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Fool's Gold #15
Until We Touch
From New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery comes the story of secret desires finally fulfilled…
After a family tragedy, former football hero Jack McGarry keeps the world at arm's length—a challenge now that his PR firm has moved to neighborly Fool's Gold, California.
Larissa Owens knows where she stands—Jack sees her as just another one of the guys. No matter what her heart wishes, Jack's her boss, not her boyfriend. But then Larissa's big secret is revealed…by her mother!
When Jack discovers the truth about Larissa's feelings, her touch suddenly becomes tantalizing, and he's not sure he wants to resist. But if he gives in to desire, heartache is sure to follow. Friendship or true love—will Jack go for the ultimate play?
After a family tragedy, former football hero Jack McGarry keeps the world at arm's length—a challenge now that his PR firm has moved to neighborly Fool's Gold, California.
Larissa Owens knows where she stands—Jack sees her as just another one of the guys. No matter what her heart wishes, Jack's her boss, not her boyfriend. But then Larissa's big secret is revealed…by her mother!
When Jack discovers the truth about Larissa's feelings, her touch suddenly becomes tantalizing, and he's not sure he wants to resist. But if he gives in to desire, heartache is sure to follow. Friendship or true love—will Jack go for the ultimate play?
379 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 24, 2014
1014 people are currently reading
4009 people want to read
About the author
Susan Mallery
854 books15.4k followers#1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Mallery writes heartwarming and humorous novels about the relationships that define women's lives—family, friendship, romance. She's best known for putting nuanced characters into emotionally complex, real-life situations with twists that surprise readers to laughter. Because Susan is passionate about animal welfare, pets play a big role in her books. Beloved by millions of readers worldwide, her books have been translated into 28 languages.
Critics have dubbed Mallery "the new queen of romantic fiction." (Walmart) Booklist says, "Romance novels don't get much better than Mallery's expert blend of emotional nuance, humor, and superb storytelling," and RT Book Reviews puts her "in a class by herself!" It's no wonder that her books have spent more than 200 weeks on the USA Today bestsellers list.
Although Susan majored in Accounting, she never worked as an accountant because she was published straight out of college with two books the same month. Sixteen prolific years and seventy-four books later, she hit the New York Times bestsellers list for the first time with Accidentally Yours in 2008. She made many appearances in the Top 10 before (finally) hitting #1 in 2015 with Thrill Me, the twentieth book in her most popular series, the Fool's Gold romances, and the fourth of five books released that year.
Susan lives in Washington state with her husband, two ragdoll cats, and a small poodle with delusions of grandeur. Her heart for animals has led Susan to become an active supporter of the Seattle Humane Society. Visit Susan online at www.SusanMallery.com.
Critics have dubbed Mallery "the new queen of romantic fiction." (Walmart) Booklist says, "Romance novels don't get much better than Mallery's expert blend of emotional nuance, humor, and superb storytelling," and RT Book Reviews puts her "in a class by herself!" It's no wonder that her books have spent more than 200 weeks on the USA Today bestsellers list.
Although Susan majored in Accounting, she never worked as an accountant because she was published straight out of college with two books the same month. Sixteen prolific years and seventy-four books later, she hit the New York Times bestsellers list for the first time with Accidentally Yours in 2008. She made many appearances in the Top 10 before (finally) hitting #1 in 2015 with Thrill Me, the twentieth book in her most popular series, the Fool's Gold romances, and the fourth of five books released that year.
Susan lives in Washington state with her husband, two ragdoll cats, and a small poodle with delusions of grandeur. Her heart for animals has led Susan to become an active supporter of the Seattle Humane Society. Visit Susan online at www.SusanMallery.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 534 reviews
May 25, 2017
Fuck you Jack!!! Fuck you fuck you fuck you! Jack you're a asshole, bastard and fuck you....
June 7, 2023
Check out all my reviews at: https://www.avonnalovesgenres.com
UNTIL WE TOUCH (Fool’s Gold Book #15) by Susan Mallery is another enjoyable addition to this small-town contemporary romance series set in Fool’s Gold. While there are continuing characters throughout the books, each individual book can easily be read as a standalone because the focus is one couple in each complete HEA romance plot.
Jack McGarry and his partners have moved their sports PR company out of LA and into Fool’s Gold. Jack has a history of keeping his feelings locked away after a family tragedy in his past, but allows his assistant, Larissa Owens, to use his money and sports status to help other people and worthy causes in his name. While this worked well in LA, the small-town of Fool’s Gold is another matter.
When Larissa’s mother visits, she corners Jack in his office and tells him to fire her daughter so that she will move back home to LA and stop loving him. WHAT? Suddenly the two go from close friends to uncomfortable. When Larissa comes up with a plan to get over her attraction, will Jack play along?
This is another rollercoaster ride of emotions which happens every time I read one of the Fool’s Gold books. I laugh out loud at dialogue that is at times witty and/or hysterical and I shed tears when the H/h are hurting. This story has sweet romance elements to start, but as it continues it becomes very emotional and hard on the heart. The sex scenes are explicit, but not gratuitous and I feel realistic to the relationship. The secondary characters are well developed and believable. I especially loved the inclusion of Percy and the chiweenies.
An entertaining and heartfelt contemporary romance and wonderful addition to the Fool’s Gold series.
UNTIL WE TOUCH (Fool’s Gold Book #15) by Susan Mallery is another enjoyable addition to this small-town contemporary romance series set in Fool’s Gold. While there are continuing characters throughout the books, each individual book can easily be read as a standalone because the focus is one couple in each complete HEA romance plot.
Jack McGarry and his partners have moved their sports PR company out of LA and into Fool’s Gold. Jack has a history of keeping his feelings locked away after a family tragedy in his past, but allows his assistant, Larissa Owens, to use his money and sports status to help other people and worthy causes in his name. While this worked well in LA, the small-town of Fool’s Gold is another matter.
When Larissa’s mother visits, she corners Jack in his office and tells him to fire her daughter so that she will move back home to LA and stop loving him. WHAT? Suddenly the two go from close friends to uncomfortable. When Larissa comes up with a plan to get over her attraction, will Jack play along?
This is another rollercoaster ride of emotions which happens every time I read one of the Fool’s Gold books. I laugh out loud at dialogue that is at times witty and/or hysterical and I shed tears when the H/h are hurting. This story has sweet romance elements to start, but as it continues it becomes very emotional and hard on the heart. The sex scenes are explicit, but not gratuitous and I feel realistic to the relationship. The secondary characters are well developed and believable. I especially loved the inclusion of Percy and the chiweenies.
An entertaining and heartfelt contemporary romance and wonderful addition to the Fool’s Gold series.
July 31, 2015
I do a happy dance whenever I get the chance to read any new Fools Gold story and it was no different for this, in fact it was probably more so as I had been looking forward to reading Jack’s story as soon as we met him a few books ago. Larissa, well I was never sure if I liked her or not, I just couldn’t make any connection with her, but wanted to go in with an open mind…..After all the woman who turned Jack around would have to be a special lady, right?
Instead of being bowled over I was quite a bit disappointed with this book and wondered what on earth had gone wrong, I mean this is Jack so the story should have had me, but alas no it just seemed to fall a bit flat. Don’t get me wrong I still thought it had merits and was worth my time reading it, but it was not what I had come to expect from Fools Gold. A lot of the time I found both characters really annoying, especially Larissa - I always thought Jack’s woman would have a backbone but it would seem not! There was quite a bit of angst which I love so was happy there and thought that the ending would have been pretty spectacular but quite frankly I hated it, it was frustrating and unsatisfying. We got more of a reunion/make up scene between Jack and Taryn than we got with Larissa which was totally wrong.
After some umming and ahing I rated this as 3 out of 5 stars which is not a bad rating, but I do think that there will be more than a few Fools Gold fans out there who will be a as disappointed as I was.
ARC courtesy of Harlequin via Netgalley
Instead of being bowled over I was quite a bit disappointed with this book and wondered what on earth had gone wrong, I mean this is Jack so the story should have had me, but alas no it just seemed to fall a bit flat. Don’t get me wrong I still thought it had merits and was worth my time reading it, but it was not what I had come to expect from Fools Gold. A lot of the time I found both characters really annoying, especially Larissa - I always thought Jack’s woman would have a backbone but it would seem not! There was quite a bit of angst which I love so was happy there and thought that the ending would have been pretty spectacular but quite frankly I hated it, it was frustrating and unsatisfying. We got more of a reunion/make up scene between Jack and Taryn than we got with Larissa which was totally wrong.
After some umming and ahing I rated this as 3 out of 5 stars which is not a bad rating, but I do think that there will be more than a few Fools Gold fans out there who will be a as disappointed as I was.
ARC courtesy of Harlequin via Netgalley
May 25, 2019
This is fifteenth in a series and go ahead and read the others. You might want to reconsider reading this one, though.
I was leery going into this one. Larissa is an annoying crusader forever pulling her friends into rescue operations. I think it's supposed to be cute, but I mostly find it irresponsible and selfish that she commits resources that don't belong to her without asking first and just takes it for granted that everybody will capitulate because she's "good" and it has always worked in the past. And Jack is a selfish jackwagon who justifies his emotional distance because he has some tragedy in his past. So he's a special snowflake that has pain like no other and deserves to keep everybody at a distance and supporting Larissa's various hare-brained whack-a-doodles somehow redeems his essential self-involvement. And yeah, most of that is established in the prior books.
So it isn't a surprise that this turns out to be exactly what I expected: a bunch of moaning about how they can't possibly because they have such a great situation and they can't jeopardize it blah freaking blah. I think I finally had enough when Jack thinks "it would all go to hell and she would walk. Because his relationships always ended." Uh. Yeah. That's how it works until you find the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. Duh. Indeed, you can say that exact thing about everybody on the planet—every relationship always ended, and the last one ended with death! How horrible! Better not to have any relationships at all, ever. It's one thing when you have someone smarting over being dumped or finding out someone they loved wasn't who they thought they were. That'll leave a mark. But Jack hasn't ever had a serious relationship. He's never fallen in love or had his heart broken because he's been very shallow all his life. So it isn't even that he's tried and failed. He's never actually tried. So this, from him, is just navel-gazing idiocy.
I was leery going into this one. Larissa is an annoying crusader forever pulling her friends into rescue operations. I think it's supposed to be cute, but I mostly find it irresponsible and selfish that she commits resources that don't belong to her without asking first and just takes it for granted that everybody will capitulate because she's "good" and it has always worked in the past. And Jack is a selfish jackwagon who justifies his emotional distance because he has some tragedy in his past. So he's a special snowflake that has pain like no other and deserves to keep everybody at a distance and supporting Larissa's various hare-brained whack-a-doodles somehow redeems his essential self-involvement. And yeah, most of that is established in the prior books.
So it isn't a surprise that this turns out to be exactly what I expected: a bunch of moaning about how they can't possibly because they have such a great situation and they can't jeopardize it blah freaking blah. I think I finally had enough when Jack thinks "it would all go to hell and she would walk. Because his relationships always ended." Uh. Yeah. That's how it works until you find the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. Duh. Indeed, you can say that exact thing about everybody on the planet—every relationship always ended, and the last one ended with death! How horrible! Better not to have any relationships at all, ever. It's one thing when you have someone smarting over being dumped or finding out someone they loved wasn't who they thought they were. That'll leave a mark. But Jack hasn't ever had a serious relationship. He's never fallen in love or had his heart broken because he's been very shallow all his life. So it isn't even that he's tried and failed. He's never actually tried. So this, from him, is just navel-gazing idiocy.
June 20, 2014
I had read all of the previous Fool's Gold books. I enjoyed the first 8 or 10 tremendously. The writing quality of the last few has steadily decreased to the point where i can no longer force myself to finish the book. This is disappointing because I'd have liked to at least know what happened to the Score guys. Here is an example from early in the first couple of chapters:
"He set down the bag of food and crossed to the drawer to pull out the opener. While he was there, he also grabbed a few serving spoons for their dinner. He turned in the small kitchen and handed her the opener. She walked back to the table."
This type of play by play fills entire chapters. Mallery is clearly not interested in this series any longer and it's time to end it. It is unbearable.
"He set down the bag of food and crossed to the drawer to pull out the opener. While he was there, he also grabbed a few serving spoons for their dinner. He turned in the small kitchen and handed her the opener. She walked back to the table."
This type of play by play fills entire chapters. Mallery is clearly not interested in this series any longer and it's time to end it. It is unbearable.
August 17, 2016
Antes De Abrazarnos narra la historia de amor entre Jack y Larissa, personajes de la saga Fool´s Gold creada por la autora Susan Mallery.
Cuando inicie la lectura no esperaba que me sorprendiera, pensaba encontrar una historia sencilla y dulce ( como las otras de la serie ) pero fue mucho mejor, aun sigo sin poder decidir cual es mi libro favorito, si el de Isabel y Ford ( el que mas me ha gustado hasta ahora ) o este.
Estaba bastante segura de que me encontraria en Antes De Abrazarnos, no esperaba que la autora " cambiara " la dinamica entre la pareja protagonista y con eso solo consiguio que me gustase mas.
Ahora a leer el siguiente, espero con muchas ganas la historia de Kipling.
3.75 Estrellas!
July 23, 2022
Until We Touch
3.5 Stars
Due to a family tragedy, former NFL star, Jack McGarry, finds it difficult to become emotionally attached and the best he can manage is allowing his personal assistant, Larissa Owens, to organize his charitable contributions. Larissa never met a crusade she didn't love, but is well aware that Jack is averse to being one of her pet projects. However, outside forces soon encourage Larissa and Jack to confront both their physical attraction and emotional bonds. Will the shift lead to a happily ever after or destroy their friendship for good?
Jack and Larissa's friends-to-lovers romance is endearing right up until the end where Jack's friendship and loyalty are rewarded with judgment and disdain by those closest to him.
To begin with, Larissa is a lovely character who deserves a man who will love her unconditionally. She is also well aware of Jack's commitment phobia yet eagerly enters into a sexual relationship to "get over him". She, and everyone else, know that this will not end well and when it does fall apart they all blame Jack.
Seriously? Why is it his fault that Larissa changed the rules on him? I was very disappointed in the other characters, who professed to be his friend and for whom Jack had always been supportive, as instead of returning the favor, decide to turn against him.
Nevertheless, all's well that ends well, and Jack and Larissa get their well-deserved happy ending even if it is not as fulfilling as it could have been. Hopefully, Bailey and Kenny's story will be more satisfying.
3.5 Stars
Due to a family tragedy, former NFL star, Jack McGarry, finds it difficult to become emotionally attached and the best he can manage is allowing his personal assistant, Larissa Owens, to organize his charitable contributions. Larissa never met a crusade she didn't love, but is well aware that Jack is averse to being one of her pet projects. However, outside forces soon encourage Larissa and Jack to confront both their physical attraction and emotional bonds. Will the shift lead to a happily ever after or destroy their friendship for good?
Jack and Larissa's friends-to-lovers romance is endearing right up until the end where Jack's friendship and loyalty are rewarded with judgment and disdain by those closest to him.
To begin with, Larissa is a lovely character who deserves a man who will love her unconditionally. She is also well aware of Jack's commitment phobia yet eagerly enters into a sexual relationship to "get over him". She, and everyone else, know that this will not end well and when it does fall apart they all blame Jack.
Seriously? Why is it his fault that Larissa changed the rules on him? I was very disappointed in the other characters, who professed to be his friend and for whom Jack had always been supportive, as instead of returning the favor, decide to turn against him.
Nevertheless, all's well that ends well, and Jack and Larissa get their well-deserved happy ending even if it is not as fulfilling as it could have been. Hopefully, Bailey and Kenny's story will be more satisfying.
June 19, 2015
This is the type of story that makes you feel whole again. Both tears & laughter fill the pages of Mallery’s work. Mallery takes the comic moments from real life and transposes them into her story. She has a down to earth writing style that you can connect with. I appreciate how many aspects of life and how many areas of the town Mallery covers without feeling like she’s flitting around. The storyline is solid but vast, like life itself. Mallery also jogs your memory with regards to previous events and people, without recapping everything, giving you a point of reference.
This novel and its characters are fantastically real. I already loved Jack and Larissa coming into this novel, but getting to know them in such a profound and intimate way was a treat. Surrounded by the members of the town we’ve come to love, and the new characters that Mallery so brilliantly inserts into our lives they create the perfect centre point for this brilliant tale.
This novel is perfect. It’s sweet and sassy with just that touch of heat. This may be my favourite Susan Mallery novel to date. I’d highly recommend it to all romance enthusiasts, both those who have and have yet to read one of her novels.
Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this work in exchange for an honest review.
This novel and its characters are fantastically real. I already loved Jack and Larissa coming into this novel, but getting to know them in such a profound and intimate way was a treat. Surrounded by the members of the town we’ve come to love, and the new characters that Mallery so brilliantly inserts into our lives they create the perfect centre point for this brilliant tale.
This novel is perfect. It’s sweet and sassy with just that touch of heat. This may be my favourite Susan Mallery novel to date. I’d highly recommend it to all romance enthusiasts, both those who have and have yet to read one of her novels.
Please note that I received a complimentary copy of this work in exchange for an honest review.
June 22, 2014
Jack, Jack, Jack…. Although I really liked Jack, there were a million times in this book that I would like to have punched him like Kenny and Sam did – HE DESERVED THOSE HITS… I understood why he acted the way that he did, because of everything that he had lost in his past, but that didn’t give him the okay to hurt the people in his life that loved him unconditionally.
Larissa… She loved everything unconditionally, especially Jack. I don’t think that I could have forgiven him as easily as she did, but I guess love makes you do crazy things. I loved have Larissa and Jack had their routine but neither knew how deep their feelings were for each other until Larissa’s mother brought it to their attention.
I really like their story and breezed through it in one day, because I just couldn’t put it down once I started reading it. Now, I can’t wait to read Kenny’s story and I am sure that it will be a good one, because you can see he has a soft, caring side just waiting to shine through.
Larissa… She loved everything unconditionally, especially Jack. I don’t think that I could have forgiven him as easily as she did, but I guess love makes you do crazy things. I loved have Larissa and Jack had their routine but neither knew how deep their feelings were for each other until Larissa’s mother brought it to their attention.
I really like their story and breezed through it in one day, because I just couldn’t put it down once I started reading it. Now, I can’t wait to read Kenny’s story and I am sure that it will be a good one, because you can see he has a soft, caring side just waiting to shine through.
September 17, 2021
Another great story!
June 24, 2014
4.5 stars Another great read.
I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for a HONEST review.
Until We Touch is book # 15 in the “Fool’s Gold” Series. It’s the 3rd of the books featuring the retired football players. The main characters are Jack, a retired football player and his assistant Larissa. They were first introduced in Taryn and Angel’s story, When We Met # 13.
As is the custom in the Fool’s Gold series, the characters are briefly introduced in previous books, with their presence gradually increasing, and leading up to their own story. It is not necessary to read the previous books, but they do give you a little more understanding of the backgrounds of the characters, the town, and the idiosyncrasies of some of its quirky residents. (Especially Eddie and Mayor Marsha) And as always, it includes an introduction to those characters that will be featured in future Fool's Gold books.
Larissa, who is known to “rescue” animals of all kinds, had been the initiator of some of the more amusing situations in previous books, and I was looking forward to her story. I admit I was a tad bit cynical about how lead characters would be brought together. So often, when a couple has known each other for a while, the writer will have them wake up one day, and Bam! Just like that. They’re in love. Not so with this story.
I did very much enjoy this book, despite that fact that I would have liked a little more “outrageous” animal rescues in it. It's such a sweet, easy, fun story to read. It is well written, and unfolds at an easy pace. I felt I really knew the characters. They are very likable, and were placed in everyday, believable situations. And best of all (for me), I couldn’t easily predict what was coming next. It is a touching romance that left me feeling happy. I can’t wait for Fools Gold #16!
I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for a HONEST review.
Until We Touch is book # 15 in the “Fool’s Gold” Series. It’s the 3rd of the books featuring the retired football players. The main characters are Jack, a retired football player and his assistant Larissa. They were first introduced in Taryn and Angel’s story, When We Met # 13.
As is the custom in the Fool’s Gold series, the characters are briefly introduced in previous books, with their presence gradually increasing, and leading up to their own story. It is not necessary to read the previous books, but they do give you a little more understanding of the backgrounds of the characters, the town, and the idiosyncrasies of some of its quirky residents. (Especially Eddie and Mayor Marsha) And as always, it includes an introduction to those characters that will be featured in future Fool's Gold books.
Larissa, who is known to “rescue” animals of all kinds, had been the initiator of some of the more amusing situations in previous books, and I was looking forward to her story. I admit I was a tad bit cynical about how lead characters would be brought together. So often, when a couple has known each other for a while, the writer will have them wake up one day, and Bam! Just like that. They’re in love. Not so with this story.
I did very much enjoy this book, despite that fact that I would have liked a little more “outrageous” animal rescues in it. It's such a sweet, easy, fun story to read. It is well written, and unfolds at an easy pace. I felt I really knew the characters. They are very likable, and were placed in everyday, believable situations. And best of all (for me), I couldn’t easily predict what was coming next. It is a touching romance that left me feeling happy. I can’t wait for Fools Gold #16!
May 25, 2021
This was the last book in Fool's Gold for now. Jack and Larissa's story. Their story was so endearing and entertaining. Jack is an ex pro football player (due to an injury) who never let anyone get close. Didn't believe in love or loving, thought it brought pain. Larissa was his assistant and a masseuse for the 4 partners in Score, the PR firm they worked for in Fool's Gold. She was always joining a cause, saving animals, fostering them, whatever the case may be, with Jack's money. They were good together,until one day, her mom pointed out something, that Larissa was in love with Jack. This was not good since Jack did not believe in love, and Larissa comes up with a plan that would allow her to fall out of love with him. The journey the take us on is wonderful, but I did find myself loving Jack, hating him and loving him all over again. The many different issues they faced, the people involved and the laughs all had me never wanting to put this book down. Through the entire journey, I kept thinking if only they would just open their hearts to the possibility of love, they might see that it could all be so wonderful and well worth it. I won't say any more, but I hope you will all read this book, and the rest of the series. This was the last one for now, but I have read the others, and I must say this one is one of my favorites. I think Susan Mallery out did herself with it. Fool's Gold draws you in, makes you feel like you belong, and treats you like a friend. I'm hooked.
July 15, 2014
First I would like to thank Goodreads for a copy of this book to preview!
Where do I begin...I really enjoyed every part of this story. I love all the twists and turns Jack and Larissa's relationship took from best friends to so much more. I feel like they had a real relationship and issues to deal with. It wasn't all a fairy tale and there was a lot of heart break that took place.
Jack, a former football star has dealt with a lot of tragedy and loss in his life. And ever since he has kept everyone close to him at a distance.
Larissa is Jack's awesome assistant who really makes Jack into the man that he is today. She shows how to be compassionate and caring and give back to others who are in need. She falls for Jack at some point without really knowing it.
When Jack comes to his senses and realizes that he loves Larissa it may be too late to have the love of his life.
I would recommend this book to everyone!
Where do I begin...I really enjoyed every part of this story. I love all the twists and turns Jack and Larissa's relationship took from best friends to so much more. I feel like they had a real relationship and issues to deal with. It wasn't all a fairy tale and there was a lot of heart break that took place.
Jack, a former football star has dealt with a lot of tragedy and loss in his life. And ever since he has kept everyone close to him at a distance.
Larissa is Jack's awesome assistant who really makes Jack into the man that he is today. She shows how to be compassionate and caring and give back to others who are in need. She falls for Jack at some point without really knowing it.
When Jack comes to his senses and realizes that he loves Larissa it may be too late to have the love of his life.
I would recommend this book to everyone!
August 5, 2014
I had a feeling that this story was going to be friends to lovers back when Jack and Larissa were first introduced. There's just too much temptation when a hero and heroine work in close proximity to one another. I thought Jack's back history of being the twin who survived was powerful and kept him from reading like a complete a-hole when the black moment arrived in spectacular fashion. I also thought Larissa's addiction to worthy causes was interesting, though somewhat eye rolling after a while. I will be forever grateful to Mallery, however, for introducing me to the wonderful world of Chiweenies. Omg, are they cute dogs! Overall I enjoyed this wrap up of this summer's trip to Fools Gold, and I'm chomping at the bit for Kenny's book come October. If only there were a way to live there all year round!
August 24, 2014
Susan Mallery has done it again. Everything I had to do today was out the window and down the road. All I accomplished today was to sit in the shade/sun and read this book! And what a book it was! To me this one had some good scenes where the characters were able to change and grow with their insights without making me groan. I think the new Jack is going to be fun. I really loved the great scenes that made me laugh out loud.
This book is all about Jack and Larissa. Jack realized as did Larissa that they were more of a couple than they thought. Unfortunately the understanding and accepting were not easy. Larissa managed to save many animals and then graduated onto saving a homeless boy. I felt sorry for Jack, his struggles were a mountain - not a molehill made into a mountain.
I loved this book - five stars for sure....
This book is all about Jack and Larissa. Jack realized as did Larissa that they were more of a couple than they thought. Unfortunately the understanding and accepting were not easy. Larissa managed to save many animals and then graduated onto saving a homeless boy. I felt sorry for Jack, his struggles were a mountain - not a molehill made into a mountain.
I loved this book - five stars for sure....
January 8, 2019
Not bad writing, but characters frustrated me. Heroine happy to settle for crumbs and hero patting himself on the back for being a good friend and feeding her the crumbs she craves. Nonsensical plot revolving around her finally turning their platonic relationship physical in the hope that it will purge him out of her system. Yes, that's really going to work, honey...
August 9, 2016
Boring. I didn't care about the characters and there was a lot of repetition... like the author didn't think the readers would remember anything. Didn't like the ending. Larissa just seemed pathetic. Jack should definitely have had to work harder at getting her back...
March 17, 2022
Reading Susan Mallery makes your whole day a whole lot better and a whole lot brighter.
September 22, 2014
This is one of my favorites of the Fool's Gold series. The emotion, especially in the last few chapters, had me reaching for the tissues multiple times. I have been looking forward to reading Jack and Larissa's story the more I saw of them in the previous books. They are best friends and coworkers. Jack is one of the owners of the PR firm, Larissa is his assistant and also the company masseuse. Larissa is heavily into charity work, helping sick kids and seemingly addicted to rescuing animals of all types. Jack helps her out by writing the checks that help her do it and occasionally doing other hands on events. Everything is going swimmingly until Larissa's mother comes to town. She's determined to get Larissa married off and producing kids and she doesn't see that happening as long as she's working for Jack. She asks Jack to fire her because that's the only way Larrissa would leave Jack who she's in love with. This starts a chain of events that is both funny and heartbreaking.
Larisa is horrified by what her mother has done. She insists that she is not in love with Jack, that they are just friends. But the seed has been planted, and she starts looking at him differently. It doesn't take long for her to realize mom is right. But she knows that Jack is a bad bet for a relationship, so if she's going to get the life she wants she's going to have to fall out of love with him. She figures the best way to do that is to have an affair with him and get him out of her system. Needless to say it doesn't go as planned and she ends up falling deeper for him.
Jack is flabbergasted and freaked out. He's never thought of Larissa that way before and doesn't want to now, but suddenly he can't help it. He doesn't want her to be in love with him. He doesn't do emotional commitments, preferring to date a woman for a little while, then move on. He has kept everyone at an emotional distance for years to protect his heart. He lost his twin brother to heart disease when he was seventeen, and his parents when, unable to cope with their grief, went off to help in Africa leaving him alone and hurting. He figures if he doesn't let himself care, he'll be safe. His friendship with Larissa has always been safe. She understands him and doesn't ask for more than he can give. Now he's looking at her as a woman too. He tries really hard to resist the attraction, but that doesn't last. Suddenly there are cracks appearing in his walls.
It's obvious from the beginning that Larissa and Jack are meant for each other. But each of them have their baggage to deal with. Larissa's causes give Jack a chance to be involved without getting too close. Larissa has spent her life feeling guilty because her parents had to get married. Her causes are her way of coping with the guilty feelings. Because she understands Jack so well his need to remain distant from the causes is just something she accepts. But as they get closer she gets him more deeply involved. The biggest thing is the homeless teen she takes under her wing that Jack and the other guys help because of her. I loved the way that Jack dealt with Percy and the way he starts to care. Then the mayor gets Jack onboard with helping the local college start a football team, and he finds people looking to him for more involvement. Suddenly it all gets to be too much for him and he completely freaks out. At this point he withdraws from everything and pushing people away as hard as he can. He really got into some self destruction. I wanted to hit him when he lit into Larissa and Taryn and was so horribly cruel to them. He earned everything he got from Kenny, Sam and Taryn. His misery was well deserved. It took him awhile to see the light, but once he did I was happy to see him suck it up and do the grovelling he needed to do.
As much as Larissa was hurt, I loved the way she deals with everything. It was great to see the support she got from her friends. I loved seeing her take a good look at her life and make the changes she saw as necessary to move on with her life. I was a little frustrated that she kept making excuses for Jack's attitude, but her love for him just wouldn't let her bash him. I'm looking forward to seeing them in later books.
It's always great to see new characters come to Fool's Gold. I thought Percy was a great addition. It showed the good that the camp does, which is what brought him back to town. I also loved the way he was shown as having been trying to live a better life because of the way he was raised. It was great to see Jack and his friends take a real and practical interest in helping him. His maturity really stood out when it came to dealing with Jack and his meltdown and I look forward to seeing more of him in later books.
As always, Mayor Marsha has her eye on the perfect person to advance whatever project she has in mind. As soon as the football thing came up, I had a feeling about what she wanted. The only question was how she was going to get Jack to cooperate. I loved the meetings Jack attended and his confrontations with the athletic director. Hope to see more of this project in future books.
Larisa is horrified by what her mother has done. She insists that she is not in love with Jack, that they are just friends. But the seed has been planted, and she starts looking at him differently. It doesn't take long for her to realize mom is right. But she knows that Jack is a bad bet for a relationship, so if she's going to get the life she wants she's going to have to fall out of love with him. She figures the best way to do that is to have an affair with him and get him out of her system. Needless to say it doesn't go as planned and she ends up falling deeper for him.
Jack is flabbergasted and freaked out. He's never thought of Larissa that way before and doesn't want to now, but suddenly he can't help it. He doesn't want her to be in love with him. He doesn't do emotional commitments, preferring to date a woman for a little while, then move on. He has kept everyone at an emotional distance for years to protect his heart. He lost his twin brother to heart disease when he was seventeen, and his parents when, unable to cope with their grief, went off to help in Africa leaving him alone and hurting. He figures if he doesn't let himself care, he'll be safe. His friendship with Larissa has always been safe. She understands him and doesn't ask for more than he can give. Now he's looking at her as a woman too. He tries really hard to resist the attraction, but that doesn't last. Suddenly there are cracks appearing in his walls.
It's obvious from the beginning that Larissa and Jack are meant for each other. But each of them have their baggage to deal with. Larissa's causes give Jack a chance to be involved without getting too close. Larissa has spent her life feeling guilty because her parents had to get married. Her causes are her way of coping with the guilty feelings. Because she understands Jack so well his need to remain distant from the causes is just something she accepts. But as they get closer she gets him more deeply involved. The biggest thing is the homeless teen she takes under her wing that Jack and the other guys help because of her. I loved the way that Jack dealt with Percy and the way he starts to care. Then the mayor gets Jack onboard with helping the local college start a football team, and he finds people looking to him for more involvement. Suddenly it all gets to be too much for him and he completely freaks out. At this point he withdraws from everything and pushing people away as hard as he can. He really got into some self destruction. I wanted to hit him when he lit into Larissa and Taryn and was so horribly cruel to them. He earned everything he got from Kenny, Sam and Taryn. His misery was well deserved. It took him awhile to see the light, but once he did I was happy to see him suck it up and do the grovelling he needed to do.
As much as Larissa was hurt, I loved the way she deals with everything. It was great to see the support she got from her friends. I loved seeing her take a good look at her life and make the changes she saw as necessary to move on with her life. I was a little frustrated that she kept making excuses for Jack's attitude, but her love for him just wouldn't let her bash him. I'm looking forward to seeing them in later books.
It's always great to see new characters come to Fool's Gold. I thought Percy was a great addition. It showed the good that the camp does, which is what brought him back to town. I also loved the way he was shown as having been trying to live a better life because of the way he was raised. It was great to see Jack and his friends take a real and practical interest in helping him. His maturity really stood out when it came to dealing with Jack and his meltdown and I look forward to seeing more of him in later books.
As always, Mayor Marsha has her eye on the perfect person to advance whatever project she has in mind. As soon as the football thing came up, I had a feeling about what she wanted. The only question was how she was going to get Jack to cooperate. I loved the meetings Jack attended and his confrontations with the athletic director. Hope to see more of this project in future books.
July 26, 2016
I fell in love with Fool's Gold a while back, and the Score crew was a big reason why. Until We Touch focuses big time on Score - especially on cutie Larissa. She will do anything for an animal or a person in need... And Score partner Jack McGarry will always come running to help.
I'm not a huge animal person, but Larissa is, and her compulsion to rescue animals totally worked. If you love fur babies, you'll sympathize and have some tender I-heart-animal moments. And if you don't, you'll just appreciate Larissa's generous heart -- like I did. In this book, Larissa helps plenty of animals, but she also makes a big difference in the life of a young adult... And reels in Jack for assistance.
So. The love story. It's a slow build-up, then some good fireworks, then some bad fireworks. The awesome thing about loving someone is that it's about the actions, not the feelings. Larissa and Jack already act like they love each other! It's only when the words and feelings are brought to the surface that trouble arises.
I liked that Larissa was a little naive here. It fits her personality and brought me back to "stupid things I did while in my 20s" - hah! And I liked that Jack was wonderful except for the time he was a completely big jerk and I could've just pushed him with two open palms and said WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!
The best part about a perfect hero who makes a gigantic stupid mistake is watching him make up for it. The apologies were worth the anguish, they really were.
As for the updates on other characters: Taryn's wedding planning was enjoyable, and I liked the fun closure to Sam's love life. Mayor Marsha brought upheaval and some new guests to town... and the local businesses were thriving. Read it. You'll see - and love it - for yourself.
By the way, I read Until We Touch on the beach. My daughter looked at me from the edge of the ocean, rolled her eyes, and said, "There's mom, crying again over a book."
Yup. You betchya. Tears of sadness, tears of joy. That's a successful read.
NetGalley provided an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
I'm not a huge animal person, but Larissa is, and her compulsion to rescue animals totally worked. If you love fur babies, you'll sympathize and have some tender I-heart-animal moments. And if you don't, you'll just appreciate Larissa's generous heart -- like I did. In this book, Larissa helps plenty of animals, but she also makes a big difference in the life of a young adult... And reels in Jack for assistance.
So. The love story. It's a slow build-up, then some good fireworks, then some bad fireworks. The awesome thing about loving someone is that it's about the actions, not the feelings. Larissa and Jack already act like they love each other! It's only when the words and feelings are brought to the surface that trouble arises.
I liked that Larissa was a little naive here. It fits her personality and brought me back to "stupid things I did while in my 20s" - hah! And I liked that Jack was wonderful except for the time he was a completely big jerk and I could've just pushed him with two open palms and said WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!
The best part about a perfect hero who makes a gigantic stupid mistake is watching him make up for it. The apologies were worth the anguish, they really were.
As for the updates on other characters: Taryn's wedding planning was enjoyable, and I liked the fun closure to Sam's love life. Mayor Marsha brought upheaval and some new guests to town... and the local businesses were thriving. Read it. You'll see - and love it - for yourself.
By the way, I read Until We Touch on the beach. My daughter looked at me from the edge of the ocean, rolled her eyes, and said, "There's mom, crying again over a book."
Yup. You betchya. Tears of sadness, tears of joy. That's a successful read.
NetGalley provided an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.
July 3, 2014
Fool's Gold has some interesting characters. Larissa Owens, who's into saving those in need, be they two-legged or four-legged, has skilled fingers and works as a masseuse at SCORE. She's also Jack McGarry's assistant. He doesn't know she's been in love with him since she joined the firm, but Larissa's mother knows and she's eager to become a grandmother. That's not going to happen as long as Larissa stays in Fool's Gold and works for Jack, so she does the unthinkable: she tells Jack how Larissa feels about him.
Oh no! Jack is the ultimate commitment-phobe, determined never to get close to anyone who can hurt him like he hurt when his identical twin died and his parents deserted him.
To get Jack out of her system, Larissa decides to seduce him. As might be expected, it ends badly, because Jack refuses to take the "bait," even though he wants to. When he finally decides to go along with Larissa's desire to make love with him, he becomes caught in her web of total loving, but that won't work. He will NOT give her what she wants, a normal life with husband, kids and a dog or cat or owl or two. To protect himself, he rejects her in a hurtful way and compounds his actions by doing the same with Percy, the runaway he's taken in at Larissa's insistence, and Taryn, who's asked him to be her "best man" at her upcoming wedding to Angel. Now he's alone and miserable.
What's he going to do about it? And will anyone forgive him? They certainly won't forget what he did.
Oh no! Jack is the ultimate commitment-phobe, determined never to get close to anyone who can hurt him like he hurt when his identical twin died and his parents deserted him.
To get Jack out of her system, Larissa decides to seduce him. As might be expected, it ends badly, because Jack refuses to take the "bait," even though he wants to. When he finally decides to go along with Larissa's desire to make love with him, he becomes caught in her web of total loving, but that won't work. He will NOT give her what she wants, a normal life with husband, kids and a dog or cat or owl or two. To protect himself, he rejects her in a hurtful way and compounds his actions by doing the same with Percy, the runaway he's taken in at Larissa's insistence, and Taryn, who's asked him to be her "best man" at her upcoming wedding to Angel. Now he's alone and miserable.
What's he going to do about it? And will anyone forgive him? They certainly won't forget what he did.
February 10, 2016
I didn't win this book on Goodreads. I got this book through a Susan Mallery e-mail request to join her "Review Crew". This book is Number 15 in the Fool's Gold series, but don't let that scare you. This is the first book in this series that I have gotten the pleasure to read. While I did have a few questions about the book when I first started reading it, I quickly got absorbed in the storyline and with the characters. It's safe to say that this book could be a great "stand alone" book or a person could pick up the series with the next book which is something that I am considering. That's how great I thought this book was. As I read the book, I laughed, got angry, and almost shed a few tears. I thought the book was very well written and would, most sincerely, recommend it to those who like contemporary romance novels. Well written, Ms. Mallery!!
December 5, 2014
This was a frustrating read.
First, Larissa is kind of hopeless with how clueless she is. Then she decides that the perfect way to get over Jack is to sex him up. That makes no sense and is the stupidest idea ever. Even when everyone points that fact out to her she brushes it off like she knows better. Though she hasn't ever really had a relationship before. And then Jack is a total douche... I mean, he fucks things up epically and with style. His groveling wasn't half bad, but I still can't believe how badly he fucked up and was still forgiven. The nice thing was that most everyone told him how badly he fucked up and turned their backs on him. It was most assuredly deserved.
So yeah. I almost DNF'd this at 50% when Larissa came up with the brilliant idea of seducing Jack but I persevered. Not this author's best work. Not by a long shot.
First, Larissa is kind of hopeless with how clueless she is. Then she decides that the perfect way to get over Jack is to sex him up. That makes no sense and is the stupidest idea ever. Even when everyone points that fact out to her she brushes it off like she knows better. Though she hasn't ever really had a relationship before. And then Jack is a total douche... I mean, he fucks things up epically and with style. His groveling wasn't half bad, but I still can't believe how badly he fucked up and was still forgiven. The nice thing was that most everyone told him how badly he fucked up and turned their backs on him. It was most assuredly deserved.
So yeah. I almost DNF'd this at 50% when Larissa came up with the brilliant idea of seducing Jack but I persevered. Not this author's best work. Not by a long shot.
February 25, 2015
So far, I believe this is my least favorite book in the series. I found Larissa's various causes over the top... if we took her humanitarian and animal causes away, she was a bland character. I expected so much more from Sam.. he was more interesting and entertaining in the last two stories than he was in his own book... He showed a mean and highly selfish side that didn't seem temporary to me. The fact that it took him a month to go to Percy to apologize, didn't sit right with me. What he did to Percy was much worse than what he did to others in my opinion.
January 16, 2023
Another entry to the Fool's Gold series. A dysfunctional family during childhood left Jack McGarry holding the world at arms length so he wouldn't experience the hurt that comes with caring. He has to hit rock bottom before he can change. It isn't pretty to watch parts of it but drop down he cares more than he wants to. The author brought the issue of youth aging out of the foster care system only to find themselves on their own with little in the way of resources to survive. It's a subject that needs to be talked about.
July 5, 2016
Jack y Larissa eran dos personajes que me llamaban mucho pero su historia no ha terminado de convencerme. Hubo momentos en los que me parecía que daba vueltas y más vueltas alrededor del mismo tema, aún así ha resultado entretenida y sigo disfrutando de los momentos q nos brindan Taryn y Angel que son estupendos.
Mi puntuación: 6,5
Mi puntuación: 6,5
October 22, 2015
Not the best. I just couldn't really feel the characters, Larissa was nice and giving but like too nice for me to like and identify with. And Jack was standoffish too. Not the worst of this series, but I doubt I'll be reading it again.
January 14, 2019
Halbzeit oder Hochzeit? von Susan Mallery ist schon der 15. Teil der Fool's Gold Reihe! Hier geht es um Jack, welcher Teilinhaber von Score ist. Larissa ist seine persönliche Assistentin und Masseurin der Exfootballspieler. Beide bezeichnen sie einander als beste Freunde, aber als Larissas Mutter erwähnt, dass Larissa mehr als nur Freundschaft für Jack empfindet ändern sich ihre Einstellungen für einander. Nun sind sie sich nicht mehr sicher, wie sie miteinander umgehen sollen.
Dieser Teil war auch wieder sehr toll zu lesen. Jack kennt man durch die vorigen Bücher schon besser und Larissa auch. Larissa ist ein herzensguter Mensch. Sie hat ein großes Herz für Notfallprojekte und versucht allem und jedem zu helfen. Jack ist dabei ihr "Opfer". Er hilft ihr wo er kann und unterstützt sie mit allem. In diesem Teil haben wir auch Percy kennen gelernt. Er ist ein sehr netter junger Mann und ich hoffe wir hören noch mehr von ihm.
Es war wieder ein gutes Buch. Ich freue mich noch immer wahnsinnig Kennys Geschichte endlich zu lesen und hoffe nun, dass der nächste Teil seine Geschichte beschreibt!
Dieser Teil war auch wieder sehr toll zu lesen. Jack kennt man durch die vorigen Bücher schon besser und Larissa auch. Larissa ist ein herzensguter Mensch. Sie hat ein großes Herz für Notfallprojekte und versucht allem und jedem zu helfen. Jack ist dabei ihr "Opfer". Er hilft ihr wo er kann und unterstützt sie mit allem. In diesem Teil haben wir auch Percy kennen gelernt. Er ist ein sehr netter junger Mann und ich hoffe wir hören noch mehr von ihm.
Es war wieder ein gutes Buch. Ich freue mich noch immer wahnsinnig Kennys Geschichte endlich zu lesen und hoffe nun, dass der nächste Teil seine Geschichte beschreibt!
February 7, 2021
Number 15 in the Fool's Gold series is the story of Jack and Larissa. Jack is the ex pro football QB who is partners in a marketing firm with two other ex football players and his ex wife. The ex wife is the only one qualified to work at a marketing firm. Larissa is his assistant and massage therapist to the four owners.
I don't even want to summarize this one. Larissa was annoying and Jack was an ass. This story ends exactly the same way the last 6 (at least) end, so there's nothing new. Why am I still reading these?
I don't even want to summarize this one. Larissa was annoying and Jack was an ass. This story ends exactly the same way the last 6 (at least) end, so there's nothing new. Why am I still reading these?
May 10, 2019
This was a little predictable in some ways but then Jack had his A**hole moment which I think went too far for the character as he'd been written. I did like the ending but I believe he received forgiveness too easily for the horrible things he did to hurt people.
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