Overall I really enjoyed this book. It took me about half the book to really like Red. She is very cold at the beginning of the book but as we get to know her, you learn why she is like she is and that once she found love her real personality and warmth come through. Brodie is lovable from the start and melts Red's cold heart. I love all of Brodie's family and his business is interesting. I look forward to more from this series.


*I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.*

Driven to Distraction by Lori Foster is the first book in her new series Road to Love.

Brodie Crew is all man and I could just eat him up. He is a bit cocky but not in a bad way, more of a take me as I am way. He will always stand up for what's right and is a complete sweetheart with his dog Howler. Mary Daniels is the opposite of Brodie in the fact that she not quiet comfortable in her own skin. She wears clothes to hide her curves and keeps her hair back to avoid attention. She is focused and dedicated to her job, so she tries to ignore her physical reaction to Brodie. Mary has some emotional baggage and feels unwanted, unloved and alone in life. Brodie has to proceed slowly in his pursuit of her and show her he cares without stepping on her independence.

Mary's boss has hired Brodie as the transport driver for his transactions which requires them to spend a lot of time together. Brodie chips away at Mary's walls, and she grows to feel safe with him. The job seems to be going great until a transaction goes bad and Mary and Brodie are being watched and followed.

Overall, Driven to Distraction by Lori Foster was a highly entertaining read that had just the right amount of action and suspense. I'm looking forward to reading more releases in this new series.

I loved this story. Brodie is possessive, strong, caring, and has a heart of gold but he is also humble and sexy as hell. He is the opposite of Mary and the two of them crate sparks. She is a lonely girl who grew up to exceed all expectations of what people in her town thought she would be. She defied the odds and is a fighter in her own quiet way.

Full Review: https://shahlas-world.blogspot.com/2018/11/ms-foster-has-not-disappointed-me-yet.html

A new series by Lori Foster (Fast Burn) introduces readers to the Crews brothers, Jack and Brodie. They are growing a small courier business and taking on a client like Mary's boss Therman is a great way to build up business. Brodie can be all business or all play, loves working on cars, pushing Mary's buttons, and catering unashamedly to his adopted dog Howler. He is as sweet, hot, and alpha as long time readers expect a Lori Foster hero to be. Mary is what we expect from a Lori Foster heroine: smart, stubborn, and driven. Her past has made her want to blend into the background and remain separated from everyone by a professional exterior, but eventually Brodie works on getting some of her walls down and showing her it is possible to be both a professional and a woman who is loved. He introduces her to the concept of a loving family and pushes her to accept the people reaching out to her. It was sweet to watch Mary struggle to adjust to this new way of looking at the people in her life, and heartbreaking to think of why it was such a struggle for her.

Distraction's secondary characters were fun and quirky, and I look forward to getting to see more of them in the next book. I have to admit that I found the threat and the idea behind it a little thin, and kept waiting for something more to happen- but since the point of the book was really more about Brodie and Mary's developing relationship it still worked.

While not Foster's strongest book, Driven to Distraction is full of fun characters, a sweet dog, humor, and emotion. A good read for long time Lori Foster fans and those just discovering her.

Driven to Distraction is the first book in the new series Road to Love by Lori Foster, and from the very first chapter I loved it, and I think it was because it reminded me about the Visitation series, where there is suspense, but the main focus of the story is on the characters relationship and I absolutely loved it.

When it came to the characters you cannot help but have your heartbroken by Mary Daniels and the harshness of her childhood, or find Brodie Crews antagonism of Mary amusing, but his desire of her, just as she is, heartwarming and really, it's what every woman wants in her life.

The story is wonderfully simple, as Mary is a facilitator for her collector employer and Brodie is the newly hired driver, and from the moment that Brodie and Mary embark on their mission, they are pursued by a bizarre rival collector and his violent henchmen.

Overall I really enjoyed this book, it had a simple which gave you the opportunity to focus on the characters and that made a wonderful change from a lot of books on the market now.

I give Driven to Distraction 5 stars!

Driven to Distraction by Lori Foster
Road to Love #1

Family, trust and love are central to this story. Mary Daniels is buttoned up and conservative in what she wears and how she interacts with others trying to be all that her mother was not. She may have envy but it is more an envy of those who are in loving families so unlike the home she grew up in. Brodie Crews has a wonderful family of mother, brother and a young woman that is like a sister to him. Brodie was the perfect book boyfriend and his interactions with Mary were a delight to read.

When Brodie and Mary meet there are sparks but of a negative nature…eventually those change and a romance begins to ignite as the two go on the road to collect items their boss, Therman, has purchased for his collections. There is a bad guy out to out maneuver Therman and in doing so he causes trouble for Mary and Brodie.

Brodie has a heart of gold that sees him standing up for women, children, underdogs and animals. By saving one dog, Howler, he gained a friend for life. What a wonderful addition Howler was to the story! In addition to Howler we meet those in the employ of Therman and the family of Jack and by the end of the story I am more than eager to hear what will happen in book two of the series when it seems Jack will meet the woman that will be his true love. Can’t wait to get it in my hands!

Thank you to NetGalley, HQN and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

Things aren't always as they seem.
Adventures in obtaining collectibles. Mary works for a collector - Therman whose collectibles are eccentric. She is uptight, wanting and ensuring the job gets done. Much to her dismay she is teamed up with transport Brodie who seemingly is a carefree, sexy bachelor.. As more jobs are deemed in close quarters both realize that there is more than meets the eye.

Mary's eccentric boss & his unusual collections created an interesting, unique and entertaining storyline. I was hooked from the very beginning and I loved how Brodie & Mary's story unfolded. Brodie's relationship with his dog, Howler, was adorable! The alpha hero's interactions with his big lovable dog added something extra special to the story. All of the secondary characters were great, as well. I especially loved Brodie's mom. She was my favorite!

Driven to Distraction is an awesome start to the Road to Love series. After reading the sneak peek of Jack's story, I can't wait to see how that situation turns out!

Lori Foster has done it again! She has this wicked way of winding a leading man around our heart that has us swooning and turning the pages faster and faster just to see more of him! Brodie was simply a delight to read. He's cocky, but adorable ... funny, yet endearing ... just an all around great guy! The touch of intrigue was just enough to keep me invested in the story. I wasn't overjoyed with the strange collection part of the story, but the character connection and overall love of seeing them together was enough to make me overlook a slightly dragging in parts plot. Overall, I really enjoyed Brodie and Mary and I look forward to Jack's story!

Mary Daniels enjoys working for her eccentric boss in obtaining the rare collectibles he seeks, but this time she's not so sure he's making a good choice! When she shows up to hire the driver at Mustang Transport that he insists upon, she's not impressed! He's blatantly hung-over, has a woman hanging all over him in public, and just doesn't seem like he's going to get the job done. 

Brodie Crews needs this job in order to keep his business running smoothly, so he's not about to let this uppity woman ruin things for him. If her boss wants him, he's got him ... and he'll do the job correctly! Then again, riding around in the car for house with this woman just might be too much temptation for him. Yes, she's wicked controlling .. but he finds it kind of hot! It's all fun and games until danger shows up in their rear-mirror, then they need to play to win!

Oh how I missed reading a Lori Foster book! I jumped right away at the opportunity to read Driven to Distraction since it was book one to a new series. I love love love Brodie! I got to say this story is so unique I have no clue where Mrs. Foster came up with it. You get so many romance novels that start to sound the same over and over again. Tropes can get overplayed. So it was refreshing that Driven to Distraction is a trope of its own.

The beginning was unexpected. My first impression of the book...Holy f@%k! What is happening. You can perceive so much and still not have the full story. I FLOVED IT!

So let's talk about Mary. She is tough as nails and is not afraid to go after what she wants. She is ready to conquer the world...until Brodie.

Their chemistry is mouth watering good! Driven to Distraction will add the drama with the sexy. You will get more than you can expect. You are in for a full course ride! The characters are amazing and this book is perfection!

***ARC Provided by the Publisher via NetGalley***

1.5 Stars

This book was not what I was expecting. I like books where there is a forced proximity relationship, and I was expecting this from the book...but, this wasn't quite like that and it didn't entirely work for me.

The blurb, treasure chasing and a driver, the idea of a chase and looking for the items, getting away from the "bad guys" should have been a lot of fun. But, this didn't really work. The book had an odd feel to it, and it felt a little forced to me. It also never really felt real, and I never totally believed the characters in the book were actual, real people. They felt like caricatures, and they felt over the top. I kept expecting characters from Monty Python (or maybe Tim Curry) to leap into the picture and yell "this is what really happened".

So, to say that this feeling didn't lead itself well to a romance, that is not much of an exaggeration. I never felt the romance with the characters, and I was not engaged with Brodie and Mary.

I am not able to recommend this title.

If I want a romance to take me away I will look to a few authors with this one being one. In this one it was the start to a new series it would seem also. Mary was a interesting character which that being said was easy to follow her along to see what her story was. When she is with Brodie the chemistry that begins to sizzle is easily come across the pages. I do not get to read this author as often as I used too but she still can enables us readers to get lost in a story filling us up with the emotions and such that draws us to a romance that has the body and ability to take us away. Weaving in a bit of suspense also is a element I forgot that is hidden at times in her stories like in here. That was like candy for me. So I speed through this one when it was in my hands with it being delicious every bit.

An intriguing read with a unique story. Mary is a prim and proper gal focused on making something of her life. She works for Therman Ritter, an eccentric collector. Her job is to obtain the unobtainable, which at times, puts her in dangerous situations. Therman hires Brodie to provide transportation for Mary. Beyond frustrated with the, laid- back, seemingly carefree Brodie, she refuses to let him interfere with her life goals or get the best of her. She has deadlines to make and rules to follow. She will NOT get side tracked by his devilish good looks.
Through their travels together Brodie learns that Mary hides behind a sharp tongue and baggy clothes, all which intrigue him more each day. He’s determined to discover what she is hiding in her life and underneath her clothes. As the danger increases Brodie finds himself unable to just provide transportation, he steps in to provide her protection enabling us to discover he’s not the laid-back careless person we think. The traveling confinement enables their relationship to build and we thoroughly fall in love with the characters. Mary’s a hot little firecracker who will put Brodie in his place whenever he steps over the line. With his desire to learn more about her he steps over the line A LOT. This gives us some hilarious entertainment and some steamy sexual tension!
Through it all we discover what makes each character tick and watch them grow as they encounter dangerous and challenging situations. I thoroughly came to appreciate each character. I don’t want to give spoilers, but I really liked the end!! It is an enjoyable read containing suspense, humor and steam!

The first of two books in the Road to Love series by Lori Foster, Driven to Distraction follows the story of Brodie Crews and Mary Daniels, who are trapped in a car for hours with nothing but Brodie’s dog and their sexual tension to keep them company. When Brodie is hired by Mary’s employer to be her driver, laid back, brash Brodie and buttoned-up, cool Mary never believe that the other could be more than a thorn-in-the-side co-worker. But their car rides begin to bring them precariously closer, and when they suddenly find themselves in more danger than either every imagined, they’ll be forced to discover exactly how far they’re willing to go for one another.

Mustang Transport - the business belonging to the two incredibly attractive Crews brothers - has been contracted to escort the young courier of an elderly collector of rare and unusual artefacts. Brodie is brash, crass and blatantly honest. Mary is poised, collected and constantly works at keeping her cool. Mary meets Brodie, and she knows she does not want him to be her driver. They’re immediately at odds, but are undeniably attracted to one another.

Their first encounter sets the stage for both characters. Mary comes upon Brodie working on his beloved car (Matilda). He’s disheveled and shirtless as a result of being hungover, but it’s a look on a broad-shouldered muscular man that anyone could appreciate - Mary included. But that appreciation immediately puts her on guard. She wears her carefully crafted level-headed persona as religiously as she wears her blocky, professional garb to hide her curves. Everything about Mary is intentionally masked, only letting people see what she wants them to. But Brodie immediately catches that she’s hiding herself, physically and emotionally. Mary protests having Brodie drive her and tries everything to avoid getting into a car with him,  but her boss - eighty-six-year-old eccentric sweetheart Therman Ritter - insists it be Brodie and not his brother Jack.

The job is simple enough. Therman arranges for a transaction to be made, Mary is to execute that transaction and retrieve Therman’s desired artefact, Brodie is to drive. Mary owns her job. She likes to be in control and she doesn’t want anyone to interfere. But Brodie can’t help but feel protective of her - physically on the job and emotionally off of it. He can tell that there’s something in Mary’s past that’s made her build these incredible walls, but he’s decided to bide his time and be let in rather than knock them down. When their job proves to be more dangerous than he’d ever anticipated, Brodie may not be able to give Mary the space and the time she needs. The danger won’t deter her, and Brodie will do anything to prevent harm coming her way.

There’s always something so appealing about the tension that this kind of storyline inherently brings; strong-willed, loner woman forced to work alongside a sexy, slightly crass guy who ultimately falls hard for her and wants to bring down all of her defences. Sometimes the books end up feeling too forced, but Foster really delivers in this one. The secrets that Mary desperately tries to keep in her past give her believable reasons for wanting to stand on her own and keep the rest of the world out. And the reader can see instances where Brodie is genuinely surprised and intrigued by Mary, making it easy to understand how he could fall for her so quickly.

The only component of this book that took away from my enjoyment was the  inclusion of a ‘bad guy’. I felt like there was enough innate tension in the love story and chaos coming from both sides that the insertion of an external villain felt forced. Every time we have to dip out of the main storyline to read more on the mystery that is the person targeting the couple, I was more annoyed than curious, which, I guess just reinforces how invested in the romance I was. There are some great steamy scenes between the two, but the emotional hurdles that Mary and Brodie get over is what kept the story moving. But Foster has also built a great world with interesting characters outside of the couple that I was happy to read more about.

I would recommend Driven to Distraction by Lori Foster to anyone looking for a quick read and a solid romance. And I’m so glad that we have the second novel in the Road to Love series, Slow Ride, to look forward to where we’ll get to encounter some of the same characters again.

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Could not get enough of the beautifully flawed couple and the journey they take together. Emotionally engaging, sweetly sexy and thrilling romantic adventure filled with danger, secrets, tested loyalties and undeniable hot passion.... loved the heart pounding action and unexpected twists. I do have to say that Brodie is a total heartthrob and awesome book boyfriend but Howler stole my heart.

Straight-laced, sit up tall, mind your p’s and q’s Mary Daniels never saw Brodie coming. Her boss hired Brodie to transport his purchases and Mary is his ride along. Brodie is a good man with a bad boy attitude, an alpha male personality, and an oh so sexy body. From the very first meeting, there was no doubt that Mary and Brodie would clash and come together with all the passion and heat that the reader could feel between them. I loved reading about the two of them, they were total opposites in all senses but together they worked perfectly.

There is a twist with the suspense that Lori Foster is known for. It is the perfect mix of romance, drama, and suspense thrown together to make a wonderful story. Pick up your own copy of Driven to Distraction and start a new wonderful series.

Fast-paced start to a new series! Fans of Lori Foster will love Driven to Distraction’s road trip romance full of chemistry, emotion, romance, and intrigue! Brodie Crews is a rough around the edges smooth talker and Mary Daniels is the object of his desires, but she’s got some scars from her childhood he’ll have to heal first. I loved the two family dynamics, the Crews and the people who make up Ritter’s household, and that building those relationships was as central as Brodie and Mary themselves. I also love that reading a Lori Foster book guarantees a strong alpha male who will be a badass when needed but also a heart-melting hero and Brodie is no exception! Very intrigued for Jack’s story next!


I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from Netgalley

The first book in the Road to Love Series draws us into Mary Daniels story. Her job is to secure certain collectibles for her employer. She ends up working with Brodie at the request of her boss . Mary is very conservative and doesn’t let anything interfere with her job . She finds this much harder with Brodie around and she quickly learns to let her hair down a bit.
This book had a little bit of everything. Between the steaminess, the humor, and romance it is a great read. I received an ARC for my honest review from Netgalley.

Driven to Distraction by Lori Foster
WOW, I haven't read a Lori title in a wee whiles, and I forgot how much I do enjoy her writing and stories.
This is a first in a new series, about Mary and Brodie. I did find the story to be a little too long and drawn out at times, its a goos start to a new series that is recommendable to everyone. I look forward to see where the series goes.

This is the first in a new romantic suspense series by the author, and I really enjoyed it! I loved both main characters so much and was thrilled to tag along on their HEA.

Brodie Crews is a great guy. He loves his mom, and his brother, and his pseudo-sister. He loves his dog, Howler, and his Mustang, and his family owned business, in his small hometown. He's never really loved a woman yet, but he's sure he'll get there one day. Maybe. Right now, he has no interest in that. He runs a transport business with his brother, and he works on his beloved car in his spare time. When a rich, eccentric, new client comes calling to hire his services, he's all for it. Especially once he sees the man's curvy, petite, red-haired goddess of an assistant, Mary Daniels.

Mary Daniels had a terrible childhood, which led to some quirks as she grew up. For one, she is always perfectly wonderful at her job. She always makes sure her boss is satisfied with his acquisitions and she enjoys doing it. Her work ethic is second to none, but she also holds herself to impossibly high standards regarding her professionalism, and the results she gets for her boss. She has no plans on letting anyone interfere with her work, or her perfectly ordered life. Especially not the too hot for her own good new driver, Brodie. She wants him like she's never wanted anyone. But she'll never tell him that. It'll just stay her safe, secret fantasy.

Brodie and Mary had great chemistry from the first time their eyes met, and I loved watching their long fall into love. Mary underestimates everything about Brodie from the start, and he gives her a hard time about being a stick in the mud. They are constantly bickering and fighting, but it's all really foreplay, and it was so much fun. They truly get to know each other on their many trips for their boss, and they begin to really care for one another, even before they actually sleep together, and I enjoyed that. They are a perfect complement to one another, and you really felt their connection.

Brodie's family was a delight, as were the happy brood that live with their boss, Therman. They were each hilarious in their own ways, and I loved how much everyone loved and took care of each other. They also all love Howler, Brodie's dog, and he was such a hilarious sweetheart of a character. The suspense plot here wasn't too scary or convoluted, but was still exciting, and I was always waiting on the edge of my seat for what would happen next. It made each job they went on exciting on it's own, separate from their falling for each other.

Brodie was an amazing hero and he was so caring and gentle with our strong, but damaged heroine. Mary was a delight, and you feel everything she feels while she's fighting falling for Brodie. She was strong, and sassy, and fully her own person, and seeing her really need someone for the first time was so heartfelt and relatable.

I always enjoy this author's writing immensely, and this was no exception. I was a little sad, as her last few series have all been loose extensions of the ones before them, and that has been such fun for the last few years. I loved those characters dearly, especially after getting to know them so well. However, these are completely new characters, with no relation to anything from before, and that does bring it's own fun and exciting new story as well.

I highly recommend this exciting, and sexy story. I loved every minute of it.