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Book reviews for the week of August 27th


Can you believe we are in September?  August flew by for me.  This blog post is for books I read from August 27th through the 31st.  I read two ARCs and one book for a reading challenge. I had hoped to have one more ARC on this post, but life got in the way of reading. If you haven't read Lucy Score's Knockemout series yet, you should start now.  The final book (see review below) releases this week.  You really don't want to miss this series.  Melanie Moreland is releasing her standalone rom-com this week also.  If you like witty banter, steamy times, and a love match to make you swoon, grab it as soon as it releases. I also read one new to me author, Kaci Rose.  She has been on my list for a while and I found a book that was the perfect read to meet a reading challenge for the month of August.  Check out my reviews below and definitely add these books to your TBR.  Until next week, happy reading!



Things We Left Behind (Knockemout #3) by Lucy Score

ARC: Release Date- 09/05/2023

#EnemiesToLovers #SmallTown #GrumpySunshine #ARC

5 STARS

Book three in the series can be read as a standalone and ends with a HEA between Sloane and Lucian.  Readers should be aware that there is an overarching plotline in the series.  If readers start with book three it contains spoilers to the first two books.  Just go ahead and read them all in order and do yourself the favor of the reading experience.  This is written in first person from an alternating dual POV.

There are some books and some authors where you know you can expect more than just a standard read.  This was one of those books.  I knew I would not want to put it down.  I knew I would not want to be interrupted.  And I knew it would take me two to three times longer to read than a standard book of its size.  I knew these things based on experience with this author.  I savor her books.  I highlight them more than books by any other author.  Reading her books is an immersive experience for me.  So, I planned accordingly.  I set aside a whole day where I knew I could read nearly nonstop all day long.  I do not regret anything about that decision.

Lucian and Sloane play key roles in the first two books of the series.  Going into their book, I knew they had a history, there is enmity between them, and a sizzling chemistry that they both deny.  In this book, we learn the details of that history slowly as their story unfolds.  There are so many layers of feeling between them.  It is beautiful and yet heartbreaking to read.  They each have the baggage of their history and the baggage of their separate lives to address along the way.  The way they understand each other enough to aim the sharpest arrows is witty and sometimes painful to read.  They learn that they have each changed in some ways since the events of their past.  I thoroughly enjoyed their rediscovery of each other as the people they are now as well as the motivations that drove past actions.

This book made me cry, rage, laugh, smile, and swoon.  There are layers to the characters and to the plot.  Twists and turns abound along the way to their HEA. They are absolute fire together and share steamy moments to prove it.  Open door steamy physical scenes are well written and define not only their physical relationship, but the trust and emotions that develop between them over time. As the last book in the series, this book wraps up the Knockemout series in a way that is perfection.  Lucy has truly delivered a series that deserves all the hype it has received so far.   You know a book is good when you finish and immediately want to reread it even though it took me all day to read the first time.  Each read is its own experience, and I am certain the reread will generate even more feelings about these characters.  I can’t wait. 


My Favorite Kidnapper by Melanie Moreland

ARC: Release Date- 09/07/2023

#AgeGap #Billionaire #AlphaHero #ForcedProximity #Virgin #ARC

5 STARS

This standalone is sugary sweet and smoking hot.  It is written in first person from an alternating dual POV and ends with a HEA that will melt you.

Dante (38) is used to getting what he wants, when he wants it.  Hot, alpha, grumpy at times; he is very commanding and relishes his self-control.  Until he meets Brianna.  Bri (26) has had a difficult life.  She is a feisty hard worker with an amazing talent at making cakes that are more art than snack.  She counts on only herself to get by because that is all she has ever known.  Dante literally sweeps her off her feet and steals her away to his Italian villa.  I adore how Dante acts so out of his normal character when it comes to Bri.  I love that Bri argues with him, despite his intimidating exterior.  The more of a hot mess she is, the harder he falls, and it is something to read.  They share an undeniable chemistry that results in their relationship getting physical fast.  Their intimate scenes are steamy and touching.  It is always more than lust from the beginning; it just takes them a while to accept that.  I love their banter, the humorous word choices, their nicknames for each other.  Honestly, I loved it all. 

Funny, steamy, occasionally venturing into morally grey territory, with a dash of suspense: this book was a joy to read.  And the bonus epilogue was perfection that brought a tear to my eye.







 A Baby For Her Best Friend by Kaci Rose

#FriendsToLovers #SurprisePregnancy #OneNightStand 

4.5 STARS

I needed a friends to lovers book that I could read fairly fast between ARCs to meet a reading challenge.  This author has been on my list for a while, so I eagerly grabbed this book and devoured it.  It was exactly what I was looking to read.  Summer and Nick have been friends forever.  Even living several states apart, they have maintained being best friends.  They have a drunken one night stand that neither remembers, yet has consequences that alter their futures forever.  It is written in first person from an alternating dual POV.

I liked both characters.  They each want the best for the other.  When Nick learns of the pregnancy, he is all in.  He dotes on Summer and the baby.  Those moments were so incredibly sweet.  I also loved the passion between them.  I love that they don't just jump into that, but date first and get to know each other outside of the friend zone.  This was an enjoyable, steamy, relatively low-angst read.

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