BOOK BLAST: BLAME IT ON THE BET by L.E RICO

Blame it on the Bet

Whiskey Sisters #1

By L.E Rico

Releasing September 11th, 2017

Entangled Publishing: Bliss

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In Blame it on the Bet (Whiskey Sisters #1) by L.E Rico, Hennessy O'Halloran has come home to Mayhem, Minnesota, in hopes of saving her family's pub after the death of her father. Yet, it isn't going to be easy, especially when she and her three sisters need to raise a lot of money, if they're going to keep the pub in the family, so it isn't torn down and turned into a multiplex theatre by Bryan Truitt, a real-estate developer from L.A. However, there's something about Bryan that has Hennessy wanting to get to know him better than continue to consider him the enemy. But when Hennessy learns something about his past, will she hear him out when it comes to the truth or will she make the biggest mistake she's ever made in her life and lose her chance at happy ever after?

This is one of the best enemy to lovers trope encompassing romances I've read in a while, and it's a story that was absolutely memorable due to the fantastic main characters that underestimate each other; secondary characters that made me laugh or smile, especially Hennessy's nephew with his new favorite word for Bryan; and dialogue that was a wonderful combination of intense, emotional and witty moments that kept me entertained from start to finish. The way this story started had me hooked and I was totally charmed by the O'Halloran sisters, as they will do anything to keep their family's legacy going. However, it was from the moment Hennessy and Bryan meet that this story gets very interesting, as Bryan's charm doesn't work on the heroine and instead he underestimates her.

Both the main characters were beguiling, not only because they had very interesting back stories, but because I loved every moment they conversed. Since at the beginning, Bryan starts off as enemy number one, not just for the heroine but her sisters as well. However, I enjoyed how Bryan won Hennessy and the rest of the townspeople over. He's confident, charming and determined to get what he wanted, even if he did have to offer the heroine a bet that was too hard for her to resist. I also loved the Truittisms and the friendship the hero shared with his assistant, as she's helped him a lot to deal with his past and I liked how she pushed him to fight for his future by facing his past and doing everything he can to win Hennessy's heart.

While the heroine, she's resilient, brave and I liked her determination to succeed in keeping her family's pub open. Then again, with her track record as a lawyer, she definitely has what it takes to win, and the way she stands up to Bryan at the start shows she certainly has the skills to go head-to-head with him. I also enjoyed how confident the heroine was and that she was willing to accept advice when it was palpable she desperately needed it, especially when things go awry between her and Bryan. Yet, what I liked most of all about the heroine is the way she is with her sisters and that she would do anything for them.

Overall, Ms. Rico has delivered a remarkable and sweet romance in this book where the chemistry between the hero and heroine was off the charts; the secondary characters were just as entertaining as Bryan and Hennessy, especially the heroine's nephew who stole my heart; and the ending took me totally by surprise with what happened with the family pub and by the way things went awry between this couple. Why did Hennessy have to react so badly when she'd only heard a secondhand version of what happened to the hero in the past? However, in saying that, I liked how Bryan made things right with Hennessy, because she's the one for him and there's no way he's going to let her get away. I would recommend Blame it on the Bet by L.E Rico, if you enjoy sweet romances; the mistaken identity trope; the enemy to lovers trope; or books by authors Sean D. Young, Victoria James, Sonya Weiss and Rachel Harris.

BLURB

Welcome to Mayhem, Minnesota, where the cats wear sweaters, the local priest dispenses dating advice, and you can find your fortune in the bottom of a pie pan.

When her family’s pub is threatened with foreclosure, Hennessy O’Halloran, along with her three sisters, is determined to raise enough money to keep it out of the hands of the L.A. real-estate developer trying to raze it and replace it with a—god forbid!—multiplex theater.

Bryan Truitt always gets what he wants. And what he wants is the sweet corner property on Mayhem’s Main Street where O’Halloran’s Pub sits. But his “quick business” turns into more than he bargains for when he meets the feisty Hennessy. Next thing he knows, he’s betting her he can outlast Mayhem’s punishing winter in time to make the pub his—or he’ll gift it to her for free.

Hennessy knows better than to flirt with the enemy. But suddenly Bryan’s not sure which he wants more…the property or the woman who owns it.

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Standing there, looking bedraggled and exhausted, is Bryan Truitt. He’s holding his iPhone up to the door, and I can just make out the tiny image of Peter Gabriel’s album So on the screen. Bryan doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t knock. He doesn’t ring. He just stands there, phone up, waiting for me to hear him and open the door.

I do.

“In your eyes, I see the doorway to a thousand churches…” Peter Gabriel sings just loud enough so as not to bother my neighbors.

“That’s my favorite line,” he says. “The doorway to a thousand churches line…”

“Yeah, that is a pretty amazing image,” I agree, playing along as he pretends this is a perfectly natural situation.

“I get it.”

“What?” I ask, neither of us budging

“I get what he’s saying. Because I see that when I look into your eyes.”

I stare at him, my breath suddenly caught in my throat.

“You…you do?” I ask, sounding tentative.

He nods.

“I do. And that’s why I’m here.” 

“It is?”

Jeez, could I be any lamer?

He nods again.

“Can I come in?”

I step back and hold the door open so he can pass me.

I realize I’m dressed in only a terrycloth robe with my hair swept up in a towel turban. No clothes. No makeup. Not even a pair of slippers.

“Uh… Let me go put something on—"

“No,” he says sharply. The surprise must register on my face because he’s quick to jump in again. “I don’t want to let you out of my sight. Not for a second. I can’t.”

“Bryan…”

He sets his phone down on the breakfast bar and wraps his big, strong hands around my forearms.

“No, Hennessy. I let you go once, and I won’t do it again. Not ever.”

L.E. Rico didn’t set out to be an author. In fact she’s made a name for herself as a classical music radio host—doing her best to make the music and the composers relevant by putting them into a modern context. It was just a few years ago that she discovered a passion for writing that blossomed into an entire novel. And then another. And another. And, while she still spends plenty of time on the radio, telling the stories of the great composers, she spends even more time composing her own great stories.

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