Gettin' Wood in the Great Outdoors

Lumberjacks, lobster fishermen and dirty wood jokes take center stage as Nicole and Meghan continue June's Great Outdoors theme with two romances proving love can flourish in even the most remote corners of the map.

First up, Nicole reviews The Catch by Amy Lea. What begins as a disastrous work trip to Nova Scotia quickly spirals into a fake engagement with a local fisherman after an accident leaves the hero injured. Nicole shares why this small-town romance won her over, from the believable communication between the main characters to a family Settlers of Catan showdown that earned major bonus points. The ladies also discuss character growth, redemption arcs and whether readers should leave reviews for books they never finished.

Then Meghan reviews Wood You Marry Me? by Daphne Elliot, a marriage-of-convenience romance set in the small town of Lovewell, Maine. Between lumberjack competitions, family drama, health challenges and a surprisingly sweet slow-burn romance, this one offered unexpected depth. Plus, no discussion would be complete without mentioning Clive the moose, who may have become one of the most memorable side characters of the season.

Along the way, Nicole learns about erotic blueprints, Meghan weighs in on DNF culture and both hosts discuss the fabulous opportunities for wood-related jokes in romance novels.

Book & Beverage Pairings

Nicole: The Catch by Amy Lea with a Dark & Dirty Screech Cocktail

Meghan: Wood You Marry Me? by Daphne Elliot with The Moscow Moose

Whether you're team fake engagement, team marriage of convenience or just here for the moose content, grab your favorite beverage and join the bookish biddies for another adventure in the great outdoors.

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Transcript

Welcome And The Outdoors Theme

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Hello, I'm Nicole Donyelle. And I'm Megan Lee. And this is Romance on the Rocks, where two bookish biddies imbibe and talk about romance novels. Specifically this time around, we are on the second great outdoors kind of theme that we've got going on.

Cocktail Picks And Cute Glassware

SPEAKER_00 0:25

So romance outside. Yeah. What are you drinking for your romance outside? This was kind of a struggle for me this time around. Both of my characters in the book are sober and it's a pretty big theme. There are reasons. So I couldn't really pick something that they specifically were drinking. And one of them was a bartender. So that just added to the whole thing that they're around it, but not really drinking. So instead of picking something they would have been drinking, because they're clearly not, I picked something called the Woodsman. Yeah. So my my book is called Would You Marry Me? Would the U-O-O-D. So I went with the Woodsman, or at least my take on it. And so this one has bourbon, lemon juice, amaretto, and it's supposed to have ginger beer. I went with the ginger lime mule seltzer water. I may have made a mistake on that. I might have needed the ginger beer. I've already taken a sip. I think it's a little heavy on the lemon, and I feel like it could be more well balanced. And I think it's my fault for doing the seltzer instead of the ginger beer, but the woodsman. All right. Cheers. And and can I also point out this cute glass that I have right here that's got its little bubble lid? Yeah. Yeah. I just got this. This was gifted to me by one of our listeners. And so yeah, so I just wanted to show that off. This was a lovely little addition to our drinking this evening. Lovely. Thank you. And how about you, Nicole? What do you have?

SPEAKER_01 1:57

Well, in my book, which is set in Kanatada. Kanada. Kanada. Canada. They talk about going into a towny bar and drinking something called Screech. I'm sure you've heard of it. I have not. No.

SPEAKER_00 2:11

No, I actually haven't. I thought you would have. Okay. No, my sister and my brother-in-law are not big drinkers. For anybody who doesn't know, they live in Canada. But my brother-in-law really never ever drinks, and my sister very, very rarely does.

SPEAKER_01 2:24

So apparently there's a type of dark rum called Screech up there. And they talked about drinking screech cocktails. So I was like, okay, I'll Google. I'll Google some screech cocktails. And what I came across was basically like a rum and coke. Okay. With screech. So we're drinking rum and coke, but it's called dark and dirty. Very nice. And uh Bob said that I had to use oh god, it's not a musky fish. It's some kind of other fish on it. Like a trout. No, it's something that he assured me.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

It's very Canadian. Oh, it's northern pike. All right, there you go. Well, cheers to that. Yeah.

Nicole's Book: The Catch by Amy Lea

SPEAKER_00 3:07

Well, girl, I think you go first, and I only think that because we checked before we started. Right.

SPEAKER_01 3:12

My book is The Catch by Amy Lee. Let me pull up my show notes. Show notes. The show notes. I like that. We need like a show notes like catchy tune or something.

SPEAKER_00 3:25

I got my jazz hands ready. Show notes. Show notes.

SPEAKER_01 3:31

So The Catch is part of a series called The Influencers, which includes two other books set on you and X's and O's. This one was published in 2024. The subgenres are contemporary romance slash romantic comedy. Tropes that we're going to encounter in this one are fake dating slash engagement and enemies to labbas. Very nice. The main characters. We have Evan Whaler, a lobster fisherman in Kora's Cove, Nova Scotia.

SPEAKER_00 4:01

His last name is Whaler, and they made him a fisherman.

SPEAKER_01 4:04

Yeah. Shocked.

SPEAKER_00 4:06

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 4:07

He also does part-time seasonal work, taking fishermen on private charters and tourists out on whale watching excursions. And in addition, because that's not enough, he's also trying to fix up and save his family's bad and breakfast slash in. Melanie is an Asian American fashion, beauty, and lifestyle social media influencer in Boston, Massachusetts. She started out being dirt poor and learned how to fake looking like she was bougie by crushing it at thrifting and learning how to sew and altering clothes at a young age and getting into the social media influencing game early on when it started to becoming a real thing. But she's getting older and feels like she's losing touch as an influencer because she's losing followers and her posts and reels aren't getting the traction she needs, which is also in turn then causing her to lose sponsors and brands. Then we have Lucy, who is Evan's cousin, who is helping him run and try to save the family in slash Airbnb. Then we have Julian, who is Melanie's younger brother, who she's taken care of and basically been his mom since their mom split when they were little kids. And even though their dad was present, he wasn't winning any father of the year awards. He was loving, but he just wasn't parenting very well. He's struggled greatly with depression. Julian has, and since their dad died a few years ago, to the point where he's been functioning, not functioning as an adult, really. And in fact, at the start of this book, he has moved back in with Melanie and is jobless. So the plot line. Mel is invited by a fancy resort in Halifax to come up for the week for an all-expense paid trip to promote their venue. This is a little different from her normal content, but she needs something to boost her views and follows. Influencing is Mel's only job currently, and she's got a condo mortgage to pay and is now basically supporting her younger brother again. She doesn't want to have to go back to getting a traditional job, but her influencer biz is starting to struggle. So this seems like the perfect opportunity to rejuvenate her biz and get some fresh content and traction going. So she boards a plane paid for by the resort and heads on up to Canada. And then when she deplanes, she finds out the resort fucked up the reservation somehow. Okay. And there are no other rooms available because it's peak tourist season and there's nothing else available in Halifax. She has the option to fly home right then and there, but she would have to pay for the flight to leave and come back.

SPEAKER_00 6:42

No, no, no. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. I'm sorry. Somebody screws up and they don't have a place for you to stay, but now it's your responsibility to fly back home? Absolutely not.

SPEAKER_01 6:53

I I was like, that's some serious BS. And not like, no, I'm also like, how did they they're the ones who arranged her flights? Right. How did they not catch the difference in the flight dates and the hotel dates? But what apps? We're gonna just suspend belief on that. All right. She's about to say fuck it and go ahead and just pay to fly home and back when she finds an Airbnb about an hour away in Cora Cove. So she books it, gets a rental car, and off she goes. She gets to the inn and is on her cell phone with her bestie, bitching about the place not matching the description and no one manning the front desk. Fair. She's tired, she's frustrated, and now this. Wait, it's an Airbnb, but sh there's a front desk? Yeah. Because it used to be like an It used to be like an inn, like in the 50s and 60s. Yeah. Still doesn't make any sense. Okay. But whatever. What else? Again, we're suspending belief.

SPEAKER_00 7:47

I love that my biggest problem with this so far is not the fact that it's going to be some sort of romance novel where people are going to fall in love instantaneously and change their lives. I'm stuck on the logistics of flights and hotels. Same, same girl. Same. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 8:04

Well, this is when our MMC Evan Whaler, the owner of the inn, who wasn't expecting her, comes in. And he's like, What the hell? Who are you? And she's like, dude, I have a reservation. I just booked it like a few hours ago. Well, he never saw it and he never accepted it. And he's like, Are you sure you have a reservation? And so an argument it ensues. And she assumed she was good to go. And that's why she's there. Well, turns out the Airbnb is under construction. And his cousin, Lucy, forgot to turn off the online booking on Airbnb.

SPEAKER_00 8:42

This is a disaster. If I were this girl, I would be like, I'm sleeping in my rental car. The world is against me.

SPEAKER_01 8:48

And that's what she was seriously about to do. She has nowhere else to go. It's late at night. And she's like, dude, can I please just stay here? I get that you're under construction, but I have no other options. And he's a total bag of dicks to her. But his cousin Lucy is like, no, it's okay. We'll make this work and you can stay for the night and then we'll figure things out in the morning. Well, in the morning, Lucy makes breakfast and the three of them chat. And Lucy and Evan agree to let Mel stay for the rest of the week until she can go back to the resort in Halifax. Mel is trying to make the most of it and get some content up during that time, and they could use the money because it's struggling and they've been closed for construction. So they're like, it'll work for everybody. And Lucy sets it up for Evan to take her on a whale sightseeing excursion because that's something he does on the side. So that's not unreasonable. Well, it does not go well, Megan. He's being a huge bag of dicks again to her the whole time and annoyed with her. And the weather is a little dicey, and her camera and she's gonna get seasick, isn't she?

SPEAKER_00 9:53

I would be barfing over the oh really? No. I'm telling you, I would be vomiting over the side of that boat. It would be unpleasant for all involved.

SPEAKER_01 10:01

Well, the weather gets a little dicey, and her camera and tripod go tripod go overboard. Like and she saved up a long time to get this equipment. And then because she's like trying to grapple for it as it's going overboard, Evan grabs her and instead ends up going overboard himself, trying to save her. Wow. Yeah. She's able to get help from another boat and the Coast Guard and rescue Evan, but he still ends up in the ER because he hit his head on the way to falling out of the boat and has a really scary seizure. So, yeah, so it was freaking her out, and everybody there is like, no, we got to get this guy of the ER in case there's something more significant going on here. Mel has no way of contacting Evan's family, and she feels responsible for him. So she lies to the medical staff that she's his fiancee. Of course. Well, eventually his family all show up. His cousin, his mom, his aunt, his uncle, his grandma. And the staff tells them that Mel is his fiance. So before anybody can correct the situation, it becomes a whole blown-out thing. And the family is all excited and they're banding together after years of infighting. And when Evan wakes up, Lucy begs Evan and Mel to go ahead and continue going along with this fiance story, because she knows the truth. But because it's brought the family together and it might be a way for them to save the inn because their respective moms keep arguing about it whether they should sell it or keep it. So Mel agrees to go along with it for the week, and she's gonna help Lucy and Evan improve their Airbnb listing and help them set up some social media accounts, because they never did, but then they can promote the inn better because it's clearly something they're both passionate about. And she sees that and she's like, guys, I can help you. And in exchange, Evan is gonna help Mel get some content for her socials too, taking her to waterfalls and whatnot, you know, all the picturesque things. There's a lot of challenges with Evan being a pretty big dick at various points at the beginning and Mel being a pretty big snob, frankly. And both of them liking to be right about things and not wanting to be wrong, and both of them having dominant personalities. There's a lot of the movie The Proposal and the movie While You Were Sleeping vibes happening here, which the author, Amy Lee, totally acknowledges at the end of the book. And that's all I'm gonna say in regard to the plot because this is a newer publication. In terms of spice level, I'm gonna put this. Your favorite. Ah, my favorite. But then things heated up nicely. You know, I like my spice. There's a pretty hot lighthouse scene. Ooh. It was quite spicy. You're talking my language about the lighthouse. Lighthouse, a lighthouse moment. And this is an open-door romance, but I also felt like the love scenes, while fairly descriptive, were also pretty brief, if that makes sense. So I don't know. Do you call that jalapeno or jabanier omegan? I go with jalapeno. Mm-hmm. Okay. That's kind of what I was feeling. Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 13:13

I feel like most of our books fall in that kind of category. Yeah. It's very rare that they stray from jalapeno.

SPEAKER_01 13:21

Yeah. Things I loved. At one point in the book, Evan and Mel engage in a pretty heated game of Settlers of Catan with his family. Uh bonus points for this element written into the story. I'm a huge settlers of Catan fan. And I loved that this was incorporated into the book. You know, I was struggling with slogging through the beginning of this, and then it got to settlers, and I looked up at Bob, my husband, and I was like, Settlers of Catan for bonus points. So yes, thank you, Amy Lee. Keeping you engaged. Yeah. The two of them battle it out for longest road and they make dirty wood jokes, and I am here for all of that. I also appreciated that later on in the book we learn why Evan was being a huge bag of dicks at various points in the book and their legit reasons. Okay. And he apologizes for his behavior. Okay. So thank you again, Amy Lee, for not just letting him be a jerk for the sake of being a jerk and getting away with it. Thank you. Mm-hmm. Because I see we I feel like we see that happen, where the guy's just a bag of dicks, no real reason for being a bag of dicks, and then he never apologizes for being a bag of dicks. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:37

I feel like that could be the title of this episode is just bag of dicks. Bag of dicks. Yeah.

unknown 14:42

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 14:43

I actually also like Evan as an MMC. He sounds pretty uh effing muscular and sexy and rugged, and he's got a baritone voice and sings in a band with East Coast Irish vibes. And he's a lobster fisherman, and all I could think of was the song Far Away by Ingrid Michelson.

SPEAKER_00 14:59

Oh, I like Ingrid Michelson.

SPEAKER_01 15:01

And I love that song and hers. So I was feeling the vibes on the whole lobster fisherman thing. There was actually really good communication between our FMC and MMC. We love that. And I loved that the resolution and the ending of the book were realistic and plausible given that their initial relationship is only two weeks, because you and I always have concerns and challenges with those brief kinds of timelines. Yep. And that short time frame is acknowledged and discussed and not just made to seem like some magical thing that's glossed over. So again, thank you, Amy Lee, the author, for that. Challenges right off the bat. I had challenges with the fact that the resort stuff like them screwing out her reservation, even though they're the ones who made the hotel reservation and the flight arrangements. I had problems with the fact that later on she decides not to go to the resort and then cancels that whole business situation. But I would have appreciated, just from a professional standpoint and a better understanding of the situation, how she went about doing that, what their reaction was and how she was able to dissolve that in a professional way, considering they already paid for her flights.

SPEAKER_00 16:20

They paid for her flights, but they also went against the contract by not providing her the place to stay. So probably the best case scenario is they just call it a wash because she could be posting all these things, bringing them down and talking about how her how her quote unquote stay was. So I don't know, man. I feel like they breached the contract first. Sure.

SPEAKER_01 16:47

And I agree with you. But they were also willing to pay for her Airbnb stay. And I just would have appreciated just a slight more, one or two more sentences explanation on how that all got resolved in the end. Also, I felt like her and Evan could have gone there. Just throwing that out there.

SPEAKER_00 17:04

But I feel like this is you and I getting caught up on the things that you and I get caught up on where most people don't have a like a care about that.

SPEAKER_01 17:14

And you and I are like, but wait, what about the reservation and the contract? You know, I get way too invested in these things anyway. Yep. For some reason, you know this because I kept messaging you about it. This started out as a really slow read for me. I was really struggling to get through it at a good pace up until two-thirds to three-quarters of the way through it. I don't know what the deal was and if it was a me thing or a book thing, but it was a serious slog for me initially. But I'm happy to say, Megan, after Settlers of Catan, the pace picked up and the story got more interesting, and I got through it. Other challenges, Evan's mom, Nessa, who is a sex therapist. That's not my issue. My issue is, quote, has my son made intimacy a priority in your relationship? Excuse me, what? Ew. And then she starts talking about arousal maps. And then I pretty much effing died when she said to Mel, quote, my son has always been a good lover. And has he been making you finish first? Oh, yuck! I know.

SPEAKER_00 18:18

I was like, OMFG, boundaries, woman, fucking boundaries. That is a category on Pornhub that none of us need to be going into.

SPEAKER_01 18:27

I don't have a problem with people having healthy conversations, potentially with their parents. And yes, Nessa is a sex therapist. I get it. But Mel didn't invite that conversation. Her son didn't invite that conversation. Exactly. And because of that, I found it to be gross and obtrusive, especially when she says her hot her son has always been a good lover. How would you fucking know? And gross. Gross stop. Yeah. No. Blue me. No. Right. So moving on to learning moments, because I always try to learn something new. At one point, speaking of Evan's mom, she mentions the erotic blueprint quiz. I I've never heard of this, so of course, Megan. I had to Google. It's a real thing? Oh yeah. Okay. On multiple websites, so I know it's for real now. Well. I I found this information at everythingbeginswithin.com. Quote Your erotic blueprint is a map to your own wiring and your own turn-on. People speak different erotic languages, and we can learn how to speak any of them. And there's five main ones allegedly. Energetic, someone who is turned on by anticipation, space, tease, longing and yearning. Sensual, someone who's turned on by all of their senses being ignited. Sexual, someone who is turned on by what we think of as sex in our culture. Kinky. Someone who is turned on by the taboo. And shapeshifter, someone who's turned on by everything. The sensual, sensual, sexual, kinky, and adrenal energetic types are turned on by. Okay then. I know it's like, well, I learned something new. I don't know if it means anything to me, but I learned it. Well, there you go. And then I learned one other thing. There's a mention of a Beatles song called I've Just Seen a Face. I have to tell you, I'm a huge Beatles fan, and I own all three of the Anthology CD collections, and I had never heard of that song, and neither had Bob. I can't place it in my head. I'd have to hear it to tell you if I even know it. We had to pull it up on Spotify, and we were still dumbfounded. Really? Interesting. So yeah, learn about a new Beatles song I had never effing heard before. All right. My final thoughts. I was shocked at the number of people who DNF'd this book, according to Goodreads. And I know we can all choose to DNF a book for whatever reason suits us. But for me, number one, I personally need closure, even if I dislike a book. And number two, there was nothing, in my opinion, in this book that would have caused me to DNF it. People were complaining about Evan and his family. And I was like, but if you would have read the whole book, you would have understood why they were the way they were. And also, they were honestly a loving family. And to be real, I found the fact that they were having some squabbles and challenges and dealing with some trauma to be pretty darn realistic. And I'm going to point out that when you DNF a book within the first 60 to 100 pages, you're not going to learn and understand those things. Again, we can all choose to DNF a book whenever we want or need to, but then I don't personally think it's fair to go on an author's website or socials or Goodreads and write a negative low-store review when you didn't finish the book.

SPEAKER_00 21:58

I agree with that. Like uh you can't review something if you haven't actually done the work. And I feel like getting through the first couple chapters and saying, this really wasn't for me. That's totally different than going in and giving a full-on review and being like one star. It's like you didn't finish that.

SPEAKER_01 22:18

That's my thing. Sure. Go ahead and go on Goodreads or wherever and note that you DNF'd. Fine. Put that you DNF'd. You are absolutely entitled to do that. But maybe don't rake it, rank it, and don't critique the characters when you didn't read their full arc.

SPEAKER_00 22:32

Yeah. I agree with that. Because you're you're just doing that on a first impression of the character. And there are so many people in the world that if you're only going by first impression, you're gonna miss out on what an amazing human is behind that first impression. So, like, why would you do that to a book?

SPEAKER_01 22:48

And you're not gonna get redemption arcs. You're not gonna see the inner motivations of your characters, you're not gonna get the full depth and breadth of your characters when you DNF 60 pages in and you're like, well, I hated that guy. Sure, you can hate him all you want, but if you don't understand his motivation, like, I don't know. That's my personal opinion, but anyway.

SPEAKER_00 23:06

I think I'm with you on that though. And and maybe that is an unpopular opinion, but I'm with you.

SPEAKER_01 23:11

Despite this having a slow start for me and struggling to get through it at first, I enjoyed the steamy parts. I liked the FMC and MMC, uh, female main character and male main character. And I liked how the book resolved and was edited. I think Amy Lee writes very well. And I know her other book in this series, X's and O's, has been largely popular. I was originally struggling with how many stars to give this one. But after the finish of the book and giving a bonus star for Settlers of Catan moment, I'm going to give this three out of five stars per Goodread's rankings of I liked it. Well, Megan, tell me about your book and the outdoor lovins.

Meghan's Book: Wood You Marry Me by Daphne Elliot

SPEAKER_00 23:55

Absolutely. So I I will first start with saying there were quite a few things that you mentioned with your book that I wanted to jump in and be like, oh my gosh, that's a lot like mine. Yeah. That I decided to hold my tongue and just wait until it was my turn. So talking about Would You Marry Me by Daphne Elliott. I love that title. Yeah, well, what's really fun about this, this is part of a series. This is the second in the Love Well Lumberjacks books. So it's a standalone. I'm assuming if I had read the first one, I would have met a couple of the characters. In fact, I think I know who the characters were who showed up in this book. I would go back and read the first book and continue. I thought it was fun. So love the fact that it is a standalone. So you can start here if you wanted to. So, would you marry me? So the premise: we've got Hazel Markey. She has temporarily returned to her hometown of Lovewell, Maine, so that she can take time to work on her PhD dissertation. Everybody in town absolutely loves her, but they're a bit sad to see her back because she is like their golden child. She was supposed to be their rags to riches story. She grew up in a trailer park and in foster care, but managed to escape the small town. And she was going to be something important, right? So they're afraid her coming back might be like, kid, don't stick around. You're not here permanently. We want to make sure you keep going on your journey. Um, but because of long-term health issues involving her gallbladder, she has had this like tenuous time trying to focus on her studies and to get through this PhD program. So she's moved back home. She's currently sleeping on her brother's couch. So, much like your book, where you're talking about characters who fallen back home, we we've got some of that happening. Enter Remy Gannon. Remy is a childhood friend of Hazel's, and more specifically, he is also her older brother Dylan's best friend. So they were kind of a little trio as children. Although Remy has been working for his family's logging business, his real passion has also been lumberjack competitions. It's a very niche sport, but one that can yeah. But it's one that can find followers and sponsorships for folks who have the talent and actually take the time to take the game seriously. Unfortunately, Remy has been seriously sidetracked. A year prior to this book starting, his fiance left him for another competitor. Oh. Yeah. And Remy. One more lumberjacky. Well, a beefcakey lumberjack who has lots and lots of money. So Remy pretty much spiraled. For a while, he stopped caring about the games, his work, himself. And it led to a very serious incident where Remy got drunk and caused a lot of property damage at his family's company. Um, and he was incredibly lucky that nobody got hurt. So since that time, he has been trying to get back into everybody's good graces and prove that he is not a total fuck up, which is a lot, you know, when you've done tens of thousands of dollars of damage and ruined your own personal reputation. Yeah. So after Remy witnesses the aftermath of one of Hazel's acute gallbladder attacks, a plan is hatched. Remy has great health insurance as an employee of his family's company. So they should get married. He and Hazel, let's get married. We're just doing marriage of convenience. You're super sick, you're poor, you don't have money. Let's get this operation that you need, right? So you'll get access to health insurance. And then Hazel can in turn help him get back that confidence. He can have somebody in his corner that will help him get back on track for these lumberjack competitions. He's got people waiting in the wings that want to sponsor him, like legitimate companies. So this was something I found kind of funny. One of the companies they mentioned was Steel, S-T-I-H-L. I'm pretty sure that's how you pronounce it. Steel Tools. Oh, yeah, yeah. Right? Okay, that's that's a real company. Yeah. But then they then they followed it by saying, and Racine Trading Company, which for anybody who knows Duluth Trading Company, which is something I wear all the time. All the time. I wear a shit ton of Duluth Trading Company. And like the most overalls I've ever seen. The overalls, the pants, the tanks. Like I freaking love Duluth. So when they and Duluth Trading Company is one of those that's like on the border of Wisconsin and Minnesota. It's a very Midwesty place. And for those of you who don't know, Racine is also a Wisconsin city. So for them to change it in the book to Racine Trading Company, but keep steel tools. I was like I was like, did they reach out and say, hey, I'd like to use this? And like one company said yes and one said no. But I feel like Duluth would be super cool with being in a book. You also don't have to ask permission to do that. Yeah, I don't know. I thought it was funny. And then I was like, Am I missing something? Is there an actual racine trading company? Because if so, I need to know. There isn't. I can't find it. So I already checked. Because I'm like, maybe there are overalls I don't know about that I need. Anyway, it doesn't matter. He had these sponsorships that were looking to get in with him. But again, these rabbit holes that you and I go down because what we're so concerned about is like these minute facts. Yeah. Nobody else cares. And I'm all like going, but there might be other bib overalls that I need to own. Yes. Anyway, I digress. He's got these people who are looking to possibly sponsor him, but he hasn't really been taking the game seriously for a year. So this is their whole thing, right? I'm not going to go any further into it. Let's just say I love Mia Slowburn. This was definitely one of those. And it's a relationship that doesn't just take place overnight, which I'm another huge fan of. These folks have known each other for a long time. Yeah. Never really saw each other as a real possibility. They've always been friends. So there's like a history to build on. They go into this marriage with very clear expectations of we're friends, we're just going to do this to help each other. But slowly things really start to work out in a way that you're like, these two belong together. Like after she got her surgery, which happened just a few weeks after they got married, because it was like, dude, we're not waiting on this. You're sick. Let's get this done. Right, right, right. She goes in for her surgery. And one of the things I absolutely loved, you know, she had been in bed for several days. They're doing all the bandage changes, you know, making sure she's okay. And the one thing she just wanted to do, she felt so tired, so gross, so whatever. She just wanted to wash her hair. Yeah. That's it. Just that was going to make her feel better. She gets into the shower and realizes she doesn't have the strength. She can't get up off the shower floor. And she's just like in there crying, right? And he comes and he knocks on the door and he's like, What's going on? And he comes in and he helps her wash her hair. And it's one of those things where, you know, like he strips down to his undies and he's in the shower with her. And like she's mostly naked and they're not really that couple. And he basically says to her, He's like, I know we're quote unquote fake married, but I am still your real husband. And you can see he's really taking that sickness and health part very seriously, even though it is not technically a quote unquote real relationship. And I thought, what a great thing, like even just being friends that you're taking care of each other. Very, very sweet, right? There are parts where, again, he's dealing with the aftermath of his family and all the bullshit he pulled when he was spiraling.

SPEAKER_01 31:45

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 31:46

And the fact that his family very rightfully is mad at him and upset with all the stuff that happened. They're having a hard time forgiving. But a couple times where they will come up and come at him, and Hazel steps right in and she will not take that shit. It's it's that mama bear coming out and protecting, like this is this is my person, and you don't do that. Yeah. And so you can just yeah, you can see them really being very supportive of each other. And I love that. That is absolutely what I'm looking for in a book. There's also a murder mystery, which you know I love. Oh shit. Really? Yes, there's a murder mystery. It's not mentioned. It's not mentioned at all on the back of the book, but I can totally see that through this. I believe it's a four-book series, or at least it was when she wrote this. That you must start in the first book to find out about the murder, and then you kind of follow through, and each book solves a little bit or gets you closer to finding out what happened. So I love that. It was a little bit preachy at times with some of the social impact things. Like I mentioned early on, neither one of these two drink. You can see why Remy doesn't. Drinking did him no good. He did a lot of damage to company property and almost could have hurt somebody. So he is stone cold sober. Hazel's family, her mom was basically lost to a drug overdose. So she is very, very much a clean person. She just can't go there. So yeah. Anyway, there's a lot going on in this book, and sometimes when it gets into that, it feels a little bit over the top or a little preachy, but but I thought it was done well enough. Yeah. So that's about all I have to say about that. My favorite parts, I would think, beyond just the caring. Remy knows that Hazel's favorite book is Anne of Green Gables. And yeah, it's very sweet. And he tells her that once she's done with her dissertation and has all her stuff together, that they that he promises if she finishes her dissertation, he will read Anne of Green Gables and then they will go visit Avonley together. And I thought that was so sweet. Right. I loved that. I'm like, that is so supportive and adorable. And then here's something Hazel says. Every time I visit a new city, I find a used bookstore to see what treasures I can unearth. And I really love it when someone has left notes or an inscription inside. Makes me feel like I'm stepping into another life. So she supports me and my writing in the margins. And your defiling of the books. My defiling of the book. So I appreciated that. There's also quite a bit with the lumberjack games that there is something called a wife carrying competition, which initially I just thought was like funny, like a little piggyback ride. And she's like, oh hell no. And she gets super competitive. And she does all this online research for like what a wife carrying competition would really be. And she's like, there is so much more than just a piggyback on her laptop. She toggled to a photo of a man carrying an upside-down woman on his back. And it wasn't just an upside-down piggyback either. The woman's crotch rested on the back of his neck and her legs were draped over his shoulders. She wrapped her arms around his waist, her face inches above his ass. If I didn't know better, I'd think this was some weird rejected Kama Sutra position. And that comes back, that comes back in the end of the book with a really fun usage. There is also a moose called Clive that makes several appearances. And Remy calls him the cock blocking moose. Anyway, I just I found this fun. I would definitely read more. And I did pick out a smell. And that is because let's talk smells. Yeah. So Remy smells like pine forest and testosterone.

SPEAKER_01 35:37

Avan smells like delicious s'mores and wood chips with a woodsy scent, a campfire, and a hint of leather. I like that better than pine forest and testosterone. And a mixture of wood smoke and salty air.

SPEAKER_00 35:50

I'll take the s'mores. Let's go back to that. I'm seeing a lot of overlap in our books, actually. Yeah, there were quite a few things that I was listening to, like when we're talking about the family dynamics on one side and, you know, kind of some of that. I I feel like there was some good overlap. But yeah, in general, I actually really enjoyed my book. And I think I might have mentioned it earlier in the podcast. Maybe not. Maybe it was when we were off air. But I was saying I actually started this book after we started recording. Yeah. I had this book done by like 3 a.m. Like I just plowed through it. So I really enjoyed it. And you took no time at all. No, I didn't take any time. Although, as I was trying to write my show notes, I'm like, I really wish this book was more fresh in my mind. Because I've read three books in between and now. And so then I had to go back and be like, oh God, please let me not mix these up. I want to get this right because I did enjoy it. So thank you, Daphne Elliott. It was lovely. I had a good time. I will revisit the rest of the series. Jalapenos. Oh, yeah. Jalapeno. Yeah. Jalapeno, I guess. You know, nothing super over the top, but definitely some scenes that were fun, unless you count Clive the cock blocking moose. There was also cock blocking in my book. So I think that's hilarious.

SPEAKER_01 37:04

But was it by a moose? Not by a moose. But a period, uh, a crow or a raven. A crow or a raven or something like that.

SPEAKER_00 37:12

Gotcha. Gotcha. Yeah. Let's see.

Booby Prize And Nana Commentary

SPEAKER_00 37:16

Booby prize.

SPEAKER_01 37:18

What do you got? What's your booby prize? Well, here's my question, Megan. And I know we've had this question before, but I'm always, I'm always like questioning it. Cleavage. Does that count? Counts? I think it counts. You're still mentioning the boobies. Well, if cleavage counts, I have page two. Ooh, look at you, overachiever. The color of your top brings out your suntan, Ian tells me. His gaze hovering dangerously close to my cleavage. And just to point out, Ian is the creepy preteen kid who lives in the condo next door to her, who's like got an unnatural obsession with her. Well, probably because of the cleavage. Right. Otherwise, if we're not counting cleavage, it's all the way at page 110. Nana gapes at a particularly risque poolside shot of me in a bikini that displays a healthy amount of under boob.

SPEAKER_00 38:12

Okay. Cleavage counts, but also, can we talk about Nanas and their noticing of your boobs? My little sister and I have almost no boobs. Okay. We we are the teeny tiny cups, right? I cannot tell you the last time I have actually worn a bra. I avoid it. Don't care for one if I can, you know, do without. But I swear to God, we would wear like a sun dress, and my grandmother would spend all of her time being like, oh, honey, and like trying to like make gestures of us needing to cover up our quote unquote cleavage. I'm like, there is no cleavage. This is this is ribs you're seeing. Cover nothing pillows, Carrie. Oh my God. So so we learned very early that we had to just wear a big necklace. Because as long as there was a necklace, Grandma said nothing. So I had just a collection of big, stupid necklaces that I could wear when I would take her out. Because otherwise I would hear all about how I needed to put a sweater on. And I'm like, girl, there is there are no boobs. Whatever. So Nana's understanding the uh the cleavage situation. That sounds about right. What do you have for boobs besides what you actually have for boobs? Thank you. My stripper name would be Tiny Maracas. Yeah, yeah. I have page 56. Okay. So I'm I'm right in between. My eyes roamed hungrily over her neck, her collarbones, and her full breasts distracting.

Summer Lovin Picks For July

SPEAKER_01 39:45

Okay, well, what do you have coming up on the next episode of the kiosk? Well, shall you tell everybody about what our theme is first? Oh, yeah, that probably makes some sense, huh, Megan? Well, coming up for the month of July, uh, Summer Lovin'. Summer lovin'. So summer themed romances is what we're going for.

SPEAKER_00 40:03

Well, and and I'd like to point out that mine is in the color of the pink ladies. So Summer Lovin had us a blast. I do feel like this is appropriate. My book is very pink. It's called The Other Room by Catherine Hastings. And I have a signed copy. I don't know if you can see my little sticker. I think it's cute. Mm-hmm. I picked this up at Novel Bay Books here in Sturgeon Bay. They are a sweet little local place. And this is a Door Peninsula Passions book. Need to warn anybody who's going to try and read along. This is part of a series. This is the second book in a series. According to the author, it is a standalone, but it might give some spoilers of the previous book. So if you do want to follow along but don't want spoilers, you might need to order the previous book. So you've got the first one. Despite Joe's fury with her ex-best friend Matt, she takes pity on him when he ends up homeless. The two frenemies and her nasty cat squeeze into the tiny beachfront cabin she scored on the door county waterfront. But as the weeks pass, the lines blur. Staying angry provides challenging when his charms start wearing down her armor. More than the walls between their rooms separate Jo from Matt. He's desperate to gain her forgiveness, and soon he's desperate for a lot more. The passion ignites between them and threatens to burn their little cabin down. As Matt tries to break down the barriers between them, Jo struggles to deny her feelings for him. Feelings that look a lot like love. The other room by Catherine Hastings.

SPEAKER_01 41:44

Love it.

SPEAKER_00 41:45

Taking place in Bailey's Harbor and Sister Bay and I'm sure other spots in the Dore County Peninsula. What do you have, Nicole?

SPEAKER_01 41:55

Hot Italian Summer by Karina Hal. Hall Halley. After the death of her best friend and writing partner, Grace Harper is struggling both with grief and with her next novel, the first one she'll have to write alone. Fortunately, she can stay at her villa in Tuscany for a month, soak in the sunshine, relax, and find her confidence again. After all, Jana has a lot writing on Grace's next book, and the last thing she wants is for her reputation as a super agent to be tarnished. At first, the villa is a dream come true for Grace. That is, until Claudio Romano shows up one day with his 10-year-old son Bonnie in tow. Turns out this is Claudio's house, and Claudio happens to be her agent's ex-husband from long ago. Thanks to their annual father and son bonding trip being canceled, Claudio and Vonnie are here to stay. So is Grace. With the three of them sharing the same house, Grace's writing plans are thrown out the window. But even if she's not pounding the keyboard, she's still finding beauty and inspiration in none other than Claudio. He's unlike any man Grace has met before. He's smart, charming, and wickedly sexy. Plus a great father, Savani. He'd be the perfect summer fling if only he wasn't completely off limits. But as the hot Italian summer wears on, Grace and Claudio are destined to succumb to the heat no matter how hard they try to resist each other. One steamy encounter with Claudio could affect Grace's chances of starting her career over. Or he could be exactly what she needs.

SPEAKER_00 43:41

So pounding the keyboard or getting a pounding? Yeah. Basically is what I'm taking away from that. Yeah. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Girl, get your pounding. Sure. Yeah. Well, anyway, thanks for sticking around through all that, folks.

Final Thanks And How To Support

SPEAKER_00 44:01

Good lord. Thank you for joining us today for Romance on the Rocks. Please like, subscribe, and follow. And if you are a hopelessly romantic bookish bitty like us, think about giving us a review on any of the platforms you may be finding us. And until next time, know that your support means the world to us. Stay safe. And know that you are love.