BIRTHDAY GIRL BY PENELOPE DOUGLAS

If you like forbidden romances where there is a significant age gap between the characters then you are going to want to pick up Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas. 

Rating:★★★
​Release Date: April 17, 2018
Page Number: 349 pages.
Genre: Forbidden Romance (Age Gap)
Series: None. Standalone. 
​Format: eBook. Kindle Unlimited.

From New York Times Bestselling author Penelope Douglas comes a new forbidden love story…

JORDAN
He took me in when I had nowhere else to go.

He doesn’t use me, hurt me, or forget about me. He doesn’t treat me like I’m nothing, take me for granted, or make me feel unsafe. 

He remembers me, laughs with me, and looks at me. He listens to me, protects me, and sees me. I can feel his eyes on me over the breakfast table, and my heart pumps so hard when I hear him pull in the driveway after work. 

I have to stop this. It can’t happen. 

My sister once told me there are no good men, and if you find one, he’s probably unavailable. 

Only Pike Lawson isn’t the unavailable one. 

I am. 

PIKE

I took her in, because I thought I was helping.

She’d cook a few meals and clean up a little. It was an easy arrangement. 

As the days go by, though, it’s becoming anything but easy. I have to stop my mind from drifting to her and stop holding my breath every time I bump into her in the house. I can’t touch her, and I shouldn’t want to. 

The more I find my path crossing hers, though, the more she’s becoming a part of me. 

But we’re not free to give into this. She’s nineteen, and I’m thirty-eight. 

And her boyfriend’s father. 

Unfortunately, they both just moved into my house. 

*BIRTHDAY GIRL is a stand-alone, contemporary romance suitable for ages 18+.

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Read my Book Review

Release Date: April 17, 2018
Genre: Forbidden Romance (Age Gap)
Actual Rating: 3 stars

I might be in the minority with this book... It sort of felt like a hot mess. You may be wondering why, and I will explain. Birthday girl is a new adult, forbidden romance. The heroine is a 19 year old collage chick who starts to have feelings for a much older man (he is 38 years old) which are then reciprocated. That doesn't SOUND like a mess, in fact, it sounds like a fantastic forbidden romance! Well, it could have been... But... Things got weird for me. What starts as a sweet and passionate romance between these two turned into something straight out of a porno. It was so weird to read. And don't get me wrong, I have read my share of sex scenes that practically steamed up my iPad, but the way the author made it seem sweet and passionate and then turned it into a downright pornographic felt weird to me. And in some instances, I was a little creeped out. This really sucked because I LIKED the hero, and then he become some sort of pervert. Maybe it's just me? I guess you would have to read it to find out if you feel the same or not. 

Anyway, I am done with my rant about that. With those feelings aside, I DO like Penelope Douglas's novels and I will continue to read them even though I was a bit disappointed in this one. This one in particular is a new adult, forbidden romance (age gap) and is quite angsty as it takes some time and speculation on the characters part. I think the author did a good job at bringing us this type of story although I would have preferred it to stay sweet if that is how she was trying to portray the relationship rather than going back and fourth with the dirty porn talk and the sweetness. I would have also liked to see a bit more fight between the father and son (c'mon, I would have FLIPPED if I was in their shoes) but can deal with how that came about as well. 

Would I recommend the book? Sure. Especially if you enjoy these taboo romances. However, be advised that some moments do come off a bit creepy...

★★★