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

Monthly Wrap Up {September}

September is over. How? It was a whirlwind month that's for certain. Every year I can't help but think of the Green Day song "Wake Me Up When September Ends". Between that song, and September by Earth Wind and Fire, I am constantly singing. 

September kicked off with my kids returning to school. That always brings on mixed emotions. Honestly though, it was a summer, so this time apart will be good. That week my husband also had off of work. We didn't accomplish as much as we wanted, but enjoyed the time together. My new oven was delivered, and the old one taken away. My kitchen is closer to being complete. I've been baking a ton, and trying to cook more as well. That new oven is just calling to me.

Now for the reading wrap up.

Playing Offsides by Cali Melle {a review}

Cameron Sawyer is the biggest temptation in my life and I don't know how much longer I'll be able to fight against these feelings.

Playing Offsides is the third book in the Wyncote Wolves series from Cali Melle. This college romance where all the heroes are hockey players called to me immediately. The first two books I highly enjoyed, and the description for Cam's story appealed to me. It sounded like an enemies to lovers or hate to love situation, so naturally I had to give it a read.

My rating for Playing Offsides:

Cameron comes across as a real stand up guy. He's your typical boy next door, and just seems as sweet as can be. He's full of charm, personality, and a fantastic friend. Aspen is someone that I can relate to when it comes to leaving the house. She's a bit of a homebody, and for a college student that's pretty much unheard of. She's also passionate about her future career choice, loves her best friend dearly, and is incredibly independent. Aspen is also very in-tune with other people. She can pick up things about them through observation, and then adjust her thoughts/words/etc to more effectively communicate. It's pretty impressive.

This budding relationship started with a simple ask for help. Well I guess it wasn't all that simple for Cam to approach Aspen, but it had to be done. His scholarship was at risk after all. I was a bit surprised by the fact that Aspen so readily agreed to the tutoring. I thought she would have turned him down and made him work for it a bit. It was through these tutoring sessions that a friendship was formed, which then evolved into a "just for this semester" scenario, and ultimately had our couple finding their happily ever after.

The attraction between these two was strong, and things evolved quickly. But I have to say, from my perspective, their chemistry didn't seem right. Maybe it was because they were both trying to deny things and/or keep them hidden, or maybe they were just too opposite. I haven't put my finger on it. As their story progressed though I found myself liking them together. If anything I think that Aspen keeps Cam grounded. 

Their moment of conflict (the big dramatic moment) was an interesting one to read. I understand the reasoning behind what happened between Cameron and Aspen. I do. It was fear. At the same time though it just goes to show how immature our couple is in this scenario. Yes they had discussed things before all of this began, but you'd think that they would be able to communicate about this as well. Apparently I'm wrong though. BUT I also need to remember that these characters are 20/21, so... I will say that the scene in the library had me sniffling a bit. Seeing that change in them, and the walls going up. It was kind of sad. Their reunion, I can't talk about. I can't. Only because it will spoil things. 

Now for the part of the review where I share my "issues" with the book. The first two chapters of Playing Offsides had me a little perplexed. I didn't understand why we were getting all this info, and how it would come into play with the story. As the story continued, my mind was still preparing for the families to pop up. For their appearances to incite some sort of issue between the characters, or something those lines. I wasn't expecting that to just be random information added to the story. Then there's the fact that Cameron's CLOSE friends don't know that he's attending the college with a scholarship? They've known him for years, you'd think that they of all people would know his home situation, and that he'd need some assistance to attend this school. I don't know. Plus, college is freaking expensive! Then that so called secret that Aspen is hiding? Uh, why did that need to be a secret? It's is a fairly common thing, so I didn't understand her hesitancy with that. Those three things just didn't sit right with.

All in all I did enjoy the story. I liked the characters, I liked the premise, and I look forward to continuing with the series. Especially since it looks like Hayden's story is up next. That man has piqued my curiosity, and I cannot wait to see what woman can put up with his larger than life ego.

If you happen to enjoy college hockey romances, then give this entire series a try. Oh, and Playing Offsides seems to run in a similar timeline as August and Poppy's story (Deflected Hearts). So if you've read that book, then there are scenes that may seem a bit familiar.

Happy Reading,
Laura

Amazon | Goodreads | BookBub

Cameron
Two things I never thought I’d a say:

My entire future is about to go up in flames.

And Aspen Rossi is my ticket to keeping my scholarship.

The only problem..She hates me.

Aspen
The last thing that I want to be doing is tutoring Cameron Sawyer.

When he asked for my help, I tried to resist but tutoring another student would look good on my application for med school.

That’s all he is—a means to an end.

However, the more time that we spend together, the harder it is to ignore his charm.

Cam is starting to grow on me, but I can’t get involved with him.

We want two different things out of life We’re on two separate paths…

Our dreams can’t coexist and neither can our hearts. Even if they keep playing offsides.

Thank you to Cali Melle, and Wildfire Marketing Solutions, for providing me with an advanced review copy of Playing Offsides.

(also, I participate in the Amazon Affiliates program. Purchases made through links in this post could lead to me earning a small commission. So thank you!)

One Last Shot by Julia Connors {a review}

I rarely feel safe around men, but Sasha has always been a protector. My Protector.

One Last Shot is a book that I have been anticipating since the moment I "met" Petra in On The Edge. She was that secondary character that piqued my curiosity. I gravitated toward her, and that interest continued in Out Of Bounds.

Petra and Sasha's story is by far my favorite of this series. Petra is an amazing character who exudes this confidence and a take no BS attitude. She isn't afraid to speak on things that are wrong, and is more than willing to find solutions. Sasha (Alexsandr) is her equal in many ways. There were times where I wish he had spoken up, but Petra was there to handle it. (all while giving Sasha the looks he deserved) This man is a protector in every sense of the word. He may hide his caring nature behind a mask, but it is there. 

One Last Shot was full of tense moments. From the moment Sasha and Petra parted all those years ago, to the eventual reconnection, to the secret that was just revealed, to how their relationship progressed, there was CONSTANT tension. Now one of the key moments of conflict for our couple was something that a lot of people could probably relate to. Then there was that secondary moment of conflict with the added stress of a hockey game that they had to work through. Those two things were a struggle, but they pushed through, and found their way to reconnect.

Stella was absolutely adorable! This little girl stole the show in every scene she was in.

Sasha's dad frustrated me beyond belief. I do wish that more information was provided with his hand in all of this. There are holes here that need to be plugged.

Two characters had me very uncomfortable from the moment they were introduced. When they met Petra, that uncomfortable feeling increased tenfold. This is another storyline that wasn't 100% closed. There are still strings hanging on this one, and I'd love to know what happened. At the time it seemed like a key storyline, but that evaporated.

In addition to those two storylines that I mentioned above not being wrapped up, there were two more that comes to mind. One storyline is in regards to Petra's business. We know what happened with the secret opportunity, but what about her original business? Did that company dissolve? Did she sell it off? Is it still operational? The other storyline was the basis for how our couple was reconnected. I mean as you read the book, and especially the epilogue, you kind of know how everything wrapped up in that regard. But I still have questions. It wasn't spelled out for me, and so my brain is just going a mile a minute. Sigh.

Even though those storylines were not fully wrapped up, this book is still my favorite of the series. It is still one that I enjoyed reading. It is still a book that I will recommend over and over again.

My rating for One Last Shot:

If you know me, you know that sports romance calls to me repeatedly. You may also know that I am a sucker for second chance romances. I'm slowly discovering that the found family trope is another favorite of mine. Seeing those bonds established, and the love grow just warms my heart.

One Last Shot by Julia Connors is releasing on October 7, 2022. The description is posted below, if that grabs your attention, please go grab a copy!

Happy Reading,
Laura