Mini Review: Runaway Love by Melanie Harlow

Runaway Love (Cherry Tree Harbor #1)
Pub Date: 4 May 2023
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(3.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Yes, I’m a single dad who needs a nanny for the summer.

But hire the stranded runaway bride who shows up on my doorstep in a wedding gown with no references, no skills, and no experience?

No one is that desperate.


Except within twenty-four hours, down-on-her-luck Veronica Sutton manages to charm my kids, my family, and half the population of Cherry Tree Harbor into believing she’s perfect for the job.

And for me.

It’s not that I can’t see the appeal–those baby blue eyes? The endless legs? That mouth made for trouble? But I’ve got enough on my plate, raising two kids on my own and keeping the family business alive. I don’t have the time or the inclination to fall for an outspoken city girl.

So I should have kept my hands to myself.

Holding her in my arms was a big mistake. Even worse? Spending the night together. She ignites a possessive fire in me that I’m finding hard to snuff out.

But the most unforgivable? Growing attached to the sound of her laugh, the scent of her skin, and the way her body wraps around mine in the dark.

At the end of the summer, she’ll be gone.
And if I’m not careful, she might run away with my heart.

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Book Review: In the Weeds by B.K. Borison

In the Weeds (Lovelight Farms #2)
Pub Date: 18 April 2022
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Evelyn St. James isn’t the kind of woman you forget.

Beckett Porter certainly hasn’t. One incredible weekend in Maine, and he’s officially a man distracted. He’s not unfamiliar with hot and heavy flings. He knows how it goes. But Evie wove some sort of magic over him during their tumble in the sheets. He can’t stop thinking about her laugh. Her hand pressed flat against his chest. Her smiling mouth at his neck.

Also, her eyes. And her legs.

So when she suddenly appears on his farm as part of a social media contest, he is… confused. He had no idea that the sweet and sexy woman he met at a bar is actually a global phenomenon: social media influencer Evelyn St. James. When she disappears again, Beckett resolves to finally forget her and move on.

But Evelyn St. James has a problem.

Feeling disconnected from her work and increasingly unhappy, she’s trying to find her way back to something real. She returns to the last place she was happy, Lovelight Farms and the tiny town of Inglewild.

It has absolutely nothing to do with the hot farmer she spent two incredible nights with.

Nothing at all.

In The Weeds is a sweet and steamy second-chance romance about finding your happiness. It features a grumpy farmer, a no-nonsense social media influencer, a small town of busybodies, and four very cute kittens. In The Weeds is a standalone romance and is part of the Lovelight series.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Social anxiety

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Book Review: Juniper Hill by Devney Perry

Juniper Hill (The Edens #2)
Published: 11 January 2022
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Memphis Ward arrives in Quincy, Montana, on the fifth worst day of her life. She needs a shower. She needs a snack. She needs some sanity. Because moving across the country with her newborn baby is by far the craziest thing she’s ever done.

But maybe it takes a little crazy to build a good life. If putting the past behind her requires a thousand miles and a new town, she’ll do it if it means a better future for her son. Even if it requires setting aside the glamour of her former life. Even if it requires working as a housekeeper at The Eloise Inn and living in an apartment above a garage.

It’s there, on the fifth worst day of her life, that she meets the handsomest man she’s ever laid eyes on. Knox Eden is a beautiful, sinful dream, a chef and her temporary landlord. With his sharp, stubbled jaw and tattooed arms, he’s raw and rugged and everything she’s never had—and never will. Because after the first worst day of her life, Memphis learned a good life requires giving up on her dreams too. And a man like Knox Eden will only ever be a dream.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Child kidnapping, infidelity (not between MCs)

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ARC Review: Defiant Heart by Brighton Walsh

Special thanks to Wildfire Marketing Solutions and Brighton Walsh for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Goodreads: Defiant Heart (Starlight Cove #1)
Publication Date: 14 June 2022
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Panda Rating:

(3.75 pandas)

I’ve slapped my cuffs on Luna Lancaster too many times to count and not a single one was for fun.

As the sheriff of Starlight Cove, I shouldn’t crave her, but I do. She’s chaos, mayhem, and sunshine wrapped up in too-tight yoga pants. The lawbreaker might have the town enamored with her free spirit, but she’s a thorn in my side, even if she is the sexiest woman I’ve ever seen.

I want her out of my town and out of my head.

Trouble is, she’s made it perfectly clear she’s not going anywhere. And her spree of minor infractions—who runs a yoga class without a license?—is hitting dangerously close to home. Her latest protest has her chained to a tree on the boundary of my family’s resort. The last thing we need is bad press ruining the short tourism season when the resort is already one bad month away from bankruptcy.

I’ll do whatever it takes to save Starlight Cove. Even if that means handcuffing Luna to my bed.

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Book Review: Second Chance Charmer by Brighton Walsh

Goodreads: Second Chance Charmer (Havenbrook #1)
Publisher: Bright Publishing, LLC
Published: 15 March 2018
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

Finn spent his childhood living so far on the wrong side of the tracks, he couldn’t even see them through his trailer window. When he moves back to his small, southern hometown to open the first bar in a formerly dry county, he’s no longer the boy who left—he’s a man with something to prove. As long as he doesn’t allow himself to get sidetracked by the only girl he’s ever loved.

Willow learned a long time ago to protect her heart at all costs, so her walls are firmly in place when her ex comes strolling back into town, all cockiness and charm. When they’re thrown together on the job, she knows better than to give in to the tug of attraction that still simmers between them. She might be drawn to him, but she certainly doesn’t trust him. It’s time for her to prove she’s not the brokenhearted girl he left behind.

There’s no room for second chances in Havenbrook. And Willow’s daddy—the mayor—will do anything to keep it that way.

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#TopTenTuesday: Books to Read If You Like Small Town Romance…

So, we’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s prompt is: Books to Read If You Love/Loved X (X can be a genre, specific book, author, movie/TV show, etc.). 

I wasn’t quite feeling this week’s topic because I’m not all that great at recommending anything to others whether it’s books, shows, movies, etc. I wasn’t sure what I would’ve gone with either but as I’m currently reading a romance series set in a small town, I thought why not just share a list of my favourite small-town romances? I know this is a pretty specific sub-genre but I love a good small-town romance especially when the town feels like its own character. There’s so much family and friendship history in these romances, plus, there are meddling townspeople that are usually well-meaning and endearing! With all the history there’s always lots of friends-to-lovers, second chances, enemies-to-lovers, and marriages of convenience—all of which are some of my favourite romance tropes!

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Book Review: Main Street Dealmaker by Brighton Walsh

Goodreads: Main Street Dealmaker (Holidays in Havenbrook #1)
Published: 28 October 2021
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

There’s no doubt these opposites attract, but there’s no way there could be any kind of a future for a wedding planner and a divorce attorney…right?

All Sadie Rollins wants for Christmas is a break. Three years ago, she stumbled into her dream job as a wedding planner, but she’s been so bogged down with the minutiae of inn ownership that she can’t even enjoy it. She and her twin sister might have been bequeathed the Starlight Haven Inn, but the bed and breakfast didn’t come with much more than extra-long hours and piles of debt.

Cole Donovan was looking for a fresh start when he moved to Havenbrook following the worst kind of betrayal. Instead, his reputation as a cutthroat divorce attorney preceded him–and tainted his introduction to the only woman he’s had eyes for since his own divorce. Too bad she can’t stand him.

When Sadie’s cousin offers her an opportunity to have the inn featured in the country’s leading wedding magazine in exchange for a bit of modeling, she jumps at the chance for some exposure. All she has to do is wear a wedding dress and pretend to be smitten with a stranger for a couple hours. The only trouble is the fake groom is no stranger, and as much as she loathes Cole, her body hasn’t gotten the message. Neither, it seems, has his…

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#5OnMyTBR: Small Towns…

Hello Mondays, welcome back to #5OnMyTBR, a meme created by the wonderful E @ The Local Bee Hunter’s Nook. This bookish meme gets us to dig even further into our TBRs by simply posting about five books on our TBR! You can learn more about it here or in the post announcing it. You can find the full list of prompts (past and future) at the end of this post!

This week’s prompt is: Small Town.

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Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: The Magic Ingredient by Lindy Miller

I’m back with another blog tour today with Xpresso Tours for The Magic Ingredient by Lindy Miller. Thanks to Xpresso Tours for organising this blog tour and to the author for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Be sure to click on the banner below to check out the other bloggers on tour!
Also, don’t forget to enter the GIVEWAY (INT) at the end of my post!

Goodreads: The Magic Ingredient
Release Date: 13 October 2020
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Panda Rating:

The end of summer is approaching, but even at the height of Bar Harbor’s tourist season, Eve Silver is having a hard time keeping enough dough in the bank to sustain the family bakery. Her only hope of paying past due bills is to win the catering bid for the town’s upcoming Harvest Happening festival. Otherwise, it’ll be lights out for Mount Desserts by Christmas.

Widower Jeff Perry is moving with his twelve-year-old daughter, Candy, from Manhattan to Maine with one goal: starting over. When sparks fly between Jeff and Eve as the town readies for the annual harvest festival, Candy wishes she had a love potion to help her dad fall in love again. Will Eve be able to save Mount Desserts—and open her heart to Jeff—by the most bewitching night of the year?


It’ll take a lot of love, a little bit of luck … and just a pinch of magic.

BUY NOW: Amazon (US)

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#TopTenTuesday: Brand New Christmassy Books!

It’s that time of the week again, friends! We’re back with another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s prompt is: a freebie! I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with this freebie, but after some thought I decided that I would try injecting a little bit of holiday cheer to my blog, so I’m looking at the brand new holiday titles on my shelf. I’m not much of a holiday or seasonal reader so I don’t have any Christmassy books, but that is all changed today, friends! Early this morning I read Jana’s ‘A Bookish Little Christmas’ post and couldn’t help getting sucked right into the holiday mood, intense tropical heat notwithstanding! I mean, everything about the post screamed CHRISTMAS BOOK BUYING TIME…and what do you think I did? 😅 If you guessed that I went and bought all the Christmassy books then you’re spot on! Okay, I’m kidding (only a little bit). I did buy some but there are quite a few options available on Kindle Unlimited, in case you’re looking for a holiday read! I’m going to go ahead and say that pretty much 100% of these were cover buys 😍

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