romance

Review: The Matchmaker’s Playbook by Rachel VanDyken

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01 amatWhat if the villain turns out to be less villainous and more hero?

When Gabi starts to work for Wingman, she is forced to start get closer to her nemesis, Lex. She needs to be trained in the art of seduction and unfortunately that means she needs to be trained from the head villain himself.

Lex has always been the villain in this story, but somehow the more times he spends with Gabi, the more time he realizes that she just may be what he’s been looking for.

I love enemies to lovers. There’s a certain amount of angst involved that keeps the story going. I mean, the guy’s name is Lex. Of course he’s gonna be the enemy of the story! But even the villains can have soft spots for the heroine.

Watching these two interact was making me smile. I enjoyed the texts and banter so much. I loved the way that Lex cared, even though he didn’t want anyone to know. Deep down, he was a good guy who needed a good girl to bring it out of him.

“And the damsel fell in love with the villain. Write that, Disney.”

~Melpomene

Buy The Matchmaker’s Playbook HERE.

Review: Anything But Love by Abigail Strom

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In this well-written romance the male lead seems to be the center of the story in the beginning … which makes sense, because the heroine has felt invisible for so long. Ben sees Jessica at a wedding and gives her a shoulder to cry on. Jessica melts inside, but maintains a cool facade – something she’s had to learn to do to deal with family problems. But as Ben continues to show Jessica he cares, a little bit of trust builds, and the possibility of healing and happiness comes to the forefront. Whether the timing is right or the friendship will be enough is another story. 

I’m a frequent reader of light and easy romances, so even though Strom is new to me, this book was right up my alley. I was pleasantly surprised to see so much focus on Ben at the beginning. It totally worked. As Jessica opened up, so the story began to center more on her. My absolute favorite parts of this book were Strom’s use of fancy vocabulary… not so much that it stopped me in my tracks, not so fancy that I had to look up anything, but intelligent use of precise words that many wouldn’t expect in a “fluffy” romance. 

This book pulled me in so hard that I was all of a sudden at 81% after midnight… and stayed up to finish it without hesitation!  I was impressed with the characters, the story, and the writing, and now I need to click on some more Abigail Strom for my kindle. 

-calliope

P.S. There’s a happily ever after for more than one couple in this book!

Buy ANYTHING BUT LOVE
 

Review: Daughters of the Bride by Susan Mallery

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What a lovely story about a mom and her three daughters. Susan Mallery writes four very different love stories in Daughters of the Bride. Awkward Courtney grows up and grows into herself even while the world isn’t watching. A certain music producer is, though, and he has no qualms about telling her. Distant Sienna seems cold until she realizes she’s surrounding herself with the wrong men. Supermom Rachel forgets who she really is until the love of her life helps her remember. 

The three women help their mom plan her wedding, and through the process they begin to know and love themselves more. 

Daughters of the Bride was a feel-good family story on the surface, but Mallery brought her signature spice to one of the couples’ romance. In the family relationships and in the romantic ones, love abounded. 

-calliope

Buy DAUGHTERS OF THE BRIDE

Review: You and Me, Always by Jill Mansell

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Another fun yet substantial read by Jill Mansell! 

From a letter she reads on her 25th birthday, Lily finds out about some important people from her past. While she decides how much time and effort to spend finding them, she is supported by longtime friend Dan and his sister, as well as her foster mom who owns a vintage shop. Lily also gets to meet a famous star… fall into Like… and live a jet setting lifestyle for as long as. 

I enjoyed every character in this book, even the one villain – maybe because he wasn’t given too much space on the page. Haha! Lily was such a kindhearted soul that each personal relationship she had was meaningful and poignant. In our recent times of uncertainty and violence, I appreciated this book heavy on the niceness. 

My favorite part was the unrequited love moving along with perfect timing. More than one character found true love and a happily ever after… That’s my kind of book. 

– calliope 

Buy YOU AND ME, ALWAYS

Waiting on Wednesday~The Highlander by Kerrigan Byrne

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TITLE:
The Highlander(Victorian Rebels)
AUTHOR:
Kerrigan Bryne
GENRE:
Romance, Historical romance
PAGES:
368 pages
PUBLISHER:
ST. Martins
RELEASE DATE:
August 2, 2016

SYNOPSIS:
They call him the Demon Highlander. The fearsome Lieutenant Colonel Liam MacKenzie is known for his superhuman strength, towering presence, and fiery passion in the heat of battle. As Laird to the MacKenzie clan, the undefeated Marquess has vanquished his foes with all rage and wrath of his barbaric Highland ancestors. But when an English governess arrives to care for his children, the master of war finds himself up against his greatest opponent. . . in the game of love.

Defying all expectations, Miss Philomena is no plain-faced spinster but a ravishing beauty with voluptuous curves and haughty full lips that rattle the Laird to his core. Unintimidated by her master’s raw masculinity and savage ways, the headstrong lass manages to tame not only his wild children but the beast in his soul. With each passing day, Liam grows fonder of Miss Mena–and more suspicious. What secret is she hiding behind those emerald eyes? What darkness brought her to his keep? And how can he conquer this magnificent woman’s heart . . . without surrendering his own?

Preorder HERE

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Review: Sweet As Honey by Jennifer Beckstrand 

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Jennifer Beckstrand wrote the Huckleberry Hill series, and I enjoyed every one of them. I was excited to start this new Honeybees Sisters series — and Sweet As Honey is every bit as good as the Huckleberry stories. 

Beckstrand masterfully blends strength of character and physical strength with humbleness, faith in God, and love for neighbor. I especially liked that the Honeybee sisters and their aunt take care of themselves and their land, demonstrating that many hands make light work. 

This first book in the series illustrates a romance between Lily and a young Amish gentleman. Beckstrand realistically wrote the  roller coaster of emotions and the tension between families. Family relationships, beekeeping, and being neighborly rounds out the story, making it much more than a romance. Excellent! Can’t wait for book two. 

-calliope

Buy SWEET AS HONEY 

Review: Up in Flames by Abbi Glines

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01 aa3 I had so many preconceived ideas about how I thought this book was going to go and I was COMPLETELY wrong. From the very first page this book had me guessing.

Nan deserved a hea. Heck, everyone does!! But true to form, Nan doesn’t do things the normal way. She goes all out and makes sure it drama filled. I was never an official Nan hater, but I didn’t really like her. As we’ve seen her actions, in the past few books, we begin to realize that there’s more her than she lets on. And when this book was announced, I was so totally excited and curious as to who was going to tame this crazy girl. HA! As if she could be tamed.

To say that this had twists and turn would be an understatement. So without too much, I’ll say this, Hold on tight.

Nan had become a part of me even before I touched her for the first time.Watching her, I’d slowly started feeling things for the beautiful woman who was so alone yet so tough. The small things no one saw I began to cherish.

I never read the synopsis until after I wrote this review. I didn’t want any influence or ideas, so I had no clue what is was about except that it was finally Nan’s turn to shine. So, to say that this shocked the crap outta me, would be an understatement. But why did I ever expect Nan to do anything the easy way. As you come to expect, the drama queen of Rosemary Beach closes out this series with a bang.

I have been a fan of Abbi’s since July of 2012, when I happened to stumble upon The Vincent Boys and then immediately into the Sea Breeze books and from then on, I was hooked. She was officially an auto buy author. I enjoy her books as they have a way of making the world calm down. While they may be emotional at times, I look forward to the break they give me, from all the angst I read. So now we say goodbye to these characters and call me crazy, but I don’t think I’m ready to let go. But I’m still crossing my fingers that she surprises us with a little something in a few years.

Thank you, Abbi, for giving us such wild and crazy characters that made me laugh, cry and swoon.

~Melpomene

Buy Up in Flames

Get caught up with the whole gang, so you can fully enjoy the ride.

Fallen Too Far
Never Too Far
Forever Too Far
Rush Too Far
Twisted Perfection
Simple Perfection
Take a Chance
One More Chance
You Were Mine
Kiro’s Emily
When I’m Gone
When You’re Back
The Best Goodbye

Review: Sunshine Beach by Wendy Wax

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This fun 4th in a series is set in the St. Pete’s area of Florida – near the famous pink castle, Hotel Don Cesar. 

In Sunshine Beach, a group of women find a run down property and hope to renovate it for their cable show “Do Over.” Problem is, the property has a mystery behind it, and the current owners are reluctant to sell. 

You’ll enjoy following Maddie, Avery, Nikki and Kyra — and their significant (and not so significant) others — as they try to solve a mystery, nail down their love lives, and use the paparazzi to their best advantage. 

I’ll admit that the characters and their relationships to each other confused me at first. Then I realized I hadn’t read the first three in the series! So if you want to pick up this cute summer read, do yourself a favor and read book 1 – Ten Beach Road – first. 🙂

-calliope

Buy SUNSHINE BEACH

Review: Bookends by Jane Green

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I love this story with an ensemble cast. Four friends grow up: one flies the coop, one gets married, one finds too much love, and one finds not enough. Green does a wonderful job making Cath the main character without taking time or page space away from the others. The writing is excellent, the plot moves at the perfect pace, and most importantly, there  aren’t so many characters that I have to work to understand who’s who. 

Favorite part: the bookshop, of course! 

Second favorite part: Cath’s romantic interest. Of course. 😉

This British rom com — about the development of relationships, the relative degrees of loyalty, and finding your true self behind the defensive walls we put up — is an oldie but goodie. I wanted to read a Jane Green novel, I did, and now I’ll be reading more!  

-calliope

Buy BOOKENDS: A NOVEL

Waiting on Wednesday~ It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

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TITLE:
It Ends With Us
AUTHOR:
Colleen Hoover
GENRE:
Romance
PAGES:
384 pages
PUBLISHER:
Atria Books
RELEASE DATE:
August 2, 2016

SYNOPSIS:
Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up. She graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.

Ryle is assertive, stubborn, and maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant and has a total soft spot for Lily; and the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head, but Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his no dating rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.

As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan, her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.

With this bold and deeply personal novel Colleen Hoover delivers a heart-wrenching story that breaks exciting new ground for her as a writer. Combining a captivating romance with a cast of all too human characters, “It Ends with Us” is an unforgettable tale of love that comes at the ultimate price.

Preorder HERE

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