Dax Colyn is one of the bad boys of Willow Valley. A fearless volunteer firefighter and hard working, sexy mechanic, he makes all the woman swoon and he likes it that way. He keeps people at a distance since his mother died. He doesn’t want to let anyone in, much less a woman he knows he could fall in love with.Ava Anderson keeps people away, too. Haunted by her tortured past and constantly … fearful of the future, it’s only her daughter Olivia and Dax’s dad Rowdy that she’s let in. But when tragedy strikes, it pushes Dax and Ava together, forcing them both to let go of their fears. They soon learn how hard it is to keep pretending and how easy it is to let others in. Especially when those people are family.”Dax” is the first in the “Bad Boys of Willow Valley” series from author Shannyn Leah.
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Wow…truly an amazing roller coaster ride through my emotions! Dax is a sexy bad boy mechanic/firefighter who has tried with everything to keep what he feels hidden. Ava is a single mom to sweet and sassy Olivia, trying to be better and do better than she had before Olivia. The heartbreak that brings them together had me in tears. I loved going through Dax and Ava’s journey, and truly loved them!!
I was able to get a copy of this book at a book signing. All I can say is I am happy to have been able to find this book and author.
The talent that I found in this author is amazing. I loved that there wasn’t to much detail with the love sence. Very classy and I love that.
I must say that I found my new book boyfriend and he is ALL MINE and I don’t like to SHARE…#sorrynotsorry. I can’t wait to read the next one
5 Stars all the way! Loved it! Dax and Ava are a couple you will enjoy reading about. The characters are lovable and the writing flows great. I hated seeing it come to an end and can not wait to read the next book! I have found another author I will be stalking!! LOVED IT!!!
This is a book that tugs at your heartstrings and doesn’t want to let them go! Shannyn Leah writes a down to earth heartwarming tale of love and life struggles.
Dax and Ava both have pasts that they would like to forget, and each has their own way of hiding their feelings and emotions.
Dax is a volunteer firefighter, ace mechanic and son of the local Fire chief. He is well known as one of the bad boys of Willow Valley, and enjoys the benefits of being a ”womanizing man whore “, with his string of one night stands and his rule of never date a girl twice,and most definitely don’t date a local girl.
Ava is single mom to Olivia, local high school teacher, and adopted daughter to Rowdy(Dax’s Father), after he took her in when she was young , pregnant and had lost her entire family in a fire.
When tragedy strikes, Dax and Ava are pushed together in a way that they had been fighting to avoid. Just as things start to look up,their new relationship is challenged again by evil from Ava’s past. Ava and Dax are forced to let go of their fears and turn to each other and friends to make it through.
Dax is the first in Shannon Leah’s new series, Bad Boys of Willow Valley.
I was introduced to Ms Leah though another author’s book release party, this is the first novel of hers that I have read,but it definitely wont be the last.
It all started with a spark…
New series staring the bad boys of Willow Valley. This was my first book by Shannyn and I loved her writing style. Only the need to get a few hours sleep caused me to put the book down. Her characters are lovable, her scenes come to life in your mind, and the mix of emotions – love, hate, fear, sadness, humor, and bravely well have you hooked too. I’ll have to add her other Willow Valley series to my TBR!! And now a bit about the story…
Dax and his father, Rowdy, co-own and awesome car restoration shop. Among with both being firefighters. Ava came to town years ago pregnant, scared, and with nothing to her name. Rowdy gave her a chance and soon Olivia was born and they became a big family. Through in a few more characters from the valley and the story keeps you on your toes. The sparks are flying between Dax and Ava, but they’ve always kept their distance. The gap is slowly closing though…
Favorite passages:
– “You know, son, there was a time when you were a newbie.”“And you fired me more times than I can count.”
– “Even when I’m not at work, I’m babysitting foolish, immature boys.” Wanda laughed. “Boys never grow up, honey. They just learn how to mask their immaturity with their charm.”
– “Alright. Are we going to share these afterwards?”“Yes. Now shhh, all your chatting is distracting me.”
When bad boys turn good Dax will be at the head of the line as he proves his feelings are real. When tragedy strikes it reminds them both that there is so much more to life. While Ava is ready to hit the road at the first sign of trouble Dax is ready to put all his baggage in the fire and go full speed ahead. This is a great story with some intrigue and suspense thrown into the midst. The pain and sorrow rings thru loud and clear but then again so does the fire that burns between these two. Love the start of the series and this standalone is most definitely just the start of what promises to be some good reading.
DAX by Shannyn Leah
Bad Boys of Willow Valley #1
Rowdy Colyn, widow and father of Rowdy, brought unwed pregnant Ava Anderson into his family after his wife died. Ava found a second and better father in Rowdy than the one she grew up with. Ava is definitely running from her past but makes a wonderful life for herself and her daughter in her new town. Rowdy and Ava are attracted to one another but fight it for years. The blurb for the book sets the right tone and background for the book while indicating that there will be a HEA in the end. There is loss and heartache and coming to terms with issues in life that both Ava and Rowdy have to deal with. Olivia, Ava’s daughter, is a charmer.
To me this felt like a New Adult romance with a bit of suspense at the end. I have to say that I really disliked Rowdy and had trouble sticking with the story due to the way he behaved in the beginning. I saw nothing redeeming in him at all and could not see why Ava or any female would want anything to do with him. Thankfully that changed when he was required to step up to the plate…well…perhaps not even then but perhaps a few days afterward. In the end he did redeem himself and I was better able to see why perhaps Ava and Rowdy would end up together. It was an okay story and one I would recommend for New Adult readers and even, perhaps for young adult readers.
I would like to thank the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.
3-4
4.5 star Review Dax (Bad Boys of Willow Valley #1) by Shannyn Leah
This is book one in Shannyn Leah’s latest series and I really enjoyed reading it and it is all about Dax and Ava.
I sit here writing my review and sighing over Dax. Although rather annoying at first but
(I thought he was an absolute jerk) he soon grew on me. Ava, I really liked and her daughter Olivia, she made me smile.
Both Dax and Ava fight to keep a reign on the feelings, neither looking for a relationship. However they don’t count on fate which brings them together more and more and when tragedy strikes they begin to see each other in a new light.
Slowly but surely these two friends become involved and romance blossoms. But will they both be able to overcome the fear that a relationship brings them and learn to trust not only themselves but each other?
I like that Ms. Leah doesn’t write perfect characters, they are real, they have flaws and this is a strength that I find in her writing style. Dax is at times an emotional read, which saw me laughing and crying, a sign of a book that drew me in and kept me interested.
I am looking forward to reading more in the Bad Boys of Willow Valley series.
Dax may be a bad boy but he’s one hell of a man.
This is book one in the Bad Boys of Willow Valley series and it kicks off with a bang, if the rest of the series is even half as good as Dax I’ll love them all!
Dax is a mechanic and volunteer firefighter, he’s single and vows to stay that way after watching someone close to him lose themselves when they lost the love of their life. Not him, he’s a one night at a time, no sleepovers, no seconds and no locals kinda guy. One night with a tourist an then on to the next.
Ava is a school teacher with a daughter. She lives with Rowdy, Dax’s dad. He took her in when she was young, pregnant and all alone. After tragic circumstances brought her to Willow Vally and into the care of Rowdy she’s slowly built a life for herself and her daughter Olivia, but theres someone in her past that threatens that security.
Dax has flirted with Ava over the years but she keeps everyone at bay, not risking heartbreak and even if she is attracted to him he’s the town whore, why on earth would a sigle mom, a school teacher, risk her reputation for one night?
He’s slowly breaking her down, she knows it and continues to fight, he on the other hand is confused. He thought he wanted one night with Ava but sometimes things aren’t what they seem.
Tragedy strikes leaving Dax & Ava shaken and lost, but it brings them closer together.
Can the sweet little school teacher be what the bad boy needs, and can that bad boy be a one woman man?
Secrets, painful pasts and even friends seem to be working against them, when the time to make a decision comes will it be the right one for all involved?
Dax and Ava are so good together, the chemistry is off the charts. Even though he was a slut I loved him early on, he loved his family and friends so I knew there was more to the man than what people thought about him. Their story is well paced and kept me turning the pages, I had to get to the end, I needed to know how it ended so I read this one in one day.
The secondary characters were pretty great too, Stone I can’t wait for his story, Hawk eh I may be able to live without him for a bit lol!
Single Mum meets Sexy Firefighter romance (Bad Boys of Willow Valley 1)
I loved it! For all that this is about Bad Boy Dax Colyn, sexy volunteer fire fighter, classic car restorer and connoisseur of woman (read this as vastly experienced), it is also about learning valuable lessons in love, taking chances in life, and learning that not everything or everyone around you can be controlled.
The family that Dax grew up in was warm and loving, his father Rowdy, was a happy man, until his wife, Dax’s mother died. As Dax watched the strong man he’d admired, become someone who could barely get up in the morning, he decided never to give his heart to a woman. “I would never lose the power of my own control and follow his path of weakness.” EVER.
Ava, having escaped the fire that killed her family, has learned that she would be the only person to look after her and her daughter, Olivia, until she met Rowdy, who took her in, gave them a place to live. Together the girls brought Rowdy back to life, but even so, Dax maintained his distance.
That is, until a devastating loss has the potential to bring them together, for more than one night. Apparently to Dax, Ava is not like any woman he’s been with before, she is THE woman. She doesn’t think so, even when he says he’s going to be claiming her.
But in the end, while Dax may have one hell of a past when it comes to women, Ava thinks her is so much worse.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy of this book, and I highly recommend it to those who love romances with that reluctant man with high values and an unrecognised love for a single mother and her tenacious seven year old daughter who also loves restoring her Rowdy gifted classic car, insisting that it is a ‘he’. 5 Stars, from an impatient reader eagerly awaiting the next book about a Willow Valley Bad Boy.
Oct 27, 2017 · edit
Dax by Shannyn Leah is the first book of her new Bad Boys of Willow Valley series. This is a contemporary romance with a HAE and no cliffhanger. Shannyn has a wonderful talent for writing about bad boys and the women who fall for them.
Dax is a volunteer fireman and co-owner of a mechanic shop in Willow Valley. He is also the town playboy. He doesn’t believe in serious relationships. After the death of his mom he can’t bring himself to involve his heart.
Ava is the mysteries woman Dax’s dad brought home 7 years ago and invited her and her daughter to become part of his family and the town. Ava has sworn of men especially bad boys.
Shannyn’s ability to write this story was fantastic. What happens when you have to hard headed individuals that won’t give an inch? You give them a shove.
Dive right in, you’ll love Dax. This is my first book by Shannyn Leah that I’ve read but it won’t be my last. I received an ARC from the author. This is my voluntary honest review.
Oh my! The emotion, the angst, the romance! Dax is an alpha mechanic, volunteer fireman, love ’em & leave ’em man. He’s arrogant & cocky & he’s keeping a secret. He’s interested in single mother Ava. He’s managed to hide it from everyone by engaging in one night stands to keep his mind off her.
Dax’s father Rowdy had befriended Ava when she was pregnant & alone. He had her move into his house as a “form of a foster” daughter to give her a hand up. She’s now a respected teacher with a young daughter. She’s looked down on Dax for his attitude but still is drawn to him. When tragedy struck, will it pull them together or push them apart? The chemistry is there but can it develop into more?
Shannyn Leah has done it again. The story pulled me in from the beginning & quickly tapped into my emotions. I cried! I actually sobbed through several chapters & used multiple tissues. I loved the idea that Olivia, Ava’s daughter, has these rough, tough mechanics wrapped around her finger. It was a sweet side that generally isn’t portrayed but tugs your heart. I can’t wait to see what Ms. Leah comes up with next.