Romance Wrap-up January 2026

The Cuddle Clause - Roxie Ray 

This was such a cute and fun read. I absolutely loved our MCs and how they fit together. Ray does a great job of really capturing that awkward new roommate time where you are learning about each other's quirks and living pattern.  When it came to the wolf shifter stuff, this almost felt like book 2 in a series because it seemed like the reader should already be in the loop.  We did have our FMC to act as sort of a reader stand-in for things to be explained to, so that was nice. The miscommunication/no-communication trope got a little old for me by the end, but the way the ending wrapped everything up so nicely really helped bring everything together.

Tropes: Roommates, Paranormal (Wolf Shifter), Fake Dating

Standalone 

And Now, Back to You - B.K. Borison

B.K. Borison is an insta-read/insta-buy author for me and I was thrilled that this read stood up to my high expectations.  I loved both of our MCs and how their quirks worked together so well.  It was like I could feel the chemistry crackling off the page even when they were just lightly flirting.  I really enjoyed that we got to see them as coworkers and the snowed-in trope at the same time since they are weather reporters - it was such a fun element and one that I never thought about before. We also get a great supporting cast and I loved that both MCs had different family structures that were present on page and informed their decisions. It all felt very realistic and helped ground the story.

Tropes: Coworkers, Opposites Attract, Only One Bed, Snowed In Together

 

Series: Heartstrings #2

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Romance for the ARC.  Expected publication date is February 24, 2026.

Dom-Com - Adriana Anders

While I'm no stranger to kinky/BDSM romances I think Anders does a great job of introducing the topics/nuances to readers who might not be as versed in those topics.  In this case, our FMC is visiting a kink club for the first time so the reader gets to learn along side our FMC. I really loved how our MCs had that sort of instant connection and meshing of their likes/dislikes that really made their relationship feel inevitable. I loved the banter and flirting during the work day together and how that ignited the spark that both of them were trying to ignore. I did feel like our MMC was a little less developed than our FMC and that led to him feeling stiff and flat in a way that made the third act of this read a little choppy. I wanted more of a gradual realization of his feelings and instead it felt more like he just flipped a switch during the third act breakup but we didn't really get to see that growth. 

Tropes: BDSM, Co-Workers, 

Standalone 

 

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for the ARC.  Publication date was January 27, 2026 

Mountain Daddy - S.J. Tilly

I've said it before - age gap romances can be a bit of a hit or miss for me - but this one was a big hit. I think Tilly does a fantastic job of really showing us the connection between these characters and how they work together despite their age difference.  I really loved how we got to see our MCs interact before they realized who the other was.  This, again, helped lay the foundation for their relationship and got it out of the (for me) creepy zone of dad's friend lusting after his daughter. I know some readers love that sort of melodrama or angst but that's not my thing. I also really liked the sort of rom-com elements when they kept trying to find time to spend together and would end up running into someone or having their plans interrupted at the last minute. 

Tropes: Age Gap, Dad's Best Friend, One Night Stand, Small Town, Forbidden

Series: Mountain Men #2

Wish I May - Hannah Murray

This was a really fun read and I'm excited to read on in the series.  After reading this, I was surprised at how long it actually was (308 pages) because it read much more like a novella. We are sort of thrown into the story after our 3 MCs have already met and, we are told, have been interacting here and there before the big renovation project gets underway.  I wanted to see more of the build up and more of those first interactions instead of being basically told where we were starting off.  I think Murray does a great job of balancing the 3 POVs and I really enjoyed seeing how all of the different characters really felt about the flirting (and then more) that was going on. Once our three got together, it was a lot of fun as well and I think the discussions around the reality of being in a poly relationship were handled in a realistic way without taking me out of the book.

Tropes: MMF, polyamorous, small town

 

Series: Three Wishes #1

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  Publication date was January 20, 2026. 

Ranger - Onley James

Another great read in this series.  We got to see our MCs interact in the previous book a little, so we had some ground work already laid for the reader.  I really liked that James didn't take the more obvious plot route by having our MCs start engaging in a BDSM/sex only relationship and then develop feelings from there.  Instead, we see them develop their relationship from the ground up and work through their own personal hang-ups first. And as usual, we get to see some of the characters from the previous books/series and have a good ol' fashioned murder party by the end.

Tropes: MM, BDSM, Age Gap, Boss/Employee

 

Series: Jericho's Boys #4

 

 

 Vows We Never Made - Nicole Snow

 

 I was in the mood for a marriage of convenience book and this sounded exactly like what I wanted.  Unfortunately, it didn't quite work for me mostly due to how absolutely miserable I found our MMC to be.  I love a tortured, reformed, bad boy as much as the next reader but there was something about him that I just wanted our FMC to leave him so he could just be alone in his misery.  Even the adorable dog in the story couldn't redeem him (in a way, I found he was nicer to the dog than our FMC). I really liked the set up and the first half of the book but every time he started to show that he was changing, he would backslide so far that I really wanted him to not get any more second chances.  By the end, I was expecting a big grovel scene, but we don't really even get that.  I could see glimpses of redeemable qualities throughout the book, but they never felt like they were building up to anything substantial. I absolutely love Snow's romantic suspense books and I think she writes great over-protective, alphahole type characters but maybe her more contemporary works aren't for me.

Tropes: Marriage of Convenience, Enemies to Lovers, 

 

Series: The Blackthorn Inheritance #1

Latte Darling - S.J. Tilly

 

As mentioned above, I can be picky about my age gap romances, but Tilly really seems to write exactly what I like and this was no exception. We get to have the little bit of angst from our MMC being the dad of our FMC's date, but without the overly dramatic fallout of if it was an ex-boyfriend. Another aspect of Tilly's books that I often really love is the sort of instant acceptance that this is their person - not exactly in an insta-love sort of way, but in a quieter 'yep, he/she is the one for me' kind of way.  This was probably the most fun and fluffy age gap romance I've read in a while.  

Tropes: Age Gap, Grumpy/Sunshine

 Series: Darling #2