Love in a Pickle, an all-new standalone contemporary romance from L.B. Dunbar, is LIVE in Kindle Unlimited! 

When a mysterious silver fox becomes intrigued with this small town’s most disliked society woman, he finds she’s more than a little trouble and possibly a whole lot of heart.

Scotia Simmons. The name says it all—ornery, judgmental, mean—but underneath a woman like that is typically a shattered heart. Locked within her secrets, this fried pickle princess has used her unkindness as a shield of protection against the loneliness. However, menopause and a one-night stand can change a woman’s perspective on things. Who knew it would take a man the likes of him to push her strong will to its limits?

Chester Chesterfield. The name has more than one meaning—generous, quiet, private—but within one man is a multitude of personas. The gruff oil mogul has a wounded heart (and a big secret) that holds him hostage from the man he’s meant to be. His past defined him, or so he thought. He never imagined it’d take a woman like her to push him over his carefully constructed edges and show him love has no boundaries.

When you’re in a pickle, it’s time to relish what—or rather who—stands before you and accept that even over forty, a second chance at love can be a big dill (every pun intended).

 

‘Love in a Pickle’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #9 in the Green Valley Library series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

 

Grab your copy TODAY!

 

Read the Green Valley Library Series of Standalones for F-R-E-E in Kindle Unlimited!

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“What a strange name. Mrs. Pickle,” I mock. The image of an elderly woman with gray hair curled tight like an old-fashioned perm, wearing a floral dress that looks like an antiquated housecoat and gnawing on a dill pickle comes to mind. In my head, she bites into it like she hates dick.

 

He’s locked up tighter than a Bible-thumping virgin.

 

Expectation is the work of the devil. When you expect something, you are sure to be disappointed

 

Naomi found us shirts— the Sun, the moon, and the Earth— for the three of us to wear. We can form an eclipse depending on how we stand next to one another.

 

My Review:

 

This was a massive surprise. I knew from previous outings that Ms. Dunbar could bring the heat but my mere perusal of this tale actually produced perspiration in a cool room. I may also have been gasping. Despite the couple’s subatomic sensual chemistry and age-defying stamina, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to warm to Scotia as she was actually rather vile.   Scotia had a well-earned reputation, as she was short-tempered, snide, snarky, and mercurial with everyone.   She was a small-town socialite and while she had finally come into her own as a businesswoman and rich widow, she had become as salty and sour as the pickle products she produced.

Scotia had married up for security and social standing, but that didn’t go as planned due to her husband’s proclivities and peccadilloes; he had repeatedly broken her heart. He had his reasons. She wasn’t his type. But when Scotia fell into an exhilarating fling with a scorching hot local entrepreneur who turn out to be quite the chameleon, she began to thaw, in all areas.   Trust was hard to come by for both but their mind-blowing carnality and visceral connection was a surprise to each, as well as a source of confusion, obsession, and wonderment to them both. They became besotted. I enjoyed their insightfully and wittily penned journey and Scotia’s gradual transformation was as amusing as it was satisfying. Combined with the clever threads of intrigue woven in between the sizzling mattress Olympics and I found this an engaging read.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

He handed me one of the two to-go cups of coffee he held. “I got it like you like your men… Blond roast with cream and sugar,” he said before turning sharply and heading to the bus.

 

He blinked slowly and yawned so big I could see a filling in his molar.

 

You’re doing it again… Looking at me like I’m a fluffy bunny you want to take home and feed carrots to.

 My Review:

 

Sizzle and snap, I was about to call the fire marshal for fear my Kindle would detonate. Holy smokes, these two sexy hunks did a bang-up job of keeping me entertained with smirks in ample supply while steaming up my tablet with their fledgling love affair. The storylines were active, easy to follow, witty, insightfully penned, and flowed at a steady pace with a likable, endearing, and realistically flawed cast of characters. This was a quick, tasty, and satisfying amuse-bouche to keep the appetites whetted for more to come.

 

Hotshot and Hospitality
(Green Valley Library, #8)
by Nora Everly

 

Amazon / BB

 

Hotshot and Hospitality, an all-new charming friends-to-lovers small-town romance from Nora Everly, is LIVE in Kindle Unlimited! 

Molly Cooper is through with men.

She means it this time.

Being stood up and humiliated was the last straw.

But after her all-grown-up and smokin’ hot childhood bestie kissed her to help her save face, she’s left wondering if it was the tequila or his lips that gave her all the feels.

 

Garrett Monroe had no intention of falling for his childhood best friend.

Unfortunately, one unplanned kiss in a bar was all it took for him to stumble. 

Now he’s stuck with a crush that won’t quit on the most stubborn woman he’s ever known.

 

Soon enough they’re overwhelmed by out-of-control feelings, one match-making momma, and two tight-knit families who think they’re dating when they’re not.

 

Or are they?

 

Nothing stays secret in Green Valley, Tennessee.

Can Molly and Garrett navigate the nosy waters and fall for each other in private?

Or will secrets sink their friendship instead? 

 

‘Hotshot and Hospitality’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #8 in the Green Valley Library series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I could use a vicarious thrill; my well has run dry. The last man I dated said he was thirty, but I swear, y’all, if you told me he was really two fifteen-year-old boys stacked up inside of a trench coat, I would believe you.

 

There were ten different kinds of feels coursing through my body right now and each one had its own sub-list of minor feels just waiting to be categorized and sorted into something that made sense. Ugh! I was like a periodic table of feelings or a horny science project.

 

I was one hundred percent sure I would be a pain-in-the-ass pregnant woman. Honestly, I was a handful with just a head cold.

 

It’s just like my great-aunt Belle always used to say— when all else fails, show your boobs… I’ll have you know it’s solid advice. She’s been married, like, eight times. Anyway, we’ll see if it works on you after dinner. For science.

 

My Review:

 

 

This was rollicking good fun from start to finish. I adored these captivating characters and the author’s irreverent and smirk-worthy sense of humor. The storylines were engaging, entertaining, and laced together with clever wit and cheeky observations. Molly was a hot mess and everyone knew it and let her get away with it, she was lucky like that but not so lucky when it came to her love life as no one seemed capable of handling her crazy for more than a handful of dates.

As someone who also requires a hearing aid, I appreciated the author’s understanding and thoughtfulness of including the challenges, limitations, and exasperation of living with hearing loss. I am totally enamored with Garrett and he currently holds the top of the list slot on my list of BBF as he was perfect in every way and so lovely he could only exist in a book.

 

 

About Nora Everly

Nora Everly is a lifelong bookworm. She started reading the good stuff once she grew tall enough to sneak the romance novels off the top of her mother’s bookshelf and it has been non-stop ever since.

Once upon a time, she was a substitute teacher and an educational assistant. Now she’s a writer and stay-at-home mom to two small humans and one fat cat.

Nora lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family and her overactive imagination.

 

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The Lost Fisherman by Jewel E. Ann is now live! 

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

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Start with The Naked Fisherman! mybook.to/TheNF 

 

It’s been five years since I’ve seen him. An unexpected event takes me back to the place where it all began.

But I’m no longer the naive young woman he once knew. And he’s no longer the man who took nearly everything from me.

Can this be our time? Or is it too late? Did I find myself only to lose him?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

The only memories of my past I want to get back … are the ones of you.

 

(Mandatory use of the F-word)

 

Sounds like you’re mad at me. Is it because I have a penis and you don’t? Because I didn’t ask for a penis. It just came with my body.

  

 My Review:

 

I didn’t think it possible but I loved this half of the duet even more than the first, Jewel E. Ann rocks and her word voodoo is strong! Her storylines and writing quickly pull me under and completely submerged me into her characters’ lives. I was right there with them in every scene as if I’m watching from a corner, sitting on the couch, riding in their vehicles, the next table over at McDonald’s, or looking over their shoulders while texting on their phones. I am as enamored with her unique style and craftiness as I am with her complicated and compelling characters. The woman has mad skills and I want every word she puts into print.

 

 

Meet Jewel E. Ann

Jewel is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today best-selling author with a quirky sense of humor. When she’s not saving the planet one tree at a time, you can find her role modeling questionable behavior to her three boys, binge-watching Netflix with her husband, and writing mind-bending romance.

Connect with Jewel

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Forrest for the Trees
(Green Valley Heroes, #1)
by Kilby Blades

 

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / GP / BB

Forrest for the Trees, an all-new slow-burn small-town romance from Kilby Blades, is LIVE in Kindle Unlimited! Kilby kicks off the brand new Green Valley Heroes series in the Smartypants Romance Universe with her enemies to lovers standalone!

 

Forrest Winters isn’t just a federal fire marshal; he’s a thorn in Ranger Sierra Betts’s side. The way he swings his big ax, fixes her with his chameleon gray eyes, and talks about his jurisdiction has a way of breaking her concentration. He has a way of showing up everywhere he doesn’t belong, including Greenbrier Ranger Station. And he really needs to quit stealing her bacon bites.

When a series of suspicious fires, an underhanded co-worker, and a cagey Parks Police Chief threatens her job and the park itself, Sierra grudgingly agrees to partner with Forrest. Their side investigation may be her best shot at preventing the framing of an innocent man. But can his firefighting expertise and her detective skills lead them to the real arsonist before Forrest breaks her with his charm?

‘Forrest for the Trees’ is a full-length contemporary romance, can be read as a standalone, and is book #1 in the Green Valley Heroes series, Green Valley Chronicles, Penny Reid Book Universe

 

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

He wasn’t a full-on curmudgeon, but half of one, a right she supposed he’d earned from managing to keep himself alive for so long.

 

“Please tell me you didn’t name your axe.” “I name all my axes. It makes them feel special.”

 

Just remember. That “no sex ’til the third date” crap is for people who secretly hate themselves and resent their bodies.

  

My Review:

 

Shame on me. I’d never heard of Kilby Blades before picking up this book and I reveled in her clever and original arrangements of words. I fell right into her smooth and easy storytelling and I was quickly invested in her uniquely endearing and quirky characters as well as smirking, sighing, and deathly curious about their exploits and endeavors. I have always enjoyed my visits to Green Valley and haven’t found a clunker yet in the Smartypants collective. Forrest for the Trees kicks off a new series and I am totally committed, hooked, enamored, and inquisitive of what will come next. In the meantime, I’ll be perusing Ms. Blades’s listing of twenty-one published books. Where have I been?

 

Kilby Blades is a USA Today Bestselling author of Romance and Women’s Fiction. Her debut novel, Snapdragon, was a HOLT Medallion finalist, a Publisher’s Weekly BookLife Prize Semi-Finalist, and an IPPY Award medalist. Kilby was honored with an RSJ Emma Award for Best Debut Author in 2018 and has been lauded by critics for “easing feminism and equality into her novels” (IndieReader) and “writing characters who complement each other like a fine wine does a good meal” (Publisher’s Weekly).

During her 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. Follow her everywhere @kilbyblades.

 

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

He began to speak, the deep, easy lilt in his voice hypnotic. When I glanced around me, everyone’s pupils could have been pinwheels— they even leaned toward him just a little. The man was a black hole.

 

And the town singles were flapping around in his orbit like moths. He was new, shiny, rich, and this town’s dating pool was stagnant and covered in pond scum. There were two ways to find love in Lindenbach— either you married your high school sweetheart or you left town and brought somebody back with you. So an eligible bachelor with a sports car that cost five times the town’s median income would get noticed. Recently divorced, middle-aged Dolores James, who’d quit paying attention to fashion somewhere around 2002, literally adjusted her boobs— hands in the cups and everything—before sauntering over to him, lashes flapping and smile on full blast. He didn’t even look at her when she bumped into him.

 

I’ll be your somebody. I hadn’t realized I’d needed one until then.

 

 My Review:

 

While this crafty wordsmith is a fairly recent discovery for me, every Staci Hart book I have picked up so far has been a guaranteed smirk factory with a few delectable sensual scenes hotter than a blazing furnace tucked inside. Her latest missive, For Love or Honey, continues this streak of winning word combinations with snort-worthy humor, irreverently amusing observations, and heart-squeezing and emotively insightful inner musings and revelations. I adore her clever humor, engaging storytelling, and flawed yet endearing characters. While I would never want to live in their tiny Texas town, I have whole-heartedly enjoyed my brief drop-ins with the Blum sisters.

 

Allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Rian Kerry, and I’m in huge trouble.

This is how it happened: I had a crush. You know those teenage crushes, which I’m sure you’ve all experienced, too. It was that kind of crush that makes your knees tremble, that makes you blush violently and stammer when you’re with that person. One of those crushes that you assume you’ll just grow out of, the way the seasons change.

The problem is that my crush didn’t go anywhere. Actually, it only got worse, transforming into something absurd and unbearable, which no one could seem to understand.

Especially not him.

Because he’s off-limits. He’s barricaded himself within his walls, from a sense of fear and guilt. He’s locked up his heart forever, and seems to have no intention of letting anyone in ever again.

My friends, Jordan, Anya, and Holly, say that he just needs a little push. They say that he needs to learn to believe again.

But I don’t think he’ll ever be ready, because he simply doesn’t want to be.

He doesn’t want to believe.

Not in something like us.

Allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Parker Hayes, and I’m an idiot.

Yep, you heard me right. I’m a real idiot. And, I swear, that’s putting it lightly.

But I’m a lot of other things, too. I’m a fireman, and a single father to two cheeky, hyperactive six-year-old twins. I’m a brother to Tyler, another fireman – and another idiot – who always seems to stick his nose into my business. I’m a kind of friend to Niall, yet another idiot with nothing to do but barge into my life, uninvited.

Let’s get back to the point, here: the reason I’m an idiot.

Well, it’s pretty simple. I’ve lost my mind. Literally. It happened again. I fell for it. With my head, with my body, and with the heart I was sure I’d never be able to piece back together after another inevitable disaster.

The problem is that she’s not like the others.

She bakes cakes with my daughters, laughs with them, and shows them her magic bag. They’re crazy about her.

And so am I.

And now she knows it, and I know it, and everyone around us knows it. But I can’t take that step. I can’t let everything go to start over.

I can’t live through this again – because this time, I won’t be left standing.

Not if she’s the one to break my heart.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Niall brings his hand to his chest in a dramatic flourish. “I can’t get any more black marks against my name. I’m getting old and I won’t have time to make up for it.”

 

He couldn’t be more handsome if he tried, and I couldn’t be in more trouble even if I’d dug myself the hole with my own two hands.

 

I’m nervous. Not because I don’t want to be here, but because I wanted to be here so badly.

 

Plan? What plan? Come on. You know I’m not some plotting evil genius. I just let things run their course and waited patiently for the stars to align.

  

My Review:

 

I wasn’t sure about this one since I was jumping into a series on book number three, and while I’m sure I probably would have enjoyed it even more had I read the previous two, I found the installment to have strong enough legs to stand well on its own. The storylines were original and engaging and I adored all the characters by the end of the book, although they often annoyed me with their indecision, anxious fears, and alternating periods of cowardice.

There were hefty servings of tormented and debilitating angst, yet the emotional tone balanced out overall due to the smirk-worthy and rapid-fire levity provided by the highly amusing banter and witty barbs tossed back and forth between the main and secondary characters of friends and family.   The romance was sweet and tender and I fell for the grumpy single-dad fireman myself by the time the steamy sensuality was added to the mix and the sexy fireman was no longer cranky but a romantic silver-tongued sex god instead.

This was my first foray into A.S. Kelly’s work and I landed well indeed. Having gotten to know the characters, I feel the pull to read the previous books in the series as well. I have added this clever wordsmith to my list of favorites.

 

 

 

Mad About Ewe (Common Threads #1) by Susannah Nix

Dawn Botstein is doing just fine after her divorce, thank you very much.

She’s got her yarn store to run, her house to herself for the first time in her life, and no use for men anymore. That is until the hottie silver fox who walks into her store turns out to be her old high school crush—the guy who rejected her 30 years ago.

No way is she going to lose her head over him this time, no matter how well he wears that salt-and-pepper lumberjack beard. Okay, so he’s the opposite of her ex in every way, and his attention gives her a thrill she thought she’d never feel again. She’s not risking her heart again.

Mike Pilota is having a mid-life crisis.

Only instead of buying a red sports car he can’t afford and dressing like a 25-year-old who’s time-traveled from the 1990s, he quit his job after his second divorce to move closer to his recently widowed mother.

He didn’t expect to run into Dawn again, but as soon as he lays eyes on her he’s utterly smitten. So he sets out to make up for past mistakes and prove he can be the kind of man she deserves.

But is it too late for second chances? Or will these two lonely hearts find a way back to each other?

‘Mad About Ewe’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #1 in the Common Threads series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.  

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

  … before Mike went off to college in Ohio— I screwed up my courage to ask him out on a date. It did not go well. His expression in response to my proposal that we catch a showing of Turner & Hooch was not unlike that of Janet Leigh when Norman Bates pulled back the shower curtain. The sight of Mike’s face frozen in shocked surprise still haunted me occasionally in my anxiety dreams.   I’d catch a heady whiff of her perfume. It was floral, but not like just any old flowers. She smelled like the kind of flowers that only bloomed deep in a mysterious woodland fairy realm.   It looks a lot easier when you do it. Your fingers are so small and graceful. Mine are as ungainly as a pack of Oscar Mayer wieners.   “As you wish.” My heart melted a little more. A man who quoted The Princess Bride in the middle of a make-out session? I had to reach up and touch his face to assure myself he was real.

 

My Review:

  This was a crisp, enjoyable, and breezy read, I was having so much fun the day just flew by. The storylines were entertaining and engaging and packed with amusing smirk-worthy levity as well as insightful observations and inner musings. I adored this couple together, it only took them thirty years to get it right but they sizzled like rabid teenagers despite the passing of time. I certainly picked a winner to introduce myself to the clever craft of one Ms. Susannah Nix, but I knew I couldn’t go wrong with a Smartypants Romance.

About Susannah Nix

Susannah Nix is an award-winning author of contemporary romances featuring smart women and swoony men, including the Chemistry Lessons series of romcoms about women who work in STEM fields and the Starstruck series of movie star romances. Susannah resides in Texas with her husband, two ornery cats, and a flatulent pit bull. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, knitting, watching stupid amounts of television, and getting distracted by Tumblr. She is also a powerlifter who can deadlift as much as Captain America weighs. .  

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