3.5 ⭐️

Definitely not your normal grumpy to sunshine rom-com. This was initially hard for me to get into because it seemed so unserious but I wanted to see it through. I’m glad I did because I loved the mountain men, found family aspect of the story. There was some depth with Wyatt’s grief and Trista’s up bringing that drew me in. The MCs Wyatt and Trista’s chemistry was off the charts and watching the banter that lead up to the stream was enjoyable and funny. The surrogacy aspect was something I’ve never read in a rom-com and that was a refreshing twist. Overall this was a well written book and I can’t wait to read the next in the series about one of Wyatt’s brother.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this early.

I loved this book! I wasn’t sure on how I would feel with these tropes but it totally works!! I loved the humor in this book too! I loved the funny animals and the dynamic with our main characters! I’m so excited for book two!!

I tend to dive into books without knowing much about them, and Nine Month Contract was no exception—what a wild ride! I don’t think I’ve ever read anything quite like it, and while I can say it was memorable, it definitely took me on a rollercoaster of emotions and thoughts.

Amy Daws has a unique writing style that I really enjoyed. Her prose is easy to follow, making it the perfect read for when my kids are playing around and I need a book that doesn’t demand all my attention. There’s humor scattered throughout, which I loved, and the chapters are short enough to make it easy to say, “Okay, just one more,” and end up reading far more than I intended.

However, the book didn’t immediately grab me. Around 30%, I was seriously considering DNF’ing. The surrogacy aspect of the story threw me off. To say it was uncomfortable would be an understatement. After reading some particularly cringe-worthy details, I thought, "Nope, I can’t do this." Let’s just say I’ll never look at a syringe or a ranch cup the same way again! But, I felt invested enough in the characters and Daws’ writing style to push through. I was curious to see what other shocking methods would crop up—and yes, there were more. So, I kept reading.

One thing that did bother me was the female main character’s (FMC) struggles with body image. It was mentioned repeatedly, and while I understand body image issues are real, I felt it was a bit much at times. The FMC was incredibly hard on herself and her body, and it felt like that narrative overshadowed her growth in other areas. It made me wish she could have been kinder to herself, especially since the book deals with such a sensitive and complex topic.

As for the series as a whole, I’m on the fence about whether I’ll continue with the other books. I didn’t feel a strong pull to dive into the rest, but I also can’t deny Daws’ ability to create characters and situations that are far from ordinary. Whether I’d recommend this book to others is still up in the air. My advice? Go into Nine Month Contract with an open mind. It’s not the usual rom-com, and while it definitely has its shocking moments, it might just surprise you.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I had such a FUN time audioing this book!
I laughed out loud many times! I think my favorite thing to say here is that it was so unique. I’ve truly never read anything with this storyline and I enjoyed that the most. The humor that Amy wrote into these characters was phenomenal. The narrators were 10/10!
The FMC was a ball of sunshine in the best way and brought out the caring soft side of the tough mountain man.
Amy Daws is officially on my radar 👀

Nine Month Contract by Amy Daws is a small town, spicy rom-com with a found family trope thrown in. Wyatt wants to be a dad without having a relationship. He decides to find a surrogate. Trista needs money for her animal rescue dream and decides to become a surrogate to help her make it happen. While this book wasn’t for me, it was a fun read. This book was full of spice, laughs and barnyard animals. This is the first in the Mountain Men Matchmaker series but as I was reading, it felt like it was a mid series book, like I should already know things. Maybe those things will be revealed in future books of the series. Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press for the advanced digital copy.

3.5 ⭐️ but rounded up specifically for the duet narration with Teddy Hamilton.
Small town grumpy mountain man Wyatt complete with a pet goat is looking for a surrogate and that’s how he meets curvy sunshine, animal loving Trisha. Wyatt and Trisha have a rather unorthodox way of the insemination process which honestly made me laugh out loud but I saw many reviews that absolutely hated that scene. It was cringy and hilarious at the same time in my opinion.

The MFC has a lot of trauma from her past which makes her who she is. She uses humor as a coping mechanism. She gave off Rebel Wilson in pitch perfect vibes with the type humor she uses.

MMC is walking the line of overly possessive and jealous but he’s not without his reasons. He falls first and is entirely obsessed with her. His love language is acts of service so he’s bringing her breakfast every morning, laying out snacks for her, buying her a fancy new mattress etc.

The character growth was good but I would’ve really loved to see a final wrap up about Tricia’s mental health with her body image issues because I really did not care for her “I’m a cow” mantra.

3.5⭐️ Rounded up to 4.

NINE MONTH CONTRACT is perfect for readers wanting high saturated Protective Alpha Mountain Man (edging on Caveman) Breeding Kink. I don't even know how to say that gently and still be accurate. That's the main reason I picked up Wyatt and Trista's story and it delivers.

I also enjoyed the emotional relationship that grows alongside Wyatt and Trista's burning hot chemistry. There is a stronger emphasis on meeting Trista's needs - financially, mentally, and physically. It was lovely to read a character that has worked so hard, and survival all her struggles to be appreciated and given the time amd space to thrive. Where she is at book's end is fully supported by the love and affection showered on her by Wyatt and his family. Get it mama!

Okay ... Wyatt. He is for the readers who see heavy handed, over protective, "Mine," possessive jealously as a a green flag. If any of those are reds for you, then you might want to sit this one out. His niece (and matchmaker - weird, but smile and nod for now okay) even calls him "sweet and psycho." Seriously this man has no chill. There are scenes when that protective instinct borders on controlling. Trista calls him out on the behavior, and is able to set some boundaries with him. But ultimately, yea no, Wyatt is hard to resist.

I have a few critical notes regarding moments that read overly sexist and were presented unchecked.

First, Wyatt drops the dreaded "she's not like other women." That line needs to fade into obscurity.

Then, there's a Harry Potter reference. Please leave JKR in the past while we're at it.

Also, a gender reveal party? And Wyatt's commentary, "those kinds of parties are always more for women than men." My guy, your intent is to be a single father with the assistance of a surrogate. I get it's Mountain Man, but hes building eco friendly new tech housing with out dated points of view on gender.

Okay my few is turning into a handful of notes.

Theres also a minor scene character that I would sooner have edited out completely rather than leave him on page to deliver my most hated wtf moments.

Trista, Wyatt, his brothers and niece, and a few friends are playing poker. One of the friends is a doctor, and when asked "what kind?" he informs he practices family medicine. In the same breath he shares, "I have a private practice with my wife in Boulder, who does more mental health stuff. We have three daughters as well, which means... I drink a lot of whiskey.” Not enough respect to say his wife is a psychiatrist or psychologist. And his family leads him to drink. Okay, let's say it's a safe space for him to commiserate about his hectic family. But when it's back-to-back with the condescension of his wife's work? I wanted to question why he was anyone's friend.

There's also a major thread regarding Wyatt's past relationship and how his other brother's were involved. Without spoilery details, he repeatedly mentions that everyone involved knew they were playing a flirty dangerous game. But when the woman involved outplays them all, shes a villain? And that ties back into Wyatt pulling the "she's not like other women" line. Mountain Man, please. Take some responsibility for how you were willing to play the game.

That's a lot to unpack.

Readers are gonna find this book for the Mountain Man, breeding kink appeal. Give the book full marks in that regard. But it's the normalized and outdated sexist content that has me hesitating to fully recommend the book.

Thank you Netgalley & Harlequin Trade Publishing | Canary Street Press for this advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

DNF @26%

I thought this grumpy/sunshine, small-town romance was going to be a great read but I'm extremely disappointed. I honestly cannot fathom reading any further in the book after seeing the way the book seems to make fun of surrogacy and the whole process that goes along with it. I hate to say this but this book is flat out awful, because of it.

The characters were hard to like as they both seemed to be taking the process of something sensitive and making a mockery of it. This book just did not work for me.

My reviews can also be accessed on GoodReads: www.goodreads.com/brandisbooks.

Thank you to both Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion, these are my own thoughts.

rating: 4.5
spice: 2

this was such a cute book omg. i’m normally not a fan of the pregnancy trope, but i loved this one! trista & wyatt forever. 🥹

i loved all the different POVs, especially everly’s! she’s wyatt’s niece and the source of the matchmaking. so we owe this incredible story to her (and amy daws)!

trista is looking to become a surrogate, wyatt is looking to start a family. can you name a better match? 🙂‍↔️

if you’re a fan of meghan quinn’s romcoms, then you have to add this one to your tbr! they give off the same funny, emotional, and spicy vibes!

- breeding kink
- curvy fmc
- rugged mmc
- death mentioned

Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book early.

I really enjoyed The Nine Month Contract. I don’t typically read a lot of romances where pregnancy was at the forefront of the book and not at the end, but I really loved this! Everly is my favorite, I love her and little genius brain so much! My girl masterminded this whole thing and we love her for that!

I absolutely love Wyatt and the fact that her loved being an uncle so much that he was ready to raise a kid of his own even if he had to do it alone. I would love to have a mountain man of I could have him and his very sweet and overprotectiveness. I loved how much he loved his family and how his family would do any and everything for him in return as well!

I really loved Trista as well and all of the adorable animals that she brought a long with her! She was the perfect person Everly could have found to be Wyatt’s surrogate. She fit in to their family so perfectly which I loved. This was such a sweet romance and I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

⭐️

I DNF’d this book at 11%. The author used words like “rizzing” & referenced current TikTok trends & I just couldn’t do it.

I’m not old, but I also don’t want to feel like I’m reading a book written by a 16 year old who speaks “social media” all the time. This was written for a certain audience & unfortunately, that audience doesn't include me. The premise of this book sounded really interesting, but I believe the execution lacked severely.

Nine Month Contract by Amy Daws
2.5/3⭐️⭐️⭐️

Some aspects of this book were really cute. I'm always game for a gruff mountain man, AND he's eco conscious?! Sign me up. I loved the beautiful Colorado setting the author wrote this story in as well, and Millie, the sweet goat Millie ❤️ unfortunately it kind of goes off the rails from there. As a former Healthcare worker, the blatant irresponsible representation of surrogacy and "at home insemination" was very jarring. I understand that as an author, certain liberties can be taken for the sake of the story, but surrogacy and infertility are such sensitive subjects that I feel like this was a fumble on the authors part. I also found myself very annoyed with the FMC, Trista. She's carrying this man's baby as a "surrogate" but still resists his help at every turn, and when she does finally cave, she's kind of a b**** about it. She has a lot of unresolved baggage from her childhood, which does contribute to this independent personality, so I get it i really do. It just got very repetitive, and the MMC is honestly such a genuine, helpful, caring guy, and she made his life chaos for the first 80%+ of the book. I almost DNFd around 60% but felt the need to finish to see if the ending made it all worth it.... and it really didn't for me.

This free eARC was provided by netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

NINE MONTH CONTRACT
AMY DAWS
ON SALE MARCH 18/25 ( previously available in 2024 in the UK)

Grumpy mountain man wants a surrogate to have his child.

We’ll that certainly would draw me in. Wyatt wants a child, but not necessarily a wife. Trisha wants $$, so she agrees to have his child so she can start her own Animal Rescue place.

She moves in with a pig and the promise of more animals. Wyatt is not thrilled about the bunny, miniature horse and chickens that follow, but it is plain to see Trisha is winning him over in more ways than one.

Quirky rom com that has a lot of sex for the reader who wants to in that direction.

What happens when your 18 year old niece plays match maker??? except not only for love but for a surrogate mother for your future child. This book had all the emotions and was laugh out loud funny. I found myself wanting to go live in the mountains of Colorado with the brothers and animals.

This book was absolutely unhinged and emotional and hilarious and relatable in all the best possible ways. I have no pregnancy hormones to blame, but I laughed and cried throughout this entire book. It was the perfect combination of light-hearted and deeply moving and I ATE. IT. UP.

Thank you so much from the publisher and NetGalley for the arc of this book.

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH. This had me on a roller coaster of emotions so fast that I wasn’t sure how to feel other than sappy.

Wyatt is the grumpiest grump. Everly just wants him to be in love. And Trista is the sunshine with sass whom I love with all of my heart.

4.5 ✨

READ. THIS. BOOK.

The vibes are so good.

Grumpy mountain man who dreams of being a daddy? Say less! Trista and Wyatt’s slow burn friendship had me giggling and blushing all at the same time. Each of these characters added a different dimension to the story that I found both relatable and eye opening. Surrogacy is not something I’m educated on but I feel like I learned so much about the struggles that people go through who are involved in the process. I also loved the story talked about being healthy despite not meeting the BMI standards. Between our two MC’s slow burn romance, Wyatt’s family, all the cute little farm animals, and all the laughs and cries in between, this story small town took my heart. There were a few things I found weird but nothing that took me away from the story. Definitely a quick read that’ll keep you laughing til the end!

I’ve never read anything by Amy Daws, but the cute “lumberjacky” cover of Nine Month Contract caught my eye. I am so glad I requested this book, as I absolutely loved it! The premise of this book is wild - a surrogate and her client falling in love - but it totally worked. I couldn’t put this book down and read it in one day.

Wyatt and Trista are set up by his niece Everly to work together to do a surrogacy. They are attracted & intrigued at first sight. The contract is signed, and Trista gets pregnant on their first attempt. She moves in to an apartment on Wyatt’s property, and both are fighting an intense attraction to each other. Wyatt does all he can to take care of Trista, but she has a hard time accepting his help.

As time goes on, Wyatt’s family welcomes Trista in their fold. I loved the way they cared for her and about her. Wyatt’s brothers also live on the same mountain, and they provide a ton of comic relief. I can’t wait to read their books! Wyatt and Trista’s relationship evolves throughout the book, and I loved how the author treated their situation and the surrogacy delicately. They have tons of chemistry and the steam was off the charts. Wyatt and Trista have some struggles, but all ends well in a wonderful happy ending & epilogue.

This book was such a fun read. The banter between the characters was really funny, and their situation and feelings for each other made this book impossible to put down. I can't wait to dig in to Amy Daws' other books. Highly recommend Nine Month Contract.

Thank you Harlequin Trade Publishing / Canary Street Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

What a fun take on a single dad romance. We get the surrogate to fall in love with the broody mountain man
This was a hilarious group of characters from our fmc Trista to her gaggle of wild pets she brings to the mountain. Wyatt is all grumpy and bossy and the banter was off the charts. A fun rom com for sure

The breeding kink is not for me. But the protective vibes, epic found family, and hilarious banter are right up my alley!

It was fun to watch both the MCs, Trista and Wyatt, evolve throughout the book. God knows I love a self-aware man!

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an ARC of this book! This is my honest review.