I have been waiting for Evan's story and it is my absolute favorite out of the series so far.

Evan is the quiet one of the family. He's the silent partner with his cousins in Vets on the Move! And with his cousin Cash out with a broken limb - he's helping to fill in with some of the moves. This where he finds Kenzie - the woman who took his breath away the minute he sees her.

Evan and Kenzie hit it off from the start. And I loved these two together. But both have some underlying feelings about past relationships that are keeping them from being fully engaged with their relationship.

Daniel, Kenzie's little brother, is a great icebreaker in the storyline and I loved his interaction with Evan. The Bromance is fun and heartwarming.

Kenzie's cast of friends also play a huge part in the story and had me laughing to the point of crying at moments. They were a great addition to the storyline too.

Evan melted my heart. Kenzie was cute and vulnerable and the perfect fit for the ever-patient Evan.
My heart definitely was won over by Evan. Each book in the series gets better and better and I can't wait for more in the series!

Marie Harte is a master at conversation. This book had me riveted with the back and forth between the characters! I so enjoy reading about the people she has in her stories. I come to care for them and have to see what they are up to now. This one is the CPA cousin of the moving company. I'm hoping for more stories about these oh so capable retired military movers.

Evan Griffith has finally left the CPA firm that has been overworking him and he is now filling in at the moving company for his cousin Cash who has broken his arm. Evan is enjoying doing physical labor, meeting clients and getting to know the crew. He meets Kenzie Sykes when she is in a wild tantrum as the next door neighbor of Rachel Kim, the lady he's moving across town. For some nutty reason he's attracted to her and she is too. When she comes over to apologize for her brother Daniel's prank they interact more. Kenzie's life is stressed with too much to handle and a tech savant smart 13 year old brother whose starting to get in trouble.

Later in the book they make a deal, he'll help her with her company's tax problem and repairs at her house if she'll design a logo for the moving company. She's partners in a graphic design company with her next door neighbors Rachel Kim and Lila. Both she and Evan are keeping their hearts shielded against love. He lost his fiance to cancer. Her fiance abandoned her and brother Daniel abruptly. Both keep busy to avoid romantic entanglements in their lives. Rachel is protective of Daniel as she raised him since she was 18 and he 2. They come at a set in her mind. Evan is an only child and his mother is showing same of the same cancer signs as his fiance showed before she was diagnosed in an advanced stage. Their lives come together in a mutually helping each other out and fall in love.

Marie's stories have a strong community of close knit characters, even set in Seattle it has a small town vibe to it. She has a great feel for relationships and dialogue and I always fall into her world and want to learn all the secrets.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced readers copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Fizzy, bubbly, sensational and sexy are just some of the words I can use to describe how I felt about some of the characters while reading this novel. I laughed, giggled, snickered and face-palmed; I grinned, gasped and fanned myself from the heat. All this from one book that was so good, I stayed up to almost 2 a.m. to finish it. Why is it so awesome? Because Ms. Harte made me feel like I was right there, walking alongside Evan and Kenzie, Daniel and Smith, Lila and Rachel and the whole cast that made up the families of both the hero and heroine. I felt part of the inner circle because of the third person POV from both Evan and Kenzie’s side of things. And yet, there was so much to discover about everyone that could only be done by watching what happened, listening in on other’s conversations and seeing the emotion and craziness falling in love brought into all their lives. Never mind the resulting entertainment as they stumbled, goofed, gaffed and made goo-goo eyes at each other on and off during their budding relationship. There were such strong feelings of warmth, welcoming and family, warts and all, that appealed to me on so many levels, I couldn’t help but adore this book. Handle with Care is an excellent feel-good, happy-inducing read that left me feeling 100% satisfied. This is romance done right.

The dialogue alone is a giggle-kicker. What comes out of the mouths of Lila and Rachel are blushingly hysterical and they make no apologies for their colorful views on sex. The resulting word war between Evan and Daniel, Kenzie’s brother, was unconventional to say the least, but I have to admit laughing out loud at some of the more creative ideas for swearwords. It’s how and when they were used that made it seem real, relatable and effective comic relief. Overall, the strength of this novel is its dialogue between the characters, both first and secondary.

Emotion. Oh, there is a lot of that going around. Here’s where I find the author did a solid. Everyone always follows a heroine when there’s some kind of breakup or misunderstanding in the process of falling in love. So many books use that trope to fill scenes up with angst. Not many look at it from the guy’s perspective. What does he do when he’s hurt? I know that Chunky Monkey seems to be popular for hurting heroines but what do guys do? Ms. Harte shares her vision of Evan in a funk and I’m not sorry to say, I found it hilarious. Genius and hilarious. In my mind’s eye, I could picture it so clearly. I liked the hero even more because of it.

I understand that this is book 3 in the series, and based on how I feel after finishing Handle with Care, I know I missed out in not reading the first two. But, I did not feel left out. That’s a huge difference. This can be read as a standalone because the focus is exactly where it should be, on Evan and Kenzie’s rocky, quirky, unconventional, romantic, sexy and wonderful romance.

Of all the subplots with a secondary character, Ms. Harte picked the right person to highlight, Smith. Evan and Smith’s relationship is important on a few levels. It’s sometime comical, but there is a depth of emotion, a well of untapped seriousness that gave the novel solid footing. These are people who’ve been dealt some seriously bad hands in life and yet manage to rise above it. Or are trying to. Through the hero, I came to understand that there is a lot more to Smith than what the story initially presented. The last chapter in the novel, where the HEA is revealed in all its fun and romantic glory also included a well worded, intriguing sentence that insured the obvious. I HAVE to read the next story. Consider me obsessed with the thought of Smith’s HEA – now that I have been given a hint of his teddy bear side, I want him to have something he never had. Evan discovered it, now I want Smith to have it. The big question is, how long do I have to wait to find out? That’s the mark of a well written book – the yearning for more of the good stuff. Handle with Care is definitely good stuff and if that’s the quality Ms. Harte is known to write, which I believe she is, then wanting more is a no-brainer. I’m in.

Handle with Care might center around Evan and Kenzies beginning romance but it also has a strong theme of family and friendship on both sides. This was a fun and lighthearted read about getting back into the dating game after suffering heartache and it involves two of the nicest characters in romancedom. Both Evan and Kenzie will make you go smile and giggle when they both navigate dating again!

A really sweet funny romance full of family drama. I loved reading this funny book. Loved all the characters and everything that was happening in their lives. Together they make a beautiful love story and show us that the family is not necessary is blood-related but is the persons who touch your hart. It was enjoyable funny, hot read.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for NetGalley

✦Spotlight, Review & Giveaway: HANDLE WITH CARE by Marie Harte https://wp.me/p3d0RZ-beX
Publication Date: August 27, 2019
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Reviewed by: Reading in Pajamas/ Donna
Rated 5 Stars

I enjoyed this installment in the Veteran Movers series. Evan’s story lived up to my expectations and then some. Kenzie and her crew were as funny and crazy as Evan’s, fitting both of their lives together like a puzzle. That opening scene was a hoot! Granted Evan could sometimes come across as too good to be true – and Kenzie edged close to my “she’s fighting the relationship too much” line, but neither circumstances made me groan. Another thing I liked about this story, is Kenzie’s younger brother was a part of the budding romance. I loved how Evan not only fell in love with Kenzie but grew to love her brother too. It was natural and never seemed forced. This is a sexy hot romance full of laughter and warm-fuzzies.

*Review copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

~*~*~*~

Kindle https://amzn.to/2znUCPr

Handle with Care is the 3rd book in the Veteran Movers series and my favorite so far! Evan Griffith may be strong and determined, but he's finally found the woman that'll bring him to his knees. Kenzie Sykes has enough on her over-worked plate, let alone having to wrangle her younger brother and keep him out of the constant trouble he finds himself in. There's plenty of characters to enjoy in this story that'll keep you highly entertained and wanting to find a good moving service of your own!

Could not put down. I started this and sat and read the whole book. Evan had been in the Marines and now worked for his family's moving company. He was also an accountant but left his big paying job because of the amount of hours he put in. He spends time with his mom and they talk about anything and he drives her to where she needs to go. His father had passed away several years ago. He also had a fiance that had died of cancer a couple of years ago and is ready to move on with his life.
Kenzie is raising her teenage brother and has been since he was a toddler, when their parents were killed in a car accident. She had a fiance who left her months ago because he said he couldn't deal anymore with raising someone else's kid. So her and her brother have trust issues. Kenzie runs a business with her 2 best friends,
Evan and Kenzie meet up when he is helping move her friend. Things go funny after that. Watching the sparks between them, everyone is rooting for them. As they start seeing each other Evan starts falling for her but she pushes him away because she doesn't want someone to hurt her or her brother again.
I laughed so hard with the bantering between Evan and his friends and family and then with Kenzie and her friends and brother. Then when you mix them all together I had quite a few laugh out moments.
I received this book from Inkslinger and NetGalley for review.

I really enjoyed this book. It had great characters and I liked the storyline. This book stayed with me a few days after I finished because it touched me.

Handle with Care is the new contemporary romance by author Marie Harte. It's the third book in her Veteran Movers series but can be read as a stand alone.

Handle with Care brings us the love story of Evan and Kenzie. Evan is a handsome, kind, and caring gentleman. He is a bit on the sensitive side and when he cares about someone he makes them a priority. I enjoyed his character, but he was a bit too sweet for me, and cried one to many times for my comfort level lol . Kenzie is headstrong, she has been the sole care taker of her younger brother since he was two. She has her wall up from being hurt in the past but eventually her protesting gets old in my opinion has Evan has a track record that shows he is in the relationship for the long haul. Kenzie's brother Daniel may have been my favorite character of the book. He was cheeky and charming for a teen. He genuinely cared for his sister and I looked forward to chapters in his point of view.


Overall, Handle with Care was a sweet addition to the Veteran Movers series. IT was a little anti climatic for me but still entertaining. I think the next book is going to be about a character I'm dying to get to know more, so I'm excited for the series to continue.

I adored Evan and Kenzie’s journey through friendship, family and love. It was sweet and hot, emotional and funny at the same time.

Evan was definitely the guy. Caring, sexy and so damn charming. When he met Kenzie while helping moving out her best friend, Rachel, he wouldn’t have expected to feel this insta connection at first sight, even Kenzie’s crazy bunch of friends haven’t scared him off.

I appreciated reading about a sensitive man who had done so much for his family, who wore his heart on his sleeve. A mix of sexiness and sweetness, I was sold!

Kenzie didn’t have time for relationships, protecting her heart and family, trying to keep her company successful. She had to raise her little brother so young, with the help of her best friends; they were hilarious, straightforward and didn’t have any time to beat around the bush. Pretty lethal combination with men for sure. But still she failed to let her feelings shown and she felt unsecured. A lot. So stubborn to see what was in front of her. To break all the walls she has built.

These two characters who weren’t looking for love would definitely feel how it would be if they let their hearts go. A slow burn romance, a little something in the air that made their story so special, like you could feel the sparks. I was smiling all along, rooting for Evan to get the girl and all the package that coming with her. His relation with Kenzie’s little bro made me melt, giving him strength back and confidence that à teenagers needed. Taking him under his wing without ulterior motives.

The interaction between all the characters felt so natural and effortless, creating this big family from different horizons, who stood by when it was hard, knew how to push forward when needed.

I adored how Evan and Kenzie accepted the other entirely, listening to the other and supportive. It took some time to get to this point but I liked it.

This book would be a winner to me if Kenzie’s issues weren’t a bit repetitive. I felt like it was going in circles at times. Especially towards the ending, when I wanted some confrontation.

The Veteran movers series keeps growing on me and it gets better on each book.

I love the way Marie Harte ties her books together through the secondary characters, and Handle with Care is full of guest appearances from previous and future Harte books. This love story is cute and sexy with a lot of heart.

The 3rd book in the Veteran Movers series which this has Evan the cousin as the main character. He meets Kenzie and her friends and ends up falling for her. Their story is built around this and dealing with the fallout from his injury. So this isnt him saving her but more of just finding himself, finding her, family, friends and the chemistry between Evan and Kenzie. It's a sweet story. Low angst story that focuses on family and friends. I can't put my finger on what's missing but there is something missing from the story to give it that added kick. It's a sweet story but it could be better. Ms. Harte's stories are great, this story just needed a boost. The characters and the story is sweet and has lovely feels to them.


My Rating: 4.3 stars *******

Evan and his cousin owns a moving business called Vets On The Go and only veterans were hired. The last two weeks he had actually been moving furniture instead of his normal desk job. Evan was a CPA he quit his high paying eight hour week job to work with the moving company and he had side jobs doing accountant work. The reason he was moving furniture is his cousin Cash broke his arm fighting off a gang and the company had been started so Cash would have a job he could work after leaving the service life. Evan had willingly stepped in to cover cash until his arm was healed about another six weeks, sooner if Cash has his way. At first he considered being out from being a desk a blessing. Sure he was sore, but he considered the physical exertion to be just the thing he needed to kick start his new life. No one had mentioned what to do when a client got in a free for all in the middle of the living room. Evan had been hired to move Rachel’s things not get into her private life. Than an avenging angel stormed through the front door . She made everything around her pale in comparison.Evan found it difficult to breath. The sight of the woman frizzled him. Than a teenage boy came up to Evan and told him the avenging angel was actually crazy. The girl was Kenzie the teenage boy was her brother Daniel who she had been raising since she was eighteen and he was two. Kenzie had to figure out how to make him stop acting like a butt and turn him back into a responsible teenager he had once been. Kenzie had a graphic design business- Sykes Design that Lila and Rachel worked with her. Daniel had messed with Evan’s phone than left it on his truck. Daniel knew how kenzie acted when she liked a guy and she liked the moving guy. Kenzie hadn’t looked at anyone like that since her broken engagement from Bryce over a year ago. Not until Evan. Daniel’s only family was Kenzi. Kenzi felt that the way Evan made her feel certainly qualified as difficult, perplexing, and chaotic. She didn't need that right now.
I loved reading this book. I loved Evan and Kenzie together and how they interacted. I loved that Evan wanted to take care of those he cared about and was the peacemaker of his family and friends. I loved that Evan told Kenzi first that he loved her not expecting her to say it back, he just wanted her to know. I loved Daniel and felt he really added to this book and loved to see him grow as the book went on. I also loved the relationship Evan was forming with Smith. I loved the plot and the pace. I advise you to read the first two books of this series for a smoother and more knowledgeable read. I loved Kenzie’s friends Rachel and Lili and how they loved Kenzie and Daniel. I also loved hector and Lili together. I loved the characters and the ins and outs of this book and I highly recommend it.

Evan is ex military working for his family's moving company. He meets Kenzie and her brother Daniel while on a job. Kenzie is trying to keep her brother from ending up in jail and recovering from a broken heart courtesy of her ex boyfriend. This is a good read when you want something light with a little angst. I like this story but want to read about the cousin Smith.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley and am leaving a review.

3.5 Stars

It had been a long while since having read this author with remembering right away why I liked reading her when I started this one. This one has Evan and Kenzie with quirky way they meet. After that you are eager to see what happens next. This also has others that will entertain you in the story but am sadden I missed the first two where some have their story. This family business seems to give us readers lots of entertainment. The look into this world was a good escape for a minute and am glad I read this author again.

I truly enjoyed this one! It picks up a couple of weeks later after the events of the previous book in the series. It can be read as a standalone, as the author provides enough information to fill in the blanks, but it's a much more enjoyable experience when you know the full background on the characters.
Taking a break from his long-hour and stressing work as an accountant on a high.end firm, Evan is determined to play a bigger part on the Vet movers company.
One of his first gigs put him on the path of Kenzie and her little brother Daniel. Evan and Kenzie are instantly attracted to each other, but they both have to navigate scars from the past, family dynamics and a few other things.
I enjoyed the new additions on this book with Kenzie's over the top friends that really complemented the Vets on the Go! characters. I liked that the story was more focused on Kenzie, her brother, her friends and Evan, with only a few appearances of the others. I gave a nice twist and originality to the series. I also enjoyed Evan navigating the relationship with Smith and working hard to make that happen.
Kenzie and Evan are actually two nice people that are trying and failing and trying again and I enjoyed that while a little over the top, Kenzie's struggle felt real. I liked that the story focused on how taking care of her little brother has her positioning her relationships in a different way and it's a beautfiul things.
A great read!

Out of the three books in the series, so far, this third book was my favorite. Handle with Care was amusing, quirky, sexy, and emotional, and contained charming characters, an engaging storyline, and a heartfelt romance. This book is not so much about an alpha hero saving a damsel in distress but rather a book full of friends, family, healing, and love with characters that are down-to-earth and relatable and a believable, realistic storyline.

Evan has his hands full at the moving company he co-owns with his two cousins, Reid and Cash, as he fills in for one while out injured, along with trying to start his accounting business and taking care of his ailing mother. Romance was the last thing on his mind and definitely not what he was looking for when his moving assignment took him to Kenzie’s doorstep. Knocked head over heels, he gets more than he bargained for with Kenzie, her younger brother and their quirky set of friends. His eyes and heart are opened to new possibilities of family, friends, and love.

Kenzie was a crazy mess! Her parents passed away when she was finishing high school, leaving her with the responsibility of raising her baby brother. She did the best she could to build a life for them, starting her own graphic design business and working from home so she would always be available to Daniel when he needed her. Her previous relationship ended abruptly when her fiancée left without warning or reason so she and Daniel are still reeling emotionally and she is heartbroken, skeptical, unsure of herself, and gun shy regarding new relationships. However, there is something about Evan that urges her to throw caution to the wind. But he seems too good to be true and can she really open herself, and Daniel, up to that kind of heartache again? With her crazy group of friends as back-up, what could possibly go wrong?

I loved Evan and Kenzie as a couple and enjoyed their developing relationship and Evan’s interaction with Daniel. Aside from being with her, Evan had a separate bond with Daniel, letting him know he mattered and he was there for him and I enjoyed seeing Daniel mature through that brotherly connection. I also loved the prank that Daniel played on Evan with his phone – completely hilarious!

Since Evan was not really an ‘alpha-type’ hero in the story, I did scrunch my nose at a few of his clingy moments, but that really just helped his character become more real. He was just a guy who was devoted to his family, loyal to his friends, and all-around nice and helpful. I struggled a bit more with Kenzie’s character. Though overall, I did like her, she grew on me more as the story progressed, but she was a bit whinier and indecisive where Evan was concerned and in certain situations, that bugged me. However, Harte adding her quirky friends into the mix helped me enjoy her character more.

Harte also gives the reader a bit more insight into Smith’s character and I was really intrigued by him. There was a huge awe moment with him and a little girl that lets you glimpse an entirely different side of him than the gruff, spiteful, bad-tempered guy he portrays himself as. I enjoyed his interactions with Evan and was glad to see that Evan stepped up to the plate and just put the truth out there to him that everyone has been dancing around from previous books. I am looking forward to Smith’s story to see how all the family drama concludes.

Overall, this book was a fun addition to the series.

3.5☆
I enjoyed revisiting Vets on the Go!

What I liked:
The writing style
The characters
Daniel
The humor
Part of a series: Veteran Movers
Standalone
HEA

I look forward to reading the next book in this series...Smith?

When Evan Griffith quits his accounting job to work full time with his cousin’s in the moving business he’s part owner in, he meets Kenzie Sykes. He’s immediately attracted but her protective little brother tries to throw him off by painting her crazy. Unfortunately for Daniel, Evan isn’t thrown off by that and gently starts pursuing the reluctant Kenzie.

Handle with Care is a little different than the first two novels in the series. Although it continues the underlying story of the Griffith family and the mysterious Smith who looks and acts exactly like Evan’s cousin. Evan is not quite as alpha as his two cousin’s who starred in the first two books in the series. Which was great! It paints a more accurate picture of men coming in all shapes, sizes, and demeanors. Evan is sensitive, gentle, and a little eager to please. It was interesting to hear his inner thoughts on how his personality sometimes scares off the ladies. I thought his insecurities were really attractive!

I think I might have found this story a little lackluster if it hadn’t been for both Evan and Kenzie’s amazing friends and family. Lila and Hector’s romance, her little brother Daniel’s mischievousness and need for a male role model, and even Smith’s introduction into the family helped hold my interest. I hope we get a spin-off series of some sort because I want to learn more about these other characters lives and interests! If I had to guess, though, I think Smith’s novel will be the last, as he is the only remaining Griffith whose story has gone untold to date.

If you like real romances about normal people and great stories about how families come in all shapes and sizes, then this series should be on your radar. The movers are all ex-Vets and create their own family, but each couple’s story has unfolded with a unique angle on what and how their version of family has enriched their lives. I like that angle a lot! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a free copy of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest!