PLBR Book Reviews 2018 - ELLES BOOK BLOG

ELLES BOOK BLOG

TO BURN IN BRUTAL RAPTURE BY NYLA K.

12/29/2020

To Burn in Brutal Rapture is a highly erotic forbidden romance of the best kind! I devoured this book despite the long page count and was extremely invested in the story! You should read it!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: October 22, 2020
Genre: Age Gap. Forbidden Romance.
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 637 pages
Format: eBook. Borrowed from Kindle Unlimited.

The ache of tragedy sunk deep, like the claws of a wicked monster.
To heal was to remember what my godfather told me when I was six…

Pain is a part of life. If you prepare for it, it will hurt less.

He would know, after all. Lazarus Weston is pain personified.

The scowling man with stormy eyes and tattoos covering his excessive muscles is not only my godfather, but also my dad’s business partner and best friend. A permanent fixture in our lives. Well, in Dad’s, not mine.

But when grief mixes with confusing new feelings, I’m forced to see Lazarus differently, in a way that severely complicates my world.
Because he’s too old for me. He’ll never be mine.

I’m not allowed to have him, but obsession burns a fine line between can’t and won’t.

THE COUSINS BY KAREN M. MCMANUS

12/25/2020

Young adult mystery and thrillers are my guilty pleasure and McManus slays the genre! I love a book that not only keeps me interested but surprises the heck out of me just like this one!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: December 1, 2020
Genre: Young Adult Mystery and Thriller
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 330 pages
Format: Hardcover. Purchased.

Milly, Aubrey, and Jonah Story are cousins, but they barely know each another, and they've never even met their grandmother. Rich and reclusive, she disinherited their parents before they were born. So when they each receive a letter inviting them to work at her island resort for the summer, they're surprised . . . and curious.

Their parents are all clear on one point--not going is not an option. This could be the opportunity to get back into Grandmother's good graces. But when the cousins arrive on the island, it's immediately clear that she has different plans for them. And the longer they stay, the more they realize how mysterious--and dark--their family's past is.

The entire Story family has secrets. Whatever pulled them apart years ago isn't over--and this summer, the cousins will learn everything.

DASHING THROUGH THE NO BY TARA SIVEC

12/21/2020

Tara Sivec does it again! She brings readers warmth and laughter in her latest novel and I know so many of you are going to gush over this quirky Christmas romance!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: November 19, 2020
Genre: Holiday Novella. Romantic Comedy.
Series: Summersweet Island #3 (can stand alone)
Pages: 200 pages
Format: Paperback. Purchased.

‘Twas the week before Christmas and all through Summersweet,
Tess Powell was annoyed and wanted to retreat.
With a BIC in her hand and a frown on her face,
everyone knew she needed a break from this place.
Wanting the holiday to be nothing but the best,
Bodhi took his girlfriend to the mountains to rest.
While visions of fire happily danced in Tess’s head,
soon she would see she had everything to dread.
Crying kids, singing hippos, and a stalker with a van,
definitely wasn’t part of Bodhi’s evacuation plan.
But all he wanted for Christmas was for her to say yes,
to the question he kept asking with zero finesse.
With some help from new friends and their holiday cheer,
Tess and Bodhi get much more
than they asked Santa for this year.

MISTLETOE AND MR. RIGHT BY SARAH MORGENTHALER

12/14/2020

Mistletoe and Mr. Right is a sweet, small town, Alaskan Christmas read. While some of it did drag for me, I enjoyed the story as a whole and look forward to reading the others in the series.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: October 6, 2020
Genre: Holiday Romance
Series: Moose Springs, Alaska #2 (can stand alone).
Pages: 400 pages
Format: Paperback. Purchased

How the moose (almost) stole Christmas.

Lana Montgomery is everything the quirky small town of Moose Springs, Alaska can't stand: a rich socialite with dreams of changing things for the better. But Lana's determined to prove that she belongs...even if it means trading her stilettos for snow boots and tracking one of the town's hairiest Christmas mysteries: the Santa Moose, an antlered Grinch hell-bent on destroying every bit of holiday cheer (and tinsel) it can sink its teeth into.

And really...how hard could it be?

The last few years have been tough on Rick Harding, and it's not getting any easier now that his dream girl's back in town. When Lana accidentally tranquilizes him instead of the Santa Moose, it's clear she needs help, fast...and this could be his chance to finally catch her eye. It's an all-out Christmas war, but if they can nab that

JINGLE WARS BY R. HOLMES AND VERONICA EDEN

12/10/2020

Jingle Wars is the perfect holiday read for diehard romance lovers! Not only is it filled with holiday cheer but it has a sexy and funny romance.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: November 10, 2020
Genre: Enemies-to-Lovers, Christmas romance.
Series: Hollyridge series #1 (can stand alone).
Pages: 276 pages
Format: eBook. Borrowed from Kindle Unlimited.

From bestselling authors R. Holmes & Veronica Eden comes an all-new steamy new adult enemies-to-lovers holiday romcom standalone.

Two inns, one town, and there’s not enough room for the both of them.

Add in a reindeer-ish donkey, a Christmas competition, and a rivalry to end all rivalries and you’re bound to end up in disaster, right?

Finn Mayberry has enough on his plate trying to keep his Grandparents inn afloat. The last thing he needed was some California state of mind starlet bulldozing into his town and throwing up a five-star resort right next to his family’s inn.

But, now she’s here and he can’t get her out of his town or his head.

EVERY LAST SECRET BY A.R. TORRE

12/1/2020

Alessandra Torre can write amazing romance novels but I have to say, I prefer her twisted thrillers! This is a must read. I devoured this book in one sitting!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: December 1, 2020
Genre: Domestic Thriller.
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 301 pages
Format: eBook. ARC kindly received by the publisher.

Welcome to the neighborhood. Watch your husband, watch your friends, and watch your back.

Cat Winthorpe has worked hard to get what she has: a gorgeous home; social standing; and William, her successful, handsome husband. Then a friendly new couple moves into the estate next door. While cautious, a good neighbor like Cat greets them with open arms and warm hospitality.

Neena Ryder isn’t a fellow lady of leisure. A life coach with off-the-rack dresses, personal issues, and a husband who hasn’t delivered, she’s anxious to move up in the world. This beautiful new town is a step in the right direction. It’s also making Neena aware of what she doesn’t have. Namely, William. When Neena’s infatuation escalates into obsession, it’s just a matter of eliminating a few obstacles to get the life she wants. The life next door.

NO-ONE EVER HAS SEX ON CHRISTMAS DAY BY TRACY BLOOM

11/22/2020

Tracy Bloom does it again! No-One Ever Has Sex on Christmas Day is another hilarious book in the series! This one is full on Christmas cheer and I enjoyed it immensely.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: October 24, 2017
Genre: Chick Lit. Holiday Reads.
Series: No-one Ever Has Sex series #3 (read in order).
Pages: 298 pages
Format: Paperback. Purchased.

A dream family Christmas or a total nightmare? Katy and Ben are about to find out...

Katy’s been stuck in the office away from her family so she wants it all: snow (fake or real), the Michael Bublé Christmas album, whatever it takes.

There’s only one thing missing as far as her husband Ben is concerned: another baby to complete their family. But Katy isn’t so sure she's ready yet…

Ben may be playing the role of Master Elf in the pre-school nativity but he is struggling to master his own family life. With romantically-challenged friends, an ex who refuses to go away and Katy's mum's 64-year-old toy boy thrown into the mix, Christmas looks like it could be going off the rails… Never mind family planning, can Katy and Ben even plan to make it to the end of Christmas Day?

THE TWELVE DATES OF CHRISTMAS BY JENNY BAYLISS

11/20/2020

If you're looking for a sweet and festive holiday read then you can't go wrong with The Twelve Dates of Christmas! I adored this one. It put me in the Christmas spirit!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: October 13, 2020
Genre: Christmas Romance. Chick Lit.
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 368 pages
Format: Paperback. ARC from the publisher.

'Tis the season for finding romance in this hilarious and uplifting holiday read

When it comes to relationships, thirty-four-year-old Kate Turner is ready to say "Bah, humbug." The sleepy town of Blexford, England, isn't exactly brimming with prospects, and anyway, Kate's found fulfillment in her career as a designer, and in her delicious side job baking for her old friend Matt's neighborhood café. But then her best friend signs her up for a dating agency that promises to help singles find love before the holidays. Twenty-three days until Christmas. Twelve dates with twelve different men. The odds must finally be in her favor . . . right?

Yet with each new date more disastrous than the one before--and the whole town keeping tabs on her misadventures--Kate must remind herself that sometimes love, like mistletoe, shows up where it's least expected. And maybe, just maybe, it's been right under her nose all along. . .

NO-ONE EVER HAS SEX IN THE SUBURBS BY TRACY BLOOM

11/18/2020

No-One Ever Has Sex in the Suburbs is the second book in this hilarious series by Tracy Bloom. If you enjoy chick lit novels about motherhood, marriage, and shenanigans, you need these books!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: June 23, 2015
Genre: Chick Lit. Romcom.
Series: The No-One Ever Has Sex series #2
Pages: 400 pages
Format: Paperback. Purchased.

Praise for No-One Ever Has Sex on a Tuesday:

"This hilarious book will sweep you up in its sheer brilliance" Marie Claire

Ben and Katy haven't had sex since Ben found out about her one-night stand with her childhood sweetheart, Matthew.

Not only that but the arrival of a new-born baby has blown their relationship apart like a hand grenade.

Drastic measures are required, so they swap roles hoping that everyone will be happier... Only it’s not as easy as they thought. When a desperate Ben starts secretly accepting help to solve his childcare disasters – from Matthew’s wife – it could mean the end of everything. Can their relationship survive the lies and suspicions and will they ever have sex again?

HAPPY AND YOU KNOW IT BY LAURA HANKIN

11/15/2020

Happy and You Know It was an unexpected pleasure! It's a scandalous read, and one perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty and Sarah Pekkanen. I can't wait to read more from the author!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: May 19, 2020
Genre: Women's Fiction
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 383 pages
Format: Hardcover from Book of the Month Box

A dark, witty page-turner about a struggling young musician who takes a job singing for a playgroup of overprivileged babies and their effortlessly cool moms, only to find herself pulled into their glamorous lives and dangerous secrets....

After her former band shot to superstardom without her, Claire reluctantly agrees to a gig as a playgroup musician for wealthy infants on New York's Park Avenue. Claire is surprised to discover that she is smitten with her new employers, a welcoming clique of wellness addicts with impossibly shiny hair, who whirl from juice cleanse to overpriced miracle vitamins to spin class with limitless energy.

There is perfect hostess Whitney who is on the brink of social-media stardom and just needs to find a way to keep her flawless life from falling apart. Caustically funny, recent stay-at-home mom Amara who is struggling to embrace her new identity. And old

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS BY WENDY LOGGIA

11/9/2020

This is my first Holiday read of the year and I am so excited because it was a winner! All I Want for Christmas is a sweet, clean, young adult romance with all the holiday cheer!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: November 3, 2020
Genre: Young Adult, Holiday Romance
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 240 pages
Format: eBook. ARC from the publisher.

This sweet and magical romance about a girl who has just one wish--someone to kiss under the mistletoe--is the perfect holiday escape!

Bailey Briggs is counting down the days to Christmas: she lives for holiday music, baking cookies, going on snowy sleigh rides, and wearing her light-up reindeer ears to work at Winslow's bookstore. But all she really wants this year is the one thing she doesn't have: someone special to kiss under the mistletoe. And she's 100 percent certain that that someone isn't Jacob Marley--athlete, player, and of questionable taste in girlfriends--and that Charlie, the mysterious stranger with the British accent, is the romantic lead of her dreams. Is she right?

This will be a December to remember, filled with real-life Christmas magic . . . and, if she stays on Santa's nice list, a wish that just might come true.

GET A LIFE, CHLOE BROWN BY TALIA HIBBERT

11/6/2020

Get a Life, Chloe Brown is one heck of a charming read and I loved every minute of it! While there were minor things that bothered me, when I think of the book as a whole, I loved it.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: November 5, 2019
Genre: Romantic Comedy
Series: The Brown Sisters #1 (can stand alone)
Pages: 387 pages
Format: Paperback. Purchased.

A witty, hilarious romantic comedy about a woman who’s tired of being “boring” and recruits her mysterious, sexy neighbor to help her experience new things--perfect for fans of Sally Thorne, Jasmine Guillory, and Helen Hoang!

Chloe Brown is a chronically ill computer geek with a goal, a plan, and a list. After almost—but not quite—dying, she’s come up with seven directives to help her “Get a Life”, and she’s already completed the first: finally moving out of her glamorous family’s mansion. The next items?

Enjoy a drunken night out.
Ride a motorcycle.
Go camping.
Have meaningless but thoroughly enjoyable sex.
Travel the world with nothing but hand luggage.
And... do something bad.

GOURD TO DEATH BY KRISTEN WEISS

11/4/2020

The Pie Town Mystery series is one of my favorite within the cozy genre and Gourd to Death did not disappoint! This is the perfect fall read as well.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: August 25, 2020
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Series: Pie Town Mystery series #5
Pages: 302 pages
Format: eBook. I received an ARC from the publisher.

This Halloween, pie shop proprietor Val Harris must patch together clues to solve a murder by pumpkin . . .

As the owner of Pie Town, Val’s been tapped to judge the pie making contest at the annual pumpkin festival in the coastal California town of San Nicholas. Things could get sticky though—her boyfriend, cop Gordon Carmichael, is entering the competition with his “special” family pumpkin pie recipe. But Val’s got bigger problems than a conflict of interest when she and her flaky piecrust-maker Charlene discover another contestant crushed under an enormous pumpkin.

When grudge-holding Chief Shaw comes up with a half-baked reason to toss Carmichael off the case and onto the suspect list, it's up to Val and Charlene to find the tricky killer. But as they dodge lethal pumpkin cannons and follow the clues into a figurative and literal maze, the pie pals are in for the scariest Halloween of their lives—and it may be their last . . .

LOVE YOUR LIFE BY SOPHIE KINSELLA

10/27/2020

Love Your Life is filled with Kinsella's trademark humor and I found myself loving this one to pieces! If you enjoy a book about love and dating then this should be your next read.

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: October 27, 2020
Genre: Chick Lit, Romantic Comedy.
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 432 pages
Format: eBook. I received an ARC from the publisher.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of I Owe You One, an utterly delightful novel about a woman who ditches her dating app for a writer's retreat in Italy--only to find that real love comes with its own filters

"As close to perfect as romantic comedies get."--Jenny Colgan, New York Times bestselling author of The Bookshop on the Corner

Call Ava romantic, but she thinks love should be found in the real world, not on apps that filter men by height, job, or astrological sign. She believes in feelings, not algorithms. So after a recent breakup and dating app debacle, she decides to put love on hold and escapes to a remote writers' retreat in coastal Italy. She's determined to finish writing the novel she's been fantasizing about, even though it means leaving her close-knit group of friends and her precious dog, Harold, behind.

THE GUEST LIST BY LUCY FOLEY

10/14/2020

Lucy Foley has written a near perfect thriller with The Guest List and I devoured each page. The atmospheric setting and the killer plot twist are insanely good!

Rating: ★★★★
Release Date: June 2, 2020
Genre: Murder Mystery. Psychological Thriller.
Series: None. Complete standalone.
Pages: 319 pages
Format: Hardcover. BOTM box.

A wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of Agatha Christie from the New York Times bestselling author of The Hunting Party.

The bride – The plus one – The best man – The wedding planner – The bridesmaid – The body

On an island off the coast of Ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. The groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. The bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. It’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. The cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed.

But perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. As the

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