dermkat's Reviews (2.11k)

Oh my word, I think this may be my fave Penny Reid book so far and I've read a lot of them this month! I was intrigued by Hank whenever we'd see him in the Winston series so I was glad he was getting a book. I also liked Charlotte the small amount we got to know her in the previous book. I love a single parent romance, there's just something about the love interest falling for the kids and learning to be something new for the little ones that gets me, and this was no exception. Except that in this case it was like Hank finally got to be his true self with them, young kids who didn't know his past or judge him for it like so many in town. The spice was good, there were swoony moments, and we got to see many of the characters we've loved from Green Valley. Out of all of them so far this is one that I'll probably want to read again at some point. 

I enjoyed this one! It's reminiscent of Sienna and Jethro's romance from the other series since it's Jackson (Green Valley resident, deputy sheriff) and Rae (actress, friend of Sienna's) who have to navigate a relationship while dealing with paparazzi/publicity, different lives, etc. She's in town over five years after their night together, needing a break from Hollywood and her life that involves so much pretending, not just while she's working. Their attraction and feelings are still there and some stuff throws them together. He mentioned eating a special diet because it helped with the cystic acne and migraines and pain he experienced growing up, but none of that was really part of his story otherwise, so I wanted more from that aspect. 

This is a short novella that sets up the start of a new series in the Green Valley universe. We previously saw Cletus talk to Jackson at Jethro & Sienna's wedding and then sort of initiate an introduction with Raquel, one of Sienna's actress friends. These two go for a tour of the town since she has to leave the next morning really early, and then end up fooling around. She's a one and done, hookups only type of gal but is drawn to him and has a hard time leaving when he's still asleep, but does so. I'm excited to read their book!

This was a novella length collection of short stories and deleted scenes that had either been released before in newsletters and such or not at all, with the occasional one being reworked into a later book. They were alright and I got to see part of the Christmas before Claire and Billy's book that they'd referenced, so that was prob my fave one even though it still didn't give me the entire thing. Otherwise, they were fine but nothing that felt necessary. I do think, though, if I had been reading the series as it was released vs all at once, I would have loved receiving these scenes in between while I waited for more. 

I'm so glad I decided to read this book, as it answered questions I've had since the first of now 11 books I've read in this Green Valley Universe. Diane Donner (Jenn and Isaac's mom) is now divorced from her awful cheating, abusive husband and is taking what she wants. That leads to her having a one night stand with Repo, one of the least sketchy of the Iron Wraiths. We also get his POV and I enjoyed learning more about him. They have a relationship in secret later on and then she's (wrongly) accused of murdering someone and they have to figure out how they're going to get her out of things safely since he's a criminal and also wanted. I actually really liked his character, and loved that she was taking back her power and discovering what sex could be like in her late 40s after a lifetime in her terrible marriage. 

Gah, this one is sad but so worth reading if you love the series because you get to know what exactly happened between Claire and Billy when they were teenagers. I'm glad I read their second chance novel first so that I knew things were resolved as I read this (though I read so quickly I could have gone from this into that and been fine too). We learn more about what Claire's life was like as the daughter of the Iron Wraith's leader, and Billy's life as the in charge, responsible Winston son. As she's 14, this one has no sex between them (intentional on their part), but we know he's had sex before (he's sixteen, it's not on page, but *Spoiler alert if you haven't read the later books* there is a surprise pregnancy with another character). I enjoyed this one but do wish we'd gotten more of what happened in the years after this one, still well before they reconciled, because they referenced situations in the current day that were never seen on page in either book. 

I really enjoyed this one as well! I liked Sienna when I'd met her and Jethro later on as an established couple with a family, but getting to know her more on her own as they first met made me love her. She's plus sized, Latina, funny, weird, and confidently claims all of those things. She's a screenwriter and A-list actress, and the lack of privacy that comes with that life couple with Jethro's troubled past from before he walked away from the Iron Wraiths causes the most issues between the as they try to balance them. Also, having read Claire and Billy's book first (even tho it's last), and seeing Claire and Sienna's friendship, it was fun to see them meet for the first time. 

I am very much enjoying going back to read the origin stories for the siblings who were already in relationships with their significant others since I started the series partway through. This is technically the first book of the series and we get Duane and Jessica's story. Learning more about what went down with the Iron Wraiths biker gang was interesting since it was referred to in multiple books. One thing I expected to hear more about was sort of still a one off comment, which was odd. And there were also some things in this one I feel still aren't answered about these two but I do have one more book to read for sure, so we shall see. I liked their story, how they grew up together and she knew all about him but always had a crush on his brother, who she spent less time with an idolized, but then he finally makes a move now and she realizes Beau was always the safe choice, but not the twin she really wanted. 

This might be one of my faves of the Winston siblings books. I read the series starting in the middle so now I've gone back to the beginning, to Ashley's book, which is first but technically part of another series. Finding out how she and Drew came to be together, seeing the family bond while dealing with their dying mother, and actually getting to meet the family matriarch was all very interesting and enjoyable. It was also fun to see how the characters started, knowing how they end up. I'm excited to read Duane and Jethro's books now. This one felt a little different because it was all in Ash's POV with only the eipollgie as Drew's, and while I wish I could have had both POVs the entire time, I get why it made sense for the story and their relationship progression for her (and us as readers) to not know how thoughts and feelings for sure. 

This one was good, the long awaited finale to the series (but I have three earlier ones to read since I started partway through) where Billy and Claire get their second chance. We know I like that trope so I was sold, but I chose not to read the prequel novel about their backstory and I think it was fine but now I want to know more details even if it's sad so I may read it too. She's the daughter of the local biker gang's sketchy murderer head guy and their history is fraught but they're all in Italy as a big family and people meddle and get them to talk it out. The epilogue was nice, a good wrapup for everyone.