3,5 Stars go TLS by MaryJanice Davidson. TLS is book two in her Danger Series. Every book can be read as a stand-alone. The previous book is Danger, Sweetheart, Blake and Natalie's story.
Rake Tarbell, twinbrother of Blake is the more careless type. He wakes up in Venice with no clue what happened and how he ended here, thanks to too much indulgence in the spirit. What he finds is a strange woman with special skills and a girl who claims to be his daughter. That's the stuff for a great read.
TLS is a rom/com full of witty banter and bicker, only the hero has a bit of growing up to do and at some point it was just too much com for me.
It's a slow burn, well written and I give solid 3,5 stars.

Super cute! I love a love story that has more than just boy meets girl, etc. This book definitely delivers! I need to read the others in the series ASAP!

Thank to the author and netgalley for the ARC

It has been a while since I have read a book by Davidson but this one reminded me why I find them so entertaining! Her characters are.. well, characters!! This seems to run at the same time as the other book in the series (which I have not read but think I need to now), and tell the tale of each of the Tarbell twins (who have what can only be called an interesting relationship)

I enjoyed this tale with the twists and turns and random Italian and German phrases thrown in for good measure!

I really like this author and have read and enjoyed her other series. I really wanted to like this book, after all it has a great author, romance, and sarcastic humor. It fell flat for me. I was never able to find the characters interesting enough to enjoy the story. I will read this author again, I love most of her work, but I will skip any other books in this series.
Thank you NetGalley for this book.

She's back and better than ever, people! Mary Janice Davidson drew rom-com (emphasis on the com!) readers in first with her Undead series and now she's having us hold our bellies from laughter with Danger. In the second book in the series, The Love Scam focuses on Rake Tarbell, a rich boy from a rich family. But he's our lovable, polyglot, fun-loving rich boy who gets into a lot of trouble in Venice. With Claire Delaney and Lillith, awesome and unexpected heroines, by Rake's side, readers are taken on trip full of espionage, mystery, comedy, and a dash of romance. When in Venice, right?

All the stars!!!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

The plot sounded interesting and the cover as cute, but I really struggled with this book. The writing style just didn’t flow for me and really took away from the book. As well, I didn’t feel any connection with the characters. Even the young girl came across as unrealistic. Overall this was a fast read but not as enjoyable as I’d hoped.

I really wanted to like this but it just wasn’t good. Yes, the premise was good Yes, the level of sarcasm was the one saving grace for this book; but the main characters were under developed and the plot didn’t come together. I feel bad because this sounded so promising but it was a flop.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC of The Love Scam, all opinions expressed in the review are my own. That being said, I am rating this book 3 stars. I found it incredibly hard to get into and stay into. There were so many asides or maybe they were characters’ thoughts in parentheses that I found them off-putting while reading.
The characters, Rake and Delaney, were somewhat interesting, but I feel like I would’ve been more into each of them if they were developed more fully. There were definitely some parts of the plot that I wanted to find out what happened with, especially if the two main characters would find romance in the odd situation they were in. Other than that, the book was difficult to finish.

I was SO EXCITED when I got the notification that I had access to an eARC of this because I remember reading MJD's Undead series back in the early 2000's. I remember loving the series and characters so much! Unfortunately, you can obviously tell that the writing is, sadly, the same. MJD has not grown as a writer in almost 20 years! There's an overabundance of snarky comments, try hard witty inner dialogue, and quite frankly, very immature personalities. Being able to compare her writing from before to now just made it super hard for me to enjoy this book, and that was only compounded by the fact that I didn't realize this was a sequel and I had no idea any of the backstory to the other characters. I'm so bummed that I'd grown out of MJD's writing and couldn't enjoy this.

The Love Scam is a sweet and sassy contemporary romance. Rake wakes up horribly hungover in Venice and has no clue how he got there from California. His wallet has been stolen along with millions of dollars from his bank account. He also has no clue who Lillith is; a charming little girl who is claiming to be his long lost daughter. Claire laughs at Rake's problems and doesn't feel bad adding to them by bringing Lillith to the mix. Rake needs help and Claire has all the answers. Claire will do anything to help Lillith, even if that means bending her rules for a bit of fun.

This book wasn't a hit for me. I almost DNF'd it, but pushed through. The premise was really good, but I didn't enjoy the style of writing. I really enjoy books by this author, but this one missed the mark for me. It was a little over the top and cheesy.

Very cute - I loved getting to know Rake and Delaney! I wasn’t sure about the start, but quickly liked Rake so much. Lots of Italian - I did find myself googling some phrases which was a bit disconcerting, but very fun overall!

This book is really not as bad as some of the reviews suggest. It isn’t going to be the best book you have ever read but it is fun. It is very tongue in cheek, doesn’t take itself seriously and definitely amused and entertained me; don’t let the other reviews put you off.

I loved the idea and concept of this book. I really thought I was going to love it. I honestly did. That was not thecae. I struggled with the writing and the plot. I tried, I did. I didn't end up finishing it.

Let me just gather my brain for s second....
Okay I’m back.
First of all, let me say that I loved the idea of this book. The plot twists were pretty genius. The characters were sort of interesting and I do love all things Italian.
With all that being said I did not LOVE this book. It is a good rainy day read. It just feels sort of rushed. There is A LOT going on in the story and I feel like some of it is mostly just filling.
As I said, the idea of this book is wonderful, but with so much extra information you don’t get to really enjoy the book. There isn’t really an opportunity to fall in love with the characters. Personally I think that’s what I was missing as a reader. I wanted a real connection with Delaney or Rake or even Lilith (who I enjoyed the most to be honesty).
There are snippets of witty banter and sarcasm, but I just wanted more out of the characters.
Overall I liked it, I was just wanting more from it.

-Stone

I really liked the premise of this book and the plot summary was intriguing. Unfortunately I found the writing style very convoluted and the characters mostly unlikeable. I have read this author's work once before and liked it, but this book just meandered all over the place until I finally gave up. Not the book for me.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

This was the first book I’ve read of this author’s and unfortunately it just wasn’t my style of writing. Although the premise sounded really interesting, the book is too cheesy and over the top. This was DNF for me.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read another amazing book by an author I haven't read before. I was in the mood for a book that was full of intrigue, mystery, and romance. I was taken on a wild ride. The plot kept my interest.