November 18, 2019
A married couple rediscovers their passion in the charming second installment in Bailey’s Hot and Hammered romantic comedy series (after Fix Her Up). Twenty-seven-year-old Rosie Vega feels that she and her high-school sweetheart turned husband, Dominic, have drifted apart. Though their sex life is still undeniably sizzling, communication has broken down between them, spurring Rosie to move out of their Port Jefferson home. When Dominic asks how he can repair their marriage, Rosie tells him that he needs to agree to last-ditch therapy. Their wacky hippie therapist bans them from having sex and encourages them to learn one another’s love languages. To both their surprise, the methods work, and Rosie and Dominic discover that simple acts of kindness create an emotional attachment that had disappeared from their marriage. The possibility of saving their life together looks brighter, until a secret Dominic has been keeping comes to light, threatening to ruin their fragile, newfound love. Bailey loads the story with humor and chemistry while still tackling heavy emotions. Sensual sex scenes and irresistible characters will draw readers in to this sweet romance. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.

December 1, 2019

Rosie and Dominic Vega were high school sweethearts who had a happy and fulfilling marriage until Dominic returned from active duty. Though the sex is still mind-blowing, they barely talk and never joke around anymore. With the encouragement of her friends, Rosie pursues her lifelong dream of opening an Argentinian restaurant and decides it's time to demand more from her husband. If Dominic wants to make their relationship work, he has to join her in therapy with the most "woo-woo-sounding marriage counselor on Long Island." The unconventional therapist helps them discover their "love languages" and how they each desire to express and receive affection. Rosie is hopeful, but Dominic fears that revealing a secret he's been keeping could end the relationship. This steamy book is downright raunchy at times, even while the couple abstain from sex per the therapist's rules. VERDICT The story is strongest when delving into communication and vulnerability but occasionally gets bogged down by repetitive writing and a too-predictable plot. Still, fans of Lyssa Kay Adams's The Bromance Book Club or Farrah Rochon's Cherish Me will be glad to discover another contemporary marriage-in-trouble romance.--Jenna Friebel, Oak Park P.L., IL

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2020
A working-class couple on Long Island fights to save their marriage. Rosie and Dominic Vega were middle school sweethearts who married right before Dominic deployed with the Army after high school. Ten years later, Rosie realizes she's tired of working at the department store perfume counter. She decides to pursue her dream of opening a restaurant specializing in the Argentinian cuisine she learned from her beloved mother. Dominic and Rosie's sex life is as explosive and satisfying as ever, but it also illustrates the holes in the rest of their marriage. Rosie realizes they never talk anymore--she doesn't know how to talk to him about the restaurant--and she decides their stagnant marriage must change if she's going to change the rest of her life. Dominic knows that something has been amiss, but his own insecurities have led him to follow his father's example: He works hard and provides and hopes the rest will work itself out. Rosie asks Dominic to go to marriage therapy, convinced he'll never agree. Their hippie marriage counselor, along with adding a needed measure of comic relief, helps Dominic and Rosie realize they each played a role in the disintegration of their relationship. The exploration of their marriage is emotionally satisfying, but a subplot involving implausible real estate dealings is hard to believe. It's worth noting that, although Rosie is biracial, with an African American father and Argentinian mother, and Dominic is from a Puerto Rican family, the most well-developed connection to either of their cultural identities is Rosie's love of Argentinian cuisine. Readers hungry for diversity and inclusivity in their romance deserve more than superficial identity markers like these. However, Bailey (Fix Her Up, 2019, etc.) crafts an emotionally wrenching and compelling story of a marriage and how the spouses' different love languages cause them to miss each other's signals. Despite some missteps, this is a powerful story of a marriage in trouble.

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November 15, 2019
After one too many silent evenings and done with feeling empty after intense physical intimacy, Rosie has decided to call it quits in her marriage to Dominic. The former solider turned construction worker has been focusing on being a provider, ignoring the emotional component of marriage that Rosie craves. Not realizing how much he needs her, Dominic will do anything to get her back, including a long dry spell in the bedroom as mandated by their pot-smoking marriage therapist. Bailey once again hits it out of the park in this companion novel to Fix Her Up (2018) that can be read as a standalone. While working on their marriage, which is full of sexual frustration, among other things, Rosie exercises her own freedom as a leader, while Dominic recounts how his time overseas in the military affected him and their relationship. From no sex to phone sex to a striptease to an orgy in the woods, Bailey is an expert in those lusty, sexually powered scenes. Perfect for fans looking for a sexy romp with a side of heart.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

June 22, 2020
House-flipping leads to a love connection in Bailey’s sweet and super-spicy third Hot and Hammered rom-com (after Love Her or Lose Her). When San Antonio cowboy Wes Daniels’s sister decides to take a break from her responsibilities, Wes travels to Port Jefferson, Long Island, to take care of his five-year-old niece, Laura. Home renovator Bethany Castle is competing on the house-flipping reality TV show Flip Off and hires Wes to be part of her construction crew. The reality show setting adds both tension and comedy as the macho Wes immediately begins pursuing perfectionist Bethany. As Wes settles into his uncle duties and his chemistry with Bethany evolves into bold, erotic sexual encounters, his resolve to return to Texas once his sister comes back wavers. Wes’s swaggering, often expletive-filled flirtations, and Bethany’s insecure internal monologue paint clear pictures of both characters, but sometimes slow the plot. Though Wes and Bethany are solidly drawn, it’s adorable Laura who sparks the most authentic and evocative moments. Chick-lit lovers will flip for this sexy, heartwarming story. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.