Tag: contemporary romance

Book Review: The Embers That Remain (Flint Hills #2) by Jordan Abitz

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 410 pages
Author: Jordan Abitz
Publisher: CJ Walker Publishing
Release Date: October 15th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

What if the love of your life never betrayed you?

Cali Walton never expected the town she left behind to become her only option. But when her grandfather’s failing health calls her home, the nurse practitioner puts her career on hold and returns with her teenage son in tow. Nothing prepares her for coming face-to-face with Lane Massey, her first love, her son’s new football coach, and the man she believes betrayed her fifteen years ago.

Lane Massey walked away from the spotlight and pressure of professional sports to return home, where he now coaches young athletes and gives back to the community that raised him. But Cali’s return rekindles a longing he thought he’d buried long ago. Caught between old wounds, hidden truths, and a father determined to maintain control, Lane must confront the past and decide what—and who—he is willing to fight for.

Fifteen years ago, they lost each other. Now they must decide if the embers of their first love are strong enough to burn again—and whether they’re brave enough to stay.

The Embers That Remain is a small-town romance about forgiveness, second chances, and the selfless love that reminds us where we truly belong.

Thank you to Love Notes PR and the author for an eARC.

LOOOOOOVED.

Oh this book had me in the FEEEEELS.

I love the way Abitz crafts her stories. There’s trauma and deep cuts that don’t feel like they overwhelm the story. It’s a part of these characters lives and are spoken about with care and consideration and the raw nature of having to move through the world with these weights on your shoulders. I got misty eyed a few times reading about the way Lane would take care of Cali. To carry the burden for just a bit. It’s love on another level.

There’s so many pieces in here I want to touch on and I know I’m going to accidentally forget too many. I loved Cali’s relationship with her son. I loved the way they took care of her grandfather and the care and compassion that went into many of those moments. And I’m in love with Cali and Lane on their own. I love when characters are solid as standalones and together. The tension and yearning for Lane was coming off of him in ways and I am always here for that vibe.

Being back in this small town was wonderful. I love this found family and the hints towards future books has me so excited to read those stories too. BUT GIVE ME MORE KISSING OKAY?

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: mild+
  • Content warnings: a grandparent with Alzheimer’s, physical assault, domestic abuse, financial abuse

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

Book Review: Soul Searching (Sweetwater Peak #1) by Lyla Sage

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary / Paranormal Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Lyla Sage
Publisher: Dial Press
Release Date: September 30th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Home is where the heart is—and this one is haunted.

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Rebel Blue Ranch series returns with a brand-new story, featuring a small-town upholsterer in need of a fresh start, a photographer whose life has come to a screeching halt . . . and the supernatural forces that bring them together.

Collins Cartwright does not want to go home. Sweetwater Peak, Wyoming, was supposed to be in her rearview mirror, but when she finds out a developer is trying to buy her parents’ antique shop out from under them, she doesn’t have a choice—at least, that’s what she tells her family. They don’t need to know she’s lost her job and is out of money. Or that the ghosts that have always been her companions have recently gone silent.

But just because she’s returned home doesn’t mean she has to stay with her parents or crash on her twin sister’s couch. Lucky for her, the new-to-town upholsterer has a room for rent above his store. Unluckily, it is absolutely crawling with more ghosts who are freezing her out. And Collins hates being ignored.

Brady Cooper is absolutely and totally fine. Seriously, there’s no secret reason why he decided to uproot his life and suddenly move to Sweetwater Peak. He just needed a change of pace. At least, that’s what he tells himself. And everyone else.

When he agrees to let the elusive Collins Cartwright stay in his spare room, he doesn’t know that she’s absolutely bonkers—constantly talking to herself and having conversations with no one—or that she looked like that. But as they begin to get closer, the lines between them start to blur, leaving both of them—and the ghosts that have been pushing them together—wondering whether or not their temporary arrangement could be something more permanent.

KIND OF A LET DOWN.

I’m a big fan of Lyla Sage’s cowboy romances and I’ve been looking forward to this book. Buuut, I don’t know y’all, it was missing something.

The audiobook was DUET though so I still highly recommend that format if you want to try it!! I love duet narration and that was great.

Overall, I just never FELT the romantic chemistry between Collins and Brady. Maybe a few scenes in the second half but all together? Meh. It’s a pretty good slow burn and doesn’t sprint to the spice which I do appreciate.

All of the paranormal moments were woven in well? But yet? Once again, I wasn’t charmed. I’m not always charmed by paranormal romances and this fell into that category. I’ll try the next book to see if the future installments work better.

Overall audience notes:

  • Paranormal romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 3-4ish open door
  • Violence: low

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

ARC Book Review: Once, Again, Always by Amanda Gayle

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Amanda Gayle
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: October 6th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A second-chance romance following a young woman who wakes up in the hospital with no memory of the past six years, only to find that she apparently married the one man she can’t stand—her arrogant and infuriating former boarding school rival.

Molly Graham’s day can’t possibly get any worse after she wakes up in a hospital bed with a head injury and amnesia. But then Aster Bishop—the Aster Bishop who made her life hell at boarding school—storms into her room calling her his wife.

To Molly’s shock, in the six years she no longer recalls, she somehow fell in love with a man she once despised. Persuaded by her lifelong friends to give her new reality a chance, she reluctantly returns to the home she and Aster share to try and piece together her life.

So much has changed, not least the considerate and devastatingly handsome man who spends every night sleeping on the sofa to avoid making her uncomfortable. This Aster is nothing like the entitled boy she once knew. Their chemistry is undeniable, but he’s distant with her, infuriatingly so. It’s clear he has secrets, and Molly can’t stand it. Especially knowing that she might never regain her memories.

That she fell in love with Aster Bishop once is hard enough to believe. But to fall in love again? To promise a future, always, when she can’t remember her past? It feels impossible when faced with a man she hardly knows and isn’t sure she can trust.

And yet…

Thank you Avon Books for the eARC.

DOWN BAD.

Oh wow. I miss binging books??! This one had me in a straight chokehold for 24 hours and I regret nothing. I was LOCKED IN. And I’m not even an amnesia girlie?? What kind of magic was sprinkled into this story because I want mooooore.

I’m kind of sort of obsessed with Aster Bishop. I liked that he didn’t call every decision perfectly. He and Molly had to find a lot of new communication routes in an impossible situation. The miscommunication actually made sense and even though it’s pretty easy to assume (as the reader) what the big secret was, I still enjoyed the journey to get there and how I had to keep turning pages to get there.

I LOVED all of the the friendships. Every side character was a gemmmmmm. A GEM. And I liked learning more about them and their relationship to Molly and Aster. The little flashback moments worked well too and added historical context to the romance.

Aster was down bad. As he SHOULD BE. The yearning and longing was evident. THE YEARNING. Off the charts. 10/10.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: mild-moderate
  • Romance: light innuendo; one more emotions based open door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content warnings: amnesia related to a stroke, miscarriage (briefly recounted)

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph

ARC/ALC Book Review: Guard My Heart by Sabrina Fedel

GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Sports Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Sabrina Fedel
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Release Date: October 13th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A girl who dreams of being a D1 ice hockey goalie meets a hot hockey player who offers a deal to boost her skills in this young adult hockey romance!

Hit me with your best shot . . .

RYLEIGH VENTO has one goal—literally. She dreams of becoming an all-star goalie on a Division 1 women’s ice hockey team. Senior year is her last shot, and she can’t afford distractions. Not injuries. Not family drama. And definitely not a relationship.

Enter Jett Robitaille, the school’s new hockey god. He wants Ryleigh to be his fake girlfriend to make another girl—Ryleigh’s nemesis—jealous. Ryleigh’s answer? To block his goal. Until Jett ups the stakes: He’ll train her, push her, and use his own skills to help her become the best goalie in the league. As the season heats up, Ryleigh has to decide if letting Jett in will make her stronger—or throw her completely off her game. Because sometimes the hardest save isn’t on the ice . . . it’s guarding your heart.

Thank you to Get Underlined and PRH Audio for the gifted copies.

CUTE YA.

This is one of those books that didn’t quite HIT for me but I can absolutely see the merits for the true young adult audience. The characters felt realistic to their age and regards to thought processes and actions, while also not having excess language or anything more than kisses. It’s a sweet young adult hockey romance with some fake dating.

I did love that the FMC is a player too!! And a goalie. Loved this so much. Having both of the leads be athletes was a good dynamic for the story. I liked the banter and that you could see the friendship turn into more. I liked the themes of never knowing what someone is going through and how being kind is key. Both of the MC’s are carrying things that are hard for an adult, even more so for a teen. There’s a pretty classic third act break up that goes back to my first paragraph about this fitting better for a younger audience and that’s okay haha.

🎧: I liked the narrator for the audiobook. Sometimes Jett’s voice wasn’t great and he sounded younger than 17, but otherwise it was fine! I did about 3/4 as audio and it’s a solid format choice for reading Guard My Heart.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Sports Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Content warnings: loss of a parent from cancer (recounted), a parent who is in remission from cancer

Instagram || Goodreads || The StoryGraph