stephsbooktalk's Reviews (915)

Thank you so much to the author for providing my employer (a library) an advance copy!

I have been fortunate to have met Jason several times and he is such a lovely man! And his book The Impossible Fortress was one that I picked up years ago when I was trying to start reading again as an adult so that book will hold a special place in my heart.

But let's get to his latest book coming out on October 8th, 2024. I feel like I would call this book more of a suspense book than a mystery or thriller. You kind of know where this book is going as you are reading but yet I still couldn't stop. I felt the pacing of the book flowed really quickly. Our MMC Frank Szatowski is just an average man who is a long time employee of our US Postal Service who gets a call out of the blue from his estranged daughter Maggie inviting him to her upcoming wedding. And from the start, Maggie doesn't come off as the most authentic character.

One of my favorite tropes in this genre is when it takes place in one location so that scored points for me. Even though it was in one location, there were different ways Rekulak incorporated the grounds throughout the book. I really loved how Rekulak weaved a whole bunch of characters into this story that didn't make it feel like it was too many. There were a lot of questionable characters and you may even get enraged.

I will say there weren't really any big twists or major wow moments but there was one moment where I went "oh OH". Which I felt like that twist element was the only missing piece that would have really changed my rating on the book. Overall I still really enjoyed & it kept me engaged. And if you love rich people behaving badly, then you will want to check this out!

Mini Audiobook Review: Thank you so much to PRH Audio for the complimentary audio!
Thank you so much to Berkley for the free book!

This book is out now!

Oh look it's another sports romance from me. I have been a fan of Lana since I first read The Nanny and knew that I would be a fan of her writing. And what makes Lana's writing so great is that she doesn't stay on one track (sports romance, single dad romance, monster romance, shifter romance).

The bad thing with this one is that it didn't leave a lasting impression on me. I absolutely loved the audio of it (how could you not with Zachary Webber as the male lead) and really enjoyed my time listening. But I fail to remember all the details of the book. I do recall this being SUPER spicy! I was in a buddy read chat for this and I made that comment that Lana knows how to write a hell of a sex scene. She can make you blush!

I did love the relationship between Delilah and Ian! I also am a sucker when someone gets to be with their childhood crush. It has to be an ultimate feel good moment when you achieved a dream. Ian's dad was absolutely horrible and put him in an impossible position. I was glad that he was honest with Delilah.

I think if you are looking for a rom com with a little bit of baking, hockey and lots of spice - check this out!

Thank you so much to Berkley for a free copy of this book!
Thank you so much to PRH Audio for the complimentary audio!

This book is out now!

This is my 2nd Laura Hankin book and I wanted to love her last book but it just fell short for me. But I had heard this one was so good & the premise sounded promising. Guess what I loved it! I am not sure if i would necessarily classify this as romance. There was a romance element that was weaved throughout the story but I wouldn't say that it was the primary focus especially since our couple really don't get together until closer to the end.

I love that this was told over a period of time and we got to see Natalie's growth as a person and professionally. Her growth professionally shows how you think you should be going in one direction but really another direction may be the path you should be taking. And I also love how we get a taste of her and Rob over time and see how their relationship changed. Rob was very stand offish and not warm at all when they first meet at their friend's wedding. Natalie had a right to be upset when she learned that Rob was behind her one star review on her debut book. In addition to see how Natalie and Rob grow over the years we also follow their friends as well. The relationship between Natalie and Gabby felt very real to me. I did feel like Natalie was a little too codependent on Gabby and really had a hard time of letting her go.

I primarily did audio while reading and I thought Laura Hankin did an excellent job with her narration! I felt between her narration and the story that the pace of the story went by rather quickly. Compared to The Daydreams, this was easy to follow & I highly recommend via audio.

I was engaged in Natalie's story from the beginning and even though the romance was low I still really enjoyed it!

Thank so much to Hambright PR for the copy of the ebook & the ALC!

This book is out now!

Guess what? I read another sports romance! This year has been the year of sport romances for me. So I had to jump at the chance to read this hockey romance.

I really love the relationship between Aiden & Cassidy! I like that the author included a prologue of us getting to see the couple as children and a glimpse of what their lives were like. They really bonded over their trouble childhood and Cassidy really looked up to Aiden and took his word to heart.

Fast forward to adult Cassidy and Aiden, Aiden is a top hockey player and Cassidy is not doing as hot in life. There was an opportunity for her to reconnect with Aiden but it turns out to be way more than she was expecting - whew! And Aiden was certainly drawn to her so much so that he hired her on spot to pose as her fake girlfriend but also to help with his OCD.

The chemistry between these two was off the chart. I was just waiting for the reveal of who she was and if it was going to be a positive or negative reaction but it ended up being really positive. There was a moment in a storage closet & ferris wheel that was 🔥🔥

I thought both narrators, Christian Fox & Angelina Rocca, did a great job! It was my first time listening to them both and Christian Fox’s voice made Aiden extra swoony.

Also I am a fan of when authors include the actual sport in the book so I was happy when we got to see Aiden on the ice!

PS - Can the hockey season start?!

Mini Book Review - Thank you so much to Simon Teen for the free book!

This book is out now.

This was my very first graphic novel and I loved it! No matter how long its been since graduating high school, it is easy to remember those scary feelings of "what is next". And I think even as an adult there are moments where you aren't sure which direction you want to go through and if you'll lose friends in the process.

I thought that Porretta summed up that end of a teen's high school era pretty well! The graphics were gorgeous and I felt really brought the story to life. Cassie was worried about how her friendships would change once her friends all go off to college and I felt her reaction was very real for a 17/18 year old. Especially from someone who is not going to have the same experience as she was not going to go to college. I did like the idea of the dares but they were quite dangerous and over the top. Now my friend group growing up did not do anything like this but I am sure there were groups that did do antics like this (thank goodness for no cell phones then).

The characters were diverse & I thought the graphics were excellent in adding to their personality (clothing, facial expressions, etc).

I really enjoyed this & it was a quick read!

4.5 - Mini Book Review: This book was on my radar after another romance author raved about it and then after reading What is Love, it was time to read this one.

This book is out now!

I saved it for vacation and it was such a perfect read while at the pool! I paired my reading with the audio and I really thought both narrators Meg Sylvan and Hunter Millbrook were so good as Erika & Christof. I have no prior knowledge of The Phantom of the Opera besides a young woman falls for a man who wears a mask because they are disfigured and I did not feel like it hinder my reading experience.

I love how Christof was in a German rock band! His bandmates were a riot being in America. He was so infatuated with Erike right away. And I was proud of Erika for not giving into his advances until he made it public that he was a single man. And let me tell you from what I learned from reading Comfort previously is that she knows how to write tension and spice. Holy moly the scene of Christof watching Erika from the balcony *insert fire emojis*

Comfort has such a way of crafting her characters and storylines and now I want to read her first book while I anxiously wait for the next one to arrive. And who knows maybe I'll do a re-read of What is Love because I have loved it so much!

Highly enjoyed this one!!!

4.5 - Thank you so much to Hambright PR for the ALC & ebook of this book!

This book is out now! 

I have heard the name Pippa Grant among the Bookstagram romance readers but never had the opportunity to read her - until now. And if you been following the romances I have been reading this year, you know that sport romances have been a new fave of mine so when I saw this had not only a hockey player but also a baseball coach. Yes please. 

From the very start we learn that our MMC Duncan is still SO smitten with his former fling Addie after an awkward encounter in a dressing room. I am not a super big fan of slow burns but this one didn't bother me because of the flirting and banter was so strong leading up to the moment.  Addie was just so resistant into starting things back up with him but she knew that she still had such deep feelings for him. 

I loved seeing them navigate how this time around would be different than the last and more importantly Duncan just being totally head over heels in love with Addie. Addie just wanted to be taken seriously as a coach which is totally understandable and dating a player (even if it was in another field) could potentially have been risky. 

I paired my reading with the audio and I thought both Virginia Rose and Tim Paige were pretty good with narrators.

This is part of a series and I did not feel like I was lost at all. There were mention of past characters which I am going to assume were past books.  It was just a fun time and I really enjoyed it!! 

If you are looking for a baseball/hockey romance, dual POV, second chance romance - give this one a whirl! 

Thank you so much to 831 Stories for the advance copy of this!

This book will be published on November 12th, 2024.

As soon as I finished Big Fan I came back to see if the publisher had any other books to read and my luck they had this one. And even luckier that they approved me to read it. 

I went into Big Fan knowing what it was about and knew that it had tropes that I loved whereas with this one I went in pretty blind. And I have to admit I struggled with this novella. I am not sure what about it caused me to take awhile to finish. I am not sure if it was the style of writing? Or how I felt like the story dragged a bit? Which I am not sure how that happened when this novella took place in a course of a night and that is one of my favorite types of tropes. 

What I thought was interesting in this story is that you thought the story was going on one way rooting for a MMC but it pivots and you switch to a different MMC. I really loved how Max and Shera met and we learn later his move to get them alone. I think I was all for the characters until the part of Max talking about his past and how he cheated on his partner previously and suddenly Shera switched to a different person. I totally understand why this confession made her upset given her past history with her last long term boyfriend but I felt like it was a tad overkill?  Sweet Max though he recognize that she was having a panic attack and knew what to do to help calm down. I will say the chemistry between the two was great and the author did a great job with the spice and their early banter. 

There was just so much emotion and events that happened in one night that I think had this been a longer book we might have more time to develop the characters and the storyline. 

This was not fully for me but it may be for you! 

Mini Audiobook Review: Okay this was SUPER cute!!!! A plus size FMC who is on a singing/dancing competition?! Yes please!

I absolutely loved Skye's attitude throughout this whole book! She is such a force to be reckon with and I am so glad she stood up to not only her mom but to the judges & critics who were criticizing a teenager. She knew what she was good at and knew what goals she wanted to achieve. I only know a smidge about the K-Pop world so it was nice seeing the behind the scenes of it. I already know being a daughter of a mother can be difficult but WHEW Skye's mom was no joke. Even my husband who could hear the book when I would listen would make comments about how mean her mom was being. I am fortunate as a plus size teen that I wasn't put under that kind of microscope but I can imagine in a lot of households it could be like that. I am glad she had her dad in her corner.

I thought the audio went by super fast and the narrator Greta Jung was great as all the characters. I do recommend via audio. Also how fab is this cover & the model even did some K-Pop dances to teach readers. 

Mini Audiobook Review: Thank you so much to Entangled for a free copy of the book!

This book is out now!

I am not sure what to think about this book. There were parts of it that I liked but honestly it really is just such a horny book. It is not that it isn't my jam I just wanted a little more to the story. Perhaps I missed that all while listening. What was kind of refreshing in this romance is that the female characters in this know exactly who they are. They both know they enjoy sex and the pleasure but maybe not the relationship part of it. I think I missed what the actual wager was in the whole "I'm attracted to your sister" and "No you should be with me and not my sister". 

I listened to the book and I thought both narrators were fine. They were pleasant enough to listen to to keep me engaged and want to continue. 

Please rely on other reviews besides my own to make a decision about reading this one.