Review: Yours to Keep by Shannon Stacey

Yours to Keep by Shannon Stacey
Kowalski Family #3
Contemporary Romance
June 6, 2011
E-book, 448 kb
Carina Press
Favorite quote: "He could do this. He’d survived boot camp. He’d survived combat and the harsh weather of Afghanistan. He could survive broccoli. Probably."
                                                                                                                                          A good contemporary romance is often hard to come by. Much of the time, authors miss the mark on presenting a realistic story that still has all the flare that romance readers expect. Too many times I have read a contemporary romance novel that had me rolling my eyes because key events in the book were just way too over the top to actually be believable. Although the plot of Yours to Keep is high up on the farfetched scale, I believed every word of it. Shannon's Stacey's characters are so down to earth and the romance in the book is so heartfelt, I constantly had a grin on my face. 
                                                                                                                                          Emma Shaw is a landscaper, living in her grandparents old farm house in New Hampshire. Although Emma's grandmother recently moved to Florida, she worries about Emma being all alone so far away.  In order to reassure her grandmother that she is just fine by herself, Emma tells her Gram that she is dating a man named Sean Kowalski, who she randomly chooses after hearing about him from her friend Lisa. Since Sean was serving in Afghanistan at the time, she didn't think her little white lie would have serious consequences. However, the lie quickly snowballs and Emma tells her grandmother that she and Sean are engaged. Now that her grandma is coming for a month long visit and Sean is back home, she has no choice but to fess up to her Gram or ask a man she barley knows to be her fake fiancé.
                                                                                                                                              Back home from his tour in Afghanistan, Sean is unsure what he wants to do with his life now that he doesn't have to report to Uncle Sam. Instead of working in the family run Inn, Sean asks his cousin Kevin if he can live in the empty apartment above Jasper's Bar & Grille until he gets himself established. Shortly after he moves in, however, there is a knock on the door. On the other side is Emma, who Sean is instantly attracted to although he thinks she is "batshit crazy". While Sean turns Emma's offer down, he realizes he has nothing better to do for the next month and agrees to play along. However, both Sean and Emma soon figure out that keeping their feelings for each other in check is a lot harder than they first thought.
                                                                                                                                               Yours to Keep was a really cute and sweet read. Reading this book was like cozying up on on the couch and sipping a hot chocolate with extra marshmallows. It just gives you those warm fuzzy feelings. All the characters in the book are likable and easy to relate to. Emma has a lot of qualities I admire in a heroine. She is characterized as being a hardworking woman who isn't afraid to get a little dirt on her nose. While Emma is deceiving her grandmother, she is doing it for the right reasons, only wanting her Gram to enjoy her new life in Florida. And like the other Kowalski men, Sean is just delicious. He was fun, sweat, and a little stubborn at times. When Sean pulls out the post-it notes and starts leaving little messages for Emma, I melted every time. The chemistry between Emma and Sean is also quite yummy. In Yours to Keep, Stacey actually includes a few more love scenes between the main characters then she does in the other Kowalski books. Lucky us!
                                                                                                                                              However, I wish Sean's time in the army would have been elaborated on a little more. All we know is that he was in Afghanistan for an extended period of time and that's pretty much it. I'm not looking for gruesome war stories, but a little bit more background on that part of Sean's life would have been nice. Also, there definitely should have been an epilogue to this book. The ending just felt so rushed that I would have appreciated a look at their life after their world-wind romance. Mostly, I just didn't want this story to end! Hopefully, we will get to see more of Emma and Sean in future Kowalski books.
                                                                                                                                            So if you are a fan of contemporary romance (and even if you are not), I definitely recommend Yours to Keep. Although this book can be read as a stand alone, make sure not to miss the rest of the Kowalski Family series! 

Other opinions:

~Goodreads

~Smexy Book - B+

~Yummy Men Kick Ass Chicks- 4/5

Other books in the series:

Exclusively Yours

Undeniably Yours

Author's website

New Cover Alert: Yours to Keep by Shannon Stacey

Shannon Stacey just posted the cover for the third book in her Kowalski series on her blog. Yours to Keep features Sean Kowalski, who I cannot for the life of me remember hearing about in the other two books. Oh well, as long as he is like his cousins, I'll be satisfied. Those Kowalski men are sweethearts. Can't wait to read this! Yours to Keep comes out June 6th through Carina Press. CLICK HERE to read an excerpt from the book.

                                                                                                                                         Sean Kowalski no sooner leaves the army than he’s recruited by Emma Shaw to be her fake fiancé. Emma needs to produce a husband-to-be for her grandmother’s upcoming visit, and, though Sean doesn’t like the deception, he could use the landscaping job Emma’s offering while he decides what to do with his civilian life. And, despite his attraction to Emma, there’s no chance he’ll fall for a woman with deep roots in a town he’s not planning to call home.

Emma’s not interested in a real relationship either; not with a man whose idea of home is wherever he drops his duffel bag. No matter how amazing his “pretend” kisses are…

Waiting on Wednesday: A Holiday Romance Collection (Jaci Burton, Lauren Dane, Shannon Stacey, & Megan Hart)

On December 6th, Carina Press is releasing A Holiday Romance Collection which features 4 short stories from Jaci Burton, Lauren Dane, Shannon Stacey, & Megan Hart. What makes this collection extra special is that you can either buy each story individually or buy the whole collection for a discounted price. They all sound so good that I don't know why you wouldn't want to buy the whole set!

PS: I think it's kind of funny that Jaci Burton named her female lead Riley Jensen. Wonder if she's read any Keri Arthur? Hehe.

Big Star, Small-town Christmas...
Country singer Riley Jensen would never have returned to her small Missouri hometown if her publicist hadn’t come up with the scheme to tape a Christmas special there. So she never would have known that the man who broke her heart at eighteen—causing her to flee to Nashville—was now a widower with a seven-year-old daughter. Riley has ten years of angst-filled hit songs and Grammy awards to prove she doesn’t need Ethan Kent. But suddenly, she can’t help thinking of all she gave up by running away…
Ethan Kent knew Riley had the talent and the drive to make it as a singer. He also knew she wasn’t going anywhere if she stayed in their nowhere town for him. Then one night and one huge mistake sent her running on the road to fame. Which doesn’t mean he ever stopped loving her…
But with so much separating them, can Riley and Ethan find their way back together one magical country Christmas?

Their First Christmas, Bound Together…
All Jude wants for Christmas is Rori, all to himself. It’s their first holiday season as a couple, and staying home, seeing friends and family, means they’ll be surrounded by the memory of Rori’s late husband. It’s time for Jude and Rori to create their own traditions. Time for them to fully explore their most intimate desires to dominate and submit...
Rori is thrilled when Jude whisks her away to a luxury resort in the mountains. Spending Christmas away, just the two of them, is the perfect time to show him she’s ready to give herself to him completely…

Newlyweds Leah and Brandon Long are finally taking a honeymoon. But just two days into their Christmas-in-Vail vacation, Leah gets run down by an out-of-control snowboarder, severely spraining her ankle. Being stuck indoors isn’t so bad though: the luxurious chalet boasts a hot tub and cozy fireplace. Besides, sitting with her feet up while Brandon serves her in every way a man can serve a woman is exactly how both of them like to spend their time...
Leah would be in heaven, if only Brandon didn’t insist on bringing up the idea of a family. She knew that kids were part of the package, but she’s not ready to make any plans just yet. Still, with kinky sex and deep conversation the only things on the agenda for the next week, Leah can’t avoid the discussion for long. Will she be ready to take her marriage to the next level in the New Year?

House-sitting for her parents seemed like a good idea, until the microwave blew up and the lights went out...
Now Chloe Burke thinks upgrading the electrical system of her childhood home while they are away would make the perfect Christmas gift. Fortunately, there’s an electrician in town who can get the job done by the holidays...
Scott Quinn has wanted to get his hands on the Burkes’ wiring for almost as long as he’s wanted to get his hands on their daughter. Chloe didn’t notice Scott back in high school, but she’s noticing him now, and soon they’re indulging in a little festive fun: no strings, no expectations. After all, Chloe plans to get out of this goldfish bowl of a town and back to her real life in Boston by New Year’s...
But Chloe and Scott discover they enjoy each other’s company just as much out of bed. Could their holiday fling turn out to be the real thing?

Review: Undeniably Yours by Shannon Stacey

Undeniably Yours by Shannon Stacey
Kowalski Family #2
Contemporary Romance
Novemeber 1, 2010
ebook, 417 kb
Carina Press
Source: Purchased ebook from carinapress.com

Bar owner Kevin Kowalski is used to women throwing their phone numbers at him, but lately he’s more interested in finding a woman to settle down with. A woman like Beth Hansen. If only their first meeting hadn’t gone so badly...
Beth’s tending bar at a wedding when she comes face-to-face with a tuxedo-clad man she never thought she’d see again. She tries to keep her distance from Kevin but, by last call, she can’t say no to his too-blue eyes or the invitation back to his room. Then she slips out before breakfast without leaving a note and, despite their precautions, pregnant...
Kevin quickly warms to the idea of being a dad and to seeing where things go with Beth. After all, he’s not the player she thinks he is. But she’s not ready for a relationship and, given his reputation, it’s going to take a lot to convince her to go on a second date with the father of her child...

In the first book, we learn that Kevin Kowalski used to work as a police officer and was married up until 2 years ago when he found his wife in bed with his boss. Now, Kevin runs a successful sports bar named Jasper’s and has a parade of willing ladies leaving him kiss-stained napkins. However, Kevin isn’t interested in a one night stand with the napkin floozies. When Beth Hansen walks into Jasper’s, he knows instantly that she is different and when he finally gets her into bed, he is left all alone the next morning without an way to contact her.

From childhood, Beth has been independent. Since she is the only child of parents who experienced multiple miscarriages, she has felt smothered her entire life and as a result, constantly moves from city to city trying to prove that she can make it on her own. After one night with Kevin, however, she ends up pregnant and her world is flipped upside down. Afraid of what Kevin reaction will be to the pregnancy, she is shocked to learn that Kevin is excited at the idea of being a father and perhaps beginning a real relationship with Beth. However, Beth isn’t too keen in Kevin asserting himself into her life so they agree to just be friends, no matter how hard it is for them to not indulge in their lustful feelings for one another.

Let me first say that I had no idea this book even existed until about 2 days before it was released. Shannon Stacey’s Exclusively Yours was my first purchase from Carina Press and absolutely one of my favourite contemporary romance reads this year. When I saw that one of my friends on Goodreads marked Undeniably Yours as a to-read I was floored that I had no clue Stacey wrote a second book dealing with the Kowalski family. How could something like this slip under my radar? Quick, someone grab a ruler and slap my hands a few times. Bad book blogging me! However, I didn’t have to wait a million years for the book to be released which was a nice change.

Kevin was just as lovable as I remember him from the first book. He’s cute and goofy, yet not to the point of immaturity. Beth, on the other hand, started to get on my nerves about half-way through the book. Her constant refusal to accept Kevin’s feelings towards her had me fuming. Being an only child, I understand the feeling of being hounded by your parents and wanting to establish your own independence. Yet, her routine of holding Kevin at arm’s length through ¾ of the book had me frustrated. As a result, I didn’t warm up to Beth as much as I did to Kevin. However, I did enjoy seeing Beth breakout of her shell near the end of the book and realize how wonderful life can be when you share it with someone you love.

Like the first book, the secondary characters play a major role in the story. I felt like I got a 2 for 1 in this book because Stacey also includes a little side story featuring Paulie, a waitress at Jasper’s and one of Kevin best friends. Usually, when authors try and carve out a second storyline in a book it detracts attention from the main couple. However, in Undeniably Yours, Stacey manages to fluidly switch between both romantic storylines. I was just as invested in Paulie’s relationship with her love interest Sam as I was with Kevin and Beth. Honestly, the Paulie storyline was a nice break in being constantly frustrated with Beth.

I adore the Kowalski family. Some of my favourite parts in the book are when Kevin’s nephew Bobby tells jokes to Beth’s stomach. Their unbelievably cheesy but just what you would imagine a little boy would say. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to be a part of a fictional family as much as I do the Kowalski's.

Undeniably Yours cements the Kowalski Family series as one of my favourite contemporary romance reads. I highly recommended this book and Exclusively Yours for anyone looking for something that’s light-hearted and portrays strong family values.

Really liked it! It was mmm mmm good.

Others Opinions:

~Goodreads

~Tracy's Place - 4/5

~Scooper Speaks

Other books in the series:

Exclusively Yours

Author's Website