"Floored" (Frenched series, #3)
Written by Melanie Harlow
Series Information
"Floored" is preceded by two novels, "Frenched", and "Forked", and one novella, "Yanked". The novels in this series may be read separately, as each one focuses on a different pair of characters in the same circle of friends. Reading them all together (and in order) does, however, enhance your enjoyment of the intertwined plotlines.
Just A Quick Note
Okay... so I was really supposed to wait until the weekend to read this, and release a review. The thing is that since I received the info for the release blitz, I haven't quite been able to get Charlie off my mind. This book was released just yesterday, and as soon as my kindle app had synced it, I knew that I couldn't wait until the weekend to read it... so I read it all last night after my homework was mostly done. As anticipated, I couldn't put it down -- just like I couldn't put down any of the rest of Melanie Harlow's work. :)
The Story
Erin Upton is the consummate perfectionist -- her she checks and double checks her locks, she hand washes her wine glasses, she even has an alphabetized spice rack. She's also a dance teacher, who has just recently taken full ownership over a dance studio, and has a million and one crazy dance moms that she has to deal with at all hours of the day.
It's no surprise, therefore, that when she gets home, Erin sometimes takes refuge from the insanity of her world in a few glasses of wine. On one particular night, after a remarkably stressful day, Erin is relaxing with her wine while watching Troy on TV. Driven by her long-standing single status, Erin takes her wine, her box of fun, and her Brad Pitt fantasy into the shower -- and as she's chasing her orgasm, with the aid of her naughty rabbit and fuzzy handcuffs, she hears a noise downstairs.
Erin discovers that she has neglected to lock her back door, and that all of her electronics have been stolen. She calls the police, and hides out in her bedroom until they have searched and secured her home. In the mean time, the fuzzy cuffs and the naughty rabbit are sitting out in the open in her bathroom, for the police to see.
Erin is mortified to discover that the first officer on the scene is her childhood acquaintance, Charlie Dwyer. To make things worse, Charlie has magically morphed from the irritating kid who held up her lemonade stand back in the day, to 6'3" of solid muscle with a killer smile and eyes that smolder, and he's not only seen her in her robe and slippers, but also her box of fun on the bathroom counter. She starts to fantasize about what they could do together with that box of fun, until Charlie ruins the fantasy by opening his big mouth, and revealing that while his exterior has changed rather dramatically, his personality is very much the same -- arrogant and annoying.
Erin and Charlie keep running into each other, and she's inclined to ignore him, until he offers to help her with the new floor in her dance studio, and he becomes absolutely impossible to resist -- not that she's trying. Her one night stand quickly turns into a twice-in-a-lifetime event, then a third time's the charm, and they're getting increasingly involved, and in a hurry.
Could cocky Charlie really be Erin's prince charming? And will the secrets that he's keeping from her cause them to fall apart completely?
My Thoughts
Charlie and Erin are PERFECTION. I'm not even kidding -- I thought that Mia and Lucas would be my favorite couple of the series, especially because of my disappointment with Coco and Nick, but this book changed everything. EVERYTHING!
While I can relate to Mia's incessant list-making and planning, and even Coco's impulsiveness, I really saw myself in Erin. I used to be that girl that everyone saw as perfection on legs -- the one who had her life together, who was OCD in her organization, and led the pefect life -- in fact, maybe some people (who don't know much about me) still see me that way. The kind of woman who likes everything to be neat and tidy and clean -- but there's a wild side to me that only certain magical people have been able to bring out, and Erin is much the same way with Charlie, which I love.
Charlie, for his part, totally reminds me of my ex. In the best possible way. I even see why Erin finds herself falling for him, despite her better judgement, because that's exactly what happened to me, too. There's something really hard to resist about a guy who has got cocky charm... it doesn't hurt that he's really hot and knows how to do things to her in bed (or out of it) that bring out the wild side of her that no one else has ever been able to do before. It's hot that he understands and caters to her kinks, and while he may run hot and cold in social interactions, it's nothing but hot hot HOT behind closed doors, just how she likes it. Just how I like it.
Melanie Harlow shows her gift for writing chemistry between her characters that draw the reader in, and make them invested not just in the people, but also their budding relationship. There were a number of times during this novel where I sighed exasperatedly, wishing they'd just get on with it, and there were times when I literally squeaked out loud, super excited about the possibility of what would happen next. I am convinced that this is not a normal reaction to most novels, but one that seems to come naturally to me when reading anything that Melanie Harlow writes. There are very few authors who are able to elicit this sort of reaction from me, and I deeply appreciate those who can.
I don't want to write too much here, because I don't want to give too much of the novel away. It's cute and sweet and funny... it's also hot and kinky and frustrating... it's got all the requisites of a great relationship, and one that's all wrong, all rolled into one, and the rollercoaster of emotions that the reader goes through while reading this book is both exciting and fun.
Suffice it to say, I LOVED this book. Easily my favorite book of the series. Easily my favorite book that Melanie Harlow has written. Easily within my top 5 for the year. Probably even top 3.
Overall Rating
5 big shiny stars!!!
Extremely highly recommended!!!!
Charlie and Erin are PERFECTION! Go read it NOW!
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