GENTLEMAN NINE
A Standalone Contemporary Romance Novel

New York Times, USA Today, and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling Author
Penelope Ward

Released February 18, 2018

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Blurb

From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward, comes a new, sexy standalone novel.

Growing up, the three of us were friends.
He was the nerd.
I was the playboy.
She was the beauty.

Deep down, I only ever wanted her. I kept it inside because Rory and I made a pact that our friend, Amber, was off-limits.
He lied.

I went off to college, and he got the girl.
Amber never knew how I felt.
They were together for years—before he broke her heart.

Through it all and across the miles, she and I casually stayed in touch.
When my job sent me to Boston for a three-month contract position, Amber let me stay in her spare room.

Still reeling from her breakup, she’d sworn off men.
One night, I opened her computer to find the shock of my life. She’d hesitantly contacted a male escort company. Afraid to date and get her heart broken again, she was looking for sex with no strings.
Every emotion imaginable ran through me: protectiveness, jealousy—curiosity.
Amber had chosen Gentleman Number Nine and sent him a message.
She opened up to him, confessing, among other things, her physical attraction to her friend—me. But she considered me off-limits—and she thought I was a manwhore. (Ironic, considering the circumstances.)

Eventually, she set up a date to meet Gentleman Nine at a hotel.
When she showed up several nights later to meet him, she got the surprise of her life to see me standing there—with an offer I hoped she wouldn’t refuse.

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Review

4 stars!

Gentleman Nine is an entertaining and addictive read that I finished in one day. It includes several of my favorite tropes that were all done well and characters I couldn’t help but love.

For as long as they’ve know each other, Channing has been off-limits to Amber.

When I first met him, he’d been my best friend’s big brother.Off-limits.
Then, our relationship evolved into a friends I valued. Off-limits.
Crossing the line with Channing wasn’t a possibility, escpisally after I fell in love with his best friend, Rory, which made Channing once again…off-limits.

Though Channing and Amber grew apart, they remained friends and when he is looking for a temporary place to stay, Amber is quick to offer her guestroom. Channing’s friendship is just what she needs to counter the pain she’s experienced the last few months when her boyfriend of nine years dumps her. Hurting and lonely, Amber thinks she needs some no strings attached fun to help her get over the breakup, especially since being around the super sexy Channing is making her sexually frustrated. When Channing discovers that she seeks out an escort for a one night stand he knows he can’t let her go through with her plan. What follows is a fun, sweet, swoony, and steamy romance full of drama and angst and a well-rounded read I couldn’t put down.

I really liked Amber. She is kind, giving, and has such a caring heart. I loved her job and how wonderful she was at it. When she is dumped her devastation and heartbreak was crushing. Then when Channing renters her life I felt the conflicted emotions she has when she still considers him still off-limits. Her desires are overwhelming and real but her fear of acting on them when it comes to Channing is understandable. I love that he takes her by surprise and sweeps her off her feet when she least expects it.

“You blew into my life like a storm. I was so depressed and hopeless. You saved me with your light, with your laughter, with your positive point of view. Before you moved in, I had such preconceived notions about the type of person you’d become over the years. And I was wrong.”

Channing is amazing! He always has Amber’s best interests at heart and even though he wants her so badly he fights his feelings for as long as he can. I felt his longing as well as his confusion when it comes to spending time with Amber especially since he’s not used to wanting more from a relationship and Amber is the one on his mind 24/7.

Channing was super swoony towards the end of the book. He is usually so strong and confident but it is the times that he admits what is in his heart that shows him most vulnerable and real. His words were gorgeous and raw and utterly perfect and I was a puddle of goo reading them.

“I wanted to help you feel better…I wanted to bring you out of your darkness. But in the process, I fucked up and fell in love with you, fell in love with not only the good parts but the dark ones, too—”

“I may not have been your first love, but you’re mine.”

The plot was entertaining and I enjoyed the progression of Channing and Amber’s relationship. The attraction was there from the beginning but the sexual tension is off the charts now that they are both single. They have amazing chemistry and they steam up the pages as they fall in love. I was so excited when they realized their true feelings and I couldn’t have had a bigger smile on my face.

However, as with most contemporary romances, there’s a roadblock that knocks the characters on their asses. In this case it’s a love triangle, and though I am not always a fan of them, this one is well done. It is angsty and dramatic but oh, so good. There is so much emotion that was realistic and believable. When a bomb is dropped like the one that landed on Amber’s doorstep I knew it would only lead to heartbreak. And my heart did break for everyone involved. I felt the conflict, confusion, frustration, and love between the characters. I didn’t envy the position Amber was in; she had some big decisions to make and I knew that either outcome would hurt even after she finds her HEA.

“But love isn’t always only about the person who makes you feel the safest or even how much you care about someone. Sometimes, it’s about the person who ignites your soul, and that may also be the person you fear the most.”

Overall, I love the way things play out. I think that the challenges Amber and Channing face are mostly handled maturely and though there are times I wanted to scream, I did understand what the characters were going through. The epilogue was realistic and wrapped the story up nicely without being too over-the-top. It all worked out in a beautiful way and I have a permanent smile on my face.

About the Author

Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today, and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling author. She’s a seventeen-time New York Times bestseller. Her novels are published in over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world. Having grown up in Boston with five older brothers, she spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor, before switching to a more family-friendly career. She is the proud mother of a beautiful 13-year-old girl with autism and a 12-year-old boy. Penelope and her family reside in Rhode Island.

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Additional books by Penelope Ward