Despite the rather odd title, Blame it on the bet turned out to be a funny, yet surprisingly touching read! I hope that this will be a series, as I look forward to reading the other Whiskey sister's stories.

The author has created a wonderful story that just draws the reader in and wraps them into the story to the very end leaving you with a smile on your face and another favourite book for you to read again and again. 5 stars for a new author for me to enjoy more from her books in the future. Would recommend this to everyone

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but I found myself skipping pages and glossing over bits. There was some humour but not enough to keep me hooked

Lauren Rico has done it again! I don't know how she does it, but she sucks me right into the story and doesn't let go. I loved this freaking story. I bit of a different twist for her, but I have to tell you the story shines right off the pages.

Welcome to Mayhem Minnesota, home to O'Hallorans Pub, A Little Slice of Heaven, Basilica of St Mary of the Assumption and home to Father Romance and Knitty Kitty.

First of all, the sisters O'Halloran, aka the Whiskey sisters. Right, Hennessy who is an attorney and lives in St Paul. Walker, bartender and mixologist extraordinaire, Jameson married to Win aka the books resident jack hat and Mom to little Jackson. Bailey, the baby soon to graduate highschool.
They've jus lost their beloved Pops a few months earlier and have called Henny home to make heads or tails out of all the paper work and the loans none of them knew he took out. Waiting in the wings to snag the property from beneath them when they default on the loan is Brian Truitt, real estate handler who lives in Cali and hasn't a clue about Minnesota, small town life or what he's up against with the sisters. He's soon to find out.

He decides the go to Mayhem when he doesn't hear back from the girls Dad, he's got no idea the man has passed away. When Hennessy is going over the paperwork and finally puts things together, the bar is deep in debt, Truitt is their now breathing down her neck and the initial dance these two do is pretty comical. The book has so many funny moments, Walker is a fire breathing snark machine, James not so much, but she takes no prisoners either and young Bailey for all her gum chewing and primping is no dummy and adds a lot of color in her own way. Henny is just classic. I loved the witty and snarky banter between her and Bryan. When Brian decides to settle there for the next month, even renting office space, he's got a plan of attack courtesy of his secretary Helen who as he describes her best, looks similar to an orange haired troll doll. But Helen looks after Bryan and keeps him in line. Bryan is settling in to small town life, he's getting comfy with the people, Father Romance and even the sisters. One night as he and Henny were going head to head over something, he makes her a bet, one that she can't and won't back down from. That he'll give her the deed to the pub free and clear, there are other details but you have to read them. The girls need to raise 100k. That's a lot of money in a short period but these girls don't roll over for anyone. And the attraction between Bryan and Henny continues to grow and I love how up front she is with him about it.

I held my breath a couple times, thinking something would happen and then it didn't and damn when I didn't see it coming, it clobbered me over the head. The Knitty Kitty hits the fan and I'm going to leave you dangle right there.

This book is a must read. Lauren is a favorite of mine but even having said that, this book just bowled me over. Funny, snarky and she writes such great characters, real people with real dialogue and real problems. I just love her for that alone. She sets up the perfect story here and you're missing out if you let this one slide by. It's a must read. Absolutely.

Perfection Lauren!!! And what I wouldn't give to see a book about Walker!!!

RATING: 3.5 out of 5

After their father died, Hennessy O’Halloran and his three sisters are determined to raise enough money to save their family pub from the hand of Bryan Truitt, a real estate developer from Los Angeles whose plan is to build a theater to replace the pub. Bryan comes to Mayhem in order to smooth the deal. Hennessy and Bryan end up entangled in a bet: Bryan will stay in Mayhem until Hennessy raise the money to buy out the loan or until the day before the loan comes due. If Bryan leaves before five weeks, he will pay the loan and deeds it back to O’Halloran family for nothing.

Entangled Bliss line promises sweet, sweet romance (and closed-door sex scenes) and that is one of my particular interests of trying this title from new-to-me author, L.E. Rico. Blame It On The Bet is the first book of Whiskey Sisters series, set in the small town of Mayhem, Minnesota. With dual narratives, I found myself being entertained with both characters as well as the citizens of Mayhem. Oh they are a HOOT!! Especially Father Romance. Yep, that’s how they call him. Oh, and Helen — Bryan’s badass assistant. She was totally awesome.

Both Hennessy and Bryan were nice characters. Yep, despite the set-up that should make Bryan the enemy, I found him more of a good guy. He totally didn’t have a “villain-y” vibe and he seemed to embrace the quirks of events that happened in Mayhem, like the chilli cook-off or trivia nights. That made it fun to read. There was sweet sparks between Hennessy and Bryan, and I liked how their relationship progressed.

I was a little confused with the girls’ names though — what can I say, I still classify ‘girls’ name vs. ‘boys’ name in my head to make it easier to differentiate the two. So names like Hennessy, Jameson, or Walker, totally threw me off a number of times. Also the Bryan’s background felt a little forced, like the author needed to introduce a conflict for these two somehow. Or else this was going to be a little too smooth.

In overall, I liked this. I am curious about Jameson and Walker next …

This book is book one of the Whiskey Sisters series and it completely stands alone – it *does not* end on a cliffhanger. There is some very mild cursing (no f-bombs), and any sex that happens is off-screen so if those things bother you, you do not have to worry about them with this story.

This was my first book by this author and I was incredibly impressed. L.E. Rico has a really smooth and easy to follow writing style that is infused with the kind of hilarity that I very much enjoy in a book. If you enjoy humor of both the subtle and laugh out loud varieties, you're going to enjoy this one. Even when dealing with things that made me tear up, this author managed to keep things light and hopeful enough that it was never depressing or difficult to read which is a testament to her writing abilities. I also loved how much the Whiskey Sisters loved each other, even though they are totally different women. Hennessy was a great character, and Bryan was the perfect match for her. I didn't know how they were going to work out their problems, but I knew that they would because they were perfect for each other. There is also a moment where we see Bryan at his most vulnerable that made me cry. So perfect. And Father Romance? I wasn't sure how that was going to work but he was fantastic. While he didn't overwhelm the story, he added so much to it that I found myself smiling whenever he was even mentioned.

The 'worst' thing about this book is waiting for the next one to be released because I very much look forward to reading more about the O'Halloran sisters.

If you enjoy a book that runs the gamut of emotions but that leans on heart and humor the most, you should read this book. If you enjoy a book about two people who are competitors of a sort but who find that they're perfect for each other, you should read this book. If you just like romance stories, you should read this book.

I requested and was very generously granted an ARC of this book via the publisher and NetGalley. I wrote this review because I loved the story.