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:
Happy Tuesday! Slapshot Surprise is out today, thank you to the author for the ARC.
I loved this!
Mabel Buckley, who we’ve seen as a side character in her brother’s books, finally has her chance to shine. She’s flying home to Cherry Tree Harbor when her plane his a lot of turbulence and she thinks she’s going to die so she blurts out all her regrets in life to the super hot guy sitting next to her – including how she’s only ever had bad sex. When they end up at the same wedding a few days later her former seatmate, hockey star Joe Lupo, offers to help her out and cross good sex off her bucket list. She agrees, and oops. She ends up pregnant.
I really loved that a lot of the book focused on the progression of the pregnancy and also the progression of their relationship. They had geographical hurdles, sure, but also Joe had never planned on settling down and starting a family so his journey into accepting his new reality was a good one and I loved that it wasn’t immediately sunshine and roses.
Though becoming a father took some time to get used to, Joe was immediately taking care of his baby mama and I loved how protective and considerate he was. Mabel was also a great character, she knew what she wanted and was willing to go at it alone if necessary.Both characters were very family oriented and I loved spending time with the Buckleys and the Lupos.
The romance between them was sweet and spicy and I loved them together. Overall this was a pretty lighthearted romance that I thoroughly enjoyed!
Make the Season Bright is out now! Thank you to Berkley Romance for the ARC.
I really enjoyed this second chance holiday romance!
Charlotte & Brighton were childhood friends to lovers to fiancées before Brighton ran away on their wedding day, leaving Charlotte at the altar. It’s five years later, the two have gone their separate ways, until they’re reunited at Christmas while staying at their respective friend’s (who happen to be sisters) house for the holiday (Surprise!)
It was like a queer hallmark movie, jam packed with snowy holiday activities, from cooking classes to skiing to looking at holiday lights. It also had a good bit of steam, awesome supporting characters, and I really enjoyed the setting.
I did like both characters, they’re both wonderfully flawed and I especially liked Charlotte’s closed off nature (I love a colder heroine, genuinely.) We got bits and pieces of their history that led to where they are today and I really enjoyed getting to know them.
I struggled a bit with the second chance portion, it’s hard for me to wrap my mind around forgiving someone who left me at the altar in front of all my friends and family. There’s a lot I can forgive but public humiliation isn’t something I think I could ever get over. But good thing it’s a book and it isn’t actually about me!!
Overall though I thought this was a thoroughly enjoyable holiday romance that I definitely recommend, especially if you are looking for something (per the book) ‘cheery & queery’!
I’m not usually one for stalker romance (or so I thought) but I’ve seen so much hype for this that I just had to give it and try. And honestly, it was so fun!
It was laugh out loud funny, completely unhinged, and just thoroughly entertaining.
It’s about Aly, a nurse who enjoys watching masked man content on social media when she has a free moment, and her number one social media crush who stalks her when he realizes she’s into him.
Our masked MMC was one part morally grey and one part golden retriever and I thought that was such a fun combination. I just really loved him and wanted to give him a hug.
There are some darker tones and trauma both characters have been through and I loved how that juxtaposed with all the hilarious moments.
There’s also a long list of kinks explored, some I didn’t know much about and this felt like a safe way to read about them for me since they existed in a romcom. I love learning something new!
The plot did fall apart for me a little about midway and I lost a little interest but it was still entertaining and I look forward to more in this world!
I did the audio for this one and the duet narration by Elena Wolfe and Jacob Morgan was 🤌🏻chef’s kiss🤌🏻 amazing. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed the book as much as I did if I had eyeball read it.
Our time in Christmas Notch has come to an end, and what a wild ride it has been!
This brings us Isaac and Sunny’s story, who have both been interesting side characters along the way. Both are in town to try to find inspiration for their creative projects, and when Sunny’s motel room becomes uninhabitable, she and her cat move in with Isaac.
I’ve really been looking forward to Isaac’s story, the broken sad boy character is like catnip to me. I loved how Sunny was his total opposite, a testament to her name (or at least that’s what she wants you to think.)
The forced proximity works its magic on them and I think this might have been the spiciest book of the series. It was probably also the saddest, and most grief focused, but I love when books make me sad so I think this was my favorite of the three. I actually really love that this series has such emotional depth when at the surface it’s a raunchy romcom series about people in the porn industry making Hallmark-like Christmas movies.
It was funny, it was outrageous, it was entertaining. I loved the first book for its uniqueness, then the second book kind of fell apart for me so I was really glad when this one redeemed the series. I’ve loved this journey and I’m a little sad it’s over!
Happy Delicate Escape day! Thank you to the author for the ARC and ALC
It’s great to be back in Sparrow Falls!
This brings us Thea and Shep’s story, both of whom we met in book one. Thea is a woman on the run, in hiding for reasons we discover as the book progresses, who has trouble letting anyone in for obvious reasons. Shep is a good guy who wants to get to know her and help her out when her house needs work. They end up as roommates so he can help with her plumbing (literally … but also figuratively wink wink)
I loved them both individually and together. I just love when opposites attract and their black cat/golden retriever energies were so great. Shep fell hard and fast for Thea and I love how carefully he worked to gain her trust and get her walls down.
The suspense had me guessing and my theory was so wrong which I love! The author fooled me again and I’m so glad she did.
I love the family/found family aspect of Shep’s family and how they welcomed Thea so readily into their fold. Lolli continues to be the best and I can’t wait to get more of her antics! I love this series and this world and am so glad when I get to spend more time there.
I read it first with my eyeballs then did a second read on audio and thought both narrators did a great job! It’s Erin Mallon and Teddy Hamilton so of course they did.
Give me a grumpy cowboy, a fish out of water city girl, and an enemies to lovers plot where the MMC thinks he was supposed to get the ranch the FMC inherits and now they have to work together side by side by side and I am a happy girl but throw in Jessica Peterson’s signature charm and steam and I am ecstatic.
Cash was on the surface a stoic, grumpy cowboy, but at heart he was actually quite sweet and very caring for those he loved. He gave up basically everything for his younger brothers after his parents passed away and has devoted his adult life caring for them and Lucky Ranch, so he doesn’t appreciate this city girl coming in after she inherits the property. Also, he has a great mustache and isn’t afraid of being vulnerable and sharing his feelings.
Mollie was a great character too, she was strong willed and determined but also willing to admit she didn’t know what she was doing. She stepped in and really tried to learn the business and I love how she stood up to Cash with no hesitation.
The banter between them was excellent and the sparks were intense from the get go, and when they finally give into that chemistry it gets to be melt-your-kindle hot. No location is off limits to these two! I’ve never considered the phrase “mustache ride” hot before but my worldview has been shaken and I’m re-evaluating everything.
I also loved the setting and side characters. Every small town cowboy romance needs a local dive bar, a close knit group of cowboys, and brothers who interfere with your life choices. I’m so excited to get the rest of these brother’s stories and get more from this world!
I’ve loved every Jessica Peterson book I’ve read and given her combination of southern gentleman (except in the bedroom) mixed with sassy, smart heroines, I feel like she was made to write cowboy romance!
The Boss + The Maid = Chemistry is out now! Thank you to the author for the ARC.
This was such a sexy and fun rom-com! This is a spin off of the author’s Doctors series though it reads fine as a standalone.
Efa and Bennett have a one night stand after meeting at a bar, only for her to show up as a maid at the hotel Bennett is currently residing in (and secretly owns.)
Efa is young and ballsy, she’s come to New York to get a job in tech and has no trouble going toe to toe with Bennett, who is 13 years older and tech billionaire. Bennett thinks she’s possibly stalking him after she shows up in his hotel room which was a funny misunderstanding.
The two are very hot for each other but it’s complicated with their age gap, her technically working for him and wanting a job at his tech company, and his general desire to remain anonymous.
It was spicy, funny, and I had a good time reading it!
Northern Twilight is out today! Thank you the author for the ARC.
I always love returning to Ardnoch!
In this we get Lewis and Callie’s story, who we first met in their respective parents’ stories, and now it’s their turn to shine. This is a second chance romance, they were childhood friends to teenage lovers, but wanted different things post school. They reunite briefly and their one night stand results in an accidental pregnancy.
This was very much an “it’s always been you” kind of romance, you just knew these two were meant to be and I loved all the angst and longing this brought. They’ve had seven years apart, and neither managed to quite move on successfully so suddenly being back in each other’s lives is quite an adjustment – at least for Callie.
Lewis was more all-in, and what’s not to love about a tatted, man bun wearing, motorcycle riding architect who knows what he wants (and has quite a dirty mouth on him!)
I loved how their relationship progressed and that we got flashbacks to where it all went wrong. It was sweet, it was steamy, there was some angst, and we got to revisit some of the other characters from previous books, so I loved it!
Bananapants is out today! Thank you the author for the ARC.
Whew this book surprised me in the best way! It starts off very rom-commy, with lots of jokes and lightness, but eventually it hits you with all the emotion and you find yourself crying on a plane next to a stranger (that might just be me??)
This features next-gen characters from the author’s Knitting In The City series, our FMC is Greg and Fiona’s daughter and the MMC is Janie and Quinn’s son, so our KITC favorites do show up here as supporting characters.
Desmond, the MMC, has bipolar and ADHD, currently under control, but it has caused a lot of problems for him in the past. There’s exploration of how this affected his relationships, first with Ava, but also with his family and that’s what had my heart breaking.
It was really interesting to read about, and I feel like I learned a lot. It did not shy away from the realities of living with mental illness so please check out the trigger warnings if needed. However, it also was a good message that everyone is deserving of love, regardless of what your brain tells you.
Ava is a bit of a quirky girl, she’s a straight laced tax attorney but is quite naive about life. She never quite got over her childhood bestie leaving her and moving away at 15, and never managed to find that connection with someone else again. Though it’s never explicitly stated I think she’s demisexual and it was nice to read about that.
I loved them together, they accidentally run into each other again after a decade apart and both immediately have big feelings again. Once Des realizes Ava might be into him too, the entire course of his life changes and I just love how all in he was.
It was funny, it was tender, it was smart, it made me cry. I loved it!
Romance Reviewed 