Fiction by Brooke Averick
Phoebe Berman is about to turn thirty years old, and she's never had a boyfriend. She has a good career and several close friends, but her crippling social anxiety has made it impossible for her to make any kind of romantic connections. Now she's terrified of tuning thirty when she's (gasp!) still a virgin! She's determined to "lose it" as soon as possible...
This was fun little straight romance that had a few surprises!
Fiction by Christina Lauren
Jess Davis is doing fine at the beginning of this book. She has her loving grandparents, her daughter Juno, her best friend Fizzy, and her work-from-home consulting job. She's not really looking for love... but then she meets River Pena.
River is a hot guy who frequents Jess's local coffee shop and happens to own a company called GenteticAlly. This company claims they have discovered how to scientifically find your true soulmate! Will Jess and River find true love? Don't answer that; it's not the point. This book is good enough to make the reader (almost!) forget the predictable nature of romance novels.
This was a fun little straight romance, something this author team does very well.
Fiction by Lauren Applebaum
At the beginning of this book, Rachel Weiss wakes up on New Year's Day with a hangover from the night before, a strange guy in her bed, and a new determination to generally try to be more responsible this year. After all, she'll be thirty soon. Maybe it's time to think about trying to settle down with a nice Jewish boy like her mother wants her to.
But then it turns out that what her mother actually wants is for Rachel to marry the rich young man whose parents just moved in next door! Christopher Butkus, as he is unfortunately named, is everything Mrs. Weiss wants for her daughter Rachel, regardless of whatever it is that Rachel wants.
Told through narrative and the titular group chap (with Rachel and her friends Sumira, Eva, and Amy), this story is funny and has good characters. It's a straight romance done well.
Fiction by Sloane Brooks
At the beginning of this story, Courtney is a high-achieving but miserable girl who is busy earning money, pleasing her family , and generally being what other people want her to be. Then she loses her job and decides to embrace her inner underachiever and just try to be happy.
And then she goes through a portal into another universe.
This was a strange and quirky book. I liked some of it, but in general it was too long. The characters were good but the story was too slow.
Fiction by Kristy Woodson Harvey
It was an okay story but not great.
Fiction by Brenda Novak
This was an okay story but a little far fetched.
Audible Original Fiction by Erin Clark and Laura Lovely
Zelda is a wheelchair user and an assistant in an advertising firm. She is hoping to move up into a more creative role as soon as she can, but her boss seems uninterested in promoting her. Besides that, she’s still reeling from her mother’s death and her father’s hasty remarriage. She needs an outlet, and she finds it in the role of The Break Up Artist, anonymously writing scathing letters for people who want to quickly end their relationships.
But what happens if she actually meets a real person who has been on the receiving end of one of her angry missives? And what if it’s a good looking guy she just might fall in love with?
It’s obvious what will happen here; still this story was engaging and had some funny parts. It’s a pretty good straight romance.
Fiction by Kristan Higgins
Emma London is doing fine nowadays with her teenage daughter Riley, although some thought Emma would never survive when she first became pregnant as a teenager herself. Chief among the naysayers was Emma's wealthy grandmother Genevieve London, who had raised Emma since the age of eight. After over fifteen years of silence, however, now Genevieve is suddenly calling to ask Emma to come home.
Emma is proud to have never needed her grandmother's help, and she is unprepared when the old woman might need help herself. Will she forgive old hurts and try to repair their relationship?
This was a really good character story with some romance.
I also read by this author: Pack Up the Moon
Fiction by Debbie Johnson
This was a fun little story about a British woman who gave up a baby as a teenager and still longs to find the child eighteen years later.
Fiction by Jesse Q. Sutanto
This book is a modern reimagining of the Disney movie Mulan, part of something called the "Meant to Be" series. The other books are by different authors, and I may try another one because this novel was light and fun, all in all.
It was, of course. quite predictable, as we already know that Mulan and Shang have to fall in love at the end, and it contained a bit too much "I-Can't-Tell-The-Truth-Or-The-Story-Will-End-Here- Syndrome,"** but it was not bad for a straight romance.
I also read recently by this author: I'm Not Done With You Yet
**I-Can't-Tell-The -Truth-Or-The-Story-Will-End-Here Syndrome
(Most recently occurred in Left by Tamar Ossowski)
This shows up in romances quite a bit, in which a main character withholds some vital piece of information form his/her love interest for flimsy reasons, making it obvious that the author is using the device to further complicate the plot and lengthen the story.
Fiction by Jennifer Hartmann
Cora and her sister's fiancé Dean have a cute banter-y relationship that makes people think they might be into each other, but they insist they aren't. After all, he's her sister's fiancé! But then they get kidnapped together, and there's no doubt they will fall in LURVE immediately. But what about the sister?!
The author categorizes her writing style as angsty romance, and that's very accurate. So this book is definitely a straight romance with quite a bit of heterosexual S-E-X. That's not really my style in general, but it wasn't a bad novel, I guess...
Fiction by Beth O'Leary
Tiffany Moore is desperate to find a new place to live in order to get away from her terrible ex-boyfriend, but she really doesn’t have enough money for anything decent, especially in London. She ends up signing on to a strange flat sharing agreement with a man called Leon, wherein she gets the flat’s single bedroom on nights and weekends, and he occupies it on weekdays from eight am to six pm.
Theoretically the two of them will never see each other. But the reader can guess that they definitely will…
This was a lovely little straight romance with great characters. I will look for more by this author!
Fiction by Rainbow Rowell
In 2006, Shiloh goes to her friend Mikey's second wedding. She didn't go to his first one, because it was all the way in New York, but this one is right here in Omaha. She hasn't seen Mikey much since they graduated from high school almost fifteen years ago, because she's not good at keeping up with people. But she goes to the wedding, and she dresses up, although she'd not admitting to herself that who she really wants to see is Cary. Cary is the boy she hasn't seen or spoken to since she was nineteen, but she has never stopped thinking of him.
This was a truly lovely romance story. Rainbow Rowell writes the most realistic characters and the best dialogue. I recommend this book!
I also read recently by this author: If The Fates Allow
Fiction by Jocelyn Green
This was a historical novel set during the Great Chicago Fire. It had good characters, but was basically a romance. It's the beginning of series; I may read the others.
Fiction by Susanna Hoffs
This book caught my eye with the author's name (Susanna Hoffs was the songwriter/singer for the Bangles) and the pretty cover (see below).
The story is about Jane Start, a one-hit-wonder singer who is still trying desperately to get that second hit after ten years. She takes an opportunity to fly to England and get out of her parents' basement, where she's been living. While she's there, she may find love, or even finally jump-start her career...
It was an okay book but I didn't love it.
Fiction by Christina Lauren
At the beginning of this book Lily Wilder, daughter of the famous treasure hunter Duke Wilder, thinks she's finally found happiness and home with her boyfriend Ian on her family's ranch. But suddenly it's ten years later, and Lily is still single and living out a semi-nomadic existence bartending and running "treasure hunts" of her own (taking city dwellers on Wild-West-themed vacation excursions.) What happened in between?
Well, the reader is about to find out when circumstances bring Ian back into Lily's life and the two of them have to face why their seemingly perfect relationship ended... while on a treasure hunt, of course!
This was a fun and exciting romance/mystery story.
I also read by this author: Roomies
Fiction by Christina Lauren
I don't usually enjoy straight romances (novels in which the romance is the only plot element), but there are a few authors who can do this genre well, and Christina Lauren is one of them. (Incidentally this author is actually two people named Christina and Lauren, which is also fun.)
This book was a classic straight romance, involving an attractive couple thrown together (by pretending to be married in this case), SEVERAL misunderstandings (does he really love her or is it pretend?), and a next-to-last chapter breakup (she decides he really was pretending).
DESPITE the formulaic nature I have just outlined, the characters in this book were good enough to keep me reading.
Result: This was a light and enjoyable romance story.
I also read recently by this author: In a Holidaze
Fiction by Brooke Lea Foster
It's 1962, and Heddy Winsome has a summer nanny job for a wealthy family on Martha's Vineyard. Heddy is a scholarship girl at Wellesley College and hopes to make connections with people who can help her in the future, and/or meet a rich boy to marry. But Heddy will learn that rich people aren't always nice, and can be untrustworthy...
This story was okay I guess. I didn't really like Heddy that much and everyone except her fellow servants were pretty unpleasant.
Fiction by Robin Caroll
Brennon is a search and rescue pilot used to difficult situations in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and she's always relied on her Christian faith to see her through. But in this story she faces trouble with a heart transplant patient, a child trafficking ring, a helicopter crash, a corrupt politician, AND a handsome US Marshall. It's a lot.
This book had an exciting storyline but I didn't love the characters.
Fiction by Jennifer Weiner
This was a fun little romance that turned into a mystery. The main character is an Instagram "influencer" with a page on plus-size fashion and also one for her dog Bingo. (The dog has more followers.) The story is mostly about her love/hate relationship with her longtime friend Drue Cavanaugh, beautiful rich girl.
This was an interesting story with some surprises.
I also read by this author: Golden Hills
