"Sometimes it's the mess that makes life beautiful."
Wow! This book had me in all my feels. I absolutely fell in love with Cole and felt for Mira throughout the entire book...and I loved seeing characters from the last book settling in to their new lives. This is the third book I've read by this author (and my favourite so far!) and she is now definitely an insta-buy for me. I love that the main characters are grown adults and can definitely identify with them as an elder millennial/xennial, myself. Definitely read this series. It will not disappoint! I mean...the mmc's are retired 90s grunge stars. Swoon! I absolutely adore Cole and how soft and cinnamon rolly he is.

REVIEW
cw: mentions of addiction, cognitive impairment, queerphobia, gaslighting
When Red Falls baker Mira Harlow lies about dating someone in front of her ex and his new wife, the last thing she expects is for legendary drummer Cole Sanderson to stand in as her fake boyfriend. Hopeless romantic Cole is instantly attracted to Mira, but his life is firmly stuck in Seattle, while Mira's is in Montana. Can either avoid their growing feelings?
This has been one of my most anticipated reads, and it did NOT disappoint. I genuinely loved it just as much as Come As You Are, in different ways. Cole was even more wonderful than I anticipated. My favourite thing was how he always asked (and remembered) about the little things going on in Mira's life. He was such a cinnamon roll, so caring, and In desperate need of finding someone who loved him as much as he cared for everyone around him. Mira was perfect in that regard, even if she refused to acknowledge it for a long time. I loved her banter, but also her more vulnerable moments. I completely understood her reluctance to reveal all of her feelings, even though my heart ached for Cole so many times, and especially in chapter thirty-six (I'm still sobbing over that cupcake moment).
Chapter five was EVERYTHING. I loved their little story about how they met, and their connection felt effortless. Their texts were adorable and anyone who quotes iconic movies like Ferris Bueller, Say Anything, and The Big Lebowski is obviously perfect together. They were so stinking cute together, but their chemistry was also sublime and felt natural. Who knew walk-in fridges could be so hot?! I also appreciated their frank conversation, especially regarding the menopause.
There was plenty of Madigan and Ashley, as the book started with their wedding. The pre-wedding Snowga banter was hilarious and I loved how much Cole loved Madigan. His best man speech was so beautiful, that I sobbed. There are also some poignant moments. The Little Timber residents' struggles were sensitively handled and Linda's cognitive impairment was heartbreakingly well-written. My heart broke for Davis, but I loved Jen’s support and Cole's daughter’s astuteness.
Maude Alice was amazing as always.No spoilers but I loved that the people who finally got through to each of them were so unexpected. And that ending? *swoons*
Utter perfection.

Overall Rating: ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
Heat Rating: 🔥🔥

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book, all opinions are my own*


Favourite Quotes:

What had she done? What madness had her Minion t*ts bewitched her into?

“You can hear the song? Only from looking at it?”
“I can,” he replied. “It’s beautiful.”

“it can be hard to move forward into your future while you’re surrounded by your past.”

'I am a hopeless dreamer. A die-hard romantic. A walking, talking bruise waiting to happen.'

He didn’t want to be another hard thing in her life, another obstacle she needed to overcome. He didn’t want to be insurmountable for her. He wanted to be, in every possible way, mountable.

“You deserve to be loved . Head over heels, no compromises, no second-guessing, loved. And anyone who offers less than that is not worth giving your heart to.”

“You don’t even have to feel all the way the same. I’ll take half. I’ll take half of what I feel for you. It’ll be enough.”

"...sometimes it’s the things that don’t line up perfectly or fall right into place that move us the most. Sometimes it’s the mess that makes life beautiful.”

“It’s not too late, Mira. But do me a favor, when you do talk to him, when you tell him how you feel, don’t hold anything back. Not only does he deserve it.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “But you deserve it too.”

“You’re my light when the world goes dark.”

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is book 2 in a series but can be read stand-alone.

Mira and Cole have instant chemistry starting out as fake dating but very quickly realizing that the feelings are real.

The cover is a little deceiving because Mira is 50 and Cole is 53. Love that they were a mature couple because there aren't many romances featuring adults in their 50s finding love.

Cute, fun romance with some heavier topics. There is one part at the end dealing with one of the recovering alcoholics that I didn't really get but maybe it would've made more sense if I had read book 1. Other then that, recommended!

I love this series. Grown ups falling in love later in life. We don’t get a lot of over 40 love stories where the people are still hot from r each other.
Cole, fucking drummers. He is solid and sincere and sexy. He’s all in with his granddaughter and loves her a friend Mad so much.
Mira has so much on her plate. A teenager and an aging mom plus a bakery that she loves.
These two are a delight. I loved the whole book and look forward to whatever’s next in this series.

"Come As You Are" was one of my favorite reads of last year. I was nervous to jump into "Lips Like Sugar" despite yearning to return to Bluebird Basin. How could anything top Madigan and Ashley?

JOKES ON ME BECAUSE IT'S COLE AND MIRA ALL THE WAY, BABY.

Jess K. Hardy has an ability to say so much with so little, doesn't shy away from characters with complicated backstories, and handles difficult subject matter with grace and earnestness. And it wasn't just our heroes that had my heart. It was Mira's mother struggling with a degenerative mental condition, Cole's brash ex, the return of Davis and Kev (I swear to god, I need this story YESTERDAY), and so much more.

The love between the protagonists was palpable. True goals for me. Though there were swooning moments abound, none of them read as corny.

And I'm a sucker for a drummer, what can I say?

Although...I am more of a bassist girl.

I'm not a reviewer. I'm a writer. I only review books I really, really love. And this one is a top tier, six star read for me. I highlighted it more than probably any book I've read since I got my kindle (and when it's officially published, I'll come back and share my favorite lines).

But holy cow. Holy cow, y'all!

Yes, just YES! Mira and Cole 100% gave Ashley and. Madigan a run for their money. I truly thought they wouldn't be able to reign as my favorite Hardy couple, but they absolutely did.

I wish I could show you the amount of passages I highlighted, it was so good. From how they first met and sparks were flying everywhere. That instant connection with some fantastic, "this is everything I want and more in a romcom movie". Pure perfection on all fronts. I simply couldn't stop grinning while reading.

And I want everyone to pick this up, add it to your TBR or even add it to your neighbor's TBR. Loved it!

If you are looking for a mature romance, this is it. Lips Like Sugar is part of the Bluebird Basin series but could be read as a standalone novel.

When Mira's ex shows up in her bakery with his new wife, she lies about having a wedding date and ropes the next man through the door into her scheme. Cole is in town for his best friend's wedding and is more than happy to play along with Mira's plans. It might be a fake date, but the feelings are real. But after the wedding, its back to reality. A moody teenage son and mother with cognitive difficulties. A daughter with a newborn baby of her own and a recording studio to run. But Mira and Cole stay connected even when life gets crazy. But are they brave enough to be together?

I really enjoyed this book. Parts of it left me in tears because it was so well written and poignant. The characters were so well developed. The romance made them feel young again, but the rest of their story was so mature. Mira and Cole were caught in the middle and I couldn't help but root for them. I also really enjoyed the small town elements to the story; the close-knit friendships of the Basin.

Mira Harlow has finally lost it. Between running her bakery, parenting her 14-year-old son, and taking care of her mom, she’s a stretched-thin mess. But kissing a total—and very sexy—stranger before begging him to be her date to the biggest wedding her small town has ever seen so her ex won’t think she doesn’t have one? That’s a whole new level of chaos, even for her.

The last thing Cole Sanderson expects when he drives into the ski town of Red Falls, Montana is to score a date to his best friend’s wedding. But since his ex-rocker life in Seattle is stagnating, when the gorgeous, green-eyed bakery owner propositions him to play the role of her long-distance boyfriend, stirring his punk-shenanigans roots to their core, he doesn’t hesitate to say, “Hell yes!”

Hardy does an amazing job writing real, relatable characters. I love reading characters that are my age, and this author does a fantastic job bringing back memories from when I was younger. ❤️ I loved the characters, the setting, the memories, and all the feels in this mature romance. Definitely recommend this!!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced digital reader's copy (ARC) in exchange for an honest review!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars
🌶️🌶️ spice

Favourite Lines:

He hummed, and never had the application of a beloved topical counterirritant felt so pornographic, like they'd unlocked some secret level of old people foreplay.

You're my light when the world goes dark

Fucking drummers. Amirite? This standalone, small town contemporary fake dating romance will have your heart in a vice-like grip. This was my first foray into more of a mature romance, with both MCs in their early 50's, and I really didn't miss my typical younger protagonists one bit. This was refreshing, it felt real and honest without sacrificing any steaminess. It was hot.

I loved that the fake dating trope used here was actually a believable storyline, and the relationship development was a very authentic slow burn. Their lives are messy and complicated, and they're both still tangled up with their past relationships. I was nervous the jealously trope would be heavily leant on, but was pleasantly surprised when it wasn't. It felt mature and less predictable in that sense, massive plus there.

Their first (official) kiss was unbelievably satisfying after all that built up tension, I was having flashbacks to The Notebook with the thunderstorm and pouring rain...ugh, feels.

Some of the plot points I found felt unfinished, like what exactly happened with Kev? We can sort of infer the events that went down but it was extremely vague. I was left feeling a little unfulfilled on behalf of Davis, her storyline just seemed unresolved. Really the only other criticism I have is for that cover, the characters look a little cursed for some reason and it threw me off visually from being able to picture them as I was reading. All that to say...It's me, hi, I'm probably the problem here.

Overall, a great palate cleanser book that was an easy read. It was really well written, and honestly, I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. Can I also try Snowga sometime? Where do I sign up?

Tropes:
🧁Fake Dating
🧁Single parents
🧁Long Distance
🧁Small Town Romance
🧁He Falls First

My review is also posted on Goodreads!

This book is the second in the series, and while I read the first and loved it, this can be read as a standalone. I love Mira and Cole and how real they both feel. The author captures them perfectly as flawed humans with beautiful complexity. I love that they are middle aged but are still relatable to any age reading this. Their chemistry is palpable and the book is a fun read. It certainly sets up for the next book in the series, and was a bit predictable at the end, but very much worth reading. 4.25⭐️, 2🌶

This is a fluffy fake dating story with characters in their fifties which we don’t see much off and a lot of people will absolutely love it, the story is so easy to follow and will have you rooting till the very end

Cole and Mira have CHEMISTRY. I really enjoyed the story and also that the characters were allowed to doubt themselves. We don't often think of people in the early fifties being unsure, about feelings, or about life.

I very much enjoyed the first installment in this series (Come As You Are) and was so excited to get my hands on an ARC of Lips Like Sugar. What I love about Hardy's romances is that they are so real — they come with real people who have real problems. There are no silly misunderstandings that could easily be resolved with a simple conversation. It's not a black-and-white, cookie-cutter romance. This is real life, and it's both messy and beautiful (though maybe a bit sexier than real life, wink wink). I love Hardy's writing style, and although I was a little disappointed that Lips Like Sugar lacked the laugh-out-loud hilarity of the previous book, it is still a fantastic read. I look forward to the next book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley, Jess K. Hardy, and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was a huge fan of Jess K. Hardy's first entry in the Bluebird Basin series of books Come as You, so I was pleasantly satisfied again by my reading experience with this second adult contemporary romance.

I cannot gush enough about how much I love MCs in their 50s getting wrecked by the fake dating trope. I also loved the whole retired celebrity/normie single mom of it all. Their convos made the characters come alive and brought a realism to long distance relationships.

Hardy doesn't shy away from the hard topics, she imbues it with the everyday realities and creates well earned triumphs.

Thoroughly enjoyed!

Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for providing an eARC for an honest review.

Lips Like Sugar - ARC Review
⭐⭐⭐⭐
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FEATURES:
-Adult Contemporary Romance
-Leads in Their 50s
-Fake Dating, Real Feels
-Former Rocker and Small Town Baker
-Single Parent
-Caring For a Parent with Dementia
-Love after toxic Relationships
-Adorable on-page text convos
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WHY 4/5: My favorite thing about this series is having leads in their 50s and seeing them get their happily ever afters. Not all HEAs begin in your 20s.
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Here are some other things Jess K. Hardy does really well:
Character Development: Hardy creates multi-dimensional characters that come to life and never fall into stereotypes. They are so fresh!
Getting Deep: Hardy explores tough topics, such as caring for a parent with dementia or leaving toxic relationships, in thoughtful ways
Swoony, everyday moments: Whether adorable text convos or every time Cole called Mira “Sugar”, there was lots of swoon. But I appreciated the swoon often in ordinary moments, notjust flashy, grand gestures.
.
DID I MENTION “SUGAR”? Because Cole Calling Mira made me melt!
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Thank you Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for my copy. All opinions are my own.

This is a cute fake dating romance. Mira's ex walking into her small town Montana bakery. They are both attending the same wedding the following day and she says of course she has a date. In walks Cole who plays the role of her boyfriend . Of course fake dating turns into real feelings. But there's more baggage when you're dating in your 50s and both have kids. I enjoyed this but I'm not sure I was the target demographic for this book. I think there's a group of people who will absolutely love this series and I hope I see more romance novels with older love interests. I'll order this book for the library if the first book in this series (which our library already owns) circulates well enough.

This is the second book in the Bluebird Basin series, following Mira and Cole. Mira is a small town baker trying to keep herself together while caring for her aging mother and teenage son. Enter Cole, a retired rockstar in town for his best friend’s wedding. What starts as a fake wedding date, quickly and easily turns into so much more.
The chemistry between these two is so good! It made the story fly by. Cole is the golden retriever boyfriend of your dreams. It’s nice to read a romance where the main characters are in their early twenties. Watching these two navigate real life while falling head over heels for each other was such a treat. I love a rockstar romance and even though Cole is technically a retired rockstar, I’m counting it.
I love Jess Hardy’s writing style and can’t believe she made me feel these feelings about a blonde MMC! Keeping my fingers crossed for a third book about Davis and Kev!
Thank you to Jess K Hardy, Victory Editing, and Net Galley for the ARC!

I didn't think I would love this as much as the first book, never mind even almost more than Come As You Are. Absolutely awesome.

What I loved:
❤ MCs in their 50s. We are still thinking about sex, love, and dreams in our 50s, as well as being caught in the middle of raising offspring (if you are a parent) and caring for our parents. Still wanting to live our dreams, even if we don't quite know what they are anymore, or if they have been buried so long we need to dig deep to find them.(can you tell I'm thinking about the fact that I'm turning 50 this year?😉)
❤ Cole. Cole Sanderson. The man, the legend. He has taken a top place in the fictional book boyfriend list. What do we want, really? We want a sexy ex-grunge rocker who loves being a grandpa. So simple! Secret desire unlocked, thanks for that, Jess.😄
❤ Mira. Mira Harlow, badass baker, mother and daughter. Raising a teenager while also caring for her aging mother. She doesn't save a lot of time and energy for herself but being with Cole opens her eyes to possibilities. Her inner thoughts and struggles as a 50 year old woman were bang-on.
❤ The texts and phone calls as they got to know each other long distance. The FaceTime spice.🥵
❤ Heart songs. F**cking heart songs, are you kidding me Jess??? The. Best. This has started a whole new conversation with my husband. After 32 years you'd think we'd covered it all but we had not considered heart songs. (Although Mira's heart song was...a choice.🤣🤣)
❤ Getting glimpses of Ashley and Madigan's HEA. I adored them in Come As You Are.

There's a lot more I could list but I don't want to give everything away. But trust me, this book deserves to be on your tbr! Jess is writing romances that us older women didn't even know how to ask for. I felt very seen and respected in the pages of this book. I can't wait to own a physical copy and share it with all my girlfriends.

Cole and Mira were as sticky sweet as it gets. I really enjoyed this story about two people who are older finding their happiness in unexpected situations. The whole premise was fun and so enjoyable to read. I really loved all of the characters you meet outside of Paul he was just too annoying for the short amount of time he was in the story. I really loved this being dual pov so you could have more understanding between both of our main characters. Each of the main characters brought a realness to the story that most people will connect with on some level. Cole is a self aware king and is emotionally intelligent on top of that. Mira was overall a strong character but had moments where her self doubt became a real downer compared to what Cole was bringing to the moment and it took away from the positive aspects. While she does deal with a heavy situation I wish she could have experienced it in a way were she’s happy for the time she has with her mom in the moment instead of always being to focused on the “what next” of it all. Overall I really enjoyed this story and would recommend to those looking for a pretty lighthearted, super sweet romance with some spice.