Laura’s Review of To the Max (Bowen, #3) by Elle Aycart

Synopsis

         Forensic accountant Annie Griffin has always suspected she's a bit jinxed, so when she finds herself 35, single, temporarily homeless, and pregnant on a technicality by a gigolo, her fears are confirmed.

          Adrenaline junkie and professional stuntman Max Bowen needs a house-sitter to watch after his pets while he's out of town. Annie needs a place to stay. Standard quid pro quo. No biggie. She can handle that, whatever hellhounds he owns. Until Max, the most sought-after bachelor in the county, comes back ahead of schedule and suddenly she's roommates with a 27-year old sex God who turns out to be so much more than what she expected.

          Max might have had the attention span of a humming bird on crack when it comes to women, but that was before Annie. Her quirkiness and sweet contradictions soon captivate him, not that she's inclined to give him the time of the day. With his reputation preceding him, he knows the odds are badly stacked against him, but he will do his best to prove her that he's what she needs, stuck-up socialite grandmothers, doomsday preppers, groupies, pregnancy hormones, and repentant biological dads be damned.

What I Loved

          First of all this series is freaking awesome, I have always loved the Bowen series and each book to just adds more and more to my love and this book was no exception.  After meeting Max in More Than Meets the Ink I couldn’t wait for him to be bitten by the love bug and it was awesome to finally see that happen.  There are no words to describe how much I love Max, he’s a hot, successful, smart man who loves to travel and adventure but a family man at the same time.  My heart grew for him even more in this story because he just adored Annie so much and totally bent over backwards to make her a part of his life and accept her no matter the circumstances.  His passion and understanding for Annie made this story so amazing and he made it easy for me become engrossed in the plot and never wanting all this to end.

          Annie has been dealt some pretty crappy circumstances, and throughout her life she’s tried to make the best of it.  My heart went out to her, because she just didn’t have the self confidence in the beginning to feel like she deserved a man like Max.  I loved that Max was able to bring out all the wonderful things Annie has to offer.  Even though she got pregnant by a virtual stranger she knows what she wants and knows how to get that.  Annie’s bad luck lead to some pretty funny scenes, which just endeared her more to me and I was able to fall in love with her very quickly.

Not So Much

      

        There really isn’t anything I didn’t love about this story.  I guess my main complaint was Annie’s constant questioning of her value.  I totally understood it in the beginning and even towards the middle because this all so very new for her.  But after a while I just wanted to yell at her to shut up and appreciate the extremely hot man that obviously loves you and accept it!  I love that Max had the patience to wait her out and fought her every time she tried to pull away but you got to be crazy to run away from a man like Max Bowen!

To Sum It All Up!

          I think what I love about this series so much is the fact that not only is there hot sex and romance but there are scenes that seriously make you laugh out loud.  No Bowen story would be complete without a little bit of mystery and action mixed in and To the Max was no different.  There was definitely some heart stopping moments that had my eyes bugging out of my head, but of course all is well that ends well and yes everything ended well!  Max Bowen is one hot stunt man, but he more than proved himself as being capable of so much more in this story.  He stepped up to the plate when he could’ve walked away and for that I will always love him.  This series is so awesome that I want to pack my bags and immediately move up to Massachusetts, which says a lot because I absolutely hate cold weather.  This story was heart felt, fun and adventurous and I cannot wait to see what happens next!