Title:  Brewing Up a Bad Boy
Author: Katherine Garbera         
Genre: Romance        
Rating:  2.5 out of 5

Sometimes the second sip is sweetest.

In the cozy town of Birch Lake, tea shop owner Poppy Kitchener thought she’d left her mistakes, and her failed marriage, in the past. But when her ex-husband, Alistair Miller, turns up—as charming and irritatingly handsome as ever—those old feelings float to the surface. To top it off, he has a puzzling pretend they’re still married for his cousin’s wedding in exchange for a lucrative business deal with his family.

Easy enough, right? After all, this could be Poppy’s last chance to get closure, grow her business and use Alistair’s knowledge of microbrewing to help her finish that winning recipe for the tea competition.

But even after all this time, he still knows how to make her laugh. And he’s changed in ways that make Poppy wonder about the man he’s become… Can she trust this new Alistair with her heart, or will a second chance brew up disaster?

This was an okay read, but that’s as far as I’m willing to go. At first, Poppy and Alistair’s divorce was in the distant past, then it was 18 months ago. The first half of the book, Poppy wasn’t into anything spiritual, then suddenly she was a diehard practitioner. This needs another round of editing to make it palatable. I enjoyed the tea stuff, but the “As you know, Bob,” discussions of kombucha and brewing felt like I was being waterboarded.

Katherine Garbera is a bestselling author. Brewing Up a Bad Boy is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Harlequin/Afterglow in exchange for an honest review.)

Title:  Only in Your Dreams  
Author:  Ellie K Wilde       
Genre:  Romance       
Rating:  4 out of 5

If he can prove he loved her then, and he loves her still, this time might be different.

Ten years after one of the most heartbreaking nights of her life, Melody Woods is back in her small hometown of Oakwood Bay, broke, jaded, and unceremoniously dumped by her big-city boyfriend. To top it all off, her twin brother, Parker, is pushing her to take his spot on a camping trip with the one guy she’s spent a decade avoiding.

For college football coach Zac Porter, his best friend’s twin sister, Melody, has always been off-limits. And after fumbling his chance ten years ago, a devastated Zac was sure he’d lost Melody for good. So, when Melody shows up at the campsite instead of Parker, Zac realizes that now is the time to prove to her that they were always meant to be, no matter how long it takes to make up for his teenage self’s mistake.

Reeling from the truth of her last relationship, Melody plans to stay in town just long enough to get back on her feet. Then, she’s gone again. Meanwhile, Zac is facing an uphill battle to coach his team to its first winning game in years, to show Melody how she deserves to be loved, and to keep Parker from ever finding out. Maybe then, being with her will be more than just a dream.

I like second chance romances, and this was a fun read. Melody and her antics kept me entertained, and Zac seemed too good to be true—while Melody’s ex was no good at all. This was pretty steamy—very steamy, actually. This would make a perfect weekend binge-read.

Ellie K Wilde is from Canada. Only in Your Dreams is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Atria Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Title:  Earl Crush  
Author: Alexandra Vasti         
Genre: Romance        
Rating:  4 out of 5

For three years, wallflower heiress Lydia Hope-Wallace has anonymously penned seditious pamphlets. And for almost as long, she’s corresponded with the Earl of Strathrannoch, whose political ambition is matched only by his charm. When Arthur’s latest letter reveals his dire financial straits, Lydia sets out for Scotland to offer him the only salvation she can think of—a marriage of convenience. To, um, herself.

Unfortunately, the Earl of Strathrannoch has no idea who she is.

When a bewitching redheaded stranger offers him her hand in marriage, Arthur Baird is stunned—but when he learns that his traitorous brother has been writing to her under Arthur’s name, he’s bloody furious. He’s content to live alone in his moldering castle, and he has no desire for a provocative, radical wife. (Or at least, he shouldn’t.)

But Arthur is desperate to track down his brother, who’s become dangerously entangled in British espionage, and he needs Lydia’s help. What he doesn’t need? The attraction that burns hotter each moment they spend together. As Lydia slips past his defenses and his brother’s mysterious past becomes a very present threat, Arthur will have to risk everything to keep her safe—even his heart.

I really enjoy Alexandra Vasti’s books, and this was a fun one, too. That scene with the zebras had me laughing! Lydia was a fun character, and Arthur was a good one, too. Several fun adventures here, set against a more modern viewpoint than was probably common back then, but this was a fun read.

Alexandra Vasti lives in Louisiana. Earl Crush is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Title:  Work in Progress
Author: Kat Mackenzie     
Genre: Romance        
Rating:  3.8

UK Bus Trip Goals:

1. Crawl out of pajamas.

2. Get over cheating bastard and his stupid ironed jeans.

3. Have my first real adventure!

4. Achieve stability, strength, and growth.

5. Definitely do NOT kiss any British men.

Alice loves a good list. But careful planning didn’t stop her from losing her job and her fiance in one fell swoop. With her dreaded 30th birthday looming on the horizon, Alice makes the first impulsive decision of her life – booking a flight to the UK for a three-week, all-female, literary bus tour. What could possibly go wrong?

Turns out – everything.

Alice arrives to discover that this tour isn’t what she expected. At all. Instead of cool, globe-trotting thirtysomethings with meaningful tattoos, she finds a rickety, antique bus full of fluffy-haired octogenarians. And to make matters infinitely worse, the tour guide makes her blood boil! And that devilish grin of his tells her he’s dead set on making her trip a misery.

But as they travel from castle ruins to cozy pubs, Alice may just find that she’s got it all wrong. The ladies are vivacious. The book club chat is on fire. And damn if that mischievous smile doesn’t threaten to turn her world upside down – and her beloved list right along with it!

I have to be honest:  Alice was very off-putting for me for the first bit. Her absolute hatred for Robby was almost irrational—and she was vicious. I liked her personality when she wasn’t being rabid, so I kept reading, and she did improve. I loved the group of ladies she was with on the literary tour, and I would have signed up for that trip in a hot second!

Kat Mackenzie is an American who loves to travel. Work in Progress is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Avon and Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review.)

Title:  A Legend in the Baking  
Author:   Jamie Wesley       
Genre:  Romance       
Rating:  3.8

August Hodges was supposed to be the silent partner in Sugar Blitz Cupcakes. Emphasis on silent. That is until his impromptu feminist rant about how women bakers are the backbone of the industry and baking cupcakes isn’t a threat to masculinity goes viral, making him the hottest bachelor in town. With a new location in the works, August and his partners decide to capitalize on this perfect opportunity to help cement their place in the community. But the hiring of his best friend’s younger sister, the woman who has haunted some of his best dreams for years, was as much of a shock as his new-found fame.

Social media manager Sloane Dell fell hard for her brother’s best friend the moment she met him more than a decade ago, but that teenage infatuation cost her dearly. Still, she accepts her brother’s request to revamp the bakery’s social media presence to take advantage of August’s newfound popularity, knowing it’s the big break her fledgling career needs. She’ll just ignore the fact that August is still August, i.e. sexier and sweeter than any man has a right to be. And that he drives her crazy with his resistance to all her ideas.

They vow to leave the past in the past. But when an explosive make-out session makes it clear their attraction burns hotter than ever, Sloane and August are forced to reconsider what it means to take a risk and chase your dreams.

As they’re both about to find out, all’s fair in love and cupcakes.

This was a decent read (I DNFed the first book in the series, so this one was clearly more to my taste). I enjoy second chance romances, although this one wasn’t quite that. I didn’t feel like there was much conflict here, except the manufactured one with the protestors—there was no hint of trouble, then, boom, they’re picketing? Again, this was decent, but nothing out-of-the-ordinary.

Jamie Wesley holds a master’s degree in sports management. A Legend in the Baking is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)