After struggling for years with her self-esteem and weight issues, Robin Summers has matured and grown very fond of her voluptuous full-figure. Not long after she lands her dream job as a marine biologist at the New England Aquarium, she meets sexy attorney, Todd Healy. A whirlwind relationship between her and Todd ensues, and before either realizes it, they are planning an intimate, tropical wedding in Aruba with their immediate families. All seems perfect two days before “big day”, until Robin walks in on Todd in the arms of another woman.
The humiliating scene sends Robin running off into the night, confused and angry. It seems she has run for miles, when she stumbles upon an unseen object and is hurled into the sand. With the help of the full moon, she finds an ornate bottle and impulsively pulls off the jeweled stopper. What she expects to find is a mysterious note, but what she ends up with is a middle-aged, gay genie named, Zahir.
With his eccentric mannerisms, Zahir quickly puts Robin’s broken heart and battered self-esteem at ease. Still owing her three wishes, it doesn’t take long for the genie to set Robin’s confidence back on the right path. He can grant her anything she wants, but the one thing she truly desires…….is true love. Robin is determined to find a way around the huge glitch in the genie’s limitations and makes a list of “must haves” she wants in a future husband. This time when Zahir flicks his wrist, a sexy highland warrior breaks through the purple haze, and he does not look happy. Its then that Robin realizes her wish didn’t just create the man of her dreams, but pulled him from his own time.
I love reading, writing, history, romance and all things Scottish! I a member of the Romance Writers of America organization, as well as its local chapter the Heart of Carolina located in Raleigh, NC. I am of a member of the Triangle’s Writer’s Group. My first children’s book is due to release June 2013 through Mountain Springs House Publishing. It is my plans to write about “Life Lessons Through Literature” through my The Adventures of Happy Valley Glen series. The first book is titled The Raccoon Family Moves in. I don’t remember a time that I didn’t read, but my love of literature intensified during the high school years, when I was introduced to Charlotte Bronte and Shakespeare!! My favorite book of all time will always be The Outsiders by SE Hinton. This is when the writing bug bit and I discovered my love of writing and telling a story. I have one grown daughter and three gorgeous grandchildren. My husband and I decided when we married 14 years ago, that we would wanted a son, so we adopted six, yes I said six boys! When I'm not reading and writing, I'm running to and from schools, to sports practices or appointments!! I started my Eight Z Enuff blog on facebook, as a way to record what its like to raise a blended, multi-cultural family in the 21st Century, and I love to capture some of the "off the wall" remarks of my then 4 year old Julius, which we refer to as Juliusisms! However, all my kids or grandkids have given me some great one-liners!! I was born and raised in southern Maine, but moved to the Raleigh, NC area in 2008 for my husband's work! I'm an advocate for animals, children and juvenile diabetes! We have a Boxer named Greta, a Chocolate Lab named Moose Man and a Pug named Mama Mia! Oh and we can't forget about our grandbird LL Cool Jake. He's an African Grey Parrot that thinks he's Clint Eastwood!! In addition to the above I love to play volleyball, softball and golf, but I don't claim to be the best. However, I can be very competitive!!! I love attending Renaissance fairs and highland games. Photography and traveling are my other hobbies.
This short book didn't take itself too seriously and I liked that! It was a bit campy, it had heart and the romance was adorable and that's exactly what I needed to erase a few horrible books out of my mind.
Not too deep. Makes some good points. Reads just like a short fairytale — an adult version. I enjoyed it. It could have been more developed; more time could have been spent on the couple to make it more believable, but, as a fairytale, believability is an assumed part of the tale. :) Good focus on self-acceptance and destined romances. Nice twist on the genie and his motives. Note: This is similar to another book by the same title by Christine d'Abo. This is the lighter version. Both are good reads.
This modern day fairy tale brings us an enchanting story of a broken heart and a genie's three wishes with equal doses of drama, humor and love.
I felt bad for all the emotional pain that Robin had to go through with walking in on the cheating fiancé + vindictive cousin.
At the start of the book Robin claims she accepts her plus-size, but I don't think she really believed it as her inner voice still spoke of her insecurities. It was through Zahir that Robin finally accepted that any man who was willing to judge a partner strictly by how they looked wasn't the kind of man she wanted to change herself for. By the end of the book, you can tell that Robin is happy with herself, and it was a nice thing to see her with some self confidence.
A 'feel good' love story with a happy ending, as well as a steamy wedding night scene. This is a perfect short story for the relaxing 'break' you may want in between more serious reads.
My only complaint is that the editing / proofreading could have been better. A good run-through with a grammar checker and learning to properly place things spoken aloud by characters in "quotation marks" would have been appreciated.
I haven't read this author before, but based on how much I enjoyed this I would like to read more of her Highland romance stories. Unfortunately, her only other highland romance is no longer available for purchase anywhere & it seems that all this author is writing now is BDSM erotica. It appears this will likely be the only book I get to enjoy by this author.
What does a genie, a jilted woman and a kilted Scotsman have in common... They find what they want and so much more... Just as I did when reading this story!
The story starts off by Robin finding her fiancé in bed with another woman and not just any woman either. The author really made you feel along with the character Robin. Later Robin comes upon a bottle and unleashes a genie granting her three wishes. Who wouldn't want that?? Again, the author surprised me with more twists from the character Robin and all that follows, including a hunky Scotsman!
The story with its twists and wit is very enjoyable to read. It holds your attention and has some comedy throughout which I find always adds to the enjoyment of any book. It’s magical and loving.
This is a new take on Aladdin's Lamp, from A Thousand and One Nights. Robin is about to get married to the man she plans to spend the rest of her life with when she catches him with her cousin in flagrante delicti. Amid the whirpool of betrayal and pain she meets a genie, Zahir, who grants her three wishes. Robin opts for a body change, then decides (with Zahir's help)that she'd rather have the body she was born with, and to have a man who will love and respect her "and worthy of being called a husband". Zahir brings her a Highlander, James, taking him away from his time.
All Bottled Up, written by Ms Angela Rose, is written with a lot of humour sprinkled with sizzling romance. I like Ms Rose's take on Zahir. He is hilarity with a heart. He is Robin's conscience, lifting her up when things around her are falling apart.
I also like Ms Rose's play with words. For me, All Bottled Up also connoted two things. First and the more obvious is Zahir in the bottle, being woken up from his beauty sleep to grant a mortal three wishes. Second, is Robin, bottling up all of her insecurities particularly when it came to accepting and loving herself, made worse by finding her fiance and cousin together.
I look forward to reading more of Ms Rose's books and humorous and loving take on fairy tales.
In this short story, Robin Summers is devastated to see her fiancee laying naked having sex with a woman --- her cousin Bianca de Rossi. Robin and Todd were to be married in two days; how could he do such a thing? She's sobbing heavily as she races along a white sandy beach, in the moonlight, as fast as she can go to reduce her rage. How could he break her heart? Her anger grows stronger against Todd, Bianca, and especially herself! Her mother tried to tell her to be wary. Suddenly, she falls flat on her face as she trips over something in the sand. It's dark, but as she sits crying even harder, she finds the bottle, partially buried in the sand, which is very ornate. She sits on the beach for a few moments and reflects on her decision that has to be made within the next two days -- to marry, or not to marry Todd. Toying with the bottle, she finally thought there might be a note in the fancy bottle. But there is no note...there is something much different, and she thinks she has succumbed to a dream. This is a delightful, witty, story like a fairy tale. The storyline is very engaging and captivating. Well worth the read--- everyone loves a dream come true.
I found this story to be fun and humorous with an undertone of seriousness. The protagonist, Robin Summers has struggled for many years with self-esteem issues, part of which was a result of her being a plus-sized woman. Just when things are looking up and she comes to terms with her body, she walks in on her fiancé in bed with her thin, good-looking, yet sleazy cousin, Bianca. This causes Robin to be thrown back to all the old feelings that have plagued her over the years. However, her luck was about to change as she stumbles upon a bottle containing a colorful and flamboyant genie, named Zahir. The one thing she wants in her life becomes her wish from him…to find true love.
Out of the past through a purple haze, comes Scottish Highlander, James Sinclair who is the perfect man in every way for Robin. He is as taken with her as she is for him.
Angela did a great job with the novella, taking the reader through every emotion possible. On a personal note, I liked that the steamy erotica scene, which, by the way was very well executed, happened between married people. This is refreshing in today’s world.
The one thing that I did enjoy about this book was Zahir, the fairy... er, genie. Okay, he was stereotypically gay, but he was fun and refreshing.
I'm going to give the author the benefit of the doubt and assume I got some whacky edition that was very poorly edited. Because there was some sort of typo (or several) on nearly every page. And given that this was a novella and not a full length novel, this made for some pretty distracting reading.
I realize that a novella is a very short span of time to develop characters to the point where they walk off hand in hand, happily ever after. But to profess love after having JUST met each other? And with Robin having just been burned by her fiance's cheating? To rush right into marriage with a stranger? How am I the only one who finds that this stretches the limits of romantic fiction just a little too far to be believed?
Oh, and my favorite part? The tonsil hockey scene and then the "I puked twice" explanation right after. Oh. my. EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! James, run, laddie - run far away!
A very short, sweet and fast paced story that leaves you wanting more (especially of the hottie highlander James *wink wink*). All Bottled Up is full of humor, romance, magic and even some deceit. A great read for any fans of the genre looking for a quick fix. A 3.5 rounded to a solid 4.
Robin is a special woman that is currently VERY unhappy with herself. She just learned her fiancé is not at all what she thought him to be. Not even close actually. Hurt, unhappy and confused, she loses herself in the exploration of her beautiful surroundings. Finding herself something that is only told in fairy tales. Will Robin finally have her fairy tale happily ever after? You’re going to have to read to find out ;)
A great start for new author Angela Rose. I look forward to what else she has in store for us within that imaginative and fun head of hers. Bravo Angela!
This was a very fun, quick read. Ms Rose does a great job of setting the scene with her character, Robin Summers. I like that Robin is struggling with her self esteem and her curves. It makes her feel real. The hurt and heartache of walking in onher fiancé with another woman the night before her wedding is felt.
The generous and funny gennie, Zahir, makes this story more interesting.
My only critique is that I wish the story were a little longer. I would have loved to see a little more in depth characterization of her true love. I didn't have a chance to get a sense of who he was. If the story were a bit longer I would have had the chance to enjoy him a little more. But, hey it's still a sexy scottish man in a kilt, so even a little bit is worh reading.
Over all, I enjoyed this story and highly recommend it to any romance lover!!
This is a short, but delightful read. It is a wonderful spin on Aladdin's Lamp with a very different set of circumstances and characters. The heroine, Robin Summers, is a full-figured woman who has just discovered her fiancé making love with another woman. Distraught, she runs away to a nearby beach and stumbles over a bottle half buried in the sand. She digs it out, rubs it and a very hip genie emerges. With his unique skill and wry sense of humor, he helps Robin realize what is truly important to her and brings about a happily ever after when he produces a luscious Highlander for Robin. I enjoyed reading this and look forward to more books by Angela Rose.
All Bottled Up by Angela Rose is a novella features a heartbroken heroine who discovers a genie bottle on the beach. I personally love genie stories and will be adding this one to my list of keepers. Robin Summers discovers her fiancee banging her cousin so she runs off to the beach and discovers a genie bottle. I don't want to spoil the story but I will say I enjoyed the plot, her choice in wishes, and definitely her new hero. The only thing I would change in the story is I wish something would have happened to the skanky cousin.
"All Bottled Up" by Angela Rose is a short but wonderful story about a curvy woman who finds her partner in bed with someone else. Low in self esteem and broken she encounters a genie who grants her three wishes and helps her restore her faith and happiness.
The genie in question is a fantastic character, gay and colourful Zahir is just what she needed, apart from the other gift, a hunky highlander.
This is magic modern fairy tale with fun and emotional intelligence or human wisdom thrown in. A feel good story and a somewhat explicit erotic short. Very enjoyable.
Great short read!!! In this short, sweet, creative read you live a modern day fairytale. As Robin’s family gathers at the beach for her wedding she discovers her fiancé in bed with her cousin. Broken hearted she flees the scene of the crime and trips over an object in the sand. Does this hold the key to her happily ever after? This was a great quick read with a hot happily ever after!!! This is the first book I have read by Mrs. Rose and I can’t wait to read more!!
A short and somewhat entertaining story. Abstract in places but enjoyable as it is short enough to read in an afternoon without you the reader having to be intensely involved in the story line. Definitely readable as this was a free e-book when I read it.
Cute and enjoyable story. The genie is an absolute hoot ! Although I generally do not buy short stories and didn't know this was one when I got it, the story was fun to read and just the right length for the amount of time I had !
This was a sweet story of accepting yourself before you can truly be happy. I would have liked it to be a little longer, however it was an enjoyable read and I would read more books from Angela.
What a blast...this was a fun read, and who would turn down a Scot in a kilt...not me...and the genie was a hoot...this was a perfect evening read...I went off to bed laughing