ARC Review: Lingerie Wars

Title: Lingerie Wars
Series: Invertary #1
Author: Janet Elizabeth Henderson
Published: June 14th 2013
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Rating: 4/5
Source: NetGalley eARC provided for honest review

InveTARTY - Where All's Fair In Love & War!!

BLURB:
Englishman Lake Benson loaned his life savings to his dippy sister so that she could buy a shop. It was a big mistake. His sister has been steadily flushing his money down the drain – and now he wants it back. Years in the special forces taught Lake that if you want a job done, do it yourself. So he steps in to make the shop profitable, sell it and get his money back. The only problem is, the business is an underwear shop. And all Lake knows about underwear can be summed up in how fast he can unsnap a bra. To make matters worse, the tiny highland town already has a lingerie shop. A successful one, run by an ex-lingerie model. A very gorgeous ex-lingerie model, who’s distracting him from his mission more than he’d like to admit. If Lake wants to get his savings back, and get out of Scotland, he only has one option – wipe out the competition. 

Kirsty Campbell has spent years rebuilding her life after she woke up in hospital in Spain to find her body scarred, and her ex-fiance had run off with all her money. The last thing she needs is a cocky, English soldier-boy trying to ruin all she has left. Her home town is only too happy to help her fight the latest English invasion, although Lake is beginning to sway them with his sex appeal and cut price knickers. With the help of her mother, and the retired ladies of Knit or Die, Kirsty sets about making sure that her shop is the last one standing in Invertary.

It’s Scotland versus England as you’ve never seen it before. It’s lingerie war.

***Mild Spoilers***

"Focus, Kirsty-this is just like therapy. Only better. You obviously have a thing about muscles and scars. So I figure the best way to help you get over it is to let you look at mine." He grinned widely.

THE GOOD:

The story:
This story centres around a 'war' that breaks out between two completing lingerie shops owned by Kirsty & Lake. Kirsty a local of Invetary, a small Scottish town, and Lake the outsider from England. There were some hilarious scenes, one in particular where Kirsty's mother & kitting club friends break into Lake's shop - dressed in black with war paint, believing they are stealth, however they are anything but. Let's just say it ends with a broken window, and an old lady chasing them down the street with a cricket bat!

The romance:
The romance between Lake & Kirsty was devilishly sexy! Their shops may be at war with each other, but the sexual tension between these two melted my Kindle! There was some wickedly suggestive sexual banter, stolen glances & even a few sneaky kisses, but once these two finally got together it was HOT HOT HOT! 

However underneath all that there was a more serious side to their relationship. Kirsty has been hurt in the past and was afraid to trust Lake. She also has scars all over her body from a car accident and not only hides them from the world, but also from herself. In their intimate scenes, Lake showed a sweet tender side of him, earning Kirsty's trust & ultimately her heart. *awwww*

The characters:
Both Kirsty & Lake where excellent lead characters - they both have strong, vibrant personalities and are easy to connect with. We also get to see Lake's sister Rainne & her minor storyline with love interest Alistair. Throughout the story we see Rainne being pushed & pulled by everyone in her life & I would love to see a companion novel that follows her life in greater detail.

What really makes this book so wonderful was the cast of supporting characters - most importantly Betty, the little old Scott with one hell of an attitude! She's like an evil little Hobbit, but you just can't help but love her. She pops up when you least expect it & she also has a snappy comeback!

The Writing:
I loved Henderson's writing style - it was sharp & witty, with just the right amount of sweet & serious moments. I also loved the ending - at the beginning I thought I could see how it would all finish, and although there was a HEA as I expected, how they got there was a little different, and I loved that! It was actually much more realistic than the ending I thought it would have.

THE BAD:
***spoiler*** I guess the only teeny tiny thing is I would have liked a little more closure for Lake's sister Rainne, & Alistair's part of the story. I loved their little scenes together, and the hopeless romantic in me wanted to see them get a HAE (I know, I know, life doesn't work like that). But Alistair was such a little sweetie - perhaps he might feature in the next book (*crosses fingers*)  ***end spoiler***

FINAL WORD:
This was a romantic & action packed story that had me laughing all the way through! Invertary is one amazing little town & I can't wait to go back there for book 2!

CONTENT:
Sexuality: medium-strong / sex scenes
Violence: medium / ***spoiler*** main charter threatened at knife point / fist fight with knife
Language: none
Drugs & alcohol: mild


1 comment:

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