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From the publisher:

Love-cynic Bridie Morgan is holding a last hurrah to the ‘dating’ stage of her life; shes going on twenty dates in twenty days. If this ‘love’ thing really is a numbers game, then surely she’ll find the one. And if not? Well at least the memory of her date with the Spice Girls’ biggest fan will be enough to put her off for life. She’ll never again wonder what she was missing.

But being love’s biggest skeptic is a challenge in the face of best friend Hattie’s upcoming nuptials. And as Maid of Honour, she really has to give it a chance. That is until Bridie’s lifelong nemesis Ben Kemp returns home to join the wedding party.

Ben Kemp who left her waiting outside their Leaver’s prom, in her nicest dress, alone. Ben Kemp who triggered the sorry state of affairs that has been Bridie’s love life. Ben Kemp the Best Man to her Maid of Honor.

A hilarious and uplifting romantic comedy perfect for fans of 10 Things I Hate About You and The Hating Game.

Bridie has had a lot of bad dates. Really bad dates. She decides to give it one more chance; well, 20 more chances as she attempts 20 dates in 20 days. Then if there are no second dates, she is giving it up and resigning herself to a life of singledom.

Bridie’s best friend Hattie is getting married and Bridie is her maid of honor. Unfortunately, the best man is Ben Kemp. Ben and Bridie were childhood friends and did some fooling around in high school, but were never girlfriend/boyfriend. Ben invited Bridie to a school dance and stood her up, and she has never forgotten or forgiven, so needless to say she is not happy she has to work with him on the wedding.

This is an enemies to lovers story, and a really funny one with lots of laugh out loud moments. Eventually, Ben and Bridie work out their problems and get to their happy ending, but it is the journey that is all the fun. A terrific read from this new-to-me author. I will be looking for more of her books!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

LOVE AT FIRST FIGHT by Mary Jayne Baker. Aria (March 1, 2022). ISBN: 978-1800246164. 352 pages.

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From the publisher:

A smart, sexy, and witty romantic comedy—perfect for fans of Christina Lauren and Sally Thorne—about a twentysomething who lives out every woman’s fantasy: getting paid to give men who do us wrong a taste of their own medicine. But when a previous target unexpectedly shows up at her office, she’s forced to rethink her life as a professional heartbreaker.

Brinkley Saunders has a secret.

To everyone in the academic world she left behind, she lost it all when she dropped out of grad school. Once a rising star following in her mother’s footsteps, she’s now an administrative assistant at an insurance agency—or so they think.

In reality, Brinkley works at Heartbreak for Hire, a secret service that specializes in revenge for jilted lovers, frenemies, and long-suffering coworkers with a little cash to spare and a man who needs to be taken down a notch. It might not be as prestigious as academia, but it helps Brinkley save for her dream of opening an art gallery and lets her exorcise a few demons, all while helping to empower women.

But when her boss announces she’s hiring male heartbreakers for the first time, Brinkley’s no longer so sure she’s doing the right thing—especially when her new coworker turns out to be a target she was paid to take down. Though Mark spends his days struggling up the academic ladder, he seems to be the opposite of a backstabbing adjunct: a nerd at heart in criminally sexy sweater vests who’s attentive both in and out of the bedroom. But as Brinkley finds it increasingly more difficult to focus on anything but Mark, she soon realizes that like herself, people aren’t always who they appear to be.

With Sonia Hartl’s “bitingly funny” (Publishers Weekly) prose, Heartbreak for Hire is a clever romcom you and your girlfriends won’t be able to stop talking about.

This was an interesting premise; women for hire to take down whatever man did you wrong. Not cheap, but possibly therapeutic? The woman who started the company found her employees crying in coffeeshops or bars etc. She offers them a way to work out their demons, and Brinkley certainly has some. She was in a psychologically abusive relationship for several years while she was in college. In fact, the breakup led her to drop out of her masters program at Northwestern, where her mother is a professor.

Brinkley and her mom do not get along. Her mother was determined that Brinkley follow her footsteps into a career in academia. But when Brinkley changes her major to art and then drops out, her mother is just beside herself. They meet up every week for lunch where her they end up fighting. Every week. Her mom thinks she is an administrative assistant in an insurance company because Brinkley never tells anyone what she really does for a living.

Then she meets Mark. The woman who contracted for his takedown is a nightmare, and Brinkley isn’t sure she even believes what she says, but a job is a job so off she goes. Except when she meets him, she likes him. A lot. They end up back at his place but she panics and runs out on him. Then they keep bumping into each other, and soon a relationship is keeping them both busy. But when he is hired by her company in their attempt to add men to the roster, none of the staff are happy, to say the least.

This was a laugh out loud book for me, lots of crazy situations along with the romance and some hot sex. Total fantasy, but what’s wrong with that!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

HEARTBREAK FOR HIRE by Sonia Hartl. Gallery Books (July 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-1982167783. 320 pages.

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From the publisher:

A woman looking for a new lease on life moves to Arizona where she rents a guest house on a gorgeous property with a mysterious owner—a man who teaches her about resilience, courage, and ultimately true love, in this funny, bighearted novel about hope and healing from New York Times bestselling author Jenn McKinlay.
 
Stuck in a dreary Boston winter, Annabelle Martin would like nothing more than to run away from her current life. She’s not even thirty years old, twice-divorced, and has just dodged a marriage proposal… from her ex-husband. When she’s offered her dream job as creative director at a cutting-edge graphic design studio in Phoenix, she jumps at the opportunity to start over.
 
When she arrives in the Valley of the Sun, Annabelle is instantly intrigued by her anonymous landlord. Based on the cranky, handwritten notes Nick Daire leaves her, she assumes he is an old, rich curmudgeon. Annabelle is shocked when she finally meets Nick and discovers that he’s her age and uses a wheelchair. Nick suffered from a stroke a year ago, and while there’s no physical reason for him not to recover, he is struggling to overcome the paralyzing fear that has kept him a prisoner in his own home.
 
Despite her promise to herself not to get involved, Annabelle finds herself irresistibly drawn to Nick. And soon she wonders if she and Nick might help each other find the courage to embrace life, happiness, and true love.

This author was new to me, and I really liked this book. So yay, she has a ton of books for me to find.

Annabelle is a graphic designer who works freelance. She’s pretty successful in her professional life, but her personal life is a mess. She lost her mom when she was in high school, and married the first guy who asked. They were both really young and no big surprise, it didn’t work out. But then she married the next guy who asked, and that marriage was even worse. Her best friend lives in Phoenix with her husband, and they are partners in an up and coming marketing firm. They want Annabelle to come be their creative director, but she’s pretty happy in Boston, despite the cold.

Annabelle and the first husband are still friends. In fact, they “celebrate” the date of their divorce with dinner every year. But this year, Annabelle realizes things are different. Her ex seems like he is going full proposal at dinner, and she panics, downs her champagne and ends up choking then swallowing the ring. Then before he can ask, she announces she is taking the job and moving to Phoenix.

Her friends arrange for her to rent a guest house on an estate that is walking distance to her new job. She is told to avoid going to the big house on the property, and not to bother the landlord who lives there. Annabelle assumes the landlord is some rich old guy who apparently is quite the curmudgeon. She receives a ten page list of rules to live by, and she is not happy because the pool is marked off limits. But there is no mention of the hot tub, so she decides to give it a go. Then she receives another note stating the hot tub is also off limits.

Annabelle is a real people person, and she thinks if she meets the landlord, then she can charm him into giving her pool rights. But he is not interested in meeting her. Until she throws a Friday night happy hour, replete with her work friends using the hot tub, lots of loud laughter and music, and enough rule breaking to get the landlord to meet her.

Turns out Nick is not old, just cranky. He is a 35-year-old man who had a stroke. Luckily, it didn’t affect his speech or his brain really, just his body. It’s been almost a year and he still has issues with the left side of his body suddenly going numb, including his leg which means he tends to topple over unexpectedly. He has become a recluse, with his hired physical therapist, groundskeeper and housekeeper all living with him and taking care of him.

Meanwhile, Annabelle is having some trouble at her new job. Her friend’s husband had hired a college fraternity brother when they first started the business, and he was expecting the promotion that they gave to Annabelle. He is not nice, to say the least, but Annabelle is very friendly with some of the staff and is determined to do a good job, despite him.

When Annabelle finally meets Nick, there is a lot of chemistry but he is still determined to keep away from her. But he can’t. Their worlds are colliding and it is for the best, even if he doesn’t realize it.

This was a really good story with characters I got to know well. There were a lot of serious issues but it is a romance so happily ever after is achieved. Reviews have been good all around, so don’t miss it! I also found her last book, Paris is Always a Good Idea, on my Kindle so I will be reading that next!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

WAIT FOR IT by Jenn McKinlay. Berkley (August 10, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593101377. 352 pages.

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A Meant to be Novel, Book 1

From the publisher:

If the shoe doesn’t fit, maybe it’s time to design your own.

Cindy loves shoes. A well-placed bow or a chic stacked heel is her form of self-expression. As a fashion-obsessed plus-size woman, she can never find designer clothes that work on her body, but a special pair of shoes always fits just right.  

With a shiny new design degree but no job in sight, Cindy moves back in with her stepmother, Erica Tremaine, the executive producer of the world’s biggest dating reality show. When a contestant on Before Midnight bows out at the last minute, Cindy is thrust into the spotlight. Showcasing her killer shoe collection on network TV seems like a great way to jump-start her career. And, while she’s at it, why not go on a few lavish dates with an eligible suitor?

But being the first and only fat contestant on Before Midnight turns her into a viral sensation—and a body-positivity icon—overnight. Even harder to believe? She can actually see herself falling for this Prince Charming. To make it to the end, despite the fans, the haters, and a house full of fellow contestants she’s not sure she can trust, Cindy will have to take a leap of faith and hope her heels— and her heart—don’t break in the process.

Best-selling author Julie Murphy’s reimagining of a beloved fairy tale is an enchanting story of self-love and believing in the happy ending each and every one of us deserves.

“If the Shoe Fits encompasses everything I love about rom-coms. I laughed, I swooned, I smiled. Another hit for Julie Murphy!”
   —Colleen Hoover, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Hopeless

Fairy tales are often fodder for romance novels, and the last ones I remember were the books in the Fairy Tales series by Eloisa James. Those were historical romances and I loved them, so i was happy to try out this contemporary version. This book is very loosely based on Cinderella.

Cindy just graduated from Parson School of Design, and her career choice is to design shoes. But how to break into such a competitive industry is a bit disheartening. Cindy lost her mom when she was young, and her father died while she was in high school. Her stepmother and stepsisters are there for her, though, and she offers to be her stepmother’s nanny for the summer. After her father died, her stepmother had his triplets, and she can use the help.

Cindy isn’t entirely comfortable with her stepfamily, but they try their hardest to make her feel like a member of the family, and she just loves the triplets. Her stepmother is the executive producer of a top dating reality show, and when a couple of the girls drop out at the last minute, she asks her daughters to step in, but not Cindy. Cindy is a plus size girl, and her stepmother is afraid that the Twitterverse will be cruel. But Beck, her second in command, thinks Cindy would be great, and talks her into it by telling her that her shoe designs will get a ton of publicity so Cindy talks her stepmother into letting her onto the show.

Living with a house full of skinny women competing for the same man doesn’t really phase Cindy. And when it turns out the bachelor (or in this series, the “suitor”) is the really nice guy she met on her flight home from school, she is in it to win it. As the competition continues, Cindy moves along and makes it to the final three. The public adores her, and her shoes are a big hit as well. Beck has been giving Cindy some intel about the whole process, and when she finds out that the winner was pretty much determined before they even started shooting, she declines to participate in the finale. Then the suitor disappears too.

This was a really fun read, and I have never even watched “The Bachelor.” But reality TV makes for a good plot, and it works here. We don’t get to know the “suitor” quite as well as Cindy, but I still wanted them to get their happily ever after. I’m looking forward to the next book in this series.

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

IF THE SHOE FITS by Julie Murphy. Hyperion Avenue (August 3, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593100851. 384 pages.

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Wedding Date, Book 6

From the publisher:

An instant New York Times bestseller!

Two people realize that it’s no longer an act when they veer off-script in this sizzling romantic comedy by New York Times bestselling author Jasmine Guillory.

Ben Stephens has never bothered with serious relationships. He has plenty of casual dates to keep him busy, family drama he’s trying to ignore and his advertising job to focus on. When Ben lands a huge ad campaign featuring movie star, Anna Gardiner, however, it’s hard to keep it purely professional. Anna is not just gorgeous and sexy, she’s also down to earth and considerate, and he can’t help flirting a little…

Anna Gardiner is on a mission: to make herself a household name, and this ad campaign will be a great distraction while she waits to hear if she’s booked her next movie. However, she didn’t expect Ben Stephens to be her biggest distraction. She knows mixing business with pleasure never works out, but why not indulge in a harmless flirtation? 

But their light-hearted banter takes a turn for the serious when Ben helps Anna in a family emergency, and they reveal truths about themselves to each other, truths they’ve barely shared with those closest to them. 

When the opportunity comes to turn their real-life fling into something more for the Hollywood spotlight, will Ben be content to play the background role in Anna’s life and leave when the cameras stop rolling? Or could he be the leading man she needs to craft their own Hollywood ending?

I love this series and this book reminded me why! I must admit I couldn’t tell you what the last book was about, so this definitely reads like a stand alone to me, so I don’t think this series needs to be read in order. If you want to try this one, it’s as good a place to start as any. Then if you love it as much as I did, you can go back and read the rest of the books in the series.

It’s the characters that make this story. Anna is a plus size Black actress who is hoping this commercial is going to give her more exposure. She’s an Oscar-nominated actress who is hoping for a new role that she thinks will get her the win. But the studio isn’t sure about her, they want a bigger, whiter, name.

Ben is hard working but doesn’t always get the opportunities some of his co-workers get. So when the rest of his team is late for a pitch meeting, he gets to take lead. He is surprised that the star of the commercial is there, but they quickly achieve a rapport that is going to move his career forward in a big way when Anna announces she wants him to run the shoot. The star always gets what she wants in these situations, and reluctantly Ben’s boss allows it.

Ben and Anna have a little fling during the shoot, and she decides it would be good publicity if he could hang out with her for a while, and the fake relationship is born. He agrees and they have an end date when all the fun and games will be over. But of course the fake relationship turns real.

This was a good love story with engaging characters and an interesting plotline, making this a one night read for me. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

WHILE WE WERE DATING by Jasmine Guillory. Berkley (July 13, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593100851. 384 pages.

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Blue Hill Brides, Book 2

From the publisher:

A delightful romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Ginny Baird…

Successful Boston matchmaker and television personality Meredith Galanes’s reputation is on the line. During a guest appearance on a morning talk show, she’s broadsided by questions about her own romantic attachments, just as she’s trying to secure a syndication deal. Afraid to admit her love life is a total disaster, Meredith blurts out that she’s seriously involved with a very special man―a boatbuilder in Maine. She never expects that small slip to get spun into a story about her supposed engagement.

Or that the paparazzi will track the guy down…

Derrick Albright is laid-back about many things. Being hounded by the press about some imaginary engagement to a woman he’s only met once―and couldn’t stand―isn’t one of them. Then Meredith actually shows up at his cabin in Blue Hill, Maine, with an apology, a pot roast, and a proposal―play along until she secures her TV deal, and she’ll help him win back his ex.

It’s a simple plan, but if they have any chance of pulling it off, they’ll have to survive each other first…

Each book in the Blue Hill Brides series is STANDALONE:
* The Duplicate Bride
* The Matchmaker Bride

I read this series out of order, but if you can believe the publisher, each book is a standalone. That wasn’t really my experience, so I recommend reading them in order. This is the second book.

Meredith was in the first book, she’s Jackie’s best friend and maid of honor at that disaster of a wedding. But it is also where she meets Derrick, the groom’s youngest brother, when they get into a fender bender. It’s pretty much hate at first sight, so you know something is going to happen. It never does in the first book, but this is their story now.

Meredith is a professional matchmaker with a TV series on a local station. She is in the process of trying to get picked up for syndication, so she happily accepts the offer of a TV interview with another local show. But that interview quickly devolves into one about Meredith’s love life, which is nonexistent. But a nonexistent love life is not a good look for a professional matchmaker, so feeling the pressure of the live interview, she blurts out that she is seriously involved with a boat builder in Maine.

The press starts digging and then Derrick’s name is leaked as the serious boyfriend. Meredith jumps in her car and heads up to Blue Hill, Maine, to warn him and beg him to play along. Unfortunately, the paparazzi beat her to his home, and he is totally confused. He slams the door on the news media, and probably wants to on Meredith once she finally gets there and starts explaining.

Meredith comes up with a plan – she’ll stay in the cabin with Derrick, they pretend they are engaged while she tries to get him back with his ex-wife. He’s not even sure he wants to, but they were both very young when they married and their divorce was acrimonious, to say the least. Ten years later he is curious to see if they still have that attraction so he gives Meredith ten days to pull it off.

Meanwhile, Meredith and Derrick had had a moment at the wedding the previous year, but neither pursued it. Now that they are in such tight quarters, those feelings are starting to return. There is definite chemistry going on, and as they learn more about each other the closer they get. But Meredith is still working on getting Derrick back together with his ex, and figures she and Derrick will “break up” once he gets back with his ex. Good ending for everyone, except she is falling in love with him and is surprised by how much it hurts to put her matchmaking skills to work here.

There are a lot of characters that overlap from the first book, and it was much easier to understand who they all are and their relationships if you read the first book first. This was a good enemies-to-lovers sweet romance, and I highly recommend this series.

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE MATCHMAKER BRIDE by Ginny Baird. Entangled: Amara (July 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-1649370266. 350 pages.

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Blue Hill Brides, Book 1

From the publisher:

Saying “I do” has never been this much fun in this charming new romance from New York Times bestselling author Ginny Baird.

Hope Webb can’t believe her twin sister, Jackie, is begging her to swap places and play fiancée at Jackie’s pre-wedding festivities. Sure, it’s only a business-deal sort of marriage, but Hope is a carb-loving teacher who enjoys curling up with a good book. Jackie is a workaholic whose idea of a good time is a brisk five-mile run at the crack of dawn. The two sisters couldn’t be more opposite.

Now Hope is stuck in the middle of a warm, tight-knit family she can’t help but adore and a groom who turns out to be entirely wonderful…for her.

Hotel magnate Brent Albright knows something is off about his fiancée, but he doesn’t care. Gone is the driven woman with similar career goals, and in her place is someone warm and funny who not only charms his family but him as well. She’s doing everything she can to avoid him, but that’s probably just nerves. Two people about to wed couldn’t know each other less.

Now Brent is determined to woo his fiancée, for real this time, because the more he gets to know her, the more his sweet fiancée turns out to be entirely wonderful…for him.

And that’s when things start to get really complicated…

Each book in the Blue Hill Brides series is STANDALONE:
* The Duplicate Bride
* The Matchmaker Bride

I read this series out of order, but if you can believe the publisher, each book is a standalone. That wasn’t really my experience, so I recommend reading them in order. This is the first book.

There are a lot of characters in this story, but the main characters are Brent and Hope. Brent wants to take over the family business, bypassing his older brother, and he thinks the secret to that is to be married. Jackie is a successful wedding planner in Boston, and she thinks if she is married it will be beneficial to her business. So an agreement is reached; a marriage of convenience. Brent is enough of a romantic to hope that love will follow once they are married, but Jackie is pure business all the way.

Jackie and Hope are identical twins, but while they look alike, their personalities couldn’t be more different. Hope is a school teacher who is laid back, sweet, and doesn’t mind being a size larger than her sister since that means she can eat carbs and she doesn’t have to exercise. So when the wedding Jackie is planning blows up at the last minute, she begs Hope to go to Blue Hill, Maine to stay with her in-laws-to-be just for a day and pretend to be Jackie, like they used to do when they were kids. Hope doesn’t want any part of that, but she agrees to go as herself.

Except when she arrives at the family estate, they immediately assume Hope is Jackie, even her fiancé doesn’t notice anything different. She ends up going with it because it just seems overwhelming to try and fix it. But since Jackie is due the next day, no big deal. But of course that disaster of a wedding just keeps on imploding, and Jackie keeps on extending her stay in Boston, leaving Hope to play Jackie in all the family wedding celebrations for the week leading up to the wedding. And then Jackie misses the wedding itself.

Meanwhile, Hope is falling in love with Brent, her sister’s fiancé, and she is panicking about it. But amazingly, he is falling in love with her as well. You just know this is going to blow up badly, but this is a romance so there will be a happy ending. But it is fun in a tortuous sort of way to get there. There are a lot of laughs in this sweet romance, and I really enjoyed it. (Especially after reading the second book first!)

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE DUPLICATE BRIDE by Ginny Baird. Entangled: Amara (September 29, 2020) ISBN: 978-1682815229. 368 pages.

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