This book was hot, hot, hot, hot. A fire so strong it could burn down the entire street. Aside from that was a deep friends-to-lovers romance.

For years Mandy has been in love with Jackson. Born a couple of months apart, the two were raised as besties and remained besties into adulthood.

The problem for Mandy is she has had a lackluster sex life and she wants more. However, she knows part of her problem are her feelings for Jack. She can't quit comparing all men to him. She is in an unrequited relationship with her best friend.

Jack is a great guy. He's so nice and ambitious, but he has a dark side. He is a member of a sex club where anything and everything happens (but in a respectable way - is that even possible - apparently so).

Long story short - ha - Jack introduces Mandy to his underworld and what do you know - she loves it! She really loves it. Jack, of course, now sees her in a different way and figures out his true feelings for her.

This is not my usual cup of tea in the romance genre, but I enjoyed watching these two figure things out.

Look, this story isn't going to win any best novel awards. It's kinky and kind of out there, but I just thought it was a good sex-positive story in which two friends finally unravel their feelings for each other. It's just a fun romp.

I can't wait to read the next book in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and Entangled Publishing LLC for an e-copy of BLUSH to review.

I fate BLUSH four out of five stars.

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
SPICE: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

Mandy Cakes, Mandy Cakes, Mandy Cakes.

If Amanda Thomas hears that stupid nickname one more time from her best friend Jackson Paris, she should not be held liable for what she would do. The moniker is only the tip of the iceberg for the stupid friend zone her gorgeous BMF has firmly placed her in. As someone who has loved Jack since they were in high school, it was time for her to move on.

And she was going to start by being no longer Ms. Innocent. When Jack finds out that his best friend is on Lustr, asking strangers to fulfill her dirty fantasies, he takes it upon himself to protect her. Will his actions open a Pandora's Box that neither Jack nor Mandy are ready for?

This was a good spicy short read about friends struggling with a possible future of being lovers. Mandy and Jack do struggle with a bit of emotional tug-of-war, which can come off as repetitive, but to me, it gave credibility to their emotional and mental struggles with commitment. I could have had more spice given the description of the book, but maybe I am just being greedy because what Helen Hardt served was pretty hot.

This is the first book in the series, and it leaves an interesting cliffhanger that has nothing to do with Amanda and Jack. Now I am seriously intrigued as to where that road will lead us readers, especially since the side characters tied to that cliffy might be in for a wild ride.

** I am voluntarily reviewing an advance copy of this book. Thank you to Helen Hardt, Amara, Entangled Publishing, and NetGalley for providing an ARC. **

Blush by Helen Hardt

Published: January 24, 2023
Entangled: Amara
Pages: 322
Genre: Romance
KKECReads Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Helen Hardt is a #1 New York Times, #1 USA Today, and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author whose passion for the written word began with the books her mother read to her at bedtime. She wrote her first story at age six and hasn’t stopped since. In addition to being an award-winning author of romantic fiction, she’s a mother, an attorney, a black belt in Taekwondo, a grammar geek, an appreciator of fine red wine, and a lover of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. She writes from her home in Colorado, where she lives with her family.

“Come with me to the dark side.”

Mandy is the definition of an introvert, and she is mostly comfortable with that. She has a job she loves, a sweet pup, and her best friend, Jackson. Who she is also in love with, but he has no idea. When her sister calls to tell her that she’s getting married, Mandy is bewildered. She also feels like it’s time for her to step out of her comfort zone and figure out who she is and what she wants.

I don’t know what I expected from this book; it’s my first Helen Hardt novel. But I enjoyed this so much. I love Helen’s writing style, character development, and pacing.

Mandy was such a charming character. I enjoyed her desire to learn and discover different aspects of herself and how loyal she is. Jack was a fantastic leading man, conflicted, handsome, and dominant.

I devoured this book, and it flowed smoothly. I found the scenes well done, and I enjoyed how the romance was intertwined with the spice. The balance was perfect.

I am excited to discover this is a series because I love these characters, and I hope that we get more of Mandy and Jack!

I really wanted to love this book. The description sounded like it would be something similar to SPC or This Man series along with it being a friends to lovers trope, which I generally like if it is done well. Unfortunately, this one fell flat for me and ended up not living up to my expectations or desires for the book. There were a lot of tropes within this book that were done in a way that I don't like, so it ended up just not being the book for me.

I'll start with what I liked in the book. The spice was great. As I said, I enjoyed SPC and This Man series, so the BDSM/sex club kink is enjoyable for me. This had some good spice to it in that element, so for people looking for that, it'll be good. The idea behind the plot was good, I just didn't love the execution of it. The writing style itself was easy to read and I was able to finish the book quickly.

I found myself really struggling with how repetitive this book was. It also falls into the bad parts of miscommunication trope and the annoying friends to lovers angle. These were related a bit with why I didn't enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. First off, it was the friends to lovers where the FMC has been in love with MMC since they were kids and MMC never realized her feelings. Then as adults, he starts magically having/realizing his feelings after multiple people tell him that she's in love with him. This led to the repetitiveness that was literally the ENTIRE plot.

**Some spoilers below. **


She was in love with him but decides she needs to move on and find someone else. He doesn't want her to be with someone else so decides to help her. He tries to scare her away, then their attraction overwhelms them and they hook up. He thinks it's a mistake, tells her they can't be together because he doesn't think she can handle his lifestyle (bdsm)/thinks he'll get bored after 3 months (a la all his other relationships/it'll ruin their friendship. She gets upset, leaves, decides she's find someone else. He gets jealous. Repeat above 70 more times. Literally EVERY time they go one step forward it's the EXACT same reasoning. After the second time it just started to get REALLY annoying as it was just a massive miscommunication between them that could have been resolved with a conversation.

I expect some miscommunication or things like that, but the entire plot was that and there was literally nothing else to the book but this miscommunication.

Overall, I think there was a lot of potential to the book, but it was not executed in a way that I enjoyed.

**Also major spoiler below**, but something I think needs addressed:

Their first scene really bothered me. He had crossed a line with another submissive earlier in the book as he was distracted thinking about the FMC. When they were setting up their first scene, he had a flash of that and was worried he'd hurt the FMC so wanted to stop. She manipulated him into continuing when he wanted to stop as he didn't feel comfortable or like he'd be safe with her. She said she'd either find someone else or not speak to him again. I was REALLY not okay with this, as in a BDSM relationship they rely so much on trust and both partners wanting to do something. I thought it was really wrong for her to do or say things like that.

Will post to Instagram the week before release.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, the publisher and author for granting me a copy of this book in return for my honest opinions.

Helen Hardt us one of my go to reads and this book did not disappoint.

I just love the enemies to Lovers plot and Jackson and Mandy were the best characters to portray this theme. Both of them were so stubborn. I just loved the back a forth.

The steamy romance, however was my favorite part of the book!

I felt the book went at just the right pace. The building romance was done perfectly. I enjoyed the book thoroughly.

Recommend.

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

Publication date: January 24,2023

⚠️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Sexually explicit content

Amanda Thomas and Jackson Paris have been best friends since they were in diapers! Their moms were best friends and they grew up together. Something changed in high school though, well for Amanda anyway…..she fell in love with her best friend and has kept it hidden ever since.

Jackson is an athlete and corporate businessman. He’s successful and knows he is attractive. Never in a long term relationship because he k owns he’s not cut out for it. Mandy has been his best friend for his entire life. She’s dependable, supportive and a little naive when it comes to relationships and what goes on in the bedroom.

Jackson knows he could never let Mandy in on his private life. She would never understand his need for pleasure through dominance but when Mandy’s profile shows up on a dating site, looking for an experienced teacher Jackson can’t imagine anyone else better for the job than him.

This book was fabulous and really fast paced! Don’t be fooled by the cutesy romance I typically read though, this one is HOT! I highly recommend this first book in a new series by Helen Hardt, I will definitely be reading the rest of the series. You may need a cold shower after reading it though! Rating this one 4/5 stars.

#NetGalley #Blush #helenhardt

Mandy is 29 and an introvert who enjoys being a virtual assistant to an author and working from home. Jackson is her childhood best friend who she is in love with. They talk and see each other multiple times during each week. She doesn’t think he’ll ever be interested in her and so she decides to put herself on a dating app with the idea of hooking up with others to gain more experience. Jackson is very experienced and belongs to a sex club where he enjoys being dominant in scenes. The story is told from both POVs alternating each chapter. Jackson decides to take Mandy to his club while in disguise hoping to frighten some sense into her.

It sounds like an interesting premise but honestly not a whole lot happens. Jackson’s chapters are him vacillating between she is too innocent for his world and wanting her. Her chapters are more straight forward and she is intrigued and interested. His disguise ruse fall apart surprisingly early with her knowing who takes her to the club. And I am perplexed that although she describes herself as an introvert she is able to go out for drinks and clubbing with her sister and friends with no issue.

The book falls into the erotica category with some BDSM but at the 75 percent mark there is only 1.5 steamy interactions between the MCs. It seems more explicit because of Jackson’s thoughts happenings at the club. And personally I threw up a little in my mouth every time he uses his nickname for her of Mandy Cakes. I was bothered in the beginning as there are body shaming comments as she is curvy and orders food in a bar while her sister and friends won't eat. But when she goes to the gym the personal trainer talks to her about health and toning. She isn’t plus size. And half way through the book those comments go away. I liked her sister who is engaged but I wasn’t’ invested in any of the other characters.

Overall I thought the book is repetitive. Especially with Jackson’s thoughts and not making up his mind of what he wants. The book can be read as a stand alone but the ending scene lets you know the series will continue. Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, LLC for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Helen Hardt is a prolific writer of spicy but also romantic novels, not for the faint hearted!
Blush has relatable characters that are emotional, sometimes clueless and fiercely passionate!
This story is cleverly written, told from the point of view of both the main characters, there’s plenty of choices to be made!
Mandy and Jackson are best friends with secrets that will be revealed if they are to be together! Mandy is ready to learn more about herself, Jackson is sure he knows what he wants out of his already successful life.
There's an insight into the world of BDSM and how secret clubs operate. Mainly what I loved about this story is the depth of emotional attachment that Mandy and Jackson have for each other.
Helen Hardt writes a page turner and will definitely have new fans waiting to read about Mandy’s sister in the next instalment!

Thanks so much to the publisher, NetGalley and the amazing author Helen Hardt for the opportunity to read this book.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I haven't read that many Helen Hardt books but this whole book gave me a wicked sense of deja vu. So maybe I had read it before? Either way I enjoyed the story although some of the actions were kind of problematic, thankfully it's fiction.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

Jackson and Mandy have been friends since birth. Jackson has always put Mandy in the friend zone, and Mandy has loved Jackson forever, he's been the recurring factor in many of her fantasies. Boy does Mandy have fantasies, as the social media manager, sometimes editor, and friend of a romance writer she wants to act out some of what she's read. She just decides she needs to move on from Jackson, and what better way than setting up a dating profile and asking for a teacher to help her navigate the fantasy life she wants? She meets Mr. Dark and he takes her to a private BDSM club. Will Jackson be able to handle his best friend, sweet, innocent, Mandy, wanting to learn the dark side of sex?

Jackson has a secret, one he never wanted Mandy his best friend to know. She is too Sweet. To innocent. He doesn't want anything to ruin their friendship. When Mandy asks him to set up her dating profile he does, but he can't imagine her with a husband or kids but helps anyways. What are best friends for?

Jacksons and Mandy's story is hot. This friends to Lovers Novel is hot and heavy. I read this story so quickly, I loved it and I didn't want to put it down. I was up reading until well after midnight.

I absolutely loved this book, Raina Ash really tackles Neurodiverse characters and I love her style of writing, she makes things relatable. Natalie and Dean’s story is simply beautiful.

This is from one of my favorite authors. Blush is a steamy , steamy book as only Ms Hardt can write.
It’s a best-friends to lovers genre.
I found myself really rooting for this couple.
What a good book can’t wait for the next one

First and foremost thank you for providing me with an E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had never read anything from this author before, so decided to give it a go. This book was better than I expected. While it still has flaws, they aren't over the top flaws to me. Most of the ones I can think of off the top of my head are minor. Such as repeating the fact that Jackson and Mandy are best friends, this isn't something the reader while reading a romance would necessarily forget. We get it, it doesn't need to be stated every couple of pages. The same goes for the fact that Mandy is secretly in love with her best friend but he can't / doesn't know it. We get it its an unrequited love so far, no need to rub our noses in it. Other than that I think this book was done properly and well written.

The author has done some research as I found the BDSM seemingly healthy, there are a few hiccups but the book deals with those in a timely fashion. The relationship between the two main characters is slightly toxic, but I honestly think its a realistic toxic. The things they say and do are things I have seen other couples do, this doesn't excuse the toxic behaviour but I think it makes it more realistic and believable.

Overall this was a good book and I do plan to pick up more by this author.

Dnf’d about 25% in. I could not get into this read :/ There was so many things that I just did not enjoy.

i could not put this book down. the CHEMISTRY!!!!! helen hardt did it again with the spiciness. it was an insightful book about bdsm culture.

I really enjoyed the story (I'm always a sucker for a best friends to lovers and a "sex lessons" type of trope, so this book was basically written for me). I loved Mandy's development and general self assuredness, just because a character is inexperienced and introverted, it doesn't mean they have to be a wallflower, so I greatly appreciated her decision to just get on with things. Jackson's development was a little slower and it can be frustrating to be inside a character's head and be able to see the big picture they are unable to see. although I'm glad this was dual POV as I'm unsure of how the story would have worked with just Mandy's perspective.

There were a few word choices I was unsure of at times, but overall I really enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read the sequel!

Blush is an extremely spicy read. It is the intense and explosive chemistry I have come to expect when reading books by Helen Hardt.

I enjoyed the twist to this friend to lovers romance. I loved Jackson and Mandy. There has always been this underlying connection between these two and Mandy joining the dating app to educate herself was just the push Jackson needed.

My biggest complaint of this book and in similar stories written by the author is the repetitive nature of their evolution. The back and forth between them was overdone. I am so over friends to lovers romances with this inherent restraint between them and their feelings. The stubbornness of them not to come clean and to be put their feelings and attraction on the line dilutes the story. It has been done, it made the story feel tired and already told. There wasn’t anything that felt innovative about their relationship. JAckson and his lack of communicating his feelings made ragy at times.

I did enjoy this story. It just felt like I had already read it. The possibilities where there but it just felt like the author relied on the tried-and-true friends to lovers hang ups.

Blush
by Helen Hardt (Goodreads Author)
F 50x66
Donna Repsher's reviewJan 08, 2023 · edit
it was amazing

Question for the ages: How have I managed to not read any of Helen Hardt's novels until last night, when I read Blush cover-to-cover until 6:00 a.m.? I absolutely loved it and the good news for this reader is that she has a huge backlist of titles for me to indulge in. Every time I thought to myself that I'd finish this novel another night, I couldn't put it down. Definitely a 5-star read.

First, the main characters, Mandy (Amanda) and Jackson, who have been best friends since they were in diapers. What romance reader doesn't love a friends-to-lovers romance--certainly not this reader. Mandy is an avowed introvert, and works from home as a romance author's assistant. She's as close to being a virgin as a 29-year-old woman can get. And then there's her best friend, Jackson, gorgeous, successful, and sexy, but he doesn't do relationships for more than 3 months, and he's clueless to the fact that Mandy has been in love with him forever. But there's a side of Jackson that Mandy had no clue about, and she would have never known until she finally decided to move on and sign up for an on-line dating site and asked Jackson to help her with her profile. Jackson has always seen her as a naive innocent, and joins the website to try to prove to her that it's no way to meet someone, at least someone who isn't just looking for his next hook-up, but his plan is about to backfire in a major way.

There's no way that I'm going to spoil this read for you. I will say that there's some light BDSM involved, if that's an issue, but as someone who isn't offended by it, it was steamy but mild in comparison to so many of the other BDSM novels I've read.

What I truly loved about this novel is that it's told in dual narration, allowing us to get to know these two main characters from the inside out. I loved how deeply both Mandy and Jackson cared for each other, were always there for each other, and always put their friendship above all else. As for character development, I'd check that box off too. Mandy's growth and daring was perfectly written, as was Jackson's, and as was the rest of this novel, and I cannot recommend Blush highly enough.

Ms. Hardt definitely has a new fan in this reader. Oh yes, there's also a bit of a teaser at the end of this novel, and Mandy's sister will be in for quite a shock in Ms. Hardt's upcoming sequel, and I, for one, can hardly wait.

I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions stated are my own.

This was my first book I have read by Helen Hardt, and definitely will not be my last! I love how she pulls you in to make you want to keep you engaged and want to finish the book in one night!.. Which I did!

Blush is an extremely hot erotic book between two life long and stubborn best friends Amanda and Jackson. In this book Amanda finds out about Jackson's secret life and she might shock him with secrets of her own.

This was a great steamy read! I enjoyed Mandy, who is a virgin, finding out who she was and what she wants sexually even if Jackson tries to convince her that what she is desiring is not what she wanted as he has found his best friend is too 'innocent'.

Overall, I enjoyed this book!

Thank you to Netgalley, Helen Hardt and Entangled Publishing LLC for this ARC.

I love a good friends-to-lovers romance, and Helen Hardt definitely took this one up a notch by introducing some, albeit tamer, Fifty Shades-style action.

Mandy and Jack are perfect friends and even better lovers. I absolutely loved that they've been friends for essentially their entire lives, yet are so clueless about the other's wants and desires. I thought the story played out at a good pace, without too much rushing into the darker elements. After all, Jack would not have believed Mandy if she rushed into her choices, so why should the plot rush into those parts either?

I usually hate the will they/won't they part of a friends-to-lovers story, but I actually didn't mind Jackson's hesitation in this one. I thought Hardt chose a logical path for Jack; not only was his friendship with Mandy at stake, but he could've easily taken her past her limits and broken her in irreparable ways. The fact that Jack was always more worried about Mandy than his own reputation truly spoke volumes about their friendship.

Hardt's writing is always easy to read and get lost in. Her dual POV writing style gives readers a poignant and necessary look into both main characters' heads while they fight to navigate their friendship dynamic as well as Jackson's darker side.

I will say, however, that the "darker" elements are really not that dark at all. It makes sense that Jackson would go easy on Mandy, slowly introducing her to his lifestyle. But even when Jack is with an experienced partner, it's still pretty basic stuff. It's very much a tease for this darker character that Jackson supposedly is.

If you're looking for a well written friends-to-lovers romance that incorporates some darker elements, definitely check out Blush.