This is the book I waited for yet the one I worried about. Cletus is by far my favorite. Jennifer is the perfect complement to the silent killer that is Cletus Win
Disclaimer: I am an AVID Penny Reid fan. Even novels which have premises I don’t typically enjoy, I love. But when Penny stated she was going to write a novel with Cletus as the romantic interest, my anxiety shot through the roof. This is Cletus. This is the man larger than life, but shrouding himself in a hill Billy guise. He is the man with immense covert machinations, but a bigger sense of justice driving them. In essence Cletus is what all of us wishes we could do (the ego of our psyche). So, his romantic interest also, would have to be larger than life. What woman could tame Cletus?

I don’t want to go into too much detail because I don’t want to post any spoilers, but this book baffles me in excellent ways.
How’d that happen? - How did I go from enjoying Jennifer (the heroine) to being annoyed by her, to smirking with her, to befriending her all within the first 1/3 of the book. And from that point on, I kept on loving her. Seriously, that girl kept on getting better.
This book is epic, like EPIC - Right when I thought I knew where the book was going, it transformed into something I wasn’t expecting. And the great thing was, there was no stupidity. For the amount of plot and the character development, it really should have been Gone with The Wind long. It wasn’t, but yet, the story was so rich and fulfilling, like the most decadent cake ever. I want to go into more detail, but once again, I’m not spoiling it for anyone.
All in the family - When some authors write a series, it’s almost a chore to read because they re-introduce couples, or make their entrance into the story seem forced, like the Seinfeld finale. With Beard, it flowed, and more importantly, the secondary characters added so much richness to the plot. You have to love a family who enjoys fine sausage, and shares their sausage with the community.
Geeky Heart - I love stories where I feel I grow as a person, and Jennifer is the Janie kind of nerdy who makes the ride fun. She is more than she appears. She has depth and skills no one knows about. This is a story about looking beneath the surface, breaking out of comfort zones, owning who you are, and finding your tribe. Ms. Reid, I adore your work for every bad day I have had this summer your words have given me a smile.

So, in summary, I loved it. It is Cletus-worthy, which is saying a lot.
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While Jethro/ Sienna is still my favorite pairing in this series, I absolutely loved Cletus' shenanigans and learning more about what the Banana Cake Queen gets up to when she's not baking. They seemed like an unlikely pairing--timid Jenn, who's seemed pretty bland (outside of the kitchen anyway) in all her cameos in prior books with outspoken, witty, shifty Cletus? But I've learned not to question Ms. Penny when she says folks belong together, and I'm glad I gave it a shot! I love books where we see major character development, as well as when there are plot twists that keep me from being able to predict what will happen next. This book delivered on both fronts--Jenn at the end of the book seemed so much more three-dimensional, and Cletus remains the twist-iest of the twisty. Looking forward to more cameos from both these two in future books! ( )

Bellissimo, mi è piaciuto moltissimo così come i due protagonisti Cletus e Jennifer due persone diversissime ma del tutto complementari che mi hanno completamente conquistato.
Una serie che diventa ad ogni libro sempre più intrigante, avvincente e piacevole da leggere.
Adesso aspetto con curiosità di leggere anche degli altri tre fratelli Winston.
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Cletus and Jenn are definitely my favorite couple in this series because of how odd and endearing they are. Obviously, none of the books in this series are entirely realistic, but that's what's fun about them. And who doesn't love a beard? ( )

4,64 (romance)stars

(I know this is getting ridiculous, but I have a system for my ratings, okay?)

This book started off a week long romance readathon for me, and for a book I had pretty low expectations for, this was truly a well made choice. This book is pretty much a unicorn in the romance genre: a book that is essentially a slow-burn insta-love that doesn't want to make me gouge my eyes out.

Things I liked:

- Jennifer. She is such a sweet cinnamon roll I just want to protect at all cost. As a character she's completely different from my own personality, which might be why I liked her so much.

- The Winston family. I love how all the characters felt real in their own right, even though I started this series with book number three.

- I really liked the side of feminism Reid chose to thread here. Feminism is about women having a say in their own life, and choosing to be home maker is as valid a choice as any other.

- I liked how the relationship started off as a reluctant friendship and morpehd into more overtime.

- I appreciated that Cletus was patient without being patronising. He took into consideration Jennifer's situation without infantalizing her.

- In the end, everything was resolved pretty painlessly and without overmuch anxiety

Things I didn't like:

- The ending took it a little too far for me. You're twenty two years old, girl, there's absolutely no rush.

- Again, everything was resolved pretty painlessly and without overmuch anxiety

I will 100% be reading more from Penny Reid in the future. ( )