Author Archives: romanticreadsandsuch

Spotlight – Captivating

13 Thursday Feb 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Captivating

Red Lips & White Liesย #4

by Bella Matthews

Blurb:

Killian St. James was the boy I loved. Now heโ€™s the man I love to hate.โ€ฏย 

To the world, Iโ€™m Americaโ€™s sweetheart. A brand built on fairy tales and love songs that sell millions. But the truth? Iโ€™m not sure I believe in happily ever aftersโ€ฏ.โ€ฏ.โ€ฏ. At least not for me. 

Burned-out and desperate for a break, I return to my hometown, craving quiet and a tiny taste of freedom. But instead of peace, I find a stalker in the shadows, paparazzi on my heels, and a meddling family with their own ideas about my life. 

Everyone insists I need protection, and having my new bodyguard pose as my fake boyfriend makes total senseโ€ฏ.โ€ฏ.โ€ฏ. Not that they asked me. If thatโ€™s not enough, did I mention that Killian is all too happy to volunteer for the job?โ€ฏ 

This MMA champion is brooding, relentless, and inconveniently perfect at keeping me safe. Heโ€™s also unimaginably gorgeous, with a quiet confidence thatโ€™s even sexier than the ink tattooed on his golden skin.โ€ฏ 

But as lines blur and sparks fly, Iโ€™m left wondering if the boy I once loved could be the man I can trust with my lifeโ€ฏ.โ€ฏ.โ€ฏ. and my heart. 

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4iwL3C6

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon: https://a.co/d/jgwBaMK

*****

Author Info:

Bella Matthews is a USA Today & #1 Amazon Bestselling author. She is married to her very own Alpha Male and raising three little ones. You can typically find her running from one sporting event to another. When she is home, she is usually hiding in her home office with the only other female in her house, her rescue dog Tinker Bell by her side. She likes to write swoon-worthy heroes and sassy, smart heroines. Sarcasm is her love language and big family dynamics are her favorite thing to add to each story.

Connect with Bella

Website: www.authorbellamatthews.com  

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20795160.Bella_Matthews 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B08NFK9K4M?ingress=0&visitId=8b4845c0-1ab8-467b-ac2a-4ddf36d673fd   

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Bella.Matthews.Author   

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/bellamatthewsgamechangers   

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bellamatthews.author/   

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bellamatthewsauthor  

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/bella-matthews   

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/bellamatthewsauthor/   

~

Review – Playing Mr. Perfect

12 Wednesday Feb 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour, Book Review, Sneak Peek

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Quarterback Clay โ€œMr. Perfectโ€ Braden is determined to show sexy scientist Pepper Montgomery the benefits of hands-on research in PLAYING MR. PERFECT, the first book in the Bradens at Ridgeport series by New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melissa Foster. Loaded with heat, humor, and heart, this steamy, small-town, opposites-attract standalone romance is unputdownable. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a happily ever after that will leave you breathless.

Playing Mr. Perfect

The Bradens at Ridgeport #1

by Melissa Foster

Releasing Feb 12, 2025

World Literary Press

Blurb:

What happens in Paris, stays in Paris, right?

Oh, Pepper. If onlyโ€ฆ

Okay, I admit it.

Sleeping with the NFL quarterback who the media has dubbed Mr. Perfect might not have been the smartest move, but Iโ€™m in the City of Love, Iโ€™d had a few drinks, and was jacked up on giddy girl talk and hopeful heartsโ€”two things I never buy intoโ€”and I threw caution to the wind.

I want to sneak out before he wakes up, but when I open my eyes, heโ€™s already up.

In more ways than one.

Convincing the ridiculously cocky (pun intended) man that Iโ€™m not the woman he slept with last night is awkward.

Actually, he makes it impossible.

The thing is, I donโ€™t even know who that woman was.

And now heโ€™s determined to find out.

About the Series:

Fall in love with the Bradens at Ridgeport and join these business-savvy, pleasure-oriented New Englanders as they fall head over heels with their forever loves.

Goodreads link:ย  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/208459267-playing-mr-perfect

Buy Links:

BUY DIRECT FROM MELISSAโ€™S SHOP: https://bit.ly/shop_PMPย 

KINDLE: https://lnk.to/PMP_Kindle

APPLE: https://lnk.to/PMP_Apple

NOOK: https://lnk.to/PMP_Nook

KOBO: https://lnk.to/PMP_Kobo

GPLAY: https://lnk.to/PMP_GPlay

PAPERBACK: https://lnk.to/PMP_Pb

AUDIOBOOK: https://shop.melissafoster.com/products/playing-mr-perfect-audiobook

*****

Excerpt:

Read Sneak Peek at https://melissafoster.com/playing-mr-perfect-sneak-peek/

*****

Review:

I enjoyed Pepper and Clay’s story. There was a little awkward dialogue in the beginning but once we got moving all was good. They were adorable together, with each of them bringing out the good in the other – Pepper needs someone to to bring out her fun-loving side, to get her away from being all work, while Clay needs someone who appreciates him for who he is and doesn’t expect him to be “Mr. Perfect”.

But he is a pretty perfect boyfriend. He listens, observes, and pushes when Pepper needs it. He’s thoughtful in the things he does and the gifts he gives her. And how to relax. Which she does for him as well. Allowing him to remember what he loved about football and what’s important to him.

Playing Mr. Perfect is steamy, sweet, and playful. There’s not a lot of angst, drama, or miscommunication. Just a couple of moments where they let their insecurities overcome them but they are few and short.

(There are a lot of characters from a related series, with Pepper’s sisters. I’ve read some, probably not all, but I still got confused about their stories. I think if you focus on Pepper & Clay and just look at them as her siblings & their spouses it is a little easier.)

*****

Author Info:

Melissa Foster is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, & USA Today bestselling author. She writes sexy and heartwarming contemporary romance and new adult romance with emotionally compelling characters that stay with you long after you turn the last page. Melissaโ€™s emotional journeys are lovingly erotic and always family orientedโ€“perfect beach reads for contemporary romance lovers who enjoy reading about wealthy heroes and smart, sassy heroines.

Website:  http://www.melissafoster.com/ 

Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/MelissaFosterAuthor 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Melissa_Foster 

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3023973.Melissa_Foster 

Newsletter: http://melissafoster.com/newsletter/ 

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/melissa-foster 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissafoster_author/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@melissafoster_author

~

Review – Not So Over

09 Sunday Feb 2025

Posted by in Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Not So Over

Not So series

by Ashley Rayne

Blurb:

What if heโ€™s not the one who got away?

Parker
I knew the minute I broke Marcusโ€™ heartโ€”and my own in the processโ€”that I was making the biggest mistake of my life. But try telling that to the anxious voice in my head, telling me Iโ€™m not good enough or how bored he must be with me. Iโ€™d give anything for a second chance with him, or at the very least, a chance to apologize. When my best friendโ€™s destination wedding gives her the chance to play โ€˜match re-makerโ€™ with her brother and me, will he finally listen to what I need to say?

Marcus
One minute, I was looking forward to a future with my soulmate and the next, I was devastated by him ending things with no explanation. Heโ€™s tried to call and explain what happened, but Iโ€™m not ready to hear. Iโ€™m not sure if Iโ€™ll ever be ready. Unfortunately, my twin sister is his best friend, so weโ€™re going to be around each other for the next week. A supposed reservation snafuโ€”that has Kendra written all over itโ€”has me forced to share a room and the only bed in it with him. With my plan of ignoring him now impossible, am I finally ready to hear what he has to say?

*Please make sure to check the authors note at the beginning of the book. On-page anxiety attack.

Buy Link – https://getbook.at/NotSoOver

*****

Review:

I’m a bit all over the board on this one. I love the idea, Marcus is an amazing partner, and I felt so bad for Parker. But I also felt like the pacing was a bit off – the first part was a bit rushed and the second part dragged.

Parker is a bit nervous because he’s going to be in the same location as his ex and is hoping that he’ll get the opportunity to explain why he broke up with him. But he’s also nervous that it won’t go the way he hopes. Marcus isn’t open at first to listening but he gets there pretty quickly. (Maybe a little too quickly.) And they spend the week finding their way back together.

I do feel like Marcus was a bit too fast being alright with sharing a room with Parker. I understand that he isn’t over him and I’m guessing he is hoping that this will give him the excuse to get back together. But he says he was devastated and I think he needs a bit more to get to that point. I do appreciate how he takes what Parker tells him and puts the effort into figuring out how he can help. The man straight up does the work to be a good partner and I love it!

So the first part is all the feels and by midway they are pretty much together. After that it is a lot of steam, with a little bit of moving their relationship further along. I’m not against heat in my stories but I think the balance is off. A bit more time needed to be spent on addressing how hurt Marcus was by the way their relationship ended, forgiving Parker, and being comfortable with giving him another chance. To working their way towards each other again.

Pacing issues aside, I did enjoy it. Loved me some Marcus and his happiness made me happy.

Spotlight – Single Mom’s Guide to Love

06 Thursday Feb 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

Single Mom’s Guide to Love

by Chelle Sloan

Blurb:

GUIDE TO LOVE RULE #50: Love isn’t always convenient. Sometimes marriage is.

My name is Maeve Banksโ€”Type A single mom; oldest daughter; and renowned interior designer for millionaire bachelors.

And the new Mrs. Logan Matthews.

The latter title is not something I wanted, but something I was forced to do. And for good reason: My adorable six-year old son.

The guide for my perfectly controlled life was simple: No dating or distractions. Focus on my son and my business.

Everything was going to plan until the night Logan Matthewsโ€”one of the world’s youngest, and most eligible billionairesโ€”sits down next to me at an airport bar.

He distracted me with his perfect smile and chiseled jaw line. His British accent didnโ€™t hurt either.

When he asked me to dance? I was a goner.

But it was one night. No harm in a little fun, right?

Wrong.

Turns out my one-night of fun is now my newest client.

Which is fine. I’m an adult. I can resist his charm. And that he’s great with my son. Or when he calls me “love.โ€

But as much as both of us make it look like we have our lives in order, they’re anything but.

So Logan offers me a proposalโ€”the one where we get married as a temporary fix to both our problems.

My ex-husband is fighting for custody of my son. And Logan needs a wife to give the media something to talk about.

It’s a marriage of convenience. Nothing more, nothing less.

There’s just one problem: I think I’m falling in love with my husband.

And there’s no guide to love for that

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3UfD69R

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3A0slRZ

*****

Author Info:

Known for her witty sense of humor, Chelle Sloan is a former sports editor who recently completed her Masters in Journalism. She’s now putting that to good useโ€”one happily ever after at a time. An Ohio native, she’s fiercely loyal to Cleveland sports, is the owner of way too manyโ€”yet not enoughโ€” tumblers and will be a New Kids on the Block fan until the day she dies. She does her best writing at Starbucks, or anywhere that’s not her house.  Oh, and yes, you probably saw her on TikTok. As for her own happily ever after? Maybe one day… 

Connect with Chelle

Website: www.chellesloan.com  

Goodreads: https://geni.us/ChelleGoodreads 

Amazon: https://geni.us/ChelleAmazon   

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChelleSloanAuthor   

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/chellesloansquad   

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chelle_sloan/   

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Chelle_Sloan    

TikTok: https://geni.us/chelleTikTok  

Bookbub: https://geni.us/ChelleSloanBookBub   

~

Review – Seaside Serenade

03 Monday Feb 2025

Posted by in Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

Seaside Serenade

Seaside Summers series

by Melissa Foster

Blurb:

What’s better than finding your forever love on Valentine’s Day?

They say opposites attract, but for former boxing champ and gym owner Brock Garner, having the beautiful dark-haired, tattooed, combat-boot wearing pixie Cree Redmond flitting around his club has nearly driven him mad. Brock has wanted her since the first time he saw her, and when he learns she has the singing voice of an angel, it speaks to another part of his heart and heโ€™s unwilling to hold back any longer. But Creeโ€™s dating a burly biker and is firmly off-limits. Or so he thinksโ€ฆ

Buy from Melissa Foster’s store

*****

Review:

I often feel like novellas don’t do their characters justice but not this time. Would I have liked more of them? Well, yeah, but Foster does a really good job of giving us a complete story in just a few pages.

Both Brock & Cree have been crushing on each other but a misunderstanding on her relationship status has kept him from pursuing her. The time together, though, has given them an opportunity to get to know each other and for feelings to develop. That helps with being able to make it a believable novella romance.

I listened to the audiobook version of this story and I enjoyed it. The narrators are nice to listen to – Masters could read the back of a cereal box and I’d be happy – and they complement each other well. At around an hour it was a fast listen and perfect for a lead up to Valentine’s Day.

(Can stand on its own. For returning readers, there are updates on characters from the rest of the series, but I kept up just fine.)

~

Review – Right the First Time

01 Saturday Feb 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour, Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Right the First Time

Shafer U Book 1

by Kristen Vail

Blurb:

Heโ€™s the smoking-hot football star.ย 

Iโ€™m the nerd just trying to graduate.ย 

So why does he keep staring at me?

Iโ€™ve always been the girl guys ignore until they need my class notes. But being invisible suits me. Iโ€™m at college to keep my head down, get accepted to grad school and hopefully save my dysfunctional family.

Simple enoughโ€”until Cam Forrester looks my way.

Iโ€™m not about to get sidetracked by some sexy wide receiver. The last time I trusted a man like him I got burned so bad I still canโ€™t shake the dark memories.

But when Cam rescues me from one of the most humiliating moments of my life, I realize this cold, cocky athlete isnโ€™t so cold when heโ€™s around me.

So when he vows to prove to me heโ€™s more than meets the eyeโ€ฆwell, what girl wouldnโ€™t give in?

Trust a heartbreaker with my fragile heart?

Thatโ€™s a dangerous play.

And Iโ€™m all in.

Buy Link:

https://a.co/d/hWxIboE

Available in KU

*****

Review:

There was so much I enjoyed with Lenni & Cam’s story. I felt for her as she struggled to distance herself from her past and juggle school & family. It’s a lot for anyone and naturally she’s finding it difficult on her own. It leads to lots of mistakes, poor assumptions and miscommunication.

Cam has his own troubles. Trying to balance school, family, others’ expectations, and his own wants. It’s a big part of growing older as we try to figure out who we are, what we want, and how to honor ourselves & those we love. It’s a struggle for him, but he is a stand up guy with a good heart and does the best he can to do the right thing.

For a first book, I’m really impressed. Vail does a good job of giving us characters with flaws and issues that feel realistic, with a good balance of sweetness, angst, and growth. These are not perfect people, they struggle but they try, and I appreciate that there’s a good resolution for both of them individually as well as a couple. I’m looking forward to seeing where the author takes us next. Reeve’s got lots going on and I need to know everything ๐Ÿ™‚

(Please note that there are content warnings for this one that can be found on the author’s website – kristenvail.com)

*****

Author Info:

Kristen Vail is the author of spicy sports romance featuring realistic characters and relationships with plenty of delicious tension. She lives in the Midwest with her husband, kids and rescue pup.

When she’s not writing, you can find her cooking, listening to music and rewatching shows from the โ€˜90s.

Connect with Kristen Vail:

https://www.instagram.com/kristenvailbooks/

~

Spotlight – Comeback

30 Thursday Jan 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Comeback

Holland Brothers #3

by Rebecca Jenshak

Blurb:

My brotherโ€™s best friend is such a jerk.ย ย  ย 

An imposing, handsome jerk who doesnโ€™t trust me. And now weโ€™re roommates.  

He wanders around the apartment in nothing but gray sweatpants, looking like a broody, tattooed muscle god, and playing music that shakes the walls. I want to hate him for treating me like an intruder, but thereโ€™s something about the way he looks at meโ€”like heโ€™s trying to figure me outโ€”that keeps pulling me in.  

Archer Holland is loyal, caring, and protectiveโ€”with everyone except me. ย 

Every time I move around our apartment, I can feel his glare. And the worst part? It only makes me want him more.  

Not that it matters.  

Heโ€™s my brotherโ€™s best friendโ€”the one guy I can never have. But after a late-night rescue, we go from sharing a wall to sharing a bed.  

Iโ€™m not sure what my brother would do if he found out, but it doesnโ€™t matter because Archer says it canโ€™t happen again.   

That imposing, handsome jerk is about to find out Iโ€™m done playing by his rules.ย 

Comeback is a football romance with lots of spice, swoon, and a happily ever after. Itโ€™s the third book in the Holland Brothers series and can be read as a standalone.

Add to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/414FjZN

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

https://geni.us/yz87lV

Audio: Coming Soon!

*****

Author Info:

Rebecca Jenshak is a USA Today bestselling author of new adult and sports romance. She writes sexy, feel-good stories with lots of swoon-worthy moments.

Rebecca lives in Arizona. When she isn’t writing, you can find her cheering on local sports teams, hanging out with friends and family, or curled up with a good book.

Sign up for her newsletter to be notified of new releases: https://rebeccajenshak.com/newsletter/

Connect with Rebecca

Website: https://www.rebeccajenshak.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16681160.Rebecca_Jenshak

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Jenshak/e/B074F258NP/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rebeccajenshak

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1523746940998401

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rebeccajenshak

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/rebeccajenshak

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@rebeccajenshak

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/rebecca-jenshak

~

Spotlight – Sterling Fight

30 Thursday Jan 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

Sterling Fight

Sterling Falls Book 5

by L.B. Dunbar

Blurb:

These former friends might be faking their engagement, but revealed crushes prove there might not be anything fictional about their arrangement.

In college, I often saw Judd Sylver in the library. He was a cool, broody type of guy who reminded me of a deeply tortured soul who might write poetry.

He was very different from the boy I met in third grade on National Make a New Friend Day when I passed him a note, asking if he wanted to be my new friend: Check yes or no.

(Iโ€™m a bit obsessed with calendar days.)

He was also vastly different from the young man who stood me up after I asked him to his prom.

Twenty years later, I can let bygones be bygones, especially when he rescues me from a bad date.

Then I witness him breaking up with his girlfriend which resulted in a sticky coffee drink on his chiseled cheeks and ice cubes on his fine-fitting jeans.

I offered him a napkin.

Hey, once a friend, always a friend, right? *insert sarcasm*

However, Judd takes us to the next level at my motherโ€™s garden party, where a misunderstanding occurs with a teeny tiny slip of the tongue and a precious ring on my finger.

And suddenly, Iโ€™m Juddโ€™s fiancรฉe. 

Fake or not, things are about to get a little too real with my old friend.

Buy Link:

https://a.co/d/7KIiaqr

Available in KUย 

*****

Author Info:

L.B. Dunbar loves sexy silver foxes, second chances, and small towns. If you enjoy older characters in your romance reads, including a hero with a little silver in his scruff and a heroine rediscovering her worth, then welcome to romance for those over 40. L.B. Dunbarโ€™s signature works include women and men in their prime taking another turn at love and happily ever after. Sheโ€™s a USA TODAY Bestseller as well as #1 Bestseller on Amazon in Later in Life Romance with her Lakeside Cottage and Road Trips & Romance series. L.B. lives in Chicago with her own sexy silver fox.

To get all the scoop about the self-proclaimed queen of silver fox romance, join her on Facebook at Loving L.B. or receive her monthly newsletter, Love Notes.

Connect with L.B. Dunbar:

https://linktr.ee/lbdunbarwrites

~

Review – Not Your Biggest Fan

29 Wednesday Jan 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour, Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

Not Your Biggest Fan

Not Yours #1

by Sara Ney

Blurb:

USA Today bestselling author Sara Ney sizzles with a quick-witted, sexy romp about an eager entrepreneur and a cocky football star who couldnโ€™t be more differentโ€”or more into each other.

Harlow James is destined to rock the dating world. The creator of Kissmet, the app helping singles find love, sheโ€™s in New York to secure advertisers. But the sassy, small-town girl canโ€™t help meddling in other peopleโ€™s business.

When she runs into a muscular stranger at her go-to food truck, Harlow doesnโ€™t realize heโ€™s Landon โ€œAndyโ€ Burke, the NFLโ€™s most-wanted free agent, in town to talk contracts. She just sees a hottie about to get burned by undercooked street food. Though she tries to warn him, he shrugs her off, making a little wager instead.

In a messy twist of fate, Andy finds himself in the same hotel as Harlow. When she collects on their bet, they make a mind-blowingโ€”and bed-rockingโ€”connection. But after the weekend, she goes home to Green Bay to her goofy dad and corgi, ready to focus everything on work again. Kissmet, however, has other ideas, when Andy knocks on her doorโ€ฆ

Buy Link:

https://books2read.com/NYBFSaraNeyKU

Available in KUย 

*****

Review:

I enjoyed Harlow and Andy together. Their time in NY is fun, with an enjoyment of the city and each other. And their flirty texts afterward are some of my favorites moments.

It is an insta-love kinda thing though, so you need to be ok with a little less than logical romance between the two of them. It’ll require you to just go with it and enjoy that they spent like 2 days together before deciding that major life decisions could be made. Realistic, no, but it’s a fun, rom-comy story and doesn’t have to be that real.

Although I do wish we’d gotten more of what it actually means for Harlow to be in a relationship with Andy. She gets a bit of it but I’m hoping that we get glimpses of it as we get future stories in the series. Because it isn’t going to be easy, and based on her issues once she figures out who he is, it’s something that needs to be addressed.

But Ney has an out here because their friends are a hoot and I’m looking forward to more books as (hopefully) each of them finds their own HEA. And Harlow’s dad as well. Like Harlow settling in to a relationship with Andy, I’m hoping that we get more of his search for a partner as we move along. There’s plenty of opportunity to address some of those missed moments and I’m curious to see where she goes.

Silly, funny, and lighthearted, as an introduction to Ney’s work I enjoyed Not Your Biggest Fan. Set your believability cap off to the side and just settle in for some fun ๐Ÿ™‚

*****

Author Info:

Sara Ney is the USA Today Bestselling Author of the How to Date a Douchebag series, and is best known for her sexy, laugh-out-loud New Adult romances. Among her favorite vices, she includes: iced latteโ€™s, historical architecture and well-placed sarcasm. She lives colorfully, collects vintage books, art, loves flea markets, and fancies herself British.

Connect with Sara Ney:

https://linktr.ee/authorsaraney

~

Review – The Perfect Love

25 Saturday Jan 2025

Posted by in Blog Tour, Book Review

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , ,

The Perfect Love

Ida Heartthrobs Series

by Bethany Monaco Smith

Blurb:

Chelsea Winters knocked me on my ass.

Meeting the curvy, auburn-haired goddess was the last thing I was expecting on my first day at a new college. But when she shows up at the lake house I share with my seven close friends, she looks like my literal dream girl.

Then we spend a few hours talking, and I know without question, sheโ€™s meant to be mine.

Until she panics, runs away, and tries to ghost me.

But our campus isnโ€™t that big, and it doesnโ€™t take long for us to cross paths again, and when we do, I realize how terrified Chelsea actually is.

Afraid to trust or let anyone past the upbeat, confident exterior she puts up.

Which means itโ€™s now my mission to show her sheโ€™s safe with me. She can trust me with her hurt and her heart. If she needs to go slow, I’ll crawl, as long as it’s to her.

Weโ€™re both here for a fresh start, trying to heal from our pasts, but the more time I spend with her, the less Iโ€™m worried about the past because all I see is my future with her.

There might not be any such thing as the perfect love, but I know without a doubt, sheโ€™s my perfect match, and Iโ€™ll do whatever it takes to be the man she shares her future with.

Buy Link:

https://a.co/d/aT8VLXI

Available in KU

*****

Review:

This is my first read by this author so I’m not sure how this represents her writing style. But I’m not 100% sure what to think of this one. I loved Chelsea and Trevor, individually and as a couple, and I loved the found family that they have created. There are a lot of them, so I was glad for the character guide at the front to somewhat keep up.

For a large group of college students, tho, they come with a large amount of trauma. This is where my hesitation comes in. I guess they could have bonded because of their issues but it seems like every one of them has something big they need to work through. And they know a lot about mental health, good communication, and support. I mean A LOT. Trevor is an amazingly perfect book boyfriend, tho he does have some trauma of his own to work thru, but the rest are amazingly perfect friends. Sure, a couple of them are studying counseling, some are actively in therapy, and they’ve been thru a ton collectively, but they are also only 20 years old. (Not that # of years lived necessarily means that you can’t have these kinds of lived experiences, but all of them?)

I saw another review say that it felt like an after school special and I can see that. There’s a lot of mental health terminology and advice, girl power and healing. I love that Chelsea is so into supporting women, lifting them up – **** the patriarchy, choose the bear kinda thing. But there’s so much going on here. I’m not sure if it is because there are so many of them, and they are so close, that it felt that way. And I admire both Trevor and Chelsea and how they address & overcome their issues. It was just a very full book.

Please know going in that this book deals with some really heavy subjects. It has some fantastic mental health representation and I love to see the normalization of that in books. The characters try so hard to be good people, good friends, to be supportive and love enthusiastically. They are wonderful characters and I so want to know their stories, to get to know them better.

It just feels like a lot when there are so many of them ๐Ÿ™‚

*****

Author Info:

Bethany is a small-town girl and lover of all things romance, love, and happily ever afters. She is an indie author of both adult contemporary romance series and new adult drama series set in small towns. She loves taking her characters (and readers!) on an emotional rollercoaster throughout the story whether itโ€™s a standalone romance or a continuous series. Even though she puts her characters through their paces, she always leaves them with a happily ever after, knowing they rode off into the sunset with a good life and their perfect match by their side.

She is shamelessly obsessed with the friends-to-lovers trope and will read any friends-to-lovers book she can get her hands on while writing plenty more. When sheโ€™s not writing, you can find her mom-ing, binge-reading, drinking coffee and pretending the laundry doesnโ€™t exist, eating sushi with her SIL, and cheering on all her author pals.

Bethany lives in the Southern Tier of NY with her husband and two sons. You can find out more about Bethany and what sheโ€™s working on next on Instagram @bethanymonacosmith.

Connect with Bethany Monaco Smith:

https://bethanymonacosmith.com/links/

~