Booked All Night

Scored by Aleatha Romig - ARC Review

2026-09-03T10:30:00.000-04:00

I can't lie, I started this one almost the minute I received it as I wanted to know how the events of the end of the third title were going to resolve.

Once we knew how that was going to resolve, a lot of this book was spent answering the questions that have been asked since book one: what happened to Reid; will the Coopers win the Super Bowl; what will happen to the team; what is the future for Fin?

There were some excellent mini-cliffhanger chapters that made this book move quickly as you wanted to know what just happened, and not just what was happening with all of the big questions.

Vee and Fin remain a strong and engaging couple through this story, which I appreciated allowing them to be the focus but not the drama.

I am not able to say more, as the rest of it would be spoilers for this book, or for the rest of the others, but I can say, I really enjoyed the resolution of this one.

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Start the Series with Book 1: Intercepted
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Hard Pass by K. Bromberg - ARC Review & Release Blitz

2026-08-20T11:30:00.000-04:00

Falling for the one woman who has the power to end my football career was never part of the plan . . .

This was supposed to be Cole Valor’s record-breaking season.

Instead, the star quarterback can’t seem to find his game. Missed throws. Bad reads. And someone is making a fortune betting against him.

When suspicious betting patterns surrounding his performance raise red flags, the NFL assigns its top integrity investigator to determine if its golden boy is the victim . . . or the mastermind.

Dublin Locke has built her career on facts, not feelings. She’s determined to follow the evidence wherever it leads, even if it points back to the man whose kiss she’s never forgotten.

The deeper Dublin digs, the more the evidence points to Cole. Yet he insists on helping her uncover the truth. Is he proving his innocence . . . or trying to throw her off his trail?

Working side by side as the investigation tightens its grip, the line between professional and personal begins to blur—and every stolen kiss pushes them further over a line neither of them can afford to cross.

Because every instinct tells Dublin to keep her distance.
But the more she falls for him, the harder it becomes to know which to believe—the facts . . . or her heart.

I don't know what it is about forbidden romance, but I absolutely love them. The idea that Dublin is investigating suspicious betting patterns, and Cole is the main suspect, made this romance so interesting, as the tension between them was so effective.

The resolution of the betting portion of the story wasn't a total surprise, but it still packed a punch, I think because by that point, I cared about the characters enough that I was invested in that part of the story as well.

Cole and Dublin worked for me as characters separate from them as a couple, which also added a depth to this that I enjoyed, as you feel like you got to know who they each were, and watch as who they were was tested by the relationship, but you also got to know them as people.

I can't wait for the next in this series.

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The Fall Affair by Vi Keeland - 5 Star ARC Review & Release Blitz

2026-08-18T10:30:00.000-04:00

BLURB

She’s counting down the days until she leaves Tuscany. He’s counting on making her stay.

Some people go to Tuscany to find themselves.

I went to escape—New York, my ex’s new relationship, and a career that derailed the moment I was passed over for partner.

My plan was simple: settle my eccentric Italian grandmother’s estate, sell whatever wasn’t nailed down, and return to the life I’d worked too hard to lose.

Instead, I walked into a mess—a crumbling antique shop, two hundred acres of leased vineyard land, and one infuriating clause in the will: Live and work in the shop for three months, or inherit nothing.

Then there’s the neighbor I clash with instantly. Matteo Lucchese is the infuriatingly handsome winemaker who leases my family’s land and refuses to be impressed by my credentials—or my attitude. He’s rugged and stubborn, stuck living in a time that has long passed us by, and the word rush isn’t part of his vocabulary. Basically, we’re exact opposites.
But as the days stretch into weeks, Tuscany chips away at the armor I didn’t realize I was wearing, and Matteo shows me the appeal of slowing down, of staying rooted, of wanting something other than climbing the corporate ladder.

I came to Tuscany to escape.

But now that the countdown to going home was on, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to leave. And the life I was falling for came with a looming expiration date.

Ok, this one got me. As a rule, if a book makes me cry, I have to say it's five stars as I am invested enough to actually cry. Allegra and Matteo managed this twice, so it's more than safe to say this one worked for me.

I loved so much about it. I loved the setting. I loved Matteo so much. How strong he was, how sure he was of her, how certain he was that they were more than a fling, even though he lived in Italy and she lived in New York City. I loved how willing he was to find a way, even when she was sure that it wouldn't ever work. And, I loved the way they author dealt with him questioning how certain he was about her, as it fit perfectly with him.

Italy is a character in this story, along with the town and the friends of Allegra's Nonna. All of them are interwoven so well into the story that you always feel like they both give you insight but also move the story along.

I didn't want to put this one down, I wanted to sneak away from work tasks to read, but I didn't want to do this story a disservice. This book is one that you want to read when you can focus and lose yourself in the story.

And, beware of the ending. It's perfection, without ruining it, and if you are like me, you are going to need a tissue as even though I was expecting it, it was still just perfect.

ADD TO GOODREADS

WHAT TO EXPECT

Opposites Attract

Under the Tuscan Sun Vibes

Found Family

NYC Heroine x Italian Hero

Late-summer Magic

PURCHASE LINKS

EBOOK

AUDIOBOOK

SPECIAL EDITION PAPERBACK

eBook available in Kindle Unlimited

AUTHOR BIO

Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria, Israel, and Hungary.

Three of her short stories have been turned into films, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.

AUTHOR LINKS

FACEBOOK

PROFILE / PAGE / GROUP

WEBSITE

TIKTOK

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X (TWITTER)

GOODREADS

The Wild Card by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review

2026-08-10T11:30:00.000-04:00

He buried a fake-girlfriend clause in a roommate agreement.

She signed it without reading.
What could possibly go wrong?FBI agent Crew Jensen thrives on control. His rigid routines keep his anxiety and OCD in check: no chaos, no distractions, and definitely no relationships.

Until his boss threatens to transfer him to Alaska.

Desperate to prove he has "roots," Crew makes a wildly unhinged decision: he slips a fake-girlfriend clause into his roommate contract, hoping his next applicant won't read it carefully.

Emmie Marshall signs on page seventeen without blinking.

Emmie is everything Crew is not—warm, messy, impossibly chatty—and currently racing a cookbook deadline that could make or break her career. She needs stability. He needs a convincing relationship. It's a simple, mutually beneficial arrangement.

Fake dates. Public hand-holding. Mandatory cuddling sessions (her counter-demand—he's just so touch-starved and grumpy).

The more they pretend, the harder it becomes to remember where the contract ends and real feelings begin.

Because she makes the counting in his head stop. He makes her feel like she doesn't have to try so hard.

Suddenly, the arrangement that was supposed to be temporary feels dangerously real.

The premise of this one, I can't lie, I wasn't sure how I felt about the idea of a woman being tricked into a fake relationship by having the hero hide the fake relationship clause in a 17 page roommate agreement.

But, while I never loved the idea, getting to know Crew, and that he also didn't think it was a great idea, I was a little more able to ignore the premise.

Once I got past the premise of this one, I really likes this title. I loved Emmie, how completely different she was from Crew, and how much she brought him out of his shell. The way they connected with one another, and accepted one another, quirks and all, was lovely and made for an enjoyable story.

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The Pilot by Susan Stoker - ARC Review

2026-08-05T10:30:00.000-04:00

Sparks fly when a former bully moves in with her former victim in New York Times bestselling author Susan Stoker’s tantalizing third foray into Alpha Cove, a spicy military romance steeped in emotion.

Ex-fighter pilot Lincoln “Linc” Young is a survivor, masking his PTSD and nightmares behind a calm exterior. When his father’s death brings him back to Maine to help his mom, he never expects to cross paths with his former high school tormentor. But the woman who once made his life hell now stirs completely different emotions in Linc, and when he finds Harper in need, he impulsively offers her and her young son a place to stay.

Harper Bates thought she’d hit rock bottom after returning to her childhood home in Rockville, Maine. Then her father begins judging her every move—and worse, her son Kash, when they discover he’s being bullied at school. The last person she expects help from is Linc, the boy Harper herself had bullied years ago. Now a commanding presence who makes her and Kash feel safe, Linc inspires both a growing attraction…and lingering shame over her past actions.

Temporary cohabitation quickly turns into something more as Harper and Linc reveal intimate secrets that put them both on a path to healing. But they’re unaware someone else has a secret. And it’s about to impact the one person the couple can’t live without—Kash.

I loved the plot of this one. The two characters who need to overcome the things in their past, with the addition of her being his high school bully.

The forced proximity added to the idea that they were forced to reconcile how they feel about one another and how they relate to one another with the things in their past they are trying to come to terms with.

Their connection was amazing, and the tension between them had me invested from the beginning of the story.

There was an additional suspense element that I actually thought was a little overdone toward the end of the story and took this one down about half a start for me, as while I understood why the storyline was included, it somewhat messed up the pacing of the story for me.

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Tracked by Rebecca Sharp - ARC Review

2026-07-30T10:30:00.000-04:00

To infiltrate a wilderness retreat and find her missing sister, she must pose as the girlfriend of a rugged survivalist. The problem? He’s her sister’s ex, and the man she’s always desired. The danger? Their pretend passion is turning real.

When ER doctor Lara Crane’s sister vanishes in the Wyoming wilderness, she turns to the one man with the skills to find her—the one man she shouldn’t want. Professional tracker Calder Stone is her sister’s ex-boyfriend and the forbidden attraction Lara has buried for twelve years.

For Calder, a survivalist who lives by control and careful rules, Lara has always been the exception. Their search leads to a remote couples-only retreat hiding deadly secrets. The only way in? Pose as lovers. But in the intimate confines of their undercover charade, pretending reveals a desire that’s dangerously real.

As they uncover the sinister truth behind the retreat—and her sister’s disappearance—someone will kill to keep it buried. Trapped in a wilderness where danger lurks behind every tree and their forbidden desire ignites with every stolen touch, Lara and Calder must risk it all to survive. Including their hearts.

This is my first title by this author, and I did enjoy it enough to read other titles by her.

I liked both of the characters and I did believe in both their connection and their reactions to one another. I do think in some places, the book was more a suspense/adventure title and less a romance. Because of that, I do think some of the connection with the characters was a little muted, so the romantic payoff did feel somewhat lessened.

That said, there were a lot of moments in the suspense story that had some great emotional payoff, so there is that to also balance the story which overall left me feeling that I enjoyed this title.

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Dirty Judge by Whitney G - ARC Review

2026-07-29T10:30:00.000-04:00

There are three rules in Judge Ashton’s courtroom:

1. Don’t ever question him.

2. Try not to look guilty.

3. Never make him remember you.

I just wish someone had told me that before I had a hearing in front of him.

Because this jerk barely listened to my speeding ticket case, ruled me “guilty as hell,” and made me pay thousands of dollars in fees—despite me pleading about how broke and desperate I was.

So, it’s only fair that I looked up his home address, found his luxury car, and treated all his windows to some much-deserved damage.

I “allegedly” did it, I mean.

He’ll never know…

At least, that’s what I thought.

Several weeks later, yours truly was hired to be a new law clerk.

For his courtroom.

Turns out, he remembered me all too well and decided to make my life a living hell.

And he plays dirty.

Far dirtier than anyone could ever imagine.

I think I say this whenever I review a Whitney G. title, but it's important to note that her stories are always a little bonkers, and that is what I love about them.

Would these situations happen in real life? I suspect not, but I also don't care as that is the fun of the book.

Olivia and Judge Ashton are what you want. Funny, quirky, hot together, and just so completely Whitney that I absolutely loved them.

I haven't looked, but I am positive I am not the only person who mentions the quirkiness of this author, as it matters. If you are looking for a serious, realistic title, this isn't for you. If you want to laugh, love the characters, shake your head at the silliness while being all in, this IS the book for you.

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Just a Little Tempted by Carly Phillips - ARC Review

2026-07-28T10:30:00.000-04:00

I never meant to fall for my boss.

When I was hired to be Simon’s assistant, everyone warned me he was impossible—brilliant, demanding, and obsessed with control. But after surviving two months of his rules and grumpy attitude, I’ve learned how to manage my boss. Maybe it’s my chaotic upbringing or the fact that I desperately need this job, but I can’t ignore the moments when his guarded edges soften… even if he pretends they don’t.

Then one nervous slip in front of a major client turns into a fake relationship neither of us can back out of. Now I’m Simon’s “girlfriend,” attending dinners, traveling for meetings, and sharing far too much close proximity with the man I’m not supposed to want. Pretending to belong to him shouldn’t feel real—but it does. And the hardest part isn’t keeping up the lie. It’s realizing I’m falling for him for real.

Simon and Raina were a fun couple. I enjoy office romance, and this one was a lot of fun with the added fact that she works for Simon and when he hires her, he expects her to fail.

I kind of loved that idea, that while there was a power imbalance, she is the one who shows that she is more capable than he expected, and puts her in the position of having the power in their relationship, even though it evolves from a fake relationship to one that becomes real.

I actually enjoyed the additional things going on with the secondary characters as it enhanced the story and didn't pull focus from it.

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The Irresistible One by Marni Mann - ARC Review & Release Blitz

2026-07-23T10:30:00.000-04:00

A naughty enemies-to-lovers, single dad, billionaire romance from USA Today best-selling author Marni Mann …

I’m the irresistible one. The man who always gets what he wants. Too bad the only woman I want is the one I can’t have.

Dating apps can’t touch the dark and uninhibited desires I keep hidden. For the kind of kink I crave, I go to Lush—a playground where fantasies become reality.

That’s where I meet her.

The breathtaking blonde in the crimson dress who steals the air from my lungs, becoming an instant fixation after just one night.

Daring.

Uninhibited.

Captivating.

One taste will never be enough.

And when we meet again, it’s the worst possible scenario …

The sexy bombshell who ruined me for anyone else is now the one person who is completely out of my reach.

Off-limits.

Untouchable.

Forbidden.

The absolute enemy of everything I stand for.

But when scorching chemistry, razor-sharp banter, and an undeniable attraction collide, staying away from her is no longer an option.

What happens when the woman I can’t have becomes the only one I can’t resist?

I love a good enemies to lovers, and Colson and Sophie is one of the best I have read in a while. You know something is going to happen to keep them from being together, but I did see this plot twist coming.

This one is fun and steamy and, as is always the case with Marni Mann's books, the steam is engaging and also moves the story forward. The spice is a focus from the beginning, but it never feels old or forced.

I also like the secondary characters weave into the story. I love that you see the characters from previous stories, making it feel like an extension of the previous stories, which also makes it fun.

If you haven't read the other books in this series, you can start here. But it is going to make you want to read all of them...immediately.

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Narrated by: Teddy Hamilton & Desiree Ketchum

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As Long As it Takes by Jill Francis - ARC Review

2026-07-22T10:30:00.000-04:00

Set in a seaside town in Italy, As Long as It Takes is a charming summer romance about finding your roots and letting love blossom.

Love isn’t exactly a priority for Lora Brooks. After all, her last break-up made perfectly clear she can’t rely on anyone but herself. That’s why Lora’s number one focus is her research, where she’s hard at work debunking Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. But when she’s offered a prestigious post-doctoral position in Zurich—one whose funding hinges on her having European citizenship—everything changes.

Hoping to claim citizenship through her birth father, Lora and her best friend travel to the quaint Italian town where he was born. She knows little about her father (and intends to keep it that way) but nothing, not even the ghosts of her past, will stand between Lora and this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Except, perhaps, Italian bureaucracy. And an outdated filing system. And Andrea, the handsome—and slightly anxious—mayor.

In between trying to save the town from bankruptcy, wrangling quirky business-owners, and debating whether to run for a second term, Andrea somehow finds the time to show Lora what it really means to live, and perhaps love, like a local. Between Lora destined for a future hundreds of miles away, and Andrea’s parents pushing him to return to his fast-paced life in New York, is it possible the pair might discover that their most basic need is actually just…each other?

I read the blurb of this one and I wanted to read it. Sometimes blurbs are like catnip, and this was one of them. I was all in and I was excited to read this one..

Lora and Andrea are one of those couples who probably shouldn't work, but they do. You like them together, and you believe in their connection.

I was annoyed by Lora, I can't lie. Yes, it's frustrating that Italy is different, but noticing and complaining about it 400 times got really old and it stopped being charming and just got annoying. And, admittedly, this ruined parts of the story for me.

It's absolutely possible this won't annoy anyone else, and if it doesn't the story likely flows pretty well. I was happy to see them work things out, and I was happy to see her change of heart toward a number of things, but I would have liked to see this happen sooner.

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Knights Like These by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review

2026-07-22T09:30:00.000-04:00

He was my first kiss. My first everything. And then he married someone else.

I've been in love with Archer Lockwood since I was fourteen years old. I've never told him. I stood at his wedding, held his newborn twins in the hospital, and cried in my car afterward. I smiled through every moment that should have been mine—because that's what best friends do.

Now Archer is divorced, overwhelmed, and raising two three-year-olds alone during an NHL season. When he calls for help, I pack a suitcase and fly to New York.

The plan was simple: help with the kids, keep my distance, and don't fall in love.
The plan lasted about seventy-two hours.

Because his twins have me wrapped around their fingers. His house feels like home. And he keeps looking at me like he's finally seeing something he missed.

I've waited years for Archer to look at me like that.

I just wasn't ready for what happens when he finally does.

Knights Like These is a full-length standalone romance and the third book in the Off the Ice series. It features a single-dad NHL goalie, his childhood best friend, scene-stealing twins, and a slow burn that was worth every single year of waiting.

Slow burn romance is fantastic. Especially when you know that both of them are resisting one another with all they have.

Sydney and Archer have known one another for years, she was a friend, she was at his wedding, and she has been part of every single big event of his life. The only people who don't know how they feel about one another is both of them. Heck, even his ex wife knows what is going on.

The focus of this story is getting to know the characters while they figure out how they really feel about one another. And, it's a lot of fun. They are so perfect for one another, but they refuse to see what everyone else does, that their relationship has been going on for the past 14 years.

I enjoyed their chemistry, their relationship, the secondary characters, and watching their relationship evolve. I enjoyed this title, and it can be read as a standalone.

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Not That Kind of Proposal by Victoria Lavine - ARC Review

2026-07-21T10:30:00.000-04:00

From the internationally bestselling author of Any Trope but You comes an enemies-to-lovers rom-com about a hopeless romantic wedding planner and the cynical divorce lawyer forced to help her plan her ex’s wedding.

Gracie Holland lives for Happily Ever Afters—just not her own. After a crushing breakup, she’s thrown herself into planning weddings at Larkwood, the ivy-covered Rhode Island estate where she also lives in the guest cottage. But when her beloved boss passes away and leaves the estate to her grandson, Gracie’s carefully rebuilt life is suddenly on the line. Jude Larkwood is everything she’s sworn ruthless, practical, and immune to romance—he’s a divorce lawyer, for crying out loud! Worse, he plans to sell Larkwood by the end of the summer.

Jude has spent his life cleaning up other people’s romantic disasters—and he has no interest in watching another love story fall apart on his family’s lawn. But inheriting Larkwood comes with one its maddeningly optimistic wedding planner. Gracie’s sunshiney faith in love unsettles Jude almost as much as her ability to push through his defenses. He’s built a life on keeping emotion out of the equation—but something about her keeps slipping past his guard.

When Gracie’s ex calls out of the blue asking her to plan his wedding, she sees an unexpected opportunity. Jude reluctantly agrees to give her until the wedding to change his mind, and in exchange, she drags him into a two-month crash course in love to make even the most hardened cynic start to wonder if love might not be such a scam after all.

But as cake tastings and vendor emergencies give way to late-night confessions and undeniable chemistry, Gracie and Jude must confront the fears they’ve spent years avoiding. But can a hopeless romantic and a confirmed cynic find a future they both believe in?

This is my first title by this author, and I did enjoy it enough to want to read her other titles.

The characters were complex and you really have a chance to get to know them as people throughout the story which is always great. I also thought it was balanced well, as the character development moved the story forward without taking away from the humor or the spice between the characters.

I liked Jude and Gracie, although at the beginning of the story, I wasn't sure what I was going to think about Gracie as she did come across as a little immature, but I also think this was partly because of the fact that Gracie wedding planner who lives on the estate and in order for the story to work and put her and Jude into the same place, she needed to be exactly where she was emotionally. Jude is a divorce attorney who inherits the estate after Gracie's boss passes away.

This sets up very differing end games for each of them, and it definitely sets up their tension. I found it believable and I was invested in the characters

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Every Single Broken Piece by Michelle Heard - ARC Review

2026-07-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

A tattooed, touch-averse alpha becomes the sunshine to a grieving woman’s darkness—but the secret connecting him to her family’s brutal murder could destroy the love that’s healing them both. From USA Today bestselling author Michelle Heard.

Kelcie

After losing my entire family in a brutal attack, I’m drowning in grief. The only bright spot? My mysterious new neighbor, Levi—a tattooed bestselling author who somehow understands my pain.

He’s grumpy, he’s damaged, and he hates being touched. Except by me.

Levi

I moved next door to Kelcie for one to make sure she’s okay after the tragedy that took her family. A tragedy I know more about than I should.

She’s the only person whose touch doesn’t make my skin crawl. The only one who makes me want to be whole again.

But I’m hiding a devastating secret—one that connects me to the worst night of her life. And when she discovers the truth, it could destroy the fragile love we’ve built from our broken pieces.

Sometimes, I really enjoy a good dark, twisty title that doesn't really have anything to make it all be tied up nice and pretty.

Kelcie and Levi are both broken people who heal one another, and that is what makes this one really work. It really leans into the idea that maybe it is ok to be broken, maybe it is ok to not be perfect, to not be totally ok, but to still be loved.

I loved them together, and watching them open up to one another and allow themselves to be enough, it was lovely even though it was full of things that should make them give up on looking for the good in life.

I think what I liked about this one is that while it wasn't a fully perfect story, it was about people who were perfect for one another finding each other.

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Contempt of Court by Whitney G. - ARC Review

2026-07-14T11:30:00.000-04:00

It's not my fault I lied to him.
I had to.

Alas, Jameson Tate might be the biggest walking hypocrite on the planet because his deeply harbored secrets make mine look like child's play.

Still, I started to trust him.

To believe in him.

But as more things begin to unravel, I regret ever meeting him...

The second installment in The Verdict Trilogy from New York Times & USA Today bestselling author Whitney G.

Jameson and Scarlet's story advanced in a lot of ways in this one, and I enjoyed all of the twists and turns of this one, but it's impossible to get into any of it without spoilers, which is always the case with the middle book in any trilogy.

I enjoyed it, I read this one quickly as I was engaged. And, as I knew this one was going to have a cliffhanger, I was prepared for it. And, for whatever reason, the cliffhanger on this one totally surprised me. Maybe it shouldn't have, but it did. I am definitely looking forward to the next one in this series.

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Secret Husband by Kate Meader - ARC Review

2026-07-11T10:30:00.000-04:00

Years ago, I broke her heart, but fate has given me a second chance. I am here to claim my wife—and I will fight like hell to make her mine.

Lauren

I might be late to the game of life, but things are finally starting to go my way. I’ve just started my own sports talent agency, stepped on the first rung of the property ladder, and landed myself a normal boyfriend who’s about to propose. (I found the ring!)

Unfortunately, I have a slight problem—as in a husband who is surplus to requirements. Somehow, I got married without even realizing it to the guy who broke my heart years ago. Now he’s back in my life, making demands and turning my world upside down. Except I’m no longer that starry-eyed girl in love with the Russian hockey star. These days I’m a ball-busting tigress for my clients, and the last thing I need is Alexei Nazarov ruining everything for which I’ve worked so hard.

But when he makes me an offer I can’t refuse, I wonder if I’ve struck a bargain with the devil who knows my heart better than anyone …

Alexei

Years ago, I met a hockey playing spitfire and fell ass over skates for her. But my life was in disarray, and I had to let her go. When a chance comes to reconnect with her, I grab it with both hands.

There are obstacles. A boyfriend (unworthy), her disdain for me (admittedly, hot), and the fact I hurt her deeply (my biggest regret). It won’t be easy, but nothing worth doing ever is. Known for fighting dirty on the ice, I am not opposed to fighting dirty off it to get what I want.

And I want Lauren Yates …

There are books that you like both characters, and there are books where one of them holds your heart just a little more than others, and this book was the latter. Alexei is one of my all time favorite Kate Meader heroes.

Alexei was handling so much, well, they both were, but there was just something about how willing he was to make Lauren his priority when anyone else might have said they just couldn't handle everything they had to and also focus on someone else.

The way this is written, you get to know both characters, how they will react, and how they will feel about things, which helps as you can disagree with the things they do while still being able to say it is in character for who they each are and how they would react in the situation.

It's the character development that really makes this one an excellent read.

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Fall For Me by Camilla Isley - ARC Review

2026-07-10T10:30:00.000-04:00

Running from a wedding… into a fake fall romance!

Fleeing her wedding and a toxic relationship in her white gown, Peyton jumps on the first bus out of town—and straight into billionaire Liam Rockwood. Literally. Distracted by her search for a place to stay, she steps into the street and sends the town’s most eligible bachelor crashing off his bike!

Liam is furious. His suit is ruined, he’s late for an event at his hotel, and now the runaway bride responsible is trying to check in. Worse, the small-town rumor mill quickly decides Peyton must be his secret new wife.

When Liam’s father arrives ready to celebrate the “happy couple,” Liam makes Peyton an offer: a temporary marriage of convenience. She gets protection against her vindictive ex, a home, and a fresh start. He gets the wife his family expects.

As crisp fall days turn into cozy nights, they carve pumpkins, steal kisses in the corn maze, and share secrets in the dark. Suddenly, their fake marriage starts feeling dangerously real. But falling was never part of the plan…

In order for me to believe an enemies to lovers, as I have said in previous reviews, I need to believe the reason for them disliking one another, but it also needs to feel authentic and not forced.

The reason Peyton and Liam dislike one another is specifically related to the events at their first meeting, and you believe it. Did I totally believe in the reason that his father thought they were married? Not totally, but I was willing to ignore that.

I liked them together and the way they related to one another. Their conversations and interactions worked well to move the story forward and convince me that they would be willing to change the relationship from fake to real.

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Hidden Hearts by Ani Thomas - ARC Review & Release Blitz

2026-07-09T10:30:00.000-04:00

There are worse things in life than being the CEO of the largest and oldest whiskey distillery in South Carolina and the self-proclaimed patriarch of my family. I can’t complain, even if my personal life has taken what seems to be a permanent backseat over the last two years.

I have my mom and brothers to look out for, a business to run, and a legacy to uphold. With the responsibility I shoulder, I don’t have the capacity for much else in my life.

Enter Lila Avondale, my new—and extremely reluctant—business partner. She’s gorgeous, witty, obstinate, and everything I never knew I wanted.

Something about Lila’s frosty charisma has me completely captivated, but she doesn’t trust my family or me as far as she can throw us.

I’m making it my mission to knock down her well-constructed walls and get to know the real her, the one she keeps hidden away. But a series of unfortunate mishaps and an unsuspecting grudge could wreck any chance I have at making that happen.

Will I break through and form a connection that could change everything for us both, or will she always keep her heart hidden from me?

I enjoyed a lot about this story, but there were parts of Lila and Corbin's story that didn't totally connect with me. Nothing enough to ruin the story, more that it felt there were times where it was a little too much tell and not enough show, so it felt that I was a little more distant from the characters than I wanted to be.

There were places in the story where I was really engaged and this definitely kept me reading and moving from scene to scene. I did like the characters and I believed their relationship and that they acted like people would in similar situations.

This is my first title by this author, and it's always great to find a new series and author that you are interested in reading the next title in the series.

💙Small Town

🥃Black Cat x Golden Retriever

💙Millionaire MMC

🥃Competitors turned Partners

💙Forced Proximity

🥃One Bed

💙He Falls First

🥃Dual POV

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Love You More by Emily Giffin - 5 Star ARC Review

2026-07-04T10:30:00.000-04:00

A woman is newly engaged to a man she adores when she receives a call from her first love—with news that shatters her carefully ordered world—in this emotional, powerful novel from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Summer Pact.

Billie has built the perfect life. Her practice as a doctor in New York City is thriving, and she’s finally found the right partner in Dean after years spent trying to move on from her high-school sweetheart, Mick. Their young love had been intense and true, but distance and ambition pulled them apart when she left Wisconsin for medical school.

Then one morning, just after accepting Dean’s romantic marriage proposal, Billie’s phone rings. It’s Mick—calling for the first time in nearly a decade. His news is urgent, and in a moment, everything changes.

As Billie boards a plane back to Wisconsin, the past comes rushing in—her friendships from home, the love she shared with Mick, and the choices that shaped them. What awaits her is a reckoning with what she’s lost, what she’s built, and what she still wants.

Gripping and deeply moving, Love You More is a story about the plot twists life throws at us—and how love, in all its forms, has the power to change everything.

Something Borrowed is one of my all time favorite books. I read it for the first time on a plane, and for one of the only times I can remember, was sad to learn that we were landing and I was going to have to close the book and finish it later.

This book felt like that one in so many ways. Different in others, obviously, but with a story that immediately drew me in and didn't want to let me go until I had finished the book.

This story is about everyone, Billie, Mick, Dean, Erin, and Phoebe. It's about the choices you make and how they lead you down a path and how that path isn't always where you thought you were going, but the end is exactly where you are supposed to be. And, you feel that through this book, the way the author makes the choices that feel wrong blend into being right.

There are really no villains in this story (well, one but that person is a periphery character who gets what was deserved) and I think that makes your heart climb into the story with all of them as they try to do what feels right and to figure out how to make what feels right into what is right when they don't always seem to be the same things.

I knew how this was going to end for most of the book. I am not going to spoil it, but there are also some huge clues that tell you, as a reader, where you are supposed to be leaning, and it's this that, at least for me, made some of the choices and events hit just a little harder.

But it also made the end just that much sweeter.

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Into the Fading Twilight by Catherine Cowles - ARC Review

2026-07-03T10:30:00.000-04:00

She’s known nothing but darkness for 413 days…but he’ll burn down the world to save her.

After a year in captivity, Nova Monroe is back in Starlight Grove—but she’s not the same woman who vanished. She lives on the edge, chases adrenaline, and refuses to be caged again. Cliff diving. Mountain biking. Anything to feel alive and outrun the memories clawing at her.

But the single dad with shadows of his own won’t let her face it alone. Especially when she finds herself needing a place to stay.

Kol Archer has made it his mission to protect her. As a Forest Service investigator, he’s no stranger to rugged terrain or battling for control. But nothing prepared him for Nova—her fire, her fight, the way she makes him feel something he thought was lost.

The closer they get, the more dangerous things become. Someone doesn’t want Nova to move on. And Kol is determined to stop them—no matter the cost.

Because for the first time in forever, Nova’s not just surviving. She’s learning how to live, how to trust, and reminding Kol he can, too. But as darkness looms, the truth could destroy them both…

____________________________________

Into the Fading Twilight is a single dad, roommates-to-lovers, small-town romance about a woman starting over and a man who will do anything to keep her safe. This book can be read as a stand-alone.

Wow. How do I review this without spoilers, either for this title or the first in this series? I think the answer to that is that I really don't, not and mention any of the details of the story.

Nova and Kol's story is a standalone, technically, but I don't think you can fully embrace this story without knowing her backstory. Don't misunderstand, you can, but there is a lot in this that builds on the events of the previous one.

Oddly, and this almost never happens, I actually (sort of) figured out the twist in this one, I suspected the correct "who" but had the reasons totally wrong, but I am going to take the win, as I never figure things out in books.

I loved both of the characters, I loved Nova's strength, but I was really drawn to Kol. His desire to do the right thing for the people in his life, even if it meant personal sacrifice. Watching him deal with his feelings, the potential repercussions of them, and figure out how to make it work made for an excellent read.

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Colt by Jessica Peterson - ARC Review

2026-06-29T10:30:00.000-04:00

She isn’t supposed to care about a ranch.

She definitely isn't supposed to fall for the foreman.
And his six-year-old son is absolutely, definitely not supposed to capture her heart.

Lainey Brown is not ranch material. She's a city girl who landed on the legendary Wallace Ranch to give the place a fresh coat of branding—and get her career back on track. She's got no interest in cowboys, cattle, or the infuriatingly gorgeous foreman who clearly wants her gone.

Colton Wallace has spent every day since losing his wife building something worth leaving his son: a spotless reputation, a thriving operation, and a life with no room for complications. The last thing he needs is a firecracker from Austin with a sketchbook full of big ideas and a smile that makes him forget every reason he swore off wanting things he can't keep.

But somewhere between their very first fight and a Texas night sky that stretches on forever, something shifts. Lainey stops counting the days until she can leave. And Colt stops pretending he wants her to.

The ranch has always been the Wallace legacy. But Colt is starting to wonder if the best thing that's ever happened to it—and to him—just walked in wearing city shoes.

Lainey and Colt were a believable enemies to lovers story. I liked their connection, I liked that Colt had reasons outside of Lainey to feel the way he did, and I liked that those were also explored. Their connection felt real and authentic and I liked the way Lainey tried to keep things separate from any type of relationship and surface level.

There was a lot of focus placed on the enemies part of their story, and I think I wanted a little more of them as a couple. Not that this was missing, but that a lot of time was spent with their internal dialogue on wanting more while also thinking about how authentic they each were.

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The Final Score by Lana Ferguson - ARC Review

2026-06-28T10:30:00.000-04:00

A hockey player and a grad student are on thin ice until they meet their match in this sexy romance by USA Today bestselling author Lana Ferguson.

Jack Baker is on top of the world now that he’s back on the rink where he belongs. But the high comes crashing down when he reinjures his arm immediately following his return to the ice, and this time, he might never be able to play again. After a lifetime as the strong, happy hockey guy whose sister needed him, Jack is left questioning everything he knows about himself.

Abigail Thompson feels like she’s hit rock bottom. It’s only been a few months since the massive scandal that finally severed the cord between her and her narcissistic father. And now, in her last weeks of grad school, she’s been kicked out of her building with very short notice. The last thing she wants to do is ask her half-brother for help after what she’s put him through, but it’s looking like his best friend’s spare room might be her only choice.

Jack is flighty, flirty, and a little full of himself—all the things Abby’s learned to avoid in men. However, spending every day together breaks the ice between them, and she starts to realize that Jack might not be who he seems. It’s possible that maybe, just maybe, he might be struggling as much as she is. Soon, confiding in each other leads to falling into bed, and this fling will either play with their hearts—or score them the ultimate goal of love.

I liked a lot about this one, and I definitely liked Jack and Abigail as characters, for the most part. Although I didn't love the way his being less than serious was something that a lot of people in his life used to minimize him, but I understand how it worked in the story, but it got a little old for me.

Aside from that, I really liked the plot point about Jack's arm, and how he was dealing with it, which gave you a connection with the player portion of the character as he grappled with what he had and what he could lose.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between them, both of them seeing the other as someone different than they originally thought. The supporting characters were also fun, and I do now want to read the story focused on those characters, but you don't need to have read that title to enjoy this one.

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The Rebound by Kelly Jamieson - ARC Review

2026-06-27T10:30:00.000-04:00

Her hockey star ex. A snowy cabin escape. A fake dating scheme to fool their families.

Carson

A family tragedy caused Ayla and I to stop skating in the same direction. I'm burying my head in hockey practice and finding my way back to myself. Now she wants me to pretend we never fell apart for one snowy weekend in the mountains. I tell myself it’s just a favor. But sharing a cabin with the woman I once called home? That’s dangerous ice.

Ayla

Carson and I loved each other, but grief rewrote the rules, and neither of us knew how to play anymore. However, our relationship status isn’t public knowledge and I need him to help keep the illusion intact. Just temporarily for my Nonna’s birthday. Pretending brings back the easy banter, the familiar heat, the moments that once made us a team. The problem? None of it feels fake. But can we get past this one weekend and confront what we have been too scared to talk about and maybe find our way back to each other?

I am not sure what I was expecting from this one, but there were definitely parts I was really engaged in the story with Carson and Ayla.

There were also some areas where I felt a little like the focus of the story was a little lost, or maybe felt a little derailed for me, as the things they were dealing with felt like enough without the additions of the fake relationship. Not enough to pull me out of the story, but there were areas that I wanted to see a little more than we did.

Their connection was excellent, and I definitely was willing to believe that they would be willing to reexplore things when they found themselves forced together, even if it was by her choice.

Overall, I was engaged with the couple and I did enjoy the title.

TROPES:

⛸️ Snowy cabin

⛸️ Fake dating

⛸️ Second chances

⛸️ Hurt / comfort

⛸️ Hockey / sports romance

⛸️ Spicy

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Ice Cold Chemistry by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review & Release Blitz

2026-06-25T10:30:00.000-04:00

The team’s broodiest defenseman meets his match in a sunshine yoga instructor who doesn’t take no for an answer.

Banks doesn’t do relationships. Doesn’t do feelings. Doesn’t do yoga.

Winnie’s about to change all that.

Ice Cold Chemistry is a grumpy-sunshine hockey romance, and oh... it’s going to get spicy!

About the Book:

She’s the distraction the team can’t afford.
He’s the solution no one saw coming.

Winnie Garrett is done with men. After a toxic relationship left her second-guessing everything, she’s focused on one thing: her dream job as the New York Knights’ new yoga instructor.

Banks Callahan doesn’t do relationships. Or feelings. Or anything that requires letting people get close. Growing up in the foster system taught him not to need anyone—and definitely not to want something he could lose.

So when the team’s new yoga instructor becomes an unexpected locker-room distraction threatening their playoff focus, Banks comes up with a solution so ridiculous it just might work.

Fake dating.

If the guys think Winnie is his, they’ll back off. It’s simple locker room code: you don’t touch what’s claimed—like calling dibs on the last slice of pizza.

The problem?
Nothing about Winnie Garrett is simple.

She’s warmth and laughter and everything Banks has spent years convincing himself he doesn’t need. She makes him want things he can’t have. Makes him feel things he doesn’t understand.

He was never supposed to fall for her.

But somewhere between fake hand-holding, pretend nicknames, and very real late-night moments, the line between “just for show” and “dangerously real” starts to blur.

Ice Cold Chemistry is a slow-burn hockey romance featuring fake dating, a grumpy hero, a sunshine heroine, and the relationship neither of them planned—but both might need.

I am a big fan of sports romance. Why, I don't know, as I am not even a sports fan. But, there is just something about a sports romance, and this is one of the good ones.

Winnie and Banks should not be attracted to one another. Winnie is happy, and is fun. Banks is neither of these things. But what he is is a respected member of the team, so fake dating the yoga instructor to keep the rest of the team from making her job impossible makes sense, even though neither of them are convinced. At first.

Part of me wanted to see Winnie solve the issue herself as women should be able to exist in a space around men, but that would have ruined the whole plot of the book, and getting to see Banks find his own was worth it.

Buy Links:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/4b7EHYj

Goodreads: https://geni.us/ICCGR

Audio: https://geni.us/jj23tn

ICE COLD CHEMISTRY 🏒✨

💙 a broody hockey defenseman

💙 a sunshine yoga instructor

💙 explosive chemistry

Tropes:

Grumpiest of grumpy/sunshine

Hockey Player x Yoga Instructor

Fake Dating

Possessive / protective hero

Opposites attract

Brooding hero softened by sunshine heroine

The Fall Affair by Vi Keeland - 5 Star ARC Review

2026-06-23T10:30:00.000-04:00

She’s counting down the days until she leaves Tuscany. He’s counting on making her stay.

Some people go to Tuscany to find themselves.

I went to escape—New York, my ex’s new relationship, and a career that derailed the moment I was passed over for partner.

My plan was simple: settle my eccentric Italian grandmother’s estate, sell whatever wasn’t nailed down, and return to the life I’d worked too hard to lose.

Instead, I walked into a mess—a crumbling antique shop, two hundred acres of leased vineyard land, and one infuriating clause in the will: Live and work in the shop for three months, or inherit nothing.

Then there’s the neighbor I clash with instantly. Matteo Lucchese is the infuriatingly handsome winemaker who leases my family’s land and refuses to be impressed by my credentials—or my attitude. He’s rugged and stubborn, stuck living in a time that has long passed us by, and the word rush isn’t part of his vocabulary. Basically, we’re exact opposites.

But as the days stretch into weeks, Tuscany chips away at the armor I didn’t realize I was wearing, and Matteo shows me the appeal of slowing down, of staying rooted, of wanting something other than climbing the corporate ladder.

I came to Tuscany to escape.

But now that the countdown to going home was on, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to leave.

And the life I was falling for came with a looming expiration date.

PRE-ORDER LINKS

eBook: https://a.co/d/0cGRrQOR
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Paperback (Illustrated special edition with sprayed edges): https://a.co/d/0hczLTBg
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/247069333-the-fall-affair

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AUTHOR BIO

Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria, Israel, and Hungary. Three of her short stories have been turned into films, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.

AUTHOR LINKS

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Final Verdict by Whitney G. - ARC Review

2026-06-19T10:30:00.000-04:00

I don't lose cases.
I don't lose sleep.
And I certainly don't lose my mind over women.

Why would I?

For the past twelve years, I've built a reputation as the attorney people hire when they want to win. I don't believe in distractions, complications, or anything remotely resembling a relationship.

My life works exactly the way I want it to.

Until her.

This woman was supposed to be a stranger.
A drunk college girl who stumbled into my Porsche and assumed I was her Uber driver...

Yet somehow, I keep running into her.

Every other day...

Then I find out she's been working at my firm.

I should've fired her immediately—for constantly tempting me with her cherry red lips—but I didn't.

I let her stay on for my next trial, let her keep challenging me until, for the first time in my career, I'm not sure winning is worth it.

And that's a problem.

Because some cases have consequences long after the verdict is read...

Final Verdict is Book 1 in a brand new legal romance series.

There is no blurb up yet for this one, so I don't want to spoil in any way by giving any details.

This book had the banter between the characters, the funny conversations, and the quirky and zany situations that have us all coming back to read this author every time there is a new book available.

I enjoyed it, it's a quick read, and I can't wait for the next one!

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Booked All Night

Scored by Aleatha Romig - ARC Review

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Hard Pass by K. Bromberg - ARC Review & Release Blitz

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The Fall Affair by Vi Keeland - 5 Star ARC Review & Release Blitz

The Wild Card by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review

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The Pilot by Susan Stoker - ARC Review

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Tracked by Rebecca Sharp - ARC Review

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Dirty Judge by Whitney G - ARC Review

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Just a Little Tempted by Carly Phillips - ARC Review

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The Irresistible One by Marni Mann - ARC Review & Release Blitz

As Long As it Takes by Jill Francis - ARC Review

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Knights Like These by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review

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Not That Kind of Proposal by Victoria Lavine - ARC Review

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Every Single Broken Piece by Michelle Heard - ARC Review

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Contempt of Court by Whitney G. - ARC Review

Secret Husband by Kate Meader - ARC Review

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Fall For Me by Camilla Isley - ARC Review

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Hidden Hearts by Ani Thomas - ARC Review & Release Blitz

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Love You More by Emily Giffin - 5 Star ARC Review

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Into the Fading Twilight by Catherine Cowles - ARC Review

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Colt by Jessica Peterson - ARC Review

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The Final Score by Lana Ferguson - ARC Review

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The Rebound by Kelly Jamieson - ARC Review

TROPES:

Buy This Book!

Ice Cold Chemistry by Kendall Ryan - ARC Review & Release Blitz

About the Book:

Tropes:

The Fall Affair by Vi Keeland - 5 Star ARC Review

PRE-ORDER LINKS

Final Verdict by Whitney G. - ARC Review

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Start the Series with Book 1: Intercepted
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Buy This Book
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Audible: https://geni.us/QTXovuk
Goodreads: https://geni.us/grknights

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