Tuesday, September 19, 2023

✱✱Audio Book Review✱✱ Loving You by Samantha Chase

 

Loving You
The Donovans (Sweetbriar Ridge), Book 1
By: Samantha Chase
Narrated by: Carly Robins

Not everyone in Sweetbriar Ridge is as sweet as the town name would suggest. But single mom Jade Mackenzie is up to the challenge of winning over the town if that's what it takes to make her new shop a success. After all, this is just the latest in a long string of battles she's had to face. Since she's given up on men—all of them except for her son—she can throw all her energy into the new business. Or so she thought until the most charming and too-good-looking-for-his-own-good man walked into her shop...and she literally falls into his arms.

Levi Donovan knows how to charm his way through life; winning people over is just what he does. But no amount of charm can save him when he's at the center of a scandal that costs him his position at a prestigious ad agency. With no other choice, he's forced to return home to Sweetbriar Ridge, the small town he left behind the first chance he got. When he meets the owner of the new coffeehouse, he starts to think that small towns aren't so bad. And when he finds out Jade needs a little help promoting her new business, he makes it his mission to help her.

No matter how hard she tries to resist, Jade can't help but be swept away by Levi's good looks and the sweet way he interacts with her son. But he isn't staying, and getting attached would be a mistake. Levi always swore he would never settle in Sweetbriar Ridge, but could loving Jade be reason enough to stay? Each book in the Donovans series can be treated as a standalone.


Momma Says: 4 stars⭐⭐⭐⭐

I've only had the pleasure of reading or listening to a couple of Samantha Chase's books, but I'm thinking I need to remedy that. There will certainly be a fair number of her books hitting my TBR. I love small-town romance and family series, and as I understand it, Loving You is the beginning of a spin-off series. So, now that I've met these great characters, I'm gonna need to meet the earlier couples that led to this point.
I'll admit that Jade and Levi are an exercise in frustration at times, but weirdly enough, that's part of their charm. If anyone deserves a positive romantic experience, it's this pair. Jade has plenty of romantic angst under her belt, and Levi needs some good vibes in his life. Of course, we get a bit of angst, but I think Samantha Chase did a great job with timing. It all felt natural, as in their responses and actions made sense for the situation - even if they didn't do what I wanted them to! The steamy stuff is closed-door in this one, and I really liked how Chase kept the romance sexy without having to go into detail. 
Carly Robins does a great job with the narration. This is the first time I've listened to her, and I liked her performance. She brought out the many emotions of the story very well.
To sum it up, Loving You is an engaging romance that held my interest from start to finish. If you enjoy small-town, single-parent, going-home-again romance, I'd definitely recommend his one, and I'll be watching for the next book in the series. 


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