SECOND EDITION! Brand new cover, author notes, and content warning.
Even after 2,000 miles of driving to overthink it, Harper Sage is still not sure what to call her hasty exit from the state of Texas. She doesn't see it as fleeing per se, but more of an overanalyzed-but-too-chickenshit-to-pull-the-trigger, long-time-coming move that just happened to be decided at the last minute, right after breaking up with her live-in boyfriend. Like, the same night. Within hours, in fact.
Luckily her childhood best friend offers her a job in the best place to start Three Rocks, Oregon, a tiny, picturesque town on the coast.
West Conrad knows a little about starting over. Not only did he leave his life in Portland behind, but now his nephew has been unexpectedly dropped into his care. Just when West feels like he’s getting a handle on taking care of five-year-old Colt, Harper breezes into town. She’s young, carefree, and everything West is not. Of course, Colt is immediately smitten with both Harper and her giant Doberman, Zero.
When Colt and Harper’s shared love of s’mores brings them together, West takes one look at Harper’s red-rimmed, teary hazel eyes and can’t look away. And it’s not just because his nephew is nestled in her lap.
As Harper breathes life back into the ailing town, West begins to realize that she’s hiding behind her neon hats and Texas drawl. Yes, she’s charming, funny, and his nephew’s favorite person, but after a couple chance encounters, it seems that things aren’t quite as sunny and carefree as she’d like everyone to think.
With every passing day, the unrelenting pull, and perhaps the five-year-old’s push, toward each other grows. Are either of them willing to go all in or will their pasts catch up with them?
Content The main character of this book deals with anxiety and panic attacks stemming from an attempted sexual assault (on page, brief). Other trigger warnings include alcoholism, the poor parenting choices that come with addiction, and unexpected pregnancy.
Wesley Harper is an amateur author, semi-professional coffee drinker, and advanced overthinker. After thirty-nine-and-three-quarters years not writing books, she decided to write a book. Or two. Or five?
When not attempting to put her fictional world on paper, she enjoys being exasperated by her bad dogs and unruly teenagers, doing things to exasperate her husband, and obsessively working out in her garage gym.
Sweet Romance! I love 'Tex', she's a great combination of strong and sassy + vulnerable. I appreciate the importance of great girl friendships in this read. Wonderful character development. I want more!
Okay so everything about this book was amazing. It had such cozy small time vibes with some badass woman who kick ass at life. The romantic side of this book was so sweet, I don't usually love books with kids but Colt was literally the sweetest little bean. I loved getting to see both Tex and West become vulnerable with each other slowly over time. The real MVP for me though with this book was the friendship built between Tex, Kelsey, Avery and then adding in Jessie. I actually loved the vibe between them all and the solid bond they build together. Sometimes I just want to read about a kick ass friendship that works on so many levels. I think the way they took in Kelsey and Jessie to their already developed friendship was so sweet. How can I also not talk about Zero being the star of this book and the cutest little friendship between him and Colt...it literally warmed my little heart. I cant wait to continue this series 🫶🏻
I received the second book in this series from the author but felt I needed to start with book 1 so I bought a copy for my shelf so book 2 wouldn't be lonely. ( I'm half way through book 2 and although they are interconnected I feel like they could be stand alone's or read in either order.)
I love West's patience and intuition with Harper. (This is a rare quality in a man and if you find one my suggestion is to hang on to him.)
Soft love - this is what kept coming to mind while trying to write this review. This was not a volcano erupting but a gentle flow of lava filled with heat.
I loved how a simple "Hi." can make a moment more...everything : less stressful, more meaningful, light hearted, soften the tension.
Harper, aka Tex, fleas her life in Texas after ending her lukewarm relationship. She lands on the Oregon coast surrounded by friends old and new, including a hot, brooding tattoo artist. Harper does a great job capturing the charm of small town coastal life and developing a romance between the two protagonists. Several steamy scenes liven things up. I think contemporary romance readers will enjoy the familiar tropes and story structure and appreciate Harper’s ability to develop lovable characters and a strong sense of place.
This is a great feel-good story! I love a good grumpy/sunshine trope, and this one landed! The characters are great, the emotional stakes read well and were relatable. The only thing that kept me from a 5th star is how heavy it was on internal narrative + a lot of off-page references to try to show time passing, and it kind of pulled me from the current time and dialogue trying to figure out where I was and what was happening in real time.
I really enjoyed reading this book! Super cute storyline, I was completely invested from start to finish. The incident in the opening chapter was a good hook for the audience. I felt like the book would reveal more as I read on, like maybe Harper would find out who the guy was that assaulted her. I was also surprised she never revealed to West the backstory behind her anxiety. However, still absolutely enjoyed this book! Would recommend.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This was such a cute story! I was hooked from the prologue and cannot wait to see where these characters go from here. 🌶️ was a contained but done well enough for your imagination to run wild. For a debut book, I was pleasantly surprised and hope for many more books from this author.
I really enjoyed this story! Great characters all around, but the side characters were my favorite. I enjoyed the breathing techniques. They sometimes helped me not get too sucked into Harper's stress! Haha. I also loved that the spice wasn't too spicy as I'm veering more away from that these days. Can't wait to read more from the author.
Book Review All In By Wesley Harper Five Stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 OMG Where Do I Even Begin!?! I ABSOLUTELY LOVED EVERY SINGLE PAGE OF THIS BOOK! Amazing Story, Amazing Characters! I Loved Everything About West & How He Took Care Of His Nephew . But Also How He Was With Harper And Her Anxiety! Gosh I Honestly Will Not Forget This Book! Such A Wonderful Story & What West Did At The End Made Me Cry!
All In was a fun read that kept me hooked from start to finish. Wesley Harper’s writing style is easy to follow, and the story is full of relatable characters who feel like old friends. Looking forward to #2!
Got book 3 from author as a arc read but wanted to start with book 1 first to get the entire story I loved this book it was a great storyline and a sweet romance book it had all the feels definitely worth the read if you love small town romance
Seriously one of my favorite romance books of all time! Being someone from the Oregon coast, this is so perfect. Perfect summer beach read! I loved every minute of this story!
Well I'm most definitely in my contemporary reads era 😂
I think this was a Facebook ad and I added it to my kindle, what a great wee read! So much happens in this book, but I would categorically say one of the most real and relateable books I've read so far.
The FMC is brilliant, fully on board to move 2000 miles back to the coast to start her life again with her best friend, the struggles with anxiety, trauma from the past and a sense of belonging.... so true for so many people.
MMC has his own struggles, isolates himself, then landed with his nephew suddenly to basically raise for a while, I loved that he stepped up and how this small community pulls in for their own. Helping with anything and everything, always.
The girl gang dynamic.... yes! Love! The group of pals around Tex, old and new, I just loved! They are each others cheerleaders.
Can I also just say I love the fact that the fmc isn't quick to disclose her past trauma to the mmc. So I loved the fact the falling and alow burn was so natural.... and couldn't be linked to pity. I've read a few like that, but I love that that wasn't like it at all.
Really enjoyed this, highlighting busy lives, stolen moments, daily struggles and just life.