wedding

The Shippers

by Katherine Center

4 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing a free review copy of The Shippers! All thoughts and opinions are completely my own.

This was a fun book that was very easy to read and get pulled in by the story. It read really fast, which I liked. It did a good job at balancing lots of lighthearted and funny moments while diving into some more serious topics as well. I really liked watching the romance develop and overall liked the couple when they were together. There weren’t a whole lot of surprises along the way – even some things that weren’t revealed for a while were pretty easy to guess early on – but I think this was more about the journey and didn’t really take away from my enjoyment of the story. I did sometimes get a little annoyed at how oblivious Jojo could be. I’m also not a big fan of some of the miscommunications that happened, though I was happy with how things ended. I feel like multiple characters were able to grow over the course of the story. I’ll definitely be reading more from this author in the future!

Mistakes We Never Made

by Hannah Brown

3 out of 5 stars (3 / 5)

I went into this one knowing that there’s a lot of lower reviews for it, but I’m interested in the 2nd book, so thought it would be nice to start here. It was readable enough and kept my interest, but I can also see what people didn’t like about it. Emma, the FMC, wasn’t exactly likable and could be pretty self-centered, even though her intentions were good. She does improve over the course of the book. Finn was more likable than Emma, but I honestly wasn’t feeling the romance between them very much. I think there’s times from the past where they both messed up. I didn’t get the best vibe on Sybil, the runaway bride, but I also detected a lot of jealousy on Emma’s part. It was frustrating to reach the end of the book and not even find out some of the answers I was hoping for. In the end, it wasn’t necessarily a bad book, but definitely not a favorite either. 

If the Ring Fits

By Camilla Isley

3.5 out of 5 stars (3.5 / 5)

When Rowena finds out she’s pregnant and lost her job in the same day, a chance encounter with a multi-millionaire who’s trying to impress his boss leads to an agreement that could benefit both of them… by getting married. If the Ring Fits is the 2nd book in Isley’s Funny Feelings series, though it can easily be read as a stand-alone. Fans of Isley’s may recognize a few familiar characters from her True Love series as well!

If the Ring Fits was a quick, light read that kept my interest well enough. Sometimes situations seemed a bit too convenient to be truly believable, but it’s all explained in a way that makes sense. I enjoyed the moments of playful banter between the main characters, and overall found both of them to be likable. As a former software engineer, I liked seeing the representation of a woman in STEM.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the free review copy of If the Ring Fits! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

She Doesn’t Have a Clue

By Jenny Elder Moke

3 out of 5 stars (3 / 5)

She Doesn’t Have a Clue combines mystery and romance when an author, Kate, attends a wedding on a remote private island. Kate writes a mystery series, and when the mystery that she encounters parallels the plot of one of her books, she tries to channel her fictional character to solve it. Meanwhile, the groom at the wedding is Kate’s ex-fiancé, and her former friend/crush, Jake, is also in attendance.

The premise of this book seemed interesting, but unfortunately, it ended up falling a bit flat for me. I struggled with the beginning of the book, I think because we are meeting so many sketchy characters that I had a hard time keeping track of who was who. The narrative would also occasionally switch to the book that Kate wrote, which threw me off even more. It was obvious from the start that Kate had history with Jake, but the references were vague, and I felt a bit out of the loop (it was eventually explained, but not until much later in the book). Things did get more interesting when Kate realized that one of the wedding guests was up to no good, and there’s a mystery to solve. I figured out the culprit about 70% of the way through, though it wasn’t super obvious, and I think other readers might be kept guessing for a while. In the end, the story kept my attention well enough, but I feel like I never really connected with Kate and the story was a bit too chaotic for my taste, so it just wasn’t the right book for me.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review a free copy of She Doesn’t Have a Clue! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

This Will Be Fun

By E. B. Asher

3.5 out of 5 stars (3.5 / 5)

Ten years ago, four heroes saved the realm, an event that is joyously celebrated by the Queendom… except for the heroes themselves. After losing their leader in the battle, the remaining three heroes split on bad terms. Now the queen is getting married, and the heroes must face each other again for the event.

I had a hard time getting into this book. It’s more character driven than plot driven, which wasn’t quite what I was expecting. For the first half, it felt like not a lot was happening, and there was a lot of eluding to past events without completely revealing what exactly happened (until around the 40% mark). Things did pick up a bit maybe around the halfway mark, but I wasn’t really feeling either of the romances. The magic in this world led to a lot of modern-world parallels – chain coffee shops, riding sharing, tabloids, social media, video streaming, etc. It made the story a bit quirky, though for me this magic almost felt a little too convenient at times. In the end, this book didn’t capture my interest as well as I thought it would, but I could see how others might really enjoy it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for the free review copy of This Will Be Fun! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

A Wedding in the Sun

By Leonie Mack

4.5 out of 5 stars (4.5 / 5)

Jo and Adrián are on a flight to Spain to attend the wedding of their ex-spouses, not something either of them is looking forward to. When the plane has to make an emergency landing in France due to bad weather, the two “exes” end up traveling together, trying to get to their destination despite everything going wrong along the way.

A Wedding in the Sun was a quick and enjoyable read. I really liked both of the main characters, who felt so imperfectly human. While they are going through some incredibly difficult situations and are understandably stressed, over time they are both able to admit to their flaws and accept each other as they are. Both characters go through a lot of growth as they process the grief from their previous marriages ending. Despite so many things going wrong on their journey, there’s also a sense of optimism about the positive experiences they wouldn’t have had otherwise. I loved the adventure of the road trip, from the Pyrenees mountains to the beaches of Spain.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the free review copy of A Wedding in the Sun! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

It’s Complicated

By Camilla Isley

4 out of 5 stars (4 / 5)

Jace, Aiden and Lori have been best friends for the past 15 years… they even share a doctor practice together. But it’s a little complicated – Jace secretly loves Lori, Lori secretly has a crush on Aiden, and Aiden is about to get married to Kirsten. Trying to make Aiden jealous, Lori convinces Jace to pretend they are in a relationship, making things even more complicated.

It’s Complicated was a very quick read for me. It held my interest, flowed well, and kept me wanting to read right until the end. I enjoyed the characters (quirks and all) and relationships between them. The story pretty much went how I expected in most parts, but this lighthearted read was just what I was looking for. I have enjoyed every book I’ve read by Camilla Isley, and this book was no exception.

Thank you to Boldwood Books and Netgalley for the free review copy of It’s Complicated! All opinions in my review are exclusively my own.

The Love Proposal

By Camilla Isley

Coming soon on July 22, 2023!

5 out of 5 stars (5 / 5)

The Love Proposal, formerly published as You May Kiss the Bridesmaid, is the 3rd book in Camilla Isley’s rerelease series. Though part of a series, this book can easily be read as a standalone.

This story’s main characters, Summer and Archie, are both from previous books in the series. Before reading, I was a little concerned I might not like Summer since she was more of a villain in the first book. However, I ended up liking her a lot and appreciated seeing the past events from her perspective. Of course, it was also fun to see other characters from the previous books as well.

Most of the book takes place over the course of a week that leads up to the marriage of the previous book’s couple, Winter and Logan. Summer and Archie begin what is meant to be just a week-long fling, but feelings start to develop between the two. I think both characters showed a tremendous amount of growth over the course of the story, which is something I like to see. The story had plenty of comedic moments intertwined with closed-door adult scenes. I really like how things ended in this story.

It sounds like there is at least one more book that will be released in this series, so I’m excited to see what comes next!

I received a free copy of the book, but all opinions are completely my own.