Book Review: Carpentry and Cocktails

Author Nora Everly
Title: Carpentry & Cocktails
Publish Date: April 28, 2020
Buy: Amazon
Book Blurb: Everett Monroe can’t keep his eyes off his gorgeous tenant.

He’d like to put his hands on her too, but she’s prickly, closed-off, and gives new meaning to the word disgruntled. In other words, she’s his perfect match and he’ll do anything to make her see it too.

Willa Hill has finally left her teen runaway past behind and wants a fresh start—alone. Men are nothing but trouble and she’s had enough man-trouble to last a lifetime. Too bad her irresistibly sexy, nerdy-hot landlord doesn’t agree.

When their mutual yearning becomes a white-hot fling and passion crosses carefully drawn, albeit one-sided boundaries, Everett finds himself in love and Willa finds herself in a pickle.

Because, unfortunately, when she returned to Green Valley, her problems came too. When the past she escaped crashes into the future she finds herself wanting more than anything, will Willa stay in Green Valley?

Or will she run away again?

Carpentry and Cocktails is book #5 in the Green Valley Library series. It is a full-length contemporary romance novel, and can be read as a standalone.

Review: I am so thankful for discovering The Page Nerds group on Facebook. If it weren't for them, I never would have found authors like Andrea Johnston and now Nora Everly. I read my first book of Nora's at the beginning of the year and I loved it.

I have wanted to read the books in the Green Valley Public Library series for awhile and I was thrilled to get a chance at reading Carpentry and Cocktails. I've been back at reading romance again and Nora's books are part of the reason I'm getting back into the genre.

Why?

Characters like Willa and Everett that feel so darn real. They aren't super rich (Greek Billionaire's etc) or even glamorous. What they are are people you feel like you could know.

I loved Everett and all his geeky wonderfulness. I'd love to watch Firefly with both of them.

Willa's situation is an interesting one for a romance novel. She's running from an abusive ex that doesn't think she should be his ex. (side note...I think said ex backed off a little too easily in the end without enough drama) What I did love was watching her learn to stick up for herself, even if it meant getting away from her mother. (Bad mothers always make me sad in books) Willa's mom was hard to wrap my head around because she had mistakes in her life, but she couldn't forgive her daughters and she was really verbally/mentally abusive to them.

I loved how her sisters stuck by her, and I really loved her relationship with her youngest sister, Gracie. She was one smart teenager, who was definitely wise beyond her years. (She deserves a story somewhere down the line)

Oh but back to the romance aspect of this book. OMG! Everett is the kind of man you want to have your back (And you front and anywhere else). Their chemistry is off the charts. I loved his protective nature that didn't send him flying into the Alpha Male category. It made him more knight in shining armor.

This is a feel good romance, with a little suspense from the ex and a bunch of laughs in between. Nora Everly should be on you must read list of authors and this book is a good place to start!

Rating: 5 flowers

Book Review: Heart Words

Heart Words: released on January 31, 2020
Buy: mybook.to/HeartWords
Add to Goodreads TBR: http://bit.ly/HeartWords

Synopsis:
She believes being alone is safer.

The last person Rose wants to see is the man who broke her heart.
Unfortunately, his daughter is the newest and most adorable kindergartner in her class, and he is the newest, hottest, and most annoyingly determined cop in town.

He believes she’s his dream come true.

Trevor knows how it looks. He screwed up. He has to make her understand and he’s willing to grovel to make it happen.
Unfortunately, Rose buries feelings like it’s her job, she’s an expert at avoidance, and he is number one on her list of people to hide from.

With the flame that never died still flickering between them and Trevor’s past resurfacing to haunt him, can he win Rose’s heart?

Is it possible to get a second chance when it felt like you never really took the first one?   

Review: This is my first ever book by Nora Everly.

Ahhh so sweet and so sexy too.

Heart Words is a truly a great small town romance with a little bit of spice to get your blood pumping.

To say that I loved Rose and Trevor would be an understatement. Rose was just so relate-able with all her quirks and Trevor, well he was the perfect romance novel hero. He was strong, a good dad, a pinch of alpha that gets him in trouble sometimes and just downright sexy. Oh and his two kids, Maddie and Mikey they really make the story move along with their antics, as well as how they play into the suspense element of this novel.

See if you start out reading it, you'd think you were in for a sweet story of two people that are trying hard to get together. See these two, don't need a meet cute, they had one. They have a history and things got screwed up. So its a bit of a second chance thing but there's a deal with Trevor's ex, erm...wife.. who was all kinds of screwed up..and some of the stuff from her life (she's dead) is coming back to haunt Trevor and his family in a big, bad way.

The suspense part really gives the book some oomph, because sometimes you need more than just romance to make things exciting, and the bad guy here manages to bring relationship woos and some good ole fashioned nastiness into their lives.


This was a super read and I'm so glad to finally read one of Nora's books!

Rating: 5 flowers