Showing posts with label best romance books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label best romance books. Show all posts

Happy Monday!

Happy Monday everyone! I hope your weeks are planned with fantastic things, or at the very least you have some great books to read!

I've got some great books to share with you this week, including a few more I've found on my Kindle Unlimited recommendations. I'm still not convinced to keep going with KU, but I'll confess it's given me some good reading that I've thoroughly enjoyed. I will confess to having a certain weakness for sport's romances, specifically hockey romances. Can I given any insight into why? Not at all. But for some reason I just absolutely love reading about a tough and graceful hockey player falling in love. Do you have any favourite hockey romance reads? Definitely send me a message if so!

I hope everyone is still enjoying Saturday Night Film Night, and keep sharing what you're watching!

No Judgements by Meg Cabot

No Judgements by Meg Cabot The storm of the century is about to hit Little Bridge Island, Florida—and it’s sending waves crashing through Sabrina “Bree” Beckham’s love life…
When a massive hurricane severs all power and cell service to Little Bridge Island—as well as its connection to the mainland—twenty-five-year-old Bree Beckham isn’t worried . . . at first. She’s already escaped one storm—her emotionally abusive ex—so a hurricane seems like it will be a piece of cake.

But animal-loving Bree does become alarmed when she realizes how many islanders have been cut off from their beloved pets. Now it’s up to her to save as many of Little Bridge’s cats and dogs as she can . . . but to do so, she’s going to need help—help she has no choice but to accept from her boss’s sexy nephew, Drew Hartwell, the Mermaid CafĂ©’s most notorious heartbreaker.

But when Bree starts falling for Drew, just as Little Bridge’s power is restored and her penitent ex shows up, she has to ask herself if her island fling was only a result of the stormy weather, or if it could last during clear skies too.

I’ve always been a huge fan of Meg Cabot. Starting with her Princess Diaries series back in 2002, I’ve read almost every single one of her books, leaving out the middle school books, and I would say hands down she is one of my favourite authors.

The Little Bridge Island Series starts off with a short story, ‘Bridal Boot Camp,’ and while a short story has limited time, the story was bland, not offering much for the reader to fall in love with the characters.

Unfortunately, No Judgements starts off exactly as the blurb lays out, and continues its short story pitfall, of simply seeming too easy. The characters are semi-likeable, but the romance seems too rush between the protagonists. While a great read for introducing us to Little Bridge Island, there’s nothing memorable about this series.

When Cabot refers to the ’emotionally abusive ex’ in the blurb, I steeled myself, for what ultimately seemed to be little resolution in the book, and retaliation with physical violence. She also introduces a myriad of backstory for the character that seem to be random notes, rather than key driving points of the story.

Overall, while I love Cabot and most of her books, unfortunately this one seemed to fall short. An interesting premise in a gorgeous setting, but the pace was too quickly set for our protagonists to reach their happy ending.

Rating: 3/5

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

Recommendations Needed!

I'm struggling a little bit at the moment trying to find some new great romance novels, and keep going back to old favourites. Does anyone have any recommendations? I'm quite happy with hockey romance novels at the moment, but am happy with just a great romance novel!

Eight Romance Novel Series To Read Right Now


I love romance series for a few reasons. One, we get more romance novels to read, and that's always a win. Two, I love falling in love with characters in one book who aren't the main characters and see the progression in all of the involved cast. It's like looking at a microcosm of a perfect world. So, it's time for a list of some of my favourite romance series!

To make things easier, I've chosen one romance novel per series, not necessarily my favourite one in that series.

Drop us a comment and let us know your favourite romance series!

 


1. Butterface (Hartigan Series) by Avery Flynn


Butterface (Hartigan Series) by Avery Flynn
It’s true. I’m not what most people would call “pretty” and, well, high school was rough. Fast forward ten years and life is good…
Until a bunch of jerks think it’s hilarious to put the “butterface” (AKA me) on a wedding Kiss Cam with the hottest guy ever—and that old humiliation hits hard.
I recognize him immediately. The sexiest cop in Waterbury and totally out of my league.
But then he kisses me. And we totally forget the room, the crowd, everything.
Then he tells everyone we’ve been dating for months.
Soon everything starts to feel too real, from adorable fights over “necessary” tools to fix my broken porch to surviving a free-for-all dinner with his six siblings to picking up where our last kiss left off.
But there’s something he’s not telling me about why he’s really hanging around, and I’m pretty sure it has to do with my mob-connected brothers.
Because this is not a make-over story, and Cinderella is only a fairy tale…

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

2. Boy Meets Girl (Boy Series) by Meg Cabot


Meg Cabot (Boy Series) by Meg Cabot
Meet Kate Mackenzie. She: works for the T.O.D. (short for TyrannicalOffice Despot, also known as Amy Jenkins, Director of the Human Resources Division at the New York Journal); is sleeping on the couch because her boyfriend of ten years refuses to commit; can't find an affordable studio apartment anywhere in New York City; thinks things can't get any worse.
They can. Because: the T.O.D. is making her fire the most popular employee in the paper's senior staff dining room; that employee is now suing Kate for wrongful termination, and now Kate has to give a deposition in front of Mitch Hertzog, the scion of one of Manhattan's wealthiest law families, who embraces everything Kate most despises ... but also happens to have a nice smile and a killer bod.
The last thing anybody -- least of all Kate Mackenzie -- expects to find in a legal arbitration is love. But that's the kind of thing that can happen when ... Boy Meets Girl.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.


3. Once A Princess (Cardinia's Royal Family Series) by Johanna Lindsey


Once A Princess (Cardinia's Royal Family) by Johanna Lindsey
Once Upon A Time...
In a rustic Mississippi tavern, a beautiful exiled princess was forced to dance for the pleasure of others--unaware of her regal birthright...and infuriated by a magnificent golden-eyed devil who crossed an ocean to possess her.

From A Far Off Land...
A bold and brazen prince came to America to claim his promised bride. But the spirited vixen spurned his affections while inflaming his royal blood with passion's fire...impelling virile Stefan Barany to take in sensuous and searing conquest the love Tatiana vowed never to yield.
Click here to purchase from Amazon. 





4. Styx's Storm (Breed Series) by Lora Leigh


Styx's Storm (Breed Series) by Lora Leigh
To save innocent, young Storme Montague from the claws of Breed slave traders, Wolf Breed Styx is forced to claim her himself-on the condition that Storme will no longer be a virgin by night's end. And though Storme's defenses are up, Styx will free her-in ways she never expects.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.








5. Seize The Night (Dark-Hunter Series) by Sherrilyn Kenyon


Seize The Night (Dark Hunter Series) by Sherrilyn Kenyon
Valerius isn't a popular Dark-Hunter - he's a Roman, which means that the largely Greek Hunters have a major grudge against him and his civilization for superceding them. To make things worse, he's very conscious of his aristocratic background and breeding. So it serves him right when he runs into Tabitha Devereaux. She's sassy, sexy, and completely unwilling to take him seriously. (Not to mention Tabitha is also the sister-in-law of Kyrian, a former Dark-Hunter and Val's mortal enemy.)
What Tabitha does take seriously is hunting and killing vampires-and soon she and Val have to grapple with the deadliest of all Daimons - one who's managed to come back from the dead, and one who holds a serious grudge against both of them. To win against evil, Val will have to loosen up, learn to trust, and put everything on the line to protect a man he hates and a woman who drives him nuts.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.

6. The Iron Rose (Pirate Wolf Series) by Marsha Canham


The Iron Rose (Pirate Wolf series) by Marsha Canham
Bound for the Caribbean on a mission for the king, Varian St.Clare's ship is attacked by a Spanish galleon. When a pirate ship, the Iron Rose comes to their rescue, cannons blazing, the emissary is suprised to learn the captain is a woman, Juliet Dante, daughter of the infamous Pirate Wolf.

Click here to purchase from Amazon.










7. Royally Endowed (Royally Series) by Emma Chase


Royally Endowed (Royal Series) by Emma Chase
Logan St. James is a smoldering, sexy beast. Sure, he can be a little broody at times—but Ellie Hammond’s willing to overlook that. Because, have you seen him?? Sexy. As. Hell.

And Ellie’s perky enough for both of them. For years, she’s had a crush on the intense, protective royal security guard—but she doesn’t think he ever saw her, not really.

To Logan, Ellie was just part of the job—a relative of the royal family he’d sworn to protect. Now, at 22 years old and fresh out of college, she’s determined to put aside her X-rated dreams of pat-downs and pillow talk, and find a real life happily ever after. The Queen of Wessco encourages Ellie to follow in her sister’s footsteps and settle down with a prince of her own. Or a duke, a marquis…a viscount would also do nicely.

But in the pursuit of a fairy tale ending, Ellie learns that the sweetest crushes can be the hardest to let go.

Click here to purchase from Amazon. 

8. A Kiss To Remember (Once Upon A Time Series) by Teresa Medeiros


A Kiss To Remember (Once Upon A Time series) by Teresa Medeiros
A daring Regency miss finds her own "Sleeping Beauty" and awakens him with a kiss...

If she is to keep a roof over her siblings' heads, rector's daughter Laura Fairleigh needs a husband. When she finds a mysterious stranger sleeping in the forest with no memory of his name or his past, she decides to claim him for her own.

Little does she know that her fallen angel is really Sterling Harlow, the notorious rakehell also known as the "Devil of Devonbrooke". Too late, Laura realizes she has given him the right to claim not only her home, but her body and her heart. Now she must win the devil's heart to save both their souls.

Click here to purchase from Amazon. 



What are your favourite romance novel series? Drop a comment and let us know!

Love Me Like You Do by Aimee Brown


Love Me Like You Do by Aimee Brown
A runaway bride. A handsome stranger. Two pasts to put behind them.
Parker is ready to marry the man of her dreams. But he isn't ready to marry her. When she's dumped moments before walking down the aisle, she didn't expect to run into the arms of a handsome stranger. The southern drawl, the dreamy eyes, she can't fall for another man after being left at the altar – can she?
When Liam agreed to go on yet another blind date, he didn't expect his escape would lead him to the emergency room with a runaway bride. She might have just been left at the altar, but he's immediately drawn to her fiery spirit, kind heart and beautiful smile. Liam's got a whole host of problems and a past that's haunting him, now can't be the time to fall in love, but Parker might just be the one to break down his barriers and let him live a little – if she'll let him in.
Will these two strangers allow serendipity to force them together, or will their fears keep them apart?
Thanks to NetGalley and Aria I was lucky enough to receive an advanced reading copy for Aimee Brown's upcoming romance novel, Love Me Like You Do, scheduled for release 17th September.
I've never read anything by Ms. Brown before, but was instantly drawn in by the description and it did not disappoint. Going through our three tests:
Did the cover match up to the novel? It's a no for me, but not in a bad way. Looking at this cover, I'll admit, I was a bit dubious about reading this book. Don't get me wrong, the cover is a nice design and I do love the colors, but for me it felt a bit light for the subject matter and a bit more serious than what I hoped the book would be. For me, the book far exceeded the cover and I was very happily surprised.
Second, does the book live up to its description? Most definitely, yes.
Finally, how was the formatting? There were a few mistakes in wrong words, words pushed together, paragraph formatting slightly out, but I'm sure this will remain in the ARC and will be corrected for the final edition.
To the story itself, I was blown away. I always love to feel fully invested in the books I read and continue reading, and this book definitely checked those boxes. It is light-hearted, comedic, but with depth and it just kept me wanting to read. The plot itself covers a variety of topics, but does so in a seamless manner that doesn't keep you thinking, well hang on, what happened to that plotline? Everything ties in together beautifully and doesn't make you feel that something was just thrown in for extra dramatic effect. Everything that was put into the book had a purpose and enhanced the story, not detracted.
Our characters meet-cute was perfect, and I loved the premise of fate and chance taking part in this love story. The characters continue meeting without expectation, randomly bumping into each other and it suits the plot perfectly. Both our main characters were well-fleshed out with plotlines aside from their romance, and it was just simply beautiful.
Spoilers ahead.
I was a little surprised with the depth that Ms. Brown went into with Parker's Mother, and for some readers who are triggered by mentions of suicide, please read with caution. I felt that it was handled in a good manner, but, still a surprise.
Even with that, the book still managed to mostly light-hearted and a joy to read, and one that I was so pleasantly surprised to have. Overall, a fantastic book, one of the best I've read this year, and one that I'm very grateful to have had the opportunity to read.
Rating: 4/5
Click here to pre-purchase from Amazon, available 17th September.

Proofreading & Copy Editing

Good afternoon everyone!

I've been asked a few times now from some of my readers about my proofreading and copy editing services/skills, and thought I'd put them collectively here to share. I am available for this work at present, and most likely through the remainder of the year.

My qualifications include a Bachelor of Arts Degree with Honours, along with publishing two academic papers at that time, available online and in print. Since then, I have worked for marketing and communications for Disney, been a Communications Manager for four years for an internationally renowned cruise line, and most recently worked as a Business & Brand Manager on board another internationally renowned cruise line. Owing to the current worldwide situation, I have a little more time at home than previously planned.

I worked in the book industry for five years while going through university, working with publishing houses to correct proofs and provide feedback. I have continued this throughout my career, and recently began to publish these reviews online as well, resulting in this website. I have a large amount of editorial and proofreading experience, combined with some graphic design knowledge.

I would prefer to edit any romance, young adult romance, or website posts, but am open to other genres/forms, just let me know. If you're interested in these services, please contact me via email at gonewiththebooks@hotmail.com, my prices are below. The book maximum indicates that if I go over this time, the maximum is the highest price that I would charge you.

Books
0-200 pages = £10 per hour, maximum of £40
0-300 pages = £12 per hour, maximum of £50
0-400 pages = £14 per hour, maximum of £60
0-400+ pages = £15 per hour, maximum of £65

Page/Post/Excerpt
0-1500 words = £3
0-2500 words = £6
0-3500 words = £9
0-4500 words = £12
0-4500+ words = £15

Owing to my time, I may not be able to take on all requests, but I will do my best to let you know. If you would like to use my services, please send an email to gonewiththebooks@hotmail.com with the following information: 
Name
Email
Title of Book
Amazon or Goodreads link of applicable
Blurb
Any other comments as required

Please note that as mentioned above, I am not a professional reviewer, however, have over eight years of communication and marketing experience with Fortune 500 companies.


Royal Bastard Sneak Peek!

It's the first day of June! I've said this every month so far, but this year is definitely not what I thought it would be, and I'm sure I'm not alone in that. But, while there's so many uncertainties and unknowns, I know that for me, escaping the madness of all of that is more important for me than ever.

Be kind to yourself, be kind to others, and take time to do things that you enjoy. We're currently in a completely unexpected period in our lives where a lot of our normalities have changed and it's hard to accept. Take the time for yourself that you need to keep being you and be happy.

Royal Bastard by Avery Flynn And to cheer us all up, there's some fantastic news from Avery Flynn for a sneak peek of her upcoming book, Royal Bastard, scheduled for release 8th June! Check it out here today.

What are you reading this month? Drop a comment and let us know!