Ziyaeddin, exiled prince and now famous portraitist, fell in love with a pair of lips years ago. When he sees these lips on a young "man" at a surgical theater, Ziyaeddin immediately recognizes them as Libby Shaw's.

Forced to disguise herself as a man in order to train to become a surgeon, Libby strikes up a deal with the mysterious man she knows as Ibrahim Kent. He'll allow her to live in his Edinburgh artist's house while she studies and masquerades as "Joseph," if she sits for him once a week in his studio. Maybe sometimes in the nude...

Both living secret lives, both falling in love, Libby and Ziyaeddin have huge obstacles to overcome for their HEA.

I loved the premise of this novel, but found the execution to not be to my personal tastes. I find Ashe writes great excerpts, but the stitching together of the story often is a bit jarring. There is mention that Libby may have "OCD" (not what it is called in the book, obviously due to the time period) or may otherwise be "neural atypical," but this wasn't further explored enough for me.

This is definitely a slow-burn romance, and the HEA was a bit bittersweet for me, because you don't get one until the Epilogue, which seems a bit of a cheat.

Still, overall, a deliciously described story. I tried reading the first book in the series and was completely lost because this is actually a spin-off series of a different one. At least here I didn't feel like I was really missing out by not having read the others.

ARC received from the publisher in exchange for a fair review! Thank you Avon!

Received an ARC from Bookish First, and started reading but after the first chapter I stopped. Just not clicking for me at the moment.

I believe teens will like the story, but I soon figured out the connection between the two female lead characters (as confirmed by flipping to the end).

Willa Peet (Ginger's younger sister from Protecting What's His) isn't nice, and she's done pretending to try. She left her first and only boyfriend Evan, a nice guy, because she knew he was just waiting for her to figure her shit out. To fix herself, or let him fix her. Evan didn't understand that Willa doesn't want to be fixed, so Willa had to leave.

Thankfully, the photography contest Willa entered sends her off to Ireland for a month, a glorious chance to distance herself from her comfort zone. Too bad the sexy, sexy pub/inn owner sent to pick her up from the airport immediately shatters all of her expectations.

Shane, on a brief stint home from his Grand Prix racing career to sort out a sale of his family's pub and inn, cannot believe his visceral and immediate attraction to the whip smart and prickly Willa. Girl even ditches him at the airport. Hell.

Two broken souls may just found out there broken pieces fit perfectly together, despite how desperately the both try to tell themselves their affair is temporary.

Oh wow, a glorious audio book. Loved the Irish accents. SUPER steamy, but definitely more of a slow-burn than Bailey's other books I've recently read, and boy did it burn good. I did miss her normal dual POV, as this is entirely in Willa's, but whatever. One of my favorites. Enemies to lovers, car racing, family, misty Irish meadow sexy-times, and realistic drama. My catnip.

Well, I finally found a Bailey I didn't much care for. I still love the Clarkson family after meeting them in Too Hot to Handle, but unfortunately Grace and Aaron's love story didn't really work for me.

Grace read too young to me, a manic pixie dream girl, while Aaron felt a little too old for her. I felt really bad for Grace, as she's been emotionally abused by her family for YEARS, and I didn't think she could really have a healthy relationship so quickly after being put through all of the psychological manipulation. I thought she'd struggle a lot more with falling in love with Aaron, especially due to his profession (just like her father's).

I found Aaron's character a bit more believable, but found his big secret that caused him to lose his last position to be not as scandalous as implied (he slept with a married politician's wife. She used him for revenge and sold him out).

Also, the dog Aaron found at the end of Book 1 was such a missed opportunity. He's barely mentioned, and why even have a dog? Seemed a bit pointless besides being the impetuous for Grace and Aaron's meeting in the woods (which could have happened a myriad of other ways).

I am still VERY intrigued to see what happens with Peggy and the mysterious man who broke her heart (not one of her four ex-fiancees) AND what the heck is up between Belmont and Sage.

Worth a read, but not my favorite by far.

Callie Carpenter is forced to leave the promotion she just landed and return to her New Jersey hometown to take care of her parents after they are injured in a car accident (from road head no less, go septuagenarians). Returning home means she's also returning to the orbit of her first love, Garrett Daniels.

Garrett, sexy history teacher and lead football coach, was devastated when he lost Callie. And now, she's back and its like those fourteen years never happened. Plus, she's a newly minted emergency substitute drama teacher and he'll see her every day. Just like high school all over again. Hormones and all.

They immediately jump back into a sexual charged relationship, falling ever so quickly back into love. But, Callie is going back to California in ten months. And Garrett doensn't want to leave home.

This was my first Emma Chase, and I adored her character development. And man, I love a good second chance romance, and this had such great bones. Garrett (and the audio narrator, cuz damn) was so sexy, and I loved his combination of smarts, protectiveness, and just all around great guy, besides being sexy AF. Callie was also great, and I loved her immediate connection with her students, her joy for teaching, and her passion for her career.

My main issues came from the kind of lack of tension in their relationship? They just fell so easily back into what they had and I just wanted more sexual tension. A bit more of "we shouldn't" instead of YES, let's be bf/gf. Also, there were a lot of plot points, but not all of them were necessary, or would seem important than would fizzle out.

Still, I'm glad I read this because Chase did a great job of making high school lovers who became awesome adults so very sweet (and sexy).

Read with Bernie! She loved the story and especially the giant's made up words.

Derek is afraid to tell Ginger his life is at risk on a dangerous mission and Ginger is struggling with how to tell Derek she's pregnant when he's suddenly withdrawing. Worried Derek is leaving her, she contemplates their courtship, their marriage, and how she ended up pregnant to begin with. A sweet, super steamy short story with our favorite couple. Good to see them again!

Harrison Tate, a Robin Hood-esque art thief, witnesses a brutal murder when out liberating a painting. Since he cannot be caught at the scene, Harrison is forced to corrupt the crime scene, tamper with the dead woman's computer, and be extracted by Wren and his team of fixers.

What Harrison does know for sure is that Gabrielle Wright, sister of the dead woman, did not do it. He was there, and he's responsible for Gabi's life being thrown in turmoil. Now, Harrison has an opportunity to hopefully clear Gabi once and for all.

Posing as an insurance adjuster, he goes back to the island where it all went down, and finds himself falling for Gabi as the mystery of who murdered her sister deepens and becomes more dangerous.

A fun book to read by the pool. I enjoyed that Harrison wasn't quite as tortured as the past heroes. Gabi wasn't my fav heroine and I didn't really buy her bad relationship with her Uncle (or didn't care), but I did feel bad for her situation.

Peggy Clarkson, of the Clarkson clan, makes the remaining members of her family's road trip to NYC detour in Cincinnati. With a string of four engagement rings around her neck, Peggy is determined to make Elliot "The Kingmaker" Brookes, coach of her Alma Mater's football team, regret breaking her heart.

Coach Brooke's is still repenting for his sins. The sins he made with Peggy, the college cheerleader who tempted him to sway his focus away from his team, from football. The first woman who made him feel, unlike his dead wife. Unlike his young daughter. He's been dead inside for three years. Especially since he received her wedding invitation, forwarded to his new address too late.

When Peggy blazes in to town for Alumni week, Elliot is suddenly FEELING again. And when he finds out Peggy isn't actually married, Elliot needs to figure out if she's actually a sin or the woman he should worship, forever, once and for all.

This one started off a bit slow for me, as it dips back and forth between the present and the past. i also am not a super fan of older-hero, younger heroine romances, but Bailey made this one work. I'm just really glad this was college (phew), as the whole cheerleader/football coach thing would have been kind of gross otherwise.

That said, this was delightfully naughty, and as a lapsed Catholic myself, I really felt sassy listening to Coach say the Lord's prayer while having sex. Still, not Priest by Sierra Simone levels of dirty, but yowza.

Elliot reformed a bit too quick at the end, but his full book grovel was a super fun ride. I love a good grovel.

Belmont and Sage are still worrying me, but I can't wait to read their story!

Wow, I've been super worried for Sage Alexander and Belmont Clarkson for all of the previous three "Romancing the Clarksons" books. I've been watching these two dance around their FEELINGS for each other and I am so happy I finally got to read their hard-earned HEA.

Bailey saved the best for last. We learn why Belmont is really still so traumatized from his days spent stuck in an abandoned well (

his step-father is the one who pushed him into the well and he didn't want his other siblings to ever know. He didn't want to ruin their relationship, little as it was, with their father since Belmont has no father. My poor sweet honey bun.

).

We learn why Sage needs to take a detour back to her Kentucky home, as despite her terrible childhood, she feels an unholy amount of guilt towards her neglectful, alcoholic parents, and needs to save them one last time, even if it means she can't be with Belmont.

We also learn that (SPOILLLLLLEEEERRR), Belmont and Sage are both virgins. I kind of figured from context clues, but it was so lovingly done. I love a virgin hero.

Plus, we get to see the entire Clarkson clan reconvene and finally fulfill their mother's dying wish. The polar bear into Coney Island harbor, and we finally find out why this was Miriam's request.

Sad to see this road trip end, but what a fun ride.