William Morrow – Readaholic Book Reviews

When Stars Collide by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Genre: Contemporary Romance/Women’s Fiction

Heat Rating: 🔥

Series: Chicago Stars #9

Release Date: June 29, 2021

I received a complimentary copy and of this book from the publisher.

SYNOPSIS

Olivia Shore, international opera superstar, is a driven diva with a passion for perfection, a craving for justice, too many secrets—and a monumental grudge against the egotistical, lowbrow jock she’s been stuck with.

It’s Mozart meets Monday Night Football as the temperamental soprano and stubborn jock embark on a nationwide tour promoting a luxury watch brand. Along the way, the combatants will engage in soul-searching and trash talk, backstage drama and, for sure, a quarterback pass. But they’ll also face trouble as threatening letters, haunting photographs, and a series of dangerous encounters complicate their lives. Is it the work of an overzealous fan or something more sinister?

This is the emotional journey of a brilliant woman whose career is everything and a talented man who’ll never be happy with second place. Tender and funny, passionate and insightful, this irresistible romantic adventure proves that anything can happen…when two superstars collide.

REVIEW

What happens when two stars from opposite spectrums collide? Renowned opera singer Olivia and NFL football quarterback Thad are both brand ambassadors for an upscale watch. Immediately they start off on the wrong foot. Olivia doesn’t want anything to do with jock Thad. Thad thinks Olivia is an uptight diva after she repeatedly freezes him out.

But the more time Thad and Olivia spend with one another, the more they realize how much they like each other. But soon enough Olivia’s life is being threatened and protective quarterback Thad will go to any length to keep Olivia safe. How long can these two before their passion ignites. And once that happens, how can they realistically make a relationship work between the two of them? They are both career driven and independent personalities.

I have read each and every single one of the Chicago Stars books and love the world that SEP has created! It was so much fun revisiting with some of the characters that we loved in previous books. I do feel like I had a harder time connecting with Thad and Olivia as a couple in When Stars Collide. There was often so much other stuff happening in the story and I wanted just a little more of their romance.

Audiobook:
Story: 3
Narration: 4
Overall: 3

The audiobook of When Stars Collide was narrated by Nicole Poole and I truly enjoyed the audiobook! I was laughing along Olivia and Thad while listening to Nicole narrate both of their voices. She did a wonderful job expressing each characters feeling and I won’t hesitate to pick up another audiobook narrated by Nicole!

While not my favorite book out of the series, When Stars Collide had a ton of fun and hilarious moments thrown in with some mystery and suspense to round it out!

Second First Impressions by Sally Thorne

Genre: Contemporary Romance / Women’s Fiction

Heat Level: 🔥

Publisher: William Morrow

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and audiobook courtesy of Harper Audio & Libro.fm

SYNOPSIS

Distraction (n): an extreme agitation of the mind or emotions.

Ruthie Midona has worked the front desk at the Providence Luxury Retirement Villa for six years, dedicating her entire adult life to caring for the Villa’s residents, maintaining the property (with an assist from DIY YouTube tutorials), and guarding the endangered tortoises that live in the Villa’s gardens. Somewhere along the way, she’s forgotten that she’s young and beautiful, and that there’s a world outside of work—until she meets the son of the property developer who just acquired the retirement center.

Teddy Prescott has spent the last few years partying, sleeping in late, tattooing himself when bored, and generally not taking life too seriously—something his father, who dreams of grooming Teddy into his successor, can’t understand. When Teddy needs a place to crash, his father seizes the chance to get him to grow up. He’ll let Teddy stay in one of the on-site cottages at the retirement home, but only if he works to earn his keep. Teddy agrees—he can change a few lightbulbs and clip some hedges, no sweat. But Ruthie has plans for Teddy too.

Her two wealthiest and most eccentric residents have just placed an ad (yet another!) seeking a new personal assistant to torment. The women are ninety-year-old, four-foot-tall menaces, and not one of their assistants has lasted a full week. Offering up Teddy seems like a surefire way to get rid of the tall, handsome, unnerving man who won’t stop getting under her skin.

Ruthie doesn’t count on the fact that in Teddy Prescott, the Biddies may have finally met their match. He’ll pick up Chanel gowns from the dry cleaner and cut Big Macs into bite-sized bits. He’ll do repairs around the property, make the residents laugh, and charm the entire villa. He might even remind Ruthie what it’s like to be young and fun again. But when she finds out Teddy’s father’s only fixing up the retirement home to sell it, putting everything she cares about in jeopardy, she’s left wondering if Teddy’s magic was all just a façade.

From the USA Today bestselling author of The Hating Game and 99 Percent Mine comes the clever, funny, and unforgettable story of a muscular, tattooed man hired as an assistant to two old women—under the watchful eye of a beautiful retirement home manager.

REVIEW

Ruthie Midona loves working at the Providence Luxury Retirement Villa. She feels safe and loves taking care of everyone at the retirement home. From the little golden endangered tortoises to the residents who live there – Ruthie doesn’t ever want to leave the comfort of being there.

That is, until she meets Teddy Prescott. Teddy is the opposite of Ruthie. He is brash, bold and a lady’s man. Where Ruthie is buttoned up, Teddy is tattooed and moves from place to place at a moments notice. Turns out Teddy is the son of the owner of the retirement home. But Teddy’s father is tired of him not being reliable and tells Teddy he can have a place to stay at the retirement home if he earns his keep.

Thus begins Teddy’s job as an assistant to two cranky 90 year old women. Teddy has run all of their errands and do everything they ask him to. Ruthie doesn’t think he’ll last a week! Will Teddy show Ruthie that there’s more out there than the comfort of the retirement villa. And can Teddy stand to be in one place too long or will he bolt as he keeps saying he will.

Second First Impressions was one of my most anticipated books of this year. Sally Thorne is an amazing author and she has a way with her words that just make you feel. But sadly Second First Impressions missed the mark for me. I had a really hard time connecting with Teddy or Ruthie and definitely did not feel the chemistry or attraction between them. Where Ruthie was so charming and sweet, Teddy was abrasive and hard to like. His jokes fell flat and I really couldn’t see why Ruthie was so charmed by him.

While I loved Ruthie’s friends and the people who reside at the retirement home, I just felt like there was a lot going on without really anything happening. I did eventually enjoy the friendship between Teddy and Ruthie, but the romance aspect of it wasn’t working for me.

Audiobook:

Story: 3
Narration: 4
Overall: 3

This was the first book that I listened to narrated by Jennifer Jill Araya. I thought she did a wonderful job voicing Ruthie. I could always tell when other characters were being voiced by the change in her voice!

While Second First Impressions isn’t my favorite book by Sally Thorne, I did enjoy Ruthie’s character and her growth by the end of the book.