Book Nerds Across America: romance

Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts

Thursday, October 2, 2025

Book Review: Falling Like Leaves by Misty Wilson

GOODREADS SUMMARY:Ellis has a plan: spend her senior fall prepping her application for Columbia, get into their journalism program, and set the foundation for a respectable career. So when her parents announce that not only are they separating, but Ellis has to move with her mom from New York City to Bramble Falls, Connecticut, to live with her aunt and cousin, it couldn’t come at a worse time.

From past summers spent in Connecticut, Ellis knows Bramble Falls is idyllic and charming. But it also seems to be full of distractions. There’s local barista Cooper Barnett, Ellis’s one-time best friend and first kiss who now wants nothing to do with Ellis. And then there’s the Falling Leaves Festival, a local autumnal celebration run by Ellis’s aunt where people from all over come to see Bramble Falls’s beautiful foliage. The house is stuffed with decorations, and every conversation seems to center around the festival.

Dragged to every oh-so-charming event from apple picking to pumpkin carving, Ellis can’t stop bumping into Cooper…or falling for the quaint town and its quirky residents. As her return to Manhattan gets repeatedly delayed, Ellis finds herself caught between two very different places—and the futures they represent.

TEES THOUGHTS:

Falling Like Leaves was my first fall read this year, and I have to say I loved it!! It gave me all the fall vibes that I was looking for to start off the season. I will admit, I picked this book for the cover, how cozy is it? and then when I went in to read I notices it was YA. I was a bit skeptical of it, some of the YA books now days are so different from where I am ( as they should be, I am far from a YA now ) that I find I struggle with relating to them.

This book is a romance, of course. My Summer of Love, has ran over into Fall and by the looks of my growing holiday reads, into the Christmas season. However, that being sad, it did deal with some fairly grownup discussions we have to make while we are young, and the author dealt with them realistically, which I appreciated.

I really enjoyed that it was a story of first love, it helps you to remember some of the magic that you forget happens when you first fall in love. It is a lighthearted and fun story despite the occasional struggle.

The characters are all so likable, some I daresay are even lovable. Both of the mains, Ellis and Cooper are sweet, and their relationship is even sweeter ( it's not candy sickening sweet so don't worry ) with their cute fall activity filled dates. It is however, not steamy, so for you that like steamy bits...nope, not finding it here. There was this one kiss though...

If you are a romance fan, I cant imagine you not liking Falling Like Leaves....OH and this books is giving major Gilmore Girls vibes, which makes it even more perfect for this time of the year. I flew through this book, and I usually crawl through them all at a snails pace, I enjoyed it, and I think all of you should read it

Monday, July 1, 2024

Book Review: The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people. Thankfully, as a librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she and her assistant, Caz—a magically sentient spider plant—have spent the last decade sequestered among the empire’s most precious spellbooks, preserving their magic for the city’s elite.

When a revolution begins and the library goes up in flames, she and Caz flee with all the spellbooks they can carry and head to a remote island Kiela never thought she’d see again: her childhood home. Taking refuge there, Kiela discovers, much to her dismay, a nosy—and very handsome—neighbor who can’t take a hint and keeps showing up day after day to make sure she’s fed and to help fix up her new home.

In need of income, Kiela identifies something that even the bakery in town doesn’t have: jam. With the help of an old recipe book her parents left her and a bit of illegal magic, her cottage garden is soon covered in ripe berries.

But magic can do more than make life a little sweeter, so Kiela risks the consequences of using unsanctioned spells and opens the island’s first-ever and much needed secret spellshop.

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

From the get go Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst won my heart. Who knew the Cottage Core Aesthetic could overflow into a book, but it has with her magical new book. Also who knew I would read a fantasy and totally enjoy it, certainly not me, but Spellshop made that happen also =0)

This book is beautifully written, it's cozy, yes, seriously. Yo will want to tuck in with a cup of steaming hot tea and have a long read. It is delightful, sweet, slightly romantic , has small town vibes, a plot that will keep you engaged. The fantasy in the book is even magical and cozy..... you will garden in a magical garden, help a mermaid baby, ride seahorses, and that is only the beginning.

Main character Kiela is much like me, she is not fond of people, she works in a library or she did, but she had to escape to her childhood home on an island to escape death. Have you ever lived in a small town? Well her home town is small and of course there are problems, mostly noisy neighbors. There is conflict of course, but it is fun and resolved quickly. Also, there is a good amount of comic relief in the story from Kiela's sidekick, who happens to be a spider plant names Caz.

Please pick this one up, but don't try and take it seriously- it is not meant to be, it is the escape we all well need right now.

Wednesday, June 19, 2024

BOOK REVIEW: SUMMER AT THE SAINT BY MARY KAY ANDREWS

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Everyone refers to the St. Cecelia as “the Saint.” If you grew up coming here, you were “a Saint.” If you came from the wrong side of the river, you were “an Ain’t.” Traci Eddings was one of those outsiders whose family wasn’t rich enough or connected enough to vacation here. But she could work here. One fateful summer she did, and married the boss’s son. Now, she’s the widowed owner of the hotel, determined to see it return to its glory days, even as staff shortages and financial troubles threaten to ruin it. Plus, her greedy and unscrupulous brother-in-law wants to make sure she fails. Enlisting a motley crew of recently hired summer help—including the daughter of her estranged best friend—Traci has one summer season to turn it around. But new information about a long-ago drowning at the hotel threatens to come to light, and the tragic death of one of their own brings Traci to the brink of despair.

Traci Eddings has her back against the pink-painted wall of this beloved institution. And it will take all the wits and guts she has to see wrongs put to right, to see guilty parties put in their place, and maybe even to find a new romance along the way. Told with Mary Kay Andrew’s warmth, humor, knack for twists, and eye for delicious detail about human nature, Summers at the Saint is a beach read with depth and heart.

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

I always look forward to a Mary Kay Andrews book, she has the ability to make me cry or laugh while feeding me a great mystery. Her summer releases are always a favorite. Maybe. I do love a good holiday story and hers are the most merry!

Summers At The Saint, her newest book was once again a winner with me. It was a fantastic beachy summer read, but it also had a bit of heaviness included within it to keep it from being too fluffy.

The St. Cecilia, or the Saint as it is know by the rich clientele that summer there sets on the coast of Georgia. Traci Eddings owns it, inheriting it from her husband when he died. She is struggling trying to keep it a float, but she has a lot that is working against her, mainly her late husbands family. The descriptions of the hotel, from the front receiving area to the kitchens all painted a vibrant picture of where you were.

All the characters in the book, and there were plenty, from the family to the summer workers, were well written and thought out. Traci was not from a rich family, she spent her summers there as a lifeguard at the hotels pool, but ended up marrying the bosses son. There is certainly a class struggler's between her and her dead husbands family.

The mystery has been unsolved for decades, and it has a surprise twist that I will confess I did not figure out. It is a great little who done it that added plenty of intrigue to the family drama.

I read and also listened to this book, which made the 400 plus book go by quickly ( everyone who knows me know I do not like a book that roams over 350 pages ), but I feel like it was a fast paced book either way. The narrator Kathleen McInerney made the listening pleasurable with her smooth and silky voice,

Summer At The Saint is fun and entertaining and it is the perfect summer read for everyone.

Monday, April 24, 2023

Book Review: Twelve Hours in Manhattan by Mean Gabriel

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Two worlds. One heart. Twelve hours.

Bianca Maria Curtis is at the brink of losing it all when she meets Eric at a bar in Manhattan. Eric, as it turns out, is the famous Korean drama celebrity Park Hyun Min, and he’s in town for one night to escape the pressures of fame. From walking along Fifth Avenue to eating ice cream at Serendipity to sharing tender moments on top of the Empire State building, sparks fly as Bianca and Eric spend twelve magical hours far away from their respective lives. In that time, they talk about the big stuff: love, life, and happiness, and the freedom they both seek to fully exist and not merely survive.

But real life is more than just a few exhilarating stolen moments in time.

As the clock strikes the twelfth hour, Bianca returns back to the life she detests to face a tragedy that will test her strength and resolve—and the only thing she has to keep going is the memory of a man she loves in secret from a world away.

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

Twelve Hours in Manhattan promises to be the perfect love story for anyone who enjoys kdramas but unfortunately, it falls short, a few times, feeling much more like a fanfic you might come across online instead.

Honestly, I wanted to like this book. I enjoy kdramas and love that more books are starting to feature more material that showcases them! Unfortunately, this felt more like someone just decided to write something they thought would be liked because it was “in.”

I’m an avid fan and reader of fan fiction so it’s not necessarily a negative to be compared to it, I’ve read some amazing fanfics, but this felt more on the side of messy, disorganized, and kind of forced.

Plots kept piling up in the story that just didn’t need to be there, almost as if they needed to be thrown in to reach a certain word count.

Beyond the story itself, the characters lacked as well. Sometimes I can read a story and think, “I don’t like this plot but I love this character,” but I never once felt that way with Bianca.

Bianca just wasn’t likable. Everyone who watches Kdramas knows that the main character is always kind of frustrating and you’re wondering HOW are they the “IT girl” in the story but eventually, they have redeeming qualities and you fall in love with them, swearing to protect them always. Never happened with Bianca for me. The only thing that Bianca left me with was exhaustion. She cries about everything and anything. There were times I couldn’t even remember what it was she was crying about because I was just so tired of her.

Eric was a perfect cookie-cutter kdrama boy but much like Bianca missed the mark because there wasn’t much substance to him.

Honestly, the secondary characters were more of a fresh breath of air, which is common in kdramas but even there, there wasn’t enough.

The book itself is a fine read, especially if maybe you are a bit younger and don’t need more from a book. This story could have made a fine one-shot on a fanfic site or even a hilarious social on Twitter but it just did not need to be an almost 300-page book.

** THIS BOOK WAS READ AND REVIEWED BY MY DAUGHTER LIZZ **

Tuesday, August 16, 2022

Book Review: Every Summer After by Carley Fortune

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

They say you can never go home again, and for Persephone Fraser, ever since she made the biggest mistake of her life a decade ago, that has felt too true. Instead of glittering summers on the lakeshore of her childhood, she spends them in a stylish apartment in the city, going out with friends, and keeping everyone a safe distance from her heart.

Until she receives the call that sends her racing back to Barry’s Bay and into the orbit of Sam Florek—the man she never thought she’d have to live without.

For six summers, through hazy afternoons on the water and warm summer nights working in his family’s restaurant and curling up together with books—medical textbooks for him and work-in-progress horror short stories for her—Percy and Sam had been inseparable. Eventually, that friendship turned into something breathtakingly more before it fell spectacularly apart.

When Percy returns to the lake for Sam’s mother’s funeral, their connection is as undeniable as it had always been. But until Percy can confront the decisions she made and the years she’s spent punishing herself for them, they’ll never know whether their love might be bigger than the biggest mistakes of their past.

Told over the course of six years and one weekend, Every Summer After is a big, sweeping nostalgic look at love and the people and choices that mark us forever

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

GUYS...if ever there was a book to read this summer THIS IS IT...yes, I know it has gotten a lot of hype...but in this case, BELIEVE the hype!

It stuns me that Every Summer After is Carley Fortune's debut, she tells a story as well or better as many seasoned writers.

Set in a lake community in Canada, the story is told in dual timelines about 12 years apart, past and present. Beginning with Percy and her family occupying a cottage on the lake for 6 summers, living next door to the Florek family. Percy and youngest brother Sam, start out as friends but build up to a relationship before breaking up that last summer. Oh there are some major feels in this book when you go through their problems and their mistakes with them, but you will also cheer them along in the present day.

It is a quick read, mainly because you will not want to put it down, but the story holds your interest with plenty of family issues such as grief and parental loss, struggling relationships, both friendships and lovers, the struggles of growing up, and of course forgiveness.

The characters in the book are flawed and they make some stupid mistakes like we all do growing up, but they grow up and deal with them like adults do, and no matter what, they stay true to themselves and you seem to always root for them despite what is going on. They are young in much of the book, which kind of grows with them, so at times where you will feel like you are reading a YA, but the present will slip in and remind you that you are not.

Every Summer After is full of washed-out summer nostalgia that will have you remembering your first summer crush. I loved this book so much that I am sure I have told everyone I know to read it..so if you haven't, I am telling you also! And y'all can I get a hell yeah on how beautiful Carley Fortune wrote the character of Sam?... Book boyfriend crush material right there!

Monday, August 8, 2022

Book Review : Meant to Be by Emily Giffin

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

The Kingsley family is practically American royalty, beloved for their military heroics, political service, and unmatched elegance. When Joseph S. Kingsley III is born in 1960, he inherits the weight of that legacy. Growing up with all the Kingsley looks and charisma, Joe should have no problem taking up the mantle after his father’s untimely death. But he is also a little bit reckless, and can’t seem to figure out how to channel the expectations of an entire country.

No one ever expected anything of Cate, on the other hand. She, too, grew up in a single-parent household—just her and her mom scraping by in their small apartment. As a teenager, though, Cate is discovered for her looks. Modeling may be her only ticket out of the cycle of disappointment that her mother has always inhabited. Before too long, her face is everywhere, though she is always aware that she’d be a pariah in her social circles if anyone knew her true story.

When Joe and Cate’s paths cross, their connection is instant. What remains to be seen is whether their relationship will survive the glare of the spotlight that follows Joe everywhere. And just as they find themselves in the make-or-break moment, the tragedy that seems to run in Joe’s family right alongside all that privilege will repeat itself.

In a beautifully written novel that recaptures a gilded moment in American history, Emily Giffin tells a story of a love that may or may not have the power to transcend circumstances that seem arrayed against it... and the difficulty of finding your way to the place you belong

TEE'S THOUGHTS:

It has been a while since I have picked up an Emily Griffin book. I enjoyed her books Something Borrowed and Something Blue, but then seemed to lose track of her, that is until I was searching Amazon for a new audiobook and come across Meant To Be. I knew nothing about the book going into it, and that it was new and sounded decent, so I jumped in.

The first thing I noticed was that the story seemed to somewhat mirror the relationship of John F Kennedy Jr and Carolyn Bessette. I grew up in a huge Kennedy family, everyone in my family was a fan of all the Kennedy's so naturally, I knew a bit about them. I also was a huge fan of Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, I thought she was elegant, the perfect wife for JFK Jr, who I was also a fan of, and loved reading George every month. Also, as a lover of fashion, I thought Carolyn Bessette had fantastic taste in clothes and loved that she loved Yohji Yamamoto, one of my favorites.

Griffin did a great job keeping me entertained with this story. While Joseph’s family background def mirrored the Kennedys, Cate’s family was nothing like Carolyn’s. She came from a lower-class family with one parent, and that played heavily into the story. I like both of the characters, which isn’t usually the case with me reading a romance. I won’t lie, I think the similarities in the story with the real-life romance, helped me quickly zoom through the book, it was something I really enjoyed and I loved seeing the ways she veered off from real life to make it her own story.

I think if you are a reader of Kennedy books you would really enjoy this, even if you basically know the story, and if you know absolutely nothing about JFKJr and Carolyn Bessette, you will enjoy just a great romance.

Luckily for Joe and Cate, Emily Griffin gave them a much happier ending than what JFKJr and Carolyn got, and I have always felt, that would have been the way RL would have went for those two.

Thursday, August 12, 2021

Book Review: Then You Saw Me by Carrie Aarons

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

You know what’s guaranteed to send your heart into your throat? Opening the front door of your off-campus house to find the boy you had a crush on all through high school telling you he’s the new subletter.

Of course, he barely knew I existed back then, and still doesn’t even though we attend the same university. But in a house of six college kids, it should be easy to remain invisible while carrying a torch for him. After all, I’m skilled at being overlooked and playing second fiddle.

Except Austin Van Hewitt, my hometown’s golden boy, doesn’t get the memo. After we throw our first party of the year, I’m on his radar and somehow my lips miraculously end up on his. The budding romance is one I’ve always dreamt about. As he shows more and more interest, I push aside the plaguing insecurity of never being good enough.

But then a letter shows up in our mailbox. A time capsule I wrote to myself when I was fifteen. You know, the kind where a teacher sends it to you years later? Guess who opens it by mistake and reads all about how I plan on marrying him and having his babies one day? Did I mention I signed it using his last name?

Mortifying would be an understatement. After he starts pulling away, I’m once again the girl in the background hoping that someone will understand me enough to pay me all of their attention.

The old me, the one conditioned to settle for what she’s given, would back down. This time, though, if I want everything I almost held in my hands, I’ll have to speak up. I’ll have to admit exactly how I feel, fight for the love that was blossoming. And I’m not sure what’s scarier; voicing my inner thoughts or facing his ultimate rejection.

TEE'S THOUGHTS

We have all been there. Had that one crush in school, the one that seemed to last forever. The one who didn't even know you were alive.

So imagine this: a few years later you are in college and one of your roommates' leaves, and who shows up to sublet their room? Yep. The guy. The one you had crushed so hard on.

Carrie Aarons knows how to write romance. She keeps you engaged and turning pages. She gets you invested, not only in the story but the characters themselves. She makes them feel like they are your friends, and that you are right in the middle of the action. In fact, she is becoming one of my go-to authors on contemporary romance.

The main characters Taya and Austin are both complex characters. Austin's last name is synonymous with the town they grew up in. Well-known and well connected. He is the perfect son, the perfect student. He is the golden boy. Taya has spent her life playing second best to her little sister.

I enjoyed both characters. Surprisingly Carrie Aarons did not make Austin a character you dislike, the arrogant high school jock that so many seem to focus on. He is very likable and you instantly understand where he is coming from and his actions. And of course, you feel for Taya, she goes through this horrible humiliation that we would all want to avoid.

Both of them are human, they feel real to the reader. They are vulnerable, they are insecure, and like anyone from a dysfunctional family they struggle with things, but the thing that really drew me to these two was their ability to be fighters and the intense connection between them.

Are you a fan of close proximity roommate romances? Do you like stories that are full of angst and emotions? If you answered yes to either of these, do yourself a favor and pick up Then You Saw Me By Carrie Aarons. You won't be sorry.

Friday, May 28, 2021

Book Review: Where It All Lands by Jennie Wexler

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

A Sliding Doors -Esque novel reveals how our choices define us and how love can find its way no matter the road.

Stevie Rosenstein has never made a true friend. Never fallen in love. Moved from city to city by her father’s unrelenting job, it’s too hard to care for someone. Trust in anything. The pain of leaving always hurts too much. But she’ll soon learn to trust, to love.

Twice.

Drew and Shane have been best friends through everything. The painful death of Shane's dad. The bitter separation of Drew's parents. Through sleepaway camps and family heartache, basketball games, and immeasurable loss, they've always been there for each other.

When Stevie meets Drew and Shane, life should go on as normal.

But a simple coin toss alters the course of their year in profound and unexpected ways.

Told in dual timelines, debut author Jennie Wexler delivers a heartbreaking and hopeful novel about missed opportunities, second chances, and all the paths that lead us to where we are

TEE'S REVIEW:

Drew, a popular boy at school, and Shane, a quieter and a music prodigy, have been best friends for years. Stevie, the new girl in school, has trouble connecting with friends due to consent moving high schools due to her father’s coaching career. But she meets up with the two boys and they all connect over their love of music.

Both of the boys find themselves crushing on Stevie, and instead of fighting over her and ruining their friendship, they allow fate to make the decision on who will date her…by flipping a coin.

The story is told in a parallel timeline, almost like two stories with Stevie possibly dating each boy. Stevie and her relationship with Drew in the first half of the book and Shane in the second half. It plays out showing us that just one change can alter things tremendously. Seeing both sides of the story was interesting and kept you reading, the characters felt real and their emotions played well into the story.

The one thing I really disliked about the story was the instalove of the boys and Stevie. I really feel a relationship should grow, but this did not happen here. One of my favorite things about the book was the music of course, which plays a big part in the story.

There were triggering points in the book…infidelity, divorce, death of a character, etc. so if those bother you, take heed, they are in the story.

Where It All Lands is Jennie Wexler’s debut book and will certainly make you think. It is about first love, second chances, and friendship. If you take anything from this story, let it be that the choices we make matter in so many lives, so make good ones.

Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Book Review: Love By Design by Effie Kammenou

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Mia Andarakis just landed her dream job at a luxury magazine. And even better, her boss is the handsome and enigmatic Nicholas Aristedis, a man she has crushed on from afar. But Nicholas isn’t who she imagined. Irascible and mercurial, his instant dislike for Mia makes it almost impossible for her to work with him.

Nicholas has faced many losses and heartaches in his thirty-two years. Determined to avoid heartbreak, he has closed his heart to love. But Mia awakens feelings in him he had long since denied. And soon he discovers their connection is deeper than he realized.

Mia and Nicolas embark on an adventure across picturesque locations as they launch a new publication and uncover the mystery behind her grandfather’s disappearance. But perhaps the greatest challenge is in learning to set aside their insecurities and fears. Can the two forget the traumas of their past? And will they ever learn to trust in the possibility of love?

TEE'S REVIEW:

I was so excited to be able to revisit the Andarakis family once again in the new book Love By Design by Effie Kammenou, which is the second book in the Meraki Series.

Love By Design is all about Mia, the sister of Kally who was in the first book Love Is What You Bake Of It. Mia the middle sister has just landed her dream job with the new luxury travel magazine Opul as the Associated Art Director. When she meets her new boss Nicholas Aristedis for the first time, sparks fly, but they are not the type either expected, they seem to bring out the worse in each other each time they have to be around the other.

Enemies to Lovers is one of my favorite tropes and Kammenou writes it so well. The tension between Mia and Nicholas is great, you will find yourself cringing along with Mia as Nicholas comes off short with Mia about things she is doing. However, the pair are thrown together thanks to Penelope, Nicholas’s sister who with him owns and runs the magazine. She sends them on a trip to Greece, the first location that the magazine is featuring, to scope out the places they are focusing on.

Just like Kally’s story Love by Design is a quick read, mostly because once you start reading, you won't want to stop. The characters are real and heartwarming. They struggle, they love, and they hurt. The Andarakis family, which is a major secondary character in itself, especially YiaYia the grandmother that lives with the family. The sub-story of her and her long-missing husband Panos is absolutely one of my favorites and could stand on its own as a book. I love the way that Effie has worked it in the books, teasing us with a little bit more info in Love By Design.

We also meet Nicholas’s family, which only includes his sister Penelope, who is so likable, especially the way she shows her concern and love for her little brother Nicholas. I found their grandfather Pavlos hard to warm up to, but I also felt he was written as he should have been, a real man with real concerns about his grandson.

I really enjoyed both the main characters, Mia and Nicholas. Mia is strong, but she is also sensitive and sometimes wears her heart on her sleeve. Nicolas is a troubled sort and there were times I wanted to scream at him for his unwillingness to admit his feelings, yet moments later my heart broke for him. I was especially surprised by the sweet little twist that Effie puts into Mia and Nicholas’s relationship, it is one of my favorite moments in the book and definitely sweet and swoon-worthy.

I can not say it enough, Effie Kammenous's writing is spectacular. She makes you a part of this big loving and lively Greek family. I know that there is a third book that features the youngest sister Krystina and I hope Loukas. I won’t lie however, I am looking forward to learning the truth about what happened to Panos. And if I am honest I wouldn’t be opposed to a fourth book that deals with brother Theo. It would be great to read about a lead male character and I know Effie would do it justice.

If you love romance, learning about other cultures, and maybe a bit of mystery, I highly recommend Love By Design, and while you can read it as a stand-alone, you’d be missing so much of the families dynamics by not reading Love Is What You Bake Of It before it!

**Thank You Effie Kammenou and Kate Rock Tours for the gifted copy **

Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Book Review: Float Plan by Trish Doller

GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Critically acclaimed author Trish Doller's unforgettable and romantic adult debut about setting sail, starting over, and finding yourself...

Since the loss of her fiancé, Anna has been shipwrecked by grief—until a reminder goes off about a trip they were supposed to take together. Impulsively, Anna goes to sea in their sailboat, intending to complete the voyage alone.

But after a treacherous night’s sail, she realizes she can’t do it by herself and hires Keane, a professional sailor, to help. Much like Anna, Keane is struggling with a very different future than the one he had planned. As romance rises with the tide, they discover that it’s never too late to chart a new course.

TEE'S REVIEW

I don’t even know where to begin with Float Plan the new romance by Trish Doller. It was nothing like I expected it to be, intact it was much more. By looking at the cover I expected it to be a light-hearted romance that somehow incorporated sailing. You know what they say…never judge a book by its cover. While the cover is a brightly covered happy yellow, the book does not always live up to the look.

The book begins with a suicide note, so you are instantly forced into the feeling of grief that Anna is feeling over the loss of her fiance Ben. She is devastated, she quits her Hooters-type waitressing job and decides to take the Caribbean sailing trip they had planned on Ben’s refurbished sailboat, visiting the islands that they had planned to see together. However, Anna soon learns she might not be the person to be off sailing the high seas by herself and she hires Keane, an Irish sailor to guide her on the rest of the trip.

Keane is struggling with a loss of his own, a freak accident that had left him without a leg, and the people he had sailed for in the past doubting his ability to continue his job.

Float Plan is an emotional ride, it is a heartbreaking and honest look at trying to start your life over after a loss, of any kind. Trish Doller’s writing is beautiful and compassionate, helping you feel the pain that Anna is feeling as she navigates her way into learning that it is ok to leave the memory of Ben behind and continue on with her life.

The descriptions she weaves of the islands that Anna and Keane visit are vivid and took me away from a freak winter storm, transplanting me into the warm tropical waters of the Caribbean. The secondary characters, however short their time is in the book are unforgettable as they move in and out of Anna and Keane’s live, providing what they need physically and emotionally. And there is a dog…you can’t go wrong putting a dog to love in a book!

The romance between Anna and Keane is a slow burner, as it should be. I would have been very disappointed in the book if the two were thrown into instant love. It starts with friendship, and learning to trust, and feeling the pain of liking someone and not knowing if you were being unfaithful to someone else memory. Anna and Keane have great chemistry and they play well off each other with humor and kindness, and sometimes anger. It feels real, it feels raw, and this entire book will have you on a rollercoaster of laughing and crying. This book is real because that is exactly how life makes us all feel.

Wednesday, January 13, 2021

EIGHT ROM-COMS TO GET EXCITED ABOUT IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS

I love the romance genre…everything about it. Yes, some are sappy and fluffy, but I need that in my life, and yes, I do watch Hallmark…sue me. I especially love Rom-Coms. Long ago when Confessions of A Shopaholic came out I picked it up and have been hooked ever since. I see myself in the characters, more so than I would ever see myself in a mystery or thriller, I would never be in a situation most of them are in, I am not one to take chances or that much adventure. I am a person though that is clumsy, a bit goofy, guarded with my heart, and yes, a bit of a shopaholic Rebecca Bloomwood and I have LOADS in common. Remember that time she was in New York and took that tour of Fifth Ave?

…It’s Saks Fifth Ave. Right there, across the street. One of the most famous department stores in the world…. ‘ This is one of New York's most famous landmarks ‘ he says with a gesture ‘ Many New Yorkers regularly visit the magnificent place of worship once a week or even more often. Some even make it here daily. We don’t have time to do more than a quick look inside…..’

’Shall we go in? ‘ says Christop at last

‘Absolutely! ‘ I say joyfully and hurry across the street toward the entrance. It is only as my hand is actually on the door that I realize no one else is with me. Where have they all gone? Puzzled I look back and the rest of the group is processing into a big stone church….

Oh.

Oh, I see. When he said ‘magnificent place of worship’ he meant….

Laughing out loud and having to read it to my husband, he asked if Sophie Kinsella had ever met me.

I get excited every month for the new ones to hit the bookstores, with their candy-colored covers and realness of the characters ( for the most part ) so here are 8 upcoming Rom-Coms I am looking forward to over the next few months.

MUCH ADO ABOUT YOU by Samantha Young

Release date February 2

Run Away to England with Evangeline Starling to a quaint village that includes a temporary job at Much Ado About Books, the bookshop underneath her holiday let where she meets local farmer Roane Robson. But does she risk a holiday romance that has the potential of breaking her heart?

THE LOVE SQUARE by Laura Jane Williams

Released February 9

Can unlucky in love Penny Bridge actually find love? Penny suddenly has plenty of romance in her life when a man comes her way, and then another one, and another one. Will she learn to trust and love again, and which of these remarkable men, if any will she fall for?

ACT YOUR AGE EVE BROWN by Talia Hibbert

Released March 9

We were introduced to the Brown sister ins Hibbert's book Get A Life Chloe Browm, and she is back with book three of the Friends book series and this one is all about flighty sister Eve as she descends on Jacob Wayne and his Bed and Breakfast, turning his world upside down.

FLOAT PLAN by Trish Doller

Released March 2

Heartbroken after the loss of her fiancé to suicide, Anna takes a cruise in the sailboat he left her, one they were supposed to take together. She hires sailor Keane to operate the boat after a rough stormy night. This romance, though does have funny moments is more about finding love after a loss and starting over. This is Doller’s debut adult book.

LIFE’S TO SHORT by Abby Jimenez

Released April 6

From the author of The Happily Ever After Playlist, Vanessa Price quits her job so she can live her life. After neither her mother nor sister made it to the age of 30, she no longer wants to take it for granted. She finds herself somehow in charge of a baby and living next door to hot lawyer Adrian Copeland. Too bad, she has taken a vow not to get involved.

PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION by Emily Henry

Released May 11

Beach Read’s Emily Henry is back with a new book titled People We Meet on Vacation. Long time best friends until a falling out during one of their yearly vacations together ruins their friendship, Poppy missed what she once shared with Alex and is determined to get their friendship and hopefully more rekindled when she asks him to take one more vacation together.

ONE LAST STOP by Casey McQuiston

Released June 1

The author who gave us Red White and Royal Blue ( who didn’t love this romance? ) is back with her second book One Last Stop. The book is a bit of a spa on Kate and Leopold that is the story of August who doesn’t believe in once in a lifetime love but falls for Jane her subway crush who is stuck in time from the 70s. Sounds perfectly magical and sexy.

IT HAPPENED ONE SUMMER by Tessa Bailey

Released July 13

Rich Hollywood It girl Piper is cut off from her money, finding herself stuck in a small Northwest beach town. There she meets Brandon, a gruff but sexy sea captain who doesn’t think she belongs in the town of Westport or that she can last a week away from the bright lights and luxury of LA. Will she stay or will she go?

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