Tag: contemporary romance

ARC Book Review: Miracle Creek Christmas by Krista Jensen

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Krista Jensen
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Release Date: September 8th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Riley Madigan escapes to the sleepy mountain town of Miracle Creek after her relationship with an A-list actor ends badly. At least for a time, she hopes her new job as a high school art teacher will bring her the peace and quiet she is looking for. The last thing on her mind is love.

Mark Rivers was a firefighter until he got trapped in a wildfire and suffered third-degree burns on his face and body. After a year of recovering, Mark is trying to piece his life back together but struggles both emotionally and psychologically. He’s been a recluse until he forces himself to attend his niece’s school play and sees Riley, the school’s art teacher. Immediately, Mark feels a connection to her. Maybe it’s the kind way she greets his niece or the way the art she created for the school play is reminiscent of his late mom’s artwork. Either way, Mark feels driven to get to know her, but first he’ll need to build up the courage to talk to her. 

When Mark asks Riley to work on a special nativity, he finds himself falling for her, particularly because Riley doesn’t seem bothered by his scars. Is her affection for him real or is she simply overcompensating, pretending he’s not different. One thing’s for certain, in a small town that views Mark as a fragile hero, it’s hard to pursue a relationship without everyone in his business. And although Riley has sincere feelings for Mark, is she really ready to risk her heart?

Broken hearts and lives are mended as the town of Miracle Creek comes together to celebrate a Christmas to remember. 

Thank you to Shadow Mountain publishing for the ARC. All opinions are my own!

A HALLMARK MOVIE IN BOOK FORM.

And boy did I really enjoy that fact.

This was such a sweet book. Oh so sweet. And I picked it up with that mindset which made me love it all the more. The atmosphere definitely screams holiday as this primarily takes place in the fall. It made me want nothing more than to curl up with hot chocolate and a sweater. Absolutely felt this setting.

I loved the way Riley and Mark’s relationship developed. It was wholesome and kind. I found myself smiling at their banter and interactions. This wasn’t something they just fell into, but had to work for, together. Riley struggling with commitment and finding a place to belong while Mark worked through PTSD and finding peace with who he is now. While communication wasn’t always entirely open, I thought everything felt real. The tender quiet moments versus the arguments was well balanced.

Riley’s character more often frustrated me because I just wanted her to see what was right in front of her. She had a good thing going, and still wanted to flirt with her old ways. These issues at least didn’t overshadow the story and I found everyone easy to love by the end.

There is a bit of Christian Christmas aspects, such as a main plot point circles around a nativity scene. I had no problems with this and didn’t feel like anything was in my face about religion. It was more subtle and fit in with the plot well. Miracle Creek Christmas was a beautifully written book that will definitely have me checking out more books by this author.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance (proper)
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: physical, see Trigger warnings
  • Trigger warnings: PTSD from a near death experience involving a forest fire (and losing a loved one in said fire)

Author Bio:

Krista writes contemporary romance, historical romance, and fantasy. She has lived in lush Oregon and rugged Wyoming, but Washington is her beloved home state. She likes to choose familiar settings for her stories and is grateful to have such inspirational places to choose from. She is a mother of six, gramma of three, a gardener and cook, loves to travel, laugh, and hike, and lives to make the best of what she’s been given. Find her on Instagram @kristajensenbooks.

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Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: August 2020

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Is 2020 over yet? Asking for a friend.

In the reading world, I did get through quite a few books, with some five stars. So that’s something! A lot of upcoming releases as well.

Favorites this month: You Have a Match, From Blood and Ash, and Heart Bones
Least favorites: Harley in the Sky, Between Shades of Gray

  • Hitching the Pitcher (Belltown Six Pack #1) by Rebecca Connolly, Sophia Summers, and Heather B. Moore – (☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Brass Carriages and Glass Hearts (Steampunk Proper Romance #4) by Nancy Campbell Allen – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • [ARC] Crazy Stupid Bromance (Bromance Book Club #3) by Lyssa Kay Adams – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Intertwine (House of Oak #1) by Nichole Van – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • [ARC] You Have a Match by Emma Lord – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • From Blood and Ash (Blood and Ash #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • The Royal We (Royal We #1) by Heather Cocks – (☆☆ 1/2)
  • Harley in the Sky by Akemi Dawn Brown – (☆☆☆)
  • The Extra (The Extra Series #1) by Megan Walker – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • Heart Bones by Colleen Hoover – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Kingdom of Sea and Stone (Crown of Coral and Pearl #2) by Mara Rutherford – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • The Fiery Cross (Outlander #5) by Diana Gabaldon – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Jade City (The Green Bone Saga #1) by Fonda Lee – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Adorkable by Cookie O’Gorman – (☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Mistletoe and Mr. Right (Moose Springs, Alaska #2) by Sarah Morgenthaler – (☆☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys – (☆☆☆)
  • Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Bright Raven Skies (Sweet Black Waves #3) by Kristina Perez – (☆☆☆☆)

What were some favorite books you read in August? Lets talk in the comments!

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Book Review: The Extra (The Extra #1) by Megan Walker and Janci Patterson

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Rating: ☆☆☆ 1/2
Audience: Contemporary romance
Length: 265 pages
Author: Megan Walker and Janci Patterson
Publisher: Garden Ninja Books
Release Date: April 6th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Gabby Mays wishes she had her future figured out, like her gorgeous roommate Anna-Marie, who has just landed a role on the hit soap opera Passion Medical. Gabby would give anything to find a career she’s half as passionate about as Anna-Marie is about acting—and a love life that isn’t comprised of nights with a party-sized bag of Doritos and her Netflix account.

When Gabby becomes a recurring extra on Passion Medical, she finds a job she’s surprisingly great at. Even better, her old crush and ex-boss—the sexy, sweet Will Bowen—is writing the scripts, allowing Gabby lots of quality flirting time at the craft services table.

But between feuding divas, fake Emmys, and Gabby’s growing concern that Will might not see her as anything more than a friend, her life on set is quickly becoming a drama worthy of the soaps.

Thank you to the author, Megan Walker, for a copy in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own!

ENTERTAINING.

I had a good time with this one! I didn’t know much going in but found myself easily drawn in to the writing style and the story at large.

Gabby was a well thought out main character. She had a lot of struggles and over a small amount of pages really showed some growth. I liked that she started to take charge of her life and didn’t rush into what she wanted to do. It’s so hard to pick out what you want to do with your life (hello, I still have no idea) that I felt and have thought the same things Gabby has.

The romance was sweet! It didn’t take up as much page time as I thought it would (or hoped), but it’s cute nature easily charmed me. The emotional cheating aspect was one of the harder things to read. I did like the way the authors addressed this though and thought it was handled much better than I’ve seen in other books (where it’s not even addressed at all, it is a form of cheating!).

You have to lean into the drama in The Extra. Knowing the synopsis and the general idea of the book helped me know it was going to be a bit dramatic, and I ended up really loving the flair of it all. Yes, a bit over the top, yet was the right kind of quirk this story needed. The soap opera plot line was humorous and totally ridiculous, and I was all in for it.

I’m curious about the other books in this series and look forward to checking those out some time!

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: kisses / make-outs; a lot of mentions of off-screen sex
  • Trigger/Content warnings: divorce, emotional cheating, physical cheating, bullying, a loved one with a drug addiction

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Book Review: My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Christina Lauren
Publisher: Gallery Books
Release Date: December 4th, 2018
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Millie Morris has always been one of the guys. A UC Santa Barbara professor, she’s a female-serial-killer expert who’s quick with a deflection joke and terrible at getting personal. And she, just like her four best guy friends and fellow professors, is perma-single.

So when a routine university function turns into a black tie gala, Mille and her circle make a pact that they’ll join an online dating service to find plus-ones for the event. There’s only one hitch: after making the pact, Millie and one of the guys, Reid Campbell, secretly spend the sexiest half-night of their lives together, but mutually decide the friendship would be better off strictly platonic.

But online dating isn’t for the faint of heart. While the guys are inundated with quality matches and potential dates, Millie’s first profile attempt garners nothing but dick pics and creepers. Enter “Catherine”—Millie’s fictional profile persona, in whose make-believe shoes she can be more vulnerable than she’s ever been in person. Soon “Catherine” and Reid strike up a digital pen-pal-ship…but Millie can’t resist temptation in real life, either. Soon, Millie will have to face her worst fear—intimacy—or risk losing her best friend, forever.

AMUSING.

What a quick, cute, simple read. I’ve had this one sitting on my TBR stack for awhile and in interest of clearing out some of those books picked up an audio version from my library to read it (which I highly recommend, I enjoyed the audio book!).

One of the things I loved was that there was a guy’s perspective in this book. We got to see the story from Reid’s point-of-view and I felt that help me understand him and Millie more. Millie’s group of friends were funny, a bit ridiculous, and caring all rolled together. I laughed at their text/IM interactions and the amusing charade of everyone using a dating site together.

I didn’t know how I was going to feel about Half-Night Stand starting off with a half-night. I’m not a fan of too steamy books and these scenes were definitely a bit much for me. While that bothered me a bit, it didn’t take away from the story and especially the clear chemistry between Reid and Millie. I actually really liked this friends to lovers trope and how the catfishing issue worked out too. I wasn’t sure what to expect because I’m not a fan of lying online like that (who is?), but I thought it allowed for some great character development in Millie. She went to him, honestly apologized, and was able to have a constructive conversation about her inability to let other people in. It made me appreciate her character all the more.

The setting was perfect. I love the idea of professor friends hanging out and the older ages of the group (late 20’s, early 30’s). All-in-all this was a great Christina Lauren pick and I’m enjoying slowly going through their backlist, while keeping up with their new releases.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: some strong throughout
  • Romance: kisses/make-outs; three very detailed/explicit love scenes
  • Trigger warnings: loss of a parent at a young age, coping with a parent with dementia

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