elizabethgscott's Reviews (435)

Crossroads is the first book in the Haven River Ranch series by Devney Perry. I listened to the audiobook and loved it! The narrators, Samantha Brentmoor and Conor Crais, were the perfect choices! 

West Haven and Indya’s story had me in all my feels! Growing up, Indya and her parents spent a week most summers at a ranch in Montana where she met West. The pair always seemed to pick up right where they left off the summer before until life pulled them apart. Years later, Indy is back in Montana as the new owner of West’s family’s ranch and resort. Tensions are high as both West and Indya are faced with memories and old ghosts. I devoured this second chance romance, which normally I’m not drawn to. Perry did a fantastic job weaving flashbacks throughout this story, really built the tension between West and Indy, I couldn’t put this down! I’m sold, hook line and sinker for this new series. I can’t wait for the next book! 

Favorite quote from the book: 

“My girl can cry whenever the fuck she wants.” 

Read this is you like:

-Childhood friends to enemies to lovers 

-Second chance 

-Cowboy/Rancher 

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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I can’t recommend Kilt Trip by Alexandra Riley enough, especially the audiobook! I loved it! 

Beautiful Scotland setting, hairy coos, grumpy hot Highlander in a kilt, hilarious banter, found family, rivals to lovers, slow burn, workplace romance, tours filled with Scottish history, grief, love, he falls first, delicious accents…what more do you need?! 

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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This appears to be the start of a series and I can’t wait to listen to the next one! 

A SUMMER READING MUST!! 

The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren is 5/5 stars of rom-com perfection! This is Christina Lauren at their best! I laughed, I cried, I devoured the whole thing in one sitting and begged my sister to read it immediately! 

As per usual, I listened to the audiobook and thought Patti Murin and Jon Root did a fabulous job bringing these characters to life! 

I’m going to be honest, I didn’t read one damn thing about this book beforehand and I think this book is better that way. But if you want a synopsis… here ya go! 

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Liam Weston, aka “West” and Anna Green had a marriage of convenience and that convenience was cheap family housing at UCLA. Anna being the quirky free spirited artist that she is didn’t read the fine print or even the large print on the documents she signed. She thinks they’re divorced and is surprised to find West on her doorstep 3 years later telling her they’re not. West needs his family to believe his marriage is real in order to get his inheritance. He needs Anna to play the role of his responsible DOCTOR wife he’s told them so much about at his sister’s destination wedding! Things get wild and people fall in love. 

The chemistry between Liam and Anna is electric! The banter and the comedy is laugh out loud! I found Anna to be so authentic and endearing. I loved the whole book and bought the hardback immediately after listening to the audio! 

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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If you’ve made it this far, what’s your favorite Christina Lauren book? Drop your answer in the comments below ⬇️

Mine’s Love and Other Words.  

Emmy Fuller has made the difficult decision to quit the collegiate cheer squad she has been a part of for the past three years. She needs a new place to live and ends up moving in with her childhood friend Matty. Matty is co-captains with Hayes Grecco, superstar short stop and playboy extraordinaire. Emmy has a bit of a crush on Hayes and after a messy night at a party she finds herself waiting for Hayes to join her in the shower. Hayes unexpectedly leaves to help his brother and ends up getting himself in some deep trouble with not only Emmy. The pair continue to be drawn together after that fateful night and eventually become friends. Hayes wants more and is willing to work hard to show Emmy how committed he is to their relationship. I really enjoyed this college sports romance. The banter had me giggling and the writing kept me engaged throughout the story. I’m not always a huge fan of the reformed playboy but this was still enjoyable to read. Read this if you like:

-college sports romance 

-baseball player x ex-cheerleader 

-reformed playboy 

-chronic fatigue rep

-she falls first, he falls harder 

-banter 

-positive therapy rep 

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Thank you to Ki Stephens and her team for a digital copy of this ARC. 

Wicked Serve by Grace Reilly is the 4th book in the Beyond the Play series and is available August 13, 2024! 

Nikolai Abney-Volkov is forced to transfer to McKee University for his senior year. Unfortunately, McKee is home to his on ice rival, Cooper Callahan. Cooper also happens to be Nik’s new team captain and older brother to the girl he shared a summer fling with, Izzy. Isabelle Callahan’s goals going into the school year are to win back her position on the Volleyball team and forget about Nik, the hot hockey player she spent the summer with. Things couldn’t get messier, that is until Nik and Izzy see each other and their summer fling is rekindled. Their secret relationship is filled with hot hookups and deep conversations. Nik is dealing with some really heavy stuff and Izzy wants to be there for him. Secrets can only stay hidden for so long and the two have to decide if their relationship is worth it. 

I really love this series and this book did not disappoint! Some difficult topics are covered in this story- childhood trauma, domestic violence, anxiety, and panic attacks. Reilly discusses these subjects with great care. I was so happy to be back at McKee and loved all the glimpses we get into the lives of the characters from the previous books. I’m so sad this series is over. 

Read this is you like: 

-new adult college sports romance 

-secret relationship 

-brother’s rival

-he falls first and falls harder

-found family 

-positive therapy rep

-spicy 

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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A big thank you to Grace Reilly, her team, and Netgalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Abby Jimenez does it again, I laughed, I cried, I swooned, and I left this book feeling sad it was over. 

Justin and Emma meet after discovering, via a Reddit thread, that they both have the same curse: people they date find their soulmates immediately after breaking things off with them. Justin and Emma decide to take up curse breaking and plan on dating each other for the summer so that when they end things they’ll go on to find their soulmates. Things get tricky when Emma’s destructive and volatile mom rolls into town and Justin’s life is turned upside down by becoming guardian of his 3 younger siblings. Heavy topics such as loss of a parent, child neglect, ptsd, panic attacks, and incarceration are discussed throughout this story. I appreciated how thoughtful these topics were written in Just for the Summer. Abby always fills her books with so much heart and found family. I was extremely invested in Emma’s character arc and simultaneously wanted to devour this story while also wanting it to last forever.

I listened to the audiobook and LOVED Christine Lakin and Zachary Webber’s performances! Read or listen to this book if you like: 

-laugh out loud moments 

-found family 

-complex characters 

-care and comfort 

-mental health representation 

-swoon worthy MMC 

-travel nurse FMC

-date surveys 

If You Hate Me by Helena Hunting appears to be the start of a brand new hockey series! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

I was lucky enough to get an Advance Listeners Copy from Helena and her team. Honestly, a dream come true. Hunting always has the best audio narrators! Connor Crais and CJ Bloom give such fabulous performances, they make If You Hate Me an audiobook must listen! 

Buckle up because this book is spicy, in fact this could be one of the spiciest Helena Hunting books I’ve read! 🥵 If You Hate Me has the heat crancked all the way up but also the heart. 

Beatrix is having a day from hell when she temporarily moves into her professional hockey playing brother’s apartment. Her brother Flip lives with his childhood best friend/teammate Tristan and to say that Rix and Tristan don’t get along would be an understatement. The pair argue like cats and dogs at every turn which makes their chemistry all the more palpable! Rix and Tristan throw one too many jabs at each other and the hate sex begins! Keeping their affair a secret proves to be difficult while living in a small apartment and discovering they actually don’t hate each other. This story covers topics about food insecurity and parent abandonment with great sensitivity but please take care when reading if these are triggers for you. The side characters are so fun, I can’t wait to hopefully get to know them better in future books! It was also so comforting to be back in the same universe as my favorite Pucked characters! I enjoyed this book but did struggle with some of the pacing towards the middle of the story. However, the plot and character development kept me interested! Read this if you like:

-brother’s best friend 

-hockey romance 

-close proximity 

-enemies to lovers 

-laugh out loud banter 

-allllll the spice!!!! 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Laura Pavlov sure knows how to write a small town romance and she really knows how to make you invested quick! 

 I can’t stop thinking about Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny Holiday! I loved these characters and their development so much. 

This heartfelt story takes place in Minnesota where professional hockey player, Mike Martin and his daughter live. He is a recent widower and is trying to get into a new normal with his middle school aged daughter, Olivia, and that starts with getting her back into dance class. Aurora (Rory) is a former ballerina turned dance instructor and is so happy to have Olivia back in class. Rory and Mike have never met until today, at least she thinks they haven’t. Mike Martin looks a lot like her Canadian Boyfriend she wrote diary type letters to in high school but never sent because she didn’t really know him. That’d  be crazy if this Mike was the same Mike she met briefly over a decade ago, right? I’m not exaggerating when I tell you this story has not left my brain. Canadian Boyfriend focuses on grief, anxiety, and recovery from disordered eating with so much positive therapy representation. The characters and their struggles felt real and honest. I listened to the audiobook, Emily Ellet and Joshua Jackson’s narration is fabulous! Their performances brought these characters to life and their voices are comforting! 

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

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-nhl hockey player 

-former ballerina/current dance teacher 

-single dad 

-widower 

-mental health focus 

-positive therapy rep 

 Attention all F1 girlies!!! Drive Me Crazy by Carly Robyn is a must read! 

Eliana Gold, Ella, is a successful sports podcaster that recently took a job as a co-author for the highly anticipated biography on Formula 1’s bad boy World Champion. Blake Hollis has let his antics off track take away from his illustrious driving career and is in need of a reputation makeover. Blake’s team decided a tell all book was just the thing to get him back into the fans and sponsors good graces. Blake is not pleased when he learns Ella will be traveling the world with him throughout the season, she made some pretty cutting remarks about Hollis on her podcast and he has not forgotten! Tensions run high but eventually the pair become friends and lines begin to blur. 

A couple pretty heavy topics are covered in this story but they are done so with great care. That being said, I’d still check trigger warnings before reading. 

Things I loved: 

-F1 setting 

-forced proximity 

-positive mental health rep 

-great banter 

5/5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

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