Romance Wrap-up 4/16/22 to 4/30/22

 Starry-Eyed Love - Helena Hunting

This is the second book in the Spark House series and follows middle sister London and Jackson.  After breaking up with her latest boyfriend, a tall, dark, and handsome stranger pays for her drinks at a bar and asks her out.  She declines, and he decides to leave it up to fate if they'll meet again.  London never expected to see him again, much less as the CEO of the media company looking to partner with Spark House - the B&B she runs with her two sisters.  Now the two are working together and managing, barely, to keep things professional.  But with a love like theirs, it won't be long before they're giving into their hearts and trying to find a way to make it all work. I really enjoyed this office romance and found London and Jackson to be just about perfect for each other.  Jackson is my favorite type of billionaire MMC where he certainly spoils the FMC, but not to impress her, just because what else is he going to do with all that money and spoiling her makes him happy.  The two connected on such a deep emotional level with the common losses as well as outlook on business/romance/life that they really do feel like they're meant to be together. We get a ton of the Spark sisters together - way more than the first book - so I enjoyed seeing that dynamic grow on page as well.  This was a bit of a slow burn since they don't cross the line until after their professional relationship is over but the tension build up was fantastic.  I also found the conflict to be very believable and I loved the conversation London and Jackson had afterward to really explain how they felt, what they recognized they could do better with, and what steps they're going to take in the future to avoid similar situations.  A+ communication!

TW/CW: death of a parent

Thanks NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC

Expected publication date is May 10, 2022

What We May Be - Layla Reyne

This MMF, second chance, romantic mystery follows Sean, Trevor, and Charlotte (Charlie).  The three were inseparable ten years prior until Sean walked out on their life together.  Now, he's back in town as an FBI agent, Charlie is the local police deputy, and Trevor is an English literature professor at the local college.  The strange murder case that brings them all back together in the same town may just be the time they need to work through their old grudges and move forward - hopefully together.  I'll be honest, I was a little skeptical at how good of a mystery this could be at only 290 pages.  I love a good romantic suspense, but I like a pretty well developed suspense plot.  This ended up being just about perfect!  It is a police procedural thriller mixed with a second chance romance and Reyne balances the two perfectly.  I loved the dynamic between our three leads and how each of the pairings had a different relationship.  The side characters were also fantastic and I'd love to see more of this little town.  The poly dynamic was not the main source of conflict - the opposite almost with everyone (eventually) glad to see the trio back together.  I think Reyne was also able to fit in some great examples of healthy communication in a poly-relationship. There was also some great casual other LGBTQ+ rep in the side characters that I loved. I can't wait to pick up more of Reyne's romantic suspense books in the future.  

 TW/CW: death of a parent, death of a sibling, 

Beard Science - Penny Reid

This is the third book in the Winston Brothers series and follows Green Valley's own scheming mastermind - Cletus Winston as he finds himself on the other side of a blackmail for once.  Jennifer Sylvester, the reigning Banana Cake Queen has lived for 22 years under the thumb of her parents.  They control everything about her life - from her clothing, her hair color, who she can talk to, and her career path.  But when Jennifer catches Cletus in a compromising situation, she convinces him to teach her how to get a husband.  The one thing they both didn't count on? Cletus would step up to the plate.  Much like the previous books in the series, I absolutely adored this.  The Winston clan are the perfect mix of sweet, loving family and small town shenanigans. I found Jennifer's journey to finally being her own person was handled really well.  At 424 pages, this is a chunky read, but the pay off is so worth it.  The romance is slow burn since neither have feelings for the other at first.  Then, once they get together, they need to navigate this new relationship and the stresses that Jennifer still has in her life.  I loved the communication between Jennifer and Cletus and how straightforward they both are.  There's no third act breakup in this, just a fight, a cooling off period of a day-ish, and then a level conversation. I'm so glad Reid decided to start a spin-off series following them and I can't wait to get started!  

Delilah Green Doesn't Care - Ashley Herring Blake

This is the first book in the Bright Falls series and follows Delilah and Claire. Delilah returns to the small down of Bright Falls to be the photographer for her sister's upcoming wedding.  Claire is one Delilah's sister's best friends and single mom struggling to adjust to having her ex back in town.  The two meet in a bar and Claire doesn't recognize Delilah at first.  The attraction is clear from both of them, and they eventually give in.  They agree to keep things casual as Delilah will be going back to her life in NYC after the wedding.  However, as they spend more time together, both of them begin to feel like this relationship would be worth fighting for.  This was only published a few months ago and I've been hearing so much about it that I just had to pick it up.  I'm so glad I did as I absolutely loved it!  Delilah and Claire were spectacular together and I loved their dynamic.  I think their backstory as kids was worked in wonderfully and it really affected their adult relationship in believable ways.  There's a great balance of friendship and relationship building throughout the story so even when they start sleeping together, they're still learning more about each other.  I thought Delilah is a wonderfully complex and flawed FMC who read very much like a hedgehog where she's all spiky on the outside to keep people away but she has a super soft middle.  The relationship between Delilah and her sister was also super engaging and really helped flesh out all the characters.  

 

TW/CW: death of a parent