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Sandy M’s Duckies Do Series review of Days of Wine and Roses Series by Jess Dee
Contemporary Erotic Romance published by Entangled Scorched 17 Jul 17

When I came upon these three books for review by Jess Dee, I recalled that I read a couple of her books a number of years ago and really enjoyed them. So I thought I’d like to read her again all these years later, knowing that I would be engrossed in a good time once again. I’m not sure exactly what I was expecting, but what I got…

Book CoverSummer Wine, Book 1

Angus is a simple working man. He’s a landscaper and loves his job. He is also quite good at it, which is why Lily has talked him into joining her at the Hunter Valley to see if he’d be interested in sprucing up the hotel and winery her boss, Blake, is getting ready to open. As far as Angus is concerned, it’s a fool’s folly all the way around – he’s over the moon for Lily and she has no idea. Mostly because she’s so far out of his blue-collar league. Oh, and Lily is in love with Blake.

I really, really like Angus. I’d have to say he’s my favorite character in the series. While he knows his mind and usually goes after what he wants, I like seeing his vulnerable side when faced with Lily and Blake together. And that’s despite the fact that as much as he wants Lily, he now wants Blake just as much. There’s not been many times over the years I’ve read believable chemistry between three characters like these. I think it’s because Blake and Angus are so different, they look at the world in opposite ways. Blake is always smiling and laughing, pulling the best of out people That includes Angus. Angus comes alive around Blake. The same happens when he’s around Lily, just in a completely different way.

Lily is one who keeps what she’s wanted for so long. She won’t let either Angus or Blake walk out on what they could have together. She wants both men and she’s going to have them. And have them she does, in their threesome and in watching the men together. These three turn each other on at the drop of a hat, and it’s all sexy and fun goodness.

Summary:

Two men, one woman, and a romantic vineyard. Summer’s never been this hot…

Angus knows he shouldn’t go to the Hunter Valley to check out a potential landscaping job with Lily. He has a wide range of tastes—including men and women—but he doesn’t stand a chance with Lily. Not only is she out of his league, she’s also crazy over Blake, the owner of the luxurious boutique hotel and winery they’re visiting.

Sparks fly when Blake and Angus meet, and it’s soon clear the three of them could enjoy a debaucherous weekend. A couple of days of uninhibited fun is one thing, but Angus knows while Blake and Lily are suited for one another, he’s a tradesman who works in the dirt. He’s just visiting their opulent world.

It’s up to Lily and Blake to convince Angus the only world that counts is the one they build together.

Grade: B

No excerpt available.

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Book CoverRed Red Wine, Book

After reading the first book, I didn’t think I’d like other characters nearly as much as I like Angus, but I was wrong. Andrew is right up there with him. He’s a good guy who does the right thing when he finally finds the woman he believes he can spend forever with, but fate is working against him on that score. But then he discovers maybe he can have her after all.

Tori is at the winery to get married. Everything is in place and the wedding march can’t begin soon enough for her. But then her world comes crashing down when she’s in the wrong place at the wrong time, learning her fiance really doesn’t love her and is about to call off the whole affair. She doesn’t get it when he tells her she wouldn’t understand what he wants in his life, especially when she thought they wanted the same thing. So when she meets Andrew the night she spends crying and wondering, he’s suddenly the one thing she really does want.

Andrew tries quite valiantly to keep Tori at bay, knowing she’s hurt and disillusioned. But why not have these few days of heaven, even when he wants forever. So begins their brief but sizzling affair. And when Tori’s time is up and she returns home, what will Andrew do with the rest of his life?

Summary: 

He’s just fallen for the one woman he can never have.

Andrew Stafford’s five relaxing days on a much-needed holiday in wine country turns even more delicious when he arrives at the hotel and meets the woman of his dreams. She’s everything he’s ever wanted, but there’s a problem. She’s carrying a wedding dress—hers—making her totally off-limits.

Tori Worthing used to feel like the luckiest woman alive. Now, jilted by her fiancé and heartbroken, she finds comfort and pleasure in the arms of a stranger, a place she never thought she’d be. It’s a rebound affair—nothing more—and it’ll end when the week is over.

But when that time comes, Andrew is reluctant to let go—which he knows is crazy. But no one ever said love was sane.

Grade: B

No excerpt available.

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Book CoverKisses Sweeter than Wine, Book 3

While I love a tortured hero as much as the next reader, Declan in this story takes his guilt a bit too far and long for me. He’s the one who dumped Tori just days before their wedding in Book 2. He thought he knew what he wanted when he proposed to her, but as the time neared to tie the knot, he knew, with the help of his friend and partner – and former lover – Noah, that Tori wouldn’t make him eternally happy. Dec loves men as much as he does women.

So after letting Declan stew in his guilt for a time, Noah has trapped him at the winery in Hunter Valley, where it all ended once before. It’s time they got on with their lives together. Because he knows Dec so well, Noah also brings along Violet, their PR person currently assisting in their business, with the goal of getting them both on the same page they all belong together and life will be good if they get there.

I have to admit I’m not that thrilled with Noah. He’s a bit too abrupt, not caring what anyone thinks of his high-handedness or anything else for that matter. I realize he has a lot to gain and lose during this weekend, but he just doesn’t come across as a truly likable hero. However, I know he cares about both Declan and Violet, that comes through loud and clear. It’s just his way of getting everything in line that doesn’t quite work for me.

I do like that Violet doesn’t let either of them get away with anything. While she may have been attracted to both men, dreamed what it could be like between them and now finding that out firsthand, she confronts and forces conversation when needed to make sure their future is on the right track.  Thus, this book is my least favorite of the three, but it does have it moments despite my nitpicking.

Summary: 

One sip of passion leaves them thirsty for more…

Declan called off his wedding after acknowledging he liked both women and men—well, one man in particular. His friend and partner, Noah. Caught up in guilt after breaking his fiancé’s heart and almost ruining his relationship and partnership with Noah, Declan’s been so preoccupied with living the life he’s expected to lead, he’s ignored his heart…and other organs.

Noah has waited long enough for Declan to accept they were meant to be together. He’s taken the situation into his own hands and dragged Declan to the Hunter Valley. And he’s invited Violet to join them at a luxury vineyard hotel, under the guise of a working weekend, in order to tempt Declan further.

Convincing the man he loves and the beguiling woman with honey-gold hair to consider his proposal is going to be tough, but Noah is ready to take them both on and make sure they all come out on top…at least once.

Grade: B-

No excerpt available.

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sandym-icon  Overall Grade: B

…is a pretty good time after all. I like that each set of characters finds their way into the other books for brief moments in time. Everything is tied nicely together and each story can be read as a standalone, though I think you’d get more out of each one if you read them in order. The winery is a nice backdrop and I enjoyed the little bit of enology here and there.