Eli Dawes returns to his family home after being away in France for over seven years. He was presumed dead, but was in fact recovering from a disfiguring injury during the Napoleonic Wars. His injury and how it was incurred haunt him, and he has no wish to rejoin the society he once revelled in.

But, he finds is home is inhabited by a school of young ladies learning to paint under the tutelage of one Lady Rose Hayward, the woman his now dead best friend was supposed to marry. The woman Eli has wanted for years.

Embarrassed by his injury and his past and baffled by the hostile and cold reception from Rose, Eli must figure out how to live when all he wanted was to be dead.

For Rose, Eli is just as responsible as her dead fiancee for the scandalous publication published before they went to war. The publication that left her and other young ladies ruined for society. Now she hopes to help women see their true beauty by painting them in all their glory, no matter their age, their handicaps, their scars.

But as she learns Eli was not in fact responsible and is appalled he wans't able to do anything, she finds herself falling for the wounded Earl and wants nothing but to help him find his way back to society in a meaningful way. Too bad if she does, she can never join him at his side.

A lovely tale that is quite feminist and handles difficult subjects with a wonderful touch. Both Eli and Rose have inner mental health struggles that are rarely seen in historical (or handled as well). Great to see them find their HEA.

I received a free copy in exchange for a fair review.

Noah Cortez is back home from his last deployment with the Marines. His entire unit perished in a terrible explosion that left him with a traumatic brain injury. While his scars are mostly invisible, Noah is hurting, mentally and physically.

Kristina knows something is up wit Noah. She's been his best friend since they were children, and the man who is now home isn't the boy who left, the boy who wrote her letters and shared her interests, the boy she never felt any attraction to.

Now everything has changed. There's something there behind Noah's pain, something more, and when Kristina and Noah get caught up in a passionate embrace after Kristina finds Noah recovering from a panic attack, Kristina is ready to jump right in to a relationship and to do anything to help Noah find peace.

But Noah isn't ready and he doesn't know if ever will be. He doesn't want to bring his demons into Kristina's life.

What follows is a utterly angsty and satisfying romance, with a wounded warrior who finds his way back to his one true love through the power of a fight club, art therapy, and mental health professionals, not sex.

You will fight for these two, and will want to read more in this series!

When Max Doyle accidentally sees Rosie Madden changing clothes through a skylight while fixing her roof, he realizes he may not quite know everything about the girl who's been his best friend forever. What he does know is that he must find out why she has that rose tattoo on her hip and why he suddenly feels like he may actually have been just a little in love with Rosie his entire life.

Featuring a sort of insta-love but in the best way low-angst fluffy romance arc, this was just a balm to my soul. Max adopts a tiny chihuahua he names Cupcake. He gives her doggy CRP. He buys her pink glittery sweaters. He takes care of Rosie and helps her with her house. He lets Rosie be exactly who she is without any expectations. He cries. He's bomb in bed.

Fluff with hot sex is my favorite type of romance right now.

I just loved this story, and this isn't the best review but whatever. Just read it.

Rylann Pierce, an Assistant US Attorney, finds out the best witness to her new case is billionaire Kyle Rhodes, recently released for time served after taking down Twitter. Not only is he bound to be uncooperative with the USAG who hit him with the book for his mistake, he is also the same sexy, charismatic man who stood Rylann up years ago after they met cute at a bar while she was in law school.

While Rylann long ago forgave him for standing her up (his mother died the night they were supposed to go out), she is worried that their past and the obvious chemistry that still exists between them will jeopardize not only her case but her new career.

Can one kiss nine years ago really be that hot? You know it.

Oh, this was so great. The reasons why the characters are kept apart are totally legitimate, and I appreciate how James doesn't have Rylann and Kyle do stupid shit that would actually cost them their livelihoods. The romance is realistic but super hot, and both characters are fully fleshed out, pasts and all. Rylann was a great heroine who has her shit together and has very real concerns about what dating an ex-con could mean for her career, and James finds the perfect ways to resolve the tension. Also, the "billionaire playboy trope" is so over done, but Kyle defied the odds and made me love him. Love it!

And, since this series is set in Chicago, this book fulfills the "book set no more than 100 miles away from where I live" category for my 2017 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge!

SO, I thought this was my first time reading AHLNO, but apparently I tried it last year? Whatever, listening to it on audiobook has vastly changed my mind on the experience, as Richard Petkoff is a narrating god! Loved his accents, so good.

Also, I am participating in the "Fated Mates" podcast reread of this IAD series, and the enthusiasm of both hosts has amped me up to plow through this entire series.

*loved the world building, all the different types of "Lore"
*OMG the violence is ridiculous but also kind of funny, but also really violent?! Lots of blood, ripped off limbs, swords, etc.
*There is definitely some WTF sexy times moments (especially when Emma 'takes' from Lachlan's um, private spot, to distract him to try and get away).


I picked this up because it was on Sarah Maclean's list of recommended romances. I typically don't read paranormal (especially shape-shifting) romance so I thought I'd give it a try, but overall I wasn't super impressed. There was an overwhelming amount of different types of paranormal characters that I'm assuming the reader would have met in the first book of the series and I found the whole destined mate thing to be a convenient go-around for the "insta-love" trope.

Basically, our "hero" Lachlain has been chained for decades in a vampire prison and is stuck there until he scents his one true mate, causing him to chew his leg off and break free. He immediately imprisons the timid half-vampire, half-valkyrie Emma who has never been touched by a man (or kissed) and immediately forces sexual acts on her, because duh, she's his. She protests, but eventually falls for her one true mate while they figure out her parentage and why her adopted Valkyrie family has made her not drink blood from the source and basically kept her hidden away.

So, overall not too impressed.

I adore a "good best-friend's little sibling" romance and Fighting for What's His is a perfect addition to the trope!

Billy Parrish promised his army buddy that he'd do anything for him, even if it means letting his little sister, Shayna Curtis, move into his apartment as she starts her new job in Washington DC.

Letting anyone into his regimented life is especially difficult for this veteran, as Billy struggles with PTSD and the third degree burn scars that still cover much of his body, as well as trying to find meaning in his new life as a PI.

Not only is Shayna bubbly, outgoing, and kind of messy, she's also hot as hell and passionate about her career as a photojournalist. Basically, perfect for the man Billy used to be, but not touchable for the man Billy is now.

As these two dance around their attraction and try to stay simply roommates, they'll find it harder and harder as they also find they may just be perfect for each other, damages and all.

Another winner from the Warrior Fight Club series for Laura Kaye!

Pride & Prejudice featuring an Afro-Latina girl facing off with her "not from this neighborhood" rich nemesis Darius Darcy in the Bronx. With themes of gentrification, class, and love, this is a great read for those looking for both another P&P fix or just a wonderful young adult title.

I read this to prepare for the December 2018 "Great Big Romance Read" being put on by the Ripped Bodice Bookstore and book clubs/stores throughout the world!

Interesting concept where a bookshop owner has a special secret backroom for erotica of all types, historic through contemporary, and the sexy college professor who wants to do research in the shop. Both the bookshop owner and the professor are widowers, with ensuing complications of grief and uncertainty.

The romance was well played out, there is a somewhat of a love triangle, but overall I found the story not as erotic as billed.

Also, Clara the shop owner is basically flabbergasted by the contents of the backroom as it was her dead husband's collection. I found it hard to believe girl wasn't in there perusing with her husband!

ARC received in exchange for a fair review.

Wendy left her small North Carolina Outer Banks island home twelve years ago because the love of her young life, her forever love, cheated on her and got another girl pregnant. He ruined their plans and she wanted nothing but to get away.

Now a Navy SEAL, Wendy is finally returning home to visit her beloved Aunt for Christmas. She's coming home with backup, all of her Navy SEAL teammates, and is determined she'll not let Ethan knock her back.

But Ethan is now a widower, and he's still feeling it for Wendy, even though he's made at her for leaving all those years ago and never telling him where she went. Despite his anger, despite marrying and never really loving his now dead wife, Ethan kept nurturing the Christmas tree they planted all the years ago, the tree they were supposed to cut for their first Christmas as a married couple. And when he sees Wendy, battle scarred, but beautiful, he wants her back.

Ah, if only this was the story, if it was that simple. But this book tries to be all things. There's a gigantic cast of secondary slap-stick characters, including at least seven who live with Wendy's aunt, the entire SEAL team, some of whom are thinking of becoming modern day treasure hunters??, obvious set up for further books in the series, and so much more. Plus a Grinch contest, massive amounts of description of the small town, the bell factory, the architexture of the various homes, and so much more. I felt so bogged down in telling and description I had no time to buy Wendy and Ethan's rekindled romance.

I loved Wendy, I loved that she was a Navy SEAL. I hated that there is an apparently completely separate group for "female" Navy SEALs called "WEALs." Why? SEAL is a non-gendered acronym.

I loathed Ethan. There is never a real explanation besides "Wendy was away for a bit and he was jealous" so he had a drunk one night stand with a girl who ended up pregnant. Um, how long did it take Ethan to confess his error? You don't catch pregnant immediately, so um, no. Ethan never explained his actions to Wendy, and I never felt his anger at Wendy was justified in any way. He's totally free with letting his young daughter know he never loved her mother, whom he married, as much as he loved Wendy. He never really groveled enough for my satisfaction.

So, alas, this was not really for me, despite the great premise and the awesome Wendy.

Thank you for the ARC Avon!

AJ, a bookworm, wallflower 6th grader, decides to pretend he's a vampire in order to impress his vampire-obsessed crush. As it turns out Mia is a slayer, and she totally buys that AJ's a creature of the night.

With cute illustrations and a fairly silly plot, this was a fun graphic novel. I question it being shelved in my library's Children's Graphic Novels, as some of the themes are a little mature and it is kind of scary and violent when Mia decides to kill AJ. There's also a kidnapping.

SPOILERS

I was a bit unclear whether the book would actually turn out to be supernatural (it is), and I was a little concerned Mia only thought she was a slayer because of "reading too many books and watching too many movies." With some of the things I've been seeing in the news about kids thinking they are "destined" to murder other kids, I was a bit squeamish with this plot line. Mia ultimately decides she "isn't read to kill" anyone, but there is not a great explanation about where Mia got the information she was a slayer.

So, ultimately fun, but not one of my favorites.