4 books in one amazing package! Each stands alone. Dare to Resist He’s about to find a baby on his doorstep… and his assistant in his bed.
Austin Prescott is a lot of things. Ex-football player. Sports agent. And as of this morning? Father. Finding a baby on his doorstep should have been a joke, but the pink sticky note and baby carrier she came in is deadly serious.
What’s an out-of-his-depth bachelor to do? Call his tempting and beyond gorgeous executive assistant and beg her to move in.
Close quarters. A baby. Undeniable chemistry. What could possibly go wrong?
Dare to Tempt He’s a smooth-talking jock in trouble. She’s the solution to his problems. Love is the last thing they expected to find.
Damon Prescott had it all. Star quarterback. Money. Fame. Now? He’s being accused of taking performance-enhancing drugs and banned from the sport and team he loves. Determined to prove he’s innocent, he hires tough-as-nails private investigator Evie Wolfe.
Evie’s used to men dismissing her, especially playboys like Damon Prescott, so she’s not buying the sexual lines he’s trying to sell. She’s with him to do a job, nothing more. But you know what they say about the best-laid plans? Sometimes you end up between the sheets with an arrogant football player anyway.
Dare to Play He’s the bad boy of baseball who’s about to lose everything. She needs a husband to get custody of her teenage sister. Suddenly a marriage of convenience doesn’t look so bad.
Pitcher Jaxon Prescott has a lot on his plate. Major League Baseball. Reputation as a player. And now? He’s on the verge of losing it all. What’s a bad boy to do? Marry his sister’s best friend to save his career, even if it’s the opposite of everything he wants and believes in.
Macy Walker needs to provide stability, and marrying someone would do the trick. Luckily for her, her best friend’s brother needs a wife. They’re this close to getting exactly what they want—as long as they don’t fall in love.
Dare to Stay He’s the one who left. She’s the one he left behind.
Willow James, athletic trainer for the Miami Thunder football team, knows abandonment and hurt. A child of foster care, she’s been moved around and left behind more times than she cares to count. Just when she was starting to let her guard down with Braden Prescott, he left for a two-year stint with Doctors Without Borders. Now he’s back.
He knows leaving her once was the biggest mistake of his life. Can Willow learn to trust him not to leave, especially when adventure comes calling again?
NY Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestseller, Carly Phillips is the queen of Alpha Heroes, at least according to The Harlequin Junkie Reviewer.. Carly married her college sweetheart and lives in Purchase, NY along with her crazy dogs who are featured on her Facebook and Instagram pages. The author of over 75 romance novels, she has raised two incredible daughters and is now an empty nester. Carly’s book, The Bachelor, was chosen by Kelly Ripa as her first romance club pick. Carly loves social media and interacting with her readers. Want to keep up with Carly? Sign up for her newsletter and receive TWO FREE books at www.carlyphillips.com.
I listened to this as an Audible set with good narrators. And while I enjoyed the stories, there were definitely editing issues and inconsistencies that were glaring obvious. One moment someone would be wearing sweat pants, then they were suddenly in jeans. The worst blunder was talking about a kidney transplant throughout all the books but calling it a liver transplant one other time. I had to wonder how hard it was for the narrators to deal with that kind of thing.
3.5⭐️ Audible - Overall I enjoyed this series. There were some odd redundancies but not too distracting. I wasn’t super drawn to any of the couples but I thought each fit. I did have a hard time remembering which brother was which and I didn’t think their history was super dramatic. Not enough to make me sympathetic. I liked how each epilogue set us up for the next book. I thought the steam was good and had some genuine laughs.
Loved every story. I absolutely loved all of these stories and the narration. Great storytelling and well worth listening to.
Dare to Resist Can they work it out? Landing her dream job and with chemistry off the charts for her boss Quinn keeps her thoughts and feelings to herself not wanting to jeopardise her job. Austin having hired the woman of his dreams as his executive assistant can not get Quinn off his mind no matter how much he tries to. When an unexpected delivery appears on his doorstep Quinn is the first person he rings to help him through his ordeal. Can they navigate their feelings that are growing stronger day by day? A story I loved, with relatable characters and a gorgeous baby. Looking forward to the next book in the series.
Dare to Tempt Can she help him out of his bind? After testing positive to performance enhancing drugs Damon’s football career is hanging by a thread. How can he prove that he is innocent and have his name cleared? Damon’s brother Austin and his girlfriend Quinn have just the person who can help. Quinn’s best friend Evie is a private detective and is the perfect person for the job. She can be seen with Damon and no one will realise she is investigating his case at the same time. Will their pretending lead to deeper feelings for each other? However, Evie has problems herself in which she needs protection. Can Damon protect her from the danger she is in? Can they help each other? A really enjoyable story that I loved in this series.
Dare to Play Fake or not? Famous, bad boy baseball player Jaxon has gone too far, needing to change his ways before his team drops him for good. Macy, guardian to her 15 year old sister has just found out that she may lose her in a custody battle. Both needing to lose themselves for a short time end up spending a night together that leads to much more. This is a fake relationship story between two people that really want more but can’t admit it. Can they overcome their fears and speak out or will they go their separate ways? Another really lovely story in this series that I’m enjoying.
Dare to Stay Will she forgive him? Having just come back from his two year stint with Doctors Without Borders Braden comes home to win over Willow. The only woman that he loves realising that he should not have left her as he did. With his work cut out for him can he make her forgive him and give them another go at happiness? Willow is at the stage that she is trying to move on in her life and starts to casually date again with a work colleague. Being shocked by Braden’s return and the chemistry that is still between them will she ever get over him? Can Braden breakdown her defences and if so will she ever be able to trust that he will stay with her? Another great story in the series. I especially loved this couple and their journey making it back to each other.
FULL DISCLOSURE: I'm not a fan (or haven't been thus far) of listening to stories told in 3rd person. I have no problems with *reading* these, but *listening* to third person, for me, has always made the stories less personal for me. They feel detached from me as the listener, so I tend to stay away from audio books in that POV. This audio book is *included* with my audible subscription so I gave it a whirl. I enjoy Joe Arden & Erin Mallon as narrators so much that after a very short period of time, I forgot I was listening in 3rd person, so that's a plus! I've also already *read* these stories at the time they were published so that helped a lot for me because I didn't have to *concentrate* on the plot as much as I would have to had I known nothing about the Dares. That lack of concentration allowed me to forget my dislike of 3rd person faster lol That being said, this is going to be one of those times I recommend the ebook over the audio and I also recommend you do not binge these back to back to back.
These are fairly short audio books, about 5 hours each, and if you're having a lazy weekend like I was, before you know it, one story flows into the next. Normally, this flow isn't a big deal except when the narrators are the same but playing different people and the stories lack depth. When I read these stories at the time of publication, my brain didn't really pay attention to the lack of backstory and depth to all the stories. There are a lot of things we are told but I didn't feel the emotional pull I should have to them. *shrug* These stories just published recently in 2020 so I can't really say it's me *growing* as a romance fiction reader soooo ....
Anywho, I could pick apart these stories in detail, but I don't have the time or energy for all that. They're not *bad* stories but if I'd have paid full price for this audio, I might have been a little stabby *shrug*
I love romantic books but i hate when they are magically in love the second they meet and then they are fighting to get together for ridiculous reason. I got thought the first book but the plot isn’t good enough for me to suffer though 3 more books in this box set, that i can’t get into and i don’t find believable.
The idea is good and the Narrators were great but it’s just not my kinda books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Better than 2 stars but not quite 3 stars. A 2.5 star series?
Cheesy, sometimes eye-rolling, very much a Hallmark channel miniseries. Lots of repetitive phrases (why do all the women constantly have “puckered nipples” and spend so much time talking about “his man scent” and his “salty taste”?!?)
There are plot issues that should have been caught in editing.
But it was a light read to pass time. But don’t expect to be blown away.
None of the characters were particularly memorable. The family plot twists were interesting. Similar to other CS series, she usually writes H/h characters who both have conflict and baggage. The h is pursued by the bad guy and the H is her savior. Add some steamy sex scenes, the same in each book. It was included in my Audible membership. I wouldn't recommend buying this series.
The narrators were excellent and added to the stories. But then these stories are unrealistic, too fantastic and by the fourth book I couldn’t take it anymore. Each story had the same feel. So it’s a pass for me.
Cute stories if you like insta-love with some tension and drama holding them back. Mild on spice scale although not fade to black. Had some inconsistencies that were very obvious. Loved the audible narration.
Listening to this boxed set all in one go is not advised. The narration is great but done by the same voices for all 4 stories, it becomes extremely rinse and repeat. Listener beware.
I only got this on audible because Joe Arden narrates the Male POV and I went in with minimal expectations. The books are so fun and each one has a different trope which I loved.