Review- Not Your Average Joe by Nell Carson

Summary-

Reality TV just got real in this Cinderella story about a factory worker and a CEO’s son…

Jennifer Wright is finishing a long shift on the assembly line at Brickman Foods when she meets her newest trainee, Jason Baxter — only that’s not his name and she knows it. She recognises him instantly as Jared Brickman, internationally renowned playboy and son of the CEO of Brickman Foods, working undercover to film the reality show, Joe Average.



Jared is also the father of Jennifer’s son, Chris, although he doesn’t know it. The six years since they dated have been momentous for Jennifer, but it’s clear when they meet again that Jared doesn’t even remember her. Jennifer knew Jared the boy — irresponsible and reckless. Now she has the opportunity to discover Jared the man. She’d like to tell him about his son, but fears his reputation as depicted in celebrity magazines.



Is Jared an infamous heartbreaker, or is he the man she sees now: sweet, shy, and dependable — someone who can be trusted in her son’s life…and maybe even her own?

Review-

Not Your Average Joe is not the first book I've read by Nell Carson. You can find Sarika's review of The Gingerbread House here and my review of Tell-All here. You can always expect Nell Carson to deliver a sweet contemporary romance and that is exactly what I got in Not Your Average Joe.

Jennifer, our heroine is works hard in the assembly line in Brickman Foods. She needs the job and the money to support her son and herself as her parents abandoned her a long time ago when they found out she was pregnant in college. I really liked Jennifer. She was determined to make the best of her situation and to work with what she got. She was sensible and smart.

While working Jennifer meets Jason, her new trainee who is actually the famous play boy Jared Brickman posing for a new reality show called as Joe Average. Jennifer recognizes him the instant she meets him but she fears losing her son if she confesses that Jared is the father. So begins their journey. It is obvious that Jared is attracted to Jennifer, yet there are secrets keeping them apart.

The romance between Jennifer and Jared was sweet. I liked Jennifer but I didn't really like Jared. He was more of a beta hero and failed to be assertive. I thought he was a bit immature and self centered compared to Jennifer and I would have liked to see a bit more depth to him. Yet, I enjoyed all the conversations between Jennifer and Jared.

The story line of Not Your Average Joe is fairly simple but it still manages to pull you in. It makes for a cute and quick read. You get the very predictable happy ending but it still makes for a sweet read. If you're a fan of sweet contemporary romances, Nell Carson's books are it.

*Note: A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. We thank the author.

Review- Tell-All by Nell Carson

Summary-

In Tell-All, New York City writer Kat Callahan is just finishing an explosive unauthorized biography of Hollywood's 'It' couple, Alex and Victoria Janssen, when they mysteriously disappear along with their 7-year old son, Jeremy. Now Kat's publisher is hot on her heels to finish the book to cash in on the free publicity. Little does Kat know the charming cowboy who's just strolled into her life is actually Alex Janssen's brother, Luke, dead-set on stopping the book. He knows it will reveal a fiercely guarded secret that could destroy the lives of all four Janssens. Now he'll stop at nothing to ensure that doesn't happen.

Review-

Tell-All  by Nell Carson was a cute and short read. The story was fairly simple with not many complications and one in which you just know you're gonna get a happy ending. Sometimes you just need to read one of these books and I enjoyed Tell-All.

New York city writer Kat Callahan is finishing a biography of Hollywood's 'It' couple, Alex and Victoria Janssen when they mysteriously disappear along with their 7-year old son. The biography would get the publishing house all the free publicity they needed and after Kat completed this she could get into the world of publishing to actually get a real book out.

Somehow the Janssen's get to know of this and Luke Janssen, Alex's brother, goes out to live with Kat under a false name to stop the book from coming out. What Luke doesn't expect at all is that he would fall in love with the writer herself.

Kat was a nice character. Learning about her painful past just makes you sympathize with her all the more. Her situation is understandable. Luke was just as good. He wants to do nothing more than to protect his family even if he goes all wrong about it. The romance was slow and extremely sweet. We get to see Kat's vulnerable side and how she and Luke fall for each other.

The writing is well paced and for a comparatively short book Tell-All manages to leave you well satisfied with the outcome. This was a cute read with a little bit of drama. But its mostly about two people falling in love under the most unlikely circumstances.

Janhvi

Review- The Gingerbread House by Nell Carson

Goodreads Summary:

After a tumultuous past, Greta Kendall has focused mainly on her bridal shop, located on the first floor of her beloved Queen Anne Victorian near Aspen. For two years she’s fought to save her house from Stephanie Harwood of Harwood Development, who is intent on razing her home to build a new mall. But now Greta’s running out of time. The town council is about to approve the final plans for the mall.

When Gray Daniels walks into her shop, Greta is immediately attracted to his rugged good looks and midnight blue eyes, until she learns he’s Stephanie Harwood’s fiancé. She’s furious to find they’ve tricked her into a publicity stunt aimed at garnering support for the mall. So now her little war has a new front: Gray Daniels. If only she could also fight her growing attraction to him.

A knock on the door brings a return of old danger, and Greta must now put aside her anguish over the house to discover if she’s at last capable of looking the past in the eye and overcoming it—and if she’s finally free to love again.

REVIEW:

*NOTE: We (The Readdicts) received a copy of The Gingerbread House from author Nell Caron in exchange for an honest review. We thank Nell for the book! 

Author Nell Carson's The Gingerbread House is a very sweet and heartwarming read. 
Greta Kendall and her mom Adele run their family's traditional bridal wear boutique. Greta is fighting to save the only home they've known, popularly known as The Gingerbread House by locals which Stephanie Harwood is keen on demolishing and in it's place, Stephanie wants to construct a mall just to prove herself to her businessman father. 

When Gray Daniels and Great Kendall meet in her shop, sparks immediately fly but it really seems worthless since Gray is there with a single purpose- to fix the wedding gown passed down by the beautiful ladies of his family for his fiancee, Stephanie Harwood. 
Greta was a good woman who stood up for what she believed in and did her best to protect The Gingerbread House. Her past was really terrible and it was so good to see her try  to overcome her fears with the help of those close to her. Her relationship with her mother Adele was wonderful. Their moments together were emotional and simply cute. 
Gray was a kind man who realised he was foolishly in love only with the girl he knew and not the woman she had become. It was so good to see him get out of it and finally find his peace and solace. 
Greta and Gray shared a wonderful relationship full of sparks, ups, downs, ons, offs and everything that basically goes into making a relationship steady and sweet. I did have a little problem getting into the story. I found myself rereading a few lines to know what was going on. 

Nonetheless, author Nell Carson's neat and simple writing, a groovy plot, an unforgivable past, a not so stable present, a bright future, a tender romance and an ample amount of humour make The Gingerbread House a lighthearted and awesome read that's short and sweet with a honeyed ending that left me smiling. 

RATING:

Sarika