Title:   How to Help a Hungry Werewolf
Author: Charlotte Stein         
Genre:  Romance       
Rating:  2.5 out of 5

When Cassandra Camberwell returns to her hometown of Hollow Brook to clear out her late grandmother’s ramshackle old house, the last thing she expects is Seth Brubaker on her doorstep. Her former best friend was responsible for the worst moment of her high school life, and she can’t imagine he wants to do anything but torment her all over again.

Until she unearths the real reason this annoyingly gorgeous beast of a man keeps hanging around: he’s an actual werewolf, who’s certain she’s the witch that will ease his suffering. But Cassie just isn’t sure if she can trust him again. So Seth offers a pact: he’ll teach her all about her undiscovered magic, and she will brew the potions he needs. No feelings, no funny business, just a witch and a werewolf striking a deal.

Totally doable. Until they get hit with a do-or-die mating bond. And now the heat is rising, in between fights with formers bullies and encounters with talking raccoons. They just have to not give in. Unless giving in just might be the very thing they never knew they always wanted.

I thought the first half of this was decent, if a little predictable and juvenile. The second half turned into some sort of wannabe-erotica without any believable worldbuilding or plot. I’m not sure what else to say about it.

Charlotte Stein lives in Leeds. How to Help a Hungry Werewolf is her newest novel.

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

Title:   All I Want Is You
Author:     Falon Ballard     
Genre: Romance   
Rating: 4 out of 5

Bitter exes. Professional rivals. Just one bed.

What could go wrong?

Jessica Carrington always wanted her own happily ever after. But, until that happens, she spends her days as a small-time romance writer, penning satisfying Happily Ever Afters to soothe the heartache left by her ex-boyfriend Nick Matthews, a fellow romance writer and now her biggest rival, who has found success writing love stories without happy endings. It’s clearly what he’s good at, after all . . .

So, when their professional obligations find them snowed in – and forced to share a room! – at the same remote inn a few days before Christmas, Jess and Nick are both fuming. But what’s more fitting for two romantic writers in a slump? And when they realize the friction between them might be the only cure for their writer’s block, they decide to turn their frustration into fiction . . . and the pages start flying.

Jess can’t shake the feeling that Nick is the last guy on earth she should be falling for (again), but, as they both finally get back in their flow, is he actually all she wants for Christmas?

There are a lot of tropes happening in this one, but it was still a fun read. I liked Jessica—and her two best friends—and found her a lot of fun. Nick was also a good character and the chemistry between them was great. This was a quick, fun read with a solid dose of heat between the characters.

Falon Ballard is from L.A. All I Want is You is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Group Putnam in exchange for an honest review.)

Website:      http://www.falonballard.com/Amazon:    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CQWVVTF5/ref=x_gr_bb_kindle?caller=Goodreads&tag=x_gr_bb_kindle-20 Title:   All I
Want Is You Author:     Falon Ballard 
   Genre: Romance         Rating: 4 out of 5  Bitter exes.
Professional rivals. Just one bed.What could go wrong? Jessica Carrington
always wanted her own happily ever after. But, until that happens, she spends
her days as a small-time romance writer, penning satisfying Happily Ever Afters
to soothe the heartache left by her ex-boyfriend Nick Matthews, a fellow romance
writer and now her biggest rival, who has found success writing love stories
without happy endings. It’s clearly what he’s good at, after all . . . So, when their
professional obligations find them snowed in – and forced to share a room! – at
the same remote inn a few days before Christmas, Jess and Nick are both fuming.
But what’s more fitting for two romantic writers in a slump? And when they realize
the friction between them might be the only cure for their writer’s block, they
decide to turn their frustration into fiction . . . and the pages start flying. Jess can’t shake the
feeling that Nick is the last guy on earth she should be falling for (again),
but, as they both finally get back in their flow, is he actually all she wants
for Christmas? There are a lot of
tropes happening in this one, but it was still a fun read. I liked Jessica—and her
two best friends—and found her a lot of fun. Nick was also a good character and
the chemistry between them was great. This was a quick, fun read with a solid
dose of heat between the characters. Falon Ballard is from
L.A. All I Want is You is her newest novel. (Galley courtesy of Penguin
Group Putnam in exchange for an honest review.) Book Review:  All I Want Is You, by Falon Ballard

Title:  Casket Case  
Author:   Lauren Evans
Genre: Romance, fantasy        
Rating: 3 out of 5

In this warm-hearted debut rom-com, a young woman returns home to run her family’s casket business and falls in love with a seemingly perfect stranger. But there’s just one problem . . . he works for Death.

Nora thought she was finished with Rabbittown, Alabama, for good. But an unexpected tragedy turned her life upside down, and she’s found herself back in her tiny hometown running the family casket business.

There aren’t exactly a lot of prospects for a single woman in her thirties in a place like Rabbittown. Until Nora Clanton’s ordinary, casket-selling day is interrupted by a handsome stranger wandering into her shop and asking for directions–as well as a date.

Garrett Bishop seems like the ideal guy. He’s thoughtful, he’s kind, and he has a lucrative job as a logistics coordinator, for which he seems to have a passion. She’s not totally sure what “logistics” entails, but she knows it means long hours, lots of travel, and urgent calls in the middle of the night.

When a few of Rabbittown’s residents suddenly pass away–a heart attack here, a car crash there–and Garrett is spotted at the scenes of, well, all of the deaths, his frustratingly vague job description starts to become increasingly . . . suspicious. What is it that Garrett actually does for a living?

He’s a logistics coordinator for Death.

When Nora discovers the truth, she is unable to reconcile the wonderful man she knows with the unthinkably cruel job he loves. Will she ever be able to understand how he can do what he does, or will she have to lay her best chance at love to rest?

This was an interesting premise, but it felt so slow! And yet, it also included insta-love with no explanation, so that part felt fast. Nora was so passive she got on my nerves. She’s dissatisfied with her life, yet unwilling to take any sort of action at all. And Garrett seems way too good to be true. I never figured out what they saw in each other—or why they got together. The execution of this idea underwhelmed me a bit.

Lauren Evans lives in Atlanta. Casket Case is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House in exchange for an honest review.)

Title:  The Break-Up Pact  
Author:  Emma Lord        
Genre:  Romance       
Rating:  4 out of 5

June and Levi were best friends as teenagers—until the day they weren’t. Now June is struggling to make rent on her beachside tea shop, Levi is living a New York cliché as a disillusioned hedge fund manager and failed novelist, and they’ve barely spoken in years.

But after they both experience public, humiliating break-ups with their exes that spread like wildfire across TikTok rabbit holes and daytime talk shows alike, they accidentally make some juicy gossip of their own—a photo of them together has the internet convinced they’re a couple. With so many people rooting for them, they decide to put aside their rocky past and make a pact to fuel the fire. Pretending to date will help June’s shop get back on its feet and make Levi’s ex realize that she made a mistake. All they have to do is convince the world they’re in love, one swoon-worthy photo opp at a time.

Two viral break-ups. One fake relationship. Five sparkling, heart-pounding dates. June and Levi can definitely pull this off without their hearts getting involved. Because everyone knows fake dating doesn’t come with real feelings. Right?

This was a cute read! I loved the banter between June and Levi, and their interactions were both sweet and funny. So many good secondary characters in this! These added a lot of believability to the story, so June and Levi weren’t operating in a bubble. I love the idea of the tea shop, although some of the scone flavors mentioned—Red Bull?—were not to my taste. A fun weekend read!

Emma Lord is a bestselling author. The Break-Up Pact is her newest novel.

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

Title:  How to Fall for a Scoundrel  
Author:  Kate Bateman        
Genre: Romance        
Rating: 4 out of 5

As a founding member of King & Co., London’s most successful private investigation firm, studious Eleanor Law delights in secretly proving that women can solve crimes just as well as men. When a charming con man pretends to be her fictional boss, “Charles King,” Ellie knows he’s lying, but accepting the scoundrel’s offer of help might just be the key to cracking her new case and recovering a priceless manuscript.

“Henri Bonheur”—or “Harry” as he asks to be called—claims his criminal past is behind him, but a man who steals and seduces with such consummate ease can never be trusted. As the investigation draws them deeper into danger and desire, Ellie’s infuriated to realize she’s developed feelings for her law-breaking accomplice. How can she love the scoundrel when she doesn’t even know his real name? And what will happen when Harry’s past finally catches up with him?

This was a fun read! I liked the basic premise of the three girls secretly investigating crimes, and they were a ton of fun to read. Ellie and Henry were a lot of fun to read together, and I enjoyed their adventure.

Kate Bateman is from England. How to Fall for a Scoundrel is her newest novel.

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