Hate at first sight couldn’t possibly exist, right?That’s what Grace Buchanan thought, before her useless car stranded her on the side of a deserted road just inside the Green Valley city limits.When Tucker Haywood—tall and handsome and full of southern charm— shows up to help, her reaction to him is the strongest thing she’s ever felt in her life, and it makes no freaking sense.It doesn’t make … sense.
It doesn’t make much sense to Tucker either. Not why she hates him, or why he finds her so intriguing. He knows well enough that Grace is moving to Green Valley for a fresh start, not to distract him when he’s got no room for something like her in his life.
The complications between them are endless, but that doesn’t stop her definitely not love-at-first-sight feelings from changing into something else entirely.
Grace and Tucker are about to learn the hard way that in Green Valley, hating someone has never tasted so sweet.
‘Batter of Wits’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #5 in the Donner Bakery series, Green Valley World, Penny Reid Book Universe.
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This is only the second book I’ve read from Karla Sorensen and I devoured it! From the first chapter, Batter of Wits was hilarious, heartfelt and heated.
I loved that things between Grace and Tucker got off to a very rocky start. Hate at first sight, yes indeed. But that anger and animosity didn’t last long. What started out as disgust quickly became so much more than either expected. Grace saw Tucker. Understood his sense of duty and obligation. Accepted the part of him that sought adventure and purpose.
But with the way things are in the small-town, it didn’t take long for things to get tricky for the new couple. Torn between keeping things close to the vest and sharing their joy for all to see, the half truths quickly caught up with them. The epic way Tucker went about proving his love and devotion to Grace and them made me melt.
Tucker and Grace’s journey to fulfilling their purpose and finding love was tender and gave me the happy belly flutters. Batter of Wits is the most tender, full of feels small-town romance. And that little tease Karla Sorensen gave me at the end…well let’s just say I can’t wait to go back to Green Valley!
Adored this story!
“I held Tucker’s gaze for a brief moment, and I wondered if he saw the same look of confusion in my eyes that I saw in his. Something changed. He felt it, and I had too.”
Grace Buchanan has moved to Green Valley with her twin brother. On her arrival, a handsome stranger comes to her rescue. However, instead of feeling grateful, she feels an unprecedented and overwhelming sense of hate for him that leaves her feeling out of control. Even more overwhelming is when her feelings suddenly start to change and the family curse appears to have affected her.
“Something filled me, slipped quietly into my veins, and pushed through my muscles, something dangerous ad strong that I wanted to rip out with my bare hands because of how it made me feel.”
Tucker Haywood had been born and bred in Green Valley. His roots and his future are deeply entrenched in the town. However, is all that really what he wants? When a beautiful stranger arrives in town and takes an instant dislike to him, he’s baffled, fascinated, and about to have his whole world blown wide open.
“One nudge over the edge of the cliff, and she’d have me free falling without a parachute. I’d never, ever wanted it so badly.”
Gah! I loved Grace and Tucker! Grace was confident, sassy and direct but her heart is big. I enjoyed her confusion when she first meets Tucker and in spite of her enmity, there was also a spark of lust. Tucker was gorgeous! I loved his good humour, his Southern manners, and his burning desire for Grace! I loved that he was so polished on the outside but underneath, there was a bit of animal in him! Rawr! Their story was funny, hot, and a feel-good. Adored it!
Moving from California to Green Valley held the promise of a fresh start. Before Grace Buchanan could even get settled, she faced the reality of living in a small town. The reality of moving in the middle of the sticks became a stark reality when Grace found herself broken down on the side of the road. With a car that wasn’t going to budge, Grace quickly discovered that the lack of cell service was just one of the changes that would be a reality in her new life.
Like a true southern gentleman, Tucker Haywood never turns away a damsel in distress. Finding Grace Buchanan on that winding road was going to shake things up in a way Tucker could not predict. The spitfire that accepted an offer of help was intriguing Tucker by the minute. As the two found themselves thrown into the same space, Tucker found himself questioning the choices that he has made with the direction of his own life. Grace brought a hurricane through the center of Tucker’s well-planned life, and Green Valley would never be the same for it.
As Grace found herself pushed into the same circle with Tucker time and time again, she began to wonder how much of this was the Buchanan curse. After all – no one could resist fate. Or could they?
Tucker and Grace give fans of Green Valley an interesting twist on a love curse. When Grace finds her way to the small Tennessee town, Tucker is immediately drawn to her instant DISLIKE for him. With a life that is nothing like he would have planned for himself, Tucker finds himself questioning the choices he has made about his career and romantic aspirations. Both Tucker and Grace find an attraction that is too unique to ignore.
There are quite a bit of giggles at the antics between these two characters. In spite of that humor, there were times where I found the plot falling flat. There was certainly plenty of upheaval in Tucker and Grace’s life to fuel a bit more of the push and pull that you would expect when fighting fate. The Buchannan curse was front and center in this story…..until it wasn’t. After the history of the curse was laid out for the female members of the Buchanan family, the storyline seemed to leave things hanging.
The drama that seemed to follow Tucker and Grace was entertaining, but I find myself wondering what is in store for Grady!! The lovely epilogue that followed this novel has me wondering if the chaos in Grady’s life MIGHT be able to rank up there with Tempest’s story!! Only time will tell!!
Sarcastic wit and humor light up the pages of this book, leaving me laughing and swooning with every flip of the page.
Can a week change your life? For Grace Buchanan the answer is yes, 100% yes. From hate, to lust, to possibly love, she feels every emotion under the sun towards Tucker Haywood, something she never expected when she rolled unceremoniously into Green Valley Tennessee. Stuck in a humdrum relationship, Tucker’s life is thrown off course when Grace and her sarcasm upend his world and has him truly examining his life and his future. The story has a great underlying theme of not being afraid to take risks and do things out of the ordinary, even if it scares you.
“Grace was freedom and choice. A risk that I had no problem taking, because it was a risk I wanted to take.”
Grace, while a bit guarded, is genuinely a nice person until she meets Tucker. Instead of feeling that instant attraction towards the sexy stranger she has feelings of instant hatred to her surprise. Her families love curse takes a twisted turn with her being the only female descendant in years, making her possibly believe the silly legend after all. I love how her character develops throughout the story, opening her heart while she tries to fit into small town life and find her place, I loved her vulnerability and bravery to step into the limelight and find her happiness.
Tucker, gahhh, I absolutely loved him, a sweet and caring man who is stuck in the family law firm he despises, wishing to be outside in nature and free of the mundane life he feels trapped in. I’m not going to lie, I was a little nervous that there is an initial girlfriend in the picture, BUT his seemingly picture perfect relationship with his high school sweetheart is not all that it seems. Through the ups and down of small town gossip, I loved the happiness and passion that Grace and Tucker found in each other. With a little help from meddling Maxine, nothing was going to stop the love curse from not coming to fruition.
Sexy, fun, emotionally thrilling, action packed adventure filled with heart racing twists, exciting turns and undeniable passion ….. was a great read. Really enjoyed this heartwarming journey!
This book had me hooked from the start! Karla Sorensen did an amazing job and it is one of my favorite books in the Donner Bakery series so far. The Buchanan Curse is at it again and Grace and Tucker are a match made in heaven. They have a magnetic attraction that had me smiling, their relationship is the definition of their being a thin line between love and hate.
Grace Buchanan is Levi from Baking Me Crazy cousin. She finds herself stranded in the back roads of Tennessee when Tucker Haywood comes to her rescue. She has an immediate negative reaction to his presence and can’t help but be rude and disdain him. Tucker and Grace are two people who are trying to find themselves. They are stuck and find themselves in situations that no longer make them happy. Together they can’t help but push each other’s buttons and flip their worlds upside down.
Grace, has just lost her job in LA and is moving to Green Valley Tennessee with her twin brother Grady for a fresh start. She is a non-believer in the Buchanan family love curse. While Tucker has lived in Green Valley his whole life and is bored. He is yearning to do something else after following in his families footsteps as a lawyer, and being stuck in a relationship he is no longer happy in. Together they complement each other, Tucker teaching Grace that love is real and her teaching him to take risks. Tucker having been a part of the Green Valley community his whole life is faced with having to learn the consequences of living in a small town and everyone knowing your business.
I truly loved the relationship between Grace and her twin brother Grady. It always gets to me the idea of someone understanding you more than anyone else in the world having known you your entire life even before you were earth side. He is extremely protective of her, but in the end he just wants what’s best for her. I can’t wait for the Buchanan curse to strike again and for Grady to find his lady love.
Witty banter and swoony chemistry are what made this book a page turner.
I love Karla’s writing style, especially in this series. Cannot wait for more!
4.5 stars
Ahhhh, I was dying to get back to the Buchanan family and their curse as we found out in the first book and Grace and Tucker book was so perfectly crafted.
A must read story with two driven characters that have a lot of chemistry and a banter that will make you laugh out loud so much while wanting to slap them over while each one is too proud to confess their feelings and I loved it!
Baking Me Crazy was the first book that I’d read from the Smartypants Romance collection. I liked it, and it was probably my favorite of the Donner Bakery series, until I read Batter of Wits. I’m actually not sure why this book belongs in the Donner Bakery series, though. The only thing this book has in common is that the first one was about Levi Buchanan, and Grace is Levi’s cousin. There’s no connection to the Bakery otherwise. But I guess they had to put the story somewhere.
These two books are about people who fall “victim” to the Buchanan Love Curse. In Baking Me Crazy, Levi is in love with his best friend Jocelyn, and waits for five years for her to realize that she feels the same about him. In Batter of Wits, Grace Buchanan experiences “hate at first sight,” and it results in a fun and interesting story unlike anything I’ve read before.
I love books set in Green Valley, especially when we get little mentions of characters we know and love, but this book seemed to give the small town even more depth and life. We meet more of its residents, and there’s a quirky little fair that reminded me of something that would happen in Lucy Score’s Blue Moon Bend. We get the setup for the next Buchanan Love Curse story, which involves Grace’s brother Grady (who doesn’t believe in the curse, BTW). I am really looking forward to that book, and hope that Grace and Grady’s dad also gets hit with the Love Curse, because it’s never too late!
Thanks to Smartypants Romance for the opportunity to read and review this lovely book.
I was so excited to read Batter of Wits by Karla Sorensen. I had previously read Baking Me Crazy and just loved it. I do not want to give too much away, but if you read the previous book, which each can be read as a standalone, you know about the curse. Grace never believed it in, then she met Tucker Haywood. Their connection is undeniable, even if they try to ignore it and their chemistry is intense. I loved their interactions and back and forth. Their story was sweet and fun and I am excited to see more of the Buchanan curse!
Read and reviewed for Sultry Sirens Book Blog.
Happy reading!
Batter of Wits by Karla Sorenson is the newest addition to the Donner Bakery books and the Green Valley series. I read Karla Sorensen’s other release in this series and loved it, so I was excited for this book and it was as great as I expected it to be.
When it comes to the Green Valley series you know going in it’s a little out of the ordinary. One of the main story lines that force Grace and Tucker together is the chicken festival and a kissing booth. I feel like the community of Green Valley is so established that you don’t question any weird situations and just go along for the ride. Overall, I adored Batter of Wits immensely and I can not wait for Grace’s brother Grady’s book!
This author’s writing always has me feeling some kind of way. With Batter of Wits there is no denying how much I swooned while turning the pages.
Tucker and Grace quickly won over my heart. And how could I not fall in love with them? If they had me laughing all the time. They are real, their personalities are amazing and just so right for each other. I love that ever if it was quick, they went from enemies, to friends, to lovers. I loved that as they got to know each other they couldn’t deny the powerful chemistry between them.
And the side characters? As always, I loved them. They bring so much into the story. It’s impossible not to fall in love with them and want to read more about them.
Heartfelt, funny and swoony.
What a story! The kind of book that causes a 3am finish. Absolute perfection
Karla is a one click author for me – I would happily read her shopping list.
I adored her first story in the Smarty Pants world, it was special. But this book, well it’s something even more.
I have struggled lately to focus on a contemporary stories, my brain can’t find the usual escape I get from reading. But this book, this witty, emotional, funny & sometimes heartbreaking story had me glued to the page. Brilliant character driven storytelling with imagery so rich you’re right there in Green Valley.
Tucker and Grace are why I read romance. Simple as that. Their story is sweet. It’s messy. It’s definitely magical and I couldn’t love it more if I tried.
Oh my I loved Grace and Tucker. You may have heard of love at first sight …..well you are about to witness disgust at first glance . Grace breaks down on the side of the road right before reaching Green Valley and her savior just to happens to be Tucker the town nice guy. The moment she lays eyes on him she can’t help but be rude, distant and brooding.
Tucker is stopping to help a fellow motorist when he sees her. He offers a friendly introduction and she does not …why does she not like him ? This is the beginning of the awkward and so funny game of sarcastic banter, rude comments and avoidance. Grace learns with some digging that she may be the target of the family curse. Tucker soon realizes that their is a very fine line between Hate and Love and he and Grace are about to run that one together. Loved their story! This little town does not provide much privacy and you are about to see all your old friends in Green Valley !!
Batter of Wits is the fifth book in the Donner Bakery series and another addition to the Smartypants Romance novels.
This is another story of the Buchanan curse and the effects it had on Grace.
Grace is trying to find a place to fit in Green Valley. She’s having some difficulties trying to adapt to small town life. She’s strong and sassy and just dances to beat of her own drum.
Tucker is a charming and handsome southern gentleman with issues of his own. He had no idea while picking up a stranger off the road that she would turn his life upside down.
Batter of Wits had me laughing and swooning. Heartfelt with just a smidge of angst. A story of finding your path and fighting for what you want.
Let the Sparks Fly!
Trading the city life for a small town is definitely a change of scenery… But when that change starts off on a bad foot, you can’t help but rethink your choices.
Grace Buchanan is doing just that. Being the only Buchanan female within 5 generations, she has a lot to deal with. She wants to pave her own path, and she is avoiding the love-curse. It has “plagued” the men of her family and she doesn’t want to fall into the same situation!
Tucker Haywood. Sexy. Responsible. Nice. Sweet. But all that goodness doesn’t change the way Grace despises him. . But maybe it is for the best. Tucker’s life is planned. He works for the family business. He has the perfect girlfriend. But when he meets Grace the pull to her is strong.
This story has a love-hate relationship and the growth that the two have between hate-friendship-love is well worth the read. They drawn you in.
While this book is a standalone, you will get a glimpse of some of the other characters in the Donner Bakery series. So if you haven’t read the previous books, read them and enjoy the rest of the characters and their stories.
Another great read from Karla Sorensen!
A love curse can truly put a bind in your happily ever after. Karla has this incredible magic with her writing. You can actually picture the incredible worlds she creates. The country charm and witty banter makes this book so heart warming. Watching this story unfold is beautiful and I love these characters so much. They are perfectly matched both strong willed and love fiercely. This is one book you need on your TBR list.
Once again this author hits you right in the feels. I laughed and cried. I swooned and gritted my teeth in anger. I loved the progression of the characters in this story. It was very realistic and I appreciated the ups and downs.
4.5 Angry Girl Stars
This book was purely fun. Grace does not believe in the Buchanan family love curse. But she is about to be struck by it. In an interesting way. These two have instant sparks between them, and boy, do they bring out Angry Girl.
Going back to Green Valley and getting to know a whole group of new people was great. Grace is standoffish and a bit hard to like at times, but her prickliness comes with just the right amount of selfdoubt and work to improve herself, that she always remains interesting.
Tucker is the cutest Southern Gentleman, and I just wanna hug him. Not without faults, at all, but just a pure delight.
Overall, their story jumped somewhat quickly from hate to friends to love, but I was holding on to the railing on the rollercoaster and enjoyed it all.
Tucker and Grace’s story is an unconventional enemies to lovers story. Grace never really hates Tucker, she just can’t explain why she’s an “Angry Girl” with him when they first meet. Their chemistry was fun and they had great banter. This is a fun small town romance with some endearing characters. Love the family curse angle and how it plays out for Grace. I can’t wait for Grady’s story next!