The Forbidden One by Marni Mann is now live!

An emotionally gripping, angsty, he-falls-first, billionaire romance from USA Today best-selling author Marni Mann …

I don’t believe in love. He’s willing to burn down the world to win my heart. I never expected him to succeed.

They used to call me the sassy one.
Unafraid. Uninhibited. Unstoppable.

Until the night everything changed.
The evening that scarred me and altered my life’s path.
I was left shattered and haunted by who I’d never be and what I’d never have.

Now, they call me the forbidden one.
Closed off. Guarded. Surrounded by affection, but unwilling to love anyone besides my family.

And then, out of nowhere, comes a man I least expect. Impressive on paper, even more so in person, and after each encounter, he leaves me craving …

More than I’ve wanted with any other man.
Moments that will overshadow the darkest ones.

Troy Wolf is everything I’m not looking for.
Everything I don’t want.
And yet he’s everything I need.

There’s just one problem …

My heart is locked.

Can I open it enough to let Troy in? Or will the ghosts from my past stand between us and our forever?

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Audiobook Narrated by: Connor Crais & Samantha Brentmoor

Ebook: https://geni.us/TheForbiddenOne

Audiobook: https://geni.us/TheForbiddenOneAudio

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4nbnPEl

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Holy crap, what did I read? And I mean that in the best way possible! The Forbidden One closes out Marni Mann’s Weston Group series, and Eden’s long-awaited story was phenomenal! This book is a bit darker than the rest, and Marni handled the heroine’s traumatic past as an SA survivor wonderfully!

From the start of this series, Eden had a mysterious air surrounding her. Now we know why she is so closed-off and guarded. My heart broke for the girl she was and what happened to her that night that changed everything. The Eden of Before was so full of life, optimistic and outgoing. And the Eden of After was jaded (rightfully so!), guarded, and hesitant to let anyone in.

Then along came Troy. Oh, how I loved these two together! He had no idea what he was getting into, but the man had the patience of a saint. And as a product of the foster system, Troy had his own demons and baggage to overcome. These two characters together were absolutely brilliant, and Samantha Brentmoor and Connor Crais perfectly played every nuance in bringing this story to life.

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Carved in the Shadows by A.L. Jackson is now live! It was a terrible idea to agree to move in with my best friend’s little sister…She is everything I’ve ever wanted and the one thing I can’t have. As our motorcycle club’s Vice President, I’m charged with her protection. Touching her would be a penalty subject to death.When she demands the chance to spread her wings, it’s my duty to go with her. I knew staying at her new apartment would be excruciating. Listening to her in her room and imagining her under the fall of the shower. But when she asks me to crawl into bed with her so she won’t feel so alone, there’s nothing I can do.One brush of her hand and I’m crumbling. One crook of those fingers and I’m trapped. One reckless night and there’s no going back. Only with the lives we lead, our enemies are never far away, and as she begins to receive threats, I’m in a race to end the threat before it’s too late. Soon, our secrets unravel, and I’m faced with the consequence of loving her. But I promised her everything, and I’m willing to offer the greatest sacrifice. Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited Audiobook Narrated by: Austin Stone & Andi Arndt Visit A.L. Jackson’s website for buy links, or search Carved in the Shadows by A.L. Jackson on Amazon, Audible, and your retailer of choice for paperbacks. Don’t forget to add Carved in the Shadows by A.L. Jackson to your Goodreads TBR! Amazon: https://bit.ly/4ryLDCo Deluxe Edition Paperback: https://geni.us/CITSDlxEdtn Audible: https://geni.us/CITSAudioOP Goodreads: https://geni.us/CITSGoodreads A.L. Jackson’s Release Giveaway: https://geni.us/CITSRlsGvwy The deluxe print edition features sprayed edges with stenciled artwork, custom endpapers and interior artwork.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars

In Carved In the Shadows, AL Jackson takes the brother’s best friend/forbidden romance trope and places it in her MC world as Crimson Crows VP Trevan falls hard and fast for Elena, the younger sister of his MC brother/president, Silas.

Elena is looking for some independence outside of the Crimson Crows family. She’s desperate to spread her wings, but Silas isn’t too keen on letting his little sister go out on her own and leave the Crows compound. So Trevan is tasked with looking out for Elena and making sure she stays safe. But what happens when Elena becomes roommates with the guy she’s been harboring a secret crush on and Trevan finds himself sharing space with the one woman he isn’t supposed to want?

This story was a delicious slow burn. AL Jackson did a great job of writing the push/pull between Trevan and Elena. On top of the angst and pining and will-they-or-won’t-they, there is an element of suspense woven through the story as well as a great use of Past chapters to highlight the long history between these two characters and show the feelings that developed between them long before they ever crossed the line once they became roommates.

Andi Arndt and Austin Stone did a great job with the duet narration in telling Carved in the Shadows. And I was so happy to see Trevan and Elena finally love one another in the light!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

CHASING SMOKE by PIPER RAYNE is AVAILABLE NOW

I’ve been running toward burning buildings for a decade. Then my best friend’s widow smiled at me for the first time in two years, and I knew right then I was in trouble.

After Caleb died, I made a promise—I’d take care of his wife. Keep an eye on her. Check in on her. Make sure she kept on living.

Collins insists she’s fine. She’s not.

So when she finally agrees to let me help pull her out of her grief, I vow to stand beside her however long she needs me, no matter how much it costs me.

Collins isn’t supposed to smile at me like she does. She’s not supposed to let me in. And she definitely isn’t supposed to be the best part of my day.

She was Caleb’s. I know that.

The problem is, I can’t stop wondering what it would be like if Collins wasn’t just someone I was meant to protect.

But mine.

CHASING SMOKE is now live in Kindle Unlimited & in Audio (FULL CAST!!!)

https://books2read.com/chasings

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Chasing Smoke was the loveliest story about finding love after loss. I absolutely adored Ansel and Collins and their journey from friends to lovers. Their story is a bit heavier than some of Piper Rayne’s other books, as Collins is a fire widow and Ansel is her late husband’s best friend/partner,

Collins has been stuck since her husband died, so Ansel gives her a push to start experiencing life again by accompanying her to yoga class, cooking class, etc. Along the way, his feelings for her shift from just a friend to something more. And Collins is equally as surprised when she realizes that she’s looking at Ansel in a way that she never expected.

There are so many layers to this relationship, and PR did a great job of writing the sensitivities that go along with grieving a spouse and the complexities of dating your best friend’s widow. On top of that, Collins discovers something about her husband that absolutely wrecks her and everything she believed she had with him.

Watching these two fall in love with one another was wonderful, and Conner Crais and Maxine Mitchell did a lovely job of hitting all of the emotional highs and lows! This series is quickly becoming a favorite of mine!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

FALLING FOR HER by Natasha Madison

Blurb:

A divorced detective who is all about order gets more than he bargained for when his new nanny sends his life—and his heart—spinning out of control in the latest spicy romance by USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Natasha Madison.

Finley Westbook’s life just blew up. Now, the only thing she wants is for her husband to sign their divorce papers. Just one problem: He wants half of her, and her family’s, fortune. When her best friend tells her a man in her hometown needs a short-term, live-in nanny for his eight-year-old son, it sounds like the perfect escape from the mess her life has become. Sure, Finley has never had a job, but how hard can it be to take care of an adorable kid?

Single dad and small-town detective Lincoln Burke doesn’t have time for chaos. But just as his ex-wife is about to leave for her honeymoon, a major case hits his desk. He’s desperate to find a nanny, and it seems Finley is his only option. She’s a walking disaster in his kitchen, can never follow a schedule—and is a dangerous temptation in his home.

The chemistry between them is impossible to ignore, but Lincoln won’t risk his heart again—especially not with his employee. Yet, the more Finley pushes his buttons, the harder she is to resist. When danger closes in, what started as a temporary arrangement may cost them far more than they ever expected.

Buy Link:

https://www.natashamadisonauthor.com/falling-for-her

Available in KU

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Natasha Madison takes readers back to Montgavin with Finley and Lincoln’s story in Falling For Her. This book was an absolute delight, performed in duet by Teddy Hamilton and Samantha Brentmoor.

Finley is a socialite who has never worked a day in her life and has no idea how to toast a piece of bread. When her estranged husband won’t sign the divorce papers, she packs up and heads to small-town Montgavin to spend some time with her friend Collins (aka Falling For You). A friend of Collins and Theo, Lincoln is in desperate need of a nanny to watch his son, Asa, for a month. After their disastrous meet-cute, Finley ends up being the last person Lincoln wants to hire, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

Sure, Finley has no idea what she’s doing, but she manages to wing it with grit and determination (and a few mishaps along the way!) and develops the sweetest bond with Asa. It’s a delicious slow burn as Finley and Lincoln go from snapping each other’s heads off to tearing each other’s clothes off! But Finley’s time in Montgavin always had an expiration date….

Once she goes back to her real life, Finley discovers how empty days of shopping and lunching are compared to how she lived — and really *lived* — with Lincoln and Asa. And when Finley’s atrocious ex makes things more difficult for her…. well, Lincoln rides in like a white knight and saves the day.

This story was such a feel-good romance. Teddy and Samantha are two of my favorite narrators, so listening to them made it even more enjoyable!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Natasha Madison:

When her nose isn’t buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she’s in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It’s a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn’t listen to her…

Connect with Natasha Madison:

https://linktr.ee/natashamauthor

I will not fall for my fake boyfriend.

Famous last words.

Dr. Ares Pierce may be new in town, but it only took one encounter to know he’s trouble. Sexy. Broody. Older. A broken look in his eyes.

The kind that says he’s carrying something heavy… and I should run.

But when my cheating ex-fiancé has the audacity to ask me to be in his wedding, panic takes over. A small lie to save face spirals out of control when I claim the sexy stranger beside me is my boyfriend.

And Ares plays along.

Soon we strike a deal: we keep up the relationship to help him win patients at the struggling clinic he’s trying to save, and I get a shield from the humiliation of my ex’s happily-ever-after.

Simple. Temporary. No feelings involved.

Except nothing about Ares Pierce is simple.

The more time we spend together, the harder it is to ignore the man behind the broody exterior… The one who makes me laugh when I least expect it and reminds me what it feels like to be wanted after the worst betrayal of my life.

But our arrangement comes with an expiration date.

Ares isn’t planning to stay in Infinity Ridge. And when he’s forced to choose between the career he built and the woman he never meant to love…

I’m terrified I’ll be the one left behind.

Again.

NOW AVAILABLE in all formats

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Corinne Michaels returns to the Heartstone Ranch with Never Been Tamed, the second book in the series. This time, sister Harper is the heroine of the story, and new-to-town Dr. Ares Pierce is the hero.

With his career as a Chicago cardiologist in limbo due to a patient issue, Ares retreats to Infinity Ridge, where his grandmother lives. He’s inherited his late grandfather’s medical practice, but Ares has no desire to run a small-town clinic. He plans to get the work there for a few months while things settle down in Chicago, then sell it. But the residents who live in town are not exactly welcoming, and Ares is fighting an uphill battle in getting them to trust him as a doctor.

Meanwhile, Harper has always put everyone in her family ahead of her own needs, and is now the primary caretaker for her ailing father. She and Ares definitely get off on the wrong foot when they first meet, but when her former best friend asks Harper to be a bridesmaid in her wedding to Harper’s ex-fiancé, Ares steps up to be Harper’s new boyfriend in exchange for getting a reputation boost around town. It’s a wild ride as Harper and Ares go from enemies to fake dating to more. But Ares never planned to stay in Infinity Ridge for more than a few months, and Harper is terrified of being left behind when he leaves.

I really enjoyed these two characters and how they changed and grew together. There is great chemistry between the main characters, combined with playful banter, vulnerable moments, and lighthearted ones. I love Harper’s family (especially her dad!) and look forward to seeing more from them in the rest of this series!

I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

ROGUE WAVE by Allison Bettes is AVAILABLE NOW

Blurb:

The sexy but grumpy sheriff next door is the last man Hazel ever wanted to ask for help—but when her backyard turns into a crime scene… Hank is her only option.

Hazel:

I’m a marine biologist by day, chaos magnet by night. I get paid to study beach life—not to find evidence from a crime that washed up after a storm. When I accidentally uncovered something that was meant to stay buried, I found myself tangled up in mystery and danger – and increasingly tangled with Hank McAllister, the divorced, decade-older, infuriatingly hot sheriff next door.

Hank:

Hazel O’Hara is my infuriatingly hot neighbor that always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. We shouldn’t work—but when a sudden storm rolls in and things turn dangerous, we’re forced to rely on each other, and my resolve to not get involved with her quickly fades away.

Buy Link:

https://a.co/d/01RdLDxv

Available in KU

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars

Rogue Wave was really cute and fun story from an author who is new to me. Hazel and Hank had great chemistry, and the snarky banter-foreplay between them was off the charts. There were so many laugh-out-loud moments between grumpy sheriff Hank and sunshiney Hazel.

It was a nice touch the way the author wove in tidbits about sea life through Hazel’s work as a marine biologist, and I enjoyed the suspense angle in this story. In the beginning, Hazel was a major thorn in Hank’s side, but it’s one of my favorite things to see a gruff hero completely melt as he tries to protect a woman.

I tend to read books by the same group of authors, but every now and then I venture out to a new author, and I quite enjoyed Allison Bettes’ story here!

I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Allison Bettes:

Welcome to My World of Romance and Suspense!

I weave stories of mystery, romance, and suspense. Dive in and join me on this heart-pounding journey, where every twist and turn brings new surprises and adventure. If you enjoy characters who are brave, sassy, and beautifully flawed, you’re in the right place.

I’m a meteorologist/science writer by day, but a romantic suspense author at heart. My journey into the world of romance and suspense started when my grandma handed me her well-worn copies of Danielle Steel and Nora Roberts novels—I was hooked.

During Covid times, with time on my hands and a need for catharsis, I dove into writing my own romantic suspense novels. Fast forward several years and four novels later, I’m ready to share my stories with the world. My books are a thrilling blend of romance, mystery, and suspense — think Cupid Meets Crime Scene.

Connect with Allison Bettes:

https://linktr.ee/allisonbettes

Until I Remember by Karla Sorensen is AVAILABLE NOW

She has no memory of choosing him. Her heart, apparently, didn’t get the memo.

Blurb:

I wake up in a hospital with a year of my life missing—and Grant Hastings at my bedside. I remember him, all right. He’s wealthy. Arrogant. British. And my late brother’s best friend. The last man I’d ever want to marry.

Except apparently I did.

Now I’m living in a beautiful house I don’t recognize, wearing a ring I don’t remember receiving, and expected to play the devoted wife while his aristocratic family descends for his birthday, unaware of the gaps in my memory. Grant is patient and attentive, dropping hints about an explosive relationship that makes my pulse race. He’s nothing like the cold, haughty man I remember.

Torn between suspicion about this inconvenient marriage of convenience and an attraction to my husband I’m not ready to name, I have to make a choice: leave the past buried or trust Grant to help me find my way back to a life I can’t remember choosing. 

The terrifying part? I’m starting to think past-me knew exactly what she was doing.

READ NOW: https://a.co/d/00M5j60G
LISTEN NOW: https://www.audible.com/…/Until-I…/B0H1TBQN1K…

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

I wasn’t sure what I was getting into when I started this book, but I love second-chance amnesia stories, and I love Karla Sorensen, so I was game. And Mercy and Grant’s story was an emotional rollercoaster!

Mercy and Grant never really got along, but sometime after her brother/his best friend tragically passed away, they end up getting married. Then one day, they are in a car accident, and Mercy wakes up from a coma with no recollection of the last year of her life — the year that she was married to Grant.

I kept waiting and waiting for Grant’s POV, and once we got to those chapters… oh, my heart! His struggle to give her space when he just wanted to keep her close! Mercy is going through the unimaginable, and Grant was so patient with her. I am really glad that we got the POV of both characters, because seeing their journey through his eyes really made me love this story even more.

The audio is narrated in duet with Samantha Brentmoor as Mercy and Shane East as the upper-crust Brit Grant. While both narrators are fantastic, East really came through in the yearning in Grant’s chapters. His delivery of some of those lines was just so well done and added depth to this story that I don’t think the ebook was able to deliver.

Overall, Until I Remember was fantastic! I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

I didn’t plan on getting into a fake marriage with a millionaire pilot I barely know, but that’s exactly what happened when I said “I do” to Wes Winters, Deep Cove’s broodiest bachelor.

So how did I get here? It’s all thanks to a looming scandal, a pushy publicist, and a deal too tempting to turn down. When a long-buried controversy from Wes’s past resurfaced and threatened to destroy the reputation he spent years rebuilding, suddenly I became the perfect solution. It turns out a sunshine wedding planner with a spotless track record is exactly what his image needs.

The plan is simple: fake the perfect marriage and play happy newlyweds for one year, long enough for the tabloids to lose interest. Thanks to our carefully arranged marriage, Wes will get the squeaky-clean image he desperately needs, and I’ll get my dad’s medical bills taken care of.

Simple enough, right?

Except pretending to be Wes’s wife is a lot harder than I expected. He’s guarded, frustrating, and impossible to read. One minute he’ll barely speak to me, and the next he’s looking at me with those deep, charcoal eyes like he wants to devour me.
Good thing none of this is real. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself as my ruggedly handsome new husband kisses me in public, calls me his wife like he means it, and slowly starts showing me pieces of himself no one else gets to see.
Somewhere between sharing a home, pretending to be in love, and a chemistry so intense it’s impossible to ignore, the lines between fake and real blur beyond recognition and falling for my husband starts to feel inevitable.

Heart Breaker is a spicy, tension-filled small-town romance featuring a smoldering hot millionaire pilot with a guarded heart, the sunshine wedding planner who turns his world upside down, and a fake marriage that quickly becomes far too real.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

After getting some hints about growly Wes in the first two books, I was really looking forward to getting to know him once his story came around. Wes and Lottie were so good together in Heart Breaker!

I love a hero who doesn’t do XYZ until he meets the one woman whom he’s more than willing to do XYZ for, and that’s what we get with Wes and Lottie. He definitely has some issues trusting people after a legal incident back when he was in high school. That controversy resurfaces among the Deep Cove brothers around the same time that a photograph of Wes and Lottie leads the public to think that they are married. So Wes makes Lottie an offer to pay for her father’s medical care to go along with the fake PR marriage.

But of course, there is much more that develops between them, and it was a delicious ride. I loved the tension between these characters and the journey they went on together. Lottie was a strong woman, secure in who she was, and Wes was so closed off, but she managed to break through his walls. I really liked that things stopped being fake between them fairly early on, so we got to see them truly be a couple rather than go through chapters of each wondering if the other was feeling what they did.

Oh, and the scene in the cockpit of his airplane was five-flames hot!

I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

Trying Not to Need You, Moran Sisters #2 is NOW LIVE

Tropes:

Small Town

Opposites Attract

He Falls First

Retired Bull Rider

Childhood Crush

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3RmGoKl

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/4x8LOb4

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3Rw3Rc1

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/4yMbjR0

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3TcwrzL

Blurb:

From NYT and USA Today Bestselling author Kaylee Ryan comes a new standalone small-town series about four sisters finding love. Trying Not to Need You is a he-falls-first, opposites-attract romance featuring a retired bull rider and the woman he’s never stopped loving.

Baylor

I thought I was living my happily ever after.

But after five years in New York, building my life around a man who stopped choosing me, I realized our future was nothing more than a dream.

So I walked away.

From the city. From him. From the family I thought we’d build together.

Now I’m back in Magnolia Ridge with my sisters, trying to figure out who I am without the life I planned.

I didn’t come home looking for love.

But somehow, love has been waiting for me all along.

Macklin

I’ve loved Baylor Moran for years.

The timing was always wrong. Until now.

She’s back in Magnolia Ridge with a bruised heart and walls higher than ever. But that’s okay. I’ll be here when they’re ready to come down.

Baylor can take all the time she needs.

I’m not going anywhere.

And while she’s trying not to need me, I’ll keep loving her until she realizes she’s not falling apart anymore.

She’s finally falling—straight into the future we were always meant to have.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Trying Not to Need You was perfect!

I loved Macklin’s calm, steady presence in Baylor’s life as she tried to piece herself back together following her breakup and move back home. I absolutely adored how devoted he’d been to her ALL. THOSE. YEARS. and the little things he did every day to just let her know he was there. Zero pressure. Baylor had no choice but to fall hopelessly in love with Mack and start to need him. The way he treated her was pure Boyfriend Goals compared to her scummy ex.

Stephen Dexter and Erin Mallon delivered a perfectly nuanced narration for this couple. They hit every note of the sweet and spicy and flirty as Baylor and Macklin reconnected and grew from friends to lovers.

So far, this series is definitely 2 for 2 and I can’t wait to see what comes next! I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.