Too Wild to Tame (Romancing the Clarksons)

by Tessa Bailey

Aaron Clarkson has dreamed of the White House since his very first debate team victory, and connecting with a presidential candidate while on the campaign trail in Iowa is the next rung in his ladder to the top. While his siblings are grudgingly obliging his request to put the road trip on a short hiatus in Iowa, Aaron escapes their passive aggression by grabbing a beer in the local dive bar, where his attentions are quickly captured by a violet-eyed seductress in leather pants.

Grace Pendleton is the black sheep of her family, but in the interest of creating a happy family portrait, she has been dragged along to smile for the camera while her father stumps for votes. She only ventured into the rundown pub to use the restroom, but she couldn't resist a chance at making Aaron, the overly ambitious politico, pant for something he couldn't have.

When a local cause in need of support draws both of their interest, Aaron and Grace find themselves in a battle for what's right - and in extremely close quarters, where resistance is futile. But they're pulled apart all too soon by outside forces and the vastly different futures they aspire to. They'll have to decide if their love is strong enough to draw them back together, but will the decision come too late?

• ISBN10: 1455594156
• ISBN13: 9781455594153
• Publish Date: 31 January 2017 (first published 6 September 2016)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 6 August 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Forever
• Format: Paperback (A-Format (178x111 mm))
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[stacey_is_sassy]

Think before you speak.

First off…how freaky is this? I finished the first book in this series on Mother’s Day and Too Wild to Tame on Father’s Day. I didn’t even plan it and I only realised when I went to check out what I’d said about the first book in the series. FREAKY!! Anyways…I really enjoyed Too Wild to Tame and to be honest, it was better than I thought it would be. The main thing that resonated with me was the realisation that a passing comment made by a parent to a child can have a lasting effect. In this case, Aaron’s father told him he would be a loner, do whatever it took (good or bad) and didn’t need anyone else to succeed. Aaron believed him. He lived his life with a single-minded focus on succeeding. Aaron believed that he wasn’t capable of love and pushed away anyone who tried to get close to him. Too Wild to Tame tells the story of Aaron coming face to face with the one person who could crack the shell around his heart.

Aaron, Belmont and Peggy are still on their journey to New York to fulfil their mother's dying wish. Sage is still with them and keeping Belmont sane. Belmont is his quiet, hulking self, needing Sage as his anchor. Peggy is giving the outward appearance that everything is OK… and great…and happy, happy, joy, joy…BUT…you can sort of tell it’s all for show. Then there’s Aaron and his faithful new canine pal, Old Man.

Aaron is the family’s organiser. It’s his job to make sure that the accommodation, car and route are planned. His aim has been to get to Iowa to try and get back on the Presidential Campaign trail. Aaron’s original plans got a little derailed in California when he was sacked from his position. His name and reputation are on the line after making a monumentally bad decision. In Iowa, he plans to sneak into one of the candidate's campaign breakfasts and try and talk him into giving himself a chance. Aaron looks like he should be in front of a camera. He’s smart and uses that intelligence to manipulate people and things to work in his favour. Aaron says it’s just the way he is and the fallout of his manipulations don’t affect him. Luckily, we see through his thoughts that he does care and have regrets. If only he could get past the security…

Grace Pendleton is the daughter of a Presidential candidate…but she’s the hidden daughter. Grace is a quirky character with a big heart. Her family, lead by her controlling father, treat her like she’s “special” and try to hide her away from the spotlight. This makes Grace feel like an outsider. Grace wants to make a difference in the world. She doesn't like the way her father uses politics to make his version of a better world. Her methods in obtaining a better world see her making a deal…with the devil…or maybe he’s the love of her life.

When Aaron and Grace meet, it’s under unusual circumstances. Neither of them know each other or expect that their unusual meeting will lead to an unexpected partnership. The more they get to know each other the closer they get. The attraction and chemistry between Aaron and Grace jumped off the pages and at times it was sizzling. Grace needs Aaron to tell her what he's thinking. Aaron needs to believe that he deserves someone as wonderful as Grace.

Grace and Aaron bring out the best in each other. I loved seeing their relationship grow. I hated seeing their vulnerable sides getting taken advantage of. Too Wild to Tame brought a tear to my eye a number of times but it also made me bust a gut laughing as well. The Clarkson family took this voyage of discovery not knowing that they would be looking not just at the road ahead, but at themselves too. Each new relationship seems to have a little magic in it. It’s definitely got a touch of insta-love, but to me, that little bit of magic can produce a happy ever after equal to a slow building love.

I’m happy with the way Too Wild to Tame concluded and I’m definitely a fan of Tessa Bailey’s style of love story. Words have the power to hurt but they also have the power to express love. Looking forward to seeing how Peggy makes a man from her past’s, life a living hell.

To buy Too Wild to Tame from Amazon - http://amzn.to/2cAjPxV

 

Style Setter Tribute to Too Wild to Tame by Tessa Bailey by staceyissassy featuring an iphone cover case

I’m an Aussie chick who loves to read and review romance, drink coffee, be a Style Setter and stalk David Gandy. To see more of my reviews, fashion, food and pervathons -

[leelu92]

As a whole, I enjoyed Too Wild to Tame more than the first book in this series, Too Hot to Handle. I struggled with the Rita/Jasper pairing but I enjoyed the Clarkson family story and I had hoped to enjoy the second book in the series a bit more. Mission accomplished.

I’ll admit that I was quite pleasantly surprised by Aaron’s mega alpha tendencies regarding Grace. In fact, he reminded me of some of Ms. Bailey’s early alphas from her Line of Duty series and I loved that. This book and maybe the first, to an extent, carry a bit of an edge for me, it isn’t obvious or dark or anything but there is a sadness in the Clarkson family. They all have had their crosses to bear and that has created fissions within the Clarkson siblings. This road trip is certainly tilling up the soil and allowing the siblings to finally plant some new roots. Aaron carries his own dark and complicated issues that were planted in him as a child. These issues tie into the oldest Clarkson sibling, Belmont and it influenced how Aaron has lived his life and carried out relationships. Enter Grace… like a freaking wrecking ball, she pulverizes his neatly made little world.

I enjoyed the opposites attract aspect of their pairing. Grace was the artistic and creative wild child to Aaron’s buttoned up political consultant genius and it worked. There was a lot going on aside from the development of their relationship, lots of things happening with Peggy, Belmont and his paramour, Sage.

From book one, I knew that Peggy and Belmont’s books would be the ones I wanted most and that desire continues to grow. In this book, we learn a little bit more about Peggy and I’m definitely looking forward to her book but Belmont absolutely fascinates me and I suspect that book will be the most intense of all.