With This Man (A This Man Novel Book 4)

Deeply Touching & Doesn’t Disappoint. There Are 13 Teary Scenes By My Count & 18 LOL Scenes. The Book Revisits Most Of The Characters From Previous Books, So It Feels Familiar. I Had My Doubts That An Additional HEA Years Later Could Top Off The Trilogy, But It Absolutely Delivers.ABOUT THE THIS MAN SERIES:This is book four in the This Man series. The series follows Ava O’Shea’s story with Jesse Ward, and book three ends their trilogy. It is essentially their first HEA. Life brings them an unforeseeable challenge down the road, leading to book four, but in the meantime, Jesse’s good friend Drew gets his own story in a sweet and spicy little novella. Drew’s story reads fine as a standalone, but fans will love the scenes that are quintessential Jesse, and his kids are carbon copies of him and Ava.I had mixed feelings about revisiting Jesse and Ava after their wonderful HEA in book three. The story was written as a trilogy, and I didn’t want anything to tarnish their story. I was not convinced that a fourth story that takes place years later would do the couple justice. However….Yes, the basis for the story is cliché, and there are a few instances in which I feel Jesse is made out to be more like a silly comic book character than the broken yet capable man he had also been, but this story succeeds in spades with delivering all the emotion and love that Jesse and Ava’s intense story had the first time around. Nearly all of the characters from the trilogy return to one degree or another. It is written in a way that it might be read as a standalone, but so much meaning and emotion would be missing that I don’t recommend it. It is definitely a must for fans.The This Man series includes:1. This Man (Ava’s POV)2. Beneath This Man (Ava’s POV)3. This Man Confessed (Ava’s POV)3.4. L’Attesa (A This Man Extra – in Italian). A brief chapter in Jesse’s POV – this will likely end up in book 3 of Jesse’s series (see below).3.5. All I Am (A This Man Novella). (Drew’s POV)4. With This Man (mostly Jesse’s POV)Note that a new companion series is in the works. This Man – The Story from Jesse, follows Mr. Jesse Ward’s point of view.The This Man – The Story from Jesse thus far includes:1. This Woman2. With This WomanFROM THIS MAN, BOOK 1:The story is set in the London area. It opens in the spring.Ava O’Shea, twenty-six, is on a break from relationships. Her four-year relationship with Matt finally came to an end a month ago, and oddly enough, she isn’t even broken up over it. Her family and friends all put up with him for her sake, but none of them were fans. After four years of living in denial, though, Matt and his cheating ways are history. She had gone into that relationship on the heels of a three-year relationship with Adam, so some time to enjoy the single life is well overdue. After moving out of the home she shared with Matt, she has temporarily moved in with her best friend Kate – just until she sorts things out. While Kate had once been in a long-term relationship with Ava’s brother Dan, she has since become the queen of first dates. Positive, bold, and uninhibited, Kate is the perfect person to help Ava get out and have some fun.Ava has worked as an interior designer at Rococo Union since graduating from college four years ago. The owner, Patrick Peterson, was looking to expand from their traditional style to offer fresh, modern ideas when he hired her. She and her co-workers all seem to get along. Tom – flamboyant and outspoken – is always entertaining. Sally is quiet and uncertain. Victoria, a new hire to help Ava with her workload, is kind, sweet, and impeccably groomed. Ava’s professional success speaks for itself. The Lusso launch is just around the corner, and there is a lot of buzz surrounding the multi-million-pound luxury apartments she designed. When Ava is personally requested to consult at The Manor, a property located just outside of the city, she never anticipates that the meeting will lead her to throw caution to the wind.Mr. Jesse Ward, owner of The Manor, needs a designer for the new extension. He has added ten new rooms, and he wants to hire Ava for the job. With an imposing figure and intense personality, the man commands every room he enters. Men respect him and women swoon, but it means nothing to him. He has never been interested in a relationship – never cares enough to sleep with a woman more than once. He loves extreme sports when he can get away, but The Manor keeps him busy.Jesse inherited the property and business from his Uncle Carmichael when he was just twenty-one. He doesn’t have a great relationship with his family, so his life very much revolves around his work at The Manor. Sam Kelt, thirty, is a regular. They share a friendship that goes back eight years. He is an easy-going jokester, quite the opposite of their shy and well-dressed friend Drew Davies. John, silent and imposing, is a giant of a man and works security on the property. Sarah, mid-thirties, is an old friend and employee. Mario works the bar.Something indescribable happens with Ava meets Mr. Ward. She is so overcome in his presence that speech escapes her. Her hands shake and her body is at heightened attention, rendering her completely useless. Worse, Mr. Ward seems to enjoy watching her squirm under his attention. An older man – perhaps in his mid-thirties, give or take – he is devastatingly handsome. But there is no way she can work for the man and maintain her professionalism. She is determined to turn the job down, yet she hardly knows how to explain it to her boss, who will want the business.When Jesse begins to pursue her relentlessly, Ava cannot deny what they both feel. She is supposed to be having fun and enjoying the single life, so she gives in and indulges. Jesse is a man that gets what he wants, and apparently, he wants Ava. His intensity scares her, though. She tries to break things off, but he wants her to promise to never leave. Jesse likes control – especially when it comes to Ava. He turns into a control freak and gets kind of scary when she defies his demands. There are things he won’t discuss – the man won’t even tell her his age.Jesse is clearly very experienced. Women everywhere fawn over him while throwing Ava nasty looks – and his friend Sarah is no exception. Ava worries that Jesse will get bored and move on, leaving her completely broken. The man is slow to open up, so she hardly knows how to interpret much of what he says. He is sweet and caring one moment, then angry and domineering the next. He doesn’t seem to understand boundaries, and there are some lines Ava won’t let him cross. She doesn’t understand why he wants her, whether it is just the physical draw that they both feel, or if he wants something more.When Ava realizes that she is falling fast and hard, she is certain that it must be one-sided. She still cannot understand what he sees in her – why she is different than all the rest. She hopes to get answers before things go too far. He seems to bring out the crazy in her. As much as she loves the man, she doesn’t like living on the edge of control. This book ends with a heartbreaking twist.FROM BENEATH THIS MAN, BOOK 2:This book picks up on Friday, five days after Ava walked out on Jesse, which is just four weeks from the day they met. Ava struggles to move forward, but when his friends express concern for his well-being, she gets pulled back in. As the guilt for abandoning him in his sorry state begins to set in, she sees that Jesse has a real problem with his relationship with alcohol and that leaving him in such a vulnerable state had been a mistake. As the two begin to nurse their wounds, they soon find themselves more in love than ever. But Jesse has secrets, and Ava wants answers. The deeper they fall, the closer she gets to those answers. Jesse wants Ava to live with him, and he wants her to return to The Manor, which is such a big part of his life. He is relieved that she knows the truth about his business, but there is more on his mind. The strong alpha that Ava fell for has a deeply vulnerable side, and his weakness has the potential to tear them apart. The women of his past are waiting in the shadows, ready to pounce at the first sign of opportunity, but there may be dangers awaiting Ava as well. The dramatic twists and turns are gut-wrenching as their story unfolds. The couple earns a happy-for-now ending here, but there remain several outstanding questions.This book includes a bonus scene in Jesse’s POV.FROM THIS MAN CONFESSED, BOOK 3:This book picks up two weeks after Jesse’s proposal, which had been on his thirty-eighth birthday, in May. Jesse and Ava met just over seven weeks prior to their wedding day. Jesse is determined to marry Ava as soon as possible, which means that The Manor is the only available venue. He has closed it down for the wedding, but the risk of Ava’s family and guests discovering that The Manor is not simply a hotel is very real.Once the wedding takes place, Ava finally faces the reality that she could be pregnant. When the truth comes out and Jesse admits to absconding her pills to make her pregnant, all the anger and frustration that had been buried at the prospect come out full throttle. Ava needs space. They begin married life living separately, yet there are many outstanding issues. Someone had drugged Ava. Mikael supposedly remains out of the country despite his recent sighting. Matt is still a suspect in the drugging incident as well. Forced to face reality, Jesse had let Sarah go, but she is not far away. Coral still stalks Jesse. And Ava soon realizes that her client, the relentless Ruth Quinn, is into her. Learning that she is indeed pregnant, Ava is forced to come to terms with a pregnancy she does not want and a marriage that may not last. She has difficult choices, but the danger remains real, and Ava is the target. The couple faces their biggest challenges yet, but they find their own piece of paradise. Jesse’s entire past is laid bare when he finally confesses everything about his heartbreaking past. The couple earns a beautiful happy ending. The epilogue is very satisfying. Told in Jesse’s POV, it is light and playful. The entire story wraps up beautifully.FROM ALL I AM, BOOK 3.5:This story takes place eight years after Ava first walked into Jesse’s office and turned his life upside down. Drew, one of Jesse’s best friends, also had his life turned upside down eight years ago. He is now the father of seven-year-old Georgia.Drew Davies, now thirty-nine, has never been in a relationship. He has never even taken a woman out for dinner. That is not to say that he hasn’t seen a lot of action, though. On the contrary, Drew gets around. Cold and emotionless, his reputation precedes him. He likes to be in control, and chains are his favored tool. It keeps things impersonal.Drew joined The Manor when he was about nineteen, and membership meant the opportunity to mix with like-minded people. The lavish setting hosted high society members with a mind for kink. Pleasure without strings was a lifestyle for Drew and he didn’t see the need for complicating his life with a commitment. When The Manor closed, it left Drew on his own in search of a new home for satisfying his needs. Hux might be seedy in comparison to The Manor, but it has been his go-to place for kink for nearly eight years now. It is all he is. Simple. Uncomplicated. Emotionless. Fun. Drew saves all his emotion for his daughter, Georgia.When Cole Hux asks Drew to meet up with a newbie, it seems innocent enough. Raya, twenty-four, is looking for someone cold and emotionless, and Drew seems like a perfect match. But the sad look in her young eyes captures his attention, and for the first time in his life, he has a hard time walking away. Soon Drew himself cannot deny that he might be ready for something real. But Raya isn’t looking for love or commitment, and the fact that Drew is an older man and a single dad might just send her running. Despite a few bumps along the road, the couple soon earns a happy-for-now ending.IN THIS BOOK:As this book opens, about twelve years have passed since Jesse and Ava’s story began, and four years have passed since Drew’s story took place. Jesse and Ava’s twins, Jacob and Maddie, are now eleven, as is Drew and Coral’s daughter, Georgia. Jesse is turning fifty in May. Sam and Drew are about forty-two and forty-three, respectively. Ava and Kate are roughly each thirty-eight, and Raya is about twenty-eight. John is going on sixty.Jesse Ward, forty-nine, isn’t happy about turning fifty and doesn’t want to face the idea of growing old. He still has his looks, though, and his age hasn’t had an impact on all the female attention that he effortlessly attracts. It doesn’t faze him, though, because he only has eyes for Ava even twelve years later. He loves the life they have built together. The birth of their twins, Jacob and Maddie, gave him two more lives to obsess over, and little Maddie follows in her mother’s tracks, driving Jesse mad with the need to control and micro-manage everything. He may just die of a heart attack one day thanks to Ava and Maddie’s antics.Having sold The Manor soon after meeting Ava, Jesse bought a little manor in which to settle down with his family. After leaving her job as an interior designer at Rococo Union, Ava chose not to go back to work. The couple spent years devoted to raising the twins, but six years ago, Jesse decided that he missed running a business. He opened up a new club of a different variety – one that is family-friend. JW’s Fitness Spa is now a thriving luxury health club that also houses various health-themed storefronts, including a sports therapy practice in which Drew’s girlfriend Raya works. John, ever loyal, helps run the place. Soon after its opening, the twins went to school full-time, so Ava decided to step in and help out as well. She now works as a director at the JW’s, helping to keep things organized and the finances in order – things that Jesse struggles with. This works out well for Jesse since he almost never has to be separated from Ava for long.Jesse’s fiftieth birthday might be hard to swallow, but any self-pity he felt is forgotten days later when tragedy strikes again. Ava is involved in another car accident, this time sustaining a serious head injury. With Ava having lost all memory of the last sixteen years, Jesse’s entire history with her is erased in her mind. The woman that makes his heart beat doesn’t even recognize him. Ava doesn’t remember twins, her husband, or the life they have built together. She still thinks she is dating Matt. For a man like Jesse who thrives on his connection with his wife – both physically and emotionally – it is a devastating blow.As Jesse brings Ava home from the hospital, his life takes a big turn. He must earn Ava’s love once again – but he cannot take the same over-the-top hands-on approach that won her heart twelve years ago. She is weak and fragile, and he cannot push too hard without the risk of scaring her away. Ava has always been unique in her ability to manage his intense personality, but Jesse is now left to manage his impulses all on his own. There is a very real possibility that Ava will never recover her memory. The question remains whether or not Jesse will ever get back the woman that made his heart beat again twelve years ago – or if that love is forever lost.Jesse has a colorful past riddled with painful secrets that nearly drove Ava away when they met. He once again faces the dilemma of how to share such shocking truths without losing her altogether. But not everything is in the past – some of it has followed the couple. Their delicate situation is complicated when danger revisits them. The couple eventually finds a second very happy ending.Wow! Jesse and Ava’s second HEA is an emotional journey. Surprising in its depth, it is deeply touching. I had my doubts that an additional HEA years later could top off the trilogy, but it absolutely delivers. Their story is a walk down memory lane, a reminder of the highs and lows of their roller coaster love story. The trilogy is told from Ava’s POV, but this is Jesse’s story. He is forced to take a hands-off approach to his wife, something that goes against his nature. It is a challenge for him, but in the end, it is also a time of growth. He was broken until Ava entered his life, and his obsessive tendencies with her are a result of the pain and loss in his past. The fear of losing her brought on his obsessiveness, but this new fear of losing her forces him to learn to let go. He is still the same man, but the situation forces him to mature almost overnight. In the end, the picture of the Ward family is tearfully beautiful.A few issues merit mention. First, Ava’s memory loss, the basis for the story, is cliché. Next, Jesse doesn’t seem to do any work at the club despite his desire to run another business. It makes him look cartoonish despite his years of business experience. He is admittedly not good with finances and organization, but those things can and have been delegated in the past, leaving him to deal with other business concerns. I would like to have seen a better balance between his over-the-top tendencies when it comes to all things Ava and his old broody, capable side – the side that made him such a powerhouse.Jesse and Ava’s final story doesn’t disappoint. There are thirteen teary scenes by my count as well as eighteen LOL scenes – a few of which are riotous. The book revisits most of the characters from previous books, so it feels very familiar. The twins, Jacob and Maddie, are a fresh addition with a familiar vibe since they are carbon copies of their parents. Jesse and Jacob are adorable together, and it feels so right that Jesse has that connection after losing his twin brother. His relationship with Maddie is familiar as well since he seems on the verge of a heart attack at the thought of her leaving the house with any skin showing. The teary ending brings together Jesse and his friends in a lovely way. After four and a half books with these characters, it is a wonderful ending but a bittersweet goodbye to them. This story is well-written. The plot is somewhat complex. The characters are wonderfully developed. They are complex and real. The story is written in first person. It is primarily in Jesse’s POV, with seven brief parts in Ava’s POV. I rate this book 4.5 stars.

I loved this series! Everything about it. A must read!! It is a page turner for sure. I read all the books in 4 days. Couldn’t put them down.

What a great gift JEM has given us to revisted the Lord years later. It's a roller coaster ride of emotions and the ending....I did not see that coming. I now want to go back and reread the entire series. Looking forward to Jesse's POV in the upcoming release. We get to revisit the Wards and peek into their love story a little longer.

I read book 4 as if I was eating salty potato chips... couldn't stop! Jesse and Ava's shattered love story took from me so many emotions...anger, grief, fear, frustration, to name a few. Within the pages of With This Man, The Lord of the Manor, his Lady, and their steamy romps lit up the pages with endless passion, hope, strength and humanity.Their delicious dialog (sometimes heated, sometimes hysterical), along with Jesse's silent 'overthinking' of everything, brought with it both heartfelt warmth and outright laughter.My heart sang and my soul sobbed.Wonderful!

Well what can I say? I was happily trampled in a way that no one else but Jodi Ellen Malpas can quite deliver. I was hesitant to revisit Central Jesse Cloud Nine again because I felt everything that had to be said, was, and I didn't need any more. However, I can now say upon completion of With This Man that I am more than satisfied and am truly thrilled we got just a bit more with the Ward family.I think what I loved best was the almost extreme display of emotions from Mr. Jesse Ward himself as he struggles to bring his wife's memory back after a horrific car accident. Seeing The Lord of the Manor have to tiptoe around Ava and not wanting to crowd her or upset her more than she already had been, was as painful for me as it was for Jesse. We get to see a different side of him this time around. The 50 year old Dad, husband and owner of a gym. His life was never better and when tragedy strikes out of the blue, he is truly out of sorts.But damn him and his stubborn nature. His intense ways. His severe addiction to his wife and their off the charts sex life. It didn't take long before the Jesse Ward we have all come to know and love is back with a vengeance, determined to set his world right again. And thank goodness for that!I will admit that I was beginning to feel as if the book was going on a bit too long and then...Chapter 53 shows up and I'm thrown for a loop I did not see coming! In fact, the author is very clever in having a less than savory character show up once again and I was fooled into thinking she'd be the one to mess things up even more than they were. Oh but Jodi Ellen Malpas was very sneaky and put in a beginning to the end of the story that brought me to my knees right along with Jesse and Ava. One minute I'm cursing that egotistic maniac in Jesse and the next, I'm shedding tears right along with him.But in the end, there is only love coming from every aspect of Jesse and Ava's lives and when I tell you they deserve it, I mean it. This is no easy journey but it never was for these two and they earned every single ounce of happiness they will most decidedly hold onto no matter what.Every single member of their tight knit crew is by their sides and despite all the worry, the sadness, the unexpected always being thrown their way, there is still a ton of humor that goes along with knowing Jesse Ward. He may have gotten older but he's still one crazy mofo and I wouldn't change him for the world.Well worth your time, With This Man was the bonus book I didn't even know I wanted. I will say that I am forever grateful I found this series and that this was the perfect send-off for one of the most beloved couples I've had the pleasure to read.3,2,1...zero baby. With This Man gets a huge 5 stars from me!

I really enjoyed Malpas fourth installment in her This Man series. As usual, I read it way too fast, so I may have to read it again, but it was really enjoyable. I think their story is really done now, and it felt very satisfying. Some old foes return and the whole memory loss issue is really intriguing. For those of you who enjoyed the previous 3 This Man books, I thoroughly recommend " With This Man".

Just when you think Jesse couldn't get any hotter!!!At 50 he still sets off all the tingles in me.I've loved this series from the very first book and they just get better and better.The fact that we get to read this from Jesse's POV is super cool.Not only do we get to read new scenes in this book but we always get to read snippets from all the books through Jesse which I love.Just when you think Jesse couldn't love Ava more than he already does. He proves us all wrong.But this wouldn't be Jesse and Ava without a little drama in their lives.I laughed, I got angry and frustrated and I most definitely cried.Absolutely phenomenal story and I'm not lying when I say this series is up there with my favourites, possible is my favourite.100% recommend this book and series if you haven't read it already then your most definitely missing out.🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 This is more than 5 starts without a doubt.

OMG the anticipation was so worth it..!2012 I read This Man, can’t believe it was six years ago but remember it like yesterday the impact was huge and the start of a fantastic series and here we are 2018 reading With This Man... our feelings haven’t changed regarding everything that is Jesse and Ava... you just can’t simply get enough.With This Man opens up on a light humorous note, it gives us a chance to catch up. Jesse and Ava’s twins Jacob and Maddie are now eleven years old and they are a beautiful family, there’s plenty of banter going on between them all. Jesse is his usual possessive self, treating us all to his usual traits... his trampling, his count downs, his threats and so much more but it’s everything we love about Jesse, it brings back all those memories good and bad.As you approach the end of chapter five things take a turn for the worst and it becomes Jesse’s worst nightmare, their perfect world is rocked, every memory they have built is no more.Jesse feels as though his world is crumbling around him, we know how he likes to feel in control but it’s the last thing he feels at the moment...it’s a long road ahead with only hope to grab onto.Jodi Ellen Malpas without a doubt has pulled everything out the bag with this story, it is written brilliantly but hasn’t all her stories, there is so much humour but at the same time it’s emotional and as if that’s not enough certain characters make an appearance and cause plenty of trouble Zara being the main concern only early on you have know clue who she really is.We have been on this wonderful journey with Jesse and Ava and it’s one that really sticks with you, their characters have been portrayed like no other, you honestly feel as though you really do know them.There are too many wonderful endearing moments curtesy of Jesse to mention and their love for each other got them through a tough patch.The epilogue was everything you could wish for... absolute perfect paradise.!!

I was a little concerned after the previous books in the series that this would disappoint and the author was perhaps 'milking it a little' with Jesse and Eva's story.On the contrary, I found myself literally giggling at some parts and enjoying relearning the characters, it was witty, sad and a refreshing storyline. The story was as well written as the previous books and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Highly recommended but only after reading the first books or you could get lost in the storyline. Another 5/5.

I have to start by saying that I loved the first 3 books in this series and was looking forward to reading this 4th book but I found it hard going as it was so boring. It was hard to hold my attention as nothing happened. I didn't enjoy it at all. I know it is a fantasy book but some things were just ridiculous. The way Ava is carried by Jesse is stupid. No woman would get on a man's back through choice. I did it once with my husband but that was only because it was muddy and I didn't have wellies on and I didn't want my shoes to get dirty! I certainly wouldn't do it if anyone else was around. Calling her My Lady also seems stupid. I live in Lancashire and no man would ever call a woman that. Little things like that annoyed me. I read the first 3 books years ago so perhaps it is me that has changed? I think this is a book that should not have been written, just left it at the first 3 in this series.