Super sexy enemies to lovers/work romance. I loved the hero in this one. I also appreciated how strong the heroine was. I think I enjoyed most, the vulnerability that both the H and h expressed. No one, even the toughest amongst us, has it all figured out, with confidence boxing on all fronts. They genuinely needed each other. That needing made them more relatable. This one is easy to recommend.

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

3.75 stars-- UNDERCOVER ENGAGEMENT is the fifth instalment in Samanthe Beck’s contemporary, adult PRIVATE PLEASURES erotic, romantic suspense series. This is rookies Eden Brixton, and Marcus Swain’s story line. UNDERCOVER ENGAGEMENT can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Marc and Eden) UNDERCOVER ENGAGEMENT follows recent academy grads Eden Brixton, and Marcus Swain on their first undercover assignment in Bluelick, Kentucky. An increase in drug possession has warranted an investigation into the sale, cultivation and distribution of marijuana in the Bluelick area, and Eden and Marcus have been assigned to go undercover as a couple, a couple struggling financially with their upcoming wedding but Eden and Marc’s previous encounters with one another have been less that tolerable, in fact their relationship is more antagonistic than hopelessly in love. Working together finds Marc and Eden struggling to remain in characters but a perceived act of betrayal pushed Eden to go it alone. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Eden and Marc, and the potential fall-out as their time together comes to a close.

The relationship between Marcus and Eden is acrimonious at best. Marc is a bit of a hotshot with ego to spare, and Eden is a bit of a straight-laced recruit from a long line of front line workers. Having butt heads with one another through basic training, their acrimonious relationship continues in the small town of Bluelick, Kentucky. The $ex scenes are intimate and intense, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

We are reintroduced to former Navy SEAL Shaun Buchanan and Mayor Ginny Boca: Dr. Ellie Swan and Tyler Longfoot, Melody Merritt; former Navy SEAL West Donovan and his girlfriend/singer Roxy Goodhart, and several townies including Kenny and Dobie.

UNDERCOVER ENGAGEMENT is a story of secrets and lies, family and friendships, relationships and love. The premise is engaging and entertaining-the angst level is low, the conflict resolution quick and easy; the romance is seductive; the characters are energetic and colorful.



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The under cops living in forced proximity as an engaged couple caught my eye when I saw this book.

I loved forced proximity so watching these two figure out how to share a living space was fun.

Unfortunately this story moved super slow for me and wasn't as attention grabbing once I started reading.

I also felt like these two were practically attacking each other for sex all the time but there was no real romance or relationship.

I almost quit reading but wanted to give it a chance to turn around.

I received an advanced copy of this book through NetGalley. This is my honest review.

* f/m romance
* interracial couple
* enemies to lovers
* fake dating
* forced proximity
* very steamy
* dual pov

Eden and Swain are cadets who were assigned together to do an undercover operation and had to pretend to be engaged. At first Eden hated his guts but when she had to play the role of his fiancée, then she could no longer deny the pull and attraction that she felt to Swain.

Are they really just good actors or did they stop pretending it's not real?

Unfortunately, this story wasn't for me. I didn't like how Swain treated Eden. His sexist comments - what she can wear and what car she can drive - were so frustrating. But Eden was a strong female character and she knew how to kick his ass.

This is 5th book in a series but you can definitely read as a standalone.

This was a quick read. Funny, hot, steamy, a bit of action, and all around comfortable romance with no big surprises :) A good book to just sit back and enjoy for a little while.

Undercover Engagement by Samanthe Beck

Eden and Swain who are competing against each other for first place as top Cadet and have a love to hate relationship and sparks well and truly fly when they are placed undercover as a couple on graduation! Will it ever work as she is completely by the book and he is the unconventional wild card .

A well written hot romance
Great read with fun characters and a few twist along the way on their journey both personal and professional. Great rainy day or by the beach fast moving read .

I Look forward to reading the rest in the series.

ARC received for review

I didn't care much for Eden when this book started but she grew on me. Swain was just yummy and an all around good guy. The two pot heads who "help" were funny. Overall, it was just an okay book.

Warnings first: VERY hot and steamy and bad language. Not ideal if you prefer clean romances. If you like them smoking and don't mind bad language, I think you will enjoy this one.

That being said, I did not mind the steam. I am not a huge romance reader, other than this past year or so, because I desperately needed guaranteed Happy Endings, so I am not sure how hot this would be considered by a veteran romance reader, but it was plenty steamy for me.

I enjoyed the characters in this book, especially the secondary ones. They made the setting feel more small town and kind of cozy actually. I liked Alvarez and wished we could have seen her relationship develop with her fiancee, though this might be part of a series, so her story might be in a preceding book. I need to look that up.

I loved the father of the MC h too, Brick. He was classic Papa Bear and I loved the one scene where he was reassuring his "little girl", who was a strong woman in her own right, but she is written as human, not as a female Terminator, which I also love. She was real. And don't hurt Papa Bear's little girl, lol. That scene was AWESOME.

I also liked the scene with the truck. Not going to say much more than that, but it was one of my favs.

I know nothing about undercover operations and some reviewers said it was completely unrealistic, but it worked for me. Every story has to have one "gimme" from the reader to the author, one plot point that gets the benefit of the imagination stretch, but no more than one. That was the stretch for me, and I didn't think it was a huge one.

All in all, this was a solid romance, with representation (the MC h's dad was half Black, half Hawaiian and her mom was Scandinavian) and a super sweet, if sometimes overly Alpha MC H. I think most romance readers would enjoy this one and it is one I will be recommending.

3 solid stars.

My thanks to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC/Entangled: Brazen for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, it is funny, hot, characters well built, storyline excellent...Everything keeps you glued to the book and forces you to read further. I just wish that I started this series from book 1 so I would know the other characters even better and I plan to fix that really soon.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I loved this story of two recent police academy graduates who must go undercover to thwart a drug ring. This was the fifth in the series and I look forward to reading the first four.

Despite the very real antagonism between Eden Braxton and Marcus Swain in the academy, they easily fall into their roles as an engaged couple low on funds. Their banter is often hilarious, though at first I wasn’t sure I’d warm up to Marcus. His inappropriate comments to Eden seemed over the top and their superiors didn’t seem at all concerned. I quickly grew to like both characters as they navigate finding themselves and shedding the expectations of the past. Marcus’ feelings for Eden lead him to want to be more than the shady, dishonest playboy he appears to be. She must learn to trust him if they can succeed. While it takes time for him to feel worthy of her and for her to open her heart, they give in to their physical attraction pretty quickly. I can’t wait to revisit the characters of Bluelick, Kentucky in the rest of the series.

Eden and Swain are rivals as cadets, and then they are paired up for an undercover op. They are supposed to be a couple, but how can they be when she hates him?
Fab read, with lots of chemistry between the two main characters.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for a voluntary and honest review.

I really enjoyed this latest installment from Samanthe Beck’s Private Pleasures series. This newest story features two new police cadet grads who are forced to work together on an undercover op. Eden and Marcus start things off with a love/hate relationship. He loves getting under her skin and she hates him for it. The two seem completely mismatched, but they do have chemistry. The pair soon find themselves learning more about each other, and themselves. It was lots of fun to read the bickering between Eden and Marcus. And it was even more fun to read how explosive their chemistry was with one another. “Undercover Engagement “ is a great addition to the series.

This book was a scorcher for me. Very good read with intensity and fire. It is the perfect rainy day read, with sexy and sharp dialogue. The characters sparring and constant banter was a plus for me. It really gave the book life as you couldn't put it down. Who doesn't love a good "fake relationship/cover story?"

Easily a 5 star read. Has everything I'm looking for when reading a book. A must read for romance book lovers. I could really mentally picture both characters and it helped add to the overall charm, wit and steam of the book.

I think this is the hottest book Samanthe Beck has written yet! I just love her Bluelick Kentucky community! This is a joint undercover operation with the county and the city. She does an excellent job of showing two highly skilled, top of their class, newly graduated police officers who are absolute opposites having to work on their first case together undercover. It is a case of opposites charged by their new bosses to find a way to use both of their skills to find answers. It was so much fun!

Eden Brixton has been hired by the new Bluelick Kentucky Police Chief Buchanan. Marcus Swain has been hired by the new County Sheriff Malone. They are charged with discovering who has the marijuana growing and selling operation in the County. It's become an increasing problem and with a new administration not willing to look the other way they want it brought down. They can't seem to find out where the local product is coming from. As no one know Eden or Marcus, their bosses determine it's a perfect opportunity to have them go undercover and find out. Problem is they are oil and water sort of speaking...

Eden Brixton is the only daughter of former Navy SEAL Commander Noah Brixton, who had several locals we've previously met, under his command. She's Vanderbilt summa cum laude, by the book over achiever. Marcus Swain is a swamp rat with a sketchy past, a dirt bag daddy con man and a long history of manipulating others. He was special ops-spy in the military with his abilities to read people and manipulate situations. Marcus is a natural at being a chameleon, Eden is not. They quickly find themselves bickering about everything. Eden has to accept help to dress the part of tailor trash essentially, and they set out to lure Dobie & Kenny, local harmless pot heads, to give up their source. This book was so much fun seeing Eden let loose and Marcus fall head over heals in love with Eden. He knew he was drawn to her while in training but little did he know how much she would heal his soul. Eden on the other hand finds there is so much to Marcus and seeks to give him the comfort and trust he's in need of. I just love all of Samanthe's stories!

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

OMG, this book is HOT! Wow, steamy and sexy and oh so good. I really liked Eden and Swain's relationship, and, for all the heat, it was also sweet. I loved the fake engagement and undercover cop aspect of the story, it made things really fun. Can't wait to read more in the series.

After reading the previous book and being hooked, I knew I wanted to read this one! And boy was I not disappointed! I was sucked in right from the start and didn't want to put it down! These two have serious chemistry right from the beginning. These two are new to this series but their characters were wonderfully written. Eden and Marc graduated from the same police academy but they aren't friends. And when they are thrown together for an undercover op, they have to learn how to get along all while doing their investigation. So yes, there is lots of chemistry between them but there is also a great story at work as well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to read more by this author!

I couldn't get enough of this book!
This book has enemies to lovers, forced proximity and fake dating. Plus an extra helping of steamy smutty goodness!
I really loved the undercover ops plot along with the fake engagement storyline. I think it added delicious tension between the characters and really amped up their chemistry.
The characters are great, in particular Swain! He was such a cinnamon roll once his walls were down. Plus, Eden is the badass woman I want to be.
I think the conclusion was satisfying and can't wait for the next book in the series.
Though this is part of a series it can be read as a standalone so feel free to dive right into this one, especially if enemies to lovers is your jam!

What if you were told you had to work with the one person you disliked most of all? Eden Brixton was graduating first in her basic training academy and was looking forward to starting work at the Bluelick PD. The second ranking cadet is Marc Swain, only 5 points behind Eden, and a major pain in her butt. So when Eden and Marc are assigned a special mission together, neither one can pass up such a remarkable opportunity. So Eden and Marc are going undercover as an engaged couple that needs extra cash for a wedding. They are hoping that this will help them in figuring out who is the head of the drug ring being ran in Bluelick, Kentucky. Eden and Marc have a hard time at first trusting each other and understanding exactly their role in this relationship and their work relationship. But they soon move forward and find a mutual respect for each other. And once they happen sparks definitely fly! Eden and Marc are HOT! However, they are still in the middle of a very serious and tense investigation. Samantha Beck keeps us on our toes with how close Eden is to the danger. It was a nail biter and I held my breath because I was so afraid for Eden and Marc. If you like danger with a lot of hot romance you have to check out Samantha Beck's Undercover Engagement.

Oh boy, another great read from Samanthe. I love the banter between these two, Eden and Marcus -it kept me wanted to see how they got their happy ending!. And the chemistry... off the chart. I really enjoy how two very competitive people have to work together to bring down a drug ring. Hopefully, we get more stories from folks in this town!

Eden is ready to begin her career as a police officer in Bluelick but before she reports for duty they have requested that she take part in an undercover assignment to investigate who is behind the recent influx of drugs in town. The only problem with that plan is it means pretending to be engaged to Marcus, a fellow recruit who appeared to put in no effort but was still her biggest competitor at the academy.

Swain is determined to not follow in the footsteps of his father and is transitioning from a career in the Marines to law enforcement. He was attracted to Eden when they were in the academy however living together and pretending to be a couple causes the sparks between them to turn into an inferno.

Swain and Eden are very different when it comes to their backgrounds and their personalities, but they balance each other to perfection. A little intrigue, compelling characters and chemistry that radiates off the pages make this an entertaining story.