Review: The Proposal - Katie Ashley

In the weeks following Aidan’s betrayal, Emma has tried her best to move on. Ignoring his countless texts, voice mails, and flowers, she isn’t sure she wants to be won back by him. But Aidan isn’t going down without a fight—especially not until Emma lets him reveal the secret of his past that caused him to be so commitment phobic.

But fate intervenes when premature labor forces Emma on strict bed rest for two weeks. Aidan steps forward with a shocking proposal. To prove his love and commitment for her and their unborn son, he will take a leave of absence from work to care for her around the clock. Vowing to guard her heart, Emma reluctantly agrees.

While she is touched by Aidan’s attentiveness and tender loving care, Emma is thrown for a loop by the amorous attentions of ER doctor, Alpesh “Pesh” Nadeen. Pesh is everything Emma could ever want—successful, stable, and ready to settle down and be a husband and father. Pesh wants nothing more than to win Emma’s heart, but she is not sure she’s able to give it.

Her heart may still belong to the very man who broke it—the one who is so desperately trying to win her back.

The Proposition Series:
The Party (Free Short Story)
The Proposition
The Proposal
The Pairing

Visit Katie Ashley's website for more information

Review:
Emma was devastated by Aidan's betrayal and has spent the last few weeks trying to move on with her life and forget about him. Aidan isn't taking no for an answer though and has continued to try to talk to her and explain his actions. Things are forced to a head between them when Emma goes into premature labour and is forced to take complete bed rest for the sake of the baby. Aidan volunteers to take time off of work to care for her and Emma has no choice but to accept his offer. Can Aidan persuade Emma that he has changed and get her to forgive him or will the attentions of handsome doctor Pesh convince Emma that it really is time to move on?

I really loved Emma and Aidan as a couple in the first book, they had such great chemistry and I enjoyed watching them fall in love. I was incredibly annoyed at Aidan's actions towards the end of the story though so I wanted to see a lot of grovelling from him in this sequel. We finally learn a lot more about events in Aidan's past in The Proposal and it made his previous actions much more understandable, that didn't make me instantly forgive him but seeing him so open and honest with Emma about his feelings helped. I actually found myself more irritated with Emma in this book which really surprised me. I found it pretty impossible to believe that a woman who was still in love with her ex and who was also heavily pregnant would even consider dating another guy, I didn't understand Emma's actions and I certainly didn't believe them so I lost the connection I had with her in the first book.

I couldn't for the life of me understand why Katie Ashley tried to add a love triangle to the story, it was completely unneeded and since it was so obvious who Emma would end up with I just felt like she was trying to manipulate us. This could have been so much better if it had just focused on Aidan trying to win Emma back and prove how much he had changed! Although Pesh was a likeable enough character I found myself disliking him because he was coming in between Aidan and Emma. I was actually annoyed when Emma went off on dates with him leaving Aidan at home alone and the whole thing left me feeling frustrated. I still love Aidan and Emma as a couple and there were some  really sweet and poignant moments between them but I didn't enjoy this book anywhere near as much as I expected to. I have found out that there will be a spin off story (The Pairing) where Pesh gets his own happy ending but I have to say I don't think it's one I'll be reading. I don't feel even slightly invested in his character so it seems pretty pointless.

I really wish the author had finished Emma and Aidan's story after the first book, we didn't need the drama caused by Aidan's actions and we certainly didn't need the forced triangle.

Source: Purchased

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Review: The Proposition - Katie Ashley

With her thirtieth birthday looming, Emma Harrison finds her biological clock clanging and the elusive knight in shining armor yet to appear. She’s running out of options, especially after her gay best friend backs out from being her sperm donor. Of course, there’s always a sperm bank, but Emma fears a donor mix-up might impregnate her with the spawn of Satan.

Resident company womanizer, Aidan Fitzgerald, is used to always getting what he wants, especially in the bedroom. When Emma spurns his advances at the company Christmas party, he's determined to have her no matter what it takes. After Aidan learns of Emma's predicament, he is quick to offer a proposition that will benefit them both. He will father Emma's child, but she must conceive it with him naturally. Not one for hook-ups or casual sex, Emma is reluctant to take him up on his offer, but his charm, coupled with her intense desire for motherhood, wins out.

Soon their baby-making sessions become more than just physical. Aidan can't seem to walk away from her while Emma begins to wonder if Aidan could be the one. But can Aidan leave his past behind to become the man Emma needs him to be?

The Proposition Series:
The Party (Free Short Story)
The Proposition
The Proposal
The Pairing

Visit Katie Ashley's website for more information

Review:
What Emma wants more than anything is a family, after loosing her fiancé several years ago she isn't quite willing to open herself up to the heartbreak of starting a new relationship. Her biological clock is ticking and her best friend had offered to be a sperm donor so when he backs out Emma is devastated. Seeing her dreams of a family disappearing in front of her she is forced to consider other options. Aidan is a playboy who is used to having women throw themselves at him, when Emma turns him down at the work Christmas party it just makes him want her even more. Then when he finds out about her predicament he offers to be her donor - but only if they conceive the child naturally. Emma is reluctant to take him up on his offer but she finds him very hard to resist and he is offering her the one thing she's always wanted. Can a relationship that starts off more like a business arrangement ever turn into something more serious?

I think I picked this book up at the perfect time, I was in the mood for something light and easy to read and The Proposition hit the spot. I found myself really liking both of the main characters, I could understand Emma's desperation to have a family of her own and the way she thought about things reminded me of conversations I've had with several of my friends. I'm not sure I know anyone who would go to the lengths she does to have a baby but if you ignore that and just go with the flow I think you'll enjoy the story more. Aidan is a typical playboy, he loves women but he has no intention of ever getting himself tied down. I liked how upfront he was about his desire and the fact that he doesn't make promises he can't keep and I'll admit that I found him sexy as hell. There was one particular point towards the end of the book when I really wanted to shake him though, he does something incredibly stupid and I was so angry about it.

That is the one major downfall of this story, I felt it could so easily have been wrapped up at the end of this book with a happy ending and that would have left me with a huge smile on my face. As it was we are faced with a cliffhanger thanks to a major event that seemed to be added purely to cause drama. As it goes I liked both of the main characters enough that I wanted to carry on reading their story so I've already read the sequel but now having read it I stand by my original thoughts that this would have been better off as a stand alone novel. Katie Ashley certainly has a way of writing believable and sexy romance but I was disappointed by the unneeded emotional angst and drama just to drag the story out into two books.

Source: Purchased

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Review: The Party - Katie Ashley

Coming off a break-up with his latest “friend with benefits”, the last thing Aidan Fitzgerald needs is a family hassle about his bachelor status. But after standing up as godfather for his great-nephew, Mason, that’s just what he gets at the Christening Party. Escaping the wrath of his father and sisters, he wants nothing more than to get to the company Christmas party. There he knows he can knock back a few stiff drinks and find some new no-strings-attached girl to take home for the night.

The last thing Emma Harrison wants is to attend another party—least of all one at work. After throwing the annual life celebration (for the anniversary of her fiancée’s death) with close friends, she’s finally gotten the courage to take matters into her own hands and become a mother. Convincing her slightly inebriated best-friend, Connor, to be her sperm donor was a lot easier than she thought, and all that’s left now is to start the process. But at her best friend and work colleague, Casey’s, insistence, she decides to make an appearance at the company Christmas party for her new boss’s sake.

Neither Aidan nor Emma could imagine what fate had in store for them at the party.

The Proposition Series:
The Party (Free Short Story)
The Proposition
The Proposal
The Pairing

Visit Katie Ashley's website for more information

Review:
Although The Party is technically a prequel to The Proposition I took the advice of other reviewers and read it after the rest of the series which I think was probably for the best. Although I do think you could read this first if you want to get an idea of Katie Ashley's writing style I think I enjoyed it more because I'm already invested in the characters. If this is your first encounter with the couple you probably won't end up with the best impression of Aidan but trust me he will really grow on you in The Proposition, he is much sweeter than you'd think after reading this!

The first chapter is like an epilogue for The Proposal and it was really nice to catch up with Emma and Aidan, this is the kind of romance I wanted more of in the second book! Of course being an epilogue that does mean it gives you minor spoilers for the series but I don't think anyone picks up a romance story not expecting the couple to be together by the end so I wouldn't consider it a major problem.

After the first chapter you take a step back in time to two years previously and get to see Emma and Aidan's first meeting. If you've read the series already you'll know that they didn't exactly hit it off immediately but it was amusing to see their first encounter and I had to laugh at the things Emma said to Aidan!

At 44 pages this is a very quick read but it does give a nice little extra background into the characters and was enjoyable to read. I always appreciate it when authors go out of their way to give their fans little extras so this free read is one I'd happily recommend.

Source: This was a free read available to download from Amazon.

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