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tips_and_tropes's Reviews (417)
Take My Name is the first book in the Willow Branch Mountain series by Brooke Montgomery. It’s a second chance, stand-alone, small-town, cowboy romance about a literary agent living in NYC who returns to her Southern hometown and the high school sweetheart she (thought she) left behind.
I love complicated love stories, and this one fits the bill for sure. I ate this audiobook up with its spicy Sweet Home Alabama meets The Notebook if everyone pierced their fun bits vibes. It’s a little messy in the best way. Brooke Montgomery skillfully dances on the line of the question-did she cheat on her fiancé with her husband? If you’re excited about finding out more - scoop this book up ASAP. It’s on KU, and the audio is live now.
Speaking of the audio, we get treated to the incredible voice acting talents of Aiden Snow and Savannah Peachwood for this story. I love the deep timbre of Aiden Snow’s voice, and as a filthy mouthed, full on simp, cowboy? HAVE MERCY! Delicious all the way around. Savannah Peachwood does fantastic work playing out how conflicted Maisie feels about the possibility of sacrificing how hard she’s worked for her career for another chance with the love of her life. I am looking forward to more in this series for sure!
Thank you so much to Brooke Montgomery and her team for the ALC opportunity!
Sometimes a spicy little smut forward nugget of a story to get your motor running is just what you need, and this one definitely fits the bill. I was gifted an ALC of the audiobook, and I couldn’t put it down once I started it. It’s a novella, which can be tricky to find the right balance, but I found this story to be a fun, hot moment in time between these two old friends and current roommates.
The narration is expertly handled by an absolute dream team of narrators in Savannah Peachwood and Teddy Hamilton. I’m a huge fan of them both, and when they work together the heat definitely ratchets up another level.
HWR is a part of Adele Knight’s Her Sweet Seduction series of sexy novellas available now in Kindle Unlimited. This is the first to be turned into an audiobook, but I really hope the others will be on the way, because it’s got everything I want in a spicy audio quickie. There’s just enough character development, back story, and tummy fluttering spice to have me hooked enough to listen straight through from start to finish. I will be checking out the series box set from KU very soon, as I really enjoyed Adele Knight’s writing style and pacing. I definitely recommend the audio for fans of the genre!
Thank you to Adele Knight and her team for the ALC opportunity to review.
I had a huge historical romance era back in my late 20s where I couldn’t get enough Eloisa James, Susan Wiggs, Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas, Johanna Lindsay, Julie Garwood, and...well you get the point. Ever since the “Bridgertonaissance”, I’ve been thinking about diving back into corsets and carriages again, so when I saw that Emily Rath had a why choose series set in the Regency period, it immediately shot to the top of my TBR.
Let me tell you, I ate this up. It’s got all the things I love about regency romance along with a messy, angsty, why choose twist. It’s a tantalizing slow burn, and I went in blind, so I didn’t know it was going to end in a cliffhanger until I was thrown off the edge. Luckily, this is a trad pub re-release, so I can dive right into the next book in the series if I can’t bring myself to wait for the re-release of “His Grace, The Duke” on October 28th.
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Emily Rath for the ARC opportunity!
Let me tell you, I ate this up. It’s got all the things I love about regency romance along with a messy, angsty, why choose twist. It’s a tantalizing slow burn, and I went in blind, so I didn’t know it was going to end in a cliffhanger until I was thrown off the edge. Luckily, this is a trad pub re-release, so I can dive right into the next book in the series if I can’t bring myself to wait for the re-release of “His Grace, The Duke” on October 28th.
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Kensington Publishing, and Emily Rath for the ARC opportunity!
After the cliffhanger Break Your Pucking Heart (book #1) left us with, I’ve been dying to get my hands on this book, and let me tell you I was not disappointed. The intrigue, the angst, the sexual tension, the drama, the stakes... everything is amplified in Bend the Pucking Rules, and I am so here for it.
In BYPH, Sebastian is a ruthless and unrelenting bully to Avery, and because it’s Callan’s book, we weren’t given any of his POV. Finally in BTPR, we get our window into Sebastian’s head, and I ate it up. Seeing him falling for Avery after how rough he was on her initially is just delicious. His protective side is seriously hot.
Once again, Rachel Leigh is leaving us with more questions than answers as we come to the end of BTPR, and another intense cliffhanger to boot! Now I’m looking forward to January, and Shoot Your Pucking Shot with Aidric’s POV to answer all my questions.
Thank you so much to Rachel Leigh and her team for the ARC opportunity!
In BYPH, Sebastian is a ruthless and unrelenting bully to Avery, and because it’s Callan’s book, we weren’t given any of his POV. Finally in BTPR, we get our window into Sebastian’s head, and I ate it up. Seeing him falling for Avery after how rough he was on her initially is just delicious. His protective side is seriously hot.
Once again, Rachel Leigh is leaving us with more questions than answers as we come to the end of BTPR, and another intense cliffhanger to boot! Now I’m looking forward to January, and Shoot Your Pucking Shot with Aidric’s POV to answer all my questions.
Thank you so much to Rachel Leigh and her team for the ARC opportunity!
Nate and Essie’s story blew me away. I just adored their dynamics. From the hilarious banter, to the sass, spice, and found family, this story is full of all the things I love to read in a rom-com. I was blessed to get an advance copy of the audiobook, and it is so good. Teddy Hamilton voices Nate Stiles, and Savannah Peachwood is our Essie Lovelock in this duet style narration. I am a huge fan of both of them, and together they make this audio immensely bingeable. They’re great at bringing the heat and the heart to life, and maintaining the vulnerability and growth of these characters with their performances.
I Could Be Yours is a fantastic summer read. It’s fun, sexy, emotional, laugh out loud funny, and a great entry point to the world and work of Helena Hunting. As a long time fan of her work, I’ve read through the “Helenaverse” from the Pucked series to the Terror and Tilton U, and this book brings together so many threads from all over. Love the vibes from Kodiak and Lavender? Meet their parents in the Pucked Series, and read their story in the Lies, Hearts & Truth Series. Can’t get enough of Flip’s constant heckling of Nate and find yourself dying to know why everyone is constantly joking about cucumbers? Dive into the Toronto Terror Series. It’s always fun to catch the easter eggs in a book, but the beauty here is that Helena wrote this story so that you could read it and love it as a complete standalone.
Thank you to Helena Hunting and her team for the ARC/ALC opportunity to review!
The Pucking Wrong Man is another darkly unhinged delight from C.R. Jane. This series is full of extreme instalove and over the top jealous possessive vibes. If those sound like fun for you, you'll eat this up just like I did. I've been binging this series in audiobook lately, and this book focuses on Camden "Hero" James and his chosen lady, Anastasia Lennox.
This book is packed full of all the things I've come to expect and adore from this series. The Circle of Trust is in full effect, and the text threads are just as chaotic and hilarious as ever. The Daddy/Baby Girl kink is just enough to be hot without tipping into ick territory for me. The spice is sizzling and plentiful as Camden tries to satisfy his hunger for his "little dancer". The addition of Geraldine to the mix is just *chef's kiss*. Her whole thing with Rookie, Disney, and Ari is pure comedy.
Troy Duran's growly deep voice lends itself perfectly to Camden's whole vibe, and both he and Alexis Page do a great job with this story. As the cast expands, and the cameos increase through the series, their talent shines in their abilities to create and maintain the differences between all of the characters in this universe. This is a thoroughly enjoyable dark hockey romance with full on laugh out loud moments. Check the content warnings if you have sensitivities, but otherwise, dive on in... the water is fine.
This book is packed full of all the things I've come to expect and adore from this series. The Circle of Trust is in full effect, and the text threads are just as chaotic and hilarious as ever. The Daddy/Baby Girl kink is just enough to be hot without tipping into ick territory for me. The spice is sizzling and plentiful as Camden tries to satisfy his hunger for his "little dancer". The addition of Geraldine to the mix is just *chef's kiss*. Her whole thing with Rookie, Disney, and Ari is pure comedy.
Troy Duran's growly deep voice lends itself perfectly to Camden's whole vibe, and both he and Alexis Page do a great job with this story. As the cast expands, and the cameos increase through the series, their talent shines in their abilities to create and maintain the differences between all of the characters in this universe. This is a thoroughly enjoyable dark hockey romance with full on laugh out loud moments. Check the content warnings if you have sensitivities, but otherwise, dive on in... the water is fine.
Everywhere You Look is the 2nd book in the San Francisco Redwoods series (following The Brotherly Shove) and it’s Luke Cannon and Dean McKenna’s story. I am a big fan of Emily Shacklette’s writing. Her voice and style are fresh and quirky in the best ways. I read The Brotherly Shove and absolutely loved it, so I was jazzed to continue in this universe.
While this book starts on a sad note with Luke’s sister’s passing, and there are some heavier moments through grief and dealing with Luke’s biological parents (I refuse to call them his family), I think that the overall tone is very hopeful and comforting. A big part of that is the found family these characters have made for themselves. It’s inspiring how they all show up over and over for their people. Seeing Luke and Dean finding their way as parents to Lemmie, Mellie, and Ollie is so sweet. Emily writes the tender moments with the girls really well.
I’m sure it’s no coincidence that with the story so heavily focused on this little family coming to be, that it’s doesn’t feel as spice heavy as some of her other books. That’s not to say there’s no spice to be found here. When Luke and Dean finally surrender to their feelings, it’s hot. These two have a lot of suppressed longing to release-all over each other... I know I’ll be back for more.
Thank you to Love Notes PR and Emily Shacklette for the ARC opportunity!
While this book starts on a sad note with Luke’s sister’s passing, and there are some heavier moments through grief and dealing with Luke’s biological parents (I refuse to call them his family), I think that the overall tone is very hopeful and comforting. A big part of that is the found family these characters have made for themselves. It’s inspiring how they all show up over and over for their people. Seeing Luke and Dean finding their way as parents to Lemmie, Mellie, and Ollie is so sweet. Emily writes the tender moments with the girls really well.
I’m sure it’s no coincidence that with the story so heavily focused on this little family coming to be, that it’s doesn’t feel as spice heavy as some of her other books. That’s not to say there’s no spice to be found here. When Luke and Dean finally surrender to their feelings, it’s hot. These two have a lot of suppressed longing to release-all over each other... I know I’ll be back for more.
Thank you to Love Notes PR and Emily Shacklette for the ARC opportunity!
hopeful
lighthearted
Daddy Tyler is home for good!
The Overtime Kiss is book 5 of the Love and Hockey series by Lauren Blakely, and the series follows the members of the San Francisco Sea Dogs professional hockey team as they find their HEAs. This time around we're getting Tyler and Sabrina’s story. . Tyler finds himself in need of a nanny for his kids, and Sabrina Snow, runaway bride and figure skating coach is in desperate need of a soft place to land.
There are so many things I love in this story. Sabrina standing up for herself with her toxic family and taking control of her own life and choices is so empowering. Tyler’s drive to take care of his people is swoonworthy, and his love of going downtown *ahem* is super hot. Hearing that Sabrina and I share a favorite candy bar made me laugh while listening to the audiobook, (Shoutout to the criminally underrated NUTRAGEOUS bar!) and I couldn’t even be mad when the characters took a shot at that football team from KC the refs all love. (How ‘bout those CHIEFS?!❤️💛) There’s even a good amount of actual hockey on page for those that miss seeing more of it in hockey romances.
I was lucky enough to get an ALC of the book as well, and Teddy Freakin’ Hamilton himself is Daddy Tyler, so you know it’s top tier. Brooke Bloomingdale does great work voicing Sabrina too, and the audiobook is performed in duet style. I loved these two together, and their chemistry worked so well.
Thank you to Lauren Blakely and her team for the opportunity to review this ALC & ARC.