Sunny Shelly’s Review: Mr. Wicked by Marni Mann

Mr. Wicked by Marni Mann is now live! 

An alpha billionaire dedicated to no-strings pleasure. A woman committed to changing his wicked mind. Together they ignite a steaming-hot romance by the USA Today bestselling author of Mr. Hook-up.

Grayson Tanner has had better days. Coming off the successful international launch of Hooked, the hook-up app he cofounded with his two best friends, and a night with one of the sexiest women he’s ever met, he’s now in a PR nightmare. A video of him has gone viral—a toast to the indulgence of bachelorhood. It’s a bad look for the creator of the app’s marriage arm. As memberships plummet amid a media firestorm, his PR firm has a new narrative to quell the flames: Grayson has to get married. Fast.

Hello, Jovana Winters—social media influencer and Grayson’s former one-night stand. The one-night stand he has yet to move on from mentally. Their immediate connection is undeniable. In front of the camera, they’re charismatic and passionate, and social media is calling them the It couple. But off camera, Grayson doesn’t trust women or believe in commitment.

Jovana is the opposite, a believer in love who knows what she wants. Now she’s on a mission to turn this fake marriage into the real deal, even though she’s hiding the biggest secret of them all.

But with a man like Mr. Wicked, it won’t come easy.

  Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

https://geni.us/MrWicked

Audio Narrated by: Andi Arndt & Ryan West

Add to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3ukrNmv

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Mr. Wicked was SO FUN! This book follows Grayson, one of the partners of the Hooked app, and Jovana, an influencer, with whom he had a hot and combustible night. (Except Jovanna doesn’t do one-night-stands, and she’s rather ticked off to find out that’s all he wanted, despite the sizzling chemistry between them.)

A while later, Grayson ends up going viral when he’s on video talking about being the ultimate bachelor…. Which would not at all be a big deal if he wasn’t one-third partner of a dating app. The solution for the PR mess is to have Grayson “fall in love” — and Jovana ends up being his fake wife.

I love Jovanna. She was fiery, and not afraid to speak her mind. She definitely kept Grayson on his toes, and gets him to open up in a way that he never has with another woman. I have a soft spot for playboys who fall hard for the right woman, and it was a trip to see Grayson fall for her. He was so adamant that he did not want to get attached, and he tried so hard to stay aloof… but Jovanna made him feel all sorts of things, and it was wonderful seeing him come to terms with how much he hated that she made him feel all these big emotions. And then ultimately give in, of course!

Mr. Wicked is the second book in the Hooked series, and while there is crossover from other characters, it stands on its own.

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Marni

USA Today best-selling author Marni Mann knew she was going to be a writer since middle school. While other girls her age were daydreaming about teenage pop stars, Marni was fantasizing about penning her first novel. She crafts sexy, titillating stories that weave together her love of darkness, mystery, passion, and human emotions. A New Englander at heart, she now lives with her husband in Sarasota, Florida. When she’s not nose deep in her laptop, working on her next novel, she’s scouring for chocolate, sipping wine, traveling, boating, or devouring fabulous books. Want to get in touch?

Connect with Marni

Facebook: http://bit.ly/MarniMannFB

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1597153177180837/

Instagram: http://bit.ly/MarniMannIG

Pinterest: http://bit.ly/MarniMannPin

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2IsSRWC

Bookbub: http://bit.ly/MarniMannBB

Website: http://marnismann.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5400988.Marni_Mann

Verve Romance: https://ververomance.com/app/marnimann

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@marnimann

Sign up for her newsletter: http://marnismann.com/newsletter/

Sunny Shelly’s Review: Falling For Her by Kelly Elliott

Title: Falling for Her

Series: Boston Love #3

Author: Kelly Elliott

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Tropes: Enemies to Lovers/Forced Proximity

She Falls First/He Falls Harder/Family Saga

Release Date: April 18, 2024

BLURB

Wes Ward finds himself in new territory. Less than a year ago, he lived in New York City in a fantastic loft that overlooked upper Manhattan. Women in and out of his bed anytime he wanted and not a damn care in the world.

Now?

Now, he finds himself back in Boston plotting ways to stop his high school girlfriend, Mandy, from getting married, dodging his mother’s every attempt at helping him settle down, and trying to understand why Clare Monroe makes him forget everything and everyone when she smiles at him.

What is this insane feeling he feels anytime Clare is near him? Why can’t he stop thinking about her every second of every day?

And what does he do about Mandy, the woman he fought so hard for who is willing to give their relationship another try right when Wes is ready to admit his feelings for Clare?

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UNIVERSAL

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Sunny Shelly’s Review: 3 Stars

Playboy Wes heads back to Boston, his hometown to stop his ex, Mandy, from getting married. She was his high school girlfriend and has always been his “one that got away.” To win Mandy back and make her jealous, Wes convinces his old frenemy, Clare, to fake date him. Welp, take one guess how that works out for him…

I liked the frenemy-to-lover vibe between Wes and Clare. They had great banter, and I loved how snarky they got with each other. Wes is a bit closed off at first, but we get to see him open up as he spends more time “fake dating” Clare. And even though it was his mission to win back Mandy, he can’t get Clare out of his mind. I actually enjoyed seeing how confused Wes was about his feelings for both women, and how he worked through all that.

Falling For Her has all the tropes I love and enjoy. However, I should have heeded Kelly Elliott’s recommendation that this series be read in order. Even though Falling For Her is a standalone, I felt a bit lost at times since this series is new to me.

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

ALSO AVAILABLE

$1.99 for a limited time!

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

UNIVERSAL

Free in Kindle Unlimited

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

UNIVERSAL

Free in Kindle Unlimited

AUTHOR BIO

Kelly Elliott is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling contemporary romance author. Since finishing her bestselling Wanted series, Kelly continues to spread her wings while remaining true to her roots and giving readers stories rich with hot protective men, strong women, and beautiful surroundings.

Her bestselling works include, Wanted, Never Enough, Lost Love and Returning Home, to name a few.

Kelly has been passionate about writing since she was fifteen. After years of filling journals with stories, she finally followed her dream and published her first novel, Wanted, in November of 2012.

Kelly lives in central Texas with her husband, their two pups, Gunner and Ellie, too many cats to name, and a plethora of wild animals. When she’s not writing, Kelly enjoys gardening, reading and spending time with her family.

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Sunny Shelly’s Review: Learn Your Lesson by Kandi Steiner

Learn Your Lesson by Kandi Steiner is now live! 

My mother only wanted me to learn one lesson growing up…

Men are trash.

Her father left her, and then my father left us. Being raised by her and my grandmother, I was surrounded by the reminder to be independent and guard my heart. 

After my one and only experience with a boy in college fell flatter than a pancake, I realized they were right — and I was content to live the life of a twenty-six-year-old cat lady.

Until Will Perry blew my quiet world to smithereens.

Starting goalie for the Tampa Bay Ospreys and the kind of hot that scrambles your brain, all I was ever supposed to be to him was his daughter’s kindergarten teacher. Then, in a twist of events, his temporary nanny.

But temporary turns to permanent, and when I move into his pool house, everything changes.

He’s impossibly grumpy and focused on only two things: hockey, and taking care of his daughter. I’m only focused on using this new income to pay back my student loans. 

But in that house, I feel his heated gaze beneath that permanent scowl, the way it lingers and warms my skin. And though I know my mother would lose her mind if she knew, my dreams have become midnight fantasies about my long-haired, muscle-lined mystery of a boss.

When the tension becomes too much, we break, and we make a deal. 

He still needs a nanny. I still need a paycheck and for my matriarchy to not disown me. But Will agrees to teach me everything I’ve always wanted to learn, and I’m all too eager to be his student.

I can do this. I’m a grown woman. I can explore my sexuality with the hottest goalie on earth and still remain one-hundred percent professional. And I can definitely do it all without catching feelings. 

I have to.

Otherwise, I’ll end up heartbroken in my mother’s arms while she shakes her head and asks me if I’ll ever learn my lesson.

  Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

https://geni.us/learnyourlesson

Audio Narrated by: Hannah Chiclana & Max Lindsey

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3UG4U8i

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Dang, Daddy P and Chloe were ON FIRE! I will not be able to look at a popsicle the same way again!

Single dad/nanny, widow, grumpy/sunshine, nanny, hockey star, love lessons — this book had it all. But Learn Your Lesson was so much more than that. This book was full of spice, sure, but it was also a rather emotional tale as both Chloe and Will fell in love and found something in the other that they never expected. I loved the double meaning behind the title — sure, Will gives Chloe lots of seggs lessons, but he learned a few lessons himself along the way as he opened up to her and let his heart get involved. Chloe really helped Will (and by extension, his daughter Ava) come to life again.

Hannah Chiclana and Max Lindsey are both narrators I have never listened to before, and I wasn’t sure how much I would like the audio for this book. But you know what? It didn’t matter one darn bit because they brought it all to the table and told Will and Chloe’s story perfectly!

Learn Your Lesson is part of Kandi Steiner’s Kings of the Ice series, but I don’t see how any other hero can be more of a king than this guy was!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Kandi

Kandi Steiner is a #1 Amazon Bestselling Author and whiskey connoisseur living in Tennessee. Best known for writing “emotional rollercoaster” stories, she loves bringing flawed characters to life and writing about real, raw romance — in all its forms. No two Kandi Steiner books are the same, and if you’re a lover of angsty, emotional, and inspirational reads, she’s your gal.

An alumna of the University of Central Florida, Kandi graduated with a double major in Creative Writing and Advertising/PR with a minor in Women’s Studies. Her love for writing started at the ripe age of 10, and in 6th grade, she wrote and edited her own newspaper and distributed to her classmates. Eventually, the principal caught on and the newspaper was quickly halted, though Kandi tried fighting for her “freedom of press.”

She took particular interest in writing romance after college, as she has always been a die hard hopeless romantic, and likes to highlight all the challenges of love as well as the triumphs.

When Kandi isn’t writing, you can find her reading books of all kinds, planning her next adventure, or pole dancing (yes, you read that right). She enjoys live music, traveling, hiking, yoga, playing with her fur babies and soaking up the sweetness of life.

Connect with Kandi

Website:  www.kandisteiner.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7319216.Kandi_Steiner

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Kandi-Steiner/e/B00JDJOINE 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KandiSteiner/

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/kandilandks/

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Verve: https://ververomance.com/app/kandisteiner

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@authorkandisteiner

Pinterest: pinterest.com/authorkandisteiner

Kandi Steiner may be coming to a city near you! Check out her “events” tab to see all the signings she’s attending in the near future: www.kandisteiner.com/events

Sunny Shelly’s Review: Dead to Rights by Jessica Prince

Title: Dead to Rights
Author: Jessica Prince
Series: Ashland

Spicy Small Town Romance, Opposites Attract, Romantic Suspense, Bad Boy Biker

When I caught my husband having an affair, I picked up what remained of my tattered pride and broken heart and left the city behind, heading for a small town where motorcycles outnumbered cars three to one.

Ashland, Tennessee was where I planned to start over and become the woman I wanted to be; a woman who was fun and just a little bit reckless. The need to break out of my shell led to one wild night with a man I never planned on seeing again. But when the tattooed stranger showed up unexpectedly at my new job, he made it clear that once wasn’t going to be enough for him.

As the president of a motorcycle club with a checkered past, Courtland Pope should have scared me, but no matter how hard I tried to stay away, the pull to him was too strong to ignore.

However, when old rivalries breach the surface and the line between good and bad begins to blur, I find myself stuck in the middle. And as much as Pope wants me, he might not be able to protect me from the past.

**Ashland is a BRAND-NEW series of interconnected, standalone, small town romances.**

Goodreads

Read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

Amazon

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars

Dead to Rights kicks off a new series from Jessica Prince. Pope — aka Courtland Pope — is the president of a MC (but Jessica Prince said that this won’t necessarily be a MC series). Lennon is new to town, having recently gotten divorced, and they have a hot one-night-stand her first night in town. They cross paths again several weeks later when Pope arrives at Lennon’s school to pick up his niece.

I liked this book, but I didn’t *love* it. I struggled a bit with Pope and Lennon falling hard and fast, because I didn’t feel it. There is a connection between them, sure. And there’s lots of spicy scenes. But I didn’t get that sense of head-over-heels-love between them. Despite that, I did enjoy the alpha male vibe that Pope gives off, and how he’s a good guy who has done some questionable things to protect the people he loves.

Overall, I thought Dead to Rights was a fun read, and I look forward to what comes next in the Ashland series!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Born and raised around Houston Texas, Jessica spent most of her life complaining about the heat, humidity, and all around pain in the ass weather. It was only as an adult that she quickly realized the cost of living in Houston made up for not being able to breathe when she stepped outside. That’s why God created central air, after all.

Jessica is the mother of a perfect little boy–she refuses to accept that he inherited her attitude and sarcastic nature no matter what her husband says.

In addition to being a wife and mom, she’s also a wino, a coffee addict, and an avid lover of all types of books–romances still being her all time favs. Her husband likes to claim that reading is her obsession but she just says it’s a passion…there’s a difference. Not that she’d expect a boy to understand.

Jessica has been writing since she was a little girl, but thankfully grew out of drawing her own pictures for her stories before ever publishing her first book. Because an artist she is not.

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Sunny Shelly’s Review: Just This Once by Lena Hendrix

Just This Once by Lena Hendrix is NOW LIVE

Whip King cannot be the man for me.

Cocky, pierced firefighters are perfect for late-night rom-coms, but in real life they’re nothing but trouble. Especially when you find out they work for your dad—after you’ve already slept with them.

Moving to my parents’ small town was supposed to be the fresh start I was looking for. When a disastrous Valentine’s Day leads to an unexpected encounter with a sexy stranger, and ends with the hottest night of my life, I didn’t think I would ever see Whip again.

Imagine my surprise when one of my sixth-grade students has a medical emergency and it’s Whip who shows up, looking hot as hell, to save the day. I should be embarrassed at how we left things, but instead I’m furious he doesn’t seem to remember me.

So I scrape my pride off the floor, lift my chin, and pretend there’s nothing between us. But that can last only so long. Stolen glances melt into forbidden touches, and once we give in to temptation, we can’t keep our hands off each other.

Nothing has ever felt so right, but my guarded heart won’t let me believe in happily ever after with a man like him. Opening up to Whip may be the hardest thing I’ve ever done, and every time we agree to one last time, we both know it’s a lie.

How many times can we keep telling ourselves just this once before we realize that, when it comes to love, once is never enough? 

Download here: https://geni.us/JustThisOnce

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Blazing Stars

Whip King is on fire! Just This Once kicks off a new series from Lena Hendrix, a spinoff from the Sullivan Brothers series. And man, does she deliver a hot one with this hero! It’s not just the dirty talking and the piercing that make Whip King hot… it’s the vulnerability he ends up showing with Emily, how in-tune he is with his feelings and knowing that he has baggage from his mom leaving the family when he was a kid… that all made him a hero i fell in love with.

Emily was such a great heroine, too. She was sassy and spunky, and I loved everything about her. Their meet-cute on Valentine’s Day chowing down on chocolate in the candy aisle of the local convenience store may be one of my favorites! That leads to a hot one-night-stand that neither one of them can get out of their minds, even weeks later. After a few more run-ins around town, Emily and Whip pick up where they left off as friends with benefits, but as the summer days grow longer, so do their feelings for one another.

I thought that Lena Hendrix really knocked it out of the park with Whip King, and I honestly don’t know how she is going to top this one when she gives us the rest of the King brothers!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: Counted by Noelle Adams

COUNTED

Noelle Adams

Release Date: April 12

AVAILABLE IN KINDLE UNLIMITED

Their marriage will only last for three months.

Eve Carlyle has known Jude Gregory most of her life as the odd, brilliant, reclusive son of her father’s billionaire client, but he’s never been important to her. Not until he proposes marriage out of the blue. He’s not in love with her, but he’s dying. He has only three months left to live, and getting married is one of the final items on his bucket list.

She feels sorry for him, so she says yes. After all, it’s only three months of her life, and it can be her final gift to him. They can get married, and she’ll take care of him as he gets sicker. They can even consummate the marriage and act like husband and wife.

But she’s not going to fall in love with him. Love was never part of their agreement. His final days are counted, and loving him would be her biggest mistake.

Grab your copy:

https://amzn.to/3SWJnph

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Counted was a heartwarming and gutwrenching romance about a marriage of convenience that turns into so much more.

Eve and Jude have known each other for most of their lives as their fathers are business associates, but he’s a few years older and they never had much in common. While they aren’t strangers, they aren’t close friends, either. But when Jude discovers he only has three months to live because of a brain tumor, he propositions Eve with a marriage proposal so he can live out the few items he has on his bucket list.

And so begins this marriage of convenience romance where Eve and Jude (not surprisingly) fall in love for real. While the clock ticks down on Jude’s terminal illness.

Parts of this book were hard to read because of how much Jude is suffering because of his constant headaches and how that affects Eve. But it is heartwarming and sweet, and there’s such a deep bond that grows between these two characters. I loved the progression of their friendship and ultimate romance.

I went into this book that it would have a HEA, but I had no idea how that was going to happen. The twist explains it all, and opens the door for these two lovely characters to really experience all that life has to offer them!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Noelle Adams:

Noelle handwrote her first romance novel in a spiral-bound notebook when she was twelve, and she hasn’t stopped writing since. She has lived in eight different states and currently resides in Virginia, where she reads any book she can get her hands on and offers tribute to a very spoiled cocker spaniel.

She loves travel, art, history, and ice cream. After spending far too many years of her life in graduate school, she has decided to reorient her priorities and focus on writing contemporary romances.

Keep up with Noelle and subscribe to her newsletter.

To learn more about Noelle Adams & her books, visit here!

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Sunny Shelly’s Review: Should Have Known by Evey Lyon

💕NOW AVAILABLE💕

𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐧, the first book in the Lake Spark Inn series, by Evey Lyon is LIVE! This is a small-town, hockey romance set in the Lake Spark world. 

“I was so invested in this book and these characters. I love a good enemies-to-lovers when written well and this was perfection! I couldn’t put this down!” – TheSassyNerdBlog, Goodreads 

𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐧 

Universal: geni.us/SHKall

Amazon: geni.us/SHKzon

Apple: geni.us/SHKapple

Nook: geni.us/SHKnook

Goodreads: geni.us/SHKGR

What to expect: Insta-attraction, opposites attract, he falls first, emotional wounds, long distance

BLURB:

A hockey player writing you love letters? That’s what happens when the man who is my opposite insists that he’s the one for me.

Having a not-so-smooth check-in at a small town inn can be blamed on meeting Stone Madden, the cocky retired hockey star with a tight jawline. Apparently, he’s the man behind the writer I assumed was a recluse with whom I’m stuck on a writing retreat. We couldn’t be further apart, I write romance, and he writes about sports. At first sight, we both desire to make each day miserable due to our apparent lack of enthusiasm for one another. But it doesn’t take long to discover that we click with an inflammable instant attraction. The fire I thought I’d lost inside of me begins to return.

Because of him.

Together, we unlock the unexpected, a strong bond we don’t want to break after our retreat ends. And we don’t.                                  

 There may be distance on a map between us, but our emails and my visits to his quirky small town bring us even closer.                        

Stone entered my life as the key to healing my emotional wounds and giving me my love story. Eventually, something has to give, and my heart can’t handle the risk.                                       

But Stone won’t give up, and in retrospect, the moment our eyes first connected is when I should have known…

Stone and Harlow bring the feels and steam in this he-falls-first and instalove romance. It is the first standalone book in the Lake Spark Inn series, which is part of the Lake Spark world where small-town romance has a hint of hockey.

Authors note: Like all of my books, Should Have Known is a heartwarming, feel-good romance full of banter and steam. However, it does reference assault from the past (off-page).

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Should Have Known is a great series starter, continuing Evey Lyon’s books set in Lake Spark. This time around, we have Stone Madden (Vaughan’s brother) and Harlow Olive, two writers who meet during a writer’s retreat at the Dizzy Duck Inn.

From their snarky meet-cute at the front desk of the inn to the epilogue at the end, Harlow and Stone stole my heart. This book was a little deeper than some of EL’s previous books in this connected series, as Harlow has some trauma in her past that she’s struggling with. It happened off page before the story began, and it is referenced, not detailed; I thought EL did a great job of dealing with that trauma and how it has affected Harlow ever since. Even though there is an immediate connection between them, Harlow is hesitant to let down her guard with him. Stone really has his work cut out for him, but he manages to break through her walls with patience and support.

The problem? Harlow lives in Florida and Stone’s life is in Michigan. Over several months, these two embark on a long-distance love affair, flying to see one another when they can and exchanging romantic emails in the weeks between. But when the time comes that they either have to commit to a life together or say goodbye, will one of them be willing to relocate for the other?

I love that EL has expanded the Lake Spark world, and I look forward to seeing what comes next for Holden!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: Never Say Never by Harlow James

AVAILABLE NOW IN AUDIO:

NEVER SAY NEVER by Harlow James Author

Narrated by Teddy Hamilton & Samantha Brentmoor!

#OneClickHere : http://mybook.to/neversaynever

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Why you need to #ONECLICK:

Childhood Enemies to Lovers

Fake Dating

Close Proximity

Romantic Comedy

“I need you to pretend to be my girlfriend.”

When those words left the lips of Damien Shaw, my childhood nemesis, I should have told him to kick rocks right then and there.

But sadly, his scheme to impress his boss left me with something to gain from it too—getting my meddling mother, who was obsessed with my love life, off my back just in time for my parents’ thirtieth wedding anniversary celebration in Hawaii.

You see, Damien and I grew up together, but we weren’t friends. No—we were rivals.

And when we both moved out to California to go to different colleges, we promised never to think of each other again.

It had been twelve years since we had been face to face, but when he kept popping up everywhere, I should have known that trouble would follow.

And sure enough, during a lunch with my parents he told them we were dating.

I was hellbent on exposing him, but then my mother’s reaction made it hard to say no. So, I ended up fake dating my enemy while trying desperately not to fall for him.

My gut told me to keep my distance. But my heart? That bastard was falling for the man with every sweet gesture he made and every orgasm he gave me.

But when the reason for our rivalry and our fake relationship comes to light, everyone and everything explodes, leaving one hell of a mess to clean up.

I never thought I’d fall for Damien Shaw. I never thought my enemy could force me to figure out my life. But you know what they say—never say never.

TW: Toxic parental relationships

Produced by: @onenightstandstudios

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Never Say Never was a fabulous enemies-t0-lovers story about how the one you thought you would never click with turns out to be your perfect match.

Damien and Charlotte have a long history together, as their parents were best friends and they grew up as rivals in everything school and sports-related as kids. They haven’t seen each other in over a decade, even though they both moved from South Carolina to California for college and stayed in Los Angeles. In present-day LA, Charlotte is desperate for a date for her parents’ vow renewal to get her mom off her back while Damien needs a girlfriend to get a leg up on a promotion he’s after. When they happen to cross paths after years of not seeing each other, it’s a perfect scenario for them to enter a fake relationship. Well, of course, it doesn’t happen that quickly or easily, and there’s some great stuff as these two hash out what it is that they need from each other in this transactional relationship.

Damien and Charlotte were wonderful characters, and I so enjoyed seeing them fall in love. She was more resistant to a relationship than he was, and I wish she’d gotten over herself sooner because they really were sweet together. I especially loved how Charlotte has believed all these years that Damien had the perfect childhood, and that was not at all the case. These two characters were really well developed, and I adored Charlotte’s girlfriends in “the ladies who brunch” and the tight bond they shared.

Teddy Hamilton is one of my favorite male narrators, and I loved everything he brought to the table in performing the role of Damien! Samantha Brentmoor is another great narrator, and I thought she did a fantastic job with Charlotte.

I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

Sunny Shelly’s Review: Older by Jennifer Hartmann

Older by Jennifer Hartmann is now live! 

Before he discovered my age, he uncovered my heart.

Bruised and abused, and victim to a loveless household, I shimmered with new life the moment he found me drowning my sorrows in a lake beneath the stars.

A chance encounter. An unspoken connection.

I was smitten; he was curious.

But, as everyone knew, fate could be decidedly cruel.

He called me Halley, like the comet.

I called him Reed.

And my best friend?

Well…she called him Dad.

Older is a forbidden, slow-burn, age-gap romance standalone, ending in a HEA.

  Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

 Amazon: https://a.co/d/9FF14wx

Amazon Worldwide: https://mybook.to/OlderJH    

Add to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3PiyGN8

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 5 Stars

Oh my goodness, Older was intense! Reed and Halley’s story was messy and forbidden, and it had me hanging on every page. I loved that this story is set in the 1990s, because there are so many musical references from my college years that make a perfect soundtrack!

There is a big age gap between Reed and Halley (16ish years) and there is the forbidden factor since he is her best friend Tara’s dad. They don’t know that when they first meet, but it does become a central part of their story as it unfolds over the course of four years. Abused and broken by her alcoholic father, Halley finds the family she’s always longed for when Tara’s mom takes her in as foster child of sorts, adding another complicated layer to the attraction between the main characters.

Reed and Halley’s story is a simmering slow burn, and after getting breadcrumbs of them together for the first half of the book, I was eager for their story to really pick up. And it did! It was messy, emotional, and full of angst, but also so much love. These characters reminded me a lot of the forbidden love story of June and Brant from Hartmann’s book June First. (Another great forbidden love story!)

Older is a wild ride, and I loved every twist and turn of the rollercoaster!

I received an advanced copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet Jennifer

Jennifer Hartmann resides in northern Illinois with her own personal romance hero and three children. When she is not writing angsty love stories, she is likely pondering all the ways she can break your heart and piece it back together again. She enjoys sunsets (because mornings are hard), bike riding, traveling, bingeing Buffy the Vampire Slayer reruns, and that time of day when coffee gets replaced by wine. She loves tacos. She also really, really wants to pet your dog.

Connect with Jennifer

Website: http://www.jenniferhartmannauthor.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20208474.Jennifer_Hartmann

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jennifer-Hartmann/author/B086Z4L9GH

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenhartmannauthor/

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/145154332790534

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/author.jenniferhartmann

Twitter: https://twitter.com/authorjhartmann

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jenniferhartmannauthor

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jennifer-hartmann

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/sweetiejenn/

Sunny Shelly’s Review: HateMates by J.D. Hollyfield

✨New Book Alert: HATEMATES by J.D. Hollyfield is AVAILABLE NOW!

Blurb:

From J.D. Hollyfield, author of Power, comes a devilishly spicy, enemies-to-lovers romance about overcoming the past, undeniable attraction, and finding love in the untimeliest of ways. 

A best friend, a stalker, and a bodyguard walk into a bar…

Current status: Living my best life. *Flips hair* What more could a girl want?

Just kidding. 

My life has gone to shit. All the fun, late nights, and single life come to a screeching halt when I find myself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now, thanks to my overbearing best friend, I’ve adopted a guard dog to keep me safe until they find the guy who attacked me. 

Insert Tate Deveraux, my newest inconvenience. He’s brawny, not bad on the eyes, and a pain in my ass. Not only am I stuck with him until I’m out of danger, but he’s moving in with me. 

He’s become a nuisance in my life and needs to go—stalker be damned. So do the urges to strip him naked and see if the rumors about hand size hold true. I blame my crush on booze and the kiss that should have never happened. 

The simmering attraction between us is undeniable, but he’s made it clear I’m just a job.  With lines being crossed and my life at stake, I guess I’ll find out if he’s better at keeping me safe or sated. 

Buy Link:

https://geni.us/HateMates

Sunny Shelly’s Review: 4 Stars

This was great! The banter was witty, Tate and Mindy were well-developed characters, and it had a plot twist I didn’t expect.

After Mindy is attacked after work one night, her best friend, Fay, and her billionaire fiance, Theo, insist on hiring her a bodyguard. At first, Mindy starts out as just another protection job for Tate. And she wants nothing to do with the broody, quiet, giant who she’s being forced to be roommates with. She’s used to not having anyone in her corner and surprises even herself when she finds herself softening towards the brute. Soon, their physical attraction leads to an emotional connection, but just as Tate and Mindy hit a crossroads regarding the future of any relationship between them, the unthinkable happens and she is abducted.

I really enjoyed the progress of this story, and how it unfolded. There was a lot of emotional growth on Tate’s part, and they both became better versions of themselves when they were together as a team.

Having not previously read Power, I’m sure I would have benefitted from knowing Mindy as a side character in that story, and appreciated her friendship with Fay even more. But I don’t think not knowing that story took anything away from my enjoyment of Tate and Mindy’s romance because I adored their story.

I’ve only read one other book by JD Hollyfield before this, which I also enjoyed, so I will definitely be checking out books from her in the future!

I received a complimentary copy and voluntarily left a review.

Meet J.D. Hollyfield:

Thanks for joining me for a cocktail and some girl talk. I live the dream in my own slice of paradise where I get to enjoy colorful sunsets from my rocking chair while I’m working. I have my very own romance hero with Mr. Rose and there’s more than a few little rose buds running around. A couple aren’t so little anymore! We keep things interesting with cats and a dog and the critters that roam though the yard (fingers crossed the mountain lions stay away).

Connect with J.D. Hollyfield:

https://geni.us/AuthorJDHollyfield