I enjoyed this read. It was quick and light but featured some brilliant characters, with the love interests both going through some real character development which I loved to read. I loved the whole Graham clan and Chevy was a great character too, but I think for me to give this 5 stars the plot needed a bit more, it was romantic but not overly so and for me I prefer a little more!

The Bluff is my second Emma St. Clair book, and idk. I don't think her writing is for me? But I say that hesitatingly because I can imagine liking her writing if I'm in the mood for a silly, fluffy romcom, which apparently I wasn't in the mood for this week. But anyways. Her silly metaphors drive me insane, and I'm kinda getting annoyed of the Graham family and how mushy they are. I need some grit in my romance, so this all just felt too fluffy for me.

I did like the character growth of both James and Winnie. I just didn't like how it didn't happen together in their relationship. The third-act break up was a bit dumb too, and I kept getting frustrated with James and how he handles things throughout the book. I liked the grump/sunshine trope, but James was too much of a grump with little-to-no redeeming qualities.

That being said, the plot was entertaining, and I did feel like James and Winnie had great chemistry. I didn't hate this book—I just felt annoyed while being entertained at the same time. Is that possible? I still plan to read more Emma St. Clair books to give her another try. Hopefully my mood will be more forgiving next time!

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 2
Plot/Movement: 4
Character Development: 3
Overall: 3

Thank you, Emma St. Clair and NetGalley, for the review copy!

Thanks to @netgalley
& Emma St Clair for this #gifted
E-Advanced Reader Copy of The Bluff.

Meet Winnie, she was hired to assist in making James' brewery launch successful...but more than that she's determined to find out what makes him tick ... and what makes him go boom.

All this has nothing to do with the fact that the man is unbearably & unfairly attractive. Or that he lost his mom when he was young, same as me.

The more he pushes her away, the more she's determined to get under his skin. It's certainly a battle of wills! And neither one is backing down..

Except the more time she spends around James, the more she starts to lose the one thing she refuses to give to any man ... her heart.

If you enjoy enemies to lovers & grumpy boss vs sunshine tropes you'll love this rom com! It has witty banter & some lovely romance 😍

“I feel your love in all the things you’ve done for me.”

The Bluff is the second book in the Graham Brothers series and focuses on the grumpiest brother: James Graham. He’s doesn’t like a lot of people, hates it when people are in his business, and constantly bickers with his temporary employee Winnie. She’s snarky, likes to challenge James, and isn’t afraid to push his buttons. But under all that rudeness and grumpiness, he has the softest spot for her. Maybe what he needs in his life is the woman that he’s been trying to keep at arms length.

This was another cute story, but I couldn’t get over how rude James was and how unnecessary he was. He truly HATES everything and complains so much. And most of his POV is him secretly pining over her and then treating her with disrespect. He was so unappreciated of all the things Winnie (+ his family) did for him.

🍻READ IF YOU LIKE🍻:
- dual POV
- hate to love
- slow burn
- boss x employee
- workplace romance
- poker night
- grumpy hero x snarky heroine
- only one bed
- small town in Texas
- text threads
- Neighborly app (cross between Facebook & Reddit)
- The Office references

cw: death of loved ones, grief, cheating, anxiety

Thank you to @netgalley for the advanced copy! The Bluff is now available!

I'd rate The Bluff 4.5 stars - I don't know if it's because I just happened to pick up this book in the right mood, but this was a really satisfying read for me. Emma St. Clair is a new to me author and while I normally don't look twice at the newer style, cartoon-like covers that are all over the place at the moment, I'm glad this one caught my eye (and I actually really love this cover) because this book was a winner for me. Quick note for other first timers: I haven't read any other books in this series and I felt it was fine as a standalone. Obviously a there's a bit more of a backstory with a couple of the secondary characters that you'd assume are covered more broadly with the addition of the first book, but this one stood up just fine on its own. Also, a hilarious but useless fact - it's called The Bluff because the books in this series have quirky poker-related titles. What I though was a lifebuoy at the start of each chapter are actually betting chips, I've just realised as I write this review. I was wondering what the boat connection was. The was none as it turns out, I'm just an idiot. One of my finer moments lol.

This book is classic grumpy-sunshine trope with James trying to take out the Olympic gold for who can be the surliest, most cantankerous male lead. If he had a dollar for every time he grunted, he wouldn't have to set up his own large-scale brewery as he'd be able to retire early. Taking on a lot of responsibility for his several siblings while still young, James carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. He's acerbic, overwhelmed easily, hates crowds like you wouldn't believe (he takes anti-social to a new level, really) and doesn't handle stress and anxiety well. Having started up a brewery in a small town outside of Austin, there's stressful situations aplenty that come with setting up a new business. Be warned: while I loved James and his growly ways, he has a few massive jerk moments and could be pretty mean, abrupt and rude at times. You'll probably want to punch him in his junk for a couple of things he does/says, so consider yourself warned, but trust me, he's worth it. To help with the start-up, he's convinced to hire Winnie, his polar opposite. A go-getter, she's all action and good intentions wrapped up in rockabilly style. I loved her. She was a pocket rocket without the annoyance and 'been done before' vibe that can sometimes come with this trope. I loved their love/hate relationship, the humour they shared and the delicious back and forth that comes with a well-written grumpy-sunshine story. And James' tendency to be jealous and possessive at times while being a gentleman and only having eyes for Winnie? Yum.

The author did a great job at conveying the nuances of each character, especially James and Winnie, without overwhelming the reader with random details. She developed the story enough to build a realistic relationship that hits all the right spots. I took half a star off because I would have liked Winnie to be a little less keen to move on and forgive and forget when James was having one of his moments and for the latter to grovel a little more. There were also a couple of parts of the story I would have like a teeny bit more closure on, but these details were only minor and personal preference. For those that need to know, the steam level is low with mostly heavy kisses, but the story was so good this didn't bother me and kept things on the sweet side.

From the cute dedication at the front of the book, to The Office reference scattered here and there all the way to the sweet symbolism used through the book rounded out by an excellent epilogue, I loved this story. The author's style of writing was completely my jam and while this was my first book by her, it's safe to say it won't be my last. The book definitely started and finished on a high note for me and I'm keen to try more by Emma St. Clair. Like I said, this was a real winner that left me smiling.

This book is about two people actively not wanting to be in a relationship but stumbling into it anyway! A man of few words, stormy temperament opening a brewery collided with sunny, smart enough to be anything Winnie. A bit of taming of shrew and a bit of steam ensues as I usually does in these situations, all these comfortably wrapped in a warm small town trope.

This is fast fun read with enemies (extremely short time, maybe developed in other books) to lovers trope along with grump sunny.

This book was adorable. I love the sunshine/grump trope and these two nailed those roles. I loved the fact that they were both colleagues and fighting an attraction to one another. Just so enjoyable throughout. Major Schitt’s Creek town vibes in all the best ways.

Minor bone to pick: Winnie’s gorgeous tattoo sleeve is mentioned several times in the book and is not depicted on the cover. Boo.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

The bluff by Emma St Clair and the second book in the Graham brothers sweet romcom series. It’s got some of my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine and is a closed door workplace romance with kissing only. Swipe for the synopsis.

James may come off as cold and detached, the opposite of a people person. As an introvert myself I get that feeling off being overwhelmed to an extent. Although he’s an extreme case, very impulsive and irrational when he’s overstimulated. But I like the idea that a certain person can make it more bearable, help him work thru that anxiety.

Winnie is also great, a strong female MC that keep surprising me throughout the book.

Other than that I also loved the pop culture references about The office. The cat mission, the Graham’s family dynamics and the epilogue is just amazing. Even though it’s part of a series it can be read as a stand-alone which is what I did, but I’ll have to go back and read the first one because this is just so good!

“ you can’t control everything. You have to take the risk. You have to try. Even if sometimes you lose”

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the publisher and author for providing me a copy to review.

I really liked this book. It was quick, fun read. I received it as an ARC from netgalley and I did not realize it was the second book in the series. It didn’t really make much of a difference, except for it started very abruptly, and I felt like I was missing a bunch, but after the first chapter, I quickly caught up, and it was fine. The characters, especially some of the secondary ones are really charming, and it definitely made me want to read the rest of the series.

THE BLUFF By Emma St. Clair

James hires Winnie on a temporary basis to help him set up a brewery. He definitely doesn't want her around, but has been talked into hiring her by his brother and sis-in-law (who happens to be Winnie's Bff too).

😊What i liked -

✔ Enemies to Lover's/ Forced proximity/Grumpy sunshine/Workplace/Small town
✔ It's a funny , cute, swoony ,slow burny (I made a word,deal with it).
✔ I knew this is my kind of book when I read the line - "Being around her is like being massaged with rough-grit sandpaper "🤣.
✔ I absolutely loved their banter and their text messages.
✔ Loved the equation between James and his brothers.
✔ Absolutely loved Chevy and his need to give a "Talk" to James.
✔ Loved the reference of books in a book.
✔ ooooo the elevator scene was OMG spicy.
✔ I loved the OC , what a charming character.



🤔What could have been better -

✔ Would have loved more spice.


📚Who Should read :
👶 beginner
💘Enemies to lover's trope
💞Forced Proximity
💘Small town


📈My Rating : 4.75/5

P.s - I know Chevy and Val are next , but the wait is just toooo long (please publish is sooner🙈).. As much I want to Chevy's story, please give Tank a story too (he deserves one).

The Bluff was a sweet, quick, and endearing rom-com. It captivated me from the first page, and I couldn't stop laughing. I usually go for the grumpy/sunshine trope, and I liked Winnie and James' dynamic. Their banter was endearing, and I enjoyed their text message exchanges. The elements and backstories that did help me get to know James and Winnie more were fantastic. The Neighborly app inclusions were funny and added to the book's small-town feel. This book combines several of my favorite tropes, including grump/sunshine and workplace romance. I highly recommend this.

𝕋𝕚𝕥𝕝𝕖: The Bluff
𝔸𝕦𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕣: Emma ST. Clair
ℙ𝕒𝕘𝕖 𝕔𝕠𝕦𝕟𝕥: 399 pages
𝔸𝕧𝕒𝕚𝕝𝕒𝕓𝕚𝕝𝕚𝕥𝕪: Available now
ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

𝕃𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕤
🫧That dedication out a genuine smile on my face.

🫧 Grumpy VS ray of sunshine

🫧Chapter 9 note: already feels like it’s a slow burn? Maybe because I’m taking too long to read it

🫧 The transition between chapters 14 and 15 made me feel like I’m reading a movie. If you don’t know I like when I’m reading a movie it’s like I’m watching everything unfold.

🫧I CAN SEE THE NAME NOW!!! I always love it when I see the part of why the book got its name

🫧 I ENJOY reading the texts on neighborly and the brilliant generic names

🫧him falling first and saying I love you first

𝔻𝕚𝕤𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕤:

🫧. I am so annoyed by the way Winnie is letting some people treat her specifically James and her brother. If my boss treated me that way I would’ve probably quit some long long time ago

🫧 Is she still talking to him after everything he’s done she’s officially getting the most naive character award

🫧 I don’t find much chemistry between James and Winnie. They always say opposite attract, they’re opposites alright but I find their relationship maybe a little toxic. Where she constantly pushes him to an overwhelming extent and him struggling not to burst in her face.

This book was a cute, quick, adorable romcom. It's a grumpy/sunshine, small-town, workplace romance.

I did enjoy the story and the characters. I loved Winnie's quirkiness and her strong personality. James definitely fit the grumpy role, though he was definitely a little too grumpy at times. Their banter was cute and I loved the text message exchanges. The Neighborly app inclusions were hilarious and added to the small-town vibe of the book.

There was a bit of insta-love here, which I'm not a huge fan of, but I still enjoyed the story. I didn't realize that this was part of a series though when I started reading this book. I can't help but wonder if it would feel less like insta-love if I had read the first book in the series. The start of the book did feel like I was coming into an established relationship. Guess I'll have to read that one to and find out!

Review posted on Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram. Links for Goodreads and Instagram included. Amazon review pending approval.

A very rude love interest masquerading as a grump. But I'll give him a pass because it's clear he has some underlying anxiety. Winnie was a highly liked MC who was very smart and nice.

Loved this book!! I will be posting my review on Thebookquad Instagram page early next week and have already posted it to goodreads!

Okay, now that I know Emma’s writing style is clean romance, I was able to enjoy it more (instead of wondering where the spice is the whole time!) This was a classic southern small town romance story and I loved every minute of it. Winnie is so sharp and motivated and determined and I loved that she never faltered in who she is. James on the other hand was a little rude but you gotta love someone who melts around the right woman. I’m also a big craft beer fan so this book had me wanting to open my own brewery and I loved how it all worked out. I love the family dynamic and how the whole town came together throughout. Parts of this book made me actually laugh out loud and I loved reading their love story. Can I also say how much I love the fact that James wasn’t this perfect romance novel character who always says the right thing? I loved how nervous and anxious he would get as opposed to always pouring out his heart which is NOT realistic. Great book, great story and I definitely wanna read about Chevy and Val next!!

Thank you Emma St Clair and Victory Editing for this ARC to review!!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

James is a grump. An extreme grump. Winnie is sassy. Put them together and you get one amazing book! We all know under the grumpy exterior there is a softness that needs to be freed. This book made me laugh a lot and that is something that I love when reading. In my opinion, it adds to the story. It holds my attention better and that is exactly what this book did. This is one I will definitely recommend. I am going to go and download the first book in this series, and I cannot wait for the third one!

Thank you so much to Netgalley for this ARC!

I loved the grumpy/sunshine dynamic of the two main characters, so cute!

✨BOOK REVIEW✨

Thank you so much to Netgalley for this ARC! I absolutely devoured it so quickly.

I won't be winning any employee of the year awards. But only because my boss is the grumpy boss to end all grumpy bosses. Did I mention he doesn't trust me to do my job? Challenge accepted. Not only am I going to help James launch a successful brewery, but I'm going to find out what makes him tick ... and what makes him go boom. All this has nothing to do with the fact that the man is unbearably, unfairly, unignorably (is that a word?) attractive. Or that he lost his mom when he was young, same as me. The more he pushes me away, the more I'm pulled into his orbit. It's a battle of stubborn wills, and I don't plan to concede anytime soon. Except the more time I spend around James Graham, the more I start to lose the one thing I refuse to give to any man ... my heart.

The sweetest small town romcom with a drop of beer, poker and banter. Ahh the seed, the characters, the story! I really enjoyed this one and it had such a good ending. I’m looking forward to reading more from this author. It’s a five star read for me!

I wanted James and Winnie’s book SO Bad because I just knew their relationship was going to be nothing but fireworks, and I was right. James is the quintessential grumpy boss and Winnie is the problem solver who exudes the outgoing cheerfulness James would prefer to avoid. So of course they can’t stay away from each other.

The Bluff was a quick, fun read with the perfect mix of emotional and humorous moments.

This book was read thanks to NetGalley.

It's a lighthearted romance story, setting in a small town, it's part of a series so it's nice. It's grumpy x sunshine, and i love it, he hires her to save his business but quick she becomes a pain in his ass, pushing his boundaries and inevitable making him fall in love.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick, sweet, romance,