Readers back for a third round of the bestselling Cocktail series will enjoy a madcap romantic comedy about bodice ripping and chest heaving, fiery passion and love everlasting. Plus a dash of paperwork filing and horseshi—wait, what?
By day, Viv Franklin designs software programs. By night, Vivian’s a secret romance-novel junkie who longs for a knight in shining armor, or a cowboy on a wild stallion, or a strapping firefighter to sweep her off her feet. And she gets to wear the bodice—don’t forget the bodice.
When a phone call brings news that she’s inherited a beautiful old home in Mendocino, California from a long-forgotten aunt, she moves her entire life across the country to embark on what she sees as a great, romance-novel-worthy adventure. But romance novels always have a twist, don’t they?
There’s a cowboy, one that ignites her loins. Because Cowboy Hank is totally loin-ignition worthy. But there’s also a librarian, Clark Barrow. And he calls her Vivian. Can tweed jackets and elbow patches compete with chaps and spurs? You bet your sweet cow pie.
In Screwdrivered, Alice Clayton pits Superman against Clark in a hilarious and hot battle that delights a swooning Viv/Vivian.
Also within this book, an answer to the question of the ages: Why ride a cowboy when you can ride a librarian?
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Review
Readers first met the snarky, quick witted Viv Franklin in Rusty Nailed when Simon went back to his hometown for his high school reunion, and now we get to go on an adventure with her, both in her romanced driven mind and in her new life in Mendocino, California, after she unexpectedly inherits a beach house from her great aunt. As the heroine of her own romance novel, Viv embraces her new home and finds out that despite the repairs needed on the house, an ornery librarian who refuses to allow certain improvements to the historically registered home, and a cowboy she gets tongue tied around, she actually feels like her life is finally what she’s always wanted it to be – minus the sexy pirate or ripped Highlander.
Viv’s obsession with romance novels plays out in her imagination on a continual basis, but her reality is never quite as hot or as easy as her dreams make it out to be. She wants to be pursued, feel wanted, and be swept away by a man who will ravage her, but the only two possible lovers in her life are a cowboy who doesn’t seem to be interested and Clark Barrow, the man who riles her up more than she’s willing to admit, even when he’s wearing his elbow patched jackets.
But maybe if Viv gives it half a chance and steps outside her books, she’ll realize that reality can be even better.
I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I love Viv just as much as Alice Clayton’s sassy redhead, Grace Sheridan. Viv is an amazing heroine whose internal monologues and escapes from reality are a fantastic addition to the text because they engage the reader and allow us to understand what Viv wants, even if we don’t think that that’s what she actually needs. Her one liners and exchanges with Clark illustrate the sexual tension that’s between them and add to the overall enjoyment of this text. It seems obvious to the reader and even her friends who needs to be the hero in Viv’s story, but she’s too blinded by what she believes the course of her romance should take based on the books she reads, and only she will be able to change her own mind and create her own happy ending. It may get frustrating at times watching Viv miss what’s right in front of her, but it’s quite comical how worked up she gets over who she believes to be the anti-hero in her story.
Screwdrivered is Alice Clayton at her finest. I loved everything about this book! It’s one hell of an entertaining read that may be light on the steam, but it’s definitely heavy on the snark, humor, and wit. I love that Caroline and Simon make an appearance in the text and help Viv with the house and her dark horse. Alice Clayton is the queen of romantic comedies, and I can’t wait for Mai Tai’d Up.
A complimentary copy was provided by the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review.
5 poison apples
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Alice Clayton is a novelist with an unholy love for her KitchenAid mixer. Making her home in St Louis, she enjoys gardening but not weeding, baking but not cleaning up afterwards, and is trying desperately to get her long time boyfriend to make her an honest woman. Hi sweetie!!
After working for years in the cosmetics industry as a makeup artist, esthetician, and national educator for a major cosmetics company, Alice picked up a pen (read laptop) for the first time at 33 to begin a new career, writer. Combining her love of storytelling with a sense of silly, she was shocked and awed to be nominated for a Goodreads Author award in 2010 for her debut novels, The Redhead Series.
Alice has penned three novels, The Unidentified Redhead,The Redhead Revealed, and coming soon in November 2012, Wallbanger. She thinks you should purchase them immediately. She’s not kidding, not even a little bit. Everyone needs some comedic erotica in their lives. She is hard at work on the third book in The Redhead Series, set to release in Spring of 2013, continuing the saucy and sexual escapades of everyone’s favorite couple, Jack and Grace.
Additionally, Alice loves spending time with her besties on Not Your Mother’s Podcast, make sure you check them out at notyourmotherspodcast.com or over on iTunes. 3 women rushing towards their forties still acting like teenagers. A saucy little mix of sex, love, relationships, pop cultural, celebrity gossip and All Things Jake Ryan.
Alice enjoys pickles, Bloody Mary’s, 8 hours of sleep, and a good pounding.
Finally Alice would also like all her readers and listeners to help her convince Mt. Alice that the only other thing that would make her truly happy is finally bringing home a Bernese Mountain Dog. She is totally serious. And done talking about herself in the third person…
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