Nights Like These by Chris Scully

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night like theseBlurb

Starting over sucks. At forty, Miles Koprowski thought he had life all figured out. He had a nice car, a hot young lover, and a cushy job… and then he didn’t. Call it fate, or karma, or a downturn in the market, but this opinionated cynic is now forced to play rent-a-cop in a dying office building in the burbs just to make ends meet. Throw in an unhinged ex, a coworker who hates him, and a hot new boss, and suddenly everything is uncertain.

Miles doesn’t plan on liking the night shift or becoming embroiled in a mystery that reawakens old passions and puts him in danger. And he certainly doesn’t plan on falling for the overbearing head of security, Colton Decker, former soldier and doting dad. But nights like these can change a man, make him start to believe there’s more to life than a high-paying job and a warm body in his bed. With a thief on the loose and his new job in jeopardy, Miles will have to decide what’s truly important. He might discover things he never knew he wanted… as long as he makes it through the night.

Review

Miles is having a rough time. He’s lost his boyfriend and several jobs and is now working as a night security guard where he meets his boss (for the second time), aka Mr. Perfect, Colton Decker.

Colton is an ex-military, widower, single-dad and now in security management. Both Miles and Colton are immediately attracted to one another, but Miles is skeptical that he can ever be in a real relationship and he doesn’t want to lose another job by fooling around with the boss.

In addition to the romance there is a mystery related to stolen art and that consumes the attention of both Miles and Colton throughout most of the story.

In the end, the mystery is solved, and Miles and Colton end up with a pretty solid HFN/HEA.

**

Chris Scully is a great writer. Her character development is top-notch and the wit behind the snark that is the constant hum of Miles’ inner dialog is brilliant.

I thought the action/mystery was fast-paced and interesting, but I thought it detracted from the romance. I really wanted to see more of the pair bonding and maybe more of them once they had become a couple. There is a lot of potential for fun there, considering the daughter, the age-gap, their employment, etc – and just as the romance was really starting to get interesting, the story ended.

Perhaps this is a part–one (she’s done that to us before!) and we will see more of them in the future (I hope!) but if not, the ending left me wanting more.

Writing/Editing 5
Romance 3
Sex/Heat 3
Storyline 5
World Building/Characterizations 5

4.2 of 5 hearts

4

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A Beginner’s Guide to Wooing Your Mate (A Beings In Love story) by R. Cooper

From DreamspinnerBeginnersGuidetoWooingYourMate[A]:

Zeki Janowitz has returned to his hometown of Wolf’s Paw to start his wizarding career. Unfortunately, Wolf’s Paw, a werewolf refuge, follows centuries of tradition and shuns human magic and a very human Zeki. He knows he’s in for a struggle, but a part of him has always belonged in the mountain town, or rather belonged to Theo Greenleaf. Years away at school haven’t lessened Zeki’s crush on the quiet werewolf. When town gossip informs him Theo still suffers from his mate’s rejection and does not date, it does little to ease Zeki’s embarrassing feelings. He decides now’s the time to get the man he’s always wanted.

Werewolves usually don’t recover from losing their mates, and Theo barely pulled through by focusing on his love of baking. It’s a daily struggle, and Zeki’s return to Wolf’s Paw shatters his peace. Theo doesn’t know what to think when Zeki attempts to woo him, talking about his wizarding business and settling in town for good. It’s like Zeki doesn’t have a clue how his words years before left Theo a shell of a werewolf.

Beginners in love, Theo and Zeki must seduce each other with a bit of heavenly baking and magic.

Marieke’s thoughts:

In the beginning of the story Zeki is not filled with a lot of confidence in himself. He knows he’s good at witchcraft, but his personality and looks have never been appreciated by the residents of Wolf’s Paw. The fact that he has magic is even more detested––or so he thinks. But during the story, Zeki meets some new people who don’t treat him badly, and don’t have problems with his magic. This makes him more self confident, which is great to read.

Zeki has no idea he’s the mate evil mate that rejected Theo, who everyone is talking about. In fact, he’s just as mad at the bloke as they are. So he tries to overcome his secret crush that makes him babble on and on, hoping to give Theo some comfort and friendship. Zeki has no clue why people suddenly start treating him as if he’s done a terrible deed again after he tells them the story of the one and only conversation between him and Theo in high school.

To be honest, Zeki was so clueless when it came to the mates stuff, I wanted to slap him. But I guess sometimes you close your eyes to the things that are too painful, or you keep thinking in circles and don’t see what’s right in front of you. That’s the only thing that kept me from being annoyed with Zeki in the second part of the book.

The first part of this story was very intense. I kept reading even when I really had to go to the bathroom, I kept putting it off because I didn’t want to stop reading. But the middle part got a bit confusing for me. The sentences became a bit chaotic, or they seemed to be for me at least. Zeki’s thoughts didn’t make a 100% sense anymore, but I got the gist of the things. He had so many conflicting thoughts, yet they all were kind of the same thing.
Anyhow, this was only a small part of the book and didn’t take away from the fact that the third book in this series is another hit for me. The third part of the book was another intensely emotional and romantic read. Zeki found out he was Theo’s mate and has a bit of a melt down. He takes some time for himself to think, while Theo tries to be patient and keep hope.

The bits where we read Theo’s POV are so sweet and endearing, I just want to hug him to pieces. The guy is so kindhearted and gentle, almost like a big teddy bear dressed as a wolf. His best friend is super funny, and his colleagues at the fire station are funny, a bit like Neanderthals when it comes to relationships, but caring nonetheless.

To make a long story short, this is a wonderful book. The middle was a bit out of my league (maybe because English isn’t my first language) but the ending was very satisfying. This series is one of my favorites, and I keep re-reading them.

Rating: 4.5