Fake Love by Jocelyne Soto {a review}

Maddox Bauer is the type of man I wish I could spend the rest of my life with. 

Jocelyne Soto released Fake Love on October 13, 2022. This book features a professional baseball player who has seemingly hit rock bottom, has been given a fresh start, and has met a woman who has deeply affected his life. Fake Love features the instalove trope, the fake relationship trope, and a bit of the workplace trope. This book was so dang good, I honestly could not put it down.

Maddox and Jen's introduction was one that was just supposed to be for a night. It wasn't supposed to be anything else. Except when Maddox returned to San Francisco, Jen immediately came to mind to handle his social media, and become his fake girlfriend. Meanwhile Jen was busy living her life, and finally deciding to make the jump to becoming a full time social media manager. She just needed to find her first client.

My rating for Fake Love:

Fake Love was full of emotional moments. It was a roller coaster ride that took us through drug addiction, a parent's health issue, being traded from Chicago to San Francisco, and entering into a fake relationship that would change their lives. Everything that happened after the relationship was created had me unwilling to put the book down. I had to know what was going to happen. What would be the breaking point? What would cause the conflict between Maddox and Jen? How would they reunite? How would they heal their relationship, and move forward?

The drug addiction was difficult to read, but witnessing Maddox go through everything that he did garnered a lot of sympathy. I say that because Maddox was not my favorite character. His actions didn't sit right with me, and while I could understand the heartache he was dealing with, and the grief he was feeling, I couldn't understand his reasoning behind his choices. I will say that as the story progressed my opinion of Maddox did change. Maybe it was seeing his eyes open at everything he could lose.

When it comes to Jen, I did like her character. For the most part. She was strong, passionate, sympathetic, and she was determined. Jen knew everything that Maddox was dealing with. She saw the man behind the mask, and fell in love with him regardless. Now I will say that I didn't like the fact that her job just disappeared and wasn't really mentioned, but I'll just assume that was happening in the background and therefore it wasn't necessary to mention.

The scene at the aquarium had me on edge for a moment. You see as that date was playing out, and a photo was snapped, my mind went to the worst case scenario. I thought for sure that it was going to wind up for everyone to see, and that there would be a gigantic fall out from that. If you caught my update on Goodreads, it was about this scene!

Let's talk about the conflict between Jen and Maddox. That was not what I was expecting at all. But when you look at everything that was shared in the story up until that point, it makes sense. It does. The fight or flight also makes 100% sense. I was not expecting our main character from Powerful Deception to make an appearance. Dante had a major influence in all of this, and so that cross over was interesting to read. 

Jocelyne Soto created a wonderful story. Fake Love was emotional, it was steamy, and I could not put it down. Also getting to catch up with previous characters always puts a smile on my face.

If you were paying attention in the story, then you may have noticed the set up for a few new books. There is Lucas’s story, as well as that new hockey romance series! I am loving the stories that Jocelyne creates, and she is working her way on to my auto-buy author list.

Go grab Fake Love. It is one of those books that just grabs hold, makes you tear up a bit, and has you rooting for a happily ever after.

Happy Reading,
Laura

Amazon | Goodreads

I had everything going for me.

Drafted right out of college. Signed a multimillion dollar contract. Slated to become a hall of famer.

All my prospects were looking up… Until a diagnosis caused me to ruin everything.

It took me a season to destroy my career and now I have to work to repair it.

Step 1 : Get clean.

Step 2 : Show my new team that their investment isn’t a waste.

Step 3 : Find a woman and convince her to be my fake girlfriend and make my mom happy.

1 and 2, I got a handle on. Step 3 is turning out to be a lot harder than I thought. Finding a woman was a piece of cake, convincing her is a different story.

Jen Zaragosa is hardheaded, feisty, and a pain in my behind. But even with her being all those things, I start to fall for her

And hard.

This started out as something to make my mom happy and it’s turning into me planning our future together.

Jen is my grand slam and there is nothing fake about it.

*FAKE LOVE IS A COMPLETE STANDALONE. THIS STORY DOES CONTAIN CONTENT WARNINGS, FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT THE AUTHOR'S WEBSITE.*

Thank you to Jocelyne Soto, and Wildfire Marketing Solutions, for providing me with an advanced reader copy of Fake Love.

Also, I am an Amazon Affiliate. Purchases made from the links above will allow me to earn a small commission.

 

The Troubles with Heartbreak by Brittany Taylor {a review}

"But I think hatred is often used as a disguise for the truth. Sometimes, it looks the same as love."

The Troubles with Heartbreak is the third, and final, book in the Heartbreak series from Brittany Taylor. This book is full of fabulous tropes, such as hate to love, enemies to lovers, fake relationship, forced proximity, and single bed. This book is quite the ride, and I loved every moment of it.

My rating for The Troubles with Heartbreak:

So here's the deal, Levi and Cassidy have known each other since they were seniors in high school. They have also hated each other since high school. Flash forward roughly 5 years, and they are now coworkers at the newspaper. They try to stay out of each others way, but considering Cassidy is the photographer, it doesn't always work out.

When Levi is invited to a hotel opening slash college football team reunion, he is hesitant to attend. After all he and the hotel owner are former teammates, and the relationship they have is non-existent. Things happened in college that tarnished that friendship, and it is still a touchy subject. Rightfully so. Yet Levi sees the possibility of an article that he could write about the new hotel, and pitched it to his boss. It was the boss who said that Cassidy should attend with him so there would be photos for the article.

What happens next? Well there's only one bed in the hotel room, and of course there are no other rooms available. So these two are being forced together in that regard. But then at a team get-together, Levi mentions that he's engaged. To Cassidy. Thankfully she agrees to play along. Except of course as the days go on things begin to shift. Feelings are emerging, passionate moments are shared, and heartbreak is on the horizon.

Things are going relatively smoothly. Yes those feelings are there, and the lines are being blurred. But then comes THE moment. The moment where the shit is about to hit the fan. The drama is strong. History is revealed, and a blow up happens. It was alot! Naturally this affected Levi and Cassidy's relationship as well. Throughout the hotel scenes I was wondering when things were going to blow up, and what the triggering moment would be. Oofta! That was a doozy. Yet now that all that information is out there, and emotions aren't as heightened, we're in the heartbreak stage. Their journey towards a reunion wasn't easy. It involved an outside party stepping in, and giving a little assistance. I loved how their reconciliation happened, and the truths that were shared in that moment. So good. It gave them both the information they needed. They shared that history, and eyes were opened.

This book is full of banter, passion, steamy moments, hate to love, and realization that the hate they felt might have been masking their true feelings. I also enjoyed how we were able to briefly meet up with the characters from the previous books in the series. Whenever previous characters make appearances it makes me smile as it reminds me of their stories, and allows me to see a glimpse into their current lives.

OH, and Cassidy's dad? Did not see that one coming. Okay maybe a little bit, but I wasn't fully expecting it. My mind actually went worse case situation. So there's that.

Loved this book. Loved the characters. Loved this series. Cannot wait to see what comes next from Brittany Taylor.

If you haven't read the Heartbreak series, please do. There are so many tropes covered between the three books, and there is really something there for every romance reader.

Happy Reading,
Laura

Amazon | Goodreads

𝙏𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙚 #1: 𝙇𝙚𝙫𝙞 𝙃𝙖𝙬𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙨... 𝘼𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨.

Levi Hawkins has been trouble since the first time I saw him through the lens of my camera our senior year of high school.

He was the star quarterback.

I was the yearbook photographer.

Although Levi’s hatred for me was no secret, I spent the entire school year fighting my feelings for him, counting down to the day of graduation.

When that day finally came, I foolishly thought I'd seen the last of him. Until five years later, when he walked into the same newspaper I worked for. Only now, he was no longer a football star. He's the paper's newest reporter.

Disguised by a grand opening of a hotel on the shores of South Padre Island, Levi dragged me on an assignment. His college football reunion.

But just when I thought he'd roped me in enough trouble, he asked for one more favor.

𝙋𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙘é... 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙪𝙣𝙞𝙤𝙣.

I knew he had dragged me along to get a story, but it wasn’t long before I realized there was more written between the lines.

𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙢𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙... 𝙇𝙚𝙫𝙞 𝙃𝙖𝙬𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙗𝙡𝙚.

Thank you to Brittany Taylor, and Wildfire Marketing Solutions, for providing me with an advanced reader copy of The Troubles with Heartbreak.

Also, I am an Amazon Affiliate. Purchases made from links in this post allow me to earn a small commission.

Silver Lining by Aleatha Romig {A Review}

"To us. To a week to remember, one that hopefully makes us each smile once we return to real life."

Aleatha Romig is back with a brand new book! Silver Lining is the story of Lena Montgomery. I first met her in the Sin series, and was instantly captivated by her. This businesswoman is fierce, determined, hardworking, and just incredible. She also has a few people that would prefer for her to disappear. Could one of them be her stalker?

My rating for Silver Lining:

When the Sin series ended I found myself wishing Lena would get her story told. Low and behold, Aleatha already had that in the works. You know I immediately added that to my TBR, and entered it in my calendar. I HAD TO!

Lena is just as incredible as she came across in Van and Julia's story. While a lot of that might be due to a mask being firmly in place, we did get to see that slip on occasion, and see the passionate woman that she is behind the scenes. Her life isn't easy by any means. Especially since someone is targeting her. But who could it be? Logan Butler automatically comes to mind, but if not him, then who?

It is on a quick vacation that Lena meets CJ. They agree not to exchange last names, or share anything about their lives outside of this resort. It's for the best as it's just a fling. Did trouble follow Lena to paradise though?

CJ, better known as Chandler, had recently sold the business that he owned with his brother. Now with little to do, it was time to take a vacation. The moment he spotted Lena, he knew he had to get to know her. He was drawn to her.

Their time spent with each other was just what they needed, but reality called. Surely they would never see each other again...

Except they did, and it was awkward until it wasn't. 

I loved their romance. I loved the suspense of who was out to get Lena, and my mind was going a mile a minute trying to solve that one. I loved that I was questioning every characters intentions. I enjoyed it when Van made an appearance. It was all so good.

Speaking of the suspects in this story, I had two that immediately came to mind. Then I added in a couple of additional possibilities, but they just didn't make sense. So when it was revealed WHO was behind it all, and WHAT their motivation was? OH MY WORD! OH MY WORD! Basically my jaw dropped.

You need to read this book. The suspense is fabulous. The romance is wonderful. The storyline keeps your attention throughout. It's also a reverse age gap, so if that's your jam, then grab this one. The gap is about 12 years. Oh, and you don't NEED to read the Sin series before reading Silver Lining. Would it help to understand Lena a bit more? Yeah probably. But that decision is up to you as this is technically a standalone. Highly recommend this one.

Happy Reading,
Laura

Amazon | Goodreads | BookBub

“Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek and find all barriers within yourself that you have built against it.” ~ Rumi

Lena Montgomery’s time and energy is spent making her dreams of wealth and power a reality, no matter who she leaves in her wake. 

She’s taken risks, climbed the ladder, and doesn’t intend to take a step back. 

Her hardline is involving herself with employees, and the last thing on her mind is blurring the lines with a man twelve years her junior.

As danger nears, it’s not her mind that wants to break her own rule; it’s her body.

What happens when the lines are blurred?

Are you ready for Lena’s story?

Hold on tight.

Have you been Aleatha’d?

Thank you to Aleatha Romig, and Wildfire Marketing Solutions, for providing me with an advanced reader copy of Silver Lining.

Also, I am an Amazon Affiliate. Purchases made through links in this post allow me to earn a commission.

With Every Breath by JH Croix {a review}

The world is filled with people learning to live with the scars in their hearts.

With Every Breath is the sixth book in the Light My Fire series from author JH Croix. This entire series is set in the town of Willow Brook, Alaska. Each book focuses on a different hot shot firefighter, and each book is absolutely wonderful.

With Every Breath is a small town romance where Jonah and Alice are neighbors. This proximity leads perfectly into a relationship, especially with Jonah's Grandma pushing things along. Gotta love those little nudges.

My rating for With Every Breath:

The Light My Fire series has been one that I have fully enjoyed. From the setting, to the storylines, to the characters, it's all been so good. Some have hit harder than others, and had me tearing up a time or two. But that's what happens when a story tugs on those heartstrings.

With Every Breath was no different. I was immediately drawn in. Alice made quite the first impression on Jonah, and all those attending Grandma Bea's wedding. Also, what a way to start a story. I definitely chuckled when I read that.

Jonah and Alice were both very likable characters, and I loved how quickly they were enveloped by the community. Yes Alice was raised in this community, but she moved away for college. It wasn't until this opportunity arose that she made the decision to come home. Jonah may not have grown up here in Willow Brook, but he has connections to the town. Now that he's had a change in professions, and is a hot shot firefighter, he's finding his footing. Jonah's Grandma Bea is a hoot, and clearly loved by everyone. That woman is a scene stealer, and I am absolutely here for it.

The relationship between Alice and Jonah started as friendship, but slowly that began to shift. Feelings were being felt, kisses were shared, and soon our couple was navigating this new found relationship. It definitely wasn't without it's rollercoaster moments that is for certain. 

The situation with Alice's former place of employment had me on edge waiting to see what would happen. How would that situation affect Alice's current employment? Would it cause an issue between her and Jonah? Then there's Jonah's trauma that he is still healing from, and I was worried that the situation** he experienced would take place in our little Alaskan town. Honestly I was preparing myself for it, all while crossing my fingers that it wouldn't happen. 

Jonah and Alice are delightful characters, and I enjoyed so much of their story. From their relationship, to the friendships they built outside of that, to just their community it self, all of that has me smiling. 

I also enjoyed getting to see the setup for the next book. All It Takes will be the seventh book in the series, and we will get to see how Tiffany and Wes find their happily ever after. I'm sure it will not be drama free, and chances are high that there will be emotional moments.

If you're like me, and enjoy small town romances that feature a firefighter, then run and download this one immediately (or any others in the series)! Jonah and Alice are a couple of great characters, and I think you'll enjoy their story.

Happy Reading,
Laura

**Trigger warning for discussion of tragic events at a school.

A Little Too Close by Rebecca Yarros {a review}

I was a compass, and she was north. I was powerless to fight whatever this was between us.

Did you know that Rebecca Yarros wrote a new trilogy with 2 other authors? It's true! Madigan Mountain is the series. Devney Perry and Sarina Bowen have also written books in this setting, with each author taking one of the Madigan brothers as their main character. Rebecca Yarros wrote the story of Weston Madigan.

Weston Madigan left this small ski town years ago. He was grieving, he was angry, and he needed out. The military offered him just that. An escape, a job, and the ability to learn to fly. Right before Weston left town though, he hired a photographer for Madigan Mountain. She was younger, pregnant, and in need of this opportunity. He never thought he'd see her again. Especially since he had no plans on returning home. All that changed with a single phone call from Reed.

Can the anger, the hurt, the heartache be pushed aside? Can Weston return home and move forward with his life?

My rating for A Little Too Close:

I could not put this book down. Weston drew me in with his closed off ways and family drama. It was more than that though. I could see the man he truly was underneath that rough exterior, and just knew that this man was hurting from childhood trauma.

While his return to Madigan Mountain wasn't something he truly wanted, it all worked out in the end. He was able to still pursue his passions, have his support system close by, and finally let those brick walls begin to crack.

That meet cute with Callie? LOVED IT. I wasn't certain how Rebecca Yarros was going to write it, but this was perfection.

Speaking of Callie, she impressed me. Once her story was fully revealed, my heart just went out to her. This woman has been through the ringer, and has finally found the people who can be her support system. They can walk through the highs and lows with her. Then there is that wonderful child of hers, and it just goes to show what a phenomenal mom she is. She tries her best, and always wants to put Sutton first. Even if that means her dreams get put on hold.

Watching that attraction build, and wondering"will they or won't they" just made the book all that more difficult to put down. Then of course Sutton comes in, and drops that little tidbit to them both. That had me chuckling.

The relationship Weston had with his big brother, and his dad, though? UH. My heart. Those scenes hit a little hard. The anger and heartache just poured off those pages during those scenes. When Callie said what she did to Weston, and it changed his perspective a bit, that too was eye opening. Still an emotional scene and storyline, but that new perspective helped.

The conflict...I couldn't pinpoint what it was going to be until it actually happened. At that point my heart hurt for the characters, and I could not wait to see how this was all going to be resolved. I was also a bit worried because I'm still not over what happened in The Last Letter, and I was honestly a bit nervous that would happen here. If you know, you know.

I absolutely loved A Little Too Close, and really need to read the other two in the series. Thankfully they are both waiting for me on my kindle. Or rather A Little Too Late is on my kindle, and A Little Too Wild will be there this weekend. 

Curious about the tropes in A Little Too Close? You'll get Forced Proximity, Former Military, Sports Romance, Single Mom, and Small Town Romance. So many good ones.

If you are a fan of Rebecca Yarros, Sarina Bowen, and/or Devney Perry, then you need to check out this trilogy. It will be worth it, I promise.

Happy Reading,
Laura