Bend the Rules by Susan Amanda Kelly

​ROMANTIC COMEDY

Publication date: 07/26/2018
Kindle Unlimited: No
Cliffhanger: No

Guest Review by mom, romance fanatic, and (someday) published author Summer Raines!

If you like mystery, crime solving and a few laughs with your romance, this is a great choice. I should warn you I haven’t read book #1, On the Run or #1.5 Cooked Goose in the Big Mike and Minnie series yet, but this book was lovely as a standalone. I can’t wait to jump to the beginning of this series and get caught up. (I’ve already 1-clicked!)

I admit I got this on Netgalley because of the cover alone. I thought it was cute. I didn’t read the blurb until after I’d read the book, and I’m glad it worked out that way. There were many things I enjoyed discovering as I read, that ended up being revealed in the blurb.

I was very nervous during the first few pages, though. I worried that our heroine was going to be a bit too much for me. She seemed like a pushy control freak of epic proportions, but the author did a great job of smoothing her back out! She made me love Mary Holmes and used her anal-retentive tendencies as comic relief.

Poor Mary has been on the wrong side of the law recently, but she’s decided to make the best of her second chance. Sure, she’s gained a few pounds, lost the spot she once held in her social circle, and had to say goodbye to her fiancé. But she’s got a knack for number crunching- and some damn good cake- to help her tackle her new reality.

It seems like Mary’s color-coded life is on the upswing… until she meets Crash. Vetruvious Security has hired Coolidge because of his “special skills” with the criminal element. His disheveled appearance and biker gang ensemble are a shock to the neat and tidy accountant. She’s surprised he was allowed in the building, much less be allowed to question her carefully compiled report.

To make matters worse, she’s assigned to his investigative team and soon realizes that her methodical planning won’t work in every situation. It becomes necessary for Mary to learn to think on the fly and roll with the punches as she faces life-threatening danger beside Crash. Crime fighting can be exceedingly undignified work, but she does what she can to bring a certain level of civility to the seedy underbelly of her city. After all, there’s never an excuse to be rude.

I loved how Crash was attracted to a woman with curves. We see so many perfect people in love stories, but this story presented a real woman with real issues. Even Crash wasn’t perfect. He was sexy and muscled and inked up, but Mary could tell he was a bit more scrawny than normal because his clothes hung loosely.

This book doesn’t have insta-love or even insta-lust. The attraction is there, but it’s the forced proximity and circumstances that create building sexual tension. Their lasting feelings for each other grow organically and realistically. I love it when the happily ever after sneaks up on the hero and heroine!
I invite you to buy this series and enjoy it with me. My rating is 5 stars!

Full disclosure: We received an ARC from NetGalley, free of charge.

Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
No rehab needed! This one’s clean and sober.

Other reading suggestions
Check out the Susan Amanda Kelly backlist for the rest of the books in the series. That’s what I’ll be doing!

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