It's easy to see why this romance is on so many top reading lists, because it's definitely going on my top ten for 2020! Amanda is a personal assistanIt's easy to see why this romance is on so many top reading lists, because it's definitely going on my top ten for 2020! Amanda is a personal assistant in the entertainment world who works for a demanding Diva but when she indulges in a night with Oscar winner Sam at an after awards party, she knows she doesn't really fit into his circles and thinks it'll remain a happy and sexy memory. Then her best friend gets married at Sam's family ranch and Amanda and Sam reconnect. Amanda doesn't believe he can really be interested in her (and he doesn't know what she does for a living) but slowly and surely Sam woos her with his charm and friendly attitude. And it's clear he's attracted to everything about her. Most of the story takes place at the Pleasant family ranch and involves several secondary characters (Sam's family and Amanda's friends). If you love a cinnamon roll hero, a woman comfortable with her body and her sexuality, a western style setting and a well deserved happy ending, this should definitely be on your reading list.
Note: a copy of this story was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. ...more
I haven’t read too many début stories this year, but I heard good chatter on social media about Cara Bastone’s Just a Heartbeat Away, the first full lI haven’t read too many début stories this year, but I heard good chatter on social media about Cara Bastone’s Just a Heartbeat Away, the first full length novel in her Forever Yours series. (Technically her first book is a prequel novella to the series, When We First Met, but this is her first full length story). What a good decision! It’s got everything I look for in a contemporary romance and is a strong contender for my top ten list this year.
Sebastian Dorner is in a spiral of grief after the sudden loss of his wife in a car accident when his son Matty’s pre-Kindergarten teacher, Via DeRosa calls him into the school to gently point out some neglect of Matty that she’s noticed and offer him some suggestions on how to get them both on a better path, one day at a time. He’s grateful for her suggestions, but embarrassed that he’d let things get so bad and not noticed – and resolves to follow her advice which turns out to be a lifesaver in getting him to focus and move forward.
Two years later, Sebastian and Matty have moved into a new house and Matty is going to a new school, one where – coincidentally – Via has just gotten a job for the upcoming year as an elementary school-age counselor. Sebastian has just taken a part time position on staff as well, as a lunch monitor and soccer coach, as he’s self employed as a furniture maker and plans to use the time at school as his breaks. Via is twenty-seven and has a boyfriend, Sebastian is forty-two and widowed. Both new at this school and with their prior connection, they become friends easily – plus they live within walking distance of each other. But soon they can’t deny an attraction – one that troubles Sebastian as he believes Via is too young for him. Will he let his fears get in the way of a second chance at happiness?
This book pulls no punches in giving you all the feels ranging from shared grief to happiness and contentment as Sebastian puts his early struggles behind him and focuses on the reality of raising his son and making the best of their situation. His best friend Tyler has been with him through it all and now that Sebastian is on the other side of those dark days, he’s been encouraging Sebastian to get back into the dating game and plying him with a variety of dating apps, though Sebastian’s thoughts keep straying to Via. This is a slow burn romance, building up tension as Sebastian and Via’s friendship becomes deeper. (When Via realizes her feelings for Sebastian are growing, she breaks things off so there is no cheating in this story.) Eventually they yield to that mutual attraction in some sexy scenes but it will take more than that for Sebastian to overcome his feelings over their age difference, something that doesn’t bother Via at all.
There are many different relationships at play in this story, and I love how the author balances out the romance between Sebastian and Via with the other connections in their lives. Sebastian’s in-laws of course grieve the loss of their daughter Cora, a woman who was very much like her mother Muriel. Sebastian and Muriel have an interesting relationship and their heart-to-heart conversations help Sebastian make decisions about his and Matty’s future. Via grew up in foster homes and relates to Sebastian’s grief from her personal understanding of loss. She has a best friend, her foster sister Serafine whom she confides in and relies on for advice. Sebastian’s best friend Tyler has been with Sebastian through the bad times and the good times and doesn’t shy away from telling him what he thinks. The conversations in this story are its strength, making you care about everyone involved.
I have to confess that I have a fondness for heroes who work with their hands (especially furniture makers) and for age-gap romances, so this novel already had some positive checkmarks for it before I even picked it up. Add to that really wonderful characters, people who aren’t afraid to admit how they are feeling (especially Sebastian, who could have walled himself off but instead chooses to be open and honest), sexual tension that leads to some passionate love scenes, and you have a charming romance that has a new spot on my keeper shelf. Fans of Kate Clayborn, Lucy Parker, and Jill Shalvis will enjoy this new contemporary romance author and I’m looking forward to reading more of her work!
Just delightful! Funny and sweet and charming - you can't go wrong with a romance by Alexis Hall.
Luc needs the veneer of respectability to keep his joJust delightful! Funny and sweet and charming - you can't go wrong with a romance by Alexis Hall.
Luc needs the veneer of respectability to keep his job as a fundraiser for a dung beetle charity (yes, that's right, dung beetles need love too). Being the son of a famous rock star who abandoned him as a toddler still leaves him on the B-list of celebrity material and hounded by paparazzi so mistakes he makes are amplified by bad press, leaving him to find a reputable fake boyfriend to redeem himself.
Cue Oliver, one of his BFF Bridget's gay friends and one Bridget has always thought would be perfect for Luc. Never mind that Oliver had already politely declined an invitation from a drunken Luc for a hookup previously. She thinks they're right for each other.
Though their initial meet up to hash out the terms of fake dating doesn't go that well, they continue to awkwardly work their way into an actually loving and respectful relationship. Oliver is patient and kind and eventually is able to get Luc to feel at ease with him. Luc is prone to making mistakes but sincerely apologizing for them, and Oliver is gracious enough to accept them. Their banter is constant and funny and there are many moments that will catch you snort laughing out loud.
Despite Luc's awkward personality he has some very loyal friends and I loved the friendship scenes as much as the romance. (It reminded me of some of the scenes from Four Weddings and a Funeral). Plus the fact that their friendship group keeps changing the name of their group chat is hilarious. He also has a lovely and supportive mother. Part of the story is him sort of rekindling a relationship with his father though it's an on again/off again thing that causes him a lot of angst. Oliver is there for him through it all.
There's something about the way that Alexis Hall writes that makes his characters seem ever so human and as a reader you can empathize with their failures and cheer for their successes. Though this story has a lower heat level than some of his others, it's perfect for Luc and Oliver. 10/10 would recommend.
A copy of this story was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. ...more
Reread Update - enjoyed it as much if not more the second time (and now the 3rd time!)
I thoroughly enjoyed this continuation of Rory and Arthur's stoReread Update - enjoyed it as much if not more the second time (and now the 3rd time!)
I thoroughly enjoyed this continuation of Rory and Arthur's story. I did find it helpful to do a quick skim of Spellbound first as I'd forgotten most of the other characters and main plot points (really, Rory's magic was the part I remember the most, the ability he has to 'scry' objects to see their history is my favorite part of the worldbuilding) as this continues from the end of book 1. I wouldn't recommend this one as a standalone.
The setting in 1920's New York adds a special kind of magic all its own to the actual magic that involves amulets and rings, spells, and the surprising appearance of a paranormal (not a good guy). Rory has managed to hook his magic into Arthur's aura and this link helps him come back if he gets stuck in the past too deeply, but in this story there is also the appearance of someone who can break that magic link, thus causing a whole host of new problems for Rory and Arthur as they try to save themselves and their friends from more dastardly deeds. There's a blast from the past in more ways than one, with Arthur's time in WWI, some of which involved captivity, as well as a former flame. Arthur's family is involved in politics and knows nothing of magic so Arthur often finds himself torn between his duties to his family and his desires to hang out with Rory and his other magic laden friends. Add in society's attitude towards gay men and you can see the challenges for Rory and Arthur to maintain any kind of relationship. Yet somehow they manage.
There are some romantic scenes but they fade to black just when the sexual tension is building. It doesn't detract from the story but I wouldn't have minded a peek through the door, wink wink. I particularly liked dipping into the Harlem jazz club with Jade, Zhang's family diner (makes me want dim sum) and the ocean liner (think Titanic) that Arthur and Rory end up on as interesting settings. And I also noted that the author made a point of mentioning when the characters were white instead of assuming they were the default - a welcome change.
The story isn't over, and that's great news because I can't wait to dive back into this world again! It's exciting, fun, intriguing and action packed - a great escape read!
A copy of this story was provided by the publisher via NetGalley....more
Reread May 2021 - I enjoyed reading this again in preparation for the finale coming out later this month!
Original Review:
The Fiery Crown by Jeffe KenReread May 2021 - I enjoyed reading this again in preparation for the finale coming out later this month!
Original Review:
The Fiery Crown by Jeffe Kennedy is the second book in her exciting Forgotten Empires fantasy romance trilogy. Middle books are a little trickier to review – there are necessarily some spoilers that will arise because you can’t talk about book two without references to some of the plot of book one. And because it’s a trilogy, the story arc in the second book has some interesting peaks and valleys with no conclusion – yet. Readers who pick this one up on its own will get a good introduction to what’s happened so far, but I definitely recommend starting the trilogy from the beginning.
The Orchid Throne introduced readers to Conri, a former prince of Oriel who was enslaved by the evil Emperor Anure but managed to escape from his prison mines, building an army of followers who call him the Slave King. Conri’s one goal in life is to get his revenge on Anure. To do this, he is following a prophesy shared with him by a wizard, Ambrose. It says that he needs to ‘claim the hand that wears the abiding ring’. It turns out the ‘abiding ring’ is also known as the orchid ring that Lia, Queen of Calanthe wears. To fulfill the prophesy, he enters into a marriage of convenience with Lia who is also trying to stave off Anure, the man she is technically (and reluctantly) betrothed to. Marrying another man is a sure way to break that promise and both she and Conri know that Anure will not take this insult lightly.
The Fiery Crown starts with Conri and Lia married and preparing for Anure’s retaliation. Their marriage has plenty of passion when the two of them are alone together, but outside of the bedroom they are in constant conflict over the impending attack. Lia’s duty is to Calanthe, the people, and the island. She worries about the possible bloodshed on its soil that could awaken a sleeping monster underneath the waters. Conri on the other hand is spoiling for battle. Anure stripped him of his family and his lands, something he has done to many other empires. He wants revenge for them, and for anyone who has suffered at Anure’s hands. He’s not above sacrificing parts of Calanthe for the greater good. But he’s also torn by his growing feelings for Lia and how they conflict with his plans. When Anure arrives, will Conri make the choices that spell victory or invite disaster?
Once again the author has put her imagination to work and created a thoroughly entertaining story with magic, action, love and desire having equal sway over the plot. There are lots of twists and turns, and some ‘Oh!’ moments that I didn’t see coming, making for an exciting and page turning read. The worldbuilding is stellar, with interesting magic systems, especially in how Lia communes with her island and it with her. There are plenty of interesting secondary characters, including the wizard Ambrose, Conri’s right hand men and women who served with him in the mines and since their escape, and Lia’s entourage of royal lords and ladies. The love scenes between Lia and Conri are very passionate and intense, and help to cement their growing emotional bond. There are some violent scenes (not surprising given Anure’s reputation) and the story ends without a cliffhanger but with things definitely unresolved. All in all it’s a very satisfying second book in the Forgotten Empires trilogy and after reading this one, I can’t wait to get my hands on the concluding story!
I’m a fan of second chance romances, especially when they feature teenage romance/first love that went awry. That’s the plot of Amanda Weaver’s Love AI’m a fan of second chance romances, especially when they feature teenage romance/first love that went awry. That’s the plot of Amanda Weaver’s Love Around the Corner, the third story in her Romano Sisters series. I haven’t read the first two, but after reading this one, they will definitely go on my to-read shelf!
Gemma Romano can see the changes happening daily in her Brooklyn neighborhood. Older couples are retiring and closing down their businesses, old friends are moving away and her family bar, Romano’s, needs a rapid influx of cash to upgrade and repair part of their building if they’re going to survive. Opened in 1934 and handed down to her father, Gemma sees it as her inheritance and responsibility, even if her sisters have taken their lives in new directions.
When Brendan Flaherty shows up in the bar one day, it’s a blast from the past, and not a pleasant one. High school promises turned into heartache when he walked away from her and their (now admittedly) fanciful dreams of the future. Brendan never told her why he’d left and she’d had to assume that he hadn’t felt the same way she did. Worse, he’s a property developer now, the kind who is swooping in to take advantage of the stores ready to close with easy cash and plans to gentrify the neighborhood. She’s determined not to give him the time of day, even if some of the better memories of their time together start to surface.
Brendan is back for multiple reasons; to take care of his ageing mother, to stop other property developers from taking over the area by helping the older shops looking to sell, and making them into small apartments that will blend into the neighborhood (unlike his uncle who would gladly put steel and glass high rises everywhere), and to get Gemma back. He knows that he hurt her and he will need to explain his actions and work hard to get her to trust him again. But he’s willing to do whatever it takes. Can he convince Gemma to give him a second chance?
The setup for this story is what drew it to my attention and I'm happy to say that it lived up to my hopes and expectations! It's a strong contender fThe setup for this story is what drew it to my attention and I'm happy to say that it lived up to my hopes and expectations! It's a strong contender for my top ten list this year.
The story/series premise is a modern and believable one - three women catfished by the same man who end up meeting each other and vowing to work on their own dreams and aspirations before diving into the dating pool again. Samiah, Taylor and London form a strong bond that surprises them as they are quite different in character and their friendship (which includes heart to hearts and witty banter) is a delight as it strengthens over the course of the story.
Samiah's work in the IT field has seen its professional ups and downs - the impact of systemic racism on Black women especially in a STEM field is not overlooked. Samiah has the resilience born of years of having to stand up for herself. One of her long put aside dreams is developing a friendship app and she's determined to make that her goal during their 'boyfriend project' (getting themselves on track before dating again) time.
Of course that's when her new colleague Daniel shows up. Samiah tries to ignore him but he's charming and funny and sincerely interested in her. What she doesn't know is what we, the reader find out early on, an intriguing aspect to his position at her company that ratchets up the tension behind the scenes for him, and for us as we know that his secret won't stay a secret for long. No spoilers, but I loved Daniel's character and the situation he's in made for a very interesting plot.
I think the combination of romance, sex, work, friendship and that intrigue made for a really unique and enjoyable story. The happy ending comes with some expected bumps but I'm on team Daniel here so I'm glad Samiah was able to look past his mistakes and understand his point of view (sorry to be cryptic!). I'm really looking forward to Taylor and London getting their own stories and will be on the lookout for them!
Note: a copy of this story was provided by the publisher via NetGalley.
Deal with the Devil is an exciting first installment in the Mercenary Librarians series, set in a postReread update - just as good as the first read!
Deal with the Devil is an exciting first installment in the Mercenary Librarians series, set in a post-apocalyptic time on earth where genetic engineering of super soldiers is the norm and daily life is a struggle against oppression. Into this chaos, three strong women - Nina, Maya and Dani -see their jobs as information brokers as indispensable to the community they live in. After all, knowledge is power. Into their domain comes Knox and his team of super soldiers, whose existence is threatened by implants that are slowly degrading. They want to team up with Nina and her crew to uncover a secret records vault, but what they neglect to tell them is that there is someone else pulling the strings.
If you're a fan of Kit Rocha's Beyond series (and I am), you'll recognize some nods to the series but this is a wholly new world, well developed and equally intriguing. Found family is key, with both the women and men having solid friendships within their groups and the willingness to risk all for each other for survival. The men and women are equals here, deadly and dangerous if crossed and it's only a matter of time before Knox's deception is revealed. I loved everything about the story and the romance that develops between Knox and Nina is icing on the cake. Action, danger, suspense, sex, romance, friendship - it's all here in a page turning read. I can't wait to read the next in the series!...more
Captivating! One of those books you don't want to put down! I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this story - the fantastic world building, the stronCaptivating! One of those books you don't want to put down! I thoroughly enjoyed everything about this story - the fantastic world building, the strong characters, the magic system, the development of the relationship between Maddek and Yvenne who start out as enemies. They become allies in the quest for Maddek to get revenge for the killing of his parents and Yvenne to enact the same as it's her father and brothers who did the deed and kept her imprisoned for years. Soon they become lovers, where a marriage of convenience will give them what they seek but also leads to a real heart-bound relationship. Lots of action, plenty of blood and guts violence, and sexy scenes make for a pulse pounding read and Maddek and Yvenne get an ending worthy of their story. I'm looking forward to reading more in the series!
A copy of this story was provided by the publisher via NetGalley. ...more
Whiteout by Adriana Anders is an exciting, fast paced romantic thriller and the first in the author’s Survival Instincts series.
The Burke-Ruhe researcWhiteout by Adriana Anders is an exciting, fast paced romantic thriller and the first in the author’s Survival Instincts series.
The Burke-Ruhe research station at the South Pole isn’t the location Angel Smith ever thought she’d end up as a cook, but it’s as good a place as any to have a brand new start. The few months she’s spent in the coldest place on earth has taught her about human resilience, including her own. With plans to depart the next day with the summer crew, she’ll miss the people, even the grumpy Dr. Ford Cooper, or ‘Ice Man’, who prefers the cold outside rather than the human warmth inside. She can’t deny that she finds him attractive despite his cold and impersonal attitude but she’s not foolish enough to think that he returns those feelings when even getting a ‘thank you’ out of him is a stretch.
With plans to leave the over-winter crew with a stocked kitchen, Angel heads into the supply arch underground and stumbles across more than she bargained for and the horrifying realization that some of her crewmates are involved in something so secret they’re willing to kill to protect their plans. At the same time, Ford is suspicious of a series of events that don’t have a logical explanation and is doing his own investigating, leading him to a fleeing Angel and the confirmation of his suspicions. With no choice but to abandon the station if they want to survive, Angel and Ford are in a race against time, the elements, and their pursuers as they make their way across the frozen land towards another scientific base. Along the way, Angel discovers that her attraction to Ford isn’t so one sided after all. But will they survive long enough to have a chance at a happy ending?
Once I started this story I could not put it down! In fact, I read it all in one go, as there was no point in the story where I felt I could leave it without knowing what would happen next. The setting of Antarctica adds a layer of tension that you don’t find in other romantic suspense stories because the cold itself is a nemesis to survive and the author writes that extra layer in a truly nail-biting fashion. Wind, snow, frostbite, hypothermia, glaciers, crevasses, underground caves and tunnels – it all adds up to some excellent worldbuilding.
Angel’s resilience and strength are a huge factor in the story. From discovering the duplicity and murderous tendencies of some of the people she’d worked alongside, to the knowledge that her only chance of survival is to follow Ford out into the elements and keep up with him, it’s an hour by hour struggle. But her life is worth the effort and she gives it her all. Ford sees this and respects her for it, though he balks at her insistence that if there comes a time where he has to leave her behind, he should save himself. There’s no way he’ll leave behind a teammate and that’s what they are.
Now that they are forced into survival mode, he can also admit to himself that he is attracted to her, a scary proposition for someone who was trying to avoid any kind of commitment to anyone to the point of moving to Antarctica to do it. But Angel is under his skin and in his thoughts and soon enough they succumb to the most human of tendencies – to turn to each other for warmth, comfort and some good old fashioned sex. As they journey together, he opens up to her and she sees the real Ford who isn’t an ‘ice man’ after all. And their burgeoning relationship gives them another reason to survive.
There are plenty of twists and turns along the way to their happy ending. Near the end we meet some other characters who will feature in more stories in the series. The ending is a bit long as it introduces these other characters and expands on some of the mysteries of what was really going on at the Antarctica research stations but it sets things up nicely for the next in the series. If you like suspenseful, sexy romances that keep you on the edge of your seat, I highly recommend this one and I’m definitely looking forward to reading what comes next!
Maria Rose
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