Beard Science
(Winston Brothers, #3)

by Penny Reid

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Blurb

Make a deal with the devil and you might get what you want, but will it be what you need?

Jennifer Sylvester wants one thing, and that one thing is NOT to be Tennessee’s reigning Banana Cake Queen. Ever the perpetual good girl and obedient daughter, Jennifer is buckling under the weight of her social media celebrity, her mother’s ambitions, and her father’s puritanical mandates. Jennifer is officially desperate.

And desperate times call for Cletus Winston.

Cletus Winston is a puzzle wrapped in a mystery covered in conundrum sauce, and now he’s in a pickle. Despite being convinced of his own omniscience, extortion by the exalted Banana Cake Queen of Green Valley has taken him completely by surprise. So… what’s a maniacal mastermind to do?

Likely, the last thing you expect.

***Beard Science is the third book in the Winston Brothers series, is a full-length romantic comedy novel, and can be read as a standalone.***

Find Beard Science on Goodreads 

Review

5 stars!

I have loved the first two books in the Winston Brothers series, Truth or Beard and Grin and Beard It, so it is no surprise that I would love Beard Science. Penny Reid’s romantic comedies are fantastic and will have you laughing-out-loud and falling in love with the characters.

Jennifer Sylvester is known as the Banana Cake Queen and is famous for her *drum roll* banana cakes. She is a unique individual, likes to stay hidden and is a people watcher. She can’t seem to get out from under her parent’s watchful eyes and controlling ways to do the things she loves, the way she wants. She would do anything to live her life as she chooses but the guilt she would feel from disappointing her parents keeps her sheltered and doing what they want.

Cletus is another Winston brother and he is a peculiar one. He keeps secrets and lives by a specific set of rules about everything. He has the ability to form impressions about people that tend to be correct, so when he meets a woman that he feels a spark with he just knows she “the one.” He plans to act on this knowledge later on when he has more time to focus on a relationship; however, his plan goes haywire when he finally has a reason to notice the invisible Jennifer.

Jennifer has incriminating evidence against Cletus that he wouldn’t want leaked. She has a proposition for him and if he doesn’t help her, she will go straight to the police. Cletus thinks he has everything under control but little does he know his world is about to get flipped upside down.

Jennifer is a pleasant surprise. She is smart, funny, and a bit awkward. Cletus can’t help but second guess his first impression of her.

Perhaps Jennifer Sylvester wasn’t feeble after all. Perhaps Jennifer Sylvester was fierce.

Cletus sees how dependent she is on her parents and knows if he is going to be able to help her she needs to start doing the things she wants by growing a backbone and sticking up for herself. Giving her “homework” to help her with her plan gives her the opportunity to work towards becoming who she wants to be.

In the beginning, Jennifer was not even on Cletus’ radar and I loved watching them become friends and grow to understand each other completely. I loved how the relationship developed slowly and there wasn’t any insta-love. The romance was beautiful and believable, and I loved how it snuck up on them.

He looked at me.
Just simply looked.
And I blinked my surprise.
The many different “Cletuses” fell away. No artifice, no mind games, no jokes, no walls – it was just the man. The raw truth of him – his soul – was beautiful. It was precious to me.
He was precious to me.
“You want to know what you are to me? Fine. You’re my beginning, middle, and end.”

Cletus and Jennifer were amazing together. They seemed so different but in the end they made a perfect couple even if they didn’t see it at first. The friendship that formed between them was solid and watching them as their feelings developed was entertaining. I loved the changes they each went through because of the other.

“Love brings its own intensions, and all other plans, hopes, and dreams fade to insignificance in the face of love.“

Cletus intrigued me from the moment I met him in Truth or Beard and he proved to be such a wonderful man in Beard Science. At first I was worried I wouldn’t love him as much as I did with his background and all of his revenge plots. I thought I would be pissed at his actions but in the end his character growth was well done and I loved how he changed. His uniqueness ended up making him even more interesting and I loved him and his quirks. He made me swoon with his sweet and caring nature toward Jennifer and my heart fluttered right alongside Jennifer’s.

“I can’t break your heart without breaking mine, and I’m terribly fond of my heart.”

I really loved Jennifer. At first I wanted to shake her and tell her to grow up and stand on her own two feet. Her parents were using her and were not showing her the unconditional love that parents should have for their children or the love she deserved. That being said I completely understood where she was coming from. Fear of disappointing people you love can hold you back from living your life the way you want and this is exactly what Jennifer was doing. I knew that she understood her issues and I can imagine the difficulty she would have to finally take a stand. When she came into her own I was so proud and happy for her.

I’d been sleeping for twenty-two years. I felt like, for the first time in my life, I was finally conscious. Life was finally happening. I was making it happen

I was also so heartbroken for her. I hated her father and I loved that Cletus tried to protect her. Though there was some drama, I understood it and it was not drawn out too long. I loved the way the story ended and the epilogue was a treat.

“Let me be your paradise…Let me be your heaven. Because you are mine.”

I love the Winston family. Every single one of them is interesting and I love getting to know each one a little better through these stories. I cannot wait to get my hands on the other Winston Brothers books! If you haven’t read this series, do yourself a favor and grab them today. You will not be disappointed.

*ARC generously provided by the author and IndieSage PR in exchange for an honest review*

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Giveaway

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The Escapist Book Blog is not responsible for this giveaway.

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The Winston Brothers

Everyone in Green Valley, Tennessee knows that the six bearded Winston brothers have been imbued with an unfair share of charm and charisma… and are prone to mischief.

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About the Author

Penny Reid is the USA Today Best Selling Author of the Winston Brothers and Knitting in the City series. When she’s not immersed in penning smart romances, Penny works in the biotech industry as a researcher. She’s also a full time mom to three diminutive adults, wife, daughter, knitter, crocheter, sewer, general crafter, and thought ninja.

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