Can’t Hardly Breathe was a great 5 star read.

We get a glimpse into Dorothea’s high school years when she was bullied. She had a white knight in Daniel when he stood up for her against her bully. Daniel Porter, the hottest boy ever born, had just out-bullied Harlow Glass. His next words would stick with Dorothea for years. I think you’re perfect just the way you are.

We jump ahead to present day, Dorothea is running the local inn. She has returned after her failed marriage and is trying to deal with her difficult sister, Holly. Her high school crush, Daniel has been staying at her inn and treating it as his playground bringing different women with him.
When she comes face-to-face with him, her crush feelings come rushing back. He looks even more handsome now then he did before.

Daniel is back in Strawberry Valley to be close to his father. He stays at the inn so he can be close but also have women, sex helps keep his demons away. He meets women from out of town so that his father doesn’t get the wrong idea and get his hopes up about grandkids. When he sees Dorothea he remembers her as Dottie which she absolutely hates because it reminds her of the bullying.

Nicknames built you up or tore you down…

Thea ends up doing something shocking but extremely brave, it didn’t go the way she had planned however it did get the attention she was looking for. Daniel likes a chase and when Thea starts to reject him at every flirtation and move he becomes more determined. He tells her he doesn’t commit and that it would be a temporary thing but she goes into it hoping she can change that.

Next time we see each other, let’s pretend we’re lovers and we’re allergic to our clothing.

There is so much more to this great read. We have returning ex’s and past demons that cause issues for these two. I had a few teary eyed moments that broke my heart. The things that Thea went through was heartbreaking but she was so brave and we get to see her come into herself even more. The secondary characters were great although I would have liked to run her sister over, what a little snot. I loved Daniels’ dad, he was such a hoot. I really loved these two and we do get a happy ending but I want more. I look forward to reading more from this series. Gena Showalter does a great job of pulling you right in.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book. Reviewed by MAustin from Alpha Book Club

This author makes me excited with anticipation when I see she has a new one. This is the first in this series but not my last I would say. These two captured me right away starting in high school. Can you imagine high school still I sure can even now clicks and the like in a small town so this one was relateable. Dorothea and Daniel then tugged at me then fast forward to now. I adore these kind of romances that fluff and touch all the emotions but especially the one that gets you falling in love with them. You keep at the story because you want to stay with them through all the thick and thin. The others also have their place that fill it in like her sister. The further you are in too the further the excitement rises, she also has nice levels of heat that curls the toes too. By the time I reached the end though I had to have more but all done so sad.

I enjoyed this book it was fast paced second chance romance. The characters were cute and the story was very fluffy if your looking for a light story here ya go

I really loved this book, i have read most of the other books in this series and after reading this I plan on making sure i read the ones i have missed. Dorothea and Daniel are a great couple and I love all of their interactions. The story was written so well I felt like I was in the story. Can't Hardly Breathe was filled with lots of emotional ups and downs and some laugh out loud moments. I felt like I could absolutely relate to Dorothea.
I am eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.

For all the survivors of spiteful bullies and heartbreakingly cruel jokes. To every person with a beautiful heart, but a tortured soul. For every hero in disguise looking for salvation. Ms. Showalter wrote Can't Hardly Breathe for you. Dorothea is the girl that longed to fit in, but never quite managed to do so. Daniel is the boy that is beautiful both inside and out, yet has never felt good enough. Gena Showalter is good at stirring up emotion. It's inspirational tales of courage like this one that keep her name on people's lips and her stories in their hearts. Ugliness is a state of mind, not a physical trait.

Where do I even start....Gena Showalter, you have done it again! This story is heartbreaking, uplifting, beautiful, and swoon worthy. Basically Can't Hardly Breathe has all the feels and then some.

Let's just get this out of the way right now, minus some of the hard times she had to go through (though she wouldn't have been the character she was if she hadn't 'gone through it' right?) I want to be Dorothea Mathis. Gena has written a compelling heroine, who is all sorts of every day woman with a little bit of badarse thrown in. She's given us a heroine who isn't going to let life destroy her, though it does get her 'down' on more than one occasion. I fell in love with and felt for Dorothea from the first pages. All she has ever wanted was to be put first for once in her life, but every day was a reminder to her that she wasn't as 'good' as everyone else. She would never be the popular girl, she would never be the 'super-model-esque' woman that everyone wants to know, she would always be asked to set herself aside so that others could blossom. My heart completely broke the moment a light shined down on her, in the name of Daniel Porter

“I think you’re perfect just the way you are.
It was funny how one sentence - one moment - could impact a life forever.”

only to have the light ripped. I struggled with Daniel a lot in the beginning. Now when he's a teenager, I get it, he's a boy not quite a man with no understanding of the world going on around him outside the typically 'randy' thoughts going through his mind. I can give him a break for that. I struggled with him in the beginning, with his coping mechanisms, especially because they didn't just affect him. I struggled with some of his excuses for what he does and how he tries to sabotage his happiness as well as the happiness of others. However, I loved how once he got with the program he went in full steam ahead. I loved the chase between Doroetha and Daniel. I loved the romance and the snark, the quiet moments of contemplation. I loved Daniels desire just to see Doroetha happy and protected. I loved Doroetha's love for her friends and family, even when in particular her family didn't deserve it. If I could have gotten ahold of her sister, boy-howdy...and that's all I will say about that.

I loved the secondary characters, Daniel's dad, Doretha's family, Jude and Brock, Raynne and Lyndie especially...I can not wait for there stories, Jude and Raynne's is going to be a tissue box read I just know it. I fell in love with this series at book one and I swear they just keep getting better and better. I honestly didn't realize that we would get more than three books to this series originally but man I could not be happier that we have more to go. I don't know that I ever want to leave this strawberry town and it's people. Can we just play matchmaker with everyone Gena so it doesn't have to end?

This series is a complete favorite of mine and if you love contemporary romance that is totally swoon-worthy, full of character development, heart breaking at times but heart warming more often and a side of a whole lot of wit and humor this is a perfect series to pick up! Start from the beginning so you can see how all the characters intertwine and just get ready to fall in love with The Original Heartbreakers!

~ HAPPY READING ~

Can't Hardly Breathe by Gena Showalter is book four in her Original Heartbreakers series. A romantic, contemporary, sort of second-chance romance. You will easily find yourself falling for these two irresistible characters.

Bullied in high-school, Dorothea Mathis would rather forget a lot of her past memories. However, she can't forget her long-time crush on Daniel Porter. Crushing on him since kindergarten, Dorothea realizes her feelings haven't changed much, even years later as adults. Two different people than they were in high-school, she now owns and runs her family's inn, while Daniel has returned to Strawberry Valley after serving as an army ranger to be a frequent guest along with whomever he's chosen as his date for the night. Her feelings for him should be long gone, but she can't help but still feel a pull towards him. So when a spur of the moment desire to be spontaneous leads her to Daniel's room one night, though not resulting in what she expected, it begins a whole new relationship between her and Daniel that this reader found enjoyable.

I really liked this story. Ms. Showalter's characters, Dorothea and Daniel, are very likeable and real. I admired Dorothea's strength and determination, as well as, her positivity and caring. She has a past that she is dealing with, same as Daniel, and I like how both characters grew as friends and companions before jumping in as lovers. Daniel is a great hero as well, though a bit stubborn in his way of thinking which gets him into trouble with Dorothea. I am happy Ms. Showalter didn't make it too easy on him to win the girl in the end. I loved his father, Virgil, and his friends Brock and Jude. I can't wait to read Brock and Jude's books in the future.

Overall, Can't Hardly Breathe by Gena Showalter is a romantic, cute, funny, and very enjoyable novel that I gladly recommend. I can't wait to read the next novel in the series by Ms. Showalter.

(I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book I received for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my open and honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.)

*thank you to the author and publisher for providing an arc**

5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


The Original Heartbreakers series is back and I'm so happy that it is! Gena Showalter's Heartbreakers series is a must read and makes you feel like you are apart of Strawberry Valley. Each book takes you deeper into the town and Daniel and Thea's story does not disappoint. Through the course of this book they not only grow individually but together and help each other realize to never give up on your dreams. Join the gang back in Strawberry Valley and it will feel like coming home.


Daniel Porter doesn't do relationships, especially since his father's health has been on the decline. Once his father hears that he is seeing someone from town he starts talking about weddings and Daniel doesn't want that. Ever since he came home from the service he is plagued by nightmares and doesn't want to lose one more person in his life, but when Dorothea is around it's hard to remember anything.

Dorothea had it rough growing up, but the one good thing was Daniel, she had a crush on him in school and still does. But after a disastrous marriage and never finishing school she still feels like she isn't good enough, especially for Daniel. Until one night she deicides to throw caution to the wind and offers herself to him for one night. Little does she know what's in store for her.

As Daniel and Thea dance around each other they will begin to realize that maybe being together isn't all that bad and who knows what will happen. But soon outside influences come into play and will start to break down their tentative relationship.

Will Daniel finally realize how he feels and let Thea know? Will Thea finally believe in herself and chase her dreams including Daniel?

Find out all the gossip and catch up with old friends (Jessie Kay) in Can't Hardly Breathe and you won't be disappointed.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of the book.

Surprisingly, this was my first Gena Showalter book, but I definitely have to go back and read the rest of the Original Heartbreakers series! Can't Hardly Breathe was funny and real and sweet and sexy and it just made me feel good without being too saccharine. The characters were so real and well fleshed out, with real flaws and genuine personalities. While Dorothea and Daniel were definitely the stars of the story, the secondary characters were superb as well. I loved everything about the book, from Dorothea and Daniel's history with each other, their individual struggles (hers with the demanding and selfish string of people in her life and his with the scars of his time in the service and PTSD), to them ultimately finding happiness with each other. I struggled with Dorothea as she watched Daniel parade women in and out of the Inn (that may have been my least favorite aspect of the plot), but it almost made it that much more satisfying when he finally realized what he wanted with Dorothea. Even though this is part of a series, it reads perfectly fine as a standalone, but you'll probably want to read them all too! I give the book 4.5 out of 5 wine glasses!

Dorothea Mathis was bullied ruthlessly in high school the only person who showed her any kindness was Daniel Porter, she had a huge crush on him. Now Dorothea is running her Mothers Inn and Daniel is a guest. She still has her crush on him. Daniel has returned home from military duty with PTSD. Daniel is a love em and leave em type and Dorothea decides maybe she will have one night with Daniel get him out of her system and move on. Things don't go quite as she planned.

Daniel and Dorothea both have issues they need to resolve to get to a happy ending. Dorothea becomes a challenge for Daniel but she decides she's worth more than a back door secret romance. Daniel needs to decide if it is worth it to take a chance on love. There are some great characters in this book. This is part of a series but could be read as a stand alone. Thank you to net galley for an advanced readers copy.

MY REVIEW:

I'll admit I am a die-hard Showalter's fan. When she first wrote the first of The Original Heartbreakers, I gobbled it up voraciously even though it was not a paranormal read. At one time, I had multiple copies of heartbreakers series books (determined to make sure to read them) until I cleaned up my library.

Usually, I feel the first of any series is the best book. In this case, I am making an exception. Showalter meets a very touchy subject, PTSD head on and comes out safe and whole on the other side as does our hero Daniel. But she also deals with several other subjects. Self-esteem, weight, body shaming, bullying just to name a few. What Showalter does in the development of her characters is amazing.

Whether intentional or not, whether she interviewed psychologists or psychiatrists before writing this book is not important to me. What is important? The fact that within this compelling story is love, laughter, tears, happiness, growth and more truth than I can express. Dorothea lives through almost every teenage girl's nightmare. She escapes a loveless marriage; most woman endure becoming more and more depressed. Thea remembers the loss of her child and moves forward with her life, some let the loss define them. She forged ahead, succeeded and let the strength derived from her relationship with Daniel give her even more confidence to become even stronger.

Daniel found his demons quieted the more he was around Thea. The more he held her, loved her, spent time with and near her. However, it was those demons which almost caused him to lose her as is true for many relationships which breakup. Rather than fight ourselves and change what causes us to act a certain way, we tend to blame others. Daniel discovers he too was blaming everyone, or at least making excuses not to give himself entirely to Dorothea. When he does, a new, more worthy Daniel appears. One Dorothea loves beyond all reason.

Very well done. Worth the read and definitely one I will be getting the paperback to add to the library shelves and re-reading again!

I love a good Ugly Duckling story, and book four in Gena Showalter’s Original Heartbreakers series delivers the goods. In CAN'T HARDLY BREATHE, we meet Dorothea Mathis and Daniel Porter.

After a childhood of torment for being overweight and uncool, and just generally everything the cool, beautiful kids were not, Dorothea is her best hype man, constantly finding it within herself to think positively: “Want change? You have to be the change.” Or “Be strong. Be brave. Stand up for yourself.” Her brightest moment was at the beginning of tenth grade when, in the throes of being bullied, Daniel stepped in and broke up the interaction … and told her, “I think you’re perfect just the way you are.” Sign … Daniel was two years older and had been her lifelong crush. Over the summer his skin cleared up and his body filled out into a thing of beauty. But his teenage boy hormones ruled him, and he never knew Dorothea liked him.

Flash forward a decade and we meet adult Dorothea, divorced from a handsome meteorologist after working two jobs to support him through school. She moved back to Strawberry Valley to take over her mother’s hotel and comes face-to-face one morning with Daniel. He was returning from a run, and she was in the midst of cleaning his room. Signs of a raucous night of sex and pleasure were evident everywhere, from the panties hanging from a bedpost and used condoms in the trashcan, which makes the meeting all the more uncomfortable.

Adult Daniel had been an Army Ranger, part of an elite unit known as the Ten. His two best friends, Jude Laurent and Brock Hudson, shared the horrors that inhibited his mind. They kept him up at night and fueled his PTSD. So every couple of months he brought a woman to the hotel to, well, fuck it out of his system. But when Dorothea makes him an offer he initially refuses, he can’t get her out of his mind. So he pursues her... much to her chagrin.

To Daniel, it seems so simple. Try, for once, to pursue a relationship that is more than a couple weeks long—although he still doesn’t intend to go for the long haul. She soothes his mind and brings him peace, so he wants to help her bolster her self-confidence and recognize that she is a beautiful, desirable woman.

His scars and trauma are visible and acceptable and attributable to war. Dorothea’s are deeper and less visible, yet no less real. Bullying altered her view of her young self, shaping the decisions she made as an adult. When she catches her husband cheating on her, everything changed. Everything. And she’s used the last year to find herself and bolster her confidence. That a handsome, sexy man like Daniel is hot for her certainly helps, but she sees her worth now as more than a temporary piece of ass.

There’s a lot of angst in this story, which makes it frustrating at times. I mean, shit or get off the pot, right? One thing I’ve learned in life is that you can never tell what happens behind closed doors. By that, I mean even the most perfect façades can mask trouble. Beautiful people are not always happiest. Strong men are not impenetrable. And a smiling face can hide a world of pain and disappointment.

*This review was originally published at Heroes & Heartbreakers: www.heroesandheartbreakers.com/blogs/2017/08/first-look-gena-showalter-cant-hardly-breathe-august-29-2017

Unfortunately the book was not for me, no review was publicly posted on Amazon, B&N, Goodreads or Twitter or the Blog etc, so no ratings were affected in relation to it.

Personally, I think the book had potential but it was just all over the place, and Dorothea was just to contradictory in relation to saying one thing and thinking another, her long and rambling inner monologues were extremely repetitive, I preferred to be in Daniel's head. And sorry who agrees to three dates with one man then plans two others with separate men as well, then wears her wedding dress to the date she originally agreed to go on with Daniel.

The whole Holly situation didn't sit well either, she almost allowed her sister to hit her, sorry but no, even attempted physical abuse in a book doesn't sit well with me even if it was curtailed.

I love a good second chance romance, especially one with unrequited love that started in high school. I think all of us have that person we crushed on in high school and wonder “what if?”. That’s what makes this type of book so popular. Gena Showalter starts Can’t Hardly Breathe with a great setup, taking us back to Dorothea and Daniel’s high school days, giving readers a glimpse into who they were then. I think just about anyone can relate to Dorothea, who was bullied and lacked self-confidence. Daniel was that guy in high school: the popular one that had a heart of gold. It’s a perfect beginning to a second chance romance.

While there are moments of pure gold in Can’t Hardly Breathe, I struggled with it fairly consistently. Let’s start with what I liked:

• Dorothea is a great character. She’s someone each of us can relate to, a person who spent her high school years feeling lonely. She was bullied because of her weight and abandoned by her father. She married the first person who paid any positive attention to her and then had her heart broken. Despite all this she’s still a wonderful person with a heart as big as the sky. She’s quirky and her inner monologue had me laughing more than once. I loved watching her find her way throughout the course of the book, going from unsure to knowing exactly what she wants and, more importantly, knowing what she deserves.
• I laughed so much while reading this! The cast of characters in Can’t Hardly Breathe are somewhat peculiar, small-town folks, which seems unavoidable in a place called Strawberry Valley. With this being book 4 in the Original Heartbreakers series, many are easily recognizable. Even so, this is easily read as a standalone (it was my first book in the series)
• Showalter does a nice job of tugging on the heartstrings. Both Dorothea and Daniel are dealing with some serious issues and I found myself constantly wanting to comfort them.

What I didn’t like:
• The narrative dragged. Sentiments and thoughts are repeated throughout the book without much change which was frustrating. It wasn’t until the last third of the book that I found Dorothea was making any progress. While I don’t mind a slow burn romance, Can’t Hardly Breathe felt like it was just going in circles for much of the book.
• I found that the PTSD plotline was unrealistic. We know that Daniel (and Jude and Brock) suffer from PTSD, but they don’t get any help, instead they try to handle it by themselves. As severe as their PTSD is (dropping to the ground when someone knocks on the door, reaching for weapons when someone steps on a stick) it was a disservice to readers and those that suffer from PTSD that it was depicted as something that could be made better by a post-nightmare blow job.

If you like sweet, quirky, small-town romances and you’ve enjoyed the previous books in this series, I think you’ll enjoy this one. Showalter does setup the next two books in the series and I really did find myself wanting to read Jude and Ryanne’s story!

3 stars for Can’t Hardly Breathe. Heat level: 3

ARC received for an honest review

I am a huuuuge fan of Gena Showalter's Lords Of The Underworld series ,however this is the first Gena Showalter contemporary romance I have read.

It is book 4 in the Original Heartbreakers series, however I did not feel like I was missing too much not having read the first books.

I am not going to lie, Can't Hardly Breathe us pretty formulaic (not that that is a bad thing) in so much as even as you are reading you know what you are going to get at the end.

It is the journey inbetween that had me turning the pages. Sure, it was a little bit cheesy at times, but what romance doesn't have its share of the cheese?

I loved Dorothea's journey of self discovery, realising she is worth more and isn't going to settle for any less. I was a big cheerleader for her.

Daniel, I loved him most of the time, but at times I really didn't like him.

But I don't want to spoil things for anyone so I will just leave it at that.

I enjoyed most of the secondary characters, and the guys and gals from the previous books have intrigued me enough to make me want to go back and read them sometime soon.

Sweet, sexy and flirty, I can't wait to see what Ms Showalter gives us next.


* will publish on blog during tour*

"In the next instant, he was looking at her as no man ever had. Not even her ex-husband. As if she were a mystery he had to solve. A dessert he wanted to eat. A treasure he expected to claim."

"Second, I’m not desperate for sex right now. I’m desperate for you. Since you came to my room, I’ve done nothing but fantasize about your beautiful curves.”

“Counteroffer. Let’s discuss this all night. Next time we see each other, let’s pretend we’re lovers and we’re allergic to our clothing.”

“Shall we seal our deal with a kiss?”
She bristled, saying, “Sure. If you want to kiss my butt.” “Yes.” He fought a grin. “I accept. Bend over.”

Okay, I need to stop but I don't know how. Daniel was something else. So damn charming...if these quotes are anything to go by! I had more but decided that you should probably swoon over them once you read the book. Hint, hint.

The moment I picked up this story, I had NO idea I would love it as much as I did. We get a glimpse into Thea's life as a teenager. She was bullied and put down for being a curvaceous young woman. The boy she loved, Daniel, was as sweet as they come, but he's a young hormonal boy. And had only one thing on his mind...

Years pass and Thea owns the only Inn in town. While Daniel served in the military and has a case of PTSD. He doesn't want to fall in love so he has a string of women he likes to chase. Once the chase is over... I'm sure you can put two and two together. When he and Thea run into each other at the Inn she works at (and the place Daniel likes to take his dates), you can already see the sparks fly between them. Delicious.

Daniel and Thea both have dark secrets that have put them in a place in their life where they have to learn how to trust. The banter and dialogue between the two was what made the book for me. I can't tell you how many times I laughed, giggled, and swooned.

"She had become his everything. His reason for waking up every morning. His reason for smiling. His reason for breathing. His reason for being."

Of course, I adored all the secondary characters and best friends of both Thea and Daniel. Who all happen to hint at more stories. One with Jude and Ryanne and the other with Brock and Lyndie. I'll be honest with you, I want Brock's book bad! I've also went ahead and bought the other books in the series. Something I strongly suggest you should do too.

I think I found gold. And I get it, I'm so late to the game. Better late than never though, right? If you're like me and hasn't yet read the wonderful books, do yourself a favor and READ! Daniel, Thea, and gang (and characters from previous books) are the best friends you wish you had in your life.

"You are my type. You are my favorite type. Right now you’re my only type.”

*Thank you so much to the punisher for providing a copy for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An ARC has been provided by Harlequin (US & Canada)HQN Books via NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest opinion

4 to 4,5 “building self-esteem” stars

This book has been a whole journey! One that looked a lot like a roller coaster rather than a stroll alongside the beach.

In the beginning Dorothea was really annoying. OK the teenage girl was bullied, slightly or more overweight, had no Dad etc. So she had reasons to complain BUT she really did look like a kicked puppy with huge wet eyes always hoping for some love. She wore her heart on her sleeve so it should have been easy to love her but her lack of self-esteem grated on my nerves.
Now her inner pep talks were something to admire but when I thought she would “grow a pair” and win she got just shot down by Daniel...and he had even no idea her hurt her bad.
In one word: she was a mess

Fast forward years later and life hasn’t been kind on Dorothea. She’s been betrayed by her husband, went through Hell and back. She even abandoned her dream of being a meteorologist just to help this pr@ck build his career. Given he knifed her in the back her sacrifice had a bitter taste.
Now she has inherited her mother’s Inn and every day is spent in cleaning the rooms (piece of advice: when you leave your hotel room don’t forget to throw the used condoms in the trash. Eeeeek!), manning the desk, trying to rebuild a relationship with her teenage gothic rebel of a sister Holly, being good to everyone all that with a self-esteem still in shambles.

But it will change! Dorothea has decided to be a new her! A better, more confident, more audacious her.
And I freaking LOVED it!
It was certainly inspiring but also hilarious to witness Dorothea evolve from a shy and bullied teenager into a kickass gorgeous woman with sass and spunk!

Daniel Porter will help rebuild her confidence. He’s been her forever crush and is now a retired soldier suffering from PTSD. Co-owner of a security firm with two other ex-army buddies he forgets his nightmares sleeping (energetically based on the discarded bras in the Inn’s room) with lots of women. Of course you have to portray our hero as hot, handsome, muscled, …. Everything you want in your book boyfriend.

When he’ll really see Dorothea and her generous curves, long lashes, green eyes, luscious hair etc. he’ll been smitten. I kept seeing one of the Tex Avery’s scene where the wolf is losing his mind, eyes bulging at the sight of the pin up. Well that’s what happened to Daniel.


HE WANTS HER. But on the side. He does not want to commit to anyone and his father can’t have false hope so it has to stay secret. No dating outside the Inn, no holding hands no…
What do you think this did for Dorothea? It was a slap in her face!

As much as Dorothea wanted Daniel she would not accept to be a dirty little secret! No new Dorothea deserved the undivided and proud attention of a man, plain and simple.
So each time she turned gorgeous Daniel down I wanted to shout “Good job sista! Way to go! You’re worth everything.”
Believe me the chemistry was off the charts, the room was suddenly steamy hot when these two met so Dorothea had to be VERY resolute.

I took enormous pleasure reading this story and witnessing a shy girl turn into a strong and determined woman. Wonder Woman has nothing on Dorothea! Especially when she is dodging tornadoes like Gal Gadot dodges bullets.


So to my utter disbelief I fell in love with Dorothea. I never would have expected this turn of event based on my initial reactions.

What I also loved was the humor and Dorothea’s come back. When she said “Pedal to the metal,” “To the car! We drive like the wind!” I was laughing like mad.
Gena Showalters also wrote very accurately about the difficulties of raising moody and hormonal teenagers. I have one home so when Gena writes “Sweet Lord in heaven. Knife fighting with a serial killer would have been easier than arguing with a teenage girl.” I feel some kinship.

Last but not least: Daniel was your hot Alpha with a twist as he was trapped at his own game of keeping a relationship with Dorothea under wrap and I loved how she gave him a run for his money. He had to chase her, put his head out of his “behind” and do some serious groveling if he wanted to win the Lady.

So it has begun with the heroine grating on my nerves and ended with a reader completely smitten with this extraordinary heroine. This story is an ode to self-esteem, growing your confidence accepting your curves and realizing you’re a pearl to be treasured whatever your weight, diploma, background. It’s as good to begin your day as listening to “I Will Survive”. A blender of optimism and energy!

Links to Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2023737133
Link to my blog (will ONLY VISIBLE FROM 08/22) http://bewareofthereader.com/?p=2190

Whew- is it me or are Thea and Daniel hot together?? Daniel breaks through Thea's self esteem issues and Thea convinces Daniel to turn a temporary arrangement into a permanent one.. I love this series and can't wait for more!!

Can’t Hardly Breathe is a another fabulous addition to a heartwarming series that this talented author has given us. Now I will admit I don’t think I have read book three so I was hoping that I wouldn’t get too lost, and I was more than fine. From the get go, was I hooked on this story. What I have always admired about Gena Showalter is the way she spins a web of depth of personality into her characters. It doesn’t matter what genre she writes, she has this remarkable talent to pull me right into a story and all the while I am these characters most vivid cheerleader. I get so hooked and I come out feeling happy, free, with a tear or two at the same time. In Can’t Hardly Breathe we have a story that brings all the feels and boy I was so wrapped up in this story even if the characters become a bit stubborn in the end….they still work out all the kinks and find their HEA.

This story begins with our two characters when they are in high school. Dorothea was bullied constantly all through high school. But there was one boy that didn’t bully in her, he believed in her and this is where Thea first started to fall in love with our hero Daniel Porter. But then he broke her heart, and now in present day they are back in the same town. Both Thea and Daniel are dealing with their own past demons. Thea has come home to recover from a relationship gone south and suffering a miscarriage, and Daniel is suffering the after effects of serving in the military. Both have scars, both inside and out. Thea knows better than to encourage Daniel’s advances, because she knows what he wants. A never ending supply of women, countless meaningless affairs and Thea could never be like that. But Daniel is relentless in his pursuit of her, and through this dangerous game they play with each other, love gets in the way.

In Can’t Hardly Breathe we have a story where we have two people that fight what they feel for each other but for different reasons. Our heroine knows that Daniel is a bad boy and she shouldn’t encourage him. But she also can’t deny the way he makes her feel. Daniel sees nothing with having casual relationships with women, it keeps him from having nightmares of his time serving in the military and keeps his father at bay with the “marriage” questions. What I found most interesting about this book was how the romance played out. I got a kick out of Daniel and Thea together. And what a team they make together, and boy did they make me laugh constantly. I adored their bantering, the way they tease and play with each other. We are also introduced to some new characters (Daniel’s buddies from the military), and boy are they delicious and I can hardly wait for their books in the near future. And also some old favorites that made me smile and got me thinking I should re read the series.

Overall this is a story that you will be head over heels in love with….a style of romance that is engaging and witty, a romance that brings a smile to your face and gives you tingles and makes you sigh in satisfaction when you reach the last page. A TASTY TREAT OF A ROMANCE!

I thought this series was completed but Gena Showalter is back with Can't Hardly Breathe about Dorothea Mathis and Daniel Porter - the innkeeper and the sexy army ranger.

Dorothea was picked on in high school but her one bright point was Daniel Porter, her high school crush. Unfortunately, Daniel's kind words are quickly replaced in Dorothea's mind when she sees him with another girl and feels foolish for believing he might have been interested in her.

Now years later with a failed marriage under her belt, Dorothea is back in Strawberry Valley trying to rebuild her life, her self-confidence, and her relationship with her sister Holly. After giving up college and her dreams of becoming a meteorologist to work two jobs and pay her husband's way through college only to have him cheat on her, the last thing Dorothea needs is Daniel walking back into her life and twisting her feelings all around again.

Daniel Porter's nights are terrorized with crippling PTSD so as a rule he's made relationships lasting more than a night or two a no-go to protect himself and his father, whom he doesn't wish to disappoint when a relationship goes sour. But one look at Dorothea Mathis all grown up has him throwing his rule out the window. He shouldn't want her, shouldn't taint her life with his issues, but he can't stay away.

Will Dorothea agree to give things a go between them without any strings attached? Or will Daniel risk losing the one woman he could see himself building a future with? Will it take a life-or-death situation for them to see clearly or tear them apart?

I loved Dorothea and Daniel's story and the introduction to (I hope) the next two "Original Heartbreakers" to get a book. The story moved away from the original three couples in the series but they we still saw glimpses of Jessie Kay and Harlow, which was great.

Both Dorothea's self-image issues and Daniel's PTSD were both realistically written, although I wish for once that an author would write a plus-sized character that is confident in herself instead of always seeing everything that's wrong with themselves. As a plus-sized woman myself, I don't constantly harp on whether my thighs are a little jiggly and I would never demand a man to turn off the lights before taking me to bed.

I did, however, love Dorothea's passion for the weather and her cool ideas for the themed rooms at the Inn as well as how cute Daniel was with the dog he found on the side of the road.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, almost more-so than the first three books!