Hi there! Today, I’m sharing of SEARCHING FOR ALWAYS by Jennifer Probst. This is the 4th book in the Searching For series and it is published by Gallery Books. I recently reviewed SEARCHING FOR BEAUTIFUL and had to continue with the series. SEARCHING FOR ALWAYS features the love story of Arilynn, yoga teacher, counselor and rescuer of dogs everywhere! Can this do-gooder save the heart of alpha male Officer Stone Petty, meat-eating, stress-case, extraordinaire? Check out the teaser and giveaway below.

About the book:
New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Jennifer Probst sparks a blissful mind-body connection as her “sexy, satisfying” (Kirkus Reviews) new series continues!

She’s an expert in helping others de-stress, but Arilyn Meadows is running on fumes. Along with her job counseling singles seeking soul mates at the Kinnections agency in Verily, New York, she’s a yoga teacher, animal shelter volunteer, anger management therapist, and helping hand to her beloved grandfather. No time to find Mr. Right—but after discovering her yogi boyfriend in a compromising asana, Arilyn would rather dog-sit for her honeymooning friend Kate than risk her heart on another downward dog. And when police officer Stone Petty—radiating masculinity and bad-boy attitude—is sent to her for mandatory lessons in cooling off when the job gets too hot, Arilyn vows to ignore his seductive glances and sexy grin. But there’s no halting their sizzling flirtation—a red-hot, high-speed chase that’s breaking all the limits.

My Review:
This is the 4th book in a series, but able to be enjoyed as a standalone.
4.5 Stars.

Arilynn is a vegetarian, holistic, dog-fostering, yoga-teaching counselor who works with her college friends, Kennedy and Kate at a computer-matching service, Kinnections, in rural Verily, NY. Her only remaining family is her grandfather–her parents died via lung cancer and suicide in the past ten years. Having witnessed her parents’ illness, she has dedicated her life to living the healthiest life possible. She regularly encourages clean-living behaviors to the people she meets, and counsels, and can be a touch sanctimonious about it. Arilynn has just broken up with her secret lover of the past five years, Jacob, who is a holier-than-thou yogi with monogamy-averse ideas. (And good riddance!!!!)

Officer Stone Petty is a cop with an anger problem, sent to Arilynn’s 6-week anger management program for counseling after a brutality incident. (He beat up a domestic abuser he caught beating the heck out of his wife and child.) As it turns out, Stone is extremely sensitive to domestic abuse as an abuse survivor. He’s also a meat-loving, fast food scarfing, dog-hating recent ex-smoker, and totally wrong for Arilynn–so why are they attracted to each other?

This is low-conflict odd couple romance with lots of heart and some good heat. I really enjoyed the alternating POV, with the large swing in emotions. Stone has a lot of emotional scars, and he’s quick to judge as a result. He is a big proponent of justice, and I liked his remorse regarding the incidents that led to his discipline. I think readers will find kinship with a man having a violent response to child/spousal abuse, even if he’s a cop. Arilynn is a heroine with lofty ideals and down-to-earth solutions. She works hard to channel her frustrations with Stone, who is REALLY difficult to work with as a client. Setting her attraction aside, he’s constantly challenging her and works hard to make her angry–so their interactions are always a lesson in patience. I rejoiced every time she got the better of him, in class and out of it. I also loved that Arilynn found a man who wanted to treat her right and never considered keeping her a secret, like Jacob had. They have some excellent passionate moments, and delicious sexytimes occur after they’ve been in contact daily for a few weeks. They start out, intentionally, to only be casual partners but it quickly turns into something far more.

As this is a series read, we get some of Arilynn’s pals in the mix, but the character interactions are toned down from recent books. This allows for greater development of accessory characters, like Arilynn’s busybody neighbor and her grandpa. Those two are a hoot! Oh, and don’t forget the dogs! Stone has a bad history with dogs and is not best pleased that his anger management includes animal therapy–his experience will melt readers. Pinky is the best, BEST, medicine for his hardened heart.

I really enjoyed this one.

Interested? You can find SEARCHING FOR ALWAYS on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and iTunes.

****GIVEAWAY****

Click the Rafflecopter link below for your chance to win! Help pet rescue shelters by posting a picture of your rescued pet, or sharing your favorite shelter, and using the hashtag #SEARCHINGFORRESCUES. 4 shelters will get a $50 prize (winners choice) and 1 a grand prize winner will also get a prize pack from Jennifer Probst.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck and keep reading my friends!

About the Author:

Jennifer Probst wrote her first book at twelve years old. She bound it in a folder, read it to her classmates, and hasn’t stopped writing since. She took a short hiatus to get married, get pregnant, buy a house, get pregnant again, pursue a master’s in English Literature, and rescue two shelter dogs. Now she is writing again.

She makes her home in Upstate New York with the whole crew. Her sons keep her active, stressed, joyous, and sad her house will never be truly clean.

She is the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of sexy and erotic contemporary romance. She was thrilled her book, The Marriage Bargain, was ranked #6 on Amazon’s Best Books for 2012. She loves hearing from readers.

You can catch up with Jennifer online on her website for updates on new releases and her street team. Also check her out on Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads.