Ms. Prestsater has given her readers exactly what they expect from her; a sweet, sassy and sexy as hell romance and the start of what promises to be another fantastic series. ~ Slick, Guilty Pleasures
Description:
Stay. Stay with me. Stay here. Stay close. Stay like this forever. Stay as happy as I am right here in your arms, always.
* * *
All I’ve ever wanted was to be loved, but if this is what true love is…I’m not so sure I want it anymore. It also makes me wonder if any of my memories of our once happy marriage are even real. Maybe I just conjured up the fairy tale in my head because I wanted…no…needed it so much. Who the hell knows?
“Molly just called to remind you about your book club meeting this afternoon.” He turns away. “I told her you’ve never missed a meeting and I doubt today would be any different.”
The door shuts behind him before I let a smile creep across my lips. Instantly, the hurt from this morning flees my mind and I feel nothing but giddiness. I have a book club meeting today, and let’s just say it’s not your everyday book club.
Sure, my husband may never truly love me again…but who needs love when you’re about to get an eyeful of hot firemen?
* * *
Tell Me You Love Me is the first in a four-book series called Fire Me Up—a sweet romantic comedy series about a group of sassy neighborhood women who have a serious love for steamy romance novels and sexy firemen. Lucky for them the local firehouse is just a few steps away and is in no shortage of hot firefighters to fill their wild imaginations.
Review copy provided for an honest review
Reviewers note: Author Julie Prestsater asked me to read the first two chapters of this book way 
back when she was first developing this series. I fell in love with the characters immediately but my one question to her was if the heroine was going to cheat on her husband which she assured me was not going to happen. That was a very long time ago and I’ve thought about these characters a lot since then so I was really happy to get an ARC for review so I could finally find out what happened next!
It is really hard being in a marriage that doesn’t work; this I know for a fact, so yes Tell Me You Love Me kind of hit home with me. While this is the first book in a new series and we meet a lot of characters I wasn’t overwhelmed, in fact I was completely intrigued by this zany and interesting group of friends and the firefighters they befriend that work at the station in their neighborhood. I loved that the women were part of a book club that met in a spot so they could watch the firefighters do their PT and that the guys became unofficial members of their club. The easy camaraderie between them all, the teasing, and the general affection was easy to see right away and I immediately felt like part of this group. I have no doubt the firefighters of Valley Creek Drive will be heating up book clubs around the world and producing some smokin’ hot book boyfriend fantasies as this series plays out!
Lizzy is one of those heroines most women can associate with; fighting her weight and trying not to let her husband’s hurtful words affect her and fighting a losing battle on both fronts. When she meets the new firefighter of the group Ryan, Lizzy feels things she knows she shouldn’t and notices that he doesn’t look at her with revulsion. There is no doubt that Lizzie’s self esteem has taken a hit and she’s not in a good place mentally or physically and she harbors a lot of anger towards her husband so I had to wonder at why she hadn’t made a move to leave; she wasn’t without skills and I came to the realization that she felt trapped and she just needed something or someone to set her free and feeling better about herself was the first step.
It is so easy to love a hero like Ryan; one that appreciates everything about a woman not just her dress size. I love that he admired things about Lizzie from the start like how she looked natural, didn’t wear a ton of make-up, let her hair down, and ran her mouth giving as good as she got. He enjoyed her wit and sense of humor as much as he lusted after her luscious curves. Most of all I loved that he didn’t let anyone talk bad about her or her weight including her ass of a husband, the one he didn’t know she had.
I really enjoyed watching the easy friendship these two fell into and the fact that the want was there on both sides from the beginning. Both Ryan and Lizzy made mistakes that cost them time they could have been together yet it was time they both needed to understand the feelings they had for one another and the way their former relationships impacted their future. This book spans over a year and while this couple does finally act on their attraction, it is a slow build up and I for one loved that it simmered slowly until the heat engulfed them and then it raged out of control. Pretty damn satisfying!
As with any book from this author the secondary characters played a huge role in moving the story forward and by offering support, help, and some sage advice when needed. From Lizzy’s friends and book club members, to the other firefighters, and to Ryan’s mom and sister they added so much fun and color to an already spectacular story.
One thing I have always appreciated about this author is her ability to write what I like to call “real” dialog; dialog most of us use and hear when we are with our friends and family. In Tell Me You Love Me, Ms. Prestsater has done that again as well as given her readers exactly what they expect from her; a sweet, sassy and sexy as hell romance and the start of what promises to be another fantastic series.
P.S.—Readers take note this author, through her characters, gives you a list of books she obviously has loved reading which is another reason to love her because she promotes other author’s work within her own!
4.5 Stars
Thanks for the review Slick this sounds pretty interesting
Great review, thanks for sharing! That’s pretty cool that the author promotes other author’s books like that… makes me want to check this one out even more 🙂
Your enthusiastic review has me interested in this. I am normally not into the marriage in trouble trope, but I guess this is more of a marriage finally over & time to move on trope, by the end!