Ms. James always writes fabulous stories and this one was great to curl up and read. I enjoyed getting to know Riss and Ike better and seeing the fireworks as their relationship grew.

Review to be published online in early August.

RACKED AND STACKED is the latest lively entry in the fun and sexy ‘Blacktop Cowboys’ series by Lorelei James. This is a classic enemies to lovers story (with no stop in between as friends) filled with barbed arguing and steamy verbal foreplay.

Here we have Riss and Ike, who are two people discovering each other in a new light. Liberally added to the mix are intrusive relatives and friends, and a whole lot of self discovery. This is one of the best reads from the ‘Blacktop Cowboys’ series, if not all of James’ books.

Although this is my favorite series by James, RACKED AND STACKED is not a particularly standalone read. There are far too many characters from previous books which could easily be confusing to a new reader of the series.

For the sake of their friends upcoming wedding, which they are best man and bridesmaid, two people who have never gotten along call a truce until after the wedding. Even though they called a truce the snarky comments were still a plenty which provided an abundance of humor. In a move that was surprising to both, Ike Palmer offers his home to Larissa Thorpe  to recovery after an accident she has after the wedding.

What was a surprising twist for me was the hero, Ike Palmer. This author is known for her Alpha males so it was a change for the man to more of a beta male with some Alpha traits. Larissa is what I would call an alpha female with beta traits that she rarely lets others see. The longer these two were together the more you see they complement each others traits.

This being book 9 in the series there were lots of couples to catch up with along with those crazy Mud Lillie's. This was an enjoyable enemies to friends to lovers romance.

If you're interested in this book do yourself a favour and read the rest of the series first. So many characters are referenced and I felt like I missed out on a lot b/c I didn't know the backstory for these people.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I truly wish I’d come into this series prior to this book, there was so much backstory I missed which would have helped keep all the different characters straight. Even with that I still enjoyed the story and the give and take between Ike and Riss.

The dialog was exceptional, fast paced keeping the story moving at a fast clip. Riss’ smart mouth and bantering shots at Ike were laughable...Ike’s bewilderment at his feelings towards Riss priceless. All in all I’m glad a took a chance on reading this story even though it is well into the series.

This ARC book was complimentary, provided by the Publisher and NetGalley. I am voluntarily providing my honest review.

Friends, I’m just going to give it to you straight, I’ve been reading Lorelei James for a lot of years; I’ve loved many of her books, liked a lot of them, and a couple weren’t my cup of tea, but the truth of the matter is very few romance authors now days craft a story the way she does with fully developed characters, a complex plot, rich and vibrant dialog, and a love story that is perfect for each couple and that is why I continue to read every release she puts out. Racked and Stacked is an enemies to lovers story filled with sexy verbal foreplay, two people discovering each other in a new light, intrusive relatives and friends, a whole lot of self discovery, and it is by far one of my favorite books in the Blacktop Cowboys series.

I love a strong heroine and Larissa (Lis) Thorpe is a perfect example. I love her spunk, her tenacity, her unapologetic ownership of her sexuality, her brashness, and the fact that she is more than capable of managing her own life despite having three older brothers who try to manage it. So I felt her pain when an accident leaves her unable to work and even perform routine hygienic care. It was obvious she was miserable and hated depending on others but I also think it was a bit of a lesson in humility and it soften her some, not enough to change her personality but enough to give her a different perspective.

Ike Palmer’s life hasn’t been easy and it was turned upside down again eighteen months ago when he was fired from his long time job as a cattle broker, a fact he didn’t share with anyone including his family and friends and the stock contracting business he bought in to is not doing well. Ike is in a rut and he has no idea how to get out of it, but one thing he does know is taking care of Larissa is something he can do even if it might kill them both.

This couple guys…so much tension between them and even they don’t really know why they’ve never gotten along other than Ike had an issue with one of Larissa’s brothers and she was determined not to like him. I loved the barbs, the quit wit, the innuendo, the respect, and the way they began to peel back the layers of one another and understand every little thing about each other. Racked and Stacked was a S-L-O-W B-U-R-N romance which was a bit surprising given the chemistry between this couple and the fact that neither one had a problem with quick and easy flings, but that’s what made their relationship and this story unique.

I loved that both of these characters wasn’t afraid to call the other on their sh*t, that despite the fact they didn’t start out as friends that they grew comfortable enough with one another to look at the other and tell them exactly what they needed to hear even if they didn’t want to hear it. But more than that, they trusted each other enough to LISTEN and learn.

I simply can’t say enough good things about this book; it was unexpected in the very best of ways. Funny yet laced with some very serious situations, sweet yet filled with tension and sensuality, and most of all two characters unafraid to take a chance and make changes to live a happy and productive life together, Racked and Stacked is a phenomenal addition to the Black Top Cowboys series.

This review will post on the links provided on release date 8/7

Riss and Ike have always fought like cats and dogs but since they're in their best friends wedding they formed a truce. During the truce they find out that they don't really hate each other and their relationship grows when Riss is injured and Ike takes care of her. Fun romance where opposites attract.

Often times Ike has to take the lead, eff it. I want this.” He clamped one hand on the back of her head and slammed his mouth down on hers." Ike is often times caught off guard by his woman, “even with zero dating experience, I can pretty much guarantee that I’m the kind of woman who effs on the first date.” As his brain— and his ***k— tried to process that, Riss softly blew in his ear, destroying any coherent response." I likee this book, Riss was sassy and Ike knew how to handle her.