Monday, April 1, 2013

The Practice Proposal by Tracy March + giveaway (US/CAN)


Liza Sutherland isn’t looking for love. Not from a charity-auction date she didn’t even bid on and especially not with Nationals first baseman Cole Collins, the guy she obsessed over as an awkward teenager. She won’t get involved with a notorious player, no matter how attractive Cole is.

Cole Collins is up for contract renegotiation, but after too many late-night parties, he’ll need some positive publicity before he can make the roster. His agent, Frank, pitches Liza as the perfect prop…only Cole didn’t account for Liza no longer being just a teenager with a crush. She’s gorgeous and smart and he’s instantly hooked.

When Frank makes Liza a deal she can’t refuse—a bet she will fall in love with Cole or a cool half mil goes to charity—the game is on. But neither bet on the real feelings that surface. Could a fake fling turn into an official forever?


Type: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 5 out of 5 paws
Heat: 1.5 out of 5

Well I am just completely smitten. Absolutely and utterly. I adored The Practice Proposal, Cole and Liza and everything about them. So I'm gonna gush a bit and I'm gonna shake my fist at Tracy March at the same time because the woman put me in a reading funk like you wouldn't believe! 5 whole days I couldn't pick up another book after finishing The Practice Proposal. 5 days and 8 book attempts and nothing doing. And still, I had a smile on my face the whole time because it was just that great of a read.

This was one of those books that just made me... happy. It was a fun read that kept me smiling and really put me in a good mood. There's not a ton of drama, even though both of the main characters, Cole and Liza, are keeping some pretty big secrets. There are some outside meddlers keeping both of them mum on what their real motives are for being in a relationship. Basically, she's been promised a huge donation to her charity camp if she can keep from really falling in love with him and he desperately needs an image redo and someone to make him look a bit more... wholesome to the people who own his baseball team.

One of the things I loved about this one was that the hero isn't some big alpha jerk or running from his feelings and the heroine isn't a damsel in distress that needs a man to save her from her life. She's a little broken after losing  her fiance years earlier but she's a strong woman who has goals and a life of her own. They're both people you can respect and that you can imagine actually being friends with and not wanting to throttle them every two seconds.

There are some really cute moments that made me snort and others that made me sigh in romance bliss as these two people went about getting to know each other in all manner of ways from campfire weenie roasts to "baseball pie wars".
"Haven't you ever seen Cupcake Wars? It's like that, but with pie." 
Liza was waiting for the punch line, and Cole looked as though he was trying not to laugh. "You're serious?" she asked, imagining the horror she might create considering she was chronically kitchen-challenged. 
"What? Are you afraid of a little friendly competition?" Paige teased.  
"No," Liza said quickly. "I just hate to embarrass him." 
Cole laughed and smoothed his hand up and down her back. "I'm not too worried about that." 
"Whatever," Liza said, enjoying the sturdy feel of his touch. "You'd be wise not to judge me based on one flaming wiener." 
Paige raised one eyebrow. "I'm not sure I want to know what that means." 
"Considering we're in your kitchen," Cole said, "and you're letting Liza cook, I'm guessing you don't." He flashed Liza a knowing smile, and her heart fluttered.  
"I think I might," Paige teased. "But I'm willing to risk it. There's a fire extinguisher mounted right there on the wall. Feel free to use use it when you need to."
I loved the two of them and how easy they were with each other. He's sexy and sweet and had a bit of an obsession with Twitter. I'm not much for Twitter myself but omg I just I loved his tweets to her. He was just such a cutie. And she's just a delightful heroine. You could see the big explosion coming from the start but even so it was just a great experience getting to the big "oh no you didn't!".
Okay, so I do have one complaint...the heat level...everything was completely fade to black. I know that's expected from the Bliss line but a little more heat would have made for an even better read for me. Yall know I love my steamy reads so it's really something that one with so little actual sexy page time got such a high rating from me. That like never happens.

If you're looking for a fun, sweet read The Practice Proposal would be an excellent pick. I swear, I'm still smiling over this one which is why it's gotten one of our "pick of the litter" awards. Definitely looking forward to seeing more of what March has to offer in the future.



There are two giveaways going today. One for a tour wide kindle! And the other just for yall for this gorgeous bracelet. Just fill out that Rafflecopter and leave a meaningful comment!

What do you think of the Practice Proposal? Have you read March yet? Do you enjoy a good light hearted read now and again that doesn't have much drama?


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