Holland McQuaid works for the toughest designer in New York City. It’s a dream job. It’s heaven and hell at the same time. But when she gets her lucky break, and the job turns into something she never expected, it comes with strings. Such as showing up to the holiday ball with arm candy hand-picked by her pretentious boss.
She has no clue her escort is one of the sports icons of the decade. Rich. Handsome. Athletic. And more her equal than any man she’s known.
It’s lust at first sight for both of them, and they offer each other a night they’ll never forget.
But when Holland can’t keep him out of her mind, and he insists on putting the Merry in her Christmas, things get far more real than she ever anticipated.
Love By Design is a perfectly binge-able holiday novella, giving Holland McQuaid an epic love story of her own all tied up with a pretty red bow. (I haven’t read Benching Brady, but Stryker is the son of the couple from that book, so I’m sure longtime Samantha Christy fans will love that connection.)
We’ve gotten to know Holland as the sister of the McQuaid brothers. She is married to her job, working for a high-end designer, and she kind of hates the holidays. Her boss sets her up on a blind date for a Christmas party, and there is an instant connection between Holland and sexy baseball player Stryker. The party ends with a hot and steamy one-night-stand — and leaves the woman who never wants more than a one-night-stand suddenly wanting exactly that.
I loved these two characters, and the connection they had. This Christmas novella was the perfect present!
I read an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
You’re probably wondering why I would do such a thing? Well, I didn’t.
It was my teammates.
The moment they found out Blakely White was single, they took it upon themselves to play cupid and instruct me on how I should win her over.
Don’t wear a shirt around her. Make her dinner. Lightly touch her shoulder when you say goodbye.
I’m so flustered, so overwhelmed, so madly in love with this woman who barely notices me, that I lose control of the situation and make one huge mistake: I offer to be her fake date for a wedding so she can make her ex jealous.
That means, for one whole night I get a free pass with her. I get to hold her, dance with her, kiss her…stare at her from across the room like she’s my entire world because she has been for months now.
But when the night comes to an end, I’m faced with two options: bring her back to my bedroom and show her how I really feel, or let her walk away, succumbing to the fact that I very well might not be her type.
I am spoiled after listening to this audio with a full cast of my favorite narrators!! That made this amazing story even better!
I’ve been dying to get Halsey’s story, after the bits and pieces we’ve gotten to know of him in the other Agitator books. But knowing what he’s been like since losing his twin, Holden, and actually reading it? I was not prepared for the heartache! Yet somehow, he comes to life when he’s around Blakely. And it’s magical. There is a lot of miscommunication between these two as she becomes his roommate and he has to hide his feelings for her because she’s fresh off a breakup. What Blakely reads as aloof behavior is just Halsey being adorably awkward. And he’s firmly in the friend zone.
With some prodding from the “Frozen Fellas” (those text chats are hilarious!), Halsey begins to make his moves. And after a fake date, the tension between them explodes. Sure, he’s gotten out of the friend zone. But will Halsey ever get to be more than roommates with benefits with his dream girl?
Not only was the story between Halsey and Blakely phenomenal, but the love between the band of brothers on the Agitators shone. The text convos made me laugh so hard and I loved getting to meet OC! There are plenty of MQ Easter eggs in this book too, like Almond Bay, and of course Halsey being Hayden’s brother from the Dating by the Numbers series. I loved the appearances by Huxley Cane. Anyone else get super excited by the fact that Kenzie and Banner are together???
Prepare for Chapter 23. There’s no Third Act breakup but MQ will rip your heart out before she puts it back together again!
Connor Crais and Erin Mallon were phenomenal as Halsey and Blakely, along with a fantastic supporting cast of narrators from the previous books: Teddy Hamilton, Jason Clarke, JF Harding and Kelsey Navarro.
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Erin Mallon and Connor Crais narrate this sexy, roommates-to-lovers romance in duet with a full cast including Jason Clarke, Teddy Hamilton, JF Harding, and Kelsey Navarro!
USA Today Bestselling Author, wife, adoptive mother, and peanut butter lover. Author of romantic comedies and contemporary romance, Meghan Quinn brings readers the perfect combination of heart, humor, and heat in every book.
Never miss another NEW RELEASE, text READ to 474747.
I rarely read a book with a nerdy hero, and I loved Austin and Shay’s story so much! The Flirt Alert is a a super steamy, angsty, enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity, workplace, unrequited love, brother’s best friend romance — it checked all the boxes that I look for in those tropes. But Kaylene Winter also delivered a lovely story with the complexities of medical issues with Shay being epileptic. The chronic illness representation was so well-written, and I loved how it complemented the romance between Shay and Austin rather than becoming a plot point that takes over the overall story.
Kaylene Winter is a new-to-me author, and I very much enjoyed what I read and will be looking for more from her in the future!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Kaylene
Kaylene Winter is an Amazon best-selling author of steamy, contemporary romance.
Each character-driven novel is filled with snappy dialogue, pop-culture references and enough steam to make you fan yourself. Kaylene weaves authenticity, emotion and angst into a turbulent rollercoaster ride of love, passion and soul-searing romance always ending with a delicious HEA.
Kaylene lives in Seattle with her amazing Irish husband and gorgeous Siberian Husky. She loves creating art of all kinds.
Getting hitched is the only way I can inherit Snowberry Lodge, and I’ll do anything to spare my childhood home from the wrecking ball-even wear Devlin Buckley’s ring on my finger.
Not that I’ll enjoy it.
Sure, he’s charming and handsome, and that no-last-names one night stand we shared ended with a fantastically big bang (I saw stars I hadn’t seen in six months, if you catch my drift).
But I’ll never trust him-he was working for the company trying to bulldoze my life.
Right up until the day he knocked on my door with an offer I couldn’t refuse.
Marry him, and he’ll help me restore my family’s crumbling resort to its former glory-and get revenge on his ex-boss in the process. Once our goals are achieved, we’ll go our separate ways.
I could not have loved Lexi and Devlin’s fake marriage story any more! Lexi needs a husband to save her family’s beloved ski lodge and Devlin — who was originally the agent making the deal with Lexi’s grandma — decides to play her husband to get some revenge on his old colleague and firm.
Sure, things start off strictly as a marriage of convenience, but considering that Devlin and Lexi had a hot and heavy one-night stand before they knew who the other was, there is that delicious sexual tension just simmering underneath every interaction. Seeing these two try to fight it, but fall miserably, was a joy to read!
Devlin is another Buckley sibling, and the timeline of Make-Believe Match is shortly after Austin and Veronica (Runaway Love) get together, but while Xavier and Kelly (Hideaway Heart) are still figuring things out. In fact, the book begins the night Xavier and Kelly meet up with his family at the local bar, so it was fun to see that night from the perspective of another character.
Make-Believe Match was swoony and spicy, full of all the goodness that you want in a fake relationship romance! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Melanie
USA Today and #1 Amazon bestselling author Melanie Harlow writes sweet, sexy, feel-good romance. She likes her martinis dry, her heels high, and her history with the naughty bits left in. If she’s not writing or reading, she’s probably at Orangetheory or watching Schitt’s Creek again. She lifts her glass to readers from her home near Detroit, MI, where she lives with her husband, two daughters, and pet rabbit.
Going home for my last winter break of college had the same feel as the year my parents told me Santa was fictional; the daunting real world loomed too close without a childish safety net.
Working on our family Christmas tree farm is supposed to be a final, blissful reprieve before adulthood. Or it would have been, if my brother’s best friend didn’t return for his first festive season in our hometown in almost four years.
Why did Mercer Russell stay away in the first place? Oh, well that would be because I broke his heart. High school sweethearts never last, or so they say, so I destroyed us before long distance and university drama ever could.
Now that the soccer star destined for one of the best professional teams in the country is home for one last holiday hoorah, it’s clear I’m still on his naughty list … and not in the good way. Between hauling Douglas firs, helping families select their perfect tree, and assisting my mom on the register, Mercer hasn’t lost any love for those he grew up with. Except I might as well be a lump of coal with the way he glowers at me.
With the past lurking around every corner and our futures uncertain, giving into the burning attraction that could torch a Fraser would be the worst idea ever. Then again, a fling under the mistletoe might be just the closure we need to extinguish this spark for good.
After all, it would take flying sleigh-level magic to turn a cuffing season hookup into a healing happily ever after … right?
Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited!
When Mercer and Emily reignite their relationship over Christmas break their senior year of college, will it be a hot Winter Break, or a cold Winter Break Up?
This book was another great one from Carrie Aarons. I adored this second-chance romance, and all the tension and awkwardness between Mercer and Emily when they first ran into each other three years after she broke his heart. Both of them are so clearly still in love with the other, and that love and affection jumped off the page. Heated glances in the break room gave way to a searing kiss, and I was rooting for Mercer and Emily to figure out their issues and get back together!
But those issues were heavy. He has abandonment issues stemming from his childhood, and she feels like she’s never going to measure up against the pretty women who throw themselves at a pro athlete. Emily’s insecurities play into a larger picture of anxiety, and Carrie Aarons did a great job of delicately handling that mental health representation in this story.
I was so happy when Mercer and Emily finally got on the same page! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Carrie Aarons
Author of romance novels such as Fool Me Twice and Love at First Fight, Carrie Aarons writes books that are just as swoon-worthy as they are sarcastic. A former journalist, she prefers the love stories of her imagination, and the athleisure dress code, much better.
When she isn’t writing, Carrie is busy binging reality TV, having a love/hate relationship with cardio, and trying not to burn dinner. She lives in the suburbs of New Jersey with her husband, two children and ninety-pound rescue pup.
Nannying two adorable kids was a way to support myself until I got on my feet again. I wasn’t supposed to fall for their stern single dad.
After a sudden, bad breakup, I land in a small town in the middle of nowhere, cut off from all my accounts and resources. I have a stalled dancing career, a mom in long-term care, and no money.
Then I meet Alcott “Cody” Knight. The type of guy I’ve learned to steer clear of—driven, rigid, and devastating in a suit. Only he also has two adorable kids, and he needs a nanny for the summer.
For two months, he’ll pay more than I need to help my mom and myself. For two months, I’ll take care of his kids, give them dance lessons, and see what a normal life could be like. For two months, I have to try not to fall for a guy who’s hotter in jeans and cowboy boots than a suit and treats me like I matter.
When my time is up, I’ll have to go. I might be used to leaving, only this time when I go, I wish I could be more than a temporary memory to the only man I could see forever with.
A Temporary Memory starts off with a temporary romance between Cody and Tova, but they were exactly what the other needed!
It’s been a year since Cody lost his wife, Meg, and he and his kids are still drowning in grief. He isn’t quite sure how to get out of being stuck between the family business and raising his kids, and thinks, since he’s a workaholic, that following his late wife’s wishes for them to live with her parents is the best choice for Ivy and Grayson. He’s living in Crocus Valley for the summer and desperately needs a nanny… just as Tova arrives in town after escaping from a manipulative and emotionally abusive ex. She needs a job, he needs a nanny, the kids love Tova, it’s a win/win.
There’s an insane attraction between Cody and Tova from the start, even though he’s super hard on himself about having feelings for his nanny when he feels he should still be grieving for Meg. But Cody and Meg’s relationship wasn’t a grand sweeping love, and Tova evokes all kinds of feelings in him that he’s not sure what to do with. Of course, they give in — but only because there is an end date in sight before the kids go to live with their grandparents and Tova returns to California to care for her disabled mom.
But what if they can have it all? Cody and his family give Tova a sense of belonging that she’s never felt before, and with Tova, he feels hope for a future that he thought was out of reach. Between his in-laws, her abandonment issues, and her stalker-y ex, it’s a bumpy road for Cody and Tova to get to their HEA. But the epilogue was well worth the payoff!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Meet Marie Johnston
Marie Johnston is a RITA® Finalist, and a best-selling and award-winning writer of paranormal and contemporary romance – and an avid reader of them both.
Several years ago, when kids started outnumbering adults in the house, Marie Johnston left her job as a public health microbiologist to stay at home. Settling into working part-time and shuttling kids around gave Marie the opportunity to think about what she wanted to be when she grew up. A die-hard science geek, she explored her previously thought to be non-existent creative side after much time spent making snowman crafts and coloring princesses. Having entertained thoughts of writing a book one day then subsequently deciding it would be too hard, she finally put the figurative pen to paper and began to type – and fell in love with story telling.
The Sigma Menace is the first series by Marie with Fever Claim being her first book EVER. She is humbled by the fact that people are willing to read to her books and looks forward to keeping readers entertained for many years.
Marie lives with her husband and four kids in North Dakota where the summers are gorgeous, the winters are brutal, and spring and fall are luxuries.
To learn more about Marie and her books, visit here!
NYT and USA Today Bestselling author Kaylee Ryan brings you a new standalone series surrounding five best friends who co-own a tattoo studio.
Emerson
It’s not like I planned to fall for my older brother’s best friend.
It just happened. With a perfect body covered in tattoos, and a dirty mouth, Roman is the kind of guy women notice—and believe me, I noticed. Even when I tried not to.
When he finally gives in to temptation, there’s no going back. At least for me. Too bad Roman doesn’t see it that way.
He thinks he needs to protect me and my relationship with my brother, but I don’t need him to fight my battles. I just need him.
Roman
My name whispered from Emerson’s perfect pink lips is all it takes for me to betray my best friend.
Before that night, I kept the green-eyed beauty at arm’s length. Watched her from afar and told myself that the chemistry between us was one-sided.
I pretended that I didn’t want her more than my next breath. Which is what’s on the line if her brother ever finds out we’ve been sneaking around behind his back.
But I can’t stay away. Especially after knowing what it’s like to have her and lose her.
Now, I’m given a second chance, and I have every intention of making her mine—consequences be damned.
Does He Know? was a great start to a new series. The relationship between Emerson and Roman was full of sexual tension, and there was a pull between them from the start. She’s always been the little sister among the guys of Everlasting Ink, as Forrest’s little sister, but Roman’s feelings for her are not at all brotherly. And with a 10-year age difference between them, he doesn’t know what to do with those feelings.
But when Emerson starts working in the tattoo shop, everything changes between them. And it is explosive! I really liked the relationship between these two characters, and what they brought out in one another. Once Roman let himself give in to what he was feeling for Emerson, he was such a devoted guy. Between their age difference and Roman being best friends with her brother, these two have a lot stacked against them. But they stick it out, and this story was a great brother’s best friend romance!
I look forward to getting to know the guys of Everlasting Ink better in the future books! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling author Kaylee Ryan has been crowned the Queen of Swoon by her readers. With nearly fifty romance books under her belt, she’s known for penning happily ever afters with heart. When she’s not writing, you can find her with a book in her hand or hanging out with her family where she resides in her home state of Ohio.
Two strangers who couldn’t be more opposite find themselves on an unexpected cross-country road trip days before Christmas where whatever can go wrong, does.
He’s an Army Ranger.
She’s a baker.
He’s organized and rigid.
She’s messy and carefree.
He doesn’t do relationships.
She’s following her heart.
His family chat blows up his phone.
She just buried her last living relative.
The holiday season doesn’t seem so jolly as they venture from one mode of transportation to the next. But, they have to become friends and rely on each other if they’re going to survive all the obstacles thrown their way.
As the miles grow shorter, vulnerabilities are shared, and by the time they reach their destination, neither one of them is sure what they really want for Christmas anymore.
Download today on Amazon, Apple Books, Audible, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, and Kobo!
I need Claus and Effect to be made into a Christmas movie! This book had everything I could ask for in a holiday story. Adorable, relatable characters who get off on the wrong foot but are perfectly matched for each other — but of course, they only find that out a series of mishaps and they must spend several days together on a road trip to get to their common destination. I chuckled, I laughed, and I even cried as Tre and Tessa fell in love with each other.
This book is a standalone, but is loosely connected to Piper Rayne’s other holiday story, Jingle All the Way, as Tessa is best friends with Kenzie. Kenzie and Andrew make a few appearances in this book, which was nice to see!
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review
Meet Piper Rayne
Piper Rayne is a USA Today Bestselling Author duo who write “heartwarming humor with a side of sizzle” about families, whether that be blood or found. They both have e-readers full of one-clickable books, they’re married to husbands who drive them to drink, and they’re both chauffeurs to their kids. Most of all, they love hot heroes and quirky heroines who make them laugh, and they hope you do, too!
Title: Sweet Spot
Author: Jessica Prince
Series: Redemption
Contemporary Romance, Small Town Romance, Friends to Lovers
Who knew four little words and a very public kiss would change so much.
Gage Langdon didn’t do relationships. After having his heart shattered years ago, he made a vow to never go down that road again. But when his past waltzes into his town, demanding his attention, he reacts without thinking and makes a very public display of kissing his best friend. Now Wynn is pretending to be his girlfriend to help him get back at his ex, and the feelings he’d sworn he turned off were starting to spark to life.
After walking in on her boyfriend in bed with another woman, Wynn Klein made herself a promise. Never again. She was done with men. When she walked into that coffee shop one morning to meet her best friend, she never expected Gage would wrap her in his arms and plant a knee-quaking kiss on her in front of the whole town. The request he whispered in her ear after sealed their fate: Just go with it.
When Wynn agreed to be Gage’s fake girlfriend, it was only supposed to be temporary. But thanks to meddlesome friends, an over-eager mother-in-law to be, and a conniving granny, things go so much further than they were intended.
The lines between reality and fiction are starting to blur, and Gage starts to see Wynn in a whole new light.
Now he just has to get her to that sweet spot where friends become lovers without freaking her out and sending her running for the hills.
I’ve loved the Redemption series by Jessica Prince, and I thought that Gage and Wynn’s story was a great ending to this series.
The Viking and his Little Bit were so cute together, and so perfect for one another. They’ve been best friends for a few years and were pretty much in a relationship without the romance. They’d both been burned by past partners and were hesitant to get involved with anyone again. But when Gage’s ex-girlfriend unexpectedly shows up in town, Wynn jumps in to pretend to be his fiance — and these two characters find themselves rolling with the lie to save face.
Somewhere along the way, Gage realizes that Wynn is pretty much the perfect woman for him, and the fake relationship they are in becomes very real for him. But will he be able to convince Wynn that he’s not pretending?
Sweet Spot was a sweet story! I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Visit Redemption a series of interconnected standalone romances
Born and raised around Houston Texas, Jessica spent most of her life complaining about the heat, humidity, and all around pain in the ass weather. It was only as an adult that she quickly realized the cost of living in Houston made up for not being able to breathe when she stepped outside. That’s why God created central air, after all.
Jessica is the mother of a perfect little boy–she refuses to accept that he inherited her attitude and sarcastic nature no matter what her husband says.
In addition to being a wife and mom, she’s also a wino, a coffee addict, and an avid lover of all types of books–romances still being her all time favs. Her husband likes to claim that reading is her obsession but she just says it’s a passion…there’s a difference. Not that she’d expect a boy to understand.
Jessica has been writing since she was a little girl, but thankfully grew out of drawing her own pictures for her stories before ever publishing her first book. Because an artist she is not.
𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐖𝐢𝐧 by Evey Lyon is LIVE on your favorite retailer! This is a small town, enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience, hockey romance you won’t want to miss!
“Waiting to Win is a fun, witty, entertaining read that is beautifully written with wonderful characters. A great addition to the Lake Spark Off Season that has left me wanting more and excited for what’s to come.” – Jackie Wright, Goodreads Reviewer
Connor Spears is hockey royalty who most definitely never planned to accidentally marry his childhood irritation Hadley Crews.
Connor is smug, grew up destined for his hockey career, and he’s irritatingly good-looking. He was also my next-door neighbor growing up. He wouldn’t give me the time of day and made it clear he would never be friends with me, the ballerina and daughter of a baseball legend. Except for that one time. Years later, one hazy night, and now he’s apparently my husband according to the paper next to his bed in a Vegas hotel room. You would think we would have it annulled, but he needs to clean up his image, and I’m a sucker for his occasional glances.
So, we agree to stay married.
Rumor spreads fast in Lake Spark, and the responses of our parents, who are best friends, well, uh… they’re mixed. But the problem with marrying for convenience is that you discover secrets about each other. You learn things too, like how he is by far more protective of you than you thought, or how sharing a bed brings out his dominant side. The thing is, it turns out that I may mean more to Connor than he’ll ever admit. When life throws me another twist, I need a real husband to support me. And it turns out that Connor may have always been offside, waiting to win…
Connor and Hadley bring heartwarming steam to this marriage-of-convenience romance with a hint of enemies-to-lovers and a dash of unrequited love. Waiting to Win can be read as a complete standalone and is the second book in the interconnected Lake Spark Off-Season series which is a spin-off of the Lake Spark series that includes their parents’ stories. For lovers of small-town romance with a touch of hockey.
I was so excited when I found out that Connor and Hadley were getting their own story! I loved seeing these two as kids in their parents’ books and couldn’t wait to see how their own romance played out. And it didn’t disappoint!
This book starts out as enemies to lovers as Hadley and Conner exchange snarky barbs on a trip to Vegas with his teammates/her friends. When they wake up married the next morning, they agree to stick it out for a bit rather than break the hearts of their parents, who are best friends. I loved the use of history between these two characters, who grew up next door to each another. I also loved that this was a second-chance romance, because those are my favorite. Plus, the playboy star of the Spinners hockey team turned out to be a cinnamon roll hero and a pretty perfect husband!
While the plot twist that upends Hadley’s life was shocking, I did feel a bit let down after the reason was revealed why Connor broke things when they were teenagers. That was it? I was expecting a bit more. That said, Connor put in the work to prove to Hadley that they were meant to be together and I was very happy with how these two turned their oopsie drunken elopement into something real.
I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.
Sunny Shelly Reads 