The Duke of Danby's Holiday Hijinx by Samantha Grace, Ava Stone and Claudia Dain

So, I’ve been in a bit of a historical romance funk lately. I haven’t been able to find books that I can really get into, but this novella collection really hit the mark. Now I need to read all of the authors books. I have not read any of the Duke of Danby series! This was a great introduction and a perfect holiday read. I have read books by all three authors and love them all! I actually didn’t read the cover or description very well and thought it was only one story. As it came to an end, I was disappointed BUT then I realized there were 2 more stories in this book. It was like a small gift :)

I think it is pretty unique that it is a Duke who is playing matchmaker in each of these stories. Although, it was never admitted… It was laugh out loud funny how some of the characters were dreading being invited to Danby Castle for anything because of the Duke’s matchmaking schemes. I love the “Holiday Hijinx” part of the title. It sounds right for the period since you don’t really hear people say “hijinx” in everyday conversation. In the book you follow Lilly & Amelia, Victoria and Judith on their journey to find their HEA. There was something bold in each of the women and it was fun to see it unfold. I love the friendships and connections and particularly how everyone tried to avoid their matchmaking turn with the Duke of Danby.

The settings are romantic in all of the stories and the suitors are all swoon worthy in their own ways. I think in real life I would probably fall for Affie. He is currently my book boyfriend. But I guess Daniel was my book boyfriend in the first novella and then Gavin *sigh*.... This was a really good choice to read during the holidays. Fun, sexy, romantic...I loved the book!

Christmas Catch by Mary Shotwell book reivew

I really thought I would read a lot more Christmas romance novels this season, but the whole time thing got in the way. I did get to read Christmas Catch and I am glad I did because it was a perfect Christmas romance. Both of the main characters have stopped celebrating Christmas. Charlee stopped because she is busy with her podcast and granting other peoples Christmas wishes. Jack stopped because he lost his fiancée during Christmas and just blames the whole holiday for his loss. The whole town stopped celebrating Christmas in support of Jack because they cared about him and he brought in a lot of business. Cheery Charlie (her podcast persona) is determined to bring Christmas back to Sunset Cove and to Jack. She has a lot of work ahead of her and some unexpected feelings toward Jack.

I feel like I learned some things about the East Coast fishing industry by reading this book :) I think if you feel like you need a bit of Christmas spirit, this would definitely be a good read. It was sweet, fun and cheerful. I like all the characters and their portrayal in a small town setting. The dialogue was funny and I really like the premise of Charlee being a podcaster who was making a living doing it. It’s kind of a cutting edge job right now, so I love that the author picked this career for the main character. Don’t want the Christmas feelings to leave just yet? Read this book! The cover is super cute too.

Flare Up by Shannon Stacey book review

I’ve really enjoyed this series and this book wraps everything up nicely. I do not recommend this book as a standalone because there is so much backstory, I think readers would miss a lot if this was the only book read in the series. This book is about Grant and Wren. We were introduced to them in a previous book, but then Wren suddenly disappeared on Grant right when he was about to propose. Grant has been pretty depressed about his situation and I like that as an alpha male, he showed vulnerability. His friends have been trying to help him, but he’s had a hard time moving on. One day, during work, Grant pulls Wren out of a fire in her apartment. He never thought she was still in the same city and was not expecting to run into her. So it really threw him for a loop. Since her apartment had burned down, Wren had no place to stay so Cait invited her to stay with them. Since Cait’s significant other is Gavin, one of Grant’s fireman’s family, it was inevitable that they would need to talk.

Readers will find out all about Wren’s backstory and why she ran. I was kind of mad at her for not telling Grant what sort of trouble she was in because, hello, he has like 100 fireman & police officer friends who could help!!! While they were both cautious about jumping into a relationship again, you could tell they never got over each other. They just lost 5 months together. I thought the author really showed the power of friendship and family, but the way all of Grant’s friends and family tried to support him and how they reacted to Wren coming back. Being involved with Grant means getting a huge family who has your back in tough times.  Grant is so nice, thoughtful and romantic.  OMG.  Just perfect husband material. I loved being in the Boston Fire family in this series. It was a good story and a perfect read for these cold winter nights. I highly recommend it.

Best Friends, Secret Lovers by Jessica Lemmon book review

Flynn and Sabrina have been best friends since college, along with Gage and Reid. Sabrina and Flynn grew apart when Flynn got married and his wife did not want him hanging out with Sabrina. Now that Flynn is going through a disastrous divorce, they are picking up where they left off. They are all older now (in their 30s) and all the guys are in a “no marriage” pact, Flynn’s father passed away and Flynn now has to run the corporation called Monarch consulting. The whole group works for Flynn, which makes for some interesting dynamics in the story.

Flynn has gotten grouchy at work and Gage and Reid have told him to take some time off. Sabrina is just the person to spend time with Flynn to get him back to normal. It just so happens that Sabrina’s plumbing is broken and she needs a temporary place to stay. So, Flynn takes advantage of the situation and invites her to stay at his place for a while. This is the perfect opportunity to spend time with each other and what could be if they just take a leap of faith with each other. This is a friends to lovers story, with witty dialogue and characters that are fun to spend time with. I like the corporate setting and the focus on friendship. This was the second book by Jessica Lemmon that I read and I really enjoyed it. Hopefully Gage and Reid will get their own stories and I will be waiting on release day for them.