Tag: romance

This Chick Read: Taking the Leap (River Rain #3) by Kristen Ashley

Alexandra Sharp knows she has to get over this crush she has on her co-worker “Rix” Hendrix. She stumbles, stutters, and glances away whenever he’s near and he can’t help but notice. However, his own insecurities make him think her discomfort is because of his prosthetics, not because she finds him attractive. Until they are out for drinks one night to celebrate and they get a chance to connect. Alex is never going to take the chance, despite having lied to her sister about her dating Rix and is forced into saying he’ll be her plus one at Blake’s wedding. Rix takes advantage of the situation to get to know Alex the shy, beautiful woman who has feelings for him.

This really was a very simple story arc for Alex and Rix. Co-workers who plan to pretend they are a couple for the purpose of protecting Alex from her socialite and kind of mean sister, and parents. Rix plays all the right angles stating they need to get to know each other in order to get their story straight and feel comfortable. That comfortableness quickly advances into a physical relationship and their pretend status becomes permanent. However, there are emotional subtleties that each character needs to overcome in order to advance their relationship emotionally. Taking the Leap is as straightforward a romance as Kristen Ashley knows how to write and Alex and Rix are characters you can root for and can’t help but like. I did.

For me, the story became energized when Rix and Alex got to New York and were mixing with her high society family. Her sister Blake’s bride-zilla attitude and her mother’s OMG behaviour added relevance as to why Alex was so quiet and shy. Rix’s protective nature came out and you forgot that he was a man with amputated legs. He was all alpha male. Out of all those scenes with her family I especially liked the quiet moments of bonding between Alex and her dad which were sweet and hopeful.

Taking the Leap had moments where Rix and Alex touched on all of the emotions, but it was the wedding scene that struck me as most memorable and man did I laugh! Without giving away any details, I’ll just say that the family bonded over an enemy and the way it went down was all I’d hoped it would be.

I had high hopes for Alex and Rix, and overall I liked them a lot. They were a good pairing and seemed to compliment each others strengths and weaknesses. However, they paled in comparison to the strength and joy in Chloe and Judge’s story. Those two will forever be my favorites in this series, but this book did not disappoint. For those of you who want to jump right in, yes, you can read this as a stand alone, but at least start with Chasing Serenity because the back story will help you with these characters histories and you’ll enjoy your journey a bit more. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link and purchase this book!* Taking the Leap: A River Rain Novel

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads

This Chick Read: Sari, Not Sari by Sonya Singh

Manny Dogra, CEO of Breakup, a company that helps break the news gently through email, is successful and beautiful. She’s also engaged to Adam, a hard-working architect and entrepreneur. Of South Asian descent, Manny was raised by her parents to be All-American where working hard can help you capture your dream, but when she finds herself on a magazine cover that has edited out her heritage by lightening her skin tone she finds herself having an identity crisis. Sammy Patel wants to use Breakup’s services to temporarily break-up with his girlfriend so he can go to his brothers wedding and not have to deal with his family’s being upset that he has a non-Indian girlfriend. Manny and Sammy strike a deal. She’ll help him out if he brings her to the week-long festivities so she can see what being in a big Indian family is really like.

I love a strong hard-working female protagonist and Manny is all of that, plus she’s kind-hearted and a good friend to her co-workers and friends. Her search for her heritage was colorful, fun, and dazzling. She fit right in and found herself, which was a really neat thing to read about and explore through her eyes. I liked her story a lot. I don’t usually love plots where our main character has a boyfriend, or is engaged to another man and then finds a new one before ending the old relationship, but Sonya Singh does a great job of making Adam somewhat unavailable to both Manny and the reader so you never build a connection to him. When Sammy enters her life and fills it with color you don’t feel too bad and that’s before you catch on to plot details and character defects that sway your decision one way or the other. So, nice job Ms. Singh on taking that trope and making it work. Other authors have made me cringe but this book didn’t at all. Whew!

The story definitely took off when you got to Sammy’s family and Manny’s eagerness to fit in. I fell in love with all of the characters, the clothes, and how Manny finally found herself. I do wish there had been more scenes between Manny and Sammy so that I could feel like she fell in love with him as well as falling in love with her heritage and subsequently him because of that but there were enough subliminal feelings to convince me that this could be a love story. The heat factor was very mild to almost non-existent the moments between our two main characters were more sweet and supportive than sizzling chemistry. For those of you who like a light (less heated) romance Sari, Not Sari will be a perfect hit. While I am not an erotica reader, I do like a bit of chemistry and heat in my romance novels and I was a little bit disappointed.

Sari, Not Sari is the debut novel by Sonya Singh. I loved her writing style which was very easy reading. The plot flowed really well and the characters had depth so the reader understood them very well. The only thing missing for me was a little heat so that their love didn’t feel so much like insta-love. Despite that, I would still highly recommend this novel for the fun South Asian parties, clothes, and characters. Sari, Not Sari is sweet and so easy to like. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley or my honest review and it was honest.

Click this link to purchase this novel!* Sari, Not Sari

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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

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This Chick Read: Always Jane by Jenn Bennett

Every summer Jane works with the domestic staff of a famous rock producer at a music festival in the mountains. She has been long-distance dating Eddie Sarafian, the son of the family who runs the festival and she’s excited to finally be in close confines. When he jets off to do business in the Philippines she finds out things that makes her question that relationship and brings her closer to Fen, his brother. Over the next few weeks they go from antagonistic friends to falling in serious like throwing a serious loop into her summer plans.

When Jane and Fen first meet he is dark, disturbing, and seems to be the black sheep of his family. We soon discover that the Sarafian brothers may not be what Jane thought and the more time she spends with Fen the deeper their attraction grows. I’ll admit, I loved Fen, but boy is he a dark soul! He is tall, dark, and handsome and has been obsessed with Jane since he saved her when she fell in the ocean two years ago. He has even commemorated that accident with a tattoo. As she gets to know the Sarafian family she is drawn to how “normal” they seem but as she gets to know them she sees the problems that reside at their roots which lead her to making some difficult choices.

I was surprised by the dark undertones in this book. The synopsis made it sound like it would be a young adult contemporary with a bit of a romance and it was, but there was also quite a bit of angst and pain. Not a bad thing but just unexpected. Fortunately I really liked both Jane and Fen. The more that was revealed about each of them the more their quirks made sense and I wanted to keep getting to know them.

I’m a sucker for books that have a music theme. Not that I know that much about music, I don’t! I just love that vibe and creativity. That Jane and Fen got to know each other through their love of music gave them a commonality that was fun to read and was a good contrast to the dark themes throughout the novel. Have you read a lot of Jenn Bennett novels? I’ve read a few and thought I knew what to expect but this novel surprised me. ❤️❤️❤️❣️

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

Click this link to purchase!* Always Jane

Copyright 2022 The Reading Chick All Rights Reserved

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

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This Chicks Sunday Commentary: My Top 5 Book Releases- April’22

For me, April is a pretty light month for books released that I’d like to read. Although I’ll admit if I actually read the synopsis of each book release I could probably add 25 books to my TBR, but I’m trying to avoid that at the moment. I took at look at the Goodreads list and came up with the five I’m most likely to read according to my own taste. Here’s my list!

#5 BOOK RELEASE

Kylie Scott writes great rock star romances so I’m always curious when the first book in a new series comes out. This one sounds good! The guy next door in a small town is a rock star and Ani Bennett is none too pleased (despite being a fan).

Synopsis:

What chance does a small-town girl have with a world-famous rock star?

Two years after his wife’s death, rock star Garrett Hayes hasn’t moved on. But he has moved out of L.A. Where better to escape his past than a small town in the northern California mountains? If only he could get the townsfolk of Wildwood to leave him the hell alone.

Ani Bennet returned to her hometown for some much-needed serenity. The last thing she needs is a grumpy, too hot for his own good, rich and famous rock star living next door—and rent-free in her brain.

She set her fangirl tendencies aside and deleted his photo from her cell when they became neighbors. But when Garrett asks for help, she can’t say no. The problem is, spending time together is making those fangirl feelings resurface—and bringing them to a whole new level.

What chance does a small-town girl have with world-famous rock star? It’s time for Ani to set her fears aside and find out.

Click HERE to purchase!

#4 BOOK RELEASE

This is a debut novel by Sonya Singh about a young woman whose parents were raised in India but raised her to be “All-American” and her identity crisis and re-discovering her South Asian roots. This is described as a rom-com and after reading several South Asian romance novels in the past year I’m eager to read this new author!

Synopsis:

Manny Dogra is the beautiful young CEO of Breakup, a highly successful company that helps people manage their relationship breakups. As preoccupied as she is with her business, she’s also planning her wedding to handsome architect Adam Jamieson while dealing with the loss of her beloved parents.

For reasons Manny has never understood, her mother and father, who were both born in India, always wanted her to become an “All-American” girl. So that’s what she did. She knows next to nothing about her South Asian heritage, and that’s never been a problem—until her parents are no longer around, and an image of Manny that’s been Photoshopped to make her skin look more white appears on a major magazine cover. Suddenly, the woman who built an empire encouraging people to be true to themselves is having her own identity crisis.

But when an irritating client named Sammy Patel approaches Manny with an odd breakup request, the perfect solution presents itself: If they both agree to certain terms, he’ll give her a crash course in being “Indian” at his brother’s wedding.

What follows is days of dancing and dal, masala and mehndi as Manny meets the lovable, if endlessly interfering, aunties and uncles of the Patel family, and, along the way, discovers much more than she could ever have anticipated.

Click HERE to purchase!*

#3 BOOK RELEASE

I’m not usually drawn to books that have several protagonists, but for some reason this one sounds cute. Maybe it’s the girlfriend group? Not sure, but Beth O’Leary is a bestselling author for a reason and I bet this novel is cute.

Synopsis:

Three women who seemingly have nothing in common find that they’re involved with the same man in this smart new rom-com by Beth O’Leary, bestselling author of The Flatshare.

Siobhan is a quick-tempered life coach with way too much on her plate. Miranda is a tree surgeon used to being treated as just one of the guys on the job. Jane is a soft-spoken volunteer for the local charity shop with zero sense of self-worth.

These three women are strangers who have only one thing in common: they’ve all been stood up on the same day, the very worst day to be stood up—Valentine’s Day. And, unbeknownst to them, they’ve all been stood up by the same man.

Once they’ve each forgiven him for standing them up, they are all in serious danger of falling in love with a man who may have not just one or two but three women on the go….

Is there more to him than meets the eye? Where was he on Valentine’s Day? And will they each untangle the truth before they all get their hearts broken?

Click HERE to purchase!*

#2 BOOK RELEASE

As soon as I saw the description using a comparison to Ocean’s Eleven my interest was peaked! I have never read a novel by this author so I hope it grabs me from the start.

Synopsis:

Ocean’s Eleven meets The Farewell in Portrait of a Thief, a lush, lyrical heist novel inspired by the true story of Chinese art vanishing from Western museums; about diaspora, the colonization of art, and the complexity of the Chinese American identity.

History is told by the conquerors. Across the Western world, museums display the spoils of war, of conquest, of colonialism: priceless pieces of art looted from other countries, kept even now. 

Will Chen plans to steal them back.

A senior at Harvard, Will fits comfortably in his carefully curated roles: a perfect student, an art history major and sometimes artist, the eldest son who has always been his parents’ American Dream. But when a mysterious Chinese benefactor reaches out with an impossible—and illegal—job offer, Will finds himself something else as well: the leader of a heist to steal back five priceless Chinese sculptures, looted from Beijing centuries ago. 

His crew is every heist archetype one can imag­ine—or at least, the closest he can get. A con artist: Irene Chen, a public policy major at Duke who can talk her way out of anything. A thief: Daniel Liang, a premed student with steady hands just as capable of lockpicking as suturing. A getaway driver: Lily Wu, an engineering major who races cars in her free time. A hacker: Alex Huang, an MIT dropout turned Silicon Valley software engineer. Each member of his crew has their own complicated relationship with China and the identity they’ve cultivated as Chinese Americans, but when Will asks, none of them can turn him down. 

Because if they succeed? They earn fifty million dollars—and a chance to make history. But if they fail, it will mean not just the loss of everything they’ve dreamed for themselves but yet another thwarted at­tempt to take back what colonialism has stolen.

Click HERE to purchase!*

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase one of these books through the above links I’ll receive a small stipend.

MY MOST ANTICIPATED APRIL’22 BOOK RELEASE

When a book comes out by Penny Reid it gets added to my TBR immediately. I love her writing style and her characters are always quirky and fun. I can’t wait to finally read this novel!

Synopsis:

Winnifred Gobaldi and Byron Visser are not best friends.

Yes, they’ve known each other for years, but they’re not even friendly. Winnie considers them more like casual, distant acquaintances who find each other barely tolerable, especially when he’s being condescending (which is all the time).

The truth is, they have nothing in common. She’s a public school science teacher with stars in her eyes, and he’s a pretentious, joyless double PhD turned world-famous bestselling fiction author. She loves sharing her passion for promulgating women in STEM careers and building community via social media, and he eschews all socialization, virtual or otherwise. She’s looking for a side hustle to help pay down a mountain of student debt, and his financial portfolio is the stuff of fiduciary wet dreams. So why are they faking a #bestfriend relationship for millions of online spectators?

When a simple case of tit-for-tat trends between nonfriends leads to a wholly unexpected kind of pretend, nothing is simple. Sometimes, it takes a public audience to reveal the truth of private feelings, and rarely—very rarely—you should believe what you see online.

Click HERE to purchase!*

What do you think? Do you agree with my top 5? Do you have your own that you want to shout out to the world? Please feel free to let me know about a book that’s on your own top 5 list.

Happy reading!

Deb

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads4 Comments

It’s Monday, what are you reading? (3/21/22)

Isn’t it awesome when you have a bunch of free time and can read just any ol’ thing you want? I’ve been going through my library wishlist and checking out what sounds good as well as taking a look at what’s been on my Kindle and have read through a few great books over the last week. It’s been so fun!

Thanks again to Book Date for starting this conversation and allowing us all to share what we’re reading.

JUST FINISHED

I saw this book on a Goodreads list about great romances of 2022 and thought I’d give this author a try. It’s the third book in the series but I didn’t miss not reading books 1 and 2. It was a different kind of historical novel that I actually really liked. I may go back and read the other two books!

JUST STARTED

This book has been on my Kindle for over three years. I didn’t read it during the Pandemic because it’s about a virus that kills off a majority of the world’s population but I picked it up yesterday to give it another try. It is very Nora Roberts in writing style and it was easy to get interested. I’ll admit, it’s kind of weird reading about a deadly virus but I’m going to power through and see where this book leads me. I know it’s a three book series so I’ll make my decision later on whether I continue reading the other books.

Have you read either of these books? What did you think? If they aren’t books you’d see yourself reading, please share what’s on your coffee table.

Happy Monday and happy reading!

Deb

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads2 Comments

This Chick Read: Homecoming King (Three Kings #1) by Penny Reid

Rex McMurtry, pro football defensive end for the Chicago Squalls, has a reputation for dating a woman and having the next person they date marry them. Always a bridesmaid and never a bride, Rex is tired of the journalists poking fun at him. When Abby finds her high school crush sitting quietly at the bar where she works, she silently serves him two drinks not realizing that he is blind drunk. Feeling responsible, she has a few friends help get him into her car where she plans to drive him home. His throwing up all over the both of them derails that plan and she decides the safest place for his famous face is on the blow up mattress in her apartment. When he wakes up and realizes she took care of him he makes a proposition that she unfortunately just can’t refuse.

I loved Abby! She is more than slightly distrustful of people and so guards her heart very tightly, but Rex was her childhood crush. She couldn’t really refuse any request he’d make of her, even if it was to be his fake wife. She was the perfect mix of innocence and arrogance. After a failed marriage and a brief stint in prison I don’t blame her for not trusting men. Her ex was a dirtbag! Despite Rex’s fake marriage proposition she feels like she knows him because she semi-stalked him all through her youth. Truthfully, he isn’t much different than he was back in high school, putting a wall up between he and anyone who wants to get close. Abby has a way of disarming him and soon she becomes one of the most important people in his life. Once again, Penny Reid writes a charming, different type of romance novel that is just fun, funny, and really damn appealing.

Most of Rex’s friends have gotten married, all to ex’s of Rex’s. LOL. However, there are two friends who’ve remained single and dare I guess that they will be King #2 and #3? While not War and Peace, Homecoming King is utterly charming and the series has promise. I can’t wait for the second to come out. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase!* Homecoming King (Three Kings Book 1)

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*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 Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas

Catalina Martín is the Maid of Honor in her sister’s wedding and she just found out that her ex will be bringing his new fiancée to the wedding. This was not a relationship that ended well and in fact contributed to Lina moving from Spain to NYC. Ever since their break-up she’s had trouble trusting someone enough to let them into her life and has remained single, but the last thing she wants to do is go back home as “poor Lina” for her sister’s wedding. She needs a date! Enter Aaron Blackford, her handsome and cold work frenemy, who volunteers to be her plus one. Despite the signs for a disastrous trip, Lina agrees to pull off this Spanish Love Deception with Aaron. What she doesn’t expect is for that frenemy chemistry to shift until she sees him with new eyes. Was she wrong about him all along?

This novel won Best Debut of 2021 by Goodreads readers and I can certainly see why! It’s reminiscent of all of the best enemies to lovers novels, including one of my favorites from last year The Love Hypothesis but this author steps up the chemistry a little earlier with a “fake date” that has Lina questioning her hatred of Aaron mid book instead of making us wait until the very end for her to realize he’s the one for her. I’m not saying that their fait accompli is not still drawn out, but at least there is some hesitancy to hate, which for me made all of the difference.

Is the plot of needing a date for a wedding overused? Yes, I think it is, however Lina’s charming Spanish family more than made up for any tiredness. I loved how everyone wanted Lina’s happiness and how they stood by her despite her ex being the groom’s brother. I also loved, loved, loved Aaron. He gives some swoon-worthy monologues that makes this fantasy novel shoot to a ten on the emotional scale. If he wasn’t already fictional, I’d certainly think he was too good to be true! Not to say he didn’t have his faults, he never strayed from his cool as a cucumber persona, but he was all mush when it came to Catalina. It was so sweet.

This was true escapism at its best. Easy reading, great characters, lots of depth of character, and a magnificently steamy love story. The fact it’s this author’s debut novel is astounding and boy… I can’t wait for her second. Ummm, when is it coming out? ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Click this link to purchase!* The Spanish Love Deception: A Novel

Copyright 2022 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: By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate

Lanie is a romance editor in a publishing firm who’s biggest client is the super popular Noa Calloway. Lanie loves Noa’s books and has based her entire relationship with her fiancé on a romantic list on the back of one of Noa’s bestsellers. She’s been lucky enough to develop an online friendship with Noa, exchanging edits and quips. When her boss retires, Lanie is given her job as the exclusive editor of Noa Calloways with the caveat that she has to have her next book in hand in three months or the job is not hers. Lanie sets up her first meeting (in person) with Noa and discovers she’s Noah Ross, and yes he’s a man. Lanie heads into a tailspin, thinking everything she’s done in her life was based on this lie. Somehow she has to get past it… and get Noah to write that next bestseller.

What would you do if Nora Roberts turned out to be a man? This is what I thought when I realized Noa Calloway wasn’t who Lanie thought she was, and in fact, was a he. If I were a romantic like Lanie I would probably be upset, shocked, angry, etc. and eventually also realize that I love my job regardless and needed to focus on helping Noah get over his writer’s block. Lanie goes all in, showing Noah her favorite places in New York and helping inspire him on his next story. What she doesn’t realize that this real life plot shift also brings to life some imperfections in her own relationship. In this way, she grows from her youthful expectations of love to realize a more adult outlook on both love and life.

This friends to lovers romance was sweet and very satisfying! Despite the bad feelings, these two cared too much about their friendship to let that one thing stand in the way of their relationship. There was a LOT of initial tension but there’s nothing I like better than when that tone shifts from anger to begrudging respect, adoration, and even love. These two had such great chemistry it would’ve been a crime if they hadn’t found a way to be together.

If you love friends to lovers slow burn romances, this is the perfect book for you. Set in New York, this story felt like a fairytale, and their slow growing romance was fun, sweet, and led up to a fabulous conclusion. What more could a romance reader want? ❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

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

Click this link to purchase this book!* By Any Other Name

Copyright 2022 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 Unsinkable Greta James by Jennifer E. Smith

Indie rock star, Greta James, breaks down on stage after the death of her mother, the world catching it on camera and making her grief go viral. Pushing back the launch of her sophomore album, Greta takes her mothers place on a 40th anniversary cruise to Alaska with her father, a man that she loves but that she’s always had a rocky relationship. Maybe this trip will help bridge the gap and keep her from losing both of her parents. While cruising she meets Ben Wilder, a guest speaker about a novel he’s written based upon The Call of the Wild. Ben is also going through personal loss, his broken marriage and missing his two little girls. In each other they find something that connects them and may help them overcome their trauma.

I have read two other books by this author and have loved them all. She balances drama and happiness so deftly and takes me on a journey that stays with me for awhile. Greta was an interesting character. Her first love is playing the guitar and everything in her life has taken a back seat to her commitment to be the best. Her father has spent her life worrying that she is choosing something that is doomed to bring her heartbreak, and despite her success he can’t help but lecture and push her to take a safer route. It’s actually kind of sweet if you think about it, but super frustrating as well. When she meets Ben, he becomes a safe place for her to escape from her complicated emotions surrounding her mother’s death and her feelings for her father but as the days pass she realizes that he is going through his own mixed up life and their vacation romance may be just that.

One of my favorite side characters is a young girl on the ship who idolizes Greta. She makes a great contrast to where Greta was in her childhood and where she is now in her own life. By helping this girl with her own guitar playing she gives her something that she never received in return. I thought that was a really neat circle of life moment that tied the drama in the book together really well and added moments of joy that I can’t say were missing but were only sprinkled sparingly through the book. It’s funny how having those brighter moments makes the contrast that much greater, isn’t it?

This was a very well planned, well executed novel. I really need to go back and read through Jennifer E. Smith’s backlog of books. I bet there are quite a few other nuggets of gold to be discovered.

❤️❤️❤️❤️❣️

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

Click this link to purchase this book!* Mr. Wrong Number

Copyright 2022 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 Sunday Commentary: My Top 5 Most Anticipated Book Releases- Mar’22

I know February is a short month, but seriously? Time is flying by this year! In already looking towards the March book releases I’m feeling like I’m falling seriously behind. There are too many books out there and too little time to read them. March has some amazing book releases, so I’m just going to add the five that are on my own radar.

#5 BOOK RELEASE

There is something about this synopsis that is drawing me in. It helps that the author is Lauren Kate because I know she will not let me down. By Any Other Name probably should be higher on my list except for a couple of much anticipated by me novels that are filling the top 2. Is this novel on your own radar?

Synopsis: What she doesn’t know about love could fill a book.
 
With a successful career as a romance editor, and an engagement to a man who checks off all ninety-nine boxes on her carefully curated list, Lanie’s more than good. She’s killing it. Then she’s given the opportunity of a lifetime: to work with world-renowned author and her biggest inspiration in love and life—the Noa Callaway. All Lanie has to do is cure Noa’s writer’s block and she’ll get the promotion she’s always dreamed of. Simple, right? 
 
But there’s a reason no one has ever seen or spoken to the mysterious Noa Calloway. And that reason will rock Lanie’s world. It will call into question everything she thought she knew. When she finally tosses her ninety-nine expectations to the wind, Lanie may just discover that love By Any Other Name can still be as sweet.

Click this link to purchase this book!* By Any Other Name

MY #4 BOOK RELEASE

Rebecca Serle’s novels touch my heart and boy One Italian Summer looks like it could be a tear jerker. I’m a big fan of this author and am eagerly looking forward to reading this novel.

Synopsis: When Katy’s mother dies, she is left reeling. Carol wasn’t just Katy’s mom, but her best friend and first phone call. She had all the answers and now, when Katy needs her the most, she is gone. To make matters worse, their planned mother-daughter trip of a lifetime looms: to Positano, the magical town where Carol spent the summer right before she met Katy’s father. Katy has been waiting years for Carol to take her, and now she is faced with embarking on the adventure alone.

But as soon as she steps foot on the Amalfi Coast, Katy begins to feel her mother’s spirit. Buoyed by the stunning waters, beautiful cliffsides, delightful residents, and, of course, delectable food, Katy feels herself coming back to life.

And then Carol appears—in the flesh, healthy, sun-tanned, and thirty years old. Katy doesn’t understand what is happening, or how—all she can focus on is that she has somehow, impossibly, gotten her mother back. Over the course of one Italian summer, Katy gets to know Carol, not as her mother, but as the young woman before her. She is not exactly who Katy imagined she might be, however, and soon Katy must reconcile the mother who knew everything with the young woman who does not yet have a clue.

Rebecca Serle’s next great love story is here, and this time it’s between a mother and a daughter. With her signature “heartbreaking, redemptive, and authentic” (Jamie Ford, New York Times bestselling author) prose, Serle has crafted a transcendent novel about how we move on after loss, and how the people we love never truly leave us.

Click this link to purchase this book!* One Italian Summer: A Novel

MY #3 BOOK RELEASE

From Rebecca Serle’s mother-daughter novel in my #4 spot to a young lady who travels on a vacation with her parents, trying to understand her relationship with her father. I love this author and she often touches my heart with her novels. I’m anticipating another great read.

Synopsis: Right after the sudden death of her mother—her first and most devoted fan—and just before the launch of her high-stakes sophomore album, Greta James falls apart on stage. The footage quickly goes viral and she stops playing, her career suddenly in jeopardy—the kind of jeopardy her father, Conrad, has always predicted; the kind he warned her about when he urged her to make more practical choices with her life. 
 
Months later, Greta—still heartbroken and very much adrift—reluctantly agrees to accompany Conrad on the Alaskan cruise her parents had booked to celebrate their fortieth anniversary. It could be their last chance to heal old wounds in the wake of shared loss. But the trip will also prove to be a voyage of discovery for them both, and for Ben Wilder, a charming historian, onboard to lecture about The Call of the Wild, who is struggling with a major upheaval in his own life. As Greta works to build back her confidence and Ben confronts an uncertain future, they find themselves drawn to and relying on each other.

It’s here in this unlikeliest of places—at sea, far from the packed city venues where she usually plays and surrounded by the stunning scenery of Alaska—Greta will finally confront the choices she’s made, the heartbreak she’s suffered, and the family hurts that run deep. In the end, she’ll have to decide what her path forward might look like—and how to find her voice again.

Click this link to purchase this book!* The Unsinkable Greta James: A Novel

MY #2 BOOK RELEASE

Mercy Thompson is one of my favorite urban fantasy characters. She never thinks twice about sacrificing herself for others, and in this novel she could be sacrificing herself for someone who has been stalking her. I can’t wait to see what Patricia Briggs does with the characters in this universe. She never disappoints.

Synopsis: Mercy Thompson, car mechanic and shapeshifter, must face her greatest fears in this chilling entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.

The vampire Wulfe is missing. Since he’s deadly, possibly insane, and his current idea of “fun” is stalking Mercy, some may see it as no great loss. But when he disappears, the Tri-Cities pack is blamed. The mistress of the vampire seethe informs Mercy that the pack must produce Wulfe to prove their innocence, or the loose alliance between the local vampires and werewolves is over.
 
So Mercy goes out to find her stalker—and discovers more than just Wulfe have disappeared. Someone is taking people from locked rooms, from the aisles of stores, and even from crowded parties. And these are not just ordinary people but supernatural beings. Until Wulfe vanished, all of them were powerless loners, many of whom quietly moved to the Tri-Cities in the hope that the safety promised by Mercy and Adam’s pack would extend to them as well.
 
Who is taking them? As Mercy investigates, she learns of the legend of the Harvester, who travels by less-trodden paths and reaps the souls that are ripe with a great black scythe. . . .

Click this link to purchase this book!* Soul Taken (A Mercy Thompson Novel Book 13)

MY MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK RELEASE FOR MARCH’22

I have read, listened to, and read again Anne Bishop’s novels that take place in the perfectly terrifying world of The Others. Crowbones finds us back in The Jumble with resort owner Vicki DeVine where she is faced with having to solve a couple of murders before the Others decide humans are more trouble than they’re worth. These novels are eery, creepy, and fantastically fun. I…. can’t…. wait…..

Synopsis: In this engrossing and gripping fantasy set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Others series, an inn owner and her friends must find a killer—before it’s too late.…

Crowbones will gitcha if you don’t watch out!

Deep in the territory controlled by the Others—shape-shifters, vampires, and even deadlier paranormal beings—Vicki DeVine has made a new life for herself running The Jumble, a rustic resort. When she decides to host a gathering of friends and guests for Trickster Night, at first everything is going well between the humans and the Others.
 
But then someone arrives dressed as Crowbones, the Crowgard bogeyman. When the impostor is killed along with a shape-shifting Crow, and the deaths are clearly connected, everyone fears that the real Crowbones may have come to The Jumble—and that could mean serious trouble.
 
To “encourage” humans to help them find some answers, the Elders and Elementals close all the roads, locking in suspects and victims alike. Now Vicki, human police chief Grimshaw, vampire lawyer Ilya Sanguinati, and the rest of their friends have to figure out who is manipulating events designed to pit humans against Others—and who may have put Vicki DeVine in the crosshairs of a powerful hunter.

Click this link to purchase this book!* Crowbones (World of the Others Book 3)

*Amazon Associate- if you purchase one of these books through one of the above links I’ll receive a small stipend.

There are so many other great books coming out in March that it was seriously hard to choose my top 5. I hope my choices helped bring some on your radar, but if you think I missed anything feel free to shout out your most anticipated book! There’s always room on my TBR (LOL!).

Have a great month of reading!

Deb

On By deborahkehoeIn A Hot Chick Who Reads3 Comments