Second Shot of Whiskey by Sarah Robinson. Sam Wylde comes from the affluent Wylde family & Sam is the oldest child. Sam has a rough relationship with his family as he was done wrong by those closest to him, trust no longer comes easily. Holly has put her life on hold to care for her family, both dealing with pain in different ways when Sam and Holly come together more than sparks fly.

Can I say I love whiskey and want to try the honey wyldefire! Anywho, Second Shot was such a cute story. I appreciated the flow of the story. To know Holly and Sam became each other person. Their foundation though started in lies allowed them to become friends and move from there. There were moments when I couldn't help laughing out loud and moments when I was fighting tears. The second shot of whiskey is truly a second shot of happiness for both Sam and Holly, I cant wait to see what happens to the rest of the family.

I would recommend this book to others and may even re-read a few more times.

This is another book that I missed the first time around. It was originally titled Wylde Fire and has evidently gone through some changes and edits since it was first published in 2019.

Second Shot of Whiskey was a sweet story with a fun premise, it just seemed to be lacking a little. Some things just seemed a little rushed. Regardless, I really liked both Sam and Holly and they were fun together. The supporting characters were fun too and if this does continue as a series, it will be interesting getting to know the rest of them better.

This is my first book by Sarah Robinson, but even with the few little bumps along the way in this story, I doubt it will be my last.

****Update 2/26/22*****
It has been a while since I read this book. There were some changes. For one thing, Sam was open with Holly from the very beginning about his situation and how their decision could be mutually beneficial.

I was still surprised that Sam's brother was so trash, and his ex was so weak. They deserved each other.

This version only had one epilogue. There wasn't what I would call a teaser for the next book. The epilogue did mention Sam's other brother, but there was no confusion about Sam and Holly's conversation.

I still found the book to be enjoyable. I liked Sam and Holly as much as I did before. I found his ex and his brother to be as reprehensible as before. The only thing I can think is this version was more straightforward than the previous version. I would kick it up from 3.5 stars to a full 4.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book received from NetGalley.

****9/14/19****
3.5 Stars
I really liked Holly. Her quick wit, her intelligence, her devotion to her sister, and her defense of Sam. I liked Sam. He was a good guy.

I also liked that Sam was not so quick to forget what his brother had done or how his family had supported Grady. You see so often in books that the wronged party always has to make concessions and be so forgiving. It was a refreshing change that forgiveness did not come quite so quickly.

Things happened pretty quickly between Sam and Holly. At some point Sam is concerned with Holly finding out his real motivation behind his offer. Whatever he was concerned about was either never revealed, or overlooked by this reader.

I also appreciated the TWO epilogues. I'm a sucker for an epilogue. My only issue is with the second epilogue. I can understand leaving a but of a teaser for the next book, but you have NO idea who Holly and Sam were referring to in their conversation. At least I didn't.

A kind of sweet, sexy, slightly humorous romance that was also a quick read.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this Advance Reader Copy received from Hidden Gems.

The couple had chemistry, the story was enjoyable, and the Nana was hilarious. I was happy to have read this book.

This is a first time read for me by Sarah Robinson and I really enjoyed it. Fake relationships are one of my favorite tropes, so this book was right up my alley. The story is full of emotion, there were times I was laughing out loud and times where a few tears were shed. The characters were nicely developed and were relatable with realistic qualities. Sam needs a date to his brother's wedding where the bride is non other than his ex-girlfriend. Holly has come back to town after a horrible accident in her family and is now operating a business that does event planning. She is caring for her sister, and money is tight, so Sam and Holly end up helping each other out. Holly had a crush on Sam back in high school and that crush never really went away. The book was full of heart and humor and I had a really nice time reading it. I will be looking out for more of Ms. Robinson's books in the future.

I received a complimentary copy from Netgalley and am voluntarily leaving my review.

Aww I loved Sam and Holly, they were so adorable together and perfect for each other. This book was a super fast read so there was not a ton of time to build up the characters and it is definitely not a slow burn. These two are super into each other, gave right into their lust, and then a future. I was so happy for the ending, it was well deserved for these two.

Love this story by Sarah! This is my first time reading this author and definitely won't be the last. I can't wait to pick up her next story!!

I've been putting off writing this review because I hate writing reviews when I didn't enjoy a book. Unfortunately, this was one of those cases.

I am quite disappointed, because the book's blurb sounded great. I liked how the book started out, as well. The way they met was really fun to read, so I expected to have a good time while reading the book. And while that was definitely the case some of the time, I grew more and more frustrated and deconnected from the characters as the story unfolded. Let me elaborate.

**Spoilers from this point on**

As I said, I liked the way we were introduced to both MC's and the way they met. It was fun to see their bickering. Also, the humor infused writing style is something that I also appreciated, because it brought a lightness to the book that made it easier to enjoy the story. I must say that I was pretty impressed of how well the MMC's experience of being cheated on was portrayed (at least in the beginning) and how the ramifications of that betrayal will be widespread and longlasting. I didn't expect any less, since I've been following Sarah Robinson on socials for a long time and learned she's a therapist.

However... My biggest complaint about this book is the relationship between both MC's. Something felt off, pretty much from the beginning. There seemed to be a sense of familiarity between them - like they'd known each other for years - that shouldn't have been there since they didn't know each other (except for Holly having a major crush on Sam). This weird feeling grew when Sam made his wild proposal. For one, I didn't buy it and, again, it just felt off. It may be because he was drunk but it was written as if he was entirely serious and it was never talked about again. Also, their sex scene right after... Well, needless to say I wasn't into it.

Their "fake relationship" that felt more like a real relationship because they were instantly so at ease with each other, began to rub me the wrong way after a while and that feeling only grew as I read on. It came to a point where I skimmed through the last 30 pages (only reading the dialogue) because I just wasn't buying it anymore (even though they admitted to each other they had feelings, it kept feeling off). If I hadn't received an ARC, I probably would've DNF'ed before the halfway mark.

Another thing that rubbed me the wrong way was Sam's character "growth". Like I said, in the beginning of the book I was pretty impressed by how his character's thoughts and fears were very much a result of the cheating and betrayal he went through. I felt like it was a very good depiction of what cheating does to you, from a psychological standpoint. However, all at once, things turned around and Sam began showing behavior that didn't fit in that picture. I didn't feel like it was because of his "growth" but just because the plot of the book "needed" it since it was so sudden. When this happened, I completely deconnected from the story and would've DNF'ed it if it hadn't been an ARC.

To be completely honest, this book had a lot of potential but it didn't deliver. The new cover is beautiful though!

Just shy of 3 stars

Second Shot of Whiskey is an okay novel that bounces all over the place too much to rate much higher than a near 3 for me. Some of the tropes that it flirts with are Fake Marriage; High School Crush; Recovering From Betrayal, and Wacky Family. I wish the author has committed to just one.

Fake Marriage is rather a misnomer as it's more of a fake engagement. But that would also a misnomer because there really isn't anything fake about it. Sam and Holly fully intend to get married, but it's more of a marriage of convenience thing (oh, a fifth trope right there). But then that's not even really true because they get busy with the sexy times pretty much immediately (and consistently and sometimes inappropriately) and they really enjoy each other's company. It was never going to be a marriage in name only.

High School Crush: Holly was a few years younger than Sam in high school and had a crush on him from day one. Apparently, even after a decade or so, she still completely infatuated with him. She's had some relationships, but each guy paled in comparison to Sam. This particular trope would have meant more to me if they had had some kind of connection back in high school. As it's described, I don't get the impression that Sam even knew that Holly existed back in the day.

Recovering From Betrayal: This one's on Sam. Supposedly his longtime girlfriend who was also his high school sweetheart was caught en flagrante with Sam's brother Grady. That was a couple of years or so before the start of the story, but it's clear that they're still bad blood between them. Grady and Jane's wedding is impending, which is part of Sam's motivation for wanting a fake marriage/engagement. Supposedly Sam's family is also really close, which makes this particular trope hard to understand. Which leads me to...

Wacky Family: So among others, Sam has the gruff father, the socialite-with-a-heart-of-gold mother, the goofy playboy cousin, and the crazy, young-at-heart grandma. Yet it's not always clear that they are one big happy family; at times they seem heartless or misguided. When they swoop in at the end, they seem perfect. I wasn't sure how to interpret them.

Nothing is inherently wrong with all of this. It just was all a little much.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Thanks!

I really enjoyed reading this book! It was a real easy read that you can pick up whenever and don’t need to do much concentrating! I always feel like there’s a need for books like this that just take you away from everything and you can read when you can! Just what I needed!

Bumping into her high school crush in a parking lot, Holly didn't know her life could take a turn for the better. In need of funds for her sister's hospital bills, Sam Wylde makes her an offer she can't refuse. But a business proposal soon turns into a lot more.

The storyline was a little insane, but it honestly didn't matter. The characters entertained, especially Nana and Ceasar, and the love scenes were steamy and realistic.

This is the second book I have read by this author and something I really like about her is her style of writing, this is genuinely easy to read, the narrative flows and you can picture every scene.

This was a great novel to get lost in, which is exactly what these types of novels are designed for. I wouldn't hesitate to read anything by Robinson.

This book went down real easy, like whiskey. No surprises here, but there's an ornery cowboy type and a woman who gets to him. Sam and Holly have a lot of chemistry. Lots of tropes here, but I love a trope! Fake relationship, bring it. I like that Holly isn't a typical damsel in distress. I like that she has the tattoos. The best part of the book is the couple (there's a bit of a heavy plot that needs a lot more explaining and resolution).

I loved it. It had great characters and steamy scenes, plus there was a good story too. What more do you need?!! I hope there will be more. No ready to be done with this world yet.

Holly has had so many losses in her life and she’s going to do everything she can to help her sister who is in a coma. When Sam Wylde asks her to be his wife in order to help him save face with this family and help her with her sister’s costs, Holly decides to go for it. I loved the chemistry between these characters, and oh, my the ending! There are no words except to say read this book!

Fun and fast, the story had a lot of emotions!

Holly and Sam have tragic backstories that pulled me in right away. They are inexplicably drawn to each other and decide on a fake marriage to try to fix some of their problems.

Cute premise with lots of steam, I hope there is another book in this series!

Second Shot of Whiskey is the story of two people who need the help of the other two to get what they need/want. For Holly, that's helping with medical bills, and for Sam it's having someone by his side while he deals with family drama.
The two end up becoming good friends and friends with benefits and very quickly it could possibly change into more as they grow.

Overall I found myself getting frustrated with this book. I was getting frustrated because so much of the actual story was just skipped over in favor of sexy times. This left the book to not have a whole lot of plot, and instead just be pure sex scene after sex scene. Because of this, it left me feeling kind of meh about the book because it had so much potential and then the ending was just so rushed and it was suddenly to the end of it all and them starting their lives together officially.

Uplifting and heart warming, one of those tales that takes two people who are both hurting for personal reasons and giving them the chance to take that risk again, knowing it is for the last time.

Holly is back in town after being gone a few years and ends up running into her high school crush Sam Wilde. Sam is in need of a new Event planner after the one they hired quit on them. Holly agrees to be the new Event planner and somehow the two decide maybe they can help each other out besides with just the Wyldefire Whiskey launch party and decide on a marriage of convivence. Can Holly help Sam overcome the scandal of his cheating ex-girlfriend marrying his brother and can Holly get what she needs out of this arrangement too?

I had high hopes for this story but for me it just fell flat pretty much from the beginning. I never connected with Holly or Sam and I felt like it was too much too fast. There were too many sex scenes (trust me I am all for the sex scenes when it helps push the plot or character development) and they just seemed repetitive. I guess maybe I like more plot and character arcs in my books. You also got introduced to all these different members of Sam's family and while I think the author did that because this is the first book of the series it felt like how many people can I add to this book to bring more stories for that family later on and didn't show why they were important. I don't know, this book just wasn't for me. It was okay and a fast read but I just didn't care for it. Again, I say this with all books that don't get a high review from me, not every book is made for every person and this book wasn't the right fit for me but it might be the right fit for you so look at the other reviews and then make up your mind.

I started reading this thinking it was just a typical romance book, but it wasn't your usual predictable one and there was lots of sex going on too which is always a bonus 😂
A great read, that I managed to get through very quickly.
Would recommend.

**Update 2/4/2022** I originally read and reviewed this book in 2019. I then bought a copy in 2020. I don't know when the content was updated but this review is based on the new and updated review copy of this book that I received from NetGalley in Jan 2022. My review is completely voluntary. The book blurb states "Formerly titled Wylde Fire and published in 2019. It has since received intense edits, scene additions, and a brand new cover and title!"

Sam's despicable younger brother Grady stole his fiance and is about to be married to her. Sam's family is basically urging him to forgive and forget and be a part of the wedding. (What a bunch of unfeeling jerks!) Sam meets Holly, who has a heartbreaking back story of her own, and is overwhelmingly attracted to her so he comes up with the idea to get engaged and take her to the wedding so people will quit talking about what happened. Then they will marry in a big splashy wedding all while keeping his heart uninvolved. Fat chance!

I honestly can't tell you specifically what is different between the 2019 version and the 2022 version but unlike my original review, I no longer feel like the author is trying to say the Wylde family is close knit and loving. The romance between Sam and Holly is great and I liked them a lot. Their story is engaging and very enjoyable. 4.5 stars.