Friends to Lovers releases October 14
Book Links:
Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Goodreads
Synopsis:
Book three of Aisle Bound
As florist and co-owner of a successful Chicago wedding planning business, Daphne Lovell has been there for the happiest days of other people’s lives. As for her own life? Well, it’s hard to be perfectly happy when you’re carrying a torch for your sexy, womanizing and oblivious best friend. So when the lights go out on New Year’s Eve, she seizes the opportunity to kiss him senseless.
British expat Gibson Moore has a lot on his plate. The hotel he manages is being bought out, his family is crazy and someone just kissed him in the dark. When the lights go on, he searches the room, trying to find the mystery pair of lips. Only, he never thinks to ask the woman standing by his side. He’s shocked when he discovers that Daphne is the woman he’s been searching for. But Gib’s also eager to act upon the attraction for her he’s always fought to ignore.
It takes trust to move from friends to lovers, and as Gib’s work situation worsens, he is no longer sure he can risk the friendship he relies on most. It’s up to Daphne to convince him that some things are worth fighting for…
My review:
Friends to Lovers is the third book in Christi Barth’s Aisle Bound Series and admittedly the first in this series that I have read. Well, clearly I have been missing out because this book was so enjoyable!
Successful business co-owner and florist Daphne Lovell has been admiring her best friend, Gib, from afar for quite some time now. She has promised herself that one of these days she will make something out of it. So when the lights go out on New Year’s Eve at a wedding she is running at the hotel Gib manages, she knows with a clear certainty that THIS is the moment she has been waiting for. Without a moment’s hesitation, she grabs Gib and kisses him senseless. The only problem is, when the lights go back on, he has no idea it was her that had just rocked his world. Will she get up the courage to tell him he’s what she’s been longing for all this time….without the anonymity of the darkness?
Known for his prowess with the ladies, Gibson Moore’s world is completely rocked with the kiss that happened during the power glitch at a wedding being held in his hotel on New Year’s Eve. He’s never had a kiss affect him like that. Now it’s his mission in life to find his Kissing Cinderella and make her his. The question is, will finding out it was his best friend Daphne ruin everything?
Once the mystery is solved and the Kissing Cinderella has been revealed, Gib and Daphne decide to go with the attraction they feel and make the move from friends to lovers. But, with everyday stressors and when issues beyond their control arise, will they be able to stay the course and give their relationship a real shot?
The thing I like best about Christi’s writing is that the story always plays out really well and feels like you could be watching it as a movie with your girlfriends on a Saturday night. Gib and Daphne’s story is no exception. Daphne is a really relatable and likable gal with an honestly about her that I enjoyed. She takes a chance with Gib and I really admired that. Gib is dashing and handsome with a cheeky sense of humor and strong loyalty to his friends. He’s got a really effed up family life and has learned to appreciate his friends as his family now and genuinely cares for them. Together, the sexual longing and tension between Gib and Daphne is palpable and was done really, really well. Their first kisses were as hot as some sex scenes….total yum.
My absolutely, positively favorite part though was the very end….talk about an emotional high and a cry your eyes out moment! Totally lived up to every expectation for a happy ending I had for Gib and Daphne. Simply perfect!!
If you’re looking for a feel-good, true-blue romance, then get this book on your list. You will not be disappointed! Thank you, Christi, for a fun, flirty and enjoyable read!
Four Loves
About the author:
Christi Barth earned a Masters degree in vocal performance and embarked upon a career on the stage.
A love of romance then drew her to wedding planning. Ultimately she succumbed to her lifelong love of books and now writes contemporary romance.
Christi is President of the Maryland Romance Writers and lives in Maryland with her husband.
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