<b>COVERGASM ALERT</b>

Holy hotness. That cover though?! I needed a hour to just take in the greatness!.

Moving on though.... know this review will be vague so there's no spoilers. Well at least not from me anyhow.

We know from the blurb that it's Amalie's story. I love her as a character she's fantastic! Relatable with human flaws but also funny sweet and a whole lotta saucy.

It's a rollercoaster Journey for her but I cant deny I enjoyed the hell outa that ride. Going into the story you get peak at how the main characters meet briefly before jumping headfirst into an explosive start. You feel the raw emotion immediately and my heart hurt for her but I also couldnt help but find humour in her reaction. That girl is a firecracker who needs to come a warning label cause when she kicks off you better run.

The story is packed full of emotions from anger and betrayal to smoking hot chemistry and endless amounts of laughter. You get craziness with garden sheers, awkwardly hilarious airport debacles and smoking hot lovings that will have you panting with need. Throw in a seriously disfunctional family, secret affairs and a fair few throw downs and y'all have your selfs a few hours of fictional bliss.

Its kind of forbidden, a good dose of disfunctional, a whole lotta hilarious and yes it's fucking hot. The story line is great with a few added surprises to keep things interesting. It's cute and a little angsty. I connected to the characters and there struggles. I rooted for their happiness and sighed in utter contentment at their ending. It's set at a great pace where nothing is rushed or misplaced. It's just an all round fabulous read. And I whole heartedly recommend it.

I kindly received this ARC from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Hot and hilarious. Hooking Up was the escape I needed from more serious reads. At times you'll find yourself laughing out loud and others fanning yourself. You don't have to have read Shacking Up to enjoy this one, though they're related. Recommended for rom-com readers who like their romance on the racy side.

I very much enjoyed this story. I found the author’s writing style easy and pleasant to get into. There are some key themes of faithfulness in relationships, a steady character, and being empathetic with and vulnerable to your partner. The “villain” was satisfyingly unpleasant. The romance was tender yet heated. I thought there was much more growth and finding-of-self for the heroine, and the hero was a warm and strong anchor for her journey.

Hooking Up is a Standalone, the characters, Amelie and Lexington, appear in Shacking Up, a novel prior to this one. This Rom-Com has all the elements we love; a great cast of characters and a funny, sexy story that had me sleep deprived at the end. I stayed up later than I should have and started it, as soon as I opened my eyes, a few hours later. I fell in love with Amie and Lex, as a couple and as individuals. Here’s to Hooking Up!

Amalie Whitfield meets Lexington Mills at a company party and is intrigued. When he offers to get her a drink, his cousin, Armstrong Moorehead, son of the CEO of Moorehead Media, swoops in and warns her about Lex. After a whirlwind romance, ten months later, it’s their wedding day. Poor Amie’s humiliated when she, her family, in-laws and the hundreds of wedding guests hear what sounds like her husband, over the sound system at their reception, receiving lots and lots of oral pleasure. So, she takes off, aided by her best friend Ruby and Bancroft, her boyfriend. Ruby insists that Amie’s strong; she needs to channel her inner Anarchy Amie, a nickname she earned in her teens, and hadn’t heard since she started dating Armstrong. So, Amie decides to file for an annulment and decides she needs to get away from Armstrong, who insists the BJ didn’t mean anything and it doesn't count as cheating, so she decides to go on her honeymoon. Alone. To Bora Bora.

Lexington has always had an acrimonious relationship with Armstrong. The icing on the cake was seeing him steal Amie, right from under his nose, at the company party months ago and then marrying her. It still comes as a surprise to find out the marriage is over before it even began, and even more so when he finds out his date was the one pleasuring Armstrong at the reception. When his father tells him he needs to take a more active role in the family business, (they own luxury resorts and hotel all over the world) and get away from the gossip and scandal he became mixed up in. Mr. Mills decides he needs to go to Bora Bora. They have some hotels there that need attention and it seems like fate has a hand in his destination.

Of course, Amie and Armstrong go to Bora Bora together, not intentionally, but it is a happy coincidence. And maybe they should take advantage of it.

“When you say things like that you make me believe forever is possible.”

I loved this story! It’s so well written, the dialogue made me want to yell “Yes!” more than once, I happy sighed throughout the story. It made me so very happy, I love a good romance. This one had hearts and flowers and a little sorrow mixed in to make it a great romance! I was hooked on Hooking Up **happy sigh**

I absolutely loved Hooking Up by Helena Hunting.

First met Amalie in Shacking Up and I gotta say I hated her boyfriend Armstrong. He seemed like the worlds biggest dickhead and sure enough he is and then some.... So many times I wanted to junk punch him.

The very first chapter literally had me yelling obscenities and wanting to inflict bodily harm on multiple people. LOL And poor Amalie she definitely didn't deserve what happens to her in this book but at the same time I gotta say I am sort of glad it did, because she deserves so much more. Amalie was doing what she thought would be best for her and her family. But I felt like she was suppressing who she really was which is fiesty baddass and I loved that side of her the most.

But wait for it, because Lexington OH MY GAWD Lexington he is the full package. Bad boy on the outside deliciously sexy with tats that make your mouth water and on the inside his thoughtfulness will make your ovaries explode. He gets a bad rap IMO or is it rep I dunno lol but regardless he's not all that he is made out to be by others and to me he is the knight in shining Armour.

This book had me all excited for Amalie and Lex. If any deserved to have a happy ending IMO it is these two. Throughout this book these two are absolutely sinfully hot together. They compliment each other so well. The sex is amazing and the backdrop to their time together is nothing short of romantic.

Of course there are some issues that get in their way and it left me aching a bit as they are almost in a forbidden relationship so to speak. I found myself devouring this wanting to find out whether or not these two can get the ending they deserve.

I will literally read anything that Helena Hunting writes. She is able to bring the humor without missing the heart of the story. She always brings the heat and the characters always have the best, but believable chemistry. I loved this book so much!

Hooking Up was everything I had hoped it would be. It was a story of heartbreak, but also one of healing. Helena Hunting's writing was fabulous! Despite Amie going through such an emotional ordeal, the book was super funny. And the setting! The Bora Bora backdrop couldn't have been anymore beautiful.

Amie was such a great character. She literally kicked ass. I loved that she was strong mentally and physically. Her reaction to Armstrong's cheating was perfect. The ups and downs she went through couldn't have been more perfect -- especially with Lex to help her heal.

Lex was pretty amazing himself. He may have been a little mischievous in the past, but he was a stand up guy in the present. The way he supported Amie during the downfall of her short marriage was so nice.

As for Armstrong -- I loved to hate that guy. He was the perfect jerk. I hated him from the moment I met him up until the very end. I'm happy he got what he deserved.

I absolutely loved this book! Romance lovers definitely should read it! Hooking Up is a standalone novel, but I really recommend reading Shacking Up first. Shacking Up is Bane and Ruby's story, and you'll see a lot of them in Hooking Up because Bane is Lex's brother and Ruby is Amie's best friend. Plus, Amie, Lex, and Armstrong are all introduced in Shacking Up. Reading both of these books in order will make the experience all that more fun. Both Shacking Up and Hooking Up are amazingly entertaining and hilarious romantic reads. I can't recommend them enough!

..

Wow what a read. Once again Helena has written another sexy must read. I loved Shacking up so much that I bought the paperback straight after and this was just as good. I loved that in this book we got to see what is going on with Ruby and Bancroft. We met Amelie in Shacking up and I knew then she needed her own story so I was so happy when she got one. It starts off with a bang . Amelie meeting Lexington and then Armstrong coming in and stealing his thunder so to speak lol. Then it fast forwards to Amelie and Armstrong wedding where Amelie by not even the end of the evening finds out the type of person she married and lets just say scum is being to nice to describe him, lets just say that every time Armstrong spoke to anyone in this book I swear I wanted to kick him in the balls I swear words cannot describe the hate I have for him lmao. After Amelies disaster of a wedding she decides to go on her honeymoon to Bora Bora alone ( and so she should), then she finds out that Armstrongs sexy swoon worthy single cousin ( who hates his cousin as much as his cousin hates him) is also going to Bora Bora.

You will have to read it to see what happens next and lets just say Armstrong does not make things easy at all. This can be read as a Standalone but I suggest you read Shacking up first trust me you wont regret it!!!

This book was everything! I love love all of Helena Hunting books. I won't get to into the book as you really need to read it. If you read Shacking Up you will know these characters. Hated Armstrong? Oh just you wait.
This is definitely one of my faves by this author.

Another great book from this author. After a humiliating occurrence at her own wedding. Amie take off her honeymoon by herself to get away from it all. While there she runs into a familiar face. He helps to distract her and make her forget all about her wedding. When they get back to the real world will they be able to stay away or will it be to hard? I loved this book and all the hilarious moments. This was also a very emotional read I truly enjoyed it.

It's a testament to Helena Hunting that this was a three-star read. A few too many of my reading NO-NOs and I was getting frustrated.

Amalie and...Mr X end up in a romantic hotspot after her husband (of a few hours) cheats on her. They fight the attraction. They hook up. She's filled with regrets. She does flaky whiny things. She drinks..a lot. And he remains this rockstars super-solid dude who should prolly realize that she needs like a year of therapy and haul ass.

Honestly, homeboy carried the book. He was sweet and sexy and a little naughty while Amalie never rose above tepid, insecure and a lush.

<b>"_______ is polished, but beneath that smooth exterior is the kind of bad boy I've always found myself hopelessly attracted to."</b>

I couldn't get past my issues - the jerky ex (honestly, how am I supposed to like a character stupid enough to marry a psychopath?!?!?), family pressure, the constant constant fleeing, rebound romance that should occur 4 months down the road not 4 days, and "problems" that could be resolved with a 14 minute conversation.

<b>"Energy crackles between us and I can't decide if it's in my head, or maybe because I'm slightly intoxicated, but for a very protracted moment I want to be alone with him. Naked and alone. I want to forget the mess my life is."</b>

Still, Hunting writes steamy, sweet characters with high-readability. Stuff that would make me chuck my kindle with another author just has me rolling my eyes and reading on. Not my favorite ever, but it could be worse...

<b>"'I don't ever want you to feel tethered in this life again. I just want to keep your heart safe, baby.'"</b>

Yes! Yes! Yes! I have been salivating waiting to read this ever since I read Getting Down in the Eye Candy Anthology. So okay, I have not read Shacking Up, but since I had read Getting Down I knew the characters. Do I think you need to read the other books to understand this book….no. Do I recommend reading them….YES!! Why? Because you will be in for a ride!

Where do I start with this story...With the bride who is left embarrassed and emotional after her husband just destroyed their relationship in front of strangers and family. Or the cousin who is drowning his sorrows while the girl he has a crush on marries his asshole of a cousin. Hmmmmm….I think I’ll start with Amalie

Anarchy Amie is a girl after my heart. She comes across as sweet and innocent, but really she is anything but. She’s feisty, snarky, loves to push boundaries, and is funny. For the past few years, she has taken on a role of sorts. She has become this girl who isn’t her...why? See her past hasn’t been the best with men and she hasn’t made the best decision when it comes to life choices. She always falls for the bad boys, so when she finds herself a man that is totally different and seems to check all the right boxes, she transforms herself to blend in more. Only she might be losing the real Amalie in the process. She is definitely attracted to another man, but it is just a big no-no...He is her soon to be husband’s cousin...his rival. But there is just something about Lexington that Amalie wants and desires.

Lexington oh my oh my...he is the perfect blend of sexy and funny. He can definitely melt your insides to goo. He can have any girl he wants except for one and he wants her. He sees there is more too Amalie than she allows people too see. He is intrigued by her, but he can’t cross the line even if he desperately wants too. I loved how he didn’t push Amie to be someone she wasn’t. He also didn’t push her to make choices that even though at the time would feel great, he didn’t want to damage her further than she was.

I loved the push and pull of these two together. They both wanted something, but were afraid of the consequences that could be potentially horrible for Amie. However, in the end they both chose to connect to one another both physically and emotionally. Could this relationship lead to a disaster for Amie? Will Lex have to sacrifice his families respect to get the girl of his dreams? Or will Amie stand up for herself and declare war?

Lex and Amie have powerful chemistry and it sent shivers down my spine a few times. These two set off fireworks and it was so delicious! I found myself laughing at the most awkward moments, but seriously the airport scene had me rolling! I loved how Amie could be herself, her true self with Lex. He was opening her up to be Anarchy Amie again and he was healing her. Lex and Amie just fit perfectly together and to see such an emotional connection between them was lovely. I could continue gushing on about these two, but you just need to read it for yourself.

I can’t even tell you how much I loved this book. It has it all...sexy moments, sweet and swoon worthy ones, it has humor and it has heartbreak. Helena is a relatively new author too me, but with each book I pick up I have not been disappointed. She has entertained me, surprised me with her engaging storylines and her characters are like-able and fun!

If you are interested in following this group of people, which you should because they freaking rock!! Honestly, they should just call it a series because it is. However, each book is a standalone with connecting characters. The order of the books is Shacking Up(Bane & Ruby), Getting Down(Novella Featuring Bane, Ruby, Lex and Amalie), Hooking Up(Lex & Amalie) and I Flipping Love You(Pierce & Rian)

There is also a mystery mentioned in the book concerning a possible new character...YES PLEASE!!
I highly recommend this book. It was sweet, sexy, and hilarious. 5 Stainless Steel Stars!!

5 star +++.
Helena what do you did !!! I totally loved this book, I devoured it in one sitting, it was all I expected and more, too hot, sexy, with chemistry, tender, funny, and great characters, my mind can not stop reproducing the scenes and dialogues of the book, I fell in love with this couple too.
Since I read Amie in the previous stories I knew her book would be too good and definitely I was not wrong, this story is completely addictive, every opportunity I had I slipped into a corner to read, because from the prologue to the epilogue kept me completely entertaining.
As we know, Amie has a horrible experience at her wedding, and she has to flee to Bora-Bora to escape all the pressure and problems that come up, I felt so bad for her, the truth is that humiliation is difficult to overcome. I do not want to delve into the wedding situation, for not to create spoilers, I'm just going to say that Armstrong is the stupidest character I've ever read and I hope he has no redemption. Helena should join him with Tash.
In her escape appears the protagonist, let me tell you, made my mouth water, is too perfect, sexy, tender, sweet, super hot, did I say sexy ?, and I LOVE his way of being and the support he gave Amie.

"Dear sweet lord of all things panty melting, this has to be the sexiest man to ever walk the planet. The only thing that would make him sexier would be if he was holding a puppy, or better yet, a baby."

"Regardless, it doesn’t matter if he’s dressed in a suit, wearing his glasses, screwing around on his laptop, wearing a pair of board shorts, naked and fucking me— he’s just sexy. And kind, and sweet, and smart."

Now, I LOVED the connection between the protagonists, that spark and chemistry that jumped with every look, every dialogue, every caress, still causes me shivers, butterflies in the stomach and makes me blush. It's so addictive, I can not stop thinking about this couple. And the sex scenes, boom, are simply spontaneous combustion.

"After what feels like far too many seconds of prolonged eye contact, the same heat that caused my cheeks to flush moves through my body, making my scalp, among other places, tingle."

"The connection we have. The electric burst of lust that rules my body every time she puts her hands on me. This is how it is between us. Always intense, out of control"

"She’s my sun and I’m her moon, connected by an invisible thread, bound but free."

Of course, I adored the secondary characters, Ruby, Bane, the dads, brothers, I died of love with them and their unconditional support to Amie.
For those who know the pen and stories of Helena, you know as I do that her stories are always super addictive and this was no exception, development, plot, takes you from fun, stress, sadness, tenderness, the sexual tension and that end that I loved. I guarantee that you will fall in love with the characters over and over again. Super recommended for all who read the two previous books of the series.

It is with mixed feelings that I write this review. On the one hand, I LOVED the swoon-worthy hero and liked the strong heroine as well. They are both very well developed, and the chemistry between them is palpable. On the other hand, my enjoyment of this book was very hampered by Amie's total douche of an (ex) husband. He kept showing back up, being more douchey every time, and even when he wasn't around, I kept cringing as I waited for him to show back up. Turns out that it was a trigger for me, and I don't necessarily think it would affect someone else's enjoyment of the book unless they shared such a trigger. With that being said, I really enjoyed the author's writing style, so much as that I'd like to go back and read the first book in this series, which I think I would enjoy a lot more. I also appreciate how strong the character of Amie is written. I kept expecting her to throw her hands up and cave at Armstrong's bullying at some point, but she never did. She gave him a very entertaining earful on each encounter. Yeah Amie! She is every emotionally bullied gal's hero. :-)

Such a fantastic and entertaining story.I loved every minute of Hooking Up , it was fun,sweet,super hot and the romance was incredible.The characters were fantastic.

Lexington is a swoon worthy hero, he is sexy,sweet and he likes Amie so much.Amie is one of my favorite heroines.Together they were perfect, seriously these two were so perfect for each other.They have some really hot and passionate moments together.They make me swoon all the time ,they are the cutest.

I find the storyline refreshing and maybe this is the reason why I loved it so much.It was a long time since I fell hard for a book.Hooking Up goes to my favorite books for 2017!! I highly recommend it to everyone!

Hooking Up, Helena Hunting

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance

This was a fun, spicy read, but not my favourite of Helena's books. I really enjoyed reading it, its a worthy 4 stars for me but not the spark that makes a five.

One of the reasons for that I guess is that its a very sensual read, and much of that spice covers a huge chunk of the story but only a couple of weeks in time, meaning the rest of the story tended to get a bit crammed. It'd be hot car encounter - very steamy and then...its several weeks later.
Though those gaps were covered it left me thinking did they really have no contact? what else went on? It just left me feeling a bit disconnected. 

The characters were great, Amie, perfect girl, but her past has lead her to try to save her family any more embarrassment and take the safe route.
She thinks Armstrong loves her, they will be happy and if he doesn't set her on fire, well, his respectability makes up for that.And then at the wedding reception all that goes so very wrong, and she faces what she knew in her heart, Armstrong isn't the good guy, the one for her, she deserves better.
She knew it really but wanted to please her family, and ignored all the little clues, started moulding herself with Armstrong's not so subtle hints into a stepford wife type lady. 

Armstrong, he really was a prig, so self assured, so much belief that his way was the only way. He doesn't regard blow jobs as cheating, tries to spin it that he was doing it for Amie, so that he could last longer with her later...WTF, the man's incapable of seeing his actions are ever wrong.He even says in their sphere its accepted that a man have a couple of mistresses and they don't count, that Amie is making a fuss over nothing, bringing bad publicity to the family. she's had a lucky escape.

Hottie hook-up - I think that's what Amie's best friend Ruby calls him, ( as requested by author I'm avoiding naming him!!) - is gorgeous, a great man but there are things he's keeping quiet about for reasons that are clear later . I loved him, so kind, genuinely so, and so sensual. He knows what he's doing when it comes to sex, and he's happy to explore further, to have fun. He was perfect for Amie, but she needed to get rid of Armstrong first and that guy's not going easily....

There are some funny moments here, bits that made me smile, ( the luggage inspection) and some sad ones too.
The sex, wow, hot and steamy and fitted the story so well, its just that at times it took the place of possible plot expansion, filled the time when the story could have been moving forward.
Its not a hugely long book, 4373 kindle locations - and the sex does take up a disproportionate amount of time I feel, making that actual story a bit rushed. I would have liked parts to be more expanded. Still, that's just me, others are happy to have less story and more sex...you can't please everyone.

Stars: four, a fun and sensual read. 

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

I’m sure every Rom-Com fan is counting down to the Release day of Hooking Up and all I need to say is you will not be disappointed, the Queen of Romantic Comedy has once again given us a book that will captivate you, it’s a fun, hot read with characters that will keep you entertained.
Married to the wrong guy, trying to get your wedding annulled and finding out you on a island with the man you should have dated is just the tip of the iceberg in this story.
This author has a knack of writing hilarious scenes and making the best of any situation, this book has it all, I wanted to give Armstrong a slap and I really wanted Amie and Lex to get the HEA they so deserved because they are the perfect couple who will have you in stitches with their banter and humour, it was also great to catch up with the gang from Shacking Up and I really hope there’s more to come from this group of friends.
Brilliant read that I could not put down.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Having finished Shacking Up not long ago I was super excited to receive an ARC of the book, and just like Shacking up it was just as funny.

It’s Amalie’s wedding and what should be the happiest day of her life soon turns into the worst, when her new husband is heard by her and almost the entire wedding party getting jiggy with someone else. In a moment of shock, she throws herself at the first guy she sees but Lex wants more than to become a revenge screw. In an attempt to escape all the wedding drama Amalie packs up her stuff and goes on her Honeymoon only to discover that Lex is headed in the same place for business.

– What happens in Bora Bora stays in Bora Bora right?

Realising that they are staying on the same island Amalie and Lex decide to have a fling and spend a few weeks getting to know one another very intimately. What they didn’t count on was falling in love.

Not only was this book laugh out loud funny it was also very sweet. I enjoyed the chemistry between Amalie and Lex it felt real and genuine. I loved Amalie’s resilience to all the bullshit that Armstrong threw her way, this guy is such a douche I already disliked him when he was first mentioned in Shacking Up, he had all the signs of a manipulator from early on.

In comparison Lex was like a breath of fresh air, completely the opposite of Armstrong, I liked how from the get-go he looked after Amalie, and even though he knew he had feelings for Amalie he didn’t have any expectations and was happy to just give her what she needed, whether that was a shoulder to cry on, time or some hot and steamy sex!

This book is told in the first person from dual perspectives of Amalie and Lex. The writing was clear and easy to follow and I liked the pace at which the story unfolded. It was also lovely to see Ruby and Bane again. I loved these two in Shacking Up!

Oh Amie. I hate to say I told you so but we all saw this coming. Armstrong is a dirty rat. Most of us sniffed him out from a mile away.

Now if you caught the snippet in the Eye Candy Anthology you knew where this was going to go. And I, for one, couldn't wait!

There was something else I couldn't wait for. Anarchy Amie. I love her. That is who Amie is meant to be.

This book was not only hilarious (the airport scene made me snort!) but heart warming, hot and beautiful.