Elise Faber

I never knew I needed a hockey GM (general manager) romance until I read Broken. This book follows Luc, GM of the Breakers, and Lexi, his best friend who works in the team's legal department. Lexi goes through a divorce, leaving Luc with the opportunity to show her what she means to him.

I love the way this book takes its time with these characters. There is plenty of time passing, allowing not only healing for Lexi, but additional bonding time. I also love that both main characters have show more their own emotional scars they are battling through. I was surprised how postponed Luc's were in terms of a reveal, but they were kind of hidden well and spread throughout the book. It was a fun reflective moment when everything came to a head.

Overall I like the dynamic between Lexi and Luc. This book makes me not just more willing to read some front office hockey romances, but to also seek some out. I need more! show less

Unexpectedly enjoyable
5 stars

This is my first Elise Faber book and it was not a disappointment - I enjoyed it from the first page to the last.

The unexpectedness in this book was because I thought I knew what I was getting - a cute second chance romance. And I was very happy with that fact. So colour me surprised when the Russian mafia show up in the book and suddenly there’s guns and dodging bullets and big scary dudes and hiding out with some shadowy secret agent operatives! This was not show more what I was expecting…but I ain’t mad. It wasn’t dark and dismal (like I expect any book that includes the word ‘mafia’ to be (sorry!)) - and the main focus of the story was definitely still the love story between Molly and Jackson. It actually turned into a bit of a fun romp - and I loved that.

Before it got to that point, I was already impressed with how easily Ms Faber pulled me into the story. The chapters are short and snappy - easily giving you that ‘oh, I’ll just read one more’ idea until you look up and the book’s nearly done. I never got bored and kept on wanting to find out what would happen next.

The story is written in third person, past tense in the heads of both Molly and Jackson. That being said, I was firmly on team Molly to begin with and was as annoyed at Jackson as she herself was. I didn’t agree with his motives or his decisions regarding the wedding - but I slowly forgave him just as Molly did. It was cleverly done.

This is the 9th book in the Billionaire’s Club series but, as I mentioned, this is the first I’ve read of Ms Faber’s so I obviously haven’t read any of the rest of the series. At the beginning of this book there’s a list of who’s who from the series so far and that gave me the fear - I would NEVER remember all these names or how they were interconnected. I actually don’t think there were any cameos from any of these people so I needn’t have worried. Regardless, this book stands completely alone so no other books are required to enjoy this one.

Having said that, the secret agents appear to be getting their own spin-off series and I while Molly and Jackson’s part in the Russian mafia is over, I suppose the overall threat from the group hasn’t really gone away which will probably be picked up in the first of the aforementioned KTS series, Riding The Edge. And I probably will pick that one up, too, as I loved Dan. He reminded me of FBI agent Doug Matthews from McMillions - who I have a (not so secret) crush on!

There’s not much sex in this book - so when it does happen it’s explosive! A bit of angry sex when Molly and Jackson re-meet after 4 years. It was near the start of the book and while it was very hot, the fact that there’s not much after that fact is something I didn’t even realise until I finished the book. I love me a bit of sex in a book and I didn’t miss it as there was so many other things going on. During the sex - and in discussions afterwards - there’s a bit of backdoor access tinkering but nothing you can’t gloss over if that’s not your thing. And there's plenty of intimacy, kissing and the like to keep everyone, including me, happy.

I loved both Molly and Jackson as characters. I especially liked the honesty between them, especially on Molly’s end, in that she realised that after her wedding-that-wasn’t, she grew and became so much more. Jackson was proud of her and, you know, I was, too. I actually found her quite inspiring.

And I also really liked the fact that Jackson (and on occasion Molly, too) used many, many terms of endearment. It was sweet and really spoke of the deep feelings that Jackson still held for Molly. I read a book last week that made me #TeamHug - now I’m also #TeamEndearment.

There are three epilogues for this story - love me an epilogue - but only 1 for this particular story. One then sets up the next book in the series, Bad Engagement, which again sounds like a fun, fake-relationship romance - that’ll probably turn into another fun romp. The third sets up the KTS series as above.

Overall, this was a fabulously fun romp of a second chance romance and I loved every minute of it. It wasn’t what I anticipated but in the end I got something I hadn’t been expecting but ended up enjoying even more than I probably would have. 5 stars and I will look out for other books by Elise Faber in the future as I loved her style. Recommended. show less

A cupcake of a romance
5 stars

Sometimes a book is a pure comfort read. It’s got all the elements required of a romance - a down on her luck, but still relatable heroine, a deliciously gorgeous hero who swoops in to save the day, and an unlikely but swoon-worthy romance with all the feels and all the sex. It’s the romance equivalent of biting into a cupcake topped with creamy frosting and sprinkles. This is that book.

First off, we get to know Shannon. She’s a single mum going through a show more horrible divorce with an even more horrible (soon to be ex-) husband. She’s just a normal woman who wants to do the best for herself and her daughter, Rylie, in the face of someone who has betrayed and belittled her time and again.

Despite her circumstances, Shannon is never a pathetic characters. In fact, she’s hella inspirational. You don’t feel sorry for her - just root for her to 1) best her vile ex-husband and 2) win the heart of the gorgeous Finn.

And boy is Finn gorgeous. Despite his looks, he’s an absolute dream. He’s polite, sweet, kind and falls hard and fast for Shannon. He’s smitten and it’s lovely to watch. All he wants is for her to be happy - something that is so foreign to Shannon, someone who normally looks out for everyone else with no-one looking out for her. Despite their different backgrounds and lifestyles, they fit so perfectly, it made me sigh on many an occasion.

There’s a lovely simmering heat throughout the book as Shannon and Finn progress through their relationship. This also helped us see the change in Shannon as she realised her own worth, what she wanted and how she was going to go for her dreams. Without getting too schmaltzy, there were several points in the book where you just feel so damn inspired. Be more Shannon, everyone!

This is the second book in the Life Sucks series. The couple from the first book (Pepper and Derek) do appear in this one, but each story stands completely alone. I will, however, be checking out Train Wreck now I’ve finished this story.

At the start of the story, I expected - and hoped - that part of the happy ending would be Shannon getting back at Brian - her ex. What I especially liked about this story was the fact that in the end, that didn’t matter. Shannon had moved on. Shannon got Finn. Finn got Shannon. Brian didn’t matter anymore and ‘winning’ didn’t matter anymore either. And that meant Shannon ultimately did win! And I couldn’t have been happier. Just like eating your cupcake - at the end you’ve a delicious sugar high and feel delightfully happy and satisfied. 5 stars and recommended.

Read my full review at: https://joreadsromance.blogspot.com/2020/08/hot-mess-by-elise-faber.html show less

This was a good read for the most part. This is the first book in this series that I've read, but I didn't feel lost. I liked Hudson and Willow together, and they had good chemistry. I thought Hudson reading to her in the beginning was super sweet. It was obvious they both developed feelings for each other, but I felt like Willow really needed some therapy to help her work through her issues. There were several occasions where she had issues because of something that Hudson did that were show more kind of just moved along. I did think that Willow was good for Hudson to help him work through some of his issues. What brought my review down (it was a toss up between 3 and 4 stars, I wish we could do half star ratings), was the situation at the end with Willow. She made a VERY stupid decision, gets upset with Hudson when he calls her out on it, and tries to tell him he's not her dad and she doesn't need his permission for anything. REALLY??!! She didn't stand up for herself with Dylan, who actually made her ask for permission, but it was okay to say something like that to the man who did everything to make her safe?? She did apologize, but again, I feel like it was just kind of swept away. Anyway, I enjoyed the relationship between Hudson and all of his family, and how welcoming they were toward Willow. Hudson and Willow do get their HFN ending, and I will be looking out for Atlas's story!
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers copy of this book. show less