Book review: FOREVER UNDONE, by J. Saman

Forever Boston #1

Ashton & Skylar

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A deliciously messy, emotionally rich, slow‑burn‑turned‑wildfire romance, this book grabbed me from page one and never let go. Ashton and Skylar are the perfect storm of unresolved tension, old wounds, and that brand of snark that’s basically foreplay in disguise. Their history is chaotic, their present is complicated, and their chemistry is undeniable. I loved every second of watching them circle each other, clash, retreat, and collide again.

What really sold me is how much heart sits beneath all the banter and snark. Ashton’s journey as a single dad rebuilding his life, Skylar’s healing after an abusive relationship, and the way Zoey fits into both of their worlds—it all feels tender, grounded, and deeply earned. The found family threads, the hospital setting, the forced proximity, the “we’re married but not like that (until we very much are)” dynamic… it’s delicious.

Despite the heavy topics, the story balances humor, vulnerability, and heat beautifully. The emotional payoff is huge, the character growth is satisfying, and the romance is the kind that makes you root for them with your whole chest. And it has just an itty bitty feeling of suspense!

The author takes us again to the Boston Fritz’s world, now joined with the Hughes family, powerful and rich, although not like the Fritz royalty.  I think this new series will include the younger generation of grandkids of Octavia Fritz, the matriarch of the empire, and I’m all for it!

If you love grumpy‑meets‑sunshine energy, protective heroes, resilient heroines, and a slow burn that eventually erupts, this one is a must‑read. I devoured it.

Purchase links

FREE with Kindle Unlimited

http://geni.us/ForeverUndone

Audible: https://bit.ly/3MbCWPW

Narrated by: CJ Bloom and JF Harding

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/43WmxVs

About the author

J. Saman is a USA Today and Amazon top 40 bestselling author who writes sassy, swoony, and scorching contemporary romances. She is addicted to Diet Coke, sour candy, and indie rock. She swears way too much (especially after a glass of wine) and has a penchant for sarcasm (or so her husband and children like to tell her).

J. is an admitted lover of second chance romances, enemies to lovers, and the perfect amount of angst. She is best known for writing funny and emotional romances filled with smart, strong women, and sexy alphas who have a softer side—especially for their women.

Connect with J. Saman

Website: https://www.jsamanbooks.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14923699.J_Saman

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/J.-Saman/author/B01FOIUR46

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/jsamanbooks

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/jsamansradtasticreaders

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/jsamanbooks

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jsamanbooks

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/j-saman

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/jsamanbooks/

Book review: LONG TIME COMING, by S.L. Scott

Another brother’s best friend romance, to add to the gazillion I’ve read this year.  But in this case, this one has been so incredibly romantic that I actually loved it, in spite of not being a trope I like. I loved the small town vibe, the cowboy/cowgirl element to the story, all the subtle plot lines that add so much to the main plot of second chance, brother’s best friend love story.

Christine had dreams of a career, but those stopped when her mother died and she took over the running of her parents’ farm.  There’s some resentment over the fact that her two older brothers skipped town and left her with the sole responsibility of the farm, and taking care of their aging, ailing father.  

Tagger Grange had also left town, studied Finance with Christine’s brother Baylor, and both were making lots of money as financial advisors in New York.  Tagger had a sudden urge to come visit his hometown, see his parents, and bring his son to visit the place where he grew up.  Same as Christine and Baylor, he had a happy, magical childhood, and he’s only now revisiting and enjoying the memories.  He introduces his son Beck to all his old haunts, the cowboy life, riding horses, all the joys of his boyhood.  And this makes him reassess the quality of life his son has in New York versus the quality of life he could give his son here in Peachtree Pass, Texas.

Christine had a crush on Tagger when they were in school, and it comes blazing back as they share days working in her ranch. She falls in love with Beck, falls back in love with Tagger, but there’s an issue of distance and how to make it work.  Also, there are issues with Beck’s mom, who is a snotty, uppity New Yorker and turns her nose up at dusty Texas and frumpy cowgirls.  Charming, she is not!

I loved how the issues are handled, with lots of respect and consideration.  Loved how Tagger fell back in love with his roots and with Christine, loved how his priority is his son’s happiness.  I even loved that he was respectful to his mother’s son, even though she was to toxic.

It was a lovely read, romantic, a slow reminiscent story of a forgotten and loved childhood and new discoveries. Utterly charming!

Purchase links

https://geni.us/LTCAm

About the author

Kylie is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today best-selling, Audie Award winning author. 

She has sold over 2,000,000 books and was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year four times by the Australian Romance Reader’s Association. Her books have been translated into sixteen different languages. She is based in Queensland, Australia; living and working on land traditionally owned by the Jagera people.

Contact her at info@kyliescott.com

Connect with Kylie Scott:

https://kyliescott.com/

Book review: NORTH, by Sawyer Bennett

Pittsburgh Titans #16

North Paquette & Farren Abrams

I didn’t click very well with this book because I don’t like the “brothers’s best friend” trope. However, the way the author wrote it was much better than other versions I’ve read. North was a bit reluctant to sleep with Farren and keep it from her brother Rafferty, who is his teammate. Although Farren wanted to keep the secret, North kept fighting it because it didn’t feel honest, and I loved that. 

I found North to be such an upstanding guy. Friendly, honest, a team player, concerned about all his teammates, sees them as family.  A rockstar in bed, and a rock of support when you need it. He’s the perfect book boyfriend!

I saw Farren as a lost one. From a traumatic experience in her teens, she’s closed herself off from any close relations, and seems to live a driftless life. Her family, including Rafferty, call her a free spirit. It boggles my mind that she has a near genius IQ, could do anything she wanted to do, and her family just let her breeze around in all her failures. Plus, she’s brilliant, she could have figured it out or seek help. It was frustrating!

For all these reasons, the book didn’t exactly click with me, even though I loved all the scenes with the Titans, the games, the women in the Titans’ friend circle, and above all, the suspense with Penn Navarro. I was a bit disappointed there was no sighting of my idol Brianne Norcross, but Willa and Mazzy appear frequently, as they have befriended Farren. Outside of her emotional issues, Farren is a delightful friend, smart and entertaining. Just allergic to commitment, sigh.

The writing is superb as always, the pace perfect, and the characters wonderful. It’s always a delight to read a book written by Sawyer Bennett!

Purchase links

Buy direct from Sawyer:

➜ Ebook: https://geni.us/STORE_NorthEbook

➜ Audio: https://geni.us/STORE_NorthAudio

➜ Paperback: https://geni.us/STORE_NorthPB

Get it at all other retailers:

➜ Amazon: https://geni.us/Q1S8G

➜ Nook: https://geni.us/5XB9

➜ Apple: https://geni.us/MAWWC8E

➜ Google: https://geni.us/g32Ok

➜ Kobo: https://geni.us/deNOy1

NORTH is narrated by Stephen Dexter and Savannah Peachwood.

➜ Apple: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_Apple

➜ Chirp: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_Chirp

➜ LibroFM: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_LibroFM

➜ Nook: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_Nook

➜ Spotify: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_Spotify

➜ Storytel: https://geni.us/NorthAudio_Storytel

About the author

When Sawyer Bennett isn’t writing New York Times, USA 

Today, and Wall Street Journal Bestselling books, she’s listening to her favorite audios, 

catering to her dogs, and schlepping her daughter to and from the horse barn. Known for 

strong character development and romance that caters to a wide variety of readers, find 

Sawyer at https://geni.us/SawyerBennett

Connect with Sawyer:

✦ Facebook: http://bit.ly/Sawyer_FB

✦ Reader group: http://bit.ly/Sawyer_NEP 

✦ Instagram: http://bit.ly/Sawyer_IG

✦ TikTok: https://bit.ly/Sawyer_TOK 

✦ Goodreads: http://bit.ly/Sawyer_GR

 

Book review: WILDEST DREAMS, by L.J. Shen

Forbidden Love #2

Rhyland & Dylan

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Only LJ Shen can take two characters who appear to be losers and made them winners.  When I started to read this story and saw Dylan Casablancas, little sister of famous chef Ambrose Casablancas, just arrived in New York broke, jobless, with a precious four-year-old little girl, and in a broken down car, then saw Rhyland Cortridge, ex-gigolo, about to go broke, all his hopes on a dating app and a Texas investor, I had no doubt LJ Shen was going to make these two succeed beyond expectations.  

Initially I saw a single mom with unattained dreams and bad decisions.  And as the story evolved, I saw a genius who sacrificed her future so her big brother could fly.  Rhyland’s most important relation is his best friend Row.  After helping him for several years, he used his physique and charm and became a ladies escort with a lot of success, lots of money, and crap money management.   He hired Dylan as his fake fiancees because his potential investor only invests in family people.  And he nearly went broke paying Dylan, not just for his dream, but in support of her dream.  

From apparently shallow people, LJ Shen slowly and surely revealed to us their hidden depths, the goody parts of their personas and made us fall in love with them.  

The author also manages to entertain and delight with the perfectly placed humorous touches, sexy banter, and yummy sexy times.  I loved, loved, Rhyland’s babysitting style.  He didn’t cater to a little girl, he called her little stinker, bribed and cajoled, read her stories with different voices, protected her and slowly and reluctantly, fell in love with the little stinker.  From a man who projected child revulsion, he certainly gave daddy vibes at the end.  I was certain of it, when he begged to enter Gravity’s room after she had gone to sleep, just to get a sniff of her hair. Truly wondrous!

It’s a wonderful love story, a saga as this couple overcome their issues, fall in love, reject being in love, fight with their feelings, get jealous, possessive, deny being jealous and finally accept their happiness depends on the other’s happiness.  It’s romantic with bite, heartwarming with angst, and wonderfully riveting.  

Purchase links

FREE in Kindle Unlimited

Ebook: https://amzn.to/3zW9Luc

Deluxe Paperback: https://amzn.to/4haIp3p

Barnes & Noble Exclusive: https://tinyurl.com/wddpbbn  

Add Wildest Dreams to Goodreads: https://tinyurl.com/wdljgr  

 

About the author

L.J. Shen is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Washington Post, and #1 Amazon bestselling author of contemporary, new adult, and young adult romance. Her books have been translated in over twenty different countries, and she hopes to visit all of them.

She lives in Florida with her husband, three rowdy sons, and even rowdier pets. She enjoys good wine, bad reality TV shows, and reading to her heart’s content. 

Connect with L.J. Shen

Website  www.authorljshen.com 

Instagram (@authorljshen)

Facebook group at http://goo.gl/QZJ0NC. 

Sign up for her newsletter at https://bit.ly/3LhsIrb, and text SHEN to 313131 to get new release alerts (United States only).

Join LJ's mailing list for exclusive material ➜ https://bit.ly/3LhsIrb

Website ➜ www.authorljshen.com