Tag: contemporary romance

Book Review | Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson

Posted January 3, 2024 by Haze in Book Reviews / 11 Comments

Meet Me in the Margins by Melissa Ferguson

Savannah Cade’s dreams are coming true. The Claire Donovan, editor-in-chief of the most successful romance imprint in the country, has requested to see the manuscript Savannah’s been secretly writing while working as an editor herself—except at her publishing house, the philosophy is only highbrow works are worth printing and commercial fiction, particularly romance, should be reserved for the lowest level of Dante’s inferno. But when Savannah drops her manuscript during a staff meeting and nearly exposes herself to the whole company—including William Pennington, new publisher and son of the romance-despising CEO herself—she races to hide her manuscript in the secret turret room of the old Victorian office.

When she returns, she’s dismayed to discover that someone has not only been in her hidden nook but has written notes in the margins—quite critical ones. But when Claire’s own reaction turns out to be nearly identical to the scribbled remarks, and worse, Claire announces that Savannah has six weeks to resubmit before she retires, Savannah finds herself forced to seek the help of the shadowy editor after all.

As their notes back and forth start to fill up the pages, however, Savannah finds him not just becoming pivotal to her work but her life. There’s no doubt about it. She’s falling for her mystery editor. If she only knew who he was.

For the Reading Challenge(s):
2024 Bookish Books Challenge
2024 Audiobook Challenge
2024 Library Love Challenge

The Reason

Came across this one while browsing my library’s audiobook catalog, and it looked fun, and it’s bookish and about bookish people! I also loved the idea of communicating through notes in the margins, there’s just something old-fashioned and romantic about it, like exchanging love letters on actual paper, rather than texts nowadays. Not that texts can’t be romantic, but there’s something special about paper notes and love letters.

The Characters

Savannah and Will. I really like Savannah, and I love that she’s exactly as she describes herself in the book and in her book – she’s not special, she doesn’t stand out, she’s not the best at anything, she’s not the chosen one, she’s just your everyday, average person. She loves her job, she’s there for her friends, she loves her family, and she writes good stories. And I like her just the way she is. She’s perfect.

Will is mysterious, charming, capable, and I have a huge crush on him. I love that he’s able to do hard things. I love that he doesn’t stand down when it matters. I feel the chemistry sizzle every time he enters a scene with Savannah. I love them together!

The Quotes

“Waiting impatiently for something that will inevitably happen either way is a waste of time. Enjoy the journey, not just the destination.”

“And anyway, romance isn’t just about attraction. It’s about companionship. You don’t see old married couples who’ve been through two world wars and five babies together making out on a bench when they’re ninety and think to yourself, Now THAT’S what it’s all about. You see the way they hold hands, the way they serve each other scrambled eggs on plates they got on their wedding day, the way they shuffle through the paper in the mornings together without needing to fill the space with empty conversation. Because they are happy. Just happy. Together.”

My Thoughts

I really enjoyed this story. I love the chemistry between Savannah and Will, and I love their banter, both in person and on paper. I love that they get vulnerable and real with each other, and I love that they have fun together too. I did not like the storyline with Ferris and Olivia – I don’t like Ferris, and I couldn’t understand why his relationship with Olivia was presented as normal at first, so I’m happy that Will called it out later in the book.

My Feels

This may be a mild spoiler, but I don’t think so because, duh, obviously Sam isn’t Savannah’s guy! I’m pretty sure no one who reads this book would think that Sam could be the guy. I just really needed Savannah to know it and I was so frustrated with her at that point! I also felt really uncomfortable with the Ferris and Olivia situation. But otherwise, I have only good feelings about Will and Savannah, and seriously, I love their chemistry. My love language is communication, so all those written notes and banter just gets me. I love that their relationship from start to finish is mature, non-dramatic, and respectful. I love that there wasn’t any big blow-ups, dramatic misunderstandings, words thrown about in anger, and stuff like that. I just love this representation of an adult love story.

My Rating

3/5 stars. I loved it for what it was, but it’s not the best romance I’ve ever read. I think what made it good for me was the notes and banter, because I’m not kidding, written notes, love letters, and communication is just my thing.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?

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10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston | Book Review

Posted December 27, 2023 by Haze in Book Reviews / 4 Comments

10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston

Sophie wants one thing for Christmas-a little freedom from her overprotective parents. So when they decide to spend Christmas in South Louisiana with her very pregnant older sister, Sophie is looking forward to some much needed private (read: make-out) time with her long-term boyfriend, Griffin. Except it turns out that Griffin wants a little freedom from their relationship. Cue devastation.

Heartbroken, Sophie flees to her grandparents’ house, where the rest of her boisterous extended family is gathered for the holiday. That’s when her nonna devises a (not so) brilliant plan: Over the next ten days, Sophie will be set up on ten different blind dates by different family members. Like her sweet cousin Sara, who sets her up with a hot guy at an exclusive underground party. Or her crazy aunt Patrice, who signs Sophie up for a lead role in a living nativity. With a boy who barely reaches her shoulder. And a screaming baby.

When Griffin turns up unexpectedly and begs for a second chance, Sophie feels more confused than ever. Because maybe, just maybe, she’s started to have feelings for someone else . . . Someone who is definitely not available.

This is going to be the worst Christmas break ever… or is it?

The Reason

I love the premise, and I love the idea of having all those blind dates and all the fun that could be had from them. I’ve also been really craving light and easy reads with low stakes and lots of fun. I must admit that I’ve been feeling a bit FOMO with the Christmas season and everyone reading Christmas-themed books. I’m still reading A Christmas Carol, but I thought this would be an acceptable Christmas read too.

The Characters

Omg, I love them all so much! Well, okay, not all of them. I love Sophie, Olivia, Charlie, and Wes, of course. I love Sophie’s sister and the baby, Anna. I love Sophie’s Nonna, and her big family, and how crazy they were. I didn’t like the Evil Joes! I also really disliked Griffin. Yuck. Eww. Blerghh.

Okay, to be perfectly honest, I didn’t like that her big family couldn’t keep confidences, and that they were basically using her heartbreak and love life for their entertainment. However, I love that element of big family dynamics being portrayed so well in the book, and for the sake of the story, it did help her get over her breakup.

My Thoughts

I did not expect to love this book as much as I did! I thought it would be a fun and silly teenage love story, something I could read and feel nostalgic about my own teenage dating days and how cringey I used to be with boys. It was fun and silly, alright, but it was so good!

The pacing is amazing, I have to say. The way the story was told, plans laid, each blind date by blind date, the dates we meet, the way they all moved the story along, the breaks between when it wasn’t all about the dates, but also about family and friendships and sisterhood. I started this book just before bed, intending to read a bit and continue the next day. I ended up staying up late to finish the whole thing!

My Feels

I am obsessed with this book! Who knew I could still feel this way about a contemporary YA romance at my age?! And honestly, while I never cared before about reading Christmas-sy books during Christmas season, I’m beginning to see why it feels so magical. It’s really something else to read the book, date by date, while I’m experiencing those same dates and feeling the spirit of Christmas.

My Rating

5/5 stars. I feel like I want to keep this book handy to read again next Christmas, but perhaps that’s only because I don’t have other Christmas-sy books on my radar yet. I’ll be on the lookout for more Christmas-themed books for next year from now on!

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?

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The Roommate Pact by Allison Ashley | Book Review

Posted December 27, 2023 by Haze in Book Reviews / 0 Comments

The Roommate Pact by Allison Ashley

All of the fun, none of the heartache…as long as they stick to the agreement.

The proposition is simple: if ER nurse Claire Harper and her roommate, firefighter Graham Scott, are still single by the time they’re forty, they’ll take the proverbial plunge together…as friends with benefits. Maybe it’s the wine, but in the moment, Claire figures the pact is a safe-enough deal, considering she hasn’t had much luck in love and he’s in no rush to settle down. Like, at all. Besides, there’s no way she could ever really fall for Graham and his thrill-seeking ways. Not after what happened to her father…

Just as things begin to heat up way before the proposed deadline, Graham’s injured in a serious rock-climbing accident—and he needs Claire’s help to heal. She’ll do whatever it takes to nurse him back to health…even if it means moving into Graham’s bed and putting up with his little dog who hates her. But with this no-strings arrangement taking a complicated turn, keeping “for now” from turning into “forever” isn’t as easy as they’d planned.

The Reason

I really, really needed something fun and lighthearted and came across this book. I also really love several romance tropes, and the “we’ll get married if we’re single at a certain age” trope is a favorite. I mean, there are several tropes in the book, but this was the one I knew about before going in.

The Characters

The two main MCs are Claire and Graham, and I love them both so much! Neither of them had any “quirks” that annoyed me, and they were both so sweet with each other; as friends, as roommates, as pact-mates, and more. They were just so great together and the chemistry was sizzling off the page!

My Thoughts

I loved that it was fun, but also mindful of difficult things that happen in life. I love that literally no one was toxic in this story; they both had wonderfully supportive friends, family, co-workers. There was no unnecessary drama (except for one very satisfying scene that wasn’t over-the-top drama). I loved their chemistry, the way they were there for each other in the ways they could be. I love the communication; the MCs with each other, and with their friends and family.

My Feels

What I loved most about this book was how demonstrative it was for loving the person who brings out the best in you, who loves you for who you are, who makes you love who you are when you’re with them. I think a lot of people put a lot of store into loving the other person in the relationship, but forget about loving themselves in the process. I think having a partner who makes you love the person you are when you’re with them is the most wonderful feeling, because I’ve been with partners who made me hate the person I was with them, and it’s not love if you’re miserable and hateful. I also love the lessons they both learn. Taking risks, both physically and emotionally, is necessarily if you truly want to live your life to the fullest.

My Rating

4/5 stars. I really enjoyed it and I loved all the characters. I believe there’s another book that features Claire and Graham’s friends, Mia and Noah, so I’m gonna get on that too.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?

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