Invertary is a small Scottish town with a special distinction: it has two lingerie shops. They’re directly across the road from each other: Betty’s Knicker Emporium, run by a dragon of a woman in her 80s, and Eye Candy, the brain child of former lingerie model Kirsty Campbell. Betty’s Knicker Emporium is bought by a rather wet English girl with money given her by her brother, Lake Benson. When the shop loses money for six successive months, Lake rides into town intending to tidy things up and get his investment back.
Lake is ex-army, confident, organized, even arrogant. He’s planning to partner up with an old army pal to start an upscale security firm in the New Year, and figures he needs nothing more than his organizational skills and efficiency to tidy up the loose ends of his sister’s underwear shop so he can get on with his life.
Lake expects the project to be quick and simple, but he’s not bargaining on the charm of Kristy Campbell, the complexity of his family relationships, or the sheer dottiness of Invertary. When national press picks up the “lingerie wars” between the two shops and start talking about InverTARTy, things get out of hand.
The inhabitants of the town are startlingly casual about the law, but the story is brisk-paced, steamy, and fun. The characters have quirks in place of real depth, but they’re interesting nonetheless. The book is well written, sassy, and heartwarming.
The subplots suggest that there will be more books about Invertary, and I’m looking forward to them.