GRR Reviews In Search of a Love Story (Love Story Boo by Rachel Schurig

In Search of Love Story is about searching for love, and finding where you didn't expect. But it seems to lack the certain spark that other stories have, like a series of bad dates, or oddball characters, or some such. instead, the schtick is "learn love through love-related media" (love songs, romance novels, etc.) And that somehow just didn't click at all.

Emily is doomed at love, according to her BFF's Ryan and Ashley, because she's completely a dullard when it comes to romance. When Emily's latest attempt crashed and burned, she accepted her BFF's plan to start a "romance research project" by studying romcoms, romance novels, love songs, and such. it couldn't hurt, right? When Emily found Greg, Ryan and Ashley were sure she found the one. So why is Elliot, a different friend, being a bit angry? is Greg really "the one"? Will Emily find her true love?

So we have a bit of unrequited love, two busybodies offering advice, and a bit of triangle, and a woman who's clueless. I'm not sure whether we're supposed to laugh or commiserate with her cluelessness. Neither seems appropriate.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a woman clueless about love find love? Could he be nearby all along? With two besties giving advice, does she have a chance?

Tropes: triangle, everyone but you

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Happily Ever Kissed (Heartland Cove) by Vicky Holt

Happily Ever Kissed used a fairly unique, if a bit contrived setup to drive the meetcute, but ultimately, it's an "everyone but you" romance.

Ava is co-owner of the Heartbeat Inn, near the historical Heartland Cove Bridge, the 2nd longest covered bridge in North America. Her family always had their first kiss on the bridge, and she's under a deadline... The mayor said the bridge is too dangerous and will be torn down, leaving her not too much time to pick out a candidate for her epic kiss, and that would include her inn's guests... but she doesn't want just anyone. He needs to be someone dreamy, like romance novel heroes... and definitely NOT her handyman Sebastian. But asking guests out for a kiss isn't as simple as it seems, even though one of them is definitely drool-worthy... Just who would she pick?

While the premise is unique and rather "cute", it's also really contrived, or at least it felt that way. The stake should have been higher, like those who didn't suffer broken hearts or something. We can see the end result from quite far away and predict the ending. The journey is... "okay".

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a young woman get the epic kiss like her family always did on the historic bridge before it got torn down? With who?

Tropes: triangle, innkeeper, family pressure

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Remember by Izabelle Jardin

Remember is an interesting novel in that it's actually more of two novellas in one, with an amnesia thrown in between for complications.

Leah was utterly fascinated by green... and Connor's green eyes are perfect for capturing her. But Leah's family had some history with Connor's family that remained a secret... and even as they knew they probably are not good for each other, they fell for each other anyway, even as they discover some trouble secrets about each other... and themselves. When Connor was injured in 9/11, and lost his memory of Leah, will Leah be able to help him recover their love?

When German author uses 9/11 as a plot device it's... interesting. Nothing really wrong with it, just... odd. The book is also a bit weird. Most romances start with the two protagonists separated but drawing ever closer. This one managed to do it TWICE, have them separate but come together, then use his injury to separate them and bring them together AGAIN. While not bad, I don't think this is one of those must-reads.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: What secrets did a couple's respective families kept about themselves... and each other?

Tropes: amnesia, family secrets, family pressure, fated mate

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews A Beautiful Mess by T.K. Leigh

WARNING: A Beautiful Mess Ends on a Big Cliffhanger

A Beautiful Mess features a broken FMC who can't form relationships, and a man who was keeping a huge secret, but also saved her. The motivations are weird, that borders on obsession, the decision processes are just flat out "weird", and some major incompetence, in order to stretch the story out to two more volumes.

Olivia Adler lost her parents young and was raised by an uncle, who she also lost later. She refused to be attached to anyone and has no close friends. And she was haunted by a dream, about a boy with brilliant green eyes that rescued her from a car wreck... Then she met Alexander Burnham when she was attacked and almost killed by a guy she barely dated. Alex rescued her, and proceed to woo her. But Alex is keeping a deep dark secret, for he had been looking for Olivia for a very long time... but is this his Olivia? And what other secrets may his family have been keeping? And can Olivia trust him to get this close?

The end of the book was basically a HUGE teaser for volume 2, and I don't really want to spoil the plot, but let me say whoever Alex hired should be executed for incompetence, not just fired. It simply made NO SENSE WHATSOEVER for her to be able to pull off what she did, if they were doing a proper job. This is the sort of plot problem that will make a reader chuck their Kindle in frustration.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman being stalked can't form relationships due to prior trauma; the man who saved her has huge secrets he's keeping from her

Tropes: amnesia, family secrets, conspiracy, stalker, protector, woman in peril

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Wildest Dreams (Hollywood Nights Book by Savannah Kade

Wildest Dreams is a romance between a career woman and an artist who can't admit their love for each other, as both claim to want to concentrate on their career, and both seem to suffer an inability to say what needs to be said. It is very emotional, but from loss, not from love.

Jenn knew Walker isn't right for her, but she'll take FWB over nothing. She has her career to think about. Walker is an artist, and knew he's not in love with Jenn, but why do his paintings have her face in it? When life threw a curveball at Jenn (she's... pregnant, by Walker!) how will they reconcile their relationship? And what happens when fate has one more blow for Jenn, that will either shatter her, or make her realize he was there all along?

It's indeed VERY angst-y, as blow after blow landed on Jenn, and it's truly a darkest hour, but it's about life in general, not necessarily love. But it works.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a career woman love an artist? Can he love her back? Is it just sex, or is there more? If there is, can they admit it?

Tropes: fling to a thing, reluctant romance

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Undone: A City Rich Novel by Amelia Wilde

Undone is a "different worlds / opposites attract" romance that sets up the scene nicely, but the transformation seems to be a bit abrupt.

Beau's a prim and proper businessman. He needs to be to court government contracts, and romance was far from his mind. Annabel is a free-spirit with no goal and no agenda, wandering the world for new experiences because that was her early life. When Beau rescued Annabel from a bike messenger in New York, a chain of events was unleashed, and the two fell for each other... hard. His work started to suffer. She started to question her whole lifestyle. But are they willing to make compromises to make it work, or will their hearts be broken?

I'm not too sure what to make of this novel. It feels like opposites attract kinda story, but the struggle feels as if it's not all there. There's no "long and arduous slide into hell", so to speak. The flip from "hi" to "madly in love" feels a bit too fast, and not quite enough of a struggle.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: City businessman rescues free-spirit woman in New York City, and they fell madly in love with each other...

Tropes: reluctant romance, opposites attract, fling to a thing

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Hell or High Water (The Deep Six Book 1) by Julie Ann Walker

Hell or High Water by Julie Ann Walker combined a taut plot with some pretty good characters with old issues. The threat was credible. My only problem is a slight technical inaccuracy.

Ex-Navy SEAL Leo Anderson, along with his ex-SEAL buddies are relaxing on his ancestral island in the Florida Keys on a long-term lease. But the lease is running out, and he wanted to find a fabled Spanish galleon's treasure that he had heard about, but nobody can find. He had a boat inherited from his father, and his buddies as crew, but it's not making enough money. Then someone from his past intruded... Olivia Mortier, CIA agent... a woman he fell for but knew it couldn't last. And one of the SEALs lost his life protecting her, and they hadn't seen each other... for a long time. But now she's back... and she has an emergency assignment... There is a mole in CIA and in order to draw him out, CIA used the most daring of bait... some real chemical weapons. Three small canisters that fit in a large makeup kit case. Somehow, the case was intercepted by those terrorists from Guantanamo during a prisoner riot... and their ship sank. Now Leo's ship must retrieve those chemical weapons with a dive... before they really disappear into the black market. But the mole is out there, and his followers are ready to kill anyone in their way...

The plot twists are good, but the fight seems a bit... off? I honestly don't believe you can sink a few hundred ton ship with just two RPGs (or "rocket launchers") unless you manage to hole it below the waterline, but wouldn't the RPG go off when you hit the water? A SLAM (much bigger missile), I can believe. But AT-4 / RPG-7? Seriously doubt that. But the plot twists are good.

The author's really needs a technical advisor. One of her other books got rated a 2 star by me for interesting romantic entanglement but IMPOSSIBLE resolution to the plot.

Category: Romantic Suspense / Military

Primary Plot: A CIA agent must ask an ex-SEAL (and ex-lover) and his team of salvage divers for help in retrieving stolen weapons...

Tropes: SEAL, evil enemies, search and rescue, betrayal, spy

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Major Cole by dirty brandi

"Major Cole" is an anthology of random short stories of horrible quality that justs wastes storage on your Kindle.

There is only one tiny bit about the eponymous "Major Cole", who was basically doing romance version of Rambo, so unrealistic it can't be military fiction at all. Add to that 1100+ pages of additional unrelated stuff and you get 1200+ pages of crap.

This is just something used to game Amazon Kindle Unlimited program with mostly junk content.

Oh, and the author profile pix is from a stockphoto site. I'm not kidding. This is the purported author photo:

Guess what I found on a free stock photo website? Tsk, tsk.

Category: Military fiction (I use the term loosely)

Primary Plot:  N/A, anthology of crap

Tropes: woman in peril / protector

Overall Rating:  1/5  (I can't give zeroes)

GRR Reviews The One (The Wilde Brothers Book 1) by Lorhainne Eckhart

The One is a novel that combined a lot of tropes, The plot twists were good, but the characters don't make sense when considered together. When you take it altogether, it averaged out to mediocre.

Magaret lost her mojo as a top surgeon when one of her operations ended up with her patient having lost major brain functions. She ran back home to her grandpa's house and lived the life of a recluse... without even a phone line. Until one day, a rough cowboy and his son came to visit... the boy has a horse called Storm that is violent. And Margaret has gained a bit of reputation as the Horse Whisperer in the area. Joe Wilde is a widower trying to raise his son, but it's clear his methods are not working, for the kid's alternately defiant and cowed. But Joe and Margaret both came from this small town and she had secretly desired him back in school. But Joe has a girlfriend who seems to only tolerate his son... When his son along with the temperamental horse disappeared into the wild, can the Margaret and Joe unite to save the kid? Can they recognize they are "the one" to each other?

For less than 200 pages, there sure are a lot of plot. However, the characters could have been introduced a bit better or a bit earlier, IMHO (like Joe's brother) and some of the motivations are a little vague. There are also some vague plot elements. How did Margaret get to be the local horse whisperer if she left home for medical school and rose to a top surgeon position? How did she get a reputation if she's a recluse? How much patience did Joe really have with a horse that wouldn't follow directions? Can't he just buy another one? What's with Joe and his kid? What's the point of keeping the GF that doesn't like his son if the idea is to find him a mother? Some of these decisions make no sense. Yet some work well. Overall, it just left me hoping it's better edited/written.

Category: Contemporary / Western

Primary Plot: Can a disgraced surgeon redeem herself by training an untrainable horse, and wrangle a cowboy's heart?

Tropes: cowboy, scars, recluse, pets, widower, single parent, forced proximity, search and rescue

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews This Time Around by Tawna Fenske

This time around is quirky, fun, and mostly light-hearted, though the darkest hour somehow just sounded... ridiculous.

Allie Ross's life had gone off the rails. Her parents are in jail for conning people in a Ponzi scheme. Her schooling is done and she can't afford law school anymore. Her grandma just died, leaving her the B&B, except it's no longer a B&B but a cat shelter full of 6-toed cats. And Allie obviously has no life, no love life anyway. When Jack Carpenter found Allie, Jack wanted to apologize. He was a real jerk back then and definitely broke her heart back then. Now he's a widower raising a 10-year old daughter and a business that made him well to do... And he's a changed man. But can he convince Allie to give him a chance? Or to give HERSELF a chance?

The extra tension of finding something in the ttic of the B&B added some interesting tension. As I said, the darkest hour feels a bit... dumb. As for why, I won't spoil the plot. But it's a fun tale.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can an overwhelmed young woman find love amidst a bunch of 6-toed cats with a guy that broke her heart a long time ago?

Tropes: pets, family secrets, B&B, reunion, single parent, widower

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Marrying Miss Marshal (Wild Wyoming H by Lacy Williams

"Marrying Miss Marshal" is a tight romantic suspense historical Western, with the stereotypical "when a stranger rode into town"... well, not quite! And yes, the town has a lady marshall!

Danna Carpenter is the town marshal after her husband, the original Marshall, died on duty, after being ambushed. She is perfectly capable of breaking up drunken fights as well as chasing down criminals such as cattle rustlers. But when her deputies quit, she's all alone... Until a stranger rode into town. Chas O'Grady wandered into town looking for cattle rustlers. Being rescued by the marshall from a stampede is just his luck... But he's a city slicker, Danna figured he wouldn't stay around. When criminals robbed the bank, he signed on as deputy to help out. When a snowstorm stranded them outside of town, the town council forced them to marry "for propriety", even though both seem to have their hearts set elsewhere... But there's a conspiracy in town... Why is the sheriff from out of town so eager to take over? Why did the town council fire her after giving her only three days to track down the criminals? What secrets was Chas hiding?

As you can guess, what happened to Danna's first husband was related to the whole thing. And that's all I am going to say about it. It's a fun adventure and while I think the "marriage" was a bit forced, and the plot did take a bit long, it was a fun tale nonetheless.

Category:

Primary Plot: Lady marshall had to keep a town safe by herself, until a stranger came to town, but the town and the stranger both have secrets

Tropes: fish out of water, law enforcement, conspiracy, forced proximity, marriage of convenience

Overall Rating: 4/5

GRR Reviews At Liberty to Love (Texas Romance Book by Caryl McAdoo

More adventure than romance, the book is one man's obsession (in a nice way) to let a woman know he loves her and changed his mind about his job, as he managed to chase her across half a continent... And she STILL won't marry him...

Rebecca is a widow who never had any children, regrettably, with her husband. She is determined to travel west to the orphanage operated by some relatives all the way in San Francisco... and adopt one or two kids. She's going by boat down to Panama canal first. On the way, she met Marcus, someone who served with her relative in the War. And he was completely smitten, but he has a teaching position in a college in the Northeast... As soon as they part, he changed his mind... Rebecca is just right for him... But it was too late to get on the same boat. Marcus ended up chasing her, always just a day or three behind, from the coast of Panama all the way to California... And he finally found her. And while they really do feel a lot. Rebecca refused to marry him as she cannot marry a heathen, and he had abandoned God when his wife and child both died during the war...

Oh, the religious message is heavy, and the darkest hour was basically forced upon them. The ONLY solution is a change of heart. This guy basically cannot make a decision at the right time... always "too late". Argh.

Category: Historical / "Western"

Primary Plot: Widow wanted to adopt two children from the West Coast... man abandoned his job to court her, but always seem to miss her

Tropes: widow, widower, road trip, orphan, boy meets, girl, family pressure

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Christmas at the Lake (Great Escapes) by Charlotte Blake

Christmas at the Lake is a pretty simple holiday romance, leading to some long-term stuff. But somehow the plot did not engage me.

Adam Hunt and Lexi Stuart shouldn't intersect. Adam is a coder who made a comfortable living and was vacationing at Lake Tahoe, NV. Lexi is a small venture capitalist who's picking businesses to grow also vacationing at Lake Tahoe. They met during Christmas Holiday at the lake... they had one wild night together... and she ignored him for further engagements... because she thought he's just one of guys looking for notches on their bedpost. But Adam is quite serious...

Somehow, their other lives didn't come back to haunt them or any additional complications. It's just a plain "fling to a thing" romance.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: A coder and a venture capitalist met at Lake Tahoe and had a fling; then he wanted to see her again...

Tropes: holiday, fling to a thing, geek

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Red Hot Christmas (Pride) by Jill Sanders

Red Hot Christmas is a novel about wrong first-impressions, that plays into long-held prejudices. There is a character arc, but there's also more than a bit of immaturity, i.e. "why don't you just ask?" Or "why don't you just speak up?"

Amber is new to Pride, Oregon, as the new manager of Golden Oar, after having enough of managing a restaurant in a big city that was not appreciated. Her last BF had been a man-child and she would definitely NOT want a repeat. When she barely pulled into town, she almost ran over a man... riding full speed in 'downtown' main street... on a BMX. Even as he sailed over her hood, she couldn't help but be entranced by those gorgeous blue eyes... right up until he landed on the ground with road rash... and then she was too angry and indignant to care. His name is Luke, and he... doesn't seem to have a regular job except he seems to be playing games all the time. Luke now must convince Amber he's not a man-child, but someone she can trust to keep her heart.

The conflict is all about withholding information, leaving the other party to guess, and reaching all the WRONG conclusions. This can be done to either dramatic or comedic effect. But when its' about as shallow as "gaming", it feels very... nebulous. It's warm, but not that fuzzy.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a tech geek who doesn't seem to treat life seriously convince a restaurant manager to love him in all seriousness?

Tropes: holiday, fish out ofw ater, fling to a thing scars,

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Colorado Winter Moon (Peakview) by Jill Haymaker

Colorado Winter Moon is another chapter in the author's Peakview CO series, and this time, it's the older folks that fall in love!

Sam Phillips gave up on love after the death of his wife to cancer two years ago, after a lifetime together in Peakview Montana. He adopted a puppy, content to live alone... Until he met the perky Vickie Dalton attending her son's wedding in town. Vickie had been widowed at a young age and spent her life raising her children and grandchildren in Tumbleweed Wyoming. She had no romance on her mind when she traveled to Colorado to attend her son's wedding to a local of Peakview... and found Sam to be a true silver fox... And tempting like no other. But can she leave her home and her grandchildren behind... or ask Sam to do the same, even as they are living 8 hours apart by car?

Oh, yes, it's practically senior romance, esp. when we're talking about folks already with grandchildren. But these two folks still have many good years left, and they are ready to let themselves go if they can just figure out their living arrangements! And the compromise is actually kinda ingenious, but you'll have to read the book to find out how. Rather enjoyable and rare.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Man who saw his wife die two years ago is content to live alone, until he fell for a new woman just in town to attend a wedding

Tropes: small town, wedding, fling to a thing

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Crossing Hearts (Cross Creek) by Kimberly Kincaid

Crossing Hearts is a second chance romance about big secrets that someone feels s/he had to keep...

Emerson Montgomery is back in town she left behind years ago, trying to avoid everyone, esp. her parents... AND the love she left behind, Hunter Cross. Emerson is trying to avoid the inevitable questions "Why?" and her big secret... that she came back to town, dumping her life as a physical therapist for a pro football team, to just be a small-town physical therapist. And her first patient is... Hunter Cross. Hunter knew his shoulder always had problems after he tore the rotator cuff in his high school's final football game victory. He had great prospects for playing college ball, but he chose to stay on the family farm, where he is happy... to mend his broken heart after Emerson left him behind. An accident in the barn left him with severe pain... and old Doc prescribed physical therapy... With Emerson, whom he hadn't seen for 12 years. They slowly got back together. But Emerson's secrets cannot be denied much longer.

The book left me a bit exasperated at the FMC, as it's always been her stubborn pride, back then, and now. It's clear something happened to her to cause her to abandon her career, and if she won't say why, it's clearly something... bad. And she doesn't want people to worry? Eh.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Why is the woman who left twelve years ago back in town, leaving behind her career? Her ex-BF intends to find out...

Tropes: return, reunion, family secrets

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Snowed Inn: Western Hearts Series by Kate Palmer

Snowed Inn is a romance with a pivot later onto romantic suspense. There was a too stupid to live moment near the end that could have been handled better, but overall, it's pretty good.

Jayne Gardner turned her family ranch into the successful Snowed Inn Lodge and Restuarant. When the community project's funding needed matching funds, Jayne donated her sleigh rides for a community fundraiser... But when the numbers were screwed up, she needed another sleigh driver to run a second shift. Her father suggested the new ferrier in town... who turned out to be Forrest Hunsaker... the man who left her three years ago. Jayne can't afford to turn away the help, but she won't suffer through that heartbreak again, even if he wanted her back. When vandals struck Snowed Inn, it seems the fundraiser may be buried, unless Jayne and Forrest team up to find alternatives... and Jayne had to decide whether getting back with Forrest is really that bad of an idea... Who's sabotaging the inn?

Without spoiling anything (let's just say, you'll know that too stupid moment when you see it, as it involves a really really stupid decision) let's just say it will take the couple a lot of luck to get out of that one! And that's a bit of meh. Consider this really 3.5/5

Category: Contemporary / Romantic Suspense

Primary Plot: Can the woman allow her ex-lover back into her life, even as she needed him to help run the sleighs for the winter fundraiser?

Tropes: holiday, reunion, evil enemies

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Longing for Love (Gansett Island Series) by Marie Force

"Longing for Love" is a part of author's Gansett Island series, where a large family and existing residents deal with newcomers, returnees, and tourists. While each book did concentrate on one couple, the amount of drama around other ancillary characters was numerous enough to be a distraction if you don't like this style of writing. But usually the plots wrap around themselves. It's a bit like soap opera.

Tiffany Sturgil is opening a lingerie boutique Naughty and Nice in downtown Gansett, just in time to drive the local police chief Blaine Taylor nuts. It didn't help when Tiffany's ex is creating trouble as well with the town council, which is just even MORE headache for the perpetually busy chief... Who really do want Tiff quite badly. Blaine had several failed love affairs and knew he can't jump into this full force... In the meanwhile, the rest of the characters on the island are back with more adventures as well. Joe and Janey return to Gansett to find his mother's big secret... Evan learned that Grace never told her parents about him... and more.

Somehow, the character's very parallel lives and never really interacting much with the main story. If they interact with the main plot a bit more, this could have been a 5/5.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Police Chief wants the new proprietor of Lingerie shop in town, but her evil ex is causing problems with the town council...

Tropes: Law enforcement, different worlds, scars, hate your job

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Colorado Summer Stars (Peakview Series by Jill Haymaker

WARNING: Contains violence, reader discretion is advised

Colorado Summer Stars is a pretty standard "woman on the run finds love in small town, then her evil ex arrived" romance. The difference is the author managed to put enough polish to make the book enjoyable and characters sympathetic.

Nicole had enough of her controlling and constantly jealous boyfriend who always gets mad about her waitressing job in San Francisco. When that turned to violence and she got a black eye, she packed up and drove all the way back home to Peakview, Colorado to figure out her life... the place she had sworn she won't go back to, and ran into old high schoolmate... Rick "Scarecrow" Brady. But the thin awkward nerd was no more. Instead, Rick is now a hunky cowboy and a successful vet on his ranch. He had a crush on the most beautiful girl, Nicole, back in school, and now she's back... He went on to woo her, even as she wasn't quite sure she wanted another man in her life... Then her psycho ex appeared in town and made her life hell...

Pretty standard "protector" plot from there on. I'd say his ability to solve the final bit was a bit, shall we say, fortuitous, but it's a novel. We need an HEA. And we got one.

Category: Romantic Suspense / Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman is back in town, away from her evil ex, and fell for her old high school friend, now a hunky cowboy veterinarian in town

Tropes: evil ex, protector, small town, woman in peril, ugly duckling, childhood sweetheart

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews All I Want for Christmas (The McKinnon B by Jennifer Gracen

All I Want for Christmas try to set up some sparks between a couple for their rather unhappy reunion, but I simply didn't feel much heat.

Cassandra has it all... almost. She's one of the youngest assistant professors at NYU. She has an apartment she can afford and doesn't hate and a circle of girlfriends she can rely on. The only thing she lacked is male companionship, which she hadn't had after Sean broke her heart 7 years ago and ran for California. When Cassandra and friend walked into a bar, it turned out to be Sean's bar. Sean's back in town and she didn't know... and both were still raw from the hurt. Sean for walking away, and Cass for the betrayal. But Sean had changed a lot since. He's no longer the insecure kid that deals with problems with his fists (but he still doesn't like academics, except Cass) but Cass wasn't ready to forgive him just yet. It took her a long time to get over him, and she's not ready to be hurt again. But Sean's not letting go... and maybe this time... she's the one running away...

The ending was really meh, sorry to say. If all it took is a change of heart, the problem isn't that significant. Meh.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: The guy who left her seven years ago is back... and he wanted her back; but she'll never trust him again... or will she?

Tropes: holiday, reunion, scars, enemies to lovers

Overall Rating: 3/5

GRR Reviews A Cowboy for Christmas: A Between the by Jennie Marts

A Cowboy for Christmas is a holiday / forced proximity / reunion novel that left a vague fuzzy but not much else feeling for me.

Holly Adams return to her hometown after losing her young husband. She came back with a to-do list from her therapist... 1) return to your roots, 2) face your fears, and 3) listen to your heart. She just did the first, and have no idea about the other two. That is, until a snow storm stranded her on Levi Garrett's ranch at Christmas Eve. Levi was a senior when Holly's just a freshman in high school, but Holly was fearless then and they even shared a kiss. Levi almost did not recognize this broken Holly, but he was sure that girl is still in there... If he can reach her...

Honestly, I read this through twice, and it just didn't leave any impression on me. It was pretty bland. At only 100 pages, I guess you can finish it pretty quickly. It didn't feel much of anything.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Young widow coming home to heal was stranded on her first love's ranch...

Tropes: holiday, unrequited love, widow, forced proximity, reunion

Overall Rating:  2/5

GRR Reviews Mail Order Bride: Christy (Orphan Brides) by Vivi Holt

"Mail Order Bride: Christy" by Vivi Holt has a good setup, but the rest of the book is just mail order bride trope, about two wounded people coming together by circumstance. It's clean and spiritual, and not much more.

Christy and her parents were on their way to California when the train was robbed, and her parents were caught in the crossfire and killed. When her relatives back in Ireland contested her father's will and the money that had been left, she's stuck in Kansas, with no money, no family, and no friends (they're all on the East Coast) and nowhere to go. A kind-hearted family took her in temporarily, but she knew she can't stay. She agreed to be a mail order bride to a rancher to the south... Brent lost his love when a horse bucked her off. He had suffered years alone. He did not expect Christy to be so beautiful... and so vivacious... And Christy found Brent very... handsome. But can two total strangers love each other, under such tragic circumstances? And when misunderstanding threaten their trust? Will they work through it, or is she leaving?

Eh... somehow it's just change of heart for the ending. It's clean, it's Christian (not too much Bible talk, but enough) But it's kinda... Meh. Too much setup, not enough struggle.

Category: Historical Western

Primary Plot: Young woman lost her parents and had no money; chose to mail order bride herself to widower rancher; can they find love?

Tropes: mail order bride, orphan, family pressure, different worlds, fish out of water, widower

NOTE: We're using "widower" label on the MMC even though he wasn't actually married.

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Mail Order Mistletoe (Brides of Beckham by Kirsten Osbourne

The setup in Mail Order Mistletoe barely makes sense even for this short (70-pages) novelette, but it sure is funny and sweet.

Meg O'Reilly, a teacher, was besieged by the 4 members of "demon horde"... the bunch of spoiled kids that enjoys tormenting her with snakes, frogs, and other critters, and generally making her life miserable in the East. When one of them slapped a copy of the Gazette listing the mail order brides wanted ads and told her she's so ugly she doesn't deserve to be their teacher, she decided enough is enough and married herself out West to a farmer named Lars Borgen... sight unseen. Lars lost his bride and child and swore never to love again. Meg...was nothing like he expected. He didn't want to fall back in love again, but he may not have a choice...

Out of all the mail order bride premises, I'd say this one is the most absurd, yet it sorta makes sense that way too. But really, resign a teacher position to be mail order bride due to kids pranking her? You had to admit, that's kinda... novel. It's just that the rest of romance didn't have that much heat, mostly sweetness.

Category: Historical / Western

Primary Plot:  What would cause a teacher to quit her position and mail order bride herself out west to a widower?

Tropes: mail order bride, fish out of water, different worlds, widower

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Blue Christmas by Diane Moody

Blue Christmas reads a bit like a fan's fantasy, and the author's notes explained it did originally start as fanfic for a boyband. The polish and expansion into a full romance novel was well done, and serves as inspiration on how not to look like an amateur.

Hannah was called in to help run the store when her boss was called away on a family emergency on Christmas Eve. Her parents were out of town, and with no one around, she accepted the kind older woman's invitation to her Christmas dinner. She had no idea this woman is the mother of Jason McKenzie, lead singer of "Out of the Blue", the hottest boy band and Jason was Hannah's childhood idol. Meeting Jason in person was a dream come true, and Jason turned out to be so unpretentious, Hannah was smitten. And Jason returned the sentiment. When tragedy struck the band, and one of the band members were admitted to the hospital in grave condition, paparazzi stalked the corridors, looking for ANY bit of news. Hannah now fully realized the pressure when the eyes of the world were upon the band... and that includes her...And that pressure challenges her beliefs in faith and love. Are Jason and Hannah too different to stand a chance at loving each other?

It is quite charming, and the meet-cute was done properly, as it's "just plausible enough" and yet fantastical. The complications provided some good tension and ratcheted up the pressure on their relationship, but you know there's an HEA at the end of the book.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Young woman on Christmas Eve met her childhood idol and star singer; and he liked her back! But can they be a real couple?

Tropes: different worlds, performer, holiday

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Winter's Magic (Music City Hearts) by Cynthia Gail

Winter's Magic is a pretty standard "different worlds" romance between a woman who served the rich and famous... and a guy who *is* rich and famous.

Beth Sergeant was not among the rich and famous, even though she did go to private school with many of them. She was even engaged to one briefly. Now, she runs a 5-star day spa catering to the rich and famous of Nashville, TN. She did not expect to find Nick Chester among her clients. Nick Chester lost his parents early on and was raised by his grandpa, the richest man in the city. Lots of women wanted him, but he understood their agenda... except Beth, who doesn't have one. Intrigued, Nick asked Beth out on a date, and they are both smitten. But both have guarded secrets that can tear them apart...

Didn't feel that much warm and fuzzy for this one. Nothing really outstanding, but thoroughly compentent... thus, mediocre rating.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Rich and famous guy falls for the one young woman in the city who has NO design on him... the spa owner

Tropes: different worlds, orphan, fling to a thing, family pressue

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews The Perfect Gift (Three Wise Men series) by Serenity Woods

The Perfect Gift is about a single mother's struggle for her son, and her struggle with feelings of inadequacy when a famous pediatrician showed interest in her. It was a bit angsty, but not overly so.

Erin Bloom is a single mom who can barely put food on the table due to her son Ryan's asthma. When another attack landed her son in the hospital, she was sure this holiday season will be the worst ever... Until consultant pediatrician Brock King showed up. Brock lost his wife to cancer two years ago, and he wasn't ready to love. But encountering Erin put a smile on his face. Brock had made a lot of money as a pediatrician with his two brothers helping him make children's toys and treatments targeting pediatric asthma sufferers (helping them getting treated), complete with education programs and charity. And he wanted to make Erin happy... by treating her to a timeout, as she has a sitter arranged. And Erin can't say no to an offer like that. Erin knew she is attracted to the handsome and rich Brock, and that timeout may result with her in his bed... but is a fling all she needed? Dare she want more?

I generally have a problem with woman who put themselves down (i.e. inadequacy issues). I understand some are not just go-getters, but being so... passive and failure to accept what life brings, even when it's handed to you on a silver platter, is not just lame, but self-doormat-ing. This book was right on the verge of that, but manage to hold her just short of that line. It's still a good read. Brock came off as kind, but a little bit on the plain flat side.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a single mom let herself go and enjoy the attention and perks of being wooed by a handsome doctor who's treating her son?

Tropes: single parent, doctor/patient, fling to a thing, widower

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Forgetting the Billionaire by Anne-Marie Meyer

Forgetting the Billionaire tried to present a clean yet tense romance where things just keep getting more and more complicated between the couple, but the issues seem to be based on douchebaggery than real emotional turmoil, and some deeply seated insecurities.

Charlie had her hands full trying to keep her own little retirement home running. She had two residents with dementia. Add that to her job at the local diner, AND her broken heart from her last BF, she definitely wasn't ready to date. When a rich guy in a pink VW Bug showed up at her retirement home, wanting to see one of the residents, she was surprised she felt some attraction to him. But strangers always leave... // Mitchell just found his grandma that his family "forgot" decades ago. He flew to the island of Sitka and located the retirement home, hoping to make amends before Grandma passes. Grandma has severe dementia and mistook Mitchell for her own son (Mitch's father) and Charlie as the fiancee. They decided to fake a relationship for grandma's sake... just in time for Charlie's ex to return and try to woo her again...

Basically, Mitch's parents are total douchebags, and Mitch is the good guy, and tries to solve Charlie's problems. Charlie, in the meanwhile was "Mitch will leave" and tries to stay distant, which obviously won't work if they are pretending to be a couple... even as Charlie wanting to take her ex back, just so she can deny her feelings toward Mitch. And Mitch finally got an epiphany, which... you'll need to read the book.

So why only average, the plot got too confusing to the end, and both characters are too... masochistic for their own good, as both are "pleasers" and failed to do anything for themselves. It's almost PAINFUL to read about them going through life kowtowing to everything and everybody else's demands. Obviously there's an HEA, as this is a romance, but how it got there... Ahem. Read the book and you'll see.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Billionaire on an island looking for his grandma found her under care of an overwhelmed young woman, who may like him a little

Tropes: small town, fake engagement, crazy grandparent, triangle, family secrets

Overall Rating: 3/5

GRR Reviews Kelly (The Princesses of Silicon Valley) by Anita Claire

Kelly is basically the story of a woman who thought she knew what she wanted but looked for love in all the wrong places.

Kelly is a tall redhead and a true wild child. She likes to do competitive mountain biking and partying, and she's good enough at mountain biking that she's probably among the world's best dozen or so. She never stayed in one place too long, due to events and training, and never had any lasting relationships, just random hookups with people in the biking scene. She didn't want a job either, as she's living off a small inheritance. Her girlfriends, the Princesses of Silicon Valley, wanted her to come back to California, but she wanted to know if she has what it takes to get to the top... and wander the world in the meanwhile. Her trip takes her to Nepal, Brazil, Colorado, California, Australia, and she came to know two guys... One is a sailor needing something different from the wandering, another is a former Olympic swimmer looking for a kindred soul. Kelly wondered which of them is a better lover... and can she even consider settling down in one place?

The first half of the book was basically Kelly going around all over the place with hookups and more. The Tibetan adventure and other bits feel a bit dry. The coming of age realization came later when the Olympic swimmer was introduced for real, not just a hookup. There are bits of cross-references to other princesses (see the other books in the series) but they're kinda minimal, just interesting enough to move the plot along. But the character arc is certain there. But this feels more like an adventure, rather than a proper darkest hour and grand gesture and all that. It's basically Kelly making a choice due to character growth.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a wild-child athlete choose between two lovers? Who should she choose even as she found what she really wanted?

Tropes: everyone but you, road trip, triangle, athlete

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews The Seven Steps to Closure by Donna Joy Usher

The Seven Steps to Closure is about finding peace (and ability to love) after a devastating loss (being dumped). The story is a bit about finding love in all the wrong places, or perhaps, not finding any.

Tara had broken up with her husband over a year ago, but with him in the news constantly, now engaged to her cousin Tash, and running for Lord Mayor of Sydney, she's somehow NOT over him yet. Her three best friends staged an intervention... The "Closure in Seven Easy Steps" protocol clipped from Cosmo. The first few are easy enough. She got a makeover, got a hobby, had a one-night stand, and traveled to exotic location... India! But will she find her closure upon her return?

A bit British in the humor (it's set in Australia, of course!) including a few more pratfalls than you'd expect, and the travels in India was really specific (but still funny), it's chick lit with a bite. If you don't like British humor, it'd be

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can the woman who was dumped by her (now ex-) fiancee get closure by going through the 7-step program? How about love?

Tropes: bucket list, scars

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews A Billionaire For Lexi: Holiday Novella (Th by Ruth Cardello

A Billionaire for Lexi is a 3 novella anthology from three bestselling authors, and each of the novellas is a short fast read, though none are particularly deep.

NOTE: Technically a collection is a group of works from the same author, while an anthology is a group of works from different authors. This is technically an anthology, as they are from Ruth Cardello, Jeannette Winters, and Danielle Stewart, but it will be referred to as a collection for tagging purposes only.

Clay Landon is a playboy, and he doesn't do relationships... Until Lexi Chambers... who's just as rich and just as free as him, and she's not impressed at all. Lexi doesn't want trouble with the rich Barringtons, as her sister just married into it, but Clay tested her resolve to stay unattached. As the two dance around each other, they come to realize their feelings may go deeper than first thought...

World-renowned chef Vincent Moretti was attending a charity event at a resort, but it was snowed out. When the kitchen can't even seem to serve any food, he went to investigate and found Renita Gallo... daughter of a famous chef attempting to uphold her father's reputation, even though she's a teacher, not a chef... Vincent was smitten by her tenacity and helped her out, but she can't stand this handsome but arrogant... CHEF?

Nolan is fuming that he's spending his Christmas alone at a coffee shop while his sister is spending cozy nights as she just married a billionaire. Holly McNamara is on the run, and meeting Nolan is a perfect opportunity for her to get out of town. When Nolan was called to attend a charity function and present a charity check, Holly offered to come along. Nolan and Holly found they enjoyed each other's company very much, but Holly was keeping a huge secret. When someone spotted Holly for who she was, she elected to leave, but Nolan is not ready to see her go just yet...

Each of the novellas is centered on a bit of holiday spirit, and have shared characters, as this is technically a part of the Barrington family series. They are not particularly deep reads. At first I wanted to rate these three stars, but I upgraded them to 4 as they have consistent quality. Though they are really like 3.5 stars.

Category: Contemporary / Collection

Primary Plot: N/A, shared universe of the rich and famous in the Barringtons series

Tropes: too many to list, see tags below

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews A Kiss for Christmas: A Holiday Collection by Melody Grace

A Kiss for Christmas is a 3 novella collection about Christmas romances, each of which is quite good. The author knows how to deliver just enough plot to swoon without overcooking it.

An unlikely couple found themselves gotten snowed in on their way to a wedding, and a game of truth or dare found they have hidden feelings toward each other...

A writer asked for rustic accommodations at a lakeside inn... except there's no power to do his writing... and no muse. Until he met the vivacious innkeeper who wanted to get out of this town...

A woman found that the holidays she planned for New York City winter holiday with her BF just went up in smoke. Can the hot musician show her some real appreciation?

Each of these novellas is fast, with just enough plot and twist to satisfy. I recommend this collection and other books by this author.

Category: Contemporary / Collection

Primary Plot: N/A, three novella collection featuring some shorter works by the author, all are definitely above average

Tropes: forced proximity, Holidays, 

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Billionaire's Vacation - A Standalone Nov by Claire Adams

Billionaire's Vacation by Claire Adams is another book in her billionaire series. While the plot is nothing really special, it's the polish that made the story rose above mediocrity. However, the ending was somewhat of a letdown.

Christian Wall, America's sexiest billionaire bachelor, is a manwhore. When his latest escapades got caught by a reporter, who was almost one of his flings, his business partners decided he needs to take a long vacation, and he picked Hawaii. On the island, he met Gretchen, a talented masseuse, someone who would never want to leave the island, being happy where she is, but she is intrigued by the sexy Chris, even as she recoils from an ambiguous relationship she ended with her ex. And Chris was... smitten, as he never had a woman who'd refuse him... But it's just a fling... right?

Little more emotional than I expected, but the ending's a bit of meh. Not going to spoil it, but it involves something giving up what that someone wanted for a very long time, just for meeting someone. Is that vague enough? :)

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: When playboy CEO was forced to go on vacation, he met a woman that made him reconsider his playboy ways...

Tropes: vacation, resort, fish out of water, different worlds, fling to a thing, triangle

Overall Rating:  4/0

GRR Reviews Beloved (The Salvation Series Book 1) by Corinne Michaels

Beloved somehow just never connected with me. I wasn't sure if it's the diction, the plot, or the characters... Probably the characters, that never gained my sympathy. The cliffhanger ending didn't help. But let me recap...

Catherine had been left behind by her father, then by her fiancee of five years. She is not about to trust a man ever again... Until she ran into Jackson. She knew Jackson will wear her down, but in the end, he will leave her, just like all the other men did. But Jackson is so nice...

So basically, you have Catherine being a whiny woman preemptively playing hard-to-get bitch, while Jackson decided to play martyr with infinite patience and glutton for punishment. And there's a cliffhanger, so basically, he had a personality flip for book 2. That's just not doing it for me at all.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: hurt girl can't love a guy, even if he's patient...

Tropes: betrayal, boy meets, girl, cliffhanger

Overall Rating:  2/5

GRR Reviews Falling for Mr. Statham: A Billionaire Rom by Whitney G.

Falling for Mr. Statham 2-book boxed set featured some good romance, with some really stupid characters making some really stupid decisions.

Book 1: Claire Gracen's life is perfect. She has a great job, her marriage to her high school sweetheart is strong, her children are grown to college... until she realized it was a lie... Her husband had been cheating on her with her best friend... She left Pittsburgh and started over in the SF Bay area. She got a new job, a new place to live, and new friends. New friends took her to a party, and a younger man hit on her. She turned him down, even though he's the most handsome man ever, but he's too young for her. She discovered to her horror later that the man she turned down was her boss, Jonathan Statham, self-made billionaire and CEO of Statham Industries. And he's VERY determined to change her mind about him...

Uh... Please hire a tech consultant. The tech talk about how Jonathan started his company that rival Apple was really lame. There was a part where he made her grovel "No, I will NOT speak to you... Until you somehow evade security to kiss me." That's really lame mental games, sorry.

Book 2: Claire Gracen has the man, and they are on their way to a great wedding. But amidst the preparations, Claire realized what had been bothering her... what she thought she left behind in Pittsburgh... is much closer than she thinks. Why is her ex after her, insisting that they need to talk? How did he get past his security teams? Claire has nothing to say to Ryan, the man who destroyed her and forced her to leave the East Coast, but he insisted he had something to say... What happened to her (former) best friend that her husband left her for?

What sort of security does this billionaire hire that this lawyer ex was able to penetrate almost at will? The rest is each acting very hurt when they saw something that could have been interpreted ambiguously, and both obviously reached "worst case scenario" conclusions instead, which lead to a big fight... Are these powerful successful people or five-year-olds? This seems to be a really lame way to create conflict.

When you add both volumes together, it's still average.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman who left her cheating ex behind fell for her hot boss... // then her ex came with complications for her marriage...

Tropes: collection, betrayal, fish out ofw ater, triangle, hot for boss

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Shopping for a Billionaire 2 (Shopping fo by Julia Kent

Shopping for a Billionaire 2 is more comedy than romance. At just over 100 pages, the book is charming, but not that romantic, and you kinda need the previous volume to get more out of this one.

Shannon and Declan explore their relationship (and each other) while she and her company got company cars that should not be allowed out in public... i.e. they are wraps with fiberglass roof displays (think the Red Bull jeep, but much much worse looking). And one of them featured Shanon's mother ("I am so **NOT** driving that one!") and let's just say their attempted tryst on a golf course went VERY badly.

As in the previous volume, the jokes just come rapid-fire non-stop but it's not very romantic, IMHO.

Category: Contemporary / Comedy

Primary Plot: secret shopper tries to take her relationship with a hot billionaire to a different level, while the entire world seems to be out to get a laugh at her expense

Tropes: boy meets girl, evil boss

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Shopping for a Billionaire 1 by Julia Kent

"Shopping for a Billionaire" is an episodic novelette that's less than 150 pages, and it ended up a dubious note, not exactly a cliffhanger, but not resolved either. It's more rom-com than pure romance.

Shannon is a secret shopper that had to rate the men's room at a cafe, so she headed in, and made the evals. When a guy came in she had to hide, realized her feet's showing, squatted on the toilet, slipped, her phone fell in, and she was in the process of fishing it out when Declan opened the stall door trying to rescue her. Forever since, he's her "hot guy", and she's his "toilet girl". Ouch.

The story continues for about 100 pages, episodic. It seems way more comedic than romance, in a non-stop-jokes sort of way. Not that romantic.

Category: Contemoporary / Comedy

Primary Plot: Secret shopper meets hot billionaire in a men's toilet... Classy, right?

Tropes: boy meets girl

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Merry Me (A Holiday Romance Novel Boo by Amanda Siegrist

Merry Me is about random acts of kindness and the chaos that ensued. It's definitely a holiday feel-good novel and may be a bit too sweet but definitely a warm and fuzzy read.

Police Chief Duncan had been a grinch since his mom passed away 3 years ago, and his job kept him busy with his father in his house. When an anonymous gift basket showed up on his doorstep, he is determined to return the gift so it could be given to someone needier. The quest lead him to Lynn Carpenter, a single mom waitress who's raising her child alone. She's not rich, but she'll always make do, with Christmas presents for all, even if she had to work overtime. When Chief Duncan found Lynn, he recognized the ribbon, then tried to leave her a $50 tip. She tried to return it and sneakily left it under his coffee cup. He'll follow her home as snow is coming down, and rescued her when her car spun out into a ditch. It's a sign that they should be together... under the mistletoe and all that... right?

Awwwww, sweet enough to make your toothache... Not really, but you get the idea. :) If you need a bit of cheering up about the human spirit, this is probably the book.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a poor waitress and single mom compete on generosity with the grouchy and grinchy sheriff this Christmas?

Tropes: Holiday law enforcement, waitress, single parent, forced proximity, small town

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Home for Christmas by Lia Fairchild

Home for Christmas is a great little short story (only 61 pages) for the holidays that contains a surprisingly good twist.

Stephen just got out of a relationship going nowhere. Ali's man in her life is dying in a hospital. It's only a few days to Christmas, and neither is in the mood to be celebrating. When Ali saved Stephen from taking a backward spill from his tilting chair they felt an incredible connection, yet neither was ready for a relationship... but he'll do anything to give her a Christmas miracle...

I can't spoil the twist, so I can't say any more about this story. Just read it. It's worth it.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can two people not feeling the spirit around the Holidays get a little Christmas miracle?

Tropes: holiday, boy meets girl

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Montana Secret Santa by Debra Salonen

I don't get Montana Secret Santa. It's part holiday tale, part romance, but the theme somehow never quite gel'ed for me.

Ad exec Krista Martin, avoiding her angst-y Hollywood family, had settled in Marietta Montana to run her Big Sky Promotions. Feeling a bit too grinch-y, she joined the Secret Santa Society, and ended up as co-chair with the tech wunderkind Jonah Andrews, who's back for the Holidays from Silicon Valley. Krista can use the connections, and Jonah can use... her companionship, esp. when they spar over type of cocoa and chocolate. It was obvious to Jonah that Krista had lost her Christmas spirit a long time ago... and Secret Santa can help... right?

I wasn't sure if this is supposed to be enemies to lover, person who lost her Christmas spirit, or both. Krista just come across as depressed and apathetic, and she's supposed to be the local. Jonah, the cheery one rich wunderkind, was supposed to be just visiting... They don't fit well. There are interspersed moments of clarity and purpose, and some scenes worked, but overall, it just didn't feel warm and fuzzy to me.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can the tech wunderkind guy save a female ad exec's Christmas spirit, and maybe get a kiss or two as well? Or it grinch time?

Tropes: Holiday, enemies to lovers, forced proximity,

Overall Rating: 3/5

GRR Reviews The Billionaire's Arranged Baby: An Africa by Rochelle Williams

The Billionaire's Arranged Baby really made no sense as both MMC and FMC had personality flips. The author's writing style of missing commas (Ex: "what is the problem Andrew?") is hard to adjust to. And the plot is "weird will" trope cliche. All in all, I had to rate this well below average.

Eva had lusted after Andrew all her life, after growing up next to Andrew's rich family. But Andrew never noticed her, always have some blonde bimbo on his arm. When Andrew's father passed away, the will was read... Andrew cannot inherit the company as CEO unless he can get Eva pregnant. Eva, then employed as librarian, refused, but soon she melted under Andrew's wooing, and they fell in love... and had some fights, they reconciled, and a son was born... The end.

WTF?! This is supposed to be a novel? Sure, there's a bit of back and forth, like Eva getting cold feet and Andrew used his seduction to get her to comply, or Eva after getting pregnant sudden decided Andrew's a cheating bastard and Andrew suddenly realized how bad he had been treating Eva and went off to sulk, then Eva was counseled into taking Andrew back (why?). The way they each had a personality flip was sudden and unexplained. It's not as if they were prodded into an epiphany. There were also some terminology problems. Since when do OB/GYN doctors say "we have to take the baby out"? They say "we need to do a C-section"! And this author also has a problem of skipping commas as explained before.

Compared to the 4- or 5-star rated stuff, the prose is stiff, grammar is iffy, the plot is cliche, and the will itself is REALLY forced plotting to squeeze some emotions out of the two flat characters. The struggle barely made sense. All in all, a disappointing novel.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Man must impregnate a woman he doesn't love to inherit his father's company; she liked him from afar but will that be enough?

Tropes: weird will, pregnancy, unrequited love, forced proximity, enemies to lovers

Overall Rating:  2/5 (rounded up)

GRR Reviews The Brands Who Came For Christmas (Th by Maggie Shayne

The Brands who Came for Christmas is a bit of holiday cheer but the initial meetcute seems overly fortuitous, and the subsequent surprise baby trope seems a bit too conflicting. While the overall feeling is cozy, one can't help but to feel hot chocolate is just empty calories.

Caleb, running away from the path set by his father, had a flat tire in a small town Big Falls, and that resulted in one night of bliss with the small town beauty Maya Brand. But when his father had a stroke, he sped back to the city without a goodbye. But he can't get Maya out of her mind, but he can't disrupt her attempt to fit in as the respectable one... Eight months later, he received an anon photo of a very pregnant Maya. He sped back to town, intending to do the right thing... But Maya is not ready to trust the guy who left without a word... And neither is her family... How can he convince them he's not here to do damage control to his senate campaign, when he hadn't even decided he wanted to run? What happens when the gossip reporter found him in town? What will happen when a blizzard hit, stranding everyone?

Sweet, but this is almost pure "sudden baby" trope, shifting into "secret baby" trope. It is nicely polished with disapproving father, wise mother, a couple of oddball sisters, and a guy who can't quite express himself.. The blizzard seems to be a bit... serendipitous? fortuitous? whatever. But the initial meetcute is really... uh... doesn't make sense? As if both of them just, for no particular reason than they met, chose to throw out all they were for one night of bliss? And is the rest of the struggle really a struggle? It shows polish but for the initial meetcute brought it back down to a "meh". I really wanted to give this 4 stars, but I don't quite feel it deserved it.

Category:  Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a prospective senator do the right thing when he found he got a small town beauty pregnant? Will her family accept him?

Tropes: accidental pregnancy, return, reunion, politics, small town, betrayal, sudden baby, secret baby

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Billionaire's Princess - A Standalone Nove by Claire Adams

"Billionaire's Princess" by Claire Adams tries to set up a fated mates scenario when a princess living in disguise fell for a commoner but was forced to go back. The evil was just too flat, and the scenario too evil fairy-tale like, and the fighting bits too... fake, that it felt it was too "hammed up for Hollywood"

Ariana is a European princess who just wanted to be normal. She was promised to the son of the King's adviser, but she escaped and came to the US with an assumed name "Emma" and is making a living as a photographer's intern. She was photographing Nick, a hotel billionaire and they felt amazing chemistry together... And Nick vows to keep Emma... who's sincere and not a golddigger. Then her betrothed showed up in Las Vegas, intending to take her back by force. Emma gave herself to Nick, hoping that if she's no longer a virgin his betrothed would give her up. But he took Emma back anyway... and left Nick a scar for getting in his way... but Nick had a condom malfunction... Two years later, Adriana is a prisoner in her own country, barely allowed to see her son (who is NOTHING like her "husband", not that anyone would dare mention it to his face), no access to comm, and Nick is not over her... When she finally was able to "borrow" her sister's phone at a banquet to send a message to Nick, Nick pulled together his team of mercenaries for the Great Rescue... Not just her, but the toddler as well...

The rescue had a couple twists, but the author could use a "military advisor" as the scenario she wrote didn't really make that much sense. And some parts of it was way too easy for the good guys. All in all, mediocre romantic suspense.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a billionaire rescue his princess for a sadistic despot from an island with his mercenaries to rescue her and his child?

Tropes: fated mates, protector, woman in peril, family pressure, evil enemies, different worlds

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews A Princess Next Door (Rothman Royals Bo by Noelle Adams

A Princess Next Door is about a royalty living in plain sight "undercover", and fell for a commoner, but it's just a fling, right? Unfortunately, the plot offered nothing really new.

Amalie "Amy" Rothman is living undercover in the US. As the oldest princess of the Rothmans, of a tiny kingdom up in the Alps, she was as useful as a chess piece, to be married off for alliances and such. She refused to marry her intended match, "Edward Farmingham Channing IV", solely to replenish the royal coffers. Instead she went off to a small school in Minnesota to do an art degree under a certain professor she wanted to study under. Four years later, school's about to end, but she did not want to go home. Her neighbor next door is Jack Watson. Despite the American swagger, he's handsome... AND nice. Amy decided to have a fling with Jack. She's leaving in a month. Besides, Jack hates formals, doesn't own a suit, and will never hook up with a princess... if he knew who she really is. But when circumstances forced her identity into the open... will she sacrifice herself for her family... or may Amy be willing to abandon it all?

The romance is a bit of meh, nothing too special. The guy's a bit too nice, and the deus ex machina ending was rather disappointing.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Princess living undercover in the US going to school fell for an American good-ole-boy, but she's graduating and leaving...

Tropes: royalty, different worlds, school, fling to a thing

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Back to the Heart by Sky Corgan

Back to the Heart is about secrets and letting go. It delievers average drama as the setup is pretty much a trope.

Ana White moved home after having her dream destroyed, her heart betrayed, AND pregnant. She wanted to be a paralegal, but she can only find a secretarial job in a law firm... Then the head lawyer seduced her... but made it an affair. When she got pregnant, he accused her of trying to entrap her and fired her, and also gave her horrible references so she can't find another job. She was surprised to find a stranger on her family ranch... Ryan Black just wanted to get away... He left his job behind, just wanted to spend some alone time in a place where nobody recognized him. But he found himself drawn to Ana. Ryan, however, was keeping a secret... He's actually Brennan, a billionaire businessman. And Ana fell for the enigmatic and compelling man. Then he left, promising to come back... And didn't. Did he lie? Will she trust him ever again?

Somehow the setup just didn't work that well for me. The part about trust betrayed was basically cliche, and I honestly didn't feel much emotional swing at all. Altogether, a bit of "meh".

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Betrayed woman ended up home, and fell for a mysterious boarder on her family ranch; then he left, breaking her heart...

Tropes: pregnancy, betrayal, disguise, different worlds, fish out of water, return

Overall Rating:  3/5

GRR Reviews Home For Christmas by Patricia Kay

Home For Christmas is a holiday romance that featured two wounded people coming together around the holidays.

Quinn Riordan had been away from her hometown of Chagrin Falls for TEN YEARS, after losing EVERYTHING to her more beautiful sister, including her first ever love. But now, Aunt Fiona had a bad fall and her leg broken. She came back... Only to find her aunt has a boarder, Peter Kimball, a teacher in the local school. Peter doesn't understand how Fiona could love someone who stayed away for ten years, and seeing Quinn was a bit of a shock. She is actually quite likable. But Peter lost the two people he loved most and will not be able to love again, just as Quinn had to stay away. But with the upcoming holidays, can they let go of their hurts in the past, and see a way to embrace the future... and each other?

While the setup was old, the usage of Aunt Fiona was what took this story beyond average, as she's part-matchmaker, part advice guru, and part just plain old wiser woman. Add a bit of holiday magic, and it's a pretty cozy love story.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Woman went home after ten years away; fell for someone had had similar loss; can they share grief and heal with holiday cheer?

Tropes: holiday, return, sibling problem, grief, enemies to lovers

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews A HEAVENLY CHRISTMAS (Heavenly Chris by Patrice Wilton

A Heavenly Christmas is about a bit of holiday magic bringing two people together that probably would have never met... But can they live with each other on a more permanent basis?

Widow Jennie Braxton and her two kids were heading to her parent's home in Philadelphia for Christmas when she hit a tree a hundred yards from a gas station (blame the puppy that ran in front of her) in the small town of Heaven, PA. She was rescued by Nick Ryan, a local chef who was chasing the stray puppy. Nick felt responsible for her injuries and wanted to make sure she was all right. Nick was reasonably rich, operated the best restaurant in town, and did like being unattached, but he was intrigued by Jennie. Jennie enjoyed the attention by Nick but wasn't sure if he's just nice, or there is affection there. She's also not quite sure she's ready to move on after her husband's death. But as they get to know each other, they found there is something there. But can this relationship work if he can't leave his place? Or will Holiday magic work its miracle?

Basically, both need to consider the existential question... Each is comfortable where they are, but are they ready for more together? And it is that contemplation that leads to conflict, and resolution, and the fun is in the journey.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can widow raising two kids swoon over a single chef who wasn't quite sure if he wanted to stay single?

Tropes: holiday, widow, single parent, chef, small town,

Overall Rating:  4/5

GRR Reviews Because It's Christmas (Bayview Heights) by Kathryn Shay

Because It's Christmas is a reimagining of It's a Wonderful Life, and it's definitely a tear-jerker, when a woman's caught between family and love.

Bayview Heights High School principal Seth Taylor is a hero, having helped dozens of students for the years he's been here. He regrets the few students that he was not able to help... Including the little brother Kevin of Lacey Cartwright. Kevin was eventually expelled for striking a teacher, and went on a life of crime, and is currently in prison. Lacey's grandpa, a former ace reporter, quit his job to raise the kids when their parents died. And when grandpa had a heart attack, Lacey quit her California job and moved back to Bayview as a local reporter. Grandpa never forgave Seth, believing Seth railroaded Kevin. Lacey wasn't sure what's the truth but went along with Grandpa in being critical of Seth. When her editorials focused on only the negative, Seth challenged her to come to the school and cover some positive stuff about the school. That lead her to realize Seth is actually a good person and fell for him. But Lacey's grandpa is determined to destroy Seth when Kevin died in prison, having been involved with the gangs. Grandpa's PI dug up the one big mistake in Seth's life... And Lacey has but one card to play to save Seth...

The darkest hour was so sad I can feel my throat close up and tears well up in my eyes. It was a tale of the star-crossed lovers. However, due to the somewhat lame ending, I can't give this a full score. And you'll have to read the book to find out why.

Category: Contemporary

Primary Plot: Can a reporter fall for the principal that may have railroaded her brother into a life of crime?

Tropes: reporter, enemies to lovers, family secrets

Overall Rating:  4/5