Book reviews for books read the week of February 1st

 

To say my life was turned upside down this past week would be an understatement. I still managed to read a couple of ARCs that were both incredible. Check out my reviews. Add them to your TBR. Read the rest of the series if you haven't.  

Hug your loved ones every day.  Till next week, happy reading.

Elevator Pitch (Callaghan Green #11) by Annie Dyer

ARC: Release Date- 02/07/2025

#Workplace #FamilySeries #SingleDad #ARC

Written in first person from multiple POV, this book tells the story of Marie and Grant’s beginning as well as the story of this big family as they enter a new chapter in their lives. It is a love letter to all of us readers who have cherished this family for so long. It is like reading a warm hug if that is possible. If you haven’t read this series yet, read it now and finish with this and I promise you will be left with all the warm and fuzzy feelings a good book series can give you.

The story is told in two timelines. Chapters in the present are from the POV of the adult Callaghan children, Grant, and Marie as they sell the family London home and begin a new chapter. Readers are gifted with a peek into the lives of each couple and their growing families as well as the mature outlook from Grant and Marie as they parent in the empty-nest/grandparent phase of life. Interspersed in between are chapters in memory form from Grant and Marie’s POV. These memories tell the story of their meeting, their whirlwind fling, their marriage, and the formation of the family we all love. The epilogue is written in third person, dual POV, and sets the stage for a future series that I am itching to read.

Grant and Marie meet with animosity, attraction, and wit. They grow quickly to respect and a fiery attraction that is 100% combustible. I have always adored Marie and now I just love her more. She is a rock-solid spitfire of a woman. Grant is in a vulnerable place when he meets her, and she helps him while helping him become better in his weaker areas. I really appreciated getting to see the history from his perspective. I especially enjoyed that he was firm in not repeating the childhood he had had for his children even though that would have been easier for him.   Love the way he cherishes Marie even more now that I know their whole story. It was also a gift to see the children when they were small and the way Marie and her relationship with Grant helped them become the men and women they are now.

I don’t think I have ever read an end-of-series book as perfect as this one. It makes me want to reread everything again. This family is my happy place.  Thank you, Annie, for this beautiful gift.

Beyond Highland Sunrise (Special Ops Scots # 2) 

by Kait  Nolan                                            

ARC: Release Date- 02/07/2025

#GrumpySunshine #HealingLove #SmallTown #Workplace #ARC

Written in first person with an alternating dual POV, this can be read as a standalone and ends with a HEA.

Callum is a grumpy wounded hero who is built like a mountain with an injury that he carries as his own baggage. Parker has been raised in wealth but treated like porcelain because of her chronic illness. Together, they see each other’s pain. They have a mutual attraction and respect that leads to friendship.  I love ho they take things slowly between them while they are each falling hard. They face challenges along the way to their HEA which made it that much more beautiful.  I really loved Callum. He is going to end up as one of my favorite Scottish heroes of all time.

I love the precision of the team.  And Falkor?  He’s my hero.