I started the last week or so in December fully intending to read a bunch of holiday romances on my TBR. I started with "Dear Christmas" by Sarah Ready, and it impacted me in the way only a really good book can. It kind of broke me. I knew that if I jumped into another holiday romance from there, regardless of how good it was, I wouldn't love it as much as I might if I waited a bit.
Looking at my book hangover cures from the past, I though that maybe an escort romance/erotica might fit the bill. I pulled of January, book one of Audrey Carlan's Calendar Girl series that has been on my kindle for ages. I never expected to get hooked. But I did. I spent the last several days of this year binging these novellas around holiday festivities. Not only did I get a little erotica, I got a series where a young heroine completes an epic journey of self discovery over the course of a twelve month period of time. Mia's character won me over and I could not leave her until she found her happily ever after. I will be completing my year-end wrap up in the coming days, but in the mean time, use my reviews to decide if you need to add these to your TBR.
Dear Christmas by Sarah Ready
#PenPal #OppositesAttract #FriendsToLovers #Holiday
5 STARS
This story is told primarily through the letters that Lee and Cordelia write to each other over a period of ten years. Those sections are written in first person from each character's perspective. Sprinkled within the letters, there are also occasional sections of what is happening to the characters written from a third person/dual POV. Though they spend most of this book separated from each other physically, they are together in spirit from the beginning. Their HEA is hard-won and exquisite.
The writing in this book is truly beautiful! There are so many beautiful quotes that are the kind of things I want to print out and use to guide my life choices. Each character's letters have a different style and tone, allowing me to feel like I really got to know them as individuals. As they each live the events of their lives in the ten years they write to each other, they both go through a lot. There are moments when they are so close to finding happiness, only to have it not quite happen-or even be ripped away. As they grow from teenagers to adults (who have lived through so much more than their years would warrant) they mature, develop direction, and find true love with each other (finally).
I don't remember the last time a book generated this much emotion within me. Parts of this story were heart-breaking. They touched my soul. I literally cried: that RARELY happens. Other parts were full of laughter, they joy of living life, and the love of friendship. There are a couple open door scenes in this book, but the story and their love is driven by the characters and the undeniable connection they feel for each other. This book is going to sit with me for a long time. I had planned to read a couple more holiday romances this season. After finishing this one, I knew that I could not do that for a while. The comparison would be a disservice to the next planned books, which I would normally believe to be excellent. What's a girl to do when a book generates this much feelings, emotions, and fullness of heart? For me, I have to go to a completely opposite place. So my holiday TBR is getting pushed out a bit. Maybe I will be ready to read them by February.
This was 217th read this year. It is also one of my top 10 reads off the year. In fact, I think I might make this one an annual holiday reread. Five stars are not nearly enough for this book. If you read only one holiday romance, read this book. You won't regret it.
January (Calendar Girl #1) by Audrey Carlan
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
Written in first person from Mia’s POV, this novella begins
a series of twelve books. It can be read
as a standalone, though as the first book in the series it sets up the reason
for Mia’s choices. Because this is the
first of many books of the series, it does not end in a HEA.
After finishing a deeply emotional holiday book that nearly
broke me, I knew I needed to go in another direction for the next few books. Looking through my library, I found this
series that has been on my list for a while.
This is my first book by this author, though I own several of her books
based on friend recommendations. I have
a few go-to’s for a book hangover, and erotica is usually a good bet. I picked up this novella that was already on
my kindle and I am hooked.
Though I felt the reasoning for Mia choosing to become a
high end escort was a little thin, these kinds of books require a suspension of
disbelief that I was willing to go with.
Mia is an interesting character.
I think she has a good heart, but she is certainly carrying a lot of
baggage. I like her survival instinct
and her love for her sister. I understood
her codependency and attachment to her father, despite his shortcomings. Her relationship with her aunt is a bit of a
mystery to me that I am hoping will become clearer as I read the series. Her friendship with Gin is funny and sassy.
Mia and Wes are good together. At first it is just attraction, fun, and business
with benefits. Their physical scenes
together are sizzling and full of undeniable chemistry. Over their month
together they develop friendship and feelings for each other. I am excited to see how Mia’s journey goes
and whether she will come to Wes at the end of the year.
February (Calendar Girl #2) by Audrey Carlan
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
In book two of the serial, Mia is off to Seattle to meet
with her next client. Alec is a sultry
Frenchman who melts Mia with a look. Though
she is not required to sleep with her clients, Mia has zero hesitation sleeping
with Alec. I felt like the author des a
good job helping readers try to understand Mia’s mindset and the reasoning for
her choices. Her relationship with Alec and
the job as his muse leads her to confront deeply held feelings and baggage from
her childhood. I love that Alec is able
to capture her in all the different facets and stages as she learns to love
herself. Their physical relationship is super-hot
and romantic at times. I love how Alec
sees her inside and out. Though their relationship is primarily physical, they
do form a friendship and an understanding of each other that is special.
March
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
In March, Mia is off to Chicago to be the fake fiancée of
Tony. Mia quickly learns why Tony needs
a fake fiancée. I love the relationship
she forms with Tony and with Hector, his best friend. While she is helping
other people find their happy endings, Mia is struggling with her own
feelings. Her abandonment issues have
created a heart with a pretty tough wall.
One man is working to break through to her, but at the same time he isn’t
waiting for her either. Their relationship
gives all new meaning to “it’s complicated.”
I love how many good friendships she is gaining through this year of
adventure.
April
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
In April, Mia is off to Boston to be the girlfriend of a
famous pitcher for the Red Sox. Mason Murphy
has his own baggage. I love how he and
Mia form a friendship and get along so well together. Their banter and the way they both tease and
tell it to each other straight is amusing.
I love how Mia helps Mason mature a bit and find a greater goal in life. I love the friendship she forms with Mason’s
publicist, Rachel, who has put up with a lot.
I adore how Mia is learning about herself through the relationships she
is forming with the people she is meeting at her job. Her relationship with Mason is almost
sibling-like. I really liked that Mia has fun in Boston and
enjoys baseball as much as I do. I also
love how she gains experience and confidence pulling together a fantastic
fundraiser.
May
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
May takes Mia to Hawaii to do a photo shoot. She has a wonderful time in the tropics and hits
it off with Tai, the male model on the shoot.
They agree to have fun for the month she is there. While having fun, they form a deep and
lasting friendship. She really likes Tai
and his extensive family, but not in an in love or forever kind of way. But they do bond while having smoking hot
times physically. I’m talking hot and fun. They part as friends who have made an indelible
imprint on each other, and I loved that.
June
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
June is pivotal to Mia’s journey. She is off to Washington D.C. to be the arm
candy of an older gentleman from old money.
Warren is a mover and shaker in the political arena who is trying to
gain support for a charitable medical mission around the globe. Thankfully, he is actually a nice guy who is
only interested in having Mia on his arm and not in his bed. Mia and Warren forma friendship and she
develops a passion for his cause and helping him achieve it. I love how her sense of self grows as she
navigates the shark infested waters of DC politics. Unfortunately, Warren has a son who is a U.S.
Senator. At first, Aaron seems like a
good guy. It doesn’t take long before
his true colors show.
Trigger warning: FMC is faces on page assault and attempted
rape by a character who is not her client.
July
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
5 STARS
Because this was originally written as a serial, there are quite
a few flashbacks this month. Some detail
her assault in June. Others detail her
past with Wes.
In June, Mia heads to Miami to be the star of a music video
for hip hop artist, Anton. I LOVED Anton. Though he would have been willing to have a
physical relationship with Mia, she is facing the trauma of her recent
assault. As she works thorough her flashbacks
to the event and comes to grips with the decisions she made afterwards and why,
he offers her friendship and kindness. He
is fun, kind of dorky, and super-hot.
They sight- see Miami on a day off on motorcycles and it was honestly
one of my favorite points in the series.
Mia is feeling happy and free as she rides with him and experiences
gelato for the first time. I loved how the story allows Mia to become a
seductress while she finds herself again after the trauma. Wes visits for her birthday and they must
address how they truly feel about each other.
They must address his time with Gina and her time with Alec and Tai. Though
it was hard for each of them, I appreciated the communication they instituted
and the desire to put the past behind them and move forward. I love how Wes’
touch is still OK for her. I love his
anger and protective nature when he finds out what she has been through. I adored how he helps her heal. At the end of this month, they are together
in a solid way unlike anything have had before.
August
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
4 STARS
August takes Mia to Texas to be the long-lost sister of an
oil mogul. Max is a special
character. He does not handle everything
in the best way, but I could understand why he makes most of his choices. He is a good heart with a deep love of family
and a protective nature. Mia learns of
secrets kept and must come to terms with her feelings about everything. In her journey she is learning that she is
not alone. She has formed deep
friendships and has family members she can rely on when faced with tough times. I love that she has stayed in touch with Wes
until he must go out of the country for reshoots of his movie and they lose
touch. Mia is under a lot of pressure by
the end of the month as her dad takes a bad turn with his health.
September
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
3 STARS
September finds Mia back in Las Vegas dealing with her dad’s health, being behind on his debt to her ex, and a complete lack of communication with Wes. When she learns what has happened to Wes and his crew, she is inconsolable. This month makes it very apparent how much of her life she has only had herself to rely on. She learns to rely on Max, and on her friends to find Wes and take care of the threat hanging over her in Vegas. Her ex is truly a vile person and takes action against another innocent person. (TW: Mia’s best friend Gin bears the brunt of a physical assault which is off page, with the ramifications on the page.)
(The one thing I will say about this month was that the
complete medical fiction of giving antibiotics for a viral infection in a
convalescent home was really irritating.
Antibiotics fight bacterial infections.
Also, the chances of a convalescent patient catching a bacterial infection
are significantly higher than catching a viral infection anyway. Not to say that a viral infection can’t lead
to a bacterial infection- but come on. I’ll
get off my soap box now.)
October
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
5 STARS
Mia starts the month back in Malibu while waiting for Wes to
come home. She is a shell of herself as
she bears the full weight of her feelings for him and her fear of losing him
completely. Once he comes home, he faces
the results of the trauma he has experienced.
Mia helps him heal with her love, her body, her patience, and eventually
medical therapy. I love how she gets
him to help with her new endeavor on a talk show, bringing him gently back into
the world of film through TV. This was a
tough month to read. Wes saw so much
pain and trauma. In addition to his
physical healing his mental health hangs by a thread. I love how Mia comes to a degree of
understanding about Wes and Gina’s current relationship and their need for each
other to heal from the trauma they faced together.
November
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
5 STARS
This was a fun month to read. Mia and Wes are growing stronger in their
relationship. They are allowing trust to
grow and love to blossom. They are still
experiencing an insane amount of passion between them as they use their
physical connection for healing and to demonstrate the love they share. Mia blossoms in her career this month. I adore how supportive Wes is of her dream. Wes comes to a greater understanding of her
relationship with Mason and Anton as they shoot her segments and spend time
with her friends. I adored seeing Mia
connect with friends and strangers in her new role as she grows in skill and
confidence.
December
#Escort #Erotica #Novella #Serial
5 STARS
Mia and her family face a surprise this month. When a job takes her to Aspen, Colorado, they
decide to have family Christmas there. Mia
is finally facing the complex dynamics of her feelings about her relationships
with both of her parents. She also
finally comes to accept the fantastic support system that is now in place. Their Christmas was heart-warming, and I
loved seeing the extended family come together to celebrate and show love and
support to each other.
This month leads up to Mia and Wes’ wedding and highlights
how strong their relationship is. It
also reiterates that life and love are a journey to enjoy.
I honestly enjoyed this serial a lot more than I thought I
would. I went in looking for a quick erotica
read and instead I was consumed for nearly a week by a heroine’s journey to
love, confidence, and fulfillment. Mia
became a character that I completely fell for in so many ways. Her spirit grew stronger, her heart full of
love more apparent, and her resilience shined above all else. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these. It was the perfect way to end 2023.
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