Which brings me to my next review of Penny Reid’s second book in her Winston Brothers series: Grin and Beard It. I can’t for the life of me remember how I even heard of this series. Probably some random google searches on Goodreads, but regardless, I was hooked. I mean, you have a set of hot brothers with beards who love their mama and say yes ma'am before ravishing you all night long. Each book follows a different brother and can be read independently of one another, which is nice, and not always the case in romance series. Grin and Beard It follows the oldest Winston brother,...wait for it...Jethro. Yes. That is his name. A close friend of mine loves poking fun at this, but honestly, if she could see what he looks like in my head...she wouldn’t care what his name was. The novel takes place in Green Valley, Tennessee where the Winston brothers are infamous. All six of them have a long history of raising hell and Jethro is unfortunately still trying to run from his past indiscretions.. Having taken a vow of celibacy for the last five years, Jethro is blindsided when he rescues Sienna Diaz, Hollywood’s rising star, as she unsuccessfully tries to navigate her way around the Tennessee back roads. Instant sparks and chemistry ooze, and as their relationship begins to sizzle, a huge dose of reality almost extinguishes the passion between them. Sienna questions whether she can throw Jethro to the Hollywood wolves without losing him, while Jethro wonders if his past will inevitably hurt the one woman who can redeem him.
Lord was this book funny. From the jokes that Sienna told, to the conversations she had with both Jethro and his brother Cletus (yeah, yeah...that is his name), this book had me laughing out loud, leaving my husband to give me side stares wondering what the hell I was reading. I mean Sienna is supposed to be a comedian/actress/writer, so her character needed to be on point with the humor but it worked so well with the story and didn’t feel campy at all. It added to her charm and made her feel like a real woman. There is a lot to be said for Sienna as a character. She is not the typical romantic leading lady. She says stupid stuff, she totally owns her size 14, and she’s Latina. What I also liked best about this character is her ability to see the best in people. She doesn’t make assumptions about Jethro when she first meets him, although in a fit of nervousness and low blood sugar mentioned something about inbreeding. She continues to see past his exterior (however gorgeous and manly that may be), and sees his heart and the love he has for his family.
Jethro Winston is just…*sigh*...like when you think of the typical Southern gentleman who is ruggedly handsome, always remember his manners, and can make a girl forget how to breathe, that is our leading man. He is deeply ashamed of his youthful mistakes and wants to make it up to his family by being the big brother he wasn’t when they were growing up. His self-imposed celibacy is more about protecting the woman around him rather than protecting himself which I found refreshing. He wants nothing more than to be close and intimate with Sienna, but continues to hold her at arm’s length even though it drives him crazy to do so. That tension is what drives the main plot and of course drives the reader crazy as well. I can’t get enough of the whole unfulfilled sexual desire between two characters. That moment where they almost kiss or they do kiss but something stops them before they can get to the good stuff. I live for that shit.
One of the side characters that I can’t wait to read more about is Jethro’s younger, maniacal brother, Cletus. He made an appearance in the first book, and played wing-man to both Jethro and Sienna in this one. He's just an odd duck who says exactly what is on his mind and loves to meddle in his brother’s affairs in the most roundabout way. His banter with other characters was always hilarious and one scene in particular about his world famous sausage will have you rolling with laughter.
Honestly, the only thing that I felt brought this down a peg was the lack of a real conflict. There was always hints of something on the horizon that the characters would have to deal with, but there was never any fear that they would break up or hurtful words would be said. It wasn’t the typical story arch for a romance novel, so maybe that’s why I felt like their happy ending was too easy. Even though both characters had their flaws, they weren’t big enough to pose any threat to the relationship which I think would have spiced the story up a bit.
I give this one a solid 4 stars. It has all the hallmarks of a good romantic comedy and was a pleasure to read. Penny Reid’s narrative voice is fun and remarkably easy to escape into and I’ll definitely be continuing to indulge myself in more of the Winston family’s escapades.
