New Release Review | Dr. Strange Beard by Penny Reid

Dr Strange Beard by Penny Reid
Winston Brothers #5
Contemporary Romance
Cipher Naught | July 30, 2018

About the Book: Hunches, horse races, and heartbreak

Ten years after Simone Payton broke his heart, all Roscoe Winston wants is a doughnut. He’d also like to forget her entirely, but that’s never going to happen. Roscoe remembers everything—every look, every word, every single unrequited second—and the last thing he needs is another memory of Simone.

Unfortunately, after one chance encounter, Simone keeps popping up everywhere he happens to be . . .

Ten years after Roscoe Winston dropped out of her life, all Simone Payton wants is to exploit him. She’d also like some answers from her former best friend about why he ghosted her, but if she never gets those answers, that’s a-okay. Simone let go of the past a long time ago. Seriously, she has. She totally, totally has. She is definitely not still thinking about Roscoe. Nope. She’s more than happy to forget he exists.

But first, she needs just one teeny-tiny favor . . .

There’s something special about the whole Winston Brothers series, and it’s not just the brothers, it’s the way Penny Reid writes this town and inhabitants. Even though each book changes main characters, I always settle right into the familiarity of everything. I think, even if an installment disappoints me, that’s what will always keep me coming back.

In Dr. Strange Beard we finally got to know Roscoe Winston, the youngest of the Winston Brothers, more intimately. My verdict on Roscoe: I loved him. Cletus is my favorite; I think he’s pretty much all of our favorites. My favorite romance was Beau and Shelly. The brother I see myself falling for, if I lived there, would be Roscoe Winston. He was so sweet. His heart is so big. I loved how he just wanted to make everyone feel good. I ached at his fear of creating memories he was incapable of forgetting. Roscoe was the very best part of Dr. Strange Beard. I wish we’d had more time to get to know him, and I hope we get more from him in the next book.

I actually really liked Simone too! I loved how analytical she was. Maybe it’s because she reminded me a lot of my sister, B-Rex, but I found myself adoring her almost immediately. I especially loved the opposing dynamic in Simone’s personality when compared to Roscoe. You had Simone, who saw everything in facts and science, and Roscoe who was a dreamer with all his sweetness. I loved how Roscoe brought out Simone’s sensitivity, and I loved how his love for Simone brought Roscoe down to earth when he needed it. They were well paired.

I also loved how Penny Reid wrote a wonderful romance novel about a biracial couple and didn’t shy away from including the systemic injustice Simone and her family went through, or what Roscoe and Simone worried about as a interracial couple. I felt it, and I thought she (and her sensitivity readers) did a great job.

When I rate a book, I’m not only looking at the current read, I’m also comparing each installment to how previous ones affected me. As much as I love Roscoe, as awesome as I found Simone, their love story didn’t compare to Beau and Shelley. The feelings I emoted in those previous books eclipsed everything. I lived and breathed Beau and Shelley. I enjoyed this one, it was solid. Just not comparable. For that reason I’m giving Dr. Strange Beard four stars.

Four solid stars, and I’m eagerly awaiting the final installment in the Winston Brothers saga. Honestly, this last pair has been a very long time coming!