Book Review – Stroked Hard by Meghan Quinn

Stroked Hard by Meghan Quinn

Sports RomCom. Standalone in an interrelated series.

The Stroked Series by Meghan Quinn has quickly become a favorite for the year. I was a little worried that I wouldn’t love Stroked Hard as much as I loved Stroked Long, because I thought there was nothing serious about it, whereas the last one had some more serious themes. But let me tell you, I was wrong. Hollis was freaking awesome, one of my favorite book boyfriends ever.

Hollis, the US Olympic gold medal diver, knew Melony was “the one” right away. He is the rare book hero that isn’t a playboy. In fact, he’s a one woman man who believes in love and romance, even reading a ton of romance books on his Kindle, so he knows exactly what women love.

“She just doesn’t know what she wants yet. She doesn’t know that one day I’ll fucking marry her.”
Reese’s eyebrows rise to his hairline. “That’s fucking bold.”
Bold. I don’t think it’s bold, because for some reason I think it’s fact. I barely know the girl. I’ve barely spoken to the girl. I’ve only seen her smile in the distance and never at me. But I’m so incredibly drawn to her. Only to her. I want her. Just her. I want her in my future.

He is also funny as hell.

“Hollis is probably the most ridiculous man I’ve ever met. No, not probably. He is the most ridiculous man I’ve ever met.”

Melony is completely anti-relationship, and she blows Hollis off any chance she gets, but he keeps pursuing in his persistent and adorably silly way.

“You really don’t give up do you? Even when it’s obvious I have no intentions of sleeping with you.”
“This isn’t just about sleeping with you, Melony. This is about getting to know you; when I find somthing I like, I go after it.”
“Even if it’s ungettable?”
“If the end result is you? Then yes.”

His nicknames may have been the best part of the book. I totally fell in love with the silliness.

“Don’t call me fudge nuggets.”
“What do you prefer? Love handles?”
“No.” Her scowl deepens.
“Sausage snuggler? Kissy kibbles? Juicy cakes? Licky lovestick?” Irritation is boiling out of her now. “Are you deranged? What makes you think I want to be referred to as sausage snuggler or licky lovestick?”
“Does that mean you like kissy kibbles and juicy cakes?”

Hollis grew up with an ultra loving family. They loved him despite a huge, life altering mistake he made. Melony grew up feeling unloved and unwanted. So she never felt good enough for him. It was up to Hollis to make sure she knew she was worth it, and he’s completely up to the task.

Melony: You have a one-track mind.
Hollis: Yeah, and its name is Melony.

The notes between “Hot Sex” and “Big Daddy” were totally amazing. OMG, I am just reading through some of the quotes I highlighted and I just want to jump back in and read this whole book again.

I’d be hard-pressed to pick a favorite in this series, but if you like the sweet, light, silly, funny guy, you will LOVE Hollis! I try to never compare books from other authors, but if you liked Mal in Play by Kylie Scott, you will love Hollis.

Likes:

Hollis is the perfect man – sweet, sexy, romantic, cocky, and funny as hell.
The nicknames had me giggling every time.
That it took place in a concurrent time-frame to the other two books, giving it an interesting look at the others from another POV.
He is a one-woman man.
He was so persistent, refusing to give up no matter how hard she pushed.
The sex was awesome.
I absolutely loved Hollis’s parents.
The epilogue was epic.
Holy crap, the part about Pocket. I may have peed myself a little.

“Oh hell, that’s her clit, right there, her clit is out and about and . . . oh God! Why is it dangling out of the bun? Her deli meat is dangling. It’s fucking dangling! (…) And what’s with her nipples?”

Dislikes:

Insta-love is OK in most cases for me, but I didn’t see the attraction at first.
Why do all these girls ruin the best day of the guy’s lives?

The Down & Dirty:

I am absolutely in love with Stroked Hard. I think some people may not have loved the heroine, she was a bit prickly while she pushed him away, but I think that’s what made Hollis so amazing, Melony’s resistance is what made him shine. His sweetness, his lack of giving up on her, and his ability to make her lighten up and laugh no matter what, are what made him so special. If she didn’t resist, he wouldn’t have shown his amazing persuasive ways. I love when a book can be totally silly in a sweet way, but never be stupid. The banter was amazing, and the nicknames sealed the deal on another 2016 favorite for me from Meghan Quinn. I hope she comes out with audiobooks, because I would love to listen to this series now!