The New York Times bestselling author of Love Me Again returns to the town of Hope, Oklahoma where school is in session and love rules the playbook.Josie Barnes has always craved a sense of home. She’s found that in Hope, Oklahoma–she bought a house, has a new job as an English teacher at Hope High, she’s made wonderful friends, and she’s taking in stray animals that no one else wants. Now she’s … that no one else wants. Now she’s flirting with fellow teacher and hot high school football coach Zach Powers. But he’s almost too good to be true, and Josie learned long ago not to trust in the too-good-to-be-true, because it has always let her down.
A former pro football player, Zach had to pull back when a career-ending knee injury forced him to rethink his future. Now he’s happy calling plays as Coach. If he could just get Josie Barnes to stop benching his players for their poor grades, life would be perfect. Instead, she drives him crazy as the stern teacher at school and the sexy woman of his dreams outside of the classroom. He knows she’s been hurt in the past, but he wants to be that guy she can trust.
The one thing Josie has never been able to count on is the people closest to her. But Zach intends to show her that what they have between them is a textbook case of love.
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I never go wrong with a story from Hope. I love this small town. The people and the town remind me of my small town. All the couples that fall in love, and become friends makes my heart grow. Josie and Zack fit in perfectly. I loved that they both were teachers, and cared for all their students. Their banter back and forth was great. Then of course the sweet animals that needed love because they weren’t perfect made the story complete. I can’t wait to see what Hope has in store for me next. I love my trips there.
“Josie knew better than to trust in fairy tales, because she knew better than most that there was no such thing as a happily-ever-after.”
Though this is the 8th book in the Hope series, I read it as a standalone. I really enjoyed the support characters whom I’m assuming the other stories are focused on, but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment of this story not to have read them yet.
This is only my second book by this author, my first being in her Play by Play series. I must say, there was a big difference. This one moved a lot slower and I admit that I struggled with the pace. Both of the main characters were reluctant to jump into a relationship. Since they both worked as teachers at the same high school it kept them in the friend zone longer than I would have liked.
I kept thinking that Zach being a former pro football player, he would have more game when it came to women, but he’s sweet, friendly, and more of a loner and not alpha other than with the boys that he coaches. Football is his passion and he really cares about the kids he teaches. When some of his best players end up on academic probation he’s not happy they might not be able to play. When he heads over to talk to the teacher responsible I was expecting fireworks, but alas I was disappointed. He was ‘nice’ and I didn’t get the BOOM!
Josie is new to Hope. She’s looking to start over, make friends, and forget her painful past. She had a tough childhood and that experience makes her a great teacher. She has a big heart and wants to help others find the love and acceptance she didn’t have. She’s also an animal lover and she feels the same way about them. But, her feelings of unconditional love do not extend to herself. She’s been hurt and wants no part of love with a man, she just wants to have fun. It’s safer that way, nobody gets hurt, right?
The attraction between Zach and Josie is obvious to everyone and I think their friends were as frustrated as I was that they moved so slowly. I agreed with Zach when he told Josie, “So one bad guy breaks your heart, and now you paint us all with the same brush?” But, at the same time, I understand why she feels the need to protect her heart. Hopefully, she will realize that their One Perfect Kiss was better than all the others that came before it and worth taking a chance on a future with the man that “wore hot like a brand.”
I absolutely love Jaci Burton’s Hope series! Small-town romances are definitely my cup of tea!
Josie and Zach’s story is fun, sexy and full of all kinds of good feels! Their chemistry is off the charts! The sexual tension is so thick you can cut it with a knife! I really enjoyed their scenes together, especially when it involved their furry friends.
Josie has trust issues stemming from some serious family issues but that didn’t stop Zach from wanting to get closer to her. He scored a lot of points with me! And can we just talk about Zach for a minute? This high school football coach was once a former NFL football player. RAWR! He’s still toned and making the football moms drool! Not to mention a certain English teacher
The supporting cast is also wonderful. I love revisiting all the Hope couples. We also get a quick mention from Ms. Burton’s Play by Play series. I loved it!
ONE PERFECT KISS is a sweet and sexy romance with all the fixings!
Cute story, hot love scenes, predictable storyline. As always, it was fun to see characters from prior books in the series make appearances. The animals sprinkled throughout these books are fun to see; I especially liked the rescue animals in this one.
This was a quick, sweet small town love story. Filled with humor, friendship and overcoming struggles from the past.
I’ve started and stopped writing this review a few times now. I think it’s because I very much respect Jaci Burton and enjoy many of her books. Some I have loved and praised, some were just so-so. But I don’t believe I ever felt she was phoning it in…until now.
The storyline is great. I love the concept and really had high hopes for this story. There’s actually no reason it shouldn’t work. In fact, if I remember correctly, I enjoyed seeing Josie and Zach interact in a previous book or two. Yet in this story it all fell flat. Even scenes that should have had the chemistry hopping off the page I felt nothing. Not to mention the sweet scenes that should have had butterflies taking flight in my stomach. Nada. I can only guess there was too much telling and not really any showing.
Zach is an amazing character. There are some things about his past that are kept vague, which may have messed with the way his chemistry came across. But really, he should have had me swooning over him. In some ways I was. Especially when he was interacting with Wilson. It’s pretty sad that the most reaction a story gets from me is the interactions between the hero and his dog and not the hero and heroine.
It was very hard for me to get behind Josie. Where I understand her thought process, it was hard for me to care about her internal struggle with her feelings when I never felt those feelings coming off the page. I hate to blame her, but I do feel she was the downfall of this book. I couldn’t connect with her character at all and everything after that just didn’t work.
I want to stress again that I have loved many of the stories this author has written. This seems to be an anomaly. Since I’ve enjoyed most of the books in this series I will be reading the next one when it’s published in the hopes this was a fluke.
This review can also be found at https://allingoodtimeblog.wordpress.com/2018/12/04/one-perfect-kiss-book-review/
One Perfect Kiss is a sweet friends to lovers romp through Hope. With visits from all our friends and a sneak peek at some other relationships, everything is perfect in Hope.
Everything except self doubt and a past that troubles our heroine. It’s a good thing the coach doesn’t give up too easily. He has his work cut out for him.
3 1/2 STARS!
Sweet, subtle and satisfying! Seeing several of the past couples from previous books in this series is always a fun update. Josie and Zach had a lot of potential, but somehow they just fell flat. More depth to their relationship was needed to really grab my attention and make me become ingrained in their story. Still an entertaining read, just not awe inspiring.
Teacher Josie Barnes has finally found a slice of happiness in Hope, Oklahoma. She has a job she enjoys, a house of her own and a really great group of friends. She’s overcome many obstacles to get to where she is today and she’s finally satisfied. What’s she’s missing though, is the hottie she flirts with on occasion at friendly get togethers! If she could find a way to add him to her list of achievements, she’d be complete.
Former football player Zach Powers might have had his journey cut short with an injury, but he’s loving life as a teacher and football coach in Hope. A great group of friends and a homey town makes for a great setting. He can’t deny he has eyes on the pretty language arts teacher though … if only he could get her to stop benching his players for their grades in her class. She’s driving him crazy … in more ways than one!
One Perfect Kiss is a fast paced addicting romance.
One Perfect Kiss follows the story of Josie and Zach. The only thing Josie has ever wanted was a feeling of home and she thinks she may have found the perfect place in Hope, Oklahoma. She’s finally living the life she’s always dreamed. She’s got the perfect job, great friends and even a potential love interest. But, if there’s one thing that Josie has learned, it’s that if it seems too good to be true, it almost always is….Zach is a former football player turned coach/teacher. He loves the game more than anything. So, when Josie benches some of his players due to poor grades, he’ll stop at nothing to get them back on the team. Josie makes Zach crazy, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to get closer….Will Josie take a chance on Zach and try to let him in?? There’s only one way to find out…
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I found One Perfect Kiss to be a quick and enjoyable read. I loved the fast pace of the story and slow burn of the romance between Zach and Josie. Yes, Zach and Josie had instant chemistry, but I really loved how the author built up their relationship; had them get to know one another and really build that trust before jumping in. I really enjoyed getting to know these two and see just how their story was going to play out.
One Perfect Kiss was a great read from beginning to end. I honestly can’t get over just how quickly I read this book. I mean I totally devoured it. Zach and Josie’s story hit all the marks for me and was just the romance I was looking for. A totally great story to spend the day getting lost in. I can’t wait to see what this author will have in store for us next.
It’s small town romance with a sporty touch! Both new to the town of Hope, Josie and Zach have become friends outside of being teachers at Hope’s high school. There’s flirting and chemistry between them but Josie’s been burned before and doesn’t want to risk her new happy life in Hope for a fling. But as they spend more time together, Josie sees how kind and charming Zach is. Not only does he care about the kids he teaches and trains, he’s also becoming an animal lover; a huge win in Josie’s book.
Zach wouldn’t consider himself a loner by his own standards, though he definitely enjoys his solitude, he also enjoys coaching football and spending time with his new friends in Hope. Particularly Josie; she’s sweet, sexy, and Zach thinks there might be more beneath the quiet school teacher. As they spend more time together, Zach peels back the layers that make up Josie. While she’s sweet and endearing to her students, she’s fun and charismatic with their friends. And once Zach gets her alone, she’s the sex kitten he’d only dreamed of. But beneath all that, Josie has more trepidation towards love than Zach knows, and it’ll take a hail mary to win her over
I love that Burton sort of switched the narrative on our hero and heroine. Zach is open to falling for Josie and finding out where they could go. He’s lived solo for a long time but Josie brings out the homely side of him. He feels warmth and happiness radiating from her whenever they’re together. But Josie’s past with her mother and the lack of love in her childhood did a number on her. She believes that love is a fallacy for most and that only some people can find it. So when Zach drops the L-bomb, it forces her to re-examine her beliefs as well as what she thinks she deserves. Another a feel good romance from Burton, featuring small town characters with big personalities and captivating hearts.
It has been a while since I have read a Jaci Burton story, and I have not read any of the previous Hope book, however this did not affect my enjoyment of One Perfect Kiss.
Zack and Josie’s story is sweet and cute and adorable and just the light read that I needed this past weekend after reading a few emotionally draining stories in a row.
I loved the support characters (even though I hadn’t read any of their stories), they are all well rounded and added a lot of depth to the story.
I did get a bit frustrated with Josie’s flip-flopping between wanting Zach and then whining about how her ex hurt her and how Zack would too. I wanted to talk some sense into her!
I am a big fan of stories with characters that are animal lovers – makes me miss my old girl but makes me smile!
I really enjoyed my tour of Hope, Oklahoma, and I have already added some of the previous books to my kindle.
Can’t wait to see what Ms Burton brings us next.