I wish more m/m had characters that are bisexual (and other sexualities besides just gay). It's so underrepresented in this genre, and I appreciate it so much. I thought this story was so adorable. Stories with kids can be hit or miss for me because so many authors don't age their child characters appropriately. I thought this one was fine though! I'm reading another series by this author now, as I really enjoyed the writing style and voice. I can't wait to see what she's releasing next.

I loved this book! Super cute. Will recommend for sure! This book was exactly what I didn't know I was looking for!

4 Stars

After the death of his partner, Olivia, Kyle, along with his 6 year-old daughter Caroline, move back in with his father in his small home-town of Red Creek. There he meets his daughter’s teacher, Adam, who after a bad breakup also moved to Red Creek a couple of years prior. It’s attraction at first sight, but as Caroline’s teacher, Adam knows he can’t get involved with Kyle. Can these two men keep their relationship strictly professional?

I’ve had this book on my TBR list for a while now and I finally got some free time to fit it in and I really enjoyed it, it was a great read and I loved both Kyle and Adam, well, eventually I loved them both. There were definitely times where I didn’t care for one or both of them and maybe wanted to knock their heads together.

The story is well-written and it flowed pretty well. Kyle and Adam had amazing chemistry and once they give into their attraction they were hot hot hot together.

I loved Kyle’s relationship with his daughter Caroline, who was just absolutely adorable. My only real problems with the story were related to Caroline's mother, Olivia. I was confused about Kyle’s relationship with Olivia, at first. I wasn’t sure if she was just a friend or someone that he had a child with or if they were actually a couple. It wasn’t made clear at first. I also felt Olivia was too big a part of the story. Not so much for Adam, but concerning Kyle, it’s only been 7 months since she passed away and it felt too soon in my opinion. I felt like because it was so recent she was a huge part of Kyle and Adam’s relationship and Kyle tended to think about her or bring her up quite often, and at times even compared Adam to her and for me, it felt a little unfair to Adam. I would also have thought that Caroline would have been much more affected by her mother’s passing. She seemed to take it a little too well, in my opinion.

Besides those things, this was a really enjoyable story and I’m looking forward to more from this author in the future. A really enjoyable read that’s definitely recommendable!

*copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

The book was...cute. It was nothing special. I did like Caroline, and I generally liked both Adam and Kyle, but the story just wasn't working for me, There's a lot of 'we shouldn't' and they do, the story with Olivia is pushed so far back that we get to know nothing...

It isn't a bad book, I think, and it is cute, but it just wasn't something I'd really enthuse about.

I wish I enjoyed The Pick Up by newbie author, Allison Temple, more. But I didn't.

Okay, there isn't anything wrong with it exactly, except that it felt endlessly, endlessly long.

The story had lots of starts and stops. The men get together... then they don't. They show an inch of progress... then it goes to crap. The back and forth got really tired after some time, to be honest. I love a good slow-burn, but this was more like slow-cold-shoulder.

I don't mind a story about a family, but I found the book to be a little heavy and more focused on the father/daughter and teacher/student dynamics than I would have liked. I wanted more romance and more oomph, but I found that part of the story to be a little flat.

For me, the romance wasn't nearly strong enough to carry a story of this length. I think I needed more wow, more of an emotional punch. However, I do hope to see more from Allison Temple in the future.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

The Pick Up by Allison Temple was probably one of the cutest books I've read in a long time. I really liked Kyle and his devotion to his family. Not once did he put anyone else before his daughter, and I found that admirable. On the other hand, Adam's point of view is what I found myself looking forward to through the whole book. He was kind, generous, and cared about the people in his life.
The only thing I didn't like about The Pick Up was the amount of "Mr. Hathaway"s. It got old incredibly fast, and I do understand why it was used so much, but I think Kyle called him Adam maybe only 1 out of every 4 times.

This was a cute sweet story that focused more on building a relationship outside the bedroom ( which is present) but doesn’t dominate the story. I found myself smiling a lot while witnessing Adam stumble through his feelings for his daughter’s 1st grade teacher and Kyle trying to readjust to life back in small hometown.

As a parent, I understood Kyle’s struggle. It’s hard to open your heart to another after losing your wife and child’s mother. As for Adam, I had to be patient with him. He was so caught up in what he perceived was the path to happiness instead of living in the moment and appreciating reality for what it is.

Both of these MC’s made me laugh out loud quite a few times. I adore Kyle's surly nature and being in his head as he groused over Adam’s many injustices. I also enjoyed Adam’s unrestrained vocal parry regardless of who he was sparring with.

This is one of those feel-good stories that you can’t help but love. There’s a lot of “meat” to this story that is delivered in small funny bites which makes this a satisfying light-hearted read. I’m looking forward to more.

~ 3.5 Stars ~

The Pick Up, by Allison Temple, delivered just what I hoped the adorable cover was advertising: a cute, low-angst, fun read. The story wasn’t perfect, but that’s ok. I was able to brush off the few little issues I had and enjoy it for the parts that worked so well. There are plenty of reasons to like this book—small-town setting, an adorable kid, good bisexual representation, great characters (I’m looking at you, Fenton clan), and humor to name a handful.

Kyle was my favorite. The author’s description of him, and all his fabulous graphic tees, fit his personality so perfectly. And, I loved how driven he was, even though his job situation was so challenging. It was tough moving back home, what with everyone knowing his business and offering un-asked for help, and the lack of privacy that came with living with his dad, but Kyle had to do what was best for him and his six-year-old daughter, Caroline, after their life in Seattle unraveled. I also loved, loved Caroline and Kyle’s dad. They were a big part of the combination of things that made the book so enjoyable.

Adam was a bit tougher of a sell for me. I did like him and ultimately thought he was a good fit for Kyle and Caroline, but he was so over the top and melodramatic at times, especially during the small conflict toward the end, that I wasn’t as in love with him as I was with Kyle. He was obviously an excellent teacher, though, and I liked how sold on the community he was. He clearly appreciated living in Red Creek and being so close to his sister, though it was a sort of reluctant closeness. Rebecca was a busybody, though, so I don’t blame him!

Temple has a very nice start to her series here. I smiled and/or laughed through just about all of it. The romance was slow burn, which was good considering Kyle recently lost his girlfriend, who was also his best friend, and Adam had a difficult breakup involving a coworker. Even though the conflict and Adam’s behavior didn’t quite work for me, I definitely enjoyed where they ended up; the epilogue was very cute. And, I just realized that the author is going to be at GRL this October. So, I look forward to seeing her there! Maybe I’ll have another Red Creek installment to discuss before then. 😊

The first word that comes to mind when I think about The Pick Up is cute. Given the cover and description, I'm sure that comes as no real surprise. Even so, there's a lot more to this book than that... (it is a really cute story though ;) )

So, some of you might have picked up on the fact that I'm a sucker when it comes to cute kids that actually contribute to the story and aren't just thrown into the mix. Trust me when I say that Emily, Kyle's daughter, is that kind of character. She's smart, funny, adorable and keeps her dad, Mr. Hathaway and Kyle's dad on their toes. Princess Emily was just one of the things about The Pick Up that I loved though.

The sense of family was strong in The Pick Up and I liked that... a lot. There are so many books (as important as I think they are) that leave gay/bi characters with no support from family at all. I like it when families are strong and supportive. Both Kyle and Adam had that. Although Kyle's dad may not understand him all the time, his love for him never wavered. In the end, he just wanted his son and his granddaughter to be happy.

Both Kyle and Adam had personal struggles. They both had other people to think of than themselves, but together they were so much stronger than they were when they were apart.

In short, Up Red Creek is off to an amazing start and I can't wait to see what Allison Temple has in store for characters in the next installment. ;)

DNF @ 63%, so no rating.

I really wanted to like this book - the setup was so sweet and cute. Unfortunately, I think this book was going for adorkable but really missed the mark. Things were awkward in a cringe-worthy way, and there was too much flip-flopping between we can and we can't. And to be honest, at 63%, this book was still way too long.

I won't be continuing with the series.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, primarily because of the snarky, sarcastic back and forth between Kyle and Adam.

This book is enemies to lovers and hot for (your kid's) teacher and returning home and finding exactly what you never knew you always wanted.

With sharp and snappy dialogue, lots of giggle-snorts, a slow-burn romance, and a good chunk of character growth for both MCs, I simply flew through the pages.

The characters are complex and flawed, and felt realistic to me. One small niggle is that Kyle's relationship with Olivia, his daughter's mother, wasn't really explained deeply enough for my taste.

I might have shed a tear for Adam and how scared he was to trust again, and for Kyle still grieving for Olivia, but also cheered for them when they finally got it together.

This was my first book by this author, and I'm interested to see what else she has to offer.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars

This is a seriously sweet family romance. Set in a small town, it is the story of a single dad who falls for his daughter’s first grade teacher. Kyle’s attraction to Adam is complicated by the fact that he and his daughter are still grieving the loss of her mother and by Kyle’s struggle to readjust to life back in his hometown after years away in Seattle.

There are a couple of steamy scenes in this book, but it is mostly a family drama. Kyle’s life revolves around six-year-old Caroline and they live with his father. I’m not a huge fan of domestic small-town romances and there were a few too many cute kid moments for me in this one. I really liked the fact that sexuality was a non-issue for all the characters in this story. There is no closeted angst here – just two men struggling to figure out how to make a relationship work.

The story only just touches on Adam’s baggage and the reason for his move to a small town elementary school. I think I might have understood his reservations about Kyle more if I’d known more about his background from the start. As it is, these two guys have pretty rubbish communication skills. I understood Kyle’s skittishness, but Adam just seemed to run hot and cold.

This is a little bit too cute for me but I’m sure other readers will enjoy the often adorable scenes of domestic bliss and the connection between two sweet men.

This story had a lot of funny passages. It made me laugh more than once.
Kyle is somewhat a boyish guy.. a lot of humor is coming out of his mouth...
Recently, because of urgent family matters, he lives with his daughter 'Beans' with and at his fathers house in a very small town called Red Creek.
When he runs late to pick up his daughter from school he gets a reprimand from her teacher... Mr Hathaway. Impressed by this hot teacher he can't get him out of his head and he doesn't know Mr Hathaway has the same going on his head.

Life hasn't been easy on both of them. Adam Hathaway turned to Red Creek after a bad ending relationship, because of this experience he refuses to get involved around work with someone ever again. So his attitude toward Kyle is a bit out of place. There is a lot of push and pull. Kyle is the playful one of them and also the one to initiative. They have besides their ongoing arguments also time to relax together... those parts were fun. Adam even dares to dream.
Kyle's field of work isn't as he has hoped so....but hey...he never planned to stay in Red Creek....

A lovely story I had warm feelings for Kyle's personality and after a while I defrost for Adam.
Kyle as father was really nice put down. His daughter of six Caroline was a sweetheart. The mother of Caroline slash partner of Kyle has died and her personality has a vague place in this story as the love life of Kyle and her did. Kyle's father and the community of Red Creek has a good part in this story. The struggling relationship between Kyle and Adam was good put down.
It was a nice written story, engaging, it had a fun dynamic.

Every few months I go to NetGalley and request some soon-to-be-available titles that have cute covers and interesting stories. Every few months I get turned down for most but the few I get approved rarely disappoint me. The Pick Up had a super cute cover and a story that got me questioning how the two main characters could make things work. I was in for the happy ending that I was sure I was going to get. Come on, you don’t throw that kind of cover for a story that’s going to have a bitter ending, right? No way!

A few months after the death of his wife and best friend, Kyle is struggling with life so he packs his things and takes his daughter back with him to his dad’s house and the town he left behind after finishing high school. He meets Mr. Adam Hathaway, his daughter Caroline’s first grade teacher. It’s almost lust at first sight. Kyle is bisexual and his heart hadn’t made that much beating since he became a widow, and Adam wasn’t planning on finding someone like Kyle when all he wanted was to lay low and avoid unnecessary complications. Life has a way to make things work even in the messiest of lives.

I have to admit that I usually get a lot affected by the ratings. I try not to but the number gets stuck in my head. Seeing that this book had less than 4 stars got me a little anxious. I’m usually easily pleased so I wasn’t really worried. If this book didn’t have the elements I usually hate in books, then I was going to be okay. And I was. I was entertained, my heart did weird things, joy and sadness mixed well together and I was giggling, gasping, smiling softly at those two dumb men and their attempt to understand what was going on between them.

Losing someone you love is hard; everywhere you see their presence, you get daily reminders of their absence, thinking about them is easy yet so hard at times. Grieving never ends; it gets easy with time but you will forever miss that person and someone else will never fill the void they left. That doesn’t mean you won’t be happy anymore. As I said, life has ways to surprise you. Some may think that Kyle was getting himself involved with Adam too soon after the death of his wife but there’s no soon or late, there’s not a settled time to grief, there are no rules to your heart. You are not really moving on, you are only finding happiness when you thought happiness didn’t have a place in your heart at least for a while.

Kyle didn’t thought he was going to feel so much for Adam, he wasn’t looking for love when he looked at him that first time. Kyle has so much going on with Caroline, with his job, with the memories of his wife and the panic attacks that not having a clue what to do with his life causes him. But maybe, just maybe, even if loving Adam wasn’t planned and it came when it wasn’t ideal, it was exactly what Kyle needed. Maybe he will find his place in this new world without his wife, with a six-year-old girl obsessed with princesses, a father who sighs loudly at his vegetarian cuisine, and a man who teaches the food groups but only buys from the frozen isle at the supermarket.

I was happy to get to know the both of them better with the two different POVs narration. Getting to know both sides, both inner monologues, make it easier to empathize and understand what’s really going on. It also makes you angrier because you can clearly see the misunderstandings forming and you can’t do anything but wait and hope they speak and work it out.

I am happy I read this book and I liked a lot the writing style. Will I be coming back for more from this author? You bet I will!

There was a lot about this that had potential. I liked the idea of Kyle revisiting his hometown and reconnecting there. I liked the idea of a nerdy teacher giving him a run for his money and I thought his daughter was adorable. (Later in the story I also really liked Kyle’s father, too.)

For me, unfortunately, I never really liked Kyle all that much. I didn’t connect strongly with him, or understand his background fully. While I thought it was cute at first, his calling Adam “Mr Hathaway” all the time got under my skin. Since our guys spend so much time struggling, I really wanted them to have a decisive HEA and it’s only tepid.

I won’t say that I’m looking forward to book 2 in this series, but if the blurb is intriguing I wouldn’t turn it down based on this experience.

This might be a case of “it’s not the book, it’s me” but this just didn’t work for me that well.

3 of 5 stars

**I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review**

So, you have super adorable hipster Kyle, who is Single Dad Extraordinaire, and currently working a multitude of jobs to make ends meet. He’s late to pick up Caroline, his first grader, one day when Adam, Caroline’s hot, stern teacher, is working the pick-up line. The two meet and initially sparks fly based off looks, but neither knows the other is gay, but they don’t make assumptions. Kyle attempts to befriend Adam, while Adam is determined to maintain his distance due to a bad experience at his previous job. Eventually, the spark is ignited into embers that rapidly burn through our two male protagonists, but a happily ever after isn’t, of course, as easy as we’d all hope.

What an adorable, feel-good story! I couldn’t help but smile through the majority of it, even with Caroline and Kyle’s tragic history. This was exactly the pick-me-up I needed after a long, dreary week.

I love the cover. It's so bright and cheerful. I expected this book to make me smile, and it did. 

Let me start by saying, this is a MM romance and I thoroughly reading it. It was a fun, light read. I had a smile on my face when it ended. And, the steamy scenes in the middle might have made me blush. Exactly what I look for in a weeknight read. Plus, the book takes place in a small town and I love small towns. 

My absolute favorite part of this book was six-year-old Caroline. She was such a refreshing addition to the story and had such a big personality. I shy away from books where children are involved, because I have a hard time relating, and because they often seem like an afterthought. Not here though, with her princess costumes and negotiations, Caroline was the star of the book. I thought it was amazing to see a child added to a MM romance story in a respectful and appropriate way. 

Reading about Kyle with Caroline, my goodness. I couldn't take the smile off my face. I appreciated how the author made sure the child was front and center in every decision that was made. 

I cringed watching Kyle and Adam become friends. There were times I wanted to shove them both and tell them they were being idiots. Then I swooned and fell in love with them both. Sometimes I laughed, sometimes I blushed. I was right there with them as they realized just being friends wasn't an option. Kyle and Adam were so cute together. 

Overall, The Pick Up was a sweet book (with a couple steamy bits). It left me so happy and I would recommend it for anyone looking for a mid-week pick me up.

I thought this book was totally adorable.
6 year old Caroline was a spunky little thing that you just couldn't help not loving.

Adam was kind of a prick in the beginning, but while you were in his POV it was kind of funny. He seems to be a man of few words (which is kind of odd for a first grade teacher, but maybe not a relationship stunted one). I don't think he quite knew how to take Kyle and Caroline's energy.

Kyle doesn't quite have a filter so the things that come out of his mouth can be quite awkward, but funny and Dare I say, adorable? As the chapters move back and forth through their different POVs it's fun to see. Kyle quirky and energetic and the perfect (single) dad to a 6 year old girl. He's fun yet stern and even a good influence in his dad's life. Kyle is all about the eating healthy and taking care of his family, Caroline is the most important thing to him.

While Kyle and Adam have both had some terrible things happen to them, this story didn't feel that dramatic to me. Kyle found it odd that the entire town wanted to help him, he didn't quite understand this at first. He wanted everyone out of his business and not pity him when it came to Caroline and her mother. It took him a fight with Adam and a 6 hour drive to Richmond to understand what he would be giving up if he left again.



All in all This was a very sweet, low drama light read

I received this arc from Netgalley for an honest review.
I'm not even sure why I finished this book other than to learn more about Kyle and Olivia's relationship and how he went from her to be with Adam. I was disappointed not to learn how he an Olivia ended up. Really though both characters annoyed me, nearly screwing up every good situation and or offer they received and then quickly coming together in the end.