Originally posted on Goodreads.

Oh boy, did I love this. I laughed out loud, I cried actual tears, and my grew three sizes. This book gave me so many feels, and I couldn’t get enough of it. I can’t believe this is my first experience with a Sarah MacLean novel, but it definitely won’t be my last. As soon as I finished this ARC, I immediately bought Wicked and the Wallflower and started it right away. I can’t get enough of these brooding Bareknuckle Bastards, and this fantastic world MacLean has created. Five stars, and I would give more if I could!

Originally posted on Goodreads.

The great thing about romance novels is the structure of them – with a series, there’s something that ties all the books together, but each can be read as a standalone. It’s not super important to read in order (although my OCD means I usually do). With More Than a Rogue, that wasn’t the case for me. The book opens in a ball, with several characters all talking together. I could not keep up with who was who, who was the main character, and what was important to the story versus being a reference to the previous novel. It stressed me out, y’all. This one isn’t for me.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

Fun, fluffy, and charming are all perfect descriptions of Parental Guidance by Avery Flynn. Caleb has royally messed up. The viral video featuring him in an uber with his hockey teammates talking about girls they’ve slept with made him out to be a Grade A Dirtbag. If he wants to have any hope of redeeming his reputation and keeping his friend on the team, he’s got to do something to get out of this. Enter Bramble – the dating app with a new Parental Guidance feature – your parents pick your date and you have to go out with them five times. 

Zara is completely absorbed in her work. She’s a miniatures artisan, scraping by with her Etsy store but wanting to branch out to do more artistic works. It’s not unusual for her to spend 10+ hours in her home/studio working under the supervision of her Great Dane, Anchovy. When her best friend bribes her to give in to this Bramble thing and help her dad get a SAG card, Zara reluctantly gives in. 

I really enjoyed the characters in this story. Caleb was a sweetheart and Zara was fiesty and adorable. I loved their banter, plus all the kissing parts. They both had clear motivations and baggage and seemed pretty realistic and well-rounded, which isn’t always the case with romance novels. 

I think my biggest complaint about this novel is that it’s forgettable. In two weeks, I probably won’t remember the title, let alone the characters or storyline. It was an enjoyable read, but some parts were just a bit too cheesy, even for me. 

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Originally posted on Goodreads.

DNF at 22% – 

I really loved Final Girls by Riley Sager, and it crossed the line of being too dark for me. I got 22% through Lock Every Door and I was just plain bored. This book is slowww. 

Jules Larsen has landed the perfect job: she’s apartment sitting for a luxury suite in the Bartholomew, a building she’s only ever dreamed about living in. For 3 months and $12,000, she’s coasting in a dream world. Or is she? 

I know I’m not the first to say it, and I’m sure I won’t be the last, but Jules is dumb. Why wouldn’t you question this? She needs a grip on reality. 

I tried very hard to give this book a solid chance, but the pacing just was way too slow for me. I invested a lot of time and still waiting on anything remotely interesting to happen. Maybe I’ll come back and try again at another time.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

I’m not quite sure how to rate this book, as it just left me feeling kind of “meh”. I think if this hadn’t been labeled as a romance novel and just as a contemporary fiction, it would’ve been a better reading experience. Anyone who goes into this looking for a light romance novel is going to be disappointed. 

I know I’m in the minority here and so many people have loved this book, but I just couldn’t get into it. Dean’s character felt pretty flat, and all of the men in Evvie’s life just seemed to be annoying and controlling. They all knew what was best for her, more than she did. 

I think if I hadn’t just recently read Fix Her Up I may have enjoyed this more. With two “romance” novels featuring an ex baseball player, Fix Her Up blew this one out of the water. 

Thank you to the publisher and Goodreads for awarding me this in a giveaway!

Originally posted on Goodreads.

Predictable? Yes. 

Enjoyable? Definitely. 

This was such a fun, quick read that I just tore through it. The cover and blurb don’t do this book justice. It reminded me a lot of my favorite guilty pleasure movie – A Cinderella Story. Yes, I love a Hillary Duff movie, what of it?

Jessie gets an anonymous email offering her some advice as she navigates her new world all alone. Through the course of two months, these emails and IMs progress into more, and this mystery man is consuming her thoughts. 

The banter between the characters was amazing and I absolutely adored it. Four stars, would’ve been five if I hadn’t figured it out so quickly.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

Girl needs to find charter declaring her title and/or marry someone with a title.
Girl meets boy with a title, who is also handsome.
Girl can’t possibly marry boy, but is willing to marry any other boy.
Boy likes girl but doesn’t want to tell her he likes her because he’s had his heart broken before.

That’s it. The end. I saved you nearly 400 pages. 

The best word I can use to describe Rogue Most Wanted is “boring”. 

Nothing really happened, the conflict didn’t really seem real, and the characters were annoying. I was super disappointed in this one.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

Ohhh friends, this is a good one. This is my first time reading anything by Tessa Bailey but it will most certainly not be my last. This adorable, STEAMY novel is exactly what I needed and I couldn’t put it down. 

Georgie Castle is the youngest child, and is always stuck in that role. No one takes her seriously, no matter how much of a life she carves into it. She is confident and loud and hysterically funny. And did I mention that she’s a clown? Like, an actual birthday party clown. Now, if you’d have told me a month ago that I would be in love with a book where the heroine is a clown, I would have thought you were on something. 

Travis Ford is back in Port Jefferson after an injury put an end to his career in the Major Leagues. He’s angry and drunk, wallowing in self-pity. Then, Georgie walks in to cheer him up and bring him back to life. 

This book has everything. Fake dating, a bad boy, witty dialogue, and STEAM. Oh boy, the steam. It is so, so good. I devoured this book, and the only regret that I have is that it’s over now.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

I finished this book feeling like I got played. Like many other reviewers, I went into this excited for a fun, diverse romance novel and was left disappointed with a mediocre drama with a few romantic moments. 

Angel is a badass single mom, working like crazy to provide. She’s almost finished nursing school, and as long as she can suffer through a few more weeks with her scummy, disgusting bosses, she’ll be free to get a nice cushy nursing job. 

Caleb “Duke” Lewis a the super-famous and super-douchey pitcher for the New York Yankees. After being shot last year, his season is in jeopardy. 

When their worlds collide, it is more than underwhelming. 

I absolutely couldn’t stand Duke. He was pretentious and rude and boring. I felt like Angel was the only character that was even remotely fleshed out, but you still see zero character development. 

I felt like I spent the entire novel waiting for the romance to happen and it just never quite got there. 

I wish I could get back the time I spent on this. I’d recommend taking a hard pass on this one.

Originally posted on Goodreads.

This book would make a great gift for any reader in your life. I enjoyed the facts and information, although I found the history to be pretty high level. I would love to see the layout of this on paper, and I almost feel disappointed that I read this on digital. It definitely isn’t the ideal medium for this.