London 1776: Lord Worth is busying himself restoring his family fortunes and burying any feelings he still harbours for the woman who rejected his proposal.
The fact that the lady in questionโLady Rebecca Fairingโhappens to be his sisterโs best friend, his nieceโs godmother, and present at every Societal gathering of consequence isโฆ unfortunate.
Meanwhile Rebecca fears she made the wrong decision in rejecting James Worth, but when he assures her he wonโt be renewing his proposal, she is forced to accept her choice. It doesnโt take long for the eligible Lord Worth to attract other suitors, among them Lady Sophia, daughter to Societyโs most notorious gossip, Lady Goring.
Rebecca knows she must step aside and allow James to find happiness, but when she senses all is not as it seems in the Goring family, she canโt help but intervene.
As James and Rebecca work together to unearth Societal secrets, deal with scheming matriarchs, and face villainous highwaymen, they find themselves more in each otherโs company than ever before.
Will they continue to bury their feelings for one another, or will they finally realise what it means to love?
Rebecca reminds me a lot of how I remember Jane Austen’s Emma – a big heart but a little flighty and easily swayed by a pretty face & even prettier words. She learns a few things about what’s truly important but of course manages to get herself into a scrape or two along the way. I’m not sure if I’d feel differently about her if I’d read the previous books though.
James is solid, dependable, and a little taciturn. He may not be as flashy as the rest of the Ton but he’s a good man and a good catch. Unfortunately the one woman he wants turned him down and he’s not really interested in getting married to just anyone. Regardless of what their mom’s think. So finding himself constantly thrown into Rebecca’s company isn’t helping. But he can’t help himself from getting involved when it’s obvious that one of their friends needs help, even when it means more time with Rebecca.
Lord of Worth is a slow burn, second chance love story with a good dose of societal shenanigans, misunderstandings, heartbreak, and trouble on the way to a satisfying happy ending.
(Can be read as a stand alone but probably enjoyed more if read in order.)
*****
Author Info:
Philippa Jane Keyworth, also known as P. J. Keyworth, writes historical romance and fantasy novels you’ll want to escape into.
She loves strong heroines, challenging heroes and backdrops that read like youโre watching a movie. She creates complex, believable characters you want to get to know and worlds that are as dramatic as they are beautiful.
Keyworth’s historical romance novels include Regency and Georgian romances that trace the steps of indomitable heroes and heroines through historic British streets. From London’s glittering ballrooms to its dark gaming hells, characters experience the hopes and joys of love while avoiding a coil or too! Travel with them through London, Bath, Cornwall and beyond and you’ll find yourself falling in love.
Keyworth’s fantasy seriesย The She Trilogy unveils a world of nomadic warrior tribes and peaceful forest-dwelling folk. Explore the hills, deserts and cities of Emrilion and the history that is woven through them. With so many different races in the same kingdom it’s become a melting pot of drama and intrigue where the ultimate struggle between good and evil will bring it all to the brink of destruction.
Win a signed copy of Lord of Worth (Open to UK Only)
*Terms and Conditionsย โUK entries welcome.ย Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below.ย The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachelโs Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over.ย Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winnersโ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachelโs Random Resources will delete the data.ย ย I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
The last thing any professional hockey player wants is to be the old man in the game. The guy who doesn’t know when it’s time to retire. Still, I can’t bear the thought of leaving the game.
This past year I’ve reflected on all my regrets, and I told myself that once I retire it’ll be the time to settle down and start a family. But this is where it gets tricky.
I think I’ve found herโmy Mrs. Although she’ll deny our connection to anyone who asks. We’ve been sleeping together casually and since I’m still playing hockey, I’ve let her get what she wantsโmeโwhenever she wants.
After being told my career as a player is over, the owner of Florida Fury grants me a shot to stay in the game. A coaching position I didn’t know I wanted until it was offered. The catch? He’s also passing the family business down to his daughter.
Who’s his daughter?
The woman who’s been in and out of my bed for the past year. Which means the woman I intend to make my wife is now my new boss.ย
I’m sure returning readers already have an investment in Jana & Kane’s HEA but as a new reader I enjoyed it as well – and didn’t feel too left out not having that background. Both characters are strong and pretty sure they know what they want out of life. Which has them bumping heads just as much as … more enjoyable activities. Forced to work together as owner & coach, their relationship changes but it’s hard to turn off the attraction so things quickly get complicated.
While I really liked Jana & Kane (individually and as a couple) and enjoyed their story, there were a couple of suspension of disbelief moments for me. The fact that Kane went from player to head coach in an instant is a little much, definitely something he normally would have worked up to. Jana as new owner is a little easier to understand as she’s been heading there her entire life. Also they both had reasons for not wanting certain things relationshipwise but that changes towards the end and the way it is handled felt a bit rushed to me. Overall though, I liked the book and the way Piper Rayne delivers it, so I’ll definitely be looking for more stories to add to my TBR pile.
*****
Author Info:
Piper Rayne is a USA Today Bestselling Author duo who write “heartwarming humor with a side of sizzle” about families, whether that be blood or found. They both have e-readers full of one-clickable books, they’re married to husbands who drive them to drink, and they’re both chauffeurs to their kids. Most of all, they love hot heroes and quirky heroines who make them laugh, and they hope you do, too!
Especially when the player is the sinfully handsome, foul-mouthed Holden Sandersโฆ my new library assistant.
The benched bad boy needed an image makeover, I needed to save my job, and his star status was just what the library ordered to raise awareness for our fundraising campaign. The press canโt get enough of Mr. Growly reading to kids.
It’s win-win and completely platonic.
Until I need a shoulder to cry on after drowning my heartbreak in too many margaritas. I only typed that invitation to his brawny biceps and perfect pectorals for funโI never meant to hit send. Holden isnโt the kind of guy to care about tears and feelings, least of all mine. Heโs made it clear good girls arenโt his type.
But he shows upโwith his strapping shoulder, a box of tissues and a supersized bag of Doritos.
Thatโs when I realize thereโs more to him than meets the eye.
One soulful, smoldering mistake of a kiss has me craving more, and the heat between us quickly builds to a blaze neither of us can control.
But Iโm not the only one guarding secrets, and Holdenโs might push us to the breaking point.
Even if Iโm surrounded by books, I know better than to believe in storybook endings.
And yet, I want to believe… Because I know he’s a keeper.
โMare, I had no idea what I was in for when you stormed out of the library that day, looking to kill me for skirting my parental responsibilities.โ
She squints, then her expression turns wry. โIโd never kill a person.โ She tilts her head from side to side, considering. โWell, unless you burned a book.โ
Nodding, I kiss her softly. โI respect that. And I want you to know you can trust me. I know people have left you behind in your past, but I hope you believe me when I tell you Iโm not going anywhere. Iโm here for you.โ As I say the words, I believe theyโre true. If I move to England, I hope she loves me enough to come with me. Even if she hasnโt said the words.
I donโt know what Iโm expecting. Maybe relief or acknowledgment that sheโs not going anywhere either. I want to believe she feels the same way.
I donโt expect her forehead to crease and her eyes to glisten with tears, which swell until they can no longer be contained and roll down her cheeks before she buries her face in my shoulder.
Turning us to the side, I wrap her in my arms, as the flow of tears turns to quiet sobs. I smooth her hair and give her the outlet she needs, even though I feel guilty for making her cry.
With a sniff, she leans her head away and meets my gaze. Her wet eyes glisten above pink cheeks. I wipe a remaining tear away with the pad of my thumb and rub her back gently.
โIโm sorry. I didnโt mean to make you cry.โ
โYou didnโt,โ she whispers, wiping her eyes. A moment later she laughs at the lie. โIt was stuck inside me. You just let it out.โ She exhales, tucking the emotions away.
โYou okay?โ I want to tread carefully until I know where she is in her head.
Nodding, she reaches for my cheek and cups the side of my face. โThank you for saying that. Iโd never ask that of you, but thank you. I love you. So much.โ
Iโve been waiting to hear those words. For a moment, Iโm convinced that everything between us can stay this easy. Weโre both cautious, but we can cross each new line together. It feels powerful to be able to do that with her.
โI know youโd never ask. Thatโs why I said it. I wanted you to know.โ
โIโm not going anywhere either.โ
Iโm struck by a foreign but welcome feeling, a realization that I canโt go backward now. I canโt be okay without her in my world. I need to tell her about the Premier League, but it can wait another day. She likes to live in the present.
She loves me.
Everything between us is still so fragile and new and good. I donโt want anything to change us.
One more day wonโt hurt.
*****
Review:
Either Molly works some magic on him or Holden isn’t as much of a grump as he pretends to be, because he’s pretty awesome, in a gruff and foul-mouthed kinda way. He wooed me just as much as he wooed her, every step of the way. And, though I’m surprised that Molly hadn’t found a way to address her problems up to this point, I’m happy that it brought these two together.
He’s a Keeper is definitely that – the characters are fun, their interactions are adorable (and hot), and it’s an easy read to a feel good ending. And while you can see the drama coming a mile away, I appreciate the way that Travis has them evaluate their feelings and come back together. It’s a satisfying HEA to a satisfying story and I’m definitely looking forward to what is coming up next with this series.
*****
Author Info:
Itโs a rough world out there, and we all sometimes need a good, romantic beach read, even if we canโt make it to the beach. Iโve spent many lazy days walking the streets of Paris and other gorgeous European cities, and if Iโm doing it right, Iโm bringing you a dash of romance and a vacay fantasy.
I canโt sit still, so when Iโm not hiking, biking or running, Iโm playing a very average game of tennis. Background music for writing undoubtedly features some U2, Lizzo, Billy Joel, Pink, Taylor Swift, and Led Zeppelin. Not necessarily in that order. And if I could only eat one food group, it would be cheese. Or wine. Or bread. Are those food groups? Whatever.
Rowe brings a story that balances suspense, danger, and emotion. WIth Caleb not being able to remember anything about his life before he wakes up hurt and surrounded by rubble, he’s running on pure instinct. It also allows him the opportunity to embrace the man he is at heart and not just who time and circumstance has turned him into. WIth the help of Jenna and her spunky daughter Gracie, Caleb has to work fast to figure out who he is and why someone wants him dead.
Overall I enjoyed this book (although there may be a bit too much of instalove for some), and it can definitely be read on its own, but I think that it would have even more of an impact for someone who has read the series. It seems that each of the Stockton’s has had to fight to let go of their childhood and find their way back again. With Caleb being the last to return, there is probably a lot more feels for someone who has been there every story. I’m not saying not to give it a shot, but maybe start at the beginning – if the rest of the books are anything like this one, you should be set on reading materials for a while ๐
*****
Author Info:
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Stephanie Rowe is both “contemporary romance at its best” (Bex ‘N’ Books) and a “paranormal star” (JR Ward). The author of more than fifty novels, Stephanie is a 2021 Vivian Award Nominee, and a 2018 winner and a five-time nominee for the RITAยฎ award, the highest awards in romance fiction. As an award-winning author, Stephanie has been touching readers’ hearts and keeping them spellbound for more than a decade with her contemporary romances, romantic suspense, and paranormal romances. For more info on Stephanie, visit http://www.stephanierowe.com, follow her on Facebook: @StephanieRoweBooks, Twitter: @stephanierowe2, and Instagram: @stephanierowe2.
My new boss is my best friendโs older brother and the golden boy of Paradise Shores.ย
Me? I’m the misfit single mom who never wanted to fit in…ย
Being forced to move back to my hometown after a decade away is embarrassing, but Iโll do anything to protect my little girl.
Iโll even wait tables at the elite Yacht Clubโฆ now owned by the boy I once had a huge crush on. Heโs grown up and claimed his rightful place as King of Paradise Shores.
Parker Marchand was a star athlete and professional sailor who never looked at me twice. Heโs strong and steady, everything my abusive ex wasn’t, but I’m a struggling single mom and professional screw-up. What could we possibly have in common?
But Parker doesn’t believe in no win situations. He wants to be my knight in shining armor.
His plan: Charm my daughter. Take me sailing. Out to dinner…and into his bed.ย
Make me forget everyone but him.
The man Iโve always wanted is within reach, but I’ve been burned too many times to trust again. Parker has a brilliant future and Iโm running from my past.
Everyone knows knights in shining armor aren’t real, and Iโm too old to believe in fairy tales. Even if Parker is making it hard not toโฆ
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He smiles, slow and wide, and lowers his head. โNo,โ he says, and then he kisses me. Itโs salty and warm and water drips from his hair onto my temple, cold against my flushed skin.
My eyes are still closed when he pulls away. โThere,โ he murmurs. โNot too little, not too much. We did it right this time.โ
โDonโt Goldilocks this, Marchand.โ
He chuckles hoarsely and then doesnโt make another sound, not as I reach up on my tiptoes and kiss him again. Itโs intoxicating being this close to him.
And just like last time, he becomes a stranger under my lips. Familiar and yet novel, an entirely new landscape to explore. Parker and yet not Parker.
โJamie,โ he murmurs, his hands finding my waist beneath the towel.
My hands settle against his chest. His bare chest. Heโs warm and hard under my hands, skin deceptively soft over the strong muscle beneath.
โJamie,โ he murmurs again, moving his lips to my ear. He laughs softly. โWeโre in the middle of the boardwalk.โ
โOh,โ I whisper against his chest.
โI donโt mind, but I have a feeling you might. You know how this town talks.โ
โYes.โ I turn my head and peek past his shoulder. An SUV drives by us on Ocean Drive. โWhat do we do?โ
He rubs a large hand up and down my arms, as if to warm me. It sends a shiver down my back. โWeโll go home,โ he says, โand start our days, and do this again. When weโre alone.โ
โI like that plan,โ I say. My voice doesnโt sound like my own.
He smiles, small and crooked. โCome on, James. Youโre getting cold, and Iโm in danger of overheating.โ
*****
Review:
Parker really is the golden boy – patient, kind, and understanding right from the start. If you are looking for any growth from him, you aren’t going to get it, but there’s plenty on Jamie’s side to go around ๐ And I find it interesting that there are a number of reviews that didn’t like the book because of Jamie’s recovery from the abuse she’d received at the hands of her ex. I don’t know if they only want strong heroines … or those that quickly get over their troubles … or … I’m not sure. It’s not easy for her to get her confidence back. She feels like a failure for letting it go so long and still bears some of the emotional scars from his words. It’s hard for her to come home and face people she knows, people that seem to have everything together. With Parker’s help she starts to let go of some of her past, to realize she’s tougher than she thinks she is, and that she can start over with her daughter. It’s not easy for her and it does take some time, but she gets there.
Small Town Hero is a slow build but satisfying read about second chances and finding yourself again.
*****
Author Info:
Olivia is a twenty-something hopeless romantic who loves billionaires heroes despite never having met one. Taking matters into her own hands, she creates them on the page instead. Stern, charming, cold or brooding, so far she’s never met a (fictional) billionaire she didn’t like.
A voracious reader of romance, Olivia picked up the pen a few years back and what followed was a love affair of her own. Now she spends her days grinning at the steamy banter she’s writing or swooning at happily-ever-afters. Or, to be frank, struggling with writing about herself in third person for the purposes of marketing.ย โ
She’s been writing contemporary romance novels since 2018.
They’re all exclusively available on Amazon and enrolled in Kindle Unlimited.ย
(Phew. Now I can go back to first-person love stories!)
Enemies to friends to almost lovers … then back to kind-of enemies … to lovers. For a guy who wanted to keep things simple this is anything but.
Fiona knew Knox would be mad when she moved in next door.
And not because she brought a collection of wild animals with her.
And she was right.
So she intended to leave him alone. Mostly.
But heโs not ignoring her. Heโs actively working to send her and her โridiculous menagerieโ (rude) right back out of town.
Still, as hard as she tries, itโs impossible to stop thinking about the small town grumpโs long hair and tattoos and that mouth.
Not the one thatโs almost always set in a grim line and says things like, โyou got a permit for that?โ
Nope, the one that kisses her like sheโs everything heโs ever wanted and says very dirty things in her ear. And sweet, protective, supportive things. Sometimes. Accidentally. When she catches him off-guard.
The one that also says he only wants a long-distance fling with her. Nothing serious. And that he never dates women he sees every day. Like his neighbor.
Well, fine. If he doesnโt want herโand her unbelievable past and that-canโt-be-real futureโthen she doesnโt want him either. He can just kiss herโฆgiraffe. (Yeah, she actually has a couple of those.)
Now she just needs to convince her heart to give him up.
โRemember that thing we talked about at Christmas?”
Knox felt his gut clench. They’d talked about sleeping together. And him becoming the temporary foster dad to three baby otters.
And they’d kissed for the first time. A kiss that had been causing annoying, unwelcome, frustrating dirty dreams for three fucking months.
“About having a salacious affair where we sneak around behind our friends’ backs and sleep together whenever I’m in town?” she pressed when he didn’t answer.
“Yes. I remember.”
Too well. He was incredibly pissed about how often he’d replayed that conversation and how restless he’d been waiting for her to call or come back to Autre.
He didn’t pine for women. Ever. He did the opposite of that.
But now she was here. And Knox wasn’t sure what he was feeling. Her showing up unannounced wasn’t unusual. Fiona Grady rolled into Autre without warning more often than not in her grape-soda-purple truck that sent his heart hammering and cock hardening.
But it had been three months since he’d seen her. Since they’d talked. Since he’d had any clue what she was doing, where she was, how she was.
Suddenly, she was on his doorstep asking about their plan to bang whenever she was in town for a couple of days?
“Okay, well, there’s something I need to tell you that will make you not want to do that anymore,” she said. “So I was wondering if maybe you wanted to get naked together once before I told you and ruined everything?”
He opened his mouth to reply. Then shut it without a word. What the hell?
He glanced over his shoulder. Three minutes ago, he’d been sitting at his kitchen table doing paperwork with a cup of coffee and listening to a podcast about new creative urban development ideas.
Now the woman he was low-level obsessed with was on his porch asking if he wanted to have sex before she told him something that would make him not want to have sex with her anymore.
He ran a hand through his hair. This was why Fiona Grady was no good for him. She came into his carefully controlled and organized life and made things chaotic and messy.
“Are you sick?” he asked.
“Sick? No.”
“Dying?”
“No.”
“Is anyone dying?”
“No.”
“Are you married?” He braced himself. He knew very little about this woman, actually, and if she belonged to someone else, he’dโฆ leave her alone. And hate that man. And never forgive her for stirring him up like this.
“Absolutely not.”
“Engaged?”
“No.”
Okay, that was allโฆway too much of a relief. He should not be this happy to hear that.
“Did you kill someone?” he asked.
She tipped her head, her mouth curling. “Is that a definite deal-breaker?”
No, probably not. Knox narrowed his eyes.
“No, I haven’t killed anyone.”
“Are the Feds looking for you? Or will I be implicated in some kind of crime if I let you in?”
“Not that I’m aware of.”
“That’s not a no.”
“I’m just being honest.”
Fair enough. Fiona was a wild animal advocate. The type of person to show up at roadside petting zoos and ‘circuses’ to monitor how the animals were treated and hand out literature to people attending the events, raising awareness about the poor conditions and treatment of those animals. She showed up to help rescue and care for animals, wild and domestic, after natural disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires. She regularly lobbied local, state, and even the national government for animal protections.
The chance that she could have done something in the “gray area” for one of her causes was pretty good.
The problem with that was he knew that wouldn’t keep him from wanting her.
She was precisely the kind of woman he should be avoiding.
He studied her face for another long moment, then gave in to the inevitable. He pushed his door open.
“Yeah?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
She wasn’t dying, wasn’t married, and hadn’t killed anyone. And he wanted her more than he’d ever wanted another woman in his life. So how was he possibly going to shut the door on her? After three months of missing her? He wasn’t that strong. Or stupid.
*****
Review:
So I’ve been enjoying Knox and Fiona dancing around each other for quite a few books now, and I was really looking forward to their story, but I’ll admit that I was really convinced early on that Knox was beyond a … jerk. Then he shares his reasons for wanting a long distance relationship (which was a big of a surprise) and my heart just went out to him. I didn’t think that I could like him any more than I did coming in but then he showed us his ooey-gooey center and he’s now my favorite book boyfriend – nerdy, sexy, intense, and sweet.
Fiona is still sassy, strong, and committed to her animals, to her loved ones, and to ruffling Knox’s well put together feathers. Her secrets are just as audacious as she is and nothing less than we should have expected from her. I loved getting to know her (and those close to her) better as the story unfolds. She understands Knox as no one else does and truly appreciates him. If she can only convince him that they can make a relationship work.
Small town charm, boisterous characters, and enough heat to keep things interesting all mix together to give readers a satisfying conclusion to the Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild series (although, never fear – there are more books coming from this world).
*Part of a series but can be enjoyed as a stand alone, although the prequal Otterly Into You is a must read and currently free on Amazon.*
*****
Author Info:
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Erin Nicholas has been writing romances almost as long as sheโs been reading them. To date, sheโs written over thirty sexy, contemporary novels that have been described as โtoe-curling,โ โenchanting,โ โsteamy,โ and โfun.โ She adores reluctant heroes, imperfect heroines, and happily ever afters.
Erin lives in the Midwest, where she enjoys spending time with her husband (who only wants to read the sex scenes in her books), her kids (who will never read the sex scenes in her books), and her family and friends (who claim to be โshockedโ by the sex scenes in her books).
USA Todayย bestselling author Sarah Morgan returns with the ultimate beach read, as one woman forges the most unlikely friendship of all, and embarks on a summer of confronting her past in order to build the future she wants…
When Joanna Whitman’s famous ex-husband dies in a car accident, she doesn’t know what to feel. Their dysfunctional marriage held more painful secrets than she cares to remember. But when she discovers that the young woman with him in the crash is pregnant, Joanna feels compelled to act, knowing exactly how brutal the media spotlight will be on celebrity chef Cliff Whitman’s ex-wife and his mysterious female friend.
Ashley Blake can’t believe it when Joanna shows up in her hospital room and suggests they hide away at her beach house on a sleepy stretch of California coast. Joanna should be hating her, not helping her. But alone and pregnant, Ashley can’t turn down Joanna’s offer. Yet she knows that if Joanna ever found out the real reason Ashley was in that car, their tentative bond would shatter instantly.
Joanna’s only goal for the summer is privacy, but her return causes major waves in the local community, especially for the man she left behind years ago. All Ashley wants is space to plan for her and her baby’s future, and to avoid causing any trouble for Joanna. But as secrets spill out under the hot summer sun, this unlikely friendship is about to be put to the test.
*****
Review:
Morgan’s latest is a lovely story about how not everything is what it seems and sometimes the only way to go forward is to look to the past.
Joanna has spent years in a spotlight that she doesn’t want and since divorcing her celebrity chef husband she’s done everything she can to avoid it. The sudden death of her husband under scandalous circumstances has the press back at her door. Realizing what it means for her, and the woman in the car with him, Joanna takes them both and heads to her home town to hide. Which also puts her close to those she left behind many years ago. While they wait for the press to find them, secrets come out and connections are made.
Beach House Summer is a slow burn as Joanna and Ashley get to know each other and examine who they are & what they want. Joanna also has to face her past – a friendship lost and a love that might be again.
Spending the night in jail isnโt exactly how I planned to spend Christmas, but Iโve had worse holidaysโฆ
Now that Iโm out, itโs time to accept my real punishment. Coaching ten-year-old terrors on the ice, in my non-existent free time. My Coach thinks itโd be good for me. Remind me where I came from. He should know Iโve tried every day of my life for the last ten years to forget.
The youth hockey league is a hell I didnโt plan on and the worst penalty possibleโฆ
Until the day a sweet, single mom cracks a joke about her kid, and then all bets are off.
Iโm the best defenseman in professional hockey, but I didnโt see her comingโฆ now what in the hell do I do? Iโm not equipped for a relationship. Iโm definitely not ready to have a kid depending on me, but I canโt deny she makes me feel thingsโ want things I never imagined I could have.
I should save us both the trouble and stay far away from her. But rules were made to be broken, and I was never good at following them anyway.
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You feel sorry for Holly when you first meet her – her ex is a total *insert favorite bad word here*, he cheated on her with her best friend and then moved in with the woman right next door! But once Dom sets his sights on her … ๐ Holly is a good mom, a caring person, and quickly finds herself drawn to the broody hockey star. And is surprised to find that attraction reciprocated.
This is my first Las Vegas Vipers book so I don’t know what impression previous stories gave readers about Dom but based on Rule Breaker I loved him. He’s troubled but loves his sister and will do whatever he can to help her. He’s made himself a loner because he wants to keep his family & his history quiet. Forced to coach a little kids hockey team, he finds himself drawn to Holly and her son. Before he knows it he’s getting involved and letting other people into his own life. The way that has him growing closer to his teammates turns out to be just as pivotal for him as the relationship that develops with Holly.
Lynn’s latest is funny, angsty, sexy, and entertaining. She gives us characters we can root for, plenty of steam, a boatload of feels, and a HEA that just tugs at the heart. A bit of a warning – there are some sensitive topics discussed, but I don’t feel like she treated them lightly (although I’m no expert in any of them).
*Part of a series but can be read as a standalone.*
*****
Author Info:
Stacey Lynn likes her coffee with a dash of sugar, her heroes with a side of bossy, and her wine a deep shade of red.
The author of over thirty romance novels, many of which have been best-selling titles on Amazon, AppleBooks, and Barnes & Noble, she loves being able to turn her vivid imagination into a career that brings entertainment and joy to her readers. Focused on sports romance and emotional, small-town romance, she also loves stretching herself in different genres.
Born in Texas and raised in the Midwest, she now makes her home in North Carolina and loves all things Southern. Together with her ultimate tall, dark, and handsome hero, she has four children. Her life is a chaotic mess that fights with her Type-A, list-making, neurotically organized preferences and she wouldn’t have it any other way.
How do you start over when the biggest mistake of your life has more than one million views?
Forget diamonds; the internet is forever. Social media consultant Isla Thompson learned that lesson the hard way when she went viral for all the wrong reasons. A month later, Isla is still having nightmares about the moment she ruined a young starletโs career and made herself the most unemployable influencer in Manhattan. But she doesnโt have the luxury of hiding away until sheโs no longer โInstagram Poison.โ Not when her fourteen-year-old sister, Dani, needs Isla to keep a roof over their heads. So she takes the first job she can get: caring for Camilla, a glossy-maned, foul-tempered hellhound.
After a week of ferrying Camilla from playdates to pet psychics, Isla starts to suspect that the dachshundโs bark is worse than her biteโjust like her owner, Theo Garrison. Isla has spent her career working to make people likeable and hereโs Theoโhappy to hide behind his reputation as a brutish recluse. But Theo isnโt a bruteโheโs sweet and funny, and Isla shouldย notย see him as anything but the man who signs her pay cheques. Because loving Theo would mean retreating to his world of secluded luxury, and Isla needs to show Dani that no matter the risk, dreams are always worth chasing.
Isla trudged along the hallway toward her apartment, high heels swinging from her finger. Usually she wouldnโt dare go barefoot on public carpetโespecially not in a building of questionable standards, like this one. But after walking six blocks to get home in the pretty, stiletto-heeled death traps, her feet had officially given up the ghost.
Besides, foot hygiene was the least of her problems. With another rejected job applicationโthis one coming through before sheโd even made it home from the interviewโshe had bigger things to worry about.
Isla unlocked her front door and stepped inside, her lips quirking at the familiar sight. Her little sister, Dani, was standing next to the wall, one hand resting on a makeshift barre crafted from a shower curtain rod and some wall brackets theyโd found at the dollar store. She was dressed in a plain black leotard and a pair of pink ballet tights with a hole in the knee. Her battered pointe shoes were frayed around the toes, though the ribbons were glossy and new, stitched on with the utmost care.
Classical music blared from the stereo and Isla hit the pause button. โWhat have I said about disturbing the neighbors?โ
Dani paused mid-pliรฉ. โIf youโre going to do it, do it properly.โ
โThatโs not what I said.โ She shot her sister a look, trying to ignore how her leotard was digging into her shoulders. It was clearly a size too small because the damn girl was growing like a weed. At fourteen, sheโd already surpassed Isla in height.
โOh, thatโs right.โ Dani grinned. โYou said that about schoolwork. But, to be fair, ballet is even more important than schoolwork, soโฆโ
โWeโll agree on that when you can pay the bills with pliรฉs.โ Isla hung her keys on the hook by the door and dumped her purse onto the kitchen counter.
โWorking on it.โ Dani continued warming up, her pointe shoes knocking against the floorboards. โHow was your day?โ
Ugh. You mean, how were the three dozen rejection letters and this last interview, which was clearly only for curiosityโs sake because the recruiter straight up laughed the second I left the interview room?
โIt wasโฆfine,โ she said, without much commitment.
In reality, it was anything but fine. What had her old boss called her? Oh, thatโs right: Instagram poison.
โYou told me once that saying something is โfineโ is no better than saying itโs โpurple pineapples.โโ Dani dropped down from her relevรฉ and frowned. โWhat happened?โ
What hadnโt happened?
Isla pulled a bottle of wine out of the fridge and poured her-self a glass. Sheโd been rationing it, since the only stuff that was left after this was a box wine of unknown origin. โAmanda lost her contract with that makeup company and her movie is flopping. She sent me an angry email today.โ
โWhatever happened to all publicity is good publicity?โ
โItโs a myth. Turns out some things are career killers.โ Isla took a gulp of the wine. โAnd now Iโm that woman who filmed a Disney princess vomiting all over herself.โ
After the live video had been splashed across the internet and featured on network television, Isla had swiftly been fired from her job as a senior social media consultant with the Gate-way Agency. All her freelance clients had dropped her like a hot potato, too. Now, anyone who searched Islaโs name got page after page of the same thing: vomit girl and the person who was too dumb to stop recording.
Hence the growing pile of rejected job applications.
โI take it the interview didnโt go well?โ
Isla cringed at the concern in her sisterโs voice. Most fourteen-year-olds were worrying about frivolous things, like which shade of lip gloss was the most on trend or how to craft the perfect TikTok dance routine. Hell, she would argue thatโs the stuff they should be worrying about. Not whether they were going to have a roof over their heads.
โNo, it didnโt,โ Isla admitted. โBut honestly, Iโm not sure I would have wanted to work there anyway.โ
It was a total lie.
Isla was ready to take anything at this point. It was humiliating to be begging for jobs she could have done ten years ago with her eyes closed, only to be rejected because the recruiters had found someone โwith more experience.โ Umm, what? In other words, sheโd been officially blacklisted from the social media industry.
โHow come?โ Dani walked over to the kitchen, her arms swinging gracefully by her sides. Her dark hair was in a neat bun on top of her head, tied with a piece of leftover ribbon from her pointe shoes. โWere they not very nice?โ
โNot really.โ
Dani came up to Isla and put an arm around her, stooping so she could lean her head against her big sisterโs shoulder. Some days it felt like it was them against the world. Given they didnโt actually know where their mother was these daysโand they hadnโt seen either one of their dads in God only knew how longโthey really did have to stick together.
Isla remembered the day it all happenedโthe eve of her twentieth birthday. Their mother had announced she was eloping overseas with a boyfriend sheโd known less than a month, and they hadnโt seen her since. Apparently motherhood was a temporary commitment, in her eyes. That left Isla responsible for the well-being of another human, and more terrified of the future than sheโd ever been.
Six years later, Isla had built a life for them both. Sheโd fostered and financed her half sisterโs dreams, built up her own dream career and done it all while hiding how often the numbers werenโt in their favor. But the older Dani got, the more keenly she observed what was going on.
โMaybe you can ask the ballet school for our money back,โ Dani suggested quietly.
Her spot had been secured for the summer intensive ballet camp months ago, before Islaโs job situation had fallen apart.
โI know it was really expensive,โ she added.
Isla felt tears prick the backs of her eyes, but she refused to let her sister see even a sliver of her emotion. It was her job to be a pillar. To be the strong one. To be the positive mother figure neither of them ever had.
โDani, I would sell my right kidney if it meant you could go to ballet camp.โ
โIโm pretty sure thatโs illegal.โ
Isla snorted and wrapped her sister into a big hug. Like al-ways, she smelled of oversweet vanilla perfume and mango-scented shampoo. She would do anything for this kid. Anything to make sure Dani grew up knowing that dreams were worth chasing, and that family came first no matter what.
โAnd how do you know so much about black market organ sales?โ Isla raised a brow and Dani laughed.
โCSI.โ
โAh, of course.โ She laughed. But when Dani pulled back, Isla noticed her sisterโs characteristically carefree attitude was hidden under the worry swimming in her blue eyes. Isla hated seeing that. โWhy donโt we go to Central Park, huh? Weโll take your phone and I can get a few shots of you for your Instagram account.โ
โReally?โ Daniโs eyes lit up.
โSure. Just let me get changed.โ
โI promise not to make you take a hundred photos this time.โ Dani grinned and did a little pirouette in the kitchen. โNot even half that!โ
โDonโt make promises you canโt keep,โ Isla shot over her shoulder as she headed into her bedroom. โTrust me, I know where you get those perfectionistic tendencies.โ
The second Isla closed her bedroom door behind her, she slumped against it and deflated like a balloon the day after a birthday party. Outside, the city roared with life. Sirens and horns, music blaring from the open window of another apartment, the shrieking laughter of people enjoying the early evening. She gazed out of the window, her eyes catching on the usual things that faced their cozy (read: cramped) place. There was a glimmer of light as the sun reflected off glass panes, and the zigzag of a fire escape from the building opposite them. The same three apartments always had their blinds wide openโeither inviting voyeurism or not caring enough to prevent it.
Sometimes she wondered about their lives. Had they been stuck and struggling at some point like her? Had they lost faith in themselves and the world?
After she got fired, Isla had assumed it would all blow over if she kept a low profile and didnโt make matters worse. But then Amandaโs movie tanked and all her sponsorships fell through, and people stopped taking Islaโs calls. Even when sheโd tried to laugh the whole thing off as a โMiley Cyrus exerciseโ her contacts had frozen harder than an Upper East Siderโs Botoxed face.
New York could be like thatโwhen you were successful it felt as though the sun was made of gold. And when you fell from grace, you hit the concrete so hard you shattered every bone in your body.
How much longer was she going to be able to keep faking that everything would be fine? Rent was due next week and the final payment for Daniโs elite ballet camp had come out of her account a few days ago. Islaโs eyes had watered at the amount. But Dani had worked so hard, practicing every day and pushing herself to the limit to beat out the rich kids with their prestigious coaches and private lessons and their lifetimes of opportunity.
How could Isla pull the rug out from under Dani like that? What kind of lesson would that be teaching her?
โYouโll figure this out,โ she said to herself. โSomeone will hire you.โ
After all, she had to make it work. Because letting her sister down was not an option.
Excerpted from The Dachshund Wears Prada by Stefanie London, Copyright ยฉ 2022 by Stefanie Little. Published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
*****
Review:
While it’s entirely predictable, London’s newest is charming and cute. In the beginning Theo is gruff and standoffish, very Beast to Isla’s Beauty but as we get to know him we see the lonely man underneath and the reasons he’s kept himself separated. Time spent around Isla’s bright and understanding spirit has him coming out of his shell more and more. But it leaves him vulnerable and that’s not something Theo likes to be.
Isla is struggling to find work to be able to support her sister and a chance encounter with Theo in the park gives her the help she needs. While working on winning the trust of his temperamental dachshund, Isla also gets a glimpse into the heart of Camilla’s equally troubled owner. And the more she sees, the more she likes.
As good as the romance is, the secondary relationships are important as well. There’s something wholesome about Isla’s relationship with her sister. The way she shows her support and patience, the sacrifices she’s made for her, and the way Dani is willing to help her sister in return. And I really hope we get to see more of Isla’s friend, Scout, as her support is very important to the Thompsons and I’m curious about her story. Theo doesn’t have very many people in his life, by choice, but you can see the caring that’s there for those that have known him the longest. And the stories of his grandmother show just how awesome she was.
There’s so much about this book that I liked. It’s fun, steamy, & emotional and even though I could see their problems coming a mile away, the path to them and then to a HEA made for a very enjoyable read.
*****
Author Info:
Stefanie London is a USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. Her books have been called “genuinely entertaining and memorable” by Booklist, and her writing praised as “elegant, descriptive and delectable” by RT Magazine. Originally from Australia, she now lives in Toronto with her very own hero and is doing her best to travel the world. She frequently indulges her passions for lipstick, good coffee, books and anything zombie related.
I used to believe in what we do at Mayberry Matchmakers, but now? Love is just another four-letter word.
Too bad my grandmother hasnโt gotten the memo. When tech billionaire Rory Byrne approaches us, wanting to develop the matchmaking app my sister and I dreamed up (and Nana shot down), she jumps at the chance. My grandmother is nothing if not opportunistic.
Of course, thereโs a catch. Sheโll only do it if Rory lets us matchmake him the old-fashioned way.
Heโs going to say no.
Please God, let him say no.
The last thing I want to do is matchmake an entitled rich jerk…especially one who looks like sin and talks a good game.
Rory
Iโve screwed up in love a few times, but I never screw up in business. Mayberry Matchmakers has the idea for something amazing, and I have the money and the experience to make it come to life.
I should deny Nana Mayberryโs condition. If I let them matchmake me, itโll be all over the news, and making headlines has never interested meโฆespecially not after the personal betrayal that nearly broke me. But Iโm having trouble caring about what I should do, because Bryn Mayberry is smart, snarky, and not the slightest bit impressed with me.
Actually, this may be Mayberry Matchmakersโ easiest job yet.
โPeople are always watching you, arenโt they?โ I ask.
Rory takes a step toward me, and I think again about all those watching eyes. Everyone in town will be watching us now, and theyโll sense . . .
Well, theyโll sense that weโre obviously in lust with each other.
โAre you watching me, Bryn?โ he says softly.
Well, throw a bucket of water on me and call me the Wicked Witch of the West.
โSometimes itโs hard to look away,โ I admit, my mouth forming the words before I have time to give it a talking-to.
His eyes sparkle, as if I just confirmed something heโs wondered about, desperately. โDo you ask so many questions of all of your clients?โ
โYes,โ I fib. While he might be averse to white lies, Iโm not. But before that sparkle can dim all the way, I admit, โBut I donโt usually offer any information in return.โ
His smile burrows under my skin. Then he glances up, taking in our observers, and says, โLet me walk you to your car.โ
โItโs in the back of the parking lot,โ I say.
He nods. โLead the way.โ
He walks beside me, a little too close, and even though itโs a warm night, I can feel his heat leaping toward me, like flames to paper.
Once weโre away from the front of the brewery, his hand slips to the small of my back and lingers there, and if thereโs ever been anything so sexy, I donโt know what it is. Weโre about to pass a copse of trees on the side of the lot when he glances around, grabs my hand, and pulls me into it. Weโre in near darkness, evergreens dancing around us, and weโre standing close enough that I can feel his breath feathering my face.
His eyes are so warm they nearly immolate me.
โI donโt mean to tell you how to do your job,โ he says, โbut I think you succeeded before you started. I want to be set up with you.โ
โMicromanaging me already, are you?โ I ask, a little breathless.
โYes.โ He reaches up to touch my jaw, tracing the shape of it. โIโd like to kiss you.โ
I should tell him no. Setting aside the whole four dates thing, weโre going to be working together. Giving into this . . . madness . . . is the last thing we should be doing, but Iโve been so lonely, and heโs more of a man than Iโve encountered in . . .
Forever.
Heโs the kind of man I didnโt think existed in real life, to be honest.
So maybe I can temporarily forget Iโm setting myself up for disaster. Because just about a year ago, my fiancรฉ of twenty-four hours and I broke up, and within a week he was with another woman. Within three months, heโd married her. If I let myself fall for Rory, if I let myself give in to these feelings tugging at me, insisting I acknowledge them, then I wonโt just be giving myself a front-row seat to him moving on . . . I might have the displeasure of being the person who helps him do it.
Still, I find myself leaning into him. โThen quit talking and do it already.โ
*****
Review:
The newest collab between these two bestselling authors is full of disastrous dates, steamy moments, and two people who shouldn’t finding themselves falling in love.
Rory is pretty much perfect – he’s generous with his money and power, he’s kind and understanding, and he’s commanding in the bedroom. Which makes him pretty darn irresistible to Bryn.
Bryn is struggling with her self-worth. Her last relationship ended badly and left her with a lot of doubts, about herself and her job as a matchmaker. Quickly realizing her early assumptions about Rory and his motives, she finds herself with another issue – resisting her latest client.
Angela Denise brings readers a humorous rom com with a near-perfect hero and a heroine who needs to learn to trust herself again. A delightful combination of comedy, heat, and emotion, with enjoyable characters and a satisfying HEA, Matchmaking a Billionaire gives readers a reason to want to return to Highland Hills again and again.
*****
Author Info:
ANGELA DENISE is the pen name for the writing duo Angela Casella and Denise Grover Swank.
ANGELA CASELLA loves writing romcoms, particularly with the lovely Denise Grover Swank. She lives in Asheville, NC with her husband, daughter, and two geriatric dogs. Her hobbies include herding her daughter toward less dangerous activities, stress baking, and marathon watching TV shows.
DENISE GROVER SWANK is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author and has sold over three million books. She indie published her first book, a romance mystery, Twenty-Eight and a Half Wishes, in 2011. She has since published over fifty novels, multiple novellas and short stories as an indie and with five publishers. She is published in seven languages. She is a single mother to six children and four dogs and hasnโt lost her sanity. Or so she leads you to believe.
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Denise Grover Swank was born in Kansas City, Missouri and lived in the area until she was nineteen. Then she became a nomadic gypsy, living in five cities, four states and ten ho uses over the course of ten years before she moved back to her roots. She speaks English and smattering of Spanish and Chinese which she learned through an intensive Nick Jr. immersion period. Her hobbies include witty Facebook comments (in own her mind) and dancing in her kitchen with her children. (Quite badly if you believe her offspring.) Hidden talents include the gift of justification and the ability to drink massive amounts of caffeine and still fall asleep within two minutes. Her lack of the sense of smell allows her to perform many unspeakable tasks. She has six children and hasnโt lost her sanity. Or so she leads you to believe.
ANGELA CASELLA loves writing romcoms, particularly with the lovely Denise Grover Swank. They write together as Angela Denise. Angela also writes the Fairy Godmother Agency series. She lives in Asheville, NC with her husband, daughter, and two geriatric dogs. Her hobbies include herding her daughter toward less dangerous activities, stress baking, and marathon watching TV shows.ย
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