Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley
Goodreads blurb: Date night goes off the rails in this hilariously insightful take on midlife and marriage when one unhappy couple find themselves at the heart of a crime in progress, from the USA Today bestselling author of The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise. Jane and Dan have been married for nineteen years, but Jane isn’t sure they’re going to make it to twenty. The mother of two feels unneeded by her teenagers, and her writing career has screeched to an unsuccessful halt. Her one published novel sold under five hundred copies. Worse? She’s pretty sure Dan is cheating on her. When the couple goes to the renowned upscale restaurant La Fin du Monde to celebrate their anniversary, Jane thinks it’s as good a place as any to tell Dan she wants a divorce. But before they even get to the second course, an underground climate activist group bursts into the dining room. Jane is shocked—and not just because she’s in a hostage situation the likes of which she’s only seen in the movies. Nearly everything the disorganized and bumbling activists say and do is right out of the pages of her failed book. Even Dan (who Jane wasn’t sure even read her book) admits it’s eerily familiar. Which means Dan and Jane are the only ones who know what’s going to happen next. And they’re the only ones who can stop it. This wasn’t what Jane was thinking of when she said “’til death do us part” all those years ago, but if they can survive this, maybe they can survive anything—even marriage.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
my take: 4 out of 5. This is an absolutely wacky concept that takes you for a ride. Its a rollercoaster ride, which means not all the turns and twist are comfortable or nice, but by the end you had fun. How to describe it, its maybe a family cozy mystery that’s weird but kind of adorable. The absurdity of it all makes it believable in the end, and I really enjoyed the way the chapters are set up as xxx hours before the end of the world. I also appreciated the shout out that no person uses the term ironic accurately as it is so true!
The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey
Goodreads blurb: A sports rom-com about a burly, surly, single dad who falls head-over-hockey-stick for his quirky live-in nanny.. Tallulah is smart, vivacious, and studying to be a marine biologist. She’s also twenty-six and broke. So when Burgess, a battle-scarred hockey veteran and newly single dad, offers her a job as his live-in nanny, she jumps at the opportunity to get paid while living in a super fancy neighborhood and being around Lissa, his cool but introverted tween. Her tween charge isn’t the only one who could use some help fitting in, though. According to…well, everyone except Burgess, he needs to get back on the dating scene, and adventurous Tallulah is just the girl to show him how. But as boundaries are slowly crossed and Burgess finds himself pulled between his daughter, who wants her parents back together, and his insane chemistry with Tallulah, a huge rift is formed, and Tallulah does the “right” thing—breaks her own heart and walks away. Though Burgess knows it’s for the best—he’s too jaded, with too much baggage—a chance meeting, and a new push from his daughter, forces him to put everything on the line and fight to prove he learned his lessons well and is worthy of a happily ever after with Tallulah.
My take: 3.25 out of 5 – This is a quite steamy if less exciting follow-up to Fan Girl Down. This is right up in the Tessa Bailey very steamy universe, to the detriment at some points to the plot. I was surprised Fan Girl Down was not like that but here it was definitely more of a BRAD, more steam than plot. It’s not necessarily bad, just a whole different story proposition
Better Hate Than Never by Chloe Liese
Goodreads blurb: Childhood enemies discover the fine line between love and loathing in this heartfelt reimagining of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. Katerina Wilmot and Christopher Petruchio shared backyards as kids, but as adults they won’t even share the same hemisphere. That is, until Kate makes a rare visit home, and their fiery animosity rekindles into a raging inferno. Despite their friends’ and families’ pleas for peace, Christopher is unconvinced Kate would willingly douse the flames of their enmity. But when a drunken Kate confesses she’s only been hostile because she thought he hated her, Christopher vows to make peace with Kate once and for all. Tempting as it is to be swept away by her nemesis-turned-gentleman, Kate isn’t sure she can trust his charming good-guy act. When Christopher’s persistence and Kate’s curiosity lead to an impassioned kiss, they realize “peace” is the last thing that will ever be possible between them. As desire gives way to deeper feelings, Kate and Christopher must decide if it’s truly better to hate than to never risk their hearts—or if they already gave them away long ago.
My take: 2.5 out of 5. – The nice lady at the Steamy lit bookstore recommended this book to us for our book club, when we asked for a nice fall vibes romance. but the overall conclusion of this was a ugh no. I finished it just for bookclub and because it was a really fast read, but i maybe should have DNFd. It is absurd that this is considered a reimagining of Taming of The Shrew. When I read that in the description it actually made me mad, because no It does not feel like a proper reimagining, and also one of my favorite movies of all time (10 things i hate about you) is a Taming of the Shrew reimagining and putting the two in the same category is offensive. It could have been a cute enemies to lovers but the vibes just felt off, in an aggressive way. Also we read it for the fall vibes and it really wasn’t that big on fall vibes at all!
Two can Play by Ali Hazelwood
Goodreads blurb: An enemies-to-lovers spicy romance set in the world of video gaming from the bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis—available only in audio! Viola Bowen has the chance of a lifetime: to design a video game based on her all-time favorite book series. The only problem? Her co-lead is Jesse F-ing Andrews, a.k.a. her arch-nemesis. Jesse has made it abundantly clear over the years that he wants nothing to do with her–and Viola has no idea why. When their bosses insist a wintery retreat is the perfect team-building exercise, Viola can’t think of anything worse. Being freezing cold in a remote mountain lodge knowing Jesse is right next door? No, thank you. But as the snow piles on, Viola discovers there’s more to Jesse than she knew, and heat builds in more ways than one.
My take: 3.75 out of 5. a quick to read and adorable novella. Ali Hazelwood will always write impeccable banter and romance and this is no exception. The narration (which makes sense as it is a Amazon collaboration) was really good and its a fast adorable little novella to read while driving. Also the side worlds were very engaging. I really want to read the book the game they are designing is based on as well as play the game, that’s how good the world created is.
The Perfect Rom Com by Melissa Ferguson
Goodreads blurb: She’s written dozens of smash hit novels as a ghostwriter. Too bad no one knows it. Aspiring author Bryony Page attends her first writers conference bursting with optimism and ready to sell her manuscript with long-shot dreams of raising awareness for The Bridge, her grandmother’s financially-struggling organization where she teaches ESL full-time. But after a disastrous pitching session, she stumbles into correcting another author’s work in a last-ditch attempt to make a good impression with the agent. And she, as it turns out, is spot on. No one is more surprised than Bryony when the agent offers her the opportunity to be a ghostwriter for Amelia Benedict, popular rom-com novelist. Bryony agrees on one she’ll write books for this vain, demanding woman just as long as Jack Sterling, literary agent of the legendary Foundry Literary Agency, works to sell her own book too. What nobody predicted, however, was that Bryony’s books would turn Amelia Benedict into the Amelia Benedict, household name and bestselling author with millions of copies sold around the world. And just like that, the Foundry Agency can’t let her go. But on a personal note, Jack is realizing he can’t either.
This is an ARC review thanks to a gift from the publisher.
My take: 4 out of 5. I wasn’t sure what to expect but this was a wonderful treat for rom com lovers. In my mind it is a book by book lovers for book lovers and the passion for the genre seeps of the page. Both the behind the scenes and the romance had such great vibes. The chemistry and banter between Bryony and Benedict is excellent and it has some very well developed buildup. The Perfect Rom-Com might not be perfect but it is pretty adorable.
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