Red Hot + Blue Reads: New Cover! Review & Excerpt: Can't Hold Back by Serena Bell

Can’t Hold Back (Returning Home, Book Two)

A love triangle gone wrong. The power to heal his pain. And a second chance for both of them.

Nate Riordan came home from war hurting—everywhere.

Alia Drake can touch him and make it all better.

Nate craves her touch, and not just the professional, physical therapist version. But he needs to keep his eyes on the prize and his feet firmly on the path he’s chosen: His buddy, J.J., died, and Nate lived, which means he has promises to keep. Plus, Alia hurt him once, and he’s afraid she’ll do it again.

Alia knows she has to ignore her feelings for Nate. Her job is to take care of him professionally, so she has to keep her hands on the parts of him she has a right to touch. Besides, when she lied to him two years ago, she forfeited any claim she could ever have to his heart.

Now she just has to find some way to stick to her guns, leave him alone, and do her job. Even—or especially—when he’s shirtless on the table in her office…

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What Readers Are Saying

“When the book keeps you up until after two in the morning then you know it’s damn good. I’ve waited so long for this book but it was worth it!” —Lisa at Fic Talk

“I inhaled this book on a wet Sunday afternoon, and it was time well spent! Serena Bell writes some seriously smart, funny and sexy stories. 5/5 stars.” —Onni at I Love Romantic Fiction

“Can’t Hold Back is a wonderful example of great writing, careful weaving of emotions and reality into a special situation, and—of course—great, passionate and sexy romance. Grab this second chance romance today. 4.5 stars.” —Eleanor, The Book Hammock

“Sweet and Sexy, Can’t Hold Back is a military romance with heart and soul.” —Beth at Tome Tender

“By the end of the book you love not only Nate, but also Alia. Serena Bell did a fabulous job with this novel.”—Sam’s Ramblings

“This sweet story is full of physical and emotional healing.” —Publishers Weekly

Can’t Hold Back Excerpt

Copyright © 2019 Serena Bell
All rights reserved.

“Is this seat taken?”

From her perspective in the grass, he was a giant, with broad shoulders and a luminous smile. She’d always thought it was exaggeration when women said they lost their breath in a man’s presence, but she just had.

She got a grip and shook her head. “Pull up some turf.” She patted the lawn beside her, and he sat.

He was vivid, like a soldier in a movie: ripped, swaggering, grinning, golden-haired. He’d smiled in her direction earlier, and for a split second she’d thought, Who me? before she remembered that she was standing next to Becca. Her sister was a man magnet. All the two of them had to do was idle in a patch of sunlight admiring the garden, and sexy six-foot-plus men in butt-hugging jeans and black T-shirts materialized from nowhere—

Abracadabra! Hot guy for Becca.

In the car on the way over here, she’d told Becca that Jake’s picnics boasted not just amazing food, but other earthly delights. “We’ll get you back on your feet,” Alia had promised, sneaking a glance at her sister, slumped in the passenger seat. Ever since Becca’s boyfriend had dumped her recently, just as they were getting serious, she rarely smiled.

Becca had been super excited about the guy, and Alia was almost as disappointed as Becca was. She wanted her sister to be happy. Settled. Cared for.

Hot Guy for Becca set his plate on the grass. He sat cross-legged, and his thighs and calves, which looked like they’d been hewn from wood, were generously decked with curly golden hair.

“My sister just went to get some food,” she told him, pointing.

He cast a glance at Becca, standing by the salad table, loading her plate with potato chips. Tall, beautiful, blond, and glowing with vitality.

“You guys don’t look anything alike.”

“We don’t.” She forced a smile. It wasn’t only blindingly obvious differences, like Becca’s blond and Alia’s dark hair, but everything else, too—Becca was slim, with hourglass curves, while Alia was “athletic”; Becca had porcelain skin and Alia was generously freckled; Becca’s features were classic and even, and Alia was—well, she’d be kind to herself and say “cute.”

She sighed.

“Nate Riordan.” The man beside her reached out his hand for a shake.

“Alia Drake.”

Big hands. Warm. A moment ago, the world had smelled like summer. Like grass gone somewhere to seed, roses in bloom, and the mingled marvels of mesquite smoke and grilling meat.

Now her head was filled with a different scent entirely—soap, shampoo, the faintest whiff of some spicy male deodorant or cologne.

He was going to have no difficulty making Becca forget her romantic troubles. He could probably make any woman blank on her own name.

She retrieved her hand before she could reflect any more on that. He was Becca’s hot guy.

What I thought about Can't Hold Back

Nate Riordan returns from his tour of duty a broken man. Not only did he suffer a devastating injury, he lost friends too. His sense of honor has him promising himself to take care of those he left behind, and to do that, he's got to learn how to handle the physical pain that wracks his body. But while his physical therapist helps him deal with the pain, she also has some history with Nate that he is struggling to get over.

Alia was immediately attracted to Nate when she met him before he left for war, but instead of letting their mutual attraction grow, she sets her sister up with him. That was a big what-the-feck moment in this book, but I got it, too. I like that these characters aren't one dimensional and that their motivations aren't always clear, even to themselves.

The attraction between Nate and Alia never died, though, and when she becomes his physical therapist there are some very heated moments, which I loved in this book. These two are hot for each other but it takes a while for them to figure out what they really want in their lives, which only makes the conclusion that much more satisfying.

Serena Bell's smooth writing and the emotional content of this book put Can't Hold Back high on my list of favorite military themed romances.

ARC provided for review.

About the Author
Photo credit Susan Young

USA Today bestselling author Serena Bell writes contemporary romance with heat, heart, and humor. A former journalist, Serena has always believed that everyone has an amazing story to tell if you listen carefully, and you can often find her scribbling in her tiny garret office, mainlining chocolate and bringing to life the tales in her head.
Serena’s books have earned many honors, including an RT Reviewers’ Choice Award, Apple Books Best Book of the Month, and Amazon Best Book of the Year for Romance.

When not writing, Serena loves to spend time with her college-sweetheart husband and two hilarious kiddos—all of whom are incredibly tolerant not just of Serena’s imaginary friends but also of how often she changes her hobbies and how passionately she embraces the new ones. These days, it’s stand-up paddle boarding, board-gaming, meditation, and long walks with good friends.