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ARC Book Review: The Gentleman’s Confession (Matchmaking Mamas #3) by Anneka R. Walker

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Historical Romance
Length: 288 pages
Author: Anneka R. Walker
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Release Date: October 22nd, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Inexperienced in love, Jemma seeks help from her best friend, Miles, unaware that he has secretly loved her for years.

Brookeside, England, 1822

Jemma Fielding has always considered herself an independent woman, but to honor her beloved grandmother’s dying wish, she makes a promise that she will marry and fall in love. To fulfill her promise, she turns to the Matchmaking Mamas Society for assistance and is paired with the charming Mr. Bentley. Though he is everything Jemma could hope for in a match, she is clueless about how to win his heart. Desperate to make a good impression, she seeks guidance from her dearest friend, Miles Jackson, a humble rector with a talent for understanding matters of the heart.

However, Miles’s secret affection for Jemma has spanned years, and teaching her to love someone else threatens to betray his own heart. Trapped by his own selfless nature, Miles fears he will never be more than a humble rector in her eyes.

Even as he gives Jemma lessons in love, Miles grapples with the challenge of convincing her that Mr. Bentley may be a perfect gentleman but he is not the perfect match for her. Will Miles’s advice in romance jeopardize their years of friendship, or will it reveal the attraction that has quietly blossomed between them, proving that this time, the Matchmaking Mamas may have made a mistake? Miles must decide if he’s brave enough to confess his feelings to Jemma before she is whisked away forever.

Thank you Shadow Mountain for the ARC.

I’M TRYING.

I have realized that friends to lovers is a trope I struggle to get on board with and this unfortunately became another case with reading this book. I thought the writing was just fine and I did like the characters, I didn’t love the plot choices though.

There was too much focus on Miles and the girl that everyone thought he was supposed to be with even if there wasn’t any legs for that plot line to stand on. I was tired of hearing about Lisette and how forceful Jemma and others were about the situation. I didn’t mind the dating lessons and thought those provided good opportunity for some closeness.

I’m not going to keep going on here, this one wasn’t for me, and that’s okay.

Overall audience notes:

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

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ARC Book Review: Home Run Heart by Hailey Gardiner

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Sports Romance
Length: 300 pages
Author: Hailey Gardiner
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: October 23rd, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

There have only ever been two things that Brooks Alden can say he truly baseball and Nora Foster, the girl he dated in high school.

Returning home in the off-season gives Brooks an opportunity he never thought he’d get a second chance encounter with a now-divorced Nora. Suddenly, the hometown he’s avoided for so long becomes a place to make new memories together. They make a bargain that entails spending five Fridays sharing new experiences in the hopes that Brooks will discover that there’s more to life than baseball, while also helping Nora cope with the resulting grief of her divorce and the demands of single motherhood.

In this second chance, sweet romantic comedy, Brooks and Nora must find the courage to discover what makes them happy and learn what it feels like to have their hearts hit a home run.

Home Run Heart is a closed-door, second chance, sweet baseball romance that delivers on all the swoon without the spice. Books in the Kitt’s Harbor series are stand-alone novels but might be best enjoyed if read in order.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

IN LOVE.

You know what really makes me smitten? Second chance romances written like this. Good heavens y’all. IT WAS SO GOOD. What I loved most, is that this story was low on the drama and high on the romance. Don’t get me wrong, sometimes I’m in the mood for drama, but what I crave other times is a slow, steady, soft and tender romance. If you need the soft and sweet right now, READ THIS BOOK.

I adored Brooks and Nora (hello dual POV, I love you). I loved the focus on therapy and working through past trauma and high pressure life styles and learning to balance what needs to be done and what you can do for yourself. There were many deep conversations and I am always looking for true communication and I liked seeing those moments between Brooks and Nora. And also, Ollie?? He was so precious!! And let it be known I was a puddle on the ground anytime he and Brooks interacted. PUDDLE.

This is a very fast paced read and will absolutely suck you in. I am now demanding that more closed door baseball romances because this is a niche I didn’t know I needed. I am such a fan girl of Hailey Gardiner’s writing and story telling abilities. Do not skip out on her books.

Overall audience notes:

  • Sports romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Content Warnings: emotionally abusive father, divorce and infidelity (recounted)

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Book Review: We Three Kings by Kristen Bailey

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Holiday Romance
Length: 346 pages
Author: Kristen Bailey
Publisher: Storm Publishing
Release Date: October 14th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Maggie Field was looking forward to a solo Christmas in her cosy London flat – before her three workmates decided to liven things up for her.

Maggie loves her job as head of IT at a financial firm, and her three geeky but lovable work buddies. And when they invite her to stay with each of them for the holidays, she can’t resist the chance to get to know them better.

But then her boss tells her she has to make one of her beloved team redundant, and Maggie is distraught. Frank’s work is his world, Jasper’s sarcastic humour is everything, and Leo…well, he’s talented, professional, confusingly attractive, dependable, and funny… Maggie definitely doesn’t want to lose him.

With her career and her heart on the line, Maggie sets off on the Christmas adventure of a lifetime, from playing fake girlfriend at a lavish wedding, to rescuing baby foxes on a posh country estate, to chasing a very confused donkey on Christmas Day in the Lake District. She can’t ignore the sparks between her and Leo – but she also can’t avoid her dilemma.

Can she find a way to keep her work family together, and maybe even find true love under the mistletoe?

A hilarious and heartfelt celebration of friendship, workplace romance, and finding where you belong. Perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Beth O’Leary, this festive rom-com will have you laughing, crying, and reaching for the mince pies.

Thank you Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for the audiobook.

UNEXPECTED.

I went into this very blind, only knowing that I liked Bailey’s Christmas romance last year. I did like the audiobook narration for this one and found it to be an easy listen. This was a bit more fiction than I was expecting but I think the heart of this story was wonderful and this was a genuinely kind book.

Maggie Field was adorable and sweet and I loved her character. And her found family work friends were the perfect group to follow around for the holidays. I loved the laugh inducing antics and the quiet, bond forming moments too. It’s a heartfelt read that was full of festive cheer. I actually really liked the way the ending came together and it was a bit of joy in my day to finish this one.

Overall audience notes:

  • Holiday Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door

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Book Review: Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11) by Robert Jordan

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 860 pages
Author: Robert Jordan
Publisher: Tor
Release Date: December 1st, 2006
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The dead are walking, men die impossible deaths, and it seems as though reality itself has become unstable: All are signs of the imminence of Tarmon Gai’don, the Last Battle, when Rand al’Thor, the Dragon Reborn, must confront the Dark One as humanity’s only hope. But Rand dares not fight until he possesses all the surviving seals on the Dark One’s prison and has dealt with the Seanchan, who threaten to overrun all nations this side of the Aryth Ocean and increasingly seem too entrenched to be fought off. But his attempt to make a truce with the Seanchan is shadowed by treachery that may cost him everything. Whatever the price, though, he must have that truce. And he faces other dangers.

The winds of time have become a storm, and things that everyone believes are fixed in place forever are changing before their eyes. Even the White Tower itself is no longer a place of safety. Now Rand, Perrin and Mat, Egwene and Elayne, Nynaeve and Lan, and even Loial, must ride those storm winds, or the Dark One will triumph.

I MADE IT.

I seriously have only been reading this series purely to cross off all of Sanderson’s book and HALLELUJAH I have made it. I just don’t think Robert Jordan’s writing style and fantasy composition is for me (and that’s okay).

While the story progressed and it was better than the previous installments I still wasn’t enamored. A lot of the time I spend wondering how much of this information is actually pertinent? And when I go an read a summarized version after to make sure I’ve caught everything I need to, I remember that stuff! So the rest…is a lot of unnecessary hoopla.

And there’s not a lot I can say that won’t be spoilery so, moving on. I’ve read it. It was fine and I can’t wait to finish this series now.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: high

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