The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood

 

5*

A delightful, heartwarming romance that’s both an homage to the genre featuring plenty of tropes and a ghost story with a liberal serving of magical realism.

After an adolescence full of bullying by her peers (including her former best friend) and neglect and abandonment by both of her parents post-divorce, Delphie (age 27) purposely made her life small, avoiding any relationships (platonic or otherwise) for fear of letting in love which would further harm her. So, when she dies after choking on a hamburger, there’s little she regrets leaving behind. When she is awakened by Merritt, her quirky Afterlife Therapist, she finds herself in a launderette, a version of heaven called Evermore. When a handsome new arrival appears, there’s an instant attraction, but realizing that he’s just sedated not dead, Merritt zaps him back to Earth, leaving Delphie feeling like she’s lost a potential soulmate. Due to a clause in the Evermore Handbook, which hopeless romantic Merritt makes unsanctioned use of to satisfy her craving for a real-time epic love story, she allows Delphine to return home for 10 days to find him and get a kiss so she can stay.

What follows is a series of missed opportunities, zany adventures that pull Delphie far out of her comfort zone, and startling revelations concerning her colleagues and neighbors (especially the grumpy, handsome womanizer Cooper and the elderly, mute Mr. Yoon). Although it’s mostly lighthearted, there are some tearful moments related to grieving the death of a loved one, but it’s ultimately a redemptive story of Delphie’s breaking the chains of the trauma that left her in a joyless, loveless, self-imposed prison. The pacing is perfect, the angst is minimal, the characters are all fully formed, and it’s set in my favorite city, London. I highly recommend this hidden gem, and hope it finds a large readership in the U.S. market. Highly recommend to fans of Ashley Poston, Katherine Center, and Sarah Ready.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Berkley through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Husbands and Lovers by Beatriz Williams

5*

It’s been quite a while since I read a Beatriz Williams novel, and I’d forgotten how much I love her writing. She does such a phenomenal job of connecting stories in multiple timelines, never sacrificing characterization or plot to make the puzzle pieces fit.

In Husbands and Lovers, there is the story of Mallory Dunne, a single mother to young son, Sam (who eats a poisonous mushroom at summer camp, leaving him in need of a kidney transplant) and her sister Paige, both of whom are still grieving the accidental death of their mother less than two years prior. When Paige finds their mother’s adoption papers, it opens a new door in their search for a kidney donor. There’s also Mallory’s first love Monk Adams, a famous musician who has been kept in the dark about Sam but, through Paige’s machinations, re-enters their lives during a visit to the coastal community of Winthrop Island, MA where these former best friends fell in love.

A gold and jewel-encrusted Egyptian cobra bracelet that Mallory’s mother willed her is the artifact that ties this modern plotline to the story of Hungarian refugee Hannah Ainsworth, wife of a British diplomat more than twice her age, from World War II in Europe to post-war Egypt and the civil unrest caused by British colonization and the establishment of the Israeli state. She suffered unspeakable tragedy during the war, and when she began an affair with the mysterious hotel manager, Lucien Beck, who other wives suspected was a spy, it was her opportunity to regain some of what she’d lost.

This beautiful novel is full of heartbreak, love, and redemption. Williams’ female characters are flawed and make morally dubious decisions with the best of intentions, but you can’t help hoping that they get the second chance they both seek and fear.

Now I need to go back and read the two previous titles that are connected to this one. Highly recommended!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Ballantine Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.
 

One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin

 

3*

Natalie, a struggling author, pens a loosely autobiographical book in which she heavily criticizes her best friend Gabby’s husband, Angus, and is devastated when she gets a 1* review. It causes her to doubt herself, until she realizes that it was posted by Angus’s best friend, Rob. She already knows, from their first meeting, that he’s an academic and literary snob, and when she learns that his 1* review is based on his anger over her skewering his best friend rather than the literary merit of the book, it leads to a multi-year love/hate relationship as they reconnect for major milestones in Gabby and Angus’s lives over an eight-year period.

Like Natalie, Rob, a linguistics professor, also cares too much about the opinions of others. In his case, he pursued academia in the hopes of getting the approval of his arrogant, carelessly cruel father. It isn’t until late in the story that he finally gains some perspective and realizes that he can use his education and experience in a field that he finds compelling and is passionate about rather than following in his father’s footsteps.

I was exhausted by the time I finished reading this second (third, fourth…) chance romance, partially because I found Natalie annoyingly immature but also because the pacing was too slow for me. Honestly, I’m tired of books with female protagonists who don’t reach their full potential and are discouraged or depressed by it, often wanting to blame others for their failures. Although I gave this 3*, I found it very forgettable and wouldn’t recommend it.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Berkley through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

A Daughter of Fair Verona (Daughter of Montague #1) by Christina Dodd

 

4*

I really enjoyed this unique, creative, humorous retelling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, imagining that they didn’t die, and I definitely got the vibe that this is how Shakespeare’s comedies would sound if written in contemporary English. It was a treat to see Romeo and Juliet as great parents, still madly in love after 20+ years. Although the book opens with them promising their spinster daughter Rosaline (all of age 20) to an evil duke, whose last three wives died under suspicious circumstances, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that Romeo taught all of his daughters how to defend themselves. So, although the medieval society of Verona was misogynistic, Romeo was surprisingly modern in his relationships with the females in his life.

There was one passage early in the book that was very reminiscent of Monty Python’s brand of comedy, and that bawdy, sometimes brutal humor was sprinkled throughout the story, including some pretty gruesome scenes as the murder mystery unfolded and the bodies kept piling up.

This is a perfect blending of a love triangle romance between Rosie, the young and handsome Lysander, and the 26-year-old scarred, but kind and protective Prince of Verona, Escalus, and a murder mystery in which Rosie takes on a detective role of sorts. My only complaint is that I found the ending irritatingly ambiguous, and then realized that it’s the first book in a series. So, I’m going to assume that any loose ends will be tied up in the next book.

If you are looking for a relatively light-hearted, multi-genre story that keeps you laughing and guessing, I highly recommend A Daughter of Fair Verona.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Kensington Books through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

 

15 Summers Later by RaeAnne Thayne

 

5*

Spoiler warning

 

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I’ve read many of RaeAnne Thayne’s books, and this is the best one yet due to its emotional complexity and harrowing tale of survival. Ava and Madi are sisters who, as teens, lost their mother in a car accident and, subsequently, their father to obsession and conspiracy theories. After he moved them to a prepper, survivalist compound in Idaho, their lives took a terrorizing turn, eventually forcing them to flee for their lives. Fast forward fifteen years, and Ava has written a best-selling memoir that throws both their lives into turmoil. Can Madi ever forgive Ava for exposing their startling history to public scrutiny, which forces her to revisit the horror daily, or will Ava lose both the sister and husband she loves?

 

Although the sister’s story is the central focus, the beautiful friends-to-lovers romance between Madi and Luke and the enduring, but fractured love between Ava and her husband Cullen are beautifully written as integral examples of how these two sisters lived through the worst experience and became strong, successful (on their own terms), kind and loving young women. Animal lovers will enjoy the frequent scenes involving Madi’s rescue animal sanctuary. If you’re looking for a heartwarming, clean romance with complex family relationships and survival against all odds, I highly recommend 15 Summers Later.

Trigger warnings: death, miscarriage, rape (off page), abuse, traumatic brain injury

 

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Canary Street Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston

3*

I want to preface this review by saying that I don’t usually talk about editing issues in an advanced reader copy, but I truly couldn’t tell if what I perceive as problems are pre-final edit or intentional.

As a fan of Ashley Poston’s adult novels (both 5*) and YA books, I was really disappointed by this one. Despite the title, there isn’t much of a “story” in this novel. We’re introduced to a large number of characters where we’re immediately at a disadvantage since Elsy, the narrator, knows them from her favorite romance series, but we aren’t given enough info to see them fully-formed. So, it’s impossible to get invested in the fictional town of Eloraton, NY and its happily-ever-afters.

Elsy was a bit of a doormat and just boring, in my opinion. She even admitted that, in her last relationship, she adopted all her fiancé’s interests and added nothing of herself to it. When she magically found herself in the setting of her favorite book series, she wanted to stay because it was comfortable and familiar, and she didn’t have to (shouldn’t) insert herself but could just live vicariously through the characters she knew everything about and who would never disappoint her. All she seemed to care about was making sure everyone was happy, even if it meant denying herself that same happiness.

I felt the dialogue was awkward, and I didn’t get a sense of different “voices.” It was mostly in Elsy’s, for lack of a better word, “monotone” delivery.

I didn’t buy into the insta-love, especially since Elsy believed that Anders hated her for the first half of their 6 days together. There was no sexual tension, and when they finally got together, it was fade-to-black.

Here’s where I get into the editing issues that were highly-distracting. Anders’s taste and smell were mentioned 22 times! (Yes, I used the search function on my Kindle to confirm.) The first description was his jacket smelling like “woodsy cedar and chamomile tea and the old, loved pages of a childhood novel,” then just 5 pages later, he “smelled like oak and old books and the slightest hint of black tea.” So, different wood and different tea…and totally irrelevant.

His “minty” eyes are mentioned 19 times (yup, checked this one, too), but when he had strong feelings, they turn emerald or peridot.

Even the first kiss scene didn’t make sense, and I’m not sure if it was intentional or careless. “At first his kiss was timid…even as my hands came up and curled into his hair” and two paragraphs later, “At first, his kiss was wild and desperate…and I found myself melting into him, grabbing hold of his starched shirt.” Then three paragraphs after that, “I pushed my hands into his hair…and yes, it was just as soft as I imagined” although she had touched it five paragraphs prior. Make it stop!

So, at this point, you’re probably wondering why I gave it 3*. It’s because I really like Poston’s The Dead Romantics and The Seven Year Slip, and I’m choosing to believe that many of these problems were fixed during the final edit. I also felt the story had enough potential for me to keep reading. I liked the defense of romance novels, especially by a college English professor, appreciated the way Poston connected Elsy and Benji from The Dead Romantics, and who doesn’t like a Brigadoon-type set-up. However, I was confused by the Groundhog Day scenario and why Elsy’s presence affected the daily thunderstorm.

Despite this faint praise, however, I just can’t recommend this story which is very sad. However, I’ll still look forward to her next novel.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Berkley through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

 

The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center

 

5*

Katherine Center can always be depended on to give us beautiful, closed-door romances with a bit of angst. The Rom-Commers is no exception. She tackles everything from sacrifice in the name of love, abandonment issues, grief, and misplaced guilt to the worthiness of the romantic comedy genre and the challenges of working in the film industry in Los Angeles.

Emma was a promising screenwriter who sacrificed probable success and ten years of her life to take care of her younger sister and her father who suffered a traumatic brain injury when she was a teen. She’s earned a living writing freelance movie reviews, but her former high school boyfriend-turned-talent manager continues to send her job prospects. When the opportunity to work as a ghostwriter for her favorite screenwriter Charlie Yates is offered, it’s a chance she is loath to pass up. He’s famous for “guy” films but is being forced to write a romantic comedy in order to get the green light for his next gangster film. He, like so many other “serious” writers, disdains the genre and, not surprisingly, is no good at writing them. Lucky for him, Emma’s an expert and she refuses to let him ruin “his career, the romantic comedy genre as a whole, and all our lives with this nuclear-waste-fueled dumpster fire of a screenplay.” If she can just get past his curmudgeonly appearance and grumpy demeanor (that makes him seem 20 years older than he is) and break down the walls he has built after being abandoned by both his mother and ex-wife, then she might be able to teach him a thing or two about what makes for a successful romance, that love is real (and not just in the movies), and that sacrifice and risk are worth it if you find the right person.

There’s so much to love about this story: the witty banter and snark (especially the frozen veggies on the bruised tailbone scene); the way Emma challenges Charlie, first by being brutally honest about how bad his first rom-com screenplay is and then by forcing him into immersion research on romance (something he’s committed to in his previous movies but resists for what he considers not worth the effort); the fact that she has a virtual museum of movies kisses on her laptop for Charlie to view with her, but still thinks real-life experience is better; how Emma and Charlie’s relationship is so obviously classic rom-com material, including everything from line dancing to literally falling into each other (which Emma insisted wasn’t the least bit romantic until it happened to her); and, finally, Emma’s take on happily-ever-after: “We act like ‘and they lived happily ever after’ is trying to con us into thinking that nothing bad ever happened to anyone ever again. But that’s never the way I read those words. I read them as ‘and they built a life together, and looked after each other, and made the absolute best of their lives.’" For fans of Center’s The Bodyguard, there is even a cameo from Jack Stapleton who is slated to star in the film. This is rom-com gold for fans of Christina Lauren and Abby Jimenez. Highly recommended!

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

A Love Like the Sun by Riss M. Neilson

5*

A Love Like the Sun is a beautiful, moving, friends-to-lovers romance set in Providence, RI between two 20-somethings who first met at age 13, bonding over being bullied for being poor and then over the loss of their parents at too young an age. They are each other’s champions, and the healthy need Issac and Laniah have for each other keeps them connected even when he moves to Los Angeles and becomes a major influencer and model with videos in which he talks about finding his soulmate while working on his mixed media art. Given how handsome and personable he is, it’s no wonder that his star rises to the point that he’s a paparazzi magnet and has millions of adoring fans. In the meantime, the natural homemade beauty care store Laniah and her mother opened three years ago is closing, so Issac announces on his platform that he and Laniah are dating, confident that it’ll help save their business and attract investors. Will these best friends be able to resist the growing spark between them and can Laniah handle the (often hostile) fandom and media attention?

Although I’m not a fan of the trope where one of the couple resists crossing the friends boundary for fear of being hurt in the future or, worse, makes a decision to end a relationship prematurely to protect their friend rather than letting them have agency, Neilson handles it well. Both Issac and Laniah have struggled with the grief over their parents’ deaths, and Laniah has health concerns that her doctor attributes to anxiety, making her feel like a hypochondriac (which Neilson expands on in her author’s note), but their love for and commitment to each other is solid if she can just get out of her own way. Fans of Kennedy Ryan and Tia Williams will love this! Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Berkley through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Nice Work, Nora November

 

3*

Although this book ends on a high note, I struggled with it because it was really depressing and not just because Nora herself suffered with mental illness. After reading the synopsis, I’d expected an “uplifting and heartwarming” story, and it wasn’t. I’d describe it as sad and highly dysfunctional with a few pages of hope and renewal at the end. From the moment Nora wakes up from a coma after her near-death experience of drowning, it’s obvious that her family puts the D in dysfunction. Her ethically-challenged father, a personal injury lawyer, is both emotionally and physically abusive, her mother is in major denial and lives to criticize and gaslight her, her younger sister has lost all faith in her after being disappointed too many times when Nora’s depression caused her to break promises, and her cousin Gus is a lonely, sad alcoholic who also doesn’t trust her.

As Nora goes through rehab and therapy, she re-evaluates her life Before (capitalized in the book) the drowning and decides that she needs to make some major changes, including trying to recapture some of what she lost. She creates a reverse bucket list that includes trying to find Jack, the man she met during a robbery hostage situation who she thinks may be The One, and tending to her late grandfather’s community garden plot that she let go wild while her mental health was spiraling. I didn’t understand London’s choice to have Nora fail at everything she tried, unless it was to highlight how easy it is to slip back into depression and self-doubt. One of the only highlights of the story is the group of senior citizen thespians she meets who knew her grandfather. They provide the only bit of comic relief in the book and are instrumental in helping Nora navigate her After life. There are also many deathbed vignettes of Jack’s hospice patients which were really interesting and set the stage for how kind and empathetic he is. I wouldn’t classify this as a romance, although there was an element of it, but women’s fiction instead.

As someone who has suffered from chronic depression and lost my father way too young, it was somewhat triggering to read Nora’s story, especially the joy she felt seeing her late grandfather while in the coma. So, I think it’s important to share trigger warnings. If you don’t want any spoilers, stop reading here.

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Depression, abuse, suicide, death, grief, alcoholism

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Harper Muse through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

One Last Summer by Kate Spencer

 

3*

I really enjoyed Spencer’s last book, In a New York Minute, so I was excited to read this one. Although it’s a nice story, with good friends, and a second-chance, friends-to-lovers romance, it didn’t hold my attention and isn't memorable. Clara, after ending a 10-year relationship, has become a workaholic, blowing off the annual reunion with her friends from summer camp for the past four years. She had every intention of doing it for the 5th year until her boss at her marketing firm forced her to take a micro-sabbatical to deal with her burnout. Although she struggled with leaving work behind (and wasn’t terribly successful), reconnecting with Mack and her best girlfriend Sam helped her gain some much-needed perspective and realize that her priorities were mixed up. But will she be able to make the hard decisions necessary to change her life and put her relationships first?

I enjoyed how Mack and Clara (the narrator) bring out the best in each other all while verbally sparring (their love language, it seems) and competing in games they haven’t revisited in 20 years. Clara’s friendships with Mack and a very pregnant Sam are beautiful and a testament to the enduring nature of relationships formed in adolescence. The secondary characters (other friends from camp and the parental-like owners) serve to demonstrate how time changes people to some degree, but their essence remains the same. This romance is relatively low angst, communication between the two is easy, honest and mostly open, and sex scenes are mild. There are queer characters, and the New Hampshire camp location is used to good advantage. Overall, this is a fun, sweet romance but not a stand-out.


I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Forever Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Cole and Laila Are Just Friends by Bethany Turner

 

4*

This beautiful story about lifelong soulmates Cole and Laila takes slow burn, friends-to-lovers romance to a whole new level. I have never read a love story where two people are more open and honest with each other as well as being protective and, to their possible detriment, self-sacrificing.

When Cole’s curmudgeonly, stoic grandfather dies and he learns that the family restaurant he poured his heart into has been sold out from under him, it brings all of his fears of being unloved and undeserving to the surface. After all, he’s the adopted son of the man’s stepdaughter, so what is he owed? Laila, who has worked side-by-side with him for over a decade and has been his friend for nearly 40 years, knows the old man loved him but can’t explain how she knows. Yet, when Cole impulsively considers a job offer in New York City because he can’t handle the memories all around him, Laila agrees to accompany him on a visit, hoping to support him in making a decision but also selfishly hoping he’ll decide to remain in their small Colorado mountain town. While staying in their mutual friends’ Tribeca penthouse apartment, they’re finally forced to confront whether their feelings for each other are more than platonic and if they can have any future together if they’re thousands of miles apart. After they share a surprisingly passionate kiss (the description of which is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever read), they decide to spend her birthday acting as if they’re on a blind date and just getting to know each other, almost a test run of what could be if they’re brave enough to go there. The planning Cole puts into the long day, where he brings her to numerous locations featured in some of her favorite rom-com movies, is a testament to the deep love and affection he has for Laila and evidence of just how well they know each other.

Turner’s wise choice of a dual POV enables readers to see how deeply these two care about each other. It’s a totally clean romance with main characters just shy of forty, so a perfect choice for those looking for mature romances. .

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.

Summer Romance by Annabel Monaghan

5*

Possible spoilers

In this mature romance set in the fictional coastal town of Beechwood, NY, Monaghan has crafted a beautiful story about a 38-year-old, soon-to-be divorced mother’s reawakening and the surprising man from her past who is the impetus for it. I couldn’t help but recognize the use of the changing tides as a metaphor for washing away the detritus of life. leaving a clean slate on which to forge a new path and rediscover parts of herself that were carried away by grief and loss.

On the one-year anniversary of her mother’s death, Ali Morris’s husband Pete asks for a divorce. On the two-year anniversary, she wakes up drowning in grief and decides to take her dog, Ferris, to the dog park to help clear her head. In a unique “meet-cute,” he pees on a charming, handsome stranger’s foot, and despite Ali’s embarrassment, Ethan doesn’t seem bothered by it at all. In fact, he looks at Ali as if he’s seeing the vibrant, attractive version of herself that she thought she’d lost years ago, before grief, a failed marriage, and three kids left her a shell of her former self. Even before she realizes that Ethan is her best friend Frannie’s younger brother Scooter, he’s already awakened feelings that she thought were long gone.

Since Ethan lives four hours away and is just visiting his parents, she knows the best they can expect is a summer romance with sex off the table (since, in her opinion, it can lead to complications and possible heartbreak). Having had a crush on her since high school, Ethan is happy to spend whatever time he can with Ali. So, when his parents announce that they’re retiring to Florida and leaving their home to him, he and Ali negotiate a deal that will benefit them both and allow them to have some alone time. As a part-time professional organizer (who can’t seem to keep her own house in order), Ali will help him clear the house out prior to listing it and Ethan, a lawyer who can’t seem to shake the reputation he earned as a trouble-making teen, will help Ali get the best deal in her divorce settlement. Is it any surprise that these two kind, supportive, and protective people, who feel truly seen and accepted by each other, find themselves falling?

There is so much to love about this slow burn, closed-door romance that really evokes emotional responses ranging from laughter to sadness. Ali’s “conversations” with her enthusiastic and eccentric mom provide guidance beyond the grave and her care for and friendship with her elderly neighbor Phyllis is poignant. Witnessing Ali’s casting off the cloak of grief (or, in her case, stained sweatpants and t-shirts) and reclaiming her self-reliance after a loveless marriage to a selfish man (especially while realizing that her feelings for Ethan are what she deserved all along) is really life-affirming. Her relationships with her three children are touching, especially with her pre-teen Greer who is navigating the horrors of middle school mean girl machinations. Ethan’s devotion to the skateboarding kids in his hometown and his selfless acts of kindness with his neighbors are endearing and provide a window into the wonderful man that he’s become, despite his family’s inability to see how he’s changed. It’s also worth noting that, despite there being no graphic sex scenes, Monaghan has managed to establish such tension and intimacy between Ali and Ethan that the fade-to-black scenes are not a disappointment (for those who crave them). If you’re looking for the perfect beach read, you’ll find it here. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary ARC of this book from G.P. Putnam's Sons through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are completely my own.