On the Sweet Side by Audrey Carlan

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Audrey Carlan comes a story of sisters, self-discovery and a little something sweet.

Baking is Isabeau Collins’s life. Back from studying under the finest chefs in France and Italy, and with a newly minted culinary degree in hand, Izzy is ready to pursue her dream: whipping up creative confections in her own custom cake shop. But her perfect plans are waylaid when two women claiming to be her half sisters show up with a stack of letters addressed to Izzy from their late mother. Torn between launching her career and the need to learn more about her family history, Izzy makes the decision to go to Colorado to connect with the sisters she’s never known.

Then Izzy stumbles across a run-down storefront in Pueblo’s funky downtown and instantly knows that with a bit of work it’s the perfect location for her dream bakery…which means her detour to Colorado will be a permanent reroute. And with an unexpected relationship growing between Izzy and her contractor, Kyson, she has yet another reason to stick around—even if there are secrets in Kyson’s past Izzy can’t quite figure out. Fighting homesickness and self-doubt, Izzy worries that she’s making a mistake. But with her sisters close and her dreams within reach, she can’t help but wonder if her riskiest move could be the most rewarding decision she’s ever made.

Don’t miss our reviews of the rest of the Wish series!
For book one, What the Heart Wants, click HERE.
For book two, To Catch a Dream, click HERE.

 

 

Book 3
Buy Links

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Apple Books  ~  B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  Kobo
Audiobook (US)  ~  Paperback (US)
Harlequin

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the third (and probably final, although I wish it weren't) book in the series, and it is pretty much essential to have read the earlier ones to understand the overall picture. There are plenty of reminders of the underlying plot if it has been a while since you read the last one, but no labouring of the points. What Carlan has done with this series is show us a flawed character, whose actions go against a lot of what is generally perceived as 'right' and unpick the outcomes and make us see there was hope, meaning, and above all, love in those actions. I don't think that makes it easier for the sisters, but it gives them peace in the end.

Isabeau and her best friend, Jasper, have just graduated when two women come to the family house and upturn all she has known about herself. As we watch her find herself again, we also see how resilient she is, and how open to new experiences, family, and especially, to love. Her immediate attraction to Kyson is very endearing, and her newly found sisters provide her with the confidence and support that she needs.

I have put this firmly in my reread when I need cheering up pile, as it definitely needs a tissue to hand, and yet is fun and life-affirming. Thank you, Audrey Carlan, for a truly lovely series.

 

 

AUDREY CARLAN is a #1 New York Times and International bestselling author. Her titles have appeared on USA Today and the Wall Street Journal. Audrey writes wicked hot love stories that have been translated in over thirty different languages across the globe. She is best known for the world-wide bestselling series Calendar Girl and Trinity.

She lives in the California Valley where she enjoys her two children and the love of her life. When she's not writing, you can find her teaching yoga, sipping wine with her "soul sisters," or with her nose stuck in a steamy romance novel.

Connect with Audrey

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: Audrey Carlan's Wicked Hot Readers

 

 

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of On the Sweet Side (Wish #3) by Audrey Carlan to read and review.

To Catch a Dream by Audrey Carlan Blog Tour

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the worldwide phenomenon Calendar Girl series brings readers a poignant and honest look at life’s most complicated relationships.

When their mother passed away, Evie Ross and her sister were each given a stack of letters, one to be opened every year on their birthday; letters their free-spirited mother hoped would inspire and guide them through adulthood. But although Evie has made a successful career, her desire for the stability and security she never had from her parents has meant she’s never experienced the best life has to offer. But the discovery of more letters hidden in a safe-deposit box points to secrets her mother held close, and possibly a new way for Evie to think about her family, her heart and her dreams.

Don’t miss our reviews of the rest of the Wish series!
For book one, What the Heart Wants, click HERE.

 

 

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Audiobook (US)  ~  Paperback (US)
Harlequin

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the second book in the series, and I would definitely recommend that you read them in order. I loved that we got Evie's story, as Suda Kaye starred in book one and her viewpoints were very different.

As Evie finally has her sister home, she is feeling that life is a little more settled. Then her all-time crush, Milo, suddenly starts paying her attention and really, she does not know what to do with it. It is disconcerting, and as everyone always leaves her, she is not really ready to believe that this could be real, or permanent.

It was great fun to catch up with everyone from the first book, and to see a settled, married, successful-business owning Suda Kaye. That she got to double date with her sister and encourage her to enjoy Milo's attention is a bonus, but it also brings up a lot of Evie's issues with being abandoned. They both need to find each other again, and for Evie, she finds that she needs to return to her grandfather's and regroup. I found it very moving that she has to work through so many issues that she has just ploughed through for years.

Milo was described with great care in What the Heart Wants, so we know the basics – and of Evie's unrequited love for him. This time we get her more sensual descriptions of his silky black hair, his looks, his body, and we also learn about his past, his heart, and his ex-wife. He is a strong character, but not overbearing – which works well with Evie's nature, and gives us a sigh of relief that he is going to be strong for her, but not too strong for her.

The story takes a very interesting turn towards the end, and whilst I guessed it in part, it definitely means that the next book will be very interesting indeed!

 

 

AUDREY CARLAN is a #1 New York Times and International bestselling author. Her titles have appeared on USA Today and the Wall Street Journal. Audrey writes wicked hot love stories that have been translated in over thirty different languages across the globe. She is best known for the world-wide bestselling series Calendar Girl and Trinity.

She lives in the California Valley where she enjoys her two children and the love of her life. When she's not writing, you can find her teaching yoga, sipping wine with her "soul sisters," or with her nose stuck in a steamy romance novel.

Connect with Audrey

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: Audrey Carlan's Wicked Hot Readers

 

 

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of To Catch a Dream (Wish #2) by Audrey Carlan to read and review for this tour.

What the Heart Wants by Audrey Carlan

From the #1 bestselling author of the beloved Calendar Girl books comes the first in a witty, wise and emotionally compelling new series, where coming home is just the beginning…

“Fly free.”

For ten years those words, written on pink parchment paper in her mother’s beautiful handwriting, have been Suda Kaye Ross’s guiding star. Every year on her birthday, Suda Kaye opens another of the letters her mother penned before she passed, heeding the advice inside as she fills her life with experiences. From Italy to Australia, from Rio to Russia, she’s slaked her wanderlust. And then, on her twenty-eighth birthday, she opens the letter that sends her home.

Returning to Colorado means confronting everything—and everyone—she left behind, including her cherished sister, Evie, and her first love, Camden Bryant. Suda Kaye and Cam spent four years and one unforgettable night together. Given the way she ran out on him, it’s no surprise that he’s wary, resentful… and engaged to someone else. Evie, hardworking and überresponsible, just wants her sister to put down roots at last.

For Evie’s sake, and her own, Suda Kaye is trying to build a new life, all the while wondering whether it’s too late to come back home—or if the most important part of her never really left.

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Harlequin

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆☆
I am a huge Audrey Carlan fan, and this is another excellent, fabulous read. I loved them all from page one and didn't put it down until my eyes were closing over the matchsticks. It is such a lovely story, which I will definitely have on my to reread list in the "make me smile and cheer me up" column.

Suda Kaye has been on the adventure of lifetime, but now decides it’s time to go home. No one there can really trust that after ten years of travel she will really settle, so there is a sadness about them waiting for the shoe to drop. This is so beautifully written and lived out, that I could feel the desire of Evie to believe her, of Cam to think there might be a chance she'd stay, but they can't quite.

I loved the boutique being created, the fun with the constructor, and the craft items that she creates to sell. It was a wonderful marker of her arrival, yet her remaining a flamboyant and free person, marching to her own beat, but building a business around her skills and to bring happiness to others through beautiful things.

As for the romance, well it had been 14 years in the making/waiting, but with the complication of a fiancée and her crazy sidekick, things don't go smoothly, until they do... and we get to see that maybe 10 years apart was the making of them, not the end at all.

I do hope that we get Evie's story too – as the Porter-Milo issues need to be explored.

Audrey Carlan is a #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of over 40 novels, including the worldwide phenomenon Calendar Girl serial, and her books have been translated into more than 30 languages across the globe. Audrey lives in the California Valley with her two children and the love of her life.

Connect with Audrey

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Audrey Carlan's Wicked Hot Readers Facebook Group

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of What the Heart Wants (Wish #1) by Audrey Carlan to read and review.