This is the second book I’ve read by Georgia Beers, and I think she’s fast becoming my favorite f/f writer. Ms. Beers has a knack for creating characters that feel like real people, with families and pets and backstories and all the general messiness of life. One of my favorite things about romance novels is watching how two people in a relationship grow and change and form a new dynamic, together and separately. Since that is exactly what this book is about, I was a very happy reader!

When the widowed owner of the Vineyard wine bar decides to take an extended vacation, she leaves it in the capable hands of her general manager, Lindsay, and her daughter, Piper. Piper is, to put it mildly, an uptight control freak, to the extent that Lindsay and some of the other employees at the wine bar call her “Queen Elsa.” Piper has a good reason for it, though – she’s a manager at a financial company, and her ice queen armor is what she needs to be successful in a dog-eat-dog, male-dominated workspace. Piper instinctively dislikes Lindsay because she’s “too friendly” and “she smiles too much.” On top of her dislike of Lindsay, Piper has a lot of complicated feelings around Vineyard because it was her father’s business, and she hasn’t dealt with her grief over his passing. Lindsay is, well, pretty much what Piper thinks of her – she’s generally optimistic and a people person, Piper’s opposite. She’s wonderful with Vineyard’s customers, even the really trying ones, and has tons of ideas for how to attract new clientele. Piper’s holding the purse strings, though, so can they work together to do what’s best for Vineyard?

“This was obviously her sole purpose in life: to kiss this woman senseless, to be kissed senseless by this woman.”

Well, I’m sure you can guess what happens! Piper and Lindsay have a wonderful chemistry with each other, and it’s such a sweet slow-burn romance. From enemies to friends to rip-your-clothes off lovers, they run through the whole relationship span. There’s quite a bit of angst as well, as Piper has a lot of deep-seated grief and anger, from her father’s death to a work merger to her mom gallivanting all over the place, and adding the stress of a new relationship on top of that causes Piper’s ice castle to crumble. This is great for their relationship, but how will Lindsay’s “invasion” play out in the rest of Piper’s life?

Overall, this is a sweet and steamy read, with two people who find that a good relationship blends the best bits of each of them together. Highly recommended, and I’ll definitely be checking out more of Ms. Beers’ books!

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I absolutely loved this book!  The flow, the characters, the setting, everything!  The book is about Lindsay who is the manager of a wine bar. It is owned by an older woman who has decided to go on an extended vacation and leaves Lindsay in charge and her daughter, Piper in charge of the finances.  Piper is not happy about these circumstances and is not thrilled about Lindsay, whom she does not have positive thoughts about.  After many instances, Lindsay is able to change Piper’s feelings and the feelings the women have toward each toward began to intensify.  
It is a wonderful book, filled with romance, turmoil and wine.  What more could you want?  And with writing such as Ms. Beers delivers, it is a magnificent read that will be read again and again.  Highly recommended.
I received a copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read anything by Georgia Beers in a while so it was a treat to read this entertaining love story filled with women I’d like to meet and a wine bar I would love to frequent. 

Lindsey Kent is all optimism and great ideas when Vineyard’s owner decides to take a sabbatical leaving Lindsey in charge of the wine bar. She knows she can grow the business and attract a younger, hipper crowd. Too bad she is handcuffed by Ellen’s request that her daughter Piper be included in financial decisions involving Vineyard. Piper has a pretty low opinion of Lindsey and is less than enthusiastic about any changes she wants to make to the wine bar designed by her late father. The clashes are inevitable and sparks do fly when Lindsey and Piper are forced to work together. 

No spoilers when it's obvious these two strong independent women will eventually learn to respect and admire one another. Lindsey has to wear the Teflon undies for a good portion of their story while Piper reigns in her anger and bitterness towards just about everyone. At first I thought two years was a long time to mourn the loss of her father but then I remembered how devastating the loss of a parent and confidant can be. Kudos to Beers for giving us characters we can relate to, even if we don’t match their beautiful bodies and athletic pastimes. 

Tuck into Blend and pair it with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon and some appropriate cheeses and enjoy this sweet traditional romance. 

ARC received with thanks from publisher via NetGalley for review.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39359152-blend" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Blend" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1521858766m/39359152.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39359152-blend">Blend</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/41784.Georgia_Beers">Georgia Beers</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2359620400">4 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
An ARC was rec'd from NetGalley/Bold Strokes Books for an honest review. No synopsis necessary. <br />A very believable and intriguing romance with a wine tasting bar setting that gives what would normally be a "run of the mill" story with leads Lindsay and Piper - oomph! Ms. Beers builds her storyline in a plausible, realistic way with just the right amount of angst/sex to hold one's attention. Kudos!<br />4 stars
<br/><br/>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/31134832-gail">View all my reviews</a>

This was a fun romance with two likable protagonists who had certain struggles but achieved a predictable end.  It was perfect light reading for a weekend day.

Really liked this.

Complex characters, lovely setting, charming writing. I was so here for this.

Blend is a prototypical Georgia Beers book, and that’s a good thing.  She is a master at character development and story arc. Even when the characters are troubled or flawed, you still find a way to like them even before the conflict is resolved. This is an enemies-to-lovers story, with a nice slow build. Naturally, once the two main characters get together, there’s a misunderstanding that breaks them apart, and to me this misunderstanding is a little farfetched. Georgia Beers usually sets her stories in upstate New York, and the setting almost acts as a character here with the vivid descriptions of the lake and surrounding areas.  An additional side bonus is learning about wines!

I love Georgia Beers. I received this book as an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This was a well written book. Both Lindsay and Piper were so likable even when Piper was a jerk. This was a little predictable in that I knew exactly who was selling the secrets, how Piper would react to the firing. Bu because I love the author none of that mattered as much. A wonderful book great characters and such a sweet story. I loved when they finally hooked up it was beautiful.

Opposites do attract and Piper and Lindsay are very different people, but as the title suggests joining together can produce positive results.  I have read all of Georgia Beers books and feel that this is one of her stronger titles, more like her earlier one Too Close to Touch and Fresh Tracks..

The latest Georgia Beers book is a very pleasant read with a background of a wine bar, a little information about wine, some unfinished threads and great chemistry between the main characters. 
I very much enjoyed reading it, if interrupted, wanted to continue as soon as I had some time, but I don't think that in a few weeks I'll remember what it was about. Or in a few days.

I'm a Georgia Beers fan. I've read several of her books in the last few months and they were always enjoyable. Solid romances with likable characters.
With "Blend" Beers proves again why she is an award-winning writer. Beautiful prose, delicious chemistry, believable characters. But the book could have been better.

The ingredients are there.

Lindsey Kent and Piper Bradshaw are forced to work together when Piper's mother and owner of the wine bar Vineyard leaves the business in their hands. Piper, the career woman, sees the passionate winebar manager Lindsey as a flaky hippie. Lindsey wants to innovate Vineyard and resents the "Ice Queen" for having the power to veto her ideas. They can't stand each other.

Beers draws the reader in with her vivid writing style. She seems knowledgeable about wines and skillfully describes the setting.
Beers' words flow with rhythm. She mixes up long, curly sentences with short, punchy ones. Her scenes paint a vivid picture.
Switching between the points of views of Piper and Lindsey allows the reader a glimpse into the world of both characters.
"Blend" is easy and enjoyable to read.

The chemistry between the main characters is there from the start. I love the sizzling attraction and how it unfolds. The romantic tension racks up, sparks fly and it's so hot!
Luckily the book doesn't fall into the trap of instant love - it's more of a simmering slow burn.

I'm impressed how Beer manages to make Piper likable. At times, Piper's shenanigans annoyed me - I could have slapped her once or twice - but they were believable.

Piper is the one who changes the most during the story - from a stuck-up career-driven A-
personality to a more warm-hearted woman.

Lindsey was a bit of a goody-two-shoes. Very sympathetic but I didn't see a lot of development for her. There were some scenes where she broke the stereotype of the passive, good girl. And those were yummy!

The drama in "Blend" builds up slowly. Some more tension and conflict would have spiced the story up.
The "all is lost" moment, when the rift between two ladies is highest, comes too late in the book. The conflict collapses. All is well too soon. Everything snaps into place, sappy happy ending.

But the finale could have so much better if Beers would have taken time to flesh it out. Some to and fro and more angst, please. Can Piper and Lindsey overcome their differences and find each other? Up until the last part of the novel, I would have rated it 5 stars. The frustrating lukewarm final act of "Blend" knocks off a star.

Still, this is a delectable read if you are looking for a good romance. Beers strengthens my respect for her as a gifted author.

(ARC received from netgalley for a review.)

Blend was very enjoyable. It had some medium level angst that kept me caught. If you love ice queens and wine, this will be perfect.

This was actually pretty good. Character driven lesfic has a tendency to actually not contain much character and consist of mostly just tired archetypes without any real flesh on their fictional bones. This on the other hand actually featured two main characters that felt like people and who weren't entirely defined through the romance plot. It's a classic tale of opposites attract set mostly in and around a wine bar. It was pleasant, entertaining and sort of made you want to get better at wine.

If you're looking for a nice contemporary romance then I heartily recommend it.

You can never go wrong with a Georgia Beers book.  The characters and storyline will keep the pages turning.  It captured me from page one.  Very likable and well written.  The development of romance was nice.  I would recommend this book for all to read.  My students will love it.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley.  I loved this book; I couldn't put it down.  The characters and storyline drew me in instantaneously.  The only reason why I didn't give this book five stars was the ending.  I wanted to know more about what happened with The Vineyard and more about the relationship between Lindsay and Piper.  Overall a great storyline and chemistry between the two characters, I will be rereading in the future.

*I received an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

5 stars, I really enjoyed this book a lot. I have read all of Georgia Beer's books and this one is definitely a better one. I love all of her books and have read most of them more than once. This was a solid story I could not put down. This was a fantastic read and I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a new novel. 

Lindsay Kent, the manager of the wine bar, Vineyard, and Piper Bradshaw, the daughter of the owner, are both amazingly developed characters and I enjoyed reading their journey. Piper had not spent a lot of time at the wine bar since her father had died. Her mother leaving on a long vacation forces her to spend more time at the wine bar, and more time with Lindsay. Lindsay is the manager and starts running all the day to day operations when Piper's mother leaves,  

They at first get on each other's nerves and cant stand each other, but their attitude changes over time. Neither of them like working with each other. Lindsay does not like she has to have all her new ideas approved by Piper, and Piper just doesn't like Lindsay and has a wrong impression of her. They both start to wear at each other after spending more time together, they seem to be changing how they feel about one another. Piper has a very closed off heart and is pretty hard and does not want to let anyone in. Lindsay starts to change Piper and she starts to do things she wouldn't normally do. 

This book really deserves 5 stars and I will say again how much I enjoyed this book. The characters develop wonderfully throughout and there is amazing chemistry between the two of them. You can feel it as you are reading it and it makes you want to find out how this story will end. I really did not want to put this one down (like many of the Georgia Beers books I have read over the years). You will not be disappointed.

Slow burn to the maximum. I have read a number of books by this author and for the most part, have enjoyed each and everyone. This was no exception. Piper Bradshaw is the daughter of the wine bar owner. Piper has issues that cause her to act not very cordial to others. She works in the corporate world that has her acting and behaving similar outside her work. Lindsay Kent is the wine bar manager and she is very good at her job. Lindsay is rolling right along, loving what she does and looking forward to taking on more responsibilities. When Piper's mother decides to take an extended vacation, she requests that Piper and Lindsay work together to operate the wine bar while she is away. The strong willed Piper and the determined Lindsay learn much about themselves and each other. The read was sweet and enjoyable.

This is a book with a fairly common story between two women who apparently dislike each other, who are forced to work together and that because of this they discover that there are more things that unite them than those that separate them.

Actually this author has a formula quite similar when developing their books. Instant attraction but not recognized by the protagonists themselves, secondary characters with more or less prominence, usually less than more, and pets.

In this case, the story is a bit lame with many points without defining or solving. They are situations in the life of both protagonists that seem important enough to define their character. This is shown briefly, but then they are not treated again. As for example ls Lindsay's family. Not to mention Piper's sadness for her father's absence. And there are also rare threads like Mr. Can I Taste That or the copy of Lindsay's ideas at the nearby bar.

But in general this is a book that can satisfy those who like light romances, with some sex, not much, some drama, not much either, and without many complications.

<i>An ARC was sent to me from Bold Strokes Books through NetGalley for an honest review </i>