A is for Alpha Male: Laurel Ulen Curtis

by - Tuesday, November 12, 2013

A is for Alpha Male
Laurel Ulen Curtis
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I’m Haley Whitfield, and I recently had the ingenious idea to enlist my mother, Allison, as my kick*ss sidekick and set out on a road trip.

This road trip wasn’t to be just any road trip, but a very special one indeed. An adventure with an acutely specific purpose-- to find our other halves. The peanut butter to our jelly. The i to our Phone. The stripper to our pole.

If our romantic desires were a personal ad, they would read something like this.

** Two sassy women (Ages twenty-seven and forty-nine respectively--Ouch. Okay, ages twenty-seven and thirty--with nineteen years experience-- respectively) seeking Alpha Males to love us with zeal and kiss us with skill. Gorgeous face and sexy, tattooed, hard body a must. If you aren’t a dangerous bad*ss with the x-rated skills and virility to match, don’t bother. Must be willing to protect us from danger, value our quirkiness, and keep your mouth shut when said quirkiness is what leads to said danger. Momma’s boys named Dan Smith need not apply.**

I know. It’s a bit wordy. In fact, it would probably cost a fortune. Luckily, we’re not ready for the personal ad. We’re not that desperate...yet.

This is my story.

Where were all the Kristen Ashley alpha males? I wanted one. For each of us.

Twenty-seven year old Haley and her young at heart mother Allison are tired of dating losers. So they decide on a spontaneous road trip in search of alpha males likes the ones their favorite Kristen Ashley books. Yes, those perfectly bossy, sexy, protective, delectable, alpha males that we all love. They even make an alphabetical list of all the qualities they need to meet. Haley and her mom are a bit daring, a little crazy, and whole lot of fun. They are strong, independent, and sassy. Their interactions were completely outrageous and fun. 

See, Allison is one of the best kind of people. One hundred percent pure of heart, her every intention good. I'm a horse of a different color. I'm mostly good-hearted, but there's also a jug full of cynicism and just a pinch of unabashed frigidity in there.

Haley's brother Hunter is their very own alpha in the family and he is the type of man that both of these women hope to find. He sends them off with this awesome advice:

“Have fun, and look out for Mom. Don’t let her get too Cougar-y, and try to reset her compass so it points somewhere other than asshole.”

Their first stop at the first bar brings Haley to Dan Smith (yes, not a cool alpha name). But he is sexy, charming, sarcastic, pushy and puts Haley right in her place. They are snarky and play off each other almost immediately.  He just gets her and all her crazy. He knows all about her trip and her search, and he uses it to taunt her more. But he is also supportive and I love that he does research on his own to learn the ways of alpha males. I adored his personality. Dan even introduces Allison to his Uncle Wade. A Tim McGraw look a like who is kind of an enigma. But certainly fits the hot alpha male requirements. 

I completely loved Haley and Dan together. Their rapport was witty, but they quickly had an underlying appreciation of each other, a friendship, and unresolved feelings. You never knew what was going to pop out of one of their mouths. They were fun, humorous, and lovable. They kept in touch as she and her mom continued their journey that just kept building their communication and connection.

“I feel like I've been waiting for someone like you… foul mouthed, brutally honest, and downright genuine… frustrating. God, you can be frustrating, but… well, I feel like I have been waiting for your friendship for most of my life.”

Danny and I fit. Our puzzle pieces were so f***ing perfect together, it was like I had carved them myself. He let my rants and ramblings run wild, only reining me in when absolutely necessary. 

As their adventure continues, there are more new males to meet, mishaps, arguments, crazy stunts, fun, and self discovery. And Just when you think things are going to go one way, there are twists and turns, surprises, and secrets. But it all  finally comes crashing together. 

Does one or both of these wild women find their perfect alpha male? And if she does, does she get to keep him?

Tammy and I have both said frequently that we would love to take off in search of Katie Ashley alpha males (not sure how well that would go over with our husbands and kids). But the whole idea is fantastic. I loved the references to the Kristen Ashley books and characters. It is funny to see characters in a book talking about other characters like Tammy and I do...like they really exist somewhere in Colorado. lol. I really enjoyed the over the top crazy, sarcastic, funny dialogue. This book is fast paced, unique, and quirky. And it just made me laugh, smile, swoon, and gave me warm fuzzies. But don't get me wrong, there was also drama, troubled pasts, and a little angst too. I have enjoyed all of Laurel Ulen Curtis' books and I think she has an easy flowing, engaging writing style, good character development, and often brings in plot twists and turns that keep it interesting. This was no exception, but this one was definitely more of a romantic comedy than her others. This story is satisfying as a stand alone, but she plans on writing a novella in male point of view and another book about one of the characters. 

Thanks to Laurel Ulen Curtis for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review. 



 Laurel Ulen Curtis Facebook/Twitter/Goodreads


Laurel Ulen Curtis is a 26 year old mother of one. She lives with her husband and son (and cat and two fish!) in New Jersey, but grew up all over the United States. She graduated from Rutgers University in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology, and puts that to almost no use other than forecasting for her friends! She has a passion for her family, laughing, and reading and writing Romance novels.

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