New York Times Bestselling Author Lynsay Sands delivers another sexy historical romance set in the wilds of the Highlands
In all her daydreams about her wedding day, Lady Claray MacFarlane never once imagined being dragged to the altar by her greedy uncle and forced to marry a man she didn’t know. But that’s what happened, or would have, had a Highland warrior not snatched her up at the last minute and ridden off with her in his arms. . .
They call him the Wolf. The mercenary’s courage and prowess in battle are known throughout the Highlands, and with his handsome face and black-as-sin hair, he is as intelligent and deadly as the wolf he was named for…
But the Wolf is also Claray’s betrothed. Thought to have been killed as a child, he’s been in hiding all these years. Now he’s determined to earn enough coin to rebuild his home, reclaim his birthright, and honor his marriage contract to Claray. For he’s fallen for the tender-hearted lass…and he will do anything to protect her and their future together.
My reading history with this series is odd, even for me! I’ve read books 6, 7, & 8 and now this tenth addition. I’ve liked them all a lot, so I don’t know why I haven’t read the entire series, but if my library has them, I will rectify this soonest.
Claray is being forced into a marriage she doesn’t want, and at the last second, the Highland warrior known as The Wolf rescues her and takes her away. No one really knows who he is, but he is well respected and Claray is thrilled to be free of her impending marriage. They head towards her home, several days away, and along the way she gets to know the Wolf, and they are strongly attracted to one another. She also picks up some stray animals that need some help, aggravating the Wolf but also adding to his attraction to the sweet, caring woman.
It turns out this couple was meant to be, but it won’t be easy. Too many people are trying to kill the Wolf and Claray, or at least marry her for her property. But love will prevail, with some nice twists in the storyline to keep things interesting.
This was another good addition to this series. I love anything set in Scotland, and the Highlands in particular. The history and culture is always interesting, as it was here. I used to read Scottish romances as sort of place holders for the Outlander series, but it’s gone beyond that now. I enjoy them for themselves, if that makes sense. I am off to hunt down the earlier books in the series. Men in kilts are just too much fun!
Enemies-to-lovers meets HGTV in this frothy, effervescent romantic comedy from Sophie Sullivan, author of Ten Rules for Faking It.
Interior Design School? Check. Cute house to fix up? Check.
Sexy, grumpy neighbor who is going to get in the way of your plans? Check. Unfortunately.
Grace Travis has it all figured out. In between finishing school and working a million odd jobs, she’ll get her degree and her dream job. Most importantly, she’ll have a place to belong, something her harsh mother could never make. When an opportunity to fix up―and live in―a little house on the beach comes along, Grace is all in. Until her biggest roadblock moves in next door.
Noah Jansen knows how to make a deal. As a real estate developer, he knows when he’s found something special. Something he could even call home. Provided he can expand by taking over the house next door–the house with the combative and beautiful woman living in it.
With the rules for being neighborly going out the window, Grace and Noah are in an all-out feud. But sometimes, your nemesis can show you that home is always where the heart is.
When her long estranged grandmother dies and Grace inherits her beach house, she is thrilled. She longs for a connection to family; her mother is wrapped up in herself and whatever money she can squeeze out of Grace, but the house means something. Except her next door neighbor, Noah, assumes he can just buy it out from under her. He wants the land to put in a pool to complete his dream house on the beach, but Grace is not interested in selling. Not that he gives up that easily.
Grace is also steps away from completing her interior design degree so she relishes the chance to fix up the long neglected cottage. On the other hand, Noah is busy hiring people to fix up his home, and there is a national magazine interested in featuring it. Except they want a bit more than a photo spread; they want to do a video series showcasing the house as the work is done, and they want the up-and-coming designer, Grace, to take over the project. The chemistry between Noah and Grace is obvious to everyone, and eventually they find a way to get together.
Grace is all hands on; Noah is all about the money. Until Grace puts a paintbrush in his hand. Opposites do attract here!
If you enjoy all those fixer-upper type TV shows as much as I do, then this is the book for you. It’s a lot of fun and an easy, thoroughly enjoyable read.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
HOW TO LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR by Sophie Sullivan. Griffin (January 18, 2022). ISBN: 978-1250624185. 352p.
From Edgar-Award nominee Elle Cosimano, comes Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead―the hilarious and heart-pounding follow-up to Finlay Donovan is Killing It.
Finlay Donovan is―once again―struggling to finish her next novel and keep her head above water as a single mother of two. On the bright side, she has her live-in nanny and confidant Vero to rely on, and the only dead body she’s dealt with lately is that of her daughter’s pet goldfish.
On the not-so-bright side, someone out there wants her ex-husband, Steven, out of the picture. Permanently. Whatever else Steven may be, he’s a good father, but saving him will send her down a rabbit hole of hit-women disguised as soccer moms, and a little bit more involvement with the Russian mob than she’d like.
Meanwhile, Vero’s keeping secrets, and Detective Nick Anthony seems determined to get back into her life. He may be a hot cop, but Finlay’s first priority is preventing her family from sleeping with the fishes… and if that means bending a few laws then so be it.
With her next book’s deadline looming and an ex-husband to keep alive, Finlay is quickly coming to the end of her rope. She can only hope there isn’t a noose at the end of it…
This is the sequel to Finlay Donovan Is Killing It, and a worthy sequel it is. It may even be better than the first book!
Finlay has published a bestseller and now her second book is coming due. Once again, Finlay is struggling with it. She thought she was done with the Russian mob but nope, they are back and badder than ever. The women’s forum has a new hit advertised and victim-to-be is none other than Steven, Finlay’s ex. Now she is not his biggest fan by far, but he is a good dad and she doesn’t want to see her kids fatherless, but if she is reading the code right, someone has taken the hit job for some big bucks.
Being a single mom of two preschoolers is no joke. Finlay’s best pal/nanny/accountant, Vero, is happy to help keep Steven alive, as much as she personally wouldn’t mind him dead. Julian, the hot young law school student is still a good friend with benefits, and the smoking hot detective Nick is still trying to worm his way into her heart, and her bed, not necessarily in that order. Finlay has her hands full for sure.
There are a lot of laughs here, but also some gruesome body parts and some scary Russian mobsters, all adding up to another unputdownable read. I’m just sad I’m going to have to wait until 2023 for the next book in the series. If you like fast paced mysteries with a lot of laughs, then add this to your to-be-read pile. I loved it.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
FINLAY DONOVAN KNOCKS ‘EM DEAD by Elle Cosimano. Minotaur Books (February 1, 2022). ISBN: 978-1250242181. 368p.
“Getting the job done” for one single mom takes on a whole new meaning in Finlay Donovan is Killing It.
Finlay Donovan is killing it . . . except, she’s really not. She’s a stressed-out single-mom of two and struggling novelist, Finlay’s life is in chaos: the new book she promised her literary agent isn’t written, her ex-husband fired the nanny without telling her, and this morning she had to send her four-year-old to school with hair duct-taped to her head after an incident with scissors.
When Finlay is overheard discussing the plot of her new suspense novel with her agent over lunch, she’s mistaken for a contract killer, and inadvertently accepts an offer to dispose of a problem husband in order to make ends meet . . . Soon, Finlay discovers that crime in real life is a lot more difficult than its fictional counterpart, as she becomes tangled in a real-life murder investigation.
Fast-paced, deliciously witty, and wholeheartedly authentic in depicting the frustrations and triumphs of motherhood in all its messiness, hilarity, and heartfelt moment, Finlay Donovan Is Killing It is the first in a brilliant new series from YA Edgar Award nominee Elle Cosimano.
This was such a fun read! This book came out last year and I promptly lost it somewhere on my Kindle. The sequel came out a couple of weeks ago, so I dug this one up so I could start reading the series in order. Yes, I do that on occasion! The NY Times review said, “Cosimano skillfully combines suspense and laughs in the manner of Janet Evanovich’s early (and best) novels” so I was all in. That was one of my favorite series, at least the first dozen or so books. So I was hopeful here and it did not disappoint.
Finlay Donovan is a mess. She’s recently divorced and fighting with Steven, her ex, about the kids, ages two and four. He left her for a realtor, and is trying to gain full custody. Finlay writes romantic suspense books for a living, but she’s not making much, to say the least. Her bills are piling up, her minivan is breaking down, and she can’t afford a good lawyer to defend her. When Steven decides to fire the nanny since Finlay works from home, she loses it. When she finally gets hold of the nanny, Vero, she learns that the real reason she was fired was because she didn’t want to have sex with Steven. Vero and Finlay bond. become besties and eventually partners in crime. Sort of.
Meanwhile, her agent is breathing down her neck about her next book. The deadline has come and gone and they arrange to meet at Panera. As they are discussing the murders at the heart of her books, a woman sitting nearby keeps giving her strange looks. Turns out she thinks Finlay is a hit man (hit woman? Hit-mom!) and wants to hire her to kill her husband. He is a bad guy for sure, but Finlay isn’t that desperate. At least she doesn’t think she is. But the woman won’t take no for an answer so Finlay decides to check the guy out at least.
Turns out he is worse than she even thought. She meets up with him in a bar at a networking event, where she witnesses him putting drugs into his date’s drink while she is in the restroom. That’s date, not wife. Incensed, Finlay pretends they met at a previous party, gets him close enough to her that she can switch the drinks behind his back. She manages to get him out the back door of the bar and into the back of her minivan as he passes out. She heads home, not sure what to do with him. After contacting his wife, she is given the password to his phone and she realizes that this is his MO; he drugs married women, takes a bunch of pictures of them in very compromising positions and is apparently blackmailing them.
He ends up dead by accident, and the wife tells a friend about Finlay and her new career is born. Sort of. Meanwhile, she had met this very cute bartender/law student, Julian, at the event and even though he is a few years younger than she is, there is some serious chemistry. And her sister, Georgia, is a cop who is trying to set her up with a very hot detective, Nick, and there is chemistry there as well.
Oline Cogdill of the Sun Sentinel neatly sums it up: “Part screwball comedy, part morality tale, the amusing Finlay Donovan Is Killing It is also a tale about parenting, bad divorces, reinventing oneself, rising above misery and, well, becoming a hit woman. It’s a solid, thoughtful and funny yet poignant mystery that never once becomes a one-note story.” This is no cozy mystery though; this borders on thriller with an appropriate amount of gore. It’s a terrific read, and I no sooner turned the last page when I started the second book in the series, Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead. Don’t miss it!
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
FINLAY DONOVAN IS KILLING IT by Elle Cosimano. Minotaur (January 4, 2022). ISBN: 978-1250830449. 384p.
An absolutely hilarious romantic comedy set in Ireland…
A newly single girl. A tall dark handsome stranger. What could go wrong?
It’s 7 a.m. on a Monday morning and Abby Reynolds isn’t where she wants to be. She wants to be in her beautiful loft apartment in Manhattan, drinking a coffee with her fiancé.
Instead, she’s heading back to the childhood home in rural Ireland she swore she’d never return to, with some big old secrets. Namely that she’s suddenly found herself unemployed, homeless, and absolutely 100% single.
She’s feeling all out of luck. Until the first person she meets after she touches down is an absurdly hot guy called Luke, who offers her a lift home. Gazing deep into his sparkling emerald-green eyes, Abby knows instantly that he’s exactly what she needs to take her mind off everything. The perfect rebound.
It’s a flawless plan. Until the next day, when Abby realizes who he actually is. Not just a stranger. He is, in fact, Luke Bailey, aka the boy next door. Luke Bailey who—so help her God—she’s pretty sure she once shared baths with, back when they were kids. Not that she can allow herself to imagine him in a bath now, not without blushing from head to foot.
And judging by the smirk on his face, the same Luke Bailey who’s known exactly who she was the whole time… And who, like everyone in the village, still thinks she’s a high-flying New Yorker… who’s getting married next year.
Abby is certain getting under Luke will help her get over her ex. But the truth is stopping her. Can she admit to everyone back home that she’s single and has lost everything? Because, if she wants the boy next door, she may just have to…
The perfect feel-good romantic comedy that will make you laugh until you cry and fall completely in love. Fans of Sophie Kinsella, Marian Keyes, and Emily Henry won’t be able to put this down!
Abby has been dumped. Her fiancé has decided that he doesn’t want to get married. Luckily, the mega financial company she works for has some apartments, generally used for new hires, available so at least she has a place to live.
Abby has always been driven, leaving the small town of Clonard, Ireland for college and never looking back. She loves the Manhattan lifestyle afforded her by her years with the company, and has all her funds tied up with them. So when they go under, she and thousands of others find themselves out of work and broke. Plus she’s now homeless as well. The only solution she sees is to go home to Ireland.
Abby’s sister is living in their family home and while they don’t really get along – she is a strong environmentalist/activist while Abby is working for the epitome of corporate greed, she knows her sister will take her in. But she’s embarrassed to admit she is no longer engaged on top of everything else.
Luke gives Abby a ride home when she is stranded at the airport. He remembers her well – he always had a crush on her. Abby flirts the whole way home without realizing that this hot man is actually the neighbor she grew up with. Once she figures it out, and he figures out she is engaged, things get complicated between them in spite of their growing attraction.
There are a lot of laughs and some angst before they reach their happy ending. Abby is a strong woman and Luke is an honorable, honest man, and I really liked them both. The setting and secondary characters were quirky and fun, and altogether this was a terrific, heart warming read.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE REBOUND by Catherine Walsh. Bookouture (February 9, 2022). ISBN: 978-1800195677. 324p.
This is publicized as a “two hour read” but I it only took me half that time. It went by so fast because it’s only 99 pages. That means there is no character development or back story and not much plot to speak of either. It is a very steamy romance, but I felt unsettled after reading it. I need more book in my book, I guess.
This was the first time I’ve read this author. I don’t read a lot of self published books because they are not often available to reviewers. I got this one through Black’s publicist – yes, she has one. And I’m pretty sure she has an editor, too, and that is not always the case with either self published writers or some bestselling, traditionally published authors – I wouldn’t swear to it but I don’t think that last Stephen King novel ever saw an editor. But I digress.
I liked this book but wanted more. Black is a very popular author and I can certainly see why. I am not a fan of novellas no matter how well done they are, and this is well done for what it is. If you like sexy romances and don’t want to invest too much time, then this is your book.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
TEMPTED BY THE BILLIONAIRE by Shayla Black. Self published (February 8, 2022). ASIN: 978-1957573007. 99p.
The brand new funny and heartwarming romantic comedy!
It only takes one night to fall in love…
Within days of wishing she could change her life, Fran Cooper is acting assistant to a celebrity, on a yacht in the Mediterranean, and en route to a tiny Italian island and the glittering Crystal Ball, along with the world’s rich and famous.
When she – quite literally – bumps into a handsome American called Evan, a man able to keep his cool in the face of chaos, the magic really begins.
Evan makes her a promise: no last names, no life stories, just one unforgettable night. Yet Evan belongs at the Crystal Ball and Fran is a gatecrasher. They may be soulmates, but their homes are an ocean apart, and their lives a world apart. They’ll never meet again – unless, on a night like this, everything can change forever…
Fran is engaged to Stew and they recently moved into his grandmother’s house in a small town far outside of London. She doesn’t love the house and Stew is starting to get on her nerves, too. He doesn’t want her leaving the small town but she needs a job. She’s been working temp jobs as an assistant and she loves it, but there isn’t any work in this tiny town and the holidays are looming. She calls a contact with a temp agency she’s used many times.
Until she signs an NDA, she can’t even learn who she will be assisting. All she knows is that she needs the money and after a strange interview, Fran is hired. It turns out she will be working for a world famous singer, Juliette. She is scheduled to perform at the Crystal Ball, the world’s most excusive party. They will be taking a yacht to the party, and on the way Fran and Juliette form a strange sort of friendship, mostly based in alcohol, but it works for them. Until Juliette strands her new pal in Sicily.
Fran is stuck but at least she has the fancy hotel suite to stay in. When the makeup artist arrives and Juliette isn’t there, she convinces Fran to dress up and go to the party. She sneaks her in and Fran is determined to have a good time. She quickly meets a gorgeous man, Evan, and the sparks fly. They spend a crazy evening together and then…the happy ending you can’t help but wish for them.
This was a very funny book and a sweet romance. It is a true feel-good read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
ON A NIGHT LIKE THIS by Lindsey Kelk.HarperCollins (January 18, 2022). ISBN: 978-0008496753. 352p.
Sex trafficking is currently a hot news topic, but it is not a new problem or just a problem in “other” countries. Every year, an estimated 300,000 American children are at risk of being lured into the sex trade, some as young as eight years old. It is thought that up to 90 percent of victims are never rescued.
Stolen is the true story of one survivor who escaped–more than once. First recruited while staying with her family at a hotel in Miami Beach, Katariina Rosenblatt was already a lonely and abused young girl who was yearning to be loved. She fell into the hands of a confident young woman who pretended friendship but slowly lured her into a child prostitution ring. For years afterward, a cycle of false friendship, threats, drugs, and violence kept her trapped.
As Kat shares her harrowing experiences, readers will quickly realize the frightening truth that these terrible things could have happened to any child–a neighbor, a niece, a friend, a sister, a daughter. But beyond that, they will see that there is real hope for the victims of sex trafficking. Stolen is more than a warning. It is a celebration of survival that will inspire.
This was one of the worst books I’ve ever read. What should have been an important message about sex trafficking in the U.S. is instead an homage to Christianity. The only reason I finished it was because I was asked to do a book talk/discussion for the Social Impact Series at Lynn University, where I work. The Impact Series addresses various topics each month, and part of the series is a book discussion on a book relevant to that topic. The January topic was Sex Trafficking, and this book was selected because the author is local and it was suggested she might be available to participate. It was then decided that we don’t get enough of a turnout to warrant inviting the author, so that was that and I was stuck reading this book.
This book is Kat’s story. She did an interview with CNN several years ago for a series they did on sex trafficking in the US: https://youtu.be/5XhOI_nite8 Watching this short video is preferable to reading this book.
When people think of sex trafficking, they often think of it as something that happens to other people. We think it can’t possibly happen in our town or neighborhood; it’s a problem in big cities or across the border or internationally. We want to feel that the young people we know – our children, our friends’ children, the kids in our neighborhood – can’t possibly be at risk. We are wrong.
It is partially true that sex trafficking does occur across our borders and internationally, but it also occurs here in these United States. Every day. Ohio leads the nation in sex trafficking, followed by Florida, where I live and where this book is set.
The book is divided into three sections. The first is Katariina Rosenblatt’s personal story–her abuse, how her loneliness attracted a recruiter in the hotel she lived in, and how she was groomed step-by-step into slavery by traffickers, her escape and recapture numerous times. In the second part, Kat had escaped and is married, but is in an abusive marriage. The third part of the book deals with how she got involved in saving children from traffickers. She has her own foundation which is promoted heavily here.
The other major theme in this book is an exploration of Kat’s Christianity. The author talks about accepting Christ as her Savior at a Billy Graham crusade when she was 12 years old, a year before the first time she was trafficked. Burned into her mind and heart from that night was Mr. Graham saying, “Remember this: God will never leave you or forsake you.” This was repeated throughout the book, usually when she did not know what to do or where to turn. The Church plays an important role in her life, but lead me to question some of what she talks about.
I had some issues, for instance, with these quotes:
“They’re less likely to go back if people like us can help them break that invisible bondage and provide a mentoring relationship with a safe, Christian adult.”
To me, this sounds like it is useless to help if that safe mentor isn’t a Christian. That’s just some flat out bullshit.
“When I first began visiting strip clubs, I went as part of a group. One night, eight girls came to the Lord through our efforts. That night God seemed to have infiltrated the whole building with his love. We had gone out to the floor and talked with the manager, and we had the privilege of leading him to Jesus Christ while a girl was dancing. We also gave tracts to most of the customers, and they accepted them. Tears flowed as Jesus broke off the shackles of bondage from all sorts of people, from the managers to the girls and even to some of their clientele.”
This was way over the top to me. Not every woman who works in a strip club wants to be “saved” nor do the customers. I found this bizarre.
A bigger problem, however, is her underlying belief that homosexuality is something that can be prayed away. In the chapter “Wedded Bliss”, she talks about her husband’s stepsister:
“The woman was a lesbian, and her girlfriend was involved in Santeria, a religion that is a mixture of African and Caribbean witchcraft and Roman Catholicism…Joel & I prayed regularly for them … ‘I know you’ve been praying for me. Thank you,’ she said. ‘I’m not in that lifestyle anymore.'”
Yep, Kat prayed away the gay. Ugh.
The writing is quite simple and often repetitive. This book was not reviewed by any authoritative journal or newspaper. I did find a “review”, and I use the term loosely, in a Christian women’s magazine that praised her finding Jesus rather than critiquing the book. Most of the reviews on Amazon and Goodreads were from Christian women who were given a free copy of the book for review from the Christian publisher. ‘Nuff said.
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
STOLEN by Katariina Rosenblatt & Cecil Murphey. Revell; First Edition (October 7, 2014). ISBN: 978-0800723453. 240p.
Don’t think about your birthday tomorrow. Or debt, your crappy apartment, and nonexistent social life.
Re-stock wine and ice cream because that’s coming.
Die in a raging blaze of humiliation when the super-hot and very delicious fireman waiting in your office is not in fact the strip-o-gram birthday present you suspected.
Reschedule the fire safety inspection you 100 percent failed because of said humiliation.
Figure out how you, in fact, agreed to fake dating Mr. Not a Strip-O-Gram Fireman to help him with a bet.
Oh yeah, and do not fall for this guy. Seriously, they call him One Night O’Neil. Red flags all over the place.
Remember, this is fake dating, even though his very talented, very real lips are doing some sexy things you definitely like.
Realize bending one tiny rule can’t be that bad, can it?
Except bend too far, and something breaks. Something you can’t get back.
Lexi is one of those selfless angels – she works in a center that keeps kids off the street. Money is super tight so when the man she thinks is a stripper turns out to be a fire inspector and the center fails the inspection, things are not good. They don’t have the money to hire anyone to make the necessary fixes, and the kids really can’t afford for the center to close, plus there is the added humiliation of thinking the gorgeous firefighter is a stripper. Not one of her best days!
The firefighter, Dyson, also turns out to be an angel. He is single and his loving but nosy sisters have been trying hard to set him up. He comes up with the perfect solution: he will do the fixes for the center but Lexi has to pretend to date him to get his sisters off his back. I love the fake dating trope – not sure why because I have never heard of anyone in real life ever being in a fake dating (or fake marriage!) situation, but it makes for a fun plot point. As soon as all parties agree to this scheme, you know what is going to happen. But it is so much fun to get there.
Lexi and Dyson have plenty of ups and downs before they reach their happy ending, and there are a lot of laugh out loud moments along the way. I loved the family relationships and how Lexi and Dyson become friends before they have a physical relationship, makes it more believable. I didn’t read the first book in this series and didn’t feel like I missed anything, so it stands alone perfectly well. That said, I enjoyed this so much I wanted to read the first book. Unfortunately, my library only has the audiobook so that’s a no for me. I’ll just hope it shows up as a freebie on Book Bub! (With several hundred unread books on my Kindle, I cannot justify buying a book. I just can’t.) But read this one!
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE DATING DILEMMA by Mariah Ankenman.Entangled: Amara (January 24, 2022). ASIN: B09MBRG4CY. 286p.
Sadie wasn’t looking for love until it landed on her doorstep.
After getting passed over for an overdue—and much-needed—promotion, Sadie Green is in desperate need of three things: a stiff drink, a new place to live, and a one-night stand. But when an accidental mix-up lands her on the doorstep of Jack Thomas’s gorgeous Brooklyn brownstone, it’s too bad Sadie is more attracted to the impressive real estate than she is to the man himself.
Jack, still grieving the unexpected death of his parents, has learned to find comfort in video games and movie marathons instead of friends. So while he doesn’t know just what to make of the vivaciously verbose Sadie, he’s willing to offer her his spare bedroom while she gets back on her feet. And with the rent unbeatably low, Sadie can finally pursue her floristry side hustle full-time. The two are polar opposites, but as Sadie’s presence begins to turn the brownstone into a home, they both start to realize they may have just made the deal of a lifetime.
This story really stretches the boundaries of suspension of disbelief, but it was worth it just for the scene where Sadie loses her job – one of my favorite scenes, ever! She says what anyone in that position would think but probably never say and I loved it. The rest of the story was good, too, just a little bit over the top.
Finding a beautiful brownstone in the trendiest section of Brooklyn with a room to rent for some ridiculously cheap rent – no. But it was important to the story so I pretended to believe it. Maybe if there was some sort of explanation about why Jack was willing to rent it so cheap I would have understood it better, but nope. Anyway, it doesn’t really matter except that these decisions set the story in motion.
Jack lost his parents several years earlier and has had a very hard time dealing with it. Sadie loses her job and with the cheap rent she is now paying, she can afford to pursue her dream of starting her own floral business. All that aside, it is the relationship that grows between the mysterious, close mouthed Jack and the outgoing social butterfly, Sadie, that is at the heart of this story. Everything else doesn’t really matter.
This was a very enjoyable read and a sweet romance. I loved these characters and the setting and highly recommend!
2/2022 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
LEASE ON LOVE by Falon Ballard. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (February 1, 2022). ISBN: 978-0593419915. 352p.
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