Tag: contemporary romance

ARC Book Review: Fake Skating by Lynn Painter

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Rating: ★★★★.5
Audience: Upper YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 448 pages
Author: Lynn Painter
Publisher: Simon Teen
Release Date: September 30th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Childhood sweethearts reunite in a hockey-loving town where romance is about to heat up the ice. Icebreaker meets  Better Than the Movies.

From play dates on the playground to sneaking into movie theaters, Dani and Alec were inseparable as kids. Until Dani moved away. Years later, Dani is back in Minnesota, and exited to reconnect with the nerdy and comforting Alec. But teenage Alec is NOTHING like the boy she remembers. He’s the hockey STAR in a town where hockey players are worshipped as gods – and he loves it. 

When one thing leads to another and Dani and Alec find themselves thrown together and playing the role of boyfriend and girlfriend, “complicated” becomes an understatement. In this Minnesota town, hockey may rule, but romance is about to take its place.

Thank you Simon Teen for the gifted ARC and eARC.

WHAT A GEM.

I have read all of Lynn Painter’s books and honestly, not one has missed. I love knowing that I can pick up her books and I know that I will love the story and characters and have a boost of joy in my day.

It’s been a minute since I’ve read a hockey romance and this scratched that itch. I loved the teammates and games and the tense moments of not knowing what was going to happen next. I ADORED Alec and his snark and passion. He was aggressive (in a complimentary way) and the kissing scenes were light your kindle on fire worthy.

And I really loved Dani too. As a fellow child of divorce I recognized many of the same sentiments and thoughts. Alec and Dani had incredible chemistry and I could not get enough of them on page. Amidst the drama filled moments they kept finding ways to be together.

OH, And Grandpa Mick??? LOVE THAT MAN. And Dani’s Mom. And Alec’s family. And Alec and Dani’s friends. Honestly, I loved all of these characters. I love that the antagonists were kept to a small circle and that I got to read about good friends and families figuring life out with love and kindness.

The more I write this review the more I am realizing how much I loved this book. You must go read it!!

Overall audience notes:

  • Upper YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: very strong (too strong for YA)
  • Romance: heated kisses
  • Violence: mild+
  • Content warnings: divorced parents, physical altercations, underage drinking

ARC Book Review: It’s Different This Time by Joss Richard

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 432 pages
Author: Joss Richard
Publisher: Dell Romance
Release Date: September 30th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In this sweeping, second-chance romance, a twist of fate forces two former roommates to move back into their beloved New York City brownstone and face the events that led to their estrangement—and confront their unresolved feelings for each other.

Subject 74 Perry Street

So begins the email that turns June Wood’s entire world on its head. Five years ago, she lived on Perry Street with her former best friend Adam Harper. But why is the management company reaching out to her about it now? 

Still smarting from the news of her hit TV show being canceled, June has nothing else to lose. She boards a plane from Los Angeles to New York City to find out more about the mysterious email and the promised opportunity it alludes to. It turns out that, thanks to an unbelievable legal loophole, if she and Adam can live together in the stunning West Village brownstone for a month, it’s theirs. Any true New Yorker knows you don’t pass up prime city real estate, and that fall in the city is magical—so what’s there to think about?

And yet, though most things have changed in the time since they last spoke, one thing hasn’ June and Adam have unfinished business. They didn’t exactly end on good terms when they each went off to chase their dreams. Now, confronted with the consequences of their choices, they must navigate the minefield of their past the best way they know together.

Every day they move closer to owning Perry Street reveals misunderstandings, long-term resentments, and long-buried feelings . . . which are suddenly feeling very, very not so buried. But they’ve already lost their friendship once before, devastating them both. Can they risk losing it again for something a little different this time?

Thank you Dell Romance for the gifted ARC.

NOT ALL I HOPED FOR.

I liked this. I did. But the more I think about it the more I’m realizing it didn’t really invoke any emotion in me. I also thought it would be more fall adjacent (the cover seems to say so) and I wish that atmosphere had been more prevalent.

It’s a good enough second chance romance. Kind of typical careers (chef x actress) with an unique living situation. The flashback chapters added a little bit to the present plot but I would have loved more yearning and tension. By the time I got to the why the broke up the first time I was not surprised and honestly a little mad. I am incredibly tired of FMC’s running away.

Adam was super sweet and I did like him the most (give me dual POV!!). Learning more about him and seeing him on page was my favorite aspect of the book. And I did love June’s friend Chloe too!

It’s Different This Time is a debut and I would love to see what a sophomore book looks like from this author.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 3+ish open door
  • Content warnings: loss of a mother (recounted, cancer), absent parents

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Book Review: Cole and Laila are Just Friends by Bethany Turner

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Rating: ★★★.75
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Bethany Turner
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: June 4th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Cole and Laila have been inseparable since they could crawl. And they’ve never thought about each other that way. Except for when they have. Rarely. Once in a while, sure. But seriously . . . hardly ever.

Cole Kimball and Laila Olivet have been best friends their entire lives. Cole is the only person (apart from blood relatives) who’s seen Laila in her oversized, pink, plastic, Sophia Loren glasses. Laila is always the first person to taste test any new dish Cole creates in his family’s restaurant . . . even though she has the refined palate of a kindergartener. Most importantly, Cole and Laila are always talking. About everything.

When Cole discovers a betrayal from his recently deceased grandfather that shatters his world, staying in Adelaide Springs, Colorado, is suddenly unfathomable. But Laila loves her life in their small mountain town and can’t imagine ever living anywhere else. She loves serving customers who tip her with a dozen fresh eggs. She loves living within walking distance of all her favorite people. And she’s very much not okay with the idea of not being able to walk to her very favorite person.

Still, when Cole toys with moving across the country to New York City, she decides to support her best friend–even as she secretly hopes she can convince him to stay home. And not just for his killer chocolate chip pancakes. Because she loves him. As a friend. Just as a friend. Right?

They make a deal: Laila won’t beg him to stay, and Cole won’t try to convince her to come with him. They have one week in New York before their lives change forever, and all they have to do is enjoy their time together and pretend none of this is happening. But it’s tough to ignore the very inconvenient feelings blooming out of nowhere. In both of them. And these potentially friendship-destroying feelings, once out in the open, have absolutely no take-backs.

If When Harry Met Sally had a quippy literary love child with Gilmore Girls’ Luke and Lorelai, you’d get Cole and Laila. Just . . . don’t tell them that.

Thank you Thomas Nelson and Bibliolifestyle for the gifted copy.

OH FRIENDS TO LOVERS.

I know this is a beloved trope, but this is one of the tropes that I can go vastly different directions about and that’s kind of how the book went too. I would be feeling good about the journey, then frustrated, and all in between feelings too. I think there were a lot of good elements to Cole and Laila’s relationship and I loved the dynamic and banter and the sweet way they took care of each other before even realizing how deep their feelings ran.

It was fun journeying around New York and getting more push and pull about the big decisions that needed to be made. The audiobook was great, highly recommend if you want to read this book to go with that format. I loved seeing Brynn and Sebastian again too. There were SO MANY DANG POP CULTURE REFERENCES. That admittedly bugged me and I thought could have been dialed back.

I thought that the story wrapped up well and even with my few grievances it was a good read and I would like to read Bethany Turner’s next book.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses

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Book Review: Loyally, Luke (Skymar #3) by Pepper Basham

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Pepper Basham
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: May 14th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Sometimes love means embracing the good, the bad . . . and even the impossible.

Dear Reader,

My name is Luke Edgewood, and there are few things in life that I require. Mainly black coffee. And flannel. And lots of solitude. And my dogs, Chewy and Indie. What I don’t need is romance, so I have no plans to change my thirty-year-old bachelor status anytime soon.

But my youngest sister thinks that by accepting a short-term construction job in the small European country of Skymar, I’m going to follow along in her footsteps and discover my own romantic adventure. Nope. Bah humbug. The End. This time, her rom-com-movie senses are totally wrong.

Or maybe not. Because I’ve met a Grace Kelly look-alike who is annoying . . . until she isn’t. But she is impossible. As in, nothing can happen between us because she is a literal princess. Even though that’s easy to forget when we’re working together to restore a castle-like orphanage in a secluded mountain town and “forced proximity” includes a small closet, a secret one-hundred-year-old journal, and the tactile memory of an off-limits royal in my arms.

Basically, the whole situation has turned into an ooey gooey magical snow globe of romantic tropes complete with cute kids and an actual ball. Now, even my sentences are starting to sound like mush. Ugh. Send high levels of testosterone my way—I’m going to need it.

Loyally,
Luke

Thank you to Thomas Nelson for the gifted copy.

MUCH BETTER.

After having a lot of mixed feelings about book two in this series, I’m happy to see I easily enjoyed this one much more. It was a sweet romance. I loved the hidden identities and all of the renovation work. The audiobook did these characters justice and blessed be that there were a loooot less texting/email conversations. I still didn’t find those necessary to the story, and I really liked when it was just Luke and the princess.

There’s good banter and that edge of forbidden romance. The setting has castles and beautiful country sides. The light faith elements didn’t overwhelm the story and I liked how the ending came together and where this couple ended up. It’s light and charming and I look forward to trying another Pepper Basham book.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low

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