Fate doesn’t always happen overnight.Hudson Bradley is the cockiest, most stubborn, hard-headed man I’ve ever known. And for fifteen years, he’s been my brother’s best friend. But lately, what I’m feeling for him isn’t friendship at all.Why is my heart racing every time his blue eyes lock on mine?Why does every word he rumbles in my ear make my body come alive?And worst of all, why did I bet him … alive?
And worst of all, why did I bet him that I could find a woman he and his son would both love?
If I hadn’t given up on love altogether, Hudson would have been perfect for me. After all, he was there the day my world fell apart. He’s spent the last six years piecing me back together.
There are a million reasons why we could never work, but after a single kiss, I can’t remember any of them.
Now that the time is right, I have to make him mine—before I lose him forever.
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Wow – nothing like killing your readers in just the opening pages and slowly and cautiously putting them all back together again piece by piece. Alexis has had a tragic past and through it all her brother’s best friend Hudson was by her side helping her recover from her loss. But while she was coming back to life, feelings slowly changed and what was just thought of as friendship turned into so much more. Can you really find love again with a person your entire family thinks of as part of the family? Or will the baggage from Hudson’s past end the romance before it can get off the ground? I do not think I ugly cried more than once in any book, but this one had me next to the Kleenex box quite a few times. An emotional roller coaster I really never wanted to get off. When you pick up this book make sure you have no other commitments because once you start you will not be able to put it down. This deserves so much more than 5 stars!!
Brilliant, Suburb, Excellent!! The phenomenal Martinez and Mabie writing duo is back and at their best! This best friends-to-lovers romance is full of snark, an unbreakable friendship, a heroine looking for big D energy and a hero who is modestly able to deliver.
Lex and Hudson have basically grown up together. They have not only shared awkward teenage moments, but laughter, heartache, and everything in between.
Hudson was there when Lex’s fiancé died, helping her pick up the pieces of her life and Lex was there when Hudson became a single/co-parenting father at the young age of 22. They have supported one another and been thick as thieves for years, but their attraction to each other has been hidden behind very high walls. When those walls begin to lower and they both take a peek, could they really have been into each other longer, but completely obvious for most of their lives? Does that really happen in real life? When the time is right it just might.
When the Time is Right is so much fun, full of sarcastic flirtiness, and whether they are friends or lovers the banter is top notch the entire read through. I love that both characters are so thick that neither realized an attraction was there. Their friendship was solid first and foremost which made them falling in love adorable.
Did I say the word adorable…now…let me mention Hudson’s son, Jack. This kid is worthy of his own book. OMG…cutest kid ever written. And Hudson as a single father…how did the man stay single for so long, that is my only question? You are going to fall in love with Jack, which means you will fall in love with Hudson guaranteed!
OMG! I really love this book. Such a fantastic friend-to-lover romance. Alexis and Hudson grew up together and has been friends forever. They never see each other beyond friendships until one kiss changed it all. Hudson runs a construction business and a fulltime dad to the cutest little 7 years old boy. Alexis has been through hell and back. She finally getting back to her feet and trying to move on with her life. I have to say I did not expect the emotional and heartbreaking plot surrounding Alexis and her past. How Hudson stepped up and always was by her side every step of the way. Ladies and gents! Hudson is a good man!!! The sweetest, swooniest hero – Love love him. Alexis is funny and adorable. The big part of that is her loveable personality, but she is also masking deep pain and a wounded heart that she can quite let go. Alexis has some healing to do before she can love freely and have the HEA they both deserved.
What I really love about this story is that Alexis and Hudson journey felt real. Real people, real jobs, and real-life issues we all face. I was also relief there weren’t any typical cattiest between the exes. Hudson’s ex has some issues she has to work out, but since they were all childhood friends it was not the typical jealousy and nastiness. That was refreshing to see for once – adults act like adults I really enjoy the flirty friends-to-lovers romance – Alexis and Hudson are so cute and sweet. They have awesome banters and incredible chemistry. I can feel that they belong together. I adore little Jack – he is so smart, funny and has a good heart. Like father, like son! I also like the hilarious meddling grandparents. Overall, this was a page-turner – sweet, funny, steamy, romantic and heartfelt read. Beautifully written by both authors. Fluid and seamless from the beginning until the end. Highly recommended!
5 This Is How To Do It Stars
* * * * * Spoiler Free
This is a Masterclass in how to write a friend to lovers trope. Period. There wasn’t one false move and I was strapped into my chair reading this. Seriously, it would not allow me to do anything but bask in the beauty of this story.
My going on and on and on about all the details and delights would take up much to much space and time. Instead, if you want more specifics, than please look at all the other fantastic reviews.
The only additional information I will give is this is extremely sexy, funny, caring, kind, and so well written. Thank You M. Mabie and Aly Martinez.
This book had everything!
Falling for best friend
Falling for brother’s best friend
Single dad romance
Witty, sarcastic banter between characters
Angst
Everything else
I enjoyed this book so much. I cried. I laughed out loud. My heart is bursting with so much happiness.
Hudson is like the best person anyone could ask for. He built up his company from the ground. Found a great best friend and family. He’s a great father.
Lex is so independent and fierce. She is loyal and has been through so much.
I love their interactions together and watching it change and them struggling through it.
Of course, there’s angst and drama.
Also, I enjoyed reading about Shane and Maggie from When the Walls Come Down.
Overall, this book had everything and I couldn’t put it down. It was just that good.
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Amazing!
Exciting!
Heart breaking!
Painfully beautiful!
I have to say that I’ve never read M. Mabie before this one, but I’ll definitely look forward to read her work again.
I already knew and loved some of Aly Martinez books, and I can’t point one single thing that I didn’t liked in this book!
Alexis and Hudson just own my heart and I’m not even sure if I want it back. That’s not true… They can give it to little Jack and I’ll be ok too.
Hudson is the ultimate alpha/best friend/DILF/human being/partner in crime/Daddy/Boyfriend… You can pick any quality that you love in a man and I’m pretty sure that Hudson have it.
Lex is a crazy cat lover red head, that has lost her love too soon, and would’ve had lost everything else if it wasn’t for her best friend Hudson’s and her family’s support.
They were so so sooooo perfect as friends as they were as a couple, and their banter and craziness just make me love them even more.
I have to say that I sheered a few tears at the end, but it so worth it that I’m not even complaining about my swollen eyes.
I highly recommend this book!
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There’s nothing sexier than a single dad with a heart of gold—unless he’s also good-looking, witty and successful—then you’ve really hit the jackpot! And if he also happens to be your best friend, then is there little doubt that sparks will eventually fly? But for Hudson and Alexis, their friends-to-lovers romance is a slow-burn and fraught with complications. Still, “When the Time Is Right,” Hudson and Alexis just might find their HEA.
As couples go, Hudson and Alexis are a very endearing pair. I enjoyed their fun, snarky banter and loved their easy, natural relationship. The pacing however, was a bit sluggish for my tastes. Still, it’s an entertaining, easy read with likeable characters and just enough angst to keep things interesting.
While I enjoyed the first collaborative effort of these two authors more than this second one, there is no denying that M. Mabie and Aly Martinez come together to make a great writing duo. I can’t wait to see what they come up with next!
6 SHINING STARS!
OMG, this book! I adored this book! I loved every single word of this hilarious, heartbreaking story – a best-friends-to-lovers romance that is real and raw with all the feels. It’s an instant favourite.
I started this book last night and read straight through until I finished it at 2am, knowing I would only get four hours of sleep before having to get up for work, and I regret nothing. My mind is a sappy mess, so this review is going to be gushy and quote-whorey, but I assure you, this book deserves it.
This book is very loosely linked to the first co-write between these authors, When the Walls Come Down. Alexis works with Maggie and Shane, and they do appear a couple of times, which is fun, but it’s done without spoiling their story, and this book can absolutely standalone.
Hudson and Alexis met as teenagers. He was the best friend of her older brother, Cal, and when she joined them at high school, she became a part of their group. They grew to become best friends, and for over 15 years they have been by each other’s sides through all of life’s ups and down. Most notably, when Alexis lost the love of her life, and Hudson carried her through her grief, bringing them even closer over the six years since his death. They are as close as two people can be, and they share everything, with a fun, teasing relationship that is absolutely hilarious.
“Wait.” One of his eyebrows lifted, and I could have sworn he blushed. “You think I have big dick energy?”
I didn’t have anything to hide. “Hell yeah. You’re all buff and manly and stacked. All that swagger you toss around. Plus, I know your dick is big.” Facts were facts. Big dicks were big dicks. And I didn’t make the rules or hand out the dicks.
I refilled my glass and poured a little more in his.
“You’ve never seen my dick.”
“Oh, yes I have. I saw that monster your senior year of high school when we went skinny dipping at the Foresters’ pond.”
He scratched the back of his neck and grimaced. “Don’t look at my dick.”
“Well, I haven’t since then.” I laughed. “But I bet the damn thing is even bigger now.”
I love these characters! Hudson is a single father of a 7-year-old son, and is sweet, fun and dependable with a fantastic sense of humour – he’s exactly the kind of guy you want in your life. By contrast, Alexis is snarky and sarcastic, a bit chaotic, but she embraces who she is and gives no fucks at all. They are real and relatable, and the book is written in dual POV so we get up close and personal with them both, and just getting to know them both is so much fun.
But with all that is between them, the one thing they have never experienced is attraction. They are platonic best friends, and that is all, with never a hint of anything else. But then they make a bet to see who can set the other up with the best blind date (more hilarity), and then one drunken night and a soul-shattering kiss changes everything.
I love friends-to-lovers romance, and the thing I loved the most about this book is the way this one played out. Usually in these kinds of stories you have one character who is already feeling an attraction, but Hudson and Alexis are both equally stunned by the emergence of their feelings for each other. It’s an absolute surprise, and their reactions are so realistic – both of them freaked out at the sudden realisation, but at the same time completely accepting of it. And watching them come to terms with it all is so much fun!
“I need to find out if this, whatever’s been building between us, is something.”
Wouldn’t that be nice? Up until that very second, it had all been so one-sided and I’d racked my brain all week to understand why I’d felt the crazy things I did about him.
“How you gonna do that?”
“We’re going to kiss,” he stated very matter-of-factly, and then he closed the distance between our bodies.
True to the nature of their relationship though, they address it honestly and openly, embracing the massive shift and following their hearts, and oh, how I loved it!
“Lex, babe, please hear me when I say this. I will always be your friend, but after the last few days, there is nothing even remotely friendly about the things I want to do to you.”
They move forward with a mix of wonder, passion and excitement, but with very real expectations about what they are embarking on. It’s functional and honest, and it’s clear that they care for each other deeply, with so much emotion between them, but they still maintain that teasing playfulness that is such a fundamental part of their relationship, and it’s all just glorious.
“Kid, I’m in love with you. Right now. You hear me? Right now, I’m so Goddamned in love with you I can hardly fucking breathe. I never knew feeling like this was possible, but I’d bet everything I have that I’ve loved you for years.”
“Let me make you mine.”
“Please”.
But discovering their feelings and coming together is only the beginning of their journey, and there is so much more to this book. There is drama, and even more feels, but again, it’s realistic, it suits the story without overwhelming it, and it’s handled absolutely beautifully! I was glued to my kindle as I read, desperate to watch it all unfold – not wishing it away as you often do when there is drama and you just want to get to the HEA, but embracing it all as part of the story and loving every moment of it, even when it hurts.
“You don’t need to protect me. Especially not from you.”
He took my face in his palms and leaned down to kiss me, but before our mouths parted, he said, “Don’t you get it, Lex? I’ve had this relentless need to protect you nearly half my life. I have no plans of stopping now.”
“I will always be here for you. There isn’t a world that exists where I’m not gonna be around for you.”
This book is so, so beautiful. I love the mix of fun and heartfelt, and every single word is sheer perfection, whether it made me laugh, cry, or fall in love (and everything in between). It’s one of those books where you reread scenes over and over again to fully take it in, and then you get to the end of the book and wish that you could experience it new all over again. I freaking loved everything about it, and finished this book hugging my kindle with tears in my eyes.
“You belong with me. You have always belonged with me.”
The co-writing team of Mabie and Martinez seems to be pure gold, and I’m so freaking excited for whatever they have coming next!