Tuesday, April 19, 2016

Dirty (Dive Bar #1) by Kylie Scott

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The last thing Vaughan Hewson expects to find when he returns to his childhood home is a broken hearted bride in his shower, let alone the drama and chaos that comes with her.

Lydia Green doesn't know whether to burn down the church or sit and cry in a corner. Discovering the love of your life is having an affair on your wedding day is bad enough. Finding out it's with his best man is another thing all together. She narrowly escapes tying the knot and meets Vaughan only hours later.

Vaughan is the exact opposite of the picture perfect, respected businessman she thought she'd marry. This former musician-turned-bartender is rough around the edges and unsettled. But she already tried Mr. Right and discovered he's all wrong-maybe it's time to give Mr. Right Now a chance.

After all, what's wrong with getting dirty?




Let me count the ways Dirty is magnificient:

1.   It’s a spin-off of the riotously funny and seductive Stage Dive series featuring a   cast of new and recurring characters.
2.   It features another formidable heroine.
3.   It has another hot and sexy guy.
4.   It’s witty and hilarious.
5.   It’s about family.

Lydia, a runaway bride, finds herself hiding out in a bathtub in a stranger’s house reassessing where her life’s at and how it got to be that way. In walks the stranger and can we say awkward?  Vaughan is the hot guitarist in a band that is on the verge of breaking up. He, too, has some mulling over to do about his future. Now for any of us, finding a complete mess of a stranger in our bathtub would warrant a quick phone call to the police in addition to a near-heart attack. Not in this world. And thank goodness for that! Lydia and Vaughan strike up a bizarre alliance that’s comforting and at the same time blurs the line of friendship and lust. It’s a strange time for both of them and it’s rather nice to have a new person far removed from their own world to lean on. The only catch is to not get attached because neither knows where they’re headed.

Scott once again delivers witty banter and hysterical moments. Lydia is quite self-aware and Vaughan exudes sex appeal. The chemistry between these two is something else! I do feel that Dirty has a different tone. Set in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, this is far away from the distraction of touring and fame which makes it an interesting change of pace from the other series. Family ties play a big part in this story particularly with Vaughan, and Lydia is lucky enough to witness their strong bonds. I love how she is accepted into the fold at a time in her life when so much is uncertain, and she has to set new plans to replace the previous ones that fell apart. Lydia isn’t the only one dealing with issues though. Vaughan is reluctant to address the things that are weighing on him. And even though they barely know each other, Lydia’s straight-forwardness is exactly what he needs even if he may not like it. 

If I haven’t mentioned it before, Kylie Scott is a goddess. I don’t know where she comes up with this stuff. Really. I suspect she has a treasure chest of biting comments, one-line zingers and endless funny anecdotes at her disposal because she keeps coming up with brilliant stuff. After reading Dirty I know that I will love this series just as much as I do her Stage Dive series. So yes, you should get dirty, too! 

~ Bel


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