Title:  Bet The House
Series:  Magnolia Bay #1 (A Lowcountry Love Story)
Author:  Erika Marks
Genre:  Contemporary Romance
Published:  May 10, 2014
Publisher:  Tule Publishing
My Rating:  4.5 stars
Source:  Owned, Personal Collection
Synopsis:

Willamena Dunn is having a lousy week. Not only is her baby sister about to marry into the family of Dunn-Right Preservation’s biggest professional rival, but the historic bungalow of her dreams has just been bought by the most infuriating (not to mention exceedingly handsome and notoriously wicked) man to ever hammer a nail in Magnolia Bay, Knox Loveless. 


But when Knox offers her a wager she can’t refuse, a bet with the coveted bungalow as its prize, Willa is sure her bad luck might finally be turning around—until Knox surprises her with a passionate kiss, and suddenly all bets are off.

Could this be just another one of Knox Loveless’ games, or will two rivals finally surrender to a long-simmering attraction and declare a truce once and for all?

Read on for my thoughts on Bet The House.  No true spoilers, promise.

It’s now a well known fact that I love series.  Short ones, long ones, forever-neverending ones.  So when I recently picked up Forget Me Not (a Loveless-Dunn romance in Magnolia Bay) on NetGalley I thought I’d go back to the series beginning.  I had Bet the House within a bundle, so that only left picking up Pick Me to get the whole series up to now reviewed before Forget Me Not launches on May 19th.  I have read and enjoyed other Magnolia Bay stories (there seems to be sub-series here – this one is A Lowcountry Love Story).  I have to be honest and say I am so glad I discovered Tule Publishing since this “house” does a few huge series with many sub-series based around the life and loves of  certain small towns.  It leaves open so many possibilities and the chance to run into familiar characters along the story way.

The Loveless family (who does new building construction in Magnolia Bay) and the Dunn family (who restores old homes and business in Magnolia Bay) have had a long, long rivalry.  I suspect the feud began years ago when Willa’s mom decided to not marry Knox’s dad.  Now Willa’s youngest sister, Peach, has actually agreed to marry Brady Loveless.  Marry!  Is she out of her mind!  Apparently so, since the wedding with all the trimming, is set to take place in mere weeks now.

Willa is passionate, headstrong, opinionated and a woman who perfectly fits the phrase of “opens her mouth before her brain is engaged”.  Some people would call her personality overbearing, and that might be true but Willa knows what she wants and what she believes – and she backs down from no one… especially a Loveless.

To add insult to injury, in addition to her sister marrying into the evil Loveless clan, Knox Loveless has outbid her on the bungalow that Willa has dreamed of owning since she was a child.  Never one to hold back on voicing her opinion, Willa and Knox get into a bet and the winner gets the deed to the bungalow.  What follows is a delightful romp as each, especially Willa, uses every trick possible to win the bet – and deal with the pre-wedding maddness of two rival families joining up.

I completely enjoyed Bet the House.  It was a funny, quirky, involved story.  The characters are so believable and it feels just like coming home and dropping in on old friends.  Because I know people like these in real life, which just made the story more fun to me.  This one is recommended for anyone who enjoys a well put together love story and to get in on the start of an enjoyable series.  Pick it up, I’m betting you’ll enjoy it too.

~What you, the reader, always must remember is this simple truth. Any review is just one person’s opinion. You might feel the same or totally different. The only way to know for certain if any novel is right for you – is for you to read it. This was my opinion of this particular book.~

The entire series is available for the Kindle