Moonlight & Whiskey is a new romance that I was really curious about. I definitely think books need more curvy characters, so when I knew this one would have that, I was sold! Thanks to the publisher an author, I received an ARC to read and review. Keep reading to find out what I thought!
When life gives you curves, you gotta learn how to rock them.
Successful businesswoman Avery Barrows likes her dips and curves, but she’s sick of the haters telling her that she should be ashamed of her body instead of embracing it. Determined to send them a big f*** you, Avery resolves to cut loose during a girls’ trip, hightailing her quick-mouthed, plus-sized self to New Orleans. So, what’s a smart woman with a little extra gotta do to get laid in this town?
Not much if you ask Declan McGinn, the lead singer of BlackSmith. Tall, dark, and tattooed, with a body made for sin, Declan prefers his women as curvy as his guitars. Avery’s sharp tongue and keen mind makes him want her even more.
As they burn up the sheets, Avery and Declan realize this is no one-night (or even one-week) stand. But for all of her bluster, Avery isn’t sure she can handle any more rejection. Besides, Declan has demons of his own. Now Avery has a choice to make: play it safe, or place her trust in the hands of a man who’s as tempting as the devil himself.
Review
Moonlight & Whiskey is a book I’ve wanted to read since I read the sypnosis and read that the main character is a curvy woman. Not many romance books have a plus sized main characters, so this was really interesting to see. Besides that, this story sounded like it was going to be amazing!
Avery has made it career wise (well, it would be completely true if she still wasn’t doing more work than she should be doing) and knows that she’s smart. After not having the best childhood, Avery has built up some walls. She knows she’s beautiful and she loves her curves, but society (especially at work) still makes her feel like she needs to be someone she’s not!
Declan is the mysterious bad boy and it’s clear there is more to him than meets the eye. He doesn’t do relationships. Not after the way his mother treated his father and how that left him in pieces. Declan is a smart man though, owns his own business, plays in a rock band. His world just happens to get turned upside down when he meets Avery on vacation.
Avery and Declan are only supposed to be together while she is on vacation in NOLA, but it’s clear they’ve got a connection that isn’t going to let it go that easily. I loved seeing them connect and the chemistry was there from the start. There are quite a lot of steamy moments in this book, that romance lovers will definitely enjoy! I think my favorite part of their relationship is the fact that they start making the other feel safe. The need for the walls slowly starts to fade. On top of that, Declan loves her for the way she is. He embraces her curves and makes sure she realizes she should too! They both become a lot stronger in this book and fight for what they want.
While I loved a lot about this book, for some reason it took a long time for it to really grab me. I normally fly through books this size, but it felt like I just wasn’t getting any further. I’ve been trying to put my finger on what it could be, but while I loved these characters, I was missing something. I’m wondering if maybe the “will they, won’t they” took too long, or maybe things were described too much? In the beginning, we read about the mystery of NOLA. After their first date in the restaurant with the whiskey, I kind of missed that through the rest of the book. It would’ve been interesting to have that play a bigger part.
Moonlight & Whiskey is mostly told from Avery’s POV. We eventually get to read how Declan thinks, but I think maybe this book would’ve grabbed me more if that had started sooner. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely enjoyed this story, there were just a few things that felt off.
All in all, if you’re looking for a steamy romance, a character who is comfortable in her own skin, great friends, tons of music references and even a couple of concerst and that has people who learn to love, Moonlight & Whiskey is the book for you!
I will definitely keep an eye on this author, because I am really curious to see what she does next. I love discovering new authors to add to my reading list!
