Release Day Review: Place Setting by Claudia Mayrant #Review #Giveaway

Author: Claudia Mayrant
Title: Place Setting
Series: States Of Love
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Brooke Albrecht
Publication Date: January 18, 2019
Length: 70 pages 

Reviewed by Erin


Synopsis

Cameron Dunlop has lived in the Lowcountry town of Summer Corners, South Carolina, his whole life. He loves his home, but his little town in the Deep South doesn’t offer much in the way of dating options.

Chef Gray Callahan has enjoyed success in the kitchen, but his last relationship sunk like a bad soufflé. When plans for his sister’s wedding go awry, it provides the perfect excuse to pack up and go home, where he can help out as he decides how to start his life over.

Gray’s path crosses Cameron’s, and he realizes together they might have all the ingredients to save the day—with maybe enough left over for something sweet just for the two of them.

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Review

Small towns, coming home and finding love, and a wedding are three of my favorite things so I couldn't wait to read Place Setting by Claudia Mayrant, the newest States of Love book from Dreamspinner Press. These short books are set all over the country in some places I know well and in some I don't ... but sure wish I did. This is the case with Place Setting, which takes place in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. I loved the "feel" of the book, that small town, nostalgic ambiance that reminds you of a different time. Gray Callahan might have spent the last few years in the big city as a talented chef but when a failed relationship has him leaving his beloved restaurant and his no good ex, he arrives in Summer Corners, South Carolina not expecting to find the perfect man.  

Cameron Dunlop might not have ever left Summer Corners but that doesn't mean he doesn't have dreams of his own. He has a job he loves and a hometown he enjoys being a part of, the only thing missing is someone to share his life with. When he crosses paths with Gray Callahan it seems like fate has stepped in and dropped the perfect man right in his lap. Helping Gray save his sister's wedding is the perfect opportunity to spend more time with the handsome man and Cameron might have the way to come to the rescue. 

This was a really quick and sweet book. I loved the setting, Cameron and Gray were super cute together, and all the food was an added bonus. Things move really quickly based on the length of the book and if there's one complaint I have it's that Place Setting wrapped up WAY too quickly and didn't give me quite the satisfied happily ever after I was hoping for. In my opinion, an extra chapter or two really would have made this an even better story. Otherwise, this was a really fun book and I would love to see more of Cameron and Gray.

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Release Day Review: Babe in the Woodshop by Ashlyn Kane, Claudia Mayrant, & CJ Burke #Review #Giveaway

Authors: Ashlyn Kane, Claudia Mayrant, & CJ Burke
Book: Babe in the Woodshop
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication date: September 30, 2016
Length: 189 pages


Reviewed by Morningstar



Synopsis

When long hours and crushing stress push Bellamy Alexander to his breaking point, he walks away from his consulting job and drives until he runs out of gas. Fortune deposits him in front of Antonio’s, a place with decent pizza and an opening for a delivery boy. Even better, he finds an apartment right across the street from his new job. And best of all, Chris McGregor, the property manager who runs the custom furniture shop below Bell’s new digs, is super hot—and super into Bell.

It seems too good to be true—and maybe it is. Things aren’t exactly going smoothly. Bell avoids telling his mother the truth about his new job because he doesn’t want to hear how he should go back to the corporate world. On the other hand, he doesn’t think he wants to deliver pizza forever either. He’d like to think about settling down, but Chris runs hot and cold. Between Bell’s uncertainty and the hang-ups Chris refuses to talk about, they have their work cut out for them. Fortune may have caused their paths to dovetail, but it will take more than wood glue to hold them together.

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Dreampinner Press

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Review

I freaking loved this story! The characters in this story were cute, funny, and full of sass and snark. One of my favorite things in stories is humor and Bell and Chris both have it in spades.

“Chris’s ears went red. “I can’t believe I did that in your parents’ house.”

“Me neither. Teenage me is fist-pumping right now.”

Bellamy Alexander, otherwise known as Bell, gets tired of the rat race and never seeing the sun so he bails on his Junior Consultant job in the big city and just drives. Where he lands is Pineville, a small town where everyone knows everyone and the new guy is a novelty. Oh and of course once you live there you never want to leave, or so they say. Bell is young and decides the life his parents and siblings live where it's all work and no play is not what he wants. He wants to experience life and have time to relax. One thing leads to another and he finds himself a pizza boy at Antonio’s, living upstairs from a woodshop and it’s sexy owner, and sharing a bed with Lady Frances. He also isn’t used to subtly because in the big bad corporate world you had to be straight forward so when he finds himself dating super gun shy Chris McGregor, owner of Good Wood, it’s a whole new ball game.

Watching these two dance around each other was so much fun and created a high level of unresolved sexual tension especially on Bell’s end who is not used to taking things this slow. But he really starts to like Chris and doesn’t want to push the sexy funny man too far too fast. Who knew beards were his thing?

“His libido seriously needed to chill. If he was going to start getting hard every time he saw a pile of wood scraps, it was going to be a problem.”

Chris has had a bad relationship that caused him some issues within himself and those issues cause him to very cautious and keep Bell at arm’s length especially when it comes to sex. The whole story is told from Bell’s POV but even through him we get a true sense of who Chris is. He such a gentle guy, one that is meticulous in his woodworking as he is in most everything else. He is also a work alcoholic.

When I say their relationship was slow build...I mean it! Chris is very standoffish when it comes to sex and Bell doesn’t find out the reason until much, much later. But not all things are going so well for Bell; he still hasn’t told his mother about delivering pizza’s or his new boyfriend since he knows she would not approve. A family emergency sends Bell home where he is forced to confront things with his family. Will Chris and Bell survive the experience?

“Because”...”he’s the best thing in my life right now, and I’ll be really upset if you make him feel like he’s not good enough.”

There’s funny banter, awkward naked run ins, meddling best friends, a pushy mom who just wants what’s best, and that secret tote full of goodies that Bell finds in the apartments closet of Chris’s. I highly recommend this book because it’ll have you laughing and full of love.

“Please keep putting up with me.”

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