laurenjodi's review against another edition
3.0
Hold Me Close
3 Stars
Rachel Andrews is wary around men in general and good-looking men in particular, so when her sexy new boss, Matt, mistakes her for a buckle-bunny and comes on hard to teach her a lesson, she isn't so willing to forgive and forget. This makes it all the harder for Matt and his business partner, Ethan, to convince Rachel to give a relationship with them a chance. That is until they learn that Rachel wants a baby. Can they convince her that they can provide everything she needs?
This is not usually a genre that appeals to me mainly due to the lack of actual plot, overdone sex scenes, and unrealistic romances. However, I needed the book for a challenge and, as it turns out, this has interesting characters with well-developed backstories and a believable storyline (aside from the sexcapades that are inherent to the genre).
Rachel is a sweet heroine and Ethan is simply wonderful. In fact, if the romance had been between these two without Matt, whose condescending attitude leaves much to be desired, the book would have been a 4 star read.
Kylie Stewart's narration is acceptable, but she does not sufficiently distinguish between the male and female voices. As such, all the characters sound the same.
3 Stars
Rachel Andrews is wary around men in general and good-looking men in particular, so when her sexy new boss, Matt, mistakes her for a buckle-bunny and comes on hard to teach her a lesson, she isn't so willing to forgive and forget. This makes it all the harder for Matt and his business partner, Ethan, to convince Rachel to give a relationship with them a chance. That is until they learn that Rachel wants a baby. Can they convince her that they can provide everything she needs?
This is not usually a genre that appeals to me mainly due to the lack of actual plot, overdone sex scenes, and unrealistic romances. However, I needed the book for a challenge and, as it turns out, this has interesting characters with well-developed backstories and a believable storyline (aside from the sexcapades that are inherent to the genre).
Rachel is a sweet heroine and Ethan is simply wonderful. In fact, if the romance had been between these two without Matt, whose condescending attitude leaves much to be desired, the book would have been a 4 star read.
Kylie Stewart's narration is acceptable, but she does not sufficiently distinguish between the male and female voices. As such, all the characters sound the same.
the_sassy_bookworm's review against another edition
3.0
OK cover on this one. Good representation of the characters. OK composition and title work.
This one was cute. It was a little repetitive in places, and I am not a fan of 26-year-old virgins. But it was very insta with no OW/OM drama and had two (fairly) likable heroes. Matt was his own worst enemy at times, but Ethan was pretty much perfect. Rachel was likable but like I said I could have done without the whole unrealistic virginity. And maybe I am a bitch, but the incident in her past seemed a bit benign to have warranted such an extreme reaction from her for YEARS. Of course, there were some hot sex scenes as well. Lastly, it was wrapped up in an OK ending. I would have liked to have seen a further into the future epilogue for these three. All in all, it was a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours on a dreary Saturday afternoon.
doloresofcourse's review against another edition
2.0
26-year-old virgin alert. That yawn lasts until about halfway through the book. Pregnancy. Laughable anal scene at the end with coconut oil. I know these are formulaic, but the sex scenes are usually better written than this one.
fiadhnd's review against another edition
3.0
**Most of my reviews contain detailed CW/TW sections, which may include spoilers. I have tried to mark them appropriately, but please use caution.**
ebook
3.5/5
Summary: instalove, FMC wants a baby, MMCs want to provide.
Stats: Why Choose (M/F/M), menage-open society, Part of a series, stands alone. Open door.
Notes: Bit of nonsense to break up some boredom. Did the job. Not the best plot, not the best relationship/character development, not the best smut, but all good enough for the purpose.
OTT and Spoilery Content Warnings (CW) and Trigger Warnings (TW):
Pregnancy
ebook
3.5/5
Summary: instalove, FMC wants a baby, MMCs want to provide.
Stats: Why Choose (M/F/M), menage-open society, Part of a series, stands alone. Open door.
Notes: Bit of nonsense to break up some boredom. Did the job. Not the best plot, not the best relationship/character development, not the best smut, but all good enough for the purpose.
OTT and Spoilery Content Warnings (CW) and Trigger Warnings (TW):
teamrobward's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
mommasaystoread's review against another edition
3.0
Hold Me Close is a quick read, easily finished in a couple of hours. It's fast-paced and overall, a fun story, but it does require quite the suspension of belief. I'm not talking about the menage part of this story - I knew that going in and while I'm pretty sure it doesn't happen quite so often, I can enjoy the story. My problem was with how fast this romance took off. I'm not a huge fan of instalove, but usually expect it in a book of this length. This one, however, was even faster than the norm for our cowboys, Matt and Ethan. Instant attraction, I could've been fine with, but one look and knowing she's the one is a bit much. Rachel's complete acceptance of this once it's revealed to her was another irksome detail for me. She did at least know a little something about them at that point, more than I can say for the heroes of this tale. It is a fun story and light on the drama, the characters are likable, the story flow is good, and the sex is over-the-top hot. Oh, and two sexy cowboys! If instant, and I do mean instant, love with lots of steamy goodness is something you enjoy, then this one is for you.
stephsromancebooktalk's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 Stars
My last Bridgewater County family and I loved this one as well! Rachel is the older sister in a family of people that have settled down into relationships. After a traumatic event in college Rachel feels skittish around men, but when she starts to evaluate her life she finds that she wants a baby. When Rachel's sister suggests that she doesn't need a relationship to have a baby, Rachel pushes her attraction to the side about her bosses and researches ways to make a baby happen. Matt and Ethan did not grow up in Bridgewater but they were familiar with the customs of the community. When Matt puts his foot in his mouth with Rachel they find they have an uphill struggle to convince the woman of their dreams to be their forever.
This specific video review will be included in the December 2018 wrap-up.
For other video book reviews check out my YouTube Channel: Steph's Romance Book Talk.
My last Bridgewater County family and I loved this one as well! Rachel is the older sister in a family of people that have settled down into relationships. After a traumatic event in college Rachel feels skittish around men, but when she starts to evaluate her life she finds that she wants a baby. When Rachel's sister suggests that she doesn't need a relationship to have a baby, Rachel pushes her attraction to the side about her bosses and researches ways to make a baby happen. Matt and Ethan did not grow up in Bridgewater but they were familiar with the customs of the community. When Matt puts his foot in his mouth with Rachel they find they have an uphill struggle to convince the woman of their dreams to be their forever.
This specific video review will be included in the December 2018 wrap-up.
For other video book reviews check out my YouTube Channel: Steph's Romance Book Talk.
mamabookwyrm's review against another edition
3.0
So ménage stories are my guilty pleasure. Whenever I need an escape from reality that doesn’t include angst, I tend to gravitate from them. So I was happy to dive into Hold Me Close. And I have to tell you, it was a cute little story that helped me relax for a few hours. It’s definitely insta-love and on the cheesy side of it. Light on the plot, it’s heavy on the steam. I’d make sure you had a battery-operated friend or your significant other nearby while reading this.
Matt is the alphahole—arrogant, fast to temper, and dominant. Ethan is no less dominant, but he’s the gentleman of the two. He’s more tender, sweet, and gentle. Rachel is sweet, shy, and inexperienced. But she’s also packing a little bit of sass underneath the sugary sweet. I appreciated that their relationship wasn’t instantaneous. But once it started, it seemed to be all about the sex until the big conflict came into play. And truthfully, it was pretty low-drama for a conflict.
So while it wasn’t checking all my boxes, it definitely was a nice way to spend a couple of hours. If you like ménage and insta-love, I’d definitely pick this up. It’s part of a series but can definitely be read as a standalone.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.
For more reviews, visit
Matt is the alphahole—arrogant, fast to temper, and dominant. Ethan is no less dominant, but he’s the gentleman of the two. He’s more tender, sweet, and gentle. Rachel is sweet, shy, and inexperienced. But she’s also packing a little bit of sass underneath the sugary sweet. I appreciated that their relationship wasn’t instantaneous. But once it started, it seemed to be all about the sex until the big conflict came into play. And truthfully, it was pretty low-drama for a conflict.
So while it wasn’t checking all my boxes, it definitely was a nice way to spend a couple of hours. If you like ménage and insta-love, I’d definitely pick this up. It’s part of a series but can definitely be read as a standalone.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.
For more reviews, visit