Happy Tuesday! Story of my Life is out now and it’s small town romcom perfection! I received an ARC, but all opinions are my own.
Lucy Score came out swinging (with a dead fish) in the first addition to this new series. Honestly I am not always the hugest romcom lover anymore, but this one was romcom done right for me – full of humor, irreverence, and a whole buttload of heart.
I loved the new in town, fish out of water vibes of city girl Hazel moving to small town Story Lake on a whim, starting over when life wasn’t going her way. She was a once popular romance author struggling with writer’s block, so when the hunky small town contractor working on the dilapidated house she bought starts to stir up some creativity in her, she asks him to keep inspiring her with a fake date, and maybe more. The banter between Hazel and Cam was hilarious, and boy were those two attracted to each other.
I loved the romance but I also loved the supporting characters and side plot. The town was so fun and quirky, and I loved how they banned together to try to save their town.
It felt like one part Schitt’s Creek, one part Hart of Dixie, with the close proximity, exasperated, I-want-to-tear-your-clothes-off vibes of Nick and Jess from New Girl (all my favorite things.)
Definitely check it out if you are a fan of the author’s Blue Moon series, or just quirky small towns in general.
Happy Thursday! On Loverose Lane is out today, thank you to the author for the ARC.
It’s so great to be back in the On Dublin Street world! This is a next-gen story following our OG ODS couple’s daughter, though you can read it as a standalone.
It’s a second chance, fake dating romance between Beth, the CEO of her own successful company, and Callan, a popular footballer. They had a brief dalliance as teens that ended quickly, but Callan still has hurt feelings over it so he’s not happy to see he’s moved into an apartment building next to his old crush. He’s even less happy when Beth ropes him into fake dating her to help her business.
The banter between the two was hilarious, and Beth was not afraid to put Callan in his place. I love a FMC that takes no shit! It was at times emotional, though overall I found it heart warming and sexy, and while I loved the nods to the original series, it still felt young and fresh. The mental health/anxiety rep was great to read about as well.
Wyatt is out today! Thank you to the author for the ARC
This one is for the mutual pining lovers! This is a childhood friends to fake dating to lovers romance between Sally and Wyatt, who we met in Cash.
I loved this! I’m not always a fan of friends to lovers but I thought this was really really well done. It felt realistic why neither would have made a move before now, and I loved watching their relationship grow and change as they finally did admit feelings.
I loved both characters separately and together. Sally is driven and ambitious but still has space for her family, friends, and community. She’s a good girl, following the dream her father set out for her, but I loved that she finally stood up for what she wanted and found her own path.
Wyatt is, on the surface, a bit of a class clown, always flirting and trying to make people laugh. He’s faced some loss in his life that makes him scared to commit, that is until he finally gets a chance with his dream girl Sally. Oh, did I love the way Wyatt loved Sally. He loved her in big ways and small ways and it just filled my heart with so much joy. He’s a man who is not afraid to show emotion, not afraid to make a grand gesture, not afraid to ask for help to win over his girl.
Together their relationship just felt meant to be – these two opposites sure had common ground in each other and I just thought it was a beautiful romance. It’s a romance that actually feels romantic but also has some very dirty (complementary) scenes that had me sweating – it was sweet and spicy in the best way.
Overall, I just really really loved this addition to the Lucky River Ranch series and can’t wait for Sawyer!
Mistletoe and Mine is out now! Thank you to the author for the ARC.
This is a fake dating holiday romance set in small town England, between a grumpy single dad and the grinchy woman running the local year round Christmas shop. He needs a fake girlfriend so his grandmother will stop trying to set him up, so he teams up with Sasha to try to help her regain her Christmas spirit through a series of Christmasy and regular dates.
It’s a warm and soft story, full of cozy holiday vibes. If you’re looking for a low angst but still spicy holiday romcom with a big boy MMC and a curvy FMC, this one is out today in KU!
My Favorite Holidate is out now, thank you the author for the ALC!
This was such a fun holiday romcom! It’s a fake dating romance between a billionaire who wants his aunt to stop trying to set him up on dates, and his employee who needs to prove to her ex she’s over him so they pretend to be together at a wedding of mutual friends. It was the perfect storm of fake dating, holiday activities, and close proximity/only one bed as they attend the wedding weekend.
Both characters were great – I’m not drawn to billionaires in general but Wilder was kind and generous and so thoughtful- gift giving is his love language and he was so good at it. He was also such a good single dad, I loved him! Fable was also a good character, spunky and kind hearted and not afraid to give her boss shit. Their banter was great and the chemistry between them was intense and this was pretty high heat for a holiday romance!
The full cast audio (11 narrators!) led by Jason Clarke and Samantha Brentmoor in duet was phenomenal, I loved all the different voices and it made it feel like a movie.
That being said – it was awfully long for a holiday romcom (500 pages) so it started to get a little repetitive for me. You definitely get your money’s worth if you grab the audio though!
Overall I thought it was a cute romcom with an excellent audio production and definitely recommended grabbing it on audio if spicy romcoms are your jam!
Happy Thursday! The Player + The Pact = I Do is out today. Thank you to the author for the ARC.
Any billionaire romance lovers out there?? I admit it’s not my fave trope but I found this enjoyable.
Leo, our billionaire, has been hurt before and is afraid to love again, but he is in need of a fake finance to show the woman who broke his heart that he’s totally fine without her. His assistant, Jules, steps into the role with the agreement that she can get a promotion in exchange for the ruse. This of course leads to real feelings as it tends to do!
I found it fast paced and entertaining, exactly what I want in a billionaire romance. Definitely check it out if you’re looking for these tropes:
This was a cute fake dating small town romance between Robin, an outgoing aviation mechanic, and Arthur, a slightly grumpy mailman.
Robin catches her boyfriend, Arthur’s cousin, cheating on her and decides to fake date Arthur to get back at him. Arthur, who believes in true love and soulmates, is appalled that his cousin would cheat on a woman as wonderful as Robin, so he agrees despite this causing major issues with his family. She decides to give him kissing lessons (and more!) after their one attempt at a kiss to decide if they’re actually compatible goes terribly.
I loved Arthur, he’s described as grumpy but I think he’s really just an introvert who appreciates a schedule and just wants to be comfortable at home while reading a book and having a strict bedtime (I can relate). He’s a big hairy guy which I lovvvveee and I loved how steadfastly he believed in true love even if he hadn’t really felt that spark with any one (until *spoiler alert* Robin). His family was also great, aside from one of them, and I loved that they were a bunch of male wedding planners.
Robin was a fun character, I loved her take no shit attitude while also caring deeply for Arthur and his happiness. I love that she has a blue collar career while also going to school to finish her degree so she can own her own company.
I loved them together but man the lack of communication made me want to pull my hair out by the end. Neither of them were honest about their feelings and it got repetitive and old as the book progressed.
Overall though it was cute and I especially loved the kissing (and more!!) lessons.
‘Package Makes Perfect’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #6 in the Green Valley Heroes series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.
Wild Card is out today and I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Staci Hart has written pure romcom gold here and I loved it. This book is so horny!
It’s a small town, forced proximity, opposites attract, fake dating romance between Jessa, who’s in town for her best friend’s wedding, and Remy, her best friend’s cousin who is forced into hosting Jessa at his house when all other beds fall through. Jessa’s been in love with a childhood friend Henry her whole life, so Remy agrees to fake date her to make him jealous, only things turn real pretty quickly.
Remy is totally outrageous- an unrepentant flirt, cocky and full of southern charm but also sweet to his mama and hiding his soft side. Jessa starts as a prim and proper lady and quickly devolves into playing horny games with Remy and I loved watching her let loose.
The banter between them had me cackling, the spice had me sweating (this is SERIOUSLY spicy), and the romance had me swooning.
Staci’s back and her books are hornier than ever and I’m here for it! I can’t wait for more from this world because that last epilogue had me gasping and clutching my pearls.
Happy Tuesday! The Love Plot by Samantha Young is out today, thank you to the publisher for the early review copy.
This was such a fun opposites attract fake dating romcom!
Rafe needs a fake girlfriend to get his family off his back about settling down, so he makes a deal with Star, the character actor hired to dress up at his niece’s birthday party. She’ll pretend to be his girlfriend, while he’ll pay her a large sum to be at his beck and call for the next six months.
The two are opposites in almost all ways, Rafe is grumpy and reserved, from a rich traditional family while Star is the easygoing daughter of two hippies, content to live her life flying by the seat of her pants.
Rafe is a new favorite of mine, he came across as Darcy-like at the beginning, so reserved and standoffish but I really really loved him as we got to know him. Star was so sunshiney and I loved how she didn’t take anything too seriously. I can’t say she didn’t frustrate me at times, but that’s all part of the character arc, right? Sometimes they have to make mistakes in order to learn from them and grow.
Overall this was a very funny and charming romance about two polar opposites finding their way together with a good amount of steam and emotional moments for balance. I definitely recommend for my romcom loving friends!
BLURB:
There’s a magnetic attraction when a happy-go-lucky gig worker agrees to a fake relationship with a rich, uptight New Yorker in this steamy romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Samantha Young.
Star Shine Meadows is all about freedom, thanks to the hippie parents who raised her. Juggling her jobs as a professional costume character actor and a line sitter, she believes in no expectations, no stressful ambitions, and no-strings-attached relationships. So when she meets a birthday girl’s grumpy uncle while working a princess party, she can’t help but needle him. She’ll never see him again, and honestly, he’s pretty hot.
Rafe Whitman may be a veterinarian with a great bedside manner, but that doesn’t mean his patience extends to anyone with opposable thumbs. His family will not stop nagging him about finding “the one,” so when he runs into obnoxiously cheery Star again, he makes her an offer: He’ll pay her more than she would make doing her odd jobs if she’ll pretend to be his girlfriend at family gatherings. She can stop sitting in line waiting for someone else’s new phone, and he’ll get his family off his back.
When the tension between them heats to a breaking point, Star’s desire for “no strings” is tested against Rafe’s staunch stability. They say opposites attract, after all….
Samantha Young is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the On Dublin Street series, including Moonlight on Nightingale Way, Echoes of Scotland Street, and Fall from India Place, and the Hart’s Boardwalk series, including Every Little Thing and The One Real Thing, as well as the standalone novels Fight or Flight and Much Ado About You.
I really enjoyed this fake dating small town romance!
This is book three in the Lost & Found series which brings us Grae, the youngest Hartley sibling, and Caden, her brother’s best friend who offers to fake date her in order to protect her from an ex who won’t leave her alone. In exchange, having a girlfriend will make him look more reliable to his company and get his dad off his back.
Caden has rubbed Grae the wrong way ever since she received her type 1 diabetes diagnosis as a teen and he basically disappeared on her but she needs her ex to stop bothering her so she puts her annoyance aside, at least in public.
Caden is a bit broody, his family sucks and he lost his sister years ago to cancer and never really recovered. Grae is tired of everyone treating her like she’s made of glass due to her diagnosis, and just wants to prove she’s a capable adult. The two had obvious chemistry and while brother’s best friend will never be my favorite trope, it didn’t bother me here.
It’s a Catherine Cowles book so of course there is suspense and danger and I loved that it kept me guessing. Overall a great addition to the series and I’m so freaking excited for the next book!
Romance Reviewed 