Worked Up (Made in Jersey #3)

Tessa Bailey is one of my top always buy her books authors. Every single hero and heroine she writes has captured my interest, so Im very happy they day I stumbled across her writing. I always feel like no hero or heroine will be better than her last but then she writes a new story with characters I fall in love with.

I never thought I would love a character like Duke that didnt have the typical hero six pack bod but a bit of a bit of a beer belly. Duke is a huge dirty talking bear of a man who is the type of man that made me fall in love with him from the very beginning. I love his protective nature as well as the words he spews out in the heat of the moment. Samantha is so quirky and a bit of an odd ball but she is the type of girl you cant help but to want to have as a friend or as Duke finds out as a lover. These two believe they are kindred spirits that as major commitment-phobes but when problems in Samanthas life caused Dukes fix it personality to come out, then commitment such as marriage is pretty easy to sign up for. What isnt easy is when real life crashes in and emotions become involved with their explosive chemistry. What will Samantha and Duke do when their marriage becomes more that either one of them expects?

Tessa Bailey had me fall in love with another one of her novels and its easy to say this one deserves 5 stars. I would give it more stars if I could. It made me laugh, cry, and had my emotion on a huge rollercoaster. I loved every moment of that rollercoaster! Well done Mrs. Bailey and I cant wait to read more from you especially after the book handover Worked Up left me with.

Apparently I bought a kindle version of this book in 2017, but I clearly didnt leave a review so I didnt remember what it was about or if I even liked it. I vaguely remembered details about it once I started reading it, but it was almost like reading a brand new book again and I can tell you that I really enjoyed reading this book!

Tessa Bailey has such a great writing style. She writes Duke as this perfect grumpy man who is also a teddy bear / super hero all rolled up in one. I love how sweet and kind duke is even though hes this big burly man on the outside. And Samantha is the perfect counterpart to his gruffness. Shes sweet and so girly, but also doesnt take any BS from anyone either.

I now realize that Tessa Bailey is the queen of dirty talk, and she does it oh so well. I loved the blazing scenes between Duke and Samantha. They were definitely hot, but also so so sweet. Im so glad to have found this book again in my Kindle library and as always cant wait to read more Tessa Bailey

I think I am in love…

You cant just tell a man you drew him as an evil gladiator villain and not cough up the goods.

About his four sisters…

Are you on a five-way text with them?

Yes. Biggest mistake of my life…. Its like the mafia, these group texts. Once youre in, youre in for life.

I was thinking I could switch to light beer for you. says Duke

Romance, thy name is Duke. says Sam.

This started out so great. Duke is just like he sounds: a big ragamuffin of a guy who, SHOCK, doesn’t have a six pack. Sam is adorable. Her cutest moments are crushing on Duke via a series of illustrations she does of Duke picturing him as a gladiator, sea captain, super hero, etc…

It all falls down the hill though in the middle. No real serious tension here or angst other than Sam needs her brother’s signature for a deal so she can continue her art project for children in school. There is a hint of why Sam is so commitment phobic via a bad step-father, but not enough details and it’s blown off. Duke, boy do we know why he is a commitment phobe albeit a commitment-phobe with a marshmallow for a heart.

All in all nicely done, but it really dropped from a potential 4 star and almost skated into 2 star territory with some silly decisions the characters made by the author. Tsk, tsk Ms. Bailey, these characters were too smart for [marrying at the drop of a hat then with the excuse of a MOC, then even worse, jumping into an annulment. Sweet Sam deserves a pretty wedding dress, flowers and a veil with a nervous and doting Duke sweating it out at the altar.

I usually really enjoy Ms Bailey’s books but this one just didn’t hit the mark for me and I can’t quite work out why. *holds up hands to deflect objects flying towards her* I know I’m in the minority but what might be 5 stars for one person just might not do it for someone else….and right now I’m someone else.

What I did like was some of the things Duke came out with and his unwavering loyalty and how he fell SO hard for Samantha was lovely .

On reflection I think the actual story just didn’t feel right. It didn’t capture my attention and although Duke’ s character was loveable , without a convincing story it all fell a bit flat.

Maybe it just wasn’t good timing on my part…I was battling a major book hangover when I started this. I would still pick up one of Tessa’s books in a heartbeat, it’s just this one wasn’t for me.

I’m not a fan of instalove and wish I had known before buying that the majority of the story happens over a weekend. I just can’t get past how unrealistic the whole thing was and I have a pretty good imagination.

If you love instalove stories, then this might just be your thing. Happy reading!

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