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Smooth is the tenth book in the love story collection by author Tracy Ewens. Each of the books in the Love Story series can be read as standalones, but there is some character overlap between the stories. I had no idea that this was the tenth book in the series when I picked it up. I knew it was a book in a series of interconnected standalones, but I had no idea the series was so long! I do wish I had read some of the other books in this series. Not because I was confused while reading Smooth, but because I would have liked to have seen some of the earlier stories to get a feel for the world abd other characters. I felt like I was coming in very late to the love story game. I will say, that Smooth really does work as a standalone though.

Smooth is the story of Patrick and Aspen. I loved how long of a past Patrick and Aspen had with each other. This was a really lovely story. Both Patrick and Aspen have clearly had feelings for the other one for a very long time. I am so interested to see if they pop up in anyone else's story in the series because I want to see how they interact and what the other characters thought about them separately and together. It would be really interesting for me to see those other perspectives going on in the background. (If you have read the entire series, please let me know if we got to see them in other books. I would be really interested to know!) I love a romance where the couple has known each other for a long time. It makes everything feel so much more realistic. They have a foundation already built. They already know one another. Smooth was really great in that regard. 

I also loved the brewery setting. I don't really have a great basis for commenting on the secondary characters because I haven't read the other stories, but as for their part in Smooth, I really enjoyed the large mix of everyone. Patrick's family and the other co-workers all made the story feel vibrant. Overall, Smooth was a really nice and refreshing slow burn romance. I loved the brewery itself, and I am more than a little bummed that I came into this series on book 10. While I loved the story itself and it can be read as a standalone, I would recommend starting this series near the beginning and binging the heck out of it. The writing was great and the characters and romance were as well. I am going to be starting at book one  next and working my way through this series for sure!

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs