I was in the mood for a light and fun contemporary romance book, and I found that in Twist. I liked the plot and really enjoyed the first half of this book. This book is about Joe Collins, who isn't a SUPER alpha male but he is a very loyal and protective of his family and friends. Alex is someone who doesn't have a lot of friends and mostly keeps to herself, while Joe spends most of his time around people. The first time these two meet in person was pretty awkward. I really felt bad for Alex for being in such a situation. I totally understood her anger and I found Joe's excuses weak. However he did redeem himself by not giving up and trying to get Alex to forgive him.

I loved their banter in the first half of the book. However the second part was a bit of a let down for me. After a particular incident their dynamic totally changed, and Joe wasn't my favorite person anymore. I understood a little bit were he came from, but I wish he didn't act the way he did. There was unnecessary drama that didn't fit the story, it felt forced. The last quarter of the book felt rushed and left me unsatisfied. Which resulted in me not being fully committed to the characters and story. I did enjoy the writing and some of the side characters. There is one couple whose story I would really enjoy reading, hopefully they will be up next.

Reviewed on behalf of Amo and Sarah’s Book Corner

5 Stars!

I loved this book!! Anything Kylie does is amazing.

Alex is a bit of a hermit, getting out of her comfort zone she decides to join a dating website and connects with Eric. They message back and forth and she begins to really like him so takes a leap of faith and goes to Coeur d’Alene to see Eric as a surprise for his birthday. Little does she know the surprise is on her.

Joe set up and online dating profile for his brother, when he showed no interest in it he went online to shut it down only he found a message from a girl, he responded and they carried on talking via email, he started to like this girl, however the lies he told pretending to be his brother are just about to walk through the door in the form of Alex.

This story is amazing! Funny, sweet, sexy. Alex and Joe get off to a really bad start what with him having lied to her but they form a sort of friendship, after some time the lines of the friendship start to blur and they both develop feelings for each other. What will happen when Joe’s ex comes back to town after he and Alex are in a car crash? Can Alex get over her fears of commitment?

Loved the fact that we even get a small taste of the Stage Dive guys too!!! Cannot wait for more from Kylie.

Alex has been talking to a man whom she met on an online dating site. Never one to pursue relationships, she takes a big leap and jumps on a flight to meet and surprise the man she has been corresponding with. But, once she meets him, she discovers their entire friendship is essentially a scam.

Joe is used to spreading himself thin and sacrificing his happiness for his family and friends. So when he innocently meets a woman on his brothers dating profile, he doesn't realize their interaction will become something real and just for him.

Alex has never wanted a long term relationship, while Joe seems to be intent on making her feel things... whether she wants to or not.

"It's not making love, it's sex. And God, you and the eye contact." My shoulders slumped, body sagging. "Why?"

I thoroughly enjoyed this second book in the Dive Bar series, where the first book was funny and mostly lighthearted, this book had the characters dealing with some larger issues. We get to revisit all of the past cast of characters, along with some new ones and see how their relationships and friendships are evolving. Funny, sweet and showing the depth of friendship and being there for someone. A must read.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for my honest and unbiased review.

5 stars.
Received a ARC in exchange for honest review.
This is the second book in the Dive Bar series and I was thrilled to receive this copy as I had previously bought and read the first called "Dirty" and really loved it. This book was also a fun, sexy story with some seriously good witty banter as well as tender moments and steamy sex scenes. So really something for everybody. It is official, I now consider Kylie Scott one of those authors that I would simply one-click onto my kindle.
Anyway I should probably state what I loved about this book.
Firstly I loved that Alex (the heroine) shows up after flying from Seattle to Coeur d'Alene in Northern Idaho to surprise Eric her online date that she has been emailing for months and comes to find out in a embarrassing and mortifying way amongst a room full of people that she doesn't even know him and that it is in fact his bearded, taller and older brother Joe that she has been corresponding with (great start).
Alex is funny and smart with an inner monologue that had me in stitches at times.
Joe is a sweet guy that had helped his flighty brother Eric set up an online dating account but when his brother soon lost interest Joe found himself replying to Alex's emails and pretty soon they are both revealing lots of intimate details about themselves.
The ensuing story was seriously enjoyable and the flashbacks to their previously shared emails was a nice touch. Did I already say how much I love this author.

Sweet, frustrating story. Revisiting the Dive Bar, this story is Joe's- well stolen from Eric. Bored with his online dating site, good ole Joe takes over. Alex has fallen for Eric (JOE) online and she opens up and shares parts of her she hides from everyone else. When she misses Eric's (JOE) messages she decides to pay a in person visit to CDL. To her surprise and embarassment the entire Dive bar witnesses her humiliation when she discovers that Eric was not the voive behind the face of her online fascination- but it is lumbosexual Joe- who Alex is ready to murder.

Fleeing the bar in a downour, Alex becomes terribly sick and must stay in CDL recoperating. Joe is a sweet, nice guy that just want to be there for everyone and help them all. He falls right into the caretaker and oversees Alex while she is pretty much out of it for days.

The two make a truce and Alex decides maybe she can forgive him. They reconnect on the things that brought them together online and soon Alex is drawn in to the reno project Joe is fascinated with above the Bar.

These two butt heads and have fun, sarcastic banter but soon realize they can't fight the sexual tension building between them. So many things are against them, namely Eric who things Alex is using Joe as his replacement, distance of where Alex lives and the need to return home, then unpredictably an old flame shows and causes tension and grief. A major event happens in this story that is a huge turning point for Joe and he retreats into himself all over again. While the "event" is tragic this story doesn't waller in the devistation and each person digs down deep inside and goes on in their own way.

You know a story is well written when you have strong feelings for the main characters. Joe made me mad how he treated Alex after then "event" and I didn't think he deserved her friendship or his anger. Alex drove me nuts for how she reacted and I wanted to see her as weak and begging for attention. In fact, Alex knew he was wrong and it was his way of pushing Alex away, Alex knew he was attempting to push her away and was a great friend by helping and not leaving him alone to do everything- she was not weak but very strong.

Kylie Scott doesn't fail in bringing in the humor by having a huge event at the end and bringing in the gang of Stage Dive for humor and fun.

Twist can be read as a stand-alone book – but I prefer to read books in the prescribed order – it is like revisiting dear friends – so I recommend to read „Dirty“ first as I did.

My review does not contain spoilers – just one: You will get a "happily ever after" – no cliffhangers.

We meet Alex – when she arrives at Coeur d’Alene and enter Dive Bar to meet her internet date Eric in person, she has to learn about the problems with internet dating – unfortunatley sometimes what you see is not what you get.

His brother Joe – lumberjack bartender at Dive Bar - used Erics account and got addicted to this woman and her emails. But of course he didn´t expected to be busted one day.

For some reasons Alex has to stay at Coeur d’Alene for a while and Joe tries to regain her shattered trust.

Some members of the previous series „Stage Dive“ made a brief appearance, which made me happy, because I enjoyed these books too and I was glad to „meet“ them again.

Twist made me laugh and cry and there were some steamy scenes too – the book was really really capturing, I read it in one day and savored every single page.

I cannot wait until the release date of „Chaser“ - the third book, I am curious who and how the next Dive Bar staff member meet his or her significant other!

Nope. This did not work for me. Awkward dialogue. Awkward plot.
Alex, girl, I know you got a lot of issues but hey maybe not being a whiny biznatch would help you work on them.
Joe, dude, I love me a nice guy, but growing a pair would be super beneficial towards your level of attractiveness and personality.
Dirty was miles above this one. Something I've come to realize between these books and the Stage Dive series is that Kylie's books are so hot and cold for me. There's no consistency with the writing. They're either good or they're all over the place.
And man, if the next book is Eric's I don't know if I can be bothered. That guy has reached the highest level of doucheness and there is just no way I'll ever find him attractive or redeemable in any way. He needs a nice punch in the face; knock the reality into him.
Let's hope it's Pat up next...

loved the book

Who doesn't love a beard.
A Romance with a Twist.
Hooked from the first page. I've loved all of Kylie Scott's Stage Dive Series and I loved book 1 in The Dive Bar series, but I think this book may possibly be my favourite of them all. We get to see all the previous Stage Dive and Dive Bar characters, and I loved that so much, nothing like a catch up while meeting new friends. The newbies in question are Joe and Alex, two pretty much exact opposites who finally meet following months of emailing. After realising she's been duped online Alex is all for leaving the lies behind and going home (lesson learned). Joe however, is not willing to give in so easily and when Alex gets a bad bout of flu, Joe is the one nursing her back to health. Their friendship strikes back up and the chemistry between them heats up, things are looking up, they're both learning life lessons, and I'm happy. Then BAM! In the flick of an eye everything changes. My heart went out to the whole group, more so with Alex who I know was just coming out of her comfort zone. Nevertheless she tries her best to be there in Joe's time of need. Brilliantly written from Alex's POV, I laughed (Alex was hilarious), I cried and I prayed for a HEA. I was provided with an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Twist, A Dive Bar Novel, Kylie Scott

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance

I love well written rock star romance and Kylie is the Queen of the genre IMO.
This series isn't rock band romance, more romance with cameos from rockers ;-), but its so well plotted and carried out, plays out the same magical way the Stage Dive books did and is perfect for me.
I've recently reread Dirty, the first Dive Bar story, so the characters were fresh in my mind. I enjoyed Vaughn and Lydia's story even more the second time round, so was keen to see to the characters and where they're going now. But beards....I don't do beards. Face fungus. Yuk. Still each to their own ;-) I guess I can Just About live with a sharp neatly trimmed short beard....

Joe reminds me of Ben in description, bearded, huge, quiet, and Ben isn't my favourite character so I wondered what I'd think of Joe. 
I liked him, which surprised me. He's a kind of gentle giant, and he's a real people pleaser. I feel for him, I'm one of those, find it really hard to say no, and end up with too much on my plate. 

Poor Alex, what an embarrassing situation she found herself in, and what a total jerk Eric was. He is anyway, but his reaction here really took the biscuit! She was crushed, (oh – crumbs...) gutted, destroyed. She's really put herself out, traveled across the country when normally she is so stay-at-home she finds it hard to interact with people, and works from home much of the while.
She's got one good friend, Val, who'd chosen her outfit. Val's style of dress is perfect - for Val, not so for poor Alex. There she is dragging her suitcase, dressed in skintight LBD and sky high heels, feeling pretty uncomfortable and Eric hasn't a clue who she is. She thinks he's kidding, he thinks she's a stripper or something hired by the family for his birthday. Then the truth comes out, she's been emailing Joe, who used Eric's photo and details....oops. Big shock.
I so felt for her, its like everyone's worse nightmare, certainly hers. She's taken herself out of her Comfort Zone, hoping the guy she's been emailing, who seemed keen on meeting her when they started, will be delighted to meet her. Instead she's humiliated. Not a good start to a relationship.

Through a catalogue of events Alex ends up staying longer than planned and becomes friends - and more - with Joe. He's really taken by her but doesn't do relationships after getting his heart broken years back, but freinds, he can do that. Friends with benefits when the friend is as hot as Alex, he's in! They're in a hot and steamy relationship, kidding themsleves they're just friends, insisting to family and friends there's nothing more when its plain to the others how it is. 
Then tragedy strikes, everything gets changed, someone from the past creeps in - and I love characters like Star, fantastic the way Kylie does them. 

Its a great read, so good to catch up with Eric - even though he's a real self obsessed jerk, Pat, Andre, Nell, Rosie, Vaughn and Lydia. The Stage Dive guys and girls drop in too at the end and it was fun seeing them a couple of years after we left them. 

Kylie does a great line in strong females, great drama that's a mix of sadness, pathos and lively, fun action, men that can be jerks but also men that can be sensitive, thoughtful and gentle. The sex scenes are hot and sensual, the funny parts are perfect, the sadness nicely drawn out and the comic scenes off the wall quirky at times, snappy one liners that could be missed at others.
I found rereading the first book, and when I reread the stage dive ones that I'd missed some of the humour first time round, being too engrossed in seeing where the story took me next, so I'm already anticipating rereading this one.
 
I'm really looking forward to the next story, and at some point to what/how Kylie is going to do/deal with Eric. How can she make this overconfident, ar sehole, this selfish, immature guy into one we readers will like? But I have no doubt through her magical writing she'll do it ;-) 

Stars: five, another cracking read, meeting old freinds and new. A great keeper book for rereading. 

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

Kylie Scott somehow manages to knock my socks off EVERY. SINGLE. TIME!!! I am so flipping happy that Twist not only lived up to my expectations, but blew them away! The characters were immediately endearing which hooked me from page 1! The storyline was original and in true Kylie Scott fashion, I laughed out loud at times and other parts tugged at my heartstrings--LOVE THAT!! I flew through this novel and then was sad that I was finished!! By the time I got 75% into the book I knew I should slow down and savor, but I couldn't put my kindle down! This epic 5 star read is a 2017 favorite for me!!! Twist can be read as a standalone, but I know for a fact that once you read this gem, you will be 1-clicking Dirty (the first book in the Dive Bar series)!! Now I am left with one heck of a book hangover and counting down the days until Chaser, the next book in the Dive Bar series publishes!!!!

Holy Hot Flash! This is my first book by Kylie Scott…I’ll bet the next round of drinks with a twist and a cherry on top that it won’t be my last! This woman can write a romance! Wow!

You take a mildly agoraphobic woman, mix with a bearded, tattooed man, add a twist of jealousy and shake well. Then just drink it all up. And be prepared. When Alex and Joe finally hook up (it’s a romance! Of course they hook up!)…anyway, as I was saying. When they finally hook up, at exactly the right time, it is smokin’ hot! Not kidding! I had to walk outside and have a quick smoke before I could go on. It was that hot! Fanning myself now just thinking about it. One of the best sex scenes ever written! I’ve read a few, so I know.

If you love hot guys who work with their hands, both in and out of bed…ahem…you’re going to love Joe. If you’ve ever been even a little uncomfortable in crowds, a little shy even, you will adore Alex and wish you could help. Don’t worry. Kyle Scott has her back. Just grab a copy…and an ice pack and fan…read and…

Enjoy!

2shay

<i>This is what came from stepping outside of your comfort zone. Bad things. Deeply shitty soul-crushing things.</i>

Okay so here's the thing about Scott's books. I am never disappointed. I don't think I've rated a single one of her contemporary novels below a four. Why? Because you get everything you'd expect.. and more. And she does it brilliantly and with class, sass and some ass.

<i>Lumbersexuals were clearly the worst. Truth was, I'd never been especially into beards. At best, I'd been indifferent. Now, however, I outright despised them. Horrible hair frames for lying lips and duplicitous tongues, that's what they were. Loathsome whiskery bastards. Burn them all in a fire.</i>

Despite the total hilarity of book one's premise, TWIST managed to be both understated and compelling and completely relateable. Not to mention ridiculously funny in a quirky awesome way. And I actually ended up liking it better than DIRTY.

<i>Aw, was the poor asshole embarrassed? My heart bled for him.</i>

Alexandra Parks has been communicating with Eric Collins via a dating service website for months; or so she thinks. When she arrives to the Dive Bar to surprise him for his birthday, he isn't the only one surprised. Because he ends up having no idea who she is. And for those of you who remember Joe furtively typing away on a computer in a completely suspicious way near the wrap-up of book one, you'll understand why. Because it wasn't Eric that Alex was chatting with.. but his much beardier, bulkier, brother. A man she is in no way attracted to (at first) and who she absolutely loathes upon discovering the extent of his lies.

<i>People said nobody told the actual truth about themselves on the Internet. Lying to strangers and sharing cat pictures were basically why the World Wide Web had been invented.</i>

But naturally that is where their story only begins.

<i>Not that I'd ever admit it for feminist reasons, but I kind of liked it when he [loomed over me]. Made me feel small and helpless in a way. Though it also put me in just the right position to grab his nuts and twist them.</i>

I loved Alex. She was sarcastic and clever and feisty and full of neuroses (preach, homegirl, I feel you). And I loved Joe, a quiet, intense, beardy bear of a man who unexpectedly comes to Alex's rescue after their disastrous first meeting.

"<i>You sick? You're not looking so hot, but I didn't want to get in any more trouble by saying something.</i>"
"<b>Wise.</b>"

The cautious evolution of their friendship, a bit of a twist (tee hee) on a second chance romance, was so wonderful. Funny, flirty and fantastic. Oh, also hot.

<i>Breathing through a panic attack was hard enough. Breathing through a panic attack while giving a blowjob was even harder.</i>

And of course there is the bevy of colourful characters that make up the town of Coeur d'Alene, specifically those who work at the Dive Bar, with the addition of Alex's bestie Valerie who might actually be one of my favourite supporting characters ever. I loved her background and I loved her loyalty and I all around just loved her.

"<i>You're going to end up like one of those crazy cat ladies with your apartment smelling of piss and regret</i>."

So much happens outside of the Alex & Joe (and Eric) drama and.. it's intense and heartbreaking and beautiful and I was dragged feet first through all those feels. There was also an unexpected element introduced that I didn't, but should've, seen coming that added some additional drama-rama. I did take issue with a bit near the end, right around the making up portion of the story, mostly because.. well.. I felt something should've been addressed but hey. Maybe it will in the final version. Who is to say but Scott herself.

"<i>Yes. You're right, there's no excuse for such a willful act of bastardry and I definitely deserve to be castrated and burn in hell for all eternity. Um. Who did you say you were again?</i>"

As always we had some cameos from the Stage Dive members and that was an added little hoot I quite enjoyed. And once again I'm left with a desire to reread that series. Damn you, Scott, damn you.

4.25 "cockblocked by a squirrel" stars

Great book to continue the Dive bar Series. I found it to be funny and emotional at times. It had me laughing and crying throughout the book.
One thing I enjoyed about this book was how Alex and Joe were really able to help each other out with their issues. Alex really got Joe and vice versa. Even though Joe lied to Alex you still liked him. You even understood why he lied after being introduced to more of Eric.
Alex surprises Eric the man she has been emailing for months only to find out it wasn't him. No not Eric but his brother Joe. Joe has really been the one she's been emailing. Alex can't believe she got her hopes up only to find out she's been made a fool of. But storming out of the bar in the middle of a rainstorm barely dressed wasn't one of her better ideas. Especially when she wakes up sick the next morning only to be confronted by Joe. Alex finally gets out of her comfort zone only to be thrown into Joes crazy life.

I have read all of Kylie Scott's books and previously I would have said that Lead was my favourite, however, after reading Twist I have a new favourite. I absolutely loved Alex and Joe and their story. The relationship they create and then the real relationship they have to build after Alex finds out the truth was beautifully crafted. The characters are well written and really likeable. I absolutely love this book. I could go on, but I know I will end up giving away spoilers and I don't want to do that. So I will be leaving a much more detailed review on Amazon on release day.

What a tangled web we weave when we try to deceive. A lesson learned the hard way by the Joe the bartender. Pretending to be his brother online seems harmless enough.

Alex has found someone online that she can talk to. What’s the harm in finally meeting him in person? Going by what he looks like in his profile picture the outside matches the personality he’s shown via messages. Or does it?

I found Twist to be funny, sweet and romantic. A nice addition to the Dive Bar series.

Twist is the second book in the Dive Bar series that centers on a group of friends that own or work in a bar. It is loosely connected to the Stage Dive series by the same author but works as a stand alone series.

As the title suggests we have several twists throughout this book and it starts in the first chapter. Joe Collins has been pretending to be his brother while chatting with a girl from an online dating site. When Alex shows up at the bar his deception comes to light and the comedy ensues.

There are many things I really enjoyed about this book not the least of which is the humor. Scott writes some pretty over the top embarrassing moments for her characters but they also seem like things that could happen making hilarious to read about but you still want to cringe a little to think of that happening to you. Alex has many of these moments since she is embarrassed in front of all Joe's friends when she meets him, gets a bad cold, has a bad dinner with his parents and several more that I won't spoil. She takes them all in stride and most of them help her to really grow as a character since she does have some anxiety issues.

I will say this book knocked me for a loop at one twist I never saw coming. I will not spoil it in any way but I will say WOW. It is the turning point of this book and a major plot point (in my opinion) of the series. I was really surprised by it because after reading Dirty I had my own ideas of what would happen in later books but Scott changed that with this one twist.

One thing I did miss in this book was there wasn't as much interaction with the secondary characters of the series. In the first book in this series we meet all the friends and learn a lot about the history of the characters. We spent quite a bit of time at the bar with all the characters but still had plenty of couple time with the main characters. But in this book it mainly focused on Joe and Alex which was nice I just really missed the interactions with the secondary characters (the 'date' at the Dive Bar was really funny) and I would have liked to have seen more.

The ending of the book was a little awkward. Because of the big twist in the last half of the book, the ending had elements that didn't really focus on Joe and Alex. Those elements are kind of brushed under the rug and while we may see more about them in a later book it felt like what I thought would be a big deal wasn't treated as such. I understand the book was about Joe an Alex so if this event (that focused on the secondary characters) was made into a bigger deal I may have disliked that. But I just felt that this event and the characters deserved more than to be so much in the background at the end of the book.

I did really enjoy this book and I will be continuing with the series. If you like lumberjack looking good guys that can't say no and always help everyone then you will like Joe. Or if an anxiety ridden recluse who has no problem saying no and considers the squirrel in the tree outside her apartment her pet then you will like Alex. They are a lot of fun together and bring out the best in each other. I am excited to see what Scott has planned for the next book in the series.

Joe Collins' brother, Eric, asked Joe to set up an online dating account for him. Then Eric lost interest in it and asked Joe to close it for him. But Joe thought Alex, the woman Eric had been emailing, was sweet and funny. So he continued to email her as Eric and they became good friends.

Alex Parks took a big risk and traveled to Coeur d'Alene to meet Eric. But Eric had no idea who she was. Joe, however, was horrified to be found out. Alex felt betrayed.

Circumstances kept Alex and Joe together for a while, and they got to know each other better. A true commitment-phobe, Alex began to panic at how close she was getting to Joe. But was Joe getting close to her?

That's as far as I'll go with the plot, because from here on out there are spoilers. The book ends up being a real tear-jerker, though, for many reasons. It will break your heart. But then it will put it back together again very nicely. There are multiple HEAs.

For fans of the series, there are some answers to the Eric/Nell/Pat situation included in this book.

Enjoy!
***
ARC provided by the publisher. This review is freely given and is my honest opinion.

Aw, this book was adorable! I loved Joe and Alex so much! They truly brought out the best in each other and I absolutely loved the way they pushed each other out their comfort zones! A fun sexy read!