CANR
WORK TITLE: The Undateable
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S): Maguire, Susan
BIRTHDATE: 1977?
WEBSITE: http://www.sarahtitle.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
LAST VOLUME:
http://www.wvgazettemail.com/Life/201304190238 * http://www.wvliving.com/Web-2014/Home-Sweet-Home/ * https://vq.vassar.edu/issues/2014/03/mixed-media/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Birth name Susan Maguire; born c. 1977.
EDUCATION:Vassar College, B.A.; Indiana University, M.L.S.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Kanawha County Public LIbrary, Charleston, WV, circulation manager; novelist.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Sarah Title is the pseudonym under which librarian Susan Maguire writes popular contemporary romance novels. Having aspired to a literary career since childhood, Title took her first concrete step toward realizing this ambition by participating in National Novel Writing Month, an online program through which participants aim to write a 50,000 word novel during the month of November. After completing her project, Title continued to work on her manuscript for several years before submitting it to a Romantic Times Convention competition, which she won. This led to publication of Title’s first novel, Kentucky Home, in 2013. This book became the first in Title’s “Southern Comfort” series.
Mallory, the book’s female lead, is unhappily married to an egotistical and selfish surgeon. She finally decides to leave her husband, looking to her friend Luke for emotional support. Luke decides that Mallory needs a complete change of scene. He brings her to his family’s horse farm in Hollow Bend, Kentucky, and introduces her as his fiancé. The story touches on the culture clash between city girl and farmers, but its main focus is Mallory’s growing attraction to Luke’s brother Keith, still mourning the death three years earlier of his pregnant wife.
Title followed her debut with the novella Kentucky Christmas, also set in Hollow Bend. Andrew Bateman heads to town to start a new job, arriving during a big snow storm. He crashes his vehicle and passes out. An attractive veterinary technician happens to be on the scene to care for him–and to make it eventually clear, eventually, that they belong together.
Mismatched lovers are frequent characters in the series. In Home Sweet Home, English professor Grace Williams hires Jake Burdette to work on her newly-purchased old house. At first it seems they have nothing in common. She sees Jake as condescending and arrogant; he seems her as an intellectual snob. Yet sparks begin to fly as they get to know each other over the course of Grace’s bathroom renovation. In Snowed In, a shy librarian mourning a breakup meets a sexy man in a supermarket, getting to know him better when a freak storm snows them in after their first date.
Two Family Home, the fourth full novel in the “Southern Comfort” series, focuses on Lindsey and Walker. Lindsey has just moved to Willow Springs, Kentucky from her hometown in Arizona, and is intent on proving her independence. Walker is the sexy and reclusive sculptor who owns the duplex that Lindsey has rented, and where he is her next-door neighbor. This arrangement inevitably throws the two together, and through an array of amusing incidents, including a disastrous furniture move, the pair discovers a mutual attraction.
The series continues with Practice Makes Perfect. The novel’s protagonist, Helen Lee, bears some resemblance to the book’s author: Helen is a reference librarian who is secretly pursuing success as a romance novelist. But unlike Title, Helen gets rejection letter after rejection letter, the latest of which states bluntly that Helen’s love scenes are absolutely terrible. Realizing that her lack of experience is to blame, the would-be writer attempts to remedy this fault by conducting in-depth research among the books at the college library where she works. As it happens, Helen’s friend Henry, a history professor at the college, notices that she has been acting strange and has been perusing erotic literature. Soon enough he has not only discovered her secret, but has offered to provide a hands-on introduction to the world of sex. Helen agrees–so long as they agree that their trysts will be strictly for research. But as their activities become more intimate, they find it more difficult to remain unaffected. Will sex ruin their friendship? Or are they destined to become a real couple?
Title’s second romance series is “Librarians in Love,” a planned trilogy set in San Francisco. The protagonist of the first book, The Undateable, is Melissa Bernard, known as Bernie. She works as a librarian at a small college library with a very limited circulation. It is a huge surprise, then, when a marriage proposal occurs in the stacks. A videotape is made of this unusual event, and Bernie is mortified when it goes viral because viewers are commenting not on lovers but on the fact that she is seen smirking in the background as they make their pledge to each other. The Disapproving Librarian, as she soon becomes known, attracts extensive media attention, but Bernie wants nothing more than to hide away until the excitement wanes.
Enter Colin Rodriguez, desperate to save his magazine job by writing a series of articles in which he finds dates for the supposedly undateable. He approaches Bernie and persuades her to participate in a challenge: thirty first dates in thirty days. She agrees not because she wants to meet men but in order to prove her Internet image wrong–she is single by choice, not because she cannot get a date. The thirty dates go wrong in all sorts of ways, and as Colin writes about the project he is forced to learn that women experience dating in very different ways than men.
As a writer for Publishers Weekly observed, the novel tells a “funny, engrossing, and delightfully witty” story. A contributor to Kirkus Reviews also noted the book’s humor, as well as its refreshing upending of stereotypes. The reviewer concluded that The Undateable represents “the best of a new kind of contemporary romance: socially aware and laugh-out-loud funny,” as well as offering a fresh and believable love story.
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, February 1, 2017, review of The Undateable.
Publishers Weekly, Jan. 30, 2017, review of The Undateable, p. 187.
Xpress Reviews, April 5, 2013, Lisa M. Jordan, review of Kentucky Home.
ONLINE
All About Romance, http://allaboutromance.com/ (March 14, 2017), LinnieGayl Kimmel, review of Practice Makes Perfect; Lisa Fernandes, review of Practice Makes Perfect.
Biblio Junkies, http://bibliojunkies.blogspot.com/ (February 6, 2015), review of Snowed In.
Buried Under Romance, http://www.buriedunderromance.com/ (October 31, 2016), review of Practice Makes Perfect
Charleston Gazette-Mail Online, http://www.wvgazettemail.com/ (March 14, 2017), Elizabeth Gaucher, “Romance Noveslit Writes ‘Love Letter’ To Appalachia.”
Fab Fantasy Fiction, http://www.fabfantasyfiction.com/ (December 8, 2013), review of Kentucky Christmas.
I Am, Indeed, http://iam-indeed.com/ (March 14, 2017), review of Two Family Home.
Musings and Ramblings, http://museandramble.booklikes.com/ (August 26, 2015), review of Two Family Home.
RT Book Reviews, https://www.rtbookreviews.com/ (March 14, 2017), Karen Sweeny-Justice, review of The Undateable.
Sarah Title Home Page, http://www.sarahtitle.com (March 14, 2017).
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, http://smartbitchestrashybooks.com/ (April 18, 2013), review of Kentucky Home.
Smexy Books, http://smexybooks.com/ (April 18, 2013), review of Kentucky Home; (December 17, 2013), review of Kentucky Christmas; (April 10, 2014), review of Home Sweet Home; (March 6, 2017), review of The Undateable.
Smut Book Junkie, https://smutbookjunkie.com/ (February 23, 2015), review of Snowed In.
WV Living, http://www.wvliving.com/ (April 14, 2014), Bethany Dzielski, “ Home Sweet Home: A West Virginia Librarian Publishes her Fourth Romance Novel.”*
Romance novelist writes 'love letter' to Appalachia
Elizabeth Gaucher
April 20, 2013
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Susan Maguire displays the "Kentucky Home" e-book cover on her iPad.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- It's a classic tale of a double life: mild-mannered librarian by day, steamy romance writer by night.Susan Maguire is the circulation services supervisor for the Kanawha County Public Library, but she is also romance author Sarah Title. When she's not making sure overdue books are returned, she's making pulses race with her new digital book, "Kentucky Home," which came out April 18 from e-Kensington and is available anywhere e-books are sold, like Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.Her sexy lead characters Mallory Thompson and Keith Carson discover love and passion underneath their initial frustration with each other at the fictional Wild Rose Farm and Stables. Mallory is distancing herself from a villainous ex-husband, and Keith has withdrawn after his wife's death.The bookends of heartbreak and healing are expected in a romance novel, but it's the in-between parts that challenge a writer, Maguire said. "There is sort of a dismissal of all kinds of genre fiction -- that it's predictable and it's not meaningful. I don't like to compare it to literary fiction because I think that makes both kinds of writing come out losing. I think all kinds of reading are valuable," she said."People are attracted to the romance formula because it's comforting. But, in the right hands, it's also interesting because you know you have to get from point A to point B, and there are a lot of different ways to get there."Maguire has a bachelor's degree in English from Vassar College and a master's in library science from Indiana University. She came to Charleston six years ago to take the job at the library, though her passion for books and reading has had the lead in her life since childhood.She wrote her debut novel, "A Ride on Halley's Comet," when she was in the third grade. Her blog says, "It was a compelling story of one girl's anthropological adventures at a Martian dinner party. Feedback was strong, but reviewers said the science needed work." "Kentucky Home" came to life when Maguire and a friend, who was living in Kentucky, started having fun with the Harlequin romance novel formula."My friend was in Kentucky horse country at the time, and we started creating characters. We made up the feisty Irish horse trainer and the sheik who owns all these thoroughbred horses -- stuff that does appear in romance novels. That is where I jumped off from, but it turned out not at all to be the Kentucky that I wrote about. These people are not rich."As a transplant to Appalachia, she wanted to write "a love letter of sorts" to the region that captures her feelings about the unexpected warmth and complexity of people here. Though set in Kentucky, Maguire's novel addresses many of her perceptions of her experiences with people in West Virginia.She began reading romance novels in high school but stopped in college when she became "a serious English major person." When she started toward her master's degree, however, she read a wide range of genres to gain the skills to help library patrons. "I started reading romance again and thought, wait, these are good. That got me back into it."
Maguire had a longstanding interest in writing, but she struggled to find her best form. When she tried her first romance novel, things just "clicked."She used National Novel Writing Month (an annual November event) to push herself to finish her draft in 2009. She reached 50,000 words, and while the manuscript needed a lot of work, "the characters were there.""Characters are the most important thing in a romance novel," Maguire said. "The reader needs to fall in love with them so they can enjoy watching them fall in love with each other." She says there are small pieces of people she knows in some of her creations. "There's one character, Libby, who is sort of the maternal caretaker of the Carson family. I didn't do this consciously, but as I was reading it back I thought, 'Oh, she's kind of like my Aunt Sue, who lives on a sheep farm and has this heal-with-cookies kind of thing.'"As far as her own personality and life experience go, Maguire says the extent to which she appears in her own characters is their sense of humor. "To me, the weirdest thing is that people will read my book and think that's how my Saturday night is. I guess there are worse things than people imagining I have a healthy sex life. My romantic life is great and fine. It's not the same as in the book. The book is made up."After receiving encouragement and enthusiasm from her writing-group friends, Maguire decided to finish her manuscript. She wanted to attend a conference she saw in Romantic Times, a big romance novel industry magazine. The full conference was too expensive for Maguire, but there was a pre-conference workshop in Chicago that was more affordable."At the end of the workshop there was a prize for your manuscript, and I won. The prize was that it would be read by an editor, and she read it and offered to buy it. I scrambled and got an agent, and here I am."Romance readers like e-books, she said. "People who love romance novels read a lot, and with e-books you can have a ton of books with you. And people don't have to see the covers. You don't have to be embarrassed by the naked-chest book you're reading," she laughed.Maguire recently finished a novella that takes place in the same town as does "Kentucky Home" and uses a side character from that book in a larger role. She has a contract to write one more book in e-Kensington's Southern Comfort series, and eventually she will have three full-length books. She also is collaborating with high-profile romance writers Lori Foster and Lucy Monroe. She said it's important that writers "really commit to fighting with" their manuscripts."Think about the excuses you give yourself for not writing. I have a full-time job and a life outside of work, and it is work to carve out time to write. But it's worth it. You have to carve out time to write, and it may not always feel worth it, but it is worth it."I wrote the book because I thought it would be fun, and because I thought it was something that would make people happy and that they could enjoy. One review on Goodreads.com says it's "a pleasant read for a cozy afternoon" and I am happy with that. I hope people just enjoy it, and that if they're thinking about writing a book that they do it."Visit Sarah Title's blog at www.sarahtitle.com, or connect with her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/sarahtitlebooks.
- See more at: http://www.wvgazettemail.com/Life/201304190238#sthash.OhvzcBiK.dpuf
About Sarah
Photo by emily bacon
Photo by emily bacon
By day, Sarah Title is a (sort of) mild-mannered librarian in West Virginia, and by night, she writes funny, steamy, comfort reads. Sarah holds a B.A. in English from Vassar College and an M.L.S. from Indiana University. Her first book, Kentucky Home, was released by eKensington in April 2013. The follow-up novella, “Kentucky Christmas,” came out, surprisingly, the following December. She also contributed to the anthology, Delicious, with Lori Foster and Lucy Monroe.
Her newest book, Home Sweet Home, was released by eKensington in April 2014.
Sarah is represented by Louise Fury with the Bent Agency.
Praise for Sarah Title’s work:
“Quite a sexy book.” —USAToday.com on Kentucky Home
“The funny, down-to-earth characters who fill the pages are wonderfully sympathetic and their chemistry is delightful, but it is the added dose of magic featured in each story that lends this book its unique charm. With subtle flair, Foster, Monroe and Title walk the narrow border between genres to great success.” —RT Book Reviews on Delicious (4 stars)
“I hope there are many more from this author.” —My mom, in her Amazon review of Kentucky Home
The Undateable: Librarians in Love, Book 1
Publishers Weekly.
264.5 (Jan. 30, 2017): p187.
COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
* The Undateable: Librarians in Love, Book 1
Sarah Title. Zebra Shout, $4.99 mass market (352p) ISBN 9781420141832
Title (Practice Makes Perfect) launches her Librarians in Love contemporary romance series with a hilarious and
charming first installment. San Francisco resident Melissa "Bernie" Bernard doesn't mean to be a cliche, but when a
picture of her is turned into a viral "Disapproving Librarian" meme, she becomes the poster child for the uptight and
unhip. Colin Rodriguez is the token straight guy at a growing fashion magazine, and his job is on the line: either he
turns the disapproving librarian into a successful article series, or he's out on his ear. Prickly and at odds from the first,
Bernie and Colin spark off each other as he persuades her to participate in 30 first dates in 30 days. Delightfully
mouthy Bernie ("Totally not looking at your butt, Mr. Patriarchy") accepts the challenge to prove she's single by choice,
not because she's undateable, and endures a gutbusting succession of dates gone wrong. Meanwhile, Colin gets a crash
course in dating from a woman's perspective, an experience that forces him into maturity. Their story is funny,
engrossing, and delightfully witty. Readers will be eager for the rest of the series. Agent: Louise Fury, Bent Agency.
(Mar.)
Source Citation (MLA 8
th Edition)
"The Undateable: Librarians in Love, Book 1." Publishers Weekly, 30 Jan. 2017, p. 187. General OneFile,
go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA480195208&it=r&asid=57f3246e3f32c6e5964d59dffe5687ef.
Accessed 10 Mar. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A480195208
3/10/2017 General OneFile Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1489166694007 2/2
Title, Sarah. Kentucky Home: A Southern
Comfort Novel
Lisa M. Jordan
Xpress Reviews.
(Apr. 5, 2013):
COPYRIGHT 2013 Library Journals, LLC
http://www.libraryjournal.com/lj/reviews/xpress/884170289/xpress_reviewsfirst_look_at_new.html.csp
Full Text:
Title, Sarah. Kentucky Home: A Southern Comfort Novel. eKensington. Apr. 2013. 201p. ebk. ISBN 9781601831149.
EPUB $3.99. WESTERN ROMANCE
Mallory Thompson is fed up with being the wife of a prominent physician in Washington, DC, especially after he gives
her a black eye when he finds her making plans to leave himeven though one of his nurses is upstairs in their bed!
Mallory turns for help to Luke Carson, bartender and man about town. Luke's bright idea is to take Mal to his home in
rural Kentucky, the Wild Rose Farm and Stables, and present her to his family as his fiancee while Mal decides what
her next step will be. The Wild Rose is inhabited by Luke's father, Cal, a cranky horseman reluctant to make changes to
his business; Luke's eldest brother, Keith, who is still grieving the loss of his wife and child in a terrible accident; his
headstrong younger sister, Katie; longtime housekeeper Libby; and a threelegged dog named Peanut. While city girl
Mal works hard to fit into a very different way of life on the Wild Rose, she finds herself falling in love with the land,
the Carson family, Peanut, and, most of all, prickly widower Keith. When Mal's husband comes looking for her and is
determined to take her back to Washington, Mal realizes that there is nothing for her in DC and that she has found a
new home in Kentucky.
Verdict The first entry in Title's "Southern Comfort" series introduces us to the Carson clan and the Wild Rose. Mal and
Keith get off to a rough start, but things soon heat up in the bunkhouse as Keith gets to know Mal, and her bright smile
and sunny disposition make it impossible for him to hold onto his gruff manner and his grief. This reviewer is eager to
find out what's next for the Carson family!Lisa M. Jordan, Johnson Cty. Lib., Gardner Neighborhood Lib., KS
Jordan, Lisa M.
Source Citation (MLA 8
th Edition)
Jordan, Lisa M. "Title, Sarah. Kentucky Home: A Southern Comfort Novel." Xpress Reviews, 5 Apr. 2013. General
OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA328852196&it=r&asid=38bf066547799a2c69b7bb73640ce854.
Accessed 10 Mar. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A328852196
Home Sweet Home
A West Virginia librarian publishes her fourth romance novel.
WRITTEN BY BETHANY DZIELSKI
Published: April 14, 2014
PHOTO COURTESY OF SARAH TITLE
A librarian and eight-year Charleston resident, Sarah Title always knew she wanted to be a writer. “Several years ago I participated in National Writing Month in November. It’s a movement for people to get out that book that’s been working inside of you,” she says. After several years of editing, Sarah took her finished manuscript of Kentucky Home and traveled to the Romantic Times Convention (now called the RT Booklovers Convention). She entered her manuscript in a competition for a chance to have an editor read her manuscript. Sarah won the competition, which lead to the publication of her first novel last April.
Sarah’s most recent novel, Home Sweet Home, was released April 3, 2014. The story follows English professor Grace Williams as she moves into the house of her dreams in a small Kentucky town. Grace arrives at her Victorian house, only to discover that fixing up the old house is going to be a lot harder than she thought. Her real estate agent wants Grace to feel welcome in the new town, so she offers her brother’s handyman services to Grace free of charge. The only problem is that Jake has no interest in helping out. He and Grace butt heads at first, but the house has plans to get the two together.
Sarah enjoys writing romance novels because she is an avid romance novel reader herself. “I’m a fan of romance novels. I like happy endings,” she says. “Plus, romance novels have a structure, and you know how it’s going to end. That helps me to let go of some of the worry. The structure is oddly freeing.” For Home Sweet Home Sarah wanted to pay homage to one of the most famous romance novels of all time—Pride and Prejudice. “I wanted to bring some of that into the contemporary world—to write about different kinds of prejudices.” In Home Sweet Home, Grace has to overcome her prejudice about blue-collar workers and Jake has to overcome his prejudice against academics.
“It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single woman in possession of a ramshackle house must be in want of a handyman.”
Although her novels are set in Kentucky, Sarah’s books are West Virginia-inspired. “A lot of my characters are molded after the way West Virginians treat strangers—either with open arms or a little bit of wariness,” she says. “Also, in Home Sweet Home there’s a swimming hole. I didn’t even know what a swimming hole was before moving here.” West Virginia readers will find a lot to relate to in this witty, Southern comfort novel that’s perfect for feel-good Sunday afternoon reading.
Home Sweet Home is available in digital and print editions on amazon.com and wherever digital books are sold.
THE UNDATEABLE
Author(s): Sarah Title
The first book in Zebra’s new Librarians in Love series is a delightful, humorous, quick and quirky tale. While the premise of 30 dates in as many days, along with a free makeover, isn’t exactly new ground for romance, Title’s characters strike the right balance and come across as believable people making the best of a difficult situation.
College librarian Melissa “Bernie” Bernard is fairly satisfied with her life as a career-oriented single. Or she was, until the day a flash mob caught her by surprise and captured her disapproving glare on camera. Now she’s a meme making the rounds on campus and on social media. Colin Rodriguez, senior staff writer for a beauty magazine, didn’t realize he’d have to fight for his job until his boss made it clear he needed to find a way to get Bernie into their makeover chair. His pitch: completely transform the self-described “undateable librarian” while offering dating advice to his readers. Under a penname, he’s been doling out advice on his own anyway; with the magazine’s backing and access to clothes, cosmetics and hair stylists, how hard could it possibly be to start Bernie off on the path to her own happily-ever-after? (ZEBRA, Mar., 352 pp., $4.99)
Reviewed by:
Karen Sweeny-Justice
Review: The Undateable by Sarah Title
March 6, 2017 By Mandi Leave a Comment
The Undateable by Sarah Title (Libarians in Love #1)
Released: February 28, 2017
Contemporary Romance
Zebra Shout
Reviewed by Mandi
Melissa Bernard, or as she calls herself, Bernie, is a librarian at Richmond College. She loves her job – she loves helping students research and finding exactly what they need. She doesn’t really date much, but is content with her single life, and the occasional visit from her neighbor’s dog. When her co-worker gets a wedding proposal set up with a surprise flash mob inside the library, Bernie frowns. It’s not that she doesn’t enjoy romance or a wedding proposal, but her co-worker is young and Bernie is cynical about young love. Unknown to Bernie, someone takes a picture of this frown on her face and turns it into an internet meme titled, “The Disapproving Librarian Disapproves.” It shows Bernie’s face in an unattractive light – and it goes viral. Bernie is horrified.
Colin works for an online fashion magazine and he contributes stories about dating and what straight men thing in the San Francisco area. He kind of hates his job, but there are some perks – trying out new restaurants and the hottest spots in the city to report on. He feels a little threatened by a junior associate who is aiming for his senior writing spot – so he is willing and ready to do any story. When the Librarian Meme makes its rounds at the magazine, and they realize she is local, he comes up with the idea that she needs a makeover. And he goes further – she gets a makeover and he will set her up with 30 dates in 30 days, and he will report on the “disapproving librarian” and whether she can go from “unattractive meme face” to finding her one true love.
Bernie of course will not have this. She can’t believe they want to change her image and send her out with men who will be judging her solely on her looks. But when her boss at the library starts to push it, and offers her a month-long vacation, Bernie starts to give in. She realizes her life is pretty boring and maybe something will come of this.
“What?” she asked, clearly irritated.
“You hate this meme because it makes you look undateable?”
“No, I hate this meme because it reduces my existence to a shrewish stereotype.”
“But you still think you’re undateble.”
“I don’t think that. I know it.”
“How?”
“What do you mean, how? I know because I don’t go on dates.”
I really adored both Bernie and Colin. Bernie has never worn make-up, doesn’t care about her hair, so when the fashion people at the magazine want to give her a make over she is offended that they need to do so much to make her presentable to men. She really sticks up for personality over appearance and her attitude in this book is charming, refreshing and made me laugh.
Colin on the other hand just wants to keep his job. He is not your standard alpha, charming hero. He is a little selfish at first, and pushes Bernie into this dating scheme without much thought to her feelings. But as he witnesses each date, and as each new man talks to Bernie and learns about her, Colin starts to learn about her too and starts to fall for the person she is. They start out hating each other, but by the end they are laughing together about the ridiculous dates.
The dates are pretty ridiculous and disastrous.
“You’re being a baby,” he whispered as they walked up the block to the restaurant.
“You want one of these pointy shoes up your ass?”
“Can you at least try? You look good. Just quit walking like a penguin.”
She muttered something under her breath he was pretty sure he wouldn’t be able to run in tomorrow’s story.
This book held my attention and I found myself smiling through most of it – but there is a “but.” The actual romance between Bernie and Colin is lacking. It’s great that they take the time to get to know each other but I was antsy for them to start falling in love. I think they are on that path, but it’s very rushed at the end. I wish we didn’t have to go through quite so many dates, and would rather have Bernie and Colin alone to fall in love. They felt more like best friends – kind of like a When Harry Met Sally relationship – than actual lovers.
There is one sex scene that happens off-page. There isn’t even that much kissing or hand holding. I needed more romance! The declaration of love at the end felt rushed and out-of-place.
For more of a rom-con with friends who go from haters to better friends- this is cute. For those looking for more romance, you might be a bit disappointed.
Grade: C+
THE UNDATEABLE
by Sarah Title
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KIRKUS REVIEW
Some good can come of internet notoriety.
Librarians are used to being stereotyped, but when Melissa "Bernie" Bernard is caught scowling in the background of a romantic viral video, the result is sudden and unbearable: she becomes a meme. As Disapproving Librarian Disapproves makes the rounds online and journalists start asking her for comment, Bernie decides to take a brief leave of absence and let it blow over. But one journalist, Colin Rodriguez, makes an offer too tempting to pass up; if she allows his colleagues at Glaze.com to make her over, he’ll set up a month of dates for her and write about them, allowing her to banish her new reputation as undateable. After she warily accepts, the dates start off terribly but slowly improve as Colin gets to know Bernie and as Bernie takes some of his dating advice. But as they get to know each other, it becomes clear that the best match for Bernie may actually be Colin. Title’s (Kentucky Home, 2013, etc.) humor and insider knowledge of libraries add pleasing depth to the galloping plot, and the chemistry between Colin and Bernie is crackling for a book with relatively few passionate scenes. Combined with Title’s remarkable ability to naturally work feminist discussions about dating and femininity into the plot, the book represents the best of a new kind of contemporary romance: socially aware and laugh-out-loud funny, with a love story that’s real enough to imagine reading about on Twitter.
A delightful start to Librarians in Love, a promising new contemporary-romance series.
Pub Date: Feb. 28th, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4201-4183-2
Page count: 352pp
Publisher: Zebra/Kensington
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1st, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1st, 2017
Review: Home Sweet Home by Sarah Title
April 10, 2014 By Mandi 2 Comments
homesweethomeHome Sweet Home by Sarah Title (Southern Comfort #2)
Released: April 3, 2014
Contemporary Romance
eKesington
Reviewed by Mandi
Grace Williams is moving to the house of her dreams, after accepting a teaching position at Pembroke College in Kentucky. Leaving the west coast, Grace arrives at her new/old Victorian house and can’t wait to get inside. But once she does, she realizes the big dreams she had of fixing up an old house is in reality, a ton of work. Everything needs updated, a lot of things need repairs, and Grace with her tiny pink hammer isn’t quite sure where to start. Her realtor really wants Grace to feel welcome in this new town (and really wants Grace and her Jane Austen expertise to join her bookclub) so she offers her brother’s handyman services to Grace free of charge. Only problem is that this brother Jake, doesn’t really want to do the work.
Jake’s passion is to flip houses, but the market at the moment isn’t great for that. So for now, he lives in a small apartment above his sister’s garage and does various repairs and handyman work around town. Right from the start Jake and Grace butt heads.
“Hello?” the woman asked.
Jake grunted in response.
“Hi, this is Grace Williams. Um, your sister sold me that house?”
Right. The professor who lived in that money pit. He thought he was off the hook with that obligation. If she needed him to hang her cat pictures, he was going to be pissed.
“Yeah, hi. What’s up?” he said in the most uninterested way possible.
“Sorry, did I wake you?”
Years of maintaining relationships with difficult clients had taught Jake to politely deny when he was being inconvenienced, no matter how big a lie it was. “Yeah,” he replied.
He wanted her to know that she was inconvenient.
Don’t fear though, because Jake isn’t that big of a jerk. These two start off not fond of one another but Jake is actually a really good guy. Grace is alone in a new town and although her realtor is very friendly, Grace is a little awkward. She is quite independent and gung-ho about her new house, but also realizes when she needs help. She hates having to ask Jake, but doesn’t know anyone else trustworthy in town to help her.
Grace also has a few prejudices against her to start. The people in Pembroke, where her college is located are known to look down upon the small town Grace lives in. Jake immediately assumes Grace belongs to this snobbish section. There is also a legend that comes along with her house – known as the ‘Spinster’ house. This house apparently in history, has gone on the market when the female owner is about to get married. It’s always bought by another single female who will always end up getting married. This worries Grace, as she had a very bad relationship and break-up back in California and is so not int the mood to find love.
But Jake and Grace turn their hateful banter to silly banter and start to become friends…best friends even. But Grace always keeps a little bit of distance from him. There are times where she can be pretty cold, which I didn’t love, but it wasn’t enough to really mute my interest in this book. When she is not keeping her distance, Grace is really cute. Like the after the first time she sleeps with him.
“Good night,” she whispered, and kissed him on the nose.
As soon as she closed the door behind him, she died. She leaned against the door and squealed as quietly as she could, which was pretty difficult considering she was bursting inside. Holy crap. Jake, the pain in her butt, was a Love God.
No, not love. She didn’t do love.
He was a Like God.
No, he was a Sex God.
They have a lot of great moments in the house doing repairs together like hanging wallpaper or when Grace gets stuck on the roof. Scenes where Jake learns how funny and warm Grace can be, and that turn his initial judgment of her into something else.
This author has a cute sense of humor. Little lines of quietly sneak up on you and make you laugh. I read Kentucky Home last year by this author and had a similar experience. Home Sweet Home is a nice, easy. cute romance.
Rating: B
Desert Isle Keeper
Practice Makes Perfect
Sarah Title
Buy This Book
Helen Lee is stuck in quite a quandary. She dreams nonstop of becoming a successful romance novelist, but she’s been repeatedly rejected by publishers because she cannot write a love scene convincingly; even though she has experience in the subject, she’s having a hard time translating that experience to the page. So focused on her ambitions (and burned multiple times by married men and cheaters), Helen spends most of her time with her senior-aged basset hounds George and Tammy, living off of her erotic fantasies.
But Helen’s got dreams, and she wants to prove to her worth, especially because her parents wish she were popping out babies instead of books. She initially uses her status as a research librarian to gain further knowledge on sexual subjects. When her friend and colleague, bowtie-wearing professor Henry Beckham, picks up on her mood he starts worrying about her. But it takes a drunken, disco-laden confession from Helen to clarify the problem. After a failed incident involving Barbie dolls, the two decide to embark on a real-life sexual education for Helen… to improve her writing, of course. But will their sexual exploration lead to something more? Will the University choose to side with Henry and save the historic brothel he’s spent months trying to preserve, or will they choose to demolish it and build the research archive of Helen’s dreams?
Charming. If I had to write a one-word review of Practice Makes Perfect it would be charming. I admit I’m weak for these kinds of tropes: friends becoming lovers, geeks finding romance, cute dogs and small-town antics. The novel even takes a little time to defend the romance genre against the slings and arrows often lodged against its writers and readers.
In short: this book combines all of the things I like about romance. It is my Kryptonite and I loved every word.
Helen is endearingly goofy without being too immature; the girl may have glitter-fueled disco parties when stressed out and be completely unable to describe the sensation of her own sexual ecstasy, but she’s bold, she’s got heart, takes her job seriously and is no shrinking flower.
Henry, meanwhile, is an endearing combination of nerd, sexual adventurer and serious professor. He worries about gender equality while reading his best friend’s smut, buys Barbie dolls to demonstrate sexual positions and is the light of Tammy and George’s lives. He is, in spite of his secret buffness, very much the kind of man you’d meet out in the average workaday world.
Their friendship and romance are handled with great humor and a touch of the ridiculous; they’re funny and easy to root for and have believable chemistry.
The book sports a bunch of fun side characters; my favorite was crusty, ancient librarian Lou, and Helen’s best friend, Grace. Even her dogs feel realistically, well, doggish.
There’s a bouncy, breezy voice and use of prose here, and plenty to enjoy. While this is part of Ms. Title’s Southern Comfort series about life in small-town Willow Branch, Kentucky, it’s not necessary to read the rest of the series to enjoy this one. It’s about as cozy as the title implies, while still being sensual enough to leave the audience smiling.
But why an A- instead of an A? Well, the last chapter of the book stumbles a bit at the finish line, becoming a tad bit too winking and self-aware to allow the audience to take Henry and Helen’s HEA seriously. Their big misunderstanding also makes Helen look a bit ditzy, but since she’s also the one who saves the day, it ends up feeling within the realm of what both characters would realistically feel and do.
But even with that minor blemish, Practice Makes Perfect is an endearing gem that will likely win Ms. Title many new readers.
Book Details
Reviewer : Lisa Fernandes
Grade : A-
Sensuality : Warm
Book Type : Contemporary Romance
Practice Makes Perfect
Sarah Title
Buy This Book
I’m a sucker for romances set on college campuses and this definitely fits the bill, with a college librarian as heroine and history professor as hero. At times laugh out loud funny, this was also always spot-on with insights into academia, while still featuring a sexy friends-to-lovers plot. I can definitely recommend this. In fact, I’m now exploring the author’s back list. Until I encountered Practice Makes Perfect, I’d never even heard of Sarah Title.
Helen Lee is a college librarian by day and a frustrated erotic romance writer by night. She has just received her latest rejection letter. Admittedly, this one’s more encouraging, noting that much of her book is good and that she has a strong voice. However, the editor also notes that when the hero and heroine take off their clothes the book gets boring; not good for an erotic romance. The editor suggests Helen either spice up the book or tone it down and resubmit it as a sweet romance. Sweet romance? The horror! Helen’s determined to write erotic romances.
Helen briefly toys with writing dog mysteries, while cuddling with her two beloved shelter dogs, but quickly gets focused again on erotic romances. Surely a smart woman who spends her days helping faculty research a variety of topics can research erotic scenes.
Henry Beckham – a history professor at the college and one of Helen’s best friends – knows something’s bothering Helen. Normally she is the loudest person in a room and lately she’s been quiet, and Henry plans to find out why. But Helen hasn’t told any of her colleagues about her romance novel; she has enough trouble being taken seriously since she’s not a “professor.” She’d never get tenure if her romance writing was revealed, which is why she’s horrified when Henry catches evidence of some of her erotic research.
When Helen tells Henry about her writing and describes the “boring sex scenes” comment, she’s shocked at Henry’s response. Rather than being horrified, Henry offers to help her do real world research. Yes, you’ve got it, the man thought of as geeky and “prematurely old” by his colleagues and students (primarily because he wears bow ties) wants to act out erotic scenes with Helen to help spice up her writing. Sound silly? Definitely. Improbable? Perhaps. But mostly, this is just a lot of fun!
Both Helen and Henry are great characters. Henry thinks Helen is beautiful, smart and funny. He especially loves her loud laugh and he completely understands Helen’s issues with writing about something no one respects. Henry’s specialty is local history, which gets no respect from his colleagues, as it’s not “important” history. Henry thinks of himself as nerdy, as do many other people, even Helen. But then she discovers just how creative, sexy, and completely un-nerdy he is in bed. And Helen is no clichéd, virginal librarian. She’s had a lot of sexual experience, just none recently while she’s been focusing on her writing.
The author gets so many things right about academics, including some of the language Henry uses. In one hilarious sentence Henry notes that he prides himself on being a sensitive guy, one who respects women’s experiences, and recognizes the “institutional misogyny of the patriarchy.” Yes, straight out of an academic’s mouth. I also love that Henry has piles of copies of old documents because he won’t scan them; he wants the actual paper. There’s an interesting subplot involving Henry’s research into a legendary madam from the community and his attempts to preserve her brothel which run into unexpected opposition.
What I especially love, is that while the author is spot on about academics, the book never becomes dry and is always fun. Henry and Helen are a delightful couple and I’d love to take a trip back to the college for a future romance and see how they’re doing. This novella is the first thing I’ve read by the author and I’ll definitely be on the lookout for future books; this one left me smiling!
Book Details
Reviewer : LinnieGayl Kimmel
Grade : B+
Sensuality : Warm
Book Type : Contemporary Romance
ARC Review: Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Title
OCTOBER 31, 2016 BY ANNMARIE LEAVE A COMMENT
ARC Review: Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah TitlePractice Makes Perfect (Southern Comfort #5) by Sarah Title
Published by Lyrical Shine on August 30th 2016
Purchase: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo
Goodreads
Helen Lee has a top-secret dream: to publish a romance novel. There’s just one problem, and her most recent rejection letter doesn’t mince words: Helen can’t write a love scene to save her life. As Head of Reference at Willow Springs, Kentucky’s Pembroke College, Helen is hoping her library research skills will do the trick. But she may have to resort to a far more “hands-on” course of study. Luckily, there’s someone who’s more than happy to instruct her…
History professor Henry Beckham has noticed that his friend, Helen, is behaving strangely. Known for her laser sharp focus—not to mention her snorting laugh—she’s been oddly distracted. He misses that laugh. But it all makes sense when he catches Helen researching erotic writing and discovers her ambition. She seems to think her only option is to die of embarrassment or give up and surrender to spinsterhood in the company of her two basset hounds. Good thing Henry has a much more real-life approach in mind. And his tutorial just might teach them both a thing or two…
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¬¬Reviewed by Amy¬¬
Librarian Helen Lee dreams of writing a romance novel. Unfortunately, she just received another rejection letter for her erotic story. The reason? It just ain’t erotic. Helen needs to spice it up. Perhaps she can use her considerable research skills to write the sex scenes.
Helen’s friend and colleague, Henry Beckham, is proud of his friend when he discovers her secret. Henry and Helen started out as colleagues, but they’d grown a real friendship. Helen always helped Henry with his historical research. He could help with her research as well. What would any good friend do? He’ll be her sensual guinea pig.
What a humorous, romantic tale of friends to lovers. The characters of Helen and Henry were delightful. Helen loved her job but it wasn’t challenging. She wanted to try her hand at writing. She hadn’t told anyone about it because she felt she wasn’t taken seriously as it was. She wasn’t a professor like so many of her friends and colleagues. She was a librarian and she didn’t think adding romance writer to her title would help. Henry could tell something was bothering Helen. They’d been friends long enough that he could read her moods. When he discovers her googling “how to write about sex”, he’s impressed that she’s giving writing a try and he understands her secretiveness. He knew how it felt to feel passionately about something that others didn’t take seriously. Like his research into the long ago Willow Springs brothel. While other colleagues teased him about it, Helen was always willing to help him with his research. So he decides to assist Helen with her research. This is where things get interesting and pretty funny too. The scene with Henry and Helen trying to recreate sex scenes using GI Joe and Barbie was hysterical. And since GI Joe and Barbie don’t exactly bend easily, you can imagine it was pretty unsuccessful. So Henry sees no other choice but to be her “research partner”. And for the first time, Helen saw Henry as a man. A man who had sex. And apparently a man who could really kiss too. The toe-curling, mind-blowing research seemed to work too. It was like working with Henry took everything Helen knew and loved about sex and made it legible. The problem though was that they were starting to forget this was research. That they were supposed to be acting out a sex scene in a romance novel instead of making out with their best friend. Were these feelings real or sex feelings? And was it worth risking their friendship?
I love friends to lovers plots because when the friendship changes, it’s so much fun watching the characters explore those possibilities. And we readers get to travel along with the characters on a voyage of surprising discovery. This is the latest in new-to-me-author Sarah Title’s Southern Comfort series. Though it can be read as a stand-alone, I’m eager to read the earlier books in this series so I can get to better know the other characters in this charming college town.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Readers Copy of this book.
Review: Two Family Home by Sarah Title
4:00 am 26 August 2015
Two Family Home
Southern Comfort, #4
Sarah Title
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publisher: Lyrical Shine
Date of Publication: August 18, 2015
Number of pages: 178
Available at the following retailers:
Amazon BN Kobo
Lindsey Alford moved to Willow Springs, Kentucky, to prove to all doubters (mostly her parents) that she’s all grown up. Something her neighbor Walker Smith never questioned—those short shorts of hers!
Put a cute single girl with an overactive imagination next door to a reclusive hot guy, add in a decadent blue velvet sofa, a locked garage and a nursing home full of busybodies, and trouble is bound to pop up. Literally, in the form of an adorably naughty stray pup with a longing for two people to lick and a home all his own.
Love isn’t complex…it’s a duplex!
Okay, so I am a sucker for a cute puppy. Who isn't? Seeing that adorable face made me stop my browsing and take a look at the book. And the tag line, "Love isn't complex... it's a duplex." I can totally own that it had me taking a look at the blurb. Then when I read it took place in Kentucky, well I have great memories of seeing the leaves change color as well as my first real snowfall. (Florida girl here.) Plus, I once worked in an assisted living facility, so this book just tugged all the right cords with me.
Lindsey has just moved from Arizona, away from her parents, for the first time, giving up her bland boyfriend and oh too predictable life. Lindsey wants some new and different experiences, and she thinks that Kentucky just might be the place to start getting them.
Walker is a metallic sculpture artist and the owner of the duplex that Lindsey has just moved into. He is a bit of a loner and spends the first few weeks that Lindsey is in her new place evading her constant attempts to meet him. It's not until she has a minor incident trying to get a blue velvet sofa into the house that he makes his presence known. But with a small town, these two find that their paths keep crossing and forging ties with one another.
One of the things that I found fascinating about this story were the short bits told from the puppy's POV. Yep, that's right. We not only get into Lindsey's and Walker's heads, but a bit of what is going on in the little guy's mind as well. At one point Walker is holding the puppy and Lindsey makes a comment about her ovaries bursting. Yep, I thought, I can totally relate to that visual.
It turns out that I had read book 3 in this series, though I didn't realize it at the time. I had no problem reading this book out of order, as each appears to be just loosely tied to the others. I really like the characters in the book, especially one crusty old man at the nursing home. My biggest complaint is that there was no definitive happy ending, more a okay they're in love and admitting it... the end. I usually like a more concrete ending, but that's my personal preference. I gave this book a solid 3 star rating - "I liked it."
Thanks to Netgalley and Lyrical Press for the opportunity to read and review the book.
Two Family Home: Southern Comfort #4 by Sarah Title
Two Family Home: Southern Comfort #4 by Sarah Title
A wonderful and sweet series from Sarah Title returns to the blog today with the fourth book in her Southern Comfort Series. A bit of chick-lit, a touch of romance and always a four-legged friend (or more) in the mix. Another in the list of titles I didn’t get to quite quickly enough, please read on for my review of
Two Family Home
I adore Sarah Title’s Southern Comfort series – because it is everything BUT a warm blanket on a rainy afternoon. Cozy, comfortable, sweet and warming.
Lindsey has moved most of the way across the country, away from her parents and all too comfortable (perhaps boring) life. She’s rented half of an owner-occupied duplex, and can’t wait to start her life anew with new experiences. The eternal optimist and actually a person who wants to get involved, she can’t seem to accept that her landlord isn’t interested in her friendly advances.
Walker is a sculptor, and not really interested in ‘chit chat’. He’s got better things to do, but having your tenant seemingly camped on your doorstep (ok – it was a fight with a sofa) isn’t easy to ignore.
Told in dual POV, the story moves along nicely and then…. the singularly BEST writing choice ever..,the PUPPY has his own POV and narrative voice. WHO can resist a puppy? It’s glorious and sweet and fits with those of us who KNOW that our animals have narrative voices.
A wonderful installment in the series that can be read as the first book, instilling interest in the town and the characters, or a perfect fit with the other books.
Review: Snowed In by Sarah Title – Southern Comfort Series – Book 3
Posted on 02/23/2015 by shellbellereads
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Snowed In
Southern Comfort Series – Book 3
By Sarah Title
Synopsis
There’s nothing like a hot kiss on a cold day…
Librarian Maureen O’Connell might have predicted she’d find herself crying into the ice cream case at the supermarket after a bad breakup—but she definitely never imagined that a guy hot enough to melt the Rocky Road would flirt with her right there in the freezer aisle. Only Gavin Fraser isn’t a fantasy, he’s a mouth-watering new flavor…
When a freak snowstorm strands Maureen at Gavin’s after just one date, it’s a perfect excuse for something a lot steamier than hot chocolate in front of the fire. It’s definitely lust. Can it also be love?
Buy: Amazon / Barnes and Noble / ITunes
4 Star
Tracey’s Review
After being jilted by her boyfriend of two years, Maureen O’Connell finds herself in a, well, strange position. Considering drowning her woes in a pint of ice cream, Maureen’s encounter with a mystery man amidst the frozen foods is completely out of character, but does the trick of snapping her out of her misery. And when fate brings them together again, she’s in for quite a surprise.
Snowed In by Sarah Title was a pleasant surprise for me. I’d never read any of Sarah’s books, but this one looked cute (I’m a sucker for a story involving a librarian, being the book lover that I am), so I picked it up. This is a shorter read, but no less engaging for not being longer. Maureen’s inner dialogue had me laughing, and Gavin is an absolute sweetheart, being just what Maureen needs to get over her ex. Their interactions are sweet, humorous, and pretty darned sexy, and I enjoyed reading their story. Sarah writes character and dialogue in a way that drew me right in and kept me reading straight through to see how things finished up. The secondary characters are great, too. I absolutely adored Pippa and Marv; they are a hoot, and we should all be so lucky to have neighbors like them.
The only thing that gave me pause with Snowed In was the darned insta-love aspect between Maureen and Gavin. It’s fairly common in romances, especially if the story is shorter, but I have a hard time buying into the idea. Given the quirky way that they met, though, and the chemistry between them, I was willing to go along with the story and see how it played out, and Sarah did a nice job of tying things together in the end. I will happily read more books by Sarah, and would recommend Snowed In for fans of the genre.
Friday, February 6, 2015
Snowed In by Sarah Title
** 1/2
Snowed In
There’s nothing like a hot kiss on a cold day…
Librarian Maureen O’Connell might have predicted she’d find herself crying into the ice cream case at the supermarket after a bad breakup—but she definitely never imagined that a guy hot enough to melt the Rocky Road would flirt with her right there in the freezer aisle. Only Gavin Fraser isn’t a fantasy, he’s a mouth-watering new flavor…
When a freak snowstorm strands Maureen at Gavin’s after just one date, it’s a perfect excuse for something a lot steamier than hot chocolate in front of the fire. It’s definitely lust. Can it also be love?
Review:
When Maureen meets Gavin, she is crying into the ice cream case at the grocery store because her boyfriend of 2 years has broken up with her. After a hot impromptu kiss that knocks them both off their feet, Maureen runs off and Gavin is too stunned to run after her. Fast forward two weeks later and they run into each other again. This time in the parking lot of the same grocery store. Maureen has been convinced that there is no better way to get her ex out of her system than by having a hot meaningless night with a hot guy. And Gavin is the perfect hot guy for the job. So they go out on a date that turns out to be so good that they don’t realize they’ve been chatting for 4 hours. They also hadn’t realized that it had been snowing for most of that time. Gavin offers to drive her home but Maureen decides to throw caution to the wind and go home with him. Thanks to a mother of a snow storm one night turns into two and Gavin and Maureen realize that they may have something more than just a one night stand.
I admit that I had a hard time reading on after Maureen and Gavin first met. Simply because a hero that tries to pick up an obviously vulnerable woman is the opposite of a hero. The saving grace was that he didn’t succeed in picking her up. He even grew on me a little bit. It’s kind of hard to not like a guy that has read Jane Austen and enjoyed it. But unfortunately, that first encounter left a bad taste in my mouth and made me distance myself from the rest of the story. I also took issue with a few inconsistencies towards the end but, unfortunately, I can’t go into more detail because I don’t want to divulge any spoilers.
There is no denying that the bedroom scenes in this are hot and I was almost cheering for these two in the end. And to be fair, it kept my interest enough that I couldn’t stop turning to the next page to see how everything turned out. I think if you, as a reader, can look past the initial meeting or if it’s something that wouldn’t normally bother you, then this is a short winter romance that you will enjoy.
~Nat
Posted by bibliojunkies at 12:00 AM
You are here: Home / C Review / Review: Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title
Review: Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title
December 17, 2013 By Mandi Leave a Comment
kentuckychristmas
Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title
Released: December 5, 2013
Contemporary Novella
Kensington
Reviewed by Mandi
I really enjoyed Sarah Title’s debut earlier this year, Kentucky Home and was happy to see a holiday novella set in the same town.
This book is cute, but a little too short to be sold on the romance. Andrew Bateman is from New York has been laid off. His cousin offers him a sales job, so he finds himself in Kentucky, in a snow storm a few days before Christmas. He is not happy.
That was another thing he hated. Being thirty-one. Thirty was not so bad. Thirty-one seemed like: no turning back now, buddy. And what was he doing with his life? He was Midwest Regional Sales Rep for Bateman Veterinary Supply, and kind of sucking at that. He’d made about three sales in Indiana. Now he was just hoping for the next appointment to go well so he could go back to his dinky apartment above his cousin’s garage and watch everyone sing Christmas songs and drink eggnog and get fat.
Let’s just say he has a bad attitude about his job. His night gets worse when he gets lost, stares at his GPS and ends up crashing into the side of the local bar. Billie runs out to make sure he is okay. Billie has grown up in this town and is a local vet tech. She lives with her dad and is quite content. The next day when Andrew shows up at her work to sell vet equipment, Billie can’t help but notice how cute he is. Andrew is really bad at sales, but his day is saved when she offers to let him stay at her house while his car is being fixed. Naughtiness soon follows.
This is quite a short book but features two cute characters. Billie is very into the Christmas holiday while Andrew isn’t, so her holiday cheer definitely starts to rub off on him. I really liked the fact that Andrew has been laid off. The reason I say that is because it’s rare to find a hero who isn’t super wealthy or super talented at something. Andrew is computer savvy, but his current situation is not ideal and that was different. I appreciated that.
Andrew has a lot of issues with his extended family back home and this story is too short to really get into all of it. I wish that could have been explored more. This ends with a happy for now (no I love you) very appropriate for the length of this book. I look forward to Sarah Title’s next full length
Rating: C+
08 DECEMBER 2013
Romantic and quirky Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title is a fun, holiday novella
Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title is a charming holiday novella that has a features a quirky hero and heroine that you know are somehow going to find their happily-ever-after - no matter how impossible it seems at first.
I really enjoyed this book as it didn't follow the standard formula, but had a few bends in the road - like the one that Andrew met when he crashed his car in the side of the bar. If you add in all the fun animals, a snowstorm, and some Christmas cheer along with vet tech heroine, Billie, it adds up to a fabulous holiday read.
I hadn't read any other books by Sarah Title, but will be on the look out for more in her Southern Comfort series (Kentucky Home is the first series title).
So try a little quirky southern hospitality in Kentucky Christmas - you'll have a blast.
From the Publisher
Southern Comfort Book 1.5
Kentucky Christmas by Sarah Title
Kensington Books
eKensington
ISBN9781601831163
Price $2.99
Welcome back to Hollow Bend, Kentucky, where love (and laughter) are just around the corner.
When Andrew Bateman rolls into town in the midst of a snow storm, his first thought is that the place is hardly big enough for a dog crate, let alone the vet practice he’s looking for. Next thing he knows, his life is flashing in front of him—a depressingly short flash—as he skids right into the side of the local bar.
Things start looking up when the vision he wakes to is not the Angel of Death, but a doctor. Well, actually a vet. Make that a vet tech, wearing red mittens. Who invites him home, where every inch is covered in holiday sparkles, cookies to be decorated, and an odd assortment of stray dogs, cats and puppies…
There’s nothing merrier than a white Christmas in Kentucky!
Posted by Emsy Van Wyck, editor at 12/08/2013 06:27:00 PM
You are here: Home / B Review / Review: Kentucky Home by Sarah Title
Review: Kentucky Home by Sarah Title
April 18, 2013 By Mandi 4 Comments
kentuckyhome
Kentucky Home by Sarah Title
April 18, 2013
Contemporary Romance
Kensington
Reviewed by Mandi
When I received this review request I first noticed Sarah Title is a debut author, which I am always eager to try and then the horses on the cover drew me in. Giddy up.
This one very pleasantly surprised me. When it first starts we meet Luke, who is the hero’s brother. Luke left his family’s Kentucky horse farm to move to DC and explore other adventures. He met Mallory at a business function and they became fast friends. Luke is somewhat of a manwhore, but him and Mal never take their relationship to that level. Based on my first impression of Luke’s personality, I wasn’t too keen on him. But things take a good turn in this book.
Mal had been in an abusive and controlling marriage, until one day she couldn’t take it anymore. She called Luke for help, he grabbed her and decided to take her to Kentucky to give her some breathing space while she tries to get a divorce from her husband. They pretend to be engaged when they arrive at his family’s farm (I’m not really sure I ever figured out why they had to pretend to be engaged but I went with it.)
Luke’s family is a little shocked that he came home with a fiancé. At his family home is his gruff father Cal, who refuses to upgrade the farm in anyway, so it’s been losing money. Libby, the family’s cook/housekeeper and adopted mother of sorts since their mother is dead, Katie, Luke’s younger sister and Keith, Luke’s brother and the hero of the story. Keith was once on track to become a veterinarian but then his pregnant wife died (three years ago) and he now spends his time just working on the farm and occasionally ugly crying over his dead wife (I love a hero who can give a good ugly cry).
Mal doesn’t make a great first impression as she has never been on a farm and isn’t used to their hard work and general lifestyle. The second day they are their, Luke leaves to go explore a business opportunity, leaving Mal to fend for herself for days and days. Mal, determined to make herself useful starts following Keith around (much to his dismay) and eventually wins over the family and Keith’s heart (it’s really cute y’all).
Let’s take a moment to get a grasp of the kind of man Keith is:
It was all Mal could do to stifle a gasp. He was a big guy, a real-man kind of man. The kind who split wood for fun, or whatever people in the country do to show how strong they are. His strength radiated from under his plaid flannel shirt, sleeves rolled up to reveal powerful forearms. His jeans were well worn, distressed from use, not from the factory, His brown hair was darker than Luke’s and shaggier, like he needed a haircut. It suited him. Mal blinked, shocked by his careless, unconscious manliness.
Well then.
Keith’s first impression of Mal is some fancy city girl who is another of Luke’s bimbos. But he soon realizes, while she is still quite naive about farm life, she is a hard worker and has a wonderful personality. While she may not know what she is doing on the farm, she never whines or comes across as immature. For that I liked her. The first task she gives herself to prove herself to him is to muck out the horse stalls. The humor in this book isn’t really in your face but it sneaks up on you.
“I think I can move a wheelbarrow. It’s not like driving a stick shift.”
Keith considered her for a moment; obviously, he was not impressed by her physical strength. “Ok, just don’t fill it.” He kicked the wheelbarrow like an old man kicks the tires of a car, showing off, testing it out.
The wheelbarrow fell over.
She thought maybe Keith was blushing a little as he bent to set it to rights. Man, he looked good in those jeans. She shook her head. Focus on the manure pile.
“Thanks,” she said, thinking about poop.
But this book isn’t all about shoveling poop! Eventually these two start to fall for each other, and Mal has to come clean about her real relationship with Luke, which I really ended up liking. They are truly good friends for each other. Keith and Mal’s romance is quite sweet and sexy. No sex on a horse, but close *wink*
I enjoyed the supporting characters of the whole family too. My only complaint is Mal’s soon to be ex-husband Michael. I felt like if this were a movie he would be an over-actor. Meaning, he seemed too much like a caricature. His personality seemed too forced. And the ending with him was a bit dramatic for my tastes.
Overall this is a really cute and fun story, It’s sexy and made me laugh and I’m definitely looking forward to more from Sarah Title.
Rating: B
Also have to note that this book is an ebook only from Kensington and priced at $3.49 (at the time this review posts), which I think is a wonderful price point for a debut author (and full length novel).
Kentucky Home by Sarah Title
by SB Sarah · Apr 18, 2013 at 2:13 am · View all 7 comments
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Title: Kentucky Home
Author: Sarah Title
Publication Info: Kensington 2013
ISBN: 9781601831149
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Book Kentucky HomeKentucky Home is a fast read that initally appealed to me in a few ways: I liked the idea of a book set in Kentucky, especially on a horse farm. I liked the description of the heroine, I liked the idea of a romance about folks starting over, and while the part of the cover copy where the heroine “wins the hearts” of the hero's family one by one gave me a pause, I wanted to read more.
Unfortunately, the book had wildly huge jumps in emotional development that I did not believe in the least, and was mostly populated by one-note characters who served a purpose to the story instead of being actual people.
Mallory Thompson gave up a lot, little by little, at the behest of her surgeon husband. If you've ever heard things about how surgeons are egomaniacal douchebags who care for no one else but themselves and their own egos, those are the elements that made up Mallory's husband. She leaves him, finally, and, posing as the fiancee of her sort-of friend Luke, arrives on his family's horse farm in Kentucky to start her life over again. Mostly, she's running away until she figures out what to do next, and Luke thought this was the best possible solution.
I don't quite get that either, but if you're in DC and you need to run away, the horse farm belonging to the family of a guy you barely know is probably a fantastic option.
Mallory, who goes by Mal, has a horracious case of Insta-Love. She has met Luke a handful of times at society events with her husband where Luke was working as a cater waiter or bartender, and they've had coffee together, but when the situation with Mal's husband goes from crap to really crappy, she runs to Luke. In the middle of the night. And off the go to the horse farm, pretending to be engaged.
Then after a couple of days, Luke leaves Mal at the farm. He takes off without saying goodbye and leaves there there with his family. I couldn't figure out if that was the action of a complete shitheel and Mal was just a crap judge of character, or if Luke hid his shitheely ways enough that Mal didn't know he'd ditch her with his family, pretending to be his fiancee. Either way, she mentions at one point that she “loves” Luke as a friend — and I couldn't comprehend that at all. She's met him a handful of times, he bails her out – sort of – when things got bad with her ex husband, and he dumps her with his family and takes off. Ok, terrific!
Mal is insta-love pants-burning attracted to Keith, Luke's brother and the one trying to keep the farm running, and feels guilty NOT because she's lying about being married (which she still is) but because she's lying about being engaged to Luke. The hell? The conflicts Mal feels collapse when you think about them too hard, which is fine because Mal repeats them a lot, but doesn't really examine them too closely.
Luke and Keith's sister is kind of awesome in a one-note, loud-and-brash ballsy kind of way. She says exactly what she's thinking. Their father, Cal, appears when drama is needed. He's sort of the dark and scary grumpy guy who won't change even though the kids know they have to do something different to save the farm, but no one will stand up to him. For such an imposing figure, he has little influence when he's not actually IN a scene. He's like a Lego stuck to the outside of the story. He can be applied because the connection is there, but he doesn't do anything.
Keith was the saving element of the story for me, and the reason I kept skimming and skimming until I got to the end and could find out what happened. I wish there had been more focus on developing his character, as I liked him the best. He was grumpy and grieving – his wife had been killed in a car accident three years prior – and he was supposed to follow a different career in the town, but he went back home to help run the farm. He's (I think) pretty stuck in his routine until Mal shakes him out of it with her innocence, her ignorant farm mistakes (Someone left the gate open! It was Mal! Grab that horse! She's horrible for being so thoughtless except no one told her not to!) and her determination.
Mal is perfectly adorable in mostly every way. She's a thwarted accountant – her husband stood in the way of her working and developing her own career because she needed to support him and his aspirations – and she's able to restore order to everyone else's offices and lives… except her own.
She's majorly attracted to files out of order and bad accounting systems, which seem to proliferate in this town, and, since the opening scene features Keith grumbling about the out-of-control bills and paperwork on the farm, you know that she'll end up there making order of that chaos, too. Her insta-love for disorganized paperwork chaos was the only insta-love she had that made sense to me. I feel like that's almost a cliche now, the heroine who is able to restore order and create organization for everyone but herself.
The story develops slowly as Mal comes to learn about the farm, the family, and the problems facing the farm. She makes friends with a few people and her home seems to shift from DC, where no one seems to be aware of her disappearance except possibly her ex, to Kentucky, where she's increasingly treated as if she matters, and that what she wants is worth pursuing. Except she didn't choose Kentucky. Luke did, and it was easiest at the time. Mal seems to have no interest in going anywhere else except staying where she's been put, and that complacency didn't fit with the times that Mal pondered how her life ended up where it did.
The ex-husband was a flaccid, one-note villain, whom we are told the heroine is afraid of, and whom we are told is abusive. And while there were recounts of his behaving abusively, and certainly he's a manipulative, selfish dickshit of a person, in the conversations Mal has with him, she's not afraid. She's exasperated every time. She's resigned that his behavior won't change, and she recognizes her own inability to say no to him in the past… except her behavior in the course of the story doesn't match what we're told she feels about her ex-husband.
As for the ex-husband, or soon to be ex-husband, he's repetitive. His manipulations don't escalate until the ending, which is telegraphed way ahead of time, and was so over the top it didn't fit either. He's an annoyance to be dealt with, and a part of Mal's backstory.
The development, limited as it was, of Keith made me keep reading. Without him I'd have stopped reading because the emotions were told not shown, the backstory was info-dumped, the conflicts were insisted upon by the characters, and the external conflict was thin.