Romance Wrap-up May 2026

 Lights Out - Navessa Allen 

I'll fully admit, I wasn't going to read this until I saw someone describe it as an unexpectedly funny dark romance.  I was intrigued and I will say I was pleasantly surprised at the humor and almost rom-com elements in the beginning of the book.  However, that charm quickly wore off as I continued reading and ended up feeling more cringe and over done by the end. I enjoyed the set up and the stalker elements of the book - I found the tech aspects to be an interesting twist on the normal physical stalking.  However, this book really suffered from a pacing problem. The murder element got stretched out way longer than I was expecting and felt like it was tacked on at the end simply to introduce a whole other cast of characters so that this can become a series.  The book tried to keep the same light tone but also wanted to introduce a whole new level of danger and it didn't quite work for me. 

Tropes: Stalker, Dark Romance, Insta-Love, 

Series: Into Darkness #1 

 

Fall or Fly - Sophie Snow

This was an absolutely fantastic read and solidified Snow as an insta-read author for me. This was trope candy for me, but the characters were so fantastically fleshed out that I was immediately invested in both of them.  The balance between the tension and chemistry was perfect. The 'will we or won't we' was used for just long enough without feeling overly used. I also really liked that we get to see some characters from the earlier books in the series as well.  

Tropes: Age Gap, Best Friend's Daughter, Snowed In, 

Series: Wintermore #3

Cactus Heart - Clio Evans

This book was constantly showing up on my Kindle recommendations and I'm glad I finally picked it up. I loved that the tension between our three MCs comes out pretty much instantly and it was wonderful. Each of our MCs had their own character arcs and I enjoyed how they all came together in the end. There was a really good balance of character development and spice that kept me engaged through the read. I really liked how most of the characters were completely fine with the MMF relationship so that wasn't really the core conflict. I look forward to reading on in this series for sure. 

Tropes: MMF, Brother's Best Friend, Small Town, BDSM

Series: Whynot #1

Muse - Miranda Silver

This was a really fun and different twist on a BDSM romance. I think Silver does a really great job at creating complex and bruised characters that find each other at the right time. In this case, both our MCs are at a sort of crossroads in their lives.  The spark between them was immediate and once they actually got together, it burned so bright.  I really liked the way our MCs explored kink and BDSM topics through the photo shoots and how they crossed the line from being in a scene to being themselves.  

Tropes: Age Gap, Professor/Student, BDSM

Standalone

 

You Won't Forget Me - Mazey Eddings

This was a really great example of an emotional, angsty, and pining romance, but that isn't the type of romances I generally gravitate to.  Eddings does a fantastic job in all of her books of really developing the character's emotional states and having them work through those on the page. I love that the relationship is never the fix to whatever the characters are struggling with, but that the relationship is always supportive and this was no exception in this case.  This ended up just falling in the 'not quite for me' category. The chemistry between our MCs was amazing and I enjoyed the side characters immensely.  

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date was June 9, 2026.

Tropes: FF, Friends to Lovers, Rockstar

Standalone 

The Break-Up Retreat - Camilla Sten

"Welcome to Himlafall Clinic, where we use revolutionary therapy techniques to heal you from heartbreak. Whether you are going through a devastating breakup, or can’t seem to stop picking the wrong partners, we are here to help you change your life, once and for all…

Isobel Anderssen has heard rumors. Nestled deep in the Swedish woods, there is a clinic. Primarily aimed at helping women who have gone through devastating break-ups, the Himlafall Clinic is meant to heal your mind and help you move on.  Sometimes people are never heard from again.

Armed with a fake story and a contraband phone to record interviews, Isobel is ready to expose Himlafall’s founder and get closure for the families of missing loved ones. But when she gets there, nothing goes to plan. Her contact is missing. The founder, Dr. Martina Hastings, knows how to get under Isobel’s skin in ways she didn’t anticipate. And all the while, the ghosts of the missing haunt her at every turn. It is clear something is going wrong and Himlafall, and Isobel must uncover the truth, before she disappears once and for all."

What Worked for Me:

The premise was really interesting and worked as a great set up.  It doesn't take a lot of time for us to get to the actual retreat location and get right into the investigation.  There wasn't too much set up, even once MC gets to the retreat and meets all the other characters - we were able to get into the investigation more quickly than I was expecting. 

I enjoyed that we got more background information of the situation that lead MC to start her investigation sprinkled into the book as it went along.  These interjections are done via forum posts and letters which really helped them stand out from the main plot. There were some that weren't exactly clear how they immediately fit in, but by the end, everything was clear.  

The variety of characters was very well done and I enjoyed seeing the full spectrum of the type of people who may be attracted to this sort of retreat. They all had distinct personalities that were very clear so I didn't get them mixed up or get confused. 

What Didn't Work for Me:

Based on the build up of the premise, I was anticipating much more of a sinister vibe for the retreat.  Instead, it seemed like a very regular place and our main character was the weird one.  There are a few moments where things get a little tense, but nothing that I felt matched the vibes of the allegations that inspired our MC to investigate.  

There's a particular part of our MC's background that gets mentioned a number of times and I was expecting it to become a bigger plot point.  However, it didn't really feel like it was a big deal to anyone outside of our MC and didn't seem like it held her back in a significant way.  I think the idea was interesting, but I would forget about it between the different times the MC mentions it. 

Overall, this was a good read that really paid off on the premise.  I liked how we got right to the retreat without any delay and dove into the investigation.  I was expecting a more sinister vibe to the book that didn't really come until very late.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.  Expected publication date is June 9, 2026.

Romance Wrap-up April 2026

Under One Roof - Sophie Andrews

This read scratched a very particular itch I had to read something with a very competent MMC and I had a great time.  This has the same vibe as The Sound of Music - a singing nanny, grumpy father, kids who prank their nannies to try and scare them away.  And I think it really delivers on all those fronts.  I do personally wish the romance was a little more of a slow burn with more of the hidden glances and accidental hand touching.  But that's just a personal wish, I think the romance pacing was overall well executed and I'll most likely continue on in the series.

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  Publication date was May 1, 2025

Tropes: Single Dad/Nanny, Age Gap, Grumpy/Sunshine

Series: Stone Family #1

The Cupid Dilemma - April Asher

I don't read a ton of paranormal/supernatural romances, but April Asher is always a hit.  Her books always feel so grounded with the characters and setting with the little bit of magic sprinkled on top and this was no exception.  The premise of this one was so fun with the Anti-Aphrodite paired up with a rockstar in search of a muse. I loved our FMC and her complexity as the down-to-earth, no-nonsense business woman in a lovey-dovey industry that she still tries her best to give her clients what they want.  I did want more from our MMC in terms of depth.  We get little glimpses of his background and we're told about how he's feeling in regards to his rockstar status, but I felt like a lot of the internal churning and deliberation were being done off-page and then we just get to see the final results. I'm not a big reader of rockstar or fame romances so I did appreciate that his fame and the complications that came with that weren't really the focus of the story. I did love the world building and I'm hoping we get a second book following two particular characters next.  

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date is May 12, 2026

Tropes: Paranormal, Fake Dating, Rockstar MMC

Standalone 

 

Mistakes Were Made - Lucy Score 

I read somewhere (I could not find whatever little article or snippet I think I read) that this series is a "coming home", of sorts, for Score's most beloved tropes and I 100% agree.  We're in a quirky small town, following a set of brothers who will inevitably fall in love with chaotic women.  And I loved every minute of it.  Score does an incredible job building up our MCs differences at the same time as their attraction.  I loved the amount of communication in the book and that they were both on the same page as far as their undeniable chemistry but also wildly different life goals. I also always appreciate the lengths Score goes through to flesh out her setting and I enjoyed that the first book in the series and this one both have very strong subplots that have to do with the town and other people living there. I absolutely cannot wait for the final book in the series. 

Tropes: Opposites Attract, Friends With Benefits, Small Town, ADHD rep

Series: Story Lake #2

The Family Game - Catherine Steadman

 

"Harry is a novelist on the brink of stardom; Edward, her husband-to-be, is seemingly perfect. In love and freshly engaged, their bliss is interrupted by the reemergence of the Holbecks, Edward's eminent family and the embodiment of American old money. For years, they've dominated headlines and pulled society's strings, and Edward left them all behind to forge his own path. But there are eyes and ears everywhere. It was only a matter of time before they were pulled back in . . .

After all, even though he's long severed ties with his family, Edward is set to inherit it all. Harriet is drawn to the glamour and sophistication of the Holbecks, who seem to welcome her with open arms, but everything changes when she meets Robert, the inescapably magnetic head of the family. At their first meeting, Robert slips Harry a cassette tape, revealing a shocking confession which sets the inevitable game in motion.

What is it about Harry that made him give her that tape? A thing that has the power to destroy everything? As she ramps up her quest for the truth, she must endure the Holbecks' savage Christmas traditions all the while knowing that losing this game could be deadly."

What Worked For Me

 This is a great example of a premise pay off and I wish I would have picked this up sooner.  There is an alternate universe where this book could have been more of a quiet domestic drama but I'm so glad Steadman went full steam ahead into thriller territory. The story does start a bit on the quiet side and it takes a little while for the sinister undercurrents to start coming to the surface but once they do, it is a real fun ride.

The comparison to the movie Ready or Not is pretty obvious and I think matches the tone of the read well.  I loved the sort of fish out of water aspect of our main character and seeing the strange world that this rich family live in.  We even get a similar sort of game element where this family has been playing certain games for years and our outsider main character gets thrown into the mix without knowing the full extent of the stakes. 

 I loved our main character, Harry, and how competent she was without feeling like she was unrealistic.  She is a mystery/thriller writer so her brain is sort of naturally wired in a way to think through these sorts of puzzles.  She has some resources from her writing job that she can reach out to for help and it never felt like she had over the top investigation skills - just a regular person with enough time on her hands to do a bunch of research.  Her keen observations about the family and her investigation made her a really fun character to follow as she unraveled the mystery.

What Didn't Work For Me

 The mechanic of Harry listening to the tape in chunks instead of all at once irked me a bit.  I understand it happened that way in order to help the flow of the story so that she would investigate one thing at a time.  However, whenever we got a new chunk, it ended up taking me out of the story a little bit because I just didn't understand why she couldn't listen all at once.  At the end of the day, she still gets all the info off of it one way or the other, but I wish it could have been handled in a way that didn't feel quite so heavy-handed. Maybe multiple tapes are being mailed to her one by one or she has to collect them from different spots that are important to the mystery, something along those lines I think would have been a bit more immersive. 

 Overall, this was a really fun and fast paced read.  I loved the reveal of all the secrets as well as the game elements. 

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the ARC.  Publication date was September 29, 2022.  

We Call Them Witches - India-Rose Bower

"Most people have been devoured by the eldritch creatures, but Sara and her family have been fighting for survival, armed with their knowledge of folklore and pagan rituals - the only weapon that seems to work against these monsters. And then a young woman, Parsley, comes out of nowhere into Sara's life. Found in their garden, they have no idea where she is from. Sara and Parsley begin to fall in love, but disaster strikes when Sara’s brother Noah is taken by the creatures. They set out to find him, across a landscape of merciless terror, haunted by death. But can Parsley truly be trusted in a world where humanity is as scarse as humans themselves?"

 What Worked for Me

 I loved the folklore elements and how they were used on both sides of the story - with the monsters and the protection from monsters.  I love folk horror and this really hit the spot.  The theme of the old ways being the only way to protect yourself combined with the fact that not many people know this information any more was very compelling. I would have liked to see more trial and error or some examples of times where they learned new information or new tactics but it turned out to be completely not helpful. 

 The monster design was great and I actually liked that they were a little mysterious and vague as to where they come from or why they all look different.  There was a part where one of the characters calls this out a little where they mention that if this was a movie, there would have been announcements on the news about the breakout but they didn't get anything like that.  We do get a whole lot of different theories thrown out there - some more plausible than others - but we never get a sort of 'official explanation' and I liked that it is left up to the reader a bit. 

 

What Didn't Work for Me 

 My main struggle was with the character relationships and trying to find my footing in regards to how these characters interacted before the Witches came in comparison to now.  We get dropped into the story about 1 year after they came, but for the longest time the reader doesn't really get much information on how things were before. We do eventually get some flashbacks and some more explanation in the later parts of the book, but I wanted that information earlier.  As it currently reads, I feel like I couldn't really settle into these characters or understand some of the interpersonal tension going on. For the first half of the book - it felt like I was just watching these characters like on a TV show instead of really feeling immersed in the story.  Once we do get some flashbacks and more explanations, the characters felt much more grounded and realistic which made the events of the ending really hit home. 

Despite knowing the main plot points from the description, the first half of the book felt very stagnant and I didn't feel like it had a bunch of forward momentum.  I thought we were going to have much more tension with the Witches or with Parsley being an outsider to this family, but both of those points were handled quickly and without much friction. Our family comes across like a well oiled machine as far as setting up their protective barrier and falling into a routine that they obviously know well after doing it for so long.  It is realistic, but sort of sucked any real tension out of the story.  Once the main event happened and our characters had to leave their safety - I was much more invested and the tension really ramped up.  I did like that we got to see their relative safety so we could understand what they were leaving behind, but I wanted to get to that main plot point faster.  

 Overall, this was a good folk horror read, I loved the second half once our characters leave their safety net and we get more background on what life had turned into since the Witches came to be.

 Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC.  Publication date was April 7, 2026

Romance Wrap-up March 2026

 Catch Got Your Tongue - Kelly Reynolds

 

 I'm not a baseball person, but I absolutely adore this series.  We got to see a bit of the crush building between our two MCs earlier in the series and I was so excited to see how it played out on page.  Despite each of these being easy to read as standalones, I would recommend reading book 2 (Pitches Be Crazy) because we get to see a bit more of Bella's background and her relationship with her brother.  Based on the build-up from the previous books, I was expecting this to be a little more on the slow-burn side of things.  However, it felt like our MCs got together relatively quickly and now there was no looking back.  I did find myself missing some of that slow burn tension that felt like the first 25% of the book was working toward but didn't end up stretching out as long as I was expecting.  Our MCs worked really well together and felt like this was a sort of 'finding their missing puzzle piece' sort of romance - things just clicked into place and then stayed put. 

 Thanks to the Author for the ARC.  Expected publication date is April 14, 2026

Tropes: Sports (Baseball), Teammate's Sister, Virgin FMC, Neurodivergent rep

 Series: Rose City Roasters #4

 

Mountain Grump - S.J. Tilly

I loved this series and this final book was probably my most favorite of the bunch - it was trope catnip for me.  Our MCs are perfectly opposite in so many ways, but they just have an undeniable chemistry right at the start that absolutely sizzles off the page and the marriage of convenience just pushes them over the edge. Our MMC was the perfect grump and while he was less grumpy to our FMC, his grump towards her was always for caring reasons that I absolutely adored.  I did find the miscommunication/third act breakup part a little overly dramatic but I think Tilly did a good job of showing us that the particular circumstances was still a tender spot for our FMC so it made more sense. I'm bummed that this series is over (I believe) but can't wait to read more from Tilly in the future.

Tropes: Grumpy/Sunshine, Marriage of Convenience, Small Town, Hurt/Comfort

Series:  Mountain Men #3

 

Pay-Per-Heart - Grace McGinty

 This book had a lot of things going for it - but I think it ended up being more of a 'not for me' type of read.  I had a lot of fun and I loved the premise, but wanted more from the execution (about 100 more pages with some character/relationship development).  As a lover of the why-choose/poly tropes, I thought this would be right up my alley.  However, I've come to discover that 5 MCs is maybe too many for me since I'm more of a character-focused reader.  I loved the initial character development and tension when our FMC gets hired by three of our MMCs and they all sort of have crushes on each other that come out in different ways and we get a lot of tension building.  But the last 1/4 of the book felt really rushed and like the characters agreed to try this sort of poly dynamic without much discussion and then they all magically loved it without much issue or conflict and then the book ended with everyone living happy ever after.  Which is all great, but I wanted to see more character development with this new arrangement.  Especially because one character had drawn a hard boundary earlier on in the book that he was not interested in non-monogamy even during the initial dating phase but then suddenly he changed his mind.  This was a low angst read, which I enjoyed, but I just wanted some more quiet, introspective moments with these characters where they really chew over this new poly life and how it is working for them. 

Tropes: MMFMM, Sex Worker MMCs, Boss/Employee 

 Standalone

 

While You Were Seething - Charlotte Stein

 Charlotte Stein has solidified herself as an insta-read author for me.  An incredible feat, considering her contemporary romances have all been single POV - which is not my preference.  Despite this, all of them have been five-star reads, because her character development and build up of emotional tension (and then release) is absolutely phenomenal and this book was no exception.  Our MCs know each other from their college days where they were rivals in creative writing classes - she was a lover of romance stories and he was a cynical lit-fic type bro.  We get a good number of flashbacks to those days which I think really helped show not only their relationship development, but individual character development as well.  I love a good forced proximity and having the sort of 'if we're going to work together, we have to at least be able to stand each other' dynamic.  Throw a little fake dating into the mix and I'm in love. As with the other single POV romances from Stein, we get to see so much emotion from our MMC that it is almost like getting his POV on page.  The pining, the self-torture, the obvious obsession with our FMC - it is all *chef's kiss* perfection. 

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC. Expected publication date is April 14, 2026 

Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Road Trip, Forced Proximity, Fake Dating

Standalone (but interconnected with When Grumpy Met Sunshine and My Big Fat Fake Marriage) 

Everyone in This Bank is a Thief - Benjamin Stevenson

 "I’ve spent the last few years solving murders. But a bank heist is a new one, even for me. I’ve never been a hostage before. The doors are chained shut. No one in or out. Which means that when someone in the bank is murdered, everyone is a suspect. 

The Bank Robber. The Manager. The Security Guard. The Kid. The Film Producer. The Priest. The Receptionist. The Patient. The Caregiver. Me. 

Turns out, more than one person planned to rob the bank today. You can steal more from a bank than just money."

 What Worked For Me:

This is the fourth installment in the Ernest Cunningham series and it was a great entry.  If you liked any of the previous books in this series and Stevenson's style of storytelling where Ernest speaks directly to the reader, then you'll like this one too.  I had a brief thought, before starting this read, that maybe the 'gimmick' of Ernest would start to get old going on 4 books.  However, Stevenson did a really great job of using the heist setting to give a twist on the standard mystery format we've grown to love watching Ernest follow.  It really walked that fine line of being familiar and hit every part of what I've come to expect from an Ernest Cunningham mystery but also new enough to not feel stale or overly formulaic. 

The cast of characters in this are absolutely fantastic and I think we get a really good feel for everyone since they are trapped in such close quarters.  Similar to the 2nd book in the series where they were all stuck on a train together, the tight location helps amplify interpersonal tensions and really adds another level of intrigue.  The variety of characters also helped the mystery investigation because they all came from such different backgrounds and just happened to be in the bank at the right (or wrong) time. 

 The mystery investigation, as usual with these Cunningham mysteries, was great.  I never actually sit down with pen and paper and try to solve the mystery first, but I did try to pay more attention and pause every so often to try and remember some of the different clues or conversations.  There was one reveal where I immediately had the though of "oh, that must mean XYZ" and in the next sentence Ernest calls out that theory and immediately dismisses it which I chuckled at.  I loved the actual reveal and how, once again, more things were connected than I was expecting which is always great in these mysteries.

What Didn't Work for Me: 

 There's one specific plot point of the book that I didn't quite buy, even though we get some on-page explanation of why that character made the choice they did.  But it just felt a little too 'out-there' of a choice to make.  I had a hard time suspending my disbelief for a moment but ended up just shrugging and continuing reading.  It sort of felt like Stevenson wrote himself into a bit of a corner and this was the least-worst option of how to fix it.  It didn't bother me enough to stop reading and I think the downstream impact of the decision was handled well but it still took me out of the book for a bit.

 Overall, this was another great entry in the series and I'll continue to read as many of these as Stevenson would like to write. 

Thanks to NetGalley and Mariner Books for the ARC.  Publication date was March 17, 2026