Crush

Crush
by Mae Wood

The only thing headier than wine is lust.
Ryan Royer thought his business trip to California’s Napa Valley would be easy. Land a new client. Taste wine. But when the client is a free-spirited bombshell who presses all of his buttons, Ryan’s world goes sideways.
Kenzie Balfour is entirely irresistible. She’s the fourth generation to run The von Eck Estate Winery and she’s more intoxicating than any award-winning cabernet.
Ryan has been working hard for a promotion at one of the world’s top investment banks. If he can close this deal for her legendary winery, he gets the job. He can’t let a gorgeous woman with a great laugh get in the way of his goals. Even if she leaves him love drunk.
From a trouser-tightening almost-kiss at a restaurant to a seductive walk through a vineyard at sunset, can Ryan keep his crush on his client under control or will a taste of Kenzie be his downfall?

Escape to California’s wine country in Crush.

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My Review:

4 Stars!

This was my first book by Mae Wood and I am regretting waiting this long to read her work. This book was awesome. So awesome that I read it in two days. I fell in love with the chemistry between Ryan and McKenzie from the first few chapters. I was hooked and couldn’t get enough of these characters.

The hot and cold, push and pull of Ryan and McKenzie’s lust and love was mesmerizing. The more they tried to stay away from each other and ignore their feelings, the more I was rooting for them!

On top of my love for the characters in this book, I loved the vivid setting that was painted by Ms. Wood’s words. This is a book that I will be recommending to my friends for a very long time!

Broken Souls

Broken Souls
by Andi Rhodes

Micah…

I served my country and returned broken. Trying to fit the pieces back together, I built the Broken Rebel Brotherhood. We walked a fine line between right and wrong to protect those who had nowhere else to turn. I’d never mixed business with pleasure. That is, until her.

Sadie…

After years of abuse at the hands of my husband, I’d had enough. The only way to live was to run. Disappear. Life had other plans for me. Plans that included a sexy biker. I wasn’t looking for love, and I certainly didn’t think I could trust again. That is, until him.

Life had been cruel too many times to count, but the worst was yet to come. Will love be enough to keep them from shattering?

Broken Souls is a complete story with a guaranteed HEA. This book contains subject matter that some may find disturbing. Reader discretion is advised.

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My Review:

3.5 Stars!

This book is definitely not for the faint of heart. The depiction of violence and the lengths that an abuser will go to is raw and intense in this book. However, it took me on an emotional roller-coaster that I enjoyed. Micah and Sadie had amazing chemistry and I really liked reading their POVs and experiencing their stories.

My favorite part of this book was learning about the Broken Rebel Brotherhood – a motorcycle club. The premise behind this club is completely original and intriguing to me. The more I learned, the more I wanted to read about it.

I also loved the secondary characters in this book. They make me hungry for subsequent books in this series.

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse
by Charlie Mackesy

A book of hope for uncertain times.

Enter the world of Charlie’s four unlikely friends, discover their story and their most important life lessons.

The conversations of the boy, the mole, the fox and the horse have been shared thousands of times online, recreated in school art classes, hung on hospital walls and turned into tattoos. In Charlie’s first book, you will find his most-loved illustrations and some new ones too.

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My Review:

5 Stars!

Oh this book is SO lovely! I’m so glad that I picked it up and devoted the uninterrupted time to read it.

Everyone needs to read this book. It’s lessons in life, friendship, and happiness will last a lifetime.

The Family Upstairs

The Family Upstairs
by Lisa Jewell

Be careful who you let in.

Soon after her twenty-fifth birthday, Libby Jones returns home from work to find the letter she’s been waiting for her entire life. She rips it open with one driving thought: I am finally going to know who I am.

She soon learns not only the identity of her birth parents, but also that she is the sole inheritor of their abandoned mansion on the banks of the Thames in London’s fashionable Chelsea neighborhood, worth millions. Everything in Libby’s life is about to change. But what she can’t possibly know is that others have been waiting for this day as well—and she is on a collision course to meet them.

Twenty-five years ago, police were called to 16 Cheyne Walk with reports of a baby crying. When they arrived, they found a healthy ten-month-old happily cooing in her crib in the bedroom. Downstairs in the kitchen lay three dead bodies, all dressed in black, next to a hastily scrawled note. And the four other children reported to live at Cheyne Walk were gone.

In The Family Upstairs, the master of “bone-chilling suspense” (People) brings us the can’t-look-away story of three entangled families living in a house with the darkest of secrets.

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My Review:

3 Stars!

Lisa Jewell has quickly become one of my top must-read authors. Whenever she releases a new book, it is automatically added to my TBR list. This book was a good suspenseful thriller. However, it did not catch my attention as much as some of Ms. Jewell’s other novels. I actually was left feeling a bit confused at different points. Overall, this book was okay for me. I was left wanting just a little bit more.

A Mrs. Miracle Christmas

A Mrs. Miracle Christmas
by Debbie Macomber

Mrs. Miracle shows an ordinary family that they are blessed beyond belief in this uplifting holiday tale from #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber.

As the holiday season begins, Laurel McCullough could use some good news. She and her husband, Zach, have been praying for a baby that seems more and more like an impossible dream, and they’ve had to move in with her beloved grandmother, Helen, who’s having trouble taking care of herself. But when Laurel contacts a local home-care organization for help, there are no caregivers available.

Then Mrs. Miracle appears at her door. No stranger to lending a helping hand to a family in need, Mrs. Miracle reveals herself to be nothing short of a godsend. Helen’s even convinced she’s an angel! Still, Laurel has to admit that Helen has become noticeably happier and more engaged, decorating the family Christmas tree and setting up the nativity with Mrs. Miracle’s companionship. In the meantime, Laurel and Zach begin to encounter curious signs, all pointing toward the arrival of a special baby.

With Christmas approaching, there appears to be even more to Mrs. Miracle than meets the eye. In a classic turn of Debbie Macomber’s signature seasonal magic, Laurel, Zach, and Helen experience a holiday of heavenly proportions.

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My Review:

4 Stars!

This is part of the Mrs. Miracle series but it can definitely be read as a stand-alone.

I absolutely love Debbie Macomber books. Her Mrs. Miracle series is one of my absolute favorites to read over the Christmas holiday. This new addition did not disappoint. It was everything that I had hoped for and more.

I loved the characters (Helen, Zach, and Laurel). They all won my heart and the addition of Mrs. Miracle truly creates a cozy and heartwarming Christmas novel.

If you love Christmas novels as much as I do, this is a must-read!

Cowboy Christmas Redemption

Cowboy Christmas Redemption
by Maisey Yates

As snowflakes fall in Gold Valley, Oregon, will this rugged cowboy finally win the woman of his dreams?

Cowboy Caleb Dalton has loved single mom Ellie Bell, and her little daughter, Amelia, for years. But since Ellie is his best friend’s widow, Caleb’s head knows Ellie will always be strictly off-limits. If only his heart got the memo. So when Caleb discovers that Ellie has a Christmas wish list—and hopes for a kiss under the mistletoe—he’s throwing his cowboy hat into the ring. If anyone’s going to be kissing Ellie and sharing this magical time with her and her daughter, it’s him.

Ellie has dreaded the holidays since losing her husband. But this year, she’s finally ready to make some changes. She never expects the biggest change to be the heart-stopping kiss she shares with Caleb. For almost five years, Caleb has been her best friend, her rock, her salvation. This Christmas, can Caleb prove he’s also the missing puzzle piece of Ellie’s and Amelia’s hearts?

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My Review:

3 Stars!

Cowboys and Christmas, my two favorite “c” words. I couldn’t wait to crack this book open!

I did not realize that this was a book in a series when I started reading. It was definitely hard to read in isolation. I struggled to understand the first couple of chapters because I had not read the other books in this series.

However, I still enjoyed reading this book. It was a nice read for this time of year because of the Christmas theme. Ellie and Caleb’s story is heartwarming and exactly the romance I craved when I picked up this book.

A Wedding in December

A Wedding in December
by Sarah Morgan

In the snowy perfection of Aspen, the White family gathers for youngest daughter Rosie’s whirlwind Christmas wedding. First to arrive are the bride’s parents, Maggie and Nick. Their daughter’s marriage is a milestone they are determined to celebrate wholeheartedly, but they are hiding a huge secret of their own: they are on the brink of divorce. After living apart for the last six months, the last thing they need is to be trapped together in an irresistibly romantic winter wonderland.

Rosie’s older sister, Katie, is also dreading the wedding. Worried that impulsive, sweet-hearted Rosie is making a mistake, Katie is determined to save her sister from herself! If only the irritatingly good-looking best man, Jordan, would stop interfering with her plans…

Bride-to-be Rosie loves her fiancé but is having serious second thoughts. Except everyone has arrived—how can she tell them she’s not sure? As the big day gets closer, and emotions run even higher, this is one White family Christmas none of them will ever forget!

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My Review:

4 Stars!

I have fallen in love with Sarah Morgan’s Christmas novels. Last year, I read my first and this was the perfect novel to follow up with a year later.

This is a heartwarming story that will lead you on an amazing journey through multiple viewpoints. As always, the character development reeled me in and kept me wanting more. This story follows the White family as they gear up for a Christmas Wedding! As much as this story is a cozy Christmas read, it is also an emotional roller coaster.

Hop into your PJs, grab a glass of wine, and snuggle up on the couch with this amazing book!