The Next Big Thing by Kristan Higgins

Summary:
Lucy Lang isn't looking for fireworks.
She's looking for a nice, decent man. Someone who'll mow the lawn, flip chicken on the barbecue, teach their future children to play soccer. But most important: someone who won't inspire the slightest stirring in her heart…or anywhere else. A young widow, Lucy can't risk that kind of loss again. But sharing her life with a cat named Fat Mikey and the Black Widows at the family bakery isn't enough either. So it's goodbye to Ethan, her hot but entirely inappropriate "friend with privileges" and hello to a man she can marry.
Too bad Ethan Mirabelli isn't going anywhere. As far as he's concerned, what she needs might be right under her nose. But can he convince her that the next best thing can really be forever?

Review:


I personally have never lost a person close to me, so I've never experienced grief, but I still disliked the heroine.

It's been almost six years since she's lost her husband and she's still wallowing: she's still watching their wedding video and she still won't move on. There were times when I just wanted to shake the heroine, slap her, and tell her to cut the crap and get her life together. It made me want to swear off getting married or loving someone.

I felt bad for the hero who had been in love with her for many years. He's always been there for her and he was always understanding--too understanding sometimes because he came off as perfect. The fact that he'd been in love with her for many years and she didn't know (eyerolls; it was so obvious), and that he was amazing with children made him sound like the ideal man. In turn, she came off as undeserving.

This was the first book I read by Kristan Higgins and I'm not sure if I want to read more of her books. I did like the secondary characters: Corrianne (the heroine's sister), the "mean" woman, and the family portrayed in this book. The fact that the women were all widows in the family was so interesting. And there was some light humor in the book, but it was used sparingly and a bit cliched.

I did not like that a secret of Jimmy (the heroine's dead husband) had to be found out in order for the heroine to realize that he wasn't perfect and that she should move on. I would have preferred if Lucy had just learned to move on by herself instead of learning something disappointing about her dead husband.

Overall, it was an okay romance--a bit too depressing for me.D/D+

Expectant Bride by Lynne Graham

Summary:
A wedding, a baby...but what about love? Ellie was unnerved by her confrontation with Dio Alexiakis. However, Dio knew just how he would deal with her. Ellie was whisked away to Dio's Greek island villa - and unexpected passion! Then, when she found she was pregnant, Dio demanded they must marry....

Review:

Ellie was one of those deceiving main characters. On the surface she looks very quiet and meek, but when angered or hurt, she lashes out. I liked that about her. She grew up in a broken home--mom was her dad's mistress-- so she thought men were just pigs, which made the first sex scene feel like a pity lay. As the story progressed, I became convinced of her attraction to him, and it wasn't just about his looks.

As the book progressed, more drama ensued, which could have been prevented had the hero more trust in her.

The hero was dark, brooding, and oh so rich, but like I mentioned before, very distrusting. There were some scenes were I just wanted to shake him and make him see that he was wrong, but the author did a great job painting the villainess as two-faced, manipulative, and persuasive.

The majority of the book I did not feel that the relationship between the two was real, at least the hero's attraction to her.The author skipped much time throughout the book, which made it suffer. If the author hadn't skipped so much time and focused more on their growing relationship, then it would have been believable. Most of the time I could not help to think that it was just a convenient marriage, just like Ellie did.

It's not until the end that their relationship was credible, that I believed the hero's love for Ellie. I liked that she made him suffer and didn't take his coldness towards her.

Overall, it's a decent book with a strong heroine. C-

This book is part of a Greek Tycoon series; you don't have to read the other books in the series to understand this storyline.