This book was solid, and I liked it very much. The stakes, while somewhat ludicrous, were firmly established, consistent, and as high as they need to be in a romcom. The main characters were both likable, with established goals and behavior consistent with their personalities. They communicated clearly with each other, had good banter, and the happy ending felt both earned and deserved.
I also thought the author did a great job with the side characters, and I can tell that as she wrote this, she had very solid character concepts for the next MCs of the series (which is great. It's always weird when you hop on to book two and suddenly, so and so's brother is like a soulful bookworm or some such not even hinted at during his appearances as a side character in book 1).

Like others, I could've gone without the baby foreskin thing, and the word "groin" made far too many appearances in this text. Looking at others reviews, it seems that some find the tone too light for the subject matter. I get this, but I don't recommend reading a romcom for the realism. That way lies madness.

I have one more gripe I want to mention: don't at me, but I wish contemporary romcom authors would cool it on the Taylor Swift references. Nothing against Tay, but she's overused as shorthand for the mmc having a sensitive side. Beloved Authors I'm begging you: please come up with a second way to indicate that your male main character isn't shackled by the bonds of traditional masculinity. Give him a collection of antique cookie jars, or a bunch of house plants that he treats like children. Put him in a beginners watercolor class. Give him a yappy little dog who he delights in buying dresses for, or an encyclopedic knowledge of some niche soap opera that he watches with his grandma. Idk, and I'm sorry, Amy, for soapboxing during my review of your lovely novel. It's just that this was the NINTH romcom I've read in a row that used this exact trope.
T. Swift thing notwithstanding, I really enjoyed this text, am looking forward to the sequels, will order this book for my collection, and plan to keep the title in my back pocket for reader's advisory purposes.

Many thanks to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review an advanced copy of this title.

Wyatt is a mountain who wants to start his own family but is single. His niece Everly puts an ad for a Surrogate. Tristia responds to the ad. Along the way, Wyatt and Tristia form a bond. Nine Month contract was quick and sweet read. It was nice to see some familiar faces from previous Amy Daws' books. This book can be read as a standone but it might make a little more sense if you have some of Amy Daws' previous work.

this was such a fun twist on the single dad trope and i LOVED it! i already had the indy version of this book but hadn’t read it yet so i was delighted to get the e-ARC copy of the canary street press publication and i CANNOT wait to see more from the mountain men.

mmc wyatt wanted nothing more in life than to become a dad - especially after unexpectedly losing his own father. little did he know, his brother and niece put out a help wanted ad in search of a baby mama for wyatt. before they knew it, they had a handful of people interested and lucky number 13 would be the one.

the way the surrogacy would work is that trista (the surrogate) would have wyatt’s undivided attention and support through the pregnancy then they would go separate ways once the baby was born - no contact after that. trista would also be able to live on the family compound where wyatt and his two brothers lived. trista came from a really terrible, loveless childhood and found her happiness in farm animals. she never expected her safe place to be on wyatt’s mountain with his quirky, fun family. they were a lot but they loved her and accepted her like she was their own — fully knowing this relationship was only temporary. this was one of my favorite executions of found family evverrrr. i loved it so much!

The book starts off making you laugh and continues that way throughout. Possibly one of my favorite parts was the brothers’ bond. It was written in a way that just felt genuine. As someone who has a sibling I joke around with but will ride or die for, it hit home.
Now normally I don’t go for novels where the FMC gets pregnant - just not my thing. However the surrogacy plot was intriguing to me, and the author did not disappoint. Wyatt is that broody, protective man that takes care of what he considers “his”. **swoon** Sign me up for one of those 🫠 while, Trista was spunky and entertaining! The collection of animals added a lighthearted humor, while the love story was everything. Amy does such a good job at bringing banter and emotion to her books!

This story is so funny and so well done.

I love all the quirky farm animals. I love the support of each other's dreams, no matter how far out there they may seem. I adore the family and found family aspects.

Very cute. Lots of LOL moments and set up for the next books. Perfect for any RomCom Readers looking for a good laugh and some excellent dirty talk.

I have a hard time giving a score higher than 3 because of the level of silly and a few cringe moments

thank you for this arc! i read this initially as part of my terrible-romance-plots series of novels but, to my surprise, i really enjoyed it! i think it’s a very comedic novel but the romance is very sweet and genuine, though i still cringe when i see words like “rizz” in my books 😭 that being said, it’s very lighthearted with some really emotional moments that make it a wonderful romance read! :)

Oh wow! I really enjoyed Nine Month Contract. I love the busy body of a niece Everly, planning out everything to a T. I loved Wyatt’s grumpy Gus exterior and they he could tell you that you are his an nobody else’s made me swoon. I loved that everyone was able to grow a little bit and realize that they are all capable of love.

I wish I had more of the animals. I loved them so much.

I am jealous of fictional character. Everly in Scotland, a girl can dream!

Thank you Amy Daws and Harlequin for allowing me to read this arc in return for my honest review!

A cute, fun, easy read. A lot of body talk about being olus sized that wasn’t needed. A refreshing storyline I’ve never read before, which hooked me quickly

(1.5 rounded down). This book had a bit too much going on and I think in trying to really push the "comedy" of the romantic comedy became extremely cringey. First, allowing your newly 18 year old niece to be in charge of your surrogacy journey was just weird and keeping her POV especially after chapters that include sex scenes felt very odd. It just kept going from there.

I think this book has an odd relationship with surrogacy. Obviously the main character is wanting to be a surrogate and the MMC wants to be a dad but the book can't seem to decide if it's critical of the formal surrogacy industry or not. It also completely undermines what surrogacy is supposed to be even before the relationship is involved. The author has a forward about her own fertility journey and seems to use that to justify why she can flippantly write about surrogacy. This gave very much "buying a baby" and getting pregnant is a funny little task, and trying to use fluffy language around that because we all know the HEA is coming.

The second that the "surrogate" FMC arrives on the mountain, she is immediately acting basically like a live-in girlfriend. She even starts to randomly bring animals and new pets into this man's property and home. I think it's supposed to be a "quirk" and "look how much she loves animals" but a man that is letting her stay for free specifically tells her "don't bring ______" and she does. The MMC is ... not anywhere near an emotionally healthy person that should be becoming a single parent purposefully. Tons of weird family issues that they try to show as "personal development", some weird slut-shamey stuff on a past love interest with no blame for the MMC of course, and in general he's just ... not great?

This is a book of moral and ethical ickiness that is packaged as a cute love story.

THIS WAS SO FUNNY!

I won't lie it took me a bit to really get into it but i honestly had so much fun reading this. Trista and Wyatt are so different but perfect for each other.

This was written well and felt like it was paced appropriately! some of the dialogue was cringey but it didn't take away from the plot or the characters. I can't wait to read the next book!!

I received an ARC of Nine Month Contract and want to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Nine Month Contract is a romance set in rural Colorado. Our MMC, Wyatt, has always dreamed of becoming a father, but after struggling to find a suitable surrogate, he stumbles upon an unconventional solution, thanks in part to his meddling (but well-intentioned) mastermind of a niece, Everly. Carmen, our FMC, meets Everly by chance, and after a thorough vetting process, she’s selected by Wyatt to carry his child as a surrogate.
There were so many things I loved about this book! I have a soft spot for unconventional family dynamics, and Wyatt and his brother’s involvement and support of Everly was so sweet. Daws masterfully creates a heartwarming found-family situation and ties everything up in an HEA so perfect it should have been wrapped up with a bow on top. Additionally, this book genuinely made me laugh out loud multiple times, which is always a win!

That said, there were a few things that didn’t quite work for me. Daws leans heavily into Millennial and Gen Z slang, which might be a personal ick, but I feel like excessive use of language and references associated with specific generations (I’m looking at you, references to TikTok and its trends, Taylor Swift, and slang like booping, girlie, and mansplaining) can date a book quickly and break immersion. While it makes the characters feel current now, it might not age well over time.

I also found myself occasionally mixing up Wyatt and Trista’s chapters because their narrative voices started to blend together. Writing multiple POVs can be tricky, and distinct voices are crucial to keeping each character’s personality and convictions clear.
But my biggest issue? There’s a moment where Trista, newly pregnant, receives a very nice bed from Wyatt to ensure her comfort throughout the pregnancy. She then makes an incredibly bizarre comparison between the bed’s comfort and a newborn baby’s foreskin…which, yes, is something I can’t believe I’m even typing out. While the book acknowledges that Trista feels awkward about the comparison, the moment was so out of left field that it completely took me out of the story and left me feeling uncomfortable.

Overall, though, I really did enjoy this book. It’s funny, heartwarming, and has an unconventional premise that keeps you hooked. While it stumbles a bit with modern slang and references, similar character voices, and that one weird analogy, I still found myself invested in the story. I’m already looking forward to the next installment!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC opportunity!

This was a fun read, but I did struggle a bit with a few things. I loved the Grumpy/Take No Attitude vibe from the main characters, the banter between the two main characters, and the bigger story was unique compared to other stories i have read, which i also enjoyed but it still fell short with me.

I wasnt a fan of the FMC, and that never turned around for me. The comments on her weight while pregnant made me cringe. Commenting on yourself like a "cow" was not cool.

The baby foreskin sheet comment was also weird af, and i never got past it.

I think it's a fun story, but maybe the weird parts were too much for me to look past. I think it would be a big hit for others though.

it was okay, the pacing is off to me, and I did not respect the FMC calling herself a cow bc she’s a surrogate. mind you; she’s mid/plus-sided, so that just didn’t sit well with me, idk. Morally I was surprised I finished this ARC. In the end it did not sit well with me and I had to push through

I really had higher hopes due to the quote on the cover by Megan Quinn (Megan is one of my top 3 rom-com authors)

i am such a huge amy daws fan and reading her books feel like coming home. i am so happy that nine month contract is as good as expected. i feel like this is amys best yet and i was eating up all the tropes in this one. absolutely love a grumpy man!!!

4.25⭐, 3🌶️

I enjoyed this book! It didn’t WOW me, but it was definitely a fun time! I loved that we got a few chapters in a 3rd POV – the niece, who set these two up. Overall, I enjoyed the book and I'm excited to see how the rest of this series goes!

This was a fun concept for a plot – a grumpy mountain man wants to be a dad, is not willing to fall in love, and just needs a safe surrogate. Enter cooky and loveable Trista that is more confident iin loving animals than humans, and just wants to start her onw non-profit.

❤️Intentional Pregnancy - She's His Surrogate
🌲Gru,py/ Sunshine
🐐Small Town Romance
🐖Age Gap Romance.


Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest and unpaid review!

This book is sexy and fun. I can see that it won't be for everyone - as it covers some messier parts of surrogacy outside of a clinic, but it made me swoon and laugh out loud and I personally loved it.

Great for fans of other small town romances like the Chestnut Spring series, rebel blue ranch series, or silver pines ranch. Fun, easy, short read. I didn’t have an issue with the context of the romance as some other reviewers did. I look forward to the rest of this series!

The audio saved this book for me. Teddy Hamilton blew it out of the water, as usual. Without the audio, I would not have made it more than 30% into the book. It was really funny in the beginning. However, the female lead was constantly calling herself a cow and the baby a goat turd. I get the farm humor of it, and it was funny the first 3 times, but the following dozen times was very old. Overall, it wasn't horrible, and I was attached enough to the side characters that I would possibly give the next book in the series a try when it's released. But the female lead in this one constantly harping on her weight and saying things a mature 28 year old wouldn't say, wasn't my cup of tea.

Nine Month Contract was a fantastic read. This is the first book in a spin off series from the author's previous novel Last on the List and it features the Fletcher brothers.

This small town romance follows Wyatt Fletcher who wants to become a father and is looking for a surrogate to have his baby. With no luck from the agencies, he agrees to let his niece help with the search and she decides to play matchmaker in the process by linking him up with Trista, who is doing this to get money to open her animal shelter.

I loved these two. They were very open and honest with each other from the start and it was interesting to see them navigate their relationship from strangers to so much more. I loved the chemistry and tension between them. Their steamy scenes sizzled and Wyatt's dirty talk was on point and their unorthodox relationship was perfect for them.

Trista's backstory was emotional giving so much feels and I loved seeing Wyatt's family become her own.

Wyatt's brother's featured heavily in the story and I loved their witty banter and sibbling relationship which had me highly amused. But it was Trista's quirky animals that was the highlight for me.

This story was hilarious, emotional, steamy and highly entertaining and I was hooked from start to finish. It was a well-written tale that I would definitely recommend to romance lovers.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fun, sometimes you just need a good rom-com, you know.

I loved Wyatt and Trista. Their banter was perfection. I absolutely loved seeing Everly again in this book (she is Wyatt's niece who we see in another Amy Daws book).

I do feel like it was kind of rushed once they finally really got together but overall, it was a great time.