I adored this debut novel by Jackie Walker. Readers should grab this romantic comedy today. I look forward to laughs I know she will bring me in the future.
Love & Other Chaos: A Friends-to Lovers and Teacher/Parent Rom Com
Release Date: December 17, 2021
Add to your GoodReads TBR:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56324785-love-other-chaos
Buy:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08PPXDFP3/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title
Blurb:
When hot teachers and internet trends collide, love soon follows.
"Well, I didn’t want to do this, but you leave me no choice. I DARE YOU!"
"You promised me no more dares after the last time when I almost got arrested for streaking through your neighborhood."
"It’s just one kiss. I bet you can’t do it. In fact, I’m sure you aren’t going to be able to woman-up and kiss that hunk."
Cara:
Damn my best-friend and her manipulation tactics. She just dared me to kiss Brody while she films it for a social media challenge. She knows I can’t resist a dare, especially when coupled with reverse psychology. I’m weak like that. Plus, I’m a little buzzed right now. Fricking margaritas. I’m going to do it, aren’t I? I’m going to kiss my best guy-friend, who also happens to be my son’s teacher. What could possibly go wrong?
Brody:
She is my friend. Just a friend. Maybe the more I say it, the more I’ll believe it. But then she plants a kiss on me out of nowhere. The hottest kiss of my life. And, I can’t wait to do it again. And again. And then do it again but without clothes on.
When it comes to her, I’ll take anything I can get. I’m like a dog looking for scraps. And I don’t even feel bad about it.
Love & Other Chaos is a laugh out loud funny, flirty, steamy, friends-to-lovers romantic comedy featuring a drop dead gorgeous and seriously buff teacher with the hots for a single-mom with an autistic pre-teen son... who happens to be one of his students. This story also includes wise-cracking grandparents with zero respect for personal boundaries, sassy felines, swoon-worthy beach scenes, a jerky boss with no concept of personal space, nosey siblings and a foul-mouthed best friend who loves to instigate trouble. If you don't like sarcasm, steam, sexy-times, heroines who drink copious amounts of margaritas and laugh-a-minute dialogue, then this might not be the book for you.
Love & Other Chaos is a stand-alone novel and the first in the new Love and Laughs series set in sunny Clearwater, Florida. Each novel will stand on its own but some characters will be related and appear in subsequent stories. All stories in the series will have a happily ever ever, because cliffhangers will kill your margarita buzz.
My Review:
5 STARS
I picked up this novel in KU after it was mentioned in an author newsletter. I love to read debut novels and encourage talented new romance authors. Sometimes the debut novel is disappointing and sometimes they are ok with a lot of potential for growth. Other times, like with this one, I know I have found gold and that I will be reading every book this author puts out. Love & Other Chaos is written in first person from a dual POV.
This friends-to-lovers novel tracks the relationship of Cara (a sarcastic, funny, and sharp-witted single mom of a pre-teen boy on the spectrum) and Brody (a fourth grade teacher). When they first meet, they have an instant attraction to each other that cannot go anywhere because Brody is the teacher for Cara's son, Miles. Over the course of the school year and the diagnosis of Miles of being high functioning autistic and ADHD, they develop a friendship filled with snark, sarcasm, and humor. When a dare leads Cara to kiss Brody after three years of friendship, the only option is to move forward to their HEA and embrace the feelings they have been denying.
Cara has her hands full. Not only are she and Miles adjusting to handling things in a different way than most children, but Cara is also the primary caregiver for her two elderly grandparents and about a dozen cats. There is A LOT of humor that comes from the situations with Cara and her family. She is hilarious and her self talk is outrageously funny. I should mention that she also has a collection of margarita inspired t-shirts that forced me to laugh out loud on multiple occasions throughout the book. Brody is caring, buff, and an all around good guy that I adored. I loved how much he loves his teaching career while still laughing at some things that teachers definitely laugh at. I love how accepting he is of Cara and Miles and the way he supports them. I love the heat between the two of them as they pursue a physical relationship (see me fanning myself here). I love the quirky family members and friends that surround them and encourage them.
This book also cleverly covers sexual harassment in the workplace as Cara takes on her slimy and pervy boss. The family and friend group pulls together to make the near-impossible happen and I loved it. (Here, I will also mention that Cara's best friend Helen is a character I just want to hang out with. That girl speaks every thought that comes through her head and I loved it!)
On a serious note, I will say I was immeasurably touched by Cara and Miles and the story of his diagnosis. It is apparent that the author knows this subject well. As I was reading about Miles and his behaviors I could not help but think of my son, who is now 25. No one ever offered to test him for the spectrum. It never occurred to me either. I am thankful that this is much more talked about now and that there are more resources available. However, reading this book, I am convinced that my son may very well be high functioning autistic. Though this fills me with some understanding, it also fills me with a large amount of guilt. I now know that there were things I could have done or done differently that might have made his life a little easier. Thought he has now successfully graduated college, he still struggles in so many social situations. I will be following up on some research to see of there are things I can do at this point to help him. One of the marks of an excellent book for me is this: does it make me think, dig deeper, research, or expand my knowledge? This book has done that for me.
I felt like the writing was on-point and funny. The black moment did not overwhelm me, which I appreciate in a rom-com. The pacing and the character development were both very good. There are a handful of errors (usage and spelling) that should have been caught in editing, but they were not prolific and did not pull me out of the story. (Honestly, it is a curse that I often catch these as most would not.) I appreciated the deeper sub-plots in addition to the love story, and I adored both Cara and Brody. I look forward to reading more by this new and promising author in the indie romance community. I definitely recommend that you pick up this book and allow yourself a laugh (or several) and a swoon or two.
About the Author:
One day during the COVID quarantine (a.k.a. the dark time), Jackie was reading yet another laugh a minute rom-com by Lucy Score or Pippa Grant, and she thought to herself - hey, I can do that. And so, she did and it turned out even better than even she thought possible.
Jackie is a fresh face on the romance author scene destined to shake things up with her signature blend of light-hearted comedy, over the top characters and romantic heartwarming moments. A voracious romance reader herself, Jackie writes stories featuring the four S's: Snark, Swoons, Steam and Sarcasm. Her heroines are bad-ass and her heroes are easy on the eyes and heavy on the charm.
When she is not writing funny stories about swoony heroes and the women who get to play with them, she is reading all types of romance novels or taking care of her army of cats and her teenage son (who also speaks fluent sarcasm).
Follow Jackie so you don't miss out on her new releases, which are destined to be topping the best seller lists.
You can also view her website at: www.authorjackiewalker.com and find her on FB and Instagram as: @AuthorJackieWalker
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