Kelly Ohlert

My sincere thanks to Alcove Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read Let's Get Quizzical by Kelly Ohlert. I give my unbiased opinion of it in the following review.

First of all, I have to say I love the title Let's Get Quizzical. It gives a fun vibe with maybe a little tension due to the competition involved and implied by the cover itself. I was all in for trying this book by Kelly Ohlert because I really liked her debut novel. This one is a second chance romance which I tend to gravitate towards when choosing a new romance to read. That being said, I really didn't love Eli and Charlotte together. I wish there would have been more about their past to make me believe that they really carried torches for each other for so long. More remembrances with more detail. More depth to their teenage romance. I liked that Eli was doing his very best to be honest and above board with Charlotte all along in a real attempt to make up for his past mistakes. She on the other hand was a little too self-righteous while at the same time thinking just as much about the physical as she was the quizzical. I honestly don't think the book needed the hook-up in the middle. It felt too rushed to me.

My favorite part was the whole quiz show aspect of the book. I thought it sounded so unique and I really liked how it started out with them being thrown back together in this unexpected way. I wasn't as much of a fan of all the other stuff about the show that became part of the new conflict. I was hoping for more getting to know each other again in a deeper way as adults as they worked toward a shared goal. I don't know - I just wanted something different than I got. There was also another sub-plot that I just didn't see any reason for. I didn't think it made sense with the rest of the book. I really wanted to like this book more, but it just fell short for me. I do think that there is an audience for this book, and I don't mind telling people to give it a try if I think they might enjoy it.… (mehr)

Many thanks to NetGalley, Alcove Press and Kelly Ohlert for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Trixie can’t help but rescue animals. When she sees a chicken in the middle of the road, she runs to save it. She does happen to notice the cute man who tried to help. When she gets kicked out of her apartment she ends up at Bear’s place. Bear is a quiet, stick to himself kind of guy and Trixie and her chicken are upsetting his balance. But that is just what Bear needs. As they start to fall for each other, they are afraid of ruining their budding friendship so they try to keep it casual. But, really, when did that ever work.

The story was cute enough, the characters likeable if not predictable. Trixie is the mess and Bear jumps in to save her every time. Who wouldn’t fall in love with a handsome guy who does nothing but help you out? It’s a dual POV so you get both Trixie and Bear’s perspective. There was a quirkiness to it, maybe because of the chicken? Overall, it was just okay for me.… (mehr)

To Get to the Other Side is Trixie and Bear's romance. They meet in the middle of the city when Trixie slams on her brakes and jumps out to rescue an injured chicken that is trying to cross the busy city street. Bear helps her and she takes off with the chicken without him finding out who she is. Trixie takes the chicken home and gets the ultimatum that she has to move out of her apartment or get rid of the chicken. She answers an ad for a room for rent and meets Bear again. His sisters, trying to get him to step out of his comfort zone, had placed the ad in hopes of helping him out socially and financially. Needless to say, the chemistry between Trixie and Bear is there from the first moment but getting into a relationship is messy enough without it being with your roommate. Feelings get involved and that can never work out, right?

I knew this book would be unique, and I wasn't wrong about that. The whole chicken as a house pet gave this former farm girl the icks but, aside from that, I really liked this book. There were a lot of layers to both of the main characters that got peeled away as the book progressed. I loved that there were dual points of view because I wanted to know what was going on in both of those heads. The chicken wasn't the only one that had trouble getting to the other side. Both Bear and Trixie make it with the help of the other and it was pretty sweet.

My sincere thanks to Alcove Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my opinion of it in the above review. I look forward to recommending it.… (mehr)