I’ve read and/or listened to several books in recent weeks and thought a quick round up would be perfect. Two of these are WAY hyped and absolutely delivered for me. Two are sports romances that I adored, and one is an unfortunate DNF. Here we go… Hyped and Loved A Court of Silver Flames by Sarah J. Maas was a super A+ awesome read. This entire series is all over TikTok and I feel like I’ve found my tribe. The ACOTAR books started as fun, adventurous YA reads with romance, but now have Continue Reading
Melinda’s Minis: All the Missing Pieces by Julianna Keyes and To Be With You by Jodie Slaughter
All the Missing Pieces by Julianna KeyesRomantic Suspense/Mystery ThrillerSeptember 21, 2020 Review by Melinda I've read this author before in more of a straight up contemporary romance genre so I was really interested in reading this but throughout the whole book I was unsure if this was romance or suspense so I kept thinking HEA or NO!?! Let me put your mind at ease that there *is* an HEA! Reese was a spoiled rich girl whose life got turned upside down when her father was sent to prison Continue Reading
Review: When Tara Met Farah by Tara Pammi
When Tara Met Farah by Tara PammiBollywood Dance & Drama Society Book 1Contemporary RomanceJanuary 26, 2021 Review by Melanie A little bit about me before I delve into this review. I don’t DNF books lightly. In fact, I do everything in my power to resist DNF’ing a book. Ironically, I advise people to DNF on the regular because life is too short to force yourself to read a book that isn’t working for you. But rarely do I ever take that advice for myself. Having said all that, I almost Continue Reading
Review: Yes And I Love You by Roni Loren
Yes And I Love You by Roni LorenContemporary March 2, 2021, by Sourcebooks Casablanca Review by Melinda Roni Loren's writing in the past has been extremely emotional and well done but her subject matter was dealing with the past trauma of school shooting so I only read one and couldn't read the rest. The Say Anything series has just as much emotional depth but in a completely different way. First of all, I almost completely passed this by as the cover implied that it was maybe a general Continue Reading
Review: Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron
Accidentally Engaged by Farah HeronContemporary RomanceMarch 2, 2021Forever Reviewed by Melanie A couple of chapters into this book, I quickly realized that it was maybe not a great idea to read this book on an empty stomach. So if you’re reading this review and contemplating reading this book (which you absolutely should read, btw), then consider this your first and only warning. Of the 38 chapters in this book, 30 of them mention food in some context, either just in passing or because Continue Reading
Jen’s Mini-Reviews: Reviews for Books by Rina Kent, Paullina Simons and Vi Keeland
I have a mixed bag of reviews this time. All were good reads, just so VERY different! From mafia and historical fiction to contemporary rom com-ish. First, I discovered Rina Kent last year and devoured her Royal Elite series. All were “A” books for me. When I saw that her newest duet was a mafia theme, I was all in. Throne of Power and Throne of Vengeance feature Rai, who is the twin sister of Reina from Kent’s Lies & Truths duet. You don’t need to read those books ahead of Continue Reading
Joint Review: Love at First by Kate Clayborn
Love at First by Kate ClaybornContemporary Romance02/23/2021 by Kensington Joint review by Melinda and Melanie Melinda: Kate Clayborn has become one of the top contemporary authors for me that I look to for emotion and character development. I’ve come to appreciate the love and care that comes through with her writing so much. However, Love at First strikes an uneven tone for me and had flashes of that brilliance that I expect from her, but it didn’t feel like it was carried all Continue Reading
Melinda’s Minis: Just Like This by Cole McCade & The Beautiful Things Shoppe by Philip William Stover
Just Like This by Cole McCadeAlbin Academy #2LGBT Contemporary RomanceNovember 24, 2020 by Carina Adores The follow-up to Just Like That takes place at the same academy for young boys as the previous one. What I love about McCade’s writing is the emotional development between the characters. Rian and Damon are extremely different teachers with different backgrounds coming together to try to help a student in trouble. Their relationship is both steamy and a bit of slow-burn simmering Continue Reading
Review: First Comes Like (Modern Love #3) by Alisha Rai
First Comes Like by Alisha RaiContemporary RomanceFebruary 16, 2021, by Avon Review by Melinda I'm a big fan of Alisha Rai's Forbidden Hearts series but was so torn on First Comes Like. What I loved was having a Muslim hijabi protagonist who was not having sex for religious reasons. Jia Ahmed has a story I'd been waiting to hear as she was a beauty influencer, which isn't something I'm exactly interested in IRL, but I wanted to see how she dealt with her Muslim family's expectations. And Continue Reading
Melinda’s Minis: Learned Behaviors by Jayce Ellis & We Could be Heroes by Mike Chen
Learned Behaviors by Jayce EllisHigher Education #1LBGT Contemporary RomanceNovember 9, 2020 by Carina Press I’m generally not a reader who gravitates to single father stories but this cover drew me in because it’s gorgeous. This story has so much going on, but all of it works together. Two single men, with families, both with heavy work loads, working together and fighting their growing attraction. I really enjoyed the subplot there is with their two daughters also being in love Continue Reading