Ruby Scott is months behind on rent and can’t seem to land a steady job. She has one chance to turn things around with a big audition. But instead of getting her big break, she gets sick as a dog and completely bombs it in the most humiliating fashion. All thanks to a mysterious, gorgeous guy who kissed–and then coughed on–her at a party the night before.Luckily, her best friend might have … have found the perfect opportunity; a job staying at the lavish penthouse apartment of hotel magnate Bancroft Mills while he’s out of town, taking care of his exotic pets. But when the newly-evicted Ruby arrives to meet her new employer, it turns out Bane is the same guy who got her sick.
Seeing his role in Ruby’s dilemma, Bane offers her a permanent job as his live-in pet sitter until she can get back on her feet. Filled with hilariously awkward encounters and enough sexual tension to heat a New York City block, Shacking Up, from NYT and USA Today bestselling author Helena Hunting, is sure to keep you laughing and swooning all night long.
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Cute, funny, and Sexy
Loved the characters and the ferret!
I absolutely loved this book
A new hero to adore!!!
Shacking Up is Helena Hunting’s newest romcom venture outside of her beloved and much adored Pucked universe. (Beloved and adored by me, at any rate!) If you’re a fan of that series like I am, you’ll be happy to know that this book will not disappoint, not even a little bit. Filled with her trademark humor, wit, and banter, and of course sexiness, Shacking Up is the hilarious and touching story of Ruby and Bancroft. And when I say there’s a new hero to love, I am not kidding. Bancroft, or Bane as he’s come to be known, will knock you off your feet. And I dare say you’ll fall in love with Ruby as well, before you flip to the last page.
After a steamy, but slightly awkward, first encounter, Bane and Ruby find themselves relying on each other for help. While they are both part of the “upper crust”, Ruby’s hit a bit of a rough patch in her life and is struggling. After losing out on a job, and losing her apartment, Ruby’s in a bit of a pickle. Unwilling to crawl back to her father, like he expects, she’s determined to make it on her own. With a little help from her best friend, all her troubles seem to disappear, at least for awhile, in the form of guilt-ridden Bane. With a job offer and a place to live, Bane seems to be the answer to all her prayers.
This is the point where I’m just going to start gushing over how much I adored this book! Ruby and Bane are so fun, so sweet, so filled with sexual tension that I thought I might combust from it. Bane is that perfect combination of understated alpha and adorable sweetheart…he’s just an all around good guy. He’s so caring and darling, with a touch of dominance that will seriously have you swooning.
“Hasn’t anyone told you it’s not polite to ogle?” His gaze lifts to mine and he leans in close, voice dropping to a whisper as if he’s about to tell me a secret. “I’m not always polite.”
Ruby is strong and feisty, with a quirkiness that keeps Bane on his toes. Even though these two, on paper, would seem to be cut from the same cloth- monied upbringings, part of the same social class, they are so completely different you wouldn’t expect them to work…but they fit together like the 2 most perfect puzzle pieces.
I loved that Bane and Ruby developed a friendship at first, after that one unexpected kiss, as it led to some serious chemistry building between the two that was really quite delicious- the anticipation was palpable and I could not wait for the payoff! Every word, every page of Shacking Up was so delightful to read. Ruby and Bane are totally charming and absolutely endearing- they’ve moved up to the top spot of my favorite Hunting couple, right up there with Randy and his luscious Lily.
“If I was a thug, I would steal you.”
Loved it!!
The characters were engaging and the book flowed well. I appreciated the pets and the building of a relationship vs an instant love affair. I thought the story could have been more detailed….there were many interesting characters, but they were not fleshed out. There are lots of opportunities here.
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Okay, so it’s been a while since I’ve been inspired enough to write a review that consisted of more than a few sentences. Shacking Up totally broke the seal for me! There are a gazillion releases this week (yes, that is a technical term) and I promise you, you need to buy this book. I enjoyed every single bit of it- so much that I didn’t want it to end! I wanted more Bane and Ruby immediately, it was that good.
I’m a bit wary of the rom-com subgenre because they tend to bend over into too over the top and too crass. When that happens, it overshadows the characters and the development of the relationship instead of accenting it.
The bar for this subgenre is set very high for me by authors like Daisy Prescott and the writing team of Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy. I LOVE literally laughing out loud one moment and swooning the next. Shacking Up hit every single one of my buttons as far what I enjoy in a well-written rom-com! Ruby is such a lovable character and Bane is 110% book boyfriend material. He is such a great guy, he’s alpha in his own way without being a jerk and his love for his non-traditional animals is hard to resist. Bane has so many chances to be a jerk, with the way women throw themselves at him and he is just not that guy. I’ll admit that there was one lack of communication plot point that I was not a fan of, but while it rankled me, it really did not take away from my overall enjoyment of the book. Remember the part where I mentioned Bane was alpha without being a jerk? Well, that alpha shows itself in the bedroom and whoo wheeee, it’s so stinkin’ hot, I was sweating. For real.
Back to the part about not wanting it to end…I loved the ending and I hope we see more of Ruby and Bane in subsequent books in this series. Which apparently, I have to wait until approximately November to get Ruby’s BFF’s book, so, y’all pray for me… I may not make it that long.
Shacking Up was rom-com sexy perfection, and I didn’t want it to end!! It’s a perfect summer by the pool read, just make sure that you have a cold beverage on hand, or a bucket of ice, you get the picture.
http://bit.ly/Hunting_ShackingUp
I Love Helena Hunting and have been a fan since the Clipped Wings and Pucked series! Shacking up was a whole new RomCom that she adds to her collection. I was completely enamored with Shacking Up and the characters that bring the story to life. The laughs, the crazy flirting, the denial, and then of course the explosive sexy scenes. Helena Hunt brings it all with this book and I love it more for that.
Ruby was the chick I loved to hear talk. Her sassiness and comebacks were on point. Bancoft, with his sexy self, shows a little bit of vulnerability. He is pleased when Ruby shows her interest and she helps him see himself as a person. I love these two together!
The banter and playfulness had me giddy. I am can not wait to see what Helena has next for us!
GENRE: Contemporary
THEME: Romance, Humor
RECEIVED: Bought
REVIEW:
Hilarious and lots of romance! I loved Shacking up, not only is there an adorable Ferret name Francesca, but the romance and tension was off the charts. Sometimes I need a break from all the angst and Hunting wrote a creative mixture of everything I was looking for.
Shacking Up follows Ruby who is running out of money and probably going to be homeless soon. Her career path isn’t going to where she was hoping for, no matter how talented she is. Luckily with the help of her best friend she gets a pet sitting job for her besties fiancé’s cousin. The same hot guy she kissed at the wedding party, and the same man who ruined her chance at a big break.
Ruby, I would define as a determined, yet stubborn woman. She knows what she wants and won’t let her father ruin her goal in life, even though he feels shes in the wrong. I loved her adorableness with Francesca the ferret and hilarious moments with the other pet…aka a large spider.
Bancroft aka Bane is a former Rugby player who is now working for his fathers company. His father has him traveling for the business and so Bane needs someone to watch his beloved pets, whom he spoils. He checks in with Ruby by calling routinely, which starts an interesting interaction and some smoking hot moments over the phone. But when Bane comes home, everything changes and both of them go through some ups and downs to figure out what kind of relationship they are moving towards.
Overall, I loved this story, Ruby is all drama and sass, while Bane is all for Ruby but doesn’t know how to handle her. The boss employee romance is top notch and I had a blast seeing where these two would end up.
Great characters. Both leads are very like-able. Funny dialogue (esp Ruby’s inner ramblings). Sweet & steamy. loved it!
This was a fun, laugh-out-loud book with delightful characters. Ruby Scott is a struggling actress who just needs a break but instead on the night before an audition she accosted by a stranger, or as she refers to him as “awesome kisser” and that kiss leaves her with the flu and her audition turns into “vomitron” but that is just one problem in her life that was leading to her becoming homeless. Bancroft Mills, AKA awesome kisser, was pleasantly surprised to meet Ruby again but felt so bad to find out he made her sick. Luckily he is in the position of helping her out and at the same time needing her help. He has to go out of the country for a few weeks and needs someone to take care of his pets and this gives Ruby a place to stay. What unfolds is a chemistry laden powder keg and thankfully they are separated and so they are forced to get to know each other over video chat and can take things slow. The chemistry is explosive when they are together and they are perfect for each other. I really enjoyed this story!