Always a Fake Bridesmaid by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

The moment Ewan McBride entered my life, my world tilted on its axis.

When we part, I promise him I owe him anything for saving my daughter’s life.

What I didn’t expect?

Being his fake date to a wedding—in two days.

It was only supposed to be a favor, but we can’t deny the attraction.

Only he lives a state away and my life is in Colorado with my daughter and the Montgomery's.

This can only be one night that feels all too real.

Yet I know walking away will be the hardest thing I ever do.

This was a short and spicy read. I loved Ewan and Livy. It is an insta love but it works. I so want more details on the wedding drama but that wasn’t what the book was about so I get why it wasn’t included.

Book 1 Clover Lake

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Inked Obsession by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

When men in uniform showed up on Eliza Wilder-Strong’s doorstep, she knew her life would be irrevocably altered. She not only lost her husband, but the future she’d carefully planned. A year later, she’s looking to start over—beginning with a solo healing vacation. Only she never expects to see a familiar, tempting face along the way.

Beckett Montgomery refuses to want his little sister’s best friend—especially because she’s a widow. Yet there’s no stopping the connection between them. As the temptation to give in intensifies, so do the reasons they shouldn’t stay together.

Painful ghosts from both of their pasts stand in their way and sometimes it’s the living that can haunt you when you’re not looking.

Eliza is dealing with a lot since the death of her husband. All the drama was a lot but Beckett is there to help her. He was amazing with her. The stuff with Eliza’s husband was interesting and is what the majority of the book is about.

Book 2 Montgomery Ink: Fort Collins

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Inked Devotion by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

Brenna Garrett needs time to think about a major decision but finds herself bringing Benjamin Montgomery with her. The problem? He's her best friend's twin, so there's no escaping that familiar face.

Benjamin didn't want to leave his family in a lurch, but Brenna isn't the only one who needs a break. Only a drunken mistake leads to a night of passion with unintended consequences.

When it turns out they can't walk away, they'll have to make a choice: Remain just friends or start something new and possibly risk everything.

Including themselves.

I liked Ben and Brenna story. Friends to lovers was a nice adjustment to what I have been reading. I loved that they both were dealing with the issues about a baby but in slightly different ways. I did love how it worked out.

Book 3 Montgomery Ink: Fort Collins

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Accidental Runaway Groom by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

I picked up a groom on the side of the road on the way to a wedding.

One problem: I wasn’t the bride.

And he didn’t mean to run away.

Sometimes things happen for a reason and six months later, I’m back in Clover Lake and Sharp McBride is single, not-so-heartbroken, and my new best friend.

Only neither one of us wants to be just friends.

I don’t know where his heart belongs, and I don’t want to be the person to break what’s left. Yet I’m only in town for a short time and I’m not sure I’m made for small time life.

And if we’re not careful, this time I might have to be the one who runs away.

You do need to read the first book in the Clover Lake series to get what is going on in this book. I enjoyed reading how MMC and FMC get their HEA. I did want more info on the bride who didn’t want to get married. It was a pretty quick read.

Book 2 Clover Lake

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Promo: Carrie Ann Ryan

 

Crossroads

Book 2 in the Ashford Creek Series

When Kiera West needs a place to hide from the media and her ex, she never thought Bodhi Ashford—the man the small town of Ashford Creek once thought a murderer—would be her salvation.

The reclusive, bearded, mountain man has secrets of his own and with one growl, she knew she’d be safe. Sure, he might only talk to her to ask who hurt her, but at least the quiet will let her heal.

When the elusive drummer from one of the biggest rock bands in the world shows up on Bodhi’s doorstep, he needs her to leave yesterday. As soon as he sees the bruises, he knows she needs to stay.

A fire took everything from him once, and the town he thought he could trust turned on him before he could grieve. Falling for a woman in the spotlight is the last thing he needs.

Yet it might be the one thing that could save them both when the darkness of their pasts finally catches up with them.

**Crossroads is a rock star, widower, second chance, small town contemporary suspense in the Ashford Creek series featuring Bodhi and Kiera. Each one can be read as a complete standalone. A HEA is guaranteed!**

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Ever After Between the Lines by Carrie Ann Ryan

 

3.5 Star

Happy Ever After is Only the Beginning.

Find your fate between the lines in this collection of steamy and special romances from NYT Bestselling Author Carrie Ann Ryan.

Fate can change in an instant.

But love can be everlasting.

Includes EIGHT short stories and novellas never before in audio or print.

What if it's You (A Montgomery Ink Legacy Romance)

Over the Bridge (A Montgomery Ink Legacy Romance)

Was it Over Then (A Wilder Brothers Romance)

Inked Kingdom (A Montgomery Ink Romance)

Montgomery Midnight Kisses (A Montgomery Ink Romance)

Inked Fantasy (A Montgomery Ink: Boulder Romance)

A Very Montgomery Christmas (A Montgomery Ink: Boulder Romance)

Delicate Nights (A Montgomery Ink Romance)

Cute little clips from previous characters. It was nice to see them all again. None of the chapters are serious but mostly smexy time and seeing where each relationship is now. If you liked the books you will like these extra clips.

Book is apart of the Montgomery Legacy

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Happily Ever Never by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

I love falling in love.

Only I’m the worst at it.

My friends call me a serial first dater and I can’t blame them.

All I want is a happy ever after, yet all I find are happy ever nevers.

This is my last chance. After this set up with my friend’s tattoo artist, I’m done.

No more dating. No more chances.

If I don’t fall in love with Leo Johnson, I’ll give up on dating.

Even if it shatters my dreams in the process.

I loved this book. May was excellent on first dates but nothing every went past that first date. I loved her with Leo. They just worked and May got to get past the first date curse.

Book 2.5 Montgomery Ink Legacy

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Sated in Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

Ethan Montgomery thought he had his life figured out until the moment he and his best friend, Lincoln, met a woman in a wedding dress drinking wine out of a paper bag. Love has never been in the cards for him because he doesn’t realize what is right in front of him.

Lincoln’s done his best to ignore his feelings for Ethan and focus on his art. Yet the moment Holland enters the picture, all bets are off and sparks fly.

Only Holland is fresh out of a disastrous relationship that ended with her running away from her cheating groom. She’s not sure she can trust a man again—let alone two.

But the attraction between them cannot be denied and sometimes there’s no going back—even when their pasts try to break them apart.

The frustration I had with Holland, Ethan, and Lincoln. They all wanted out so the other two could have their HEA. It got old really quickly. I also felt like the ending was too rushed.

Book 13 Montgomery Ink

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Wrapped in Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

Liam Montgomery will try everything once.

He started his career as a model and turned that opportunity into becoming a bestselling author.

The only thing he hasn’t tried is a steady relationship.

Not that he’s looking for one.

Arden Brady doesn’t get out much.

Living with Lupus means sometimes her days aren’t her own. She’s lived her life to the fullest so far, but the one thing she’s never let herself do is fall in love.

Then comes Liam.

A chance encounter changes the game, and both will have to risk everything they thought important to make this work. Because family secrets and unplanned heartache aren’t the only things trying to tear them apart. But if they’re lucky, the passion between them might just make this romance thing something they can believe in.

Arden has Lupus and doesn’t think she will ever get her HEA. Liam is all in with her basically from the beginning. He works with her and wants to care for her. There were a lot of cute moments in the book.

Book 12 Montgomery Ink

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Ink by Numbers by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

Kaylee knows art, friendship, and love. And because she’s known love, she wants nothing to do with it ever again. She likes her life just the way it is. Her art and her Brushes with Lushes classes keep her sane and happy.

Landon spends his days with numbers and financial spreadsheets. At night, he just wants to relax, but the only way he can do that is with a woman. But these days, not just any woman will do.

Kaylee and Landon do an excellent job of dancing around each other, but no matter how much desire burns between them or their own personal hang-ups, they’ll need to make a choice: life as they know it, or a life that could be so much more.

Kaylee and Landon get their HEA in this book. It flows nicely and adds to the rest of the series. Even though neither is a Montgomery this book was good short story.

Book 4.5 Montgomery Ink: Colorado Springs

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Jagged Ink by Carrie Ann Ryan

2 Stars

Roxie Montgomery met her soul mate when she least expected it. When he asked her to marry him, she thought her happily ever after was only just beginning. Then, she found that walking into the sunset was much harder than her favorite books made it out to be.

After a crushing loss, she feels as though she doesn’t know her husband anymore, or rather…she doesn’t know herself.

Carter Marshall has loved Roxie since the first time he saw her. But as the days pass between them, so does the distance. He doesn’t know how to show her that he’s all in, and honestly doesn’t know if she’s in at all.

When an accident changes everything, they’ll have to decide if what they have can be salvaged, or if starting over is the answer. Or even possible.

I think this was my least liked book by Carrie Ann Ryan. I liked Roxie and Carter but the story was just meh. They suffer a loss and drift apart. This is normal. They refuse to talk to each other. It was more Roxie than Carter that was refusing to talk and that led to all the problems.

Book 11 Montgomery Ink

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An Unexpected Everything by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

He left me with a note.

Weston Caldwell and I had two months together. Two months of intense heat and plans for our future. Then one day he left me sleeping with a note and never turned back. I closed off my heart and my dreams after he left and promised to take care of my family, never trusting love again.

So when I am forced to head to my family’s small town for protection, I never expect to turn around and see the man I loved.

I want to walk away and never look back, but when I find out he left for a heartbreaking reason, I’m not sure what to think. The chemistry between us hasn’t gone away—if anything it burns even brighter.

But my life is in the city and his is in this small town that draws me. Between his siblings, the town itself, and my new found family, walking away might break me.

Only Weston isn’t the only secret from my past. And it turns out, if Weston and I aren’t careful, we could lose everything before we find our second chance.

I enjoyed this one but Weston was an idiot when they were younger. I get the stress and everything but he made a decision that changed the course of both his and Isabella’s life. Now that they are older and they are both at a crossroads of life it was interesting to see them figuring things out. I did have issues with Phoebe’s name being misspelled a couple of times. Other than that it was a good book.

Book 2 The Cage Family

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Taken with You by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

It all started at a wedding. Beckham didn’t mean to dance with Meadow. And he really didn’t mean to kiss her. But now, she’s the only thing on his mind. And when it all comes down to it, she’s the only person he can't have.

He'll just have to stay away from her, no matter how hard they’re pulled together.

Running away from her friend's wedding isn't the best way to keep the gossip at bay. But falling for the mysterious and gorgeous bartender at her friends’ bar will only make it worse. Beckham has his secrets, and she refuses to pry.

Once burned, twice kicked down, and never allowed to get up again. Yet taking a chance with him might be the only choice she has. And the only one she wants.

I liked the story but felt like it needed slightly more for a fully fleshed out book. I felt it was missing some things to be a completed story.

Book 3.5 Fractured Connections

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Wilder Brothers Collections by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

When the Wilder brothers return home after leaving the military and the lives they fought to build, they’ll have to start from scratch and create roots when they had none before. They’re moving to a new state, a new town, and with a new set of problems they never expected. Falling in love along the way isn’t in the cards, but the Wilder brothers should know by now—you don’t choose your fate, fate chooses you.

This set includes:

A Night for Us

One Way Back to Me

Always the One for Me

I loved these stories will draw you in and deal out trauma and love. Each brother has their love interest that they have to win over and get through some trauma. Some of them have their own trauma they have to work on. I loved listening to them and can't wait to listen to the rest of the books.

Book .5-2 The Wilder Brothers

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His Second Chance by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

The rules were simple. Protect the woman I love. And try to stop loving her along the way.

Kane Montgomery Carr and Phoebe Dixon’s romance went from a fiery temptation to a fizzled out heartbreak.

Only Kane has no idea why. All he knows is that he has to keep her safe when a stalker sets Phoebe in their sights.

Yet as the two of them are forced once again into each other’s lives, the truth behind their breakup surfaces and they are forced to face the facts: the feelings and heat they buried aren’t quite as gone as they’d like.

If they give in, they’ll have to face the demons that broke them up in the first place—including a startling secret that shocks them both.

Yet if they don’t, they might lose the chance of a life time.

That is, of course, if they can survive what lurks in the shadows for them both.

This was such an amazing second chance romance. I love that it builds on all of the other stories and adds to them.

I loved the narrators as well. they did a good job bringing the people to life

Book 6 Montgomery Ink Legacy

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One Night with You by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

Never fall for your best friend.

That’s the rule. The code.

Claire Harlow always follows rules—except this one.

However, when an attack leaves both of their worlds shaken, she decides to walk away from what could have been and hide within her own shadows. Kingston Montgomery is the man who saves the day.

At least that’s what he’s always told himself—until one day he was too late.

Now he’s trying to find his purpose while also ignoring the heat between him and Claire.

When a chance blizzard changes their plans, one night turns to two…and then there’s no going back. Only the two must overcome what they thought their relationship should be and realize what it could become. Because if they don’t figure it out quickly, the spark that ignites them could burn them both.

 

After the last book this was so less dramatic in a good way. I enjoyed these two coming together and finding their happy. The epilog for the next couple makes me want to go and read that book immediately.

Both narrators did an excellent job with the character voices.

Book 7 Montgomery Ink Legacy

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Wilder Wedding by Carrie Ann Ryan

3 Stars

The Wilders know their weddings and this time it’s for one of their own.

Naomi and Amos have been the secret backbone to the Wilder Brothers’ Retreat and Winery for years.

They’ve also loved and hated each other along the way.

Their on and off again relationship has always worked for them, but now it’s getting in the way of the next Wilder Wedding.

If they don’t figure out what they want, one of them will have to do what they feared: leave the Wilders.

But if they take that leap, they might just break.

Or finally have what they’ve always wanted.

Each other.

This was a short and sweet story. Just a little glimpse of a secondary character from the winery. it was nice seeing the couple get their HEA. Narrators were OK.

Book 7.5 The Wilder Brothers

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Best Friend Temptation by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

I fell for my best friend long before I knew what that meant. Only I know he’ll never love me back.

He’s stuck in his head and his past demons and can’t see what is right in front of him.

But when Greer loses her home and needs a place to stay, both Noah and I know the only place she belongs is with us—in every way possible.

Now I’m falling for both of my roommates and trying to keep the people I protect safe.

Only someone is coming for them, and I can’t stop the inevitable fall.

I just have to hope that we made the right choices and that one day soon Noah and Greer will finally see who we can be.

Before we lose it all…or I finally walk away for good.

I loved this one so much. The give and take between the three was in the fore front of this book and I loved it. The mystery part was very much secondary but still enjoyable. loved the narrators

Book 4 Montgomery Ink Legacy

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Long Time Crush by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

When my best friend and I fell for the same guy in middle school, I stepped back.
I'd always expected to dance at their wedding.
Not sit in the back pew of her funeral.
I left town for my own reasons, but now that I'm back, it’s clear Sebastian Montgomery isn't the same man I left.
He's hard. Broken.
And a single father to an adorable little girl.
When it turns out he’s my new neighbor, I can’t stay away.
But I know I’m playing with fire and the heat between us burns enough to scorch.
I thought I was over my crush.
But now it might crush me.

I loved this book so much. I loved Sebastion, Raven, and Nora. Nora was so cute throughout this book. Seb and Raven have issues they have to work through and I loved the process. I don’t think the book needed the stalker but it was fine. I loved all of it and the narrators did an excellent job.

Book 3 Montgomery Ink Legacy

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The Forever Rule by Carrie Ann Ryan

4 Stars

Blakely

The moment I met Aston Cage, I knew my life had changed. A single dance later, we’re both all in. Until he ghosted me.

Then my boss fires me for dancing with the enemy.

Three months later, working for the Cages is my last resort. Now I’ll work beside him day by day, trying not to let my feelings take control. It’s heaven and hell. Except I’m starting to think there’s a part of this story I’m missing…

Aston

I made myself walk away from Blakely after my family’s dirty laundry hit the news. My father’s secret family complicates everything. In order to keep our inheritance intact, we’re forced to do monthly dinners with both sides of the family—the brothers I grew up with and the new set of siblings we never knew about.

An additional obstacle: Blakely is my new sister’s best friend.

Meaning the moment I give into temptation, I not only risk the woman I’m falling for, but the family legacy just starting to reveal itself.

But Blakley is worth it. I just have to prove I am as well.

I loved all the drama and the give and take between the characters. Aston is dealing with a lot with his family secrets that are coming out. He screws up so much with Blakely but he does have his reasons and he does make it up to her. The story flows nicely and this builds off of the Montgomery books. I can't wait for the rest of the Cage books

Book 1 The Cage Family

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