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Book Review: Dr. Billionaire’s Baby (Falling For A London Billionaire Book 2) by Mandy Michaels    @authormandymichaels

Dr. Billionaire’s Baby
(Falling For A London Billionaire Book 2)
by Mandy Michaels

It was only one night with my best friend’s new brother-in-law at her wedding. I swore never to sleep with another gorgeous man from the other side of the world. Not even a gentleman with a charming accent.

I have a habit of getting tangled up with unavailable foreign men. Yes, Dr. Mick Bonnaire is the literal man of my dreams, with stunning blue eyes and a touch that makes me weak. Not to mention he’s a renowned heart surgeon and heir to billions.

I’m desperately trying to convince myself that Dr. Mick-dreamy is NOT the exception to my heart-saving rule, especially since he’s still wounded after catching his fiancée cheating on the day of their wedding. Now neither of us can trust in love and happily-ever-afters.

It’s been two months since our night of passion, and now I’m staring at two pink lines on a pregnancy test.

Oops!

Suddenly, Mick’s out of my dreams and in my life again when my movie-mogul father winds up on his operating table in London after a heart attack. The good, handsome doctor saved my dad’s life, but what will happen to our lives when he finds out I’m carrying his unplanned baby?

While my father recovers, Mick invites us both to stay at his gorgeous manor with a staff who treats us like gold. With his bedroom down the hall and the memory of our night together fresh in our minds, he can’t keep his steady-surgeon hands off me.

All I’ve ever dreamed of was a family with an incredible man that I’m crazy about. Carrying his baby while he holds me in his arms makes me feel so complete. But I’m afraid this isn’t what he wants.

Can he open his heart enough to see that this baby may be our only chance at a true happily-ever-after?

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

On the outside, I put on a smile but on the inside, I grew cold and emotionless. It wouldn’t have surprised me if someone had opened up my chest and found cobwebs hanging from my ventricles.

Are you Pretty Woman’ing me right now?

My Review:

 

I loved the story, despite the wretched title. I’m enjoying everything else about this series; the storylines, the wealthy yet endearing and hard-working characters, and the amusing and easy-to-follow writing style. Just ignore the cheesy title, trust me.

 

 

About the Author

Mandy Michaels is the contemporary romance author of the Falling For A London Billionaire series who writes heart-racing love stories that blend humor, heat, and happily-ever-afters. Mandy’s novels feature savvy heroines, heart-of-gold hotties, and chemistry so sizzling it will melt your Kindle. With engaging characters and witty dialogue, love always wins in her books.

When she’s not writing, Mandy indulges in classic romcoms with a homemade blueberry-vanilla latte in hand or skips off to Manhattan for the perfect foodcation.

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Book Review: All Folked Up (Good Folk: Modern Folktales #3) by Penny Reid @ReidRomance  @SmartyPantsRom

All Folked Up
(Good Folk: Modern Folktales #3)
Penny Reid

Amazon / BB

Isaac has never been what he seems.

Rumor has it that gruff, brooding, and solitary man-of-mystery Isaac Sylvester is back in town, and the only thing folks in Green Valley know for certain is that this prodigal son’s motives are as elusive as he is. He’s been spotted loitering near the old Townsen farm, hanging around the Hill’s homestead, and glaring menacingly from the edges of The Donner Lodge’s parking lot. What this hometown-hero-turned-criminal wants, no one knows. Nor can they stop talking about it.

Hannah’s last night as an exotic dancer might just be her most memorable.

Hannah Townsen has often been a subject of local gossip. Folks shook their heads when Hannah’s daddy ran out on her momma; folks blessed her heart after Hannah’s momma had that tragic accident; and folks really talked up a tizzy when Hannah became an exotic dancer in order to pay off her parents’ debt and put food on the table. But now, ten years after being dubbed as a hometown-stripper-with-a-heart-of-gold, Hannah has seemingly—and finally—fallen off the gossip mill’s radar.

That is, until the enigmatic Isaac Sylvester shows up at Hannah’s retirement party wanting so much more than a private dance. . .

‘All Folked Up’ is the third book in the Good Folk series and is a full-length, small-town, contemporary romantic comedy novel.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

“Talking about you that day made her melancholy,” he went on, his eyes seeming to lose focus. “She cried. Made me want to release a roll of armadillos into your underwear drawer at the time.”

I tried to meet his gaze, but every time I did it felt like a firecracker was going off in my chest.

It’s his murder eyes. That’s what won me over. A girl can’t resist a guy with murder in his eyes.

My Review:

 

I adore Penny Reid and her latest offering was a tasty treat of mammoth proportions. Pairing an earnest, hard-working, and intelligent stripper with a prudish undercover officer of the law, who’d have thunk it? The inner musings and descriptive narratives were highly amusing and beyond smirk-worthy. And I’m always thrilled with more encounters with the oddly clever Cletus.

 

Penny Reid is the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of the Winston Brothers and Knitting in the City series. She used to spend her days writing federal grant proposals as a biomedical researcher, but now she writes kissing books. Penny is an obsessive knitter and manages the #OwnVoices-focused mentorship incubator/publishing imprint, Smartypants Romance. She lives in Seattle Washington with her husband, three kids, and dog named Hazel.

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Book Review: No Good Deed: A Psychological Thriller by Britney King  @britneyking_

No Good Deed: A Psychological Thriller
by Britney King

Amazon / B&N /  Apple / BB

From Britney King, the bestselling author of HER and The Social Affair, comes a dark psychological thriller that will make you question the boundaries of trust and the depths of deception.

They say love is blind. But what happens when seeing the truth could cost you everything?

Everyone in Cedar Hill thinks they know us—Trent and me. I’m the friendly face at every community event, always there to lend a hand. Trent is the charming, successful salesman admired by all. But they have no idea what really goes on behind closed doors.

It starts with an old milk carton. A missing girl’s face stares back at me—eerily familiar, like the woman in a photograph I wasn’t supposed to find in Trent’s workshop. That image shatters everything I thought I knew about my husband.

Most would dismiss a forgotten photograph as meaningless. But for me, it’s a key to a past I never imagined—and a present that’s more dangerous than I ever realized.

Now, the young woman we recently hired has become Trent’s newest obsession. I know I should protect her, but I’m up against a man who knows my every move. Time is running out, and I have to make a choice: keep my children safe or stop the monster living under our roof.

They say a wife knows her husband. But what if that’s the cruelest lie of all?

Set in the deceptively tranquil suburbs of 1980s America, No Good Deed is a dark psychological thriller about betrayal, survival, and confronting unimaginable truths.

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

It’s almost poetic— while he sleeps, he finds peace, a respite from the turmoil that consumes him when he’s awake. Not that most people see it. He’s too careful, too calculated, a sociopath with a day planner.

She probably organizes her spices alphabetically and considers skipping church on Wednesday night an act of rebellion.

Edith’s house is old and suffocating, and it smells of mothballs and something else, something stale, like disappointment.

Edith’s shadow looms large in this house, her presence like a bitter aftertaste.

My Review:

 

My shoulders were in my ears while I perused this consuming, gripping, evocative, and tautly written tale. Each page had my beloved Kindle thrumming with tension. I cringed, flinched, and grimaced at the realistic recounting of various forms of abuse, yet I couldn’t put this monstrous story down.  I don’t read horror stories yet Britney King always manages to turn me inside out and upside down, and I keep coming back for more from this crafty wordsmith.  A phenomenon that continues to leave me more than a bit perplexed and pondering… what does that say about me?!?

About the Author

Britney King lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, children, two dogs, one ridiculous cat, and a partridge in a pear tree.

When she’s not wrangling the things mentioned above, she writes psychological, domestic, and romantic thrillers set in suburbia.
Without a doubt, connecting with readers is the best part of this gig. You can find Britney online here:

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Book Review: One Hundred Humbugs (An Aspen Cove Romance Book 25) by Kelly Collins  @kcollinsauthor

One Hundred Humbugs
(An Aspen Cove Romance Book 25)
Kelly Collins

 

Amazon /  BB

 

Debt-ridden web designer. Hunky goat whisperer. One jungle of an inheritance.

Welcome to Ruby Whitaker’s Christmas catastrophe.

Inheriting her uncle’s mountain hoarder-haven was supposed to be Ruby’s ticket out of debt. But with a wildly overgrown yard and Christmas right around the corner, her dreams of a quick sale are tangled in weeds and winter frost.

Enter Becket Shepherd—rugged, irresistible, and bringing the most unconventional lawn-care crew a herd of ravenous goats.

His offer? Free landscaping. The catch? Temporary housing for his four-legged demolition team.

As tinsel tangles with tumbleweeds and holiday cheer collides with chaos, Ruby and Becket are caught in a whirlwind of attraction, mischief, and small-town meddling. She’s desperate to sell. He’s determined to stay. And Aspen Cove? It’s betting on love.

Can Christmas magic bloom amidst the mayhem, or will their budding romance get devoured faster than you can say “goat appetite?”

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My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

It must feel like you’ve landed on another planet after Chicago. But give it a chance, will you? Aspen Cove has a way of growing on you.” “Like mold?” Ruby quipped. “More like a persistent ivy,” Doc winked.

Finally, she spotted it— a house that looked like it had seen better days, sometime around the Lincoln administration. The porch sagged like it was tired of standing, and the paint peeled like it was trying to escape.

Note to self: When a lady asks if her dress makes her look fat, ‘Is the Pope Catholic?’ is not an acceptable response. Even if you’re in the middle of organizing your Vatican commemorative plate collection.

Either he was good at his job, or he was as clueless as a cat in a dog show.

Ruby frowned, her eyebrows knitting together like two caterpillars in a wrestling match.

Before I came here, I was living in Dallas. I had a corporate job, the kind where you wear uncomfortable shoes and count down the minutes until you can leave.

Mrs. Brown’s cat Mr. Piddles cradled in one arm and a bag of knitted items in the other. Becket had to stifle a laugh when he saw Mr. Piddles dressed in a full elf costume, complete with pointy hat and shoes. The cat’s expression could be described as one of utter resignation.

Ruby realized that sometimes, the most unexpected detours in life could lead to the most beautiful destinations.

My Review:

 

I would never miss a chance to return to Aspen Cove, I hope Ms. Collins can be persuaded to treat us to more as I will never tire of these endearingly odd characters and their authentically quirky community. This couple was a delight to peruse.

 

ABOUT KELLY COLLINS   

 

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

International bestselling author of over 30 novels, Kelly Collins writes with the intention of keeping the love alive. Always a romantic, she blends real-life events with her vivid imagination to create characters and stories that lovers of contemporary romance, new adult, and romantic suspense will return to again and again.

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Book Review: Death by the Book (Mercy McCarthy Mystery #2) by Lucy Connelly @candace_havens @bookouture

Death by the Book
(Mercy McCarthy Mystery #2)
by Lucy Connelly

 

Amazon  / B&N / BB

 

Irish scones, shamrock shortbread, a local literary festival… and a rather dead author? Join Mercy McCarthy on her next case!

Mercy and Lizzie McCarthy are settling in to the charming seaside village of Shamrock Cove on the west coast of Ireland. Lizzie throws herself into organizing a book festival and mystery writer Mercy even agrees to come out of her bookish hidey-hole to get involved. But then the event’s star author is found dead. James Brandt was killed by a falling bookshelf in his own cottage…

The local detective is not convinced by Mercy’s suspicion of murder but when someone else turns up dead, the police cannot ignore it. There’s just one problem: Mercy and Lizzie’s beloved dog Mr. Poe sniffs out the second body in the storeroom of their own bookstore. And now all the gossips seem determined to pin the murder on Mercy!

Convinced the police are focusing on a red herring in this real-life case, Mercy needs to act fast to clear her name. A meddling mayor, a cheerful chef and a bashful botanist make her suspect list, but it’s not until Mercy discovers a tatty old photograph in the local library archive that she is onto the killer’s trail.

With the police keen to shut her out of the murder investigation, can Mercy play this case by the book, or will she be the next to fall off the shelf…?

A totally gripping and twisty cozy crime novel, perfect for readers who love Agatha Christie, Carlene O’Connor or Faith Martin! This incredibly fast-paced and fun murder mystery will whisk you off to Ireland and won’t let you go until the final page!

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Not that I would ever say that out loud. But I could think it loudly.

What a toad.

It is impossible to negotiate with a narcissist. You’ll just end up with both of you upset.

Like many politicians, he was a smooth talker… The ones on this side of the pond weren’t that different than their American counterparts. He reminded me of those sports guys who peaked in high school or college and kept telling the same stories over and over.

Sometimes, my thoughts came out of my mouth before I had a chance to stop them. I talked to myself while I worked. Who was I kidding? I talked to myself all the time. I always had characters in my head chatting. Talking out loud was how I stayed sane. Though, I wasn’t always aware I was doing it.

My Review:

 

Ms. Connelly has conjured another well-contrived and amusing mystery that kept the little pea in my brain pinging in various directions. This talented scribe is gifted in misdirection and has a writing style that is well-honed, engaging, and easy to follow. I continued to enjoy the odd ensemble of characters and reveled in the addition of the clever antics of the little pup named Poe.

 

Bestselling author Candace Havens has published more than 25 books. Her novels have received nominations for the RITA’s, Holt Medallion, Write Touch Reader Awards and National Reader’s Choice Awards. She is a Barbara Wilson Award winner. She is the author of the biography Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy and a contributor to several anthologies. She is also one of the nation’s leading entertainment journalists and has interviewed countless celebrities from George Clooney to Chris Pratt. Candace runs a free online writing workshop for more than 2000 writers and teaches comprehensive writing classes.

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Book Review: An Irish Bookshop Murder (Mercy McCarthy Mystery #1) by Lucy Connelly @candace_havens @bookouture

An Irish Bookshop Murder
(Mercy McCarthy Mystery #1)
by Lucy Connelly

 

Amazon  / B&N / BB

 

An utterly gripping cozy crime murder mystery

Meet Ireland’s newest daring she’s a bookstore owner, a coffee lover, and a crime writer. Now Mercy McCarthy needs a little Irish luck as she takes on her first case!

After receiving unexpected inheritance from her grandfather, Mercy and her twin sister Lizzie are now the proud owners of a charming antique bookshop in the tiny Irish village of Shamrock Cove. But before they can take in the beautiful view of the sea, one of their neighbors drops dead!

Mercy finds the Judge, a well-respected man who lives next door, dying on his own doorstep. She rushes to help, but with his final words, he accuses Mercy of murder! Most of their new neighbors hear his words and, with suspicion pointing at Mercy, she decides to investigate the case to clear her name.

Searching amongst the Judge’s old books, Mercy uncovers letters proving several of the townsfolk had reason to dislike the judge—but was it the local pub landlord, the kindly cook or neighborly knitter who killed him?

Then Mercy’s chief suspect turns up dead and she receives a threatening note, typed on paper from her own bookstore… Ireland was supposed to be a fresh start for Mercy and Lizzie, but dead bodies keep turning up.

Does Mercy have what it takes to nail the culprit or will the killer close the book on her time in this charming Irish village?

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

I’d offered to try to learn while we were here, but my sister had tried food I’d prepared and preferred to handle that chore herself. Her exact words had been Mercy, if there is nothing left to eat on the planet, then I’ll be grateful for your cooking. Until then, well, you have many other wonderful qualities.

I snorted. “As if.” “Oh, you if. You if all the time,” she said.

Now, if you’re going to arrest me for stealing evidence, I ask that you give me the courtesy of lunch first. No one wants me hangry in jail.

My Review:

 

This was a fun and lively read that was wryly humorous, engaging, and easy to follow. I’ve never made a trip to the old sod, but I would love to go if I could stay in a quaint little village such as this one. The murder mysteries were well-plotted, well-paced, and unpredictable. I enjoyed getting to know the quirky residents of the exclusive court and look forward to more of their adventures.

 

 

Bestselling author Candace Havens has published more than 25 books. Her novels have received nominations for the RITA’s, Holt Medallion, Write Touch Reader Awards and National Reader’s Choice Awards. She is a Barbara Wilson Award winner. She is the author of the biography Joss Whedon: The Genius Behind Buffy and a contributor to several anthologies. She is also one of the nation’s leading entertainment journalists and has interviewed countless celebrities from George Clooney to Chris Pratt. Candace runs a free online writing workshop for more than 2000 writers and teaches comprehensive writing classes.
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Book Review: Murder at the Tea Shop (Sarah Vane Mysteries #3) by Alice Castle  @ alice_castle__ @bookouture

Murder at the Tea Shop
(Sarah Vane Mysteries #3)
by Alice Castle

Amazon   / BB

This cosy seaside village may seem picture perfect, but there are sketchy secrets hiding in plain sight…

Having left the big city behind, Sarah Vane is fully embracing her calmer life in the quaint coastal town of Merstairs. With more time for hobbies, she joins a very popular life drawing class at the local tea shop. But when their usual model, the ever-punctual Mr Williams, doesn’t turn up, Sarah’s worried. He’d been complaining of a cough just last week so she decides to check up on him.

Arriving at his crooked little cottage, it appears the front door isn’t quite shut. Stepping inside, Sarah is shocked to find Mr Williams slumped in his armchair. Casting her eyes down to his coffee table she sees a generous slice of Victoria sponge with one perfectly sized bite taken from it. Is this a case of death by cake?

As Sarah hunts around the cluttered cottage for clues, she finds that Mr Williams had a rather peculiar hobby. It seems that he was an avid collector of ladies’ delicates, and from the looks of it, all the washing lines of Merstairs have been raided. But could his quirky collection really be a motive for murder?

But then the case takes a darker turn when another elderly resident is found dead after eating a slice of red velvet cake. Sarah starts to wonder – why would anyone target pensioners with a sweet tooth? And in a village known for some of the best cakes in the county, can Sarah find the culprit before another life is taken?

A delightfully cozy, utterly compulsive and gripping murder mystery, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Betty Rowlands and Katie Gayle who are looking for their next addictive read.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

Sarah had been terrified, when she’d first heard about the Men of Merstairs, imagining a cut-throat gang at the least. But, as she had rapidly discovered, they were people who’d need satnav and a guidebook to fight their way out of a paper bag. And then require extensive counselling afterwards.

Seastore was Merstairs’ biggest and newest supermarket, and was built in a blocky, unchallenging style that suggested the architect had only just finished playing with Lego and didn’t really see why they should stop now.

At this point, they’d had more false starts than an under-fives egg and spoon race.

My Review:

 

This was a fun and entertaining cozy featuring some snoopy seniors who just can’t seem to leave a mystery unsolved or pass up a piece of cake with a cup of strong tea. Ms. Castle laces her stories together with lashings of clever wry humor and populates them with knowable, amusingly detailed, and authentically quirky characters. I am already looking forward to the next installment.

 

 

About the Author

Before turning to crime, Alice Castle was a UK newspaper journalist for The Daily Express, The Times, and The Daily Telegraph. Alice is an avid reader of crime fiction, her favorite stories are cozy crimes with a strong sense of place. When she couldn’t find a series about her beloved south London, she decided to write her own – and single mum amateur sleuth Beth Haldane was born. Alice also writes twisty psychological thrillers for HQ Digital under the name A.M. Castle. The Perfect Widow was a top-selling audiobook in 2019 and The Invitation hit the top 50 on Amazon UK in 2021. Alice lives with her two children and two cats and, if she isn’t writing or reading a whodunit, she’ll be watching one on telly.

 

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Book Reivew: A Ho Ho Ho Beau Christmas by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff @mimijeanpamfiloff

A Ho Ho Ho Beau Christmas
by Mimi Jean Pamfiloff

Amazon  / B&N / Apple / BB

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From New York Times bestseller Mimi Jean Pamfiloff comes a Christmas Rom-Com with a sweet magical surprise.

As the snow begins to fall and the city streets sparkle with festive lights, Meri Winters feels anything but merry. Juggling a demanding job and a strained relationship with her best friend, she’s more focused on surviving the holiday season than enjoying it.

That is, until she meets Beau Starling, a ruggedly handsome hobo who’s been living in the alley behind her building. Despite his disheveled appearance, there’s something mysterious about him—an inexplicable pull she can’t ignore.

As Meri opens her heart to this unlikely stranger, she discovers that Beau isn’t just a wanderer passing through. He has secrets—ones that could change both their lives forever.

In a season known for miracles, Meri will have to decide whether to take a leap of faith and trust in the magic of the holidays, or risk losing the one gift she never expected.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

We’d been best friends since middle school, ever since Kevin Foster started making fun of my freckles and frizzy brown curls. Every day he’d come up with a new name for me— fuzz butt, pork rind, rat’s nest, and pube head. Then one day, he’d called me “slutty tumbleweed,” claiming I just rolled from guy to guy like a “wild bag of hoes.” He added that each freckle on my face was a devil’s kiss for all the boys I’d banged. “Marks of shame,” he’d called them. I guessed his parents were super religious or something, and he’d improvised on their teachings.

I was twenty- nine now— on the precipice of thirty— and I’d be single for the holidays again. If it weren’t for Kay and her unwavering friendship, I’d probably just give up on romance and marry a cucumber.

Dating at work wasn’t easy these days. Lots of HR landmines. But how else were people our age supposed to meet other dysfunctional, horny, semi-responsible adults to settle down with?

Moments earlier he’d been as cold as penguin toes.

But you’re Miss Ing. Never stops cooking, baking, planning, decorating…

My Review:

 

This was a delightfully fun little romp to ease me into the holidays since we are officially taking down the Jack Skellingtons and putting away the pumpkins before digging out the semi-crumpled and moldering boxes of tinsel and twinkling lights. I enjoyed the quirky characters and Ms. Pamfiloff’s signature snarky humor, while I smirked my way through this well-paced and engaging story from its beginning to its satisfying conclusion.

About the Author

MIMI JEAN PAMFILOFF is a USA Today and New York Times bestselling romance author with over a million books sold worldwide. Although she obtained her MBA and worked for more than fifteen years in the corporate world, she believes that it’s never too late to come out of the romance closet and follow your dream. Mimi lives with her Latin Lover hubby, two pirates-in-training (their boys), and the rat terrier duo, Snowflake and Mini Me, in Arizona. She hopes to make you laugh when you need it most and continues to pray daily that leather pants will make a big comeback for men.

Sign up for Mimi’s mailing list for giveaways and new release news!

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Book Review: Quiet Longing (Quiet Love Book 2) by L.H. Cosway   @l.h.cosway @greyspromo

Quiet Longing
(Quiet Love Book 2)
by L.H. Cosway 

 

Amazon  / BB

 

When she agreed to spend her last summer before college at her cousins’ house in Ireland, Charli Moretti never expected to meet anyone like Rhys Doyle. He was the first boy to ever make her heart flutter, and though their lives followed different paths after that fateful summer, she always remembered him as her first everything.

Sixteen years later, after a tumultuous divorce from her abusive husband, Charli is returning to Ireland a shell of the woman she once was. Life has tried to break her many times over, and now all she wants is a fresh start and an even keel. She’ll be working as an accountant at her uncle’s hotel, but what she doesn’t know is that Rhys Doyle works there, too. He’s the head of security, in fact, and he’s no longer the teenage boy she once knew.

With the rumours flying around that he and his fiancée just broke off their engagement, Charli decides it’s best to give Rhys his space. She knows personally how hard it can be when a relationship ends. The problem is, she can’t seem to stop running into him, and the more she gets to know the man he’s become the more those old feelings start to return.

Tropes & Themes:
~Second chance~
~Workplace romance~
~Protector hero~
~Summer fling~
~Tragic past~
~Starting over~

Quiet Longing is book #2 in The Quiet Love Series and can be read as a standalone.

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

 

It was an ache I’d barely even known was there before I met her. I wasn’t entirely sure what it meant, but it felt a lot like longing. Longing for connection, for someone to understand me, to know and accept all the things I normally kept hidden.

This world is full of people who’ll put us down. We don’t need to do it to ourselves, too.

Being alone in a room with Rhys was like swallowing the antidote to all my worries and fears. His presence seeped into my bloodstream like medicine.

It was the kind of place a burglar only had to breathe on the locks to get inside.

I think of nothing else. If you cracked open my skull, all you’d find are thoughts of you…

My Review:

I always enjoy a second-chance romance, and although I don’t typically appreciate angst, I didn’t seem to mind it this time. Written with two timelines and in my favorite dual point of view, the storylines were engaging and realistic and laced together with real-life concerns. Ms. Cosway’s writing style continues to be easy to follow, thoughtfully parsed, and poignantly penned.

 

 

About the Author

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L.H. Cosway lives in Dublin, Ireland. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favourite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books. She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories. L.H. is represented by Louise Fury at The Bent Agency.

 

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Book Review: That One Heartbreak (The Heartbreak Brothers Next Generation Book 3) by Carrie Elks   @CarrieElks

That One Heartbreak
The Heartbreak Brothers Next Generation Book 3
by Carrie Elks

 

 

Amazon / BB

 

She used to be his best friend’s wife. But now she’s the one woman he can’t resist…

Single mom Kate Connelly is doing her best to hold it all together after losing her firefighter husband two years ago. With a teenage son who loves to push boundaries, a middle child who’s a pyromaniac in the making, and a curious daughter who never stops asking questions, Kate barely has time to breathe—let alone think about romance.

But when her late husband’s best friend, Marley Hartson, shows up with his steady presence and protective instincts, Kate can’t ignore the flutter in her chest.

Marley made a promise to his best friend that he’d always look after his family. What he didn’t expect was to fall for the one woman he’s forbidden to love.

As their attraction deepens and the summer sizzles, Kate and Marley must decide: Will they honor the past, or risk it all for a chance at a new future?

Because some promises are meant to be broken…

 

My Rating:

Favorite Quotes:

Grief was a strange thing. It ebbed and flowed like the ocean. Sometimes the tide would be so low you barely thought about the loss at all, and then it would come rushing back, a tsunami of remembering.

“I hear he’s single,” Gloria, one of the older stitchers, said. “Think he’d like a cougar?” “The car or the cat?” one of the other ladies asked. “Me, you dumbass.”

He’d come along at the right time, this man they hadn’t realized they needed. He was the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle of their lives. He completed them.

My Review:

I always enjoy picking up a new Carrie Elks book as I always seem to fall into her storytelling as if I’ve been teleported into the quirky little communities she seamlessly creates. Her writing finds that magical balance of humor, romantic chemistry, sizzling sensuality, endearing characters, and descriptive narratives that have me alternating between giggle-snorting, sighing, and gasping while frantically fanning myself.

Carrie Elks writes contemporary romance with a sizzling edge. Her first book, Fix You, has been translated into eight languages and made a surprise appearance on Big Brother in Brazil. Luckily for her, it wasn’t voted out. Carrie lives with her husband, two lovely children, and a larger-than-life black pug called Plato. When she isn’t writing or reading, she can be found baking, drinking an occasional (!) glass of wine, or chatting on social media.