Beard Science

I was so excited for a book full of Cletus and Beard Science did not disappoint! Cletus is so much more than the quirky hillbilly brother we've seen glimpses of in the previous two books. Being inside of his head was a treat and I could not stop laughing at all of his Cletus-isms and the way his mind worked in general. I loved seeing him slowly lose his resolve as he finds himself falling for Jennifer and I loved watching Jennifer grow from a severely sheltered girl into a strong, independent woman. Such a great read, I can't wait for more of these crazy Winston brothers!

This is the book I waited for yet the one I worried about. Cletus is by far my favorite. Jennifer is the perfect complement to the silent killer that is Cletus Win
Disclaimer: I am an AVID Penny Reid fan. Even novels which have premises I don't typically enjoy, I love. But when Penny stated she was going to write a novel with Cletus as the romantic interest, my anxiety shot through the roof. This is Cletus. This is the man larger than life, but shrouding himself in a hill Billy guise. He is the man with immense covert machinations, but a bigger sense of justice driving them. In essence Cletus is what all of us wishes we could do (the ego of our psyche). So, his romantic interest also, would have to be larger than life. What woman could tame Cletus?

I don't want to go into too much detail because I don't want to post any spoilers, but this book baffles me in excellent ways.
How'd that happen? - How did I go from enjoying Jennifer (the heroine) to being annoyed by her, to smirking with her, to befriending her all within the first 1/3 of the book. And from that point on, I kept on loving her. Seriously, that girl kept on getting better.
This book is epic, like EPIC - Right when I thought I knew where the book was going, it transformed into something I wasn't expecting. And the great thing was, there was no stupidity. For the amount of plot and the character development, it really should have been Gone with The Wind long. It wasn't, but yet, the story was so rich and fulfilling, like the most decadent cake ever. I want to go into more detail, but once again, I'm not spoiling it for anyone.
All in the family - When some authors write a series, it's almost a chore to read because they re-introduce couples, or make their entrance into the story seem forced, like the Seinfeld finale. With Beard, it flowed, and more importantly, the secondary characters added so much richness to the plot. You have to love a family who enjoys fine sausage, and shares their sausage with the community.
Geeky Heart - I love stories where I feel I grow as a person, and Jennifer is the Janie kind of nerdy who makes the ride fun. She is more than she appears. She has depth and skills no one knows about. This is a story about looking beneath the surface, breaking out of comfort zones, owning who you are, and finding your tribe. Ms. Reid, I adore your work for every bad day I have had this summer your words have given me a smile.

So, in summary, I loved it. It is Cletus-worthy, which is saying a lot.

Yes, my AirPods were surgically attached to my ears for two days and I would've gladly listened to more. Don't judge. This is Cletus Winston's story. I love Cletus Winston. [a:Penny Reid 5997227 Penny Reid https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1548811001p2/5997227.jpg] is brilliant. Other writers would perhaps have been tempted to soften Cletus's rough edges, make him a more palatable romantic hero, but she doubles down really revealing him as the cunning mastermind that he is. One who patiently plots and weaves intricate and sometimes sinister plans. His lists had me in stitches. I laughed and took notes, you never know when you'll need to infect an enemy with leprosy. He does have an emotional journey but happily doesn't transform into a different character inhabiting Cletus's body. Another joyous thing is that Cletus's romantic counterpart is Jennifer Sylvester. Known in town as nothing more than the Banana Cake Queen, a small town caricature. Nothing can be further from the truth. Jennifer has unplumbed depths that surprise the reader and especially Cletus. Cletus is rarely surprised. This is a good thing. I loved how these two really fell in love by getting to know each other. I trust that love. I believe in it. I love the whole Winston clan, how they relate to one another. Spending time with them is far from a chore. I'm thrilled that Jennifer & Cletus are getting their own spinoff. I'll be there for that. The audio was ... perfect. Yup. I'm expecting to re listen to this in my hour of need.

Thank you for telling the story of my favourite Winston brother and “his woman” perfectly!

Sometimes, when reading a series, and I get to the story about that special character I've fallen in love with in previous books, it's easy to get disappointed. I start reading with such high expectations, and when those are not met 100% by the author - who, strangely enough, can't read all their readers' minds and meet all those different expectations in one story ;) - the story tends to fall flat for me.
This has happened before, and will surely happen again, but fortunately, it was NOT the case with Beard Science. Expectations were not only met, but exceeded.

For me, this book captures Cletus beautifully in all his devious, scheming, calculating, quirky, big-hearted, verbing glory. <3
And getting to know Jennifer was a wonderful surprise - it's fascinating for me how Penny Reid takes (sometimes some of the worst) Romance tropes and twists them into believable characters I can't help but root for.

Really looking forward to reading the other books in the series!