Okay, I loved this!! A slow-burn romance with two plus-size characters, small town vibes, and really wonderful people trying to make the world a better place. This also does a great job of weaving in real issues PTSD with former military and the dearth of mental health resources available to them. And there is conflict that feels realistic, but with characters who grow enough to recognize their own hangups and work to move past them. And the fat representation is really good as well. It can be tricky to get it right when you have a heroine who starts out being insecure about her body, but this really nailed that journey and the hero is never anything but super into her.

Rose is a really sweet but lonely woman whose life changes dramatically when she unexpectedly wins the lottery. Suddenly people who ignored her or were cruel want to be part of her life, so she runs away and starts going by her middle name. She finds herself in a charming small town that she falls in love with and decides to buy a house while figuring out how to manage all of this money and do good with it. Angus is a vet determined to repay his debt to the world. He works as a contractor, but also a part-time therapist for military personnel. He's grumpy but has a big heart and Rose ends up hiring him to renovate her new house. They slowly form a friendship and then something more...

This was a really fantastic romance. I was so invested in these characters finding love together! Definitely a fan and looking forward to more books from this author. In terms of steam, it's on the lower end. There are open-door bedroom scenes, but the emphasis in how the scenes are written is really on how that impacted character development and the relationship rather than trying to be super explicit or sexy. (I don't have a problem with reading books that are higher steam, I just want to give readers as sense of what to expect) And this book does a really beautiful job with handling their movement toward intimacy. Rose's only previous experience was a traumatic one and Angus is so sweet and patient with her as she slowly works through that. Truly cannot recommend this book enough and the audio narration is great as well. I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.good-fat-rep48 s Tracey574 37

This is an entertaining, well-written, steamy, contemporary romance novel. It is fast paced with vividly described settings, small town charm, wonderful characters, supportive friends, wit, a touch of humor, a heart warming romance, and a happily ever after ending. Many thanks to Goodreads author, Ms. Suzanne Brockmann, who featured this fabulous novel in her August newsletter. The narrators of the audio version of this novel, Mr. Paul Bellantoni and Ms. Michelle Price, are truly talented and do an outstanding job depicting the characters and their personalities.31 s scthoughts258 48



It's nice to see representation of other women outside of just the usual thin for a change. I appreciated that the main character, Rose, really cared about wanting to help others with her money and one of the best scenes of the book to me was her in the grocery store with helping the little boys.

Unfortunately, the execution of the story itself didn't work for me. The writing felt hollow and lazy. The pacing was inconsistent and abrupt, effecting any tension that the writing was already failing to build. You don't really get to sit in a scene long enough to be invested in the moment. The odd timeline jumps of the story/events feels as if someone is continuously pressing a fast-forward button.

I think the plot would've benefited from tightening up. Cutting down on the amount of sensitive topics. They were talked about in a way that was very surface level. Keeping the focus strictly on Rosie's self-discovery journey and the "found family" aspect could've leveled up the story and strengthened the character developments (which were very minimal).

Quite frankly, the book overall had better potential if the romance wasn't there at all. It ended in a way that, in my opinion, went against the progress Rosie had already made in her journey. Her happiness depended on being with the man. Rose and Angus were better off as friends. Once they got together, their dialogue/banter became so dry and cringeworthy. They had about as much romantic chemistry as tapping two un-wired lamps together in the middle of a deserted Bed Bath & Beyond. The intimate scenes came across as these awkward how-to's on sex and anatomy that rivaled a 7th grade health class. Also, I simply can't take a story serious after there's been a moment of trauma and it goes directly into sex. That's never romantic or sweet.

Now for the main reason I didn't enjoy this book: Angus, the love interest.

He was barely tolerable when they first met and started to eventually become friends but then he became really annoying and insufferable the further I read.

Stick with me as I try to explain this nonsense **deep exasperated sigh**:

Ok, so Rose has a numbered list of things she wants to accomplish ("figure out") with her secret lottery winnings on her refrigerator buy a house (which she did and checked off and then hired Angus for renovations), school, travel, etc. One of them says 'money' bc she wants to find specific ways to help people with it.

This is when Angus aka Mr. PocketWatcher aka Mr. SaviorComplex starts to become more and more consistent with assumptions and being downright annoying. He sees the list and all the way to the third act, automatically thinks things :

1) How bad are her money troubles that she's got to figure out money on the list?

2) Maybe she makes do with student loans, but that wouldn’t cover house renovations… But it would explain why she’s got basically no furniture. Probably can’t afford anything else.

3) She’s never said anything about having money problems, but there’s still that uncrossed-off figure out $ line on her refrigerator list. And recently, books lying around with titles Money Management and Financial Responsibility. 

4) I try to give her openings to tell me she needs to whittle down the remodeling list but she’s silent...She’s put so much into it, it’d be great if she could actually afford furniture. Woman doesn’t even have a TV. Or a sofa to watch it from.

5) Rosie’s got this place looking great. She’s been slowly furnishing the empty rooms—I guess money’s trickling in from somewhere, or she’s taking on more debt…

6) She doesn’t have to buy so much patio stuff all at once. Even the landscaping could have been done gradually, in phases, as she could afford it. I should butt out. This is none of my business. She’s told me she doesn’t have money problems. I should just leave it at that until she tells me different.

7) She slides a thick envelope toward me...It’s her brand-new passport. "Another thing off your refrigerator list!" I smile down at her. "Where you going first?" "Don’t know yet." She’s perched on one of the island bar stools, swinging her feet. "Guess I’ll research that next." Wonder how much of her answer is due to money constraints. Maybe I can help her with that goal.

8) I’m not wealthy, but I can support us. And if she wants to stay in her house, I could sell my place. Put some of the money toward building an office in her garage and give the rest back to her to help makeup for all the money she paid me for renovations.

9) Correspondence from lawyers seems a bad sign. Maybe she’ll feel better after I pop the question tonight. She’ll know I’ll be there to help. If a creditor has sent her to collections, we can climb out of debt together. Surely she’d let her husband help if she was in trouble? True, she’s really independent. But at least I can be her safety net.


Now here are some things he said and thought after he found out she wasn't the PovertyGirl of his dreams:

1) It would explain the weird financial phone call I overheard, and why Rose told me she’s okay money-wise, even after paying for her house, renovations, the furniture, the pool, and way too damn much of our food.

2) Shit, she doesn’t need my help. She doesn’t need me at all. It’s fucking hilarious how much she doesn’t need me.

3) I feel I’ve been kicked in the balls. Here I’d been planning to ride in a hero on a white horse with my little ruby ring and save my Rosie-in-distress. There’s no distress. She doesn’t need me.

4) I thought I knew her. Thought she was this down-to-earth scrappy little fighter who wouldn’t let anything defeat her. Man, I was going to jump right in so she’d have somebody fighting at her side for a change. Somebody to have her back so she could rest.

5) "It changes everything. Changes how I feel about you, how I feel about us." His voice gets softer, more vulnerable. "How I feel about me."

6) Marriage had seemed the next logical step before I found out about the money. If we can’t take that step, what’s left? Especially now that I know how little she needs anything I can offer.

7) "I’d be lying if I said you being rich and me just having an average income didn’t bother me. July said, ‘That’s some sexist bullshit you’ve got going on there.’ She’s right. I know. I don’t think it’s all sexism though." I hold her gaze. "It’s the main thing that’s still bothering me. In my head we had a certain kind of relationship and I knew my role. Knew what I had to offer. I felt…valuable.”

8) She sits back and looks at me oddly. "But…money never had anything to do with anything I wanted from you. I told you more than once I didn’t need money. Didn’t you believe me?" I wave that off. "I thought that was you being stubborn. You’re independent. I thought you didn’t think you should ask for help." She frowns. "You were fine with the idea that I was in money trouble?" "Yeah." I shrug. "I can help with something that."

And she took this man back...

Also, there was point after he finds out about the money and wonders about the comparison of the sex with him to the other guy before him (who raped her back in high school).

ME:


So this dude assumes on his own Rose is basically a broke, debt having ass bitch who needs him to save her from the trenches even though he was told otherwise. And all bc she didn't immediately get her living room furniture, TV and had some money management books....
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