Thank you NetGalley for the copy of Playing With Trouble by Joya Ryan that I read and reviewed.
This book was just okay for me. I could not get into it at all. I found it kind of boring because to me all that Jake and Laura wanted to do was have sex anywhere and everywhere and in every way they can even though they claimed not to like each other other. I also got really sick of Laura living in the past and whining about her mistakes but seeming to be repeating them by jumping the bones of the first guy she meets when she gets back home. I just did not like the book at all.
I am sorry to say I can only give it two out of five stars.

After spending the last ten years of her life with a man that never really appreciated her Laura Baughman, has signed on the dotted line, bid her miserable ex farewell, and is headed home to rediscover herself and the life she left behind. But soon after arriving she realizes the life she left behind has moved on without her, and the plans that she came home armed with, are about to take a unexpected hit. She wants to revive the family flower shop, but it seems that her father has already taken the business in a little different direction, with the help of a irritating and devastatingly handsome foreman. Now she is forced to work alongside her irritating, but oh so tempting, nemesis in order to achieve her goals... and it is proving to be far more difficult than she anticipated!

The moment Jake Lock learned that his bosses gorgeous daughter would be returning home to take over the family business, he felt a little pang of hurt, and also a little excitement. Hurt because he always thought the business would fall into his hands when his boss decided to retire, since his daughter had never shown any interest in carrying on the family legacy. And excited because he is a changed man, one that he hopes will finally catch her eye. In high school she always overlooked him, but now he is certain there is no way that will be possible, especially since she will be forced to work alongside him everyday... and he has the perfect plan to lure her into his bed... and maybe even into his heart... if he is lucky!

Ahhh Jake!, he is the book boyfriend you can't help but fall for, the underdog of sorts, the one who worked his butt off to make a change for the better, and find a way to finally get the girl he has been dreaming of since he was in high school. The moment he walked onto to page I was completely taken with him, he was bold, witty, sexy as hell, and a man who didn't back down from a challenge...and I thoroughly enjoyed watching him battle it out with his feisty nemesis. Watching them dance around one another, share their heated banter, and watching the fireworks explode when they finally gave in was a real literary treat!! Ms. Ryan has done it again, not only wowed me with her literary prowess, but also given me a story that I could  completely get lost in... and I have to say I enjoyed devouring every little word! Highly recommend this one, it is sure to satisfy!!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this title.

Firstly, I liked the concept of this book. That Laura just got out of a marriage and returns home after 10 years to try take on her late mothers flower shop. But Laura has a real sense of entitlement and thinks she can just take over which I really didn’t like. I go into more details about her in my character section but she was playing so many different roles which was confusing, it was as if the author couldn’t decide how to really portray her.

One of the downsides to this book for me was the ending which felt so rushed, obviously not wanting to be a spoiler sue I won’t reveal it, but there’s a bit of back and forth with Laura’s decisions where she doesn’t know what to do, run or not? This moment was played out so quickly, I would have liked it to have lasted longer, her indecisiveness and then I would have liked for her and Jake’s reunion to be longer to. Because for me the fact it was all happened so quickly I found the story to be missing something.

I did like Jake and Laura’s relationship, I liked how they shared little snipes at one another but also it was something that could get annoying. Laura kept making decisions without speaking to Jake and I just wanted to scream at my kindle like ‘COMMUNICATION.’ Which I suppose is a plus for the book because it got me emotionally involved with their relationship and their lack of ability to just talk but after a few times you think ‘ok, when are you going to learn to talk to each other?’

My biggest issue with this book was the role of Laura’s dad. I don’t think this part was dealt with properly because it left too many questions up in the air. Laura and her dad have 1 interaction in this book and that is cut short when he rushes to meet his new girlfriend which she knew nothing about. It’s revealed that during their odd phone call her dad never mentioned the extent of how much the warehouse had grown and changed, his new girlfriend, the fact he’s living with her or even the fact he sold their old home. Laura has more interaction with her dad’s new girlfriend than she does him, whilst in some cases we know he’s avoiding her for a reason it just didn’t make sense to me. He was a mixture of a loving dad for wanting to give her a part of the shop and he grieved for her mother but he was also a dead beat? because their was no proper communication between the pair or resolution. For example I was left with questions like why wouldn’t her dad talk to her about why her marriage broke down? Why wouldn’t they talk to each other about their lack of communication and how they drifted apart? She wants part of the business from him but he just isn’t there. We see more of him talking to Jake.

Too many questions were left unanswered for me.

 
Characters:

The story is told from the perspective of Laura, when we first meet Laura I found her funny as one of her opening lines is “What the hell was she doing? Oh, right, she was taking her life back. ”  – Yes, you go girl.
I thought this was funny and strong but Laura then turned into a confusion for me… and at times an annoying one.

At times it was like Laura was a few different girls rolled into one, she was insecure then confident and bitchy but also at times really stuck up. I cringed at times she had this sense of entitlement that her dad would just give her everything despite being gone 10 years. Her personality just wasn’t consistent for me, there was too many changes, it wasn’t like a shy girl becoming confident or a mean girl really having a heart. It was like every character trope rolled into one but it didn’t work out – for me at least. I just couldn’t be doing with her stuck up persona mixed in with her lack of confidence one, I wished the author had picked one particular type and went with that consistently throughout.

Something I did like which I mentioned before is the jokey-ness shared between Laura and Jake and I would have liked to see more of that sort of relationship than the one depicted. The tension between them two was definitely there but the moments they just didn’t talk to one another was so annoying.

Rating:

Playing with Trouble was a 3 star read for me, I enjoyed it and liked the funny moments shared between Laura and Jake and I rooted for their relationship but the book left me with too many unanswered questions and not enough resolution. The role of the dad just didn’t work for me either and he could have practically just been scrapped. Other than it being business they were deciding on who should manage it – he wasn’t really relevant. I also think if their was more emphasis on Laura and Jake building up this relationship and they shared more ‘will they- won’t they’ moments with a bigger description I would have liked it a bit more.

Playing With Trouble by Joya Ryan......Another amazing book from this wonderful author. Joya Ryan knows how to suck the readers into the story and we become one big happy family. I loved seeing Laura and Jake's story being told and you have to work hard for what you want. I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book by publisher via NetGalley.

My heart broke for Laura so many times. Jake was hard to like at first but, you do get a sense that there is a caring and kind person underneath all that entitlement he shows towards Laura’s family business.  They both make mistakes, while trying to keep true to their dreams. Sometimes those dreams change and evolve, Jake and Laura learn that little gem through out the course of their story.

I really enjoyed reading this book!  I loved waiting to see how they could work together and make the flower shop AND the home goods stores successful.  The romance wasn't my absolute favorite but still enjoyable.

Playing With Trouble by Joya Ryan
3.5 Stars

A quick and entertaining story, about a woman finally coming home to face her past, and the man she left behind 10 years ago.

While parts of the story were well hashed out and developed, there were parts that seemed very rushed, and left me wanting more. The ending came out of the blue, and left me with some unanswered questions, this is marked a book #1 in a series, but given that there weren't very many background characters introduced I'm not sure who the next book will be about, and we will see more of Laura and Jake.

There's no doubt that the sex scenes between Laura and Jake were HOT, but at times I struggled to believe in them as couple. They very quickly went to hate sex to more, and I feel that the story didn't match this progression in feelings.

Overall this was a good start to a new series, and I am very eager to see who the next book will be about.

no review left - I didn't finish this book.  I didn't like the heroine of this story at all and it ruined the whole book for me.  It's a personal preference so I did not review this book - I would hate to discourage someone else from reading this book because they may like the heroine more than I did.

It wasn't bad, but also wasn't 5 stars read.
I really like Joya Ryan's books, she has amazing and engaging writing style, but during reading this book I simply didn't feel the chemistry between the main characters.
This is a good story, but some things are missing to be amazing read.

What’s it About? After spending ten years away from her hometown in Oregon, recently divorced Laura Baughman decides to take back her life. She starts by taking over her late mother’s flower shop but when she steps inside the shop she finds it’s been neglected and that former band geek Jake Lock is set to inherit the shop unless Laura can prove she can run it. The last thing Laura wants is a romance with anyone and Jake agrees, however, the attraction between them is too hot to ignore so Jake proposes a no strings fling for awhile but when things go wrong with the business, Jake has to think fast to keep Laura from leaving town again.




Overall reaction to the story? I’ve read Ryan’s books before and have loved them to bits which is why I picked up Playing with Trouble. I didn’t love this story though. I didn’t connect with Jake or Laura very well and I didn’t feel their connection to one another either. The plot is a good one: Small town girl dreams of something bigger and better, leaves home but returns years later a jaded, worn down version of herself only to find love with a hometown boy from her past. I just thought that the characters were lacking a bit and while the physical chemistry was a hit, the romance was a definite miss.



Describe the hero in five words: Smart. Pushy. Dedicated. Loyal. Fair.

Did you like him? Yes, even though I question his taste in women.

Why? Jake was a responsible guy for the most part and he had a practical way of looking at things, especially when it came to running a business. I like practical characters; they tend to do what needs to be done without bringing a lot of unnecessary drama and that was Jake. He wasn’t mean about making the business successful but he wasn’t going to be pushed into failure because of an emotional tantrum so it came as a surprise when he fell for Laura.


Describe the heroine in five words: Stubborn. Childish. Selfish. Irresponsible. Inconsiderate.

Did you like her? No.

Why? Laura acted like she was entitled to the family business even though she had no clue what to do with it. She essentially expected Jake to step aside and take orders from her simply because she had the right last name. She didn’t stop to think that 1.) She had no idea how to get the business going again, 2.) Jake was ALREADY taking steps to do just that and 3.) There were people who depended on the business being successful again in order to make a living. But Laura saw none of that. She essentially threw an adult version of a temper tantrum when she didn’t get her way and in between arguing with Jake and having sex with him, very little was done to change her personality. Laura never tried to be a better person.


Let’s talk about the romance: There wasn’t much in the way of romantic development between Jake and Laura. To be honest, Playing with Trouble was more the sexual escapades between two adults. Which wasn’t a bad thing. I like sex scenes in books, I really do and Joya Ryan writes some really hot ones. I just couldn’t get into a relationship between someone like Jake who was responsible and considerate of people, and a woman like Laura who seemed to only have consideration for herself.


Click It or Skip It? Skip It. A character like Laura isn’t much fun in real life or in fiction, even with a guy like Jake as a hero.

After coming home after a decade to rebuild the flower shop her mom owned. There she meets the former band geek. They have chemistry and it works.

A good romantic book that has a focus on finding new love.

Laura Baughman is recently divorced and decides to go back to her hometown to get her life back. All she wants to do is take over her late mothers flower shop and make her parents proud of the person she is but she quickly realizes that things aren’t like they were when she left 10 years ago. Laura’s father has basically left the business in Jakes hands and over the years it has gone from a floral shop to a construction company. As expected they but heads immediately, what’s less expected is the growing attraction they have for each other.

This book hooked me from the very beginning. Laura could be annoying at times but I still found myself connecting with her character. I think the reason I felt said connection was because she lost her mom and I have lost my dad and step dad so I know what its like to not want to deal with the pain. Although this is pretty much a typical story for this genre I couldn’t help but be drawn in. I had to know if Laura was going to stay or if she was going to run again when things got hard.

I have seen some reviews that say the steamy sex scenes didn’t fit but I disagree. I thought they were hot and spot on with the story. I am not the type to get flustered when I read sex scenes in books but I found myself looking around making sure no one was around even though I was in the comfort of my own home.

The reason I took off a star is because I really wanted more of the side characters. It seemed like they only popped in when the main characters needed to realize something that in my opinion they should have been able to do on their own. Overall I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to those who are looking for a quick romance read.

3.5 Stars

This book was a quick read focusing on the relationship between Jake and Laura. 

Laura left town 10 years ago after the death of her mother. After her marriage ends, she returns home to take over the flower shop her mother once ran. Unbeknownst to her, her father has more or less handed over the business to Jake, and it's no longer the flower shop she once knew. It's now a home and garden center selling lumber and other items. Flowers are no longer in the picture. Laura and Jake clash in how they feel the business should be run, and who should be in charge, while Laura's father steps back and let's them work things out for themselves.

I thought that storyline was OK. What fell short for me was there wasn't any additional depth to the story. We don't get a glimpse into her relationship with her father. We barely learn anything about her best friend. The only secondary character I felt we got to learn a little about was Jake's sister. Since this appears to be the first book in a series, I'm curious where it will continue since I didn't feel like we got to know anybody else in the book enough to desire to continue with their story.

ARC kindly received from publisher via NetGalley.

There's no question about what's going to happen here.  You know Laura and Jake are definitely going to hook up and do it in a steamy way.  This is a fast pretty predictable read that's just right if you want something escapist that's less romance and more sexy.  Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

3 - "I can’t make everyone happy." Stars.

Playing With Trouble, marks the beginning of Joya Ryan’s new Desire Bay series, and although well written as I have come to expect from this author. The story and characters definitely fell in the didn’t love it, didn’t hate it category…

A decade may have passed but they were still in different leagues.

This is pretty much your typical story of young woman heading off to find a better life in the big city, only to then return home with her tail between her legs some years (ten in this instance) later, when it all falls apart. Only to find that her small town community aren’t really on-board in letting her back in with open arms and all past indiscretions forgotten. Top of that list being Jake Lock, the man who has essentially revived her father’s business, and made it profitable. Boughman Home Goods is something that Laura believe is her birth right, and she is determined to take control, even if she actually has no idea what she is doing and risks the business and the livelihoods of the staff in doing it.

They may hate each other, but deep down, she wanted him… Just like he wanted her…

To be honest I found the story line for this one pretty weak, the author seemed to skim over both characters back stories and instead concentrate on sex. And there is a lot of sex in this book, not a bad thing if you are backing it up with a bit of substance in between but this couple pretty much had a loop and they stuck to it religiously –

• Sex
• Argue
• Sex
• Argue
• Sex

And so on, until the big fall out in the last few pages when everything was then resolved without too much fuss. My other gripe is the fact that while I loved Jake, I abhorred Laura, there was absolutely no point in this story where I felt any empathy for her or the situation she was in, she just came across as selfish, self-centered and didn’t really seem to grasp that after ten years away she wasn’t really qualified to just step back in and take over, after Jake was the one that had done all the hard work to keep the business viable in the first place.

"I can’t make up for the mistakes of the past…"

And to be honest, she never really tried, which is why I think I disliked her so much, she was so focused on resurrecting her mother’s Flower Shop, consideration for everyone else pretty much went out of the window.

She wanted to get lost. In him. With him.

For all the issues, Playing With Trouble wasn’t a struggle to read, but then it’s a relatively short book, but there were several secondary characters that offered up potential in relation to further books so I will be interested to see where the author goes next and whose story she decides to tell.

ARC generously provided via Netgalley, in exchange for the above honest review.

Teenage dreams spirited Laura out of small town Oregon. Now ten years later a reversal of fortune has brought her home to surprising twists. Playing with Trouble proves that change is inevitable, but life is full of surprises and life lessons. People change, places grow, life moves on. However, the most rewarding of experiences can start when we take a second look. Joya Ryan took us from bad girl to responsible woman. From geeky nerd to seductive heartthrob and from salty to sweet. Jake and Laura are a topsy turvy bundle of sexy, sassy, turbulent and tempting fun.

Really liked this book. Was very well written with great characters with a lot going on which I could follow the story an get into. Will try this authors books again an thank-you for letting me read this book. Would recommend

Another winner for Ms. Ryan!  In this story Laura comes home after 10 years of being gone, freshly divorced from a loser husband who did nothing but beat her down emotionally.  She ran from home when her mother died and now she is determined to make things right with her father and the past she ran from.  Wanting to start her mother's flower shop back up she has a plan all worked out until she gets home and discovers things are not like she thought.  
Jake who is in the process of taking over the company from Laura's dad when Laura shows up out of the blue.  Jake has always been attracted to Laura from there school days and she has just gotten pretty to him.  He has changed a little since high school and when Laura recognizes him the chemistry is off the charts.  When Laura tells Jake she is running the flower shop he is not happy and makes it very hard for her to do that.  Can the two figure a way to make the arrangement work with everyone happy or did Laura make another bad decision coming home.   This story has quiet a few lessons given for life and that life is something you have to work at to reach your dreams.  Really enjoyed this story and can't wait for more of Ms. Ryan's work.  Honest review in exchange for ARC.

i enjoyed this book and couldn't stop reading and i read this book in one sitting i loved the reletionship and i was engorssed and roating for it all the way through