Category: 5 Star

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Kimberly reviews Dark Tarot by Christine Feehan

TITLE: Dark Tarot
SERIES #: Dark #31
CHARACTERS: Sandu & Adalasia
AUTHOR: Christine Feehan
PUBLICATION DATE: 11/09/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon  | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Sandu Berdardi continues to exist only to protect his people. An ancient Carpathian, his entire long life has been dedicated to honor above all else. He knows his time has passed, especially since he has not been able to find his lifemate — the anchor to keep him sane in a world he no longer understands. But just as he truly starts to give up hope, a voice reaches out to him in the night and his world explodes into color.

Adalasia enters Sandu’s mind seamlessly, as if she has been a part of him forever. While she can see the shape of things to come in her deck of cards, her gift is both a blessing and a curse. The true course of Sandu’s quest remains unclear, with danger waiting at every turn. She cannot see everything the future holds, but she does know it is a journey they will take together.

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts This is the 31st… YES! 31st! In the Dark series (part of the Carpathian series) and how this author keeps the books fresh and entertaining and wanting to read the next one as soon as the reader is done with this one is a mystery.

This story is filled with action, romance, sacrifice and travel. The story takes place in countless states in America and many countries around the world. Sandu has been in a few recent novels and I am so glad that we finally got his story. And Adalasia is perfect for him.

Feehan delivers the best in the series in a while and that is saying something. Feehan never disappoints.

While I would say that yes you can read this story as a stand alone (sorta) but I really recommend that you read the entire series so you understand the Carpathian dynamic.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Winter Romance Wednesday! Kimberly reviews A Lot Like Christmas by Jennifer Snow

TITLE: A Lot Like Christmas
SERIES #: Blue Moon #2
CHARACTERS: Jessica & Mitch
AUTHOR: Jennifer Snow
PUBLICATION DATE: 09/28/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
This Christmas season, love comes where you least expect it.

For Jessica Connolly, there is no better place than her coastal hometown of Blue Moon Bay. She has a wonderful family, supportive best friends, and a successful bakery on Main Street. Unfortunately, every time she designs one of her ex-boyfriends’ wedding cakes, she’s reminded just how unlucky she is with love…and that she’s a good luck charm for men to find their happily ever after. With someone else. The minute they break up. So she’s decided to be done with love.

Dr. Mitch Jameson is more comfortable traveling the world with Doctors Without Borders than staying in one place. He just needs to survive the holidays in his small hometown before he can leave again. The beautiful, intriguing bakery owner with an aversion to dating might be just who he needs to occupy his restless heart.

From sipping hot chocolates at the local festival of lights to early morning dessert deliveries, Jessica and Mitch rediscover the spirit of the holidays. But when the 25 days of Christmas are over, will their romance be over, too?

Each book in the Blue Moon Bay series is STANDALONE:
* A Lot Like Love
* A Lot Like Christmas

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts What if you were a good luck charm… In love… For others.. Not yourself… Well that is what Jessica is known for. She has dated men who find their real loves right after dating her. And to make matters worse they all want Jessica to make their wedding cakes. Hooked yet? You should be.

Not hooked yet? Ok what if you are a doctor who is on a break from Doctors Without Borders and is forced to go home to your family and are counting down the days until you can go back to Cambodia and then you meet an adorable baker and suddenly one month isn’t long enough since there is a deadline until you head back to where you are most needed. Hooked now?

What if I said all of this happens during the merriest time of the year. Now you are hooked! Jessica and Mitch are delightful together. I loved all the emotions they went through and including family issues, PTSD and self awareness.

I read this is July but part of me wished I had waited until the Christmas season when I could have sat under a cozy blanket with a cup of hot cocoa and had some me time because this is a great story to get you into the mood for romance and the holidays.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews Rebel’s Karma by Rebecca Zanetti

TITLE: Rebel’s Karma
SERIES #: Dark Protectors #13
CHARACTERS: Karma & Benjamin
AUTHOR: Rebecca Zanetti
PUBLICATION DATE: 06/08/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
There’s no denying destiny . . .

For too long, Benjamin Reese has masked his deadly skills and temper with loyalty and humor. A vampire-demon hybrid, he fiercely protects his family, guards his brothers, and destroys the enemy without mercy. But when he discovers one fragile, beautiful blonde—a woman once mated to a Kurjan, no less—every primal instinct he has buried for centuries roars to life. With the mating mark she roused on his hand entwining their fates, no one will prevent him from keeping her safe and making her his, forever . . .

Or desire . . .

Karma wishes she could remember her last name. Or if she even had one. All she has in this confusing new world is a desperate duty to save the innocent. That means destroying the dark, dangerous, and desirable Benjamin Reese and everything he loves—an impossible task even before his touch arouses a passionate hunger she can’t afford. She’s certain a deadly enemy watches her every move, but it’s not until Benny kisses her that she tastes true danger…

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts As a fan of Rebecca Zannetti I look forward to every book that comes out but honestly I have waited for what seems like forever for Benny’s story. And I was not disappointed.

Benny and Karma are meant for each other but they do now know it… Well, maybe they do but Zanetti doesn’t make it easy on them.

I could tell you the synopsis and give you a short view but you can read that in other reviews. What I want to say is this series is on #13 with more planned but Zanetti has not let this series go stale. Each character is one that begins to live with you and the reader will automatically recall her characters when someone asks you your go to PNR series. Talon, who has a cameo in this book, is a favorite of many fans.

I will say you can read each story as a stand alone but I am not sure why you would. You need the background to really appreciate each story.

If you are a fan of PNR then you probably already know this author and series but if not you will not be disappointed.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews The Path To Sunshine Cove by RaeAnne Thayne

TITLE: The Path To Sunshine Cove
SERIES #: Cape Sanctuary #2
CHARACTERS: Jessica & Rachel
AUTHOR: RaeAnne Thayne
PUBLICATION DATE: 03/30/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon| B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
With the emotional pull of Debbie Macomber, Barbara Delinsky and Susan Wiggs, RaeAnne Thayne brings readers an uplifting, brand new story told with her trademark charm and heart.

She knows what’s best for everyone but herself…

With a past like hers, Jessica Clayton feels safer in a life spent on the road. She’s made a career out of helping others downsize–because she’s learned the hard way that the less “stuff,” the better, a policy she applies equally to her relationships. But a new client is taking Jess back to Cape Sanctuary, a town she once called home…and that her little sister, Rachel, still does. The years apart haven’t made a dent in the guilt Jess still carries after a handgun took the lives of both their parents and changed everything between them.

While Jess couldn’t wait to put the miles between her and Cape Sanctuary, Rachel put down roots, content for the world–and her sister–to think she has a picture-perfect life. But with the demands of her youngest child’s disability, Rachel’s marriage has begun to fray at the seams. She needs her sister now more than ever, yet she’s learned from painful experience that Jessica doesn’t do family, and she shouldn’t count on her now.

Against her judgment, Jess finds herself becoming attached–to her sister and her family, even to her client’s interfering son, Nate–and it’s time to put everything on the line. Does she continue running from her painful past, or stay put and make room for the love and joy that come along with it?

REVIEW:
4.5 Hearts This is a RaeAnne Thayne book so of course it is a great read!!! I might have had more than a passing fan feel to this book since my son has autism. Let me explain.

Jess comes back to Cape Sanctuary where she used to live. Her sister, Rachel, still lives there but their relationship is a bit strained. And while the world sees Rachel’s life as perfect there is a lot more going on. Rachel’s son has just been diagnosed with Autism and it seems her world is unraveling and when she needs her sister the most her sister hasn’t been there. And now Jess is back and Rachel hopes she will have the sister she desperately needs. But Jess doesn’t feel the same…. Or does she? Jess is becoming more attached especially to her nephew and the relationship with her sister is slowly growing.

Now, like I said I have a son who was diagnosed with Autism but thankfully a very high functioning child on the spectrum. I remember the feeling when I was told our lives would be changed and the first person I called was my sister. I couldn’t imagine having the relationship that Jess and Rachel have.

So the story was palpable to me and is so true to life. Thayne is a master at women’s fiction and high on my recommendation to strangers list but this will be the book I recommend at the same time I recommend Thayne.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews The Vineyard At Painted Moon by Susan Mallery

TITLE: The Vineyard At Painted Moon
CHARACTERS: Mackenzie Dienes
AUTHOR: Susan Mallery
PUBLICATION DATE: 02/09/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Step into the vineyard with Susan Mallery’s most irresistible novel yet, as one woman searches for the perfect blend of love, family and wine.

Mackenzie Dienes seems to have it all—a beautiful home, close friends and a successful career as an elite winemaker with the family winery. There’s just one problem—it’s not her family, it’s her husband’s. In fact, everything in her life is tied to him—his mother is the closest thing to a mom that she’s ever had, their home is on the family compound, his sister is her best friend. So when she and her husband admit their marriage is over, her pain goes beyond heartbreak. She’s on the brink of losing everything. Her job, her home, her friends and, worst of all, her family.

Staying is an option. She can continue to work at the winery, be friends with her mother-in-law, hug her nieces and nephews—but as an employee, nothing more. Or she can surrender every piece of her heart in order to build a legacy of her own. If she can dare to let go of the life she thought she wanted, she might discover something even more beautiful waiting for her beneath a painted moon.

REVIEW:
I am a HUGE fan of Susan Mallery’s and never miss her books because I know they will be a great read but I was not expecting just how good this one would be.

In short, Mackenzie marries into her best friends family and believes she becomes one of them but after almost two decades together her husband wants a divorce and it becomes crystal clear how much of an outsider Mackenie is with the people she believed to be her family.

This book, as with most reads by Mallery, had me laughing and chuckling but what doesn’t normally happen is a tear rolling down my cheek or a lump in my throat and that happened too.

I found myself wanting to crawl into the book and let Mackenzie know she wasn’t alone and that I was her friend and when an author can do that to a reader you know they have written magic.

I will always tell readers to pick up a Mallery book (I can not tell you how many times I have said that to people in stores) but this one will be one of the books I actually call out by name.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kimberly reviews All The Colors Of Night by Jayne Ann Krentz

TITLE: All The Colors Of Night
SERIES #: Fogg Lake #2
CHARACTERS: Sierra & North
AUTHOR: Jayne Ann Krentz
PUBLICATION DATE: 01/05/21
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Two psychics plunge into a dark world of deadly secrets in this second installment of the Fogg Lake trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Jayne Ann Krentz.

North Chastain possesses a paranormal talent that gives him the ability to track down the most dangerous psychic criminals. When his father suddenly falls into a coma, North is convinced it was caused by a deadly artifact traced back to the days of a secret government laboratory known only as the Bluestone Project. North knows his only hope of saving his father is to find the artifact. He is good when it comes to tracking down killers but to locate the relic, he’s going to need help from a psychic who knows the shadowy world of obsessive collectors, deceptive dealers, and ruthless raiders…

With her reputation in ruins after a false accusation, antique expert Sierra Raines is looking for a fresh start. She turns to the murky backwaters of the paranormal artifacts trade, finding and transporting valuable objects with a psychic provenance. When North Chastain approaches her for help, Sierra takes him on as a client, though not without reservations. North represents the mysterious Foundation, the secretive organization established to police the underworld populated by psychic criminals and those, like Sierra, who make a living in the shadows of that world.

North and Sierra soon find themselves at the scene of The Incident that occurred decades ago in Fogg Lake. The town and its residents were forever changed by the disaster in the nearby Bluestone Project labs. The pair unearth shocking truths about what happened that fateful night, but they are playing with fire—someone in town knows what they’ve discovered and will do anything to make sure the secrets stay buried.

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts As with all of JAK’s books I loved this book. I somehow managed to miss the first in the series but while I will be catching up and reading book one this can be a stand alone.

This book has a bit of paranormal and a good amount of romance. North’s father is dying. Sierra’s job is to find psychic relics and North needs Sierra to find the relic that may save his father.

I loved the main characters. Sierra and North are really interesting characters alone but put them together and they are terrific. As JAK normally does she writes Sierra as a strong independent woman who isn’t looking for a man but when North falls in her lap she is smart enough to know the connection means something. I love how JAK writes women!

North is a good guy too. Not that there isn’t conflict and it is all peaches and cream because it isn’t but the couple works perfectly.

I really enjoyed the story. It was one that I wanted to rush through to read every word but also didn’t want to read too fast because the story would end.

JAK is one of the best and this book is just proof.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Winter Romance Wednesday! Kimberly reviews Christmas At Holiday House by RaeAnne Thayne

TITLE: Christmas At Holiday House
CHARACTERS: Abby & Ethan
AUTHOR: RaeAnne Thayne
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/06/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
In the town of Silver Bells, there’s always a feeling of Christmas in the air… Let love—and RaeAnne Thayne—melt your heart this holiday season!

This New Year will bring widowed nurse Abigail Powell a fresh start in a different city. Excited about the chance to create an unforgettable Christmas for her young son in picturesque Silver Bells, Colorado, Abby has been hired to take care of her dear friend’s recuperating grandmother. But sprightly senior Winnie insists she doesn’t need looking after. What she does need is help decorating her historic mansion, Holiday House, for a seasonal town fundraiser. Abby warms to the festive task, but she’ll have to contend with her own personal Grinch: Winnie’s prickly grandson, Ethan Lancaster.

Ethan Lancaster is good at a lot of things. Relationships surely aren’t one of them. His ex-fiancée convinced Ethan he was incapable of love, and he believes her…up until the moment he impulsively kisses Abby. What is it about this vibrant woman and her sweet son that knocks his world off-kilter? He knows they’re leaving town after Christmas. He just didn’t expect they’d be taking a little of his heart with them. But as he and Abby work together on the magical Holiday House through the record cold weather, visions of a different future dance in his head…one filled with warmth, love and a new beginning for them both.

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts I love all of RaeAnne Thayne’s books but there is something special about the Holiday/Christmas novels that she writes and this one was simply one of the best yet.

Abby is brought to town to help with her best friend’s grandmother. She feels this will give her son a festival holiday and she is slowly pulled into the town and the wonderful people she comes across. Ethan is one of those people and sparks fly but neither Abby nor Ethan are sure that they are ready for or even can love.

The city of Silver Bells makes you want to climb through the book and head there for the holidays. Thayne has a way of pulling you into her stories with the meeting of the first character.

Another worthy read to get into the Holiday/Christmas spirit.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kelly reviews Nice Werewolves Don’t Bite Vampires by Molly Harper

TITLE: Nice Werewolves Don’t Bite Vampires
SERIES: Half-Moon Hollow #8
CHARACTERS: Tylene McClaine & Alex Bonfils
AUTHORS: Molly Harper
NARRATOR: Amanda Ronconi
RUN TIME: Hours & Minutes
PUBLICATION DATE: September 28, 2020
ORDER LINKS: Audible | Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
The “enchanting” (Publishers Weekly) Jane Jameson series is back with a new paranormal romantic comedy about werewolf yearning to find her own place world, and the group of admittedly unique vampires who help her find love.
Tylene McClaine, black sheep of the McClaine Half-Moon Hollow werewolf pack, has spent a lifetime blocking out the criticisms of her boisterous pack. They say she’s too bookish, too sarcastic, and worst of all, too picky when it comes to finding a nice werewolf boy and settling down.
But when she meets vampire and Half-Moon Hollow music teacher, Alex Bonfils, Tylene starts to wonder if she could create the life she’s always wanted. She takes every precaution to meet her sexy vamp in secret, but when a vandal around town starts targeting vampire businesses, she fears her family might have found her out. When the damage in town escalates, Tylene and Alex join forces with Jane Jameson, Dick Cheney, and the whole vampire gang to find the culprit and save Half-Moon Hollow before it’s too late!

REVIEW:
Tylene McClaine has always known she isn’t your typical wolf, but she didn’t know just how unusually she really was until she started hanging out with vampires.
Alex Bonfils has lived a very long life and never has found a place to call home. That is until now, but he has to convenience a certain werewolf to take a chance on him.

You know what I love the most about long series? That every time there is a new book in that series it feels like coming home. That is exactly how I feel about Molly Harper’s Half-Moon Hollow series. I just love to see what shenanigans the gang is up to, to catch up with them and of course meet the news members of the family. Nice Werewolves Don’t Bite Vampires is all that and more. I loved Tylene & Alex together! The make a wonderful couple and bring some spice and calm to the Half-Moon Hollow family
Amanda Ronconi again lends her talents to the Half-Moon Hollow series. It is so great to have a narrator that is able to do so many voices. I also love the fact that I never feel like Amanda is just reading words off a screen. She is so good at telling these stories and bringing the characters to life.
I am already looking forward to the next adventure in this series.

Disclaimer:
I purchased this book from Audible.com and this review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

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Kimberly reviews Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

TITLE: Magic Lessons
SERIES #: Practical Magic #0
CHARACTERS: Maria & Hannah
AUTHOR: Alice Hoffman
PUBLICATION DATE: 10/06/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
In an unforgettable novel that traces a centuries-old curse to its source, beloved author Alice Hoffman unveils the story of Maria Owens, accused of witchcraft in Salem, and matriarch of a line of the amazing Owens women and men featured in Practical Magic and The Rules of Magic.

Where does the story of the Owens bloodline begin? With Maria Owens, in the 1600s, when she’s abandoned in a snowy field in rural England as a baby. Under the care of Hannah Owens, Maria learns about the “Unnamed Arts.” Hannah recognizes that Maria has a gift and she teaches the girl all she knows. It is here that she learns her first important lesson: Always love someone who will love you back.

When Maria is abandoned by the man who has declared his love for her, she follows him to Salem, Massachusetts. Here she invokes the curse that will haunt her family. And it’s here that she learns the rules of magic and the lesson that she will carry with her for the rest of her life. Love is the only thing that matters.

Magic Lessons is a celebration of life and love and a showcase of Alice Hoffman’s masterful storytelling.

REVIEW:
4.5 Hearts Any fan of Practical Magic needs to read this book. Ever wondered why the family is cursed about their first loves? Wonder how they became witches? Well this book you will learn from Maria Owens. Through her history we learn how what we know began.

I enjoyed this story. This is not about witches or witchcraft or the supernatural. Just as with Practical Magic it is about love, family and learning about yourself.

Maria starts off as an abandoned baby and is raised by a witch. She becomes a servant, follows her “true love” to Salem, Mass (we all know that area) and then on to NYC.

As I said in the beginning. Any fan of Practical Magic needs to read this book!

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

4 Hearts

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Winter Romance Wednesday! Kimberly reviews Happily This Christmas by Susan Mallery

TITLE: Happily This Christmas
SERIES #: Happily Inc #6
CHARACTERS: Wynn & Garrick
AUTHOR: Susan Mallery
PUBLICATION DATE: 09/29/20
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Susan Mallery, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Fool’s Gold romances, proves there’s no place like Happily Inc for the holidays…

There’s no place like Happily Inc for the holidays…

Wynn Beauchene has a thriving business, a great kid and a mildly embarrassing crush on the guy next door—local cop Garrick McCabe. She’s a strong, independent woman who can’t help dreaming what-if about a man she barely knows. Until he needs her help…

Garrick’s pregnant daughter will be home for Christmas, and his house needs a woman’s touch. Garrick and his little girl were tight once and he’s hoping a small-town Christmas will bring her back to him. But thawing his daughter’s frosty attitude will take more than a few twinkle lights. Maybe sharing the holiday with Wynn and her son will remind her of the joy of family.

As the season works its magic on these wounded souls, Wynn realizes it’s time to stop punishing herself for a painful secret, while Garrick remains haunted by the ghosts of past mistakes. Will he allow Wynn to open the only gift she truly wants—his heart?

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts Happily, Inc (and Fool’s Gold) are my favorite places to visit. Susan Mallery is honestly one of my favorite authors. She pulls me in before I have finished the first page. And this book is no different. Especially for the holidays!

Ok so let’s say it out right. This is a holiday romance so we know with the magic of the holidays Mallery will give us a HEA. But this isn’t about the ending but about the getting there. In this novel Wynn has been secretly in love with Garrick for a while. And now he could use his help when his daughter comes to town.

I really like all the characters in the story. Wynn and Garrick are so sweet together They both need each other but have no idea how or why. And then they both have a child and they need Wynn and Garrick too. And of course the people of the town make visiting Happily, Inc a great place to spend the holidays.

There is no way to read a Susan Mallery book and not love it. I could go into all the wonderful things in this book but there are too many.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

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Kelly reviews See Her Die by Melinda Leigh

TITLE: See Her Die
SERIES #: Bree Taggert #2
CHARACTERS: Bree Taggert & Matt Flynn
AUTHOR: Melinda Leigh
PUBLICATION DATE: September 15, 2020
ORDER LINKS: Amazon | B&N

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
Sheriff Bree Taggert is both hunter and hunted in #1 Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Melinda Leigh’s blood-freezing thriller of murder, rage, and revenge.
New sheriff Bree Taggert is called to a shooting in a campground shuttered for the winter. But she arrives to find a perplexing crime. There is no shooter, no victim, and no blood. No one but Bree believes the sole witness, Alyssa, a homeless teenager who insists she saw her friend shot.
Bree calls in former deputy Matt Flynn and his K-9 to track the killer and search for Alyssa’s friend. They discover the battered corpse of a missing university student under the ice in Grey Lake—but it’s not the victim they were looking for.
When two more students go missing and additional bodies turn up, Bree must find the link between the victims. She knows only one thing for certain: the murders are fueled by rage. When Alyssa disappears, Bree must race against time to find her before her witness becomes another victim.

REVIEW:
4.75 Hearts Bree Taggert is having to deal with her first major case since taking over as sheriff. This case will test Bree both professionally and personally. She has to learn how to balance the job and her new family. But can she rely on the people under her command? She calls in the one person that she knows she can trust 100%, Matt Flynn.
Together they will race against the clock to find a killer.

See Her Die is the second book in Melinda Leigh’s Bree Taggert series (bk 1 Cross Her Heart). I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love Bree’s character. She has been through a lot that makes her an excellent sheriff and even better Aunt. I am very much looking forward to the next installment in this series and can’t wait to see Bree and Matt’s relationship grow.

Disclaimer:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley & Montlake Romance in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.