Bayou with Benefits

Badges of the Bayou

De: Erin Nicholas

Narrado por: Jakobi Diem, Mollie Stark

They are friends. Without benefits. Unfortunately.

Michael LeClaire is small-town Louisiana. A firefighter. A single dad.

And Amelia Landry is New York City. A social media influencer. A model.

Sure, she’s his son’s favorite person on the planet.

And yeah, their families spend so much time together it’s hard to remember who shares DNA and who just shares secrets, inside jokes, and a sincere lack of boundaries.

And okay, he’s seen her nerdy side. Her sweet side. Her funny, self-deprecating side.

Fine, yes, resisting this woman has taken a saint’s share of willpower.

But he has to. He just cannot do long-distance. And he can’t have a casual fling with someone he’s known–and will know–forever.

Thankfully, he only has to hide his feelings a few times a year when she visits.

And then, he slips. One time. One spontaneous I-knew-it-would-be-everything kiss and he’s a goner.

Now every time they see each other it's harder and harder to ignore the heat.

And when she shows up on his doorstep after a car accident changes her entire life, there’s no way he can resist the chance to see if this can last…or if they’ll finally flame out.

©2022 Erin Nicholas (P)2022 Erin Nicholas

Great read

I love the story line and the ending was fantastic. We all have a little bit of fixing in us

Made my heart come alive~

First I have to admit I listened to this on audible.
The narration and narrator were outstanding. I don't think they could have picked a better narrator for this specific book.

The story was well thought out with absolutely ideal characters.
Amy is a breath of fresh air, sweet, caring, down to earth which makes her friendship with Andre enough to make you tear up at times. Michael, a single dad and paramedic with a need to always make everything right is just to good to be true.
These two were meant for each other and the journey is one that makes you believe in true love and happily ever after.
This is a clean romance but with so much heart you just don't need the heat or smut (although I love those also). My heart felt heavy and leapt with joy. It's just perfect.
Highly recommend to all lovers of true romance.

Excellent Story

Loved the storyline and the series. can't wait for the next book. female narrator was good but the male was throwing me off with a NY accent for a "bayou boy". He would be a great voice for a detective series located in NY/Jersey/Chicago but does not pull off a person from a swamp area in Louisiana.

Embracing a new path together

I loved Michael and Ami’s friends to lovers story. I especially liked the plot device of showing us the moment Ami’s life and their relationship shifts super early in the book and then backing the story up and walking us back to the big moment. I got so invested in the story this way - I wanted to go back to see what was happening but at the same time I wanted to see how they got to that point. I just love a book that grabs me and takes me for such an enjoyable cannot put it down ride. This is a book that reminds you that good things can result from bad events and that everything’s going to be okay. Michael is a single dad and a paramedic in small town Autre, LA. Ami is a model and lives in New York City but has family from Autre. Ami and Michael have feelings for each other but have agreed not to pursue it because of the distance. But then a car accident changes everything. You’d think the journey to their HEA would be easy from that point forward but that’s where the hard part begins. There’s a lot of growth and change for the characters along the way. This is not another light breezy romcom though there are definitely laugh out loud moments. This story has character depth, deeper emotions, and grit. I especially loved that Andre, Michael’s son, was a wonderful and integral addition to the story rather than a flimsy story prop. The story of course has plenty of hilarity, steamy scenes, sweet moments, family support, painful pasts, big feelings, and small town goodness.

Jakobi Diem and Mollie Stark did a phenomenal job narrating the story and characters into life with enough change of inflection, tone and cadence to voice multiple characters quite convincingly.

Lovable Characters

I’ve been looking forward to Michael’s book since he showed up on the scene of Zeke’s goat accident. And the story went above and beyond my expectations. I adored Ami. I couldn’t see her to know how pretty she was, but I saw her strength, her willingness to learn new things, her easygoing nature, and her deep care of the people in her life. Those are the things that won me over. As for Michael, I have only one word: HOT. Sure, Jakobi Diem’s brilliant narration had plenty to do with that. Additionally, Michael was loving, passionate, and kind. He got on my nerves by being too judgy about makeup and what Ami wanted to do, but he was able to figure out his mistake and learn from it. This was a great love story that tugged the heartstrings in all sorts of different directions.

Badges of the Bayou #2!

This is a sweet and spicy romance!

Michael LeClaire is a single father and firefighter based in Louisiana who's all about his small town and the family he has and has made there. Ami Landry has always been a part of that "family," but could she be more?
Ami grew up spending time in Autre, LA, but as a former beauty queen and model, her life is in NY. When she suffers a life changing accident, it helps her realize with who and where she wants to live her life.
The bond between Andre, Michael's son, Ami, and Michael only grows as she begins again in Autre.

Jakobi Diem and Mollie Stark were amazing and brought the story to life!

Boring

Not sure why but this book was boring; Jakobi and Mollie’s voice’s didn’t work together at all; Jakobi sounded like a mature 30 something year old male, while Molly sounded like a women in her late teens; even though there was only a 5-year age gap. There was no humor, just dry depressing stuff. Couldn’t finish it.