​If I’m looking for soft & cozy Roan Parrish is always a good bet & the title of this upcoming release--The Rivals of Casper Road—(not to mention those adorable FREAKING PUMPKINS on the cover!!) sucked me in.

Give me all the fall stuff.

This ended up being everything I said in the first paragraph: soft, cozy. Sweet. Pumpkin-y ;).

The basic set-up of this one is that after suffering a big heartbreak Bram Larkspur has moved to Garnet Run, Wyoming, home to some of Parrish’s other beloved characters.

His new neighbor is prickly Zachary Glass, a stiff, reserved type who has won the neighborhood Halloween decorating competition several years in a row.

Thanks to a couple of unfortunate moments they end up as rivals for a brief moment, & then they become something else (hint: something with smooching).

This is just a fast, heartwarming read between a prickly & the sunshine one with an epilogue that ended things on an awww note.

I’m really happy that these two Harlequin releases of Roan’s just go for it & these covers make me all kinds of happy.

I’m going to start this review with the caveat that I did not know a lot about outer space before beginning Moiya McTier’s The Milky Way: An Autobiography of Our Galaxy. (I still wouldn’t call myself an expert but that’s no fault of McTier’s 😆).

But this book enhanced my understanding of how big space is so much (trying with all of my willpower not to say astronomically 🤣). Wow, I really had no idea.

There were so many other “wow” kind of moments as I listened. Moments when my mind boggled.

Moiya was easy to listen to. McTier—an astrophysicist & folklorist—is clearly very passionate about their book & the subject & the creative project the author took on by dramatizing the Milky Way’s life is admirable.

But sometimes the dramatization goes too far for me, like when the Galaxy discusses suicide ideation because of how the Galaxy created the black hole “Sarge.”

My knowledge of space is so limited that honestly I’m not sure what level this book is best for 😆. I learned a lot, but quite a bit went over my head as well—mostly because I didn’t always have the time or opportunity or ability to absorb it all. But again, that’s not a fault of the book—I’m sure those facts will please a lot of people.

Overall I’m glad I checked this one out. It did what I hoped it would do: teach me more about space & even changed my understanding of it.

I’ve been dipping my toes into holiday romance novels so to speak & Helena Greer’s Season of Love has some winning qualities but ultimately falls somewhat flat for me.

Miriam Blum is an antique upcycler who’s estranged from most of her family, including her horrible father, her mother who remains married to him, & the beloved aunt who owned the one place she felt totally comfortable, a Christmas tree farm.

At the beginning of the book Miriam’s aunt has passed & Miriam’s going to return to that farm after many years away to sit shiva. Back to the other people she loved but hasn’t had a meaningful relationship with in years, including a cousin.

But there’s a new person living on the farm, Noelle Northwood, who immediately dislikes Miriam, & Miriam’s time at home is complicated by the presence of this person who doesn’t like her but whom she’s attracted to.

There’s a lot to appreciate about this Queer romance, including Jewish rep, romantic moments on the ice, & how Miriam finds her way back home & to an old artistic love.

But in general, I wasn’t a huge fan of Noelle (whose brashness & personality might feel authentic in some ways but also gets a little off putting for me in moments) and a secondary storyline which is a little puzzling at times. Also, a lot seems to happen to Miriam personally & professionally & it’s a little unsettling how quickly it did.

Overall, there’s potential here & I can see a lot of people relating to & enjoying this sweet romance, but it didn’t really work for me.

Baseball? In real life I don’t know ya 😆. But serve it to me in bookish romance form & I am one very excited person.

KD Casey & Lauren Blakely have released another MM sports novella, Dirty Steal, & it offers a satisfying hookup ➡️ teammates ➡️roommates ➡️ lovers again arc.

Derek Miller & Adam Chason are two baseball players who hook up one night, neither of them exactly looking for something permanent. Later, Adam is traded to Derek’s team & they unexpectedly become apartment-mates. Awkward forced proximity, anyone? 🤣

These leads have a sweet & winning love story with some steam thrown in. While I didn’t feel the zip, the zest, as much in this one as I loved in the first novella, this one too is sure to please so many of us looking for that lovely trifecta of sports + kissing + novella.

This or That: Historical Romance
 18th century or 19th century
 Marriage of convenience or class difference
 I hate everyone but you MMC or dutiful, uptight MMC

Wow, let’s give a round of applause for Finn Ransome, his sweetest soft secret heart & his basically 12 pack 😆. He was  the standout of Eva Leigh’s How the Wallflower Was Won for me. Unfortunately some other parts of the book—including the heroine and conflict—don’t work for me as much.

That could probably be my review in its entirety but I’m going to add more 😆 .

This is a marriage of convenience tale with a cerebral wallflower heroine & a bold & studly gambler hero who is secretly very self-conscious about his intelligence, particularly when it comes to reading.

From the beginning of their marriage these two burn up the sheets but the emotional intimacy is a long time coming, especially for our very smart heroine Miss Tabitha Seaton.

Tabitha has big ambitions & she wants to use her brain & her drive to help others. All of that is admirable, & I loved seeing gambler Finn appreciate those aspects of her over & over again.

But the conflict made me have bad feelings 😆, especially how Tabitha handles it all.

Setting that frustrating moment of the plot, on paper this book has so much going for it. But while there are some moments that had me feeling the swoons (like the steam—Tabitha seems to have a lot of climaxes —), overall this one left me a little cold.

A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy & Sierra Simone *is* very very cute (sorry) & just an overall positive read where people support & love each other. Then factor in the steam (sex in a church, anyone?) & you have something that is wholesome & love affirming & also pretty darn dirty. 

Adult performer Bee Hobbes is offered the chance to act in a Christmas Hallmark-ish movie but she has to be careful that no one realizes she’s actually adult film star Bianca von Honey. 

But her costar & former boy band member Nolan Shaw recognizes her right away bc he’s a huge fan.

He keeps her secret & when the sparks finally ignite, the book went up in flames & I grabbed my fire extinguisher . 

The steam in this book is stellar. But I think what really makes the book stand out for me is how much respect the leads have for each other, their total lack of judgement, their support for each other’s goals & wishes, & just how harmonious they are, in bed & out. 

It really felt to me like this couple is going to go the distance. 

The support didn’t just extend to the leads either. There are so many loving secondary characters, so many people rooting our precious & libido-happy leads on. 

Other things I love? Their confidence & maturity, the body positivity, the bisexual rep, how you can tell how much Nolan has grown since his boy band days (but how he still likes to have fun), & the funny mix-up when the other adult film employees show up to work the Hallmark-ish movie set.

This is a great time!