Tag: laura langa

ARC Book Review: Marriage is a Shore Thing (Wilks Beach #2) by Laura Langa

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 280 pages
Author: Laura Langa
Publisher: West East Publishing
Release Date: October 10th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’s tough. He’s golden. One dare later, they’re hitched.

I’ve sworn off love, so accidentally marrying a stranger after a friendly game of Truth or Dare? Worst. Case. Scenario. Never mind that Evander Young is a brilliant ER doctor with a dimpled smile that makes my heart race.

News of our nuptials spreads through my small beach town like wildfire—only everyone thinks it’s real after a long-distance romance. With my mom ecstatic that her grumpy, boxing-instructor daughter has finally found love, it looks like we’re stuck playing house—at least for now.

The thing is, happily-ever-afters aren’t for people who avoid feelings like they’re a knockout punch. But Van’s golden-retriever energy keeps chipping at my well-forged armor, and the sizzling chemistry between us? Definitely not fake.

When a family heirloom goes missing, Van and I team up for a midnight heist—sneaking through shadows, racing against time, and dodging a few close calls. Turns out, the real risk isn’t the heist—it’s falling for my accidental husband.

Enjoy the playful banter and sizzling tension of this accidental marriage, black cat/golden retriever, small beach town, closed-door/kisses-only romance by grabbing your copy TODAY!

SWOONY.

Accidental marriage romances are so fun. And I think this handled insta-attraction + slow burn well. I thought that it was paced well (maybe a little fast) but that I genuinely started to love Van and Gen together. I’m apparently super into black cat x golden retriever romances and highly recommend you go try one too!! [aka this one because while it’s second in a series it can be read easily as a standalone!]

There’s just the right amount of small town shenanigans and I especially loved Gen’s tight friend group and the continual support that flowed from that corner. Van wove himself deeply into the Wilks beach community and I was smitten with him myself. I loved the heated kisses and the key quiet moments where their relationship was truly strengthened.

Looking forward to the next book!

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Content warnings: mentions of absent father, losing a sister to an aneurism (off page but recounted, grief depictions)

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ARC Book Review: Seas the Dating Coach (Wilks Beach #1) by Laura Langa

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Rating: ★★★★.25
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 300 pages
Author: Laura Langa
Publisher: West East Publishing
Release Date: June 6th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Seizing the day is great—but snagging a dating coach is better.

All I wanted was to finally say hi to my longtime crush. Instead, I slipped on a puddle of coffee and landed in the arms of Finn Reynolds—the infuriatingly charming newcomer in town. When I tried again, I got utterly tongue-tied. Now I’m blushing, flustered, and somehow caught in Finn’s ridiculous proposition.

With plans to become our library’s next director, Finn has one major winning over the standoffish locals. If I agree to shift popular opinion in his favor, he’ll become my personal dating coach. I’m more fluent in fictional dukes than real-life flirting, but I’m also ready to step out of my shell.

As we navigate trial dates along the seaside and late-night pep talks, I start to feel more confident—more myself. And the way Finn looks at me? It’s impossible to ignore the sparks between us—or how sizzling those practice kisses are.

But Finn’s hiding a big secret—one that doesn’t stay buried for long. And the truth turns out to be a plot twist I definitely didn’t see coming.

Enjoy the playful banter and sizzling kisses of this dating coach, secret identity, small beach town, closed-door/kisses-only romance by grabbing your copy TODAY!

Seas the Dating Coach is the first book in the Wilks Beach Series, but can be read as a standalone.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

A SWEET READ.

For someone who is hit/miss on the dating coach trope I enjoyed this book a lot! I thought the banter and flirting were great and let me tell y’all, there were so many kissing scenes??? I love a a good heated kissing scene.

The relationship dynamics between Finn and Vivian were wonderful. I loved that they pushed each other to step outside comfort zones, lean on each other and find that strong bond of trust. I absolutely think these two have a HEA that surpasses the end of this book. There were multiple sweet and tender moments that made my heart squeeze.

I also really appreciated how the third act was handled as well as some of the background reveals between characters. Things could have easily gone sideways and blessed be, they did not. I love when characters communicate and trust the person they have gotten to know to explain themselves first before jumping to conclusions.

Laura Langa continues to deliver fantastic closed door romances.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Content warnings: a manipulative father

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ARC Book Review: Holiday Tides (A Wilks Beach Holiday Novella) by Laura Langa

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Holiday Contemporary Romance Novella
Length: 143 pages
Author: Laura Langa
Publisher: West East Publishing
Release Date: October 15th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Don’t get caught kissing Surfing Santa beneath the mistletoe.

Returning to her small beach town, Summer Owens finds herself living next to her former rival, Nick Watson, the renovation foreman who’s as handy as he is irresistible in his custom Santa-red wetsuit. But Summer isn’t falling for Nick’s charm, remembering how he once made her life miserable.

Determined to prove he’s changed, Nick jumps at every chance to fix the things that keep falling apart in her historic cottage—and maybe in her heart too. But nothing can happen under the mistletoe until Summer realizes that her current boyfriend is all wrong for her.

As they enjoy the town’s tree lighting ceremony, holiday parties, and a spirited karaoke competition, the sizzling tension grows. With Christmas approaching, Summer must decide between the wrong man in her life and the one who’s been right next door all along.

Enjoy the playful banter, sizzling kisses, and all the Christmas feels of this he falls first, small beach town, closed-door/kisses-only holiday novella by grabbing your copy TODAY!
Holiday Tides is a standalone novella that shares characters with the Wilks Beach novels.

Thank you Laura Langa for the gifted eARC.

JUST RIGHT.

You know what hits well? A perfectly crafted holiday novella. I love reading novellas during the holidays because when so much is usually going on moving through a quick romance brings a smile to my face. I adored this story.

I thought there was just the right amount of background information provided to really set the scene for the romance and that both characters were easy to love and clearly had a lot of great chemistry and banter together. The beachside small town holiday goodness was in abundance and made me crave all things winter.

Overall audience notes:

  • Holiday Romance Novella
  • Language: low
  • Romance: make-outs
  • Violence: low
  • Content Warnings: cheating (not between the main characters), mentions of loss of loved ones

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Book Review: Date the Alphabet (Love Tucson #2) by Laura Langa

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 315 pages
Author: Laura Langa
Publisher: West East Publishing
Release Date: July 24th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Fake date to win four thousand dollars for charity? You bet.

Going on twenty-six first dates—one for each letter of the alphabet—is a ludicrous proposition. Especially since Ann Powell doesn’t date. AT ALL. But if Ann takes her sister’s bet, she’ll win four thousand dollars to donate to a cause close to her heart—underfunded classrooms.

Audiobook narrator Zane West has been struggling to hide his crush on his daughter’s third grade teacher for months. So when Ann asks him—in a moment of dating-app misery—to be her fake date to her sister’s wedding, the only answer is yes.

Pretending to be the cheerful, handsome, single father’s girlfriend isn’t only fun, it’s feeling dangerously real. And as much as they need to sell their fake relationship to her family, no one else can know. Dating the parent of one of your students is definitely off-limits.

Zane only falls harder for Ann through each piano karaoke session, sabotaged hike, and unexpected javelina encounter. Just as she begins to let him in, reality pulverizes their blissful bubble. An honest relationship with Ann is all Zane wants, but now he might be forced to let her go.

OH SO SWEET.

This book owned me for an evening and I adored it so much. I love how much Zane was gone for Ann from the moment he saw her. And that it didn’t feel like instant love either!! Langa wrote a beautiful soul mate vibe that I was here for.

I loved the subtle side pieces like Zane being on good terms with his ex-wife and co-parenting. I feel we often see the bad sides in books and I loved getting a positive take on a relationship that was no longer beneficial to either party but were both still their to take care of their child.

Ann and Zane had all the chemistry and the closed door steam? YES PLEASE. This is my favorite zone to be in and I really appreciated how well written this was. It’s a quick audiobook and this is a closed door author you shouldn’t be sleeping on!

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: closed door

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