Tuesday 6 February 2018

BLOG TOUR - REVIEW & GIVEAWAY: ICING ON THE CAKE by ANNE MARIE WALKER

Icing on the Cake
Wild Wedding #2
By Ann Marie Walker
Releasing January 30th, 2018
Swerve




Notting Hill meets The Prince & Me in Icing on the Cake, the second standalone laugh-out-loud romance in Ann Marie Walker’s Wild Wedding series

Cassandra Miller doesn’t have time for men. She’s far too busy trying to open a cupcake shop with her silent partner and best friend, not to mention catering her brother’s wedding. And let’s face it, it’s not like Prince Charming is going to stroll into the bakery and sweep her off her feet.

Henry has been a prince his entire life but for one wild wedding he wants to be nothing more than an “Average Joe”, or in this instance, “Average Hank”. However, when a case of mistaken identity and a batch of burned cupcakes ends in a night of passion, Cassie and Hank must decide if theirs is a recipe for disaster or the makings of true romance.

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In Icing on the Cake (Wild Wedding #2) by Ann Marie Walker, Cassandra Miller hasn't been with a man in a long time, so she's decided to take her friend's advice and have a fling while away at her brother's wedding. However, she never imagined she'd fall in love with the man she chooses. Yet, Hank Green is keeping a huge secret and when she discovers the truth that his real name is Henry and that he's a prince, will she be able to forgive the fact that he broke her trust, or will she walk away from her chance at happy ever after?

I really enjoy Ms. Walker's books and this second story of her Wild Wedding series was such a delightful and compelling read that was full of hot romance; wonderful main characters and fascinating second ones; and the dialogue was riveting, as Henry brings out a side of Cassandra that she doesn't normally show to anyone. In fact, she's playful and a total vixen around him where as she's usually quite boring as she puts it. 

The way this story started drew me into this story immediately, as Cassandra is finally living the dream in that she's opened a cupcake shop and is doing something she loves. However, it was her discussion with her best friend that had me laughing, because Cassandra definitely has a dilemma. How can she not follow her best friend's advice? Yet, it was from the moment Henry and Cassandra come face-to-face for the first time that had me reading quickly, determined to discover how long it would take for the heroine to get lucky since she and Henry have splendid chemistry that needs to be explored sooner rather than later. 

Both the main characters were wonderful, but it was the secondary characters that had me liking this story even more, as their advice definitely needs to be taken to heart by this hero and heroine otherwise they don't stand a chance of forever after once everything goes awry in their relationship. Will Henry be able to make things right once the truth comes out about who he really is? Will Cassandra's stubbornness keep her them apart? Moreover, the heroine is strong and brave in giving Henry a chance and then with what she has to deal with when their relationship goes awry. I also liked how enthused and passionate she is about her new venture in opening a cupcake shop and being able to bake for a living, because it's a dream come true. Yet, what I liked most of all about the heroine was the close relationship she had with her brother and that he would do anything to protect her.

Although, in saying that, I loved what he did for her towards the end to make her see that her stubbornness was exhausting and that she should forgive Henry because nothing is more important than love and happiness, which he believes she found with the hero. While the hero, I could understand his need to just be an average guy because he's always in the spotlight and doesn't want to take the focus off the soon-to-be bride and groom. Really, he's a good guy that is determined to have fun and not turn the wedding into a media circus. I also liked how determined Henry was to win the heroine over, because she fascinates him and he can't seem to get her out of his head.

Overall, Ms. Walker has delivered a fantastic read in this book where the romance was hot and heady and had me liking these two together, as Cassandra needs a wonderful man such as Henry in her life in order to make sure she's having fun both personally and professionally; and the ending had me liking that the hero doesn't give up on winning Cassandra back, even though she gives him every reason to with her stubbornness. Will the heroine listen to the hero's plea of forgiveness? Will she be able to handle the fact that he's a prince if they get back together? Yet, what I liked most of all about the ending was the last line and how it ties in with the title of this book. I would recommend Icing on the Cake by Ann Marie Walker, if you enjoy the mistaken identity trope, the opposites attract trope, the brother's friend trope, or books by authors Kira Archer, Jennifer Probst, Kate Meader and Jessica Lemmon. 





His fingers rested on her hips, barely touching her, and yet she felt as though she were melting into his hands. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. She wanted to feel the weight of him against her, to know he was as affected by her as she was him. He pressed against her and she felt the shape of him, hard against her softness, and she couldn’t help but wonder how long he’d been that way, if this perfect man had wanted her this whole time as badly as she’d wanted him.

When he broke their kiss, she was more than ready for whatever came next.

“Come up to my room,” Hank breathed. His lips moved over her jaw and down her throat, leaving a trail of feather light kisses that left her aching for more. “I have a lovely four-poster bed that’s far too big for one.”

His room, his bed. Sex in his bed. She couldn’t pretend she didn’t want one wild night with this handsome stranger, but sex in a bed was so . . . so . . . normal. She’d done normal. And although normal sex was better than no sex, something told her that the man in front of her was offering good sex, and that was something that was long overdue.

Cassie blinked hard. She took a moment to gather her composure, but like her resistance it was currently scattered all over the bakery floor. Hmm, the floor would work just fine.

When she didn’t answer he pulled back, slipping a finger under her chin and lifting her eyes to his once again. “Shall I take that as a yes?”

“Why can’t we just stay here?” Her voice sounded as shaky as the rest of her. But it wasn’t from intimidation or nerves. On the contrary, for the first time in her life Cassie felt strong and fearless and brave. Still, something about this man made her tremble in the most delicious way.

His eyes glowed with a mixture of amusement and lust. “Believe me, luv, I’d like nothing better than to take you right here, against this door.”

Her heart hammered inside her chest. Did he really just say that? And in an accent that was nearly enough to finish her off? Who was this man who had come into her life as if a direct answer to Olivia’s outrageous suggestion? The images her friend had conjured two days prior flooded her senses. Oh yes, that was exactly what she wanted. Right then and there.

Lucky for her, Hank was a bit more aware of their surroundings. “But those windows don’t have any curtains,” he said, nodding over his shoulder. “And I would hate for some random pub-goer to get an eyeful of your beautiful curves as he stumbled home.”

Sex god and a gentleman? This guy was too good to be true.

“Ask me again,” she said.

A momentary frown drifted across his face until realization took hold. He leaned closer and whispered roughly against her ear. “Let’s go up to my room, so I can make you come all night.”

Holy hell, that he didn’t have to offer twice.







Ann Marie Walker writes steamy books about sexy boys. She’s a fan of fancy cocktails, anything chocolate, and 80s rom-coms. Her super power is connecting any situation to an episode of Friends and she thinks all coffee cups should be the size of a bowl. If it’s December she can be found watching Love Actually but the rest of the year you can find her at AnnMarieWalker.com where she would be happy to talk to you about alpha males, lemon drop martinis or supermodel David Gandy. Ann Marie attended the University of Notre Dame and currently lives in Chicago.




































































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