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Carolina Bad Boys #1
Stone: At Your Service
Rie Warren delivers a steamy, humorous romance with one hell of an alpha male bad boy.
Hell on wheels meets Hell in high heels.
Bad boy mechanic Josh Stone likes to get his hands dirty any way he can—the filthier, the better. Ever since his wife walked out on him and their young son, he’s only had room in his heart for two loves: the kid and cars.
Roped into playing his best buddy’s gay boyfriend during a romance writers convention, the player meets the girl who’s gonna rock his world. Leelee Songchild. Shy, bashful, beautiful Leelee who blushes at the drop of a hat yet writes hardcore smut to rival Josh’s backlist of Penthouse Forum.
The only problem is his hands are tied. Josh can’t stab his old friend/fake lover in the back even though all he wants to do is take luscious Leelee to bed, and maybe, love her. When the truth comes out, all hell breaks loose.
Too bad romance is just for books.
Hell on wheels meets Hell in high heels.
Bad boy mechanic Josh Stone likes to get his hands dirty any way he can—the filthier, the better. Ever since his wife walked out on him and their young son, he’s only had room in his heart for two loves: the kid and cars.
Roped into playing his best buddy’s gay boyfriend during a romance writers convention, the player meets the girl who’s gonna rock his world. Leelee Songchild. Shy, bashful, beautiful Leelee who blushes at the drop of a hat yet writes hardcore smut to rival Josh’s backlist of Penthouse Forum.
The only problem is his hands are tied. Josh can’t stab his old friend/fake lover in the back even though all he wants to do is take luscious Leelee to bed, and maybe, love her. When the truth comes out, all hell breaks loose.
Too bad romance is just for books.
317 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 25, 2014
205 people are currently reading
872 people want to read
About the author
Rie Warren
52 books674 followersAll of Rie Warren's self-published series are available to read on Kindle Unlimited, including the instant hit Bad Boys of Retribution MC, Carolina Bad Boys, Bad Boy Ballers, and many more!
Badass, sassafras Rie Warren is an OG Amazon All Star author of Bad Boy books and MC romance. She delivers five star sex, suspense, and the best banter around. Her stories are one hundred percent original, do not contain fluffy plots or virgin brides, and wring every last emotion from readers to leave them with a satisfied smile. Rie’s tough alpha males are never brought to heel, but are instead healed by the feisty femme fatale of their perfect match.
She grew up in Maine, went to college in Iowa (Iowa, what?), lived in Scotland, and married in Englishman. In true roundabout fashion, they came back to the States, settled in South Carolina’s lowcountry, putting down southern roots and pursuing their arty endeavors. Tale spinner and character diviner, Rie is a lover of sleep, wine, and rude memes often involving either Disney characters or Winnie the Pooh. She is raising two teen daughters along with an entire brain full of unruly characters.
Rough-talking alpha men? Rie has that on tap.
Stubborn sassy heroines? You bet.
Smoldering sex scenes that’ll set your Kindle on fire? Check, check, check.
Keep a fan handy, you’ll need it.
Follow the signup link below to her romance newsletter for sneak peeks, new releases, first looks, and her quirky sense of humor.
https://www.subscribepage.com/riewarr...
And, as always, happy sexy reading to you!
Badass, sassafras Rie Warren is an OG Amazon All Star author of Bad Boy books and MC romance. She delivers five star sex, suspense, and the best banter around. Her stories are one hundred percent original, do not contain fluffy plots or virgin brides, and wring every last emotion from readers to leave them with a satisfied smile. Rie’s tough alpha males are never brought to heel, but are instead healed by the feisty femme fatale of their perfect match.
She grew up in Maine, went to college in Iowa (Iowa, what?), lived in Scotland, and married in Englishman. In true roundabout fashion, they came back to the States, settled in South Carolina’s lowcountry, putting down southern roots and pursuing their arty endeavors. Tale spinner and character diviner, Rie is a lover of sleep, wine, and rude memes often involving either Disney characters or Winnie the Pooh. She is raising two teen daughters along with an entire brain full of unruly characters.
Rough-talking alpha men? Rie has that on tap.
Stubborn sassy heroines? You bet.
Smoldering sex scenes that’ll set your Kindle on fire? Check, check, check.
Keep a fan handy, you’ll need it.
Follow the signup link below to her romance newsletter for sneak peeks, new releases, first looks, and her quirky sense of humor.
https://www.subscribepage.com/riewarr...
And, as always, happy sexy reading to you!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 233 reviews
June 18, 2018
Stone: At Your Service was the first book in the Carolina Bad Boys series by Rie Warren. It was also my first book by the author.
It was told in the single POV, Josh Stone’s. Stone’s best friend was the Romance author Nicky Love. Nicky pretended to be gay at the conferences to ward off the groping women and he convinced Stone to act as his partner to lend it credence. Stone was the gorgeous, masculine, alpha mechanic who loved women, so not an easy feat to pull off, but he was loyal to Nicky.
LeeLee Songchild was a newly successful New Adult Romance writer and was attending her first conference. She was beautiful and feisty but also shy in crowds.
It was an interesting premise and Warren did a good job with providing details about the writing profession and attending conferences. I also liked the characters, both the main as well as the colorful array of supporting characters. There were too many to count but I’m hoping the series continues with the garage folks - they were quite humorous.
Unfortunately, the premise didn’t keep me pulled in and I was desiring more of a main plot between LeeLee and Stone and less of the pretend “gay” persona. So for me, it didn’t click - but it was well written so will appeal to those who connect with Warren’s writing.
I’ll definitely continue the series as I think it was just this book that didn’t draw me in and not the writing or the series. Nick, totally a favorite in this book, is up next in Love: In the Fast Lane.
It was told in the single POV, Josh Stone’s. Stone’s best friend was the Romance author Nicky Love. Nicky pretended to be gay at the conferences to ward off the groping women and he convinced Stone to act as his partner to lend it credence. Stone was the gorgeous, masculine, alpha mechanic who loved women, so not an easy feat to pull off, but he was loyal to Nicky.
LeeLee Songchild was a newly successful New Adult Romance writer and was attending her first conference. She was beautiful and feisty but also shy in crowds.
It was an interesting premise and Warren did a good job with providing details about the writing profession and attending conferences. I also liked the characters, both the main as well as the colorful array of supporting characters. There were too many to count but I’m hoping the series continues with the garage folks - they were quite humorous.
Unfortunately, the premise didn’t keep me pulled in and I was desiring more of a main plot between LeeLee and Stone and less of the pretend “gay” persona. So for me, it didn’t click - but it was well written so will appeal to those who connect with Warren’s writing.
I’ll definitely continue the series as I think it was just this book that didn’t draw me in and not the writing or the series. Nick, totally a favorite in this book, is up next in Love: In the Fast Lane.
September 14, 2014
Okay, I'll be the first to admit, I've been waiting (very impatiently) on this book and here's why. I'd stumbled upon Sugar Daddy by Warren months ago and it was my first erotica read. It opened up an entire new genre for me, I loved it so much. Her stories aren't just about sex (though her sex scenes...holy hot moly) but they are wrought with emotion, and I was hoping upon hope Stone would have the same infusion of drop-down-drag-out heartstrings-yanking that this author is known for.
Stone didn't disappoint.
I wanted to read this until my eyes wouldn't work. I swooned over Josh Stone, that manly rugged alpha male, from page one to the end. Cars and oil and sweat and male ego that didn't go overboard. Warren can write a man. And don't let soft talking, Leelee, fool you. She might be soft spoken and shy but she's tough. Really tough and she won't take crap off of anyone. More heroines should be like her. Josh is there to protect her, but she is perfectly capable of protecting herself. The story line kept me hooked and that ending was just right. Clean writing, clean (and dirty, winky winky) story, witty/hilareous dialogue, and the emotional grit that'll bring an 'awww' from your lips and a tear from your eye. I can't wait for the second book in this series. I'm officially a fan of Carolina Bad Boys. Five huge stars from me.
Stone didn't disappoint.
I wanted to read this until my eyes wouldn't work. I swooned over Josh Stone, that manly rugged alpha male, from page one to the end. Cars and oil and sweat and male ego that didn't go overboard. Warren can write a man. And don't let soft talking, Leelee, fool you. She might be soft spoken and shy but she's tough. Really tough and she won't take crap off of anyone. More heroines should be like her. Josh is there to protect her, but she is perfectly capable of protecting herself. The story line kept me hooked and that ending was just right. Clean writing, clean (and dirty, winky winky) story, witty/hilareous dialogue, and the emotional grit that'll bring an 'awww' from your lips and a tear from your eye. I can't wait for the second book in this series. I'm officially a fan of Carolina Bad Boys. Five huge stars from me.
November 28, 2015
Cute scenes with Josh and his boy. Just other things are not my taste.
dnf
November 24, 2015DNF @ 19%. This was pretty bad. When I put it with my samples there weren't that many of my friends or people that I follow that had read it, so I wanted to give it a try. I am a sucker for the single parent theme (especially single dads), and I'd have to say that the only good thing about this one at 19% was how the H was sweet and devoted to his son.
The rest is a different story. The idea is that the H is attending a romance book convention with his best friend, and is posing as his boyfriend. They go to the conference, and the women that his friend is in a Facebook group with are from all different romance genres, and are all obnoxious, horny, inappropriate, gossiping women. The H's best friend needed to fake a gay relationship and orientation because the fellow authors and readers would just grope him and be completely inappropriate to the point that he felt he needed to so they would back off. I personally have never been to one of these conventions, nor have I met any romance authors -- but I was a little offended on their behalf because it was so OTT. I feel like it might've been the authors attempt at humor, but it was just too OTT to be funny IMO.
My next issue is the homosexual stereotypes that fly around. There are different types of gay men just like there are different kinds of straight men -- and I felt like it was stupid that the H had to change so much and act in the stereotypical way. I am sure there are plenty of gay men that own garages, work on cars, and drink beer! They were so corny in their lovey talk, were affectionate, and put on PDAs so much that I was certain that the H's best friend was going to confess that he really did have romantic feelings for the H at some point in the book.
Then there is the h. She is a big contradiction because she is supposed to be shy, but she dresses like a sex kitten. She was burned by her ex-fiancé because he was cheating on and eventually left her for a man. If she ends up sleeping with the H while thinking he is gay and in a relationship it makes her no better than her ex-fiancé's OM! The H was constantly talking about his hard-on and how sexy she was at this point to where it became really annoying. I ended up closing my reading app and going on goodreads after being irritated with the storyline to see if there are other reviews, and there were. It doesn't look like it gets much better, so I am putting it on my dnf shelf...sorry...
The rest is a different story. The idea is that the H is attending a romance book convention with his best friend, and is posing as his boyfriend. They go to the conference, and the women that his friend is in a Facebook group with are from all different romance genres, and are all obnoxious, horny, inappropriate, gossiping women. The H's best friend needed to fake a gay relationship and orientation because the fellow authors and readers would just grope him and be completely inappropriate to the point that he felt he needed to so they would back off. I personally have never been to one of these conventions, nor have I met any romance authors -- but I was a little offended on their behalf because it was so OTT. I feel like it might've been the authors attempt at humor, but it was just too OTT to be funny IMO.
My next issue is the homosexual stereotypes that fly around. There are different types of gay men just like there are different kinds of straight men -- and I felt like it was stupid that the H had to change so much and act in the stereotypical way. I am sure there are plenty of gay men that own garages, work on cars, and drink beer! They were so corny in their lovey talk, were affectionate, and put on PDAs so much that I was certain that the H's best friend was going to confess that he really did have romantic feelings for the H at some point in the book.
Then there is the h. She is a big contradiction because she is supposed to be shy, but she dresses like a sex kitten. She was burned by her ex-fiancé because he was cheating on and eventually left her for a man. If she ends up sleeping with the H while thinking he is gay and in a relationship it makes her no better than her ex-fiancé's OM! The H was constantly talking about his hard-on and how sexy she was at this point to where it became really annoying. I ended up closing my reading app and going on goodreads after being irritated with the storyline to see if there are other reviews, and there were. It doesn't look like it gets much better, so I am putting it on my dnf shelf...sorry...
August 22, 2014
First off, I want to say I'm a huge fan of Rie Warren's writing style. Her ability to tell a story, engage the reader's emotions and flat-out charm the pants off you is amazing.
Now. I loved this story. I LOVED Stone. I loved Leelee. I loooooved them together. And Stone and Nicky's relationship? Stone and Nicky and JJ? Amazing.
I admit this story wasn't perfect. Neither were In His Command and Jingle Bell Rock. But ask me what the flaws were and I couldn't tell you because all I remember from those stories were the characters. I read IHC almost a year ago, and still think about Blondie and Big Man occasionally. To me, as a reader, that's what I want. Engage my heart. Make me care. Make me remember these characters forever.
Stone and Leelee weren't the best couple ever, they were flawed, but the way Stone loved her...HOLY. HAWTNESS. Don't even get me started on the sex. All. The. Sex. (Keep a fan at hand. Seriously.)
One of my biggest hang ups with some romances is I walk away not believing the heroine deserved her hero. Leelee didn't have to fight for Stone. She didn't have to battle a dragon for him. But she was possessive and lovely, sacrificing herself when needed, and I loved--loved--that
All in all, this was a flawed, imperfect, lovely, steamy hot love story between two people who genuinely loved each other and wanted the best for each other. And I love that.
OH! And don't forget to read the teaser chapter for Nicky's story at the end. Goodness, I'm psyched for that one.
Now. I loved this story. I LOVED Stone. I loved Leelee. I loooooved them together. And Stone and Nicky's relationship? Stone and Nicky and JJ? Amazing.
I admit this story wasn't perfect. Neither were In His Command and Jingle Bell Rock. But ask me what the flaws were and I couldn't tell you because all I remember from those stories were the characters. I read IHC almost a year ago, and still think about Blondie and Big Man occasionally. To me, as a reader, that's what I want. Engage my heart. Make me care. Make me remember these characters forever.
Stone and Leelee weren't the best couple ever, they were flawed, but the way Stone loved her...HOLY. HAWTNESS. Don't even get me started on the sex. All. The. Sex. (Keep a fan at hand. Seriously.)
One of my biggest hang ups with some romances is I walk away not believing the heroine deserved her hero. Leelee didn't have to fight for Stone. She didn't have to battle a dragon for him. But she was possessive and lovely, sacrificing herself when needed, and I loved--loved--that
All in all, this was a flawed, imperfect, lovely, steamy hot love story between two people who genuinely loved each other and wanted the best for each other. And I love that.
OH! And don't forget to read the teaser chapter for Nicky's story at the end. Goodness, I'm psyched for that one.
September 14, 2015
This one sadly didn't work out well for me. For a bad boy ( and I understand he needed to play a role, but still) too feminine. I could absorb that for a supposedly badass alpha male.
September 5, 2014
Its no secret I'm a huge fan of Rie Warren's. When I needed something fresh & new to read, someone mature yet hip - with a wide range and variety, and a gift for explicit sexual encounters... I met Rie. She was pimping her new release, In His Command. A genre and story line I had no interest in at all, until I opened that book!
I laugh and cry and get so pulled into her stories - I know when ever I'm reading her, or talking to her - its gonna be a good time. She has a writing style that reaches out and grabs you, sets you down in the front seat of the roller coaster with a warm southern smile, hands you an ice cold beer, then shoots ya outta the gate for a ride you'll always remember.
Everything about her writing is down to earth, home grown and southern fried, sizzle! She's easy to love and so are her stories, because she doesn't hold back anything.
Sexy, sassy, southern boys are just a lil' sum'pin not everyone gets a taste of in their lives - yet should never miss out on! Now you don't have to thanks to Rie!
Her new series "Carolina Bad Boys" is gonna charm the pants off readers of all ages - on BOTH sides of the Mason-Dixon line - Yankee girls as well as GRITS are gonna fall in love with Stone - At Your Service.
Stone. Josh Stone, The hunky, hardworking, no nonsense, confirmed bachelor, single dad, that turns to mush for his toddler sized, mini me, singing Disney show tunes on request, is totally irresistible! Toss in a hunky best friend that needs Josh to play gay couple with him for the sake of his career, and take the act on the road to a writer's convention in "Lanta - makes for plenty of hilarity, shits and giggles. But, since its the first time he's left his little guy behind, at home with his Jamma, and its a week long commitment to ignore his dick - there are moments of down right misery.
Until - Leelee Songchild arrives on the scene.
Josh's head , heart and cock have never wrapped around just one girl. Nope, Not Ever - He's never waivered with his confirmed, love 'em and leave' em bachelor status - until now. And when he waivers, holy cow! He doesn't hold back. Stone and Leelee sizzle from the moment they meet, through all the moments they try ignoring each other. Stone and Nicky are hilarious. Everyone should have a bestie like they have. The look into the writer's convention world is entertaining, fast paced and provides plenty of opportunity for anything to happen and it does!
But will Josh give up everything he's carefully built, sacrifice his sanity - AND his best friends career to have what he may want most?
I love all of Rie's characters- I love them flawed and older, a bit jaded and a lot of tough mileage on them. I love that Josh did what he had to, and Leelee was strong - like all of Rie's GRITS - and did what she had to do too. The women Rie writes are never simpering, helpless - girly girls. She writes them feminine yet strong to the core. Her men are all alpha's with a dash of animalistic need and feral protective streaks in 'em... so yeah - if you like to have a great time when you read, and enjoy meeting characters you;ll never forget - you can never go wrong with a story by Rie Warren. Hot , hunky Josh Stone was no exception, in fact I really enjoyed coming back to M/F romance with Rie - she writes it so damn well!
These sexy southern boys and their feisty GRITS are gonna be a real treat. Can't wait for the next book. Gimme some LOVE!
Five Freakin Thumbs Up - a Re-read fo sho!
I laugh and cry and get so pulled into her stories - I know when ever I'm reading her, or talking to her - its gonna be a good time. She has a writing style that reaches out and grabs you, sets you down in the front seat of the roller coaster with a warm southern smile, hands you an ice cold beer, then shoots ya outta the gate for a ride you'll always remember.
Everything about her writing is down to earth, home grown and southern fried, sizzle! She's easy to love and so are her stories, because she doesn't hold back anything.
Sexy, sassy, southern boys are just a lil' sum'pin not everyone gets a taste of in their lives - yet should never miss out on! Now you don't have to thanks to Rie!
Her new series "Carolina Bad Boys" is gonna charm the pants off readers of all ages - on BOTH sides of the Mason-Dixon line - Yankee girls as well as GRITS are gonna fall in love with Stone - At Your Service.
Stone. Josh Stone, The hunky, hardworking, no nonsense, confirmed bachelor, single dad, that turns to mush for his toddler sized, mini me, singing Disney show tunes on request, is totally irresistible! Toss in a hunky best friend that needs Josh to play gay couple with him for the sake of his career, and take the act on the road to a writer's convention in "Lanta - makes for plenty of hilarity, shits and giggles. But, since its the first time he's left his little guy behind, at home with his Jamma, and its a week long commitment to ignore his dick - there are moments of down right misery.
Until - Leelee Songchild arrives on the scene.
Josh's head , heart and cock have never wrapped around just one girl. Nope, Not Ever - He's never waivered with his confirmed, love 'em and leave' em bachelor status - until now. And when he waivers, holy cow! He doesn't hold back. Stone and Leelee sizzle from the moment they meet, through all the moments they try ignoring each other. Stone and Nicky are hilarious. Everyone should have a bestie like they have. The look into the writer's convention world is entertaining, fast paced and provides plenty of opportunity for anything to happen and it does!
But will Josh give up everything he's carefully built, sacrifice his sanity - AND his best friends career to have what he may want most?
I love all of Rie's characters- I love them flawed and older, a bit jaded and a lot of tough mileage on them. I love that Josh did what he had to, and Leelee was strong - like all of Rie's GRITS - and did what she had to do too. The women Rie writes are never simpering, helpless - girly girls. She writes them feminine yet strong to the core. Her men are all alpha's with a dash of animalistic need and feral protective streaks in 'em... so yeah - if you like to have a great time when you read, and enjoy meeting characters you;ll never forget - you can never go wrong with a story by Rie Warren. Hot , hunky Josh Stone was no exception, in fact I really enjoyed coming back to M/F romance with Rie - she writes it so damn well!
These sexy southern boys and their feisty GRITS are gonna be a real treat. Can't wait for the next book. Gimme some LOVE!
Five Freakin Thumbs Up - a Re-read fo sho!
November 14, 2015
It should be criminal to take sugar and fuck it up like that ^, just like it should be criminal to take a great story and fuck it up like this ....
I loved the shell of the story. I loved the shell of the characters. But, all the details within and how those details were presented, constantly triggered my brain 'REVOLT, REVOLT, REVOLT & RETREAT'
Male Character Confusion Revolt
Yes, I get that the male MC, Stone, was pretending to be gay for his BFF while he was actually a straight man lusting after his BFF's writer pal. I get it... I do!
Still, it's hard for the brain to not want to revolt and run away when presented with two starkly different images of the same fing character:
Do I want to go shopping for shoes and complain about the woes of my period with the feminine version of him, or
drool, pant, and swoon over him like a chihuahua in heat over the alpha male he TELLS us he is ?!?
The author failed to bring Stone out of pretend mode unless Leelee was present for him to mentally imagine fucking, and even then, it was often questionable...
"Hitting the chair, I practically chewed through my belt, unzipped lickety-split and ripped those bastards open. Shirt buttons torn aside, I glanced at the desk. Tissues, golden. Two hard tugs at my nipples and my hand brushed down my belly, onto the thick cock rearing straight up in the air."
Tell me that shit doesn't sound like a girl masturbating ~ lickety-split? Nipple tugging? Ripping his own buttons off to masturbate? Come on now?!! If a female author is going to write in a male POV, she better make damn sure he sounds male.
If an author is going to write a straight male pretending to be gay, then she better make damn sure his inner voice sounds heterosexual.
Pretend mode never shuts off, not in inner thought nor action. That's a serious problem for f/m romance readers!
Why have the two guys slapping each other's asses; talking about m/m sex; and otherwise playfully acting as lovers, not friends, would when they are alone in their hotel room and no one is there for them to be pretending for?!? It's confusing, and the author's idea of solving these awkward scenes with a 'manly' fist bump afterward did NOT do I mfing this to quell my problems.
I guess 1% should've clued me in that this ride would be nothing less than confusing:
Stone at 1% as he is laying his sexual preferences out for readers:
It happened every Friday night. I liked to screw ; ladies liked my looks.
Love 'em and leave 'em was my style....
Being ball and chained for thirty-one motherfucking months to Crazy Claire had taught me two things: expect the unexpected and keep your heart to yourself."
"He referred to the woman is made eyes with at Richard's Bar and then made love to for several hours afterward.
I'd swept my arm toward the bathroom door, thinking that was at least one gentlemanly thing to do, giving her some privacy after our fuck-fest.
So, which is it? Do you make love, or do you have fuck-fests w/ no loving involved?
Anyway...
It's tragic because I could've, should've loved this scorned single dad willing to pretend to be gay to help his buddy avoid a herd of thirsty romance authors.
Overkill Kills
Overkill has killed more great reads than I care to discuss, and this book is another victim in that long line.
I started out reading the shell of the gay farce and the rom-com setting and found quite a few chuckle moments. Then it just gets too much and too little simultaneously.
The author goes too hard at everything , from the gay pretending, the lust for Leelee, the men being mancandy for the writers, the reading book passages, the sex scene, the masturbation scene, etc etc etc. It's all just done too heavy handed to be funny, romantic, even interesting.
I think the author was going for a Rachel Van D brand of over the top humor and romance, but unlike Rachel, this author failed to balance, mellow the absurd with a tablespoon of practicality.
Female MC
The book is in Stone's POV, meaning I don't expect to connect as much with the female MC, Leelee, but I do expect more than what this author dishes.
By 48%, this is all I know about her:
• she blushes a lot
• she's a romance writer
• she's messy
• she dresses in fuck-me clothes but doesn't want attention
• she doesn't deal with crowds well
• her ex-fiancé left her for another man
• she's a cheater
That's it.
Not only do I not know jack shit about her personality, what little there is simply isn't very appealing or believable.
She is left by her fiancé for another man. From her point of view, Stone is gay and in a relationship with a fellow writer, but finds her hot and fuckable. So, what does she do?
She fucks who she believes is a gay Stone in a relationship with MAN. That one moment makes her ... Idiot? Cheater? TSTL? Glutton for pain? ~ all traits that I find unappealing!
Calling It Quits... REVOLT
Despite my research showing this author writes legit m/m romance books, I read this book because a lot of my review buddies loved it. It just didn't work for me.
Again, the shell of the story is something that could've been fanfingtab. The overkill delivery and details & character shortcomings and inconsistencies up to 50% guaranteed that this book would never crest above a 3 star.
But, when the gay-burned female MC has cheating sex with a man she believes is in a gay relationship.... Book death to 0 stars! I'm done! There can be no respect, much less a HEA, after that shit, which makes this a pointless romance.
September 24, 2014
My Review:
I adored this book, but I will tell you right up front...the character Stone is not going to be one that everyone loves. But I thought that Rie Warren set him up perfectly.
Stone is an unrepentant ladies man. He's a single dad for his 3 yo son, but Friday nights are when JJ goes to stay with Stone's mom and it's his night to get laid...with no strings attached. And he's good-looking enough that the ladies are usually okay with that. Stone narrates the story in 1st person POV so this is where he sometimes is a little hard to take...because ego much?? Yeah.
But in this book, Stone is in a totally new situation. Stone's best friend is Nicky. Nicky happens to be a romance author who is good-looking in his own right, but he's tired of getting pursued at romance conventions by horny women, so that's where Stone comes in. Stone is going with him this time to act as his gay lover. These guys are as close as heterosexual men can get without being lovers. They've been best friends forever so neither one is all that uncomfortable about having to put on this act. They seriously have a great bromance. But the entire lie (and Nicky's career) is threatened when Stone sees LeeLee, another romance author. As they get to know each other, Stone realizes that for the first time ever, he's really interested in a girl for more than sex.
This book was so fun. I loved Stone and Nicky and the entire snarky sense of humor and vibe they have between them. Almost the entire book is set at a romance writers convention and having just attended one of those a little over a month ago, I loved that about it because the characters and settings were just so right-on. I can't even tell you how many times I laughed out loud while reading the book, but it had it's heart-breaking sweet moments too that made me smile or tear up.
I loved all the parts of this book. The chemistry between LeeLee and Stone was sizzling and every single scene was perfection. I loved this book so much from the setting to the guys at Stone's auto shop. Those guys knew what he was doing on this trip and gave him a hard time about it the entire time he was going with dirty messages, watching the convention twitter feed, and with his awesome welcome home present. Way early in the book, when Stone looks like he's going to be a real jerk, there's a scene between him and his son that just melted my heart. JJ isn't just a prop in this book. JJ is Stone's entire life and seeing that amazing link between them just made me love Stone even more. I'll be honest, I don't think I've EVER seen a connection between a parent and child written better or more pure than Rie Warren did with these two. Seriously heart-melting scenes every single time Stone and JJ interacted.
I highly recommend this one and cannot wait for Nicky's book coming in December!!
I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.
I adored this book, but I will tell you right up front...the character Stone is not going to be one that everyone loves. But I thought that Rie Warren set him up perfectly.
Stone is an unrepentant ladies man. He's a single dad for his 3 yo son, but Friday nights are when JJ goes to stay with Stone's mom and it's his night to get laid...with no strings attached. And he's good-looking enough that the ladies are usually okay with that. Stone narrates the story in 1st person POV so this is where he sometimes is a little hard to take...because ego much?? Yeah.
But in this book, Stone is in a totally new situation. Stone's best friend is Nicky. Nicky happens to be a romance author who is good-looking in his own right, but he's tired of getting pursued at romance conventions by horny women, so that's where Stone comes in. Stone is going with him this time to act as his gay lover. These guys are as close as heterosexual men can get without being lovers. They've been best friends forever so neither one is all that uncomfortable about having to put on this act. They seriously have a great bromance. But the entire lie (and Nicky's career) is threatened when Stone sees LeeLee, another romance author. As they get to know each other, Stone realizes that for the first time ever, he's really interested in a girl for more than sex.
This book was so fun. I loved Stone and Nicky and the entire snarky sense of humor and vibe they have between them. Almost the entire book is set at a romance writers convention and having just attended one of those a little over a month ago, I loved that about it because the characters and settings were just so right-on. I can't even tell you how many times I laughed out loud while reading the book, but it had it's heart-breaking sweet moments too that made me smile or tear up.
I loved all the parts of this book. The chemistry between LeeLee and Stone was sizzling and every single scene was perfection. I loved this book so much from the setting to the guys at Stone's auto shop. Those guys knew what he was doing on this trip and gave him a hard time about it the entire time he was going with dirty messages, watching the convention twitter feed, and with his awesome welcome home present. Way early in the book, when Stone looks like he's going to be a real jerk, there's a scene between him and his son that just melted my heart. JJ isn't just a prop in this book. JJ is Stone's entire life and seeing that amazing link between them just made me love Stone even more. I'll be honest, I don't think I've EVER seen a connection between a parent and child written better or more pure than Rie Warren did with these two. Seriously heart-melting scenes every single time Stone and JJ interacted.
I highly recommend this one and cannot wait for Nicky's book coming in December!!
I received a complimentary copy of this book in return for an honest review.
September 22, 2014
*I received an ARC of this book and I'm giving my honest opinion.*
I have to say that I am a HUGE fan of Rie! From the first excerpt I read of In His Command I was hooked. I've read all her releases, and they just get better and better. She never fails to amaze me.
As for Stone, At Your Service -- Oh My God! I loved, loved, loved this book! It's cute and cheeky with the gay charade at the romance convention. The characters are fantastic. Stone is a total hottie alpha and Leelee is adorable but headstrong. They had just the right amount of angst to make them real and they fit together so perfectly. Can you say HOT? These two sizzle right off the page!
Love JJ and how Stone calls him "the kid." He's such a sweet boy. Stone's conversations with him are hilarious and so heartwarming! And the cast of characters -- Nicky, Jamma, the shop guys, Nicky's writer group, the Hens, Jules -- all of them added such depth and humor to the story. Topped off with a slimeball villain.
I loved every single minute of this book!
I have to say that I am a HUGE fan of Rie! From the first excerpt I read of In His Command I was hooked. I've read all her releases, and they just get better and better. She never fails to amaze me.
As for Stone, At Your Service -- Oh My God! I loved, loved, loved this book! It's cute and cheeky with the gay charade at the romance convention. The characters are fantastic. Stone is a total hottie alpha and Leelee is adorable but headstrong. They had just the right amount of angst to make them real and they fit together so perfectly. Can you say HOT? These two sizzle right off the page!
Love JJ and how Stone calls him "the kid." He's such a sweet boy. Stone's conversations with him are hilarious and so heartwarming! And the cast of characters -- Nicky, Jamma, the shop guys, Nicky's writer group, the Hens, Jules -- all of them added such depth and humor to the story. Topped off with a slimeball villain.
I loved every single minute of this book!
September 19, 2014
Overall Rating: 5 Rockin’ ★★★★★
What do you do when your best friend is an author/best seller of romance novels and needs to pretend he is gay to keep the wild women of romance off his back? You help him by going undercover as his gay lover! The whole idea that Josh Stone or Nicholas Loveland were anything but all American heterosexual men was ludicrous! Both men are men’s men with enough testosterone to run a small country between the two of them. This is where the fun, laughter and OMG did that really happen starts to go viral.
Josh Stone is a responsible father, son and overall good guy, with the exception to his Friday one night stands. His ex-wife left him, signed over all rights to their baby and disappeared. Josh loves his son with all his heart and soul and takes his job as a father seriously. He agrees to go with his BFF to a romance writers’ convention in Atlanta and protect him from all the crazy women that want a piece of Nicky Love. The first person he runs into is the woman of his dreams, the one he didn’t think he would ever find and he has to pretend to be gay and in love! What is a guy to do? Especially with a redhead, over the top sexy woman walking around in stilettoes and strutting her stuff!
Leelee is a new-comer to the industry and has just published her first novel. She is being pursued by an obnoxious agent that wants her to sign with him. Leelee did not expect to be rescued from the oily agent’s pursuit by a knight in shining armor named Stone. He made her forget her despicable ex-fiancé and want to get up close and personal with this beautiful man. Only problem she could see was the fact that he had a lover already and he was gay! What’s a girl to do when said gay guy starts getting up close and personal. Can he really want her? What is happening to her?
Will Stone be able to last a week as a gay guy to help his friend? What is he going to do about Leelee, the one he never thought he would find? This is a must read for anyone that loves a good HEA!
Hero –Josh Stone: 5 stars
Heroine –Leelee ‘Songchild’ Childes: 5 stars
Steam: 5 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Cliffhanger: No
Would I recommend this book: Yes! If you want to laugh, cry and just enjoy yourself while reading a really great romance this is the book for you! You will not be able to put it down from the moment you start reading. It really is that good!
Would I read other books by this author: Yes! Ms. Warren tells her stories with such skill that the reader is immediately enthralled. After finishing her books, I find myself hunting for another book to read by this remarkable author.
***Received an ARC of this book from the Author in exchange for an honest review***
Stone, At Your Service
Rie Warren
What do you do when your best friend is an author/best seller of romance novels and needs to pretend he is gay to keep the wild women of romance off his back? You help him by going undercover as his gay lover! The whole idea that Josh Stone or Nicholas Loveland were anything but all American heterosexual men was ludicrous! Both men are men’s men with enough testosterone to run a small country between the two of them. This is where the fun, laughter and OMG did that really happen starts to go viral.
Josh Stone is a responsible father, son and overall good guy, with the exception to his Friday one night stands. His ex-wife left him, signed over all rights to their baby and disappeared. Josh loves his son with all his heart and soul and takes his job as a father seriously. He agrees to go with his BFF to a romance writers’ convention in Atlanta and protect him from all the crazy women that want a piece of Nicky Love. The first person he runs into is the woman of his dreams, the one he didn’t think he would ever find and he has to pretend to be gay and in love! What is a guy to do? Especially with a redhead, over the top sexy woman walking around in stilettoes and strutting her stuff!
Leelee is a new-comer to the industry and has just published her first novel. She is being pursued by an obnoxious agent that wants her to sign with him. Leelee did not expect to be rescued from the oily agent’s pursuit by a knight in shining armor named Stone. He made her forget her despicable ex-fiancé and want to get up close and personal with this beautiful man. Only problem she could see was the fact that he had a lover already and he was gay! What’s a girl to do when said gay guy starts getting up close and personal. Can he really want her? What is happening to her?
Will Stone be able to last a week as a gay guy to help his friend? What is he going to do about Leelee, the one he never thought he would find? This is a must read for anyone that loves a good HEA!
Hero –Josh Stone: 5 stars
Heroine –Leelee ‘Songchild’ Childes: 5 stars
Steam: 5 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Cliffhanger: No
Would I recommend this book: Yes! If you want to laugh, cry and just enjoy yourself while reading a really great romance this is the book for you! You will not be able to put it down from the moment you start reading. It really is that good!
Would I read other books by this author: Yes! Ms. Warren tells her stories with such skill that the reader is immediately enthralled. After finishing her books, I find myself hunting for another book to read by this remarkable author.
***Received an ARC of this book from the Author in exchange for an honest review***
Stone, At Your Service
Rie Warren
September 16, 2014
Disclaimer: I was provided an ARC in exchange for an honest review
I had the honor of reading Stone: At Your Service, book 1 of Carolina Bad Boys, a new series by Rie Warren. I loved this story! I loved the fact that Josh Stone is an alpha male who is raising his son on his own, and is a true friend. Only a true friend would go to the lengths that Stone does for his childhood best friend, even when it means he might lose his chance at that one woman who makes him believe in forever again, Leelee.
The setting for the majority of the story is a week-long romance writer’s convention. I have only ever been to one of these conventions, and that was only a day, but this story makes me want to go to one that is longer just to see if the characters and drama is anywhere close to what you read in this story. There are parts of this story that will make you laugh out loud with some of the hijinks that these characters get into. At the same time there are parts of the story that will break your heart and make you hope, pray and wish that Stone and Leelee can finally come together and find the happy ending that they both so richly deserve.
Stone is a story that is both funny and passionate. There is just as much passion and sexual tension and there is comedy. The story ends leaving you panting and wanting more. The wait for book 2 just might make you combust, at least it is only a few months until book 2.
Stone comes out on September 25th, so go reserve your copy now!
I had the honor of reading Stone: At Your Service, book 1 of Carolina Bad Boys, a new series by Rie Warren. I loved this story! I loved the fact that Josh Stone is an alpha male who is raising his son on his own, and is a true friend. Only a true friend would go to the lengths that Stone does for his childhood best friend, even when it means he might lose his chance at that one woman who makes him believe in forever again, Leelee.
The setting for the majority of the story is a week-long romance writer’s convention. I have only ever been to one of these conventions, and that was only a day, but this story makes me want to go to one that is longer just to see if the characters and drama is anywhere close to what you read in this story. There are parts of this story that will make you laugh out loud with some of the hijinks that these characters get into. At the same time there are parts of the story that will break your heart and make you hope, pray and wish that Stone and Leelee can finally come together and find the happy ending that they both so richly deserve.
Stone is a story that is both funny and passionate. There is just as much passion and sexual tension and there is comedy. The story ends leaving you panting and wanting more. The wait for book 2 just might make you combust, at least it is only a few months until book 2.
Stone comes out on September 25th, so go reserve your copy now!
September 20, 2014
Recieved an ARC in exchange for an honest review so here we go...
LOVED IT! What I loved most about it was it was from a male POV. Rie is known for other male POVs like her "In His Command" series BUT that's a m/m start off and her short story "Jingle Bell Rock" is also m/m so you expect it BUT not so much from a m/f story.
The interaction between Josh (Stone) and Nicky cracked me up and I thouroughly enjoyed their antics with each other. They have a real sense of true friendship through thick and thin. "The kid" aka JJ is so stinking cute! All the supporting characters from his mom, to the guys at the garage were very well developed. Josh loves them all and yeah he has an alpha caveman attitude and appeal but doesn't let that cloud his thinking when dealing with real life situations or being the best father he can be to his son.
The love scenes...YOWZA! Rie never disaponts when needing to burn up the sheets, desk, car hood, wall, you name it! The passionate monky lust Josh and Leelee have is electric and its raw and open and no holds bared when needing to tell the other how much then need each other. Leelee is quarky and sweet and so very stuborn and I was affraid at one point in the beginning that she would be too stuborn but she got her act together. The story flowwed and I didnt want to put it down when i needed to and I highly recommend this series and all of Rie Warrens works!
LOVED IT! What I loved most about it was it was from a male POV. Rie is known for other male POVs like her "In His Command" series BUT that's a m/m start off and her short story "Jingle Bell Rock" is also m/m so you expect it BUT not so much from a m/f story.
The interaction between Josh (Stone) and Nicky cracked me up and I thouroughly enjoyed their antics with each other. They have a real sense of true friendship through thick and thin. "The kid" aka JJ is so stinking cute! All the supporting characters from his mom, to the guys at the garage were very well developed. Josh loves them all and yeah he has an alpha caveman attitude and appeal but doesn't let that cloud his thinking when dealing with real life situations or being the best father he can be to his son.
The love scenes...YOWZA! Rie never disaponts when needing to burn up the sheets, desk, car hood, wall, you name it! The passionate monky lust Josh and Leelee have is electric and its raw and open and no holds bared when needing to tell the other how much then need each other. Leelee is quarky and sweet and so very stuborn and I was affraid at one point in the beginning that she would be too stuborn but she got her act together. The story flowwed and I didnt want to put it down when i needed to and I highly recommend this series and all of Rie Warrens works!
September 13, 2014
Stone, At Your Service is an erotic contemporary romance which sees bad boy mechanic Josh Stone agreeing to play his best friend’s gay boyfriend at a writers’ convention. While there, he meets Leelee, a shy woman who writes sexy romance, and the woman he soon isn’t prepared to let walk out of his life.
This is hot romance with a fabulous cast and a riveting storyline. Stone is a single dad, and the relationship between him and his young son is gorgeous. Add in Leelee, the woman who’s perfect for him and his kid, and you’ll find yourself rooting for Stone and Leelee to sort the lies from the chaos their relationship began with, and to find a way to make things work out.
This is a sexy and real read where the attraction between two people can’t be denied, but it also includes an in-depth layer that shows just how life keeps on going for the characters when things don’t go as planned.
My thanks goes to the author for a riveting read. You gave me a rugged and loving hero to root for, a man with a streak of fire and yet a surprising amount of vulnerability. He didn’t always get things right, but then who really does?
This is hot romance with a fabulous cast and a riveting storyline. Stone is a single dad, and the relationship between him and his young son is gorgeous. Add in Leelee, the woman who’s perfect for him and his kid, and you’ll find yourself rooting for Stone and Leelee to sort the lies from the chaos their relationship began with, and to find a way to make things work out.
This is a sexy and real read where the attraction between two people can’t be denied, but it also includes an in-depth layer that shows just how life keeps on going for the characters when things don’t go as planned.
My thanks goes to the author for a riveting read. You gave me a rugged and loving hero to root for, a man with a streak of fire and yet a surprising amount of vulnerability. He didn’t always get things right, but then who really does?
September 15, 2014
I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
First off: HOT HOT HOT!
Stone is a good guy, a rough and tough cocoa puff, loyal and kind. He's also a man whore.
That said, if he's your friend, he'll do anything for you. Stone's love for his son warmed my heart and gave me the warm and fuzzies too!
Hence the premise of the story. His friend Nicky is a romance writer, needs a "gay" boyfriend to keep the sassy women at bay at a writers convention. Enter Stone at Nicky's service.
Long story short, they go "gay" to the convention, of course Stone meets Leelee, another writer, and his world tips on it's axis.
How can he bang her when he's supposedly gay?
That's when all the good sexy stuff that Rie excels at starts to happen. Jacking off in showers, jacking off in front of Leelee... yeah, Stone is a horn dog. And I love him for it!
It's actually quite comical to see what they go through, and seeing Stone suffer was somewhat enjoyable as well.
I don't want to give any more information and ruin the story but lets just say, the horn dog meets his match and the end is the sweetest thing I've ever read!
Read it, you won't be sorry.
First off: HOT HOT HOT!
Stone is a good guy, a rough and tough cocoa puff, loyal and kind. He's also a man whore.
That said, if he's your friend, he'll do anything for you. Stone's love for his son warmed my heart and gave me the warm and fuzzies too!
Hence the premise of the story. His friend Nicky is a romance writer, needs a "gay" boyfriend to keep the sassy women at bay at a writers convention. Enter Stone at Nicky's service.
Long story short, they go "gay" to the convention, of course Stone meets Leelee, another writer, and his world tips on it's axis.
How can he bang her when he's supposedly gay?
That's when all the good sexy stuff that Rie excels at starts to happen. Jacking off in showers, jacking off in front of Leelee... yeah, Stone is a horn dog. And I love him for it!
It's actually quite comical to see what they go through, and seeing Stone suffer was somewhat enjoyable as well.
I don't want to give any more information and ruin the story but lets just say, the horn dog meets his match and the end is the sweetest thing I've ever read!
Read it, you won't be sorry.
May 27, 2015
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
5 stars (times 2)
I NEED to give this book 10 stars. What.A.Great.Book!!!! Written from the perspective of Josh/Stone, there are some great moments of hilarity perfectly balanced with some amazingly hot action (in the book as well as in the book in the book). It’s a story of life imitating art, in the sexiest ways…
This book is written from the male perspective, being exposed to a female-dominated slice of the universe. Josh and Nick attend the Litluv writers convention as a gay couple to help convince Nick’s colleagues that he is indeed gay. It’s hard for a man to break into the romace novel industry, writing from a female’s perspective! Josh is a seriously great friend, willing to take one for the team, a.k.a., Nick. Nick has always been there for him and his son. Shoot, he might as well be his brother, having grown up in the Stone household. You know your relationship is beyond tight when you offer to be a gay lover to your best friend, even being willing to plant a wet (albeit sexy) smooch on your bestie in front of a crowd of people and enter a cover model contest. Josh’s “gay alter” ego, Stone, is just as sexy!!
While Josh is fulfilling his best friend duties, he stumbles upon the woman of his wet dreams. Could she be the women of his waking dreams, too? He knows he wants her, but can he take the risk of acting upon his hetero tendencies without outing his faux gay relationship?
Leelee is all sorts of pin-up sweet and sexy. She is written with a perfect blend of innocence and sex kitten…just enough to entice Josh and drive him crazy with her written words. You’ll love the “hens” and the “widows” at the conference. From the hen mauling, literary acronym soup to the supportive spouses, you’ll get a massive kick out of the type of characters who frequent this genre of writers convention. Getting a glimpse of what a convention is like makes you wish you could attend one. Maybe Josh (or Stone) and Nick will be there?!
There are scenes that will make you giggle and others that may require a change of underwear. All of it is excellently written and completely worthy of a second read. There is a second book in the series about Nick. If it’s even half as good as Warren’s first one, then it will be a hit!
5 stars (times 2)
I NEED to give this book 10 stars. What.A.Great.Book!!!! Written from the perspective of Josh/Stone, there are some great moments of hilarity perfectly balanced with some amazingly hot action (in the book as well as in the book in the book). It’s a story of life imitating art, in the sexiest ways…
This book is written from the male perspective, being exposed to a female-dominated slice of the universe. Josh and Nick attend the Litluv writers convention as a gay couple to help convince Nick’s colleagues that he is indeed gay. It’s hard for a man to break into the romace novel industry, writing from a female’s perspective! Josh is a seriously great friend, willing to take one for the team, a.k.a., Nick. Nick has always been there for him and his son. Shoot, he might as well be his brother, having grown up in the Stone household. You know your relationship is beyond tight when you offer to be a gay lover to your best friend, even being willing to plant a wet (albeit sexy) smooch on your bestie in front of a crowd of people and enter a cover model contest. Josh’s “gay alter” ego, Stone, is just as sexy!!
While Josh is fulfilling his best friend duties, he stumbles upon the woman of his wet dreams. Could she be the women of his waking dreams, too? He knows he wants her, but can he take the risk of acting upon his hetero tendencies without outing his faux gay relationship?
Leelee is all sorts of pin-up sweet and sexy. She is written with a perfect blend of innocence and sex kitten…just enough to entice Josh and drive him crazy with her written words. You’ll love the “hens” and the “widows” at the conference. From the hen mauling, literary acronym soup to the supportive spouses, you’ll get a massive kick out of the type of characters who frequent this genre of writers convention. Getting a glimpse of what a convention is like makes you wish you could attend one. Maybe Josh (or Stone) and Nick will be there?!
There are scenes that will make you giggle and others that may require a change of underwear. All of it is excellently written and completely worthy of a second read. There is a second book in the series about Nick. If it’s even half as good as Warren’s first one, then it will be a hit!
September 21, 2014
"Hell on wheels meets Hell in high heels." HELL YEAH!
Stone, AT Your Service is the first book in the new Carolina Bad Boys series by Rie Warren, who is also the author of the Don't Tell and Sugar Daddy series. I have only read the former, but I can almost certainly guarantee it is quite different from both.
Our first 'bad boy' is Josh Stone. Mechanic, proud owner of his dad's shop, single dad... and gay for a week thanks to his best friend Nicky, for whom our Stone would do just about anything. Nicky is a writer, and has lied, saying he is gay to shed the playboy attention and sell more books. But after his writing group started hassling him, he's forced to take a boyfriend to the next convention, and so he enlists his friend, who had sworn off serious relationships after his baby mama left him. What neither of them expected was LeeLee Songchild, a new author who has Josh instantly captivated by her sweet yet feisty personality.
I might have to confess, I think I'm addicted to serious stories, because I had a hard time getting into the easy, playful mood of this one, especially compared to the Don't Tell series, which is much darker, and also more urgently paced, which this isn't, and I really missed that. But this really comes to life at a point, when you start to know the characters and really understand their stories, and then the story starts gaining more pace as well. Besides, this really packs a lot of fun, playful banter, which everyone knows I die for, as well as really hot, steamy sex.
Now, I don't want to spoil no one, but one of the things I really adored was the inclusion of passages from LeeLee's book, Ride. I wish Rie had explored that a bit more, or that she actually finishes it and publishes it on the side.
As for the rest, it's different, but I really like it. And I can't wait for the next one!
Stone, AT Your Service is the first book in the new Carolina Bad Boys series by Rie Warren, who is also the author of the Don't Tell and Sugar Daddy series. I have only read the former, but I can almost certainly guarantee it is quite different from both.
Our first 'bad boy' is Josh Stone. Mechanic, proud owner of his dad's shop, single dad... and gay for a week thanks to his best friend Nicky, for whom our Stone would do just about anything. Nicky is a writer, and has lied, saying he is gay to shed the playboy attention and sell more books. But after his writing group started hassling him, he's forced to take a boyfriend to the next convention, and so he enlists his friend, who had sworn off serious relationships after his baby mama left him. What neither of them expected was LeeLee Songchild, a new author who has Josh instantly captivated by her sweet yet feisty personality.
I might have to confess, I think I'm addicted to serious stories, because I had a hard time getting into the easy, playful mood of this one, especially compared to the Don't Tell series, which is much darker, and also more urgently paced, which this isn't, and I really missed that. But this really comes to life at a point, when you start to know the characters and really understand their stories, and then the story starts gaining more pace as well. Besides, this really packs a lot of fun, playful banter, which everyone knows I die for, as well as really hot, steamy sex.
Now, I don't want to spoil no one, but one of the things I really adored was the inclusion of passages from LeeLee's book, Ride. I wish Rie had explored that a bit more, or that she actually finishes it and publishes it on the side.
As for the rest, it's different, but I really like it. And I can't wait for the next one!
August 2, 2015
⭐️⭐️ 4.5 Stars ⭐️⭐️
* * * POSSIBLE SPOILERS * * *
♦️BOOK: #1 in CAROLINA BAD BOYS series. Can be read as a Standalone. 280 pages.
♦️POV: first person, HERO
♦️WRITING: very good - different, edgy & humorous
♦️EDITING: very good - no errors found
♦️HERO: Josh Stone, 32--Mechanic, business owner. Single father to a 3 year old son. Short dark blond hair, hazel eyes, perpetual dark stubble, 6'3, muscular, manwhore, macho but very sweet with his son.
♦️HEROINE: Leelee Childes aka Leelee Songchild, 27--New Adult Romance author. Southern. Wears pretty dresses, high heels, wigs. Long wavy light red hair, green eyes, curvy, feisty. Strong, likable h.
"Leelee was a slob. Either that or she had some kind of personality disorder where she needed to see all of her belongings at once."
♦️PLOT: Tough-guy Josh agrees to help his author best friend out by pretending to be his lover/partner for a week at a romance convention. While there, he meets the beautiful author Leelee Songchild and wants her desperately but can't break his character and disappoint his friend. The two just can't stay away from each other and share some very sexy times. Meanwhile, Leelee has someone out to get her.
♦️REVIEW: I really enjoyed this funny and sexy book! It was different reading it entirely through the H's POV but I really liked it. Loved all the characters including Josh's son, mother, bestie, and co-workers. Can't wait to read Josh's best friends' book up next!
♦️STEAM: HOT, 4/5
♦️ENDING: HEA, No epilogue, No cliffhanger
♦️QUOTE:
“I am not going clean-shaved. It hides my weak chin,” I grumbled quietly."
* * * POSSIBLE SPOILERS * * *
♦️BOOK: #1 in CAROLINA BAD BOYS series. Can be read as a Standalone. 280 pages.
♦️POV: first person, HERO
♦️WRITING: very good - different, edgy & humorous
♦️EDITING: very good - no errors found
♦️HERO: Josh Stone, 32--Mechanic, business owner. Single father to a 3 year old son. Short dark blond hair, hazel eyes, perpetual dark stubble, 6'3, muscular, manwhore, macho but very sweet with his son.
♦️HEROINE: Leelee Childes aka Leelee Songchild, 27--New Adult Romance author. Southern. Wears pretty dresses, high heels, wigs. Long wavy light red hair, green eyes, curvy, feisty. Strong, likable h.
"Leelee was a slob. Either that or she had some kind of personality disorder where she needed to see all of her belongings at once."
♦️PLOT: Tough-guy Josh agrees to help his author best friend out by pretending to be his lover/partner for a week at a romance convention. While there, he meets the beautiful author Leelee Songchild and wants her desperately but can't break his character and disappoint his friend. The two just can't stay away from each other and share some very sexy times. Meanwhile, Leelee has someone out to get her.
♦️REVIEW: I really enjoyed this funny and sexy book! It was different reading it entirely through the H's POV but I really liked it. Loved all the characters including Josh's son, mother, bestie, and co-workers. Can't wait to read Josh's best friends' book up next!
♦️STEAM: HOT, 4/5
♦️ENDING: HEA, No epilogue, No cliffhanger
♦️QUOTE:
“I am not going clean-shaved. It hides my weak chin,” I grumbled quietly."
September 15, 2014
4.5 Star Review
Josh promised his best friend a favor, if it includes pretending to be his gay lover then so be it he owes him big after everything he's done for him. Rule number 1 though, no showing attention To any girls, which even for a manwhore like Josh Shouldn't be a problem...until she walks in and screws everything up just by being in the Same room with him. Leelee is the new kid on the author block but her curves and attitude are anything but childlike and Josh just can't seem to stay away no matter what promises he made.
Josh Stone is a mans man, he loves getting dirty and playing even dirtier. He's sweet and caring when it comes to his family and friends and he'll doing anything for them. When it comes to his personal life it's all about his son, women have no place with him except his Friday nights scratching the itch when is son is staying at his Jammas, for a woman to get past his guard she'll have to be something special and I loved seeing Leelee tear them down without even realizing it.
I loved seeing the push pull Between these two. With allot of steam and lust and ever more comedy there's something fun on every page. Great start to a series and I can't wait to Nicky Love and his story!
September 22, 2014
This book was satisfying on so many levels. Josh Stone is a man’s man, rough, gruff, no-nonsense. He’s the kind of book boyfriend women are really looking for. But this single dad loves his young son, is great to his mother, and fair but funny with his employees and friends. All of these trait leads him to agree to help his friend Nicky Love, by pretending to be his boyfriend at a convention of romance novelists. As they say, the road to ... well, you know where... is paved with good intentions. Because Josh isn’t at the convention for two minutes when he meets the one woman he’s convinced is right for him. Except, he’s supposed to be gay. How in the world can he pursue Leelee Songchild without ruining things for his lifelong friend, Nick. It’s a tangled mess with equal parts of fun, frivolity and hot, hot romance.
Rie Warren has an amazing grasp of writing from a man’s perspective. Not only that, she has created a secondary cast of characters that almost stole the show. I found myself loving them on the page as much as I loved Stone himself. By the time I finished reading this book, my cheeks hurt from laughing and smiling so much.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
Rie Warren has an amazing grasp of writing from a man’s perspective. Not only that, she has created a secondary cast of characters that almost stole the show. I found myself loving them on the page as much as I loved Stone himself. By the time I finished reading this book, my cheeks hurt from laughing and smiling so much.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
August 18, 2016
Mechanic and single father, Josh Stone would do anything for his best friend Nicky, even pretend to be gay at a romance writers convention. Josh figures this will be the first vacation since he had his son and although the women will be off limits, he can still enjoy the scenery. He didn't expect to meet budding new author LeeLee Songchild though.
Although Josh tries to stay away, the hot tempered yet shy woman pulls him in. Josh figures he can bide his time, but everything about LeeLee makes him want to act on it. He can't betray his friend by revealing his secret but at the same time he could end up losing the woman who is meant to be his.
This was a fun read. I liked all the different personalities at the writers convention, they were a hoot. Josh was pure alpha male when it came to LeeLee and she is equally enamored by him, but he is sending mixed signals. Looks like there could be a ton of books to read in this series in the future.
Although Josh tries to stay away, the hot tempered yet shy woman pulls him in. Josh figures he can bide his time, but everything about LeeLee makes him want to act on it. He can't betray his friend by revealing his secret but at the same time he could end up losing the woman who is meant to be his.
This was a fun read. I liked all the different personalities at the writers convention, they were a hoot. Josh was pure alpha male when it came to LeeLee and she is equally enamored by him, but he is sending mixed signals. Looks like there could be a ton of books to read in this series in the future.
November 20, 2014
4.5 Stars
September 26, 2014
** JOSIE'S 4 STAR REVIEW **
Stone at Your Service by Rie Warren was a funny and delightful read. The author gives readers, drama, a really hot sexy as h*** Southern bad Boy, LOL moments and my favorite – romance authors UNCENSORED. This story was different in that this is told in a man’s POV. Josh is a single divorced father, he owns a garage that details foreign cars and he loves the ladies but only for a night. His best friend is a romance writer who poses as a gay author that writes about sex. He enlist Stone’s help for a convention. He wants them to pretend to be gay lovers. Sounds easy right – Wrong. Stone is about to have is life changed forever.
Stone is bought along to help Nicky preserve the appearance he’s established. He needs his help to keep the throng of female fans and a group of groping author ladies at bay. These women are so funny, they have ZERO filter. Let me just say the author nailed those characters to the tee. These women reminded me of my friends and how we are when we are chatting on PM – we have ZERO FILTER. I felt like I was at this convention with them.
“Stone, foreign car dealer.”
“Swoon.”
“More like sex on legs.”
“I’d love to suspend him in a hogtie and try out my new Evil Stick on those thighs.”
“Ice girls, I need ice!”
“Was it something Nicky did to you last night? Did he pounce on you as soon as you walked through the door? I always figure him for a freak in the bed.”
Stone is really playing up the gay lover part really well until Leelee enters, he wants her. Leelee is a new comer into the NA hot reads world and is welcomed into the fold, as such Stone and Leelee end of spending time together. Stone is in a bad place. He promised his best friend he would help him but Leelee brings out a primal need in Stone, one that he cannot ignore. She is blunt, caring, sexy and overall interesting to him and the more he gets to know her the more he wants to have her. It should be easy, if only he wasn’t playing the role of a Nicky’s boyfriend. I really enjoyed that the author showed readers the inner monologue with Stone. We are able to see the immediate turmoil he was in when dealing with Leelee.
“Danger zone, danger zone. My legs twitched, my cock throbbed, and I fought down the animal inside. Bad move, bad move. The side of me that wanted to protect her from pain warred with the part that wanted to prowl all over her body.”
The convention itself was funny, these side characters were odd, totally hysterical and they really added a bit more excitement to this read. I could wait to see what they were going to come out with next. The story has betrayal, a scheming perverted book publisher and plenty of dirty raunchy sex and foreplay. Leelee was the perfect woman for Stone; she knew what she wanted and did not hold back.
Stone is hot, there is no other way to describe him. He is an awesome father, son, boss and friend. Life handed him a difficult hand, instead of letting it destroy him he became the best dad to his son JJ. He loves his son fiercely and give him anything and all of himself, just like he does to all that are close to him. He also has this amazing, loving and close relationship with his mother. I loved that the author gave us parents who were not the cause of MC’s past pains, but who are the force for him to be a better person and father.
“I downloaded it to my Nookie thingy, and mah Lord, that girl can write! Her books hotter than my kitchen on ninety-degree day.”
“It’s called a Nook. And you can follow Leelee on Facebook, Twitter, everywhere.”
“I already googled her, so don’t treat me like I don’t know anything about the Machine, sonny.”
“Baby boy, its late.”
“I had a wightmare, Daddy. You didn’t come back from L’Ana.”
“I’m always coming home to you, kid. Always.”
“Yeah but I still can’t fwy to Momma.”
“I don’t want you to fwy to her, kid, okay? You stay with me. I’ll always take care of you.”
I really loved Leelee’s character. She had a little bit of everything to her. She was shy, insecure but at the same time she was aggressive, tough and when it came to sex she was 100% in. The story showed us the positive effect Stone had on Leelee. He bought out the passion and force out of her. Let me say when these two finally get in on, GEESH – HAWT HAWT HAWT.
“Take it off, take the top off, Leelee. Fuckin gorgeous, babe. Let’s see that pretty pu**y, babe.”
“I want to suck your c*** right. Stand up so I can get on my knees.”
“Want this, babe?”
“I want your c*** in the back of my throat.”
“Open up, Lick it. Yeah, lick it hard.”
“I can go as hard as you want, You just have to ask me for it.”
“Please, Josh, please. F*** me.”
“If any man touches you again, I’m gonna kill him.”
The writing style of this book is different. It was funny, not a typical love story and the author left nothing to the imagination with these characters. You know things are going to go from bad to worse sooner or later, but the author wrote it in a way where I just felt sad. Leelee has been hurt in the past and she doesn’t trust men easily. When Stone and Nick’s truth comes out, will Leelee be able to forgive the betrayal? Will Stone be able to keep the one woman who makes him feel complete? Will Nick loose his credibility as a writer? This is definitely one worth picking up.
Stone at Your Service by Rie Warren was a funny and delightful read. The author gives readers, drama, a really hot sexy as h*** Southern bad Boy, LOL moments and my favorite – romance authors UNCENSORED. This story was different in that this is told in a man’s POV. Josh is a single divorced father, he owns a garage that details foreign cars and he loves the ladies but only for a night. His best friend is a romance writer who poses as a gay author that writes about sex. He enlist Stone’s help for a convention. He wants them to pretend to be gay lovers. Sounds easy right – Wrong. Stone is about to have is life changed forever.
Stone is bought along to help Nicky preserve the appearance he’s established. He needs his help to keep the throng of female fans and a group of groping author ladies at bay. These women are so funny, they have ZERO filter. Let me just say the author nailed those characters to the tee. These women reminded me of my friends and how we are when we are chatting on PM – we have ZERO FILTER. I felt like I was at this convention with them.
“Stone, foreign car dealer.”
“Swoon.”
“More like sex on legs.”
“I’d love to suspend him in a hogtie and try out my new Evil Stick on those thighs.”
“Ice girls, I need ice!”
“Was it something Nicky did to you last night? Did he pounce on you as soon as you walked through the door? I always figure him for a freak in the bed.”
Stone is really playing up the gay lover part really well until Leelee enters, he wants her. Leelee is a new comer into the NA hot reads world and is welcomed into the fold, as such Stone and Leelee end of spending time together. Stone is in a bad place. He promised his best friend he would help him but Leelee brings out a primal need in Stone, one that he cannot ignore. She is blunt, caring, sexy and overall interesting to him and the more he gets to know her the more he wants to have her. It should be easy, if only he wasn’t playing the role of a Nicky’s boyfriend. I really enjoyed that the author showed readers the inner monologue with Stone. We are able to see the immediate turmoil he was in when dealing with Leelee.
“Danger zone, danger zone. My legs twitched, my cock throbbed, and I fought down the animal inside. Bad move, bad move. The side of me that wanted to protect her from pain warred with the part that wanted to prowl all over her body.”
The convention itself was funny, these side characters were odd, totally hysterical and they really added a bit more excitement to this read. I could wait to see what they were going to come out with next. The story has betrayal, a scheming perverted book publisher and plenty of dirty raunchy sex and foreplay. Leelee was the perfect woman for Stone; she knew what she wanted and did not hold back.
Stone is hot, there is no other way to describe him. He is an awesome father, son, boss and friend. Life handed him a difficult hand, instead of letting it destroy him he became the best dad to his son JJ. He loves his son fiercely and give him anything and all of himself, just like he does to all that are close to him. He also has this amazing, loving and close relationship with his mother. I loved that the author gave us parents who were not the cause of MC’s past pains, but who are the force for him to be a better person and father.
“I downloaded it to my Nookie thingy, and mah Lord, that girl can write! Her books hotter than my kitchen on ninety-degree day.”
“It’s called a Nook. And you can follow Leelee on Facebook, Twitter, everywhere.”
“I already googled her, so don’t treat me like I don’t know anything about the Machine, sonny.”
“Baby boy, its late.”
“I had a wightmare, Daddy. You didn’t come back from L’Ana.”
“I’m always coming home to you, kid. Always.”
“Yeah but I still can’t fwy to Momma.”
“I don’t want you to fwy to her, kid, okay? You stay with me. I’ll always take care of you.”
I really loved Leelee’s character. She had a little bit of everything to her. She was shy, insecure but at the same time she was aggressive, tough and when it came to sex she was 100% in. The story showed us the positive effect Stone had on Leelee. He bought out the passion and force out of her. Let me say when these two finally get in on, GEESH – HAWT HAWT HAWT.
“Take it off, take the top off, Leelee. Fuckin gorgeous, babe. Let’s see that pretty pu**y, babe.”
“I want to suck your c*** right. Stand up so I can get on my knees.”
“Want this, babe?”
“I want your c*** in the back of my throat.”
“Open up, Lick it. Yeah, lick it hard.”
“I can go as hard as you want, You just have to ask me for it.”
“Please, Josh, please. F*** me.”
“If any man touches you again, I’m gonna kill him.”
The writing style of this book is different. It was funny, not a typical love story and the author left nothing to the imagination with these characters. You know things are going to go from bad to worse sooner or later, but the author wrote it in a way where I just felt sad. Leelee has been hurt in the past and she doesn’t trust men easily. When Stone and Nick’s truth comes out, will Leelee be able to forgive the betrayal? Will Stone be able to keep the one woman who makes him feel complete? Will Nick loose his credibility as a writer? This is definitely one worth picking up.
September 18, 2014
Josh Stone is a divorced, single father, garage owner, and ladies' man when he finds the time. When he agrees to pose as his best friend Nicky's gay boyfriend for a romance writer's convention, he has no idea how it is going to affect his life.
First of all they aren't gay. Nicky needs Josh to help perpetuate his image that he has created to go along with his pen name and to protect him from legions of female fans and a group of groping author ladies.
"From skirt--chasin' rogue to queer and en vogue overnight, Josh? I'm impressed."
But when Josh meets one of these ladies in the group, he just wants to grope her himself. Her name is LeeLee Songchild and she writes hot NA reads. Soon they are thrust together at convention events and Josh is in between a rock and a hard place. He has finally met a woman that excites and truly interests him that he could even see bringing home to Ma and his son...but she is supposed to be off limits and he is supposed to be in a happy gay relationship.
I walked away mesmerized by her feminine--f***--me appearance up to her goddamn adorable face. A killer combination. Full throttle attraction the likes of which I'd never felt made my head spin, my heart speed. And there was no way I could act on it because I'd just signed up for five and half days of Gaydom at the Rom Con.
There is a crazy cast of quirky characters at the convention. There is lots of subterfuge, lies, hidden agendas, and adventures. Josh fell fast for LeeLee, but it was made difficult by his perceived gayness and her past history.
Josh was a rough talking alpha who also was an awesome dad, son and friend. He loved those close to him fiercely. I loved his interactions with his young son...they just melted my heart. And he was such a Mama's boy and he was a really good friend to do all he did for Nicky. His relationships with his friends from the garage were hilarious but you could also tell how much of a family they were. His adventures in the writing world were funny showing off some of the stereotypes and general fandom craziness. It was interesting to see his reactions to LeeLee as she got to him like no other woman had before.
LeeLee was a bit of an enigma. She could be shy and unsure, and feisty and tough. Se had fears and insecurities and hid behind facades as needed. But she had an underlying passion and intensity about her. She had been burned in the past and was scared of getting hurt again.
"You are everything I want and nothing I can have."
Together they were in a big mess and under a microscope. They should have been off limits, but found resistance futile. Their chemistry was off the charts. But there were plenty of eyes on them.
Is their connection strong enough to survive all of the lies?
This was told in Josh's point of view and his rough, country boy, macho voice. The writing style is a little different..funny, course, quirky, and a no nonsense style. At times I had a hard time with the pacing of the story. It seemed a bit long and dragged in places and went fast in others. I liked the characters, but sometimes shook my head at their actions and was not sure that the actions made sense with the plot going on. If I had been LeeLee I think I probably would have run for the hills due to all of the questionable situations surrounding him. It was humorous, entertaining, and had a whole lot of craziness, but there were also some sweet, sexy, and romantic moments too. And even though it was not perfect, I realize thinking back what a fondness I have developed for these characters. The next book was teased in this one and will be called Love in the Fast Lane and will be Nicky and Cat's story. I think Nicky has his work cut out for him.
I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.
First of all they aren't gay. Nicky needs Josh to help perpetuate his image that he has created to go along with his pen name and to protect him from legions of female fans and a group of groping author ladies.
"From skirt--chasin' rogue to queer and en vogue overnight, Josh? I'm impressed."
But when Josh meets one of these ladies in the group, he just wants to grope her himself. Her name is LeeLee Songchild and she writes hot NA reads. Soon they are thrust together at convention events and Josh is in between a rock and a hard place. He has finally met a woman that excites and truly interests him that he could even see bringing home to Ma and his son...but she is supposed to be off limits and he is supposed to be in a happy gay relationship.
I walked away mesmerized by her feminine--f***--me appearance up to her goddamn adorable face. A killer combination. Full throttle attraction the likes of which I'd never felt made my head spin, my heart speed. And there was no way I could act on it because I'd just signed up for five and half days of Gaydom at the Rom Con.
There is a crazy cast of quirky characters at the convention. There is lots of subterfuge, lies, hidden agendas, and adventures. Josh fell fast for LeeLee, but it was made difficult by his perceived gayness and her past history.
Josh was a rough talking alpha who also was an awesome dad, son and friend. He loved those close to him fiercely. I loved his interactions with his young son...they just melted my heart. And he was such a Mama's boy and he was a really good friend to do all he did for Nicky. His relationships with his friends from the garage were hilarious but you could also tell how much of a family they were. His adventures in the writing world were funny showing off some of the stereotypes and general fandom craziness. It was interesting to see his reactions to LeeLee as she got to him like no other woman had before.
LeeLee was a bit of an enigma. She could be shy and unsure, and feisty and tough. Se had fears and insecurities and hid behind facades as needed. But she had an underlying passion and intensity about her. She had been burned in the past and was scared of getting hurt again.
"You are everything I want and nothing I can have."
Together they were in a big mess and under a microscope. They should have been off limits, but found resistance futile. Their chemistry was off the charts. But there were plenty of eyes on them.
Is their connection strong enough to survive all of the lies?
This was told in Josh's point of view and his rough, country boy, macho voice. The writing style is a little different..funny, course, quirky, and a no nonsense style. At times I had a hard time with the pacing of the story. It seemed a bit long and dragged in places and went fast in others. I liked the characters, but sometimes shook my head at their actions and was not sure that the actions made sense with the plot going on. If I had been LeeLee I think I probably would have run for the hills due to all of the questionable situations surrounding him. It was humorous, entertaining, and had a whole lot of craziness, but there were also some sweet, sexy, and romantic moments too. And even though it was not perfect, I realize thinking back what a fondness I have developed for these characters. The next book was teased in this one and will be called Love in the Fast Lane and will be Nicky and Cat's story. I think Nicky has his work cut out for him.
I was gifted a copy in exchange for an honest review.
October 4, 2014
Review Originally Posted at: Book Freak
PURCHASE IT ►►► AMAZON
Rating: 4.5 Stars
I had so much fun reading this book, over-half of it I was grinning or laughing. There were a lot of LOL moments, especially between Josh and Nicky- not to mention the mechanics from Stone’s who love to rile Josh up from miles away, and the crazy, lovely women in the book conference – this book has been a blast.
What can’t you not do for a friend?
I can’t believe alpha, bad-boy, uber sexy mechanic Josh Stone agreed to be his best buddy’s gay conference during a romance writer’s convention. Both of them were hotter than the sun, and seeing them together would surely break a lot of hearts. But Nick needed this, to protect himself from the gropers and the stalkers and the unwanted attention he gets from the opposite sex. Being a great friend, Josh agreed to it. All he wanted to do was to help his friend, what he didn’t expect is to meet an author who can rock his world at first sight.
Left with a child to take care of, Josh life circulates on his shop, his beloved car and his baby boy. I adore him as a father. Even though his wife left the both of them, he did try his best to be the father that JJ needed. He was a great dad who puts his son needs first rather than his own.
But how can he put his moves on Leelee when he was busy playing a role being his best friend’s gay boyfriend? How can he prove to her that he’s not gay? Leelee has been burned, and him giving out mixed signals was making her confused too. It was apparent that she wanted him too, but she was holding out. How can he tell her that he wants her, when he was doing a favor to his friend?
He was in between a rock and a hard place, and I wonder how he can possibly get out of it without pissing off two important people in his lives.
A few people would do this kind of stuff for friends, and that’s why I love Josh. This was completely out of his element, but he agreed to it, and made the best out of it. His generosity could speak numbers, and for that Nick is lucky to have him as a best friend. As for Leelee, you’d understand her predicament and her skepticism about Josh, after what she had been through, she needed to be careful. But out shy, and bashful girl turned out to be a little feisty. I was glad she knew how to fight her battles, and grew a backbone in the near end.
If you want a good laugh, a great romance, and a sizzling read – this one is a perfect pick.
•Complimentary Copy was given in exchange for an honest review.•
More of my reviews at http://reviewsofabookmaniac.blogspot.com
PURCHASE IT ►►► AMAZON
Rating: 4.5 Stars
I had so much fun reading this book, over-half of it I was grinning or laughing. There were a lot of LOL moments, especially between Josh and Nicky- not to mention the mechanics from Stone’s who love to rile Josh up from miles away, and the crazy, lovely women in the book conference – this book has been a blast.
What can’t you not do for a friend?
I can’t believe alpha, bad-boy, uber sexy mechanic Josh Stone agreed to be his best buddy’s gay conference during a romance writer’s convention. Both of them were hotter than the sun, and seeing them together would surely break a lot of hearts. But Nick needed this, to protect himself from the gropers and the stalkers and the unwanted attention he gets from the opposite sex. Being a great friend, Josh agreed to it. All he wanted to do was to help his friend, what he didn’t expect is to meet an author who can rock his world at first sight.
Left with a child to take care of, Josh life circulates on his shop, his beloved car and his baby boy. I adore him as a father. Even though his wife left the both of them, he did try his best to be the father that JJ needed. He was a great dad who puts his son needs first rather than his own.
But how can he put his moves on Leelee when he was busy playing a role being his best friend’s gay boyfriend? How can he prove to her that he’s not gay? Leelee has been burned, and him giving out mixed signals was making her confused too. It was apparent that she wanted him too, but she was holding out. How can he tell her that he wants her, when he was doing a favor to his friend?
He was in between a rock and a hard place, and I wonder how he can possibly get out of it without pissing off two important people in his lives.
A few people would do this kind of stuff for friends, and that’s why I love Josh. This was completely out of his element, but he agreed to it, and made the best out of it. His generosity could speak numbers, and for that Nick is lucky to have him as a best friend. As for Leelee, you’d understand her predicament and her skepticism about Josh, after what she had been through, she needed to be careful. But out shy, and bashful girl turned out to be a little feisty. I was glad she knew how to fight her battles, and grew a backbone in the near end.
If you want a good laugh, a great romance, and a sizzling read – this one is a perfect pick.
•Complimentary Copy was given in exchange for an honest review.•
More of my reviews at http://reviewsofabookmaniac.blogspot.com
January 1, 2015
I was told several times to read this book. Because people know I love funny, sexy books and because Stone, At Your Service is most definitely that. In fact, it’s one of the funniest books I’ve read this year – and I’ve read a hell of a lot of books in 2014.
Josh Stone has agreed, maybe against his better judgment to pretend to be his best friend’s gay lover for one week. It’s just for a romance writer’s convention, so it’s not that big of a deal, right?
Wrong. There Josh meets Leelee Songchild. Sweet, sexy Leelee that makes the departure of his wife, his single fatherdom and weekly one-night stands fade into the background. He’s only ever had time for his business and his boy, but when Leelee looks at him, he starts to see the opportunity for more.
But Josh is stuck. He can’t pursue the woman that writes sex scenes that make him blush and blush....hard. Because that would blow his gay cover. So, how does he get the girl and still keep the (fake) boy?
Yeah, this book was f—king hilarious. Laugh-out-loud funny in a way that made me want to re-read scenes over and over and over to sate my need to giggle. Because hell, Josh, Nicky and “Stone’s Roses” know how to have a good time at each other’s expense.
But oh, it’s not just the humor that sucked me into this classic book. It’s hot, dirty and downright smutty, and come on, who doesn’t love a book like that? I actually had to stop partway through to message a friend – one who’d repeatedly told me to read this book – and let her know I was a) gettin’ the tingles and b) hoping like hell that Ride, the book written by character Leelee would be an actual book because damn. And it is. Hooray!
Stone, At Your Service was such a good story. Because it was funny and it was sexy but it was also loving, and sweet, and had a hero that valued family, friendship and fought for those things. I loved every page of this book and I can’t wait to read Nicky’s story, Leelee’s book and anything else Rie Warren decides to put on paper. My only regret? I didn’t listen to my friends and read this book sooner.
Stone, At Your Service is the first book in the Carolina Bad Boys series. No cliffhanger. ~ Beth, 5 stars
Josh Stone has agreed, maybe against his better judgment to pretend to be his best friend’s gay lover for one week. It’s just for a romance writer’s convention, so it’s not that big of a deal, right?
Wrong. There Josh meets Leelee Songchild. Sweet, sexy Leelee that makes the departure of his wife, his single fatherdom and weekly one-night stands fade into the background. He’s only ever had time for his business and his boy, but when Leelee looks at him, he starts to see the opportunity for more.
But Josh is stuck. He can’t pursue the woman that writes sex scenes that make him blush and blush....hard. Because that would blow his gay cover. So, how does he get the girl and still keep the (fake) boy?
Yeah, this book was f—king hilarious. Laugh-out-loud funny in a way that made me want to re-read scenes over and over and over to sate my need to giggle. Because hell, Josh, Nicky and “Stone’s Roses” know how to have a good time at each other’s expense.
But oh, it’s not just the humor that sucked me into this classic book. It’s hot, dirty and downright smutty, and come on, who doesn’t love a book like that? I actually had to stop partway through to message a friend – one who’d repeatedly told me to read this book – and let her know I was a) gettin’ the tingles and b) hoping like hell that Ride, the book written by character Leelee would be an actual book because damn. And it is. Hooray!
Stone, At Your Service was such a good story. Because it was funny and it was sexy but it was also loving, and sweet, and had a hero that valued family, friendship and fought for those things. I loved every page of this book and I can’t wait to read Nicky’s story, Leelee’s book and anything else Rie Warren decides to put on paper. My only regret? I didn’t listen to my friends and read this book sooner.
Stone, At Your Service is the first book in the Carolina Bad Boys series. No cliffhanger. ~ Beth, 5 stars
September 29, 2014
Find this Review at Taryn Lee's Book Blog
A gifted copy was provided by the author for an honest review.
So, I read this book awhile ago and I liked it then and thinking back on it, I still DO like it. But that's about the extent of my feelings for this book. Don't expect a soul tugging, life altering novel people. This book is about a man who was dealt a shitty hand but finds his future in the least expected way... kind of a novel concept, but one that has definitely been done before.
Josh Stone owns the same garage his dad did, and he loves his life. Left by his son's mother, he knows what it means to take care of the one's you love and cherish them forever. And he sure does; especially when he meets Leelee Songchild one a weekend where he's supposed to be extremely in love with his "not-gay" best friend. While his best friend needs him to act gay, he's feeling straighter than ever for this beauty of a woman!!
Overall, I felt this author took this idea and transformed it into exactly how she felt Josh and Leelee should meet, interact, fall for each other. I enjoyed the male POV tremendously. That was one element that just felt so fresh to me. You don't see that done well all that often, but Rie Warren does it amazingly. As far as the storyline, I just felt there should have been more interaction with the Kid. I wanted more of those daddy/son moments that make me swoon!! I'm giving this book 4 STARS out of 5 STARS.
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Read by Taryn Lee on September 14, 2014
Reviewed by Taryn Lee on September 28, 2014
Taryn Lee's Book Blog on Facebook
A gifted copy was provided by the author for an honest review.
So, I read this book awhile ago and I liked it then and thinking back on it, I still DO like it. But that's about the extent of my feelings for this book. Don't expect a soul tugging, life altering novel people. This book is about a man who was dealt a shitty hand but finds his future in the least expected way... kind of a novel concept, but one that has definitely been done before.
"I was gonna milk this gay-cation for all it was worth."
Josh Stone owns the same garage his dad did, and he loves his life. Left by his son's mother, he knows what it means to take care of the one's you love and cherish them forever. And he sure does; especially when he meets Leelee Songchild one a weekend where he's supposed to be extremely in love with his "not-gay" best friend. While his best friend needs him to act gay, he's feeling straighter than ever for this beauty of a woman!!
"Va va vroom and va va voom. Damn if she wasn't the woman of my dreams."
Overall, I felt this author took this idea and transformed it into exactly how she felt Josh and Leelee should meet, interact, fall for each other. I enjoyed the male POV tremendously. That was one element that just felt so fresh to me. You don't see that done well all that often, but Rie Warren does it amazingly. As far as the storyline, I just felt there should have been more interaction with the Kid. I wanted more of those daddy/son moments that make me swoon!! I'm giving this book 4 STARS out of 5 STARS.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Read by Taryn Lee on September 14, 2014
Reviewed by Taryn Lee on September 28, 2014
Taryn Lee's Book Blog on Facebook
January 11, 2015
3.5 stars. There were so many funny parts to this story that I laughed out loud. Then there were the parts in the story where I groaned because they just seemed over the top. Stone spent almost the entire book with a hard on. Sounds quite uncomfortable. And sometimes it felt like the author used all the dirty cuss words because she could, not because it added anything to the story. I liked Josh as a father. He made my heart go "awwww". I loved the easy going and real friendship he had with Nicky. Leelee was a little milquetoast for me. I know she asserted herself at what were supposed to be appropriate times, but it felt fake and forced. I just didn't really feel any connection to her. I've been to a reader convention and I must be going to the wrong ones, because the LitLuv convention sounds way more crazy, over the top, and fun than what I've been to. Overall, it was enjoyable and I'm curious about the other characters in the book. I want to give it more than 3.5 stars, but a lot of the sexy dirtiness just didn't seem real and felt like the author was trying too hard. I'd still recommend it though.
August 30, 2014
What i liked about this book is that it feels down to earth. Something that could happen. You see conections made not only with the main characters. Just when you think it is over and you got what you wanted you see that life keeps going for the characters. Plus i like that the women are not damsels in distress...
October 4, 2014
~~~RECEIVED FOR HONEST REVIEW~~~
SEXY! HOT! AND OH MY!!! If you have not read this book yet you are for sure missing out on a sexy read! But I won't tell you anymore, you will just have to read for yourself!
SEXY! HOT! AND OH MY!!! If you have not read this book yet you are for sure missing out on a sexy read! But I won't tell you anymore, you will just have to read for yourself!
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