Review: Handle With Care by Helena Hunting

Handle With Care by Helena Hunting
Published by St. Martin's Paperbacks on August 27, 2019
Pages: 300
Format: ARC
Genres: Romantic Comedy


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The next book set in Helena Hunting's hilarious and sexy world of Shacking Up!

For the last few years, Lincoln Moorehead has been working for non-profit organizations around the world. When his father suddenly passes away, as the eldest son, Lincoln reluctantly returns home to New York City to inherit the family business--much to the chagrin of his younger brother, Armstrong. What he doesn’t expect is that he’s been assigned a handler, a woman who he finds extremely sexy but frustratingly annoying.

Wren Sterling has a goal: to start her own children’s charity in honor of her sibling that died when they were young. But she lacks two important things: the money and the connections. So when Frederick and Gwendolyn Moorehead hired her as a “handler” to deal with their youngest son’s various indiscretions, she accepted, no questions asked. With Frederick’s sudden death and Lincoln’s return, Gwendolyn makes her a new offer: “handle” both of her sons short term, and she would double her pay and introduce her to all the right connections to help get her charity started.

Lincoln and Wren butt heads in the beginning, but soon their relationship progresses from professional to physical and becomes one of attraction and mutual appreciation. As Wren helps Lincoln adjust to being back in the corporate world, they discover that Frederick had a lot of skeletons in his closet, ones that his mother never expected would be revealed. But Gwendolyn has damning information in her possession—information that would wreck Wren’s family if she can’t stop Lincoln from digging further into his father’s secrets.

So far, 2019 has been a year of underwhelming reads for me. I was stuck in somewhat of a book slump, but thank goodness for Helena Hunting. Handle with Care delivers the kind of entertainment I was craving.

I find brains and confidence to be wildly appealing in female protagonists, and Wren is sharp as a tack. Nobody is a bigger PR nightmare than Armstrong but she handles him with ease. Lincoln, while not a liability, is gruff and stubborn and proves to be a bit of a challenge for Wren. It makes breaking down his defenses more satisfying. I got a kick out of mountain man Lincoln’s forced makeover.

I love the way Wren takes charge of things both in and out of the bedroom. Together, she and Lincoln are fun and sexy. They are well matched in wit and intelligence and they share a passion for philanthropic work. Hallelujah for a man who respects women and doesn’t play games.

There is a lot going on in the plot and it may be overwhelming for some, but I appreciated the different aspects. The biggest weakness in the story is Armstrong. He is too much of a caricature to be believable. If his obnoxious and sexist behavior weren’t so over the top, he would be less of a one-dimensional, creepy character. I also think the ending is too rushed. These drawbacks didn’t stop me enjoying Handle with Care, though, so hats off to Helena Hunting for the pick-me-up.

Handle with Care is part of the Shacking Up series, but it can be read as a standalone.

Recommended for fans of:
Strong heroines
Makeovers
Lipstick
Romantic comedy

 

* I received an early copy to voluntarily read *

Read Chapter One of Handle with Care

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