Parker Brown needs a fake boyfriend to convince her misogynist billionaire investor boss that she's serious about becoming a full team member of the green technology company he's at the helm of. She hires the her perfect match from an escort service, only to have his livid former heavy weight prize winning boxer brother show up for their first business dinner "date."

Rhys Morgan is everything Parker is not. Huge to her tiny, gruff to her prim, and extremely adamant that she will NOT be hiring his brother. Plus, turns out Parker's boss is a huge fan of Rhys, so maybe Parker should hire him instead.

Their fake relationship quickly turns into real feelings as they realize that opposites do attract and both Parker and Rhys are more than stereotypes.

I loved the Boston setting and the chemistry is real and jumps off the page, but some of the rest of the plot fell flat. I wanted to know more about Parker's job and really hated her boss, as you were supposed to, but he's almost cartoonishly "evil." Rhys makes some very harshly judgey comments about sex workers when he confronts Parker about her "whoring" out his brother.

I listened to Outmatched on audio book because I wanted those Boston accents, and it took me a bit to get in the groove with the male narrator. I did not care for his "female" voices and his narration was very staccato at times. I did like the female narrator, so a bit of a mixed bag.

My last read of 2019 was this swoony and sexy Professor and Librarian romance, forthcoming from Charish Reid!

Dr. Victoria Reese is tightly wound and trying to make her mark at her prestigious and mostly white University. Being a Black woman in academia brings her both fulfillment and stress.

One of her new initiatives brings the sexy head Children's librarian and maybe a Viking John Donovan into her life.

Wildly attracted to John, Victoria attempts to plan via spreadsheet a torrid affair with the more than willing Johnny. But Johnny is just as determined to show Victorian that sometimes going off calendar can be just as good.

I really loved this one! I had to forgive Johnny a pretty egregious library worker mistake early on, but who cares really. I sure didn't as I fell in love with both characters.
There is absolutely delicious consent too.
I also appreciated the ADD representation.

Preorder this one now, Hearts on Hold is available February 3rd, 2020. *I received a free copy to review from @netgalley*

Forty-somethings Lana and Simon, divorced for over 15 years, agree to rent an apartment together after Lana returns to NYC. They have rules, especially no falling back in love, but rules are meant to be broken.

Loved this second chance romance that is low-angst, super sexy, and has an uppity cat.

I also appreciated how both characters were in their forties and had no qualms about not wanting children, ever. Lana's need to explore her life while Simon settled in to the career he was born to do was also lovingly discussed without ever villainizing either character. It is so hard to write a second-chance romance, let alone one about divorcees, but Lang did it with aplomb!

I received a free ARC for review from the publisher. Thank you.

Reading Work for It sent me down a rabbit hole trying to figure out what Elderflower cordial tastes like because after a particular scene involving the creation of it I kind of need to know. Really bad.

Work for it is absolutely delicious, angsty, and so hot I can't even give justice to a description beyond that. Olu and Griff's chemistry and antagonism is so very palpable my eReader was heavy in my hands. I loved the details of Griff's place in the elderflower business, his recipes, and how absolutely gentle he was with Olu's emotions and heart and how NOT gentle he was when asked.

Definitely a must read, absolutely loved.

CW for forced-outing (off page), sharing of intimate photos (off page), and parental death by suicide (takes place in the past).

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

Lucy Parker truly knows how to deliver a fabulous enemies-to-lovers romance. I was eager to see how the redemption arc would work for nefarious Nick from [b:The Austen Playbook|42279630|The Austen Playbook (London Celebrities, #4)|Lucy Parker|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550200262l/42279630._SY75_.jpg|63884092] which while not 100% necessary to read before Headliners WILL make you appreciate this story all the more.

The slow-burn and almost cozy romance (with steam, you just have to wait) combined with the details about Nick and Sabrina's new day time TV talk show gig was a perfect way to while away some reading time in bed. The dialogue sparkles and the little details like Nick falling in love with Sabrina AND knitting are lovely and perfect.

The "mystery" sub-plot about who is sabotaging the show was not important to me but may be attractive to readers who appreciate the small intrigue it offered. This book is also a "holiday" romance if you consider the time period leading up Christmas and some holiday partying and a hunt for a scary "tickle me Elmo meets a Furby" type gift for Nick's niece to be Christmassy.

I also adored that both Sabrina and Nick were clear on their desire to be child-free!

Thank you to Netgalley and Carina Press for the ARC.

If I could separate the romance from this book I would give it five stars. I absolutely adored Andrew and Jiya's smoldering tension, their discovery of Andrew's kink for being ordered to do things, Jiya discovering she loves it too. So hot and sexy and delicious. Thus three stars.

But I can't separate the romance from the reason why Andrew and Jiya haven't been together for years and then the actions taken by Andrew and his brothers to "fix" the problem was just WHAT.

I love Tessa Bailey, I'm a huge 'stan, this just didn't work for me. I can't say more in the review without entirely spoiling the book so I'll wait until after publication.

Also, Jiya is Indian-American which only seemed to matter to the plot in the sense her family owned a restaurant, the food descriptions, and a sort of arranged marriage subplot. I can't comment besides that on accuracy or portrayal so I'm interested to see what other readers thought.

BUT, this is compulsively readable, highly entertaining, and has the Tessa Bailey dirty talk we love. It will work for many people, just didn't work especially for me this time.

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

I am so happy I was able to read this absolutely luscious slow-burner by the pool in Vegas. Whew. Definitely yelling at my Kindle to get these two to K-I-S-S for a very long time, but the sheer chemistry between Macon and Delilah was palpable on every page. I also really really didn't like Macon at first, and the story bordered *this close* to being a bully romance, which is not usually something I enjoy reading, but Callihan had my trust and brought it home in the end.

What made it work the most for me was the close proximity of having Delilah living in Macon's home, being his personal chef, all up in his intimate space(s). These two have a whole passel of baggage to sort through and I enjoyed watching them clean up their mess, especially in the bathtub *waggles eyebrows*

I also enjoyed reading about Delilah's complicated relationship with her sister, but I did find the bits after the dark moment to be a bit rushed and over jammed with plot wrap up. Just get back to the tub you dirty kids!

Bonus points for Macon playing a Khal Drogo type figure (armor and all) on his TV show and for body guard North who I hope will someday have his own book! I also appreciated the work to show Macon's restricted diet and how he had to work very very hard to have a body the show wanted him to have.

CW bullying, fatphobic comments, diet culture (Macon is on a diet because he needs to keep his eight-pack), stalking, parental death (off page), gas lighting, lying.

Thank you for the ARC Netgalley!

My favorite part of THE BOYFRIEND PROJECT came at the beginning of the novel. Our protagonist Samiah Brooks discovers the man she's been tepidly dating is ALSO dating two other women. She finds out on Twitter of all places and when she goes to confront him, she and the other women band together to take him down. They go viral, and all three must now contend with the ramifications.

Seeing these characters become friends is almost better than the romance, which for me was lovely, but not what drew me to the story. There's also a bit of a suspense plot involving why Daniel Collins is now employed at Samiah's work. Samiah is also developing an app and I enjoyed seeing her work and her passion for her career.

A great start to a series and I'm looking forward to more.

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy.

Natalie Sobol and Garrett Song are both wildly attracted to each other, despite Natalie laying the HR hammer on Garrett not realizing he's the CEO of her company (for not filling out paperwork). Both aren't looking for love, but both soon find they could benefit from being married, so they agree to a marriage of convenience. Garrett wants his matchmaking grandmother off his back AND an edge in striking a business deal; Natalie wants to convince the state to give her full custody of her niece.

Over the months of living together and acting married, their lust turns in to love.

A promising debut from an author to watch! I found some of the time jumps a bit choppy, but overall this was delicious fun and pulled off a modern, contemporary marriage of convenience with heat and charm.

Thank you to the publisher for the free review copy (from Netgalley).

CW for death (siblings, parents, off page), child custody stuff

Mutual pining and a legacy of failed relationship attempts don't stop the sparks flying between two former best friends and lovers who reconnect at the destination wedding of their mutual friends. But can Pris, a NYC detective growing weary of her job, and JuanPa, a physical therapist for the NY Yankees, get over their past to have a future together?

Herrera closes out her Dreamers series with a delicious second-chance romance that reconnects fans with the other beloved couples and closes out with a hard won and well deserved HEA for our jaded couple who both are absolutely gone for each other. As always Herrera deftly weaves social justice, therapy, and culture into her characters' lives without ever losing track of the heart and soul of the romance. And oh the heat. It is real good.

Come for the romance, stay for the seniors learning about b*tt play.

CW for discussion of sexual abuse of a minor - it is a case Priscilla is working on as a NYC detective. All discussion is based on the facts of the case.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.