Ranger

Reynolds Protective #4

by Rebecca Sharp

Sydney Ward woke up on the wrong side of life—that’s what it feels like when cancel culture claims another victim.

After her relationship implodes and tanks her career as a bestselling romance novelist, Sydney decides to start a whole new chapter in the last place that any kind of romance—literal or figurative—could find her: Wisdom, Wyoming: a town with two stoplights, one main street, and zero book boyfriends.

Sydney was prepared to rebuild her life. She was prepared to forget all about sexy firefighters, broody billionaires, and dreams of her own happy ending. She was not prepared for her incredibly intelligent and endearingly awkward landlord—or the way he makes her feel things she’s only ever written about.

Ranger Reynolds lives by his own rules. While his exceptional IQ makes him an asset to Reynolds Protective, Ranger knows he’s too smart for his own good—and too smart to find love like the rest of his brothers. So, he ignores the pull he feels for the woman renting his garage apartment and sticks to facts instead.

When the press show up looking for a story on Sydney, they bring a dangerous plot twist. They’re out for blood, and they aren’t the only ones with Sydney in their sights. Ranger is determined to help. So, when Sydney approaches him proposing a very convenient kind of protection, Ranger agrees. Because what other reason would he have to get married?

Genres: Romance, Dark Romance, Romantic Suspense, Forced Proximity, Contemporary, Small Town Romance, Mystery

389 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 23, 2023

About the author

Rebecca Sharp always loved a good love story. Let's face it, when you include a romance novel on your 8th grade summer reading list just to see if the teacher would notice (she didn't!), she was bound to give writing one of her own a go. There's really no corner of romance that she doesn't (or wouldn't) enjoy writing, except maybe aliens, much to her husband's dismay, so her large catalog features a little something for everyone. However, her love of shows like NCIS and Criminal Minds makes her favorite stories to write the ones with some kind of suspense and crime solving.

When she's not writing, she's at her office treating patients, and somewhere between those two things, you'll find her wandering the globe with her husband always searching for their next adventure.

For more information on previous or upcoming releases and the most up-to-date and exclusive book news, connect with her at one or all of the links below!

Mailing List: http://bit.ly/StaySharpSignUp

Facebook: www.facebook.com/drrebeccasharp

Facebook Reader Group (My Sexy Sharpies): https://goo.gl/RrNZvT

Instagram: www.instagram.com/drrebeccasharp

Happy reading!

Reviews

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did I read this because I saw one TikTok about the mmc being inspired by Spencer Reid? Yes

Was it worth it? Absolutely!

[Summer Livingston · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s posted a few times throughout the comment section, but since there’s so many comments I feel the need to repeat it. Dr. Rebecca Sharp stalked and plagiarized her sister in law, AK Evans. Here’s where you can read the post by AK Evans complete with screenshots: https://www.authorakevans.com/decay-s...
Personally, I have not read books by either author, but I definitely won’t read Dr. Rebecca Sharp now.

[Matie · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I loved the Spencer Reid aspects that the character of Ranger had, to much of the book to me is a direct rip from Criminal Minds. There are quotes, descriptions, and whole plot lines that are ripped directly from the TV Show.

I admit that the chemistry between the characters is spicy and well written but everything else sent me into hysterical laughter and sent my Criminal Minds loving brain into writing down every single quote or aspect that related to the show.

To me, Sharp's writing is good and I will most likely read another book from her in future but this one just felt like Self Insert Fanfiction to give the reader a happy ending to one of the most beloved characters from Criminal Minds.

[Raluca · Rating 1 out of 5]

dragged spencer reid s name through the mud

[EmBibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

“I know how strong your mind is,” she said throatily. “I want to be the one who makes it lose control.”

Ranger was the most caring supportive nerd. I truly liked his sweetness, awkwardness and his super high IQ brain. I love it when he would start stating facts. He was my favorite thing about the book. This was a typical small town romantic suspense story with a fake marriage trope. I didn’t realize that this is like the last book in the series, but I think I’ll be reading more from the author.

[rae ✿ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i'm coming here to update a review but got a tea instead and it's wild 🍵 https://www.authorakevans.com/decay-s...

[helena · Rating 1 out of 5]

If there's one lesson I should've learned from my own love life, it is to never let my love for a man speak louder than the warning sirens.
My love for Spencer Reid is, clearly and unfortunately, deafening.
I heard of this book through booktok (redflag #1), but thought it couldn't possibly be that bad. It is. It's bad. It's poorly written, rushed, unbelievable and the spicy scenes aren't even that impressive, I've seen better stuff on AO3. There's too many tropes shoved together, the characters are shallow, and the very starting premise is dumb. "Cancel culture makes another victim", girl what? Tell me you're a republican without telling me you're a republican.

Spoilers from this point on.

So, a couple of things that actually bothered me. For once, this book was painfully straight. There's a solid three moments that I can currently remember where the fmc thought of how surprised she was that the mmc was attractive despite him not being "traditionally masculine". The book is advertised as "Spencer's happy ending", but the author just gave him a bunch of kids. Girl, if you watched Criminal Minds you know Spencer's happy ending is a good therapist and visiting his godchildren on the weekends. Period. I can enjoy heterosexual love stories, but heteronormativity to this level is too much for my poor queer heart.
Second, Ranger (the mmc inspired by Spencer) is a 32 years old man who has never been kissed, but suddenly can't keep it in his pants because of a woman he met 4-6 weeks ago. Like, what? There's a moment in the book where Ranger clearly states that he hasn't settled for meaningless sex because he knew it could be more, so insta-love is completely out of character for him.
Besides, don't think I didn't notice that they only had sex after they got married! That plus the Twilight references (Ranger has a Volvo like Edward) gave me war flashbacks.

So, yeah. I'll… wash my eyes with some actual edits of Spencer Reid now. Goodbye.

[A thousand lives · Rating 1 out of 5]

4 kids in 5 years ?!? Yeah absolutely not

[m · Rating 5 out of 5]

She was becoming my addiction, and there was no Narcan for falling for my fake wife.

it’s 3am.

sobbing, crying, weeping, shedding tears, wailing, bawling, sniveling, grieving, mourning, miserable, vomiting, squeamish, nauseous, queasy, repulsed, manic, insane, frenzied, demented, deranged, psychotic, rabid, crazed, delirious, erratic, idiotic, maniacal, unhinged. just a few emotions going on rn

pardon my french- IM NOT FUCKING OKAY IM NOT AND I WONT BE???:?:?:?:?:? DR SPENCER REID YOU CAN REST IN PEACE NOW JUSTICE HAS BEEN SERVED TO YOU THANK YOU MISS SHARP FOR WRITING THIS MASTERPIECE OF A BOOK THANK YOU THANK YOU. YOU NAILED IT. FUCKING NAILED IT FROM ALL THE REFERENCES AND THE ICONIC LINES AND THE LITTLE TINY THINGS ONLY HE DOES OHMYGODSMDJENXJE *rips hair out*

”Achilles had his heel. Samson had his hair. Superman had kryptonite. And I… I had Sydney.”(I do not lie when I say I stared at a wall and cried for five minutes after this)

“But Sydney… Sydney was like my own personal Rosetta Stone. She was both a question and the answer. The unknown and the tree of knowledge. A relative stranger… and my wife.”

“I stared at my hands on the wheel. I always drove with two hands. Ten and two. It was the safest way to drive, and I always did what was safest. Until now. Until now, when the most dangerous thing I could do was not hold on to her. I peeled my right hand from the wheel, using my left to steer as I took her hand in mine. Her fingers were cold, so I squeezed them tight.” my crying can solve the water shortage going on in canada rn


That was why I couldn’t get enough of her—because she humbled me. Because being with her made me feel like I had so much to learn—so much more to grow. To experience. Being with her made me feel like I had so much more to live. THIS IS WHAT MADE ME DIE. NO EXPLANATION NEEDED.

I DIEDDDDDDD DEAD SIX FEET UNDER THE GROUND. HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO GO OUT TO THE WORLD AND TALK TO MEN RIGHT NOW?/?:?:?:?: HOW I DONT WANT ANY MAN WHO ISNT THIS EXACT BREED OF MAN. I WOULD LIST EVERY SINGLE THING THIS MAN DID BUT THE WORD LIMIT WOULDN’T LET ME. NO MA’AM THANK YOU FOR RUINING MY STANDARDS THANK YOU ILY IM GOING TO GO BACK TO CRYING NOW AND REWATCH CRIMINAL MINDS FOR THE 10TH TIME. THIS WAS PERFECTION. PERFECT I LOVED SYD AND RANGER LIKE?:?/?::?:?:??::??:: FUCKING PERFECTION I CANT LIKENEBDBENZJEJE EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED NEVER A DULL MOMENT THIS SHIT BREATHED LIFE INTO ME AGAIN AND MADE ME REALIZE WHY IM A HOPELESS ROMANTIC TILL THE DAY I DIE😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

yes if u can’t tell I do have an unhealthy obsession with spencer reid criminal minds I’m just a girl 😔😍🥰🧎‍♀️🎀🎀

[rubellys · Rating 1 out of 5]

girl💀

[sashenka 🖤 (hard book slump) · Rating 1 out of 5]

In a nutshell, ⛔ even though the idea of Spencer Reid as MMC was a good idea

[Miki’s⚠️ Safety Reviews & Rants⚠️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars 🌟 🌟🌟 rounded up Cause the H was a super smart sexy Virgin and I loved the sex scenes and his reactions and evaluations of how he was feeling for the first time in his life.

⭐️⭐️⭐️The Hero got all the stars for this book.

❤️The romance was very sweet and cute but it was all because of Ranger. And unfortunately the rest just bored me or annoyed me.

‼️Everything else in this book got on my last nerve after the 50% mark cause I could see where this was going. How the author was gonna string along the drama between the H and h till the VERY end. And the drama was not good or worth it.
I felt like this was mostly boring and dull. It’s was very contrived and a lot of their actions just didn’t make sense to me.

‼️No real storyline… minor stalking which was good but not enough to keep me interested. Nothing really happened w it till the last 10%.

‼️She’s an unrealistically famous author fighting off the paparazzi like she was a Kardashian whose ass exploded on live TV. I mean some of it is explained away but yeah it was totally annoying cause it was so unrealistic and she overreacted to it constantly.


‼️This girl is a DRAMA QUEEN and a coward and I didn’t like her at all after a while. She just was to dramatic with her reactions to things and I HATED that she wouldn’t tell the H how she felt and fight for a man who deserved it. She had way more experience than the H in relationships and knew what they had was REAL. He was worth fighting for and she kept chickening out.


‼️I HATE HATE HATE when authors push the contrived drama and lack of communication TILL THE VERY END! 90% until they actually talk about their feelings. 90%!

‼️You know what’s the worst? When 2 grown adults have a fake relationship and fall in love and have ZERO REASONS for not pursuing a relationship except “THAT WASNT THE PLAN” for 90% of the book.
It makes you hate the characters after a while cause how can 2 people in their 30s be so dumb. You can’t relate. So you roll your eyes and stop rooting for them
Or caring at all.

‼️Overall. I had high hopes for this but I guess I just could suspend belief enough to really buy what this author was selling and I don’t think I would read more from her at this time.

‼️❤️THE ONLY SAVING GRACE FOR THIS BOOK WAS RANGER. If not for him I would have DNF in the first 20%.

‼️Safety
❤️VIRGIN HERO 32yr- he hasn’t done ANYTHING w any woman and I loved this so much!

‼️h was engaged 6mo before the book starts they broke up cause he was cheating. No history before that.

‼️No condoms she is on BC

No OWD/ 3Rd act - I mean how can they breakup when they are not officially together till 90%.

Mild OM- she had a stalker

[Callie Williams · Rating 1 out of 5]

Loved the book till I realized it was someone else's book, shortly after I went and read AK Evans versions and let me tell you FUCKING AMAZING! I will never read another Rebecca Sharp book after learning what I did today. I encourage all other readers to look into this author and not support her stalking and plagiarism of her sister in law.

[kaleigh (semi hiatus because reading slump…) · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE CUTEST ROMANCE!!! RANGER REYNOLDS <333333😍😍😍

To be honest, I can’t even describe how much I loved this book! I’m not used to reading the rom com genre since most of what I read is on the darker scale but gawdddd this delivered and I ate it up😋😋😋 BRB about to make all my Goodreads friends read this😭🤣

The story:
Sydney aka our heroine rents out an apartment in Wisdom, Wyoming trying to get away from her cheating ex fiancé and death threats for killing a character in her newest novel. Sydney is a romance author and her latest series was inspired by her ex fiancé Vince. When Sydney learned Vince had been cheating on her, she killed off the Hero in the book, upsetting fans. She starts getting death threats by her readers and goes to Wisdom in hopes to get a break from all the negativity. When Sydney arrives in Wisdom, she meets Ranger, the landlord to her apartment and also her neighbor.

Ranger is the youngest of his brothers and always overlooked. He is literally the smartest person and has 3 PhD’s😍 He works at a private security firm with his brothers and does most of the behind the scenes stuff. Ranger tends to ramble when he gets nervous and his ramble is the cutest thing ever. Ranger has always known what to do in situations but when Sydney comes along, he is utterly confused and has absolutely no clue what to do. He does not know why his body reacts like it does and every time Sydney touches him, he forgets all thoughts, something that has never happened to him🤭

Tropes:
• neighbors
• he’s her landlord
• cute/soft H
• romance author h
• fake marriage/ marriage of convenience (turned real😏)
• virgin H😍😍😍😍(he’s never even kissed another woman, had oral, touched another woman intimately or anything❤️)
• he’s her bodyguard
• criminal minds/ Spencer Reid vibes
• H cooks and bakes
• THEY MAKE SNOW ANGELS TOGETHER 😩😩

I also can’t forget about the side characters. Every single one of them was so good and had such a great impact on the story! Ranger goes to senior citizen trivia night every time they have it and we get to see his amazing friends throughout the story.

In the town there is a book club which is mostly a fan club for the amazing author Sydney. Each person in the club is fond of her and they come to her rescue when she has run ins with the paparazzi every time!!!

Quotes and funny scenes
“Sydney, please,” I insisted with a soft laugh, adjusting my bag on my shoulder and extending my hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ranger.”
His smile fell and he stood frozen while I waited with my hand extended. Seconds passed like I was waiting for a watched pot to boil.
Well, this was awkward.
He stared at my hand like I’d just wiped my nose with it. Or my ass.
God, I needed to sleep.
“I’m… sorry.” I dropped my head and my hand, feeling foolish as I rubbed my palm along my thigh. “If you just want to show me—”
“Did you know studies show more pathogens are exchanged by shaking hands than a ten second kiss?”

This scene had me cracking up it was hilarious!

“I’m sorry… was that supposed to be a pickup line?” If it was, it had the poorest delivery in the history of pickup lines.
Ranger’s eyes bulged, and he visibly flinched as though I was the inappropriate one.
“What? No.” He bundled his arms over his chest. “I apologize. I just mean… I only meant that research has shown that handshakes spread about a hundred and twenty-four million bacterial cells, whereas a ten-second kiss only transfers about eighty million.”

“Yeah, it seems kind of crazy when you put it like that. Maybe we should start just making out with everyone instead,” I replied casually—jokingly—but Ranger didn’t laugh.
He gave me a horrified stare. Oh god, he thought I was serious.

Chemically… biologically… my body found Sydney attractive. I’d spent a good portion of that night researching and reviewing all the anatomical and biochemical processes involved in my reaction to her.

I’d wanted to kiss my new guest, and there wasn’t a single logical reason for it.
I’d never wanted something that was illogical, never experienced my body being out of sync with my brain. And that unsettled me. A lot. So, either I was going to figure out what happened to me—what caused my brain to malfunction—or I was simply going to have to avoid Sydney at all costs.

“One minute, my thoughts are all there like a million-lane highway where I was just switching from one lane to the next. From driving to saying goodbye to Sydney to cataloging the steps to replace the broken bike chain… and then the highway was gone. And it was like I was in a field. Except I wasn’t, I was in the garage. But I felt warmth like I was in the sun. There were goose bumps on my skin like from a breeze.”
“Ranger…” Gunner was smiling at me.
“This has never happened before, Gunner. It could be serious.” I stopped because Gunner made a noise, and that was when I noticed he was chuckling. “Why are you laughing? What if this is a symptom of a transient ischemic—a ministroke? Do I have brain damage?”
Gunner’s loud hoot startled me as he threw his head back in uncontrolled laughter.
“I don’t understand why you’re laughing,” I told him bluntly. “I’m telling you I lost my ability to think, and I can’t find a medical explanation for it.”
He laughed harder.
“I think I need to see a neurologist,” I tried to emphasize the severity of this issue, but for some reason, my brother doubled over and started wheezing. “You’re not very helpful,” I grumbled.
Gunner held up a hand, waving it at me as he gasped for air, reeling his amusement in. “You don’t need… a neurologist,” he said between heaving breaths.
“I disagree.”
“Baby Brains, you didn’t stop thinking. You were just thinking with a different part of your body,” he informed me, but he was making no sense.
“That’s not possible, Gunner. No other part of your body has the capability to think. Your brain is what controls—”
“You can argue with me, Ranger, but for once—for maybe the very first time ever—you’re wrong,” he declared, and I shifted in my seat. He was wrong. I was never wrong. “You weren’t thinking because you were feeling… because you’ve got the hots for your romance novelist renter.”

“So, have you finished all her books?”
“All the ones you have,” I admitted.
After I’d read Twisted Fate, I immediately went to Mom’s collection and read all of the ones on her shelves. I ordered the rest online, but they weren’t scheduled to be delivered for a few days yet.

“There’s something more torturous than having a spike slowly driven up your ass?”
“Yes.” I looked up at her and replied before I could think. Everything with Sydney was always before I could think. “Losing you.”

“Not god. The G-spot is named after Grafenberg.”
“Ranger.” Our eyes locked over my trembling stomach, and I panted. “Are you finger fucking or fact fucking me?”

There was a pause. “You look a little flushed, Ranger. Sweating, even.”
“I was just… cooking,” Ranger replied, and I grimaced. He was the worst white liar. “Cooking and then very hungry. Did you know eating a large meal can make you hot? It’s called gustatory sweating.”
I covered my mouth, stifling a laugh.
“What?” Ranger probed.
“Nothing,” finally came the other man’s reply. “Not a thing.” I could hear the smile in his voice.

“Everything,” Ranger murmured, his voice catching as his eyes connected with mine. Intense. Unquestionable. “I’m willing to risk everything on her.”

“According to Einstein, time is relative—a measurement affected by gravity. And in the eleven weeks, six days, nineteen hours and thirty-six minutes since I met you, I’ve never fallen so hard, yet my feet haven’t left the ground. The only conclusion is that gravity has changed because you’re around, and therefore time has, too.”

Ranger is so funny without even meaning to be. Through half the book I could not stop laughing.

My only downside to this book is that in the beginning there were a few mentions of modern day stuff like the Drew Barrymore show, ect.. It wasn’t all through the book so I didn’t see it as much of a problem.

Ranger😍
Absolute perfection. He was beautiful written and probably one of my all time favorite characters.
• Ranger can read fast, extremely fast and reads the h’s book in under ten minutes but also reads every single one of her books and loves every one. At book club he said his favorite scene was a sex scene🤭
• Ranger memorizes things so fast so even though he’s never kissed a woman, he learns so quickly and memorizes every thing about her and her body.
• I loved the time when Ranger was freaking out thinking he needed to see a neurologist because he thought he had brain damage since when he was so close to the h, he couldn’t think which had never happened to him before.
• Ranger is so protective and obsessed with her. He steps out of his comfort zone multiple times to reassure and stick up for her.

This book is the 4th book in a series but it can be read as a standalone. If you are a safety reader and plan to read the whole series, I would skip Gunnar’s book because in this book it was mentioned how much of a manwhore he was. Not sure about the other guys.

Safety info
• virgin H/ experienced h
• no OW drama
• some OM drama with her ex fiancé who cheated on her and some obsessive fans
• H has never kissed, pleasured or touched another woman romantically🤭🤭
• birth control used

[Jandira Pimentel · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too much tears rolling for my liking.
1 star to that 1rst spicy scene though.

Dear author, why, in a Social media and Netflix world is it important to only kiss or live with someone if you’re married? Who cares, exactly?

[Jessie ツ · Rating 4 out of 5]

All u need to know:Genius-virgin H written after Reid from Criminal Minds 😮‍💨😮‍💨

VIBES: genius & sexually inexperienced H, romance author h, close proximity, he helps her

——ˋˏBLURBˎˊ——
H helps h when she’s being harassed/stalked by and unknown person (presumably angry fan). Cue the proximity, tension, & playing house except there’s nothing pretend about it.🤞

——•THOUGHTS•——
Yup. Just what Dr. Reid ordered 😝😝! I really enjoyed the genius-understands-everything-except-his-feelings H & the sorta meddling vibes from his siblings having to tell him why he had a reaction to h. Cute cute cute

I will say I got, not bored, but less interested by the 70% ish mark idkkk it was still good but I was kinda over it.

——•TROPES & SUCH•——
Marriage of Convenience
She’s his tenant
Close proximity
FMC had bad past relationship
He falls first, harder
Instant attraction from both sides
Small town
Family vibes (H siblings, mom)

———•SAFETY•———
Virgin H
Non-virgin h
No OWD
No real OMD: just mentions of FMC past relationship (ended badly, in past, she doesn’t love him anymore)
No cheating
HEA

[Youssra (back to work-semi ia) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having a life I cant forget isn't the same as having a life worth remembering, and the only life worth remembering is one that has you in it. *SWOONS*

audio: 5 stars!! I swear the narration made this book so much better! especially Ranger bcz of his awkward personality and Zachary captured it excellently!

plot: 3.75 stars

It only took the words " MMC inspired by Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds" for me to jump into this book and I have zero regrets because this was so much fun!

Ranger, the mmc, is so awkward and nerdy and adorable I was gonna cry from the sheer cuteness!!! He wears sweater vests, he is a genius with an eidetic memory, HE CARRIES HANDKERCHIEFS!! OMG he was such a lovable little nerd!

This was a fun read, kinda like a palette cleanser, little brain power needed😂 I liked the small mystery and action elements. But oh boy, the spice? If you haven't read nerdy spice, you are missing out because it was an EXPERIENCE 😂😂 nerds can get it y'all 😂

I didn't like a few things. The reason for the marriage of convenience did not convince me lol, the fmc was kinda bland, and it was a little bit insta lovey, but for Ranger I let it go bcz he was just so adorable 😂

Overall, a very fun listen!

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

the main character says “my jaw went slack” 16 times. yes, i counted.

[hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

the dedication of this book:

To Dr. Spencer Reid, Criminal Minds did you dirty, Pretty Boy. You deserved a happy ending, so this one’s for you.

spencer reid from criminals minds but in book form????? this is literally all i could ask for in life. I WOULD PICK HIM OVER THE HOT GRUMPY BUFF BOOK BOYFRIEND EVERY TIME NO QUESTIONS ASKED >>>>>>

if i could have a character like this in every book i read i would be perfectly content. this was the perfect book to take me out of my almost two month reading slump. so thank you rebecca sharp 🙏

— if yall are looking for a book boyfriend that is spencer reid, this is the book. he's described as pretty much the same as in the tv show. with his personality, his intelligence and physical looks, but ofc rebecca adds in her own 🤌✨ and it was 😩
— ranger blushes 😭😭😭 and is super shy and awkward around her. when he doesn't know how to react to her he spits out facts and it was the cutest shit ever
— he's a virgin and sydney's the experienced one. he hasn't even kissed a women before nor has even had the urge to do so until her 🥺 he was losing his mind over her and even with his 3 phds, he couldn't figure out what was going on with him. a genius who has the answers for everything, losing his mind and going blank over the girl he's obsessed with? IT WAS SO FREAKING GOOD I WAS ALSO LOSING MY MIND
— sydney is a famous romance author who is getting major back lash for killing one of her characters off, so she leaves to get some time away where she meets ranger and he's her landlord. turned fake husband and also bodyguard 👀 yes, this book has all the amazing tropes
— he reads her books. like devours them immediately. she gave him one of her books late at night and he returned it the next morning. she was thinking he didn't like it because he returned it so quickly but he actually loved it and just reads 20k words a minute so he finished the book within 10 minutes. then continues to read all her other books
— he's the youngest of his 3 brothers (the other brothers are also inspired by criminal minds characters) and they are all really protective over him but ranger stands up against them for her. and she also sticks up for him too when she can see his brothers being to overbearing 🫠
— he's a quick learner yall better be prepared 😳😳😳
— he cooks and bakes
— grey sweatpants
— lots of "my wife" AND "my husband"
— romance AND plot. there is a thriller/mystery also going on at the same time so i was never bored or felt the need to skim.
— they actually get to know each other deeply and truly understand each other first before spicy times come. i can really appreciate insta love now (i used to hate it) but it's nice to have slow burn too. it's way more realistic
— DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES DIMPLES
— the perfect fairy tail ending. i appreciated this because syndey is a romance author and it felt very fitting. i read books for an escape and the HEA. so their ending was wholesome af and i was giggling and kicking my feet. SHE IS LITERALLY LIVING MY DREAM 😭😭😭😭😭

so if you love the shy hot nerdy virgin mmc x the confident experienced fmc with a slice of thriller and whole lot of swoony romance, i recommend this!!!

now time for me to go watch criminal minds to further feed my obsession with spencer reid. ALSO CAN WE GET MORE BOOKS WITH CHARACTERS LIKE THIS PLEASE IM BEGGING YOU????? if anyone has recs please let me know.

[Tegan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did I stay up until 2:30 reading glorified Spencer Reid fan fiction that I can track on goodreads? Absolutely. Will I regret it when the alarm goes off in 4.5 hours? Absolutely. Would I read it again? Absolutely.

[del · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was crazy. I've never actually experienced that sort of atmosphere a game before. It's absolutely ELECTRIC. The passion, the tension. The hottest shit i've ever read in my mega-short life.
I'm about to cry.

update: one day after and i’m still thinking about this, i think i’ll never overcome this thing. Call me crazy because i am and it’s because of Matthew.
I freaking love this book it really awakened me, it brought me back to life.

[Kayde · Rating 1 out of 5]

Another DNF…this one is sad because I was really enjoying the book but as the first spicy scene was so cringey I just couldn’t force myself through the poor and unrealistic scene. I initially was so excited to read this book as the MMC is inspired by Spencer Reid, and if you know me you will know how much love I have for him as he is the namesake for one of my fur babies. But throughout the half of the book I read I was convinced that the author had only ever watched the first season of Criminal Minds and essentially copied her character and dialogue from there, ignoring a lot of his character growth and leaning too much into his neurodivergence that it was almost gimmicky in the way it was written. Again, I found the mystery aspect far too predictable from the moment the first bunch of flowers arrived, and even though the big reveal hadn’t happened by the time I had to stop reading, I could predict what would happen and that does take a lot of enjoyment out of a novel for me.

[Monika Konrad]

I’m so not gonna rate this. The book itself would have been like idk, 3 stars maybe. But hear me out-

How is a bland and boring character like Sydney a good match for the perfect babygirl that Spencer is?

And let’s please cancel pregnancy trope. Like forever thank you

[Jen ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐

MCs:
- Ranger, 32
- Sydney, 34

Book info:
- Small town romance
- Landlord / Tenant
- Forced proximity
- Stalking
- Suspense
- No cheating, opd, third act breakup
- Secret Wedding
- HEA
- Virgin MMC
- Bonus epilogue


"Being with her made me feel like I had so much more to live."

The plot and the reason for suspense was almost the same as Hunter's book. But I liked this story way better, mainly because of Ranger. Gosh, this guy had me falling head over heels for him, why is he a fictional character? 😭

So Sydney moved to the small town of Wisdom wanting to get some break from writing and away from all the readers who are mad at her for killing the MMC in her book. The character was inspired by her cheating ex, and she no longer wants to write in reference about him hence the killing of her beloved male character. She rented the room above the garage of Ranger and sparks flew between them from the very beginning.

With all the tension, you would think these two would burn so fast and hot, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. This is a freaking sloooow burn, I guess I should be glad because the chemistry is there, and they have emotional connection so there's no struggle to connect with the MCs. But honestly, the constant will-they-won't-they started to slowly piss me off. When I thought they were finally going to act on their attraction something would interrupt them or someone will pull away. I think I lost a few hair strands 'cause I was so frustrated with these scenes. They eventually gave in around 73% of the book, which is like almost 3/4 of the book already. Maybe it's the mood I'm in too, I'm not really looking for a slow burn atm.

I liked, no, I love Ranger as an individual, this guy had so many layers in him and he's just the most caring, protective, understanding, and awkward nerd and I've read this year. 😂 He's different from his brothers and he's aware of that. He's smart, like Einstein level smart, he could read 20K words per minute, he has three PhD, an eidetic memory (the ability to vividly recall an image you are exposed to, but only briefly). But also because of these things, he always sticks to facts and numbers. It's difficult for him to understand and read people's emotions. Buuuut, this didn't deter him from learning all the things about Sydney and all other things that he used to don't care about before 😉 All I just want to say is, he's included in my top 10 book boyfriends for this year. I can't find the right words to express how much I love his character. 🥹 The 4 ⭐ rating is solely because of him 😂

As for Sydney, I liked her in the beginning. She was brave for stepping out of her comfort zone and to protect her mental and emotional wellbeing. She was a strong character in general. But she annoyed me every time she chickens out when it comes to Ranger. She's the one who has more experience about relationships and other things, and Ranger was only taking clues from her. But her push and pull game because she's afraid of falling for him (which was dumb cuz she's halfway in love with him already) was grating on my nerves. Like I said, Ranger isn't really that great when it comes to reading people so her mixed signals only confused him most of the time. I'm so close to throwing my Kindle around 80% of the book after reading her inner monologue. For someone who's in her thirties I kind of expected some mature thinking and healthy conversation from her, but no, none of that happened and her decision to leave and go back "home" made me even more pissed. Tbf, she thought that she was doing Ranger a favor, but I still don't like this in my romance. I want the MCs to work their issues together not apart. Thank God, there's no third act breakup and she didn't follow through with her plan.

As a couple, they're as so-so. I didn't love them didn't hate them either. But ngl, their steamy scenes are hot but I think that's only because of Ranger. 🤭

As for the suspense, a delusional fan who thinks he's going to spend his life with Sydney stalked her from New York to Wyoming. He was an avid reader and a huge fan but like I said he's delulu. He thought Sydney was in love with him because of the nice words she told him in the past. I mean she's an author after all, it's part of her job to interact with her fans and to tell or show them how much she appreciates their support. Apparently, he put so much thought about her nice gestures and that's how his delusions started. Anyway, it was.... anticlimactic, the way he got caught and how it went down. Maybe I'm reading way too much romance suspense and I was waiting for more actions but it didn't happen. 😅

Overall, I liked the story though it was almost the same as the book 2 in this series. I still enjoyed it and the fact that the MCs chemistry is off the charts. I think it helped me to push through because I really feel the sincerity and emotions between Ranger and Sydney. I did like the bonus epilogue too that shows each brother's life, their families and how they are still working together. Anyway, I think this is worth reading and recommending but if readers aren't fans of slow burn they won't probably enjoy this. 😅

[Samantha Kirkpatrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know this is suppose to give Spencer vibes but instead I got a sheldon with a hint of Spencer. The author is witty and I really liked her references to songs and current situations. But man after the 3rd “baby brains” in like 2 pages I was already over that nickname. The facts were cool though.

*marriage of convenience, damsel in distress, HEA*

[✰ celly ✰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

this would be rated higher for me if there weren’t lines just pulled straight from criminal minds

[Yana (the duchess) · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wrote an absolutely scathing review of this book, detailing exactly how terrible it was and listing all the ways it deserved 1 star, only for my app to crash and delete it. If that isn’t a clear sign that I shouldn’t waste another second on this story or it’s forgettable characters, I don’t know what is.

This might be my least favourite book this year.

[Ellen W · Rating 4 out of 5]

The happy ending Dr. Reid deserved.
It's funny how I've probably watched Criminal Minds so many times, that I actually heard Rangers voice as Spencer Reid

[ChasxSabri&#x1f497;&#x1fae7; · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was delicious. I like my men nerdy and socially awkward😌

[Kristin · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 54%.

Even before I found out about the plagiarism accusations against this author, something just didn’t jive with me and this book. Maybe it was the writing style?? Things just happened too quickly and the plot made no sense. It was an amalgam of better books and she just kept stuffing in more and more tropes including marriage of convenience, one of my least favorites. I didn’t care about the characters. And I found it really hard to believe paparazzi would chase an author all the way to Wyoming. It’s not like she’s Stephen King. The smut was not good. I usually love male virgins but I just wasn’t buying this. Just because he knows everything scientifically about kissing doesn’t make him good at it. Also who gets married after one bj?

I haven’t seen Criminal Minds but apparently the author also plagiarized a lot from that. I also don’t like when people call themselves “doctor” to sell books. Whether she really is one or not, it has nothing to do with making her qualified to write romance novels.

Even having some of my favorite narrators Zachary Webber and CJ Bloom (who’s done Chloe Liese’s books) couldn’t save this mess.

Romantic suspense
Stalker
Bodyguard
Roommates
Just one bed
Autistic MMC
Male virgin