All is fair in love and auto maintenance.Beau Winston is the nicest, most accommodating guy in the world. Usually.Handsome as the devil and twice as charismatic, Beau lives a charmed life as everyone’s favorite Winston Brother. But since his twin decided to leave town, and his other brother hired a stunning human-porcupine hybrid as a replacement mechanic for their auto shop, Beau Winston’s … Beau Winston’s charmed life has gone to hell in a handbasket.
Shelly Sullivan is not nice and is never accommodating. Ever.
She mumbles to herself, but won’t respond when asked a question. She glares at everyone, especially babies. She won’t shake hands with or touch another person, but has no problems cuddling with a dog. And her damn parrot speaks only in curse words. Beau wants her gone. He wants her out of his auto shop, out of Tennessee, and out of his life.
The only problem is, learning why this porcupine wears her coat of spikes opens a Pandora’s box of complexity–exquisite, tempting, heartbreaking complexity–and Beau Winston soon discovers being nice and accommodating might mean losing what matters most.
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Beau is just such a great guy. He’s patient, loyal, gentle, honest, hard working and sexy. Shelly his love interest is something you don’t see a lot of in books. She’s a tall, sexy auto mechanic, a famous artist, and has some OCD issues. Them coming together, involves therapy, talking her issues over and patience. (something I lack) I just got so tired of her issues getting in the way. yeh I’m a horrible insensitive person. 😛 I didn’t want to listen to her program, one more time. I felt bad for beau that he had to tiptoe around her.
There was a big secret revealed, HUGE ! it knocked me on the floor.
i didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did other works from Penny Reid. Still it’s a 4 star read of sexy humor.
There is more to Beau than a handsome face and joking/addictive personality. There is more deep down that he keeps from others.
Shelly is different and comes across as cold and rude but there is also more to this stunningly gorgeous woman with aversions to contact with people.
This was a wonderful story between these two and the other characters in the Winston family.
A surprising twist was that in it as itself…surprising. Not sure how I feel about it even with finishing the book but the overall book was beautiful, fun and enjoyable.
I listened to the audiobook and found this funny, and some times sad. This is about Beau Winston fifth sibling of the Winston Family. Beau Winston is outgoing twin brother of Duane. He’s meets Shelly Sullivan the new mechanic in their auto shop and mistakes her for a stripper. Shelly Sullivan is new in town trying to live on her terms and make adjustments. Beau thinks she is unfriendly and wants to fire her. Beau finds out there is more than meets the eye as he discovers the layers beneath the surface. Penny Reid has done it again and made love the Winston family so much.
Beard in Mind is another winner for Penny Reid and all of her Reiders. If you get started reading this series, you won’t want to stop until there are no more to read.
Fun and smart series
A-Good Friday Night Read
First thing first. Let’s address the elephant in the book. Chris Brinkley’s Aw-Shuks boyish charm voice! It makes me smile and know it will all be OK, just stick with him. I enjoyed the Winston Brother’s Series. However, I loved reading Beau’s story, which is Shelly’s story too. (Some issues may be sensative, but artfully explained) From the moment Beau met Shelly it was meant to be. They just need to figure it out. It’s Friday, Let’s tuck in and enjoy a refreshing #opposites attract #madeforeachother #romance
I simply love the Winston family. Beau’s story was *almost* as good as Cletus’s story, and made me belly laugh numerous times [I’d have to guess it was an odd number ;)]. Fantastic read.
Beau Winston is known as the friendly twin with the easy smile who can always be counted on to help most anyone who asks. When he meets the new hire, Shelly Sullivan, he is ready to exercise his right as part owner to fire a person he believes will chase away customers with her rudeness and abrupt communication skills. One of his five brothers insists they need this skilled auto mechanic, as Beau’s twin will be leaving the shop and the country for a long time—another source of unhappiness for Beau. Frustrated, he doesn’t understand his body and mind betraying him when he thinks about the very irritating Shelly, but something makes him realize she has hidden depths that are puzzling which may be worth exploring. Shelly is an unexpected type of heroine who considers herself to be deeply flawed, as daily living is quite challenging for her. Although her character keeps the book from having an easy flow, Penny Reid was brave to insert this character in the story and the reader is richer for having experienced her. People who read “happily ever after” romances like to think that there is someone for everyone and even if we have already found our special someone, we like the idea of others finding love too, even in the pages of fiction.
Whoa. Wow.
I find I really love reading Penny Reid’s stories with two POVs but I loved it even more that this was written more from Beau’s POV. And Shelly! What an amazing character; seeing inside her thought processes, struggling with her OCD, was tough but eye opening.
I admit at first it was tough to get into this as Shelly’s quirks were a bit annoying but I stuck with the story. Dealing with all these compulsions is a horrible reality for many people who only want to live a “normal,” healthy, happy life. To love and be loved. Beau Winston is the right Winston to give Shelly what she wants and needs and to give him what he needs.
Not as searing and passionate as Cletus and Jennifer but still a wonderful Winston Brothers story.
Ugh, sometimes love is so complicated. Beau and Shelly had me all tangled up, waiting to see what would happen next. Excellent read!
An emotional, intrigue, a little intense, overall enjoyable journey to go on with Beau and Shelly. I absolutely adore these Winston siblings and cannot wait to read more.
I was trying to read the whole series and then write the reviews, but I can’t help it. This book surprised me so much. Beau was not my favorite in general and the way he appears in the previous books is like he is just a shallow flirt. I should have known better, the Winston brothers are awesome and Beau is definitely a Winston brother. He is caring, smart and so lovable I can’t handle it. His woman, Shelly, is such an interesting character. They complement each other and it is so obvious that they need each other in order to be their best selves. I loved, loved this couple and the series is amazing!!
I liked Beau and Shelly’s story. It was different from the previous books I listened to in the series. I loved that Shelly is smart, artistic, talented. That she is loving and willing to take a chance on love. Beau also revealed the different layers to his personality, and discovered characteristics about himself that he was not aware even exited.
This book had a lot of the same scenes and dialogues as in book 3, Cletus and Jennifer’s story. It felt to me that a large portion of the beginning of this book was just a repeat.
This enemies to lovers tale with Beau and Shelly’s was interesting, as they navigated Shelly’s issue with OCD, and Beau’s surprise. I didn’t feel the strong connection I felt with some of the other couples, but their relationship was sweet.
The other thing about this book was there were quite a few side stories or subplots going on at the same time. There were also a number of surprises. My guess is that these books can be read or listened to independently. I think they would be much more enjoyable if they were listened to in order.
I thought Cletus was my favorite but I was absolutely wrong. Beau is amazing and willing to look at things in a new way. Shelly is so great and I love that she is willing to try. They are going to be perfect together!
With some of the books in this series now available via KU along with some I’ve nabbed over the years on sale, I’m finally making it a goal to read all of them…not necessarily in order, folks. So these comments are more of a note to myself charting my progress and reminding me of tidbits here and there. Since this is not an ARC review, I don’t have the luxury of time to linger too long here. Sorry about that. I do hope my few comments here are helpful to you in some way though.
This book is the fourth one, but is only the second book I’ve read so far. I definitely enjoyed it more than the first book (Truth or Beard), which featured this hero’s twin bro and what I considered a whiny, wishy-washy, very self-centered heroine (Truth or Beard – Jessica & Duane). Yeah, I never actually even finished that book, because I found Jessica that annoying. Even saw the ending coming, because, hey, that couple had a few cameos in this one, so I easily caught up with their current status. But that’s OK. I’m cool with confirming how it worked out for them. I had already guessed their wrap up scenario anyway. Hint: not surprising she comes first and gets her way!
Back to business here .. Distrust/practically instant hate from Beau, the hero, soon turns to intrigue and love, folks. You see, he soon realizes there’s much more to Shelly than meets the eye. I’m all down for that, as well. It was a nice surprise to find Beau was just a good natured flirt and not a manho. In fact, he’s been celibate for quite awhile.
As usual, it is this author unique writing style, which features funny back and forth banter, that grabs me each and every time. Shelly gives as get as she gets from Beau! Yeah, right from the get go she is no shrinking violet. Then it is heart melting when Beau realizes and takes on Shelly’s struggles right along side her. Yep, he’s a keeper..and I plan to keep on reading to see how all these Winston Bros turn out. Beau has set a standard that will be hard to beat.
(These comments are not based on an ARC copy. KU or purchased copy was read.)
4 1/2 stars.
The beginning of “Beard in Mind” was a little slow for me because it showed some of the same events that happened in “Beard Science”. Fortunately, when it started to focus more on new events involving Beau Winston and Shelly Sullivan, the book got infinitely better. While Beau is the golden boy who treats everyone nicely, Shelly is the closed off and “mean” girl.
I liked that two of my favorite tropes were present in this book. The first trope was “enemies to lovers” even if the enemy thing was kinda mild compared to other books. Their relationship started on the wrong foot because Beau just couldn’t understand why Shelly had such poor manners with their clients. I thought it was cute and funny how frustrated they were with the situation while also being extremely attracted to each other. The second trope was “grumpy/sunshine” and the fact that Beau was the “sunshine” character only made it better.
When Beau finds out the reasons that make Shelly behave in a way that he’s not used to, he immediately realizes how wrong all his assumptions were. I loved that he took the time to understand her disorder better and wasn’t scared or ashamed to help her and be by her side. I know this is the least he could to, but it still warmed my heart to see how caring and thoughtful he was with her.
I also loved that they spent most of their time in Shelly’s house because it made their intimacy and connection stronger and more beautiful. Domestic relationships are really something else, am I right? And their scenes with Shelly’s pets were incredibly sweet and made them look like the perfect little family.
I’ve always liked Beau because he seemed to be a genuinely empathetic and nice guy. This book only proved how right I was. Instead of letting his past dictate his behavior, he tried to be someone who only brought happiness to people. Even though he used his cheerfulness and selflessness to hide some of his insecurities, he was never fake to anyone. Beau is really a precious character that I’ve come to admire and love even more now.
Shelly is another female character in the Winston Brother series that is extremely successful. I love that even while dealing with a mental disorder since her childhood, Shelly became a world famous artist and an incredible mechanic. The fact that she had OCD didn’t define her whole life. Yes, that definitely changed the way she saw and interacted with the world, but it didn’t stop her from achieving some of her dreams and becoming an amazing professional and person.
I also have to thank Penny Reid for showing the importance of seeking professional help to deal with any kind of mental disorder. It was also incredible that the author didn’t put Beau to be Shelly’s savior. In many romance novels, the girl’s mental disorder magically disappears after she ends up with the guy, so it was a relief that Shelly kept doing her treatment after her relationship with Beau started and never even thought about giving it up.
My only real complaint about this book, besides the slow beginning, is that I felt like the ending was a little abrupt. I don’t know, I guess I was expecting more Shelly’s POVs and scenes of them traveling to Chicago or just being their domestic selves. Nonetheless, this was yet another incredible book in the Winston Brothers series and I highly recommend it.
Penny Reid just put this series on Kindle Unlimited making her one of my quarantine heroes!!! I said firmly that Cletus is my favorite Winston brother. I’m sticking by it. Buuuuttttt…Shelly may just be my favorite spouse. I loved this. I loved it so so so so much. There was just so much sweet, wonderful, I’ll-make-room-for-you-and-support-you-while-you-work-on-yourself cuteness in here. And then I realized that every single one of my sentences ended in exclamation points leaving this paragraph looking like a cheerleader’s journal, so I took them all out.
Shelly and Beau are probably blindingly beautiful walking down the street together, but what really makes them a power couple is their ability to support each other. Shelly’s OCD and Beau’s family drama make for some pretty heavy burdens, but they are the essence of a couple who really are better together than they could ever be apart.
On a very small and thoroughly insignificant side note, I have a mild for of OCD called Grammar Pedantry Syndrome. Penny Reid’s editor clearly doesn’t think that you need a comma between compound sentences, but he or she is wrong. But I do give everyone permission to laugh that the book about a character working through her OCD triggered mine.
And we are back to saying that this book was so very very good!
**All the exclamation points I took out:!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well thought out characters.
Penny Reid has created a wonderfully quirky set of siblings who each have their own rocky road to their HEA. This series is beautifully crafted with great attention to character development. The fact that this series is based in one of my favorite areas (the mountains of Tennessee) gives the series a distinctive cultural flavor. Don’t be fooled! These hillbillies are smart and savvy, except when it comes to love. They get lots of help along the way from their tight knit family. Do yourself a favor and just buy the whole series. I did!