Sometimes you fall for Mr. Right. And sometimes for Mr. Right Now… not all Alec is good at. Our unexpected chemistry makes him the perfect rebound guy.
Alec
I should know better than to hook up with my rival’s little sister, but the fiery look in May’s eyes really turns my crank. She needs cheering up, and I’m just the guy for the job.
It’s not like I’ll fall in love. Not even after a string of scorching hot trysts, and the realization that we’re good at the same things: wild nights and familial disappointment. I don’t do love, never have, never will. So this is the perfect arrangement, for both of us.
Nobody would approve, but nobody has to know…
more
One thing that is always consistent with a Sarina Bowen book is that I easily get hooked and gobble it up. Speakeasy was relatable, fun and heart warming. While it is the fifth installment in the True North Series, it can be read as a standalone. I’ve been with these guys from the start so it’s always good to get more of the gang.
May Shipley has always felt like the black sheep of the family. She’s bisexual and a recovering alcoholic. She’s also an extremely intelligent lawyer and loved by her family. Coming off a breakup from her live-in girlfriend, May finds herself becoming closer friends with Alec Rossi. He’s easy to be around and has a sharp tongue that keeps her laughing during a rough time in her life. She also starts to feel attracted to him but fights it with everything that she has.
Alec feels like the kid in the family who messes up and is considered a playboy but he has a successful bar that he puts his heart and soul into. When May walks into the bar and he sees her world shatter, he can’t help but be drawn to her. He wants nothing more than to make her smile again. The more he spends time with her, the harder he falls for her. When things get heated, they say it’s for fun only but Alec wants more. Problem is, May doesn’t. Now he has to convince her that they are actually perfect for each other.
I like May and Alec together. He has his own insecurities, which makes him real, but he also has a confidence that is perfect for May. He supports her when she needs it but she can recognize when he needs it in return. He was so patient with her while she worked out her insecurities.
It was also great to get more of the gang. Gruff Griff, Audrey, Lark, etc. I will say that I wanted more of Jude but I understand based on the story of May and Alec how it isn’t that easy to really bring him into it more than he was. Plus, Griff and Alec were sort of enemies so it was great to see their relationship play out as well.
Overall, I enjoyed Speakeasy. It talks about real issues and it makes the characters relatable. I’m greedy so I hope we continue to get more out of this series.
I absolutely love this series every book is so different, i love where these books are set and for me it’s just like coming home and coming back to a family that you feel you know so well and get so excited to see where the next lot of characters take us.
This one was no expectation, we got the playboy Alec and the very confused May. We got to know Alec as a good brother to Zara in her book, but he wasn’t ready for settling down and was trying to make his bat successful. I felt like we got such a different view of Alec which we expect but i never expected him to so thoughtful, caring and really misunderstood. I liked Alec from the start he was so funny and he made me feel good just reading his character.
May what a complex character she was in previous books it was almost like she was in the background but you could see her spiraling down and she was going to hit rock bottom and she did. We were left wondering why she was with her partner because they were so mean to her and bringing her down and i couldn’t wait to get May’s Story for this reason. In her family she always felt like the joke but it was like she never felt like she was worthy of being good enough for anyone or that she didn’t deserve good things and i felt so sorry for her.
I absolutely loved this story, in a way it was about two very lost characters who just needed to bring the best out in each other and to really show each other that they were worth it. There was the drama, the previous characters who we got read how they were going. For me this book is one of my favorites i have read this year and that cover is beautiful.
If you have read this series you will not be disappointed at all, it was amazingly written and such a great story.
If you haven’t started this series it’s a must.
Big 5 Vermont stars for this book
You Guys!! Anyone who knows me knows that
Sarina Bowen is a desert island author. I absolutely run to everything she writes as I feel like she has a finger on the pulse of what people love and want to read about. I absolutely adore her True North series and could not wait for May Shipley’s book!! And honestly her and Alec? SOO adorable and fun. They brought out facets in one another that no one else did. But while I thought this book was such a fantastic addition to the series, I did have some mixed feelings about their connection.
If you have read this series from the beginning, then your May Shipley obsession is real. I loved her feistiness and loyalty to her family and friends and the fact that she had struggles and turmoil in her life she was dealing with. I think she is one of my favorite characters this author has written purely because of her relateabilty factor. Now my main man Alec Rossi? He gives Jude a run for his money (sorry Jude!) I absolutely loved that he was an absolute sweetheart who only saw the fun and flirty in life. At first he was the perfect playboy distraction for May while dealing with a painful breakup and a turning point in her life. But as they got closer and emotional boundaries were crossed, would May be able to see past Alec’s playboy persona to want something real?
Gah!! This story was fabulous. So utterly fabulous as I loved Alec. He was just so real and honest and himself. There was no artifice. He was who he was. His struggles about his own self worth and everyone’s (false) perception of his reputation and limitations made my heart ache for him. Likewise, May was amazing and so loving. She was at a point in her life where she needed to figure herself out. For that reason while I appreciated and understood her struggle and the rough patch she was at in life, unfortunately, I didn’t really feel her connection and feelings for Alec until the very end. It felt like she was struggling so much with figuring herself out that her feelings for him were almost *lackluster* and an afterthought and could have been fleshed out a bit more.
All in all though, let’s be real. This series has been a solid gold star in my book and one of my favorites from this author. This family feels more like friends to me and ones I will miss and revisit often. Here’s hoping we receive more of the Rossi family’s books (*cough* Benito *cough*) as I will read anything this author writes. Dictionaries included! Bravo! 4 stars! ~Ratula
Speakeasy is the fifth story in the True North series. I loved returning to this series and the Shipley and Rossi family. Don’t worry if you haven’t started this series yet it can be read as a standalone. But i can highly recommend reading this series right from the first book Bittersweet you will not be disappointed.
May has had a lot of pressure coming from her family and friends. They worry about her maintaining her sobriety. Throw in a cheating Ex and May feels like her life is crushing her. All she wants is to live her life and be happy.
Alec Rossi on paper is the last person May needs in her life. He owns a bar and his own family class him as a bad boy always looking for a good time. The night he steps in to help May he becomes that and so much more. The sexy, light-hearted bad boy becomes escape that she needed.
In that escape both May and Alec find something so much more than they were ever expecting. And we get a love story of over coming ones faults and finding your soulmate.
Speakeasy by Sarina Bowen
I love returning to True North and the Shipley family and I loved Alec and May’s story. While I needed a quick refresher on who Alec was, I was well-acquainted with May and her habits.
After a humiliating breakup, May returns home to the suffocating bosom of her family – having struck up an odd friendship with her rescuer, Alec along the way. May is a recovering alcoholic who is always wishing for that one drink so perhaps striking up a friendship with the owner of the Gin Mill – a pub in town – is a little unorthodox, but they somehow make it work.
Alec is used to working hard and playing harder. He likes a good joke and he’s a fun-loving guy. He’s always thought May was more than a little attractive but never acted on it given that a: he hates her brother and b: her last partner was of the female variety.
This series of Bowen’s always makes me feel all the damn feelings in the whole world! I’m happy and smiling one minute, then the next I have tears and feel like I could toss out some violence. Speakeasy was no different in that regard. I wondered how Bowen would handle May’s bisexuality: would she denounce all feelings towards women? Would she immediately jump into something with Alec? And what about her alcoholism? Would it be prettified for the reader? Silly, naive Mel. Bowen handled all of these issues and questions with her usual aplomb and treated them with the respect they deserve. For that alone, I take my hat off to her.
I loved this book and honestly couldn’t find fault with it. This whole series is a must-read in my opinion. It’s not always pretty, there aren’t always rainbows and sunshine. But these books and the characters are raw and real and I cannot get enough of them.
*arc received in exchange for honest review.
**Reviewed by Melinda for Joandisalovebooks Blog.
Alec is just a romantic, “he kisses my ear. “Amazing. Been waking up hard every morning, dreaming of you.” Alec has a great way of getting his girl to stop talking, “I’ll show you some ongoing royalties.” I thrust my hips and she laughs. Then I kiss her, and there’s no laughing for a nice long while.” I liked this book, I loved Alec.
SPEAKEASY – Sarina Bowen – 5 STARS
We all remember May from the first books. She’s the Shipley’s ‘problem’ child. She’s an alcoholic. And nobody in the family really trusts her to make sensibly decisions about her love life and her life in general. Now she’s living with a girl – Daniela – and hoping that for the first time in her life something is going her way. Hopefully forever. BUT, of course it’s not – Daniela is cheating on her.
Poor May packs her bags and with the help of bar owner and her teenage crush Alec (who is the brother of the girl from book #4 and a little bit of a Shipley family nemesis – as in he hates them!) she moves back in with her parents. Just what any 27 year old lawyer wants.
Alec is busy with his bar. He needs money to make some changes; like brew his own beer, add a restaurant. But now he’s horribly distracted by beautiful May.
But of course she’s gay, right?
What will happen to May & Alec?
Will there be a Happily Ever After?
READ THE BOOK TO FIND OUT!
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Eeep – I was so glad when I found out that this series was not over yet!
I loved Griffin and the other guys … and now here’s finally May’s story.
She pretty quickly starts something with Alec…
And both know that it’s only sex and only for a little while. Nobody can know. Griffin would probably kill Alec.
But it’s not only for a little while. It becomes serious pretty fast. But poor May doesn’t know if she can trust herself and she doesn’t know that Alec really understands what it means to be with an alcoholic. But of course Alec is mega adorable about everything! Even though he has his own problems!
Such a sweet & moving & sexy & fun romance. With a lot of very serious topics.
I adored it!
I soooo want this series to be on Netflix one day! PLEASE!
SPEAKEASY was such an adorable & moving & sexy & funny love story!
Will May & Alec get that happily ever after? Run to your nearest amazon to find out!!!