Kai Manning isn’t happy his business partners and friends agree to establish their security company in Mercy, a small town close to Washington, DC. First of all, again, it’s a small town and everyone knows everything about the people in it. And secondly, he’s isn’t interested in settle down—he has to travel a lot because of his job. Then, when he comes to Mercy after one of his security assignments, he meets Felicity “Flick” Sturgiss. Instantly, they got attracted to each other. They both know anything between them will work; neither of them want commitments in this moment in their lives. Yet their chemistry is so strong to deny it and they decided to have a one-night stand. Would one night be enough?
Flick has a huge heart, and that leads her to breakups. She always wants to rescue everybody—from her abandoned dog to men. Coming from a broken home (her mom and little brother died as a child and her father is an absent one since that happened, although she has four brothers and a friend, Sawyer, who overprotects her), she tries to fix people. And Kai is a shattered, damaged one. At a young age he was orphaned, and only trusts a few people—his business partners and friends—relying practically only in himself when things gone bad. He also has a huge sense of loyalty towards Sawyer, Axl, and Reagan (maybe a story for these three?) and a sad soul and caring heart.
I loved how great are Kai and Flick together: they’re sexy, funny, alluring and with tons of flair that make them a fantastic couple. Also, their interactions aren’t forced so when they had their first night (afternoon actually) together, even though it was pretty soon in the plot, it felt organic. The best of Kai and Flick is the fact that they make the other better, and that’s why they work as a couple.
As the first book in the Men of Mercy series, there’s A LOT of secondary characters. From Sawyer and Pippa (I want these two to be together!!) to Gina, we can have fantastic moments with all the characters in this book. Even Rufus, Flick’s particular dog, has tons of personality in this book! And we can’t forget Mercy Online, the town’s forum on the web where the lives of the people of Mercy is well displayed by its population (I love the cynicism and sarcastic comments from BoredWife…just her nickname is hilarious!!). That’s the second biggest asset of this story: the small town of Mercy—where there are no secrets—that Ms. Wood created is funny, fresh, funny, attractive, funny, witty…did I said funny already? Is full of drama, emotion, and, above all, it has something you can’t find easily: it has heart.
Joss Wood isn’t an unknown author for me. I’ve been reading the books she’d written for Harlequin for years, and I loved them. That said, this book takes her wonderful writing to another level. Man, the woman can really write! I don’t know if it’s because this is a longer story in comparison with her Harlequin books, but it gives her a biggest range of possibilities for her to create. And create she did; a fantastic story full of great characters, a well developed and thought setting and credible situations. Looking forward for the next book of the series. This first one shows how promising this series could be.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
About the Book
Release Date: December 1, 2022 (2nd edition)
ASIN: B0BL5SZ3JZ
Published By: Independently Published
Series: Men of Mercy #1
Genre: Romance
eBook, 302 pages
Best friends Kai, Sawyer, and Axl worked hard to make Caswallawn Security the booming success that it is. As for love, marriage, and commitment, those are way down on their priority list…
Kai Manning is unhappy that Caswallawn is making Mercy, Virginia, its permanent headquarters—he doesn’t understand this quaint, crazy town, and he doesn’t want to settle down, period. A rough childhood made him fiercely independent, and he’s determined to rely on nothing and no one. So the moment he lays eyes on Flick, he knows he’s in trouble…
Local baker Felicity “Flick” Sturgiss is not looking for a man. She’s done giving her all to relationships that give nothing back. But Kai is undeniably hot. He may look like bad news, but he’s not going to be in town for long, and she’s dealing with a lot right now—she deserves to have some fun.
When a family emergency calls Sawyer away, Kai must remain in Mercy to hold down the fort. Now, Kai and Flick’s plan for a quick fling falls to the wayside (just like their torn-off clothing), leaving them wondering if they can keep their hands—and their hearts—to themselves…
*This book was previously published in July 2016 under the title of Inescapable (Intermix) *
About the Author
“Sizzles with drama, intensity and sensuality… “
“Chemistry and connection…”
“Knows how to keep her reader’s attention and on the edge of their seats”
I’ve been a reader all my life and I wrote my first book at the age of eight, and haven’t stopped since. Writing and reading have been my solace and my joy, stories are where I lose, and find, myself.
I also love traveling, a backpack and an airplane ticket are two of my favorite things. What else? I have the domestic skills of a pot plant, drink far too much coffee and have an on-off, mostly off, relationship with exercise.
I’ve written over fifty books and I write for both the Harlequin Presents and Desire lines. I’ve also published romantic action novels with Tule Publishing and Penguin/Random House’s Intermix imprint.
I spent many boring years in sales, pro-business lobbying and local economic development, but now I’m lucky enough to write full time. I live with my husband in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa and am the mom of two amazing young adults. (Everyone says that but mine are spectacular. Everyone says that too…)
I am a slave to two spoiled cats and the worst behaved dog in the world, who also happens to be the size of a small cow. I love meeting readers, so come hang out with me on my social media channels.
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