Cocky Bastard

My first thought when I read the blurb for Cocky Bastard was...well, this is kind of vague. The blurb gives the bare bones of the story, which was enough for me to think I had a good idea how it was going to play out. Read: gorgeous but cocky guy with an adorable Aussie accent meets a more than likely gorgeous but pent-up gal on a road trip. They fall for each other, some stuff happens, misunderstandings abound, they work them out. Ta Da.Sweet baby Hey-Zeus! At 7% in I was IM'ing my review buddy ordering her to put down the shifter book I was sure she was reading and READ THIS BOOK instead! Don't put much stock in the blurb, I said. This book is so much more! That being said, it occurred to me there was no possible way for a Cocky Bastard blurb to impart how funny, charming, sexy, and riveting this book is without giving away important details you absolutely must uncover on your own as you read.Cocky Bastard begins as a road trip novel. Road trips are always enlightening because you have a lot of time to reflect on your life. They're like being on vacation from your life even if, as in Chance and Aubrey's case, the road trip is a means to an unknown and unpredictable end. You can suspend your reality for the duration of the journey. Which is exactly what Chance and Aubrey do. Aubrey, to forget the cheating ex she's running away from to begin a new life in California. Chance to forget...well, we're not sure what Chance is trying to forget as he heads back home to California. However, his intense looks, sad eyes and cryptic comments that pop up out of the blue are written so well that every time I thought I'd figured out his dilemma, I was wrong, dammit. Of course, I didn't know that until midway through Cocky Bastard when the point of view changes from Aubrey's to Chance's. And then, Pow! I didn't see that coming.I had a crush on Chance immediately. He's cheeky, pushy, adorable, and absolutely hilarious. He's also amazingly perceptive and figures Aubrey out by the time they hit the first rest stop. His antics and irreverent remarks had me laughing out loud. Really. Laughing out loud. I love that he maintains a suave maturity even when goofing around. He considers Aubrey's feelings every step of the way. The attraction between them is immediate, however, the authors do an amazing job of keeping it on a low simmer for pages and pages as the trip progresses. I like this a lot. It's believable. With nothing to lose, since they will part ways once they reach California, Chance and Aubrey open up to each other, slowly revealing bits and pieces of themselves.Let's talk about Aubrey. To paraphrase Harry from the movie When Harry Met Sally;There are two kinds of women, high maintenance and low maintenance.If Aubrey were to ask Chance which kind she was, his reply would be the same as Harry's,You're the worst kind; you're high maintenance but you think you're low maintenance.Despite her quirks, I really liked Aubrey. Her heart has been broken and she is very guarded, as she should be. She is heading across country to a new town, a new job, a new life. Meeting Chance, allowing him to ride along with her after his motorcycle breaks down in Nebraska, and trusting that he isn't a serial killer isn't anything she would normally do. But she's ready to take a risk because being predictable and careful certainly didn't work out for her, did it?I absolutely loved the wacky road trip. From fainting goats (yes, they really exist) to fake Vegas weddings, the authors were wonderfully inventive with dialogue and scenes that had me absolutely caught up in the action, laughing and sighing and hoping for an easy HEA. Ha! When does that ever happen?When the point of view changes and we see life through Chance's eyes, everything changes. I gasped, I smacked my hand against my forehead. And then I told everyone in the house, Leave me alone, I'm busy. The second half of Cocky Bastard had me holding my breath in anticipation one minute and wanting to strangle Aubrey the next. There were times I thought it dragged out a bit, that Aubrey was being just a tad too...confused and bitchy. And yet, I understood her actions.Cocky Bastard is an amazingly sexy, witty, well written novel that you must read. And, it has one of the best ending lines I've read in a lonnnnng time!

I needed a feel-good book, and this was it! So not what I expected, but so glad it wasn't all the same!This will be a dual review. One of the story, and one of the audio.FIRST, THE STORY! 4 Stars!Simply put, it was great. I really had no idea what the story was about when I picked it up. I had done a promo tour for this back in the fall, and from the teasers, I thought this was going to be a book about a guy who was a playboy and needed to be redeemed. I thought he wouldn't have any heart, just a "cocky b@st@rd". But I was wrong. The story was humorous, sexy, tender and had heart. I found the writing engaging and addictive.The story is given to us in two parts and started out with a bang. I was laughing from the start. Chance, our sexy Aussie, meets Aubrey, our uptight, recently single, heroine, at a quick stop on the way to California. After playing with an Obama bobblehead and breaking it, Chance jokes with her about it. She gets pissy and throws attitude. He pays for the bobblehead and tells her,❝ There's some change in the bag. Buy yourself a sense of humor.❞Yeah, he's arrogant and she's nasty and they fit together perfectly. When his motorcycle breaks down in the parking lot and she gets a flat tire, he offers to change her tire for a ride to California. This is when I got excited. A road trip with these two was guaranteed to be fun and funny!❝What's C.B. stand for anyway?❞❝Those are my initials.❞❝Let me guess...Cocky B@st@rd?❞❝See...I would have told you my name, but since you're so clever, I think I'll just let you guess.❞❝Whatever, Cocky.❞These two had some great adventures, including the goat. I'm not gonna explain that. If you've read this, you know what I mean, if not, then read it and tell me you didn't laugh and swoon.But, more than just funny, there was romance and surprisingly tender moments. Our C.B. was much more than the package in which he was wrapped. He had a heart of gold. This gets him in trouble, yet he gladly accepts his punishment and like the man he is, he seeks redemption.This brings us to the second part... the AFTER the road trip. It is told in Chance's POV, which I loved.❝Sometimes, it takes losing everything to make you realize what you really need.❞Seeing him fight for what he wanted and reading his inner thoughts actually made my eyes misty at times. I felt so sorry for him. Poor Aubrey, she was so torn. Having made a life for herself, she didn't know what she wanted. I did wish she would have chosen a bit sooner or made some moves to show she was making a decision. It might have helped to have had her POV during this time, too. I loved their sexual tension and the build of their love story from beginning to end.A fan of this writing duo, I will definitely read something from them again.-------------------------------------------------------------AUDIO REVIEW! 1 Star!I decided to listen to this audio while I was driving home from visiting my daughter. It was a 3.5-hour drive, so I was looking forward to listening to an audiobook. Simply stated, save your money. There were so many issues with the audio, I cannot list them all here. But I will give a few.1.) The narrators had a difficult time with the dialogue. I think this might be a case of when an audio is not a good option for a book. Too much dialogue forced these narrators to have too many voice and inflection changes that it became seriously annoying!⦁The female narrator had a lilt at the end of her sentences which made her sound like she was whining. Throw in other character voices and an Australian accent, and I wanted to throw my iPhone out the window.⦁The male narrator had a naturally deep voice, so when he raised his voice and slowed down his tempo to "sound like a woman" he sounded more like a preteen boy, or demented man, I haven't yet decided which.2.) When I got home, I was exhausted and thought I would read the book along with the audio --- so basically I just followed along. This was a BIG mistake. What I found were numerous inconsistencies from the audio to the book.⦁Audio says Chance's sister is 22 years old. The book reads she's 28.⦁Audio says his sister "looked like a woman now". The book reads "she looked like a mum."I wish I could say this was all there was, but that's not the case. Eventually, I turned off the audio and just read the book. I found I enjoyed it much more that way.

This is a fun story with a goat included. No matter the circumstances, honesty and commitment are at the forefront. Living in the moment doesn’t hurt either.

I've had this book on my kindle since it was released and never got round to reading it. This year i decided i needed to go through my books i hadn't read. I'd joined the cocky club an thought i better get reading! So thats where i'm at and with tears of happiness i'm writing this review.I can't even say how much i loved this story. I loved everything about it. Its just completely stole my heart and made me super emosh! My heart is pounding, my chest is tight, my eyes are leaking and i'm smile/laughing at myself lol i'm seriously a bit of a mess!I loved how the story was written. I've not read a set up like this before and i found i absolutely adored it! From the first words i was captivated by the characters. Aubrey was so beautiful. A normal girl who had been pushed down into a shell that didn't fit the real her and the second she met Chance he cracked that shell with his CB ways. I just loved them. When we got to see in Chance's head i was an absolute gonner! Oh my god my heart can't take him! He's just Yum Yum Tim Tams!I lost myself in this story. Part 1 i was on the edge of my seat. At tge end i was a little disappointed and a lot of "please turn this around!" At the start of part 2 i breathed a sigh of relief and was in a full on hopeful and "lets do this!" Mode! I was worried there for a while but by the end i have this most amazing feeling of happiness. Just pure bliss! Its seriously an amazing feeling and what a way for a book to make you feel!There's quite a few laugh out loud moments, the Goat being the funniest! I want a pet Goat! Theres a few swoon and hot hot hot thigh clenching moments too. This book has the perfect formula for a romance book. I just love love loved it!Highly recommend! Don't be a me, don't leave it to read. Do it now.

Nicely written. Chance meets Aubrey at a stop over when his motorbike wont start and her car has a flat tyre. She lets him join her on her way to a new job after breaking up with her boyfriend. The dialogue between the two is really good and along the way they manage to pick up a small goat who wondered onto the road. They have one lovely night together and then he disappears leaving her heartbroken. Chance tried not to get close to her but two years later he has to find her. Its lovely the way he doesnt give up and you want to get in his corner that it will work out.

OK, I admit I may have had preconceived notions about the story, you know the title makes you think the main character is going to be a first class douche to begin with, then by some miracle redeems himself as the story progresses. I am more than happy to admit I was totally wrong. Cocky B is so much more, full of sass and sarcasm with endearing characters you can't help but root for from the beginning.A chance encounter (pun intended) leads to life changing events between Chance and Aubrey. Aubrey is crossing the country, uprooting her entire life due to a cheating ex, a fresh start calls to her even if she still pursues a career she doesn't find especially fulfilling. She has always done what others have expected of her, never putting herself first. She is far braver than she gives herself credit for.The chemistry between Aubrey and Chance is off the scale from initial eye contact, with the hint of something deeper from the beginning, the soul-mate principle in full effect. However, Chance slams barrier after barrier in their path making Aubrey lose more self-confidence. Although I would never have guessed the reasons behind Chance's barriers, they made perfect sense and added to the emotion of the narrative and my love of Chance.Their road trip across the country is fraught with tension of the passionate variety, as well as tender, touching and humourous moments. I laughed so much at the visual of a fainting goat.The story is told in to halves, the first half is in Aubrey point of view and covers the meeting and subsequent road trip with Chance. the second half is told from Chance's point of view and covers the events following the reason for the barriers (evasive I know but I don't want to spoil the plot for you). Neither Aubrey or Chance had been able to forget the other, despite all the events that have occurred or not occurred as the case may be between them, can they overcome the past and work toward a future together. Commence the swooning.Cocky B is so much more than I expected and utterly romantic <3

Omg how much do I love chase? That man’s character was one of the best that I’ve read in a while. His love for her to a fault stopped him from pursuing another relationship and I’m still not sure she deserved him! Too much of a ditherer for me but she wasn’t a hateful character just didn’t get her with the boyfriend and chase was on the side without benefits. Good read though.

Wow! Was one amazing Book. Was sucked in as soon as I started reading it. I don't understand why anybody under 18 shouldn't be able to read it as it isn't even that erotic or erotic to be fair. Not much sex in it. So I think anybody over 16 be more suitable. Mainly an adventure of 2 people bonding on a road trip and falling inlove. Has complications. Drama. Happy and funny. Witty. Really well written. Was an absolute joy to read. I couldn't stop much I just had to keep reading and hard when I have a 3 year old lol. Anyway give it a shot it's worth a read.