definitely, possibly, maybe

i've read books 1 and 3 of the royally series and really enjoyed them. and queen lenora is a compelling presence. royally yours  functions as a prequel and tells her story. and it's a beautiful story. i loved lenora and edward together. and it was also so bittersweet. because you know how their story ends beyond the end of the novel. and that's the tricky thing about prequels i think. if you know too much going in, it can color your view of what happens. but it's still a beautiful love story. you get swept up into the story so quickly and i read this in one sitting. **royally yours will publish on october 30, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of social butterfly pr in exchange for my honest review. keep reading for more information.

after suffering a horrific trauma, ellie carter runs away from her life and sets up shop in a tiny town in cornwall. new tides   opens on this moment, but jumps ahead pretty quickly. it's several years later and ellie still suffers from panic attacks and keeps the world at arm's length. when her favorite author asks to become her client they strike up a correspondence. when ellie finally works up the courage to meet in person she's horrified to realize the person she believed was olivia wren, was a guy named owen.in spite of her skittishness, she is compelled to seek owen out. and slowly she begins to open herself up to the world she shut herself away from. and owen recognizes that she is traumatized and is gentle and willing to take things at ellie's pace. because of the level of trauma ellie suffered this is a slow burn, and it takes a lot of work for ellie and owen to find a way forward together. **new t...

i enjoyed the wayward wallflowers, and first earl i see tonight  kicks off the new debutante diaries series from anna bennett. bennett's writing is always enjoyable and i really liked both fiona and gray as characters. i'm just not sure they're well-served in this story. other reviewers have called out the inconsistencies in the plot and secondary characters, but these things don't mean that this book isn't enjoyable. it is. like i said, fiona and gray are characters you can't help but root for. and so, even if they deserve something better in terms of plot, the one they have still gets them to happily ever after, and isn't that the point? **first earl i see tonight will publish on october 30, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/st. martin's press in exchange for my honest review.

part of me felt like i was thrust into the middle of a long-standing series, and had no idea what was going on in the darkest star . it seems like there's a story before, and that story before informs the story now in so many ways. but even though you have this niggling feeling. and yet, this is fully enjoyable as a standalone. the story really starts when evie meets luc. because the day she meets him is the day he stops staying away. even still he doesn't tell evie the whole truth, and you know that he's holding back. at least you suspect what it is, but it's really quite amazing when the truth comes out. basically, evie and luc have this incredible journey and it's worth going along for the ride. **the darkest star by jennifer armentrout  will publish on october 30, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/st. martin's press. 

sometimes i read these category romances and while some aspects of the settings have changed, namely the technology, but books like beauty and the greek billionaire are blasts from the past. this could have been one of my grandmother's harlequin books.in fact,  i'm one hundred percent positive, it was one of my grandmother's harlequin books. and i don't mean that in a plagiarized, bad way. it's just that the whole vibe of this book reminds me of a harlequin presents. and i love it. it's kind of trope-y and predictable, but in the best possible ways. marianna and nico are just perfect for each other. her optimism and whimsy and smarts are the perfect counterpoints to his pessimism and practicality and distrust. everything about them shouldn't work but does. because in his heart of hearts, nico craves the whimsey and his shattered heart can only heal with the kind of faith a person like marianna can give him. that's what makes these...

zach piper escapes a lifetime of emotional abuse when he leave behind the cult run by his father. from the moment he meets cameron cronin something about him calls to him. he trusts cameron. he knows that he could love cameron. even before he had the words for his sexuality he's always known that he was gay. but he's also lived a life sheltered from modern technology, modern problems, modern beliefs. so zach has a lot to learn. cameron knows he wants to protect zach. he loves zach, but is afraid to be in love with zach. his previous relationship experience deeply scarred him. his partner was emotionally, physically and sexually abusive and it took him a long time to recognize this. and he still feels unworthy and at fault. and he's afraid to trust his own feelings for zach, and afraid to trust zach with his feelings. this is a slow burn. cameron tries to keep things platonic, but zach pushes at this boundary. he might have been sheltered. and cameron ...

after the jump, you know what to do...

this is the second book titled big stick  that i've read in the last month. the first one didn't really do it for me, but this one i liked much better. we met nick in previous breakaway books, and he finds his match in jodie, a big-hearted, chatterbox who lives life believing things will work out for the best. as a single mom, her relentless optimism is pure defense mechanism. but the more time she spends in nick's company, the more she realizes that his grouchy personality hides a big old softie at heart. the guys on the chicago aces are seriously the best. they're broody and sweet and i just love them. and there's always new teammates who have stories waiting in the wings. they're all basically one-click buys. **big stick published on october 23, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/random house publishing group (loveswept) in exchange for my honest review. 

the end of an era is upon us and another fantastic series concludes with reveling in sin . i so enjoyed lincoln and whitney's up and down, twisty, second-chance love story. these are two people who have to overcome so many odds to be together. absolutely no one is rooting for them. except they are rooting for each other. and finally they are trusting in the love that they've shared for over a decade. and once they let it free, it's crazy how strong it is. how much it can overcome. the world can be on fire, and still lincoln and whitney will endure. their love proves itself indestructible. i loved this couple. i loved this series. it's an absolutely addictive, super enjoyable read. **reveling in sin will publish on october 23, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of meghan march in exchange for my honest review. 

when scott hunter's on-ice slump ends after getting a smoothie, he is superstitious enough to come back for more. good luck charms are a game changer in hockey. the flirtatious banter with the sexy barista, kip is just an added bonus. soon scott finds ways to spend more time with kip in and out of the coffee shop. except, scott isn't actually out, so they spend all their time in scott's apartment. kip's already had one relationship go south where he wasn't enough for his partner and he refuses to be someone else's dirty little secret. he understands the pressures of scott's career and he loves the time they spend together, but he also wants more. he's entitled to more. this story was both sexy and sweet. both guys are characters you can't help rooting for, and you want them to figure things out so badly even though you totally understand both their sides in the conflict. i loved the romance, it was just the right blend of steamy and emotional,...