In the Eye of the Storm

Holly is Stephen’s overworked assistant who was falling for him. Holly tolerated the long hours but picking up her boss in the middle of the night is a breaking point for her. Stephen is a workaholic and Holly is always by his side, so when Stephen friends call him out on his feeling for Holly he’s all out of sorts. After being together for a weekend because of a storm changes their relationship completely.


Catering to the CEO

I thoroughly enjoyed Catering to the CEO. Cassie is so sweet and likable were as Adam is the character you love to hate, but you find yourself rooting for him in the end. The chemistry between them is hot and I loved the bantering between them. What an enjoyable story

Thx -- will add to an upcoming roundup at RetailMeNot

Two enjoyable stories are included in the volume. They are similar to each other but different enough to make it worth reading. This is the perfect beach read: light, fun, and you know there is going to be a Happy Ever After .

In the first story, Holly is Stephen’s assistant at work. He is demanding and takes advantage of her time, but the two realize there is something worth exploring between them. The second story, featuring Adam and Cassie, was good, but Adam was hard to like at different points of the story. Both stories show men learning to be vulnerable, which is heart-warming. I believe the Stephen’s story is my favorite of the two but I enjoyed both.

There is a lot to like about this duo of CEO centered romance novels. Samantha Chase writes a lot love stories about imperfect people finding their perfect matches and these two titles do not disappoint.

In the Eye of the Storm is a steamy tale about the workaholic CEO who finally realizes his beautiful, dedicated assistant could be everything he never knew he needed in a woman. I enjoyed the chemistry between the characters and it was an easy, enjoyable read.

Catering the CEO features a cute story about Cassie, a caterer/event planner and the brooding CEO Adam, who hires her to handle corporate events. The characters seem to have a natural chemistry and I enjoyed their connection. But I feel like the story ended before they fully dealt with some of their conflicts or Cassie is just a little too forgiving.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

In the Eye of the Storm
Holly works like a slave for the oblivious Stephen who is busy building his business. Stephen puts in long hours and weekends and expects Holly to do the same, as they've done for the last three years.
Until the night she gets a call at 2 a.m. to go pick him up on the other side of town, in the middle of a tropical storm. She's furious. Can't understand why he didn't phone one of his friends, or his driver. No, she gets the call. This sets off a chain of thoughts in her head about how he takes advantage of her so by the time she gets to the bar on the other side of town, she walks in to find him slumped over the bar. He's drunk and not very nice. She's livid and reads him the riot act during the ride home, especially when he programs her GPS for his house. 30 miles away. Which means she'll get home at about 5 a.m. She tells him she's quitting. She's had enough. Because of the storm she has to spend the night, when she tries to leave the next day the route in blocked by downed trees so she has no choice but to return to the house. They spend a relaxing day together, staying away from the hot topics like work and her leaving. He got into a fight with his two best friends the night before in that bar because of her. While he gives he some sketchy details, she's still in the dark. He's made in clear through their working together he's not interested in anything but his business and she's sent a few kiss off gifts to a few dates he's had to know he doesn't do relationships. There's heats up and they end up smoking the sheets. Honestly, I didn't feel the chemistry. Between his meddling friends, one who was a real dick and totally screwed with both of them, I was glad when this story was over. Stephan couldn't get out of his own way. The only one with a pair was actually Holly.

Catering the the CEO
Cassie has had it with the almighty Adam and quits. Truthfully I skimmed this one after reading the first 20 plus pages I couldn't stomach Adam. There was nothing appealing about him, he was a snake.
Cassie was great and her family as well. The secondary characters pulled this together a little more unfortunately there was too much Adam and his crap attitude to deal with and wow Cassie was his whipping post. Let me back up, no one escaped Adam's wrath. Thankfully this was a short read.

I wanted to like these two novellas, the blurb lured me in and this is my first read from Samantha I believe. But honestly it was a struggle to get through them. They weren't for me, but I'm certain there is an audience for these two reads out there.

3.5 stars

**arc from NetGalley and publisher for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

This collection contains two rather similar romances with professional women falling for business associate who starts out the novel as a really obnoxious guy who treats the woman in a totally insensitive and selfish way. We’re supposed to buy that these strong, smart women suddenly turn around and fall for the hot guy who treated them pretty badly. It took me a lot longer to flip and like the heroes of both novels. In the first novel, “In the Eye of the Storm,” Holly Abrams’ boss keeps her working at all hours and calls her in on weekends and in the middle of the night. He seems oblivious that it is inconsiderate to treat his assistant as if she has no life and lives to serve him. She unloads on him and he wakes up to how he’s been treating her and then everything is fine. That was easy.

In the second novel, Cassie runs a catering service and she gets fed up with how her best customer, millionaire Adam Lawrence, keeps changing his demands for her services. She tells him off and her family gives him the evil eye. He wakes up to how great she is and soon everything is fine between them. That was easy.

I didn’t buy these romances. I would also have liked a bit more detail on the businesses that these two guys run. It’s never that clear what the business is in the first novel. In the second one, he runs a security service but it’s not clear why he’s always needing catered meals. I dislike when characters are being given a mere veil of a job with no realistic description of what they do. Add in unrealistic romances and neither book thrilled me.

I was given a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

In the Eye of the Storm:
Definitely one of Samantha Chase's earlier works. Her writing has matured significantly since then. I loved the story though, and Stephen's friends played a pivotal role in how the story played out. I liked Holly's character, but they both needed to just TALK and many of the problems would have been resolved earlier.

Catering to the CEO:
Another early Samantha Chase book. I loved the story, but thought that Adam was a bit of a jerk during the first half of the story. He redeems himself in the end. Cassie was sweet and a great cook, but she did so much more than catering. She was almost a party planner for Adam's business meetings/retreats.

Sooooo...I thought this was one book. Turns out, it’s two. Not that that’s a bad thing but not what I anticipated. This was a pretty cute story about a completely oblivious man and the woman who dotes on him. As you would predict their communication skills are terrible and everything goes a little sideways befor the HEA. Predictable but really sweet.

In the Eye of the Storm

It's 2 a.m. and Holly Abrams is on her way to pick up her overly demanding boss, Stephen Ballinger. First he demands 12-14 hour days, then he steals her weekend mornings, now this? Holly lets loose, giving Stephen a piece of her mind. He's shocked that she feels that way; he thought that they had a great working relationship. This makes Holly even madder. Then downed trees make it impossible for her to get back to her house and she has to stay with Stephen at his giant mansion. Somehow, seeing Holly wet, in sweatpants, and without makeup makes Stephen wake up to how truly beautiful she really is.

In the Eye of the Storm / Catering to the CEO by Samantha ChaseI would hope that if this book were written today, the Big Misunderstanding would be greatly changed. As it was, it made me very aware that this was a re-issue.



Three stars



Catering to the CEO

Adam Lawrence didn't become a millionaire CEO by letting people walk all over him. Cassie Jacobs, caterer, doesn't seem to care. She has a contract that says that he can't make changes two weeks before his event, so when he tries to do so 11 days in advance, she walks out. That would be the end except that they see each other again that night when they discover that her dad is dating his mom. It is seeing Cassie outside of work that makes Adam really discover that she's a beautiful woman underneath. Too bad I can't say the same about him. Adam is a real alphahole. Like, think late 80s alphahole only concerned with his problems and only wanting Cassie when he can't have her. I actively disliked him and wouldn't have finished this had it been a full book.



Two stars.



Two and a half stars

This book comes out April 3

ARC kindly provided by NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for a review. This book was a lovely surprise in many ways, the first of which was that there were two stories in it!
The first story tells of Holly and Stephen. Holly has been Stephen’s PA for three years and has an unrequited crush on him the whole time, but it’s not until the night of a storm that leaves them stranded together that there is finally a change in their relationship. I really loved the character of Holly in this story because she experiences what I often do. She finally speaks up about all the things that are bothering her at work and Stephen very kindly agrees to change them all, but once she has what she wants, Holly determines that it’s not as good as what she had. The characters in this book were so human and relatable! I also liked how the supportive friends were the guys in this book! It made a nice change from the regular. The book has a great pace and no lulls; I definitely had to keep reading until I was finished!
The second story was a surprise to me and while I was expecting it to be about one of the friends from the first story it wasn’t. It was completely unrelated and told the story of CEO Adam Lawrence and caterer Cassie Jacobs. Again they have worked together for three years and have had a very professional relationship. It is not until Cassie speaks her mind that the relationship changes.
As I was reading along, I was thinking that there were a lot of instances of Adam being a jerk in this book, but then I realized that that was perfect because it was true to his character. I really loved the sweetness in the relationship in this story which has Adam taking care of Cassie when she is unwell. It showed the dichotomy that existed within Adam and gave hope that he would come around right from the beginning. The supporting cast of the Jacobs family was also awesome! I’d like to be adopted into this family!
Overall, both of these stories were wonderful! I did nothing but read until I was done and simply couldn’t put the book down! I would highly recommend these two stories to any romance reader who enjoys a strong female lead and a sweet, yet spicy read!

This duo of books from Samantha Chase is a re-issue of some of her earlier titles.

The Eye of the Storm 3 stars

This was a pretty straightforward and predictable romance between a CEO and his assistant. For years Holly Abrams has been Stephen Ballinger’s assistant and basically right hand often keeping him on track and jumping in to help smooth over presentations and deal with clients. When he gets into a knockdown, drag out fight with his two best friends it is Holly he calls to pick him up at the bar and when she gets there her temper flies and she lays everything on the line about how he takes advantage of her and expects her to give up her nights and weekends to be at his beckon call. Finding out he fought his two best friends because of comments they made about her leaves them both reeling. I found myself at times loving these two together and then scratching my head at the fact that despite all the time they spent together they really didn’t know each other at all. I hated that they were both so defensive and had a hard time communicating what they wanted but were obviously so compatible in their working relationship and in their intimate moments. This was an easy romance in that there really was nothing hugely dramatic and they figured out how to make their relationship work for them both.

Catering to the CEO 3 stars

This was a book I think I could have really loved if the hero hadn’t been such an alphahole and the point of view didn’t change around so much that it made me dizzy. Cassie Jacobs is an event planner and has built her business from the ground up largely due to lucrative, repeat business from CEO Adam Lawrence, but when Adam makes some unreasonable demands for an event less than 2 weeks out Cassie decided enough is enough and so he threatens to replace her and while she’s angry about it, she realizes it is for the best until at a family dinner she realizes that her father’s new lady friend is Adam’s mother and they are about to be family by marriage. There were a lot of ups and downs in this book and I’ll be honest in saying that Adam’s overbearing ways and the way he jumped to conclusions constantly made me question how he ran a company successfully. While I enjoyed watching their relationship blossom and seeing Adam’s softer side, it didn’t hang around long enough to make me love him or this story. I did love that Cassie wasn’t afraid to stand up to him. Overall, this book had enough good to keep me reading, but it isn’t one I’ll read again.

One woman finds that falling in love with her boss, can cost her more than her job, unless she proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that she is NOT living for his every corporate whim, but he needs her in every way, for the rest of his life.

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM by Samantha Chase is a light and often humorous tale of cat and mouse, where the big cheese learns the hard way that his heart needs more than good dictation when he finally sees Holly for the strong woman she is. I loved their interaction and have to say, Holly had a point to make and did so quite well! Sweet, light, charming! 4.5 Stars

****************

Adam Lawrence is about to learn that you will reap what you sow when the beautiful and talented Cassie outwits him and teaches him a lesson about life what success in life really means and it all starts with family.

Samantha Chase’s CATERING TO THE CEO is a little darker, with a lot more tension. I was most definitely NOT a fan of Adam’s which made it hard for me to see what Cassie saw in him. It was a good story, just not my favorite the very talented Samantha Chase! 3.5 Stars

Anytime you can get two stories under one cover by a wonderful author, you have to love the opportunity to witness two pairs of conflicted souls muddling through life and finding love!

I received a complimentary ARC edition from Sourcebooks Casablanca!

Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: April 3, 2018
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Print Length: 416 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews & More: http://tometender.blogspot.com

Two fabulous stories in one bundle. I the first “Eye of the Storm”, Steven needs the help of his assistant Holly in the middle of the night in the middle of a storm. Once they are safely at his house the storm keeps Holly from returning home and they are left together where sparks fly and passion ignites but once they are back in the real world, will their affair become a real relationship or will they go back to being boss and assistant? In the second “Catering to the CEO” Cassie finds herself in a predicament when she needs to break the contract with the CEO she has been catering for, Adam, only to find out he is the son of her father’s fiancé. Now that they are going to become family, a truce is made and the work continues. But seeing her in a different light, Adam suddenly has feelings for her, can he act in them? Or is it best to end both the working and emotional relationships? Samantha Chase once again writes beautiful characters that the reader cannot help but fall in love with. This collection should not be missed.

Great read! Both of the stories in this book are a great read. A beastly boss who falls in love with a woman that he has over looked before this and you get to go on the charming ride to find out that he really is a good guy who has just lost his way and needs her to help him find it again .

In The Eye of the Storm is an utterly sweet and endearing story all around. Holly was an overworked executive assistance who was in love with her boss but always kept their relationship professional. Stephen was the executive Holly worked for, the one that never realized what he had until his friends made some lewd comments about Holly. That interaction triggered a series of events that changed both their lives forever. 4.5 stars

Catering to the CEO For all that Cassie was sweet and endearing, Adam was not a very likable character or someone that would get you to rally behind him. There is a balance between wounded and causing wounds on others. Adam caused wounds time and time again to Cassie, 3.5 stars.

I received this ARC copy In the Eye of the Storm from SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca. This is my honest and voluntary review. In the Eye of the Storm is set for publication April 3, 2018.

My Rating: 4 stars
Written by: Samantha Chase
Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Publication Date: April 3, 2018
Genre: Contemporary Romance

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Two for the price of one is a real treat. I have read Catering to the CEO, before. I enjoyed reading it again. Into the Eye of the Storm, was new to me though. I got to say I kept thinking that it would be nice if it was book one and Stephen's two friends maybe got a book also.

IN THE EYE OF THE STORM:

Stephen is a little to slow for Holly's patience at times, “what took you so long?” she said as she grabbed his tie and pulled him into the house." Stephen could be an animal when he wanted to be, "Holly had no idea Stephen could move that fast. She squealed with delight as they rolled around on the bed until he was on top of her, looking down into her face, his eyes piercing hers. “You will not be going to work for anyone,”he growled and gave her a heated kiss." I liked this book, I loved that Holly stood her ground.



CATERING TO THE CEO:

Adam subconsciously seems to always go to his woman, "...he realized he was driving not toward his house but toward her shop." Cassie is like the sweetest person, at times I wonder what Adam does to deserve her, “here,” she said. “Take the leftovers for yourself for dinner another night. I know you’ll still have to nuke them, but at least they’re homemade.” Adam is just really over the moon for his girl, "...He wanted to see if she needed anything. Mainly, him." I liked this book, Adam I swear to God was bi-polar or something, but I loved it, it made him Adam.