I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
Following Written in the Stars and Hang the Moon, national bestselling author Alexandria Bellefleur pens another steamy queer rom-com about former best friends who might be each other’s second chance at love…
Margot Cooper doesn’t do relationships. She tried and it blew up in her face, so she’ll stick with casual hookups, thank you very much. But now her entire crew has found “the one” and she’s beginning to feel like a fifth wheel. And then fate (the heartless bitch) intervenes. While touring a wedding venue with her engaged friends, Margot comes face-to-face with Olivia Grant—her childhood friend, her first love, her first… well, everything. It’s been ten years, but the moment they lock eyes, Margot’s cold, dead heart thumps in her chest.
Olivia must be hallucinating. In the decade since she last saw Margot, her life hasn’t gone exactly as planned. At almost thirty, she’s been married… and divorced. However, a wedding planner job in Seattle means a fresh start and a chance to follow her dreams. Never in a million years did she expect her important new client’s Best Woman would be the one that got away.
When a series of unfortunate events leaves Olivia without a place to stay, Margot offers up her spare room because she’s a Very Good Person. Obviously. It has nothing to do with the fact that Olivia is as beautiful as ever and the sparks between them still make Margot tingle. As they spend time in close quarters, Margot starts to question her no-strings stance. Olivia is everything she’s ever wanted, but Margot let her in once and it ended in disaster. Will history repeat itself or should she count her lucky stars that she gets a second chance with her first love?
REVIEW
Margot is happy and content with the way things are. But things are changing and changing rapidly in Margot’s happy circle of friends. Where once there was game nights and casual hangouts, now it’s turned into a couples thing and Margot is feeling like the fifth wheel.
Doesn’t help that THE blast from the past shows up as you guess it…her best friends wedding planner. Olivia is the one, the one that got away that Margot still thinks about. They were best friends and were always together. Until one sweet hook up turned them from friends to lovers briefly and then to merely acquaintances. Because of their one time hookup and the miscommunication after, they haven’t seen each other in over a decade. Olivia got married to her high school sweetheart, but she is divorced now and on her own. Margot and Olivia find each other working closer together than ever before – will be they able to mend their friendship and possibly turn it into something more?
I loved Olivia in the previous books of the Written in the Stars series. She is such a fun and outgoing person and I love her personality. I was so excited for her to get her own story in Count Your Lucky Stars. What happened to make these two best friends who were inseparable suddenly without their best friend. The journey of why these two lost touch was so bittersweet.
I really enjoyed the premise of this book. Second chance romance is such a favorite trope of mine and I love the angst and tension that it brings. However, I do feel like I wasn’t fully invested in these two characters as a couple. I wanted to feel more for why they were separated and sadly I didn’t get that in Count Your Lucky Stars. I understand that Margot as a character was going through a lot of changes with it feeling like losing her friends because they were all in relationships, but she seemed very insecure and that’s not the vibe I got from her in the first two books.
I had the opportunity to listen to an audiobook of Count Your Lucky Stars which was narrated by Lauren Sweet. I felt like Lauren did an absolute tremendous job narrating the voices for both Olivia and Margot. I was laughing out loud at a lot of the dialogue in the book and definitely made me enjoy the book!
Overall, I really enjoyed the Written in the Stars series! While I didn’t really click with the characters of Count Your Lucky Stars, so many friends really loved this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author.
SYNOPSIS
A slow-burn friends-to-lovers standalone featuring Nick from Shortcake.
Note to self:
Next time your life falls apart, don’t hobble your broken ass back to your hometown to hide out. You think it will buy you time to glue yourself back together, but it won’t.
Why not?
Nicolas freaking MacGregor.
You remember him, right? Your stepbrother’s best friend. The boy you shared secrets with and maybe-loved once. The boy you asked to be your first kiss.
The one who shattered your glass heart into a million pieces.
Well, that Nick rents your grandpa’s guest house now. And yep, he still has boundary issues.
FYI, the lanky skater boy with a sweet smile and crooked glasses has turned into a tattooed Viking with a devilish grin and a body of lean-muscled perfection you will not think about. Ever.
You’re wiser now, Riley, so I know you won’t fall for him again. Right?
PS: When he smiles and his cheek creases in that near-dimple way, run.
Trigger Warnings: childhood abuse (not shown); mentions of weight (no sizes or scale numbers); discussions of mental health, including PTSD and anxiety; cheating ex (not shown); violence (in flashback); body shaming (by parent); cursing and vulgar language; explicit sexual content.
REVIEW
I just finished binge reading Peanut and this book…this book took my whole heart and ripped it apart and then put it back together again. Seriously I was sobbing into my pillow while staying up way too late reading this amazing book. I knew after reading and loving Shortcake that I needed the next book in the series ASAP and Lucy did not disappoint!
Peanut follows the story of Riley and Nick. These two group up together and shared their deepest darkest secrets with one another…until they didn’t anymore. Riley up and left to LA to pursue a dancing career and Nick stayed back to become a prolific tattoo artist. Riley is back after being gone for over a decade. Broke and needing a place to stay she ends up crashing at her grandfather’s house only to find out that her neighbor is – yep you guessed it – Nick. Will these two pick up their easy friendship? Even though Riley has always longed for more than that from Nick and he’s always shot her down.
I honestly cannot put into words how much I loved this book. I binge read it and every time I would look down to see what percentage I was at I wished there was more to this book. More Nick and Riley. More of the crew together again. More angst and swooniness and lovely lovely words written by the talented Lucy Watson.
At times, Peanut was not an easy read. But the writing was always beautiful and really tugged at my heartstrings. The love that Riley and Nick had for one another was so damn sweet and I was rooting for these two to get together right from the beginning. Their journey was filled with so much emotion.
Not only did I love Riley and Nick’s journey, but every single secondary character had an important part of the story. Nick’s co-workers and friends at the tattoo parlor were so much fun! When they were on the page I was guaranteed to be laughing. It was also a treat to see Nick’s friends from Shortcake including a few scenes featuring Ben & Emelia who I loved!
If you love a swoony, angsty, second chance, slow burn romance I would highly recommend you pre-order Peanut!
CW(from Lucy herself): childhood abuse (not shown); mentions of weight (no sizes or scale numbers); discussions of mental health, including PTSD and anxiety; cheating ex (not shown); violence (in flashback); body shaming (by parent); cursing and vulgar language; explicit sexual content
When Kian gets a text message from ex-boyfriend Hudson, he’s not quite sure what to expect. He definitely does not expect for Hudson to ask Kian to be his fake date to Georgia’s wedding of the season. Soon their fake dating starts to feel all too real – will they keep up the charade or move to make their relationship real? Really looking forward to reading this fake dating/second chance romance!
SYNOPSIS
It’s been months since aspiring journalist Kian Andrews has heard from his ex-boyfriend, Hudson Rivers, but an urgent text has them meeting at a café. Maybe Hudson wants to profusely apologize for the breakup. Or confess his undying love. . . But no, Hudson has a favor to ask–he wants Kian to pretend to be his boyfriend while his parents are in town, and Kian reluctantly agrees.
The dinner doesn’t go exactly as planned, and suddenly Kian is Hudson’s plus one to Georgia’s wedding of the season. Hudson comes from a wealthy family where reputation is everything, and he really can’t afford another mistake. If Kian goes, he’ll help Hudson preserve appearances and get the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the biggest names in media. This could be the big career break Kian needs.
But their fake relationship is starting to feel like it might be more than a means to an end, and it’s time for both men to fact-check their feelings.
EXCERPT
I’M SO (NOT) OVER YOU by Kosoko Jackson
Berkley Trade Paperback Original | On sale February 22, 2022
Excerpt
Chapter One
The first rule, and only rule, of getting over your ex is not to answer your ex’s messages. This can be done in many different ways, depending on the person.
One, change his contact to read: DO NOT ANSWER.
Two, block his number.
Three, glue a horrible weave to your scalp, so you look and act like a completely different person.
Four, restart your life as the owner of a mom-and-pop shop in rural Indiana and call it a day. That’s one I’m particularly partial to.
All of those are good and valid options. Do what you need to do-no judgment.
And yet, somehow I found a way to break this simple rule. Not just break it, burst it wide open. Shatter it, if you will.
Because it’s one thing to open a text and answer it, but it’s another to decide to follow through with your ex’s request.
Look up Bad Idea on Google, and our helpful search engine will bring up, Did you mean: Kian Andrews’s choices whenever they involve Hudson Rivers?
My phone in my pocket vibrates once. My heart skips a beat. Maybe Hudson will cancel. Or maybe he’ll realize the past three months apart have been a mistake and he’s going to confess he’s still madly in love with me? Maybe . . .
Nope, just Divya.
DIVYA EVANS: Let the record show this is a horrible idea.
“Of course you’d say that,” I mutter, forgetting she can’t, you know, hear me. And she may be right, but that’s not the point.
When I got the text from Hudson a week ago, asking me to meet him at the Watering Hole, Divya was not amused. She scrunched her nose, like she tasted something rancid in the air, which wasn’t entirely off.
Because to her, that’s exactly what my relationship with Hudson was: rancid. Which, sure, everyone says that about their ex because it makes them feel better.
KIAN ANDREWS: You’ve said that-multiple times.
DIVYA EVANS: And yet, you still refuse to listen. Remind me, who is getting their law degree from Harvard?
KIAN ANDREWS: Wow . . . we went . . . 12 hours without you bringing up your Harvard degree. That’s a new record!
DIVYA EVANS: But seriously, K. This is a bad idea. Closure is not as good as you think it is.
As a lawyer-in-training, she should understand why I need to meet with Hudson: to process what happened, to close that chapter of my life, and to seal it shut with a glue made of truth. The memory of us breaking up is an open wound that never healed. It was a volatile separation, ending with me blocking him on every social media account possible and drinking myself into a stupor that made the two weeks after the breakup a blur.
Maybe that’s why Divya’s a prosecutor and not a defense attorney.
Another vibration, another text.
DIVYA EVANS: I’m only a few blocks away if you need me.
KIAN ANDREWS: What are the chances of that happening?
Pretty high, if I’m being honest. Divya has always been my rock, no matter what. Whether keeping me from embarrassing myself when I started crying in the club two weeks after my breakup, making sure I got my worthless self out of bed so I didn’t lose my partial scholarship, or even finding some men with absolute dump-truck asses to help me get over my head-over-heels obsession with Hudson, Divya has been that ride-or-die friend for me.
So it’s reasonable to assume that when I’m about to go through another major, traumatizing Hudson experience, Divya Evans is the big guns I have on speed dial. What’s that expression? Behind every great gay guy, there’s a badass woman?
Again, my phone pings. I pull it out of my pocket without looking, expecting another (well-deserved) quippy barb from Divya. But instead, an e-mail stares back at me.
I stare at the screen for so long, the colorful background of one of the many lighthouses on the North Carolina coast. I want to savor this moment. Hold on to it, keep it in its box, and put it on the top shelf somewhere out of the way. When I’m a famous journalist, with sources sliding into my DMs, begging me to write Pulitzer-winning stories, and I’m giving a guest lecture at Northeastern, they’ll ask me, How did you get started in this competitive, cutthroat business?
And I’ll say, I got my first job at Spotlight. Will Spotlight be around twelve years from now? Probably not. News websites cannibalize themselves like bacteria. But it’s the hottest place to work in journalism right now. Getting an Investigative Journalism Fellowship here would change my life. It’s like . . . do not pass Go; instead, get Park Place on your second turn.
I tap the screen, bringing it back to life. Still, the e-mail alert taunts me. Maybe it’s an interview request? Maybe my pitch on the lack of education programs in Appalachia and how it’s setting students back several grade levels that I spent all last week making really did impress them, and they are going to offer me a position sight unseen. That’s not unreasonable. It happens to white guys all the time. And I have good-no, fucking great credentials.
Like Divya says, they would be lucky to have me.
But at the same time, as my journalism professor said, Journalists are a dime a dozen. Why should they pick you over anyone else?
Which takes us back to Divya Evans, and her exact words: You’re a goddamn star, Kian Andrews.
I wish I had the same level of confidence as her. I do a good job faking it when I’m around her, at least I think I do. But now? Alone in this cafŽ? Doing something stupid like waiting for the boy who broke my heart-who is now seven minutes late-and staring at the e-mail that could change my career? That confident facade is pushed far back into the closet; a place I haven’t been since middle school.
And I promised I’d never go back there again.
Without overthinking it, I tap on the screen one more time, and then enter my passcode before I can change my mind. One more tap, and the e-mail fills the screen.
Dear Mr. Andrews,
Thank you for your application for the Investigative Journalism Fellowship at Spotlight’s Boston branch. At this time, we’ve decided-
“Shit.”
There’s no need to read any more. I could do a CTRL-F in my inbox, search for “we’ve decided,” and bring up more than a dozen results. This is no different, despite how badly I want it to be different.
I’m halfway through a text to Divya, informing her about the rejection from Spotlight, which will undoubtedly result in her replying with drinks on me tonight, when a baritone clearing of a throat behind me causes my fingers to stop. The deep voice cuts through the low sensual tones of the Esperanza Spalding cover artist serenading us in the Watering Hole, even if it is as out of place as a Black guy in Boston-aka Me.
But the voice is unmistakable. Even after a year of avoiding everything related to Hudson, the way he speaks effortlessly from the depths of his diaphragm still sends shivers down my spine. And the way his boyish grin plays off his chiseled jaw makes me want to melt.
“Kian?”
I do my best to turn slowly. Eagerness isn’t a good look on anyone, especially around your ex when you’re trying to act like you’ve moved on and are living your best single twentysomething life.
But my God does he look nice.
No, not nice.
Hot.
“Hey,” he says while smirking. “Thanks for coming.”
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
How do you solve the Perfect Equation? Add one sharp-tongued mathematician to an aloof, handsome nobleman. Divide by conflicting loyalties and multiply by a daring group of women hell-bent on conducting their scientific experiments. The solution is a romance that will break every rule.
Six years ago, Miss Letitia Fenley made a mistake, and she’s lived with the consequences ever since. Readying herself to compete for the prestigious Rosewood Prize for Mathematics, she is suddenly asked to take on another responsibility—managing Athena’s Retreat, a secret haven for England’s women scientists. Having spent the last six years on her own, Letty doesn’t want the offers of friendship from other club members and certainly doesn’t need any help from the insufferably attractive Lord Greycliff.
Lord William Hughes, the Viscount Greycliff cannot afford to make any mistakes. His lifelong dream of becoming the director of a powerful clandestine agency is within his grasp. Tasked with helping Letty safeguard Athena’s Retreat, Grey is positive that he can control the antics of the various scientists as well as manage the tiny mathematician—despite their historic animosity and simmering tension.
As Grey and Letty are forced to work together, their mutual dislike turns to admiration and eventually to something… magnetic. When faced with the possibility that Athena’s Retreat will close forever, they must make a choice. Will Grey turn down a chance to change history, or can Letty get to the root of the problem and prove that love is the ultimate answer?
REVIEW
Letty Fenley is the most at home at Athena’s Retreat, where women scientists such as herself are free to complete their experiments without any outside interference. When Letty’s best friend and owner of Athena’s Retreat, Violet asks Letty to manage Athena’s Retreat, Letty reluctantly agrees. What she doesn’t count on is having to manage the retreat alongside Viscount Greycliff. Letty and Grey have had a rocky past and Letty wants nothing to do with him and the feeling is mutual. How will these two keep the retreat open when they can barely be civil with one another?
Oh, how I adored Letty and Grey in A Perfect Equation. These two had so much chemistry. I loved their banter and immediately needed to know what history they shared that made them dislike each other so much. And while I loved their enemies-to-lovers slow progression, I also loved how fierce and protective they were of one another (swoon).
I loved delving into both Grey and Letty’s past. These two individuals had been through so much and both of them had such a hard time letting their guard down. There were so many times when I just wanted to scream at them, but at the same time I knew exactly where they were coming from.
A Perfect Equation had the perfect amount of humor, romance, angst and suspense! I was hooked from the beginning and loved the storytelling. I can’t wait for the next book in The Secret Scientists of London Series. Overall I would give A Perfect Equation 4.5 stars!
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
She does everything right. So what could go wrong?
Mackenzie “Mac” Cabot is a people pleaser. Her demanding parents. Her prep school friends. Her long-time boyfriend. It’s exhausting, really, always following the rules. Unlike most twenty-year-olds, all she really wants to do is focus on growing her internet business, but first she must get a college degree at her parents’ insistence. That means moving to the beachside town of Avalon Bay, a community made up of locals and the wealthy students of Garnet College.
Mac’s had plenty of practice suppressing her wilder impulses, but when she meets local bad boy Cooper Hartley, that ability is suddenly tested. Cooper is rough around the edges. Raw. Candid. A threat to her ordered existence. Their friendship soon becomes the realest thing in her life.
Despite his disdain for the trust-fund kids he sees coming and going from his town, Cooper soon realizes Mac isn’t just another rich clone and falls for her. Hard. But as Mac finally starts feeling accepted by Cooper and his friends, the secret he’s been keeping from her threatens the only place she’s ever felt at home.
REVIEW
I’m not quite sure how to review this book without giving away major spoilers (read to the end if you’d like to see some of my thoughts that might spoil the book for you) – so I will say that I really ended up loving both Cooper and Mackenzie (Mac) in Good Girl Complex. This book was complicated and messy…but somehow it really worked. I loved not only Mac and Cooper but all of the secondary characters in the story as well.
I was rooting for Mac and Cooper as soon as they first “met.” Their chemistry and banter was always so fun! I loved how they were both stubborn and feisty. And I liked it how they didn’t always see eye to eye on every topic. Somehow that part of the romance felt so real. Cooper and Mac had their own differences and ideas and they fought about them…but they also always talked it out and saw the other side.
Good Girl Complex was funny, sweet, sexy and yes at times made me feel that angst that I love so much with Elle Kennedy books. I definitely recommend this book and hope that we get to see more of the characters from this universe.
SPOILER . . . .
While I typically HATE cheating/love triangles. For some reason I didn’t mind the one in Good Girl Complex. Yes, Mac starts having feelings for Cooper while she’s still with her boyfriend Preston. But he’s a total douche and she breaks it off with him before fully committing to Cooper. So…while not ideal and typically I’d be like NOPE not really my thing, I stuck it out and am really glad I did!
CW: parental abuse/neglect, cheating, alcoholism (death of parent off page)
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
King crab fisherman Fox Thornton has a reputation as a sexy, carefree flirt. Everyone knows he’s a guaranteed good time–in bed and out–and that’s exactly how he prefers it. Until he meets Hannah Bellinger. She’s immune to his charm and looks, but she seems to enjoy his… personality? And wants to be friends? Bizarre. But he likes her too much to risk a fling, so platonic pals it is.
Now, Hannah’s in town for work, crashing in Fox’s spare bedroom. She knows he’s a notorious ladies’ man, but they’re definitely just friends. In fact, she’s nursing a hopeless crush on a colleague and Fox is just the person to help with her lackluster love life. Armed with a few tips from Westport’s resident Casanova, Hannah sets out to catch her coworker’s eye… yet the more time she spends with Fox, the more she wants him instead. As the line between friendship and flirtation begins to blur, Hannah can’t deny she loves everything about Fox, but she refuses to be another notch on his bedpost.
Living with his best friend should have been easy. Except now she’s walking around in a towel, sleeping right across the hall, and Fox is fantasizing about waking up next to her for the rest of his life and… and… man overboard! He’s fallen for her, hook, line, and sinker. Helping her flirt with another guy is pure torture, but maybe if Fox can tackle his inner demons and show Hannah he’s all in, she’ll choose him instead?
In the follow-up to It Happened One Summer, Tessa Bailey delivers another deliciously fun rom-com about a former player who accidentally falls for his best friend while trying to help her land a different man…
REVIEW
Hannah and Fox have a friendship. A completely platonic friendship. They text almost daily and haven’t seen each other in a few months. They met when Hannah and her sister relocated to a small crab fishing town in the PNW for the summer. Hannah works as a production assistant on a movie set and gives the director – who she has a deep crush on – the idea to move the location to Westport. The director runs with the idea, but why is Hannah all of a sudden nervous to see Fox again.
Fox was a goner for Hannah the moment they set eyes on each other last summer. So when he finds that she’s coming to Westport and will most likely be staying in his guest bedroom – he’s excited. The bond that Hannah and Fox share is special to him. And he wouldn’t do anything to mess that up. So what if half the town thinks that he’s a manwhore, as long as Hannah believes in him – it’ll be okay. But the closer these two are in each other’s presence the more they want things that might end up hurting their friendship. Are they willing to take that chance?
Oh, how I loved Fox and Hannah. From the very first pages with their sweet back and forth text messages I was a goner. Their friendship was so sweet and vulnerable and I loved how they slowly – oh so slowly – became more than just friends. The relationship was never one sided and the way they balanced each other out was always perfect.
I felt Hannah and Fox’s insecurities. Imposter syndrome is real and most of us feel it on a day to day basis. But the support that they both got from their friends, family and most importantly from each other made them stronger and I loved the journey both of them took to get there.
Hook, Line, and Sinker is definitely one of my favorite Tessa Bailey romances. I feel like she does friends-to-lovers so well. So if you’re looking for a book that will put a silly grin on your face, make you feel some angst and have you swooning – definitely pre-order Hook, Line, and Sinker!
The Roughest Draft by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Heat Level: 🔥
Release Date: January 25, 2022
Publisher: Berkley
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
They were cowriting literary darlings until they hit a plot hole that turned their lives upside down.
Three years ago, Katrina Freeling and Nathan Van Huysen were the brightest literary stars on the horizon, their cowritten books topping bestseller lists. But on the heels of their greatest success, they ended their partnership on bad terms, for reasons neither would divulge to the public. They haven’t spoken since, and never planned to, except they have one final book due on contract.
Facing crossroads in their personal and professional lives, they’re forced to reunite. The last thing they ever thought they’d do again is hole up in the tiny Florida town where they wrote their previous book, trying to finish a new manuscript quickly and painlessly. Working through the reasons they’ve hated each other for the past three years isn’t easy, especially not while writing a romantic novel.
While passion and prose push them closer together in the Florida heat, Katrina and Nathan will learn that relationships, like writing, sometimes take a few rough drafts before they get it right.
REVIEW
Katrina Freeling and Nathan Van Husyn were THE sensational writing duo. Their books made it big and these two co-authors had a knack for working together. Their work was always amazing and their books were best sellers. So then, what happened to Katrina and Nathan? Why did they “break-up” and never write another book again? And more importantly – why are they now coming back together to write one more book together?
This book…I finished it a few weeks ago and I honestly cannot stop thinking about it. This book was messy, angsty and filled with a lot of anger, hurt and tension. I really liked the flashbacks between how Nathan and Katrina were before and how they are currently. I was itching to find out what happened to make them dislike each other so much.
I will admit that I am not a fan of cheating or love triangles and this book had no black or white area where that was concerned. It was a very gray/murky area and I’m honestly not too sure how I feel about that. That being said, The Roughest Draft was a book that deeply touched me. It’s a book that was often hard to read at times, because it felt so real. I still find myself thinking about Nathan and Katrina.
Grab your copy of The Roughest Draft if you’re looking for a second chance, angsty romance that will leave you thinking about these characters long after you’ve read the book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
Ari Abrams has always been fascinated by the weather, and she loves almost everything about her job as a TV meteorologist. Her boss, legendary Seattle weatherwoman Torrance Hale, is too distracted by her tempestuous relationship with her ex-husband, the station’s news director, to give Ari the mentorship she wants. Ari, who runs on sunshine and optimism, is at her wits’ end. The only person who seems to understand how she feels is sweet but reserved sports reporter Russell Barringer.
In the aftermath of a disastrous holiday party, Ari and Russell decide to team up to solve their bosses’ relationship issues. Between secret gifts and double dates, they start nudging their bosses back together. But their well-meaning meddling backfires when the real chemistry builds between Ari and Russell.
Working closely with Russell means allowing him to get to know parts of herself that Ari keeps hidden from everyone. Will he be able to embrace her dark clouds as well as her clear skies?
A TV meteorologist and a sports reporter scheme to reunite their divorced bosses with unforecasted results in this charming romantic comedy from the author of The Ex Talk.
REVIEW
Ari Abrams loves the weather and her job as a meteorologist at a local TV channel. What Ari doesn’t love is how her boss and idol, Torrence is always at odds with the stations news director Seth. The two have been divorced for a few years, but both work at the same station and situations have a tendency to get tense.
Russell Barringer, a sports reporter at the same station comes up with a plan. What if Ari and him were to get Seth and Torrence into situations where they’d end up alone with one another. Would that rekindle their love for one another? Maybe that might make their jobs more enjoyable. Ari would maybe be able to get more mentoring from Torrence and Russell would be able to cover a larger variety of sports to report on. But the more scheming they get into, the more time they end up spending together and their attraction starts to grow. Will they end up not only succeeding in getting their bosses back together, but also finding a way to each other?
What I loved about Weather Girl, is the way each character was so well developed. Everyone from Ari to Russell’s daughter to Ari’s mom. These characters who we are so invested in each have their own story to tell and they are all important to the storyline.
Mental health is a vital part of the story in Weather Girl and I feel that Rachel Lynn Solomon did such a wonderful job of letting us into the vulnerabilities that Ari feels while dealing with her depression. Ari’s relationship with her mother impacted her in so many ways and while that was hard to read, I really enjoyed how she grew to accept her depression. Some of those moments with her mom were my favorite and I have so many of them highlighted.
I loved the sweet and slow burn between Ari and Russell. Both of them have so many vulnerabilities and I really liked that they took their relationship slow. While Ari is not sure how to share her depression with Russell, he isn’t sure how to talk about his daughter or his weight. You don’t see that often enough in romances – that a male character also struggles with their weight and how that feels for them. These sensitive topics were done so well in Weather Girl.
As with Rachel’s previous adult romance, The Ex Talk, I really liked the references to Judaism in Weather Girl. Both Ari and Russell are Jewish and I really enjoyed the way topics of Judaism were discussed for these characters – everything from not celebrating Christmas to Russell’s daughter’s bat mitzvah.
Overall, I really enjoyed Weather Girl, this book often felt like a warm hug and I feel like we could all use a little more of that!
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
He was the most beautiful man alive. And if I wasn’t careful, he was going to be my death.
*A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Psyche and Eros that’s as sinful as it is sweet.*
In the ultra-modern city of Olympus, there’s always a price to pay. Psyche knew she’d have to face Aphrodite’s ire eventually, but she never expected her literal heart to be at stake…or for Aphrodite’s gorgeous son to be the one ordered to strike the killing blow.
Eros has no problem shedding blood. But when it comes time to take out his latest target, he can’t do it. Confused by his reaction to Psyche, he does the only thing he can think of to keep her safe: he marries her. Psyche vows to make Eros’s life a living hell until they find a way out of this mess. But as lines blur and loyalties shift, she realizes he might take her heart after all…and she’s not sure she can survive the loss.
REVIEW
Psyche is used to playing a specific type of public persona. She has to be while living in Olympus otherwise the vultures will tear her apart. Not only for being a part of the thirteen, but also because she’s not what you would consider conventionally “beautiful.” Pysche is plus sized and not afraid to own it.
Eros has his own persona to uphold. He does his mothers bidding. When she has an obstacle in her way, she relies on Eros to eliminate that pesky little problem. Usually Eros doesn’t have any issue with doing as he’s told. Except this one time when it’s Pysche who his mother wants destroyed. Eros defies her and decides to keep Psyche safe any which way he can. Marriage seems to be the only course of action to protect themselves for the time being. Will they be able to pull of the ruse to a city that watches the thirteen like hawks on any given day?
I absolutely loved this modern take on Eros and Pysche. And while I am not familiar with the Greek tale of these two – I think that Katee Robert did a wonderful job sucking me into this world in Electric Idol. I fell hard for both Eros and Psyche. Their modern marriage of convenience + fake dating was so perfectly angsty.
The amount of vulnerability that these two display had my heart fluttering so many times. They were often stuck between a rock and a hard place and yet both of them only wanted what was best for the other. I feel like the vulnerability between these two also made the more intimate scenes in Electric Idol so so so hot.
I have so many scenes highlighted! I can’t wait to re-read this book again. The suspense, the drama, the romance (and steam) definitely put it up there as a book I highly recommend. I can’t wait to see which sister’s story will be next!
Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize the purchase.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher.
SYNOPSIS
Six summers to fall in love. One moment to fall apart. A weekend to get it right.
They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of glittering summers on the lakeshore of her childhood, she spends them in a stylish apartment in the city, going out with friends, and keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.
Until she receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry’s Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek—the man she never thought she’d have to live without.
For six summers, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm summer nights working in his family’s restaurant and curling up together with books—medical textbooks for him and work-in-progress horror short stories for her—Percy and Sam had been inseparable. Eventually that friendship turned into something breathtakingly more, before it fell spectacularly apart.
When Percy returns to the lake for Sam’s mother’s funeral, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until Percy can confront the decisions she made and the years she’s spent punishing herself for them, they’ll never know whether their love might be bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.
Told over the course of six years and one weekend, Every Summer After is a big, sweeping nostalgic look at love and the people and choices that mark us forever.
REVIEW
Percy meets Sam one summer when her family buys a cottage on the lake for a summer home. Percy and Sam immediately form a bond – both just starting their teen years. They form a sweet friendship and become inseparable by the end of that first summer and every summer after. Until one summer twelve years ago when Percy and Sam suddenly stop talking. What happened that summer and why haven’t they kept in touch? Percy is now headed back to Barry’s Bay for Sam’s mothers funeral. Will Sam and Percy move on from whatever tore them apart 12 years ago?
As soon as I started reading Every Summer After I immediately fell in love with both Sam and Percy. Their friendship was so sweet and pure when they first met. I loved watching them grow together through flashbacks as well as how rocky their relationship is in the present. What happened, why did they drift apart?? These are the questions I needed answers to even though I knew they’d break my heart.
Carley Fortune’s writing is so beautiful. I couldn’t stop reading and felt like I was right there with Percy and Sam every summer on the lake. I enjoyed every single secondary character in Every Summer After and each of them was essential to the story.
Every Summer After was heartbreakingly beautiful. This book was extremely hard to read at times and my heart broke on more than one occasion. Overall I would give Every Summer After 4.5 stars!
CW: cheating, death of a parent, bullying, panic attacks/anxiety.
Disclosure: Some of the links above are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize the purchase.
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