If you'd asked me what love was two years ago, I probably would've said, 'It's this amazing feeling that obsesses and possesses you; it's what me and my husband currently have.' If you ask me that same question today, I'll say, 'Please get the hell out of my face.’
Claire Gracen's life is picture perfect. Her career as a marketing director is on the brink of being legendary, and her marriage to her high school sweetheart has never been stronger. No, wait. It has. It used to be amazing and fulfilling, but one day Claire realizes that she's been living a lie and her best friend and husband have committed the ultimate betrayal.
Broken and depressed, Claire is in need of something new—new city, new job, new friends.
When she happens to attract the interest of the sexiest man she's ever met, a man significantly younger than her, she immediately turns him down—only to later discover that this man is Jonathan Statham, self-made billionaire and CEO of Statham Industries. Her boss.
Jonathan Statham is unlike any man she's met before. He's used to getting whatever he wants—whenever he wants, and he isn't about to take no for an answer.
**BOOK 2: Loving the Boss
If you ask me if Jonathan Statham makes me happy, I’ll say ‘Absolutely. He’s the man of my dreams and I can’t wait to marry him.’ If you ask me why my ex-husband Ryan is currently one inch away from me—staring into my eyes and pressing his hand against my cheek, I’ll say, ‘I have no fucking idea…’
Claire Gracen finally has the life she’s always wanted: A career she loves, a man who’s willing to do any and everything for her, and friends that show her the true meaning of the word ‘friendship.’
As she and Jonathan prepare to make the ultimate commitment to one another and plan the wedding of her dreams, she quickly realizes that the hurtful past she left behind in Pittsburgh is a lot closer than she thought.
If you'd asked me what love was two years ago, I probably would've said, 'It's this amazing feeling that obsesses and possesses you; it's what me and my husband currently have.' If you ask me that same question today, I'll say, 'Please get the hell out of my face.’
Claire Gracen's life is picture perfect. Her career as a marketing director is on the brink of being legendary, and her marriage to her high school sweetheart has never been stronger. No, wait. It has. It used to be amazing and fulfilling, but one day Claire realizes that she's been living a lie and her best friend and husband have committed the ultimate betrayal.
Broken and depressed, Claire is in need of something new—new city, new job, new friends.
When she happens to attract the interest of the sexiest man she's ever met, a man significantly younger than her, she immediately turns him down—only to later discover that this man is Jonathan Statham, self-made billionaire and CEO of Statham Industries. Her boss.
Jonathan Statham is unlike any man she's met before. He's used to getting whatever he wants—whenever he wants, and he isn't about to take no for an answer.
Sexy, unpredictable, and charmingly clever, Mid Life Love is a story that will captivate you, entertain you, and force you to fall deeply in love with the characters.
**BOOK 2: Mid Life Love: At Last
If you ask me if Jonathan Statham makes me happy, I’ll say ‘Absolutely. He’s the man of my dreams and I can’t wait to marry him.’ If you ask me why my ex-husband Ryan is currently one inch away from me—staring into my eyes and pressing his hand against my cheek, I’ll say, ‘I have no fucking idea…’
Claire Gracen finally has the life she’s always wanted: A career she loves, a man who’s willing to do any and everything for her, and friends that show her the true meaning of the word ‘friendship.’
As she and Jonathan prepare to make the ultimate commitment to one another and plan the wedding of her dreams, she quickly realizes that the hurtful past she left behind in Pittsburgh is a lot closer than she thought.
Sexy, unpredictable, and as charmingly clever as Mid Life Love, ‘At Last’ will captivate you from the first page and never let you go.
Read Mid-Life Love and rated it 4 stars, and read At Last and rated it 3 stars. Now they are combined to make this book. I didn't write a review before, so I thought I'd add this. Who knows how I'd like it now since it was so long ago 🤷🏻♀️
Book 1 Resisting the Boss (Review under solo title) 4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Book 2 Loving the Boss 3.5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐
Delightful sequel. Jonathan and Claire were just as entertaining second time around and marriage plans are now on the table. ****Whitney G included a sweet epilogue for book one at the start of the second book - for some bizarre reason she failed to include this with her solo book "Resisting the Boss".
This book was ridiculous. I'm amazed this garbage gets printed. A woman who has seriously struggled to get out of the hole her husband and best friends' betrayal.... only to let some immature asshole push her around? Blech.
I have mixed feelings about Mid Life Love. On one hand it is by Whit Garcia and is beyond funny with an eccentric, sexy alpha male with way too much money. On the other hand, Claire is out of her mind to turn down said man and he is a dope to put up with her and holy geeze, he blows through money like there is no tomorrow. I was hoping I would find my middle aged hero in Claire, at times I could relate to her thinking but at others I had my WTF face on. I still can't help but love the snarky humor.
Resisting the Boss showed us a slightly unusual look on the couples with bigger age difference. I enjoyed the fact that it was the heroine who was eleven years older than hero. It also helped there were so many sparks between them. I loved the banter, how patient Jonathan was with Claire and her doubts, how they helped each other to become a better version of themselves. The dramatic parts of the story (which mainly revolved around Jonathan's mother) were engaging as well.
As a continuation of Jonathan and Claire's story, Loving the Boss was a bit disappointing. It had its moments, I admit, but there were too many secrets surrounding the wedding ceremony for my taste. I would have rather to know everything and looking forward to reaction of the other person than be kept in dark and more or less lead by the nose. The plot twist in this story with the ex-husband and ex-best friend wasn't great either—boring and redundant would be the words I could use to describe it. But as I said, the story had its moments so I still liked it in spite of all those faults.
To sum the whole story up in one sentence, Falling for Mr. Statham was a story about overcoming insecurities from divorce and developing strong will in dealing with absolutely pushy hero.
I made it to chapter 11, 23% of the set of two books. Way to much sex, everywhere and anywhere no matter who else was around. She didn't always consent and he forced her many time in the first 11 chapters. Could not continue reading because I was losing the point of the story. This book will be deleted from my kindle as soon as I finish my review and if I had this in paperback, it would be in the garbage already. Will never read any other books by this author. Just reading some of her other titles tells me they would be on the same level. One star is one too many.
This was readable until the "love interest" forcibly accosted the protagonist and physically held her and kissed her against her will until she agreed to a date. Sexual assault and harassment does not constitute as passion.
I gave book one of this series 3 and book 2 a reluctant 4 so I guess this is 3.5.. Again if not for Claire I'd have given it a solid 4! Sorry Jonathan your girlfriend pissed me off so much..So even though I like you you're stuck at 4
No cliffhanger Standalone though there is a second book that continues their story Told from both POVs Minor editing issues
I was very curious if I would like this book or not but was very quickly pulled in by the storyline. The author has you rooting for Jonathan very early on and at times I wanted to slap Claire for not appreciating him more but you start to get it after a while.
One thing I will say is if you are looking for a realistic book about falling in love this ain’t it. After basically barely knowing Claire he buys her a $100,000 bracelet. He pays off her mortgage and her student loans and she barely bats an eyelash. Not very believable but still a super hot book to get lost in if you want to escape reality for a bit.
PS: Her kids are spoiled little brats. That is the only really thing I would change in this book.
Loving the Boss
No cliffhanger The follow up to Resisting the Boss Told from both POVs Minor editing issues
This book was actually way better than the first book. I was sucked in from the beginning and the drama just kept getting better and better.
It is really hard to not give too much away but you get a lovely glass of closure when her ex husband shows back up to mess with her life again.
This book was just as hot as the first one and Jonathan might have become even more irresistible in this book which I didn’t think could happen.
I am interested in reading the next book in this series about his sister Hayley.
I love Whitney Garcia Williams. Her stories are refreshing and her characters are usually fun, unpredictable, and relatable. I like the premise of Mid Life Love but my frustration with the main character, Claire, prevents me from loving it. Jonathan is THE ultimate book boyfriend and he is unrelenting in his pursuit of Claire. He doesn’t care that she is older. Claire, however, is extremely hung up on their age difference and it takes the pretty much all of Book 1 for her to feel comfortable with it. At first she refuses to date him. After he finally wears her down she spends the rest of the book hiding their relationship -- not because he’s her boss but because she doesn’t want to seem like a cougar -- often treating Jonathan like a jerk in the process. I just wanted to scream at her to get over herself and enjoy the ride!
Despite these things it’s a sweet story. There’s Claire’s crazy friend Helen to add a dose of humor, some sexy times are thrown in for good measure, a little mama drama, and there’s no cliffhanger.
Book 2 picks up with Claire and Jonathan preparing for their wedding. Claire has a thriving new interior design business and she is (thankfully!) no longer bothered that Jonathan is much younger. Just when everything seems perfect, Claire’s ex-husband shows up to throw her life into a tailspin. It’s a quick read, made more enjoyable due to Claire’s character development.
While I liked the premise of the books, I had difficulty liking Claire. She meets and is pursued by a younger man (Jonathan, a billionaire, no less) and spends much of the first book lamenting their age difference. I didn't like the way she treated him throughout the books, and while he had no trouble spoiling both her and her two daughters, she couldn't seem to see his perspective throughout their relationship. For a supposedly mature woman, she acts very childish throughout the book, and I felt that the daughters were, "Hey, Mom's dating a rich guy - let's see what we can get out of him!" I didn't feel them coming together as a family unit at all. Jonathan displayed a remarkable amount of patience for all the crap Claire pulls, and doesn't help by overindulging the twins, Caroline and Ashley. (I'm sorry, but when you're given a Range Rover for a birthday gift, and he's sending you $300 a week while you're in school, why do you feel it necessary to ask for $500 instead?) Overall, it was okay.
I only got this book because it was a free Kindle book, but I did not get very far into reading it before I wanted to put it down. First off, the lead man, Jonathan, is extremely disrespectful of the lead lady, Claire. And, second of all, the sexual content quickly gets way out of hand.
I don’t like this book. And this kind of stuff must stop happening in books and tv. This male protagonist was constantly having sex without her consent and manipulating the female lead. He always says to her stuff like ‘you are mine’ ‘no other man can touch you’ etc etc forbid her to take massage from a guy (even if he is gay) and stuff like that. THAT IS VERY TOXIC, MANIPULATIVE STUFF. No healthy relationship should be like that and it does NOT represent love nor passion. NO is NO. A healthy relationship should be based on trust and not restrictions. And since this stuff is read by many people specially young women it troubles me because many women think relationships should be like this and they dont see violence in this. Very disappointed.
This book has held me spellbound. I just couldn't put it down Steamy sex. Hot younger man. Older woman. Wow this is fantastic It's funny and hot and the storyline doesn't dissapoint I know how it feels to loose your husband to your best friend. Its painful and totally sucks Claire is very insecure. Jonathan is slowly falling in love What a bloody meddling so and so his mother is. Hello pot....she is a "recovering meth addict". Mother from hell. At least Claire has two caring friends who stands by her At last she pulled up her socks and declared her love for him in public. Way to go Claire Wedding bells...yay. The dream wedding is planned, but Claire is also being stalked by her ex husband. Can a man be so bloody selfish. Now he wants her back. May he rot in hell At last Clair and Jonathan had the wedding of her dreams. Happily ever after. I so thoroughly enjoyed this book. Well done Whitney G
This author--she just.does.it.for.me! The main characters in this book, and the road to their HE had me smiling often....crying a bit, and frustrated a time or two--but oh, what a journey it was & how I hated it to end.
Where in the world is MY Jonathan? He doesn't even need to be wealthy, but I want.him.now!
I actually date younger men & I so identified with some of what Claire felt early-on! And I really wanted to string her ex up & hurt him bad....sigh.
Just.READ.THIS.BOOK! It's one that should leave you with that truly GOOD feeling in your heart. It's one I'll certainly reccomend,, and read again.
Cleverly written and I loved the characters because they were interesting and the story seemed real if not a bit farfetched. But the billionaire theme was a stretch. I loved the original theme and the value of commitment to each character. He was a bit over the top and unreal but she came across as a real person and totally relatable. Almost like a real life story from her perspective. I enjoyed this authors story and would be open to reading more of her stuff.
I can't count how many times I've read this book series. Every time I read it, I fall in love with Jonathan & Claire all over again. I love how Whitney gives the perfect believable, but so overly romantic, love story. The spicy scenes are there, but it never takes away from the story. Let me say, if my man doesn't give me Jonathan Statham vibes I'm not sure I want him!
P.S I know Mocha Mondays are no more 😫 but please give us more Jonathan & Claire! I could read about them forever.
I'm glad I was able to purchase the box set - was able to read the whole story in a day! My only critique is that Claire is a spoiled woman and I'm not so sure why Jonathan didn't give up on her and her cold shoulder. The wedding was ridiculously over-the- top - she completely bought into the Rich Life. I was kind of disappointed with her behavior but he didn't seem to mind!?? A must read!!!
The story was generally nice. Instead I didn’t like so much the way in which it was told. At times the story was really nice, then it became boring and quite annoying. The plot twist, if it can be called so, was a little surprise but then it was dealt with superficiality and I didn’t like it so much. I think you can give a try to these books, but I honestly think that a lot shorter version would be nicer.
It's my favorite re-read, whenever I feel sad about my age and myself, I tell myself that I hope to be like Claire, one day. But in all seriousness, this book is just one of my favorites, because it tells you the story of a woman who has a second-chance and she goes after that, no matter what obstacles life throws her way, the same for Jonathan, I just love it, and is she really pregnant at the end?? (Whitney, inquiring minds want to know)
Despite my absolute hatred of the wedding planning (probably the fact I would rather stick pins in my eyes than have a wedding this ridiculous) I l💖ved this book. I like the characters so much. Yes, female carries on a bit but I find his ability to read between the lines of her constant lying a great quality in a man.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I really loved the concept of this book and I swear there were wow moments. Just in general it fell a bit flat for me. For a 40 yr old woman to act and react the way Claire did, it left me a bit disappointment that affected the way I feel reading it. It is still worth reading for its entertainment value and I will continue to read her books. =)
I don’t know why PART 2 was written. It totally made me dislike Claire. She was selfish and manipulative of Jonathan’s love for her. I could why Ryan cheated on her. Her whole family became money hungry and eager to spend Jonathan’s wealth. She turned into a total Bridezilla. I really grew to hate her by the end of this book.
Whitney G. - You craft such a beautiful, beautiful picture of intense love between these two main characters!! Not only love, but all the feels!! I absolutely love the storyline for Claire and Jonathan! Well worth the time it took to read.
I rated it a 5 star because I couldn't put it down. I stayed up late reading and I woke up early to read some more. Loved the main characters and hated the ex husband .
If you are looking for a sexy read with two strong protagonists you have found it. A persistent man in love with a resistant woman, the path is twisty, but always enjoyable. Add family, background baggage, and sex galore... yum!