Fun read, but was difficult to buy into this instant I gotta have her, she's the one mentality. Did enjoy his total obsession with her


Merged review:

While some predictability, was a nice romance

Fish Out of Water by Cat Johnson - 5
Professor nerd and outdoor loving cowgirl make a whole lotta heat. They just need to get believe they are worth each other ( )

The first 2 stories were what I expected. Light romantic feel good reads that were fun to read, by authors I follow. The next three author's were new to me. The next 2 stories did not live up to it for me. I found them dull, too cheesy and just worth the time. The last book I didn't finish I couldn't find any interest in the characters of the story so I dropped it.
stories 1-2, 4 stars
stories 3-4, 2 stars
story 5, 1 star ( )

Five great short stories by five great authors. Perfect beach quick reads that will keep you entertained. A definite must read. ( )

BATTERIES NOT REQUIRED by Linda Lael Miller
Series: Parable MT (Book .5)
Contrary to popular opinion, Gayle Hayes's love life is out of service. But when she returns to her small Montana hometown, rodeo bad boy Tristan McCullough gives her a whole new lesson in power surge. . .

Good story, though very short. Gayle had left Parable right after high school, leaving sweetheart Tristan behind. She didn't think he'd care, since she saw him with his arms around someone else. When she comes back to town to help her mom sell her bar, she runs in to him right away. The chemistry between them is even stronger. I liked seeing them actually talk about what drove them apart although that seemed to be about the only talking they did. I would have liked it to be a little longer so that there was more to the story.

CAPTIVATED by Jill Shalvis
James Scott warned his investigator ex-wife Ella to be more careful. Now he finds the irate woman nearly naked and handcuffed to the towel rack in his Mexican vacation condo. He should release her. Then again. . .

Pretty good story. Ella is an insurance investigator who has really bad luck. She is constantly getting caught by the bad guys and locked in trunks, tied up, etc. This time she's been caught snooping and handcuffed to a towel bar to keep her out of the way until the bad guys can get away. She's discovered by her ex, who had come to their cottage to get away for awhile. James (a cop) still loves her, but his fears for her safety made it impossible for him to live with her. All he wants is for her to give up the dangerous investigations. I completely understood Ella's problem with James. As she told him "I loved you James. Every part of you, but what kills me is that you can't say the same." She accepts that being a cop is who he is and doesn't try to make him change, but he was constantly after her to change. The question is, can they find a compromise before Ella gets into more trouble?

SEDUCING TABBY by Lucy Monroe
Everybody always wants Tabby Payton's beautiful sister. But not sexy English spy Calder Maxwell. He wants Tabby, body and soul, and he's willing to take seduction to new levels to prove it. . .

Loved this story. Tabby is used to people wanting her beautiful sister. Men will make up to her as a way to learn about Helene. She doesn't mind - she loves her sister and wants her to be happy. But when Calder makes it clear he is interested in her, Tabby doesn't know what to do. Having a sexy Brit courting her is a dream come true. I adored Calder. I loved the way that he saw what a wonderful and sexy woman she was. It was so much fun seeing him do so many things to make her happy. I loved seeing the care he took to make sure that she was certain about wanting him.

NO SHIRT, NO SHOES, NO SERVICE by Kate Angell
Series: Barefoot William (Book 2.5)
Violet Cates is done with surfing beach bums. She's ready for a new wave, someone with more ambition than a grain of sand. Like Brad Davis. He looks like a beach bum, but looks can be so deceiving. . .

Very good story. Violet and Brad had been together for six years when he left town to try to make a better life. Five years later he has returned, apparently not much different. The love between Violet and him is still there and as strong as ever. Vi is just happy that he's back. Together they work at the diner where they worked as teens and get to know each other again. I loved seeing the way they shared their dreams. I also enjoyed seeing Vi take care of Brad, even though he tried to tell her that she didn't need to. I really enjoyed the ending and seeing how they make their dreams come true.

FISH OUT OF WATER by Cat Johnson
Series: Oklahoma Nights (Book 2.5)
Carla Henricks is a cowgirl through and through, but her lasso has never met an English professor like Mark Ross. It's true opposites attract. Staying together is the juicy part. .

Good story. Carla has been burned in love by cowboys once too often. She's ready to try something different. Mark is on a university staff retreat camping trip when he meets Carla. I loved the way he was so unenthusiastic about the camping and fishing until he met Carla. Having her show him the ropes is the best part of the weekend. I really enjoyed seeing how much fun he had catching his first fish, and then doing the cooking. The attraction the two felt to each other was strong, but I also enjoyed seeing them just get to know each other. ( )

He's The One by Linda Lael Miller, Lucky Monroe, Jill Shalvis, Kate Angell and Cat Johnson
Love this anthology-5 different authors, some new to me. Each book has hot steamy sex scenes.

Batteries Not Required by Linda Lael Miller
Gayle Hayes is returning to the hometown that she left. She is now a paralegal and she's just back to see to her mother's interest in the tavern-where they used to live and work.
She brought her boyfriend with her-BOB as she's told Lucy her bff in CA. Problem is she runs into an old boyfriend and they split on bad terms. From the time she steps off the airplane nothing has gone right.
Tristin McCoullough blames her for the breakup 10 years ago and she blames him for cheating. She reviews the property and finds him in there. She tries to get back on track with her mission.
They do listen to one another as to why she ran to him for help, saw him with another woman and wrote him a letter. He explains his side and they still have the meeting of the sale to get through...
.
Captivated by Jill Shalvis
Ella Scott is a fraud investigator and after the year she's had she's ready to switch to workman's compensation department.
This last one she has figured out the boats that had gone down that the owner wants the insurance money and she's linked it to drug money. Some thugs came into her Mexico hotel and handcuffed her to the shower and told her somebody would be by in a few days time.
She's there with only a towel when her soon to be ex husband walks in. He wants her to tell him that she wants him to sign the divorce papers but he also knows when she is lying...
James knows her and her body and will prove to her they need to be together...
He's a cop and he wants to protect her and get her out of harms way and she wants to finish the case herself.
.
Seducing Tabby by Lucy Monroe
Tabitha Payton is hostessing the summer gala. Her parents own the yacht club and marina and restaurant where the gala is. There is some speculation about the man of the hour-Paul Calder. Some think he is royalty, some that he's in the secret service.
While dancing she tries to tell him of her sister Helene's best kept secrets so he will find it easier to court her. Tabby love her job selling books and he's a regular once a week buyer of mystery books.
She experiencing a lot of new things as she finds out he is interested in her and not her perfect size 6 sister. They spend a lot of time together just talking and then other things...
Love the day at the museum and the night after...
.
No shirt, no shoes, no service by Kate Angell
Violet Cates is a waitress in Barefoot William, FL at a diner-Molly Malone and one of the patrons is a long lost high school romance,
Brad Davis was a blast from her past... Loved the prior books I've read about the communities and the people in it.
The town is divided into 2 parts: one barefoot william and the other Saunders Shores. The high end is Saunders and the everyday crowds go to Barefoot, it's such a lived in place, the boardwalk.
They had dated 6 years and he felt he had to leave til he could make something of himself and then return...The chef will be gone for 2 weeks and he will take that job and all they can think about are the escapes to the backroom ...
He finds out not much has changed, her sister and kids have used Violet and her house and never even pick up after themselves. All her money goes to them. He wants to change all that..
.
A Fish Out of Water by Cat Johnson
Carla Hendricks and Mark Ross are on the camping/fishing trip with their bosses.
Mark has never been but he follows what the others are doing and some words such as noodling has Carla and Mark stripping - down to their bathing suits.
It's also known as other words and Mark is able to catch his first fish ever. Carla makes it so he is not embarrassed and she cooks the fish for him over the camp fire later.
As the others head down to go fishing they stay behind and end up in the lake having sex. When they get back to work she breaks up with him because of his level of education is so much different than hers.
Her boss finds out the real reason why she won't date Mark and goes out of his way to help them out...
.
Few excerpts from the authors upcoming works is included at the end.
I received this book from The Kennsington Books in exchange for my honest review ( )