TWG is back with a review of book two from ‘The Continental Breakfast Club’ series; ‘Fresh Brewed’!
If you missed my review of the first book in the series; ‘Over Easy’, you can find my review here: Blog Tour! Review of ‘Over Easy’ by Pamela Ford.. iRead Book Tours have been running the tour for both books for over a month and today is the last day -cries-, it’s been wonderful to be involved, so thank you!
Blurb.
Breanna Mitchell is on her way to a relaxing vacation at the ocean. Maybe she’ll even have a beachside fling to help her get over a recent breakup. But when a tropical storm makes her destination hotel uninhabitable, a chance encounter at continental breakfast delivers a fabulous option—with a catch.
She and her friends can stay at a privately-owned, three-story oceanfront home—if she pretends to be the girlfriend of the owner’s heartbreaker grandson, Ethan. Since he won’t even be there, how hard could it be?
Everything is going swimmingly until Bree drinks too much wine and regales the family with romantic tales about her relationship with Ethan. His adorable brother Adam gets suspicious. His marriage-minded grandma gets engagement fever. The beautiful woman next door gets teary-eyed.
And then, Ethan unexpectedly arrives. Suddenly Bree is about to get everything she’s ever wished for—but is it what she really wants?
What does TWG think?
I’ll be honest (when am I not?), I was a little bit concerned about this book because I really enjoyed the previous book in the series and I really didn’t want it to disappoint!
It didn’t disappoint, at all, not in the slightest!
Oh my gosh! Aside from the fact that a tropical storm creates issues before Breanna’s holiday fully begins, there is just drama, after drama. A drama storm! Yes, a male induced drama. It is all well and good going along with a fictional story to help a man you have never met, in return for a decent place to stay, but what happens if the man in question turns up? Breanna wants to be loved, she wants someone to like her for her, fling or not. Could Breanna get her happily ever after from a fictional story? Or will her vacation end up being one that she wishes to forget?
As soon as I had read about the ‘plan’, I just knew that I would be in for a drama filled read. Something just HAD to go wrong. I’m not being a cynic, but when you go along with something incredibly farfetched, there is a chance you’ll be falling flat on your face. Whilst the ‘plan’ was very farfetched, it was also absolutely BRILLIANT! Breanna was asking for trouble, but once she let loose and went with the flow, I couldn’t stop laughing. The things that Bree came out with were so cringy, but in a ‘omg I need to carry on’ sort of way.
As well as Breanna’s hilarious thoughts, her friends, Allie and Megan, didn’t keep quiet either. Maybe their continental breakfasts should add sarcasm to it, not that they would need any extra mind!
Just like ‘Over Easy’, there was ALOT happening in the story, each of the girls were always making their presence known, as well as making sure any eligible bachelors spotted them too. What I find incredible about Pamela’s books is the way they’re so easy to read. I found myself getting so involved with the storyline that I didn’t realise I had nearly finished the book (much to my disappointment). Pamela has such a talent when it comes to writing books as she writes in such an engaging and relaxed way, yet still ensures a storyline full of things to sink your teeth into.
Yes ‘Fresh Brewed’ is full of mad moments, bad decisions and ‘oh my gosh, what ARE you doing?’ moments, but those moments make the book what it is. I loved reading ‘Fresh Brewed’, everything about it was hilariously brilliant.
‘Fresh Brewed’ is a story about breakfast, bad decisions and following your heart. If you don’t stay true to yourself, who will? This is the perfect book to lose yourself in, and just relax. Make sure you have a freshly brewed cuppa though, yeah?
(I received a complimentary copy of the book in return for my thoughts.)
Purchase links:
Buy from Amazon US
Buy from Amazon UK
Don’t go anywhere just yet as I managed to get Pamela Ford under the TWG spotlight, take a look:
TWG: Could you tell us a bit about you and your background before you began writing?
I have known since forever that I would be a writer. But from high school on, I wanted to go into advertising and become a copywriter. Breaking into advertising isn’t easy, so after graduating college with a degree in Advertising, I ended up working as a graphic designer and then in sales for a few years before finally landing a writing job at an ad agency.
TWG: Have you always wanted to be a published writer?
Even though I’d always been a voracious reader, the idea of writing a book never crossed my mind until I was in my late twenties. . .and even then, I didn’t actually write one until five years later. That book, which took me years to write, has a permanent home in the attic!
TWG: You might make me jealous here, but have you been to every city/country where your books are set?
I have! But since I don’t have that many books out, you don’t have much to be jealous about!
TWG: If you had to choose a favourite character from one of your books, who would it be and why?
Oh no! That’s like asking which of your children is your favorite. Each of my characters has different traits that make me love them. For example, I love Allie in Over Easy because she has such an overactive imagination and goes off on these mental flights of fancy. I love Kathleen in To Ride a White Horse because of her loyalty to family and because she doesn’t give up in the face of overwhelming adversity. I think I tend to write people who I would like to be friends with, so that makes this question especially tough.
TWG: Have you ever disliked any of the characters in your stories?
I’m writing one right now, but since the book is still in first draft, he may not stay as unlikable as he is right now!
TWG: Time for a tough one. If you could choose any book that has already been published to be the author of, which would you choose and why?
Hands down, The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley. It’s a retelling of the King Arthur saga from the point of view of the women. I was drawn into the story from the first sentence and couldn’t put it down. Her writing is superb. The way she rounded out the King Arthur legends was amazing. She did such a phenomenal job of creating all the worlds, including the magical island of Avalon, that you can’t help believe that it’s all real. I was so enthralled, I actually did a lot of research afterward to try to find out how much was real and how much she created.
TWG: One final question. What advice would you give to a writer that wants to be published? Any words of wisdom?
Learn the craft. I wasted several years simply writing—and getting rejected. Once I realized there was more to writing a book than just getting words on the page, my writing improved, and I sold. Learn about Goal, Motivation, and Conflict and apply it to your work. (Get Debra Dixon’s book by the same name—it’s awesome!) Learn about turning points, black moments, and character arcs, and make sure you incorporate them into your book. It’ll mean you have to plan more, but your writing will be much stronger because of it.
Author bio:
Pamela Ford is the award-winning author of contemporary and historical romance. She grew up watching old movies, blissfully sighing over the romance; and reading sci-fi and adventure novels, vicariously living the action. The combination probably explains why the books she writes are romantic, happily-ever-afters with plenty of plot – and often lots of laughter.
After graduating from college with a degree in Advertising, Pam merrily set off to earn a living, searching for that perfect career as she became a graphic designer, print buyer, pantyhose sales rep, public relations specialist, copywriter, freelance writer – and finally author. Pam has won numerous awards including the Booksellers Best, the Laurel Wreath, and a gold medal IPPY in the Independent Book Publisher Awards. She is a Kindle Book Awards finalist and a two-time Golden Heart Finalist. She lives in Wisconsin where she is working on her next novel.
Social links:
Website
Twitter
Facebook
Goodreads
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