BEARD NECESSITIES
(Winston Brothers, #7)

by Penny Reid

 

Released – 4 November 2019

 

Available now!
Amazon  |  Paperback

 

 

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Blurb

Billy Winston’s family is going to see him happy and in love if it’s the last thing they do.

No one deserves a happily-ever-after quite as much as the second oldest Winston brother and his lady love, Claire McClure (aka Scarlet St. Claire). Cruelty and circumstance tore them apart almost twenty years ago. Secrecy and bitterness kept them separated.

But you know who’s tired of their separation and stubbornness? Everyone. Especially Billy Winston’s family. And now they’re going to do something about it.

Well-meaning interference means the star-crossed lovers can’t stop tripping over each other in the hills of Tuscany, the catacombs of Rome, and the waterways of Venice. Billy and Claire find themselves thrown together and at the mercy of the Winston siblings’ shenanigans.

But will their forced proximity bring them together? Or push them even further apart?

This second-chance romance brings back the entire Winston gang, playing cupid in one last story of love, hi-jinks, and family collusion.

BEARD NECESSITIES is a full-length contemporary romantic comedy, and can be read as a stand-alone, but it’s probably best read after books 0.5, 2, 3, 5, and 6 of the Winston Brothers series.

Find Beard Necessities on GOODREADS

 

 

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Review

5 HUGE STARS for Billy, Scarlet, and the whole Winston family!!

Beard Necessities is Billy and Scarlet/Claire’s love story and the final book in the Winston Brothers series. I have been waiting for this book for what feels like forever, and even though I didn’t want this amazing series to end, I couldn’t wait to dive in. And I am glad I didn’t because it is everything and more than I could have asked for. Emotional, addictive, consuming, smart, and witty, Beard Necessities gives us a beautiful second chance romance while bringing the whole Winston clan together again, and I devoured it!

Billy and Scarlet have a complicated and heartbreaking past. They fell in love as teenagers only to be pulled apart before they could grasp onto their future together, and both Billy and Scarlet were never the same. It’s been nearly two decades and the Billy’s family has had enough. Enough of the hurt, anger, and confusion Billy and Scarlet experience each time they are together, and enough of them avoiding the other as much as possible while denying their feelings. The whole family makes it their mission to make Scarlet and Billy find the love they lost. They have a plan to bring these two together again, and I was totally on board!

“Billy deserves happiness, as does Claire. But these two idiots, they’re too stubborn and noble to climb over the messy mountain of regret and secrets they’ve built between each other. So, as folks who love them both, it falls on us—all of us—to make the magic happen.”

I knew this story was going to be hard. I knew that Billy and Scarlet couldn’t immediately reunite. There were too many secrets and lies between them. Too much regret, guilt, sadness and hurt that overwhelmed them. Watching them push each other away was painful. Every road block made me want to cry. But these characters! OMG, these characters! I loved every single broken, hurting, real piece of them and wanted nothing, and I mean nothing, more than for them to finally find their happily-ever-after.

I knew they would have to fight for it but before they could do that, they had to get to a place where a HEA was even feasible. That’s where the wonderful Winston clan came in. They are so full of love and are always there for each other. And they wanted Billy to be happy after everything he’s been through. He was always the one to put things back together. He’s kept his family safe and he still puts them first in everything he does. Now, it was time to put him first, and they orchestrated their plan perfectly.

At first it was hard to see Billy and Scarlet together because of the hurt in their hearts. Having to face the truths they have kept bottled up inside, they had so much to discuss and so much to work through before they could be together. Yet, with a complicated, emotional past like theirs, I found myself desperate to see how the story would unfold, how the forgiveness, healing, and loving would happen, and how Billy and Scarlet would finally have a future together.

Even though everything changed and they went through so much over the years, there was still a spark that lived in their hearts. The heat, attraction, and chemistry was still present, and they were still so madly, deeply in love with each other no matter how hard they tried to deny it. Once they were able to open up their hearts to each other, the strained interactions turned into fun, flirty, banter-filled moments, and when their walls came tumbling down, the passion reignited.

These weren’t the sweet, searching kisses from our past. This was a monster, a beast fed by years of need and frustration and raw desperation.

Not a single Winston has let me down, and I have loved each and every one of their stories so I’m not surprised that I also loved Billy and Scarlet’s. I was desperate for their second chance, it’s one of my favorite tropes after all, and there was no doubt that they would find a place in my heart with the others. It was beautiful when they were able to finally love freely and openly, and I was happy with how everything played out. And the epilogue!!! Perfection!

This story is Billy and Scarlet’s but it is so much more than that. It’s about family, unconditional love, forgiveness, and understanding. It’s about the people who mean the world to you who will never let you fall or fail. The ones who wish only for your happiness and that is why the Winston Brothers series filled my heart beyond its capacity, and continues to do so as I think about these characters. The whole Winston family added so much to this story. I needed their connection again. I needed everyone back for one last hurrah, and their parts in Beard Necessities were perfect. And did I mention the gang brought out the laughs?! Because they did! This book was hilarious!!

In the end, this funny, emotional, charged, captivating, and unputdownable book was the perfect ending to a wonderful series! My heart is happy!

“Love isn’t about giving up. It’s about never giving up.”

Note: Though we get the beginning of Billy and Scarlet’s love story in Beard with Me, you do not have to read it to enjoy Beard Necessities; however, I do recommend reading it to get the whole picture. It only added to my love for Billy and Scarlet, and though it is heartbreaking, the pain is worth it!!

*ARC generously provided by the author*

 

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Winston Brothers

 

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