Buns (The Hudson Valley Series Book 3)

Smart, funny and gorgeously romantic with wonderful characters, great dynamics and childish (but still very adult) innuendos and humour, it is everything that I love about Alice Clayton. It’s my favourite of the Hudson Valley books and finishes off the series beautifully! Clara is the third in a trio of girlfriends whose stories make up this series. After a difficult childhood, her career is now her life and she is the best at what she does – rebranding and rejuvenating struggling hotels. Her job keeps her moving around, which is exactly the way she likes it as she desperately avoids putting down her own roots and keeping clear of any kind of personal attachment (apart from her beloved girls of course). Her latest job brings her to Bailey Falls – the town where her two friends Roxie and Natalie have unexpectedly found the loves of their lives. She is working at the historic and prestigious Bryant Mountain House which badly needs to be dragged into modern times, but while most people are welcoming of her presence, the son of the hotel’s current owner and the man destined to run it one day, Archie Bryant, wants nothing to do with the woman coming in to trample all over his family’s legacy. The scene is set for an epic battle of wills, and OMG I loved every moment of it! The banter flies thick and fast as Clara and Archie clash over absolutely everything! He doesn’t want her there, and he makes no secret of the fact, arguing constantly with her and making her job so much harder than it needs to be. But underneath it all is a simmering chemistry, and when Clara learns that her nemesis used to be different before the tragic death of his wife years earlier, she starts to see him as human and things begin to change. The shift from enemies to sort-of-friends-who-madly-lust-after-each-other is really well done, with lots of sweet moments, funny moments, and sizzling sexual chemistry. You can feel the want that builds between the two of them, and the pacing is fantastic as they feel it all but don’t rush into anything, and the emotion between them is beautifully explored. And as the flirting, teasing and innuendo reaches boiling point, it’s hotter than all hell as they decide to just go with what they’re feeling, for however long they are able to have it. I just love these characters. They both have pain in their past, and Clara has walls around her, but they are open about what’s happening between them and I love that they throw themselves right in there. And in typical Alice Clayton style, there are lots of laugh-out-loud moments, the dialogue is spot-on, and the romance is easy, natural and believable. But Clara’s walls are tall, and she is only in town for a limited time. Will she be brave enough to accept what she is feeling and follow her heart, accepting that the gorgeous widower and his mountain – and all that comes with that - are the best thing that ever happened to her? Or will her debilitating fears keep her running? This book is such a great read. It’s fun, romantic and beautifully emotional. I could understand and empathise with both Clara and Archie and their struggles to let the other in, and I was completely swept up in their developing love story. There’s a bit of angst but it’s well handled and resolved well, and the book finishes in a great place. There’s lots of time spent with the characters from previous books of the series, and I loved catching up with all of them. There’s progression for both of the previous couples, and seeing the full group all together is a real treat. And Clayton fans will love the cameos from both of her other series. I also really enjoyed the HGTV-esque storyline of the hotel, which was entertaining and interesting, and was woven into the story perfectly without overpowering the romance (and the Dirty Dancing/Kellerman’s references were awesome!). I loved everything about it, and couldn’t put it down. I laughed and I swooned, and I fell in complete love with Archie. The romance is sweet, funny and passionate, and I finished this book with a huge grin on my face and hugging my kindle. Absolutely fantastic! 5 stars!

Buns by Alice Clayton Book #3: Hudson Valley Series Source: Netgalley My Rating: 4/5 stars My Review: Alice Clayton is back haunting the Hudson Valley and this time she brought Clara and Archie and whole pile of shenanigans. Clara Morgan is many things including accomplished, self-reliant, confident, intelligent, competent, loyal, and terrified of loving anyone and putting down roots. In an effort to avoid those last two, Clara has assiduously avoided romantic entanglements and devoted her life to travelling all over the country helping hotels and resorts rebrand themselves and become more successful. Clara excels at her job and loves her life. Or so she thought. The moment Clara steps foot on the property of Bryant Mountain House resort she knows she has her work cut out for her and relishes the challenge. The elder Archie Bryant invited Clara to rebrand the resort, but it’s his son, also Archie whom Clara is to work most closely with. If she thought the resort rebranding was going to be a challenge, well, she hasn’t met the younger Archie Bryant yet. At every turn and with every pronouncement, the resort owner with the smashing butt defies challenges, and contradicts Clara. For as much anger and frustration as Archie causes Clara, he also interests her and forces her to confront the fact she isn’t as happy with her life as she thought. Sweet, sexy, nerdy Archie Bryant loves his home and has no desire to see its history and traditions trampled on by the likes of Clara Morgan. With her bold, brash, confidence she outlines plan after plan for rebranding Archie’s beloved resort. Clara is suggesting changes, renovations, alterations, and upheaval that makes Archie’s head spin. Inconceivably, Archie seems to be the only one among the staff who is opposed to such calamity. In an effort to save his home, Archie defies Clara at every turn, he contradicts her, and stubbornly refuses to accept her ideas. He also has to deal with the fact that he is tremendously attracted to the little firebrand and that’s not helping the situation . . . at all. As days turn into weeks, Archie slowly begins to accept the inevitable, his resort is going to undergo changes. However, the more he gets to know Clara, the more he understands she doesn’t want to destroy his home, his resort, and the traditions of the site, but preserve them and bring them into the 21st century. Clara wants Bryant Mountain House to be restored to its former glory and that is something Archie can get behind. Being behind Clara isn’t half bad either and it isn’t long before Archie realizes the extent of his feelings for Clara. Unfortunately, as his feelings grow, Clara becomes more resistant. Clara is very aware of Archie and his feelings and that scares the ever-loving crap out of her! So much so, that when her professional life takes a most unexpected turn, Clara uses it as an excuse to escape the uncomfortable feelings caused by Archie and his feelings. Clara has too much personal baggage to ever settle down and being with Archie for the long-term would simply be disastrous. Besides, her career has always come first and satisfied her, so why upset the apple cart now? Says Clara to herself as she sits miserably in her lonely apartment far, far away from the man and place she accidentally fell in love with . . . . . Fixing the situation isn’t going to be easy, but Clara is determined and most fall in the face of Clara Morgan’s logic, reasoning, and loud arguments 😊 The Bottom Line: I like the first two-thirds of this book and simply adored the final one-third!! The first two-thirds of this read have some great moments, some excellent fights, some great conversations with old friends (Bombshell is on a roll in this one!) and a few naughty bits, but it is in the final one-third of the book that everything shines. It isn’t until Clara screws everything up with her ridiculous notions about love, commitment, and putting down roots that the read really takes off. Fixing her mess isn’t easy and Archie is so very heartbroken that it takes a monumental move to set things right. The. Move. Is. Monumental. The highlights of this read include Archie and the characters from the first two Hudson Valley books. These richly written and developed characters populate a world that is believable, funny, emotional, and engaging. I don’t know that this is the end of the Hudson Valley series, but if it is, Buns is a fitting ending to what has been another excellent series from Alice Clayton!

Buns by Alice Clayton is the third book in her hilarious new Hudson Valley series. With the focus on a tight knit group of friends, Roxie (Nuts), Natalie (Cream of the Crop) and now Clara, (Buns), Bailey Falls is one of my new favorite fictional places to be. Told mostly from Clara's POV and can be read as a standalone. Clara Morgan is the friend that renovates, rejuvenates, and refreshes hotels into being the best they can be and her next project is the Bryant Mountain House set up in the mountains just outside Bailey Falls where her two best friends have now moved. Archie Bryant is next in line to take over the family hotel business and isn't as open to all the so-called changes as his father is. Unfortunately for Clara, he gets most of the say in decisions as he will be taking over in the next year. He won't let this city girl into his home to wreak havoc and modernize his heritage. Filled with humor, intensity, a little drama and some great friendship moments this book was a pleasurable read from start to finish. I love Alice Clayton's books and haven't read one yet that I have not adored. With a brief cameo from a character or two from both her Cocktail series and also from her Redhead series this story was just the epitome of awesome. Archie was a buttoned up man with a growl and some alpha tendencies that remained hidden underneath his three-piece suit and pocket square until Clara got under his skin, or pocket-square, so-to-speak. I Loved This! Enjoy!

Another smart, sexy and fun addition to this amazing series! Archie and Clara were the kind of characters that you cheer on, hope the best for and get incredibly frustrated with. They each had their own issues from their pasts to deal with and overcome. It created a lot of tension in their already fragile situation. I loved the way this story unfolded. She was brought in to help the hotel, yet he wasn't too excited about any of her ideas. That push and pull in the beginning created sparks and magic. I loved it. The whole cast of characters in this series are incredible, and I was thrilled when they all spent time together. So much laughter, fun, crazy moments to cherish. Archie and Clara had a lot of growth over the course of this story, and I loved every word of it.

4 stars! Clara Morgan makes her living rebranding hotels on the verge of closing. It’s a job she’s wonderful at and it’s given her the stability she never had growing up. Clara is tasked by her boss at a classic hotel in Bailey Falls, The Bryant Mountain House. Upon arrival Clara finds the owner is thrilled to have her there, but his son Archie is not. Clara finds she must prove herself to Archie, that she has the best interest in his hotel at heart, no matter how much he resists her. The longer Clara stays in Bailey Falls, the more she grows to love the place. And the more time she and Archie spend together, it’s hard to deny an attraction between the two of them. But both of them have a past that can interfere with their future, not to mention in a way Archie is Clara’s boss. It’s up to them to decide whether or not they will let their issues get in the way. Alice Clayton never fails to make me smile. I’ve read every single one of her books, and I love the anticipation of a new release by her. Will it be funny? Or angst? Or sweet? This book was all three! From the moment I began reading until the very last page I was enamored with the story and these characters. I feel like Clara is unlike any character we have seen by this author, and I loved that Clayton tackled a more sensitive subject with this characters past and did it in a way that’s accurate but tactful. I thought Archie was great as well, I wish we had delved a bit more into his past, maybe developed him a bit more. But what I loved most about him was he was the perfect counterpart to Clara, knowing when to push and when to let things go. His heart and soul was in that hotel and he wanted to save it, so while he may have fought change, ultimately he wanted what was best for his family legacy and those he employed. This is a great hate to love story about two people who weren’t looking for each other, but found each other. Oh and if you are wondering about the title, it refers to hot cross buns sold by the hotel. And Archie may have had some buns too…….

Alice Clayton is my favorite romance author. She writes realistic intelligent, strong women with just enough vulnerabilities to be relatable. I believe Clara is the most relatable character yet for me, and the main man... well, I love someone very much like him in some ways. This story is another humor laced gem by Alice, with a very specific career for a strong female character. She must spend weeks researching these careers, because they are wonderfully and specifically written. Just enough detail to be interesting, but not so much that the pace of the story lags and you get bored to sleep. I fell in love with her first book--Wallbanger--and have pre-ordered and devoured everything she's written since. These books are best read in order, of course, to truly understand who the side characters are, but they are also easily read as stand-alone stories. If you love one, I'm sure you'll love them all. They aren't carbon copies with different names, though. No, no! Each of her leading ladies has a strong personality and life of her own, though some do share some similarities. The stories of their lives intertwine and intersect beautifully, and while the endings are always satisfying, there's always a little thirst for more, too. Ahh, the magic of Alice's books... they are my own personal "Wonderland"!

Buns is a sweet story about Clara, the rebranding genius and Archie, the soon-to-be owner of the Bryant Mountain House. It takes place in the charming small town of Bailey Falls, where we’ve fallen in love twice before with the previous books in this series. While I absolutely loved the first two books in this setting (Nuts and Cream of the Crop), this one fell flat for me. The enemies-to-lovers trope can be done really well, but I felt like this one just didn’t quite make the cut. In the beginning of the story, Clara is pushing Archie and the staff of the Bryant Mountain House to make changes, and he is pushing back. You can feel the tension between them, but it’s a professional tension. Clara is trying to shake things up, bring the hotel into this century and liven it up, but Archie is holding on tightly to traditions. The moment when their relationship turns from completely professional to romantic comes literally out of nowhere. I hadn’t been rooting for them to be together AT ALL, I was still enjoying their banter and watching them try to do their jobs together. So now they’re together, and Archie isn’t quite as stuck-up as previously thought. He’s actually lovely, and funny, and has a bit of a sarcastic side. But it felt like a real 180 turn from the Archie from the beginning. A lot of his quips and comments almost felt out of character. I had spent the first 40% or so thinking he was one way, and now that he became comfortable with Clara, he’s relaxed, and it was just a little bit distracting for me. Once they accepted that they liked each other and started not-dating but really dating, the pacing really slowed down to me. I felt like I was skimming a lot of the story. Clara has a troubled backstory, but I never really felt any emotion towards her. I didn’t pity her or her situation, but I also didn’t feel bad for her. I mostly felt annoyed that she was being so stubborn in accepting this man into her life. While I didn’t really love this story and many aspects of it, I did love the interactions between Clara, Archie, and the rest of our friends from town. I felt like Roxie, Natalie and Clara had a great relationship, and I loved the scenes where the girls and their men were interacting and having a good time. I also really enjoyed all of the details about the actual hotel. It felt like a real hotel in my mind, and I wish it were a real place that I could go visit! Overall, this was an average read, with average characters in a brilliant setting. I won’t be re-reading this story any time soon, but I hope there are more love stories to be told in Bailey Falls!

I really loved getting to know Clara more. We got bits and pieces of her through the first two books, but she remained a bit of a mystery until now. I also loved getting to know Archie. He came off as totally stuffy and a bit boring, although smoking hot in previous books, I couldn’t wait to see him become unhinged. The chemistry between Clara and Archie was combustible. Their backstories were heart-wrenching but made them absolutely perfect for each other. I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed Clara and Archie as well as getting to see characters from the previous books. This is a series of books that I will love re-reading over and over and over again.

I love how each story may have familiar faces and places but can still bring a completely fresh way of experiencing it! I loved discovering more about Clara at last, and the inner workings of the lovely hotel and it's owner were just the icing on the cake!

I'll be watching Dirty Dancing and The Shining if anyone needs me. I will miss this book, and I will likely have a book hangover

Oh, I love this author and I also love this series so Buns being the third installment of the Hudson Valley series is fantastic and I was super excited I received it this morning on my Kindle as a pre-order. The series centres on a tight-knit trio of friends, who are just fabulous (although it can totally be read as stand alone). Clara is our heroine in Buns, her career is her life! Her job keeps her moving around, which is exactly the way she likes it as she desperately avoids any kind of personal attachments. She lives and breathes it and not much has room beside it except her two best friends who live in a small town called Bailey Falls. She rebrands and rejuvenates struggling hotels and this time her job sends her to an old luxury resort - the Bryant Mountain House, at you guessed it - New York, Bailey Falls. Upon arrival she immediately clashes with the owner's son, Archie - he is old-fashioned & very proud of the Bryant traditions and history. Archie and Clara are supposed to work together to rejuvenate the run-down resort but there are many fireworks - of the not good variety! The banter flies thick and fast as Clara and Archie clash over absolutely everything! “You’re incredibly rude, a know-it-all wrecking-ball girl who is more than a little bossy.” I laughed in spite of myself. “What lovely things to say, coming from a pretentious, snobby, incredibly rude himself hotel boy who’d rather rattle around spooky hallways and spend time with antiques than listen to reason.” But underneath it all is a simmering chemistry, and when Clara learns the truth behind his pain... things start to thaw. By the end I adored Archie, I found he brought something very different to the book which made it feel totally original and nothing like other books in this genre. Clara was very strong and independent. She had layers, and was exactly what Archie needed. Once again Alice Clayton proves she is a fabulous writer that manages to bring together smart, funny and wonderfully real characters like no other. She always keeps me smiling, rolling my eyes and I swipe at such a fast pace I have no idea how quickly the time goes. If you enjoy the ”enemies-to-lovers” trope, then you will not to miss Buns. As a bonus there’s time spent with the characters from previous books of the series. If you are a fan of the series, you will not be disappointed, it's exceptional. If you haven't read previous books in the series you won't miss out but mostly.... you will be delighted and no doubt go back and read the others... Highly recommended.

So first book is a farmer, the second he s a dairy farmer .... I was expecting a nice baker lol. What I got was better . Archie is freeekles gorgeous and Clara is ... well she s something alright . To me it took so long for them to get to a good point that once they were there is was not enough and the reunion was a bit rushed .

I gave it 4 stars but the whole series 5 Stars. As a series it stands out as great romantic and fun read. A heart lifter and sends a strong message that love comes in many forms, when we least expect it! Which is the best way ever to explore heart and love.