Tag: romance

REVIEW: Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

REVIEW: Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Alexis’s coffee shop, ToeBeans Cat Café, has become something of a safe haven for other survivors of sexual harassment and assault. And that’s why she thinks the new arrival at her shop has shown up. But Candi is actually there because she believes Alexis is her biological sister. And she has an unbelievable request. Her biological father is going to die unless he gets a kidney transplant.

Noah desperately wants to protect Alexis from whatever this business is with Candi. Either it’s all a scam, or it’s a gross imposition on Alexis for a man who never bothered to acknowledge her before now, a man who left Alexis and her mother to scrape by on their own.

But this crisis is tweaking Noah’s and Alexis’s feelings for one another. Out loud, they both insist they are only friends.  Or that they can’t risk their friendship on something more. But maybe a chance at rich, true love is worth the risk.

Review

There’s a lovely emotional ebb and flow to this story. There are laugh-out-loud moments, especially when it comes to Lexa’s cat, Beefcake. There are also heart-tugging ones with the core romance as well as with the losses both characters have experienced. The ups and downs evolve naturally and made for a fun reading experience.

It was good to be with the Bromance Book Club crew again. The premise for this series – a group of men who read romance novels to help them in their romantic relationships – is outstanding. The men in the group are a hoot, and I enjoy the banter between them. Even more, I love their more touching, emotional moments with one another. The scenes with the Bromance guys were my favorites in the story.

While I was moved at times by Noah and Lexa’s story, I didn’t click with them like I have with other series characters. One of the issues for the couple is his seething resentment and anger and unresolved grief while she tends to gloss over her hard feelings in an attempt to take the high road and be “above” such things. It was perfect for the story being told, and the growth needed for the characters. But their situations should have made them furious, at least at some moments. But there wasn’t enough fury for me for the context. (Of course, this could just be my own 2020 rage looking for an outlet, too.)

I enjoyed this addition to this excellent series, and I cannot wait to get my hands on book 4, Isn’t It Bromantic, set for a summer 2021 release. If you are a fan of the series, you will want to pick this one up for yourself and check out Noah and Alexis’s story. (Language, sex, TW: grief/loss)

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½=Good+

BONUS REVIEW: The Switch by Beth O'Leary

BONUS REVIEW: The Switch by Beth O’Leary

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Flatiron Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Leena’s been trying to hang onto her “normal” life with both hands, but it’s not working. She’s still grieving the death of her sister. She’s not speaking to her mother after everything that happened. And then she has a panic attack in the middle of a huge pitch for work. In an act of compassion – instead of firing her for her declining work – her boss gives her an 8-week sabbatical to get herself together.

Leena’s grandmother, Eileen, is feeling lonely. In the months since her husband ran off with another woman, she’s been  staying busy with community events and her “Neighborhood Watch” group. She’s tried to be a bridge between her daughter and her granddaughter, but they are still estranged. She still has years of life to live! The men her age in town, though, are not good candidates for romance.

When Leena comes to visit, she suggests the switch. She’ll stay in rural Yorkshire, work on her relationship with her mother, cover her grandmother’s responsibilities to the town, and try to find her equilibrium again. Her grandmother will head to London, stay in Leena’s flat with her flatmates, and see if she can find love in the big city.

Review

This was a delightful surprise! I thought the premise was clever, but the execution was so much more than I expected. It was fabulous!

I fell in love with Eileen’s story first. I loved her relationship with Leena’s flatmates and the difference she makes in their building. She’s a bridge builder, both at home and in London. And she has the wisdom of age and experience, so she’s willing to take risks and ask for what she wants in life. Her story is SO fun!

It takes Leena a lot longer to find her footing in the swap. And that makes sense. She’s there because she has repressed her grief. She is furious with her mother and flees from memories of her sister. She has a lot to work through. But when she finds her groove – in herself and with her grandmother’s friends – her story shines as much as her grandmother’s.

I loved all of the relationships here – the romances, sure, but even more, the family relationships, Eileen’s relationships with the folks in Leena’s building, and Leena’s relationship with the seniors from her grandmother’s home. I loved how the grief pieces are handled here and the growth Leena experiences over time.

Do not miss this rich, character-driven story. I adored it! (Language, LGBTQ+ secondary characters, TW: grief)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½=Loved it! Would re-read.

REVIEW: Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

REVIEW: Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Avon in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Marcus Caster-Rupp has just finished shooting his final season of Gods of the Gates. His public persona has always been on the “pretty but dim” side, and as an actor he can play that role convincingly. But now that shooting is done, maybe he could be something… more.

No one knows Marcus is Book!AeneasWouldNever!. He writes Gods of the Gates fanfiction. He loves the book version which is so much better than what the show runners have done lately with the characters. His favorite person on the fanfiction sites is UnapologeticLaviniaStan. She gets him and gets these characters. She will flip when she sees what the show runners have done in this next season. And not in a good way.

April, UnapologeticLaviniaStan on the fanfiction sites, is ready for serious life change. She kept her cosplay and fandom life secret at work in order to be taken seriously. And she’s never posted pictures of herself online in her cosplay because she doesn’t want to deal with fatphobic trolls. But she’s ready to take a stand and be 100% herself both in person and online.

When a beautiful cosplayer is trolled on Twitter, and Marcus is pulled into the conversation, he takes the high road, asking the woman out on a date (rather than eviscerating the trolls, which was his first instinct). But Marcus has no idea April is his fanfiction best friend, UnapologeticLaviniaStan. And if anyone finds out about his alter ego, Book!AeneasWouldNever!, Marcus’ career will be over.

Review

This was fantastic! It includes a fandom as well as a convention, which I always enjoy. (You can read my post from earlier this year about fandom and fan convention stories here.) There’s a You’ve Got Mail piece to this too where April and Marcus meet in real life while also having an online relationship hidden behind screen names. At first, neither one knows about the connection. The main difference here is that they are not antagonists in real life like in the movie.

But the real life relationship means Marcus has to break the online relationship and keep the connection a secret for the sake of his job. While he likes April, it’s too soon to know if she can be trusted or if she would even understand the risks he has already taken by writing fanfiction – and talking about the show- in ways that could jeopardize his job.

I loved April and Marcus, together and separately. They have fantastic chemistry together. They also have depth. The author does an exceptional job with the emotional pieces of this – the personal insights, the empathy, the descriptions of toxic family relationships, etc. I adored this layer to the characters and to the larger story.

There’s a secondary relationship that was teased in this book, but mostly took place off-page. I had hoped it would get it’s own book. It seems like that relationship will be the focus of the next book, out next year. I am absolutely here for that story. This is my first book by this author, although I own one of her e-books – Desire and the Deep Blue Sea – and its sequel is on my wishlist. I’ll be bumping her books up on my TBR.

If you enjoy fanfiction and fandom stories like I do, do NOT miss this one! It feels like an adult version of the Geekerella/Once Upon a Con series, which I love. (Language, sex, CW: fat shaming, disability shaming, toxic families/trauma)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥♥=Great! Might re-read.

REVIEW: Well Played by Jen DeLuca

REVIEW: Well Played by Jen DeLuca

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

At the end of the summer’s Renaissance Faire run, Emily is engaged and Stacey is feeling stuck. She gave up a career and a life in New York to help out her mom with a health scare. Her job feels like a dead end. She lives above her parents’ garage. And the only relationship she’s had is her hook up with Dex from the Faire.

After an evening of melancholy – and wine – Stacey messages Dex and lays out her loneliness. The next day, she’s mortified over her boldness and vulnerability. But he actually responds! Soon they are messaging back and forth, and she realizes he has more depth than she ever gave him credit for. Occasional messages turn into regular emails and then daily texts. And Stacey’s feelings for Dex grow.

Until the moment, a week before the Faire begins the new season where they will be in the same town for a few weeks, when Stacey realizes she’s been texting with Daniel, Dex’s cousin, for the last year and not Dex.

Review

It’s so good to be back at the RenFaire! I loved the first book in this series, Well Met (♥♥♥♥♥), and I was eager to see how things were going for Emily and Simon while digging into the new relationship at the center of this book.

I enjoyed Stacey and Daniel’s story. While I didn’t feel they had the same spark as Emily and Simon, I liked them together. In a lot of ways this is Stacey’s story alone. She feels trapped and resigned to her situation. I was eager to see how she was going to change over the course of the story.

The main conflict here – Daniel’s identity – has some layers. And it’s prickly when everything comes out. The lying is bad – he should have just told her the truth from the start. But then there wouldn’t be much of a story. So in some ways it was a plot device to give tension to the romance. But the romance is warm and sweet in the end, so you can forgive a lot.

I don’t think these books have to be read in order, but I think it’s more fun that way. Then you can see how the first relationship is growing while the second one is getting started. Book 3, Well Matched, is scheduled for next year, and I’m excited to read it. It will star Emily’s sister, April, who is a prickly character in the first book, but she softens a little in this one. I am extremely curious to see how my image of her changes as I get to know her from her own story.

I love the RenFaire setting for this series. It’s really what keeps bringing me back. Romance fans and Renaissance Faire fans should check this out. (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½=Good+

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss

SATURDAY SMORGASBORD: The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and G.P. Putnam’s Sons in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. This book will release on October 13, 2020.]

Summary

After a dating dry spell, Kate Turner lets her best friend, Laura, talk her into signing up for the Twelve Dates of Christmas. It’s an event run by the Lightning Strikes dating site. The site plans the dates with 12 matches, and all of the food and drinks are included in the cost. It’s a great way for Kate to meet 12 men, and enjoy some out-of-the-ordinary activities during the holiday season.

Living in a small town means everyone knows Kate’s business. They all know she signed up, and the gossips are staying busy keeping everyone up to speed on every dating disaster. Every time her other best friend, Matt, calls it the Twelve Shags of Christmas, she wants to forget the whole thing. It’s a good thing Kate is such a good sport.

Over time, it becomes clear that there might be a relationship from Kate’s past that is getting in the way of her moving forward with a new relationship. When everything falls apart, she will have to decide if she’s going to fight for the life she has built or if she’s willing to leave it all behind to avoid more pain.

Review

The set up for this – with the twelve blind dates – reminded me of 10 Blind Dates, a YA book I loved last year. This isn’t a comedy like that one is, but the set up works well in both books. It allows the author to introduce a bunch of quirky characters and scenarios for the protagonist.

I liked Kate a lot. She’s confident and knows who she is. She doesn’t put up with any garbage from the dates. And she has an amazing sounding job. I loved how her family and friends support her.

The dates – both the men and the activities – were fun to read. Kate meets interesting people. The activities were varied and fit Kate’s personality – a snowy hike, salsa dancing, a cooking class, etc. And even when the events end in disaster, I always liked Kate as she dealt with the surprises and the disappointments.

I figured out where things were going by about page 10, but I enjoyed the journey to get there. There’s a lot of great food described here (the final copy of the book will have recipes), and tons of holiday elements to help readers get into the Christmas mood. Don’t miss this fun Christmas romance. (Language, off-page sex, LGBTQ+)

Rating: ♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥½=Good+

REVIEW: You Lucky Dog by Julia London

REVIEW: You Lucky Dog by Julia London

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Carly Kennedy is trying to build a PR business in Austin so she can get the money to move to New York City. She’s keeping her sister’s basset hound, Baxter (her mother’s fault – don’t ask), and she pays someone to walk him. Baxter is a quiet, sad, and anxious fella but Carly loves him.

Max Sheffington is a neuroscience professor studying dogs. He’s interested in how the reactions of neurotransmitters in dogs and dog lovers could be applied to the understanding of the autistic brain. Max’s brother, Jamie, is profoundly autistic. But Jamie really connects with dogs. That’s why Max got his basset hound, Hazel – to connect with Jamie.

When Baxter and Hazel’s dog walker gets into some trouble, someone else has to take the dogs home. And that person switches the two basset hounds. Carly and Max notice immediately that they have the wrong dogs, but it takes awhile to find each other. But once they do, they see what a difference Hazel makes in Baxter’s life.

Review

The core to this contemporary romance by Julia London is the relationship between Baxter and Hazel and the one between Max and Carly. And there’s a lot in those relationships to love. Unfortunately for Carly and Max, their relationship also has about three Hallmark movies’-worth of roadblocks and drama. The ending, thankfully, is a satisfying resolution to those roadblocks.

Along the way, though, this gets wordy. I’m not big on setting and wardrobe descriptions. I skim right by those in most books if they are more than a sentence or two long. Also, too much overthinking by the characters encourages me to skim. There was a good bit of that here. I felt like I did a fair amount of skimming, especially early on. If you enjoy the more detailed descriptions and inner processing, this may be a better fit for you in that way.

The characters in this were what kept me turning pages. First of all, Baxter and Hazel are excellent. The description of Baxter before he meets Hazel is endearing and sad. But the spark he finds in Hazel is darling. Carly and Max alone are okay on their own. She puts up with a lot of garbage from her wacky family and her clients. Max can get too in his own head. But together they are great. I liked them more as a couple than I did as individuals. I also loved Max’s brother, Jamie. I would have enjoyed even more scenes with Jamie in them. I think character-driven readers will like what they find in this book. (Language, sex)

Rating: ♥♥♥*

*♥♥♥= Fine/Solid/Good

REVIEW: Loathe at First Sight by Suzanne Park

REVIEW: Loathe at First Sight by Suzanne Park

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Avon in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Melody Joo is a new video game producer at a male-dominated gaming company. The boss, Ian MacKenzie, is everything awful you can imagine – demanding, tantrum-throwing, egotistical, and misogynistic. And since he’s the leader, many of the other staff follow his example.

In a moment of commiseration with a female colleague, Melody tosses off a random game idea about male strippers fighting zombies and such in the apocalypse. She was just joking around. But Ian gets wind of the idea. And when the board backs him into a corner about the company’s low engagement with female gamers, he throws Melody’s idea at them. And they love it.

Now Melody has to work with the company’s latest intern – Ian’s nephew Nolan – on this fast-tracked game. Melody and Nolan have already had several conflicts. What are the chances they can finish this project without killing each other?

Review

This was so much more than I was expecting! I knew it would be an enemies-to-lovers romance, but that was a smaller piece of the whole story than I realized it would be. And it was terrific!

The bulk of the story focuses on Melody, striving to succeed in a field – and a company – willfully working against her. The racism and sexism is rampant. Early on, Melody assumes Nolan will be a part of that.

The nitty-gritty gaming pieces are not part of this, which I liked. The focus stayed on the people and the outcomes, which was perfect. While I might not have been 100% clear on what Melody was doing all the time, I definitely knew she was busting her backside, working long hours and leveraging the expertise of her team members and friends when she needed to. When word gets out about her game – targeting female gamers and produced by an Asian woman – the backlash is tremendous. There are no magical solutions to the haters and trolls and doxxing and harassment that Melody endures. But I was quite satisfied with how most of that is sorted out in the end.

The gaming story is balanced out by Melody’s parents who were a lot (for Melody, not for the reader) and her two best friends who are both experiencing major life transitions. They were just the right blend of helpful and focused on things outside Melody’s work life. They rounded out the story well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one! If you like your romance books with a full, meaty story around the relationship, pick this one up. If you love books about strong, bright women fighting for a seat at the table, pick this up. And if you love books about women in tech fields charting their own courses in both their work and personal lives, pick this up. I don’t think you will regret it. You can read my review of the author’s latest YA romance, The Perfect Escape, here. (Language. TW: Harassment)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½*

*♥♥♥♥½ = Loved it! Would read again.

BONUS REVIEW: The Love Scam by MaryJanice Davidson

BONUS REVIEW: The Love Scam by MaryJanice Davidson

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and St. Martin’s Griffin in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Rake Tarbell is having a bad day. He woke up hungover in a strange hotel room. In Venice, Italy. But he has no memory of going there. He also has no wallet, no phone, and he’s fallen into the canal. And the tip of the iceberg? When he finally finds his way to his bank accounts to get some money, he finds them empty.

All of that is epically bad. But in the middle of discovering how much trouble he’s in, he also meets a woman who says the girl at her side – Lillith – is his daughter.

So now Rake is in Italy with no money, no ID or passport, no phone to call his family, and a kid he doesn’t know but might be responsible for. Thankfully, the woman who brought Lillith to him, Delaney, is willing to help him. They just have to dodge thugs, stuff Easter baskets, and figure out why Rake’s life has turned upside down.

Review

What a hoot! I got a huge kick out of Rake and this whole story. Apparently this takes place concurrently with book one, Danger, Sweetheart, which I have not read. I feel like I picked the right book, and the right brother of the Tarbell twins, though. Rake is obnoxious early on, but I warmed up to him. (His brother, on the other hand, always felt like a jerk whenever he appeared in this book.) Lillith is also a complete delight. I love adult books with fantastic kid characters. And Lillith is brilliant, both literally and figuratively.

The “mysteries” of what Delaney and her friends are up to, what happened to Lillith’s mother, and what happened to Rake’s money were engaging. I enjoyed watching it all unfold, and I laughed loudly and often as I waited for things to be resolved. This was a ton of fun, and I’m glad I tried it out!(Language, sex, some violence)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥½

BONUS REVIEW: Mr. Malcolm's List by Suzanne Allain

BONUS REVIEW: Mr. Malcolm’s List by Suzanne Allain

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Mr. Jeremy Malcolm is the hottest bachelor of the 1818 London season. He has no title, but he’s inherited funds and a country house. He’s feeling the pressure from debutantes – and their mothers – constantly. One dance or conversation – or a trip to the opera – can convince a young woman that he’s interested. But Mr. Malcolm knows what he’s looking for. When it comes to a woman he’ll spend the rest of his life with, he’s determined to be as careful about the choice as he would be about choosing a prize horse or a business investment. There are certain qualities that are non-negotiable. Mr. Malcolm has a list!

When one of those young women gets word of Mr. Malcolm’s list, she is incensed. She invites an old school friend to town under the auspices of helping her meet some eligible men at society events. But in truth, Julia only wants Selina to help her turn the tables on Mr. Malcolm. To string him along until he’s hooked and then dump him for not meeting her own list. Selina has numerous reservations, but she also has no where else to go if she wants to meet the right sort of men. Julia knows this and will not be dissuaded from her plot.

Review

With the exception of Selina, who is a delight, the other main characters in this book are infuriating. I despised the spoiled, bratty Julia from her first appearance. She is arrogant, smug, and manipulative, and I audibly grumbled about her for 2/3 of the book. Mr. Malcolm is no Prince Charming. He’s arrogant as well, and also entitled. Maybe the author was trying to show that the more plain-born Selina has better character than the wealthy, privileged people in the story. Julia’s cousin, who is supposed to be Mr. Malcolm’s friend, was just as awful. While I waited for everything in the story to inevitably fall apart, I grumbled about the lot of them.

The “Hallmark movie moment” – you know, the spot in 90% of these sorts of stories where all the secrets are spilled – was fairly predictable. But I was surprised that Jeremy thought so little of Selina that he immediately wrote her off. Sure, be angry. He was manipulated and lied to. But there was no grace offered and no opportunity for Selina to explain things.

I would have loved for this moment to happen sooner in the story so that when Selina gets riled by Jeremy’s dismissal of her, she could really make him feel the pain of his decisions. I wanted him to “suffer” his losses a little more. And sadly, Julia has no consequences whatsoever for her part in things. She becomes a somewhat better person, magically, because of love. This was not satisfying. These two pieces would have improved my mood considerably.

Despite all of that irritation and emotional upheaval, I could not put this down! I had to see if Selina would triumph over these yahoos around her. And to see if they could ever be worthy of her friendship and her love. I read this compulsively, from start to finish. And even with all of my grumbling, I enjoyed the overall story. Jeremy’s mom alone was worth sticking with the book through the aggravating parts; she’s a hoot!

Rating: ♥♥♥♥

BONUS REVIEW: Paris Is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay

BONUS REVIEW: Paris Is Always a Good Idea by Jenn McKinlay

Posted on by Jaymie

[I received an electronic review copy of this book from Netgalley and Berkley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.]

Summary

Chelsea Martin discovers her father is engaged when he asks her to meet him, saying it’s urgent. She finds him at a bridal shop.  Her twice-married younger sister is completely on board. The fact that the couple met through a bachelor auction two weeks ago is only a factor to Chelsea.

Chelsea’s mom died 7 years ago. At the time, Chelsea was spending a gap year in Europe. As soon as she heard her mom was sick, she dropped everything and went home. When her dad announces his sudden engagement, Chelsea realizes everyone else has moved forward after her mother’s death except her.

So Chelsea takes a leave from her job to go back to Europe. Her plan is to look up the men she fell in love with during her gap year and see if reconnecting with them will help her find herself and her happiness again.

Review

This was fun. I loved the travel as well as the premise of Chelsea trying to find herself or find the person she used to be. There were many laugh-out-loud moments in this, too. That levity was a lovely contrast to the world I find myself in these days.

The story isn’t all light, though. Chelsea is a fundraiser for a cancer charity, so there are characters tied to her work, herself included, who have experienced grief and loss. So there are some heavy, emotional moments in this as well.

Chelsea’s co-worker – and nemesis – Jason Knightley – is probably my favorite character in the whole book. I loved the evolution of Jason and Chelsea’s relationship from the start of the book to the end.

The resolution to Chelsea’s quest was satisfying and wrapped up the book nicely. The journey was fun from start to finish.

McKinlay fans, especially of her romance novels like the ones in the Bluff Point series and the Happily Ever After series, including The Christmas Keeper (♥♥♥♥), should be sure to check this one out. Contemporary romance fans and readers who enjoy books with travel aspects (like One to Watch) or personal quests (like A Dozen Second Chances or My Great Ex-Scape) should check this one out, too. (Language, sex, TW: grief/loss, gaslighting/manipulation in relationships)

Rating: ♥♥♥♥