Book Review: Nuts (Hudson Valley #1) by Alice Clayton

Nuts
Hudson Valley #1

By:
Alice Clayon

Release Date:
Oct. 20, 2015

Publisher:
Gallery Books

Source:
eARC from Publisher in exchange for a honest review

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GR's Summary:

From New York Times bestselling author Alice Clayton, the first in a brand-new romance series telling the humorously sexy tale of Roxie, a private chef who gets a taste of love—but is it to stay, or to go? 

After losing almost all of her clients in one fell swoop following an accident involving whipped cream, private chef to Hollywood’s elite Roxie Callahan gets a call from her flighty mother, saying she’s needed home in upstate New York to run the family diner. Once she's back in the Hudson Valley, local organic farmer Leo delivers Roxie a lovely bunch of walnuts, and soon sparks—and clothing—begin to fly. Leo believes that everything worth doing is worth doing slowly…and how! But will Roxie stay upstate, or will the lure of West Coast redemption tempt her back to Tinseltown?

Lindy's Thoughts:

Alice Clayton's stories always put me in a good mood, carefree, fun, playful, and refreshing are words that come to mind when I think of her writing style.  As a huge fan of the Cocktail Series, I was excited and eager to dive in to Nuts, the first book in the Hudson Valley Series.  Nuts was crafted beautifully.  

Ms. Clayton showcased her talent for witty wordplay, sexy double entendres, and humor expertly woven throughout the entire story.  I found myself laughing nonstop as the main characters continuously found themselves in awkward situations and compromising positions.  I had butterflies fluttering in my stomach over the fun and flirty dynamic between the characters, and a nonstop case of the swoons, as far as the male lead made me fall in love with him.

Roxie Callahan has a passion for creating a beautiful meal.  She grew up in the small town of Bailey Falls, New York.  Roxie could not wait to be free of small town living, and went to culinary school in California.  Now, she is a personal chef for the wealthy and privileged upper echelon of society.  Roxie is focused on her career, and does not need the messy complication of "love" and a serious relationship in her life.  

She saw her single mother have several unsuccessful relationships when she was growing up, and doesn't think giving herself over to another person is worth it.  When her mother gets offered an opportunity to be on the reality show, The Amazing Race, Roxy is needed to run the family diner for the summer.  While she is hesitant to return to her hometown, her career is suffering in California, and she has nothing to lose.

While back in Bailey Falls, Roxie meets Leo Maxwell, who runs Maxwell Farms, the premier organic teaching farm in the Hudson Valley.  Leo is gorgeous and very drool-worthy.  All of the ladies in town lust after him, and he is the most sought after eligible bachelor.  Sparks fly between Roxie and Leo.  Roxie proposes a fling just for the summer, and these two become enamored with one another.  As Roxie begins to find her niche in Bailey falls, and fall in love with her hometown and Leo; what is she to do when the summer comes to an end?

Nuts was a breezy, light-hearted, fast-paced read.  Whenever I need a pick me up, Alice Clayton's stories are the perfect solution.  As a foodie, I loved all the descriptions of the sights, smells, and tastes of various ingredients.  I learned some interesting information about how organic farming works, and became inspired to create tasty meals and desserts.  I fell in love with the caring and connectedness of small town living, and enjoyed being introduced to Oscar, the sexy, brooding, tattooed dairy farmer, and Roxie's friends, Chad, Natalie and Clara.  I'm crossing my fingers that the sequel in this series will be about Natalie and Oscar.  Those two have off the charts chemistry. 

My Rating:

I give Nuts, by Alice Clayton, 4 Ravishing, Butterflies Fluttering, Comedic, Fun-Loving Stars!  Readers that enjoy a feel good romance, numerous sexy times, and witty humor, will be happily satisfied with the first book in the Hudson Valley Series!

Mikki's Review:

The first installment of Alice Clayton's new Hudson Valley series, Nuts, was like a breath of fresh air! I am a big romantic comedy fan and when it comes to romance, humour and sexiness, Alice Clayton always delivers! I absolutely loved her Redhead and Cocktails series so I knew that I was in for a treat with Nuts! 

Roxie Callahan is a chef for the rich and the famous. She's been living her dream in LA, but one little culinary incident leaves her without work. When she gets a call from her mom, Roxie makes the decisions to go back to her hometown to help her out with her diner. Roxie is not happy with the idea of going back home, but when she meets sexy and intriguing local organic farmer, Leo, her life is literally turned upside down. Roxie does not do relationships, but Leo's irresistible charm is making it difficult for her to simply live a summer fling with him. The more time she spends with him, the more he gets under her skin. Will she give Leo and Bailey Falls  a chance or will she go back to LA and forget about the wonderful summer she just had?

Roxie and Leo are absolutely sublime! They have this explosive, fun and sexy chemistry that will always leave you either fanning yourself, swooning or with a big smile on your face. This is the kind of couple you cheer for from beginning to end! They are so easy to relate to and their journey touched my heart.

I loved how Roxie fell in love all over again with her hometown. Cooking for the rich and famous is not a piece of cake. She's passionate about what she does, but when Leo enters her life she sees her career in a totally different light. He brings out the best in her and seeing fall in love with this wonderful man totally melted my heart! 

Leo is the perfect male character! He's sweet, loyal, sexy and confident. I loved him from the very beginning and I am positive that you will as well! He has a je-ne-sais-quoi about him that made me swoon non-stop! He always was there for Roxie and he did not push her into anything she was not comfortable with. You could see that he really loved her and wanted the very best for her.

What I love about Alice Clayton's writing style is that she makes you feel like you are a part of the story. Every single character in her stories are like your close friends and you want to be by their sides to live and feel their amazing life journey. Her supporting cast of characters in Nuts is phenomenal! You will love each and every one of these characters just as much as I did! The Hudson Valley series is off to a great start! I cannot wait to see what's next! I highly recommend this wonderful romantic comedy!

My Rating:

I give Nuts, by Alice Clayton, 4 entertaining, fun, sweet and sexy, irresistible stars!

Book Teaser:

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About Alice Clayton:

Novelist Alice Clayton makes her home in St. Louis where she enjoys gardening but not weeding, baking but not cleaning up after, and is trying desperately to get her long-time boyfriend to make her an honest woman–and please buy her a Bernese Mountain dog. 

After working for years in the cosmetics industry as a makeup artist, esthetician, and educator, Alice picked up a pen (read laptop) for the first time at 33 to begin a new career: author. Having never written anything longer than a grocery list, she soon found writing to be the creative outlet she’d been missing since walking away from the theater 10 years before. 

She has a great time combining her love of storytelling with a sense of silly, and she was shocked and awed to be nominated for a Goodreads Author award in 2010 for her debut novels, the first two installments of The Redhead Series–The Unidentified Redhead and The Redhead Revealed. Her latest novel Wallbanger is a return to her trademark comedic erotica, or funny smut, that Alice has become known for. 

Additionally, Alice loves spending time with her besties on Not Your Mother’s Podcast (check them out on iTunes) and has recently partnered with actor Greg Grunberg, blogger Brittany Gibbons, and actress Keili Lefkovitz on a new travel show that will begin filming in January. 

Alice enjoys pickles, Bloody Marys, eight hours of sleep and a good pounding.

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