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Book Review: The Proposal Planner (Ever After #2) by Kelly Collins  @kcollinsauthor

The Proposal Planner
(Ever After #2)
by Kelly Collins

 

One loft. Two wildly different visions. And a barn full of glitter, fog machines, and undeniable chemistry…

I’m Maddy Chang—professional proposal planner, glitter enthusiast, and co-founder of Ever After, Inc. With my best friends off honeymooning and handling bridal disasters, I’m holding down the fort in River Bend. That was going fine … until Mason Kincaid moved in.

He’s Henry’s best man, all business suits and spreadsheets, and he just claimed my creative loft like it came with a deed. We’ve been clashing over everything from furniture to fairy lights—but when a last-minute proposal forces us to team up, the unthinkable happens.

We make magic. Together.

I’m chaos in combat boots. He’s logic in loafers. But somewhere between the fog machine and the fake Eiffel Tower, we crossed a line—with a kiss neither of us can forget.

Now we’ve got no feelings, no repeats, and definitely no falling in love.

But the heart doesn’t follow blueprints, and love doesn’t wait for permission.

Especially not in a town like River Bend—where sparks fly fast, second chances sneak up on you, and one perfect proposal could change everything.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

His voice carries the ease of someone who’s never heard the word no and wouldn’t recognize it if it arrived by certified mail.

…the fog machine kicks on with the subtlety of a Broadway understudy desperate for stage time. White mist pours across the barn floor like ghost cats in a Halloween parade. “Oh my,” Mrs. Patterson says, unfazed. “Is this part of your artistic process, or are we summoning something?”

Her jaw drops so far, I’m pretty sure I can see her molars.

Oh, he’s definitely husband material! Look at that sense of humor! That’s what we need in the family tree, strong bone structure and an ability to survive emotionally volatile brunches!

My Review:

 

Kelly Collins has really hit her stride with this delightfully amusing missive. I adore her humor, smooth storytelling, and engaging writing style, and all her well-honed skills truly shine through in this, one of her most humorous and endearing efforts I have had the pleasure of reading. I can’t wait to see what she does with the next installment.

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS   

 

  Goodreads  / Website  / Amazon / Facebook  Bookbub

Kelly Collins is a bestselling, award-winning author of feel-good small-town romance filled with heart, heat, and happily-ever-afters. Her books are perfect for readers who crave heartwarming contemporary love stories, sassy heroines, and slow-burn romances with cinnamon roll heroes you’ll wish were real.

With humor, charm, and emotional depth, Kelly brings to life tight-knit towns, unforgettable characters, and the kind of love that feels like coming home. When she’s not plotting her next happily-ever-after, she’s sipping strong coffee and dreaming up heroes who are tough on the outside and gooey in the middle.

Come for the charm, stay for the swoon—and don’t be surprised if you fall in love with the whole town.

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Book Review: The Break Up Broker (Ever After #1) by Kelly Collins @kcollinsauthor

The Break Up Broker
(Ever After #1)
by Kelly Collins

 

Amazon /  BB

One unforgivable betrayal. Two broken hearts. And a small town that won’t let them forget what could have been…

Breaking hearts is my business. I’m Savvy Honeysucker, Manhattan’s premier break-up broker. For the right price, I’ll deliver the bad news your soon-to-be ex can’t seem to manage. After three hundred and forty-two clean breaks, I’ve got it down to a science.

Until my next client walks through the door, and I come face-to-face with Henry Kingston—the man who ghosted me five years ago and turned me from an aspiring wedding planner into the goodbye girl.

I’m Henry Kingston, heir to an empire built on destroying dreams. When Savvy delivers my girlfriend’s goodbye, I realize my father’s plans for River Bend—her hometown and the place we once called ours—will destroy everything she loves. Again.

My grandfather is dying, and his last wish is to see the girl who understood him better than his own family. But as buried truths surface and old wounds reopen, we discover some endings aren’t meant to be clean. Sometimes the messiest goodbyes lead to the most unexpected beginnings.

In a fight between love and legacy, we’ll have to decide what’s worth saving—and what’s worth letting go. When it comes to second chances, timing isn’t everything. Sometimes it’s the only thing.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Ivy’s voice carried that edge she reserved for wedding- day meltdowns and mascara emergencies.

…courage isn’t just about putting up defenses. Sometimes, it’s about knowing which ones to take down.

Today was different— like stepping into my story instead of managing everyone else’s.

My Review:

I’m no fan of angst, and the front half of this tale was laced with it. Thankfully, I have trust in this clever scribe, and my faith paid off – big time. I enjoy an underdog story as much as a second-chance romance, so double bonus on those as well. I found the concept of a professional relationship undertaker to be fresh and entertaining. The main characters were endearing and likable, while the storylines and emotive writing kept me engaged.

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS   

 

 Goodreads  / Website  / Amazon Facebook / Twitter / Pinterest / Bookbub

Kelly Collins is a bestselling, award-winning author of feel-good small-town romance filled with heart, heat, and happily-ever-afters. Her books are perfect for readers who crave heartwarming contemporary love stories, sassy heroines, and slow-burn romances with cinnamon roll heroes you’ll wish were real.

With humor, charm, and emotional depth, Kelly brings to life tight-knit towns, unforgettable characters, and the kind of love that feels like coming home. When she’s not plotting her next happily-ever-after, she’s sipping strong coffee and dreaming up heroes who are tough on the outside and gooey in the middle.

Come for the charm, stay for the swoon—and don’t be surprised if you fall in love with the whole town.

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Book Review: The Book of Irish Secrets (Magnolia Manor 5) by Susanne O’Leary @susanne.olearyauthor @bookouture  

The Book of Irish Secrets
(Magnolia Manor 5)
by Susanne O’Leary

 

Amazon  / B&N /  BB

 

The woman looks out at the grand magnolia tree as it casts a shadow over the old house. ‘One day you will find out what destroyed our family, Claire. I only hope I’ve raised you to be strong enough to handle the truth…’

Claire takes a deep breath as she turns the old leather book in her hands. Names scribbled inside in faded ink create a family tree, the words Magnolia Manor at the top. She thought she’d lost everything when her Aunt Rachel died, but does this book hold the key to reuniting her with her long-lost family?

When she arrives in a little cove in Ireland, Claire wastes no time searching for Magnolia Manor, the gorgeous family home high up in the hills. But when she meets its intimidating owner, Sylvia Fleury, and Sylvia’s three beautiful granddaughters, her heart races, and she finds herself too scared to reveal their connection…

Claire rushes to pack her bags, convinced she’s made a mistake, but the welcoming embrace of local chef Karina and her handsome brother Pierce make her stay. Hunched over old recipes in the kitchen with Karina, listening to village gossip, Claire laughs like she hasn’t in years. And as she walks along the coastal path beneath the stars with Pierce, Claire feels totally entranced by his bright blue eyes and begins to fall in love. Could just starting again in this little village, close to her ancestors, be enough?

But deep within the pages of the book, Claire discovers a bitter family rivalry that could destroy Sylvia and her granddaughters. If she tells them who she is, she could lose everything. But can she really put down roots with Pierce if he doesn’t know the truth? Can Claire heal more than just her own heart, and make things right for her family? Or will the lies she’s told push everyone away and force her to leave forever?

Fans of Sheila O’Flanagan, Debbie Macomber and Mary Alice Monroe will be swept away by this gorgeous, unputdownable romance set in beautiful Ireland.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Sylvia is pretending to turn eighty-five yet again and she wants it to be very special.

She had felt that she had to constantly prove that she was able to do even the simplest tasks with Hugh watching over her shoulder all the time. As if he was waiting for her to make a mistake in order to give him a chance to criticise.

She found it hugely amusing the way Sylvia always managed to turn doing something wrong into a virtue if it was in her own interest.

My Review:

 

I fell right into this tale and received a free trip to Ireland without having to experience the arduous travel or rainy weather. The writing style was easy to follow and engaging, and populated with characters who were realistically flawed and likable, even when I didn’t like what they were doing. I enjoyed the characters so much that I have amassed all the previous installments of the series and plan to indulge in the rest of the family secrets.

 

Susanne O’Leary is the bestselling author of more than 30 novels, mainly romantic fiction set in Ireland. Her many books set in County Kerry have been hugely popular among readers worldwide. She shares her time between Dublin and Kerry, where she and her husband have a little cottage near the beach. The wild, beautiful landscape, the small villages, and the friendly people of that county have inspired her to write her feel-good stories. She’s been inspired to represent people of all ages and walks of life, with lots of romance, and more than a dash of humour.
When she is not writing or reading by the fire, Susanne loves heading for the great outdoors, walking on the beaches, or scaling the green hills of her favourite county.

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Book Review: The Antique Store Detective and the Deadly Inheritance (Bella Winter Mystery #3) by Clare Chase @clarechaseauthor   @bookouture 

The Antique Store Detective and the Deadly Inheritance
(Bella Winter Mystery #3)
by Clare Chase

 

A mysterious death and a missing ruby necklace… it’s clearly a case for antique store owner and amateur sleuth Bella Winter!


Nobody was surprised when Clemmie Crowe passed away – she’d been sick for a long time. But Bella Winter isn’t sure it’s as simple as it seems. Why was Clemmie so agitated the day she died – and why did she ask a local policeman to call on her?

Bella’s certain Clemmie knew something about her relatives, the powerful Powell family. They used to own half of Hope Eaton, but now they’re planning to sell what remains… Including the Steps Café, owned by Bella’s best friends.

The sale has to be stopped. Where else will Bella get her sausage sandwiches? Perhaps Clemmie’s secret will be enough to put a spanner in the works. So when matriarch Althea Powell invites her to value their possessions, Bella jumps at the chance. She can find some gems, investigate Clemmie’s death, and stymie the sale all at once.

It seems to be going swimmingly… until it’s proved that Clemmie was murdered, and Althea’s priceless ruby necklace vanishes. The list of suspects is as long as Bella’s arm. Was it Althea’s shady stepson, desperate for cash? His older brother, who wants to sell up? Or even her husband, who keeps changing his will?

Then Bella finds the necklace in the last place she expects, upsetting everything she thought she knew. Where there’s a will, there’s bound to be a quarrel. But can Bella figure out whose inheritance means murder, before things turn deadly for her?

A completely charming English cozy mystery. Fans of Agatha Christie, Faith Martin and Betty Rowlands will love following the fiendish clues as Bella cracks her most puzzling case yet!

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

She was adept at spotting lies and bluffs, thanks to being the oldest of four sisters and an antiques dealer to boot.

Bella always found other people’s emotion contagious. She couldn’t help imagining what they were feeling and feeling it too.

Tony grunted. ‘All right. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t.’ Bella tried to imagine what that might be, and failed.

Then he’d asked if she had any idea how to get children to eat cabbage but Bella hadn’t replied. Her childcare knowledge had been hard-earned and it didn’t come for free. If he wouldn’t promise firm action on Gregory and Kevin Baker, she was withdrawing her services.

 

My Review:

 

This was a rather complicated mystery for a cozy; the little pea in my brain was dizzy from spinning in circles. I was starting to lose faith in Bella as this one just kept getting further away from her, with additional murders piling up and multiple relatives appearing guilty. The storylines were active, humorous, multi-layered, and chockablock full of odd and uniquely drawn characters. I would never have unraveled this one and had no idea Clare Chase could be so devious. She’s become quite the shifty minx.

 

 

About the Author

Clare Chase writes classic mysteries. She aims to take readers away from it all via some armchair sleuthing in atmospheric locations.

Her debut novel was shortlisted for Novelicious’s Undiscovered Award, as well as an EPIC award post-publication, and was chosen as a Debut of the Month by LoveReading. Murder on the Marshes (Tara Thorpe 1) was shortlisted for an International Thriller Writers award.

Like her heroines, Clare is fascinated by people and what makes them tick. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked in settings as diverse as Littlehey Prison and the University of Cambridge, in her home city. She’s lived everywhere from the house of a lord to a slug-infested flat and finds the mid-terrace she currently occupies a good happy medium.

As well as writing, Clare loves family time, art and architecture, cooking, and of course, reading other people’s books.

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Book Review: Mince Pies and Murder (Morwenna Mutton Mystery #4) by Judy Leigh @judyrleigh   @theboldbookclub

Mince Pies and Murder
(Morwenna Mutton Mystery #4)
by Judy Leigh

 

Amazon  / B&N  / BB

The BRAND NEW instalment in the Morwenna Mutton Mystery series from MILLION COPY BESTSELLER Judy Leigh, perfect for fans of Richard Osman. As Christmas approaches in the Cornish town of Seal Bay, festive cheer fills the air. Twinkling lights, jingling bells, and sparkling trees adorn every corner, and Morwenna Mutton, the sharp-witted sexagenarian sleuth, is eagerly counting down the days. But when local author Pawly Yelland is discovered dead at a party, a champagne flute in one hand and a mince pie in the other, it seems this Christmas will be anything but merry.

Known for his grudges against several neighbours, Pawly had recently made no secret of his disdain for some of the local crowd — and now, with his death, a long list of suspects emerges. As the police begin narrowing down those with a motive, Morwenna knows she’s the only one who can uncover the truth and restore some yuletide magic to Seal Bay.

But things take a darker turn. Mysterious Christmas cards begin arriving at doorsteps, and sightings of a sinister Santa-costumed figure at windows only add to the growing tension. Can Morwenna solve the murder before Christmas is ruined for good?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

This year, the same as every year, an anonymous person gifted in the art of crochet had covered all the post boxes in Seal Bay with little woollen Santas clutching a wine glass in one hand and an envelope in the other. No one in Seal Bay had any idea who made them. It was a Seal Bay mystery.

It occurred to her that the sea was like the future. It stretched in front of you, uncharted, and you could make your way across it as you wished, quickly, slowly, hesitantly. You could swim, sink. Or you could ride the waves.

My Review:

 

This was an amusing and intriguing cozy read that kept me guessing on several fronts. Judy Leigh is a smooth and gifted storyteller who never fails to pull me into her oddly compelling characters’ vortex and involve me in the minutiae of their lives.

And score – I found a new addition to my Brit Word List with rufazrats, which Mr. Google has informed me is slang for a hangover, feeling poorly, or something that isn’t working correctly.  I am assuming it is pronounced somewhat like rough as rats, which seems like an excellent term for a hangover, not that I would know anything about one of those… ;-}

About the Author

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Judy Leigh is the bestselling author of Five French Hens, A Grand Old Time, and The Age of Misadventure, and the doyenne of the ‘it’s never too late’ genre of women’s fiction. She has lived all over the UK from Liverpool to Cornwall, but currently resides in Somerset.

Newsletter sign up: http://bit.ly/JudyLeighNewsletter

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Book Review: The Whispering Girls (Detective Katie Scott Book 14) by Jennifer Chase  @jenchaseauthor @bookouture

The Whispering Girls
(Detective Katie Scott Book 14)
by Jennifer Chase

Amazon  / B&N

Dressed only in an oversized t-shirt, with a burlap sack covering her head, the body of a girl swings gently from the branches in the breeze. A newly-lit candle burns on the ground below. The killer was here just moments ago…

Taking a much-needed break in a cabin in the woods with her service dog Cisco, Detective Katie Scott is disturbed by a sharp knocking at the door. Outside, she finds a terrified girl called TJ, begging for help—she says she has found a dead girl in the forest. When they reach the scene, Katie turns to ask TJ further questions, but she has vanished.

At dawn the next day, the body of another girl is found laid out only a mile from the first. To Katie’s horror, she realizes it is TJ. The scene looks eerily similar, with a small shrine below her feet. What kind of monster would do this? And if a twisted serial killer is at work, who is their next victim?

As more bodies and shrines emerge, Katie needs to find the link between the girls and the unhinged killer. But when she stumbles across a cold case that the local police seem determined to keep quiet, Katie realizes danger could be closer to her than she first thought. How much will Katie sacrifice to find the killer and can she stop more innocent lives from being taken?

An addictive crime fiction novel for fans of Lisa Regan, Rachel Caine and Melinda Leigh. A nail-biting rollercoaster ride from USA Today and Amazon bestseller Jennifer Chase!

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

These investigations were not only the hardest they’d had to investigate, but the twists and turns were both unusual and horrific. It was as if they were being dropped into a play with no script and didn’t know what was going to happen next.

Everything seems to read like a soap opera and not a crazed killer taking victims. There are too many moving parts to this case. People who aren’t who they say they are. People not telling us the truth.

My Review:

 

This complex and compelling tale was more than a bit complicated, while fraught with tension and an eerie unease from beginning to end. Katie was supposed to be on vacation and resting, but the location of her R&R was an unfortunate choice. The creepiness factor was high in that odd little berg with impending peril always seeming to be just around the corner.

This installment had my shoulders in my ears as I white knuckled my Kindle and fretted that the main character wasn’t going to unravel it in time to save one of their own. Silly me, I should know better. While she is not without personal challenges and foibles, Detective Katie Scott and her wonder dog, Cisco, are a phenomenon with an unheard-of 100% closure rate.

Jennifer Chase is a multi-award-winning author and consulting criminologist. She has authored eight crime fiction novels, including the multiple award-winning Emily Stone thriller series, as well as a screenwriting workbook.

Jennifer holds a Bachelor’s degree in police forensics and a Master’s degree in criminology. These academic pursuits developed out of her curiosity about the criminal mind as well as from her own experience with a violent sociopath, providing Jennifer with deep personal investment in every story she tells. In addition, she holds certifications in serial crime and criminal profiling. She is an affiliate member of the International Association of Forensic Criminologists.

 

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Book Review: Murder in Hollywood (Opal Laplume Mystery #2) by Millicent Binks  @millicentbinks @bookouture 

Murder in Hollywood
(Opal Laplume Mystery #2)
by Millicent Binks

Amazon  / B&N  / BB

Lights, camera, action, and… murder?


Opal Laplume’s star is on the rise when she gets a job making costumes for Hollywood’s biggest talkie star, Jane Margeaux. But when Jane is fatally shot on set by a prop gun, and security guard Augusto finds a bullet missing from his pistol, it falls to Opal to save her favourite new friend from a wrongful murder accusation.Opal soon discovers that Jane had a list of enemies as long as the train on her designer gown. Jane’s co-star Betty envied her rise to fame, but did her jealousy take a deadly turn? Jane’s loyal assistant Virginia, was overworked and underpaid. Did she get Jane out of the way to get ahead at the studio? Or did Jane’s fortune-hunting husband Carey, see an opportunity to inherit his wife’s jaw-dropping Sunset Boulevard mansion?Just when Opal thinks she’s found her prime suspect, a crew member is found dead in the California desert with a briefcase stuffed full of movie scripts. And a close look at the director’s cut of Jane’s latest picture reveals a secret message hidden in plain sight. Soon, Opal will find that Jane was hiding the biggest secret in Hollywood – one truly worth killing for.

Can Opal keep her English cool among the Tinseltown drama and crack the case before it’s a wrap for the entire crew?

Grab a first-row seat to this fabulous and utterly charming Golden Age whodunnit full of glamour, intrigue, and murder set in 1930s Hollywood. Fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey, and Verity Bright won’t be able to put this down!

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Her performance was so wooden I half expected termites to start a union.

I don’t trust that woman. She’s an executioner who uses blood for fountain-pen ink.

‘Sounds like he chased after money like a dog after sausages,’ Opal commented. ‘He did. Relentless, single-minded, and with a fair bit of drool involved,’ Virginia added.

There is a lot of pride in getting older. It comes with the perk of feeling the veil of hogwash lift, all the societal pressures that you’re supposed to believe in and adhere to becomes piffle. You wish your younger self had the same level of clarity and confidence.

My Review:

 

This was an entertaining, amusing, and easy-to-follow cozy read, populated by a clever pooch and a copious cast of largely unlikable yet uniquely authentic and quirky secondary characters. I had not read the previous book, but I didn’t feel that this hampered my understanding or enjoyment, as Opal’s relevant history was provided in ample detail. The storylines were well-plotted and smartly merged, just in time for our eagle-eyed heroine to save the day.

About the Author

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Millicent is a writer, former costume designer, and burlesque performer from Suffolk. She now resides in North London with her husband and two cats, Queenie and Tarquin.

She holds a BA (Hons) from Wimbledon College of Art in Costume Interpretation. Her writing credits include a column in The London Evening Standard about her life as a burlesque starlet.  She wrote the cover story “Alter Shego’s”  for The Sunday Times Magazine, in which she disguised herself as different women, took self-portraits, went out, introduced herself to random gentlemen, and documented their reactions. This was optioned for TV by NBCUniversal.

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Book Review: How to Slay at Christmas by Sarah Bonner @sarahbonner101 @theboldbookclub

How to Slay at Christmas
by Sarah Bonner

She’s making a list, she’s checking it twice…

Jessica Williams loves the food, the drink, the fairy lights, the opportunities to take out all the miserable people who ruin the festive season for others. And what better cover for her murderous intentions than taking a job as Mrs Claus at the Ellsbury Christmas Market grotto? After all, who would possibly think Mrs Claus could stab a man through the eye with a Phillips-head screwdriver?

Fearne Dixon hates Christmas. As the long-suffering wife of the Ellsbury Christmas Market’s manager, she’s sick to the back teeth of it and it’s still only November. But then the bodies start piling up, an old rival arrives back in her life, and Fearne reaches breaking point.

When the lives of the two women collide, who will end up on the Naughty List?

A brilliantly subversive, darkly funny crime thriller that fans of Katy Brent, CJ Skuse and Bella Mackie will devour.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Wow. Well that really does go to prove you can’t judge a book by its cover. She looks so prim and proper and then BAM! It’s all fairy porn and werewolf harems.

Not that I don’t like what I do. But it’s not exactly a respectable pastime is it? When people ask what you do for fun, it would be far easier if you could say you like reading or building Lego or whatever, rather than killing scrooges.

Spoiler alert: I’m still convinced I’m in my twenties and that fate is just playing some kind of cruel stunt on me by making me look like I’m mid-forties.

‘I don’t use TikTok.’ It was set up a few years ago when I was having a crisis of confidence about my writing career and thought I needed to do more myself. I vowed to post to TikTok every single day for three months to see what happened. I lasted four days before I ran out of content and lost the will to live. Sometimes I get an urge to try again and then I remind myself just how painful it was and have a large glass of wine instead.

I read something last year about how the average person consumes over six thousand calories on Christmas Day. I’m treating that as a challenge that I fully intend to beat.

My Review:

The name Sarah Bonner has become synonymous with the idea of smirk-worthy good fun to me. The little pea in my brain leaps for joy whenever I pick up one of her cleverly penned missives. I revel in her witty snark, wry humor, and snappy inner musings. I adored this tale; it kept me gleefully engaged from start to finish.

 

About the Author

Sarah grew up in Salisbury, dreaming of a career as a writer and performer. Instead, she became an accountant! After a fifteen-year career, she decided to answer her original calling and completed her first novel which was published in 2022.

Sarah lives in Devon with her husband and very spoiled rescue dog.

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Book Review: Well, Actually by Mazey Eddings    @mazeyeddings @stmartinspress

Well, Actually
by Mazey Eddings

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / GP / BB

An utterly delightful and sexy second-chance romance between a black cat and golden retriever with Mazey Edding’s signature sparkling voice!

Eva Kitt never expected to be the host of Sausage Talk, interviewing B-list celebrities over lukewarm hot dogs, instead of pursuing the journalism career she dreamed of. But when Eva’s impromptu public call out of her college ex goes viral, she’s thrust into the spotlight. It doesn’t help said ex is Rylie Cooper, a beloved social media personality that has built a platform on deconstructing toxic masculinity and teaching men how to be good partners.

Forced to confront Rylie on a live episode of Sausage Talk, he offers Eva a allow him to take her on a series of dates to make up for his toxic behavior, then debrief them on his channel to show he’s changed. Eva refuses to play nice, but agrees to the scheme to advance her own career and continue defaming Rylie’s good name. When these manufactured dates start to feel real, Eva has to wonder if the boy that broke her heart has become the man that might heal it.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I roll my eyes so hard I see spots.

I’ve never been a particularly touchy person, but something about Rylie has me constantly reaching for him like I’m a plant and he’s the sun.

My Review:

 

I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy this book as much as I did, as I had a hard time finding anything likable about the female main character; she was caustic and rather vile, and my distaste for her in the first half of the book was palpable. But she came around, and so did I. The primary and secondary characters were authentic and well-drawn, and realistically flawed. The writing was well-paced, well-honed, easy to follow, cleverly amusing, and smoking hot. The storylines kept me engaged and interested, even when I was annoyed and exasperated with Eva. I truly loved the ending beyond measure – girl-power!

Mazey Eddings is a bestselling author, dentist, and (most importantly) stage mom to her cats, Yaya and Zadie. She can most often be found reading romance novels under her weighted blanket and asking her husband to bring her snacks. She’s made it her personal mission in life to destigmatize mental health issues and write love stories for every brain. With roots in Ohio and Philadelphia, she now calls North Carolina home.

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Book Review: One Snowy Day by Shari Low @sharilowbooks @theboldbookclub

One Snowy Day
by Shari Low

Amazon  / B&N / GP / BB

 

On a cold winter’s day, a storm is brewing in the village of Weirbridge…

Georgie Dern has the chance to swap her empty nest for the job of a lifetime in Los Angeles. Can she chase her dream if it means letting down the woman who has given her the world?

Jessie McLean should be counting down the hours until she jets off to spend her retirement years in the sun. But when a devastating betrayal resurfaces, she has to choose between a fresh start and staying behind to settle old scores.

Alyssa Canavan has spent years building the business she adores. Now a legal letter has threatened her home and livelihood, but how does she fight a family that doesn’t give a damn?

Lachlan Morden is forced to return to Scotland to face the people who almost destroyed him. Will coming home reopen old wounds, or will a memory from the past lead him to the perfect revenge?

One snowy day, four lives, but who will have a bright new future when the snow is gone?

No1 bestseller Shari Low is back with her brilliant new release about love, loss, friendship and second chances.

Perfect for the fans of Marian Keyes, Lauren Weisberger and Beth Moran.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

‘I’m surprised you’re not doing a Joan Collins, luxuriating in your bed until lunchtime, wrapped in white fake fur, with thirty-year-old oiled-up bodybuilders feeding you grapes. Actually, I don’t know that Joan Collins does that, but I like to imagine it that way.’ ‘I’m not having oiled-up bodybuilders anywhere near my bed, thank you.’ Jessie countered. ‘I’d need to boil wash my sheets and it would take the pattern right off my duvet cover.’

…the little devil on her other shoulder hadn’t been able to get past hoping that Monica would dump him on his arse and he’d wither away, loveless and sexless until his penis fell off. The devil watched too many crime shows.

Eve, it’s been three years. And in that time, the only hot hip action in my life has been watching Strictly.

Being a lawyer must be like being a doctor, she imagined. As soon as people at dinner parties knew what you did, they wanted to ask your advice on their speeding ticket or their piles.

My Review:

 

This was a fun and wryly amusing read that was stuffed to the gills with engaging and entertaining storylines that converged in a brilliant and highly satisfying manner. Shari Low is a clever wordsmith and weaves absorbing, well-honed, and insightfully written tales that are laced together with witty humor and perceptive observations, while populated with admirable and endearing characters doing their best to get ahead while handling problematic family members. Every time I pick up one of her books, I want to stop time and rearrange my schedule to do nothing else but read her entire listing.

 

About the Author

 

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In January 2001, Shari Low’s Low’s first novel, What If?, was published. Since then, Shari has published over 35 books and sold three million copies around the globe, hitting the bestseller charts in many countries, including the UK, USA, Canada, Germany, and Australia. In 2023, she had three consecutive #1 best sellers – One Day With You, One Moment in Time, and One Christmas Eve. Her first release of 2024, One Year After You, also hit the #1 spot.

In late 2020, her first novel, What If?, was updated and re-published, followed by the sequels What Now? and What Next?. All three novels became international bestsellers.

Shari has also co-written three Hollywood thrillers, The Rise, The Catch, and The Fall, with LA-based TV presenter and actor Ross King.

In real life, once upon a time, she met a guy, got engaged after a week, and thirty-something years later, she lives near Glasgow with the one they said would never last. Their children have now grown and scattered across the world, so she spends an inordinate amount of time on video calls and aeroplanes.