The Ivy Chronicles #1
Release Date: November 5, 2013
Genre: New Adult Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased paperback at an author signing at Tattered Cover
Rating: 4.5 Worms
Synopsis
Pepper has been hopelessly in love with her best friend's brother, Hunter, for, like, ever. He's the key to everything she's always craved: security, stability, family. But she needs Hunter to notice her as more than just a friend. Even though she's kissed exactly one guy, she has the perfect plan to go from novice to rock star in the bedroom: take a few pointers from someone who knows what he's doing.
Her college roommates have the perfect teacher in mind. But bartender Reece is nothing like the player Pepper expects. Yes, he's beyond gorgeous, but he's also dangerous and deep—with a troubled past. Soon what started as a lesson in attraction is turning both their worlds upside down, and showing them just what can happen when you go past foreplay and get to what's real. . . .
Sophie Jordan has solidified her place on my favorite authors list! Foreplay was brilliant!
I'm gonna show my age here but do any of you remember Garth Brooks' song Unanswered Prayers? (it came out when I was in high school ;) That could be Pepper's theme song. Pepper's life, especially her childhood, was never normal and definitely not safe. When she ends up living with her grandmother, she is befriended by the Montgomery siblings. Lila becomes her best friend and Hunter becomes the man to whom Pepper hopes her future is tied. The Montgomery family is normal, stable, and they're good people, in Pepper's eyes. That's what Pepper believes she needs to escape the nightmares of her past.
Pepper is a smart, hardworking girl. She's spent so much time fixating on Hunter and school, she's never given another guy the time of day. She's never really dated, much less done anything else with a guy. So when the opportunity for dating Hunter presents itself, Pepper decides she needs a few lessons on seducing a man. And that's where Reece Mulvaney comes in.
Reece is a bartender at a local bar. Pepper's friends believe he's who she needs to practice with because he has quite the reputation as a ladies man. However, Pepper sees him as a gentleman, a knight in shining armor and he's really pretty dreamy. *sigh* When Reece and Pepper meet, he immediately knows she's not like every other girl. So when Pepper makes her proposition, he's taken aback. But he takes her up on her offer anyway.
Pepper is a doll. She's loyal and compassionate. She thinks she has it all together. The picture of her future she has in her mind is so solid -- but all the pieces have to fall together. I understood Pepper's desire for safety and security but it sure was fun watching her realize that what she'd thought she wanted wasn't necessarily what she needed. And I can't tell you how much I giggled at Pepper's awkward-ness when it came to any dating-related interaction. The things she blurted out to Reece...oh my goodness.
Reece was very thorough in educating Pepper in the art of foreplay. And he was always a gentleman. Reece has a tortured past too. As he and Pepper spent more time together and learned more about one another, he starts to realize -- well, they both do -- that maybe they need each other. Pepper fights it with everything she has though.
Pepper's friends, Emerson and Georgia, are two characters I'm anxious to get better acquainted with. We learn a few things about them but mostly see how loyal and supportive they are of Pepper. Luckily, I'll get to see more of them in future books. :)
Ms. Jordan created very real, relatable characters in Foreplay. And yes, Ms. Jordan, I could definitely see Texas A&M in your Dartford. I'm gonna admit, too, that despite being set in Pennsylvania, Pepper had a soft Southern accent in my head. The writing is excellent and I thought the pacing was as well. Foreplay was sweet and fun and I loved it!
Foreplay is a story about thinking you know what's best for you - and fate stepping in and saying 'yeah, you don't know as much as you think you do'. And it's about realizing that taking a chance sometimes is the safest bet. I've said before that one of the things I love most about the New Adult genre -- perhaps my favorite thing -- is watching these young people figure out life and their place in it. In Foreplay, we get to watch as Pepper realizes she doesn't have it all figured out. Reece threw a monkey-wrench in all her carefully cultivated plans. And it was a beautiful thing. ;)
Sophie Jordan has solidified her place on my favorite authors list! Foreplay was brilliant!
I'm gonna show my age here but do any of you remember Garth Brooks' song Unanswered Prayers? (it came out when I was in high school ;) That could be Pepper's theme song. Pepper's life, especially her childhood, was never normal and definitely not safe. When she ends up living with her grandmother, she is befriended by the Montgomery siblings. Lila becomes her best friend and Hunter becomes the man to whom Pepper hopes her future is tied. The Montgomery family is normal, stable, and they're good people, in Pepper's eyes. That's what Pepper believes she needs to escape the nightmares of her past.
Pepper is a smart, hardworking girl. She's spent so much time fixating on Hunter and school, she's never given another guy the time of day. She's never really dated, much less done anything else with a guy. So when the opportunity for dating Hunter presents itself, Pepper decides she needs a few lessons on seducing a man. And that's where Reece Mulvaney comes in.
Reece is a bartender at a local bar. Pepper's friends believe he's who she needs to practice with because he has quite the reputation as a ladies man. However, Pepper sees him as a gentleman, a knight in shining armor and he's really pretty dreamy. *sigh* When Reece and Pepper meet, he immediately knows she's not like every other girl. So when Pepper makes her proposition, he's taken aback. But he takes her up on her offer anyway.
Pepper is a doll. She's loyal and compassionate. She thinks she has it all together. The picture of her future she has in her mind is so solid -- but all the pieces have to fall together. I understood Pepper's desire for safety and security but it sure was fun watching her realize that what she'd thought she wanted wasn't necessarily what she needed. And I can't tell you how much I giggled at Pepper's awkward-ness when it came to any dating-related interaction. The things she blurted out to Reece...oh my goodness.
Reece was very thorough in educating Pepper in the art of foreplay. And he was always a gentleman. Reece has a tortured past too. As he and Pepper spent more time together and learned more about one another, he starts to realize -- well, they both do -- that maybe they need each other. Pepper fights it with everything she has though.
Pepper's friends, Emerson and Georgia, are two characters I'm anxious to get better acquainted with. We learn a few things about them but mostly see how loyal and supportive they are of Pepper. Luckily, I'll get to see more of them in future books. :)
Ms. Jordan created very real, relatable characters in Foreplay. And yes, Ms. Jordan, I could definitely see Texas A&M in your Dartford. I'm gonna admit, too, that despite being set in Pennsylvania, Pepper had a soft Southern accent in my head. The writing is excellent and I thought the pacing was as well. Foreplay was sweet and fun and I loved it!
Foreplay is a story about thinking you know what's best for you - and fate stepping in and saying 'yeah, you don't know as much as you think you do'. And it's about realizing that taking a chance sometimes is the safest bet. I've said before that one of the things I love most about the New Adult genre -- perhaps my favorite thing -- is watching these young people figure out life and their place in it. In Foreplay, we get to watch as Pepper realizes she doesn't have it all figured out. Reece threw a monkey-wrench in all her carefully cultivated plans. And it was a beautiful thing. ;)
