I love the Kasper Ridge series! This book is a continuation of book 1 in the series, and features Mateo and Annalee. Anna lee is a retired navy pilot whose call name is Monroe. She was destined to grow and be a blonde bombshell beauty queen. Mateo is a single dad, not looking for live but unbeknownst to him may have found during a hike with Monroe. Can he let Annalee into his and his daughters life? Can he trust and love agin without feeling guilty? Can Annalee move past her stereotype and let her guard down? Can she let someone see the true her and not the fake beauty pageant girl? Read this book to find out!!

Delancey Stewart delivers in book 2, a single dad romance! I liked this book as much as I loved the first one. I enjoyed Mateo and Annalee and their backstories. These characters were well developed and the book was well written! This book has great conflict making me want to keep reading to the end. This doesn’t happen with every book I read. I highly recommend this series and you definitely need to start at book 1. This is a great winter read! Huge thanks to the author and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book!

** spoiler alert ** I have mixed feelings about this! It is a really well written story. I enjoyed the characters.

However, excellent sex does not cure someone of their issues. The guy needs counseling before ever committing to someone else. Between the internal and external dialogue, the guy is clearly no where near over his guilt or his wife. Literally, he states "this is Poppy's house" in the last pages of the book, referring to the wife he lost. The woman has been dead for 5 years. He also begins comparing the new woman to his dead wife in his head while they're becoming intimate for the first time. Not a great look.

He also stumbles into asking her to move in and asking her to marry him. No foresight, no inner dialogue before he randomly comes up with these options. Yikes. He really knows how to make someone feel special.

A highly entertaining, heartwarming and fun adventure filled with witty and engaging charters, heart racing twists and exciting emotional turns. An edge of your seat emotional roller coaster from beginning to end.

I loved this story. From the first page when you get to see Mateo with his little girl, too freaking cute. I have to say that Annalee had no choice but to fall for these two 😊

This was a sweet story that I know if I say too much will just spoil the reading experience. So I'm going to say this: Mateo and Annalee both had their own issues about being in a relationship. But one night getting stuck in a cabin and things seem to change for these two. Although hard for them to accept, attraction and fate has spoken 😊

Awesome story, awesome characters. Mateo’s little Lily too freaking cute. Definitely a story you will get hooked on from start to end. Sweet, entertaining, emotional, funny and so much more… You wont be sorry 😊

This was the first book I've read from Delancey Stewart but it won't be my last. In fact, I was going through my list of books I want to read and found that I already had several from her on my list. I really enjoyed this book and I loved the part about the mystery. I also loved Mateo's daughter, Lily. She was hilarious and adorable. I haven't read the other books in the series but I'll definitely go back and read those.

Thank you to Netgalley and Delancey Stewart for this ARC.

I absolutely loved returning to Kasper Ridge that much that I binged this book. Highly recommend!

Mateo, a widower single dad and Annalee (aka Monroe) are both fighting their attraction for each other while working on restoring the Mountain resort. In order to have the resort ready for the soft opening for some influencers, they have to check some backcountry rustic cabins. It was a quick hike, supposedly back the same day, but a sudden snowstorm has them stranded at the cabin the with just one bed to share.
I loved Mateo and Annalee together. They have some issues they need to figure out before their HEA, but the journey was an enjoyable one. The chemistry between them is sizzling. Mateo’s daughter Lily was just adorable. The mystery around the treasure hunt continues and I can’t wait for the next book.

Monroe is in Kasper Ridge to help her friends getting the lodge ready for guest and business. Staying was never planned and Mateo was not in her sight.
A very cute and emotional love story with some good reasons both need to hear.

Mateo has a daughter and she's his all in the world. But then one sight at Monroe and boom. Not planned but ..

A real good cosy romance with much love and some drama in it. Cute characters and so much love and unplanned things happening.
And i'm so excited how the scavenger hunt will end.

Have fun reading!

Thank you to Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for this arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

(This book debuted on 14 September 2022)

3.5 stars! I loved the characters, they were well developed. The story flowed smoothly, and I liked the setting, their community and friends’ circle.

Annalee was a fresh breath of a character, beautiful inside and out. I just loved her from the beginning. She’s so cool and IDK when I grow up I want to be her. That cool.

Mateo, despite his beautiful name (I like the name Mateo)… I find that I don’t like him much. I don’t like reading his POV, always mentioning Poppy that Poppy this, it got tiring and annoying. He was kinda weak and I was very disappointed with how he yelled at Annalee and just said a simple brush-off half-assed “sorry”. Goddamnit. He should’ve grovelled to our queen Annalee!!!

Also, it was rather quick at how Lily took to Annalee. They met for a day and suddenly… bam, will you be my mother? I don’t know. Seems a bit unrealistic to me, but perhaps there are kids out there who take on strangers almost immediately.

While there were weak points, the overall story was enjoyable and at times made me teary-eyed. Could have been better, though, if there was more angst and slow burn in the beginning.

Part of the Kasper Ridge series. Can be read as a standalone.

Mateo is a single father that works with the construction company that is renovating a resort.. He absolutely does not want to get involved with the attractive former Navy pilot that is also working on the project.

Annalee is incredibly attracted to Mateo, but she has no desire for a family life.

After being snowbound in a cabin, they can no longer resist each other, but when they return to civilization, will they feel the same?

I have read all of the books in this series and absolutely love the characters and sub-plots. Such good stories!!

I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Only a Crush
By: Delancey Stewart

📚💕⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💕📚

Single dad books oh my!

In my first look into this author I’m probably a new true fan. I received this book through Netgally but of course had to read the books in order. So I of course bought the first two books and first and foremost yes technically this book could be a stand alone but way to many exciting thing including clues happened in each book. Each book has its own love story but it’s so much more.

In book 3 in the Kasper Ridge series I was sucked into single dad Mateo and former hot shot fighter jet pilot Annalee (Monroe) and his sweet daughter Lily.

When you take the time too see someone’s inner sole you just might find your forever.

The author writing is flawless, and the words are so captivating, the plot had so many twists and turns and none that I was expecting, and many shockingly intimate I have become a huge fan of this author. The author writes with so much intensity and emotion pulled from each book it’s felt page after page. Some are quick witted story lines are so perfect and lets you believe you have a front row seat. So being able to read this love story didn’t disappoint. The authors ability to have two separate individuals struggling in their everyday life and try to navigate someone else’s thoughts, needs and desires was intense and gives all the fills.

Authors Blurb: Stuck in an outback cabin in a snowstorm with a stoic, blazing-hot, single dad.

It’s every woman’s fantasy.
Except mine. Because while Mateo is undeniably hot, he’s also got one of the things I’ve pretty much sworn I was never going to touch again... a family.
He lost his wife when his daughter was little. And from what I can tell? He’s been paying penance ever since, telling himself that he owes her something, even though she’s gone.

And though we’re both resisting the tantalizing pull between us with everything we’ve got, there’s only so much willpower available inside a tiny two-room cabin in the middle of a freak summer snowstorm that doesn’t seem to be stopping any time soon.
With only one bed…

This book has everything I love in a book. Then you add that it's beautifully written and believable. It is easily a five star read. Written in dual POV my personal favorite this story flows so incredibly well that the next thing you know your 80% into the book and loving every second of it. The believable way the characters interact is perfect. Run, Hop, Jump or use your (1 click) finger to do whatever you have to do and get this amazing book. It'll break your heart, you'll want to scream with frustration and it'll let you discover that love just might conquer all. The chemistry is steamy and sweet and oh so romantic.

Thanks Netgally for letting me read and review.📚💕

This book was so much fun!! I love single dad, small town romances. It had me blushing and giggling the whole way through. It seems to be the second in a character series and I will definitely read the first one next. I love this small town and can't wait to continue with the series!

The story was well written and the characters were so well integrated that you couldn't help but love them. It will make you happy and relaxed, and not to forget the ending was so good.

Marilyn Monroe and the single dad...

Mateo is a wdowed father to seven year old Lily, who is his main focus. He's not ready to move on from his deceased wife, though his body has other thoughts about that. He's smart enough to know his time with Lily is precious and few. But Monroe makes him all hot and bothered.

Annalee, aka Marilyn Monroe, her call sign when she was a fighter pilot in the military, is a bombshell. Instead of being a beauty queen, she became a fighter pilot, is now working in Colorado in PR and is overall a badA. I like how she surpirses people with how smart and capable she is, though has a harded time finding women to be friends with. She's a great foli for Mateo.

So, a thoroghly enjoyable read.
Recommend.

This is a fun second instalment to a series set in a Colorado mountain town, with a an ongoing resort refurbishment and a treasure hunt mystery yet to be resolved. Annalee and Mateo both have tragedy in their pasts and internal conflicts in their present lives; neither is looking for the chemistry they find in each other, but a bit of forced proximity in a snowstorm kickstarts something that’s difficult to stop. I’m really enjoying the characters, locations and clues that are being developed, and look forward to the next one.

A great read - Annalee (Monroe) and Mateo’s story.
She is a former fighter pilot who is in town to help her friend work on the resort he now owns. Mateo's first priority will always be his daughter, but can he balance that with having a life of this own. When they are trapped in the snow together will they realise they could be together?
Looking forward to the rest of this series.

5/5 ⭐
4/5 🌶️

Mateo and Monroe were so flipping adorable. I love the single dad trope, so I was already excited for this second book in the Kasper Ridge series, but once I discovered it was also going to be a one bed / stuck in a snowstorm situation, I knew it was going to be a one sit read for me. And it was... I started at bedtime and read straight through to 2am. The chemistry between these two was so intense and so fun, I couldn't put it down.

I adore Monroe. She is a smart, independent, strong and badáss woman and she immediately became an amazing role model for Lily. I just loved how she spoke to Lily, showing her you can be anything you want to be. Monroe may not believe she's mother material, but sometimes all it takes is knowing what you'd do differently and just being there.

The snowstorm was incredible. The way the two of them flirted around their chemistry before giving in was *chef's kiss* One of my favorite scenes of the whole book was their first night in the cabin, but the entire stay was hot as hades. This book also included one of my favorite grovels ever, Mateo (with some help from Brainiac) did a great job getting Monroe back.

I can't wait for more from this crew. They have had such fun stories to tell so far and I can't wait to see what's in store for Brainiac.

Total fan of Delancey Stewart. enjoyed this book. It had a good pace and story line. I would read more from this author any day of the week.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I became a fan of Delancey Stewart when I read Only a Fling. Having a soft spot for small town romances, I was entranced by what I thought was the first book in the series (FYI - you will want to read Only a Summer first). Add to that how Stewart writes her female characters and you will quickly understand how reading her books in less than day is far too easy.

Back to Only a Fling (I know this a review for Only a Crush so bear with me), to my surprise and delight, Delancey added a bonus epilogue, allowing the reader to dive further into the lives and relationships of the Kasper Ridge Resort crew. We find ourselves witnessing the interaction between Mateo and Annalee, setting the scene for this book and what may potentially build between these two characters.

I am happy to report, she did NOT disappoint!

What I liked about the book: The same wit, charm, sarcasm (my goodness the sarcasm!), and overall laugh out loud moments were front and center in Only a Crush. There were moments I laughed so hard that I had to take a second before continuing (hard to see a screen with tears in your eyes).

The way Stewart wrote Annalee was phenomenal. I swear I wanted to sing “Anything You Can Do". She was the epitome of that song. She was gorgeous but not a delicate flower. She was smart, quick, talented in anything and everything she tried (pilot, chef, event planning, film critic), and she didn’t take mess from anyone. At the same time, she was fallible, vulnerable, and protected herself from a world that wanted to prove her wrong at every turn, making her believe she was no better than the world she left behind. That constant struggle was hidden behind the persona she carved as Monroe.

She met her match with Mateo, fighting the same two sided struggle - staying true to his past but not wanting to lose the potential of his future. I felt myself being more and more protective of Mateo when it came to Monroe until we finally got to peek behind the curtain of who Monroe/Annalee really was. When that shield was dropped, when we truly saw the real person behind the blonde hair and perfect smile, you couldn't help but be glad they found each other.

To witness the push and pull between these two characters, the tug of war of want, desire, protection, and honor is what makes you keep turning the page to see how it all plays out.

What I didn’t like about the book: Nothing. There isn’t a single thing I disliked about this book. I LOVED Lily, I always enjoy the background characters and how they contribute to the story. I think if I was forced to pick something, I wasn’t sure what to think of Sass and Antonio. I was unsure if they were introduced last minute as another potential story in the future or what their ongoing purpose would be since they were going to stay. Not knowing how many books this series will be, I will simply accept that it is a soft introduction and we will learn more about them in Only a Secret.

Speaking of which, I can’t wait to read Only a Secret. I have been DYING to get into Brainaic’s head! I will also admit, Stewart knows how to write a steamy scene. I mean WOW! Like fog the glass because I was breathing too hard WOW!

The last thing I will say about this series is you want to know these characters - inside and out. You learn each time that who they appear to be is nowhere near who they really are and the real life experiences they have had make them so relatable. By having an alternative POV, the unsaid moments are so strong, so informative that you fall more and more involved with every single member of this growing family.