After a bet with his brother, Liam O’Connor has to date the next woman who walks into the pub. And he’s all in, because his pub is on the line. What he didn’t expect was Cassie Meadows, who at first glance with her big glasses and bulky sweater looks like a woman who has many, many cats–but her wit and smile make him wonder what’s underneath her bulky armor. Cassie Meadows aka sweet romance … romance author Cassie O’Brian is about to lose everything. As in, her writing career is going down the drain because she can’t write the sexy stuff that’s selling these days. She needs inspiration in the worst way. That’s when she walks into the wrong pub at the right time. Sexy owner Liam is just what the writing doctor ordered. Her whole body is feeling inspired–and when he makes a proposal she can’t refuse–she’s all in. Oh, hell yes. Best. Sex. Of. Her. Life. Thanks to Liam, she’s about to write a best-seller.
But having an erotic romance alter ego is nothing compared to the real secret Cassie is hiding–and that one could destroy everything.
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A sweet romance writer who’s told she needs to up her game to steamy novels, a hot Irish pub owner that fits the bill to fill up the pages. I’m surprised my e-reader didn’t melt from the hot steamy sex and dirty talk. No strings attached, experience for her book, sexual gratification for both. Except that isn’t always the way it turns out! A quick, enjoyable read. Great for a day to just kick back, relax and enjoy!
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing for introducing me to Candace Havens and the opportunity to read this novel. I enjoyed it so much I purchased it tbr again.
Liam is the best book boyfriend ever
I thought this book was wonderful. It had all the right elements. It was sexy, funny, dirty, romantic, smart, and had a strong but vulnerable female lead and a handsome and genuine male lead. It starts with a bet between two brothers that own an Irish Pub in Boston together. The older brother Liam is worried than his younger brother Finn gets engaged too often and too soon.
Liam is afraid that one of these timers Finn will actually tie the knot and end up divorced, giving part of their pub away to the ex wife. So he bets gets Finn to agree to stay away from women for a month and Finn gets Liam to agree to date the next woman to walk into the pub. The woman that walks in is a writer who has written nice tame romance novels, but needs to move into a more erotic genre.
Casey is immediately attracted to Liam and though at first he doesn’t see behind her baggie sweat pants and large sweater, he looks closer pretty quickly as she talks to him. She is unafraid to speak up. She asks for what she wants and the book starts out quickly and is fun to read. The dirty talk is humorous and jokes are hilarious. The sex is downright steamy. There is just the right blend of humor, sex, and story so there is not too much of one or the other. I really enjoyed the book and plan to read more from this author.
This was okay for me. While the writing wasn’t bad, there wasn’t a whole to the story. It’s a quick read, and although I don’t mind (in the least), steamy times for the main characters, this book didn’t have a lot of plot to go a long with it. I liked Liam and Casey okay, but there just wasn’t enough there for me to root for them. The big “secret” that Casey has was just meh to me. It really wasn’t as bad as what the lead up would make you think. They do get their HEA, and the last part of the book was very sweet. This was a first for me from this author, but I would give her another read.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers copy of this book.
Bet Me to Stay is by, new to me author, Candace Havens, and I loved every moment of it. This book was the perfect blend of romance, humour, and just enough drama to make it enjoyable, but not bog down the story.
The writing style just flowed, quickly switching between the POV of our two main characters. Character development was on point. Liam is almost the perfect book boyfriend. I liked that he admitted (to himself) that his view to have a ‘casual fling’ was in trouble from nearly the first moment. As much as he tried to talk himself out of it, he did not try to deny his feelings or try to sabotage the developing relationship unconsciously. Both characters accepted, on some level, what was happening, and it was refreshing not to have either of them self-sabotaging the relationship’s development. Casey was a lovely character. She too recognised what was evolving, but she wouldn’t allow herself to accept it. Her history with her family, how they treated her, and the secrets that she was keeping from Liam, left her too insecure to embrace it. However, I didn’t find this annoying, as I do in many similar scenarios. I think because there were very practical reasons (and ones not overly exaggerated) for her hesitation, with her lack of self-confidence and self-worth being significant factors.
Bet Me to Stay is one of those stories that stay with you, long after the book is finished. I’ve read it twice in the last six months, and I enjoyed it just as much the second time as I did the first. It is a beautifully crafted story packed with emotion, humour, and more than a little heat.
I’d highly recommend any reader of contemporary romances ignore the category tags and give this one a chance. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Bet Me to Stay is available from Amazon.
BET ME TO STAY by Candace Havens is a contemporary Rom-Com that takes a look at two brothers and their very different dating habits. Marvelous Must Read!
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I loved this one. Cassie and Liam were such great characters, and their chemistry was scorching. What starts out as a hot one night stand turns into so much more, and we’re left watching these two try to figure out their growing feelings for one another. Liam initially approaches Cassie because of a bet with his brother, but that bet soon becomes incidental to his fascination with Cassie. Cassie, meanwhile, is trying to put more spice in the erotic romance she is writing and finds more than the inspiration she was looking for with Liam. I loved seeing the progression of Cassie and Liam’s relationship, and the steamy scenes were VERY steamy. I highly recommend this book.
Note: I received a copy of this book in return for an honest review.
Liam and Cassie’s story was a fun and wonderful adventure in Bet Me to Stay by Candace Havens, book one in her Abbott series. Hot, sexy, bartender Liam agreed on a bet with his brother that he would date the next woman who walks into their pub; especially since his pub was on the line. Liam never expected Cassie with her big glasses and bulky sweater, making her look like a cat lady. Cassie is funny and her smile causes Liam to wonder that’s underneath her loose and bulky clothes; hoping to get a chance to see. Cassie is a sweet romance author who has decided to up her game and write a sexier romance like the books that are selling like hotcakes. Only she can’t write the sexy stuff and need inspiration, in the worse way. When she walks into the wrong pub at the right time she finds that inspiration in Liam. Neither Cassie nor Liam is looking for a relationship while he is more than willing to teach her about hot, enjoyable sex; something she hadn’t experienced before. Thanks to Liam Cassie is not only getting the BEST SEX OF HER LIFE, but her book is about to become a best-seller. Then the axe falls and Liam learns that Cassie has not just been using him to write her book but discovers the secret she had been hiding; one that could destroy everything. Plus that no relationship rule failed to take into account that after a month together feelings and beliefs can arise, making what they had a true, loving relationship.
Ms. Havens wrote a wonderfully hot and sexy story that is not to be missed. She provided a tale rich with sexual chemistry, amusing banter, and endearing characters giving Cassie and Liam a chance for the happiness, love and a future together neither ever expected. I highly recommend Bet Me to Stay to other readers.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
Bet Me to Stay by Candace Havens is the story of Casey Meadows and Liam O’Connor.
Liam and his brother end up making a bet that his brother won’t date someone for a period of time and that Liam will date the first women that walks into their pub.
Casey is a romance writer who looks bookish / messy since most of her time is writing. But when she is told that she needs to steam up her books she knows she might have to do some ‘field’ work. Casey ends up meeting Liam who sure brings spicy and hot to her mind.
This was a cute easy romance. Enjoyed it and will look for more books from this author.
I really liked this book a lot and Liam and Cassie make the perfect couple, they just belong together.
Cassie starts of having no confidence and no real sexual experience, so when her best friend and agent Tansie tells her that her romances are lackluster and needs a lot more sexual language and scenes, she has to figure out how to become more free and open to the experiences a man can give her.
Liam is the owner of an Irish pub and he has closed himself of from having relationships since his ex and her cheating ways left him heartbroken. His brother Finn on the other hand falls in love every other day and he wants to find a love like their parents have so his heart is wide open. Liam and Finn makes a bet and Liam’s part of the bet is to date the next woman who walks in the pub, and that woman is Cassie.
Liam helps Cassie open up and not be afraid to say what she wants and feels and the more they are together the more brave, sassy and confident she gets.
Cassie helps Liam open up to the possibility of love again and she helps Liam and Finn with ideas to make the pub more homey and get more clientele.
I love that these two really help each other and even though they try to explain the love away they just want to be together all the time and can’t keep their hands of each other.
The characters are all great and those Irish boys are really something special.
I can definitely recommend this book especially in these summer months when you just need a cute, funny, lighthearted romance.
I got this book for free through Entangled Publishing and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Time for another episode of the good, the bad, and will I read this new-to-me author again? Yes, this is a new-to-me author. She seems to have quite a few books under her belt, but I haven’t yet read her until now.
I adore Cassie and Liam. They are really good together and have some chemistry. Separately, they are also interesting and fun characters. The way they meet is also interesting, and things only progress the way they do because of the events of the day for both characters. In other words, they’re both in the right place at the right time…physically and mentally.
While I like the concept of Cassie trying to spice up her own sex life in order to better write sexy scenes in her romance books, this opened up the sex scenes in this story to closer scrutiny. At least that’s the way I felt. Some of the scenes more than stand up to any test. Unfortunately, some of the scenes seemed a bit more forced and stilted. Just as Cassie was told in the beginning, it’s more than insert tab A into slot B. But a couple of scenes seemed to be doing exactly that. Like the author had a list of positions she wanted to make sure to check off through the course of this story.
It’s no secret I’m a timeline/small detail stickler. I’ll reiterate my stance on this for those that don’t know. If mistakes become too numerous, are blatantly wrong, or start distracting from the story I will call them out. Otherwise I let the mistakes slide. Now, the ARC I received of this story was obviously an early copy and hadn’t been fully edited yet. So some word tense (which I’m terrible at myself but always seem to notice when it’s someone else’s writing) and editorial issues I ignored. But there are more timeline issues and little mistakes than I’m comfortable with letting slide. If these things don’t tend to bother you, great. If they do, be forewarned! (And if you are nit-picky like me, rest assured the fact that Liam has an accent is eventually explained. It seemed to me it went too long for Liam’s situation to be fully explained because his accent and some things about his parents and grandparents were really annoying me until he finally gave his story to Cassie almost a third of the way into the story.)
Many things in this story work, and work well. But the things that weren’t working for me seemed to be mistakes a less seasoned author would make. I could see her potential and did enjoy the story for the most part. Then, last week, I received an email from one of the publicist at Entangled explaining that they had decided to go back and do another rounds of edits on this book. Unfortunately, I have not had the time to go over the updated version they provided through Net Galley. This book came out yesterday and I would normally have posted my review by that time. I put this one off another day hoping I’d get to give the updated version at least a quick peek. Rest assured, if I am able to read the re-edited version I will come back to update my review if need be. In the meantime, I believe I will give this author another chance since I did enjoy a lot of this story.
** I received an ARC of this book courtesy of the Net Galley and the publisher. All opinions expressed in my review are my own and given freely. **
This review can also be found at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2019/07/09/bet-me-to-stay-arc-review/
A little She’s All That vibe with some serious grown up heat!
It starts with some bad news from her editor and ends with finding the love of her life! Cassie is a romance writer who can’t quite get the sexy stuff on the page. Liam is a co-owner of an Irish pub with a brother who seems destined to ruin the business. A bet between the brothers leads Liam to approach Cassie at a low point that leads to some serious steam!
I really liked how affirmative Liam was of not only Cassie’s body but also her talent and intelligence and that she was supportive of his hours at the bar. What I didn’t love quite as much was the long drawn out secret but that’s a personal thing – it always bugs me for secrets to be drawn out too long.
I’d definitely love to see a book about Finn and Tansey seemed like she’d be the perfect girl for Cassie’s brother!
I received a complimentary review copy of this book but all opinions are my own.
Disclaimer: This review MAY contain spoilers. I received an ARC of this book at no cost from the publisher/author. All opinions expressed in my review are my own.
This is one of those books that has so much going for it, but it doesn’t quite reach its full potential. There are some really great things in this book and a lot of things that I felt needed some work.
I really liked both of the main characters in this story, but I felt like they were underdeveloped. I certainly got the gist of their personalities through the writing, but I couldn’t help but thinking over and over again how much better these characters could have been with more polish to them. We basically got the bare bones of what these characters could have been. I admit that at the start of the book I was fairly uninterested in them altogether. I did start to care about them closer to the end of the book, but I never fully connected with them. It is a shame too because they really did have something special that just needed more nurturing. Adding more depth to these characters could have taken them from “getting the job done” to “blowing it out of the water”. Also, some of the dialogue felt choppy and forced to me.
The plot of this story was okay but honestly, it could have used some work. I felt that the premise for both Liam’s and Cassie’s plotlines were interesting, but pulled together a little too loosely. It felt like the stakes weren’t quite where they needed to be. There just didn’t seem to be enough conflict in the story. The whole book felt like it was mainly about sex. The sex totally overshadowed the other points in the story. I think that part of the problem was the length of the book. This book is very short. Reading this book felt like reading the bare bones of what a book should be. The basic framework is there, but it just needs some more details to fatten it up.
This story had a very strong insta-love feel to me. Cassie and Liam both go into this thing between them as a no-strings-attached one-time thing but they find that they have an incredible connection in bed and that spills over into wanting to spend more time together. The entire romance between them, apart from the epilogue, happens within a four to five week time frame. And most of that time is spent having sex. They do spend a little time together outside of the bedroom, but I really didn’t like how their relationship sparked over having the best sex of their lives and not wanting to walk away from it. The fact that they fall in love and don’t even really know it or admit it to themselves felt forced because of the instalove factor. I really would have liked to see them out of the bedroom more and experiencing everyday things together. And I think that it would have lessened the insta-love feel if the timeframe would have been drawn out.
While I felt that the romance was a little problematic because of the insta-love, I can’t deny that Cassie and Liam had damn good chemistry together. Apart from the insta-love, I liked the evolution of their feelings for each other. Their romance just needed to be fleshed out a little more to make it completely believable. I think that the main issue with it is that there really wasn’t any build up at all. They both jumped in with both feet and kept freefalling.
I am struggling with what I think an appropriate rating is for this book. I did have a lot of issues with this book, but on the plus side, I do think that it has some redeeming qualities. I noticed that the last quarter of the book, especially the last chapter and the epilogue, was written much better than the beginning of the book. Almost shockingly so. I am not sure where the difference is coming from, but if that magic could be worked into the rest of the book then it would be in much better shape.
Overall, this is a story that has a lot of potential but in the end, I found it lacking. It has the basics down but it needs some more depth to really make it shine. If you are someone that likes a light, quick, and smutty read then this would be a great book for you to pick up.
Keep your fan handy and crank up the AC, you’re gonna need it because Bet Me to Stay is one seriously hot read!
The setting is simple, Liam bets his brother he can’t keep it in his pants for a month and in exchange, he has to date for the same amount of time. Casey is in desperate need of some sexy time inspiration as the new book she’s writing totally sucked in the hotness department. Perfect timing means Casey walks in Liam’s pub at exactly the right moment, and as soon as she is sitting at the bar their chemistry comes alive.
Neither of them is looking for a relationship but their attraction is too powerful to just ignore, so they enter into an agreement. Liam will… keep enriching Casey’s sexual knowledge for as long as they have fun together. No matter how good they are together though, when they’re both keeping secrets shit is bound to hit the fan eventually. And everything they’ve shared will be in jeopardy.
Casey starts off as a mixture of shy innocent and naughty vixen. She was funny and smart but had a few self-confidence issues in the beginning. Fortunately, Liam helps her out with that.
Liam was what Irish guys dreams are made of. Broody, intense and sexy as all get out and had a dirty mouth that paired with the accent was absolute perfection. The fact that he was in complete denial of what was happening between Casey and him (feelings, lots and lots of feelings) made me want to slap upside the head a time or two, but I have to say the guy really knew how to make up for his mistakes.
Fun, engaging, with great banter and incredibly hot and naughty shenanigans, Bet Me to Stay was an absolute treat to read I enjoyed from top to bottom.
*I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book*
Passionate, fun, and unputdownable!
A bet between two brothers: one that falls in love with every girl he meets, and one who is never giving his heart away again. Add in a romance writer in desperate need of inspiration and a hint of forbidden romance, rival family businesses and you have a everything you need for a perfect quick romance read with a good balance of heat, heart, humor and great characters.
Now I really hope Liam’s brother Finn gets his own story!
Fun and quirky! What starts out as a bet for Liam and Cassie soon turns into something real and lasting. Of course everything is not smooth sailing but what is real love without a little bruising. This is a quick and often funny read about a girl who is still testing her boundaries. When she finds out how strong and powerful she can be she also discovers true love and a family who adores her.
I thought that this was a very steamy and fun read. Casey and Liam were great characters that have sizzling chemistry. I thought the story offered a good blend of drama, sweetness, humor, heat and heart. Very enjoyable.
Quick sexy read. Loved the banter and chemistry between Liam and Cassie. Found it had to connect with Cassie but Liam hooked me from the start. Would love to read more about Finn.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC received via NetGalley
Cassie O’Brien needs help, her career as a romance novelist is floundering. She just can’t seem to get good words on to the page. Liam O’Connor needs to keep his brother from getting engaged again, so he can protect the pub his grandparents opened. When Liam takes a bet with his brother Finn, that he has to seduce the next woman that walks in to the bar, he was not expecting Cassie. Deciding that Liam is better book material than any of her characters, Cassie decides not to shut him down right away and see if he can help her with her writing issue.
This book was a quick-ish read, and didn’t waste any time getting Liam and Cassie to what was supposed to be a one night stand. We got to meet a lot of Cassie’s family but only Liam’s brother, I would have liked to have seen more of his family. I’m not 100 percent sure it really got to the bottom of his big issue, and why he quit music to run the pub, but it almost felt like there was more, or should have been more to it than that. I really liked Cassie and felt like she was relatable. Overall I thought it was a sweet, super hot, quick read. Definitely a good in-between for heavier books. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided by Net Galley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Bet Me to Stay by Candace Havens a five-star read that you would bet the house on. I will be honest in parts this was only a four-star read but overall it deserves five full stars as there was just so much drama. The concept was so much fun, an author writing a risqué scenes in a bar opposite her family’s place and getting inspired not by the hot young man everyone usually falls at but the big growly brother, it should be too predictable but it just kept coming and going in ways you don’t imagine and keeping it fresher and fresher. I can only hope and imagine that the author had some autobiographical moments in the story. If you want fun and hot, then you need this story in your life.
While this book had the potential to be a fun, sexy romance, for me, it unfortunately fell short. Cassie is a romance author who writes wholesome books. But this is a dying market and if Cassie wants to keep her author dreams alive, she will need to add some spice to her books. Liam, owns the pub across the street from Cassie’s parents but is in danger of losing it if his brother, Finn, doesn’t stop getting engaged/married and giving a piece away every time in a settlement. If Liam agrees to date the next girl who walks into the bar, Finn agrees not to date anyone for the next month and to make them sign a prenup before it goes too far. When Cassie walks into the bar looking like a homeless bag lady with 98 cats, Liam’s heart sinks. But appearances can be deceptive and Cassie turns out to be quite some firecracker between the sheets. My problem was that this went from a bet, to insta lust, to non stop sex to love with such speed that my head was spinning. Cassie, a self confessed prude and novice in all things relating to the bedroom, suddenly became this extrovert who will try anything, and I mean anything. It just felt a little too fake, too rushed and too contrived. There was problems with the continuity in some places in the book and with some of the words and grammar, but I am hoping that this is something the final edits will pick up before it is released. As I said, great potential, but sadly I found it lacking.