Everyone has a celebrity crush. What would happen if you met yours? #ThatNewsGuy
Taking a chance and making a change after his divorce, Trapper Del Rio signs up for personal training services to get in better shape for his embedded reporting gig with the Army. TFA Fitness Center is known for their discretion, having trained the famous and infamous alike over the years. When he meets the adorable curvy woman working at the Smoothie Bar, who blushes every time their eyes meet, Trapper wants to see where the explosive chemistry may lead.
After making a fool of herself the moment Trapper came up to her bar, Jessica Buckley didn’t believe the hot Latino reporter actually asked her out on a date. With a little prodding from her friends, Jessica risks dating Trapper, only to find him even more interesting off-camera. Jessica carefully navigates the intense feelings building between them, unsure she’s ready to give Trapper her heart, aware he’s going overseas in a few short months.
I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw that Nixon was writing contemporary romance, after reading Tiva Boon and the first MIND book. Plus, contemporary hetero romance is usually not my thing, but I gave it a shot and was so glad that I did!
The story centers around Trapper, a news reporter with a jaded past who needs to get in shape to travel to a war zone for a journalism project, and Jessica, a thick (she's not fat, she's thick) woman who works at the Smoothie Bar in the gym Trapper attends.
The story starts with their meet-cute, where Jessica is so starstruck she's nearly speechless. Right off the bat I liked her. She's intelligent, witty, and extremely realistic. She doesn't let her weight bring her down, either. Despite heading into her forties, she's portrayed as a sexy, vivacious, spunky female lead. As someone who is of a similar body type, I loved seeing a woman like her as a sexy heroine and think that other authors should follow suit.
Without giving too much away, think of this book as a Hallmark movie with sex. There's instant attraction (but NOT insta-love, thankfully), cute banter, first dates, and extremely emotional blow-ups. At one point, I had tears in my eyes and was worried for one character's survival rate.
The secondary characters are also something to talk about. Trapper's so-called "friend" needed a good beating, but his other friend who owns a restaurant was really likable. Rava, a trainer and friend of Jessica's, was by far my favorite character. I really, really want a spin-off with her!
All in all, this was a great book with hot sex, deep emotions, great characters, and tackles body-image issues in a profound, very realistic way. Jenn Nixon has a real winner here, and one of the best romances I've read in a while.
5/5--sweet, sexy, and emotional.
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