Romance – Page 11 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: Gwen and Art Are Not in Love

Title: Gwen and Art Are Not in Love
Author: Lex Croucher
Genre: Young Adult, Historical, Romance, LGBT, Fantasy
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Publisher
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: November 28, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Heartstopper meets A Knight’s Tale in this queer medieval rom-com YA debut about love, friendship, and being brave enough to change the course of history.

It’s been hundreds of years since King Arthur’s reign. His descendant, Arthur, a future Lord and general gadabout, has been betrothed to Gwendoline, the quick-witted, short-tempered princess of England, since birth. The only thing they can agree on is that they despise each other.

They’re forced to spend the summer together at Camelot in the run-up to their nuptials, and within 24 hours, Gwen has discovered Arthur kissing a boy, and Arthur has gone digging for Gwen’s childhood diary and found confessions about her crush on the kingdom’s only lady knight, Bridget Leclair.

Realizing they might make better allies than enemies, Gwen and Art make a reluctant pact to cover for each other, and as things heat up at the annual royal tournament, Gwen is swept off her feet by her knight, and Arthur takes an interest in Gwen’s royal brother. Lex Croucher’s Gwen & Art Are Not in Love is chock full of sword-fighting, found family, and romantic shenanigans destined to make readers fall in love.

Review:

Hundreds of years after King Arthur’s death, his descendant, Arthur, is betrothed to Princess Gwendoline. However, they can’t stand each other. They are forced to spend the entire summer together leading up to their eventual marriage. Soon after Arthur arrives at the palace, Gwen catches him kissing a boy. After she confronts him about it, Arthur finds Gwen’s diary where she fantasizes about kissing the only lady knight. Since they both like people of the same sex, they know they aren’t meant for each other, so they decide to work together. Gwen gets to spend more time with her lady knight, while Arthur gets closer to Gwen’s brother Gabriel. They eventually have to figure out a way to get around their future marriage and be with the ones they love.

This was a fun historical romance! It isn’t a retelling of the King Arthur story. Some of the characters are descendants of King Arthur, and most of them have been named after people from that era. Gwen, Arthur, and Lancelot were some of the names that were popular in the time period in the story. Though there were some serious moments, with the characters dealing with homophobia, there were also a lot of laugh out loud moments as well. It was very entertaining.

Gwen and Art Are Not in Love is a fun queer historical romance!

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing a finished copy of this book!

Content warnings: homophobia, death of parent

Have you read Gwen and Art Are Not in Love? What did you think of it?

Review: The Christmas Wager

Title: The Christmas Wager
Author: Holly Cassidy
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Viking
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 26, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

One rivalry. Eight days until Christmas. Let the holiday games begin.

When LA-based real estate developer Bella Ross arrives in the sleepy, mountain town of Maple Falls, she has one mission: to acquire the local failing Christmas shop, Always Noelle, securing the promotion of her dreams. Nothing can get in her way. Except the shop owner’s stubborn grandson, Jesse Harrison.

Both refuse to budge, until an unlikely wager is struck: Bella and Jesse will compete in the Maple Falls Holiday Games, an annual tradition of eccentric feats of strength and skills. Winner decides the selling price. They’ll give each other a run for their money, but as the competition heats up, Bella and Jesse’s icy feelings toward each other begin to thaw. It’ll take a Christmas miracle for them to admit there’s a spark, but what if it’s just another game?

Review:

Bella Ross, a real estate developer based in LA, must go to the small town of Maple Falls to purchase a Christmas shop. If she can successfully purchase this shop, she will get a huge promotion. However, just before she can sign the contract with the owner, the owner’s grandson, Jesse Harrison, steps in and stops the sale. When they can’t come to a deal on the price, they decide to make a Christmas wager: if Bella can beat Jesse in the Maple Falls Holiday Games, they will take the low offer, but if she loses, they get more money. As the games begin, Jesse and Bella become closer and their feelings make it difficult to compete against each other, even when their eyes are on their prizes.

This is a fun Christmas rom com. I love the enemies to lovers trope! The holiday themed competition was fun, but I was getting stressed out thinking of the stressful challenges they had to do. I couldn’t imagine doing them myself. I really liked that there was an epilogue that showed what happened to the characters a year following the end of the story, rather than just ending when they got their happily ever after.

The Christmas Wager is a fun enemies to lovers rom com!

Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a digital copy of this book.

Content warnings: parental abandonment (off page), death of parents (off page)

Have you read The Christmas Wager? What did you think of it?

Review: Fake Famous

Title: Fake Famous
Author: Dana L. Davis
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Skyscape
Source: Firefly Books Distributed
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: November 7, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this breezy novel from the author of Somebody That I Used to Know , one Iowa farm girl—a dead ringer for a global pop star—gets an unlikely shot at stardom. Will she choose fame…or the family farm? Red Morgan is fresh out of high school. With signature red curls and a remarkable singing voice, the bubbly teenager is a devoted daughter and big sister. The world should be her oyster. But Red already knows exactly where her future the family farm in Orange City, Iowa. Zay-Zay Waters is at the top of her game. The Brooklyn-born singer has it all—talent, fame, even a smokin’ hot boyfriend. But life in the limelight isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. And when a video of Red singing in the mud—looking and sounding exactly like Zay-Zay herself—goes viral, the pop star begins to hatch a plan. Red is the key to Zay-Zay’s scheme. With much-needed money on the line, Red agrees to step into Zay-Zay’s famous shoes for one week. But when planned appearances start to go off script, Red may be in over her head. Can she really pull it off?

Review:

Red Morgan is a recent high school graduate who loves helping out on her family’s farm. She knows she’s destined to run the farm after she goes to college. When a video of Red singing goes viral, everyone thinks she’s pop star Zay-Zay Waters. Red looks so much like the singer that Zay-Zay goes to the farm and asks her to impersonate her for a week while she goes to a private retreat in Brazil. Red’s family’s farm really needs the money she’ll receive, so she agrees to do it. However, when the planned appearances take an unexpected turn, Red’s true identity could be revealed.

This was such a fun story. Red got to live the dream as a celebrity for a few days, but not everything was easy. I really liked the characters in the story. Some were quite eccentric and entertaining characters, who made the story fun. The ending was so great too!

Fake Famous is a fun story!

Thank you Firefly Books Distributed Lines for sending me a copy of this book!

Have you read Fake Famous? What did you think of it?

Review: Iron Flame (The Empyrean #2)

Title: Iron Flame (The Empyrean #2)
Author: Rebecca Yarros
Genre: New Adult, Fantasy, Romance
Publisher: Red Tower Books
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: November 7, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

“The first year is when some of us lose our lives. The second year is when the rest of us lose our humanity.” —Xaden Riorson

Everyone expected Violet Sorrengail to die during her first year at Basgiath War College—Violet included. But Threshing was only the first impossible test meant to weed out the weak-willed, the unworthy, and the unlucky.

Now the real training begins, and Violet’s already wondering how she’ll get through. It’s not just that it’s grueling and maliciously brutal, or even that it’s designed to stretch the riders’ capacity for pain beyond endurance. It’s the new vice commandant, who’s made it his personal mission to teach Violet exactly how powerless she is–unless she betrays the man she loves.

Although Violet’s body might be weaker and frailer than everyone else’s, she still has her wits—and a will of iron. And leadership is forgetting the most important lesson Basgiath has taught her: Dragon riders make their own rules.

But a determination to survive won’t be enough this year.

Because Violet knows the real secret hidden for centuries at Basgiath War College—and nothing, not even dragon fire, may be enough to save them in the end.

Review:

Violet and her fellow classmates are still reeling from the discovery at the end of Fourth Wing. She comes up against the new vice commandant, who doesn’t like her or her two dragons. Violet starts doing some research of her own and discovers a secret that was hidden at Basgaith for centuries. She’s the only one who could potentially save them all.

This was a great sequel to Fourth Wing! It was super long and detailed but I loved being in this world again. Violet’s second dragon, Andarna, is now one of my favourite characters. She’s so adorable! The ending of Iron Flame was surprising but not as shocking as the ending of Fourth Wing. I’m not sure where the story will be heading next, so I’m excited for the next book!

Iron Flame is a thrilling sequel!

Content warnings: death, abuse, death of parent, death of sibling, torture

Other books in the series:

Fourth Wing (The Empyrean #1)

Have you read Iron Flame? What did you think of it?

Review: If You’ll Have Me

Title: If You’ll Have Me
Author: Eunnie
Genre: Graphic Novel, Romance, Young Adult, LGBTQ, Contemporary
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: October 17, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Momo Gardner is the kind of friend who’s always ready to lend a helping hand. She’s introverted, sensitive, and maybe a little too trusting, but she likes to believe the best in people. PG, on the other hand, is a bit of a lone wolf, despite her reputation for being a flirt and a player. Underneath all that cool mystery, she’s actually quick to smile, and when she falls for someone, she falls hard. An unexpected meet-cute brings the two together, kicking off the beginning of an awkward yet endearing courtship—but with their drastically different personalities, Momo’s overprotective friend, and PG’s past coming back to haunt her, Momo and PG’s romance is put to the test.

Review:

Momo Gardner has always been eager to help, especially when it comes to girls she has a crush on. She may be too trusting sometimes but she tries to see the best in people. When she meets PG, she has an instant crush. The problem is that PG is known as being a player, like other girls who have used Momo in the past. When they keep running into each other, they decide to start hanging out and develop a friendship. However, Momo’s friends have to warn her that PG has a bad reputation and she may just be using Momo like girls in the past. Momo has to decide if she’s willing to risk her heart for PG.

This was an adorable graphic novel. Momo was sweet, innocent, and relatable. She could be a little naive when it came to falling for the wrong kind of girl, but that added to her charm. Though PG had a reputation as being a player, there was more to her than that. They made a cute couple, and I was rooting for them the whole time!

If You’ll Have Me is a cute graphic novel romance!

Thank you Penguin Teen Canada for providing a copy of this book!

Have you read If You’ll Have Me? What did you think of it?

Review: It Happened One Christmas

Title: It Happened One Christmas
Author: Chantel Guertin
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Doubleday Canada
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: October 31, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Zoey Andrews lives and breathes Christmas. She loves everything about the season, and after years of directing countless holiday movies, she certainly knows her way around a festive tale. So, when she finally gets the chance to bring her own script to life, she isn’t about to let anything, or anyone, stand in her way–not even the stupidly sexy, utterly frustrating plaid-clad tree farmer Benoît Deschamps. Moonlighting as mayor of Chelsea–the cozy Quebec hamlet at the center of Zoey’s screenplay–Ben maddeningly refuses to grant her a film permit in his enchanting town.With just four days left before Christmas, Zoey must change Ben’s mind, but not before an unscripted ice storm leaves them stranded in the middle of nowhere, with nothing except . . . each other.Will Ben’s chilly resolve shatter Zoey’s Christmas movie wish? Or will Zoey be able to melt his stubbornness–and maybe even his heart?

Review:

Zoey Andrews loves Christmas and directs popular Christmas movies. When she writes her own script for a movie, she has the perfect town in mind: Chelsea, Quebec. After a mix up with their location scout, Zoey only has a few days to find the right places for them to film. However, as soon as she gets to the town, she comes up against Ben, the owner of the Christmas tree farm and mayor of Chelsea. Ben refuses to allow Zoey to have a permit to film in town. Zoey tries to change Ben’s mind, but as time is running out for Zoey to get the permits, they’re caught in a devastating ice storm. Ben and Zoey are suddenly facing a life and death situation. As they get closer to each other, Zoey keeps trying to change Ben’s mind, and possibly win his heart.

This is a fun and fast paced rom com! I read this book in just two sittings. The town of Chelsea sounded like the perfect holiday town. When Ben and Zoey were caught in the storm, the story took a scary turn. I knew nothing too serious would happen since it’s a rom com, but it was still scary to imagine being stranded in a severe ice storm. The ending was adorable and made it all worth it.

It Happened One Christmas is an adorable holiday rom com!

Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for providing a copy of this book!

Have you read It Happened One Christmas? What did you think of it?

Review: The Prince and the Apocalypse (The Prince and the Apocalypse #1)

Title: The Prince and the Apocalypse (The Prince and the Apocalypse #1)
Author: Kara McDowell
Genre: Young Adult, Romance
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: July 11, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

An American teen stranded in London is forced to team up with the British crown prince if she wants to make it back home before the end of the world in this delightfully rompy high-stakes rom-com.

Wren Wheeler has flown five thousand miles across the ocean to discover she’s the worst kind of traveler: the kind who just wants to go home. Her senior-year trip to London was supposed to be life-changing, but by the last day, Wren’s perfectly-planned itinerary is in tatters. There’s only one item left to check off: breakfast at The World’s End restaurant. The one thing she can still get right.

The restaurant is closed for renovations—of course—but there’s a boy there, too. A very cute boy with a posh British accent who looks remarkably like the errant Prince Theo, on the run from the palace and his controlling mother. When Wren helps him escape a pack of tourists, the Prince scribbles down his number and offers her one favor in return. She doesn’t plan to take him up on it—until she gets to the airport and sees cancelled flights and chaos. A comet is approaching Earth, and the world is ending in eight days. Suddenly, that favor could be her only chance to get home to her family before the end of the world.

Wren strikes a bargain with the runaway prince: if she’ll be his bodyguard from London to his family’s compound in Santorini, he can charter her a private jet home in time to say goodbye. Traveling through Europe by boat, train, and accidentally stolen automobile, Wren finds herself drawn to the dryly sarcastic, surprisingly vulnerable Theo. But the Prince has his own agenda, one that could derail both their plans. When life as they know it will be over in days, is it possible to find a happy ending?

Review:

Wren Wheeler traveled from Chicago to London for one last class trip before starting college in the fall, but she was plagued with homesickness and didn’t do anything she wanted to. While looking for one last breakfast to make the trip worth it, she runs into a boy who looks a lot like the missing Prince Theo. She protects Theo from photographers, and he gives her a phone number to call if she needs help. Wren rushes to the airport to catch her flight home, but when all the flights are cancelled, she learns that a comet is heading towards Earth, which will kill everyone in eight days. With no other way home, Wren calls Theo to ask him to help her get home. The two of them embark on a journey across Europe to the Royal Family’s private jet in Santorini so that Wren can get home to see her family one last time. However, Theo has his own plan and reason for running away from his family, which could derail Wren’s goal if she finds out.

This was such an exciting story! It would be a fun adventure to travel across Europe with a Royal Prince. Some of the things they did seemed unbelievable, and were things I definitely wouldn’t do (like jump off a ferry in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea), but they were fun to read about. A sequel was just announced a few weeks ago, so I had a feeling I knew how the story was going to end, but I still loved reading the twists at the end!

The Prince and the Apocalypse is a fun road trip story!

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing a digital copy of this book!

Have you read The Prince and the Apocalypse? What did you think of it?

Review: The Long Game

Title: The Long Game
Author: Elena Armas
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Atria Books
Source: Publisher via Fable app
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 5, 2023
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A disgraced soccer exec reluctantly enlists the help of a retired soccer star in coaching a children’s team in this smalltown love story in the vein of Ted Lasso and It Happened One Summer —from the New York Times bestselling author of The Spanish Love Deception.

Adalyn Reyes has spent years perfecting her daily routine: wake up at dawn, drive to the Miami Flames FC offices, try her hardest to leave a mark, go home, and repeat.

But her routine is disrupted when a video of her in an altercation with the team’s mascot goes viral. Rather than fire her, the team’s owner—who happens to be her father—sends Adalyn to middle-of-nowhere North Carolina, where she’s tasked with turning around the struggling local soccer team, the Green Warriors, as a way to redeem herself. Her plans crumble upon discovering that the players wear tutus to practice (impractical), keep pet goats (messy), and are terrified of Adalyn (counterproductive), and are nine-year-old kids.

To make things worse, also in town is Cameron Caldani, goalkeeping prodigy whose presence is somewhat of a mystery. Cam is the perfect candidate to help Adalyn, but after one very unfortunate first encounter involving a rooster, Cam’s leg, and Adalyn’s bumper, he’s also set on running her out of town. But banishment is not an option for Adalyn. Not again. Helping this ragtag children’s team is her road to redemption, and she is playing the long game. With or without Cam’s help.

Review:

Adalyn Reyes works as an executive for the Miami Flames soccer team, with her father who is the owner. Her life is changed when a video of her attacking the team’s mascot goes viral. Instead of firing her, her dad sends her to the small town of Green Oaks in North Carolina to help improve their soccer team, the Green Warriors. She didn’t expect the team to be full of nine-year-old girls. When she arrives at the cottage where she’ll be staying, she finds former soccer star Cameron Caldani already living there. Adalyn isn’t sure why he’s living in this small town, and coaching a children’s team when he was a soccer superstar. They instantly dislike each other, but Adalyn needs to make this team a success so she can return to her life in Miami, so they must learn to work together.

This was a fun enemies-to-lovers romance. It reminded me of Ted Lasso, in the way that an unexpected coach is brought in to coach a soccer team. The connection between Green Oaks and the Miami Flames wasn’t revealed until the end of the story, so I was wondering about it for most of the story. The romance was a super slow burn, but it was worth it in the end.

I was given the opportunity to read this book on the Fable app, in a book club with the author. I highly recommend checking out the app for fun reading opportunities like this!

The Long Game is a sporty slow burn romance!

Thank you Atria Books and Fable for providing a copy of this book!

Have you read The Long Game? What did you think of it?

Review: Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh

Title: Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh
Author: Rachael Lippincott
Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ
Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher
Format: Paperback arc
Release Date: August 29, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

From the New York Times bestselling coauthor of Five Feet Apart and She Gets the Girl comes a fresh and inventive sapphic romantic comedy that’s What If It’s Us meets Bridgerton.

What if you found a once-in-a-lifetime love…just not in your lifetime?

Audrey Cameron has lost her spark. But after getting dumped by her first love and waitlisted at her dream art school all in one week, she has no intention of putting her heart on the line again to get it back. So when local curmudgeon Mr. Montgomery walks into her family’s Pittsburgh convenience store saying he can help her, Audrey doesn’t know what she’s expecting…but it’s definitely not that she’ll be transported back to 1812 to become a Regency romance heroine.

Lucy Sinclair isn’t expecting to find an oddly dressed girl claiming to be from two hundred years in the future on her family’s estate. But she has to admit it’s a welcome distraction from being courted by a man her father expects her to marry—who offers a future she couldn’t be less interested in. Not that anyone has cared about what or who she’s interested in since her mother died, taking Lucy’s spark with her.

While the two girls try to understand what’s happening and how to send Audrey home, their sparks make a comeback in a most unexpected way. Because as they both try over and over to fall for their suitors and the happily-ever-afters everyone expects of them, they find instead they don’t have to try at all to fall for each other.

But can a most unexpected love story survive even more impossible circumstances?

Review:

After Audrey Cameron’s boyfriend dumps her and she was waitlisted by her dream art school, she doesn’t know what to do. When Mr. Montgomery walks into her family’s convenience store, she doesn’t realize he will change her life by tossing her a coin. Audrey catches the coin and ends up in the middle of a field in England in 1812. Lucy Sinclair finds Audrey on her family’s property. She’s glad to have a distraction from her strict father who is forcing her to marry the wealthiest man in town. However, as Audrey and Lucy spend time together, trying to figure out how to send Audrey home, sparks fly between them and they may find love in an unexpected place.

As soon as I heard this was a YA sapphic love story with time travel to Regency England, I knew I would love this book. It was funny to see Audrey bring her 2023 lifestyle and knowledge to 1812, where life was completely different. There were some emotional parts where Lucy’s father was forcing her into a marriage that she didn’t want. However, there were more lighthearted moments between Audrey and Lucy that turned into the sweetest love story.

Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh is a heartwarming romance!

Thank you Simon Teen and Simon and Schuster Canada for providing a copy of this book!

Have you read Pride and Prejudice and Pittsburgh? What did you think of it?

Review: A Smile in a Whisper

Title: A Smile in a Whisper
Author: Jacquelyn Middleton
Genre: Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: Kirkwall Books
Source: Tandem Collective Global
Format: Paperback
Release Date: August 10, 2023
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

NOT ALL FAREWELLS ARE FOREVER…

Evie Sutherland throws herself into everything. Like many on Scotland’s picturesque Orkney Islands, she works several jobs: managing her family’s shop, researching genealogy for tourists, and writing historical romance novels. Evie aces most challenges—except love. With a childhood diagnosis of Crohn’s disease and a disastrous dating history, Evie has convinced herself that guys won’t date the “sick girl” and the blame falls on the shoulders of her first love, a famous boy from London who spent his summers on her island.

To the outside world, Nikolai Balfour lives a charmed life. Starring in a popular British TV series as a teen, young Nick stole fans’ hearts from the Isle of Wight to Shetland. However, that was a lifetime ago, and the years since have been filled with “Didn’t you used to be…” moments, career wrong-turns, and empty relationships. Now finding success behind the cameras, Nick is still racked with regret and guilt over how things ended with the Orcadian girl he’d loved and left behind.

But when a television series filming in Orkney blows Nick back into Evie’s quiet life, they’re forced to face their heartbreaking past and revisit old secrets that should never have been kept.

Unfolding in alternating past and present timelines, A Smile in a Whisper is a touching story of first love and second chances, and the enduring summer memories that shape us.

Review:

On the Scottish Orkney Islands, Evie Sutherland has had Crohn’s Disease since childhood but she lives a quiet life in her hometown. She blames her disease for her disastrous love life, starting with her first love, Nick Balfour. Nick visited the islands in the summer as a teen, when he was on a break from filming a popular teen soap opera. Now it’s been over a decade since their romance ended. Nick has returned to Orkney to produce a tv show and Evie is catering the food for the crew. They must revisit their past, learn each other’s secrets, and figure out if they can have a future together.

This was such a sweet second chance romance. The story alternated between their past and present relationships, which showed all the heartache they had both been through. There was great representation of Evie’s Crohn’s disease as well as Nick’s panic disorder and anxiety. I have IBS which has some of the same symptoms of Crohn’s, though not the damaging flare ups and hospital stays. I could relate to the way it affected Evie’s social life, food choices, and even clothing choices. I haven’t seen much representation that was as close to my lifestyle like this, so I really appreciated it! I think fans of second chance romances like Every Summer After will love this story!

A Smile in a Whisper is a beautiful summertime romance!

Thank you Tandem Collective and Jacquelyn Middleton for sending me a copy!

Content warnings: Crohn’s disease/chronic illness, panic attacks, hospital scenes, allergic reaction, underage drinking, and drug use

Have you read A Smile in a Whisper? What did you think of it?