'Yours to Keep' Kowalski Family #3 by Shannon Stacey

Received from NetGalley

From the BLURB:

Sean Kowalski no sooner leaves the army than he’s recruited by Emma Shaw to be her fake fiancé. Emma needs to produce a husband-to-be for her grandmother’s upcoming visit, and, though Sean doesn’t like the deception, he could use the landscaping job Emma’s offering while he decides what to do with his civilian life. And, despite his attraction to Emma, there’s no chance he’ll fall for a woman with deep roots in a town he’s not planning to call home.

Emma’s not interested in a real relationship either; not with a man whose idea of home is wherever he drops his duffel bag. No matter how amazing his “pretend” kisses are…

Sean Kowalski has just arrived home from his last tour of Afghanistan, and he is treated to the strangest of home-comings . . . between greetings from his cousins, bear-hugs from his aunt and pile-on’s from his nieces and nephews, Sean Kowalski is informed that he is fake fiancée to his sister-in-law’s best friend, Emma Shaw.

It’s not as crazy as it sounds, really. Emma’s grandmother recently moved to Florida and was worried about leaving Emma alone in her big stately home. Worried that her grandmother would sell the house that means so much to her, Emma fictionalized a man around the house for Gran’s peace of mind. Lack of imagination and plausibility saw her dragging her best friend’s brother-in-law into the equation. But now Grandma Shaw is coming home for a visit, and Sean Kowalski is coming home from a tour of duty and Emma is finding herself between a rock and a hard place. . .

Luckily for Emma, Sean has some time and procrastination on his hands while he figures his life out away from the army. While acting as Emma’s fake fiancée, he will be working for her landscaping business and deciding on where life will take him after Grandma Shaw returns to Florida.

Meanwhile he and Emma are acting a little too much in love for either of their liking. It’s one thing to fool Grandma Shaw, but are Emma and Shaw also kidding themselves?

‘Yours to Keep’ is the third book in Shannon Stacey’s sweet contemporary romance series, the ‘Kowalski Family’.

I fell in love with the Kowalski clan back in March, with Stacey’s first book in the series ‘Exclusively Yours’. This is a family of strong, mule-headed men and the women who love them. This is one of the best contemporary romance series out at the moment, so I was thrilled to learn that a third book was scheduled. And ‘Yours to Keep’ does not disappoint in the least.

Once again Stacey kicks her book off with an unusual bang. Joe Kowalski convinced his lovely lady to go on a family camping trip for the sake of an exclusive news story. Kevin Kowalski found his one-night-stand on his doorstep with a bun in her oven. Sean is a Kowalski-cousin, but he has a similarly ludicrously sweet beginning when a beautiful woman knocks on his door, informing him they are (fake) engaged and would he mind carrying on with the charade for the sake of her poor grandmother? Admittedly the origins of this love story are fairly outlandish – but that’s as wacky as the story gets. What follows is a strange romance that unfolds under false pretences, hot wanting and lusty coupling.

All of the Kowalski men thus far have been hot, stubborn and lusty manly specimens. Sean Kowalski is no different. He’s a funny, laid-back guys-guy who hates broccoli, loves football and can’t believe his strenuous luck when a beautiful woman knocks on his door and invites him into her bed for a fake engagement. He’s so sweet and hilarious, I loved Joe and Kevin respectively, but Sean is just as lovable and I can’t choose between them! If I had any complaints about his character it’s that I would have liked a bit more back-story about his time in the army. As it is, Sean returns home and there’s not a word of how hard his time was, no talk of night-terrors or fallen comrades. I know that if Stacey had explored the ramifications of his army life then ‘Yours to Keep’ would have been a very different story . . . but I still would have liked some acknowledgement of his time in Afghanistan.

Emma Shaw was a wonderful heroine for the imposing Sean Kowalski. She’s a bit of a tomboy, without Stacey writing the usual clichés for such an un-girly heroine. Emma is a landscaper, who doesn’t mind getting dirty; she speaks her mind and doesn’t let Sean get away with anything. Emma being able to hold her own against Sean provide some great laugh-out-loud interactions between them;

He drummed his fingers on the wheel. “I just don’t want you getting any ideas, that’s all.”

Getting any ideas? Emma was speechless for a moment, unable to believe he’d actually said that.

“Since I was walking away from you when you spun me around and kissed me, I'd say you’re the one getting ideas.”

“Of course I’m getting ideas. You’re hot and I’m not dead. But I know enough not to confuse lust with anything else.”

She snorted and looked out her window. “Oh yes, Sean Kowalski. Your amazing kisses have made all rational thought fly out of my besotted brain. If only you could fill me with your magic penis, I know we’ll fall madly in love and live happily ever after.”

The truck jerked and she glanced over to find him glaring at her. “Don’t every say that again.”

“What? The madly in love or the happily ever after?”

“My penis isn’t magic.” His tone was grumpy, but then he smiled at the windshield. “It does tricks, though.”

I fell in love with the Kowalski’s back in March, so I was beyond thrilled to learn that Shannon Stacey intended to write a third instalment for her wonderfully addictive contemporary romance series. Sean and Emma were a wonderful couple, and their unconventional beginnings made for a lusty, tension-filled coupling. Now I can only hope that Shannon Stacey intends to write more stories for the ‘Kowalski Family’ – I have my fingers crossed for an instalment about Mitch Kowalski, the self-proclaimed Lothario of the K-men.

Shannon Stacey’s series keeps getting better and better, ‘Yours to Keep’ is more contemporary goodness and now I have my fingers-crossed for many more Kowalski love stories!

4.5/5

'Undeniably Yours' by Shannon STACEY

From the BLURB:

One-night stand + two percent condom failure rate = happily ever after?

Bar owner Kevin Kowalski is used to women throwing their phone numbers at him, but lately he’s more interested in finding a woman to settle down with. A woman like Beth Hansen. If only their first meeting hadn’t gone so badly...

Beth’s tending bar at a wedding when she comes face-to-face with a tuxedo-clad man she never thought she’d see again. She tries to keep her distance from Kevin but, by last call, she can’t say no to his too-blue eyes or the invitation back to his room. Then she slips out before breakfast without leaving a note and, despite their precautions, pregnant.

Kevin quickly warms to the idea of being a dad and to seeing where things go with Beth. After all, he’s not the player she thinks he is. But she’s not ready for a relationship and, given his reputation, it’s going to take a lot to convince her to go on a second date with the father of her child...

Kevin Kowalski was happy being a bachelor. After his disastrous marriage finally crashed and burned, in one gloriously horrific finale that took his police career with it, he lapped up his bachelor lifestyle. He bought a sports bar and enjoyed the attentions of artificially enhanced women in too-small, belly-bearing jersey tops and tight jeans. But then his oldest brother went and got engaged to his high school sweetheart, and suddenly Kevin is the last man standing in his family. He’s the third wheel at family functions and the only bitter soul in a sea of happy couples . . . and then Kevin meets Beth Hansen.

Their first meeting isn’t exactly encouraging. He breaks her boss’s nose in a barroom brawl and gets her fired.

Then they meet again at his brother’s wedding, where she is tending bar in her new job. Kevin can’t take his eyes off of her all night long. He doesn’t pay attention to any of the lipstick napkins handed his way . . . he just wants Beth. And after some coaxing and moonlight dancing, they share one explosive night together.

One night. That’s all it was supposed to be . . . until Beth finds a little blue plus sign on her home pregnancy test weeks later.

Beth is a nomad. Since was the only miracle child in her family; which saw her rebel against her smothered upbringing and has spend her 20’s roaming around America. She lives month-to-month, hand-to-mouth and never stays in one place long enough to make friends let alone fall in love. And then one beautiful night with Kevin Kowalski throws a spanner in her works and a bun in her oven.

Kevin is finally ready to settle down, but Beth doesn’t want to be tied down. Beth can’t deny her baby its father, so she’s staying - with ground rules. She and Kevin will be acquaintances, bordering on friends, who just so happen to be having a baby together. Unless Kevin can change her mind in nine months. . .

‘Undeniably Yours’ is the second book in Shannon Stacey’s contemporary romance series, the ‘Kowalski Family’.

I excitedly dived into this book after reading and loving the first instalment, ‘Exclusively Yours’.

I was really looking forward to this second book, especially because Shannon Stacey dropped such tantalizing tidbits about Kevin and his past in that first instalment. I don’t really want to give anything away for those who haven’t read ‘Exclusively Yours’ yet, but there is a certain ‘OMIGOD’ element to Kevin’s past and the reasons his marriage crumbled. Save to say, it’s a devastating tale that will have you sympathizing with Kevin, and understand the reasons behind his promiscuity. I loved Kevin’s background because it instantly turned him into a wounded puppy, with a tortured past . . . in other words, my kinda hero!

I did wish that Stacey had dug deeper into Kevin’s past. I really thought that the way his ex burned him would have some affect on his relationship with Beth. But aside from explaining to her how the marriage ended, there was no real discussion or impact from his past pain. I was even hoping that Kevin and Beth would run into his ex, but no such luck.

Regardless, I loved Kevin. He’s a total heartbreaker – to the point that he has a bin especially for disposing of the numerous napkin numbers he gets handed while working at the sports bar! But even though Kevin is a ladies’ man with a killer smile, he’s also a family man . . . and it takes his brother getting engaged to highlight to him just how ready he is to start a family and settle down (with the right woman, this time).

Enter Beth. In the beginning I really loved Beth. She’s this ballsy woman with itchy feet – constantly moving around and never settling down. She meets Kevin and isn’t impressed (he gets her fired, after all) but eventually, slowly, succumbs to his flattery and flirting. I really loved that all other women came so easily to Kevin, but that Beth put up a fight. I loved that combativeness initially, but by the end of the book it became a bit of a pain. . .

Once Beth discovers that she is pregnant, she is shaken. She loves travelling around and not being tied to one place. This pregnancy forces her to stick with Kevin, and she rebels. She wants to split everything 50/50, and not take any hand-outs (even though she’s living on a waitress’s wage). Beth kicks up a stink every time Kevin tries to offer a helping hand, from giving her a place to stay, to inviting her to the Kowalski Thanksgiving dinner . . . she always feels the need to assert her independence, and remind Kevin that they are two friends having a baby, nothing more. After a little while I couldn’t help but see Kevin as a bit of a kicked puppy, under Beth’s boot heel. It got to be a little ridiculous, where she couldn’t enjoy the pregnancy (and Kevin) because she had an insane need to be free. I totally understood it, but it was still somewhat annoying to read.

Regardless, I still loved reading Kevin and Beth’s dynamic. It’s interesting to read a renowned ladies man struggle to keep his woman (even after he got her pregnant!). Once again I love that Stacey has taken typical contemporary romance storylines and skewed them slightly. In this book, it’s the baby surprise – on the flipside of things it’s Beth who is horrified of being tied-down by a baby, and Kevin who is gunning for love and marriage. To some extent it’s a little far-fetched – the fact that Beth puts up such a fight over every little offer of help and home from Kevin. Meanwhile, Kevin seems happy to dispense with his womanizing ways and get on board the baby train.

It had been a couple of years since Kevin’s marriage had exploded in a cloud of toxic flames, torching his career along with the relationship, and since then his libido had survived on a steady diet of bar bunnies. Less satisfying, but also a lot less risk, like eating a microwave meal instead of preparing a five-course meal. A lot less painful to throw away if it sucked.

In 'Exclusively Yours' there was concurrent plots concerning the other members of the Kowalski clan and their various marital problems. In 'Undeniably' the side-story is about Kevin's barmaid and best friend, Paulie, and her mysteriously rocky past with a suave businessman called Sam Logan. I didn't particularly like, or care about this storyline. I was never invested (possibly because of its total lack of connection to the Kowalski clan?). It made me wish that Stacey hadn't referenced so many Kowalski back-story's in 'Exclusively', if only to save a little something for this second installment. I'm crossing my fingers that the third book in this trilogy (coming out June 6th this year) will exclusively focus on the Kowalski siblings.

This series is so darn feel-good, purely because Stacey has written a wonderful grounding in the Kowalski family. This close-knit pack is all about familial warmth and chaos. It was wonderfully hilarious to read about the Kowalski’s camping shenanigans in ‘Exclusively’, but it’s even nicer to read about the family’s home life. I felt glowing and happy just reading how the family banded around Kevin and Beth, how they opened their arms and put aside the one-night-stand awkwardness to totally envelope the couple and support them, no matter what. Even the littlest nephews get in on the act, offering up very sweet exchanges with Beth’s burgeoning belly;

And to keep things interesting, somebody told Bobby, Kevin’s youngest nephew, the baby could hear stuff and he was determined to make his new cousin his BFF in utero. It was a bit disorientating having a kid randomly tell bad jokes to her stomach. Like now.

“Why did the weasel cross the road?” he yelled at her belly button. “To prove it wasn’t a chicken!”

Then he laughed so hard he almost fell over.

I also loved when Kevin’s niece threw in her two cents for the baby naming, hilarious!;

“And Stephanie has requested Jacob Edward if it’s a boy and Bella Stephanie if it’s a girl. Something to do with some sparkly vampire werewolf books she’s into, according to her mother.”

I am loving this series. Shannon Stacey has based this contemporary romance around a tight-knit, turbulent family – all their ups and downs, relationship woes and triumphs. I wasn’t as in love with this second instalment, but I still enjoyed spending time with the Kowalskis, and I can’t wait to read more about them.

3/5

'Exclusively Yours' Kowalski Family #1 by Shannon STACEY

From the BLURB:

When Keri Daniels’ editor finds out she has previous carnal knowledge of reclusive bestselling author Joe Kowalski, she gives Keri a choice: get an interview or get a new job.

Joe’s never forgotten the first girl to break his heart, so he’s intrigued to hear Keri’s back in town—and looking for him. Despite his intense need for privacy, he’ll grant Keri an interview if it means a chance to finish what they started in high school.

He proposes an outrageous plan—for every day she survives with his family on their annual camping and four-wheeling trip, Keri can ask one question. Keri agrees; she’s worked too hard to walk away from her career.

But the chemistry between them is still as potent as the bug spray, Joe’s sister is out to avenge his broken heart and Keri hasn’t ridden an ATV since she was ten. Who knew a little blackmail, a whole lot of family and some sizzling romantic interludes could make Keri reconsider the old dream of Keri & Joe 2gether 4ever.

Celebrity reporter Keri Daniels knows better than anybody that the fame game is a tough, take-no-prisoners business. So she shouldn’t be all that surprised when her editor discovers Keri’s best-kept secret . . . that she has a tantalizing connection to Joseph Kowalski, America’s favourite reclusive author. He has been on the top-seller list for years now, the literary world’s new answer to Stephen King. But when Keri Daniels knew him he was just Joe, and he was her high school sweetheart. More than that, he was ‘the one’. They used to get hot n’ heavy in the back seat of a ’78 Ford Granada, before Keri ripped his heart out and ditched him after graduation for a life of sunshine and fame in California.

Now the past is back to haunt her, and put her career in jeopardy. Joe Kowalski is public celebrity number one as far as Spotlight Magazine is concerned. And Keri must do anything in her power to get the juiciest story possible.

Joe Kowalski’s life nearly came to a screeching halt after Keri left him. He went off the rails, and even while his books sold big, his life became bleak. It was only with the help of his close-knit family that he was able to drag himself out of the hole of heartache Keri left him in. So why is he incapable of turning her away when she comes sniffing for a story? It was only a matter of time before Keri’s inner journalistic blood-hound came begging for a tell-all tale. But there’s some part of Joe that still holds out hope for the Keri he fell in love with . . . so he makes a compromise. He invites her on the annual Kowalski family camping trip. If she can survive the ATV’s and his screaming nephews every day for two weeks, she’ll get her interview (one question a day. . .)

But the Kowalski camp ground is rife with gossip. His brother, Mike, is desperate for a vasectomy but his wife is keen for a fifth baby. Kevin quit the police force under a storm of controversy, and his sister Terry has been separated from her husband for three months now, and it looks as though they’re on the slippery-slope to divorce. . .

This camping trip will be a true test of Keri’s character. Will she sell Joe and his family out, all for the sake of a grabbing story? Or is there still some of the old Keri in there, the girl who Joe fell in love with?

‘Exclusively Yours’ is the first book in Shannon Stacey’s contemporary romance series, the ‘Kowalski Family’ . . . and it is fantastic!

I loved the premise for this book. The reunited high school sweetheart’s storyline is nothing new to contemporary romance – but what is unusual is Stacey’s decision to have the girl be the heartbreaker who trampled her fella’s dreams. Keri panicked after high school, afraid that the sum total of her life would be her role as a Kowalski wife and mother – so she left. She left Joe with a bruised and battered heart, and sought a career in California. I also think the trigger to bring Joe and Keri back together is kind of ingenious – one now a journalist, the other a hermit celebrity. It sounds outlandish and trite, but Stacey really only uses that plot to test Joe and Keri’s changed personalities.

“I wouldn’t do this if I had a choice, but my career means everything to me.”

“No, babe, your career is everything to you. And we’re going to remind you success doesn’t equal bylines and bottom lines.”

He wasn’t smiling, so she wondered if he actually believed the tripe he was spewing. “So you’re doing this for my own good? To save the shallow princess from the gleaming ivory tower?”

Now the dimples made an appearance. “As the good and pure-hearted prince the shallow princess stomped all over on her way up the ivory steps, I just want to see you get mud in your hair.”

I loved Joe and Keri’s interactions. There are no flashbacks to their high school romance, but their exchanges are filled with warmth and familiarity. You can really read between the lines to how much they meant to one another, once. Throw in camping trip shenanigans and pent-up frustrations, and you’ve got plenty of burning page-time;

“Some women would be flattered to be the muse of a popular author.”

“Some women didn’t get to read themselves getting a machete manicure.”

The dimple on the cheek facing her popped into view. “Okay, that was a little harsh.”

Shannon Stacey has written a plethora of modern-day problems for her characters. Mike and his wife Lisa have four young sons, and no time for themselves. But right when their youngest child is about to start pre-school and they’re about to gain an iota of freedom, Lisa decides she wants to start the baby-making process all over again . . . much to Mike’s chagrin. Meanwhile, Terry’s husband left her three months ago, claiming a lack of spontaneity as the reason for his walk-out. Terry is stubbornly refusing to partake of marriage counselling, afraid to admit that her husband just doesn’t love her anymore. And Kevin Kowalski, the laid-back ladies-man of the Kowalski clan, is harbouring a particularly vicious heartbreak following his divorce.

In the beginning I was slightly concerned that there would be too many storylines for Stacey to commit to, and for me to keep track of. Especially when Joe and Keri’s story is the real clincher – they have history, high-stakes and heat! I really didn’t want to lose Joe and Keri’s story amidst all the family drama and complex emotional upheavals . . . but Stacey manoeuvres this plot beautifully, and she had me hooked from the first chapter.

The various marital and relationship pitfalls of the Kowalski clan are a wonderful counter-point to Joe and Keri’s rekindled romance. Mike and Terry are navigating the pitfalls of marriage with their respective spouses – combating the usual problems of flagging libido and what happens when you talk more about the kids than you do about yourselves. These marital problems act as an interesting contrast to Joe and Keri’s lives. When they are brought back together they can’t help but imagine what could have been – what might have happened if they’d gone for the marriage and kids instead of a book and journalistic career, respectively? If it hadn’t been for his families problems, Keri might have believed her ‘what if’ life would have been perfectly rosy.

I love, love, loved this book! Shannon Stacey has a fantastic contemporary romance tone – equal parts funny, meaningful and sexy. For all the LOL moments, Stacey really excels when she’s writing deeply complex marital problems for her characters, or putting them in morally compromising positions. I loved the ‘Kowalski Family’ debut, and will be delving into the next book with fervour.

5/5