This feature is for short reviews, reviews of books in a series where it might feel repetitive, or (as Michelle suggested) books I was too lazy to write a “real” review for. Today’s books make up the complete Big Rock Series by Lauren Blakely. I devoured them last year and never got around to reviewing them on the blog – so it’s about time! These are my quick (twitter-ish length) Goodreads reviews, so my immediate impressions (even if it is more than a year later).
Narrator Note: I listened to this entire series, which is narrated by Sebastian York. He’s a fantastic narrator and really added to the story for me! He sure knows how to deliver as sexy male voice, while still giving good female voices.
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #1
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on January 22, 2016
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 6 hours 5 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
It's not just the motion of the ocean, ladies. It's definitely the SIZE of the boat too.
And I've got both firing on all cylinders. In fact, I have ALL the right assets. Looks, brains, my own money, and a big c*&k.
You might think I'm an a*&hole. I sound like one, don’t I? I'm hot as sin, rich as heaven, smart as hell and hung like a horse.
Guess what? You haven't heard my story before. Sure, I might be a playboy, like the NY gossip rags call me. But I’m the playboy who’s actually a great guy. Which makes me one of a kind.
The only trouble is, my dad needs me to cool it for a bit. With conservative investors in town wanting to buy his flagship Fifth Avenue jewelry store, he needs me not only to zip it up, but to look the part of the committed guy. Fine. I can do this for Dad. After all, I’ve got him to thank for the family jewels. So I ask my best friend and business partner to be my fiancée for the next week. Charlotte’s up for it. She has her own reasons for saying yes to wearing this big rock.
And pretty soon all this playing pretend in public leads to no pretending whatsoever in the bedroom, because she just can’t fake the kind of toe-curling, window-shattering orgasmic cries she makes as I take her to new heights between the sheets.
But I can’t seem to fake that I might be feeling something real for her.
What the fuck have I gotten myself into with this…big rock?
BIG ROCK is a standalone, dirty romance novel written from the guy’s POV by NYT Bestselling author Lauren Blakely…
I really enjoyed this book and I’m glad I finally got to it. I love both tropes – friends to lovers and fake relationships. At first I didn’t like the main character; he seemed too cocky, but as you get to know him it stopped feeling that way. I look forward to reading more of this series!
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #2
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on May 10, 2016
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 7 hours 55 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
Just call me Mister O. Because YOUR pleasure is my super power.
Making a woman feel ‘oh-god-that’s-good’ is the name of the game, and if a man can’t get the job done, he should get out of the bedroom. I’m talking toe-curling, mind-blowing, sheet-grabbing ecstasy. Like I provide every time.
I suppose that makes me a superhero of pleasure, and my mission is to always deliver.
BUT then I'm thrown for a loop when a certain woman asks me to teach her everything about how to win a man. The only problem? She's my best friend's sister, but she's far too tempting to resist--especially when I learn that sweet, sexy Harper, has a dirty mind too and wants to put it to good use. What could possibly go wrong as I give the woman I've secretly wanted some no-strings-attached lessons in seduction?
No one will know, even if we send a few naughty texts. Okay, a few hundred. Or if the zipper on her dress gets stuck. Not on that! Or if she gives me those get-over-here-and-take-me-eyes on the train in front of her whole family.
The trouble is the more nights I spend with her in bed, the more days I want to spend with her out of bed. And for the first time ever, I'm not only thinking about how to make a woman cry out in pleasure -- I'm thinking about how to keep her in my arms for a long time to come.
Looks like the real Adventures of Mister O have only just begun....
Unabridged Audiobook
I’m loving this series. Another of my favorite tropes (same as last book actually) Friends-to-Lovers. I love the characters. It’s sexy as hell. And it makes me laugh. All wins!
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #3
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on September 12, 2016
Genres: Contemporary
Length: 6 hours 48 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
Here’s what you need to know about me — I’m well-off, well-hung and quick with a joke. Women like a guy who makes them laugh—and I don’t mean at the size of his d*ck. No, they want their funny with a side of huge… not to mention loyal. I’ve got all that plus a big bank account, thanks to my booming construction business. Yup. I know how to use all my tools.
Enter Natalie. Hot, sexy, smart, and my new assistant. Which makes her totally off limits... Hey, I’m a good guy. Really. I do my best to stay far away from the kind of temptation she brings to work.
Until one night in Vegas… Yeah, you’ve heard this one before. Bad news on the business front, drowning our sorrows in a few too many Harvey Wallbangers, and then I’m banging her. In my hotel room. In her hotel room. Behind the Titanic slot machine at the Flamingo (don’t ask). And before I can make her say “Oh God right there YES!” one more time, we’re both saying yes—the big yes—at a roadside chapel in front of a guy in press-on sideburns and a shiny gold leisure suit.
But it turns out what happened in Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas. And now, my dick doesn’t stay in my pants when she’s around. I try to resist. Honest. But the more we try to keep our hands to ourselves, the more we end up naked again, and the more time I want to spend with her fully clothed, too.
The question now is…do I take this woman to be my ex-wife?
*WELL HUNG is the next sexy, funny standalone romantic comedy to feature characters first seen in BIG ROCK and MISTER O. *
Loving this series! The whole Vegas element in this one was great. And tons of risky behavior! Fun! This was my favorite book of the series, even when I finished them all.
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #4
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on January 9, 2017
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 6 hours 6 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
I’ve been told I have quite a gift.
Hey, I don’t just mean in my pants. I’ve got a big brain too, and a huge heart of gold. And I like to use all my gifts to the fullest, the package included. Life is smooth sailing....
Until I find myself stuck between a rock and a sexy roommate, which makes for one very hard… place.
Because scoring an apartment in this city is harder than finding true love. So even if I have to shack up with my buddy’s smoking hot and incredibly amazing little sister, a man’s got to do what a man’s got to do.
I can resist Josie. I’m disciplined, I’m focused, and I keep my hands to myself, even in the mere five-hundred square feet we share. Until the one night, she insists on sliding under the covers with me. It’ll help her sleep after what happened that day, she says.
Surprise—neither one of us sleeps.
And even though we agree to return to roomies-without-benefits, I quickly realise I want more than someone to split the utilities with. Now all I want is to spend every night—and every day—with my gorgeous roommate.
Did I mention she’s also one of my best friends? That she’s brilliant, beautiful and a total firecracker? Guess that makes her the full package too.
What’s a man stuck in a hard place to do?
I’m really devouring this series! I think because it’s full of a favorite trope : friends to lovers. This one is no exception and it’s done so well, as they try being friends with benefits. I love the cook book entries too – it gives us little glimpses into her POV.
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #5
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on May 9, 2017
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 6 hours 40 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
From the New York Times Bestselling author of MISTER O and BIG ROCK, comes a hot & hilarious new standalone romantic comedy…
Let’s be honest, ladies. A good man is a lot like the perfect car. You want a hot body, an engine that purrs, and superior performance under the hood. You probably also crave a ride that can go all night long.
I’m at your service.
Like the custom cars I build with class and sophistication, that’s exactly how I treat a woman. But don’t worry. I absolutely do my best work dirty…both in the shop and between the sheets. Work and play keep me plenty busy, until a certain sexy brunette reappears in my life and throws a wrench in all my plans.
This woman drives me insane. With longing. With lust. With every-damn-thing. But I kept my hands off her when I worked with her before, and I can damn well do it again now that’s she’s the competition.
After all, you don’t sleep with the enemy, even if it’d be one helluva joy ride?
Even though I really enjoyed this one too, it’s my least favorite of the series so far. I don’t know why exactly. I love the second-chance trope and also enemies-to-lovers. Maybe it’s just because I’m not a car person and I didn’t get it? IDK, but it was still really good and I’m still looking forward to reading the next book!
Narrator: Sebastian York
Series: Big Rock #6
Published by Lauren Blakely Books on October 16, 2017
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 5 hours 16 minutes
Format: Audiobook
Source: Audible Escape
Goodreads
Women often say a good man is hard to find. And a hard man is even better.
That’s why I’m quite a catch— good, hard, loaded, and wait for it…I’m ready to settle down too. But the woman I want to pitch my tent with is precisely the one I need to stay far away from.
After that fantastic night with Mia Summers, I’m ready to give her many more. But there's a hitch in my plans — she just hired my company. If there’s one thing I’m committed to, it’s running a squeaky clean adventure tour business. One of the iron-clad rules?
Don’t screw your customers.
But what's a guy to do when she's so hard to resist? How hard can it be to keep our hands off each other for a quick group tour down the hills and over the trails? I’m about to find out, and I have a feeling I’m going to need a new badge of honor because things are about to get very hard in the woods.
Another great one to end (I assume it’s the end) the series. I really enjoyed the friends-to-lovers trope again, Lauren Blakely is great at that. This relationship was one of my favorites, and the cat was a brilliant touch to the story.
Berls loved the Big Rock Series - read her tweet length reviews of each book, here! Share on X
I own all these in a box set I think and I have some on audio. I’m a mess. I’ve read one Mister O. I’m glad to hear they are all pretty good.