“No one writes realistic romance, laugh out loud dialogue and heart warming moments better than Sterling. This book is a MUST read!” – Goodreads Review
New York Times best selling author J. Sterling brings you a brand new standalone romance that will excite and delight you. Falling for your rival has never been more fun!They say you always want what you can’t have. And what I want is Julia La … always want what you can’t have. And what I want is Julia La Bella. I’m supposed to hate her with every fiber of my being, but I’ll let you in on a little secret…. I don’t. Not even close. The woman is stunning. She’s also a colossal pain in my- you know what- but even that turns me on.
Julia’s my number one competitor in the wine industry and she also happens to live next door. Not a good combination for a guy who’s been told to “stay away from her” his whole life. Our parents can’t stand each other; a bitter, outdated rivalry with no end in sight. Which doesn’t fare well for my heart. Or my loins. Yeah, I went there.
I want her. I’ve always wanted her. So how am I going to convince her to see me as the super hot, smart, irresistible guy next door, instead of the one person on earth she’s supposed to despise? I’m not entirely sure, but we’re about to find out.
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I so badly wanted to like this book more. However, I was bored most of the time reading Bitter Rivals. The story dragged on and was nothing but predictable. Honestly, I just didn’t connect with any of the characters. It got to a point where I just didn’t care what was going to happen but I still ended up finishing the book. I do think this writer has great potential though and maybe I just didn’t click with this particular book. I needed more steam and banter between the two main characters. I don’t even know why the author labeled this book as the two characters being enemies to lovers because there wasn’t as much tension as to be expected. Enemies to lovers is my favorite romance trope and these characters just didn’t do it for me. I needed more. I honestly cared less about the family feud. The feud felt like the author snapped their fingers and it was suddenly just over. There was no development. I had a hard time believing that the parents were just suddenly fine and accepting of the two characters getting together after a multiple generation feud.
James is more than meets the eye. He is not just some arrogant playboy, but a man in love and you will love all his flaws and his heart from the first page you meet him. Julia though is a feisty heroine who does not just give in even though she is attracted to him. She holds her own and lets him know who’s boss. The sexual tension is just delicious and just gets hotter with every page.
Bitter Rival is a nice read. Julia and James are from rival winery families. They have always liked each other but their families have kept them apart. Julia’s Dad is super serious about hating James’ family. Julia put up a big fight with her feeling for James because she has a lot to lose. James is sweet and nice. I loved how he was done with the rival and just wanted Julia. Julia takes a little more persuasion to get her to think of James and not the rival. It’s told in the dual POV of James and Julia and it was great to see what each one was thinking. I really liked this one.
This was a great 4 star enemy to lover story. This was a quick read full of bartering.
Julia’s family and James family have been enemies for as far as can tell. They have been at each other’s throats since they were kids. Now years later James makes his move because he has always loved her. She can’t resist him.
It was a short read that kept me on my toes. There’s was a lot of description about vineyards and such which I thought the author seemed to know what she was talking about. Due to the shortness of the story I thought it took away some focus from the couple. Besides that the storyline was quite entertaining with all the bantering.
Standalone told in a dual POV with an HEA. I recommend this story.