The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren

Release Date: 16 May 2023

Genre: Romantic comedy

Helpful hints: If you like the bachelor, this one's for you!

Prefer closed door romance? Skip Chapters

Romance novelist Fizzy Chen is in a slump. She realizes that she's never been in love, and ends up with terrible writer's block. Producer Connor Prince is used to making nature documentaries, but the production company he works for dumps a reality TV show in his lap, he comes up with an idea. He'll target romance lovers like his ex-wife by casting Fizzy as the heroine of a new dating show. Fizzy, unimpressed by Connor, creates a list of archetypes for the heroes. We have the hot nerd, the cowboy, the cinnamon roll, and even a vampire. Will Fizzy meet her prince charming?

I honestly loved this book. I am admittedly not a fan of dating shows, but this book flips the script. Fizzy and Connor's banter is hilarious, and all of the characters are well developed. Also features Jess & River from The Soulmate Equation, and the dating show in the book ties in River's DNA based technology. I think this one is one I'll reread in the future.

Plot Twist by Erin La Rosa

Publication Date: 14 Nov 2023

Genre: Romantic comedy

Helpful hints: Features a male main character in recovery from alcoholism and a female main character who considers herself to be pansexual (and has dated mostly women)

Prefer closed door romance? Skip Chapters (half of) 14, 15 26, 27

This was my first time reading an Erin La Rosa book, and I must admit that I found myself feeling like I'd jumped into the middle of something without knowing the background of the other characters. When I looked it up on Overdrive, I discovered a book about the female protagonist in Plot Twist's sister, Nina. I'm now on hold for it, (because Plot Twist was great!) but Plot Twist might make slightly more sense if you read the first book in the series, "For Butter or Worse," before this one. With that being said, there was enough information for it to still be able to be read as a standalone.

Anyway. Plot Twist is the story of bubbly Sophie Lyon, a romance author, and her seemingly grumpy neighbor/landlord Dash Montrose, a former movie star and recovering alcoholic. When Sophie gets drunk and bashes love during karaoke, she goes viral on TikTok. Her best friend Poppy sends her brother Dash over to check on a very hungover Sophie, she vomits all over him, and against all odds, they become friends. Join Sophie and Dash as he helps her navigate the world of TikTok, she attempts to learn why she's never fallen in love, and he does his best to remain sober. Hijinks and shenanigans unfold with a plot twist I probably should have seen coming but somehow didn't. Not going to lie, with as many books as I read, it's hard to surprise me these days lol. My favorite random feature was Richard the squirrel, who has an inexplicable disdain for Richard Gere. 😂

Somehow this book manages to cram a lot of tropes into one book -- best friend's brother, friends to lovers, AND grumpy sunshine -- but somehow it still works without being cliche.

I'm baaaaaaaaaack

 I'm back to reviewing books on a blog (instead of directly on Netgalley and Amazon) for the first time since 2016. My last post not so coincidentally coincided with morning sickness courtesy of my oldest daughter. 😂 

Regardless, I'm excited to be back in the world of book reviews! I've been mostly reading romantic comedies in the time she's been alive, with a focus on happily ever afters, so that's mostly what you'll see here.

BOOK REVIEW: The Afterlife of Alyx and Israel by Hanna Peach

*Disclaimer- I received a free electronic galley of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review*

The Afterlife of Alyx and Israel by Hanna Peach 

Release Date: July 3, 2016

Amazon Description:  
Once upon a lifetime, Alyx & Israel lost each other...

In their new mortal lives, Alyx & Israel don't remember anything about their past. And they have never crossed paths. Until some old friends decide to secretly nudge destiny along, their efforts almost destroying everything...

Now Alyx's life lies in the balance, trapped in a coma deep within a DreamScape maze city. The only one who can help her escape is Israel, a man she doesn't remember. They need to find a mysterious Mapmaker and solve his riddle. But is this Mapmaker hiding something?

Although this book is part of the Dark Angel series, it can be read as a standalone.

My Review:
Whenever I hear of an offer to read a new YA book for free, I jump at the chance. This one first showed up to me as a Facebook ad and I was fascinated. First by the beautifully designed cover, which I came to find out, ties into the story line nicely, then by the plot summary. I'm a sucker for the idea of fate, and a hopeless romantic at that, and The Afterlife of Alyx and Israel (henceforth just referred to as Afterlife) did not let me down. Now, I haven't read the other stories in the Dark Angel series (though I want to now!), but this book can also be read as a standalone (whew!). The reader needs to warned of something important, however- THIS BOOK IS ADDICTIVE. I like to read for a bit before bed, and also before going to work, and I'll be honest, I did not want to leave for work as a result.

As the summary implies, Alyx and Israel knew each other (*ahem* KNEW) in a past life, and when they died they were reincarnated into mortals. Three friends from their past life, all immortal, try to reintroduce Alyx and Israel, but when the two meet, there is a devastating accident that puts Alyx in a coma. Can Israel help Alyx escape all of the trials of the maze city in her mind? Will they remember their past lives? Afterlife is a  fast-paced, exciting, and sometimes sexy book. You're definitely going to want to read to find out what happens.

Afterlife by Hanna Peach- Available now!

Title: The Afterlife Of Alyx & Israel (Dark Angel #6)
Author: Hanna Peach
Cover Designer: Romac Designs
Genre: YA Fantasy 

Once upon a lifetime, Alyx & Israel lost each other...

In their new mortal lives, Alyx & Israel don't remember anything about their past. And they have never crossed paths. Until some old friends decide to secretly nudge destiny along, their efforts almost destroying everything…

Now Alyx’s life lies in the balance, trapped in a coma deep within a DreamScape maze city. The only one who can help her escape is Israel, a man she doesn't remember. They need to find a mysterious Mapmaker and solve his riddle. But is this Mapmaker hiding something?

Although this book is set years after the Dark Angel saga, it can be read as a standalone.

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Afterlife can be read as a standalone
BUT you can grab the Dark Angel's series now!
Start it FREE
OR
Get caught up

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Hanna Peach

Hanna is the bestselling author of the Bound romantic suspense series and the Dark Angel fantasy series. Although she writes in more than one genre she can’t write a book without weaving together a complicated plot and filling it with twists. She writes what she believes: good people can do bad things, ordinary people can do great things, and choose love above everything.

Eternally restless, Hanna has lived in Indonesia, Australia, Germany, Scotland, England, Croatia and Ireland – everything she owns fits into one suitcase. She’s planning her next move with her gorgeous (and understanding) partner right now.

If not writing, she can be found wandering a dusty market in Marrakesh or trekking a mountain in Peru, often using her travels as settings in her novels.

To WIN a copy of her next release subscribe to her newsletter: www.hannapeach.com/subscribe.

Author Links:

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BOOK REVIEW: How to Keep Rolling After a Fall by Karole Cozzo

*Disclaimer- I received a free electronic galley of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

How to Keep Rolling After a Fall by Karole Cozzo

Release Date: August 2, 2016

Netgalley Description: 

After a cyber bullying incident turns her life upside down, a handsome wheelchair rugby player shows a former mean girl that everyone deserves a second chance in this swoonworthy new novel from the author of How to Say I Love You Out Loud.

The party was at her house. The photos were posted to her Facebook account. That's all the evidence anyone needed to condemn Nikki Baylor for a cyberbullying incident that humiliated a classmate and nearly resulted in the girl's suicide. Now Nikki's been expelled from her old school, her friends have abandoned her, and even her own parents can't look her in the eye. With her plans for the future all but destroyed, Nikki resigns herself to being the girl everyone hates - almost as much as she hates herself. But then Nikki meets Pax, a spirited wheelchair rugby player who knows what it's like when one mistake completely shatters your life. Refusing to judge her because of her past, he shows her that everyone deserves a second chance... and everyone deserves to be loved.

My Review: 
I literally could not put this book down until I finished it a couple of hours later. How to Keep Rolling After a Fall is the story of Nikki, a former mean girl, and Pax, a wheelchair bound rugby player. Pax enters Nikki's life at just the right moment, and the relationship that develops is sometimes awkward and painful to read, but always beautiful and life changing. I REALLY hope that the author writes a sequel about Nikki & Pax- I can't wait to find out where life takes them next.  Karole Cozzo, if you're reading this, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE write another one!

BOOK REVIEW: Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry

* Disclaimer- I received a free electronic galley of this book for NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry

Click HERE to read the first chapter! 

Release Date: March 29, 2016

NetGalley Description:
One moment of recklessness will change their worlds 

Smart. Responsible. That's seventeen-year-old Breanna's role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyber-bully's line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas "Razor" Turner into her life. 

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don't belong. But when he learns she's being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it's time to step outside the rules. 

And so they make a pact: he'll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she'll help him seek answers to the mystery that's haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they're both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they're going from here.

My Review:

Love love love love LOVE! I cannot say the word love enough to convey how I feel about Katie McGarry's books, and Walk the Edge is no exception. In Walk the Edge (book two of the Thunder Road series), McGarry builds upon characters introduced in Nowhere But Here (book #1). These characters are instantly relatable and deal with issues that teens run into every day, such as cyberbullying, popularity (and lack there of), family problems, and even trouble with school work. There's also the perfect mix of romance and friendship that leaves you hanging on every word. We have Walk the Edge on order for our library!