Tag: romance

This Chick Read: Toe to Toe by Falon Ballard

Allegra Hart has been working her whole life towards being a principal ballerina. When her director announces he’s choreographing a brand new ballet and will be holding auditions for the leads, Allegra knows she will be auditioning, however when she approaches her director he tells her that she doesn’t have the sex appeal to play this character. That evening she goes to her sister’s bachelorette party at a male revue club and is gobsmacked by the lead dancer. Determined to gain his help in training her she approaches Cord Donovan and appeals to him for his help. When he agrees she’s not sure of the direction this training will take, but is sure it will take her outside her comfort zone.

I don’t usually read reviews before I write my own but I was curious what other people thought of this book. There were some triggering subject matters. An example-Allegra worked in a ballet company where she was sexually harassed by her director.. and she ignored it in order to keep her job. Some readers were pretty pissed off that the author wrote a story where the protagonist didn’t stand up for herself, other women, and pretty much all things sexually harassed related. Yes, I noticed these things as well but I’m just going to throw this idea out there. While I would kick scream and shout to the world about what was happening, not everyone handles situations in strong outspoken ways. Sometimes the fight happens when that person is ready. Do I wish that Allegra had forsaken all that she’s worked for in her career to scream about harassment to the world? Nope. As a woman of a certain age who works in a not at all related field, let me just say that you deal with all sorts of things that you have to weigh and decide what’s best for you at that moment and for your future. I wasn’t mad but I could see how some readers might be.

I enjoyed the push and pull of Allegra and Cord’s slow burn romance. Despite their instant attraction they were both committed to their careers and didn’t really want to cross that line, but while they were getting to know each other those dance scenes sure did create some great tension. As a non dancer I really appreciated how I could visualize their dancing too. Kudos to this author for doing her research and writing some great numbers.

Cord and Allegra’s relationship was not perfect but it did feel real and it brought up that age old issue. Do women need to compromise their wants and needs, the future they were building, in order to live happily ever after with a man? I know my answer but if you want to know Allegra’s read the book. 🙂

❤️❤️❤️❣️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* Toe to Toe

Copyright 2026 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: In Time With You by Kristin Dwyer

When Nieve’s boyfriend Carter dies trying to save her from drowning in a river she is devastated. Blaming herself for his death she’s too depressed to continue on with school and heads home to her Grandmother’s house where she grew up. Her Grandmother’s always been a bit odd with her strange stories, uncanny happenings and magic. The following morning when Nieve wakes up a year in the past before Carter’s death she has to make a decision. Does she go on as she did the previous year, or does she do things differently putting a little distance between she and her ex. Deciding on the more difficult route of giving him up draws her closer to his best friend Max but in order to change her past she must embracer her future.

This was one of those stories that could’ve gone either way- love or hate. Luckily, I was in the right mood to read a quirky story filled with interesting characters, a rivetiing plot, and perhaps a little bit of magic.

Is it possible to love someone you used to hate? As this story goes on and Nieve becomes closer to Max she realizes that maybe all wasn’t as it appeared the previous year. Maybe she was overcome with her love for Carter and didn’t see clearly through that haze of first love, but Max is not at all what she remembered him being. Is it weird that I was rooting for her to give Max a chance? Despite all the twists and turns in this story I was intrigued by he and Nieve’s possibility’s and wanted to see where this story was going to take me.

I’ll admit that if I wasn’t in the right frame of mind it’s possible that I wouldn’t have liked this story as much as I did. But the timing was right, I loved all the Groundhog Days and I appreciated the well crafted storytelling. Well done!

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* In Time With You

Copyright 2026 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: And The Crowd Went Wild (A Dallas Stars Novel) by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Actress Dancy Flynn has an embarrassing and humiliating episode and is just looking for a quiet place to escape from the press. Chicago Stars quarterback Clint Garrett, Dancy’s high school ex-boyfriend, is preparing mentally for the season at his vacation home when Dancy gets dropped on his doorstep. Still holding a massive grudge he doesn’t want anything to do with her, but he’s a nice guy and allows her to stay for a week in his refurbished caboose. There are rules though! He’s not supposed to hear or see her. So why does he keep breaking his own rules to make sure she’s ok?

There’s just something about these Dallas Stars novels that call out to me. I just know that I’m going to like the plot and even though the characters are always quirky, I’m going to love seeing the slightly kooky heroine tame her football player hero. Sure enough, And The Crowd Went Wild checked all of those boxes. Dancy was working through some issues regarding her ex-husband and his newly knocked up girlfriend and even though Clint says he wants nothing to do with her, he manages to see glimpses into the real Dancy that intrigues and fascinates him.

A romance needs a little conflict to bring our two main characters together and this novel has plenty. Her ex-husband and his girlfriend show up, Dancy’s penchant for picking up strays brings a couple of new acquaintances into the picture, and Clint’s Mom arrives to “save him” from his evil ex-girlfriend. Needless to say there was plenty going on in this novel while Dancy’s heart healed, and she learned to lean on and like Clint.

If you’re in the mood for a fun-filled, yet poignant novel with great characters and storytelling, then please pick up And the Crowd Goes Wild. This novel can be read as a stand alone, so no worries over missing out on previous storylines. Enjoy!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* And The Crowd Went Wild

Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Free Falling (Colburn Brothers #2) by Jill Shalvis

Caleb Colburn needs this construction job he’s managing to go smoothly so he can prove his worth in the family business. Emma Sumner is the liaison assigned to the project- she’s also the woman who made his life a living hell in college. Emma’s in love with the beautiful historic building but her feelings for Caleb run more towards hate. She blames him for taking the scholarship she needed and she’s never recovered. But forced proximity and surprising common ground have these enemies starting to wonder just how fine the line between love and hate is.

The second in a series about the Colburn brothers, this one about ex college hockey star turned contractor, Caleb. On the surface he seems to be a smooth talking charmer but there are a lot of hidden depths to his character that are brought into the light through his growing relationship with Emma. She, too, has a lot of baggage from her past and surprisingly, despite the synopsis she seems to have a pretty easy time forgiving Caleb, but she is cautious letting him into her life. It’s this will they or won’t they that drives the tension in the story.

Throw in some charming side characters and a small woman in jeopardy plot and there is plenty of meat to this novel to hold my interest. I can always count on this author’s interesting characters and the continuation of the sabotage of the construction projects means I’ll be reading that third novel to find out the conclusion and of course the romance of our third Colburn brother. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* Free Falling

Copyright 2025 the Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Only On Gameday by Kristen Callihan

Recent NFL draft pick Austin Luck is on a rising trajectory, but he keeps messing it up with bonehead moves. His most recent bad behavior has gone viral and his PR team is telling him to tone things down. When he goes home for the weekend he runs into his childhood friend, Penelope Morrow. Her mother and his were best friends so she was always around but whenever he stepped into the room she left it. This time things are different Pen has a problem too. She has inherited her grandparents home in Los Angeles and can’t afford the estate taxes. Austin proposes a solution. Would she consider being his fake fianceé? He’d help her with her estate taxes in exchange for he help with his image. Win-Win, right?

It’s been a few years since this author’s last book release and I had forgotten how much I like her writing style. Penelope and Austin were pretty down to earth, regardless of Austin’s stress causing him to act out in embarrassing ways. He definitely used some of his game moves to talk Pen into his fake dating scheme but the rest of the time he had a pretty soft approach and took his time in sweet talking Pen into giving him a chance at a real relationship.

Not your typical WAG, Pen comes across as shy except for when she’s alone with Austin, then she’s the sassy type of heroine I enjoy reading. Kristen Callihan proved a deft hand at some great dialogue keeping the pace flowing pretty quickly, with each chapter ending with a moment that kept me reading past the time where I should’ve put the book down.

It was fun reading a new novel by this author again. In fact, I may need to pick up her backlog of books and re-read them again. Hopefully this is the first of many more enjoyable books to come!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest.

Click this link to purchase this book!* Only on Gameday

Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chicks Audio Review: Bound by Ali Hazelwood

Surprise! The very prolific Ali Hazelwood released the audiobook of Bound in November. I had no idea this one was on the horizon but as I’m a big fan and the synopsis seemed different I thought I’d give it a listen.

Veronica “Vero” Mercer grew up with con artists as parents. In grad school for a degree in art history, Vero gets talked into doing a little forgery to keep her friends in their jobs at an art dealer. Her forgeries are so good she comes to the attention of Dr. Viktor Ashworth, a very private, British professor. He too has a little side job for her. He wants her to reproduce an ancient manuscript for him. It’s supposed to be a short term deal, but as Vero spends more time with Viktor and things become more dangerous she has to wonder. What does Viktor really want? And why can’t she seem to stay away?

As I listened to this book, I realized that this author has done it again. She’s pivoted subject matter and type of romance and given her fans a slow burn romance that takes place in a world where our heroine is very knowledgeable about art history and how to forge a books. How does Ms. Hazelwood find the time to both write a novel at breakneck speed and research a new subject matter, assuming she herself wasn’t an art history major? I never felt like I was being sold a bill of goods and found everything she wrote to grab my attention in a way where I didn’t doubt what she had written. She is truly amazing.

I need to also give credit to the two narrators. Brittany Pressley and William Macleod did a great job imbuing the characters with life and personality. Viktor was a little stuffy, but he was English, Immortal, and a professor so that modulated tone fit well. Did you catch that I threw in the word immortal? Yep! The author pivoted genre’s and has given us a paranormal species (race?) that we haven’t read before in any of her past novels. Viktor and his crew were very interesting and I wished that their past had been fleshed out just a touch more, however, I enjoyed what was written and their being immortal didn’t detract from my liking the story or where it led me.

If you’re a fan of Ali Hazelwood’s I think you’ll also like this novel. Bound is different, kind of like her other paranormal series, but not too much like them and not set in that world. I was entertained which for me is what reading or listening to a good book is all about. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this book!* Bound

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This Chick Read: Seeing Other People by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka

Morgan is haunted by her ex. Seriously, his ghost is following her around and basically making her life hell. It wouldn’t be so bad if she knew him, but they only went out one time and she can’t figure out why she’s the one he’s haunting. Sawyer’s fianceé turned ghost is starting to fade and he’s not ready to let her go. At a support group for humans and their haunters Morgan and Sawyer meet and although they face opposite problems they decide to work together to solve their problems. As Morgan and Sawyer work towards figuring out their ghosts unfinished business, they start to develop feelings for each other, feeling more alive than they’ve ever felt.

This was a surprisingly sweet and funny story. Morgan’s ghost, Zach, tends towards poltergeist shenanigans while Sawyer’s ex-fianceé is just getting more sad as the days go on. Sawyer keeps trying to live their lives like she’s alive, but has actually stopped living, afraid to move on because he’s not ready to lose her. When they meet up at the support group Sawyer doesn’t really want to have anything to do with Morgan, but for some reason he allows her to move into his studio rent free while they sort out their ghosts unfinished business. I really enjoyed the friendships that Zach, Sawyer, and Morgan created. Zach was mischievous in death, and as they got to know what he was like in life their feelings for him became bittersweet. Yes, this was a little bit of a love story between Morgan and Sawyer, but truthfully, I liked the friendship trio that Zach’s ghostly presence created. He was such a quirky individual and added a lot of heart to this story. Without Zach I think this story would’ve been two dimensional.

If you’re looking for a ghost story, well, there are ghosts in the plot but it’s not spooky at all. It was a story about holding your loved ones close, but also it was a story about it being ok to let go and keep living. I liked that theme a lot!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book though NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* Seeing Other People

Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: The Marriage Method (The Crinoline Academy #2) by Mimi Matthews

When newspaper editor Miles Quincey starts questioning the intentions of the Benevolent Academy for the Betterment of Young Ladies the academy sends one of their brightest graduates Penelope “Nell” Trewlove to quell his interest. What’s supposed to be an easy task gets complicated when Nell arrives in London at the same time one of Miles’ reporters gets murdered. When Miles and Nell get caught in a compromising situation they agree to an arrangement that will save their reputations while enabling them to investigate the story that lead to a man’s death.

When I’m in a historical romance mood, I immediately think of Mimi Matthews. Her novels are romances, but more importantly she really seems to research and know the period she is writing about lending her novels a lean towards historical fiction rather than romance. The Crinoline Academy touches on the subjugation of women in this period of history. The Academy where Nell resides does a bit more then enable women to launch into society, they are also training these women on how to ‘distract, disrupt, and discredit men in power who would seek to harm the advancement of women’. It’s during this time that women are starting to fight for their rights, and I love that Mimi Matthews has chosen this time in history to set her stories.

Nell is a bit of a fish out of water. She’s never left the academy in large part due to her disability. She was injured as a child and walks with a cane. She tires easily, but doesn’t let her fragility stop her from pursuing the leads that draw her into danger. Miles rose in station through hard work and takes his job and place in life very seriously. When he and Nell get caught in a compromising position he offers her marriage, but it’s not until they are investigating the murder that the two of them really get to know each other. It’s during those moments that the story really becomes interesting and the chemistry takes center page. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* The Marriage Method

Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate-if you purchase this book through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: The Seven Rings (The Lost Bride Trilogy #3) by Nora Roberts

Sonya had inherited the grand house in Maine from her dead father’s twin brother. A brother he never knew he had. In the previous two books Sonya eagerly moves into this home along with her best friend and finds out that, surprise!, it’s haunted by an evil witch. A curse was laid on the Poole family’s brides, each one dying in that home with the witch collecting their seven wedding rings. In this third installment Sonya, her boyfriend Trey, and their two friends battle this evil witch and banish her from their home, giving those brides a place to remain or move on from.

These types of novels are among my favorites to read by Nora Roberts. A good vs. evil theme, two besties who are determined to stick it out and best the big bad, and a little romance as a side dish. In this series we also get to know some of the ghosts who inhabit the mansion, especially Sonya’s grandmother, a young boy, and a young maid. The author does a great job of weaving spookiness with humor and love to give the reader an enjoyable story with a little bit of everything to get them involved.

What set this novel apart for me was that Sonya, who is a Poole by blood, but was raised under another name could travel through mirrors to see the brides stories. She had a guest on these journeys and it wasn’t her boyfriend Trey, but her own cousin Owen, another Poole, who came along for the ride. It was an interesting way to tie family together, but also the two couple’s who were developing romances. I’ll admit to finding Cleo and Owen’s love story a bit more interesting becauses Cleo was kind of a wacky character and Trey was kind of pedantic. However, all in all the book did it’s job. I was entertained, invested in the story and characters, and felt good at the plot resolution. You can’t ask for much more than that! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review and it was honest!

Click this link to purchase this book!* The Seven Rings

Copyright 2025 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

*Amazon Associate-if you purchase this ring through the above link I’ll receive a small stipend.

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This Chick Read: Reproduction (Hypothesis Series #8) by Penny Reid

The second part in the three part serial, and yes it’s #8 in a larger series, Samantha Jarlsten finds herself living with her childhood best friend Andreas Kristiansen. Faking an engagement while he adopts her (yep!) to undermine his two brothers from inheriting her father’s ex business that they swindled her out of, Sam is understandably confused. As am I after reading that previous sentence! Although her confusion is more to the fact that she’s in a fake engagement but is developing feelings for Andreas. She continues to work in the STEM field, with a new boss who hits on her all the time, and he is a chess master world champion- or something to that effect. For two very smart people, they are being kind of dim-witted.

So, they agree to a friends with benefits scheme that is surely going to bite them in the behind. As the reader in this relationship, I say thank goodness! It moved the plot forward a bit beyond the two brothers being threatening and her boss being a jerk. I enjoyed getting to know them as a kind of real couple- although it was still fake.

This being a serial and having one more book left that will be released next week, the reader will finally get a resolution to the story. This one again ended on a bit of a cliffhanger. So, will Sam and Andreas find happiness? Will Sam take control of her father’s company? Will Andreas’ two brothers stop threatening her and give up? We’ll find out all this in the next book. Whew!

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase this book!* Reproduction

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*Amazon Associate-if you purchase this book through the above links I’ll receive a small stipend.

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