Butterface, a hot romantic comedy from USA Today bestselling author Avery Flynn, is LIVE!
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Synopsis
Looks aren’t everything.
It’s true. I’m not what most people would call “pretty” and, well, high school was rough.
Fast forward ten years and life is good…
Until a bunch of jerks think it’s hilarious to put the “butterface” (AKA me) on a wedding Kiss Cam with the hottest guy ever—and that old humiliation hits hard.
I recognize him immediately. The hottest cop in Waterbury and totally out of my league.
But then he kisses me.
And we totally forget the room, the crowd, everything.
Then he tells everyone we’ve been dating for months.
Soon everything starts to feel too real, from adorable fights over “necessary” tools to fix my broken porch to surviving a free-for-all dinner with his six siblings to picking up where our last kiss left off.
But there’s something he’s not telling me about why he’s really hanging around, and I’m pretty sure it has to do with my mob-connected brothers.
Because this is not a makeover story, and Cinderella is only a fairy tale…
Review
3.5 stars
I really enjoyed this book. A fun romance with a lot of heart, and a sweet, sexy romance with lots of chemistry and swoon.
Gina Luca grew up knowing that she wasn’t attractive. She endured teasing, taunts, stares and heartbreaking ridicule as she was christened ‘Butterface’, which set the stage for her to not expect romance and come to accept the single life.
Butterface. Why? Because her body was okay, “but her face?” Not so much.
She has created a good life for herself, and is building her wedding planning business, and it’s at one of her weddings when she is caught on the kiss cam with one of the hottest men she’s seen – detective Ford Hartigan – who kisses her like he means it, sparking a chemistry that surprises them both.
Ford is a strong, straight-laced, by-the-book police officer. He is dedicated to his job and doesn’t have time for much else in his life, but the kiss he shared with Gina at a colleague’s wedding put him into a spin. And then he learns that she is Gina Luca – sister of the two Luca brothers who have ties to an organised crime ring and he is on a taskforce to bring them down. So not only is she not his usual type, but she’s now completely off limits… until his Captain asks him to stay close to her to see if he can get an ‘in’ for his case.
It may not be the most honest of set-ups, but the chemistry is there and Ford is only too happy to force himself into Gina’s life under the pretence of ‘protection’, moving into her inherited Victorian disaster, helping her out with her renovations, and becoming a part of each other’s lives – giving them the perfect opportunity to get to know each other.
OMG, the sexual tension between these two is off the charts! They want each other badly, and while Ford tries to keep his distance to avoid breaking the rules, Gina knows that the sexy-as-all-hell detective couldn’t possibly want her. My heart broke for her, all that she has endured, and her belief about herself, but rather than wallow in low self-esteem, she acknowledges it, and just carries on with her life, and though I hurt for her, I couldn’t help but admire her courage.
“What, do you think people believe this is some lame romantic comedy where the hot guy falls for the ugly chick? Newsflash, I don’t wear glasses, so there’s no taking them off and then suddenly I’m a total babe and believably your girlfriend.”
People are unspeakably cruel, and I was shocked at the taunts and ‘jokes’ that are made towards Gina, but Ford saw past outward appearances and Gina’s perceptions of herself, to the smart, funny, warm and bright woman that she is, and despite his intention to keep things professional between them, I loved watching him begin to fall.
She did a little shimmy dance move, threw her arms in the air, and turned to face her brothers and Ford at the table with a smile that lit up her whole face.
Maybe there was some asshole out there who could look at her and not return her grin. Ford was a dickhead, but he couldn’t stop the end of his lips from curling upward.
And when they finally reach breaking point…. Holy damn the sexy time is seriously steamy!
He kissed her like a man who believed that if he did it right, she’d forget that anyone had ever called her awful names or made her feel like she wasn’t everything a man could want.
But despite how much they want each other, there is still so much standing in their way – Ford’s job and Gina’s family ties to organised crime, on top of her personal issues, and Ford’s inability to handle all that he is feeling and his complete cluelessness when it comes to dealing with it all. It’s going to take a whole lot of soul searching for them to figure out what they want and then find the courage to go after it.
“You’re gonna break me, Ford Hartigan,” she said, her voice ragged and her back still to him.
“I won’t. Trust me.” And he meant it.
This is a really sweet and fun read. There are aspects of it that are really sad as we get an up-close look at all that Gina has gone through, and I did wonder if the author took it a little too far at times? But if her goal was to show Gina’s strength in overcoming all she’s been through and Ford’s heartfelt realisation of his feelings for Gina despite her perceived “flaws”, then that was accomplished.
“I wish you saw the woman I see when I look at you.”
I really enjoyed these two as characters. Their journey was realistic and heartfelt with loads of chemistry, and their love story was just gorgeous. I could feel everything between them, and loved seeing them fight their way to their HEA.
This is the first book in the Hartigans series, and it introduces us to Ford’s loud, brash, and in-your-face family, and I’m keen to get to know more of this wild clan – starting with eldest Hartigan, the hilarious Frankie, and Gina’s outspoken friend, Lucy in Muffin Top.
3.5 stars.
An Advanced Review Copy was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Excerpt
“Do not disrespect the Kiss Cam, Hartigan!” someone bellowed out as the chanting crowd grew more restless. And louder.
“One quick kiss,” he said, his tone grim with a thread of something more vulnerable underneath. “Then, they’ll leave us alone.”
That’s when Gina’s gaze moved from her own face, blotchy with embarrassment on the screen, over to him. The tips of his ears were scarlet, and he was tapping the tips of his middle finger and thumb together like he was keeping rhythm for a ska band.
He was hiding it better, but the reality was he wasn’t enjoying this anymore than she was.
Glancing from the screen to the actual man himself, her lungs tightened. He was a big guy, and she wasn’t just talking about his broad shoulders that filled out his tux to a mouthwatering degree. He had to have at least four inches on her own five foot ten.
He glanced down, making eye contact, and for a second they weren’t the hottie and the nottie. They were two people stuck in a completely socially awkward situation that they had no control over.
She nibbled the inside of her cheek and considered her options before deciding that Ford was right. A quick peck would get the videographer out of their faces and divert the boisterous crowd’s attention to another couple happier to indulge in this bit of insanity. Then, she could finish up the last of her duties and go home to her peaceful, if totally messy, mid-renovation Victorian.
She let out a shaky breath, not sure she was making the right decision. “Fine. A kiss. Whatever.”
Gina had barely gotten the words out when his large hands cupped her face, sending electric shock waves through her that made her lips part slightly with surprise. He dipped his head down—and he kissed her.
The roar of approval from the crowd faded to almost nothing when he seemed to groan involuntarily. Her body approved and made an answering sound of its own. At her encouragement, his tongue slicked across her bottom lip, and her mind lost all reasonable thought. Teasing her senses and sending her heartbeat into overdrive, she softened against him, practically melting against his hard, muscular chest. Somewhere in the back of her mind she registered that people were cheering. She just couldn’t for the life of her care. The world turned electric as the air practically vibrated against her skin as he deepened the kiss. His tongue
swept against hers in a brief but oh-so-potent move that had her clutching his lapel before she’d even realized she’d lifted her hands.
Then, almost as soon as it began, he lifted his head and stepped back, breaking the connection.
Dazed, she released his tuxedo jacket and looked around, catching sight of herself on the giant screen. Her face was flushed and her eyes hazy. She pressed her fingers to her still-tingling lips. She looked like a woman who’d been kissed senseless, which made sense because that was exactly what had just
happened.
The Hartigans
Butterface (#1)
Review
Buy: Kindle Ebook | Paperback | Audio
Muffin Top (#2)
Buy: Kindle Ebook | Paperback | Audio
Tomboy (#3)
To be released 18 February 2019
Pre-order: Kindle Ebook | Audio
About Avery
USA Today bestselling romance author Avery Flynn has three slightly-wild children, loves a hockey-addicted husband and is desperately hoping someone invents the coffee IV drip.
She fell in love with romance while reading Johanna Lindsey’s Mallory books. It wasn’t long before Avery had read through all the romance offerings at her local library. Needing a romance fix, she turned to Harlequin’s four books a month home delivery service to ease the withdrawal symptoms. That worked for a short time, but it wasn’t long before the local book stores’ staffs knew her by name.
Avery was a reader before she was a writer and hopes to always be both. She loves to write about smartass alpha heroes who are as good with a quip as they are with their *ahem* other God-given talents. Her heroines are feisty, fierce and fantastic. Brainy and brave, these ladies know how to stand on their own two feet and knock the bad guys off theirs.
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