Hollis is this beautiful creature that hides his pain behind a laid-back attitude and smile on his face while creating walls so high not even his closest friends know what lurks behind them. He has a past that he hides so well by never letting anyone too close to know what all he has endured, and my heart broke for him. Hollis is selfless, beautiful inside and out, caring, funny, and pretty much everything anyone could ever want in a guy, yet he doesn’t think he is worth it. When he finds himself at the mercy of a girl in need, he doesn’t hesitate to help her out and that is how he finds himself as someone’s fake boyfriend for 5 minutes. In those five minutes of playing pretend Hollis finds that he is really attracted to Larissa, but he is only in town temporarily. As fate plays a hand in bringing these two together again, they decide to strike up a bargain to help each other while he is in town. Larissa comes from a wealthy family and one that loves each other dearly so that makes Hollis want that too, but he feels he is very undeserving. Larissa was perfect for him because she could see to the heart of him, which he didn’t like but, she also showed him love and that he too deserved people to surround himself with to love. Larissa and Hollis are funny, bring out the best in each other, and care deeply for those around them but can Hollis let go of his fears and let love in or will he succumb to loneliness because he thinks that is all he is destined for? Loved this read, this series, and the guys so much it has been pure perfection. ( )

4.5 stars

There is truly something special about this author. She manages to always create a big story with small town appeal. There is an authenticity to the characters that she creates that always manages to feel like coming home. Any time that I can come back to visit the Landry's I will. That was how I found this author so this was a little like homecoming.

Strong characters, just the right amount of angst, sizzling chemistry, interesting secondary characters, a splash of humor, and just the right amount of steam made this book a great addition to the other stories in this trilogy of interconnected books. I loved still getting to see some interactions from the previous characters, and also loved watching Larissa (Riss-Great name) and Hollis (another great name) as they grew confident in the idea of love. They both had their own lessons to gleam about love and what to do with it and I liked how they discovered it together.

I did wish that I had more backstory about what happens with Hollis, especially in light of how the story ends. I would have also liked to see more of the future, but if I had to guess, these characters will be back as secondary characters in other books and I will get to see the future more clearly then. If that is the case, I will not complain. This book did give a sneak peek of what is to come and to say that I am excited is an understatement.

I highly recommend this book as well as Crew and River's stories as well. These authors did an amazing job at keeping their own style in the story but also cohesively blending the stories seamlessly. What a way to end this dumpster fire of a year. Bravo to all three of these ladies. ( )

Palate cleansers are good; I have a whole shelf of those transition-y books. The problem, though, is when I get stuck in the transition and don't settle on a main course.I'm afraid I have the tendency to overdo those fluff-em and forget-em books and then all of a sudden, I think I hate reading again.

So, note to self. There's a slump cycle b/c palate cleansers aren't really meant to be satisfying. This is me, not overdoing it.