Misadventures of a Curvy Girl (Misadventures Book 18)

This is part of a mulit-author series in which each book is really a standalone. I don’t want to scare you off by listing it as book 18 of a series because, trust me, you want to read this one. It was so much fun while also having way more emotion than I was expecting. This is another book I read on the recommendation of the wonderful hosts of the Fated Mates podcast. Specifically, episode 12.5, Small Town Romance.

Right away, I could tell why this story spoke to Jen and Sarah from Fated Mates. This is actually a fated mates type of book without any paranormal elements. I guess some would call it insta-love, but it’s not really that from my perspective. All of the main characters (this is a menage situation) feel something special when they meet. Something they are compelled to explore even if it’s not in the nature of all of them. The author kept me full of warm-fuzzies through this whole book.

Caleb and Ben have known each other pretty much their whole lives. As they grew into adults they realized they were meant to be together, but not just the two of them. They tried that and loved it, but always felt something was missing. When a third is brought in they always feel more complete. Still, not fully complete as they hadn’t ever found the right third person. Then Ireland comes to town, and more specifically to their home on a project from her boss, their college friend. A lot happens in a very small amount of time. There’s a storm that wreaks havoc on the town, which ends up putting Ben into a tailspin. Between Ben’s PTSD, Ireland’s body image issues, and Caleb’s deep need to make them both happy, there are a lot of ups and downs in this story.

There are so many things to love about this story and these characters. Ireland is bound and determined to love herself and her body. When the self-doubt creeps in, she does her best to slap it away and think positive thoughts. For their part, Ben and Caleb never do anything to disparage her body…they love her curves and softness. It’s an issue she has that they want to help her to overcome. They want to build her up, not knock her down. But when Ben does knock her down due to his own issues, he wants to make things right. He is so set on making sure there is absolutely no manipulation or excuses when it comes to his apology and plea for her forgiveness. I fell in love with Ben just a little bit more in that scene.

I cannot wait to read more by this author. I’ve heard and seen her name over the years, but hadn’t yet gotten around to checking her out. I’m so glad I finally did. This story has heart and heat, my favorite combination.

You can find more of my reviews at All In Good Time.

way too much negativity about body image

Fated mates did not lead me astray with this one. It was so good. Sierra Simone captured the various emotions that curvy girls feel about their bodies so well. I know everyone experiences these things in their own way but I felt so seen! Also I loved that she was more than 200lbs, usually curvy girls are like a 12 or 14. It was so nice to have a heroine that was bigger than that. The boys where delightful of course. I loved them as well. It was pretty spicy if you are sensitive to that.

Not my favorite of Sierras, but I’m not a huge fan of the misadventures series as a whole so that might have something to do with my mediocre reaction.