• Book cover of The Sweet Talker
    Best Contemporary Romance Novels

    The Sweet Talker by Gina Azzi

    I’ve sworn off hockey players. Until the pregnancy test turns pink.

    Noah Scotch is revered in Boston, a veritable god on the ice. I’m a nerdy, newly minted college professor who would rather color code my planner than hit the club scene. Noah shouldn’t look at me twice but when he does, I falter. Who can blame me? The sweet talker with the deliciously chiseled abs and sinful chocolate eyes is a force. On and off the ice. One hot and intense night with Noah has me second guessing my lack of a dating life. Growing up in a hockey family, I know better than to get serious with a player. But the more time I spend getting to know Noah, the more my intention to keep things casual rings false. Now, I’ve got a hopeful heart and a baby on the way. I just need to tell Noah. But when I do, will I end up with everything I never knew I wanted? Or on my own? A  review of the novel:

    “Indy is a great character: smart, driven, focused and still fun. Noah is super sweet and funny, so I liked them both immediately. The supporting cast is Indy’s family, Noah’s brother and other players for the Boston Hawks and I liked them all. They set up the next story in the series well and make me want to read the next one. This is a low-angst, HEA story with real heart and lots of laughs. I highly recommend it.” Daisy Knox

     

     

  • Book cover of One True Loves
    Best Contemporary Romance Novels

    One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

    A breathtaking new love story about a woman unexpectedly forced to choose between the husband she has long thought dead and the fiancé who has finally brought her back to life.

    In her twenties, Emma Blair marries her high school sweetheart, Jesse. They build a life for themselves, far away from the expectations of their parents and the people of their hometown in Massachusetts. They travel the world together, living life to the fullest and seizing every opportunity for adventure. On their first wedding anniversary, Jesse is on a helicopter over the Pacific when it goes missing. Just like that, Jesse is gone forever. Emma quits her job and moves home in an effort to put her life back together. Years later, now in her thirties, Emma runs into an old friend, Sam, and finds herself falling in love again. When Emma and Sam get engaged, it feels like Emma’s second chance at happiness. That is, until Jesse is found. He’s alive, and he’s been trying all these years to come home to her. With a husband and a fiancé, Emma has to now figure out who she is and what she wants, while trying to protect the ones she loves. Who is her one true love? What does it mean to love truly? The author on her inspiration for the novel:

    “I really wanted to write about an impossible situation. A woman who has to choose between the husband she thought she lost and the fiancé who has made her believe in love again felt pretty impossible to me. I kept asking my friends, ‘If this happened to you, what would you do?’ The fact that no one had an answer felt like a great place to start a book.” Taylor Jenkins Reid

     

     

  • Book cover of Summer in Sweetbriar Cove
    Best Contemporary Romance Novels

    Summer in Sweetbriar Cove by Melody Grace

    Two novels in one, Summer un Sweetbriar Cove takes you to the charming small town on Cape Cod that’s home to friendship, laughter, and feel-good romance. 

    In MEANT TO BE, a runaway bride goes in search of true love on Cape Cod. Romance author Poppy Somerville is hiding out at her aunt’s beach house after calling off her wedding. Handsome next-door-neighbor Cooper is soon keeping her up all night – in more ways than one – but can the couple find a way to heal from past heartache and write a new happily-ever-after? In ALL FOR YOU, pastry chef Summer Bloom is opening her dream bakery in Sweetbriar Cove — much to the dismay of local bookstore owner/landlord Grayson Reid. He’s learned the hard way that a woman can turn your whole world upside down, but Summer’s kisses – and those chocolate croissants – are too tempting to ignore. Can this headstrong pair mix the right ingredients for love? The author on writing about writing in the new adult genre:

    “New adult is about the time when your choices create the world you live in. The relationships you have in your late teens and early twenties are the ones you remember for the rest of your life: everything is intense and new, but has so much consequence too. That vivid, crazy emotion is so much fun to write, and it’s been an amazing challenge to explore the adult side of relationships too.”
    Melody Grace

     

     

  • Book cover of Country Heaven
    Best Contemporary Romance Novels

    Country Heaven by Ava Miles

    Emotions Rye faked for the tabloids become all too real, but will the country heaven he’s found in Tory’s arms survive in the real world?

    When famous—and infamous—country singer rock star Rye Crenshaw saunters into the diner where she cooks, Tory Simmons is certain she’s got him pegged. He’s a bad boy who lives large. But while she couldn’t care less about country music or arrogant men, Rye makes her an offer she can’t refuse when he asks her to be his private chef. The job is the answer to all her prayers: it will clear out her debt and finance the fresh start she desperately needs.

    Rye is certain his sassy new cook is the last woman who’d ever tempt him, but spending time with the wholesome girl next door will do wonders for his damaged public image. Her food also happens to be the best he’s ever eaten, both comforting and seductive. They find themselves becoming friends although both are secretly hoping for a whole lots more.
    When an emergency in his family whisks him home, Rye does the one thing he’s never risked: he lets a woman into his heart…

    The author on the theme of hope in this novel:

    “Hope is the breath of life, and we could all use more of it. My characters go through such tremendous transformation, some of it pretty tough and painful. I’m thinking about Rye in COUNTRY HEAVEN, who has to totally transform his view of himself and his profession. He had to heal some serious childhood wounds to get there. The love he feels for Tory gives him hope and helps transform him. To me, hope is the taste of eternal promise. It’s the Holy Grail that keeps us moving forward when we’re confused, overwhelmed, or feel totally out of control. Hope is magic, as a friend recently told me. And to be human, and call in more abundance into our lives, we need to have the courage to hope that it will find us”

    Ava Miles

  • Book cover of Mad About Matt
    Best Contemporary Romance Novels

    Mad About Matt by Theresa Paolo

    A hot cop and a sweet baker get a second chance at love in this small town romance.

    Seventeen years after Shay Michaels said goodbye to summers in Red Maple Falls and the only boy she ever truly loved, she’s back and the proud owner of Sweet Dreams Bakery. Life is good until someone breaks into her shop, making her question if the life she left behind in New York followed her.

    As the local sheriff, Matt is keeping a close eye on the place and an even closer eye on the beautiful owner who refuses to take the break in seriously. Two conflicting personalities that burn bright on their own become down right explosive when thrown together. But in order to move toward a future together, they will have to let go of their past and accept the mistakes they made.

    A 5-star review on Goodreads:

    “Small town setting with fantastic chemistry and a cute romance- I absolutely adored this book!! There was a good amount of humor and the romance so totally sweet – I didn’t want this book to end. I’m so excited that there are going to be more books in this small town series! Highly recommend this one to anyone who wants to read a sweet romance that will leave a smile on your face!”

    Mandy, Goodreads