Cash Evans knows exactly what he wants for Christmas. Too bad he can’t have her.The infamous tattoo artist’s been watching geeky Bailey Cooper for months, but that’s all he’ll ever do: watch. Bailey’s too sweet, too smart, too good for the likes of him, and he knows it. So Cash keeps his distance… until a Christmas miracle makes him Bailey’s boss.Socially awkward Bailey learned long ago that men … Bailey learned long ago that men just aren’t worth the hassle. Take her new boss, Cash: he’s a brooding beast who avoids her like the plague, but he also fixes her plumbing, helps the homeless, and offers Bailey a place to stay for Christmas.
She’s never met anyone so confusing—or so impossible to resist. And the more Bailey learns about Cash and his demons, the more she thinks it’s time to stop fighting.
Warning: this 50,000-word holiday romance features an alphamellow bad boy hero, a strong, geeky heroine, a naughty office flirtation, and a guaranteed happily-ever-after. There’s no cheating and no cliff-hanger. Enjoy!
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I went on a bit of a Talia Hibbert binge read over the Xmas break. I can see why everyone raves about them.
So much tension, and difficult topics dealt with in a way that didn’t hurt the reader.
Book Review: Merry Inkmas
Author: Talia HIbbert
Four Stars
Merry Inkmas drew my attention because umm who doesn’t love Christmas and tattoos?? Yes please. Anyway, suprisingly there is very little in here about tattoos except the “Hot Coffee Guy” is a tattoo artist (this is an unknown in the first chapter) and actually doesn’t like coffee.
Bailey is a barista and is determined to not let men rule her life or control her like her mother has dealt with over the last many years.
Cash grew up with a very rough past. Abusive father and having to run from him, dealing with homelessness and the fact that they were being hunted by their own blood.
When Bailey stood up to her boss at the coffe shop, Cash admired her and was determined to do something to keep her in his life, although, he dealt with so many of his own demons, there was something about Bailey that he couldn’t get out of his mind.
This story follows Bailey and Cash and they learn and discover so much about each other. And they learn that the one thing they don’t want to lose, is the way they feel.
Good read. Just short. There could have been so much more put in. But it works.
Kelli Harper.
I wanted to read a Christmas story, and in spite of the numerous seasonal books I have on my ereader, nothing was calling to me. Then I thought of Talia Hibbert, who hadn’t failed me yet, so I opted for MERRY INKMAS, and it was exactly what I needed!
I love Talia Hibbert’s writing: her exceptional prose is modern, lyrical, and utterly flawless; the dialogues are fantastic and always sound so very genuine. The characters are fabulous: Cash Evans has adopted the persona of a grouch, but in fact he is extremely guarded. He is hopelessly smitten with Bailey and is adorable in his infatuation. Once again Ms. Hibbert has created a female character I can cheer for, I can identify with; I would want Bailey for a BFF. She is intelligent, self-assured, comfortable in her sexuality, but has serious doubts when it comes to relationships, as does Cash.
How can I express my gratitude to Talia Hibbert for writing characters who act like rational human beings, who actually talk to each other and listen; where the conflicts come naturally from the circumstances and the characters’ own personalities, and not from manufactured silliness and inconsistent behaviour. Ah the joy of being able to read a book where you can relate to the protagonists because they are like you and me. Let me go back to the stunning writing: I could picture Cash’s work environment – a tattoo parlour – his drawings, especially THE one he shows Bailey; my, but it was glorious! I adored the secondary characters: Bailey’s friend Tara; Cash’s employees: Steve, Jay, the awesome Gem; John – Bailey’s atypical friend – and Cash’s family, particularly his fabulous mother. The chemistry between Cash and Bailey is palpable, explosive, and irresistible.
I know that one day Talia Hibbert will leave me “wordless”, and that I will write a ridiculous review because I won’t have the proper words anymore. She is the author I had been waiting for: she writes romances with intelligent characters, for intelligent readers; her writing style is unique, her stories captivating, her characters feel like real people, without anything being over the top. Her characters find their happily ever after in a way that makes me believe that finding true love is something that can happen to everyone. Talia Hibbert is IT.
Cash is broken guy with a horrible past that he tries to hide from everyone. His past haunts him everyday and he doesn’t know how to shake it. That is why he has rules that he lives by and will not break them for anyone. Or so he believes until the day he meets the lady who has him second guessing everything. Will Cash give into temptation?
Bailey is a struggling college student with a past also. She has seen her mother hurt on more that one occasion by men she thought she was in love with. So Bailey vowed never to end up like her mother not matter what. She was doing A-Ok until Cash. And when these two people met lights light up and they will not be turned down or off. No matter how much they try to do just that. Will Bailey and Cash just let the lights burn bright for however long it will? Or will they dim them forever?
I could not put this book down, once I started reading it. This is my first time reading this author, I liked this book. The flow of the book was on point. The characters were well developed. I can’t wait to see what else Talia has to write about. Kelli is might become one of my favorite authors. I recommend this book it others.
I picked this book up for free from Amazon US in November. As I went back to leave a review on Amazon US I saw that the book “Merry Inkmas,” is still free. I don’t know how long it will be at this price.
Christmas Romance at its best!
Tortured artist hero
Geeky, upbeat but wounded heroine
Amazing family, both of the blood and found varieties
Explosive chemistry
Messages of hope, love, acceptance, and healing
Cash and Bailey both have troubled pasts that make them wary of strong emotional connection to others but when it’s meant to be and it’s Christmas time AND your family wants what’s best for you an HEA is the only option.
Merry Inkmas goes beyond the sexy Christmas romance to also deal with some very deep social, emotional, and mental health issues with truth and delicacy.
Really enjoyed reading this book more than once.
OMG! I DID NOT WANT TO THIS TO END!! I loved the story of Bailey and Cash so much, I didn’t want it to end. I wanted it to keep going!!
I loved that it was a slow start and then built up to the story!!
Cash and Bailey both come from difficult backgrounds, but they find each other! And right in time for the holidays!! I loved Karen, Cash’s Mum, so much!!!
George is weird…..
I really enjoyed the storyline, and just really the whole book! I hope there’s a book out for Gem!!
But seriously this book was the best thing ever!! I loved it so much!
I loved Bailey’s compassion and being able to bring that with her to her relationship with Cash. I loved the Cash was able to bring Bailey out of her shell, and help her get past the past.
LOVED IT ALL!
Some of my fave quotes from the book
1. Oh, he was so fucking gorgeous. – When Bailey sees Hot Coffee Guy again.
2. Even an incredibly hot, intimidating gift horse who apparently owned a tattoo parlour? – Um, yeah Bailey!! LOL!!
3. Thank you, baby Jesus, for the blessing of vibrators. – ROFL!!! YAS!! Bailey would be thinking of Hot Coffee Guy while using hers.
4. “I’m not.” she said. “But I’d certainly like to fuck you.” – Get it Bailey!!
5. She looked down and —oops. There he stood like a fucking god, like the image of sex itself, and here she was in her Beauty and the Beast knickers. – OMG!! Too funny!! I died laughing at that one!!!!
6. “It’s not,” he said smugly. “It’s a MacBook.”
“A Macbook is a laptop.”
“Nope. A Macbook is a Macbook.” – LOVED THIS SO MUCH!!! And it’s so true!!
A beautiful story, with lots of depth. A great story to read with a lot of emotional depth and wonderful characters. I especially loved the brokenness of some of the people in the story and how they worked through the things that held them back. Cash and Bailey have so many instances where one of them lets their head block their heart that a happy ending seems impossible, but the way the story flows, the way the characters are presented, you as a reader, are rooting for them to work things out every time they mess it up!
Finding a new canvas
Such an adorably sweet romance, on the surface that is, but there is so much depth to the story that I had to read it twice to take it all in. I love the tortured artist, who is a hero in my book, and the quirky barista who is such a wonderful soul. They both did so many good things as they found their way to each other. The author put so much detail into the characters and the story that I found myself completely in love by the last page. This book has the absolute best HEA, I can’t wait to read more stories by this author.
What a great Christmas read! With all of their faults, I loved Cash and Bailey. One of the best Christmas stories I have read. They make me love Christmas even more. They deserved the peace they found.