Obtain Defying The Odds (Battered Hearts, #1) Conveyed By Kele Moon Shown In Edition

the Odds was the perfect book to start off the New Year!

I thoroughly enjoyed this emotional, endearing, fun, and heartfelt story.
The cast of characters were multidimensional, engaging, and fantastically quirky, The hero and heroine were adorkable! I couldn't seem to get enough of their fun dialogue and sizzling HOT chemistry.
I'm definitely looking forward to the next addition to this series,

Caution: There is quite a bit of descriptive violence in this book, as the hero is a heavyweight fighter.
 
Defying the Odds is an oldschool romance, What do I mean by that This book was written inback when there wasn't a ton of sports romance books to pick from.
There was a phase, aboutyears ago, where readers would claim books like this had too many themes that were overdone a surly guy who's a famous UFC fighter happens upon a downandout waitress who is running from her abusive exhusband.
She's clueless about who this guy is sitting at her table on a Thanksgiving evening, Her act of kindness sets in a motion a romance, Yet, this trope is a winning one and that's the reason why almostyears later it still captures readers interest.


I've spent the last two weeks with a book hangover and every book I've picked up just hasn't clicked with me.
I decided to give this book a try and I, for one, enjoyed reading this storyline, It made me smile because it made feel like when I first joined Goodreads and was reading romance books with my friends.
Sort of like a comfort food for the soul,

It's hard to believe but Ms, Moon is new to me author, I've had friends over the years sing her praises, I can now see why she's so popular, I've already got the next book loaded on my kindle,

"It felt like she had accidentally fallen into a relationship with a rock star, "

DEFYING THE ODDS is the first book in Battered Hearts series, This series is filled with UFC fighters, If you love sports romance, especially fighters than this is series is for you! Be in the octagon with Clay and also watching from the sidelines with Melody.


P. S. Currently.on Amazon: sitelink to/oHJkAtgt

sitelink
Follow Foxy Blogs at: sitelinkBlog sitelinkTwitter sitelinkInstagram sitelinkFacebook Sweet Giant amp Pumpkin Pie Stars!

sitelink

Awww! Well, I was smiling at the end so I think that's the sign of a good book.
Love Clay!!!!! And his story was so stinkin' cute!!

sitelink

So I read this series all out of order.
. . it's become a nasty habit of mine, I was going to skip this book altogether, because I was told it was just a quick, sweet read and not integral to the rest of the series.
HOWEVER, after reading the third book in the series, sitelinkCrossing the Line, I HAD to read Clay's book!!! This poor guy! He and Tabitha the heroine from Crossing the Line were best buddies as kids and both stuck together.
They had a huge thing in common, . . a terrible home life and parents that straight did not give a shit! So heartbreaking!! Clay is just a guy that takes what life handed him though.
He doesn't have a lot to say and he never complains about anything,

One Thanksgiving, he is perfectly content to be eating by himself at Garnet's own, Hal's Diner, when a new waitress decides that he looks lonely and attempts to cheer him up with a slice of pumpkin pie.


If Clay had a female equivalent, it would be Melody, Coming out of a terrible marriage with an ex that used to beat the crap out of her, she too has nothing to complain about.
She was brave enough to escape from her ex and as long as she was able to do that and gets to open her eyes every morning as far away from him as possible, she's happy.
Even though the chick's flat broke , has no heat, her shoes are falling apart, . . she's happy as a clam,

Her are Clay have this adorable little attraction and flirtation thing going to slowly starts to turn into a burning desire.

"If fairy godmothers existed, she'd have wished for a doover tonight, She didn't want a ball or a fancy dress she just wanted one night with Clay and damn the consequences.
"

Sadly, Melody can't make a home out of anywhere as she is always looking over her shoulder for her ex, so she doesn't think she'll be in Garnet for long.
Clay is the defending heavyweight UFC championship fighter and is training for a fight but, he is most interested in the sweet, shy little waitress from Hal's Diner.


sitelink

Ok, so because I read the other two books first, this book was such a huge treat for me!! Clay is a huge teddy bear on the inside and I so loved seeing this other side of him.
. . I just knew it was in there somewhere, But do not mess with his woman!! He was still a man of few words and he would get all shy on her at times with his words, but when he did open up to her, it was so damn romantic!! I'm a sap so I ate this shit up!!! LOL! The book is low on angst and even lower on drama.
It's just sweet and EXTREMELY spicy!!!!

sitelink

"Go ahead, " Clay's voice turned low and gravelly with sex, "Use it fuck it. It belongs to you own it, "

DAYUM these two burned up my iPad!!! The scene in Vegas up against to floor to ceiling windows HAWTTT!!!

sitelink

Could the author have done more here Sure.
. but I appreciated the fact that not every couple in the series has to have a crazy angsty story.
I think this mirrors real life more, Some couples have an easier go than others, To me, this also made for a really wellrounded series, You get the sweet and sexy book in this one, the fun and also very sexy one in sitelinkStar Crossed, and finally, the super angsty and emotional story in sitelinkCrossing the Line.


I loved Clay and Melody's story and I sooo love that Clay found his other half, lt

And, oh, . that part right at the very end with Wyatt and the potentially lucky pumpkin pie! Had me tearing up all over again! Absolutely LOVED this series!

On to the spinoff of this series next, Untamed Hearts.
Another one to my LOVVIT shelf, I loved everything about this book, The tender Hero, the downonherluck heroine, the blabber mouth wingman and most definitely the HOT smexings,

All were very yummy and my personal favourite was the shower sex, I cannot gush enough how scorching that was, Absolutely yummy!

Apart from that, there were many bleedingheart moments between Clay and Melody that I just couldn't believe that for a guy who made a living out of beating people up he was the UFC world champion, he could be so sensitive emotionally.
I loved him for that, thick neck and all,

It all started with the new waitress giving a pity pumpkin pi to a lonely complete stranger on Thanksgiving, who knew All you single ladies, take note.
Defying the Odds is the love story of a gruff heavyweight UFC champion with abandonment issues and a struggling waitress with an abusive exhusband.


Melody has no idea who Clay is, and what UFC is, She is working hard, trying to be strong, but also very tired, She is fearful and overwrought, Considering all these things and her dreadful past, it is weird how open and chatty she is, and trusts in Clay immediately.

That fighter had her feeling young and alive when shed felt wornout and beaten for so long She felt normal and womanly and blissfully free from her demons.

Clay is lonely, gruff, and unsociable, lives only for the fight, He is idolized, but without real relationships, except his two best friends, Wyatt and Jules, He is touched and stunned by Melodys honest interest in him,

It was more than her lush figure and beautiful smile, It was

her soul that called out to him, Being around her felt like coming home, He could smile around her, He could laugh and feel normal in a way he never anticipated with anyone,

Melody and Clay both are lonely, and are about quitting the fight: Clay literally, from his career, Melody figuratively, from her fight of hiding, struggling, being strong.


Plot
The beginning was nice, I enjoyed the elongated phase of longing for each other, But later everything was rushed, not only the events, but the emotions as well, Sometimes I felt I missed something, the descriptions were too long, and thoughts were repeated,
Justin, the exhusbands appearance was inevitable, and the way it was handled was the best part of the story.

The ending was great again, nicely frames the story,

All in all
It is a sweet well, sugary sweet romance, with a naïve but likeable heroine, with a rugged but tender hero, and great secondary characters.
The erotic scenes are mediocre for me I couldnt feel the sparks and passion, The story has its good features, but it is far from perfect,

“I never met anyone like you, Mel, First time I saw you I thought you were an angel, and Im still not all that sure youre not.
”

.stars!!

So this is what happens when you read a series backwards, This was supposed to be read first but once again, I jumped the gun and started sitelinkCrossing the Line first and then sitelinkStar Crossed before this one.
And because of that, this only gets,from me since this book is nowhere as intense as the other two,

I still liked it but after the emotional angst packed in bookand, this one was a little tame for me.
In hindsight, if I had started with this one first, I might give this a four, Oh well, I still love Clay though, Melody was okay. She got better as the series went on but here, she was just okay for me, When struggling waitress Melody Dylan gives a handsome, lonely stranger a simple gift she has no clue her life is about to take a drastic turn.


The stranger ends up being Clay Powers, a famous UFC heavyweight fighter, Clays large build and dangerous fists have always intimidated, People in his hometown keep their distance and Clay is fine with that, Everything changes when a new waitress at the local diner buys him a piece of pie on Thanksgiving, Touched by the gesture when its obvious she can barely afford to survive, her warm smile and lush body churn up powerful feelings that leave Clay wanting more from her than pie.


Melody is running from her past and the small, country town of Garnet is the perfect hiding place.
With an exhusband after her and scars from her abusive marriage etched deep, the last thing she expects is to fall for a man who makes a living with his fists, but she cant resist Clay or the tender connection they share.


Finding love in the most unlikely of places, the passion is undeniable, but Clay and Melody know their haunted pasts and unpredictable futures leave the odds stacked against them.


Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual situations, graphic language, and material that some readers may find objectionable: violence.
A sweet romance that brings two people with troubled pasts into each others live, Clay was adorable, so big, so strong, and very humble, Melody senses his loneliness and offers up an act of kindness that touched him more than she realizes, No one has ever done anything for him, who didnt want anything in return, Clays a wealthy, popular MMA fighter, and she doesnt have a clue who he is or what he does.
Shes been living a sheltered life and has escaped from an abusive marriage,

Considering the nature of the sport Clay participates in, ultimate fighting, and Melodys past history, it would seem like an unlikely pairing.
Clays a brutal man when hes competing in the ring, but hes the man of Melodys dreams outside of it.
Hes caring, kind and extremely passionate, and he ignites a fire in Melody that she never knew existed, They are explosive togetherPOW!

Its a quick read, with some interesting characters, good dialogue and very unique storyline.
The ending left me with the feeling that this isnt the last that weve seen of this delightful couple.


My Clay

sitelink