An enemies to lovers romance set in a bookmobile in the next installment of the Librarian's series. An IT geek and a librarian spark a connection that is layered with wit, charm, and lots of wild moments.

What would you do if you couldn't stay away from the one person that could change everything?
When Sam meets Con he never imagined a future like the one she said she wanted. Will he be satisfied with the idea of never having his own biological children?

Sometimes it takes distance to figure out what matters the most in life, will Sam be able to live without Con on her terms? In a twist we see the male hero grapple with a major decision and it's refreshing.

If you're looking for a sexy spicy read full of books, computer glitches, and lots of fun one-click.

It got off to s good start, I was engaged, but then after 35, 40% it began to drag. I stopped at 55% as I just lost interest.

A cute look into the life of librarians and all that goes into making it work. Dade goes back and gives a brief highlight of how other couples came together as we see Con and Sam become a couple. I love theory of a big bus full of books make calls to help out the people in their community. I liked that Sam and Con were in there 30s and knew what they wanted in life. Con was hilarious with her mouth and the things that came out of it. Sam was a dream boyfriend to have

Please see link.

Ok – seriously. Where can I get a job driving a Bookmobile around?

Con and Sam have been battling the attraction between them for years. Years. Both of them. The only reason they’ve been fighting it is that Penny, Sam’s newly re-discovered sister, is Constance’s best friend. I’ve been pretty clear on this blog in my feelings on this topic. It’s a pretty thin premise. Penny’s a big girl. She can handle two people she cares about having feelings for each other. And as we discover mid-way through the book, she’s well aware of their feelings and is just fine with it.

I really liked Sam. A lot. A lot a lot. He was the sexy, lumberjack-esque IT guy assigned to ride around with Con in her Bookmobile in order to help her figure out why the internet connection in the van went wonky every time she got to a certain area. Being in such close confined quarters makes it really difficult for both of them to control their raging hormones.

I liked this book, I loved the story, but I didn’t love Constance, which killed it for me a little bit. She was determined not to get involved in a relationship, and her reasons, while not completely rational, were valid. But in her determination, she was cold and selfish with Sam. You have to be willing to compromise in a relationship of any kind, and I never saw that from Con. Whether it was something huge like plans for the future, or something small like whether or not to go out on an actual date, she was completely unbending. Then when there was an issue that was too big to compromise on, she had no give. It was always Sam who had to give in. There was none of the back and forth that’s necessary for a healthy relationship.

There are some things that are too big to compromise on, and when they come up against something, they go their separate ways, and once again it’s up to Sam to give in. I probably would have been more ok with him making such a huge concession, but since he’d been doing all of the conceding, it rubbed me the wrong way.

This wasn’t a bad book; I definitely enjoyed parts of it, especially the Bookmobile itself. Con and Sam had great chemistry, whether they were in bed, out on a date, or snarking at each other in the Bookmobile. I didn’t have any issue tracking everyone, even though it was the fifth book in the series. It can easily be read as a standalone. It was clear there were stories I’d missed, but they didn’t take anything away from this story.

This one had such a strong start--the bookmobile librarian and the geeky IT guy who have all kinds of sexual tension going on, both believing that they can't be together (he's the brother of one of her best friends and younger than her; she doesn't want/have time for a relationship) competing against each other for department of the year at the library...at the beginning, this was all kinds of fun. It was a bit frustrating that Con was so dead set against any kind of a relationship beyond the purely physical, but Sam put his all behind changing her mind on that point, and it was great to see him bring her around to the idea. Oh, the presents he leaves for her--made me melt every. Single. Time. He plays hockey, and she cheers him on using hockey terms that are perfectly valid but manage to sound totally dirty at the same time :) So fun.

But...

The major conflict in their relationship changed everything for me. First, it took them 80% of the book for them to figure out what their conflict was...I really have a hard time believing that they would have gotten to the point that they did without having the talk that they clearly needed to have before committing to a future together, but they didn't. They actively avoided it, both just assuming what they wanted to believe about the other until they couldn't believe it anymore. Then they broke up. Then they reconsidered, and of course got back together in the end--with another really big

BUT...

It was really hard to buy the way this whole issue was resolved. One person completely turned around on their position, thanks to a single conversation and the events of a weekend, and the other person...didn't. They pretty much said, "Yeah, I suppose I could possibly, maybe change my mind eventually in the far distant future, but I strongly doubt it." As much as I had wanted them together early on (and there were more awesome gifts involved in the reconciliation!) the way they managed it in the end left me unconvinced that they really should be together, which made me sad.

Still, I love the idea of a series built around public librarians. How awesome is this? I'll definitely try some of the other books in this series--the one excerpted at the end, book 4 Ready to Fall , looks cute--in the hopes that this one was a one-off. The series characters all work together and are friendly with each other, and so the MCs of the other books were in and out of the pages of this one. Not having read the other books yet, I wasn't familiar with their stories but still enjoyed seeing their relationships here with Con, Sam, and each other--as a standalone, it worked okay; those who have read the other books, though, will definitely enjoy seeing the stories of those librarians continue here.

Rating: 3 stars / C

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Sorry I couldn't finish this book. I love the series, but the heroine of this story drove me nuts!

Always fun with a nice amount of sexy, Olivia Dade knows this genre well and always does it justice. These librarians are a hoot and apparently the cute IT guy is too.

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGallery, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This one had such a strong start--the bookmobile librarian and the geeky IT guy who have all kinds of sexual tension going on, both believing that they can't be together (he's the brother of one of her best friends and younger than her; she doesn't want/have time for a relationship) competing against each other for department of the year at the library...at the beginning, this was all kinds of fun. It was a bit frustrating that Con was so dead set against any kind of a relationship beyond the purely physical, but Sam put his all behind changing her mind on that point, and it was great to see him bring her around to the idea. Oh, the presents he leaves for her--made me melt every. Single. Time. He plays hockey, and she cheers him on using hockey terms that are perfectly valid but manage to sound totally dirty at the same time :) So fun.

But...

The major conflict in their relationship changed everything for me. First, it took them 80% of the book for them to figure out what their conflict was...I really have a hard time believing that they would have gotten to the point that they did without having the talk that they clearly needed to have before committing to a future together, but they didn't. They actively avoided it, both just assuming what they wanted to believe about the other until they couldn't believe it anymore. Then they broke up. Then they reconsidered, and of course got back together in the end--with another really big

BUT...

It was really hard to buy the way this whole issue was resolved. One person completely turned around on their position, thanks to a single conversation and the events of a weekend, and the other person...didn't. They pretty much said, "Yeah, I suppose I could possibly, maybe change my mind eventually in the far distant future, but I strongly doubt it." As much as I had wanted them together early on (and there were more awesome gifts involved in the reconciliation!) the way they managed it in the end left me unconvinced that they really should be together, which made me sad.

Still, I love the idea of a series built around public librarians. How awesome is this? I'll definitely try some of the other books in this series--the one excerpted at the end, book 4 Ready to Fall , looks cute--in the hopes that this one was a one-off. The series characters all work together and are friendly with each other, and so the MCs of the other books were in and out of the pages of this one. Not having read the other books yet, I wasn't familiar with their stories but still enjoyed seeing their relationships here with Con, Sam, and each other--as a standalone, it worked okay; those who have read the other books, though, will definitely enjoy seeing the stories of those librarians continue here.

Rating: 3 stars / C

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

This is the first book I have read by this author and it won't be my last. Funny, sexy and sweet - I really enjoyed this one. It was steamier than I was expecting and there were a couple really good laugh out loud moments. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more by this author soon!

My Rating:

4.5

Favorite Quotes:

Some might argue that women would overestimate penis length because men have lied to them about it for generations. But in my opinion, women have known the truth all along and simply humored their various lovers.

As I understand it, poutine comes from Canada… Are there a lot of Canadian pirates? Wouldn’t they spend all their voyages apologizing instead of looting?

You should lecture your girlfriend about her salty language… and I’ve decided that doctors need to study your penis…All I’m saying is that any man who elicits this kind of trust and affection from Constance Chen… We need to study him. For the sake of science. So drop trou, Wolcott. I’m going in.

Like hell, woman. He’s mine. No one sees this lumberjack’s might oak but me.

I love her dearly. But she wakes us up between five and six every morning, Sam. Usually by shrieking that her stuffed turtle is misbehaving and needs a timeout. If you let me sleep late two weekend mornings in a row, I’ll build a small shrine in your honor.


My Review:

Driven To Distraction was my first trip to the library to read Ms. Dade; I liked it so much I want a lifetime membership at her branch. The plot was unique and entertaining and the characters were adorable, quirky, and highly amusing. I instantly fell in love with Sam and his superhero t-shirts, and Con could be my twin with her creative use of profanity and opinions on family. The writing was humorous, engaging, clever, insightful, and loaded with expletives. The witty and bawdy bantering among the characters and their friends kept a near-constant smirk on my face and often had me barking aloud as well. In addition to my favorite type of mischievous humor, the creatively steamy sensual scenes caused me a bit of difficulty in catching my breath. I need to load up my library card with the rest of her shelf.

Why I read it: I received a review copy from the author via NetGalley

What it’s about: (from Goodreads) IF THE BOOKMOBILE’S ROCKING . . .

Constance Chen is not the demure kind of librarian. Sure, her high-horsepower ride is Big Bertha the Bookmobile, but Con swears a blue streak, does her own home improvement, and wears steel-toed boots. She has a tight circle of friends, a demanding, beloved sprawl of a Chinese-American family, and a strict hookups-only policy when it comes to men. Her life is just how she wants it. Except for one maddeningly sexy footnote.

Sam Wolcott, her friend’s baby brother and the library’s IT star, has been throwing sparks with Con since he moved to town. To everybody else, he’s a thoughtful, sensitive sweetheart. To Con, he’s a cantankerous pedant, because if they don’t fight nonstop their clothes will spontaneously combust. Sam needs a commitment Con won’t—can’t—give. And neither of them will chance their hard-won bonds for pure lust.

Too bad Con and Sam have a whole week in a very tiny, very private space to sustain their dumb arguments. Alone. What happens in the Bookmobile might take their resistance right out of circulation . . .

What worked for me (and what didn’t): This book was a lovely surprise. Constance Chen (aka “Con”) is the type of heroine I don’t see a lot in the romance genre. She’s a tough, no-nonsense woman, who knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go and get it. She is blunt, prickly, a little brash and not looking for a relationship. She’s also a devoted sister and daughter and friend. Her close friendship with Penny, one of the other librarians in Niceville has her hesitating to act on her attraction to Sam Wolcott. And Sam has similar concerns. He has only just reconnected with his half-sister (they had different fathers) and she is the only family (apart from an extremely absent and disinterested mother) he has. He won’t do anything to risk that. He fears that if he starts anything with Con and it goes south, Penny will choose Con over him and then he’ll be alone. And that – being alone, is his greatest fear.

Sam, who works in the IT department of the library, and Con have adopted a novel way to deal with their strong attraction: sublimate all that heat into bickering. Con is downright mean to Sam and he fires the same right back at him. Everyone else who works with Con finds her to be kind, caring and friendly – albeit with a bit of a potty-mouth but with Sam, she’s hell on wheels. They both know they’re doing it too. They don’t talk about it out loud but each is aware that’s the cause of their friction.

Con does have some legitimate IT problems in the “Bookmobile” (I gather it is a bus or large RV-sized-vehicle which serves as a mobile library) and Sam is nominated to spend a week working with Con on the Bookmobile to troubleshoot IT issues as they arose.

His fingers danced over the keys. “No Wi-Fi. No access to the library’s circulation and reference software. No internet.”

She had an easy response to those statements. “No shit.”

Unfortunately, this proximity means that bickering and avoidance become unable to keep their simmering attraction at bay. And, both are forced to admit that each had legitimate concerns from their perspectives and, wonder of wonders, they start to get along. Oops.

Con isn’t interested in a relationship however. She wouldn’t mind a fling with Sam as long as they can make sure that there’s no fallout which would impact either of their relationships with Penny but a boyfriend/girlfriend thing? Nope. Not interested. She is one of nine children and had a large role in child-rearing when she was young. Even now her younger siblings constantly (like, EVERY DAY) call her to get her help with various issues from money to part time jobs and trouble with a professor. She is super busy at work and her family, even though they live far away from her, are constantly requiring her time and attention. She knows from experience that she doesn’t have time to devote to a relationship.

“But the right person wouldn’t be an albatross,” he protested. “He would lift some of those burdens from your shoulders. Share their weight.”

“That’s what all my exes said at the beginning,” she noted with a wry smile. “But somehow, a few weeks later, I was always running errands and cooking dinner for us both. I was always expected to stay home instead of going to games or meeting my friends. And at some point, they always informed me I spent too much time and energy on my family’s needs and not enough on theirs. It was predictable and inevitable and so goddamn boring, I can’t even tell you. A decade or so ago, I decided to opt out. And I’ve been happier ever since. I’m not a relationship kind of woman.”

Jesus, her ex-boyfriends sounded like complete fucking tools. But he couldn’t figure out a good way to dispute her conclusions without using the term not all men. Or, even worse, coming across as a patronizing ass who thought he understood her needs better than she did. So he kept his mouth clamped shut.

Sam is an unusual man however. He actually gets off on helping Con and making her life easier. The text explicitly said that. I was still a little concerned, I admit, that things were a bit too one-sided in their relationship once it go going. I didn’t see Con doing much of anything for Sam and I wondered if things could last that way. Even though Sam was deliriously happy to be with Con and was pretty much prepared to do anything to keep her, it seemed to me to be a problem waiting to happen. Perhaps I’m projecting. However, I was really happy that this was addressed later in the book and it was clear that things would be far more balanced as they started living their HEA.

Sam stealth-wooed Con and got past her barriers. He managed to navigate the Penny situation and was gratified to know that Penny’s feelings toward him weren’t anything to do with Con or how successful his romance with her was (or wasn’t). I liked how he admired and liked Con for who she was and didn’t seek to change her.

He loved her directness. Her humor. Her liberal use of profanity. Her completely whacked grasp on figurative language. Her pragmatic brand of caring. Her loyalty to her friends and family. Her work ethic. Even her damn steel-toed boots, which had come to represent Con to him, their hard edges concealing something breakable inside.

The real stumbling block for them came when the issue of children came up. Con doesn’t want to be a parent – she’s done her parenting thank you very much, has the t-shirt and everything. And Sam wants kids. That’s a pretty insurmountable problem unless one of them changes their minds. I liked where this story went and how it got there. I liked that Con got the non-traditional HEA she needed to make her happy, while Sam got what he needed too.

Sam and Con have great sexual chemistry but they also like each other and have similar interests; hockey, gardening and Con demonstrated that she’s just as fierce about supporting her man and she is about everything else important in her life. It took me a little while to warm up to Con, mainly because I tend to avoid conflict in my personal life, but I enjoyed seeing her layers peeled away. She turned out to be very relatable and Sam was delish.

What else? What was also fun was the interaction between Con and all of her work friends and their partners. Angie continues to make me laugh – her plans for the bachelorette party for Penny and Jack were hilarious.

Penny pointed an accusing finger at her best friend. “But you can forget about your plan to make butt plug puppets. We’re not decorating them with little wigs and dresses and googly eyes. And we’re not guessing the lengths of various dildos, either.”

I really enjoyed Driven to Distraction; it had all the elements I look for in a contemporary romance.
Grade: B+

I have read this whole Lovestruck Librarians series and some books are hits and some are misses for me. Unfortunately this is a miss. I was really hoping to like it much more than I actually did.

Con, short from Constance, was a very hard and inflexible person. Compromise doesn't seem to be on her radar. She has a take no prisoners type vibe which I usually like in strong heroines, but she expected way too much from the hero-in my view.

Sam is a self-proclaimed geek, and does the IT stuff for the library. He needed to man up a bit as he seemed to let Con just walk all over him. I kind of felt he let all his dreams go just to have Con by his side. I really would've liked him to not give everything he ever wanted up. I don't know what the compromise might have been truthfully.

I didn't care much for either character. So much of the story was these two acting stubborn and totally childish. Why couldn't they sit and have an adult conversation?? I ended up feeling no connection to either one. Yes they had a bit of sizzle, but the extraneous stuff just wore me down. I didn't care for how Con wanted Sam to do all the changing, and I didn't care for Sam because he had no backbone to fight for his dreams.

In the beginning, the book was funny and lighthearted, then it took a serious turn, which changed the whole mood for me. That's when the characters did nothing to make me root for them.

I did enjoy an update of all the previous books couples-I love when authors do that! However, this book I don't feel could be read as a standalone. The series should be read prior to this read. From the series standpoint, this is just ok. Would I recommend it? Maybe. You may totally fall in love with it.

reviewed by Deb

I. Love. This. Book. So. Much.

Driven to Distraction is book #5 in Olivia Dade's Lovestruck Librarians series, which gets better and better with each book. This story features Constance Chen, Bookmobile manager and all-around badass, and her enemies-to-lovers relationship with Sam Wolcott, resident geek and sexy lumberjack-esque IT guru.

Throughout the series, Constance (aka Con) and Sam have typically been at each other's throats. They bicker constantly, but more in a sexually tense kind of way rather than an actual hateful manner. In this book, that tension comes to a head when they decide to call a truce and acknowledge their mutual attraction.

Along with managing Big Bertha the Bookmobile and its staff, Con acts as a type of stand-in mother to her siblings. Growing up, their parents worked constantly, so the brunt of the child-rearing fell on Con. Even though her siblings are now grown adults, they still flock to her every day for help, both in times of crisis as well as mundane matters that they should be able to take care of themselves.

In addition to the demands of her family, Con spends a lot of time with her friends from the Niceville library system (who we've met in the previous books in the series). She's a loyal, dedicated friend who's always there when her buddies need her.

Needless to say, with her busy life at work and at home, Con doesn't have much time left for herself, much less a relationship. So when it comes to men, her rule of thumb is simple: hookups only and nothing more. Con doesn't have a desire for a lasting commitment, so she's happy to be the Booty Call Queen...for the time being.

Meanwhile, Sam's upbringing couldn't have been more different from Con's. He lacked the closeness of family, thanks to an absent mother. His father passed away recently, so his only family connection left is his half-sister Penny (from book #1, Broken Resolutions). For Sam, family is everything and he doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize his relationship with Penny, the only relative he has left.

When Con and Sam first give in to their attraction, they agree to a no strings attached arrangement. But soon, that's not enough for Sam, who realizes that he's falling pretty hard for commitment-phobe Con. Sam is determined to woo her and show her how much he cares about her--that he doesn't want to add to her burdens, but rather make her life easier.

Con and Sam have crazy sexual chemistry. This is Olivia Dade's sexiest book to date. I loved how confident and unapologetic Con is regarding her sexuality. There are moments when I think Con and Sam are battling to see who can out-dirty talk the other.

Con is also one of my favorite heroines from the series, mostly because she's such an unconventional romance heroine. She's fiercely independent, capable, and at times brash. She's not demure or innocent. She swears like a sailor and could probably kick your ass if you crossed her. I also loved the fact that she's Chinese-American and sometimes finds herself the recipient of several ill-advised comments on her ethnicity. Seriously, I found myself nodding along and sympathizing with her during those moments.

As for Sam, he's pretty unconventional in his own right: that is, he's not an alphahole jerk. For the most part, Sam is kind of a dream man. He's sexy and smart, but also nurturing and considerate. When he sets his mind on wooing Con and showing her how he truly cares for her, he scored major points in my book.

Having said all this, neither Sam nor Con are perfect characters and their romance isn't all sunshine and rainbows once they get together. In fact, they find themselves at an impasse when it comes to a crucial issue in their relationship. But how they work through that conflict is a testament to their devotion to each other and how far they're each willing to go for love. For me, that conflict is resolved maturely and with mutual respect. I absolutely loved how this book does not have a stereotypical ending.

Once again, Olivia Dade brought all the feels for me with Driven to Distraction. Its signature humor, emotion, and super hot sexy times made me so happy. I highly recommend this awesome addition to the Lovestruck Librarians series.

Constance (Con) Chen is a Chinese-American, kick-ass, steel toed boot wearing, potty-mouthed heroine with a love for books, the ability to do her own DIY, and never at loss for the ‘right’ book for each patron. Her life has been filled with raising her siblings, fitting in and rebelling against her Chinese heritage, great friends and a job she loves. She’s prickly unless you rate as one of “hers” she’s brusque, no-nonsense and does not suffer fools, flirting or relationships.

Sam Wolcott is the new star of the library’s IT department, and just happens to be one of Con’s best friend’s baby brother. Everyone LOVES Sam – finding him charming, smart and just an all-around great guy. But he and Con fight like cats and dogs, sniping at one another constantly, when they aren’t panting with lust that is. He’s new in town, moved there to be close to his sister Penny, and has always believed he’d have a wife, a large family and plenty of love to go around,

The writing in this is wonderful: sharp wit mixed with clear voices give even the briefest scenes life and heart. The dialogue and push-pull between Sam and Con is wonderful –his desire to make a relationship, and her clearly thought through (although never expressed) desire to continue her life just as it is make for a wonderful story. With the addition of Con’s family and friends, you have a true sense of the story in its place, and there is a clear path. Until there isn’t. These two are stuck in the perpetual loop – with Con “keeping it light” and Sam pushing for more, the end-result (an engagement) is all he sees. But Con has other plans, that she never disclosed or shared, and to say Sam was devastated, and issues that should have been discussed were left untouched until far too late.

Oh how I wanted these two to find the time to discuss instead of assume, and perhaps they could have found some middle ground. But, they didn’t and while their openness came late, they did manage to find and define what will bring them each happiness. A wonderfully engaging book with plenty of real-world feel in terms of friends, family and issues that often are too hard to voice aloud.

I received an eArc copy of the title from the publisher via NetGalley for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review: all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Sam and Con have always clashed at work. The two can't stand each other, though their coworkers all claim they are each the nicest person to get along with. We all know what the REAL problem is then: sexual tension. And oh, is it delicious between these two.


Sam works in the library's IT department; Con runs the bookmobile. But the issue keeping them apart isn't just being coworkers. For one thing, Sam is the younger (half) brother to Con's best friend. On top of that, Con does not do commitment or relationships. She's a booty-call-on-my-terms all the way kind of woman. Between those three things? They've got ample reasons why they should fight, not fuck. But they both know what they actually want to do. 😏


Con has her reasons for not wanting anything more than sex. For one thing, she's had some bad experiences with exes who expected all of her, allowing her no time for herself, her life, or her dreams. No more. Now Con sticks to keeping it simple and dirty -- and always on her terms. When Sam and Con do finally decide to get the tension out of the way, it's Con who is in control. She wants quick, hard, scratch-an-itch sex with him, nothing more. But she's afraid that Sam is going to start wanting more, and she just can't give him more. Even if she's tempted . . .


Fair warning: There is a (brief) part of the book where they break-up temporarily. Part of Con's arc is also her decision to never have children (biological or otherwise), which creates some conflict with Sam, who does. Or rather, Sam thinks that he does; in reality, what he wants is people around that care and support one another -- he wants family. He realizes that family isn't restricted to a wife and children, but that family can be made from friends and extended family. I won't get into all the details, but in short Con does not magically change her mind and want children because she's found The One and Sam doesn't have to change his stance, either, instead realizing that he doesn't need children of his own to be complete, he just needs Con and the family they've created.


I had so much fun with this book.


I loved their banter and the fight-'em-and-fuck-'em tension that they had going on.

I loved that Con was the one who just wanted sex and took control of her own sexual agency. Also, same is such a great match for her; she's sexually confident, but he's her equal and their scenes were ridiculously sexy. I mean, really, really sexy. There's even a desk quickie in the bookmobile. 😉

I loved that Sam had to gently woo Con, working with her boundaries rather than trying to barrel through them. He offers her thoughtful, small gifts -- like her favorite lunch, a new hammer, etc. -- as well as being there to offer help, even though she was very much against accepting help. Again, he didn't push her in this regard, but he let it be known that he was there, that he could help her and that his helping her didn't mean she was unable to handle it herself.


I could very much relate to Con. Not that our stories are exactly the same. However, I was able to relate to a lot of her feelings regarding having your childhood replaced with caring for family and the struggle to be the anchor for everyone, even years later. It's something that not every reader is going to be able to relate to, and that's fine; for me, the ability to relate on a personal level just added to my enjoyment of this book.


I loved the other characters. Many of them have their own stories in previous books, and I will definitely be reading them.

I loved all the fun moments, scenes, and quotes. My Twitter was full of quotes I shared, and honestly I didn't even share ALL of the good ones.


And yes, I even liked the scene that shows love, and taking care of someone, is not always pretty. You'll know the scene I'm talking about when you get to it.


Overall:


Did I like Driven to Distraction? YES
Would I recommend it? Oh hell yes!
Can it be read as a standalone? Yes; I read the novella right before this (it was free recently) but even so you can jump in with no problems at all.
Would I try another from Olivia Dade? Yes!
Quickie sell: Lumbersexual IT + take-no-shit bookmobile librarian + fantastic sexual tension and chemistry.


4 1/2 STARS!

I was kinda hoping that this book would be better than it was. Librarians make an interesting character for me, but I found myself rolling my eyes at a lot of what these characters went through.

Much of the conflict in this story stemmed from the fact that these two characters couldn't actually sit down and communicate with one another because they were being too childish or stubborn! They had great physical attraction, but I wasn't able to believe what attracted them to each other as a couple.

Constance or Con, as she's nicknamed, was very harsh and unbending when it came to some of Sam's desires. Has this woman never heard of compromising?! Why should Sam have had to do all the changing for her? Relationships work because of compromise, and she wasn't one to do that. It made me hate her overall, despite the fact that she was a kick-butt type of heroine.

Sam came across entirely too needy, even for a self-proclamed geek like he was. He was totally fine with letting go of all of his dreams to be with Con, which made him rather spineless in my eyes. He was also rather dense and clueless overall, so I didn't care for him as a hero either.

I thought it was good to check back in with the other couples from the series, but I didn't really feel like this was a stand-alone novel. I think I would have been lost if I hadn't binge read the entire prior series before this. Not sure I'd purchase or recommend this book to others, based on that.

The Good, The Bad, and Everything In Between

-Excellent writing. I’ve never read anything by Ms. Dade before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. Loved the idea of Constance Chen, who runs the library’s bookmobile like a well oiled machine, and Sam Wolcott, her friend Penny’s half-brother and general pain in her buttocks. Which simply masks their UST, but as you may have guessed, romance happens. Ms. Dade’s writing flowed really well, this ‘verse has characters, lead and supporting, that are diverse and well drawn. Loved that.

-Loved the whole crew of friends: Speaking of love, this fantastically diverse group of friends are more like family and I adored that. One of the things that really stood out was the banter and the genuine friendships. Each friend (who are hero/heroines from earlier books) really brought something to the table when they got together. I love seeing that kind of camaraderie in romances, because it really fleshes out a story, giving them a chance to exist within a more realistic setting, as opposed to having their relationship exist in a vacuum. Time alone can be fun, but the best romances have a balance of both.

-Part of ongoing series, but works as standalone: For those concerned about reading a series in order, this is the fifth book in the Lovestruck Librarians series. I didn’t know that when I picked it up, but it did not affect my enjoyment at all. If anything, it left me more intrigued than feeling as if I’m missing something.

-Con’s a (head) strong heroine: Con is used to taking care of everyone around her - her family, friends and all of her patrons at the bookmobile. She’s dedicated her life to raising her siblings, to the detriment of her own personal wants and needs. She’s a heroine who has a legitimate reason for her desire to not become romantically involved with anyone. Her ability to mangle most metaphors, her straightforward, no-nonsense personality is one that I could connect to and I respected her no games approach. She shoulders alot of burdens on her slim shoulders and does not suffer fools gladly. She’s not a cuddly heroine, but that does not mean that she isn’t nurturing or supportive. Far from it. She is one that I admire for her commitment to her convictions, her complexity and her fierceness. This is mildly spoiler-ish, but I have to say how refreshing it is to read a romance where the heroine isn’t climbing the walls to become a mom and has realistic reasons for that.

-Sam is such a good beta hero: I could say that this is almost a twist on gender stereotypes within romances. Sam moved to Niceville in an attempt to be closer to his only living relative, his sister Penny. Sam has been alone and lonely, and his desire for love and a big family are ones that are usually consigned to heroines in romances, so I really appreciated seeing his desires and the reasons for them. Sam is a classic example of a hot beta hero, whose protective and supportive love is just what Con needs to let her guards down. When his backstory unfolds, it makes perfect sense as to why he is tireless in his dedication to lightening her burdens, not adding to them and I think they are incredibly well matched.

-Unusual turn in the last quarter of the book: the setup is there, and you’ll get (more than) an inkling as to what the big obstacle will be for Con and Sam. There is a reliance on deliberate misunderstandings between these two (some time is condensed for the sake of pacing, and these are important discussions that should have happened). However, this takes what’s a fairly lighthearted read a bit deeper into the emotional weeds. This isn’t a bad thing, and I want to say that I respect Ms. Dade taking a chance and not relying on the usual HEA tropes. This is a specific HEA for these two characters and I loved that it discussed a serious issue and yet allowed them to realize what is most important to them.


The Bottom Line 4.5 stars
A delight to read from a new-to-me author, I really liked it. With strong friendships and an atypical HEA which I truly appreciated, I think this is a series worth getting to know and I’m about to go out and get the earlier books. If you’re into contemporary romances, you should check this out.

**ARC provided by publisher via netgalley for review**