For the reasonable price of $1, Natalie Malone just bought herself an abandoned villa on the Amalfi Coast. With a detailed spreadsheet and an ancient key, she’s arrived in Italy ready to renovate–and only six months to do it. Which seemed reasonable until architect Pietro Indelicato began critically watching her every move… .  

My Rating:

 

Favorite Quotes:

 

Betrayal was never accidental. It was always a choice.

Pietro’s charm was universal— not something meant specifically for, or uniquely affecting, her. Natalie had seen toddlers swoon in his presence.

That’s why I came to Italy. To live in a beautiful little town with quirky but lovable people, great weather, and delicious food. Jorge gave me a rundown on the merits of naked beekeeping last week. Between him and Signora Carlota, I’m exceeding my goal.

She had once thought kissing straightforward— formulaic— then she experienced what Pietro could do with his tongue. Natalie was torn between wanting to be jealous of all the practice that had left him with skills like that and wanting to write personal thank-you notes to every woman who had contributed to his technique.

She didn’t think she’d ever felt so many different emotions at once. Pietro appealed to her sense of freedom, to her sense of humor, and even to her sense of logic. He knew how to get at her from anywhere.

 

My Review:

  This was an entertaining and relatable read with generous sprinkles of humor, a slowly developing new romance, gasp-worthy sensuality, observant insights, family drama, DIY renovations, gorgeous Italian sightseeing, and an interesting mystery. The writing had a smooth and easy-to-follow flow with taunting tidbits that teased my curiosity and kept me reading when the clock argued otherwise. The angst and contrived conflict levels were low, which is exactly how I like it. This was my second time reading her work and I find I enjoy Ms. Blade’s engaging writing style and liberal injections of humorous descriptions and amusing observations, which are some of the excellent reasons why she has been added to my list of favorites.   Kilby Blades is a USA Today bestselling author of Romance and Women’s Fiction. During her fifteen-year career as a digital marketing executive, she moonlighted as a journalist, freelanced as a food, wine, and travel writer, and lived it up as an entertainment columnist. She has lived in five countries, visited more than twenty-five, and spends part of her year in her happy place in the Andes Mountains. Kilby is a feminist, an oenophile, a cinephile, a social-justice fighter, and above all else, a glutton for a good story.  

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The One Month Boyfriend
(Wildwood Society #1)
by Roxie Noir 

 

It’s a simple enough agreement: for one month, Silas Flynn is my boyfriend of convenience.

 

He needs his old-fashioned boss to think he’s ready to settle down.

 

I need some arm candy to prove to my jerk ex-fiancé that I’ve moved on.

 

Perfect, right? Except for one minor detail: we can’t stand each other.

 

Everybody thinks he’s this perfect guy, but I know the real Silas. He’s a cocky, obnoxious jerk who thinks he can charm his way out of trouble and get anything he wants.

 

But there’s one tiny problem with fake dating: it looks a lot like real dating. Worse, it feels a lot like real dating.

 

I know once this is over, we’ll go our separate ways. No matter the smoldering looks he gives me, the possessive way he touches me, or the dirty things he whispers in my ear, Silas isn’t falling for me.

 

That’s fine. No matter how good being with him feels, I’m not falling for him, either.

 

One month. That’s it.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

God, I love air conditioning. The pinnacle of human achievement.

‘…if you want me to break into his car and put shrimp paste under the floor mats, I will.” Now that’s the kind of friendship I need. “In August, no less,” I say. “Can you imagine?” “I don’t want to.” “My cousin’s friend’s roommate said someone did it to her once when she left her car somewhere for a whole weekend, and it smelled so bad she called the cops because she thought there had to be a dead body in there,” she says, comfortingly. “Wow,” I say, my chin digging into her shoulder. “One of the cops puked. She had to sell the car for scrap.

My face goes hot. My lips go cold. My body is somehow every temperature at once, I can’t feel my fingertips, and I think I might pass out from the sheer, all-consuming blinding rage. It feels like someone hooked my brain stem to a car battery, it’s so forceful, so palpable that I swear if I move at all I’ll send shockwaves through the room.

I’ve had one drink and I feel like I’m made of night air and fireworks.

Sentences feel like tetris when I’m like this: all pieces that could easily fit together if only I had enough skill and speed to make it work, which I never do.

 

My Review:

 

This is a fun and humorous read despite being filled with a cast of complicated and fractured characters with a multitude of issues they struggle with on a daily basis. Some were obvious and some were masked. This clever scribbler obviously knows a thing or two about anxiety and the ridiculousness of the scenarios the sufferer can conjure to endlessly fret over.

The characters were well-textured and frequently annoying yet oddly endearing and endlessly entertaining. I unequivocally adored Silas, and I knew I would, based on this wily writer’s skills.

While the overall plot was a common one, the storylines were original, authentic, highly amusing, smirk-worthy, atomically steamy, and unpredictable. Just like every other book by Ms. Noir that I’ve been lucky enough to stumble upon. The gal has mad skills and remains near the top of my list of favorites.

 

I love writing sexy, alpha men and the headstrong women they fall for.

 

My weaknesses include: beards, whiskey, nice abs with treasure trails, sarcasm, cats, prowess in the kitchen, prowess in the bedroom, forearm tattoos, and gummi bears.

 

I live in California with my very own sexy, bearded, whiskey-loving husband and two hell-raising cats.

 

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http://roxienoir.com

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When Tawna Fenske finished her English lit degree at 22, she celebrated by filling a giant trash bag full of romance novels and dragging it everywhere until she’d read them all. Now she’s a RITA-nominated, USA Today bestselling author who writes humorous fiction, risqué romance, and heartwarming love stories with a quirky twist. Publishers Weekly has praised Tawna’s offbeat romances with multiple starred reviews and noted, “There’s something wonderfully relaxing about being immersed in a story filled with over-the-top characters in undeniably relatable situations. Heartache and humor go hand in hand.”

Tawna lives in Bend, Oregon, with her husband, stepkids, and a menagerie of ill-behaved pets. She loves hiking, snowshoeing, standup paddleboarding, and inventing excuses to sip wine on her back porch. She can peel a banana with her toes and loses an average of twenty pairs of eyeglasses per year. To find out more about Tawna and her books, visit www.tawnafenske.com.

 

Smart Mouth, an all-new opposites-attract romantic comedy from Emma Lee Jayne, is now available.

 

The rockstar

 

There are lots of assumptions people make about rockstars. Shallow. Player. Addict. The truth? I’m none of those. 

 

The even bigger truth…the only opinion I care about is her’s and she hates me. Her as in Gwen Matthews, my twin brother’s best friend, the unrequited love of my life. She thinks I’m a liar and a jerk which is why I pretend to be my brother when she needs help one night. 

 

Except Gwen is a genius. Literally. So it doesn’t take her long to figure out it’s me and not my brother, but maybe, just maybe, she’s willing to give me a second chance. Because maybe when she looks at me, she only sees a rockstar with her best friend’s face, but when I look at her, I see my other half. She centers me in a way that no rhythm or line of lyric ever could. 

 

 

The scientist

 

I have three priorities in life at the moment: finish my research, defend my dissertation, and get my Ph.D., so that I can actually figure out what I’m supposed to do with my life. Tom Mendoza won’t help me achieve any of those things. Yet I can’t help the sudden feeling that I’ve been completely wrong about him all this time. 

 

The day we first met when we were both teenagers, I saw a glimpse of a sweet, funny boy that felt very much like a kindred spirit; awkward and full of energy and dreams. But that guy seemed to disappear and in his place was this stereotypical stupidly hot rock star that did not make sense in my world. 

 

Being a scientist means being willing to admit when you’re wrong and reevaluating everything. I might not understand much about human behavior, but I can clearly see the tender underbelly that Tom protects. The subtle rituals he uses to stave off his anxiety. Yes, he’s ridiculously hot, but his soul just might be more beautiful than his face and I’m not sure what to do with that. 

 

Especially when I find out that he’s in love with me. 

 

‘Smart Mouth’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #4 in the Work For It series, Educated Romance World, Penny Reid Book Universe.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quote:

 

I stop talking when I realize I’m speaking in choppy phrases that all sound like questions. I’m a smart woman who is about to get her Ph.D., and here I am, talking to the hottest man I’ve ever met about tilapia and compost, and I can’t even do that without sounding like a moron. Ladies and gentlemen, this is why I’m still single.

 

My Review:

 

This was a fun and witty tale full of insightful observations and amusing encounters between a brilliant but socially awkward microbiology doctoral candidate and the man who has pined for her for half his life. The characters were authentic and accessible and I particularly enjoyed the character of Tom being the complete antithesis of his culture, birth order, and successful career.

The storylines were active, well-paced, and engaging with smirk-worthy writing that pulled strong visuals to my mind’s eye. There was a small amount of breath-stealing and gasp-worthy sensual steam yet the heat level was high enough to singe my eyebrows.

This was my first exposure to the clever word voodoo of Emma Lee Jayne but I definitely feel a habit forming.