How Sweet It Is by Dylan NewtonContemporary Romance/Romantic ComedyJuly 13, 2021, by ForeverARCReview by Angela My luck with cutesy covers and blurbs that have the words "romantic comedy" in them hasn't been the best lately. So I was keeping my fingers crossed that this book would be the one that held true to its claims. AND IT DID. This is an opposites-attract romance, pairing a successful event planner who is known for her big happily-ever-after send-offs at weddings and the Knight of Continue Reading
Review: Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep
Capture the Crown by Jennifer EstepGargoyle Queen #1FantasyJuly 6, 2021, by Harper VoyagerReview by Angela Capture the Crown is the first book in the Crown of Shards spin-off series featuring two well-known characters. The Gargoyle Queen series will follow Gemma Ripley as she first acts as a spy for the kingdom of Andvari, uncovers sinister plots, and teams up (and maybe falls in love?) with an enemy to prevent a war. Readers first met Gemma in Kill the Queen, when she was a young girl Continue Reading
Audible Original Review: What the Hex by Alexis Daria
What the Hex by Alexis DariaContemporary PNRJuly 1, 2021, by AudibleAudio ARC Review by Melinda Another well-done Audible Original with a fantastic narrator, Jacqueline Grace Lopez. Basically audiobooks can live or die entirely on who narrates them, and Jacqueline added so much to this experience. It’s even more impressive that when I looked her up to see what else I could find that she narrated this was her debut! Her Spanish added a lot to the context of the book. This is a Continue Reading
Review: Freed by E L James
Freed by E.L. James50 Shades as Told by Christian #3Contemporary June 1, 2021, by Bloom BooksReview by Jen Freed by E L James is the third book in the 50 Shades series told from the voice of Christian Grey. Let me set the stage, 50 Shades came out in 2011 and I read the series three times. I read it the first time because I was seeing it quietly posted about in some forums and blogs. I could tell it was going to be a big thing. Women were gushing about it, but a bit embarrassed that they Continue Reading
Review: The Devil and the Heiress by Harper St. George
The Devil and the Heiress by Harper St. GeorgeThe Gilded Age Heiresses #2Historical RomanceJune 29, 2021, by BerkleyARCReview by Angela I simply adored the first book in this series, The Heiress Gets a Duke, and couldn't wait to get my hands on a copy of the follow-up, which features the younger Crenshaw sister Violet, and Lord Leigh. An aspiring author heroine fleeing her parent's marriage trap and a disreputable rouge out to win her heart? Yes, please. Violet Crenshaw isn't as invested Continue Reading
Angela’s Minis- Love Scenes by Bridget Morrissey and Subtle Blood by KJ Charles
Love Scenes by Bridget MorrisseyContemporary RomanceJune 22, 2021, by BerkleyARC I kind of expected a soft, funny book with lots of shenanigans and on-set hi-jinks, but Love Scenes by Bridget Morrissey turned out to be a whole lot more. This an emotional read, featuring an actress heroine from a big, diverse, creative extended family who are all in the Hollywood business. They write, they direct, they do movie scores... this is a bright and fun group who has issues but love each other. Continue Reading
Kate’s Minis: Very Sincerely Yours by Kerry Winfrey and A Lowcountry Bride by Preslaysa Williams
Very Sincerely Yours by Kerry Winfrey June 15, 2021 by Berkley Contemporary Romance Very Sincerely Yours is an adorable book. Unfortunately, I don't have that much more to say about it. It follows romance novel conventions, including the third act break-up, has one of my favorite tropes (hidden identity), and is very sweet. This is obviously not a negative - sometimes this is what you're looking for in a book! But not a ton happens in Very Sincerely Yours, and despite the aforementioned Continue Reading
Review: The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid
The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava ReidFantasyJune 8, 2021, by Del ReyARC The Wolf and the Woodsman is a fabulous debut fantasy. Full of everything I love when I'm seeking out a new epic adventure. There is such depth to this world-building and the plot arc is complex- full of sacrifice, past abuse, talk of cultural identity, and scenes of persecution and oppression. I don't know if I'll do a good job of it, but I'll try to hammer out some words in a workable review. Evike is the only Continue Reading
Angela’s Minis- Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia and Tempting Fate by Kerrigan Byrne
Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa AfiaHarlem Renaissance Mystery #1Historical Mystery06/01/2021 by BerkleyARC I've been on a historical mystery binge for the last year or so and have devoured one series after another. I saw the cover reveal for Dead Dead Girls on Twitter, read the blurb, and then immediately put it on my TBR wishlist. I mean who can resist gorgeous women drinking illegal booze in speakeasies and dancing with each other all night long while a killer is on the loose in Harlem? Continue Reading
Review: Serving Sin by Angelina M. Lopez
Serving Sin by Angelina M. LopezFilthy Rich #3Contemporary RomanceMay 25, 2021, by Carina Press Review by Melanie Angelina M. Lopez, who burst onto the romantic fiction landscape in 2019 with her debut novel, the delightfully subversive Lush Money, returns to wrap up her Filthy Rich series with the final book in the trilogy, Serving Sin. Set in the fictional Monte del Vino Real, a tiny Spanish principality, the first book focused on Mateo, the future king of the principality and the Continue Reading