Tag: indie author

ARC Book Review: Rebel Season (Hockey Boys of Loft 3B #3) by Katie Bailey and Leah Brunner

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Sports Romance
Length: 324 pages
Author: Katie Bailey & Leah Brunner
Publisher: Self published
Release Date: August 27th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

He wants to prove he’s more than a pretty face with a trust fund…

NHL rookie Archibald Fisher is wealthy, handsome, and appears to live a charmed life without a care in the world.

But behind closed doors, Fisher’s pretentious family treats him like a liability. A problem to fix rather than a person. And when his granddad passes away, he’s given an ultimatum: Get married, or say goodbye to every penny of his inheritance.

His family thinks it’s a foolproof plan to control their rebellious youngest son…but they clearly don’t know him very well.

…She’s fighting to save everything she loves

Lila Chen practically grew up in San Francisco’s historic firehouse turned art collective. Her fellow artists are like family to her, especially since her mom passed away.

So when she discovers the firehouse is going to be destroyed by Fisher Group, Lila is desperate to save the only home she has left. But after multiple dead-end attempts, she’s running out of hope.

Until Archibald Fisher shows up with a proposal she can’t refuse…

Their marriage was meant to be on paper only, until real feelings creep in. But new love is fragile, and between Lila’s secrets and threats from the Fisher family, there might be no way to stop it from shattering…

(This is a new adult hockey romance with moderate language, frequent innuendo, and references to sex. Though the romance fades to black, there are themes of grief and emotional/verbal abuse. If you are sensitive to these subjects, please use this content warning to make an informed decision before reading this book.)

Thank you Leah Brunner for the eARC.

Y’ALL KNOW I LOVED THIS.

Marriage of convenience is my kryptonite and I am down bad. JUST LIKE FISHER. I was obsessed with this book from the get go and it did not let up on the swoon and banter and chemistry and all the things.

I loved the way Fisher and Lila met. I loved every single interaction. I loved them on their own. I just ate up all of the moments together. What really makes for my favorite romances are when I feel like every scene serves the romance. AND SERVE IT DID. And Fisher and Lila stood strongly on their own which only made me love their arcs too.

And of course I loved seeing the previous couples too. This mish-mashed found family and how well they take care of each other in endearing and HILARIOUS and New Girl coded in all the best ways.

There’s plenty of hockey content, a lot of good conversations about privilege and grief, beautiful paintings that I wish I could see in real life and more. It is so hard to pick a favorite from this series because I love them all but this might have squeaked out on top.

Overall audience notes:

  • NA Sports romance
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Violence: mild
  • Content warnings: loss of a parent (recounted but brought up throughout), toxic family relationships, emotional abuse

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Book Review: The Silversmith (The Selvaren #1) by LJ Claren

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Rating: ★★★.5
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 480 pages
Author: LJ Claren
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: July 13th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Power is awakening. Love is a liability.

And the fate of the world rests in the hands of a grieving girl who never asked to be chosen.

Still reeling from the deaths of her father and brother, Ary Gold survives only by sheer will in the icy wilds of the North. But when friends arrive with stories of long-lost magic and a power buried in her newly discovered royal blood, Ary is thrust into a fate far larger than her sorrow.

The realm of Nyrida is under threat. An ancient shadow wielder is determined to claim Ary’s power and plunge the world into corrupted darkness. To stop him, Ary must marry the commander she’s been promised to—a man whose army could help them win the war—and train to fight alongside him.

But her fiercest challenge may not be on the battlefield.

Assigned to shape her into a warrior is a man cloaked in violence and secrets. Cold, commanding, and maddeningly unreadable, he isn’t her betrothed… but he may be her undoing. As sparks fly and loyalties are tested, Ary must decide whether to follow the path laid out for her—or risk everything for a love as wild and dangerous as the power awakening inside her.

WELL THAT WAS…SOMETHING.

I read this with a group of friends and I’m glad I did because this felt like pure chaos that I had to dissect with multiple people at once.

There were more good than bad moments. I liked the concept and bones and the reveals were handled [mostly] well. I felt like I kept learning more and more at just the right moments that did keep me wanting to read.

And while I looove a possessive grumpy alphahole type of love interest, the MMC was a bit…much? I don’t know. The way he was written came across as trying too hard and some of it honestly felt a little icky too. There were great moments woven in, but that was my overall impression.

A crucial moment was created by an idiotic decision from the FMC that made me want to throw my kindle across the room. Which left me feeling in the middle about most of this book. I don’t know if I’ll read book two? I’ll wait to see some reviews.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 1-2ish open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: attempted sexual assault, animal death

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Book Review: Love’s Racing Line by Hope Snyder

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Rating: ★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 482 pages
Author: Hope Snyder
Publisher: Sunny Laurel Books
Release Date: September 12th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Can their love find a racing line or will it crash into the barriers?

Formula One—the high-octane world of fast cars, globetrotting races, and wildly handsome drivers—is Jacqueline Martin’s favorite escape. As a waitress in Monaco, the best weekend of the year is when the Grand Prix takes over the very streets she walks to work and she’s immersed in a world blissfully removed from her everyday life.

But worlds come crashing together when Formula One driver Antonio Avari takes a seat at her table, looks her in the eye, and tells her she’s the most beautiful woman in the world. He’s earnest and engaging, igniting instant chemistry. But her dad has made her swear to never date an athlete and her mother’s sky-high anxiety surrounding cars and racing after a horrific car accident means a man like Antonio could never be an option.

A year later, Jacqueline gets deja-vu and fresh butterflies when Antonio returns to take a seat at her table, this time with a plan to win her over. He offers her a bet—one date if he qualifies well for the Monaco Grand Prix.

Intrigued, Jacqueline can’t say no. Her only condition? Complete secrecy.

But as one private date turns into more, with a growing realization of something unique and promising between them, can their love find a racing line or will it crash into the barriers?

Love’s Racing Line is a closed-door Formula One romance with a dramatic love story ending in happily-ever-after and a swirl of suspense.

OH WHERE DO I BEGIN.

I am convinced I must have read a different book than the other reviews I’ve seen for this one y’all. Big yikes. Poor intro into the F1 world and something should absolutely recommend a different racing romance for me.

Anyways, my main issue stems around the fact that the entire plot centers on the FMC lying to everyone in her life about one thing or another. She won’t tell her parents everything, or the love interest, or her friends, or those she works with. It’s relentless and went on for way too long. I’m not convinced of the FMC’s character arc whatsoever.

She also treated Antonio pretty poorly. Ghosting him? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I hate stupid miscommunication.

The “suspense”? Did not fit the plot, get rid of it.

Antonio was kind of a punk too? The communication did not feel natural. Heavy on the insta-love too.

All of the breaks for F1 story time? Not needed either. Why was this book almost 500 pages?

The dress maker x restaurant plot points? Once again, could have done with a better organization of these. The Bill thing just made me roll my eyes.

Those were the big red flags for me. The hate reader in me came out about 35% in and I had to see what nonsense this was going to throw out on me.

Will I read another by this author? I don’t know.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: mild
  • Content warnings: brief gun violence, a parent with severe anxiety

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ALC Book Review: Autumn On My Mind (Falling for Autumn) by Gracie Ruth Mitchell

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 378 pages
Author: Gracie Ruth Mitchell
Publisher: Self published
Release Date: August 19th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

What happens when two exes find out their parents are dating?

When Reese and Dominic secretly dated and then broke up years ago, they knew they’d have to see each other again. They were from the same small town of Autumn Ridge, Vermont. Their families still lived there. It was inevitable.

What Reese didn’t expect was to see Dominic across the table from her, being introduced as the son of her mother’s latest boyfriend.

Dom and Reese can be exes. They can be neighbors. They could even maybe someday be friends. What they cannot be is siblings.

But Reese’s mother has her eyes on the prize, and she’s not walking away without a ring on her finger. So even though part of Reese’s heart still hurts from the past they share, she and Dominic agree to team up and separate their parents.

Spying? A necessity. Sneaking around? Obviously. And sabotage? Well…never say never.

But the further apart they attempt to push their parents, the closer Reese and Dom get—until the lines between past and present begin to blur, and they find themselves with the stickiest conundrum of owning the truth of what really happened between them…and deciding if their love deserves a second chance.

Thank you to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC.

PRETTY CUTE.

The second book I have happened to read in this series and it was a sweet read too! I am seriously in love with the setting. Maybe I’m desperately craving all things fall and small town right now (as I’m sitting here in 100+ degree weather with a massive highway under construction nearby BUT ANYWAYS).

I adored the audiobook! You can’t go wrong with it. It’s only about nine hours and flies by. She did a fantastic job with the narration for Reese.

I’m not sure I ever fell in love with the larger plot of Dominic and Reese trying to break up their parents dating. It wasn’t a bad concept perse, it just didn’t work for me? I think the focus kept tilting to what the parents were doing and I wanted more of the focus back on the Dom & Reese. They did have some great moments together and I loved the tender touches and glances and realizing that they both weren’t quite over each other. I did enjoy having the flashback chapters because that gave needed context to the present storyline.

There’s some shenanigans and quirky humor I have come to love from Gracie Ruth Mitchell. I do think these two were a match and I liked seeing them fall in love [again and again].

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: none
  • Content warnings: loss of a parent (recounted)

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