Kissed by Her by Chelsea M. Cameron is an enemies-to-lovers romance set in an idyllic small town in Maine.
Layne’s job as a nanny for twin eleven-year-olds keeps her busy and on her toes. She’s looking forward to spending the summer reading all the books she can get her hands on while lounging by her boss’ fabulous pool and hanging with her best friends.
What puts a damper on her plans is Honor Conroy, her boss’s new assistant. Honor is icy, rude, and extremely uptight and it’s obvious to anyone with eyes that Honor is trying to get her claws into him and become his second wife.
Honor gets under Layne’s skin like no one else and the twins keep pulling immature (but hilarious) pranks on Honor to (hopefully) drive her away. Unfortunately, Honor is made of stronger stuff. Then, Honor invades Layne’s book club and Layne can’t handle it any longer. When she confronts her, Honor plants a steaming kiss on Layne that completely rocks her world.
As Layne peels back the layers to reveal what’s underneath, Honor might be exactly who Layne never knew she needed.
Writing
I’m not sure how this is my first Chelsea M. Cameron novel, but I’m sure glad I picked up Kissed By Her, the first book in the Mainely Books Club series. It’s a really fun intro to the series and does a great job setting up future books. In Kissed By Her, readers get Layne’s first-person point of view, which is honest, witty, and real. This account works well because Layne’s distaste for Honor is apparent and her thoughts, feelings, and emotions are right there for us to absorb. This also helps to add to the enigma that is Honor Conroy. The story moves quickly with charming dialogue and breezy descriptions.
Layne and the twins are convinced that Honor is trying to wrangle Mark to marry her. But there honestly isn’t any showing of this, just a lot of hearsay which made it a bit difficult to believe. Also, both Layne and Honor unfortunately had to deal with less-than-stellar parents which caused trauma for both of them. While their backstories are discussed, I do feel that more pieces could have been added to make the story deeper.
Pros And My Favourite Parts
In the beginning, Layne almost goes out of her way to show Honor how much she doesn’t like her. She lets it be known that she’s very unsupportive of the fact that Honor is trying to wrangle Mark for herself. She makes assumptions about Honor and allows her thoughts to downward spiral into a negative space. Despite this, she’s a really positive and upbeat character who loves her job, the twins and their parents, her friends, and her brother. She’s a fixer who goes out of her way to make the people she loves lives easier.
As Honor began to let her guard down it’s apparent that there is a vulnerable woman underneath the icy exterior. She unfortunately has a bitch (Layne’s words not mine) for a mother whose boisterous opinions bled into her daughter but fortunately, her growing feelings for Layne help her see that letting people in and trusting isn’t a detrimental experience. Getting to know the woman behind the facade is really special and I honestly just want to give Honor a hug while whispering that she deserves all the goodness life has to offer, including love.
I absolutely adore the twins, Riley and Zoey, whose energy, mischievousness, and mature immaturity enhance this story. Their relationship with Layne makes my heart so happy. Their divorced parents Mark and Sadie’s will-they/won’t they chemistry is so adorable and the boat ride is amazing!
Both Layne and Honor took on the parent roles for their younger siblings in order to provide stability which they weren’t getting from either set of parents. I feel that this helps to bond the two women further.
Layne’s relationship with her friends Joy and Sydney is a safe place for Layne to vent and give and receive advice. I look forward to reading their stories soon.
Two words: Slutty Brownies (you’ll just have to read the book to find out what in the world I’m talking about!)
Heads Up
Emotional abandonment and manipulation by parents during formative years are underlying themes in this book.
The Conclusion
Kissed By Her by Chelsea M. Cameron is a breezy, witty, and fun enemies-to-lovers romance which proves that you should never judge a book by its cover. Speaking of covers, this book’s cover is such an adorable representation of this sweet story. Layne’s first-person point of view takes us on a ride through a summer filled with opinions, pranks, and tons of swoon-worthy occurrences. This book is a perfect accompaniment on a vacation to the beach, mountains, sea, or city. So sit back, grab your copy, a brownie, or a bowl of ice cream, and just enjoy. You’ll be glad you did!
Excerpt from Kissed by Her by Chelsea M. Cameron
“What kind of books did you think were my kind of thing?” she asked with an arched eyebrow.
“Ones on how to marry your boss?” I asked and the playfulness was gone in a second.
Honor leaned close to me and I could see the rage ignite in her eyes.
“You—” she said, but she didn’t continue.
“Me?” I said as I moved closer to her, as if drawn to her inner flame.
“You,” Honor said and then I was almost knocked off my feet as she kissed me. No, she didn’t just kiss me. Her mouth attacked mine. Almost as if she was angry at me and was punishing me with her lips.
The kiss shocked me, but then my brain registered that Honor was kissing me and I…I liked it. A lot. Her mouth was plush and firm and hot and delicious. I hadn’t been kissed in a long time, and for a second I forgot what to do, but then her tongue licked the seam of my lips and with a moan, I opened up and Honor Conroy’s tongue was in my mouth.
Honor Conroy’s tongue was in my fucking mouth and the world had gone completely bonkers. Before I knew what was happening, the kiss was over, and I was blinking my eyes open in a daze.
Honor stormed out of the bookstore without another word as I pressed my hand against my mouth.
Get It Online
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Series: Mainely Books Club
Kissed By Her
Enchanted By Her
Tempted By Her
Surprised By Her
Allured By Her
Charmed By Her
Bits and Bobs
ISBN number: 979-8355866938
Publisher: Indie Author
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Note: I received a free review copy of Kissed by Her by Chelsea M. Cameron. No money was exchanged for this review. When you use our links to buy we get a small commission which supports the running of this site
