Review: Just One Kiss by Jami Wagner (Black Alcove #1)


Note: This ARC was provided by InkSlinger PR in exchange for an honest review.

Kelsey Brian was fifteen the first and only time she was kissed by sixteen-year-old Ethan Connelly. They've never forgotten each other though nothing really came out of that shared kiss. Seven years later, Ethan is tasked to take over managerial duties for the Black Alcove, a bar that his uncle owns, for his cousin Sara who just happens to be Kelsey's best friend. There's another reason why Ethan is working in Black Alcove and that's to help his father set his uncle up in order to gain ownership of the BA. But Kelsey proves to be a distraction that Ethan wasn't wholly prepared for and try as he might, he keeps coming closer to her every single time he tries to keep his distance. Now, Ethan is torn between proving to his father that he's worthy of praise and can get the job done and showing the girl he's fallen for he's worthy of her love and respect.

Just One Kiss is the first novel in the Black Alcove new adult (NA) series from author Jami Wagner and introduces readers to a bar called the Black Alcove and the young people who work there. Here we have Kelsey Brian, an accounting student, and Ethan Connelly, nephew of the bar's owner. The blurb may sound as if it's a second chance romance but I don't think Kelsey and Ethan were ever truly in love with one another when they were in their teens. Yes, they exchanged one memorable kiss and they were probably enamored with each other, but Ethan was only in the area every summer and never returned after the summer that cemented that first kiss. When Ethan returns seven years later, Kelsey's wary of him because he had a girlfriend when they kissed and Ethan never understood Kelsey's reaction to the kiss afterward.

The first few encounters between Ethan and Kelsey are filled with embarrassingly awkward (for Kelsey) and physically painful (for Ethan) moments that had me laughing. There's also a fair amount of drama that goes on because Ethan is keeping a secret from Kelsey for most of the book and then Kelsey ends up keeping her own secret from him later on. These two are in their early twenties so the immaturity and bad decision-making is understandable, though those can occur at any age. I did like them together, even though there was a great deal of one step forward, two steps back on the part of Ethan. I loved Logan and Sara, Ethan's and Kelsey's best friends, respectively, and after reading that epilogue, I'm excited to see what book two has in store for them. Just One Kiss was an overall charming read and it receives 4.5 stars. ♥

Release Date: 12 October 2015

Date Read: 09 October 2015

Learn more about Jami Wagner here.

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