I found myself speeding through "The Plan" and enjoying it. I related to Amelia in some ways - like the anxiety she has and the need to have things in order... but her overthinking began to slowly annoy me. One thing that the author did a great job was pulling me in despite this and leaving me wanting more. The attraction/pull between the main characters made me root for them.. hoping they could overcome their obstacles. ( )

Full review appeared at Reader's Edyn on 04/29/20

Amelia is finally in a good place with her life … well, as good as it is going to get for her anyway. The victim of a harrowing experience in childhood – though she is unaware of that little detail – she suffers from extreme anxiety. It’s been a long and debilitating road to get to some form of normalcy, but she’s done it. She may have to make sacrifices along the way and she might seem a bit odd to some, but she’s found happiness. Until her dream come true walks through the door of her bead store and sends every aspect of her life scattering about recklessly. So what if he’s a famous rock star? He’d never be interested in a small town nothing like her. He’s only around for a short amount of time. Plus, his daughter needs a level of companionship that only Amelia can provide. So what if he makes her shudder with desire every time he’s near? So what if he seems to have set his sights on breaching her carefully constructed walls of protection? So what if he’s everything she ever wanted for herself and everything she never dreamed of wanting? So what if she feels like she knows him after more than a decade of connecting to every word of his music? So what if he says he wants her? He’s only temporary and temporary can never work in her perfectly ordered, perfectly quiet, perfectly planned life.

Huck Wiley is a rock star God! But with fame comes sacrifice. He’s away from his daughter more than he gets to see her and everyone wants something he can provide because of who he is. It never has anything to do with who he really is after all the rock star persona is left on the stage. When he immediately senses something different about Amelia, he knows he has to get to know her. But he’s used to getting what he wants where women are concerned and Amelia continually rebuffs his advances. Nothing left to do but dig in and prove to her that he really wants a relationship with her. And given his past and the secrets he’s carefully guarding, that’s no small admission. He also knows, given Amelia’s insecurities and fear of change due to her severe anxiety, that he has a lot of work to do. But when you know you’ve found the person that was made for you alone, you have to take the good with the bad. Funny thing though … rather than see Amelia’s handicap as a hindrance, he sees her as the most fascinating woman he’s ever come across. He’s determined to break through her defenses and prove that they could be something wonderful together. He’s got to get Amelia out of her own head so that she can take a chance and listen to her heart instead of all of the reasons she keeps trying to stall him with. And little by little, he does exactly that.

I have to say first that I have not read the previous books in the series. I feel that this was a huge mistake for one reason only. Initially, there were so many dang people introduced that I was overwhelmed. I looked into the series and because a lot of the characters that are mentioned in the previous books are once again brought to life within this book, I feel that my confusion would have been non-existent had I started the series from the beginning. Honestly, that is my only complaint and more than likely one I created myself. Other than that, once I started to get a handle on the characters and this wonderful family, I thoroughly enjoyed this book!
Initially, I thought the premise sounded fun, but internally, I expected much of the same kind of storyline. Small town girl falls for a crazy famous rock star, he whisks her away and sweeps her off her feet, they get down and dirty and all of a sudden rock star has a new wife and no more groupies. I mean that’s the gist, yes? I was so wrong. This book was nothing like that! Not even a little. For starters, Amelia suffers from severe anxiety. The anxiety was brought on by a rather terrifying event that occurred when she was a child, yet no one thought to enlighten her. They just went along like nothing happened. Recipe for anxiety. That might be a bit of a spoiler, but I left quite a lot out surrounding the reveal. Suffice it to say that once the anxiety set in, it just became worse until Amelia had to create her own coping mechanisms so that she could lead a relatively normal life. One of her mechanisms involves Huck’s music. Another involves counting specific numbers. Another means no traveling far from home. Much of this is explained in detail within the book, but that gives a bit of an idea as to how impacted Amelia’s life has been as a result of the anxiety. But the best thing about Amelia’s anxiety is that it never magically disappeared when she fell for Huck. Through it all, she still continued to cope and while it did lessen in some cases, the anxiety remains. This is great because it kept the character true to who she was created to be. Amelia is who she is because of this aspect of her life and magically curing it or finding a way to stop it would have cheapened her value and lessened her impact in connecting with the reader. I also enjoyed the added twist of Huck’s daughter having severe anxiety as well. She has different triggers and different mechanisms for coping than Amelia, but together they help each other shatter their own glass ceilings and take huge steps they would never have been brave enough to conquer individually. I was completely touched by their ability to challenge one another as well as learn from each other. Through it all, Huck is this perfectly gentle, patient man who happens to be a huge success. I was thrown by the path this book took and completely enchanted by the time I finished it.

Not only is it tons of fun getting to know Huck and Amelia, but all of the secondary characters were nearly as lovable. The family dynamic is fantastic and a hoot in many cases. Maggie, Huck’s daughter, very nearly steals the whole book. Between the Southern charm peppered throughout the story and Maggie’s charm alone, I was completely engaged. She may be a child, but she speaks with wisdom – an old soul – while maintaining some level of innocence despite her unconventional life and the struggles she has endured for one so young. Besides being one heck of a romance, this book is also a story of strength in overcoming personal challenges and always pushing toward that next step; demonstrating that having the right support system in place can help motivate anyone to break out of the confines of their comfort zone and take a risk on the possibility of gaining over losing. Additionally, quite a bit of back story was provided, allowing the reader a glimpse into the premise of the previous stories in the series. It wasn’t over much, but it helped to fill in some blanks while simultaneously piquing my interest in the rest of the series. More than likely I will be starting at the beginning at some point and when I get to this book, I will gladly read it all over again. For those of you who tend to enjoy a tamer version of romance, this is the perfect book for you! Absolutely no sex occurs within these pages. But do not let that detail fool you into thinking there was no passion to enjoy. Both Huck and Amelia exude attraction to the point that you could almost envision it as a tangible thing. This romance is all about sweet and clean. I do not even recall a single cuss word. If there was, there may have been one, but I have forgotten it.

Overall, this book was adorable and took me completely by surprise. There is a ton of humor to offset the seriousness of the toll anxiety has taken within the lives of Amelia and Maggie. When Gizzy, Huck’s rocker friend appears the sparks fly with a family member. I expect to see a book for them appear in the future. I can only imagine what fun that could shape up to be. There were a ton of scenes that had me snickering or completely laughing out loud. Too many scenes to list, in fact. I wish I could, but you’ll have to experience the humor for yourself. For those of you looking for a sexy, clean romance, this is the place to be. And for those who gravitate toward the grittier side of the sexual spectrum, who cares? This book is fantastic enough on its own that is doesn’t need all of that graphic sex to punch up the passion factor. It doesn’t hurt that it’s a series either. Those of you who enjoy it, like myself, will take comfort knowing there is more both before and after this installment. A story about how love and trust with the right person can overcome anything and that when you love someone, you love all of them whether part of the plan or not.

Kindle version provided by Xpresso Book Tours/Author in exchange for an honest review. ( )