THAT FIRST DATE by Jenn McMahon

 

 Release Date: August 25

My new boss has lost his mind.

Marc Ford is everything that I’m not. He wants a long term relationship that leads to marriage and a house full of kids, but I want nothing to do with being tied down to someone. In fact, I have never been in a relationship in my life.

But then he approaches me with a plea to be his fake fiancé because his boss wants someone in an established relationship to pass down ownership of the real estate agency we work for.

I don’t know how he expects me to spend the summer pretending we’re a happily engaged couple.

We’re opposites in every way that counts.

I told myself this would be easy because I don’t catch feelings and I’m a pro at keeping things casual. We both agreed to the rules. Except, things started to feel all too real, even on That First Date.

** That First Date is a steamy, fake dating romance that will leave you both blushing and laughing at the same time. This book is intended for mature readers only. This is a stand-alone and can be read on its own.

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My review:

That First Date is the second book in the Firsts In The City series by Jenn McMahon.  This was a new-to-me author, and I am so glad I had the chance to read one of her books.  This was a fake dating and work romance that was full of humor and spice.  It was well-written and entirely too easy to get stuck in.  I love the fake dating troupe, but this one is more memorable than the ones I have read recently.  

Avery didn’t want any long-term relationships and was not looking for the white picket fence.  Instead, she avoided them and never wanted to be tied down to one person.  She thought agreeing to help her boss by pretending to date him would be easy.  They were opposites and she could certainly resist falling for him!  

Marc loves his job so when he has the chance of getting the real estate agency he loves, he is on board.  But his boss wants a family man to take over when he retires.  Mark wants a long-term relationship leading to marriage and children, but he hasn’t found the one yet.  As a last resort, he asks Avery to be his fake date.  He’s afraid of how it will go because she is his opposite, but it is only for one night.  That is until his boss announces he is going to spend the summer getting to know Marc.  Can they follow their rules and not fall for each other?

This was such a fun read, and I loved all the witty banter between Avery and Marc.  And being they were direct opposites of each other, there was a lot of it!  I loved watching Marc, the grumpy boss, find his cinnamon roll goodness and be the one to fall first.  I am so glad I had a chance to discover this author and I look forward to more books from her.

I received an ARC and am voluntarily leaving a review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Grab Your Copy Here!

Meet Jenn McMahon

Jenn McMahon resides along the shore in New Jersey with her husband, Daniel, two children, Zachary and Owen, and two dogs, Cooper and Piper. She has spent the last couple of years engrossed in romance books and finding the best book boyfriends out there, to now writing her own and sharing them with the world.

When Jenn is not writing, she can be found reading, watching reruns of her favorite TV shows (Scandal, Grey’s Anatomy and Friends – just to name a few), or petting her dog. She also loves taking trips to the beach with the kids, Atlantic City date nights with her husband, and thunderstorms in the spring.

To learn more about Jenn & her books, visit here!

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MINE TO SHARE by Kennedy L. Mitchell

 

Release Date: August 25

Five murders, one killer, and a chance at an unconventional happily ever after.

Two years ago, flirty FBI agent Jameson Bend was the crush I left behind.

Today, the grumpy Detective Slade is the man who stars in my dirty fantasies.

When my autopsy findings connect five recent murders committed by a single suspect, Jameson and Slade join forces to help solve the series of homicides. Toss in my emotionally abusive ex-husband stalking me, and I’ll not only need Jameson and Slade’s help to piece the clues together on the case but also to protect me from my ex’s attempts to force me back under his control.

As we work side by side in the heat of the investigation, our longing turns into desire, and soon we’re tangled in a passionate affair that could cost us our jobs—and lives. They cater to every side of me, one sweet and sensitive, the other possessive and protective. I never expected to end up with two men, but now I can’t imagine my life without them.

But with the killer hiding in plain sight, I walk right into a carefully planned trap.

If my men can’t get to me before time runs out…

Our happily ever after will end before it even gets started.

Mine to Share is a standalone, multi point of view, MFM, age gap, grumpy/sunshine, second chance, forced proximity, dark romantic suspense. Each book in the Protection Series can be read as a standalone, but because of character crossover, they are best read in order. Please note this book is for mature readers due to detailed sexual content, foul language, discussion of abuse, and violence.

If you love a little darkness, murder, and possessive alpha heroes with the need for control mixed into your suspense, then this series is for you.

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

My review: 

WOW! Just when I decide on a favorite book, Ms. Mitchell delivers another one that blows me away. This series just keeps getting better! Spicy romance, hot alpha heroes, suspense, and plenty of twists and turns are just a few things you will find.

“Oh no, that doesn’t work on me anymore. You’ve shown me your softer side, so I know you’re just a big ole cinnamon roll inside that giant, tough exterior.”

Mine to Share is the seventh book in the Protection series. It is told from multiple POVs, but Ms. Mitchell does a great job breaking the sections up. At times multiple points of view can get confusing, but this book was easy to read and easy to follow the character dialogue and thoughts. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and the unknown kept me reading until I finished it.

After meeting Jameson in the previous book, I was sad when Remi and Tallon paired up and left him alone. So, I was so glad to see him find his people. I loved how Rain, Slade, and Jameson complemented each other. They made the perfect couple.
I highly recommend the book; as always, I am anxiously waiting for the next one to be available.

I received an ARC and am voluntarily leaving a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Grab Your Copy Here!

Available in KU

Meet Kennedy L. Mitchell

Kennedy lives in Dallas with her husband, son, and 80lb Goldendoodle who still believes he’s a lap dog. 

A bookworm at heart, Kennedy loves to snuggle up in bed or by the campfire with an unputdownable book. 

She began writing two years ago with Falling for the Chance and has no plans of stopping. Her novels are witty, action-packed, and offer enough steam for a great facial. 

If you like strong heroines and sexy, tattooed men who can’t keep their hands off them, then this author is the one for you.

To learn more about Kennedy and her books, visit here!

 

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BECC

The Cold Ride by Anya Summers

 

The Cold Ride
Anya Summers
(SEALs on Wheels, #2)
Publication date: September 19th 2023
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance

Duty. Honor. Sacrifice.

My faith in humanity is all but gone. Whatever goodness I had in me was eliminated long ago.
All I know is war.

Then I meet her. My best friend’s ex-wife. She lights up my darkness.

I crave her sunshine like an addict. I want to bask in it.
But she’s forbidden. I can’t touch her.
I can’t love her – doing so would only drag her into hell with me, and betray everything I hold sacred.
I might have lost my humanity, but I refuse to sacrifice my honor…

Until a single misstep damns us both.
And now I can’t let her go.
I’ll fight anyone to claim her and keep her – even her.

Dive headlong into this grumpy/sunshine forbidden romance, where a Navy SEAL falls for his best friend’s ex-wife.

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Author Bio:

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, Anya grew up listening to Cardinals baseball and reading anything she could get her hands on. She remembers her mother saying if only she would read the right type of books instead binging her way through the romance aisles at the bookstore, she’d have been a doctor. While Anya never did get that doctorate, she graduated cum laude from the University of Missouri-St. Louis with an M.A. in History.

Anya is a bestselling and award-winning author published in multiple fiction genres. She also writes urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and contemporary romance under the name Maggie Mae Gallagher. A total geek at her core, when she is not writing, she adores attending the latest comic con or spending time with her family. She currently lives in the Midwest with her two furry felines.

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Descent into Madness by Fiona Murphy

 

Title: Descent into Madness

A Dark Cartel Romance

Series: When Titans Fall #1

Author: Fiona Murphy

Genre: Dark Cartel Romance

Tropes: Arranged Marriage/Age Gap

Release Date: August 25, 2023

BLURB

I’m told the man I’m to marry is a psychopath. He doesn't feel. They say it’s a good thing, no feeling means no anger for me to fear. Except they don’t see the flip side. If he can’t feel, he can never love.

He saved me by ending my boyfriend who refused to take no for an answer. Only Manuel Rodriguez is no savior. He’s the lethal enforcer of the all-powerful Rodriguez cartel. His father and brother handle their drugs and money. Manuel handles their death and destruction.

I wasn’t supposed to be there. I’m a good girl. I was raised to be a perfect mafia princess, destined to be the wife of a powerful mafia capo.

My rebellion against my destiny culminated in me thanking him on my knees. And ended the moment I was back on my feet.

For Manuel, my way of thanking him wasn’t enough. He needs a mother for his children. I need to protect my mother and myself from my father’s misdeeds.

Now one question remains: Can a marriage without love and made of lies survive?

Because I lied when I told myself I married him to protect my mother. I lied by omission when I didn’t tell him the secrets he asked for. I have a secret. A secret that could destroy everything, including a marriage I’ll do anything to keep.

While this is the first book in a series it is a standalone and does not end in a cliffhanger.

This a romance with dark elements including rough scenes. There is also discussion of multiple miscarriages causing mental distress including hospitalization by the mother of Nicolette. If such things offend you please do not buy.

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AUTHOR BIO

Due to commitment issues I have lived in many different cities and my favorite is Chicago but I have managed to settle into Austin and perhaps my commitment issues are behind me. 

I have enjoyed reading from a very young age and it wasn't long before the children books bored me and I read the books my mother enjoyed Stephen King and Dean Koontz and I didn't sleep without the light on until I was about ten. 

I came across my first Harlequin by accident and it was love at first read, no one died and happy endings? It was a whole new world and I loved it. 

I wrote my first story at eight and everyone died, of course. Since then I would like to think I've gotten better and now I'm writing the happily ever afters I first fell in love with, with some hot sex thrown in along the way. 

As a plus size woman myself, I have started writing the stories I always wanted to see myself in but never did. And now I’m ecstatic to give BBWs the happily ever afters with hot Alphas I want to read.

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Without You by Lacey Black

 

Title: Without You

Series: Burgers and Brew Crüe #8

Author: Lacey Black

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Tropes: Single Dad/Second Chance/Small Town

Cover Design: Melissa Gill Designs

Photographer: Wander Aguiar Photography

Model: Tyler Collins

Release Date: September 26, 2023

BLURB

Tucker

I spend my days brewing beer for the popular Brew Crüe Beer Company and my nights devoted to being a dad. Raising a young child with special needs can be tough and stressful, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. He’s everything to me, and the reason I keep going. It’s him and me against the world, and I have no intention of changing that.

Then, Kinsley McGregor walks back into my life.

Letting her go all those years ago was the hardest thing I had ever done, and having her here proves how good we are. Unfortunately, her Nashville life is calling, and I will have to let her go again.

This time, it’s not just my heart I risk, but my four-year-old son’s too.

Kinsley

My entire life explodes on television for the whole world to witness. After my husband’s public affair throughout the course of my very first headlining tour, I retreat to my safe haven: Stewart Grove. I need a place to lick my wounds and figure out my next step, without being under the watchful eye of the paparazzi, and I find it in my hometown.

I wasn’t planning to reconnect the man I left behind, along with his adorable son.

Tucker Dunn was everything I ever wanted before I went to Nashville to chase my country music dreams. Leaving him in Stewart Grove wasn’t easy, but it was the path we chose together.

Now, I stare down the same choices; only this time, the decision will be harder to make.

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PRE-ORDER LINKS

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

Only available at the following

retailers for a limited time

B&N / KOBO / APPLE BOOKS

AVAILABLE NOW

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

All free in Kindle Unlimited

AUTHOR BIO

USA Today Bestselling Author Lacey Black is a Midwestern girl with a passion for reading, writing, and shopping. She carries her e-reader with her everywhere she goes so she never misses an opportunity to read a few pages. Always looking for a happily ever after, Lacey is passionate about contemporary romance novels and enjoys it further when you mix in a little suspense. She resides in a small town in Illinois with her husband, two children, and three rowdy chickens.

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NEWSLETTER

Fury by Anna Hackett

 

Release Date: September 7

I’m not looking for a hero, and definitely not a fake relationship with my new boss, nightclub owner Dante Fury—over six feet of dark, hot, and dangerous.

But he isn’t taking no for an answer.

The plan was to run, live under the radar, survive. My life’s been destroyed by some very bad people and everything I know is gone—career, friends, family. I thought I could hide as a bartender at New Orleans’ hottest new club, Ember.

I can’t trust anyone, but after I’m attacked, Dante is determined to play protector by claiming me as his. No one would dare touch the woman of one of the Fury brothers. Suddenly, I’m living at his place, and he’s touching me, kissing me, taking care of me…

Dante makes it very hard to remember

this relationship isn’t real. He makes my heart race, but he’s way out of my league, and he’s protecting his own broken pieces.

Nothing this fake should feel this

right.

The bad guys won’t give up, but I’m

starting to think the biggest danger to me is Dante Fury.

The Fury Brothers: fierce, loyal, and live by their own code

Five men who grew up in foster care and became brothers by choice.

They vow to always have each other’s back: no questions, no doubts, no

hesitation. They protect their own…always.

Add to your Goodreads TBR List Here!

Meet Anna Hackett

I’m a USA Today bestselling romance author who’s passionate about fast-paced, emotion-filled romantic suspense and science-fiction romance. I love writing about people overcoming unbeatable odds and achieving seemingly impossible goals. I like to believe it’s possible for all of us to do the same.

My parents are to blame for my insatiable need to mix action, adventure, and romance. When I was young, I raided my mother’s romances and my father’s action adventure thrillers. I love being exhilarated and left just a little breathless. I’m a sucker for that moment when the team is walking in slow motion, shoulder-to-shoulder heading off into battle.

To learn more about Anna and her books, visit here! 

 

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PROTECTING EVERLEIGH by PJ Fiala

 

PJ Fiala’s new release, Protecting Everleigh, is a gorgeous new small town romance out now! Check it out and be sure to pre-order your copy today!

Title: Protecting Everleigh

Author: PJ Fiala

Genre: Small Town Romance

About Protecting Everleigh:

USAT author PJ Fiala, brings you the next generation of GHOST operatives set in the small-town of Glen Hollow, Kentucky, where a long-standing rivalry is brewing into an all out war, and love comes calling even in the worst of times.   When the job can only be handled by a team that doesn’t exist, you call GHOST.   He was raised to be a GHOST operative.   She's an Army-trained, skilled negotiator.   Together they play a game of push and pull—until she finds herself in need of his protection.   Henry Delany inherited his father’s muscular frame and his mother’s penchant for the law. Working for GHOST gives him the opportunity to use both while doing what he loves—protecting the lives of others. Determined to bring tranquility and harmony to Glen Hollow, the small-town he now calls home, he has agreed to work with a closed-off, government liaison in an effort to broker a peace deal .But Protecting Everleigh just might be Henry’s most challenging mission to date .   Everleigh Hayes was raised to be a negotiator, and Glen Hollow, Kentucky is a small town in need of a truce. She is just the woman to make that happen. Like her previous assignments, she approaches this one with her finely-tuned grace and finesse. But when Everleigh comes face to face with the undercurrent of darkness permeating this little town, she finds herself ensnared by more danger than she’s ever faced. Needing Henry and falling in love with him is a development she’s never negotiated before.

Order Your Copy!

Catching Up with the Series:

Finding Lara

Saving Elena

Rescuing Kenna

Guarding Adelaide

Shielding Maya

About the Author:

USA Today Best Selling Author, PJ Fiala, has independently published multiple romance novels over the years. Focusing primarily on romantic suspense, she weaves a little bit of reality with a little bit of make-believe to create stories with heat, heart and all the feels. PJ lives in the Green Bay, Wisconsin area but travels to destinations unknown via motorcycle. Spending time with her grandmother Ruth, in Kentucky has helped to mold PJ into a person who enjoys life on the farm as well as life in the burbs. But it was romance novels that took her to places she’d only dreamed of and solidified her love of all things romance and swoony. Her family keeps her feet on the ground when her mind travels too far from home, delivering both a reality check and a nudge to keep it real.  

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