Sunday, July 14, 2024

ARC Review: Just One More Dare (The Sterling Family #2)

Just One More Dare (The Sterling Family #2)

Carly Phillips

Blurb:

A runaway bride.

Her older brother’s off-limits friend.

Taking one more shot at love should be easy, right?

Not on a dare.

Samantha Dare had one thought when she found out her fiancĂ© was a lying cheater. Escape. So, she ran from her wedding…straight into the arms of the man who once gave her the hottest kiss of her life. But rebounding with her brother’s friend would be a huge mistake…wouldn’t it?

The last thing Dex Sterling needed was more chaos in his life. Retiring from football and starting over in broadcasting gave him plenty of that. But even though Samantha is chaos personified, for some reason, he’s still not able to keep his mind—or hands—off her…

Is a little bit of forced proximity and a lot of sexual chemistry enough to earn them a second chance at happily ever after?

Samantha and Dex are about to find out…

Themes:  Contemporary

Rating:  4.5 stars

Heat Rating: 

Review:

Long-time Carly Philips readers have wondered whatever happened to that last Dare sibling from the Miami Dares… Well wonder no more my fellow readers! Samantha Dare finally meets her match and the man that will steal her heart and make her life and adventure in Just One More Dare.  I have been dying for this book ever since Carly gave me a hint it was coming, and I have to tell you she in no way let me down and I am truly proud to have had to chance to be one of the first to read the story. Samantha and Dex’s Road to love is a somewhat long and rocky one, filled with detours and obstacles that could have prevented them from ever ending up together, but in the end, they found their HEA together.  If you are a fan of two people working together to overcome adversity and beat the odds of not only scheming and lying exes, but also overprotective family members, and well-meaning but nosey friends, you will love Carly’s latest foray into the world of love and drama.

Samantha Dare is preparing to walk down the aisle, marrying her business partner and a man that she has doubts about until she learns the truth from his own lips about his plans for her and his mistress. Determined to not be made a fool, she runs from her high-society wedding and is rescued by her oldest brother’s good friend—one she shared a hot kiss with years ago, but never really saw again. Dex Sterling had no idea when he headed toa business meeting one morning that he would suddenly find himself whisking the woman that he always considered “the one who got away” to a private getaway in the Caribbean to help her escape her “almost wedding”. Dex knows that he has to keep his hands off the vulnerable and hurting Samantha, but the more they are together the more he wants her, and she isn’t helping as she flirts and tries to seduce him.  But once they return to New York, all bets are off as Dex realizes that she isn’t as broken by her aborted marriage as some might think.  Working to build a new relationship soon might not be the smartest move, but both Dex and Samantha as determined to prove everyone wrong and finally have their chance at happiness now that there is nothing standing in the way of them having a relationship.  However, someone is determined that Samantha does not get her HEA and if they aren’t careful, they will lose their chance together forever.

I really loved finally getting to know the last of the very first in the long line of the Dare’s, the family that began it all and opened up a whole new world of characters and spin-offs that I have enjoyed for a while now.  The Original Dare family began with Robert Dare’s children (Dare to Love) and if you haven’t read them, I suggest you run out and start them immediately, but I digress.  Samantha is the last of the single children from that large not-so nuclear family and she has lived an interesting and anything but sheltered life, but her siblings and mother have always been a support system while also being overprotective enough that she fears letting them down.  That fear of failing has made it hard for her to reach out when she makes mistakes, but Samantha learns through her relationship with Dex that sometimes its ok to admit we need help to solve our bigger problems. I loved seeing Samantha interacting with her siblings and her best friend, she was sassy, smart, savvy, and sensitive to the needs of others, but never let herself be walked on.  She stood up for herself and her confidence barely wavered even when she was angry enough to spit, but she certainly reached out and took the hand (Dex’s in this case) that was there to rescue her.  Dex was the sexiest KISA I have seen in a while.  While his version of armor might have been a sexy suit, he wore it with an aplomb that made any woman pant, he was loving, sweet, caring but strong, dependable and smart enough to know not to get between a woman and her problems, instead he stood beside her and supported her.  I loved seeing Dex as he shared the story of his past and how he became a Sterling, loving and supporting his second family when he had never been shown that from his bio family.  It is obvious that he has a lot of love to give and that he will always be there for Samantha and that the two of them will make a great bridge between two large families.

Just One More Dare is the perfect story to remind you that even in the midst of large supportive families we can sometimes feel inadequate in certain ways, finding ourselves adrift, but reaching out and finding that support is the most important feeling.  I loved the feeling of family togetherness, defense, and love that is always found in Carly’s Dare and Sterling stories and seeing it together all in one was masterful.  Samantha is a Dare through and through; loving, protective, sassy, smart, and willing to lay down her life for those she loves, Samantha will do whatever it takes to keep her family and friends safe and happy, and when she loses her heart to Dex there is no doubt that he will be her everything.  Dex is the most beautiful of alpha males, because even when he manages to make a dumb mistake, he can solve it; I loved watching him work through his fears and worries about building a relationship with Samantha until finally realizing he wasn’t willing to lose her a second time, no matter what it costs him.  The heat that flares between these two is unquestionable and even when they are trying to hide their love from others or even themselves you can feel the passion between them.  I am dying for the next book in the series and cannot wait for find out which Sterling sibling will lose their heart next, but I know whatever happens, Carly will blow our minds and it’ll be a heartbreaking and ultimately fulfilling story.

*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.


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