Tag: romance

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#BookReview: A Brief Fleeting Almost Impossible Gift by Karaya Vega

Fault In Our Stars Meets Meet Joe Black Meets Twilight. This is one of those sad romance novels – and yes, it does meet every known RNA/ RWA “requirement” for romance novels – that specifically because it *is* so heavy is actually that much better for it. This isn’t a feel good beach read. At all. This book is going to haunt you in some of the best possible ways – but it is going to have quite a few very dusty rooms throughout. It is a powerful romance of its form, and it has that tinge of the paranormal that humanity has always wrestled with in these points of our lives.

It is almost as much character story as romance, and that is where the real depth comes in. It asks a lot of the questions that are seemingly common at this point, particularly when you are so young. Which I happen to have a degree of experience with these last several months, as my wife had a Widowmaker type heart attack at just 43yo almost a year ago as I write this review, survived (because she was literally 3 miles from Advent Celebration hospital just outside the gates of Walt Disney World near Animal Kingdom), and now less than a month ago had a quadruple bypass surgery. Indeed, that surgery is the reason this review has been so delayed and the reason I fell about a month behind on reviews generally, though this review marks the beginning of the final phase of me catching up on them – this and two other books came in after I knew the surgery was coming, and all three authors knew up front the review would be delayed. So while I’m not dying myself (not any more than everyone is all the time, at least), I’ve been quite close to these questions from the side of the “significant other” and know all too well this side of that. Which I know is something far too many will identify all too well with, either from the characters’ perspectives here or from my own.

For those that can withstand or even appreciate the weight of this tale, it really is one of the better books I’ve read this year – and this was the 75th book I’ve read so far in 2026. Even without looking back, I can tell you that this book is right up there in the top third of those at minimum, *perhaps* as high as Top 10 or even higher. It really is that good – but it is absolutely one that you need to be in a mental place to be able to withstand its weight to fully appreciate, and I understand all too well that not all readers are in such a space at all times. I would still recommend picking this book up for when you *are* in such a space, because even if you’re one of those left behind by someone like these characters, it really can bring a degree of catharsis when you’re in the space to be able to accept it.

For me, the absolute best romance novels are not the bubblegum or even Hallmarkie ones. Don’t get me wrong, those are good for what they are, but they’re the safety blanket or the candy. They’re designed to be safe at worst and even fun and enticing at best, and they are awesome. Needed, even. But the best, most powerful romances for me will always be the ones where death is imminent – and love is chosen anyway. Whether that be a Without Remorse by Tom Clancy, where John Kelly becomes one of the most sadistic, brutal murderers you can think of specifically because he is going after the people who killed the woman he fell in love with while leaving him for dead himself, or a Nicholas Sparks tragic romance or, yes, a Shakespearean romance (no, not Romeo and Juliet, where teens were being overreactive teens and if they had just slowed down and thought things out, virtually none of the tragic elements there would have happened). Or even a Pearl Harbor (the 2001 Michael Bay movie) or even (and I’m really going to piss even more people off with this one that perhaps any of them yet!) the Star Wars prequel movies and how Anakin Skywalker becomes Darth Vader *specifically because he is trying to protect the woman he loves*. This is *that* type of romance, romance knowing death is absolutely imminent, and it is so much more powerful because of it.

Very much recommended.

This review of A Brief Fleeting Almost Impossible Gift by Karaya Vega was originally written on May 23, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Shippers by Katherine Center

Another Solid Katherine Center Romance. If you’re already a fan of Center – and clearly she has many, as evidenced by nearly 5K reviews of this book on Goodreads on release day -, know that this is her typical excellent storytelling, this time set on a cruise ship more than her more typical Galveston area setting. (Though it *does* start there.) If you’ve somehow never read a Katherine Center romance, this is a pretty good introduction to her overall style. you’re going to laugh. Your heartstrings are going to be pulled without necessarily moving into dusty room territory. You’re going to have more eggnog/ horchata level spice where sex is mentioned, but generally happens off screen and where about the spiciest it gets on screen is some intense kissing and maybe changing clothes while the other person’s back is turned. Yes, there will always be some level of drama, and yes, there will always be some level of family tale as well, and Center uses these well to provide a degree of depth of flavor to the tale beyond the bubblegum label. Call it something around the lines of a good sit down meal at your favorite chain restaurant. Fairly standard stuff, but tastes good and you enjoy it and you know what to expect nearly every time with nearly every bite. Perfectly safe, perfectly tame, perfectly designed for mass appeal. Which clearly is working quite well for her and her fans.

The cruise setting here is something I actually have a degree of experience with, having sailed with Carnival for over 150 days over the last nearly 20 years, and Center does a solid job of both showing the beauty of cruising while also taking a decent amount of creative license when her story needs her to. So yes, elements of this tale will ring all too true, though revealing which ones would dive into spoiler territory. Others are more fantastical, but work well within the story being told.

For those looking for a solid, safe romance that will transport you away from your “real” life and into a fun, funny, and peaceful enough world without too much of the bullshit of the “real” one, this is absolutely one of those types of books.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Shippers by Katherine Center was originally written on May 20, 2026.

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#BookReview: The Cupid Dilemma by April Asher

Fun Spicy Bubblegum Paranormal Romance. This is another of those books where the 2* reviews are so wrong as to be laughable. I don’t know what is happening with those reviewers of late, but they used to be at least somewhat more reliable, pointing out things that were actually problems from certain perspectives rather than just completely not getting a book at all or even making shit up about it. So ignore those bastards. Seriously.

What we *do* get here is exactly what I said in the title of this review – a fun spicy bubblegum pop paranormal romance that never takes itself overly seriously and just has fun with its premise. We get the children of Greek gods living in NYC – along with a singular “they” most often presented as female but always using “they”, so do with that what you will with no judgements from me either direction there. We get a band full of mythological beings that is essentially virtually any teen/ early 20s rock band of any era of the last 50 yrs or so. To the level that my own mind was essentially making them a mashup of Sum 41/ Good Charlotte/ etc (because that was my own era of that age) but with griffins and gargoyles and phoenixes.

Yes, a lot of this is quite silly from a “Serious Romance Reader” perspective. It isn’t meant to be “Serious Romance Reader” approved. This is light summer reading specifically targeted at that very late teens/ early 20s ish “new adult”/ starting their career set that these characters themselves are, with a lot of the issues common at that age.

Now, for the “clean” vs “spicy” romance debate, this one definitely comes in fairly spicy. Somewhere between a habanero and a Carolina Reaper, you’re definitely going to feel the heat here… but you may not be rushing off to find a private area yourself. Unless, perhaps, you *are* that late teens/ early 20s ish target audience (or someone who still acts like it even at more advanced ages), in which case, well, hey, do what you need to do. So “clean” romance crowd… this one may not send you to the emergency room, but you’re probably going to be reaching for the smelling salts and maybe checking your pulse to make sure it isn’t too high. Might be best for y’all to just skip this one, unless you’re feeling particularly adventurous. (But if you *do* read this one despite these warnings, please don’t 1* it for being too spicy – I already warned you about that!)

The paranormal aspects here are done in a fairly realistic way that doesn’t require much of a leap… but also requires that you not think too deeply about it. Just follow the jump through the portal and don’t worry about how it works or where they actually are. This is bubblegum. It isn’t supposed to be deep or thoughtful. Just enjoy the spectacle and keep moving. You’ll be fine. If you’re one that can’t help but think too deeply about even bubblegum… again, this may not be the book for you. I think one of the best illustrations I can give that a lot of people may be somewhat familiar with is how Loki just shimmers his armor on in his first scenes with Captain America in The Avengers or just shimmers his way into other realms in those early MCU movies. If that isn’t something you can handle in novel form without deep explanation… this probably isn’t the book for you.

But for those looking for exactly what this book is – fun spicy bubblegum paranormal romance, again – hey, this one works on a lot of levels and will very likely be something you’ll enjoy.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Cupid Dilemma by April Asher was originally written on May 15, 2026.

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#BookReview: Out Of Her League by Ava Rani

Carolina Reaper Spicy Romance With Atypical And Controversial Message. First thing to know about this book: Not for the “clean romance” crowd. AT. ALL. Y’all don’t need to bother reading a word of it, because there are at least three instances where you will need the fucking *emergency room* from the heart palpitations you’ll get, rather than just smelling salts. But for those that enjoy actual porn level (Fifty Shades level, if not exact type) spice… hey, I’ve got a book for you. (Though to be clear, there is actual plot here. This is *not* erotica. Just *very* spicy romance. If only in like 3 scenes.)

Now that the romance crowd has sorted themselves already, let’s talk to the rest of us who fall somewhere in the middle. Beyond the spice debates, there was actually a lot to like here, and indeed a lot of in your face yet not actually preachy (weird, I know, but mostly because of how well it worked within the story itself) messaging that will prove controversial to some and refreshing to others. Subversive, in fact. Which to me makes things so much more interesting anyway.

The actual story itself progressed maybe a touch slowly, but also, the two star reviews here are fucking morons that I wish Goodreads allowed users to block other users, because seriously, after reading this book myself they are so wrong that I will never trust them to tell me the sky is fucking blue, ok?

Instead, for me, the story absolutely clicked on all levels. You’ve got two people at some of the highest levels of their respective fields yet at different stages within them and all the competing wars within both of their heads about how to proceed. You’ve got some tough but not backbreaking emotional weight for both of them to overcome. You’ve even got some travel in here, and hell, for those soccer fans – and at least Rani never called it “football”, because “football” is the sport played with an oblong pigskin whose best players come from the American Southeast – you’ve got a decent amount of soccer-adjacent stuff going on. No, this isn’t anything remotely resembling a sports romance, so there are no actual soccer games here, just a lot of more off the field stuff with this character at this stage of his career.

An excellent tale that nails pretty well everything pretty solidly, again, this is going to be one that is controversial to some and refreshing to others, and again I repeat: “clean” romance crowd, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK. This is one for the Carolina Reaper spicy crowd to enjoy. Particularly those that enjoy their Carolina Reaper as the sauce on some good slow cooked fall off the bone ribs. Dammit, I’m making myself hungry.

Very much recommended.

This review of Out Of Her League by Ava Rani was originally written on May 12, 2026.

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#BookReview: Meet Me In Italy by Brenda Novak

Solid Women’s Fiction/ Romance Blend. This is one of those tales the genre blends between women’s fiction and technically satisfying all known RWA/RNA “romance genre” requirements… while being around habanero spicy to boot, at least in once instance. (Others are closer to jalapeno or even milder, though still stronger than a warm glass of milk.)

Told from a few different characters’ perspectives and thus allowing them all to feel fully fleshed out, one weakness here is that many characters outside these specific perspective characters often feel… not as fully fleshed out. Indeed, at least a few are “I need a character in this role” thin – but for the most part they’re also barely relevant to the story at hand, so it does make at least a degree of sense that they aren’t as strongly written. Particularly given the length of the tale even with these “less fully fleshed out” characters – giving them more to do and making them feel more fully alive the way our main characters do could easily have added a few dozen pages to this already decently chunky tale, particularly given its type.

Overall this is exactly one of those safe *enough* women’s fiction / romance blends that while it may have a thing or two here or there that may begin to step on some toes, for most readers this really will go down about as easily as a cool bottle of Coca Cola on a hot summer day – which is exactly what it was designed to do, clearly. It is that exact kind of not-quite-bland-yet-also-not-too-memorable tale that is almost explicitly designed to appeal to as many readers as possible, and I have exactly zero doubt that it will do exactly that. If you’re looking for a safe *enough* read over the summer, one that transports you to an exotic location – again visiting Italy’s Amalfi Coast, as Sarah Penner’s The Amalfi Curse did last summer and a few others have done over the years – and tickles the brain *enough* and warms the heart *enough* while also providing *enough*… “excitement”… for other regions of the body that it will quite clearly play well with the summer “beach read” / “vacation read” set, which this is clearly intended for.

One thing that makes this a touch more interesting to read after its release (due to life issues arising just before its release, despite having had it as an Advance Review Copy for nearly four months prior to release) is Novak’s public announcement about her own real life shortly after the publication of this book and how that seems to inform various aspects of this tale.

There is also a decent amount of social commentary about various topics, specifically the publishing industry as well as a few others, but other than perhaps the publishing industry “inside baseball”, none of it ever really comes across as preachy. Again, this is where the brain is tickled a bit while never going so far as to produce real agitation, at least for most readers.

Ultimately this is a book that will likely do everything it set out to do – a perfectly safe, flavorful enough, summer/ vacation/ beach read that will play well with the women’s fiction/ romance set generally while being perhaps a bit spicier than the Hallmarkie crowd specifically would prefer.

Very much recommended.

This review of Meet Me In Italy by Brenda Novak was originally written on May 11, 2026.

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#BookReview: Five Star Summer by Sarah Morgan

Low Stakes Medium Spice Sarah Morgan/ Hallmarkie Summer Tale. Sarah Morgan basically has two settings: summer and Christmas, and she seems to make it a point to release both types of book every year. This being a May release and given the title, it is obviously her summer version. Which does involve coastal/ beach living and general summer-ish vibes without being too country or culture specific. (Well done as this book takes place in both the UK and the US, though the bulk of the tale is in the UK.)

If you’ve never read a Sarah Morgan tale before, this – like pretty well all of them, at least in my experience – is a solid introduction to her general style and conforms pretty solidly to “her style”. Not to the level of “if you’ve read one of her books you’ve read them all” but certainly to the level of the Hallmarkie “everything will be in this style with different particulars and take that as you will”, and yes, there is a difference there.

Those that can’t stand the heat of a jalapeno or so, know that this book is likely too spicy for you. Those that need a Carolina Reaper to be able to feel any heat at all, know that this book is nowhere near spicy enough for you. For most readers that fall somewhere in between, this book will likely be engaging without being distracting.

Overall, as I said in the title, really just a solid low stakes, medium spice, Sarah Morgan/ Hallmarkie type tale perfect for when you want to escape “actual” reality and know that there isn’t anything problematic or disturbing (for most readers, at minimum) in the book you’ve chosen to escape into.

Very much recommended.

This review of Five Star Summer by Sarah Morgan was originally written on May 3, 2026.

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#BlogTour: The Last Daughter by Soraya Lane

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a truly great finale to an amazing series. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Last Daughter by Soraya Lane.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / TheStoryGraph.com), YouTube, and Substack:

What. A. Finale. This is the book that has had 7 books before it to hint at and build up to. The book whose story actually begins the entire event. The book that fans who have been following this series all along have been waiting for… and it absolutely delivers.

Make sure you read the seven books before this one before you read this one. They lay the groundwork and build the anticipation well in telling their own stories while revealing bits and hints of this one, and most all of the ladies from the contemporary side of those stories show up in some fashion here. Even while these stories are all ultimately romances, there are also enough women’s fiction elements to all of these stories (contemporary and historical) that there are indeed some spoilers to some of those stories within this story… which isn’t an issue if you read them first. 😉

Jeremy Robinson likes to tell people that they can read his book Prime, about the origins of one of his teams and written after several of the books featuring that team had been published, first when encountering that particular team (his “Chess Team”) for the first time. I’ve always recommended against that as one of Robinson’s oldest fans who was there when he was first coming up with the idea (and thought it wouldn’t play well… boy was I wrong!). To me, that series absolutely needs to be read in publication order so that you get the full impact of Prime when you get to it in that order.

And here is where the above story ties into Lane’s Lost Daughters: Yes, on the historical side this is *the* story that begins it all. We get a *lot* of answers on that side of it, and from that side of it you may argue that this book serves as a prequel that perhaps *should* be read first. You would be wrong… because the *contemporary* side of this novel absolutely serves as a coda to the entire series here.

Remember, this entire series is built on a fusion of the historical and the contemporary, merging Lane’s “brand names” of Soraya M. Lane (historical fiction) with her Soraya Lane (contemporary romance/ women’s fiction) “brand”. In the historical side of this tale, we get the origin story that allowed the entire rest of the series to take place. In the contemporary side of this tale, we get the ending that ties everything together in a nice little bow.

… or does it?

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Last Daughter by Soraya Lane”

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#BlogTour: All The Ways You Break Me by Melissa Wiesner

For this blog tour, we’re looking at a worthy successor and conclusion of this romance duology. For this blog tour, we’re looking at All The Ways You Break Me by Melissa Weisner.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / TheStoryGraph.com), YouTube, and Substack:

Worthy Successor. This is one of those duologies where the first book is *so* strong, how can a second *possibly* hold up to it? And yet the second one comes and shows that it is every bit the first tale’s equal.

Pretty well everything that was present in the first book is back in some form. The teen romance. The second chance a decade or so later. The mystery. The tragedy. About the only thing *not* here from the first book is the one thing the most people likely had the most problems with, except that in its place we get something that arguably even more people will have a problem with… though in this case (fortunately) it isn’t anywhere near as explicit.

As to what this thing is, I applaud Wiesner for having a webpage listing trigger warnings for this book rather than listing them at the front of the book and thereby making them unavoidable for those reading on eReaders, and I encourage any who may need to see a list of trigger warnings to go to that page, indeed it is directly on the book’s page on her website at melissawiesner dot com/books/all-the-ways-you-break-me. Even here, note that the warnings are all the way at the bottom of the page and thus fairly easily avoidable even here for those who do not wish to see them.

We do, however, get the jalapeno/ habanero level sex scene in this book as well, it just happens to be with a couple approaching 30 rather than a couple who still hasn’t hit 18. Still, for those who prefer to read books without such scenes… you’ve been warned. Once again, please don’t 1 or 2 star this book over this scene now that you’ve read my own review where I am making it a point to tell you of its existence. 🙂

And yes, this is the conclusion to a particularly strong romance duology. We get answers. We get happy endings for everyone (as far as the romances themselves go – no guarantees for anything else 😉 ). And yes, we get a few dusty rooms along the way too.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: All The Ways You Break Me by Melissa Wiesner”

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#BookReview: What Tomorrow Will Be by Julianne MacLean

Proof That The Greatest Romances Don’t Always Involve HEA. Oh that title is sure to roil up oh so many in booklandia, but this tale really is, at least in some ways, proof of something I’ve personally long held, that the greatest *romance* stories known to humanity don’t always involve a happily ever after.

Like Tom Clancy’s Without Remorse, we get an all too brief but oh so epic romance tale for the absolute *ages*… before we see it shattered in an instant. The love – and the tragedy – are far *too* real in MacLean’s words, and the room will get quite dusty indeed through this section of our tale.

And then, like Without Remorse again, we get a new romance at some time period after the initial one, and this is where we spend the majority of the tale (unlike Without Remorse, which is as much military thriller as it is romance… indeed, Clancy *set out* to write a military thriller, he just also included one of the best romance tales I’ve ever read even now).

This one too is divided – we see the couple coming together, and again here MacLean truly makes us *feel* it. Unless you have a block of solid granite in your chest, you’re going to be swooning through this section. It really is one of those truly epic love stories that really makes you feel what these characters are feeling.

But then we flash forward several years again, and this time reality has set in. We’re beyond the honeymoon period, and life is taking its toll. Here we get to the real drama of the book, and again MacLean does a superb job. Various conflicts are happening, and MacLean does a great job of making them all too real. Some of the drama is unfortunately plucked from so many peoples’ experiences, some of it is more reminiscent of the chronically underrated Hundred Foot Journey – but with a twist more familiar to many romance novels and indeed all too familiar to far too many people’s real lives. Here, MacLean does a superb job of making each character – at least those at the heart of these conflicts – feel like they could be sitting there reading these words over our shoulder – they feel *that* real.

And then that back third or so. Simply stupendous. Just. Wow. I’ve read a few of MacLean’s books in recent years, and I do believe this one to possibly be her most powerful yet, certainly among those I’ve read. And yes, it is in this back third that we really see the true power of what I said in the title of this review – sometimes the greatest romances don’t involve a happily ever after. Sometimes the greatest romances of all are the ones that change us forever.

But that isn’t actually a spoiler of anything here. You’re just going to have to read this book to find out exactly what MacLean did here to make me say that. 😉

Very much recommended.

This review of What Tomorrow Will Be by Julianne MacLean was originally written on January 27, 2026.

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#BlogTour: The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman

For this blog tour, we’re looking at very solid penultimate book in its series. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (BookBub.com / BookHype.com / Goodreads.com / TheStoryGraph.com), Substack, and YouTube:

Solid Penultimate Book In Series. This is one of those entire series where you’re going to want to read the entire series before this point – including the short story prequel that sets everything up – before you get here. Even though this one stands alone (*ish*), you really need that deep understanding of all that is going on here to fully appreciate this story, and really those prior books are just as strong as this one, so if you see this one first and are interested in it at all, you’ll be glad you read them first anyway.

For what this book – and its predecessors – actually is though, it really is quite good. We get a dual timeline with both women’s fiction and romance elements in both timelines – enough that yes, this book technically satisfies all known RWA/ RNA requirements to be “officially” classified as a romance novel – and all elements here are done remarkably well. Considering that some other authors struggle at times with one timeline or genre and Kelman here is not only juggling, but excelling in, a combined four different genre/ timeline combinations is really quite astounding, and an absolute testament to her storytelling abilities.

If you enjoy dusty rooms or cutting onions, you’re going to love this book. (To be clear here, men don’t cry. The room is either very dusty or we’re cutting a lot of onions. We. Never. Cry. (And yes, this is a joke, but a joke explaining the other joke. 😉 )) If you enjoy books that both transport you to another place *and* make you *feel* something within it, you’re going to enjoy this book. If you enjoy books that are close enough to reality that you can more easily switch your brain off and accept the one presented in front of you, you’re going to enjoy this book.

And when you get done with this book… well, you’ll be glad to know that apparently we can expect the conclusion to this series later in 2026. I’m not sure *how* public the release date of Book 5 here is -I asked the publisher directly and have a longstanding working relationship with them across dozens of reviews every few months for several years now – but I feel reasonably confident that no one will get too upset with me for saying simply “by the end of this year”. 😀 And seriously, I can’t wait. Definitely going to be one hell of a back-end-of-2026 read, just as this book was one hell of a Book 5 of 2026 read for me.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Secret Twins Of Paris by Suzanne Kelman”