Stacked Up (Worth the Fight #6) by Sidney Halston [Review]

Working two jobs to support her infant daughter is harder than anything Penny Richards has ever done, but it sure beats living under the rules of her stepfather, a television preacher who demands a picture-perfect family. And if Penny hadn’t struck out on her own, she never would have met Travis Calhoun. The intensely physical heavyweight brawler has a way of drawing out her wild side. But Travis lives fast, with no responsibilities—and that just isn’t for Penny.

Most of the women in Travis’s circle wear tight clothes, high heels, and tons of makeup—not pearls or plaid headbands. But once he works past Penny’s inhibitions, Travis discovers a kindred spirit who longs to trust someone with her body, and her secrets. Still, Travis can’t help but wonder if this rich girl is just slumming it before she returns to her privileged life. Now it’s up to Penny to prove that she wants her hard-edged, hard-loving fighter just the way he is.

4 Stacked Stars
A single mama’s book with a MMA fighter, well sign me up! Stacked up is a standalone and is part of the Worth the Fight series. This is my first Sidney Halston book. I’m a mega fan of single-parent books, so I was really excited about this one.

Penny Richards ran away from home when her baby was two days old. She adventures to a small town and becomes a bartender and waitress to earn a living. On her first day on the job she meets Travis. I really love Penny, I love a struggling poor mother. We don’t know why Penny ran away from home, but we do know her staying home isn’t an option. She’s very resilient, determine and strong. Her daughter is her priority and when she sees Travis she knows he’s the type of guy that would never go for a broken girl like her.

Travis is a MMA fighter. He’s also from the south, everyone calls him Texas. He’s a single guy looking for a no-fuss no-muss relationship. It’s a year later and Penny and Travis are still friends, until one day they kiss and everything changes. Travis was a hard character to like. He’s got all the charms of a likable Hero, but his take on children was hard to get through. He kept on calling Penny’s daughter “kid” and that kind of got on my nerves. Call me crazy but I wanted him to have insta-love for Penny’s daughter at first sight.

Travis is being filmed because HBO is doing a documentary about fighters. Penny is cautious about being in the spotlight, but Travis assures her that he’s not that famous and he’s only filmed when he works out.

I liked how Penny and Travis’ relationship wasn’t an insta-love and it took about a year for things to move into something more.  The relationship never dragged, but just slowly developed. I did wish in the beginning there were more baby moments. I love reading kids in books, so you don’t get to know the daughter until towards the middle of the book.

I really liked the second half of the book when it shifts and the drama comes out. Travis’ inability to love and Penny’s past comes to light. It’s a non-stop action pack book filled with obstacles, but it was entertaining to read. I assume the secondary characters are from the previous books and it makes me curious to read their stories now. I really like the supporting characters and I found the town really adorable.

It’s a fun lovable single-parent read with a slight touch of angst and alpha hero.

An ARC was provided

 SERIES

Against the Cage #1 AMAZON

Full Contact #2 AMAZON

Below the Belt #3 AMAZON

Laid Out #4 AMAZON

Fighting Dirty #5 AMAZON

Stacked Up #6 AMAZON

USA Today bestselling author, Sidney Halston lives her life with one simple rule: “Just Do It” Nike, and that’s exactly what she did. After working hard as an attorney, Sidney picked up a pen for the first time at thirty years old to begin her dream of writing. Having never written anything other than very exciting legal briefs, she found an outlet for her imaginative romantic side and wrote Seeing Red, among four other novels currently in the works, including the sequel to Seeing Red. That first pen stroke sealed the deal and she fell in love with writing.

Sidney lives in South Florida with her husband and children. She loves her family above all else, and reading follows a close second. When she’s not writing you can find her reading and reading and reading… She’s a reader first and a writer second.

When she’s not writing or reading her life is complete and utter chaos trying to balance family life with work, and writing (and reading). But she wouldn’t have it any other way.
http://www.sidneyhalston.com