Romance Books Reviews & Treats

Seeing her teenage crush Hero again 10 years later while recently homeless and unemployed heroine was literally down capped off her worsening Christmas Eve.

His invitation to his home became their chance to explore their long-held attraction to each other. But his secret reservations get in the way now as it did then.** Will Hero open up to her about them? How much will it affect her?

Funny, dramatic, sweet and sexy. Well-paced and emotionally engaging. Given that is a novella, the characterization was surprisingly deep and the romance believable. Especially given that the present story was within a 6-day period. It helped that their total romance spanned 10 years. The blocks to their romance were distressing but I wished we got more details of the exact event between Hero and heroine that made her leave home. It would’ve increased the angst and our understanding of their forbidden romance. The resolution showed their character growth, including that of heroine’s brother. Hero and heroine’s openness and maturity gave way to a deep love that could handle serious issues.** They were a sweet and sexy couple.

Recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
 

25y.o. jazz singer immediately seeks out hotelier Hero after her niece’s confession that she lied about him 3 years ago.** Her apology was met with his unforgiveness and cold rejection.

His father, however, encouraged her to not give up on Hero and offers her a job in their new hotel in Venice, where Hero will be working. She takes it and tries to find opportunities to have Hero give them a second-chance together. What does it take for him to forgive her and give their romance another try?

An average read, with the best part being the local tour guide of Venice. Lamb’s writing made the place come alive and sound so interesting. What makes the romance stand out is that it’s heroine who made a big mistake and needed to grovel for betraying Hero and their love. She felt sufficiently guilty and horrible for having misjudged Hero without giving him a chance to defend himself.** However, she didn’t grovel. She did think about it but chose to manipulate his forgiveness and love instead. And she did it in a passive-aggressive manner. Knowing that Hero probably still loved her gave her the power she needed for a successful “man hunt”. She did it in a subtle way, though. Hero’s distancing and avoidance of her was no match to her sly strategies.

Moderately recommended.

**An illustrated review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
 

Lisa Renee’s Play With Me:
Instant attraction between new temporary assistant heroine & her new boss Hero.

But their working relationship and security problems at work get in the way. How do they work around them?

Mary Ann Rivers’ Snowfall:
Microbiologist postdoc heroine becomes involved with her occupational therapist.

What does it mean for her cyber-romance with another man?**

Serena Bell’s After Midnight:
Middle-school teacher has no luck finding the man she met on New Year's Eve and was about to have a hot rebound with.

Eleven months later, she finally gets his name & contact info. How willing is he now to have a romance with her?

I expected a bundle of Christmas romances. Instead, we get a Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s romance stories. These stories have more substance than other Christmas romance bundles I’ve read. They’re well-written overall, although it took me awhile to get used to Rivers’ scientific-poetic language. It’s the characterization of Hero and heroine, the progression of their relationship, and the emotional connection that gave it substance. The sexual chemistry of the main characters were obvious & sex scenes, hot and detailed enough. I was planning on only reading 1 story but I got so caught up with the stories I ended up reading all 3 in 1 night! That’s a good sign of a good book.

Recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
 

28y.o. heroine asks tattooed former Army Special Forces Hero to help find her brother who named him in his cryptic message.

Hero was at first reluctant to help her when he found out her identity. But his sense that something big and dangerous is going on around heroine and his strong attraction towards her compels him to stick close to her. This soon changes when he rescues her from a house intruder and gets her to stay in his place for safety. Their close proximity eventually leads to an affair. But when Hero’s former military teammates join in her brother’s search, Hero’s secret from her becomes obvious. How does it change their relationship? How does it connect to her brother’s disappearance?

Exciting first quarter of the book. Hero and heroine’s sexual and emotional chemistry sparked from their initial meeting. It was even more interesting when mixed with Hero’s resentment with her due to his secret. The action-suspense part was initially engaging as well, with the way her brother’s disappearance was described and the mystery that could possibly connect her brother with Hero’s secret. But then the book slow down and plateaued. It don’t know if it was the introduction of other characters (including a 3-legged dog) or the change in the writing that made things seem tepid or the everyday life details that seem to infiltrate the book until the end. Whatever it was made my interest in the story subside. So, even though the main character’s sexual chemistry was still fiery and their emotional connection growing, my overall emotional engagement in the book had waned due to the other distractions. It also didn’t help that the action-suspense was the central focus than the romance. So I started keeping pages just to get to the romance part. By the time Hero’s big secret was revealed, I’d lost interest which was compounded by the contrived resolution of it all.

Limitedly recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by Amazon Vine program in exchange for an honest review.
 
 

It's been 3 years since 25y.o. heroine & early 30s Hero met and they've been happy together.

She's been working on her trust and commitment issues. Hero's unexpected proposal and their wedding didn't even send her into panic. The thought of having kids, though, is something she'd rather avoid. So when she finds herself pregnant, her reaction doesn't go well with Hero. Does this spell the start of their marriage doom?

A nice epilogue to [b:On Dublin Street|15760001|On Dublin Street (On Dublin Street, #1)|Samantha Young|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1358249908s/15760001.jpg|21459719]. It was told from heroine's POV(point of view) so we primarily get her thoughts and feelings about their relationship and her progress with her commitment and trust issues. It made her look self-centered though. And their romance, heroine-centered. Hero served as her support, encourager, and stability. He seemed to be the perfect boyfriend. So I considered it a good turn of events when he got upset with her for being seemingly unhappy with having kids.** It made him more relatable and more human. We saw how his childhood issues played a major part in his reaction to heroine's issue with having kids together. I liked that we finally see heroine reciprocating the supporting and proving her worth and love to Hero instead of just Hero doing the emotional giving in their romance. For a novella, there's character growth and emotional depth between the main characters. Their sexual chemistry and sex scenes were sensual and loving.

Moderately recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
    

Heroine works hard to maintain a good professional relationship with her boss, restorer Hero since she started working for him 16 months ago.

She hides her attraction towards him because of her beloved job. Being stuck at a lovely hotel for the weekend due to a snowstorm enables her to spend some time with him without work involved. Hero has likewise controlled his strong attraction to heroine but seeing her carefree and getting to know her outside of their professional capacity inevitably pushes him to make his attraction towards her known. They succumb to their mutual attraction. But going back at work makes things awkward for them. And seeing Hero take another woman as his date to their annual work Christmas party confirms what heroine has feared all along.

Unrequited attraction, hidden sexual chemistry, passionate sex scenes, and being snowed-in a romantic hotel together. A recipe for a sexy romance. But the emotional pull was lacking. Partly because Hero and heroine seemed to value their jobs more than each other, even after their weekend affair. Partly because of the lack of emotional intensity for each other. They really could’ve gone without ever revealing their attraction for each other. Being stuck at a romantic hotel during a snowstorm was what gave them the opportunity for romance neither were going out of their way to pursue. Both were mutually attracted to each other but not in the obsessive & intense I-gotta-be-with-him/her way that I prefer. And it showed. Hero’s insensitive choices when they went back to work declared his lack of prioritizing heroine in his life.** She did distance herself from him at work but that was understandable since he hadn’t made any long-term commitment to her. He didn’t pursue her when he could have. The lack of sacrifice for the sake of love on both Hero and heroine’s parts made this an average read.

Partially recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
 

25y.o. heroine blurts out her pregnancy as soon as she signs the divorce paper her estranged husband of 6 years gives her. Hero’s gloating over finally upsetting her cool demeanor goads her to ruffle him back with news of her pregnancy from their unplanned tryst a month ago.

He gets his revenge by announcing her pregnancy to the media, causing potential investors to her start-up business to pull out. It forces her to take him up on his offer of needed financial investment in exchange for their staying together for the sake of their unborn child. Their volatile past and present issues combust into passionate interactions. How can they manage to stay together without tearing each other apart?

This was my 1st Pammi read. I liked its complexity, especially for a HP(Harlequin Presents). Things were not tied up in a neat bow at the end, giving us a more realistic depiction of a passionate romance between 2 strong-willed people with deep issues that led to lots of misunderstandings. Their drive to succeed was motivated by their childhood issues, which neither shared enough with each other when they first got married. Unfortunately, their issues played against each other, worsening their initial fears and insecurities. Their marriage was doomed to fail then. Although neither filed for divorce in their 6 years apart, they worked hard at becoming successful and went on with other areas of their lives.** Their current successes showed them what was missing and helped them re-prioritize their life. They matured and changed for the better through the years. So they were ready for each other now and the possibility of a more stable marriage was more likely.

Recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
 

25y.o. heroine blurts out her pregnancy as soon as she signs the divorce paper her estranged husband of 6 years gives her. Hero’s gloating over finally upsetting her cool demeanor goads her to ruffle him back with news of her pregnancy from their unplanned tryst a month ago.

He gets his revenge by announcing her pregnancy to the media, causing potential investors to her start-up business to pull out. It forces her to take him up on his offer of needed financial investment in exchange for their staying together for the sake of their unborn child. Their volatile past and present issues combust into passionate interactions. How can they manage to stay together without tearing each other apart?

This was my 1st Pammi read. I liked its complexity, especially for a HP(Harlequin Presents). Things were not tied up in a neat bow at the end, giving us a more realistic depiction of a passionate romance between 2 strong-willed people with deep issues that led to lots of misunderstandings. Their drive to succeed was motivated by their childhood issues, which neither shared enough with each other when they first got married. Unfortunately, their issues played against each other, worsening their initial fears and insecurities. Their marriage was doomed to fail then. Although neither filed for divorce in their 6 years apart, they worked hard at becoming successful and went on with other areas of their lives.** Their current successes showed them what was missing and helped them re-prioritize their life. They matured and changed for the better through the years. So they were ready for each other now and the possibility of a more stable marriage was more likely.

Recommended.

**A more detailed review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
 

Heroine's quiet & unassuming life in Sicily changes one night, when American war Hero accidentally holds her in his arms.

He did so due to the traumatic flashback he was having during the wedding party. She’s astonished that he would be attracted in someone drab and full-figured as her and embarks in a 2-day affair with him. A month later she goes to Washington DC and tells him she’s pregnant. He proposes a marriage of convenience to tamp down any media sensation that would ruin his family’s political reputation. What Hero doesn’t expect is to want more with her. But would she want a future with him once she finds out the truth of his military past?

This book was just average. It’s unfortunately not to the degree of excitement, in-depth characterization, and emotional pull of the only other Harris book I read, Strangers in the Desert. The romance was believable but not spine-tingling spectacular. Heroine was a doormat who kept on hoping that others would love her the way she’s wanted, aside from her grandparents. She viewed herself poorly as a drab, overweight, and socially clumsy. Her large and influential family has said so and see her as a disappointment. So Hero’s attention towards her was a once-in-lifetime opportunity she wasn’t going to ignore. Although Hero was clear about their temporary affair, heroine in her hopeful pushover mentality wanted more anyway. That’s why she spent her little money on a plane fare from Italy to Washington DC to inform him she was pregnant. She hoped he’d be happy about the baby and want to have a happy family with her. Unfortunately for her, that wasn’t his reception. Fortunately for her, he wanted a temporary marriage to save his family’s political reputation. I don’t think he would’ve ever looked for her if it wasn’t for her pregnancy. His returning his love for her was more a matter of being the right place and right time. He did open up to her later about his war trauma and it was good of her to mention professional help and that he was receptive to it.**

Limitedly recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
 

21y.o. Goth-dressing film-school student just got partnered up with the preppy frat-boy Hero she bumped into and was slinging stereotypes with before getting to their first day of class.

Their world collides further when their film-class assignment becomes the basis for their real-life bargain: heroine’s room and board for the summer in exchange for her acting as his pretend girlfriend to her parents’ upper-crust social functions. Their time together makes Hero’s issues with his ex-girlfriend and his mom evident. Likewise, Hero begins to clue in to why heroine acts and dresses the way she does. They’re not as polar opposites as they first thought and their attraction to each other heightens. But are these enough to sustain them past the summer?

Hilarious rapport and POV(point of view) from Hero and heroine. I cracked up quite a bit. Layne pulled off the odd combination of preppy college boy and Goth film-school girl falling in love with each other. The process was interesting because they were so strangely matched. But that spark of something. That indescribable connection was there.** And it grew as they got to know each other more and realized that they had more going on inside than their outside appearances suggested. Hero and heroine shared similar experiences regarding their families and their personal lives. I liked that they didn’t rush their odd romance. They were wise enough to know they had to take care of things before embarking on their complicated relationship. Interestingly, their romance strengthened as both were managing their own issues while they played out their Pygmalion pretense with his social circle. Hero had to ultimately make a choice what was more important to him: the girl or his social life. Heroine also made some realizations from their experience together: be frozen in the past or start living despite the truth. They challenged each other and they were good for each other. And that’s the strength of their seemingly-misfit romance.

Recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
 

21y.o. college student was planning on spending her spring-vacation her best friend dragged her to reading her romance novels. She didn’t expect to be roped in to help at her friend’s brother’s seaside diner or be entranced by the brother’s best friend, surfer Hero.

She’s surprised at how interested he seems to be with her, given the toned bikini babes interested in him while she’s a size-14 clothed in blowsy dresses and always has her nose stuck in a book. As the spring break week closes in, they get closer together but heroine isn’t sure if things will end when they go back to school. When she hears from somebody else that her meeting with Hero was all part of his grand scheme, she doesn’t know what or who to believe.

It’s telling when the best you can say about the book was the anticipation you had reading it. It was really too bad because the premise sounded good: hunky surfer guy with unrequited crush over plus-sized bookworm heroine goes all out so she can notice him and spend time getting to know him. The execution fell apart from the beginning, with it’s lack of emotional focus and lukewarm characters.** The focus was on Hero’s surfing and his mistreatment of his intern-classmate. The vagueness of his secret plans and why and how started in the first chapter and permeated the book throughout. I kept on scratching my head and saying “huh?” because I was lost and didn’t know what the heck was going on. This vagueness became annoying after awhile and I didn’t care what it was by the time it became fully revealed. It was anti-climactic and predictable. That vagueness got in the way of my reading. The romance was about ego and physical attraction but not love. Hero was interested in heroine mostly because he’s never been ignored by a girl he was interested in before. They did share a chemistry later and had some sexy times. But love was never in the picture. Hero was more into heroine but I wouldn’t even call it love. The most heroine could admit to was “liking” Hero and she wasn’t even planning on anything past Spring Break and was sort of glad that Hero pursued her after. A HFN(happy for now) with a questionable future.

Miminally recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

25y.o. proper and efficient personal assistant makes an uncommon request for time off work in order to help her famous twin sister privately rehab from drugs. They go to their male friend’s cabin to do so and she was hoping that she could spend some one-on-one time with her friend whom she’s had a crush on since childhood.

But the cabin was far from empty since her friend’s playboy friend Hero preempted them with his lover. Heroine managed to make Hero’s lover leave but unfortunately Hero decided to stay to deliberately make things uncomfortable for her. Their constant fights ended up turning on a different sort of fire. Soon they’re burning things up with their passion for each other. But, when heroine’s crush finally asks her out on a date, she immediately accepts and leaves with him. Did she use Hero to make her crush jealous? Who does she ultimately choose?

This wasn’t an insta-love or lust book. Hero and heroine actually didn’t like each other much at first meeting.** And they fought a lot after that. Out of all that fighting and getting a rise out of each other came their chemistry and mutual attraction. After awhile, their snipping and snapping became a sexual turn-on that ended up in some pretty steamy sex scenes. Calculating Hero became hot and bothered by what he initially ridiculed heroine with: her prim and proper dress and manner. I was cracking up! It was so ironic. I loved how arrogant, prideful and self-centered Hero started transforming because of being with heroine. She challenged him to think beyond himself and to care about others. And because she mattered to him, she rubbed off on him. I thought his change from a calculating man-ho to a faithful partner to heroine was believable. He changed her as well. He brought out the untamed and emotional side of her. And helped her be more at ease and free with herself. Likely HEA(happy ever after).

Recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
 

20y.o. recent widow is trying to resist the charms of well-known womanizer Hero who happens to be the son of the Venetian nobleman she thinks may be involved in her painter father’s death.

She uses his attraction to her to get into their family home so she can search for the book used in a shocking ceremony her father accidentally witnessed and noted in his journal. The Venetian authorities’ dismissal of her claims pushed her to pursuit her father’s justice on her own. Hero, however, is beginning to be suspicious of her machinations. And her attraction towards him increases as she realizes that he has more depth and kindness than he lets anyone else see. They eventually become lovers. But when Hero confronts her about the truth, will he side with her or with his friends and family? How does it change their relationship?

This book was more mystery & intrigue with a side of romance. The mystery and intrigue were well-paced, brought us to various parts of 18th-century Venice, and even occasionally humorous (i.e., vomiting as means of escape).** The resolution was too swift and a tad unbelievable, with the culprits confessing their involvement, promptly switching their allegiances, and promising to do right. The romance was slow to develop. The physical interest was immediate but their emotional connection took longer. Heroine was busy investigating her father’s death and she had difficulty trusting Hero who was a womanizer like her husband. Their painting sessions allowed them to get to know each other for who they really were. From there, their emotional connection deepens and resulted in a more solid sexual chemistry. By the time they finally have a sexual affair, the focus became their emotional attachment. I wished their emotional attachment was evident much sooner than it was. It would’ve made it a stronger emotional read and give the book a more central romance feel. Or, at least, a 50% romance feel.

Moderately recommended.

**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
 

28y.o. 2nd-grade teacher has always lived her life putting others first. Her dreams of going to a 1-year paid training program at UC San Diego and having a tryst with her best friend’s older brother Hero are in reach yet seemingly impossible at the same time.

Hero is back in their Idaho town after years in the military in time for his sister’s wedding. He seems to be attracted to heroine but he tries to resist what she’s blatantly offering. When he eventually does give in, Hero is bothered that she’s limiting it to a 1-night-stand. He pursues her but she doesn’t know what kind of future they’ll have if she pursues her training in San Diego and he with his job offer in Washington DC. He makes a promise to her, which he quickly breaks due to a family problem.

A humorous, sexy, and engaging romance. What makes this book stand out is how the emotional tables got turned between Hero and heroine. She’d had an obvious crush on him for a longtime and tried to seduce him a few times. He couldn’t resist her for much longer as he gets to know her more and find her fascinating. But her low expectations of their romance shook him. He found himself wanting more from her and becomes the pursuer. I liked how clear his strong feelings for her became and she became the level-headed one. It made him do things for her that he’s never done for anybody else. Observing her and seeing how happy and content she was and how she positively affected others inspired him and made him want to be with her. She was good for him and he was smart enough to realize it, even though he almost bungled it in the end. He did grovel and it made up for his mistakes with her.**

Recommended.

****A different review with SPOILERS is on my blog. Click here.
*ARC courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
 

32y.o. journalist feels strong enough to come back to work 2 years after she was rescued from her 18-month abduction in the Middle East. Seeing 38y.o.

Hero again was a good surprise since her last memories of happiness before her abduction was her weekend affair with him. Their attraction is mutual and even more intense than ever since they both want a second chance together. Hero, however, can’t divulge that he was the Navy SEAL who rescued her. He does act as her bodyguard after threats and attempts at her life begin. He also has to thread carefully with her due to the emotional and sexual trauma she suffered during her abduction. But it’s the secrets that they’re keeping from each other that may make or break their relationship.

Good deep romance that transcended the trauma heroine suffered when she was abducted. Clare made this book about a heroine who transformed from her broken & fragile self into a powerhouse who bested those who tried to degrade her and Hero who boosted her will to live an even better life. Her strong survivor attitude was already evident before she met Hero again. But his understanding and support of her made her stronger. They might have only spent 3 days together 4 years ago and he may have his secrets and she, hers.** But their emotional connection was deep and they got each other. Hero’s consideration and patience with her emotional and sexual fears helped her trust in herself and in their relationship. It took awhile for sex scenes to play out but it strengthened their emotional bond and made their later sexual consummation that much more intense.

The action-suspense part was thrilling and the villain wasn’t predictable. The deaths and injuries weren’t written in gory detail. The main focus was finding out how the various murder attempts were related and who the villain was.

Recommended.

*ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.
 

24y.o. recently-widowed heroine finds herself becoming more sexually aware of her husband’s college best friend Hero.

He’s been a good friend and constant comfort to her since her husband’s recent demise. She decides to start moving on with her life by socializing with her friends again and having an affair with Hero. But she wrestles with guilt for moving on and continued loss, affecting her romance with Hero. At the time she finally decides to move on more fully with Hero, she finds something that makes her retract from her decision.

I wasn't sure if this was chick-lit or romance. It leaned more towards chick-lit because the book was mostly spent on heroine trying to cope with the loss of her beloved husband than it was on her romance with Hero. Even her romance with Hero was very much tied to her feelings towards her husband: guilt for moving on from him, continued love for him, and missing him. I felt bad for Hero's unrequited love for heroine but also understood how recent her great loss was. Her romance with him was mostly out of comfort and familiarity. Heroine seemed to cope with her loss by engaging with the familiar. Frequenting their old college haunting grounds (i.e., bars, restaurants, beaches) with her old college friends. There were a lot of reminiscing about their college days, especially their drunken escapades, and involving themselves in college-related events. Alcohol was involved in all these activities and seemed to be a huge part of heroine's coping mechanism. I lost count of how many times she drank alcohol with friends and by herself for various reasons. Drinking was a major part of her adult formation. Maybe drinking now was her way of connecting with her deceased husband whom she did a lot of partying with in college. Heroine seemed to be in a numb state maturity-wise in this book. There wasn't a lot of forward movement. There was more of a going back. I hope to see her mature and move forward with less dependence on alcohol on the next book(s). I also hope for a more central focus on the romance between her and Hero.

Partially recommended.

*ARC provided by the author for an honest review.
**A more detailed review is on my blog. Click here.