Mini-reviews of Best Laid Plaids, Lovewrecked, The Switch, Charming as a Verb and Kiss My Cupcake. That's an m/m historical, a contemporary (women's?) novel, two f/m contemporaries and an f/m contemporary YA.
What happens when you combine a no-nonsense woman who knows what she wants, the man she’s been pining after for years, a meddling little sister, a birthday celebration,and a surprise cameo by Carole Baskin?
One of the things you have to know about me to understand my adoration for this novel is that I LOVE “trash” reality shows: The Chasing series, The Housewives Franchise, OG Real World and the messiest of all: MTV’s Catfish. So a book based off two people falling for one another while catching a catfish? Right up my alley.
Mini-reviews of More Than Maybe, Hairpin Curves, I Think I Might Love You and The Fell of Dark. That's an f/m contemporary YA, an f/f contemporary, an f/m contemporary and an m/m YA contemporary fantasy.
Kate Stayman-London's debut novel One to Watch falls neatly within the bounds of "women's fiction," focusing on Bea's character arc as she's propelled from her popular plus-size fashion blog to the role of first-ever plus-size star on a Bachelorette-esque dating show.
Tools of Engagement is the third and (as far as I know) final book in Tessa Bailey's Hot & Hammered series, following Fix Her Up and Love Her or Lose Her. I enjoyed Fix Her Up but skipped the second because I don't think Bailey has the tools to write outside her lane with two POC protagonists.
Female friendships were central to Kit Rocha’s Beyond books, with their leather-clad sisterhood ready to fight for their chosen family. In Deal with the Devil, Dani, Maya and Nina are a misfit trio of former bodyguards, information couriers, and genetically modified soldiers, serving and protecting a small community in the ruins of Atlanta, trading in information and creating community through a post-apocalyptic library. Scarred by losses they fiercely protect each other and are deeply suspicious of the band of renegade super-soldiers who show up on their doorstep with a tempting offer, the location of one of the Rogue Library of Congress cache’s.
It's been a while since I shared any of these, so here are a few of the romance reviews I've written for Shelf Awareness!
Intense action, illusion/deception, trust and loyalty are at the heart of each Hidden Legacy novel. Can the Baylors hold together as family against all-comers, can they stay true to who they are when things are at their worst? Just how much sacrifice and punishment can one family take?
Better Than People is the charming, cozy, low-angst comfort read I didn't know I needed. The anxiety rep is startlingly accurate, and Jack's once-scorned-now-grumpy mood is relatable as heck. It's kind of a hurt-comfort bring-the-life-back-into-me book for both characters. Simon discovers that, despite what he's felt, been told, and experienced in his life thus far, he can be loved and fall in love and enjoy a wonderful relationship that becomes his life alongside the anxiety.
