Excess Baggage (Standalone)

Babes of Brighton, Book 1

By: Laura Barnard

Narrated by: Penny Scott-Andrews

Stuck in a dead-end relationship, Erica Bennett finds herself daydreaming of her first holiday romance. She was 15, and it was exciting, new, and full of possibilities...and Jack Lawson was hot as hell. That kind of thing leaves a mark.

So when her friends suggest a girls' holiday to Luna Island, it’s exactly what she needs to take her mind off things. What she doesn’t expect is to spot Jack - a much older, hotter version of him - across the hotel lobby.

Their attraction is still there, and it isn’t long before sparks fly, but 15 years is a long time. They aren’t the same people they were back then, and besides, it’s only a week, right? Is it a second chance at something real, or will their excess baggage ruin their shot at love after they leave Luna Island?

©2017 Laura Barnard (P)2019 Laura Barnard

Second Chance at love

Erica and Jack fell in love as teenagers but being teenagers it was hard to maintain a long distance relationship. They broke up. Fast forward fifteen years and Erica is on vacation with her girlfriends. Who appears at the same hotel? Jack. Her first love. The one that got away. The one who broke her heart and made her feel unworthy for a long time. What follows is a hilarious (on Erica's part) story of the same chemistry that they had as kids and fighting the attraction but at the same time not. Will it work out this time? Can they make it work?
This is a sweet 'short' second chance romance that will crack you up and also make you facepalm yourself at Erica's unfortunate happenings. I highly recommend.
Penny Scott-Andrews does an amazing job bringing to life all the characters and I'm going to keep her on my watchlist.

A good story

This is a second chance at love story and although I have read several books form Laura Barnard, the narrator Penny Scott-Andrews is new to me.
This is not a particularly long book to listen to and although I enjoyed the story line I could not get into the narrator at all.
A girls trip away leads Erica Bennett to a blast from the past, when she comes face to face with her first love Jack Lawson, the man who broke her heart. However, the attraction is still there and now all that needs to be considered is whether they should act on it since nothing has really changed from when they were 15.
The chemistry between Erica and Jack is intense and thanks to their interfering friends life becomes complicated. I really enjoyed the camaraderie with the secondary characters who were entertaining.
Can Erica and Jack, get through the emotional baggage from their past and in doing so create a future or should they quit while they are ahead?

Cute short story

The story is cute but typical. The narrator's voice was anoying to me. She flowed well but her tone is grating. This is a basic 2nd chance book but I'm glad I took the time to listen.

Lover’s Holiday

This was a quick and very satisfying story.
It amazes me how people get their wires crossed and misinterpret things all the while being completely funny.
Laura Barnard writes the best self deprecating characters, and they are thoroughly entertaining too.
Erica and Jack... with their history, the obvious passion and electricity between them, will they finally get things sorted out?....I’m not telling... you’ll just have to listen (narrated extremely well by Penny Scott-Andrews) yourself to find out!
Brilliant!

heat and humor second chance

Evelyn was such a buzzkill for Erica and she really irked me. They went to have fun, not to be chaperoned by the voice of doom and gloom! Maybe Evelyn needs a man or she's jealous!! The angst and tension between Jack and Erica had me on tenterhooks waiting for a positive outcome. I think I may have an ulcer from angsting over these two and hoping they'd get it right. The author delivers in spades! Wild, zany,
funny book you must read/listen to. I voluntarily listened to a free copy of this and am giving an honest review. The narrator did a great job.