Hi and welcome to my blog tour stop for Andie J. Christopher's Unrealistic Expectations! I'm excited to feature this romance--out today--and to share an excerpt! Summary.UNREALISTIC EXPECTATIONS follows relationship therapist Jessica Gallagher after a sudden break-up with her long-term boyfriend turns into a PR nightmare. How will she be able to sell her newly releasing dating handbook as someone who failed to make her only serious relationship work? At first, all Jessica wants is to return to the comforts of a stable relationship, even if the spark fizzled out a long time ago. But when she unexpectedly runs into her old crush, Galvin Baker, Jessica is presented with the opportunity to not only bring some spice back to her life, but also save face with a fake relationship. Luckily, Galvin seems game. Excerpt."What the fuck is going on?" That startled Luke out of his furious packing. He turned, and his normally pale skin was tomato red. Probably because Jessica rarely yelled, but she was yelling now. "I . . . uh . . . I was going to tell you-" "Tell. Me. What?" She'd managed to quiet her voice, but she knew there was still rage in her tone. "Because it looks like you are moving out of our home. And that seems weird to me, because you haven't said anything about us moving somewhere new together. So this must mean that you are moving someplace else on your own. Which is also weird, because you haven't mentioned anything about wanting to break up. But of course this means we're breaking up. People don't just live together for a decade and then not live together but remain romantically involved. Especially when they've been talking about having a baby." Jessica took a step toward Luke, and he wouldn't meet her gaze. "Do they?" Everything below her neck was cold and numb, and she couldn't hear anything but her own thoughts screaming at her. "Listen-" "That's all I do, all day. I listen to people." For some reason, him telling her to listen to him, when she'd been his steady confidant for the majority of his adult life, made her want to scream. She'd often felt a little superior, despite herself, during sessions with clients who talked about having screaming arguments with their partners. She and Luke had never had a screaming argument. They had discussions and made agreements. They-well, she-expressed feelings and needs, and Luke tried to meet them. They'd never been the kind of couple to make rash decisions or even the kind of couple who went to bed angry. Because they never made each other angry. Irritated-yes. So angry that she wanted to drag him out of the closet by his receding hairline and demand answers-no. "I was going to tell you last night, at dinner." "You were going to tell me that you were moving out and abandoning our relationship last night, at dinner? The special dinner that we were having to celebrate the release of my book?" Luke flinched. "You just seemed so excited about your little book, and I couldn't stand to see you upset." He made a lame hand motion at her. "Like this." "I'm not upset right now that you're moving out. I'm glad you're moving out. If you weren't moving out right now, I would be tempted to kill you and then retile the bathroom with your rotting bones behind the new tile." "That would really start to stink after a while . . . the decomposition." "I would dissolve your flesh with lye." This was probably not the time to make jokes about murdering him, but that had always lightened the mood before. He'd joke about giving her an air embolism in her sleep. She'd imply that she could deadlift his body easily enough to hide it-all the while knowing that they were adults, and they'd made a commitment to one another. "You really do watch too much true crime." "You mean that I watch too much television, when I'm at home, waiting for you." The only reason that she'd ended up writing the book was that she had most of her evenings and weekends on her hands and shows about murder had started to give her nightmares. Luke put his hands on his hips and looked down at his feet. They'd had this conversation before, but the stakes had never been this high. Even though she'd had her moments of feeling lonely with him, their relationship had never been about their passion for each other-she'd thought that they were both passionate about the life they'd built together. He might have chosen her because she was convenient, but she'd chosen him because he'd never once made her worried that he would abandon her. He'd never given any indication that he wasn't ready to stick around for the long haul-not until now. But here she was, standing in her half-empty closet, looking at a man that she'd spent almost her entire adult life with become someone she didn't recognize-someone who would leave her without warning. She'd been grateful at the beginning of their relationship that he'd been kind and friendly and it seemed to come from a place of wanting to get to know her, not from any compulsion to see what he could get from her. "Is this because we haven't been having sex?" Their sex life had never been bad, but it also hadn't rocked her world at the very beginning-or the very end, it seemed. Over the last fifteen years, they'd gotten into a good rhythm. And most long-term couples didn't have much sex. That aspect of their relationship had never been the most important thing to Jessica, and she hadn't thought it was that important to Luke, either. But the way his skin flushed, when she asked him that, told her that she'd been making assumptions about their sex life, too. Luke finally met her gaze again. "I care about you, and I want you to be happy." "So, you were planning to disappear without telling me?" Jessica was shrieking again, and Luke looked a little befuddled. But that didn't stop him from pulling the few articles of clothing he hadn't packed off the rack. "You think I'd be happy about you leaving without a word? Without a discussion? Without even trying to work out whatever is making you unhappy?" "I knew that if we had a discussion, you'd get me to go to couples counseling, and we'd talk things out like logical adults. And I'd never really leave, but neither of us would ever be happy." Luke sounded so defeated, and Jessica started shaking. Her body literally could not hold on to the shock. "It almost sounds like you feel like a prisoner . . . in our life." Luke stepped toward her with his hands outstretched, as though he was going to pull her into a hug. As much as she could use a hug right now, she couldn't accept one from him. Not right now. Not ever again. Excerpted from Unrealistic Expectations by Andie J. Christopher Copyright © 2023 by Andie J. Christopher. Excerpted by permission of Berkley. [ID: Jess's white hand holds the ebook in front of a weathered gray and white barn wall.]Praise for Andie J. Christopher.“Thank You, Next is snarky and sharply funny but with a rich, tender heart. Andie J. Christopher is a master satirist of the absurdities of modern womanhood even as she renews our faith in the power of love.”—Jenny Holiday, USA Today bestselling author of Duke, Actually “A wild and delightful ride from start to finish. Christopher delivers a stern, grunting hero, wildly sexy chemistry, and an alpha heroine that owns every page.”--Mazey Eddings, author of A Brush with Love “As witty as it is sincere, Thank You, Next is the most refreshing take on second chance love I’ve read in a long time. Alex’s journey to self-love is perfect—and Will’s unconditional acceptance of his fierce and wonderful woman is everything I want to read in contemporary romance.”--Therese Beharrie, author of And They Lived Happily Ever After About the author.USA Today bestselling author Andie J. Christopher writes sharp, witty, sexy contemporary romance about complex people finding happily-ever- after. Her work has been featured in NPR, Cosmopolitan, The Washington Post, Entertainment Weekly, and New York Post. Prickly heroines are her hallmark, and she is the originator of the Stern Brunch Daddy. Andie lives in the nation’s capital with a French bulldog, a stockpile of Campari, and way too many books. Who's up for a fake dating romance? I love that trope. Let me know what you think if you check this one out!
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Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. A road trip romance with some let’s-snuggle-to-stay-warmer & mutual rescuing moments?!?! One Night in Hartswood by Emma Denny is a character-driven romance with some big moments at the end that really amp up the action & the dramatic gesture quotient for each lead. The book opens with Raff, the son of an Earl, traveling to the home of his sister’s intended, William, who is a nobleman she will soon marry to shore up an alliance between their families. But William leaves before the wedding, before Raff and his family even meet him, & when Raff is tasked with tracking William, he enters Hartswood Forest and finds only the servant Penn that he met in the forest a day or so before & kissed. Seeing that Penn needs assistance with his own escape from the keep, Raff says Penn can accompany him on his journey North & find another way home & employment on the way. So, in short, Raff & Penn are on a journey away from the keep together, both of them keeping secrets that will soon blow up in their faces. This book is soft, with several moments where the leads try to protect each other. Both leads are loyal, steadfast, & brave, and both show how they’re willing to face pain for the sake of the other. Moreover, there’s an emotional consideration to the protection too, as Raff worries about the social dynamics between him & Penn, the man he believes to be a servant. ONIH is a great historical romance & I adore how these two are able to make a happy, safe life together because they made it happen. 4.5⭐️. Out 11/07. CWs: Penn’s past abuse. Reference to death, family exile.
Hi and welcome to my blog tour stop for Kerry Winfrey's Faking Christmas! A big thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.Summary.Laurel Grant works as the social media manager for Buckeye State of Mind, an Ohio tourism magazine and website. She most definitely does not run a farm . . . but one tiny misunderstanding leads her boss, Gilbert, to think she owns her twin sister Holly’s farm just outside of Columbus. Laurel only handles the social media for the farm, but she’s happy to keep her little white lie going if it means not getting fired—she cannot be jobless again. And keep it going she must when Gilbert, recently dumped by his wife, invites himself over for the farm’s big Christmas Eve Eve dinner (as advertised on Meadow Rise Farm’s Instagram, thanks to Laurel herself). Laurel immediately goes into panic mode to figure out how she can trick Gilbert into thinking she’s basically the Martha Stewart of rural Ohio and keep her job in the process. Laurel and Holly come up with the perfect plan—all Laurel has to do is pretend to own the farm for one dinner. But Laurel shows up at the farm to find an unwelcome guest is waiting: Max Beckett, her nemesis since Holly’s wedding. The annoyingly attractive man she hates will be posing as Laurel’s husband just for the evening, but when a snowstorm traps them all for the entire weekend, Laurel is going to have to figure out how to survive with her job and dignity intact. Whatever the case, this promises to be the most eventful Christmas in ages. . . [ID: Jess’s white hand holds the ebook in front of a red-orange sunflower.]My review.If I were in a deception plot romance I would crumble into dust the minute anyone tried to test my fake relationship but Laurel Grant…Laurel is pulling off the sweet-hearted scam of the year by convincing her boss that she is married, has two kids, & lives the farm life she acts like she does in the column she writes at the magazine they both produce. She’s pulling off this scam at Christmas & with the help of her beloved twin, her brother-in-law, & her nemesis, Max Beckett, the man she’s hated since her sister’s wedding. That means this fake scam is pretty low-angst, friends—sure, the boss might be an issue, but Laurel has the loving support of her family as she stumbles her way through acting married & parental etc . A fake marriage, a snowy setting, some revelations, two enemies who end up looking up at Christmas tree branches from below… Faking Christmas by Kerry Winfrey is charming & sweet & I could totally envision it on a screen somewhere, making people feel those holiday + let’s fall in love vibes. Also those let’s-respect-people’s-unique-interest vibes. I adore what this book says about not denigrating people’s joys—whether it be animal communicators, romance novels, Lego, whatevs…just let the people be happy . I wish I could have *felt* this opposites attract romance a bit more—it isn’t effortless for me to see that at the end, & that’s what I want—but I did appreciate that their relationship isn’t super hasty at moving to any *big* declarations & Max’s assertion that Laurel is *enough,* is everything & more, is lovely. 3.5⭐️. Out 09/26.CWs: Max had a toxic childhood & doesn’t have a positive relationship with them in the present.Are you in the holiday romance mode yet? Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.This Duke wants naughty things… From the beginning, the relationship between the new Duke of Penning & his housekeeper is a battle of wills, when they crash into each other on his grounds & she accuses him of lying about his Duke claim. Lucian is, indeed, the Duke, though, & he soon realizes he really wants his housekeeper Susanna. But he’s not going to act on that attraction for numerous reasons & in fact plans on firing Susanna (& making sure she is well-equipped to find a new position) because she & her willful personality are such a temptation to his self-control & plans. The dynamic between leads is pretty sizzlin’. Sophie Jordan knows how to write sexual tension and steam & I always love those parts of her books. But I didn’t always love the dynamic between leads in The Duke Starts a Scandal. First, it’s complicated by their difference in status, & though Susanna is often spirited and in control of her domain, Lucian is often a jerk to work for. I was a bit saddened by a scene where Susanna feels like she has to humble herself before him, & annoyed when he’s a smartass & she’s just trying to do her job. But I do think there’s a really interesting, sometimes tragic, backstory for Lucian, and it helps the reader see the possibility that he will be an unconventional duke who might not be totally hampered by societal dictates, including those related to class difference and a possible public future with his housekeeper. Lucian is a former sex worker who entered the profession to try to provide for his family & I really liked how there’s a lack of shame in him regarding what he did & how much he enjoys sex in general. In the end, this book is uneven for me. The sexual tension & the basic things I want (interesting leads, good backstories, a building connection) are there but I wasn’t totally convinced by their hasty relationship development. Still, this is a fast-moving sensual historical. I really hope the next Sophie Jordan book I read merges the physical & emotional more strongly for me! 4⭐️. Out 10/24. Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. Whew, Stars In Your Eyes by Kacen Callender hurt. But it’s also a really good adult romance with so many wonderful things about how it’s written & what it has to say about self-love & loving others. Logan Gray & Mattie Cole are costars in an upcoming queer romcom. Their director & others ask them to engage in a fake dating romance to drive up positive press & attention for their movie & both agree, thinking it will help their reputations. Logan is known publicly as a Bad Boy. IRL he doesn’t have any friends & he’s living with trauma from childhood as the son of a Hollywood Important Person & a child actor in his own right. Mattie has a rep as being so nice that he’s seen as boring. Despite neither of them liking the other, they engage in a fake dating romance, both learning along the way that there’s more than meets the eye when it comes to their costar. Be advised that this book deals with heavy topics including sexual abuse, & specifically sexual abuse that’s been permitted & even facilitated by a parent. Understandably, that gives a very sad tone to the book & as the narration makes clear, that is not trauma that disappears immediately, even after falling in love. In addition to the emotional strength of this book, Callender writes it so well, using what the characters are doing/thinking in the film Logan & Mattie are acting in to mirror & help explain what they might be feeling IRL. Both characters grow so much throughout the book but like I said, it’s not an easy read. But that’s part of the point: like Callender writes in one moment, people who are living with trauma can fall in love & be loved & love themselves & be part of healthy relationships, too. They shouldn’t be excluded from stories of finding Their Person. 5⭐️. Out 10/10.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.A coven of deathwalking witches who have to set themselves on fire in order to patrol the Veil; a terrifying Warden who uses his army of soulless, half-masked soldiers to control it all; a heroine who sets herself on fire so she can save her sister… Tonight, I Burn by Katharine J. Adams is such an inventive story with so many striking elements that viscerally hold you in check. Penny, the protagonist, is a deathwalking witch who finds herself going farther against the Warden than she ever suspected she would in order to protect her sister & the other people she loves. As she plans in secret & then with the help of others, she also develops feelings for two different people, a man & a woman, & she opens up some of the closed-box tension surrounding her own family. This book is very much leading up to another which is good because it feels like some things are left unfinished. I would have liked more with Penny’s romantic relationships, which do get steamy but which also feel separate in a way I didn’t totally appreciate. But witch fans, rejoice, here’s another witchy offering for us to celebrate the glorious season of fall. 4⭐️. Out 11/07.Please see a trusted reviewer’s list of CWs.
Thanks to the author for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.Eliza McLane’s holiday novellas are so good, you all: they include outrageous amounts of sexual tension, MCs who are living their best lives sexually, and big emotional breakthroughs that contribute to the HEA. These novellas never feel like they’re missing a big part of the emotional story—they feel complete & full & that’s such a nice feeling to walk away with after you’ve flown through a novella. In Haunted Hookup, Alice is finally getting to visit the reputedly haunted house she’s spent so long researching. She’s been invited to join a house party of sorts & serve as a tour guide. The first night of the ball includes so much wish fulfillment (thank you, Eliza!) & I was like wow, it goes there, & yes, this is fun! It turns out that Alice actually knows the very attractive masked stranger who makes her toes curl & what follows is a lovely & hot exploration of what might have been & still could be if they follow their hearts. There is a ghost in this book & some thrills but it’s mostly a sad/wistful kind of ghost story that runs a nice parallel to Alice’s own. This book is great fun, like Eliza’s others. Check it out if you’re looking for Halloween vibes or a hero with chest hair or some great communication or some restraint play. 4.5⭐️. Out 10/10.Please see a trusted reviewer's list of CWs.
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