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 

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

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) 

Romance Wrap-up February 2026

 Maybe This Once - Sophie Sullivan

I really enjoyed this read and I loved being back with these characters.  I was a little hesitant going into this read because I really don't enjoy romances that focus around a fame element or famous people and our FMC is wrapped up in that world (although she doesn't particularly want to be). I found that the fame aspect is sort of on the edge of the story enough that it didn't really bother me.  And big points to Sullivan for not taking the 'easy' route when it came to the conflict in the relationship.  I thought for sure when a certain plot point came up that it would be the central conflict but we ended up going in a different direction.  I did find the sort of push/pull dynamic between our MCs a little tiring after a while but I did think it was believable for their characters since they had both been hurt in past relationships so they would be a little extra cautious this time around.  The chemistry between our two MCs was very well developed and you could really feel the tension when they were still fighting their feelings. I loved that we got to see the conclusion of some plot points with our side characters as well as the main couples from the previous 2 books in the series. 

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date was February 10, 2026. 

Tropes: Small Town, Cost of Fame, Love after Divorce, Complicated Family

Series: Rock Bottom Love #3

 

Most Likely to Doubt Love - Mary Waterford

 

 I absolutely adored this book and wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did.  This book had the perfect balance between cute contemporary romance while also handling some quite serious topics with care. Our FMC has quite a lot of childhood trauma which led to self harm and while I have not, personally, dealt with that, it felt like there was a lot of space in the book for our FMC to navigate and be supported by friends and our MMC. The kids in the book were adorable and I liked that they had their own mini-plot line going on that was resolved by the end of the read instead of just being used as plot pawns for our main couple. I really enjoyed the slow-ish burn between our MCs where there was a little bit of insecurity on both of their parts but once they finally went all in, they were in it together for the long haul. 

Tropes: Single Dad, Neighbors, Grumpy/Sunshine, Trauma Healing

Series: The Yearbook #3

 

Feast - Hannah Murray

 Murray has done it again - this was a super fun and a little unhinged of a read and I loved it.  Our MCs do not know who the other one is until the day their parents are getting married and by then they have had one heck of a one night (and next day) stand with no names. Once they are back from the wedding trip, they choose to keep going as a sort of friends with benefits situation.  I really liked the bit of character development we got with our MMC because in previous books, he comes off a bit emotionally closed off.  Our FMC was super fun, confident, and met MMC's energy and vibe every step of the way.  I do wish the timeline wasn't quite so short between them getting together and their family finding out.  I really wanted more emotional development from both characters as maybe they moved from FwB to actual dating first and then telling the family.  

Tropes: ONS to Lovers, Step Siblings, Kinky

Series: FILTH #3

Kissed and Missed - Cleo White

 Similar to the first book in the series, we jump into this read when the MCs already have feelings for each other but aren't acting on it.  I did like the amount of flashbacks we got to see the build up of the relationship given the age gap and situation with the ex-girlfriend. I did find our MMC to be a bit unhinged in the way he 100% went all in on the relationship, despite his best efforts to try and be reasonable and not overwhelm our FMC. I did find our MMC to be surprisingly romantic for a business man and I really loved seeing that softer side to his character. Despite the flashbacks, I do wish we got a little more on-page time to see our MCs interacting and seeing those feelings blossom because as much as I enjoy an age gap romance, I do find ones where the age gap is this significant a bit of a hard sell. This is a novella length read at 160 pages, so I knew I was probably not going to get the amount of character development I usually like and I was ok with it. I loved getting to see the couple from the first book as well as some beginnings of the couple of the third book.  

Tropes: Age Gap, Ex GF's Dad, Billionaire

Series: Daddy Issues #2

Swipe Right on Fate - Roxie Ray

 Roxie Ray is quickly becoming my go-to for softer, cute, but still hot paranormal romances because the books seem to hit that sweet spot for me.  I absolutely adored this book where our two paranormal outcasts accidentally find each other on a human dating site. Our MCs were instantly kindred spirits and I loved their dynamic together.  I enjoyed the amount of character development we get as well as their growth in regards to finding a way to help other outcasts find friends and other connections. Ray gives us enough background on the paranormal world and societies in this book that I never had a question and any time I did have a question start bubbling up, it would get addressed on page. 

Tropes: Paranormal, Wolf Shifter x Vampire, Found Family

Standalone

 A Reckless Indulgence - Aveda Vice

I didn't know going into this read that I wanted a queer, dragon pirate vs siren, enemies to lovers romance but I loved it.  We get dual timelines alternating throughout the book where we see our MCs in current time as well as the first time they met. I loved the world that Vice built and I found the world building to be incredibly thoughtful.  These two have absolute combustible chemistry and I loved watching them heat up until they boiled over.  I was expecting more exhibitionism and performances out of them given the plot mechanic that got our MCs together on the boat, but I loved that the scenes we got with them were more emotional instead of performative.  Great character development and exploration. I was absolutely cheering from the sidelines for every step forward they took in their relationship.  

Thanks to the author for the ARC.  Publication date was January 9, 2026. 

Tropes: Fantasy, Queer, Enemies to Lovers, Sex Worker MC

Series: Tides of Pleasure #1

 

 

Silver Secrets - Tilly H Colson 

 This book is going squarely in the 'it was fine, but not what I wanted' category.  I was in the mood to read some romantic suspense starring a big, competent, alpha dude (I was in the middle of a Reacher re-watch and wanted something with that vibe).  The same time, I saw a video with a snippet of one of the scenes and it sounded exactly what I was looking for.  Unfortunately, this read was a lot more emotional and heartfelt than I was expecting or looking for. I really enjoyed the set up and first part of the book until our MCs got together and started sharing their histories and trauma.  And I know that sounds awful of me to say, but I just wasn't looking for a book with that sort of emotional depth.  I think it was well done and I'm sure if I was in a different mood for that type of book, I would have really enjoyed it. However, it did overall kill the vibe I was looking for and I ended up finishing the book to figure out the answer to the mystery instead of watching our MCs get together. 

Tropes: Romantic Suspense, Serial Killer, Love After Loss

Series: Silver Springs #2

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

Romance Wrap-Up December 2025

 He Sees You When You're Sleeping - Alta Hensley

I'm pretty sure anyone remotely looking for holiday romances this year has seen a video/TikTok/Reel/etc about this book.  I love me a good unhinged romance every now and again and this read did not disappoint in that area.  We get sort of thrown into the plot without much backstory about our two characters and why the MMC is stalking our FMC.  We do find out later and I wasn't a big fan of this reveal or how some side characters treated this information - it was sort of like the reason given was made to soften our MMC and make him not seem like such a big red flag but it didn't really work for me. I do think Hensley did a great job of building these characters up so they could have a sort of 'your crazy matches my crazy' romance and I think it was really fun in that regard.  I do love the little bit of suspense we got as well in regards to these secret lives being revealed.  I'll probably pick up the next book in the series during the next holiday season.

Tropes: Dark Romance, Stalker, Kinky, Firefighter MMC

Series: Naughty or Nice #1

 

Chilled and Thrilled - Cleo White

As many age gap romances as I read, I do have some pretty specific guidelines I like to stick to.  I generally don't like age gap romances where the characters have known each other since the younger one was under-aged, only to 'suddenly realize' they were perfect once they're barely 18.  Even more so when a daughter/son is involved.  In this case, I really enjoyed that our MCs don't meet until the youngest is in college and it sounds like they didn't have a ton of interaction until our FMC came to work at MMC's company.  I think this read more like a boss/employee romance first with the daughter's best friend angle not really pushed until later.  I think these touchy tropes were handled well and I didn't really find myself icked out at any point.  White did an excellent job of really showing the reader how much both MCs liked the other as a person which helped keep the creep factor low.

Tropes: Boss/Employee, Age Gap, Best Friend's Dad

Series: Daddy Issues #1

You Make it Feel Like Christmas - Sophie Sullivan 

Sophie Sullivan books are always solid comfort reads for me.  I really enjoy her style of character development and the couples in the books always give off the feeling that they were inevitable which gives me the warm and fuzzies.  I think the fun and games element was handled well with just enough family games/competitions to see different personalities and dynamics, but it didn't feel overly-chaotic or overblown. I do wish we could have seen the one night stand or maybe the morning after first hand because I did have a bit of an odd time trying to pin down the characters and their feelings about those events.  We do, eventually, get details but I think it would have been more impactful for me if we saw that up front.  I loved that there was no real third act breakup - but instead was some realistic challenges that they had to work through.

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date was September 23, 2025

Tropes: Small Town, Second Chance, One Night Stand, Sports (Hockey)

Standalone

 

A Heart for Christmas - Sophie Jomain

This was an early Christmas gift from my sister - which is 100% the only reason I picked it up and finished it.  I haven't read YA romance since I was in college and while I'm not opposed, it just isn't something I'm reading for any more.  That being said, when I saw this was a YA romance, I was still excited to read it given the 24 chapters/Advent read layout.  The plot seemed pretty straightforward based on the synopsis on the book - best friend's brother, small ski town, our FMC finding herself after a health scare - all perfectly fine in theory.  However, this was probably the worst written book I've read in a long time - plot, characters, and actual writing were all super low quality.  It honestly had me wondering, at times, if an editor had looked at this at all.  It was published by a big publisher, so it must have, but goodness it was rough. From a little looking around on Goodreads, it seems Jomain writes primarily in French but this was an English book with no notes of a translator so I assume she's bilingual but I don't think that excuses the amount of poor writing (and goodness, the amount of exclamation points was absolutely unhinged!).  I think a lot of the plot issues I had were to do with the very short amount of pages we actually had to get through the story so that I blame more on the publisher than the author.  I did finish the read as it was a pretty fun gimmick to 'unseal' and read a chapter a night before bed, but I absolutely do not recommend this book. 

Tropes: YA, Best Friend's Brother, Small Town

Standalone

 

Good Spirits - B.K. Borison

This is, for me, the absolute perfect Christmas romance.  I loved everything about this from start to finish and the amount of Christmas magic was spot on.  There are romances that take place during Christmas, but this one went a step above and truly captured that special, sparkly, holiday feelings.  Our MCs are well rounded and their slow burn coming to terms with their feelings was delectable. I'm excited that this is the start of a new series because the supernatural world Borison introduced us to deserves a whole pile of books exploring the different entities. 

Tropes: Paranormal, Fated Mates, Grumpy/Sunshine

Series: Ghosted #1

 

The Bright Side of Christmas - Morgan Elizabeth

Every year, I pick at least one cutesy, small town romance and this was the pick for this year.  I think Christmas romances always fit those tropes so well that finding good examples of those tropes can sometimes be a bit of trouble.  I wanted  a good amount of characters, good world building, but without characters or plot elements feeling overly cliche.  This book starts with our FMC being absolutely OBSESSED with Christmas to the point where I was initially worried she would come across more like a caricature than a real person.  However, that sort of characterization quickly settled down and we got to see her as a well-rounded character.  The opposites attract elements were fantastic and I really enjoyed that we got to see early on just how much these two were attracted to each other.  I also found the main conflict to be very realistic given their dynamic and personalities.

Tropes: Small Town, Grumpy/Sunshine, People Pleaser FMC, Fame (Songwriter)

Series: Holly Ridge #1

 

Scrooged for the Holidays - Kayla Grosse

I didn't think I needed 'A Christmas Carol but make it smutty and kinky' but I stand corrected.  Grosse does a great job of really building out the world and the details on how her version of the three Christmas ghosts work.  I loved that our FMC was a true scrooge, down to the evicting people during the holidays and saying some absolutely horrible things.  That being said, she wasn't too far gone so her eventual change into a nice person didn't feel unreasonable.  We got a good mix of seeing the different relationship dynamics between all the characters and I loved that we got all 4 POVs. 

Tropes: MMMF, Paranormal, Scrooge FMC

Standalone

 

Elf Against the Wall - Alina Jacobs

I was pleased that book 2 in this series was just as unhinged as book 1 was - which I very much enjoyed.  If you enjoyed book 1, then you should absolutely pick up book 2 as well. They are so similar, I had to go back and check that we are following a different family this time around.  It did feel very copy+paste - our FMC is a huge doormat for her absolutely horrible family, our MMC doesn't seem to care about anything anyone thinks and says the most unhinged things, the two end up fake dating for plot reasons and eventually everything works out.  I'll absolutely continue on in the series next holiday season, and it looks like book 3 might be a little different and not so similar to books 1 and 2.

Tropes: Fake Dating, Bad Boy MMC, Revenge Plot, Awful Family

Series: The Wynter Brothers #2

Romance Wrap-Up November 2025

Thirsty - Lucy Lehane

I really enjoyed this paranormal read, especially the characters and world building.  Currently, I don't see that this is part of a series, but I hope we do get more books in this universe some day.  Lehane does an absolutely fantastic job of fleshing out this world where humans have fairly recently become aware of supernatural creatures.  While our one MMC is a vampire, we get to see a whole host of other creatures in this read and I would love to see more.  We get some fantastic banter between the MCs as well as with side characters and everyone feels so incredibly well-developed.  I think the journey from enemies to lovers was also well developed and I liked that the reason they were enemies was something they could realistically get over.  The main conflict didn't quite work for me and I found that I often forgot about it for large pieces of the book until the one MC would mention it.  It felt like something that would be more pervasive in the overall relationship and friendships with the other supernatural characters in the book.

Tropes: MM, Paranormal (human x vampire), Secret Identity, Enemies to Lovers

Standalone

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date was October 14, 2025.

The Home Wrecker - Sara Cate

This was absolute perfection.  I loved how different all of the characters were and how they each were working through their own things but all three came together so perfectly. This really balanced the spice with the emotional so well for my tastes. I haven't read a lot of the marriage in trouble trope, so I don't have a lot to compare this to, but I think Cate did a great job of showing the reader the connection between Caleb and Briar so we could see where they came from and how far they'd grown apart. I think the different dynamics between the different character pairings as well as when they were all together were a great way to show off the different character developments.  While book #1 in the series is not necessarily needed to read before this one as each one centers around a different Goode brother, I think book 1 lays a lot of ground work for the relationships and history of the Goode family that I would recommend reading it first. 

Tropes: MMF, Queer Awakening, Marriage in Trouble, Sex Worker MMC, Kinky

Series: The Goode Brothers #2

Disciplinary Action - Onley James

This wasn't quite it for me.  There were parts that really worked well, but I think the whole thing went a little off the rails at the end.  This is very much a sort of 'if you can suspend your disbelief enough, you'll have a good time' sort of read, which I generally don't mind.  And I was able to forgive a lot in the name of a fun romance read such as the reason our MCs end up meeting in the first place.  But it really stopped working for me when it came to the main conflict and how our MCs ended up resolving it.  It felt very much like James had written the characters into a corner and devised the most outrageous plot twist to get them out of it. 

I want to mention that, based on reviews I was reading on Goodreads from when the book was first released in 2020, the book I read was different so it seems like James made some updates in the past 5 years. 

Tropes: MM, Age Gap, Kinky, Student/Headmaster, Hurt/Comfort

Standalone

Spicy or Sweet - Sophie Snow

This was a super fun read and I loved being back in this series.  We get great banter between our MCs as well as the rest of the characters and some of that great small town pushy busy-bodiness that I love.  Snow does a great job of giving her characters realistic depth often with conflicts outside of the main relationship which I really appreciate.  I did keep forgetting about the age gap (30/46) until the characters mentioned it, but I think overall it was handled well.  I especially liked how the younger MC was the more aggressive of the two which made it feel more equal and less predatory like some age gaps can get.  

Tropes: FF, Enemies to Lovers, Small Town, Age Gap

Series: Wintermore #2

Mountain Boss - S.J. Tilly

There is something about Tilly's writing that my brain just absolutely loves and this was no exception.  We get a ton of short chapters and frequent POV changes which could absolutely feel like whiplash, but it was like potato chip reading where I just wanted to keep reading long past my bedtime. I completely adored both our MCs and their personal journeys and loved that our FMC was not a pushover or bad at her job.  She was a very resourceful person who was proud to do a good job which I loved to see in a male-dominated industry.  Tilly writes the best unhinged heroes and Sterling is the perfect mix of unhinged obsessed with absolutely adoring.  We get a little touch of romantic suspense/danger as well which I loved.

Tropes: Boss/Employee, Age Gap, Forced Proximity, Hurt/Comfort

Series: Mountain Men #1

Hammered - Jasinda Wilder

This was another one that didn't quite work for me.  I found our FMC to be incredibly annoying and the main conflict very repetitive despite it feeling resolved time after time.  Our FMC recently finalized her divorce and has some personal body image issues and overall confidence issues from the marriage that she's still working through.  I loved the sort of meet cute aspect of her needing a last minute handyman to fix her window and the connection the two had from the start was really great.  However, our FMC was very hot/cold on the MMC as well as on her own body despite him constantly telling her how attractive she was and how much he wanted to be with her.  I could believe this coming up once or twice, but the way it seemed like it came up every other interaction was just exhausting to read. This is one of those times where I think it is more 'realistic' that these issues don't disappear after just one time of the MMC telling her that he likes her, but it wasn't doing the flow of the story any favors to be 'realistic' like this.   I do think I'll read on in the series as I am interested to see how the couple in the next book plays out. 

Tropes: Handyman MMC, Love After Divorce, Older MCs 

Series: Dad Bod Contracting #1

Silent Vows - Jill Ramsower

This was a pretty solid mafia romance read but I wasn't overly wowed by it.  I did find the FMC deciding to be mute to be an interesting aspect that I think was used well in the overall narrative. This hits all the usual mafia romance tropes - arranged marriage, possessive MMC, etc - but I found that it focused mostly on the main couple and we didn't get a whole lot of 'mafia business' on-page. While our MCs were pretty well developed, any side characters felt very one dimensional and the overall world didn't feel developed enough for my liking.

Tropes: Mafia, Arranged Marriage, Possessive MMC

Series: The Byrne Brothers #1

A Forbidden Arrangement - J Wilder

I picked this book up because I saw a video where it was described as a "dark romance with a walking red flag MMC" and that was all I needed to hear. I love my MMCs in dark romances to be basically unhinged obsessed with the FMC and in this case, she disappears after a one night stand and when he finds her, he forces (or forges?) her into a marriage with him so it completely fits the bill.  This is the 4th book in the series and I didn't read the first three (but I will probably go back and read them at some point) so it was pretty glazed over what the brothers do but it seemed like some sort of secret society but not quite mafia (but I could be wrong about that). I loved our FMC and how smart she was when it came to figuring out the MMC.  

Tropes: Dark Romance, One Night Stand, Forced Marriage, Red Flag MMC

Series: Twisted Vows #4

Most Likely to Deny Love - Mary Waterford

This was a super fun read that was unexpectedly sweet.  Our FMC needs a date to her sister's wedding, ideally someone who can help her shake off her sister and mother's constant comments about her weight.  Good thing her boss is already obsessed with her and offers to step in, I loved their chemistry both in the office as well as outside of it.  Both have complicated family relationships and I loved how the FMC gets her chance to help the MMC as well.  We get a lot of heat along with a lot of heart in this read.  The fake dating was fun - complete with a practice kiss so it looks real when we do it in front of your family. 

Tropes: Fake Dating, Boss/Employee, Age Gap, Plus Sized FMC

Series: The Yearbook Series #2

Zomromcom - Olivia Dade 

This was a fun read and a good first entry in a new series.  I loved the banter between our MCs and absolutely cackled anytime our FMC would break out into song.  We have some great side characters and moments of action as well.  Dade gives us some great world building and character development as our MCs work to discover the truth behind the zombie breakout. I did struggle with the tone of the read for the first half of the book. I think Dade was going for heavy real world stuff with moments of levity between the MCs but instead it sort of felt like they couldn't decide if they wanted to take the zombie breakout seriously or not. I think the second half of the book balanced that tone much better.

Tropes: Paranormal (human + vampire), Romantic Suspense, Zombies

Series: Supernatural Entanglements #1

Romance Wrap-up October 2025

 Dealing with a Desperate Demon - Charlotte Stein

Stein has hit it out of the park yet again!  I really love this series and how much fun and heart it has.  Nancy and Jack are so immediately obviously into each other but they are both playing it cool for reasons that become apparent as the plot goes on.  They were one of those couples where I could see some readers getting frustrated that they wouldn't just tell each other that they liked the other person, but I think Stein does a good job of giving plenty of explanations as to why so this didn't feel like a miscommunication trope book.  Their chemistry was off the charts and I love the dating lessons that Nancy was giving Jack because he was such a cinnamon roll MMC who just wanted to do a good job.  The chemistry between them was absolutely sizzling and I was glad that they were able to act on that chemistry earlier on in the book than I was expecting. We get more world building with the small town setting and even some cameos of the couple from the first book - which is always fun.  Overall, this was a really fun read and I look forward to more books in the series.

Tropes: Supernatural, Dating Lessons, Single POV, Cinnamon Roll MMC

Series: The Sanctuary for Supernatural Creatures #2

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC.  Publication date was October 7, 2025

My Big Fat Vampire Wedding - Jessica Gadziala

This was a pretty solid book that just didn't quite work out perfectly for my tastes. Based purely on the title - if you liked all the family antics in My Big Fat Greek Wedding - you will like this book.  Unfortunately, I wanted less family and more of our main couple in the book. I get that the whole point of the read is that she a vampire, her whole family are vampires, and he's a human but every time their personal time would get interrupted by someone, I would get frustrated.  Now, that's not to say the family parts were bad or boring - actually I found them to be quite funny and entertaining, but I just thought the balance of the book was leaning a bit too much toward the family antics side.  I thought the chemistry between our two MCs was really great and I loved how their fake dating/marriage of convenience progressed to a real relationship. The spicy scenes were fantastic and really ramped up the romantic tension.  As of now, I can't find any mention of a book 2 in the series, but there were two characters who were certainly set up for one that I would absolutely love to read so I hope we get that book in the future. Overall, this was still a good read, just wish there was a bit less family and a bit more of the main couple.

Tropes: Supernatural, Fake Dating, Marriage of Convenience, Single POV

Series: Standalone

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC.  Publication date was August 14, 2025

Romance Wrap-up September 2025

 

First-Time Caller - B.K. Borison

This was an absolutely fantastic romance and solidified Borison as an insta-read author for me.  The premise was pretty straightforward, a jaded radio host of a romance advice show meets a hopeless romantic single mom and they start hosting the show together.  Borison does a fantastic job of grounding these characters in incredibly human moments that took what could have been a much more fluffy, sweet romance into something with a little bit of grit.  This isn't the type of romance where the jaded cynic learns to love again just because the FMC has that 'special something' that melts his ice cold heart.  In this case, it was so much more and we could actually see Aiden work through his feelings about relationships and love.  This read had so much heart along side some absolutely top tier mutual pining and slow burn romance.  The side characters were also very well developed and I can't wait to continue on in the series.

Tropes: Single Parent, Hopeless Romantic FMC vs Jaded MMC, Dating Game

Series: Heartstrings #1

Addicted to Glove - Kelly Reynolds

I've never had a surprise pregnancy book make me cry out of happiness for the characters before but this one sure did. I normally don't read them unless the author has earned my trust that they'll handle it in a way I'd enjoy.  Childfree by choice over here so surprise pregnancy books can often come across as a little more on the horror side than romance for me personally.  Reynolds and the whole series so far has been absolutely fantastic and after seeing Dani and Brooks in book 2, there was no way I'd be skipping this one just because of the pregnancy stuff.  Reynolds also identifies as childfree by choice in the author's note at the end of the read so maybe she had a different view on writing a surprise pregnancy romance that worked with my brain.  We get to see a lot of the previous couples and the team overall so it was such a fun read where pretty much everyone was happy about this baby coming.  There was so much pure happiness and joy that Reynolds put into all corners of this read that I couldn't help but feel the same for Dani and Brooks.  But then add in some very steamy scenes and this was a great read. 

Tropes: Sports - Baseball, Surprise Pregnancy, Age Gap, Coworkers

Series: Rose City Roasters #3

Stuck in the Middle With You - Frances M. Thompson

This was a pretty solid romance read and I had a pretty good time.  I really enjoy the Gym Bros to Lovers aspect of this as it is a little different than a regular friends to lovers trope. I found both MCs to be very well fleshed out, but they are both in their 40s and really felt much more like they are in their 20s.  Both of them had some pretty significant communication issues for their own reasons.  And while I think the reasons behind these communication issues were really well developed, it just didn't feel like they should have still had as much trouble as they did at their ages. This did lead to a number of mis-communication/non-communication trope situations that I'm not a huge fan of.  However, we do get past those very quickly and they don't really escalate the way they do in some other books.  I loved the very positive queer exploration/realization that Marcello went through in this read and how that Giles and the other characters helped him along that journey.  I thought the mental health impacts (ADHD and OCD) were realistic without feeling overly focused on.  I thought the friendship both in and out of the gym really shined in this read and there were so many times that I was yelling at the book for them to just kiss already.  The friendship really supported and highlighted the more romantic parts of the read, which I loved.

Tropes: MM, Bi x Pan, Friends to Lovers, Sex Lessons, Gym Bros to Lovers, ADHD/OCD Rep, MCs in 40s

Series: Standalone