Place Your Betts (The Marilyns) by Katie Graykowski
Contemporary Romance
September 20, 2013
Self Published

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “He’s the enemy, but he’s got a great ass. There’s no law against admiring it while we kick it.”

Betts Monroe left her small minded town and worked herself to the bone to become a famous country music star. When her grandmother dies and leaves her a letter, informing her that the son she was forced to give up for adoption is living with his biological father, Betts drops everything and and high tails it back to the town and the man who broke her heart.

Gabe  Swanson went from cattle baron to cattle rancher in the blink of an eye when his father gambled away the family fortune. Now it’s only his son and him left to carry on the family name…a name that isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. Gabe regrets nothing about his life, except a young woman whose heart he broke. When that woman blows back into town, demanding to see their son, all hell breaks loose.

Gabe and Betts may be on opposite sides of the fence, but the attraction between them burns as brightly now as it did sixteen years ago. Can Gage and Betts overcome their past to create a future or was that first cut just too deep to heal?

Fans of Jennifer Crusie and Susan Elizabeth Phillips will enjoy this humorous debut contemporary romance of lost love and second chances playing out under the star struck eyes of a small southern town. A classic trope of young love that was brought under by the manipulations of family. Unplanned pregnancies, misunderstandings, smoking hot chemistry, a scaredy cat bull named Buttercup, and a lycra wearing grandmama will leave you laughing and sniffling just a little as you watch two former lovers try to find away to forgive each other and themselves. Fun snarky dialogue keeps the story flowing along at a steady pace. Multiple plot lines keep you entertained; merging together towards the end to provide a worthy conclusion for our couple.

Heavily character driven, the star of this book is Betts Monroe and her fun loving, no boundaries, sidekick mama. I absolutely adored those two. Lord have mercy. The two of them would get to going and I would laugh my fool head off.

Mama picked up on the second ring. “I’m kinda busy right now. Can I call you back?”

“Nope. This is an emergency. I need a chainsaw and…” Betts’s stomach growled, “a large Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Blizzard—”

“Are we having a party? Why didn’t you tell me? I’ll grab some wine too. Something dry and red. Red always goes well with mayhem and destruction.” Mama hung up.

Graykowski had the perfect blend of snarky fun conversation without oversaturating the book in one liners. Betts is a solid  presence in here. Her backstory is heart wrenching and there were two people in her life I wanted to slap the ugly out of. I liked that Graykowski doesn’t make Betts larger than life or the perfect heroine. She’s made mistakes and paid a heavy price for them but she doesn’t allow herself to stay mired in the past.

“It doesn’t matter. I take full responsibility for my mistakes. I should have seen the writing on the wall. Not taking my phone calls or answering my letters was a pretty clear indication of your feelings. Love makes you blind and, in my case”—she laughed, but it sounded hollow—“stupid.”

Gabe  was just as strong willed and likable. He gives as good as he gets and some of his “gives” will leave you giggling. In the beginning, I didn’t like him and didn’t want too. After reading how he handled the situation with Betts when she announced she was pregnant; I wanted to choke him. He’s cocky and  acts a bit like a martyr. When the whole story is revealed, especially what Betts did after he walked away, he realizes he knew nothing and his hatred was misplaced. I personally think Betts forgave him way too quickly for somethings. Sometimes, “I’m sorry,” isn’t enough.

Everything he’d believed about Betts had been false, and all the years of hatred seemed like a huge waste of time. She’d had to make all the hard choices because he’d been a coward.

The journey our couple takes is sexy, humorous, and heartbreaking. They were both horribly manipulated by their families and spent many years hating each other for the lies told to them. The chemistry between Gabe  and Betts is HOT and is made hotter by their innuendos and negotiating. Lust and snark makes for some wild and steamy times as these two bicker and flirt their way back into bed and each others hearts. Though their relationship starts out rocky, they each harbor resentment over past issues, it progresses at a reasonable pace which is helped out by their attitudes. Bett’s isn’t emotionally broken so she never plays the victim card and Gabe  isn’t a domineering jerk, hell bent on making Betts pay for presumed mistakes. It was nice that the usual over the top misconceptions weren’t made a main focus in this installment. I enjoyed watching Gage and Betts get to know one another again as adults.

“Is name-calling part of your master plan to get me into bed? I have to tell you, it isn’t working.”

Well developed secondary characters round out the storyline and add depth, good old southern wisdom, delightful snarkiness and humor to the story. The four churches and their stalking was a trip. I love watching Tom get to know his mother and find his own romance. Betts mom will keep you stitches. She may march to her own drum but she loves her daughter and will take out anyone out who even tries to hurt her.

“I’m right here if you need me.” Mama called out. “Just holler and I’ll come running, swinging my bat first and asking questions later.”

We don’t see much of Betts best friends but from what you learn, they always have her back.

The main conflict is resolved in a predictable fashion as Gabe and Betts learn exactly what happened sixteen years ago and are able to work beyond it. Various smaller storylines also wrap up with little fanfare. Though I felt the ending came a little too fast and easy, I enjoyed the overall journey. There were a few things that I felt didn’t develop quite as well as they could; the role Betts grandmother played and I was curious as to why Gabe  never contacted Betts later on in life.

Place Your Betts is delightfully funny sentimental story that is just the thing for those looking for a lightweight and engaging romantic contemporary brimming with laughter, love, and a healthy dose of lust. I do believe this will be a series as Ms. Graykowski seems to be working on book two, Lucky In Love, which is based on one of Betts best friends.  I look forward to reading more by Ms. Graykowski.

Rating: B-  

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