Review: Review for Asking for Trouble by Tessa Bailey
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 25, 2013
***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***Asking For Trouble by Tess BaileyBook Four of the Line of Duty seriesPublisher: BrazenPublication Date: November 25, 2013Rating: 4 starsSource: eARC sent by the publisher***Warning: this is an adult book, and for the eyes of mature readers***Official Summary:Pretending to be in love has never felt so sexy.Brent Mason and Hayden Winstead can't stand each other. She plans exclusive parties for her rich family’s charities. He’s a rough and tumble cop who rigs explosives for a living. Could two people be any less suited for conversation? They think not and prefer to keep it that way.Unfortunately, their two best friends are deeply, disgustingly in love. Forced together, the mutual attraction simmering beneath the surface of Brent and Hayden’s non-relationship grows with every argument until it explodes into a scintillating night of mind-blowing sex. And it won’t be the last, as far as Brent’s concerned.Hayden has a secret, though. Her father’s company is relying on a merger to save them from financial ruin, and only Hayden’s marriage to the CEO’s wealthy son can secure the deal. If she’s to protect her family, she’ll have to forget Brent. And he has no intention of being forgotten.What I Liked:First, thank you so much, Brazen, for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. The publicists for Brazen Books sought me out to offer this opportunity, and I could not resist. I love Tessa Bailey's Officer Off Limits, and I love Brazen Books. Why wouldn't I take this opportunity!?Well, once again, Tessa Bailey has me hooked on her adult contemporary romance novels! I haven't read an adult contemporary romance novel in a few weeks, so this was refreshing. It doesn't hurt that Bailey knows how to keep things fresh and interesting! One of the things I really liked about this book was how fast it went by. I was so engaged in Hayden and Brent's story, I found myself whizzing through this book!Hayden is Story's best friend, and Brent is Daniel's best friend. We know all about Story and Daniel from Officer Off Limits. It's not necessary to read any of the previous books in this series, but you should read Officer Off Limits if you want to know more about Story and Daniel. Which you do, believe me.But anyway. It would seem that Hayden and Brent are so, so, SO wrong for each other. They argue ALL THE TIME. They get on each other's nerves. But you know what they say about anger... it's a true form of passion. And after one heated exchange, suddenly, that's all these two can think about. But Hayden's family - rich, snobby, upper class -  has financial problems, problems that could drive Hayden to do something she would never want to do.Almost every scene of this book involves Brent and Hayden, and I love that. They don't just bicker, they legitimately argue and fight. It was so funny to read their dialogue - I bet Bailey had the best time writing this book. And while I loved the constant dialogue between Brent and Hayden, I loved the scenes with just one of them, to get to know their thoughts.Bailey does a great job of letting readers get inside each protagonist's head. She also does a good job of pacing the plot of the book - something with which I find a lot of romance books have issues. This book is relatively short, but Bailey keeps the plot flowing, and nothing feels rushed. One of the things I really dislike is rushed romance - but the romance in this book was well-placed and well-timed.What happens in the end? Do Brent and Hayden get their happy ending? You'll just have read this one to find out...What I Did Not Like:This is a general thing, but I hate how adult do NOT effectively communicate. Like, you just shut down when someone is trying to explain a situation? NO. You stop and LISTEN, instead of feeling sorry for yourself and getting angry. There is this one scene towards the end of the book that made me a little ragey. Brent totally shuts down when he finds out about something, and doesn't want to hear an explanation from Hayden.No no no. Whether she is right or wrong, you don't just jump to conclusions. Especially if YOU'RE wrong. Then you just look like a jacka**. Just saying.Would I Recommend It:I recommend this book to all contemporary romance lovers! Of adult books, that is. It's a short and fun read, and it will definitely keep you interested! I can't see why romance readers WOULDN'T love this one, overall.Rating:4 stars. Go Tessa Bailey! Go Brazen! I was super pleased with this book, and so happy that I had the chance to read it.