Title: Wrangling a Groom
Author: DJ Jamison
Series: Marital Bliss #2
Genre: M/M Romance
Release Date: October 10, 2019
Can two men keep a childhood promise for marital bliss?
Wyatt is overwhelmed after his grandfather dies, leaving him to take over the cattle ranch. The Triple J is floundering, vandals are targeting him, and his first and only love is finally within reach--and still holding a grudge. Wyatt has wanted to marry Diego since they made a childhood pact, but Diego isn't back for their second chance.
When a funeral calls Diego back to Texas, he comes face-to-face with the cowboy who broke his heart. Resentment has burned inside him for years, but his anger wavers as he realizes just how much Wyatt is struggling to keep his head above water. The man he once loved is lonely and burdened, and Diego feels compelled to help him rediscover the strong, capable rancher he knows him to be.Hostility gives way to passion, then friendship as they fall into a rhythm of work and sex. Wyatt has renewed hope he might wrangle the man he wants to be his groom. But Diego has a life waiting for him one thousand miles away, and love may not be enough to prevent history from repeating itself.
Wrangling a Groom is Book 2 of the Marital Bliss series, but it can be read as a standalone.
Can two men fake their way to marital bliss?
Caleb Taylor is shocked to learn his family could lose Bliss Island Resort — their home and livelihood — unless he makes use of a clause to marry the child of investor Louis Chastain. Sofia Chastain is more like a sister than a love interest, and Caleb isn’t ready to sign over his future. But Sofia has a brother, and Caleb has a plan ...
Julien Chastain was disowned at fifteen and has made a life as a go-go dancer in Miami, but he lives paycheck to paycheck. When his childhood friend proposes an outlandish marriage contract, he thinks he’s crazy. But it’s a chance at a future that’s tough to pass up.
Caleb and Julien must present themselves as an authentic couple for the legal loophole to work, but the lines between “fake” and “real” keep shifting as they navigate intimacy, public scrutiny, and sabotage.
Love isn't part of the plan, but plans change. If they can outsmart Julien's father and prove their love is worth more than a transaction, they just might find a true happily-ever-after.
Some might say that "fake marriage turns into true love" is a trope that has been done before and they'd be right. Of course, pretty much every trope has been done many, many times across all genres since stories have been told. It doesn't really matter how many times a trope or plot has been done, what matters is how well its been written. DJ Jamison has done an exceptional job with "fake turned true" in Surprise Groom and there's plenty of twists and turns for the unexpected couple throughout the story as they navigate from point A to point Z.
This is only the second time I've read this author but I can honestly say it won't be the last. Surprise Groom is a wonderful journey of not only finding love but also finding yourself, finding what's important, and balancing it all together. Caleb wants to save his family business and home and in doing so he gets reacquainted with his childhood best friend. Julien is at a place in his life where his young age is not quite young enough to keep his place as Caliente's dancer. When they meet again, they each have a reason for wanting this contract but there is obviously something more brewing between them.
Watching both men discover their place in this contract is equal parts celebratory and frustrating. You want to shake them, bang their heads together, and lock them in a windowless room till they communicate properly all while wanting to wrap them each in a huge Mama Bear hug and convince them everything is going to be okay. It's this blend of emotions that make Surprise Groom a memorable and delightful entertaining gem. I don't know just what the author has in store for this new series, Marital Bliss, but I look forward to finding out.
RATING:
DJ Jamison is the author of more than a dozen m/m romances, including the Ashe Sentinel series and the Hearts and Health series. She writes a variety of queer characters, from gay to bisexual to asexual, with a focus on telling love stories that are more about common ground than lust at first sight. DJ grew up in the Midwest in a working-class family, and those influences can be found in her writing through characters coping with real-life problems: money troubles, workplace drama, family conflicts and, of course, falling in love. DJ spent more than a decade in the newspaper industry before chasing her first dream to write fiction. She spent a lifetime reading before that, and continues to avidly devour her fellow authors' books each night. She lives in Kansas with her husband, two sons, two fish and, regrettably, one snake.
Wrangling a Groom #2
Surprise Groom #1
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