It Started with a Puppy

Furever Yours #12

by Christy Jeffries

The matchmaker wore a collar…

Elise Mackenzie is committed to making the Furever Paws fundraiser a huge success. She’s even roped in her landlord and new boss, Harris Vega, for help. But spending so much time with Harris, especially around an adorable puppy named Pancake, is giving the usually shy Elise ideas she shouldn’t be having. Could a man like Harris really think twice about a woman more comfortable with flour on her face than lipstick?    

Genres: Romance, Harlequin

288 pages, ebook

First published July 7, 2022

About the author

Christy Jeffries graduated from the University of California, Irvine with a degree in Criminology and received her Juris Doctor from California Western School of Law. But drafting court documents and working in law enforcement was merely an apprenticeship for her current career in the dynamic field of mommyhood and romance writing. She lives in Southern California with her patient husband, two energetic sons, and one sassy grandmother. Follow her online at christiejeffries.com.

Reviews

[Tina Loves To Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Romance, and this is the 12th book in the Furever Yours series. I have read and reviewed a few books from this series before picking up this book, but I do feel this book can be read as a standalone without any problems. I loved the characters and animals in this book. I got pulled into the storyline so quickly, and I did not want to put this book down. I loved the beginning of this book so much, and I found it so cute. I guessed what was going on way before it was revealed, but I did not it took anything away from my reading enjoyment. I was kindly provided an e-copy of this book by the publisher (Harlequin Special Edition) or author (Christy Jeffries) via NetGalley, so I can give an honest review about how I feel about this book. I want to send a big Thank you to them for that.

[Guylou (Two Dogs and a Book) · Rating 3 out of 5]

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📚 Hello Book Friends! IT STARTED WITH A PUPPY by Christy Jeffries is a charming romance novel about Elise, a young woman who is struggling with so many things in her life until she meets Harris who helps me in many ways. It is adorable to see how their relationship develops and how they find love. The title did not suit the book until near the end, but there are cute furbabies in this story. This is a clean love story with some drama. It is an enjoyable read.

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[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a sweet, heartwarming story that was fun to read. Elise is a young woman who lived with her aunt after her dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and moved to assisted living. After his death, Elise remained with her aunt, who lost no opportunity to tell Elise how grateful she should be for having her aunt take care of her. Aunt Regina was the town socialite and a bit of a flake, frequently leaving Elise to pick up the slack when Regina moved on from a project. Now, Regina has disappeared, along with the money for a local fundraiser. Elise is doing her best to make the fundraiser happen.

Elise also has no money of her own and prefers being around animals to people. She moved out of her aunt's house and into a fixer-upper, where she is trading repairs for reduced rent. Her landlord is Harris, a local contractor, and house-flipper. Harris is kind and charming and a bit of a flirt.

I loved the opening scene, as Elise and Harris arrive at the house with cat food for the previous owner's feral cat colony. I laughed at Harris's nervousness around the cats and Elise's instructions to him. When they found a little girl's missing cat among the colony, their immediate attempts to catch it were funny. One thing that was evident was that Elise and Harris were attracted to each other but hadn't done anything about it.

I enjoyed watching the relationship between Harris and Elise develop. Elise is very shy and tries to stay in the background of whatever she does. Harris is much more outgoing. I loved watching him draw her out as he involved her in the design work of the houses he was renovating. Elise's aunt constantly put her down, so Harris's compliments and confidence in Elise made her bloom. There are many scenes of them working together and connecting over their partnership. Their attraction continues to build until they can no longer resist it.

As their feelings for each other grow, neither Harris nor Elise says anything to the other about it. Harris recognizes Elise's wariness and doesn't want to push things too fast and scare her off. Elise finds it hard to believe that the handsome and charming Harris would be the least bit interested in her for the long term. When Regina turns up back in town, she picks away at Elise's confidence, causing her to doubt herself even more. I loved Harris's reaction, and though I ached for them during their time apart, it allowed Elise to see who she was and what she wanted. I loved seeing her take charge of her life and enjoyed her big moment at the end.

Watching Elise put together the Furever Yours fundraiser was one of my favorite things. Her cleverness and enthusiasm came out in everything she did, including going outside her comfort zone as emcee. I especially enjoyed seeing more of the puppy, Pancake, and Elise's connection to her.

There was a bit of a mystery involving Regina and her disappearance. The more I learned about Elise and her background, the more I began to suspect what had happened/what was going on. I enjoyed seeing Elise deal with the surprising truth and loved that Harris was there to support her. I look forward to seeing more of them in later books.

#netgalley

[Annarella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot resist a book with a puppy/dog/cat on the cover and this one had "puppy" in the title and it feature plenty of pets
I loved Elise, Harris and Pancake.
It's a heartwarming, sweet, and entertaining story that kept me hooked and made me root for the characters.
It's a romance, it's a story of discovering who you are, and I loved the fleshed out characters and the lovely setting.
The author is a good storyteller and the well plotted story is compelling and cute.
Can't wait to read other books by this author.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Lynn Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartfelt, addictive and simply adorable! With the final book in the Furever Yours series Christy Jeffries brings us a romance filled to the brim with heart and I loved every minute of it. The characters are endearing and the redemption of Elise is beautiful.

Elise is a total sweetheart and sincere as all get out, but she's socially awkward and thinks she's at her best when she's blending into the background.

Harris won my heart when he showed her kindness and saw her worth right from the very beginning.

I highly recommend this book to anyone that enjoys a small town romance with a hint of mystery, a passel of heart and so much cuteness.

[Julie Rhinehart · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun read! The characters are great and you fall in love instantly with Elise, Harris and the whole bunch. Full of family drama, learning who you are and what you want, and falling in love. This would make a great Hallmark type movie!! Can’t wait to read more in this series!!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you NetGalley, Christy Jeffries and Harlequin Enterprises ULC and hearing my honest review. Looking forward to reading more with you
#partner

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Contemporary Romance
Miniseries
Furever Yours (Book #12)

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It Started with a Puppy by Christy Jeffries, the final book in the Furever Yours series, is heartwarming story of opposites attracting. As a young girl, Elise lived with her aunt after her dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and moved to assisted living. After his death, Elise remained with her aunt, who lost no opportunity to tell Elise how grateful she should be for having her aunt take care of her. Aunt Regina was the town socialite and a bit of a flake, frequently leaving Elise to pick up the slack when Regina moved on from a project, before completing it. Regina has recently disappeared, along with the money for a local fundraiser for the animal shelter. Feeling badly, Elise, although quite shy, decides to make the fundraiser happen. With the disappearance of her aunt, Elise took a job at a doggie daycare, opened her first bank account, and moved out of her aunt's house, into a fixer-upper, where she is trading repairs for reduced rent. Her landlord Harris, a local contractor and house-flipper, is kind, charming, and a bit of a flirt. Working together to feed the feral cats living behind Elise’s house, Harris realizes that there is more to her than the shy wallflower he believed she was. Spending more time together, Harris draws her out, getting her involved her in the design work of the houses he was renovating. Elise's aunt constantly put her down, Harris's compliments and confidence in her made her thrive. Working together and connecting over their partnership their attraction builds as their chemistry sparks and sizzle. Putting the Furever Yours fundraiser displayed Elise’s talent for the fundraiser; despite it pushing her out of her comfort zone. Elise also had a special connection with the puppy Pancake, which helped Elise heal. Seeing Elise deal with the surprising truth and it was wonderful that Harris was there to support her. I highly recommend It Started with a Puppy to other readers.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elise's aunt is known for taking on a lot and being a total flake so this time Elise is roped into everything her Aunt signed up for and more. Now she's unsure of where the aunt went and Elise is dealing with a lot also renovating the place she's staying at, thank goodness her landlord and boss Harris is generous. As they begin to spend more time sparks begin to fly and a mystery beginnings to brew since her aunt disappeared and it doesn't look good for her.

So I was going into this book thinking I'm just going to read some fluffy romance novel and what I ended up getting was a bonus mystery and I love mysteries. Also I want to point out that even though this book is apart of a series it does fine as a stand alone. I do know after reading this book I am curious to checking out the previous ones because I'm curious to see more. I enjoyed getting to know Elise and Harris's character and seeing that romance between the two. I loved how selfless Elise was I mean she was doing lot, especially for her aunt she her aunt seems to have roped her into things on more then one occasion. There was just so much going on every where that there was so much to enjoy about this book. If your looking for a good book to check out I recommend you check out this one.

[anie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A better title would be it started with feral cats. :)

Elise is finally free of her controlling aunt, excited to build her life, but she is very broke. She works at an animal shelter and is searching for part-time jobs to supplement her income. Luckily she got the house for half the rent if she did little projects around the house and feed the wild cats, that the previous owner took care of.

Her new landlord Harris is a good guy, he even gives her a part-time job as the designer for his house flipping business. The more time they spend together, the more sparks fly between them.

When Elise finds out that her aunt took charity money before she left, she is more than determined to make the fundraiser a success. In doing so, she slowly comes out of her shell and starts to make friends.

Harris has very little patience and is always on the move, but there is something very charming about him. Elise went through significant character development throughout the story, from being shy, and want to blend into the background, to standing up for herself and making friends.

I like the romance but wished there was a bit more tension between them.

thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin for the ARC, all thoughts and opinions are my own

[Aisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

FULL REVIEW HERE:
https://harlequinjunkie.com/review-it...

This is a slow burn romance full of emotion and, I have to say it, surprisingly pure. The way I-always-go-after-what-I-want Harris woos Elise, being carefully slow not to scare her is simply adorable. At the same time, their time apart at the climax of the story is so sad it hurts and demonstrates how Elise and Harris love each other.

This is a book that has very funny moments, a lot of animals of all kinds (but no puppy until nearly the end, in which I don’t understand the book’s title) and nice scenes. A well developed story—especially in the way Ms. Jeffries brings unexpected twists to the plot— but a slow rhythm in the first 6 chapters, a loose end left in the air and no epilogue that was NEEDED to see how Elise and Harris evolve together.

[Aly · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5

Elise Mackenzie have a lots on her plate right now. And for someone who doesn't like to draw attention to herself, that's huge. Between working at Backyard Boarding and volunteering at Furever Paws, she also have to manage their fundraiser, since her aunt, who was supposed to take care of it, disappeared with the money. At least she can count on her new landlord, Harris Vega, to help her.

First, let me say that if your book is in a series about dogs and you put one on the cover and the back cover also talk about spending time with a puppy named Pancake, I expect to read a story with a dog in it and not just see him for one page or two. That's my biggest disappointment. I also felt like the chemistry between the MC was more friendly than romantic.

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elise is completely broke, but thanks to Harris, one of the big contractors in town, she has an affordable place to stay. The two decide to partner when they both realize they need help to feed the feral cats that expect their food. This was so endearing and at times hilarious and definitely romantic. The perfect love story

[Sharon Helfrich · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m going to miss this series, wish they would continue.