Page Princess: HOT SOUTHERN MESS by T.A. Hardenbrook

Title: HOT SOUTHERN MESS

Author: T.A. Hardenbrook

Publish Date: 01.06.14

Publisher: T.A. Hardenbrook

Category /Genre: Contemporary Romance

Recommended for: 18 + due to sexual content

Grammar/editing: C – average writing, probably self-edited

Received from: T.A. Hardenbrook (in exchange for an honest review)

Goodreads: Hot Southern Mess

Date completed: 01.09.14

Description from the publisher:

My mother always said, “You need to act like a lady if you are ever going to be the perfect wife.” Well, that would require me to first become ‘lady like’, and then sell my soul to the devil. Down south, women were groomed to be the perfect trophy wives. One must be the total package, in order to catch a man that had sort of social ranking at the country club. To my parents and sister’s dismay, being sold off to the highest bidder in society wasn't the life for me.

Hi I’m Molly, and anything but the southern belle type. My hair isn't blonde and I don’t wear dresses. My shoe selection consists of my favorite chucks, and I’m lucky that I shower daily. I bite my nails and play guitar, and well my makeup regimen involves the very basics. I don’t hold any pageant titles and I’m entirely too awkward at social gatherings.

So what does one do when her younger sister finds the man of her dreams and gets married? You suck it up and put on that horrible bridesmaid dress, and explain to everyone that you are perfectly content on living alone for the rest of your life. Then, you get the hell out of there.

I just want to play my music and live my life, free of sparkles and crowns. Being twenty-five and not married wasn't the end of the world. In reality, it is just the beginning. I am not going to worry about finding “the one” till it finds me. One afternoon I walked right into all six-foot-three rock star of it, shit.

Hi, my name is Molly, and I’m a complete Hot Southern Mess.

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Molly Anne McGlenister has been born into Southern Royalty, as she calls it, but she doesn't want to be a plastic Barbie clone. She is the black sheep of the family, so she dyes her hair black. She is has an artistic heart, so she adds streaks of bright color to that hair. She is a guitar-playing, klutzy, independent, emotional, wreck. After her sister's fairy tale wedding, Molly hits the road to find her own version of happily ever after and freedom. With anywhere a possibility, she chooses Seattle, home of alternative music. Because of her trust fund, she is able to get a healthy start without worry, and is lucky enough to land a dream job as a PA to a manager of rising rock stars. Thrown into life on the road with the band Black Laden and their opening act Political Downfall., and lusting after both of their drop-dead sexy, alpha, front men, Molly will have to choose her own path to happiness.

After my volunteer shift at A Gift for Teaching (agiftforteaching.org), my husband picked me up because the kid had my car. I was reading while DH drove. He told me I was actually making "snark" sounds like the Pillsbury dough boy in the Geico ads! I told him most of my laughing out loud was the chapter titles (OMG, the titles!).

As soon as my son got home from work, I warned him that I was enjoying this book. He interrupted me once and I gave him a short answer. He interrupted twice, and I gave him a pointed look and a short answer. He interrupted a third time and all I did was look. The look on his face was priceless! He knew he had pushed me too far. So, he went back to his book. I told him he had just earned his place in this blog post.

This book definitely could have used a professional editor (or a grammar Nazi beta). As a Steelers/Penguins/Pirates fan raised in Western Pennsylvania, for me the most irritating error was the spelling of Pittsburgh. I'll give you a little history lesson as told to me by my father. During/after World War II, the American people of German descent wanted to distance themselves from the atrocities of the war as much as possible. One of those ways to drop the "h" in any town or city that ended in "burgh." The one and only city in the U.S. to refuse to drop their "h" is Pittsburgh. There are no people more proud of their city without boasting of themselves than those from Pittsburgh and her surrounding cities and town. In addition to my concern about my beloved 'Burgh, there were words that were completely incorrect for the sentence, but sounded like close to the right word, duplicated words, and homonyms (sight for site).

I love the title of this series, probably because I love the song (Miranda Lambert – Mama's Broken Heart) Trust me, the humor, romance, and familial angst far outweigh the errors. This book is a definite MUST-READ in my humble opinion. I am looking forward to the next book in this series and hope that Ms. Hardenbrook will include me when it is released as well.

Hide Your Crazy series: