J J Knight

When Mr. Pickle decides to “undercover boss” his own Austin deli franchise to find out why it’s losing money, he doesn’t expect to fall for the sexy and unpredictable acting manager who will think his lies aren’t kosher.

Jason “Jace” Packwood, or better known as Mr. Pickle, is the party playboy and eldest heir to the Pickle Delicatessen empire. His other two brothers, Max and Anthony, run the other two chains. When his father calls a meeting of the family announcing he wants to show more retire, he issues a challenge to the three brothers to step up and show him who loves the business the most. They have until the end of the year to prove who has the highest profits and that son will receive control of the franchise. Unfortunately, Jason has blown off his franchise in Austin. In fact, he hasn’t even looked at the books since it opened, but when he arrives at Austin Pickle, he didn’t expect so much worse. Someone was stealing from his store, and how much does the extremely attractive and bossy Nova Strong know? Time to go undercover.

Nova is flying by the seat of her pants. The Austin Pickle’s manager up and disappeared claiming she to be on medical leave. Nova works part-time and with a small number of employees is trying to keep the place running hoping they keep getting their deliveries and the bills are somehow paid. Then the cocky and very rich Jason Packwood walks in. He says he is a friend of the ever evasive asshole owner, Jace Pickle, and he is here to learn the business from the ground up. When they finally join forces to catch the culprit, the attraction builds, but will his secret destroy everything?

The hilarious pickle jokes and puns along with the great chemistry between Jason and Nova is priceless. Jason definitely needs to be taken down a peg or two and Nova has a practical head on her shoulders and good business sense proving she can run this franchise without any help from the big boss. When she finally does find out the truth, it will take a lot for Jason to get her back. With the help of the wonderful Pickle family, he just might have a chance. Let’s not forget the great supporting characters such as Jason’s brothers and his Grammy as well as Nova’s little sister Leah who bring some depth to the story.

Overall, this is a fun romantic comedy that had me rolling on the floor with laughter. The witty banter and LOL shenanigans were genius. Oh, and let’s not forget the crazy funny name of the specialty bread with dill pickles…Dill Dough. Actually, I would like to try it. It sounds great! Pick this one up, it’s a hoot!!

Thank you to Ms. Knight for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review. show less

Full review posted at Reader's Edyn on 04/07/20

Nova is up to her eyeballs in responsibility. Between her party-animal mother, making sure her sister is taken care of and acting as manager for a deli of which she is NOT the manager, she’s taken on about all she can handle. She knows things are off with the deli and that the owner is nigh impossible to reach, so with little other choices she begins to snoop around where she can. Attempting to discover where the problems exist, while show more singlehandedly trying to keep the business afloat won’t be an easy task. Her goal is to go back to college and if she loses this job, she loses her dream right along with it. When the ridiculously hot Jason shows up looking for a job, claiming to have been sent by the family and knowing zilch about the deli business, she is suspicious. After a while, he seems to be putting in a good effort. They share some sexy, friendly banter, he shows some endearing sides of himself, and the reasons to keep her distance from the guy making her melt with desire don’t seem so prevalent anymore. Together they end up getting to the bottom of the deep deception within the business as well as growing their new relationship. But suddenly all of the truth comes out, putting their fledgling romance at risk and exposing Jason’s deception as well. Nova has some life-altering decisions to make and Jason might not make the cut.

Jace has been living a carefree, playboy lifestyle and not really given a second thought to the well-being of his deli business. When his father announces a competition between the brothers and their delis, Jace discovers that his deli is barely hanging on by a delicate thread. With no other choice, he heads to Texas to check things out and quickly devises a plan to act as an employee in order to ferret out the truth of what’s been occurring behind his back. What he isn’t prepared for is the animosity directed toward him since he’s been an absent owner for so long. He’s not entirely convinced that Nova doesn’t have something to do with his failing business, but his attraction to her is also something he isn’t able to ignore. As their emotions become more entangled and their working relationship strengthens, he is reluctant to tell Nova the whole truth. Fearing the truth will end their fragile connection, he puts it off as long as he can, knowing he’ll have to come clean soon. But waiting too long forces him into the truth and immediately pushes Nova away. Knowing she needs time, he keeps his distance all while setting things right for the deli and its staff. With one last chance to try and get Nova back, he acts, but it seems as if he might be too late to rekindle that flame.

I have to say that I had pretty high expectations for this book. Between the cover and the blurb, I knew it was something I wanted to read. Luckily, I was gifted an ARC and allowed to participate in the review tour. I say luckily because … dang … it exceeded my expectations! First, there are a ton of pickle jokes, references, innuendos – whatever you want to call them. Some had me groaning, others full out LMAO! It was almost too much, but also welcomed and enjoyable. I loved how even the deli itself made so many clever plays on its menu items. For example, they create a bread with pickles in it and call it dill dough! I mean that humor is right up my alley. This book is definitely current contemporary including references to things like the Witcher, which I believe also helps with the pickle innuendo. You couldn’t have had a setting with so much double entendre bordering on lascivious without being a modern time read.

Nova is fierce and isn’t afraid to take charge when necessary. Her mother has been basically absent, struggling with alcoholism, leaving her to care for her sister. It even stretches to the point of Nova being the one to provide the apartment they all reside in. It’s a pretty messed up situation, but Nova does what is necessary to take care of her sister and mother. The same rules apply to the deli. She knows things aren’t adding up, but she doesn’t have access to be able to dig in and go through documents to find out where the problems actually lay. Unable to contact the owner – ever – and having no ability to right the wrong, she does whatever she can within her means to keep things running because she needs the job so badly. She’s actually pretty amazing. Top that off with wanting to finish her college degree she had to abandon to take care of her family and you’ve got a very strong female lead. What I also enjoyed about Nova is that she also recognizes when it’s time to kick back and allow herself some fun; even if that does involve hooking up with an employee. But it also seems as if there is more to their relationship than just a fling, so in the back of her mind, though she’d never admit it out loud, she was also hoping for more with Jason. I might have also enjoyed Nova not giving Jason the slightest break in training just a bit more than I should have.

Jace is completely opposite Nova. He’s got money and he isn’t afraid to spend it. Completely oblivious to the danger his deli is in, he shoves everything off on to his assistant and pretty much leaves the deli to its own demise. What was wonderful to see unfold was the complete 180 that Jace performs; transforming from sexy, rich playboy to a responsible business owner who is irrevocably in love with his employee. He goes from not so much as lifting a finger, to jumping right into the fray of things in the deli and performing any and all tasks each day. It’s pretty fantastic! Typical to the normal romance novel, there must be a woman who motivates Jace to be a better man. Had Nova not been part of the equation, Jace likely never would have been inspired to make the necessary changes to morph his business from a failing mess into a thriving hotspot. Basically, he needs a swift kick to the butt and Nova gladly supplies the cowboy boot. An added benefit to this salty story is the toggling points of view. Each chapter switched back and forth between Jace and Nova, allowing the reader to see things through the eyes of each of the lead characters. I didn’t use to be a fan of this style of writing, but I seem to be enjoying it more than ever as I come across so many books that make use of this writing tool. Ultimately, the feelings of each character can be conveyed on a deeper level when allowing the POV to switch. That said, each change is clearly made and did not create any confusion as the chapters began and concluded.

This book is deliciously dirty as indicated by the blurb. Really, just read the blurb and if you are not okay with some of the suggestive material it exhibits, then don’t read the book. It’s a rather tame preview if I might say so myself. I’d hate for anyone to review BIG PICKLE badly because the content is too strong for their liking. There are swear words included and the sexual content is stupid hot. (I mean that in the best way possible.) Descriptive is putting it mildly and as far as locations … it definitely occurs in the workplace. 😉 While I enjoyed their undeniable attraction and scorching encounters, I also very much loved the family dynamic at work. For the Pickles, family is everything. The love between the family as a whole is adorable. Exactly the kind of family everyone wants to be a part of. From the immediate family members and extending out as far as cousins, they would all have one another’s back in any situation. In short, because of a nudge from his father, and then Nova herself, Jace discovers that the deli is everything he ever wanted. He ran from his legacy for so long, seeking his own life, when it was sitting under his nose the whole time just waiting for him to realize it. Definitely an HEA here! I absolutely adored my time spent with the Pickle legacy and all of their endearing friends and family members. Nova and Jace were a joy getting to know as their own transformations occurred. The steamy sexy content, friendly banter, and pickle entendres successfully kicked my enjoyment up several notches. I remained engaged from the first page through the last; the story in constant motion, never stalling. With so many Pickles appearing in this story, I have no doubt that more stories will soon be coming to life. I for one would love the opportunity to revisit the Pickle family again in the future. I’m sure that those who enjoy unexpected romance, hilarious humor, and burning desire will as well.

Kindle version provided by Xpresso Book Tours/Author in exchange for an honest review. show less

This was a fun read that has you letting out a giggle every now and then while Ensley and Drew try to get to know each other again. Drew definitely has you wondering whether Ensley will be the one he really wants to shed the play boy ways with especially as he channels grumpy really well. Ensley really wants things to work and you want that for them both and at times I was checking how much was left in the book lol

MADE ME SMILE

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. A hot ex military guy with tattoos runs a bikers bar…heck to the yes. Oh and he’s artistic! The sex was hot. The angst was low.