Another good week of romance reads - a bit heavy on the Mafia romance, but the rom-coms balance them out.
Real Fake Love - Pippa Grant
This is the second book in the Copper Valley Fireballs series and follows baseball player Luca and romance author Henri. They meet for the first time at Henri's wedding at which her fiance leaves her at the alter (which isn't the first time for Henri). A while later, they find each other again when Henri and other romance authors are given a tour of the baseball field for their research. Henri and Luca strike up a deal where he will help her learn to not fall in love and she'll help keep his grandmother happy while the team finishes the season. However, as always, the two characters who have sworn off love as nothing more than trouble in their lives come together in ways neither expected. I really loved how both characters were shown as being 'broken' by society's standards but both are learning to be happy in their own way. Luca and Henri strike up a true friendship and are there for each other during their hardships in their other relationships and careers. I really loved the ending, which is a happily ever after of course, but it wasn't the traditional way most romance books end. It felt completely authentic to the characters even if it isn't what most people would consider the traditional conclusion to a romance book.
Accidental Rebel - Nicole Snow
This is the fifth book in the Marriage Mistake series and this one fell a bit flat for me, but I still enjoyed it. It follows Miller, single dad on the run, and Gwen, paralegal to a shady lawyer. The two are connected by Gwen's boss to get married so Miller can escape the people following him and get his two kids to safety. However, trouble finds Miller faster than he expected so the original plan gets thrown out the window. The plot was a bit crazy and over-dramatic but that is sort of the theme of these books and I love it. All the books in the series have that summer blockbuster feel where they are just fun action books and it is really easy for me to suspend my disbelief while reading. I wasn't completely sold on the chemistry between the two characters and that's where the book lost some points. There were parts where the chemistry was super well developed, but then other parts where the two characters almost felt indifferent towards each other while they were flirting. The chemistry wasn't consistent and it was giving me emotional whiplash. But overall, I did like the book just fine but would recommend other books in the series over this one.
Obsessed with His Bride - B.B. Hamel
I've got a soft spot for Mafia romances and the plot of this one felt right up my alley but it fell short at the finish line. It follows mafia boss Dante and Aida who is given to him by her father as payment for a mistake. Dante is your typical ruthless mafia boss and Aida is the typical strong-headed girl who gets wrapped up in all this mafia business by chance. The first 3/4 of the book, I was all in. I liked how well developed the mafia story line was with the growing threat of war between the Italians and the Russians. I liked how Dante and Aida's relationship was growing (despite some scenes with questionable consent). I liked how complex both characters were with each bringing out something in the other. And..... then the ending happened. There were two main issues I had with the ending and I'll try to explain with no spoilers. Firstly, Aida seemed to go through some sort of personality transplant at the 75% mark. She spent the first 3/4 of the book being one way and then it felt like she woke up one morning and was a completely different person. Looking back, I could pick out scenes where Hamel was obviously trying to put Aida in situations that would show her gradual character change, but I needed a whole lot more of those scenes or much more significance in those scenes before I could accept the change Aida went through. Secondly, the ending of the mafia plot was a let down, to put it mildly. Again, the first 3/4 of the book did a really fantastic job of ramping up the tension both between the rival families as well as internal strife. But then, again, it feels like a switch was flipped and all of a sudden the threats didn't feel real and any tension that was in the plot just fizzled out.
Off Limits - M.S. Parker
This is the first book in the Scottish Billionaire series and follows Scottish Billionaire Alec and new teacher Lumen. This is not a stand-alone and the story does continue into book 2 but I don't think I'll be continuing to read. The two meet after a miscommunication at a massage parlor and then keep running into each other despite what a large city Seattle is. This book was just super bland for me - the plot, the characters, the romance, just everything about this book was meh. There were also some plot points that I was pretty sure wouldn't happen and they happened frequently enough that I was getting annoyed. The one that happens right at the beginning is in the massage parlor where we learn Lumen is a certified massage therapist and she is doing this while finishing up her teaching degree. My issue is that it take so long to get certified (hundreds of hours of training over months or years) that it really doesn't seem like something someone would normally do as a side job. A receptionist at a massage parlor? Yes. An actual certified massage therapist? No. There were a handful of other incidents but they're all farther along in the plot and I don't want to spoil anything. I also had a hard time believing the chemistry between the two main characters. It got better toward the end of the book, but the first half I didn't understand what kept these two so obsessed with each other. I did really like Lumen's side story with the foster home volunteer work and I would have liked more to happen with that (I'm assuming more will happen in the 2nd book). Overall, this was a pretty below average read and I disliked enough about it that I don't feel like spending another afternoon reading the second book in the series to see where Alec and Lumen end up.
The Rancher's City Girl - Leslie North
This is the first book in the Wells Brothers series and follows single dad Cade and city girl Becca. Cade is looking to sell his ranch so he can move his 10 year old daughter to the city to give her the life she deserves. Becca visited a ranch down the street when she was younger and she's looking for a fresh start. Becca may have big dreams, but she's not an idiot and makes a deal with Cade for her to work on the ranch with him for a month to decide if she's cut out for the realities of ranching and then if all goes well, she'll buy the ranch at the end of the month. I did like the overall premise of the story, Cade's backstory was really interesting, and I thought there were a good number of cute scenes that got me smiling. However, this book was simply too short to develop the plot lines that it was looking to develop. My main issue with the pacing of the book was that there were so many times when something happened at the end of a chapter and then the beginning of the next chapter would be hours or days later. For example, a person who is significant to one of the main characters shows up to the ranch at the end of one chapter and I'm fully expecting the next chapter to be them hashing out their history or inserting some sort of conflict into the main plot. Nope. Next chapter starts as if the visitor never came, and I was honestly wondering if that was an editing mistake, but the visitor does show back up in the story later. This happened a number of times and I really think that had those scenes been included in the story, the characters would have been more fully developed and the overall story more engaging. I did think Cade and Becca had pretty good chemistry but I wanted more backstory from Becca. I didn't quite understand why the two characters got together so quickly and outside of the bedroom, I didn't have anything in the story to grab onto to show that they loved each other.
**ARC provided by NetGalley**
The Executive - Winter Renshaw
This is a stand alone romance that follows Reed and Joa. A year ago, they were office frienemies with benefits until Reed took a promotion that Joa wanted and she transferred to a different branch halfway across the country to get away from him. Now, Reed is the CFO of the company and coming to Joa's branch for an audit before Christmas and he requested that she be his helper for the few weeks he'll be in town. Reed has two missions for this trip - the audit, of course, and winning back Joa. Joa, however, is still angry at Reed's betrayal and tensions are high whenever the two are interacting. This book has extensive flashback chapters to when Reed and Joa were together and while I really liked those chapters, I was annoyed that the flashbacks weren't in chronological order. The reader gets the big reveal on what Reed's secret is pretty early in the book and then the rest of the book feels like waiting around for him to finally tell Joa but by the time that happens, the tension is lost because I've been waiting for 200 pages and I'm over it. I also think the chemistry between the characters would have been better developed if the flashbacks were in order because then we could see the relationship grow between them. I think a lot of the current day narrative relied on the past chemistry but if the reader doesn't see that past chemistry building then the current day plot falls pretty flat. I thought the flashback scenes were all great, I just want them in a different order. I did love Joa's family and the scenes where Reed is with them were heartmeltingly adorable. I also appreciated how mature both Joa and Reed were. They obviously had a messy break-up situation but both put that aside and worked to be professionals at work and polite outside of work. I was worried there'd be some sort of big blow out at the office or other workplace drama scene but there wasn't.
Marauder - Bella Di Corte
This is the second book in the Gangsters of New York series and follows up and coming mob boss Cash and bombshell archer Keely. Keely is the best friend of Mari, the heroine from the first book in the series, and the plot of Marauder follows the same general timeline as the first book, Machiavellian. You don't need to read the first book, but I would recommend it because it will give you some extra context and background to a few of the events in this book. I loved this book. Since it is a mafia romance, it is a little dark and gritty. The characters are all well developed, especially Cash. He's a troubled alpha hero who is working on reclaiming his father's territory in NYC and will stop at nothing to complete his goal. Cash and Keely only get together because Keely's boyfriend at the beginning of the book is Cash's enemy and he wants to steal everything he has. This set up allows the two characters to be completely honest with one another which is a big win for me. Cash and Keely have major chemistry and they love as hard as they fight. I loved how these two characters grow together and each seems to bring out the best in the other. Some of the mafia business scenes were a little hard to follow and I had to re-read some just because I can't keep the 18 million henchmen who are all talking straight but other than that, this was a really fun read. I highly recommend both books in this series so far and book 3 comes out later this year and I can't wait to pick it up too!
Liar Liar - Donna Alam
100% pure swoon! This book follows Rose and Remy. She's a waitress at a strip club and he's a billionaire in town visiting. They meet late one night when he shows up at her apartment after being in an accident. She goes with him to the hospital and lets the doctors assume she's his girlfriend. The doctors tells her he only speaks French and she is tasked with the girlfriendly duty of keeping him under observation for his head trauma. Back at her apartment, both are speaking freely because they think the other can't understand them - Rose in English and Remy in French. They spend one hot night together and he disappears in the morning before she wakes. Months later, Rose gets a job at a prestigious hotel in Monaco and the boss of the company - Remy. They pick up where they left off, but lies unearthed along the way threaten their relationship and their lives. I absolutely loved this book. Remy and Rose are perfect together and their personalities really complemented each other. I loved how Rose refused to be given handouts or special treatment from Remy. She is fiercely independent and proud of being able to take care of herself. Remy grew up in the world of the wealthy but also doesn't think that world is perfect. He isn't the typical rich hero who throws his money around, he knows what he values in life and when he finds something that is important to him - Rose - he'll do anything to keep her with him. Lies are the main conflict in the story and they were mostly lies of omission which I thought was an interesting choice. I appreciated how serious the conversations about lies and honesty were between Rose and Remy. This book is long (over 500 pages) but the only time I felt it drag was a few times when Rose and her friends were sitting around talking and just making idle chit chat for pages at a time. It only happened 2-3 times but other than those few scenes, I thought this book was wonderfully paced and engaging the whole way through.
Keenan - Jane Henry
This is the first book in the Dangerous Doms series and is a dark Irish mafia romance. The book follows Keenan - heir to his clan's throne - and Caitlin - a mysterious sheltered girl with ties to the mafia of her own. The plot is pretty standard - secrets, mafia, rivalry, contract hits, ect - but what else do you want from a mafia romance. The content in the book is on the dark side with Keenan punishing Caitlin for misbehaving or disobeying his orders but I felt like most of these scenes we got from Caitlin's point of view so the reader knows that while she doesn't exactly like being punished, she does get turned on by it. There are also kinky elements to the story, just as an FYI. I loved Keenan's character and his connection with Caitlin. I thought the whole clan family were interesting characters and I'm excited to read the rest of the series, with each main brother getting his own book. I liked Caitlin as a character and her discovering the 'real world' after being sheltered for so long was really interesting to see. I didn't love how Keenan almost fetishized Caitlin's innocence but his reactions varied from wanting to protect her from the evil in the world to wanting to show her everything she's been missing (like french fries) to wanting to show her what she's been missing in the bedroom (yes, she is a virgin).
No Perfect Hero - Nicole Snow
This is the first book in the Heroes of Heart's Edge series and follows Warren and Haley, both new arrivals to the town of Heart's Edge. Warren grew up in the town, but doesn't visit often. Haley is driving through with her niece after finding her fiance and best friend sleeping together but her car breaks down so they're forced to stay in town for now. Warren is the grumpiest hero I've ever read and he has good reason to be. Haley is strong willed and is on a mission for a better life after breaking off her engagement. The two end up being next door neighbors at the local inn and for better or worse, keep getting entangled in the other's business. Warren is on a mission and doesn't need Haley or her little niece getting him off track and Haley isn't interested in men right now, especially not the growling hunk of muscle next door but the two strike up an unusual relationship since both have expiration dates on their stays in Heart's Edge. I love me a good grumpy hero and Warren is maximum grump with maximum secrets. I really liked Haley as a character also, she's trying her best in a bad situation and is making sure her trip with her niece is still great despite being stranded in a little town in the middle of no where. I really liked how Haley and Warren's relationship grew and the little concessions they each make for the other person. One thing I think I've mentioned in every Nicole Snow book I've read so far is that the main conflict of the story is always outside the relationship. The main characters do have arguments and their own relationship conflicts, but it isn't ever the main conflict of the story. This allows the two characters to work to solve the conflict together in some way or at least be a united front against this outside force.
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