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Release Reviews: Sidebarred: Emma Chase

by - Sunday, April 24, 2016

Sidebarred (The Legal Briefs #3.5)
Emma Chase
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Expected April 24, 2016


Join Jake & Chelsea, Stanton & Sofia, Brent & Kennedy as they navigate the hilarious and heartwarming hurdles of love, life and the law in this final addition to the Legal Briefs Series.

There was a time when Jake Becker had it all together. He was controlled, driven, ruthless—in and out of the courtroom.

Then, six irresistible orphans and their heartbreakingly beautiful aunt crashed into his perfectly ordered life. They changed everything. They changed him. Now he’s a husband, an upstanding member of society, a father figure—a family man.
And he’s pretty damn good at it.

Sure, he has to referee sibling smackdowns, re-learn algebra, ensure his clients stay of jail, and keep his wife happy—but it finally feels like he’s got it together again....
So, of course something has to screw it all up.

It’s huge. Life-changing. Kind of terrifying.

And it will be the most amazing, perfect thing he’ll ever do.
I abso-freakin-lutely adored Jake and Chelsea's first book Sustained. This couple combined with the six crazy kiddos all with "R" first names and Jake's friends made it such a heartwarming, smile inducing story. So I was ecstatic to hear they were getting a follow up novella! This is a cute and funny extended epilogue focusing on Jake, Chelsea and their adopted kids, but also allows us to catch up with Stanton, Sofia, Brent, and Kennedy's progress.

This novella is full of good and fun stuff, but there are also some issues, concerns, and situations that they have to face adding some tension and emotional drama. So it gives them opportunities to continue to grow as a couple and as a family. It is a look into the organized chaos that is the combined Becker and McQuaid clan and how two people work to  manage their lives, kids, careers, and try to find time for their love life.

Fans of this series are going to enjoy visiting with this beloved family and getting more of Jake's point of view. I did not realize how much I missed them until I was right smack dab in the middle of all of the love and craziness again. Jake is one of my favorite book heroes and I adore each and every one of these characters, their banter, and their strong bonds. I have really enjoyed this Legal Briefs series and was thrilled to also see where the other couple's lives have taken them and see the kids grow. This is a humorous, sweet, sexy, emotional and swoony novella and we are left with the ultimate of HEAs. What a sweet treat!

 I was gifted a copy  by publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

When I saw there was a novella to complete the Legal Briefs series I was excited. When I saw that Jake and Chelsea were the main focus I was even more ready to get my hands on this short story. The Beckers and McQuaids were my favorite bunch from this series, so more time with this bunch was not a hardship.

Just when Jake Becker thought he had things figured out -- how to wrangle all six of the kids, balance life and work, and keep Chelsea happy -- life throws him a curveball that will change everything he thought he knew.

I love these two together. Jake is so sweet to Chelsea and the kids that I fell in love with him all over again. Watching them navigate the new waters they face, was entertaining as all getout. 

This was a quick read, as most novellas are, so it is hard to review with any depth. Suffice to say, I was grinning through much of this story, including the fantastically extended epilogue that fills readers in on where all 6 McQuaid kids found themselves as adults. I needed the light break this novella afforded my reading schedule and couldn’t have imagined a better way to wrap up the series for these 3 couples.

 I was gifted a copy  by publisher in exchange for an honest review. 
Chelsea sits beside me on the couch, facing me, her legs tucked, her pretty feet curled under her. Yes—Chelsea has pretty feet, okay? I never knew feet could be pretty—until I saw hers.

“So . . . that talk I mentioned before? We should probably have that now, while we can.”
I take a sip of my drink and nod. “Yeah—I wasn’t at all hoping you’d forget about it or anything.”
Her face slides into a grin. “Funny.”
I look back at her, straight-faced. “I’m a funny guy.”
When she doesn’t say anything for a few moments, I ask, “What’s up?”
Because now I’m actually getting concerned. My stomach tightens as I brace for whatever’s worrying her—and before I even know what I’m up against, in my head I’m already planning all the ways I’ll take care of it. Because that’s what I do—and I’m good at it.
But what she tells me next blows my fucking mind.
“I’m late.”
Two words—ten thousand thoughts exploding in my head at once.
I’m a big guy, six-five, 225 pounds of muscle. Guys like me, our voices don’t squeak. But at this moment, mine comes damn close.
“Like . . . for an appointment?”
Chelsea inhales deeply, then breathes out, “No.”

Emma Chase, New York Times bestselling author of the Tangled Series, returns with the first installment of the Legal Briefs Series. 

As a DC defense attorney, Stanton Shaw keeps his head cool, his questions sharp, and his arguments irrefutable. They don’t call him the Jury Charmer for nothing – with his southern drawl, disarming smile and captivating green eyes – he’s a hard man to say no to. Men want to be him and women want to be thoroughly cross examined by him.

Stanton’s a man with a plan. And for a while, life was going according to that plan.

Until the day he receives an invitation to the wedding of his high school sweetheart and mother of his beloved ten-year old daughter. Jenny is getting married — to someone who isn’t him.

That's definitely not part of the plan.

***

Sofia Santos is a city raised, no-nonsense litigator who plans to become the most revered criminal defense attorney in the country. She doesn’t have time for relationships or distractions.

But when Stanton, her "friend with mind-blowing benefits" begs for help, she finds herself out of her element, out of her depth, and obviously out of her mind. Because she agrees to go with him – to The-Middle-Of-Nowhere, Mississippi – to do all she can to help Stanton win back the woman he loves. 

Her head tells her she's crazy...and her heart says something else entirely.

What happens when you mix a one stop-light town, two professional arguers, a homecoming queen, four big brothers, some Jimmy Dean sausage and a gun-toting Nana? 

The Bourbon flows, passions rise and even the best laid plans get overruled by the desires of the heart.


A knight in tarnished armor is still a knight.

When you’re a defense attorney in Washington DC, you see first-hand how hard life can be and that sometimes the only way to survive is to become harder. I have a reputation for being cold, callous, intimidating – and that suits me just fine. In fact, it’s necessary when I’m breaking down a witness on the stand.

Complications don’t work for me - I’m a “need-to-know” type of man. If you’re my client, tell me the basic facts. If you’re my date, stick to what will get you off. I’m not a therapist or Prince Charming – and I don’t pretend to be.

Then Chelsea McQuaid and her six orphaned nieces and nephews came along and complicated the ever-loving hell out of my life. Now I’m going to Mommy & Me classes, One Direction concerts, the emergency room and am knee deep in a damn compost pit. 

Chelsea’s too sweet, too innocent and too gorgeous for her own good. She tries to be hard, but she’s not. She needs someone to help her, defend her…and the kids.

And that – that I know how to do.



Appealed (The Legal Briefs #3)
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Kim and Rachel's 4.5 star reviews and Tammy's 5 star review

When Brent Mason looks at Kennedy Randolph, he doesn’t see the awkward, sweet girl who grew up next door. He sees a self-assured, stunning woman…who wants to crush the most intimate - and prized - parts of his anatomy beneath the heels of her Christian Louboutins.

Brent has never let the loss of his leg in a childhood accident affect his ability to lead a fulfilling life. He sets high goals–and then he reaches them.

And now he has his sights set on Kennedy.

*******
When Kennedy looks at Brent Mason, all she sees is the selfish, Abercrombie & Fitch catalogue-worthy teenager who humiliated her in high school to join the popular crowd. A crowd that made those years a living hell. 

She’s not a lovesick social outcast anymore - she’s a DC prosecutor with a long winning streak behind her. Brent is the opposing attorney in her next case and she thinks it’s time to put him through a little hell of his own. 

But things aren’t exactly working out that way. 


Because every fiery exchange has her wondering if he’s as passionate in the bedroom as he is in the courtroom. Each argument and objection only makes him want her more. In the end, Brent and Kennedy may just find themselves in love…or in contempt of court.

Emma Chase
By day, Emma Chase is a devoted wife and mother who resides in a small town in New Jersey. By night she is a keyboard crusader, toiling away the hours to bring her colorful characters and their endless antics to life. She has a long standing love/hate relationship with caffeine.

Emma is an avid reader. Before her children were born she was known to consume whole books in a single day. Writing has also always been a passion and with the 2013 release of her debut romantic comedy, Tangled, the ability to now call herself an author is nothing less than a dream come true.

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