Series: Cocktail #4 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: December 2nd 2014
Purchase: Ebook • Paperback
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher (Gallery Books) in exchange for an honest review
Looking for the perfect mix of smart, sexy, and sassy? Mai Tai’d Up continues New York Times bestselling author Alice Clayton’s Cocktail series, which began with Wallbanger and continued with Rusty Nailed and Screwdrivered.
The gossip mill in the seaside community of Monterey is churning about Chloe Patterson, the newcomer who is starting a sanctuary for rescued pit bulls. It’s rumored that she’s a former beauty queen (true) who ditched her fiancé the morning of their wedding (also true). And that while she’s not looking for a new man, the good-looking local veterinarian has his eye on her. Absolutely, positively true.
When Lucas Campbell isn’t at the family veterinary clinic, he’s paddle boarding in Monterey Bay. Recently single, he’s definitely not in the market for a new relationship, but he still can’t resist taking a second, third, and fourth look at the recent arrival of Miss Golden State.
Neither Lucas nor Chloe has any interest in being tied down. Being tied up, however—now there’s a thought. But are a few Mai Tais, a moonlit night, and the music of Frank Sinatra enough to allow them both to forget their past? Let’s hope Ol’ Blue Eyes knows what he’s doing.
Mix one part tiki, one part kinky, and a splash of old black magic matchmaking, and it’s time to be . . . Mai Tai’d Up.
If you like your romances with a side of funny, Alice Clayton is definitely an author to read! While Mai Tai’d Up is my least favorite of the Cocktail series, it has Alice Clayton’s classic humor as well as heart-warming characters you grow to care for. If you’re a fan of the series, you don’t want to miss this latest installment!
Chloe Patterson is a former beauty queen who ditches her own wedding. She hasn’t been happy in a while, and she knows that going through that wedding will be the worst decision of her life. She wants to find true romance and passion, so she grows some balls, packs her bags, and moves to her father’s old house in Monterey.
What I could see now was that nothing about our relationship was “Holy Mary mother of God.” It was smooth and beautiful and covered in swirls of yummy on the outside, but the inside was fat-free and full of air and nothing. And if I was going to have a life of air and nothing, I’d at least like a big fat dick to bounce on.
Chloe is hilarious! A little dirty, but a total sweetheart. I totally admired how she took charge of her life and decided to make a change. She moves to Monterey in order to work with rescue dogs, which is honestly the sweetest thing ever! And it certainly helps that the local veterinarian there is a hottie. 😉
Lucas is the hot, ginger vet who has just gotten out of his own relationship. Neither Lucas nor Chloe want to go back to being in a relationship, so a hilarious, chemistry-filled friendship blooms. And there’s some serious chemistry between them that’s hard to ignore. I really enjoyed the way Alice Clayton portrayed their changing relationship. And you know that with her books, when the main characters get together, it’s explosive!
Had it really been so long that I’d been without contact like this? Was I just skin-drunk?
Nah. I was Lucas drunk. He was the perfect cocktail.
I was a bit disappointed with the romance – I just didn’t feel a connection between Chloe and Lucas, and the romance wasn’t fleshed out well enough for me. One moment the romance would be moving too slow, and then the next, it would move too fast. What I liked were the characters individually, and so what saved this book was Chloe herself. I loved the animal shelter aspect of this book and how she built it on her own merits. And have I mentioned how adorably hilarious and sassy Chloe is? Even though the romance wasn’t all that great, Chloe was still a heroine I really enjoyed reading about.
Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.
Reading Order: Cocktail series
#1 ~ Wallbanger: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Rusty Nailed: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Screwdrivered: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#4 ~ Mai Tai’d Up: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#4.5 ~ Last Call: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
Booklovers For Life 