Book Review: A Love Uncontainable (Under Kansas Skies #2) by Leah Brunner

October 11, 2022January 31, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 405 pages
Author: Leah Brunner
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: November 20th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Seven years ago I made a decision that would change my life forever… I’ve never told a soul.

Now I’m worried my past could ruin my future.

As a surgeon and single father, my life is chaotic. I barely have time to find a new babysitter or a new tenant for my income property, let alone think about dating.

Sophie Windell-Miller seems like the answer to all of my problems—renting out the basement apartment and watching my daughter for me.

But now Sophie brings a whole new set of complications.

I can’t stop thinking about how gorgeous she is, and how her laughter fills the house with joy. Not to mention our daughters adore each other.

So, what’s the complicated part? Well, she’s still grieving the loss of her husband, and I work with her dad.

And then there’s the secret I’ve held for seven years.
If I tell her, will I lose everything she’s brought into my life?

WANTED MORE SHOW.

This was an enjoyable read, but I realized two things: it was too long, and there was a lot more telling rather than showing.

At 400 pages I expected a lot more moments between the two love interests. But that really wasn’t the case until after the halfway point when I was already pushing to get through. There was already a big forced proximity aspect and I think that could have been played into more initially.

I also got tired of long inner monologues about feeling the angst but not showing that on page. I want to feel it too!! Give me those scenes that make me ache for them to kiss already.

The romance is sweet when it finally gets there. I really liked Sophie and Drew as separate characters and together. There’s a lot of different types of love here and it’s emotional at times. I thought the two young girls in here were ADORABLE. They fit so well into the story. I can pick out plenty of scenes I definitely enjoyed, just needed more across the entire book.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: very little
Romance: make-outs
Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a spouse (off page, but many on page grief depictions), mentions of rape (off page, and briefly spoken of)

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Book Review: A Convenient Christmas (Isn’t It Sweet #1) by Jody Holford

October 9, 2022August 25, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 211 pages
Author: Jody Holford
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 1st, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Abigail Smith loves Christmas so much she made it her business. Whether it’s simple gift wrapping or arranging a sit-down feast, clients of A Convenient Christmas can count on Abby to meet all of their holiday needs. When her oldest and dearest client hires her to add a little cheer to her son’s life, Abby is up for the challenge.

Until he fires her.

Finn Edenbury is too busy trying to get through the holiday season to enjoy it. The divorced dad is not looking forward to spending this year alone since his daughter, Melody, will be with his ex. Which might be why he overreacted when he found a beautiful, tree trimming woman in his living room.

An unexpected change of plans mean Finn will spend the holidays with his little girl after all. Finn turns to Abby with an apology and a request: help him make Melody’s Christmas magic.

The Queen of Christmas can hardly say no even if she still thinks he’s a bit of a Scrooge. That is, until they spend time together. These two opposites end up wanting something for Christmas that neither of them expected: each other.

RATHER UNCONVENIENT.

This was heading towards a strong three star. I wouldn’t say memorable, but I was enjoying the holiday spirit, the single Dad romance was pretty cute and I’m always here for a sunshine/grump trope.

Enter in, the dreaded conflict. We all know they arise each romance read, and sometimes they work out great, other times I turn into a rage monster over the ridiculousness nature of it all. This one was the latter. If a 5 year-old has to tell her Dad he’s being silly because he blew up at the heroine without a good enough reason, something is wrong with that picture. It was laughable and extended the book unnecessarily. Really wish it just had skipped over the conflict and went to the sappy ending.

I liked that the Abby owned her own event business. It was fun to see a different angle to holiday romances with this. Abby and Finn got along together well and I love a cute kid to boot. There’s some goodness here overall, even if things weren’t clicking for me.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: none
Romance: closed door
Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a grandparent (prior to book, but discussed often), divorce

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Book Review: Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez

October 6, 2022April 25, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: Abby Jimenez
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: April 19th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The New York Times bestselling author of Life’s Too Short delivers a refreshingly modern fairy tale perfect for fans of Casey McQuiston and Emily Henry.

After a wild bet, gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich, and cuddle with a baby goat, Alexis Montgomery has had her world turned upside down. The cause: Daniel Grant, a ridiculously hot carpenter who’s ten years younger than her and as casual as they come—the complete opposite of sophisticated city-girl Alexis. And yet their chemistry is undeniable.

While her ultra-wealthy parents want her to carry on the family legacy of world-renowned surgeons, Alexis doesn’t need glory or fame. She’s fine with being a “mere” ER doctor. And every minute she spends with Daniel and the tight-knit town where he lives, she’s discovering just what’s really important. Yet letting their relationship become anything more than a short-term fling would mean turning her back on her family and giving up the opportunity to help thousands of people.

Bringing Daniel into her world is impossible, and yet she can’t just give up the joy she’s found with him either. With so many differences between them, how can Alexis possibly choose between her world and his?

NEW AUTHOR FAVORITE.

Ohhh this just climbed mountains to become my new favorite book by Jimenez. WHAT A READ. Everyone’s reviews had me hyped for this and it delivered.

One of the subtle things I appreciated was how the one night stand trope was handled. I’m generally not a fan, but it was kept closed door and I liked that spice wasn’t added just to do it. The heat was brought in further along in the story when the connection between Daniel and Alexis had reached extreme levels. I felt like it was the best way to use this trope and rather than being in my face about it, just slowly brought on how much I ADORE these characters.

I loved that both Alexis and Daniel had their own personal struggles and true differences. But that with both sides of their lives they found ways to connect, to understand where the other person is coming from, and to find ways to bond themselves together. There were plenty of utterly wholesome moments (baby goat y’all) and passionate arguments about what was happening meant to them. I loved it all (though I could have thrown Alexis’s Dad down a hill and would not have blinked an eye).

The side characters only enhanced the plot and made me excited for future books in this series. Even those I didn’t like, I thought brought in the right touch of drama to keep things moving and to shine light on certain topics and how they can unfold without knowing. I LOVED THIS BOOK. Highly recommend. It’s everything I love about contemporary romances.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: some
Romance: brief/vague open door
Trigger/Content Warnings: parental abuse, emotional abuse and gaslighting (on page), intimate partner violence and abuse (side character, on page), cheating recounted, depression, grief, on page childbirth, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: Lovelight Farms by B.K. Borison

October 5, 2022November 19, 2021 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: Unknown pages
Author: B.K. Borison
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 10th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Where the lovelight gleams …

A pasture of dead trees. A hostile takeover of the Santa barn by a family of raccoons. And shipments that have mysteriously gone missing. Lovelight Farms is not the magical winter wonderland of Stella Bloom’s dreams.

In an effort to save the Christmas tree farm she’s loved since she was a kid, she enters a contest with instafamous influencer Evelyn St. James. With the added publicity and the $100,000 cash prize, she might just be able to save the farm from its financial woes. There’s just one problem. To make the farm seem like a romantic destination for the holidays, she lied on the application and said she owns Lovelight Farms with her boyfriend. Only … there is no boyfriend.

Enter best friend Luka Peters. He just came home for some hot chocolate, and somehow got a farm and a serious girlfriend in the process.

Lovelight Farms is a romantic comedy featuring a handsome, freckled data analyst, a messy, optimistic Christmas tree farm owner, and a small town with the best hazelnut lattes on the east coast. This sweet and steamy romance is a holiday happily ever after.

NOT FOR ME.

I wanted to love this more after seeing some positive reviews on it but I had some issues with the story throughout.

I did love that it was set at a Christmas tree farm. That’s adorable and I haven’t read a holiday romance like that. I liked seeing some of the workings of the farm. All of the holiday vibes were had with this setting.

There were some cute moments between the love interests, Stella and Luka. Both of them clearly wanted to date and when the moment arose for a solid fake dating trope it fell flat. No angst, they just started dating. That’s it? Stella tried to drag it out by telling Luka that there’s no way he likes her (and other eye roll statements like this) as she went with the completely oblivious play call.

It could have used another round of edits as I noticed a lot of repetitive phrasing choices and dialogue set-up. All in all, this didn’t click for me, but I know it might for others!

Overall audience notes: