The Opposite of Wild

Clover Park #1

by Kylie Gilmore

Unleash the wild woman…?

Ex-cop Ryan O'Hare takes one look at buttoned-up control freak Liz Garner and just itches to loosen the woman up. Not that he’s into her. Because a woman like that comes with way too many expectations. Not to mention, she practically works for him, and he didn’t hire Liz to watch after his beloved Harley-stealing Gran so he could turn Liz loose in his bed. Still, there’s something about her, a hidden wild side, that makes him wonder what it would take.

Liz must be crazy to work for the insensitive, arrogant, horribly… hot man she's avoided for years. Unfortunately, she needs the money and Ryan's grandmother needs a keeper. (Midnight tango lessons and ziplines with Gran, anyone?) Ryan's rare smile and swaggering confidence have Liz torn between throwing her favorite pinot grigio at his head or throwing herself at him. Can this control freak find a way to let loose with the tough, no-strings guy who once broke her heart?

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Amazon, Ebooks, Chick Lit, Fiction

268 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 9, 2014

About the author

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Kylie Gilmore is the USA Today bestselling author of over fifty humorous contemporary romances. Her series include Happy Endings in Clover Park, Unleashed Romance, the Rourkes, the Happy Endings Book Club, Clover Park, and Clover Park Charmers. With more than three million downloads of her books, readers all over the world love escaping into her hilarious feel-good romances featuring strong bonds with family, friends, and community.

Kylie lives in New York with her family, a demanding cat, and a nutso dog. When she's not writing, reading hot romance, or dutifully taking notes at writing conferences, you can find her happily crafting what will surely be future family heirlooms.

Join the Gilmore Goddesses Readers Group to chat about Kylie's books in a non-spoilerly way. Also, man candy. Click here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Gilmo...

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KYLIE’S BOOKS

HAPPY ENDINGS IN CLOVER PARK
The Kissing Part (Book 1)
The Sexy Part (Book 2)

UNLEASHED ROMANCE
Fetching (Book 1)
Dashing (Book 2)
Sporting (Book 3)
Toying (Book 4)
Blazing (Book 5)
Chasing (Book 6)
Daring (Book 7)
Leading (Book 8)
Racing (Book 9)
Loving (Book 10)

THE ROURKES
Royal Catch (Book 1)
Royal Hottie (Book 2)
Royal Darling (Book 3)
Royal Charmer (Book 4)
Royal Player (Book 5)
Royal Shark (Book 6)
Rogue Prince (Book 7)
Rogue Gentleman (Book 8)
Rogue Rascal (Book 9)
Rogue Angel (Book 10)
Rogue Devil (Book 11)
Rogue Beast (Book 12)

HAPPY ENDINGS BOOK CLUB
Hidden Hollywood (Book 1)
Inviting Trouble (Book 2)
So Revealing (Book 3)
Formal Arrangement (Book 4)
Bad Boy Done Wrong (Book 5)
Mess With Me (Book 6)
Resisting Fate (Book 7)
Chance of Romance (Book 8)
Wicked Flirt (Book 9)
An Inconvenient Plan (Book 10) 
A Happy Endings Wedding (Book 11)

CLOVER PARK SERIES
The Opposite of Wild (Book 1)
Daisy Does It All (Book 2)
Bad Taste in Men (Book 3)
Kissing Santa (Book 4)
Restless Harmony (Book 5)
Not My Romeo (Book 6)
Rev Me Up (Book 7)
An Ambitious Engagement (Book 8)
Clutch Player (Book 9)
A Tempting Friendship (Book 10)
Clover Park Bride: Nico and Lily’s Wedding
A Valentine’s Day Gift (Book 11)
Maggie Meets Her Match (Book 12)

CLOVER PARK CHARMERS
Almost Over It (Book 1)
Almost Married (Book 2)
Almost Fate (Book 3)
Almost in Love (Book 4)
Almost Romance (Book 5)
Almost Hitched (Book 6)

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked this up as an e-book freebie a few weeks ago. I loved the grandmother and her police officer/private investigator grandson, but the female protagonist was "big feeling." The number of times in this book that I wanted to slap her were too many to count! I would have much preferred a story about the grandmother only and her romance!!!

[Mya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm being generous with this rating. I felt like the main character was dumb, I mean her sister has to grow the "fickle" up lol.

[Abra · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book sounded reasonable, but I spent the whole time wondering why the hero was putting in so much effort trying to get the heroine to date him.

At first she avoids him because of a embarrassing incident when she was 13 even though she's now 30. Liz finally starts using Ryan for a booty call by arriving late at night and leaving before he wakes up in the morning. She spends the entire book avoiding dating him because she'll risk her heart due to the well known fact that he doesn't do love. He spends the entire book desperately trying to get her to date him. He should have cut his losses and moved on.

Liz has long internal monologues about her feelings and her life, but never tells Ryan anything at all despite longing for a deeper relationship. I have no idea why he's interested in her because all he knows about Liz is second hand from his grandmother.

Liz is also a serious people pleaser and door mat, which isn't very interesting. The only parts that were ok were the descriptions of Ryan's past and of living with a very difficult baby. I have friends who have gone through that and it's no fun. The other major character is the kooky grandmother living life to the fullest that I've seen many times with the added element of selfishness that makes her very annoying.

[MsChris1161 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Kylie Gilmore's THE OPPOSITE OF WILD was a well written story of Liz Garner and Ryan O'Hare unexpectedly falling in love amidst a handful of quirky, oftentimes hilarious, secondary characters and well, life. I was lucky enough to listen to the audiobook version and the narrator did a fantastic job. The varying nuances for each character were clear and contributed to my enjoyment of the story.

Mostly I loved that this story was in no way cookie-cutter or predictable. I thought it would be sweet... and it was, but it was also steamy. I thought Liz would be stuffier and well, prudish even, but no way. She was definitely the responsible sort, but she also had backbone, could be adventurous and had a serious heart for accepting the people in her life for who they were. Ryan also had a few surprises up his sleeve. Ms. Gilmore gave him depth you don't always find in such an alpha lead. And as much as this was all about whether or not Liz and Ryan were going to be willing to take a chance on each other, it was so much more. Seems there was a plot twist every few chapters which really kept my interest. And honorable mention must go to Ryan's Gram. Maggie O'Hare was a hoot and did her best to steal the limelight. Definitely the way I hope I have the guts to be when I'm in my 70's. Overall fun and very romantic! 4 stars

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meet Liz, a prim and proper 30-something who wants a baby so bad that when her wayward older sister comes in pregnant and ready to pop she starts acting like its her kid.

When her sister can't take Liz’s attitude, she leaves to live her own life; Liz then hooks up with Ryan, a guy she had a crush on in middle-/high-school, for a casual sex-only relationship. But she falls in love... And since Ryan doesn't want kids, white picket fence, and dog fantasy, she leaves him.

But it's ok, because her sister is back with a 3-week old colicky infant and Liz jumps in without hesitation and decides the baby needs her, starts acting like the mom and "settles" by thinking this is how she will get her dream baby. In the meantime Ryan decides his job isn't worth Liz and decides to go back to being a cop, tries to make amends with his alcoholic father, and decides after meeting the baby that maybe having a kid wouldn't be so bad after all. You've got to be freakin' kidding me ...

The reasons characters do anything and the whole plot line is weak, and screw character development - there isn’t any! I set this book aside and read three others before I came back to it just so I could finish it. I didn't enjoy this at all.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from the author in exchange for a honest review.

My Thoughts: This was an OK read for me. I really thought I was going to love this book.

The Heroine: She was really annoying. She has always pined away for the hero, but never pursued him. When he shows an interest in her, she takes on the guy's part. She uses him for sex only. She was convinced that he could never change his playboy ways. He should have had more self respect for himself and dumped her.

The Hero: He has known the heroine since childhood. He never knew she had feelings for him. He had a difficult childhood raising his siblings after his mother's suicide and his father's desertion. I think that is why he never committed to a relationship before the heroine. At first, he is shocked that he is attracted to her. They date and eventually he gets tired of the way she treats him. I generally liked his character. Whereas, the heroine annoyed me many times.

The Story: Liz Garner (the heroine) is at home when her sister suddenly shows up. Daisy is pregnant and Liz offers to help with the baby. She realizes she need a summer job until school starts back up in the fall. Liz is an elementary school teacher. She sees an ad in the paper for an elder care giver. She calls the number and is shocked that it is Ryan O'Hare's number. She has always pined over him, but knew he would never go for someone like her.

Ryan calls back and hires her. She goes to his grandmother's house and realizes Ryan never told her. Eventually, Ryan's grandmother accepts her. They strike up a friendship.

The rest of the book deals with Ryan and Liz's eventual HEA.

[Geekifychic · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't make myself like Liz she is just not likable. Her borderline obsession at the beginning with her sister baby was just disturbing like her sister was bringing her a puppy in 9 months. And it's supposed to be a romance but there was nothing romantic about the fact that Liz treats Ryan like a Booty Call the whole book in till like a few chapter before the end. I could go into more detail about all the things she did to frustrate me but I ended up deleting that review because it became a long winded rant, suffice to say when I have the urge to slap the main character in the romance it's time to move on to a different book.

[Dali · Rating 4 out of 5]

In her debut novel, Kylie Gilmore gives us a highly amusing, sweet, sexy and very enjoyable read.

Even though I wanted to throttle Liz at the end because of her excessive OCD, if that’s even possible, I identified myself with her almost from the start and luckily Maggie (you’ll love her!) got across her very important point.

The story and individuals felt very genuine, even with Ryan’s take charge, caveman behavior and it left us with the promise of more.

[B · Rating 2 out of 5]

So corny it hurts. No one has conversations like this. But bigger question, how can you be in love if you don't talk. After Liz realized she was "in love", her and Ryan had nothing but uncomfortable silent moments. Sex doesn't equal love. The addition of a baby, which coincidentally isn't hers, should not result in the deadening of a social life. Ugh this book was dumb.

[bean]

free first book in series on ibook kinda deal… needing to escape and read not great books

[Anna lost in stories *A* · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 5% 2,5 stars… you may think that it’s too early to make a decision so fast about finishing a story… but the more I read the faster I can tell if a book will be one I will enjoy or not… in this case, after the first chapter I knew it’s not for me… the heroine felt too silly and overly dramatic, the writing style was just ok, nothing special… so instead of wasting more of my time on it, I decided to move on to a different book… if it sounds like something you might enjoy, definitely give it a go :) I hope you will love it :) it’s just not for me, and that’s ok :)

XOXO

A

[Maura · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Fantastic Debut!

The Opposite of Wild from debut author Kylie Gilmore is the opposite of dull. It’s a delightful, fun, fast-paced read that will have you literally LOL-ing in many places. When her flighty sister shows up on her doorstep and announces she’s pregnant, schoolteacher Liz Garner is reminded of the loud ticking of her own biological clock. Seizing the opportunity to have a baby in her life, Liz puts all of her control-freak efforts into helping her sister, including taking an extra job as a companion to uber-sexy Ryan O’Hare’s somewhat…unconventional grandmother. Keeping her eyes off Ryan while struggling to keep up with the irascible Gran, Liz finds her neatly scheduled life spinning out of control.

Ryan is intrigued by the buttoned-up schoolteacher, and the hints of reckless passion simmering just below her surface present him with a challenge he can’t pass up. But for him, that’s where it ends. After raising his brothers almost single-handedly, settling down with a family of his own is not on his agenda.

The author has a gift for writing both humor (think Kristan Higgins) and passion (think Jill Shalvis). Home and family are major themes throughout the story and in this first book from the Clover Park series, Gilmore has created a charming small town backdrop for Liz and Ryan’s whacky and rocky road to romance. The secondary characters are well-developed and witty (especially the sometimes scene-stealing Gran!) and I’m looking forward to seeing them all in the next story in the series.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am already a big Kylie Gilmore fan.

[Dorel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the 1st book I read by Kylie Gilmore. The only I liked about this was granny. I didn't like Liz character. I thought she was kind of bossy & immature. I didn't like Daisy character either. I thought she was immature too. If this story was about granny I would have been funny.

[Jo-Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liz is a teacher but takes a summer job as a senior care giver to Maggie O'Hare to earn extra money to help her sister who shows up unmarried and pregnant. One of Maggie's grandson's is Liz's boss which she really hates because they knew each other briefly as teenagers and had an embarrassing moment. Liz remembers it as The Humiliation but Ryan remembers it much differently in a more positive way. Liz's job watching out for Maggie is not easy since Maggie wants to live life to the fullest (at 72) and does things like goes zip lining.

The characters are great. Very sexy Ryan O’Hare is Maggie’s grandson and an ex-cop but now a P.I. Liz is very organized, actually too organized but very capable and always looking out for her sister who seems to be in some sort of trouble most of the time. Maggie is a blast and certainly needs a care taker or three. Ryan and Liz are attracted to each other but fight it for different reasons. Ryan tries to stay away from Liz because she is his employee and Liz can't imagine Ryan being interested in her because of The Humiliation years ago.

I enjoyed this book and am glad I won it in a giveaway.

[Heather andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ryan's family I knew right off the bat was going to entertain me especially his gran, "Ryan couldn’t believe his eyes. Gran wearing leather chaps in a Harley shop, talking about her a**. It was a living nightmare." Being a detective means Ryan always is on his 'A' game and notices everything, "you seem so…uptight,” he said. She stiffened and took a step back. “But I know you were checking me out when I was mowing.” He's persistent and keeps at things until he gets what he wants, “for someone that doesn’t want to have dinner with me, you’ve had lunch and now breakfast,” he said. “How about dinner tonight?” Liz's manner come through in all situations especially when sneaking out after sex, "unfailingly proper and polite, even after a hot tangle between the sheets. He smiled. They weren’t done yet." Liz has everything but the kitchen sink in her purse and Ryan enjoyed seeing what she had it got him thinking, "some shiny foil caught his eye. Did Liz pack condoms? He got hard thinking about it and considered the back seat again." I really liked this book and can't wait to read more in this series.

[Bette Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one and will absolutely be reading more in this series. Liz, the lead female character was a tad annoying at first with her control freak tendencies but she eventually won me over. The book is full of fun quirky characters who will have you laughing in no time. Liz has avoided Ryan for years after "the humiliation" when they were younger but now she needs a summer job and caring for Ryan's Gran is her best bet. She's an uptight control freak and he's a no strings loner, together they are explosive!

Definitely a book I recommend!

[Jean Oram]

A small town setting for a fun romance between a serious, planning teacher and a less-so-planned, but equally serious police officer/P.I.

These two have a little bit of a history and there is definitely a power imbalance in some regards when these two hook up for a summer. There are some fun scenes where the characters reveal their true feelings to the reader.

Add in some crazy family dynamics, a grandmother with a renewed vim for life and it’s a great small town read.

[Becki Brannen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book! Ryan was dreamy, Liz was repressed, and their interactions are hilariously explosive! The characters feel real and likeable, and this was such a fun read!

It did beg the question, early on for me - which came first, the chicken or the egg?

When you read it, you'll realize why that question had me snorting in laughter!

[Lisa Mandina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick easy read.  Nothing too remarkable about it.  I might try more in the series.  We'll see.

[Brickley Jules · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book!

It's a sweet romance that's part of the Clover Park series but is a stand-alone. If you're like me sometimes cliffhangers get old and a you need a Happy Ending.

[Karen Hrdlicka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read by Ms. Gilmore and I am hooked and need to read the rest of her series. I enjoyed the fun flirty banter, the heartwarming family aspect, and the characters that Ms. Gilmore created. Maggie (Gran) ranks high up on my 'who I want to be when I grow up' list. She's grabbing life by the balls and forces her grandsons and others to join her, much to their dismay. The main couple, Ryan and Liz, are polar opposites who have known each other most of their lives. In school, Liz had a huge crush on the upperclassman, but a humiliating experience caused the young woman to bottle herself up.
When Ryan hires Liz, a schoolteacher, as a summer caregiver for his grandmother, chaos, laughs and love ensues. The story is fun, sometimes laugh out loud funny, flirty and sexy as can be. I can't wait to dive into the next book.

[Renee Entress · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

I was pulled right into this story. The story has laughs, secrets, and heartbreak.

This is Liz and Ryan’s story. He hired her to look after is gran. His Gran gets up to all kinds of trouble. Liz is a control freak and should keep her in line. But he is having thoughts that have nothing to do with taking care of his gran about her. Can he keep those thoughts in check or is he about to cross a line with the help? Liz is trying to avoid anything to do with him after all he broke her heart before. Can she chance another heart break? Sparks are flying and they are about to find out if they can resist the pull.

I recommend this book.

[Teresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertainly funny at times and serious at others. The Opposite of Wild has grandma Maggie living with a new lease on life after an accident. She wants to live life to the fullest and boy, does she ever. Her three grandsons on the other hand, think she has gone over the edge. Liz, Maggie's new caretaker, helps her along and gets to do some of the fun stuff, even ziplining, whew! Liz has a sister who has her own problems, as well as Ryan, who Liz has liked since eighth grade. In this book you get to meet the family of both Ryan and Liz, along with their issues. I just really like the story, connect with the characters, and getting to know the small town life of Clover Park.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this romance. The characters are quirky and flawed and I think most of us can relate to at least one of them. Whether it is the quirky and outgoing grandmother, the solid and dependable Ryan, the over organised Liz or the wild and needs to grow up Daisy. There are lots of connections hinted at in this book and I look forward to reading more of the Clover Park series.

[Season · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really fun story and so cute. Perfect summer read. This one flowed really well and the characters were very believable. I would have liked a little more, but overall it was very entertaining.

[SamJ ★Needs a HEA★ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copy received in exchange for an honest review


This was a light-hearted, cute romance.

I think I have read too many MC or Romantic Suspense books lately, so it was really refreshing to pick something up that is purely about the relationship, and not about bad guys with guns!

The entire cast of Characters was great. I loved Maggie! I want a Gran like that!

Ryan, again, loved. In fact I loved all the O'Hare brothers! There is something about a man who loves his Gran that is swoon worthy! And their reactions to their Gran and her new lease of life "Gran is flirting. I've never seen that. It's like seeing a cow suddenly milk itself"

I wavered between 3 and 4 stars for this, as it was a really enjoyable book, but I struggled with certain things.

Liz! I really struggled to warm up to her at first! I know she is meant to be buttoned up and uptight, but she took over control too far sometimes IMO

The way she went on about her sisters baby, how she would be bringing it up, etc, " Me and the baby are a package " Well, no, the kid has parents, and she needed to stop enabling her sisters dependant behaviour!

But, she started to grow on me, especially when we learn of The Humiliation, what led to her total control, and you realise, she is grabbing at excuses to not let Ryan close to her, because her self image of herself was formed in the moment of The Humiliation! And even her super organisational skills started to become almost endearing. Alphabetised Spices!

Also, at the beginning, maybe the first 30% or so, I wanted more of Ryan, it felt like Liz and Maggie were the two main characters of the book, and I loved Maggie, but needed more of Ryan!

There was there odd thing here to there that was a bit predictable! I knew, as soon as it was mentioned there would be a wedding, Liz and Ryan would end up getting together properly at the wedding

All in all, though, a great début by Kylie Gilmore, that I enjoyed. I ended up rating it 3.5 (rounded up to 4) just because it took me a bit to warm up to the h and I wanted more from the H at the start.

But, I will certainly be getting books 2 about Daisy and Trav, and cannot wait for a book, about Shane (which I assume/hope there will be)

[Melody May (What I'm Reading) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Posted on What I'm Reading

Okay, I liked The Opposite of Wild by Kylie Gilmore, but I have a few reservations about a character. That's a problem in itself, because she's the heroine. Yeah, that can't be good. Lets dive into my thoughts on this story.

So, we have Liz Garner who is Type A scary. Seriously, she has to be in control of everything and I don't know where it all stems from, because it's not like she had a horrible childhood. What I gather she had a normal childhood other than the one embarrassing incident at the pool when she was a teen. Honestly, it wasn't that bad, but she carried that memory and used to fuel her life choices. Someone needs some help in that department. Anyway, she tries to micromanage her sister, she kind of gets upset when her sister decides to try to do things on her own. Not a healthy relationship there. Plus, she feels like she has to do everything for her sister, because has been doing it forever. Some psychologist would have a field day with that situation. Time to move on.

Next we have Ryan O'Hare who needs a caregiver for his grandma (Maggie), because she's just not the same person after the accident. Of course he feels Liz would be a good person for the job cause she's just so button up. However, Maggie teaches Liz to live a little more and venture out of the comfort zone. I have no problem with that. I did have issues with her turning down Ryan for a date, but was willing to sleep with him. Ryan was wondering what was wrong him. That could totally give a guy a complex. Even though she was finding a new lease on life, she was still holding back. I have issue with a girl saying she wants husband, kids, and the white picket fence, but afraid to take a chance on love or even attempting to date. Yes, Ryan has been known to play the field, but give a guy a chance he could change.

Liz was my major hang up in The Opposite of Wild, but I still liked the story. It has to do with Ryan and his family. It's a hard lesson for Liz to learn to let go on somethings, but it takes practically the whole book. I actually like the next couple book in the series, but I just had a hard time with Liz. Good thing Ryan and Maggie kind of balance Liz out.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to give one star, but I actually finished the book so for that, I gave it two.

The heroine has three strikes from the very beginning of the book. The fact that Liz harbors such intense animosity about a person she hardly knows, Ryan, because of incident that happened 17 years ago when she was an overweight 13 year old at the pool, gazing up at his eyes as he sits in the lifeguard stand. The second strike came when her older sister, Daisy, tells Liz that she's pregnant, and Liz completely takes over and decides she has to raise the baby because her sister is incompetent. Third strike was when Daisy told Liz she needed to pay off $10k of credit card debt, and Liz agrees without batting an eye because "it's what's best for the baby" and immediately takes a second job working for Ryan so she can afford to bail her sister out. Give me a frickin' break. Who in their right, sane mind takes a second job to pay off an irresponsible sibling's debt? This chick desperately needs to make an appointment with a therapist, or simply pick up a copy of the book "Boundaries." No, no, no. This is not noble, this is stupid. Although she racked up three strikes for herself in the first couple of chapters, I kept reading because of the character of Maggie. I have no idea why Ryan was interested in Liz; she was so incredibly unlivable. Part of me also kept reading to see if Liz changed, if the pendulum swung just as far the other way. I saw a little of myself in her; I'm the oldest of four kids with uninvolved parents, so I could relate to wanting to swoop in and help. But why did Liz and Daisy's parents have zero role in this situation, other than running a local fast food joint and letting the girls pick up shifts? And her mom flying out (to Arizona?) to visit when the baby was born. Why don't we know any details of her failed marriage, and how that has affected her dating/social life since? Why aren't those relationships explored? Why doesn't Liz ever bring up the snide comment she overheard that day at the pool, and Ryan's response? That would have made an excellent scene, and would have given me hope that Liz could articulate her feelings and have the courage to stand up for her 13 year old self. Little things like these would have made the story better for me.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally posted at http://kimheniadis.com

This story was good, and would have been great if Liz was not so annoying.

Okay. You had a traumatic experience with Ryan years ago at the public pool. Either you get over it and be with him, or you don’t get over it. If you don’t, then you don’t need to be with him. Move on with your life.

Or better yet, why not communicate with him. If you can’t talk to him about something that happened about 20 years ago, what are you going to do when something happens in your relationship today? Oh that’s right, act all snarky and pull away.

If it wasn’t for the other characters, mainly, Maggie, Ryan’s grandmother, I don’t think I would have finished the book.

Maggie, who raised Ryan and his two brothers, is now in her early 70’s. She recently had a car accident, and realized she has a lot of life in her, and wants to live it to the fullest. After she steals Ryan’s Harley, Ryan thinks his grandmother needs someone to watch her. This is where Liz comes in.

There was a lot of potential with Liz and Maggie’s relationship. Maggie helps Liz loosen up a bit, but it’s not soon enough. If it had happened about a fourth of the way into the story, I think it would have been a lot better read. I really enjoyed watching the adventures that Maggie dragged Liz into. And when Maggie found a lover who was 20 years younger, it was great reading the family’s reaction, and Maggie basically telling them to bug off, because she didn’t care.

I did start the second book in the Clover Park series, Daisy Does It All, because the premise of the book sounds good. I’m only a few chapters in, so I hope Daisy isn’t as annoying as her younger sister.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried, but just couldn’t do it. This book vascillated between dull and inane. The heroine, Liz, used to be a big girl but after a humiliating incident she became a control freak who monitors everything she eats and organizes the heck out of everything in life. She’s straightlaced and dependable.
PI and ex-cop Ryan hires her to serve as a companion to his Grandma who’s trying to live life to the fullest after surviving a car accident.

So many things about this book irritated me, but I’ll mention only a few:
• Stock characters. Uptight heroine whose fiancé dumped her. The omnipresent ex-cop. The irresponsible younger sister and the fun-loving grandma. Not a lot of depth.
• Liz’s bizaare reaction to her younger sister’s pregnancy. When Daisy shows up seventh months pregnancy, Liz starts having over-the-top co-parenting ideas and starts treating the unborn child like it’s hers. Get over yourself woman – it’s not like you’re too old to have kids
• “The Humiliation” Liz tries to avoid any contact with Ryan because of his role in an incident that weighs heavily on her life, too heavily. The incident is mentioned too often, and waiting half the book to find out the details is too much. Liz really needs to get more of a life.
I’m going to stop now. The worst thing is that the book is kinda dull. I got half way through the book and just didn’t care about the characters. Life’s too short to read something that drives me this crazy.