 Thank you, @berkleyromance, for the free book! #BerkleyPartner #BerkleyRomance. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.Whew! This is a sizzlin one. I Got Abducted by Aliens & Now I’m Trapped in a Rom-Com by Kimberly Lemming offers everything you get from the wild & fun cover & more. Dorothy Valentine is a wildlife biologist who is abducted by aliens and dropped off on a different planet. Said planet has dinosaurs, Siberian tigers, aliens, and the lion that attacked Dorothy earlier in the book. Soon after arriving, Dorothy’s drive to mate is enacted without her consent, & she finds herself falling into lust with Sol & Lok, two aliens who like to punch each other. With a truly absurd plot, dramatic rescue efforts, lol moments, & some powerhouse spice, this book was the good time I wanted. Though I wasn’t totally convinced of the love, the steam & zesty heroine are on point. 4.25⭐️. Out 02/18.CWs: violence, torture
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 This blog post includes affiliate links.His Curvy Rejected Mate by Cate C. Wells. Do you enjoy the thought of shifter males being huge dummies/aholes to their newly-realized mates, realizing the magnitude of their screw-ups, & then having to win them back? If the answer’s yes, check this series out! Be aware of TWs for this one, but as always, it was a compulsively readable ride. 4 ⭐️. Cold-Hearted by Heather Guerre. This author was recommended to me by a trusted friend & the antagonistic hero was giving me lots to enjoy yesterday. He’s a gruff pilot sending some mixed signals; she’s a newcomer to town who knows there are secrets but never suspects the big one is shifters! Rescues, scent-marking, biting, it’s here, folks! 4.33 ⭐️. Twisted Shadows by Allie Therin. In the mood for something slower? This series focuses on two opposites attract (as in, they literally can’t touch each other) leads who are drawn together, despite the towering challenges facing them. Pick up book 1 & get lost in a world of Empaths & an Empath hunter, machinations & plots, & the comfort of finding someone who can reach you. 4.25⭐️ ️, out now. (Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.) Have you read any of these or are any on your TBR? Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links. Work in Progress has re-activated my desire to go on a tour of Great Britain. Alice Cooper puts her supposed mess of a life on pause to go on a bus tour, not realizing until she gets there that (1) she is the youngest tourer by far &, (2) the hottie jerk Scot who royally made her mad at the airport is the tour leader. The chemistry between Alice & Robbie is zesty, & their romance arc is fun, satisfying, & bittersweet to watch bc Alice is only visiting. But this is at least partially a romance, thank goodness, & that ending really packs the sweetness. With that being said, this is also women’s fiction, with emphasis on Alice’s considerable growth as she wanders historic literary sites. Alice can come across as judgmental, & this is something that she is sometimes aware of, sometimes not. The journey that she goes on wakes her up, shaking loose some of her ideas about life & introducing her to the wondrous stories we carry around, & her journey to love is not straightforward, but it is there. In the end, this book feels like Casey McQuiston’s The Pairing for me—the romance is there & it’s flawed but good, but I’m mainly reading for the gorgeous European adventure. 4.25⭐️. Out 01/14.Please see a list of CWs collected by a trusted reviewer.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.After reading a couple of Martha Waters’ historical romances, I was curious to see what her contemporary Christmas Is All Around would be like. The verdict: despite the FMC, who sometimes seems oblivious, this book ends up being heartwarming. There’s so much discourse about unlikable heroines but the truth is that Charlotte is kind of annoying at times. I thought she was unfair toward her sister & surprisingly high-maintenance herself, given her vocal distaste for the movie she was in as a child & her dislike of Christmas. But…I also like how Graham likes her crabbiness. There’s something nice about someone falling in love with a grumpy, not always very self-aware lead, & the way that the characters overall engage with each other is cute. This isn’t a book that will be perennial holiday fave for me, but it was enjoyable & sweet & real, if you know a holiday grump or are one yourself ;). 4⭐️. Out now! 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. This blog post includes affiliate links.Emotional heartstrings will likely get pulled with this one, people. Jillian Meadows’ Give Me Butterflies gave me major Tarah DeWitt Savor It vibes—it’s funny, warm-hearted, soft, sweet, & sexy. It’s apparently the author’s debut, which makes it particularly impressive, given that this book really comes out the gate firing on all contemporary romance cylinders. There’s a grumpy astronomer, who’s actually a single dad of two nieces whose mother has just passed away. A cute & sunshine entomologist, who’s chasing her career goals after rescuing herself from a toxic ex. A couple of disastrous meet cutes. & some Tessa Bailey “he is absolutely wild for her” undertones. Although I had a slight issue with the pacing, overall, it’s a satisfying contemporary where the leads take the time to build a family together. 4.25⭐️. Out 01/21.CWs: toxic ex & mom, grieving loss of sister.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.My Vampire Plus-One doesn’t take itself too seriously & I really like that. He’s a himbo vampire with a latent bullet journaling interest & she’s an accountant who thinks he’s being funny every time he makes a vampire reference. Amelia & Reggie have agreed to fake date each other & all that time together gives them opportunity to act on their real feelings for each other. This is an adorable book with a heartwarming romance—sure, Reggie could be a killer but instead he wears questionable outfits & flies to a convenience store so he can make sure Amelia has plenty of food when they’re snowed in. I found myself wishing that the vampire aspects were less realistic though. Like, in real life, I might be nervous around a vampire but in my books I want the other lead to have Paris Hilton “that’s hot” energy . But this is fun & quirky vampire romance & if it didn’t give me everything I wanted, it still satisfied & brought a smile to my face. 4.25⭐️. Out now![ID: Jess holds the book over a field with purple flowers.] Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.I was curious about Morbidly Yours by Ivy Fairbanks: a mortician hero, an animator heroine who has just moved to Ireland, stutter rep, life after loss… This book is charming & sweet with , too, & while I didn’t fall head over heels in love, I can certainly see why it’s been a hit. It’s a sunshine & reserved MC combo with plenty of quirkiness, respect, & appreciation thrown into the mix. Ivy Fairbanks inserts a maybe-marriage-of-convenience obstacle in there too, & I really liked how it all ended up for the leads, even if I could have done without some of the angst . I think if you like Chloe Liese, you’d like this one. 4.25⭐️. Out 08/20.CWs: previous loss of spouse due to accident or possible suicide; feelings of guilt over spousal loss; manipulative father.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.Rosie is a romance novel lover & Aiden is a romance denouncer & when they’re paired together for a class assignment (bc their acrimony is too much for the class dynamic!), things do not go smoothly at first. I wasn’t initially sure what to make of Katie Holt’s Not in My Book. The leads’ enemies to lovers relationship is intense & hair-trigger, for one thing, & that tumult rises between them at the beginning of the book & at the end, in the 3rd act break-up. But this contemporary ended up really winning me over, & I loved the moments of vulnerability & steam between Rosalinda & Aiden, how they engage with each other’s families, & the friendship that ends up being so important to them both. This isn’t a flawless romance for me but it is a romance with a lot of heart & I was definitely rooting for the leads to stop fighting so HARD already & channel that passion into something more productive for all of us lol. (FYI: If epistolary elements are your jam, you might like the bits of Rosie & Aiden’s “fiction” that are sprinkled in the book. Sometimes I did, & sometimes I didn’t .) 4.25⭐️. Out 12/10.CWs: emotionally manipulative, toxic dad; previous death of mom; reference to dad cheating.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.It’s not fall but can we all agree that it should be? Perfectly Wicked by Lindsay Lovise gave me that bit of faux crisp feeling in the air, Apple orchard, ghost haunting, secret-kissing feeling I’ve been craving. Featuring an apple orchard manager of a long-held family farm & a ghost hunter who wants to showcase said farm on his reality tv show, Perfectly Wicked sets up a great conflict between our leads from the beginning. Holly & her family have been keeping secrets about their orchard & their family for years & Connor is all about busting them wide open. But Lovise also highlights the good in them & between them & the way they metaphorically set the orchard on fire with is definitely something to appreciate. There are moments this book goes a bit far for me, but it’s also entertaining & atmospheric, & the steam really worked for me, so three big thumbs up! I’m really looking forward to book 2 & hoping it focuses on two very intriguing characters from this book! 4.25⭐️. Out 09/17. CWs: hauntings, references to suicide, death, blackmail.
 Thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own. This blog post includes affiliate links.A fantasy with an anxious protagonist who works at a zoo of magical creatures?! Sign me up. In reality, The Phoenix Keeper by S. A. MacLean is occasionally too slow for me. But it’s also cozy, soft, & inspiring, as protagonist Aila—who really struggles when asked to put herself out there (not to mention who hates the publicity components associated with her Phoenix keeper job!)—tries & succeeds as the book progresses. With sterling friendship rep & animal appreciation, The Phoenix Keeper is a rewarding fantasy with a touch of romance & danger. If you want a read that demands that you slow down & savor the details of a magical creature-zookeeper job, check this one out! 4.25⭐️. Out 08/13.Please see a trusted reviewer's list of CWs.
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