PERFECTION! There are so many things I could say about this book because it's just amazing and I am in sheer disbelief that this is a debut novel. I loved SO MANY things about it. First of all, this book has loads of representation, which is something that is sorely needed. We have an autistic, bisexual FMC and a fat MMC with is also bisexual. Side characters within the book are also neurodivergent and members of the LGBTQ+ community. The openness and fearlessness in which everyone in this book talks about sex, mental health struggles, sexual orientation and gender identity is a beath of fresh air. I think one thing I want to highlight in particular is consent. There are numerous conversations surrounding consent, between Nic and Josh. Josh, in particular, is very vocal about consent because he cares about Nic and wants her to feel comfortable and SAFE. It isn't just about him. And I know the main plot is sex/intimacy lessons between the MMC and FMC but I feel like Josh just GETS IT. He ALWAYS makes sure Nic is safe and secure and loved, and lets her know she has an option to stop or change the rules at any time. I wish there were more men like him! I loved that we got to see such a real and raw representation of later in life diagnosed autism and how this can affect someone, as well as how PTSD can manifest. I especially appreciated the talks about getting therapy to deal with said PTSD and all that comes with that. The support and love and just growth that these two experience is so heartwarming and yet also very hot! I also absolutely LOVE when a book contains a playlist too! Katie made such great picks and I am obssessed. I just cannot say enough good things about this book and I am SO looking forward to Jo's story and all of the Quinn siblings! 

This took me three days to read because I had the flu but I think my temperature was actually so high because of this book! It was HOT. Noah and Mackenzie had such wild and and amazing chemistry and I loved every bit of it. I really liked the fake dating aspect, the workplace romance, the dislike to like trope and this was my first werewolf/shifter/alpha/omega sort of book, but I truly enjoyed it. The one thing I wish the author had included was some sort of glossary of terms because I didn't really know any of them and had to look up them up. It would have been nice to have something like this for people like me who aren't familiar with this lore. I also REALLY hated the annoying villain but I suppose that's the point, right? 

This was such a wonderful and warm book. This is a reverse age gap, single parent, curvy girl romance and out girl Quinn has been THROUGH it. I felt for her, but here comes Lachlan to save the day and show her exactly how a man should treat her. This was just fun and light and definitely had soem steamy scenes. Quinn's ex husband truly pissed me off! I think there were times when Quinn became a little annoying with her walling in self pity but given her trauma, I could sort of understand. Overall, I liked it! 

Wow, what a HOT novella! This was really good and full of plenty of spice. Sometimes you just want some sort of spicy escape that has less plot and more steam, you know? This is perfect for that. It's takes place in winter/Christmas time so it's great for this season. 

I gave this three stars because although I think it was fun and a nice read, there was not a lot of adventure for me (given the cover and summary, I expected more) and Ford Matthew is just a white man with a LOT of privilege who uses it to get ahead of a Latina and feels little to no remorse. He basically realizes at the *very* end that he was wrong and could see how he screwed her over and how she had to work twice as hard due to her gender and her skin color, but it felt too little, too late. This would have been a better enemies to lovers, academic rivals book IF the MMC wasn't so... not redeemable or likeable. Was the spice hot? Yes, sort of, but not enough to make up for any of this. It's got a beautiful cover, which drew me in, and I was promised something along the lines of Indiana Jones, The Mummy, and Tomb Raider; we got none of that. They basically move from one dig site to another and, in between sex, look for bodies and artifacts but it was really rather underwhelming in that department. I wanted more action and adventure, and a much better MMC. Oh, well. It was just okay. Also, third person POV didn't really work here and I think first person POV would have been better. 

Once again, Jillian Meadows is quickly becoming my new favorite. This was really good! I am so happy that Lena got her own book. Gavin and Lena were so cute together, and the rest of the family and their dynamics were so awesome. I really loved how much Lena's family loved Gavin and how they never hesitated to make sure he knew he was part of their family and that they loved him as their own. After the life he has had, he certainly deserved it. I really like the best friend's sister trope, and Jillian really did this so well. This is also a small town, holiday romance with some forced proximity, one bed, age gap, "just one night to get it our of our systems", and a guy who is obssessed with his girl. I love the title and the nod to Taylor Swift! I enjoyed this one so much and Jillian Meadows is now an automatic read for me. 

This was such a huge disappointment. This is supposed to be a book about Mateo Eden, who is an Eden sibling. The series is literally called "The Edens" and yet... the first ELEVEN CHAPTERS were all from Vera's point of view. We don't get anything from Mateo until chapter twelve. By then, I was 25% through the book. We heard about Mateo all through the previous five books, and I was so interested in his story. But we got essentially nothing. Also, we find out in the last book that he has a daughter, and I was so intrigued by how he would handle being a single parent through his daughter's life, particularly through the first few years of her life but WE DON'T EVEN GET TO SEE IT! It's all from Vera's point of view and then it's a few years later in the present when we see Mateo and his daughter. WHY? VERA IS NOT AN EDEN! Why did we just get the majority of HER story and not Mateo's? It just doesn't make sense. 

Another thing that bothered me is that when we DO get to Mateo's point of view, he basically says that the reason he is a better man now and not a manwhore who doesn't care about women is because he has a daughter now. Um, so you weren't a good guy before but now that you have a daughter, you are? Why did it take being a father to make you realize you treated women like shit?

I understand Vera was in love with Mateo for a long time and it was unrequited love but for the first 25% of the book, we hear over and over and OVER about how much she loves him but he doesn't give her the time of day. It was really getting annoying, and actually embarrassing and pathetic. Borderline creepy how obssessed she was with him. Then, when she does tell Mateo how she feels (sort of?), he all of the sudden "sees" her and is madly in love with her. He didn't notice her for years but NOW he's all about her? I don't buy it. It just seemed like an immediate shift with little to no thought. It didn't make any sense. 

There wasn't an exciting climax and no payoff to truly be worth taking up the first 25% to have Vera talk about how broken she is and how much she loves Mateo and he doesn't notice her. They didn't even really have chemistry. For Mateo, it was sort of just like, "Oh, here's Vera. She's pretty and she's good to my daughter, so I'll be with her then." We learned nothing about him, except he's a dad, he's a pilot and he wears brown boots with black belt. 

This was basically just unrequited love and a fuck ton of hiking. Like, we get it... you're hiking every single day. ENOUGH WITH THE HIKING! 

I still cannot believe Devney Perry wrote the masterpiece that is Juniper Hill and then every other book in the series was awful. How is this possible? I don't know but she did it.

Also... the thing that was REALLY WEIRD was at the end, Allie is 17 years old and she brings this 20 year old guy she's dating to a family party and NO ONE in the Eden family says anything?! No one thought, "Hey, that MAN is too old to be dating my TEENAGE DAUGHTER." ??? How did Devney Perry think this was okay?! I am appalled. Did anyone else catch this? Because my jaw literally dropped and I thought there's no way she wrote this BUT SHE DID. SO gross. 

I cannot believe this is a debut novel! It was SO GOOD. I am obssessed with this book and everything about it. It was so well written, which is why I have such high praise for something that is a debut romance. It was cute, angsty, swoonworthy, steamy and had me kicking my feet and smiling like crazy! I love that Finn and Millie really didn't like each other at first, even though they are colleagues at the museum. But really, they're both just misunderstanding each other while also actually having a huge crush on one another. It's so cute how they write notes to each other. This melted me. Finn was amazing - he steps up for his nieces, protects and loves Millie and is SUPER HOT with GLASSES. I just loved him. He's the ideal book boyfriend. He was so kind and patient with Millie and the struggles she had, and the way he is with his girls just warmed my heart. I loved Millie's family too! It makes me excited about what's to come in Tess and Fable's books. Like, what is UP with Fable and Theo? What happened with the video?! I MUST KNOW! 

This was really good! I'm not usually a fan of reading books that feature a character that is a widow, and this book features TWO WIDOWS. Grady and Addision both lost their significant others in tragic ways and are now single parents. Addison wants to date and Grady doesn't, although he definitely is attracted to Addison right off the bat. Their kids are friends, which leads them to grow closer, and then they both have mutual things they need out of a partner, so they agree to "fake date" to accomplish what they need to and then break up when those things are over. I really enjoyed the fake dating part, and how Grady and Addison slowly fell in love with each other, despite their best efforts not to. I love seeing all of the characters from the previous book as well as characters from other books that Corinne Michaels writes. Grady was a little insecure for me, but other than that, I really loved it! I'm looking forward to the next book in the series! 

I was so excited to learn that Lacey and Shawn were getting their own book! I KNEW in the first book that they had some chemistry and I just wanted them to be together. I really liked that they started off as best friends, because it made the romance aspect so much better. You could tell how much they cared for each other, how they were interested in each other, and not just Shawn's fame or money, or Lacey's looks and smarts. It was so much deeper than that and it was refreshing to see and amazing to see their journey go from friends to more than that. The fake dating was top tier! The MOUTH on Shawn?! Oh my goodness. It was so hot and filthy and it was SO GOOD. I don't blame Lacey girl for wanting him so badly. The concept and plot that kicked off the book and the fake dating was so unique and I really loved it. 

Microtropes & moments I loved:
“Fuck it” 😏
The FaceTime call
Caretaking (he has anxiety/panic attacks)
Hair washing
Spoiling her
Wearing his T-shirt
“Why am I jealous right now?”
Telling off the boss and protecting her

Tropes:
Fake dating
Friends to lovers
Kiss cam
NFL coach x doctor
Holiday (Thanksgiving to New Year's)
Sunshine x sunshine
Mental health rep

This was SO GOOD and I cannot say enough good things about it. I cannot WAIT for Dallas's book!!!