Book Review Tour for Any Fin For Love by Petie McCarty (REVIEW & GIVEAWAY)……..

A woman coping with the loss of her father enters a fishing tournament, only to find herself paired with  the man who's been competing against her at every turn, with fireworks the result.  Keep reading to get a tempting taste of Any Fin For Love by Petie McCarty, along with my impressions of it, then learn even more about this book by visiting the other sites hosting this tour!  In honor of this charming small town romance, with a bit of suspense thrown in, make sure to fill out the form below for the chance to win a $10 bookstore GC too!

She could almost hear the fish laughing at her...

Cody Ryan’s father never missed fishing the annual Loon Lake tournament until his unexpected passing. So this year, Cody packs up her how-to fishing videos and her dad’s old johnboat and gives him one final entry.
Gage Connor needs some R&R away from his coast guard deployment catching drug smugglers along the Louisiana coast, so he borrows a bass boat from his buddy and heads to Loon, Alabama to do some fishing.
When Gage and Cody meet at Loon Lake, their attraction is immediate and intense—until the two discover there is only one boat slip left on the lake and they both need it, and there’s only one vacant hotel room left in Loon and they both want it. Thus, their competition begins. Both vow to keep their distance from the other to fight the temptation, but fate has other plans. The tournament pairing party picks the two-man teams and chooses Gage as Cody’s partner.
For two days. Alone on a boat. Working as a team.
Good things come to those who bait...

EXCERPT:

Double damn!
Gage looked over Lila’s head and saw Cody stomping toward the dock, a big Igloo cooler in her arms, fire in her eyes, and steam escaping from her ears. Okay, no steam, but she looked mad enough for some. He swallowed hard and tried to pry Lila’s arms free, but she was having none of that.
“Now you just hold still, cutie patootie,” she drawled, “and let little ole Lila give you my special good-luck hug.” She crushed her barely-covered breasts against his abdomen, causing the neckline on her tank top to droop almost to her navel.
Cody had reached the dock and stomped so hard he could feel the vibration in the boards. Her glare could singe the fins off an alligator gar, and Gage had Lila stuck to him like a tick. He was a sitting duck.
Cody looked even madder now than when she left to get the rest of her gear, which could only mean...
Wait a minute! She’s jealous.
Of Lila.
Cody’s glare deepened upon final approach. And Gage grinned for real.
Zeke Tumson, my ass. She likes me.
He stopped trying to struggle free of Lila and waited for Cody to get to the boat and the fireworks to begin. Lila felt his struggle cease and snuggled in closer, rubbing every inch of her breasts against his gut, then laying her cheek on his chest. A week ago, Lila’s antics might have elicited a very pronounced and noticeable reaction. Today—he glanced down to check—nothing. His gaze shot to Cody steaming down the dock. Had she done this to him?
“Mmmm,” Lila cooed and squiggled her body again, “good luuuuck.”
Cody marched mere steps away. When Lila purred, Cody hesitated for a heartbeat, made a sharp left, stepped down into the johnboat, and proceeded to hook up her livewell.
Gage waited a five-count, but Cody kept her head down and fooled with the tubing attached to the cooler. He knew he had to move. If he didn’t, Lila would be in his shorts any second.
Maybe he should let...Nope, bad idea.
Cody would push him overboard later, then drive off and leave him. Heck, she may already be planning that.
He cleared his throat to be sure Cody heard. “Thanks for seeing us off, Lila,” he said politely. No reaction from Cody.

“I didn’t come to see her off,” Lila sniped. “Just yooouu,” she cooed and rubbed her breasts against his gut again.
Cody missed it. She never looked up.
“All right, you get on back to your registration table, and let me get to my fishing.” Gage took Lila’s shoulders and physically set her back.
Still ignoring him, Cody finished with the livewell and picked up a fishing rod.
Lila batted her eyelashes. “I’ll be waiting when you get back, sugar. What say we have dinner tonight?”
No way would he answer that question. He just smiled and stuck a foot out to step down in the johnboat at the same instant Lila hooked her finger in his belt loop to tug him back.
Too late, Gage saw the butt end of Cody’s rod push off on the dock cleat, and the johnboat shot back the full three feet of loose bow and stern line.
His sneaker stepped into thin air, and he dropped like a rock.
Gage hit the water at an angle, and Lila followed him in, her finger still hooked in his belt loop.

MY IMPRESSIONS OF THIS BOOK:

When I first read the synopsis of this book I was expecting a lighthearted read full of humor and heart.  What I got was so much more as this book dealt with loss, empowerment, and exhilarating suspense...all wrapped up in a charming small town bow.  It was ultimately a satisfying story that pushed every one of my emotional buttons, a well-rounded tale that put a permanent smile on my face courtesy of a likable main couple and their crackling connection.

When readers first meet Cody Ryan they see a woman full of determination, dealing with the death of her father in the best way possible...by taking part in the annual Loon Lake fishing tournament, a tournament he never missed as it revolved around his favorite sport.  The only trouble is that she's woefully unprepared for the rigors of the tournament.  Though she fished with her father often she didn't really pay attention.  That doesn't stop her though as she forges ahead in participating in the tournament.  She's a strong-willed heroine who doesn't let anything stop her, being the first woman in the tournament had me rooting for her and made her even more determined to do well.  Being paired with the sexy man who's been challenging her at every turn adds an intriguing element to her being in the tournament, making her even more stubborn in her fishing plans.  He's a distraction she doesn't need but she can't help herself whenever she's around him in scenes full of sexual tension and a verbal tug of war that makes me smile.

Gage Connor is a Captain with the Coast Guard and is in town for a much-needed vacation at the behest of his best friend.  The moment he arrives in town he has a run-in with Cody, the first of many with each one becoming more crackling than the last.  It seems that when it comes to Cody, Gage knows just what buttons to push to get her attention focused on him.  Gage is an appealing hero but it takes a bit of time to truly get to know him.  He's nursing some wounds of his own and it's left him with trust issues which causes many roadblocks in his attraction to Cody as well as having him close himself off to the love that's right in front of him.  His appearance in town also brings with it danger, from drug dealers wanting what's (unbeknownst to him) hidden in his boat.  Their appearance leads to exhilarating scenes of suspense, surprising twists and turns, and a reason for Cody and Gage to truly work together.  These scenes brought the two of them closer together, had them working as one, to keep one step ahead of the bad guys.

Cody and Gage are a good match with both of them trying to work through pain from the past.  For Cody, honoring her father by entering the tournament was an empowering moment for her, one that made me really like her.  She knew she wasn't fully ready for the tournament but threw herself into it wholeheartedly.  She was determined to beat the men and their outdated notions.  In contrast, Gage acted out because of his pain, goading Cody every chance he got which frustrated me at times.  Once danger crept close though they worked together beautifully, pulling me in completely to their character growth.  Alongside this appealing main couple were a large cast of secondary characters, both good guys and bad, that were larger than life and left an indelible mark in the storyline.  First and foremost was Gage's friend Dougah Fortier, a charming and caring friend whose calls to Gage were laced with many words of wisdom.  He was a supportive and protective friend which comes into play later in the story especially.  The many denizens of this small town added not only color and charm, but twists and turns too.  Velma and Delma were the town's matchmakers and I found their actions endearing...as well as having them put a smile on my face.  Doc Taylor was the backbone of this town, with a story that wove through the facets of many people's lives.  His connection to Cody's father is a cleverly crafted part of the story and helps build a solid conclusion to this story.  Even the bad guys left an impression on me.  Zeke and Alvin were one of those unlikable pairings, not very nice to Cody, but the unexpected twist that befell them at the end of the story left its mark on me.  In a story of starting over, of working past the pain of the past, Ms. McCarty has crafted an entertaining tale...a battle of the sexes in a small town where unexpected danger rears its ugly head.  Readers will ultimately find much to like about this book while hoping for a return visit to this town and its colorful characters!

My rating for this is an A-

*I got this book from the author for review in exchange for my honest opinion.

AUTHOR INFO:

Petie spent a large part of her career working at Walt Disney World—"The Most Magical Place on Earth"—where she enjoyed working in the land of fairy tales by day and creating her own romantic fairy tales by night, including her new series, The Cinderella Romances. She eventually said good-bye to her "day" job to write her stories full-time. These days Petie spends her time writing sequels to her regency time-travel series, Lords in Time, and her cozy-mystery- with-romantic-suspense series, the Mystery Angel Romances.
Petie shares her home on the Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee with her horticulturist husband and an opinionated Nanday conure named Sassy who made a cameo appearance in No Angels for Christmas.
Visit Petie's WEBSITE or her FACEBOOK PAGE online.

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