My Favorite Books in 2020

 I listed my favorite books/series of 2019 and I had to do it for 2020. When I went back into my reviews for this year, I noticed something.  The majority of books I read were from series.  I also noticed that 2 of the authors on this year list is also on last year's list, but with different series.

1. Sweet Magnolias series by Sherryl Woods

I was watching this series on Netflix before I read the series.  I decided that I had to read it before season 2 came out.  I would love a group of ladies like that for friends, who drop everything and comes together in support of one another.  My favorite of the 3 is Maddie Townsend.  She is a strong woman.

2. Wait With Me series by Amy Daws

I think my favorite book out of the series would have to be book #4, Take a Number.  I love the fake relationship! These are available on Kindle Unlimited.  I would recommend this series & the Harris Brother series (last year's favorite).

3. Broken Gems series by Jane Blythe 

This series had everything I love in a book: suspense, crime, murder, intrigue, and a bit of romance. When I was reading Cracked Sapphire, I realized human trafficking could be anywhere.  I have taught my children to be aware of their surroundings.  I have read all, but the last book, #6, Salvaging Marigold.  This series is available from Kindle Unlimited. Beautiful titles!!

4. Winter Black series by Mary Stone

This series had suspense, crime, murder, and intrigue.  I have read all, but the last book, #9, Winter's End.  This series is available in Kindle Unlimited.  This coming year I plan to read the series, Autumn Trent, who is a character in this series.  

Happy Reading!!
Melissa

Previous year: 2019

Book Review: Daddy's Girls by Danielle Steel

 For this review, I chose Daddy's Girls by Danielle Steel.

I requested the ebook through my library's Overdrive account.

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

IN DANIELLE STEEL'S RIVETING NOVEL, THREE WOMEN RAISED BY THEIR FATHER ON A SPRAWLING CALIFORNIA RANCH NOW CONFRONT DIFFICULT TRUTHS ABOUT THEIR PAST.

Decades ago, after the death of his wife, Texas ranch hand JT Tucker took his three small daughters to California to start a new life. With almost no money, a will of iron, and hard work, he eventually built the biggest ranch in California. but when he dies suddenly at the age of 64, the ranch is inherited by his three daughters - each of them finding it impossible to believe this larger-than-life figure is gone from their lives.

JT's relationship with each daughter was entirely different. Caroline, the youngest and most reserved, was overlooked by her father for her entire life and fled to become a wife, mother, and writer in Marin County. Gemma, his declared favorite, sought out Hollywood glamour and success and became a major television star. Kate, the eldest, stayed at home with her father to do his bidding as a ranch hand, without thanks or praise, forsaking marriage and a family of her own for the love of him.

Now, upon JT's death, the paper trail he leaves behind begins to reveal much more than the three sisters ever guessed about who he really was. It will turn their world upside down, and each of them must grapple with a new reality, strengthening their relationships with one another and discovering who they are now as grown women, in spite of him.

Set against the magnificent backdrop of the West and the drams of a family in turmoil, 'DADDY'S GIRLS' is the story of three remarkable women and their unique bond to each other - the daughters of a complex, many-faceted, domineering father who left his mark on each of them.

LARGE PRINT PAPERBACK ⇒ 352pages
HARDCOVER & KINDLE ⇒ 288pages.
AUDIBLE RUNNING TIME ⇒ 7hrs. and 28mins.

©2020 Danielle Steel (P)2020 Recorded Books (less)

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It’s been a while since I read a book from this author. Beautifully written!  I love to read books where sisters come back together after the death of one of their parents.  Sweet!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Book Review: My Husband's Girlfriend by Cydney Rax

 For this review, I chose My Husband's Girlfriend by Cydney Rax.

I requested the ebook through my library's overdrive. 

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

A celibate husband and wife are the two most dangerous people on earth . . .

Neil and Anya Meadows are stuck in a sexless marriage. Anya suffers from a hormonal disorder that leaves her with no sex drive at all, while Neil has a voracious sexual appetite. After one unfulfilling encounter too many, they make a deal: Neil will be allowed to have a mistress, but only for oral sex and only twice a month. And he’s forbidden to fall in love with her.

Things don’t exactly work out as planned. Neil and his mistress Danielle have a child together, and all of them—Anya, Neil, Danielle, the new baby, and Neil and Anya’s daughter—decide to live together as Houston’s most complicated blended family. The tension builds as each is forced to make difficult choices, as well as to come to terms with the past—and the future.

Fast-paced, provocative, and sexy, My Husband’s Girlfriend explores issues of morality, emotional ties, family, love, and monogamy, and is an eye-opening novel about the complexity of modern love.

From the Trade Paperback edition. 

I couldn’t believe that Anya came up with that contract.  I knew it would get messy.  Anya was strong for how her family’s life changed.  I keep thinking would I do that?  I really don't think I would.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Book Review: The Safe Place by Anna Downes

 For this review, I chose The Safe Place by Anna Downes.

I requested the ebook through my library's Overdrive account.

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

Superbly tense and oozing with atmosphere, Anna Downs's debut is the perfect summer suspense, with the modern gothic feel of Ruth Ware and the morally complex family dynamics of Lisa Jewell.

Welcome to paradise...will you ever be able to leave?

Emily is a mess.

Emily Proudman just lost her acting agent, her job, and her apartment in one miserable day.

Emily is desperate.

Scott Denny, a successful and charismatic CEO, has a problem that neither his business acumen nor vast wealth can fix. Until he meets Emily.

Emily is perfect.

Scott offers Emily a summer job as a housekeeper on his remote, beautiful French estate. Enchanted by his lovely wife Nina, and his eccentric young daughter, Aurelia, Emily falls headlong into this oasis of wine-soaked days by the pool. But soon Emily realizes that Scott and Nina are hiding dangerous secrets, and if she doesn't play along, the consequences could be deadly.

I’m not sure what I read. Suspenseful. Confusing. What happened to Emily as a child?  

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Book Review: Where Azaleas Bloom by Sherryl Woods

  For this review, I chose Where the Azaleas Bloom by Sherryl Woods.

I requested the ebook through Hoopla.

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

Single mom Lynn Morrow is determined to put food on the table for her son and daughter. Her soon-to-be-ex-husband has failed to meet his obligations time and again—but it turns out that Ed is struggling with his own demons.

Enter contractor Mitch Franklin, an unlikely knight in shining armor. A widower with two grieving sons, Mitch once admired Lynn from afar. Now he sees in her not only the sweet girl who got away, but a woman desperately in need of support. While rushing to the rescue of Lynn and her children comes naturally to Mitch, he's also wise enough to encourage Lynn to find her own way…hopefully straight into his arms. (less)

Wow! I never imagine that was Ed’s secret. That was awesome!  A great book! I can’t wait to read the next book. 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Book Review: Just Breathe by Susan Wiggs

                                For this review, I chose Just Breathe by Susan Wiggs.

I requested this ebook from my local library's overdrive.

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

Unexpected change can be like a breath of fresh air-a little brisk at first, but magic for the body and soul.... 

Sarah Moon tackles life's issues with a sharp wit in her syndicated comic strip Just Breathe. With both Sarah and her cartoon heroine undergoing fertility treatments, her fiction often reflects her reality. However, she hadn't scripted her husband's infidelity. 

In the wake of her shattered marriage, Sarah flees to the coastal town in Northern California where she grew up. There, she revisits her troubling past: an emotionally distant father, the loss of her mother and an unexpected connection with Will Bonner, the high school heartthrob skewered mercilessly in her comics. But he's been through some changes himself. And just as her heart is about to reawaken, Sarah makes a most startling discovery. She's pregnant. 

The winds of change have led Sarah to this surprising new beginning. All she can do is just close her eyes...and breathe. (less)

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Exactly what I needed- a story of loss and finding love again.  

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Cover Reveal: How to Catch a Star by M. Piper

 

Title: How to Catch a Star

Author: M. Piper

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Cover Design: Inked Imprints

Release Date: March 12, 2021

BLURB

I had learned a lot in my life. Being a foster kid and jumping from household to household, I knew more about surviving than any other human my age. I could disassemble and reassemble a motorcycle in a matter of a couple of weeks. I had experience in carpentry, cooking, cleaning, and any other odd job one could do while growing up. I thought I knew it all and had done it all. Meeting Brooklyn, however, taught me the one thing I never truly had. 

Love. 

She brought feelings into my life that I couldn't explain if I tried the rest of my life. The word love never meant much to me, but with her, it felt natural. Real. 

I didn't know love, and I wasn't prepared for what it brought along with it. 

Love brought jealousy. 

Love brought worry. 

Love brought a side of me I wasn’t prepared for. 

Brooklyn brought a lot of unexpected changes into my life. 

Love. Loss. Heartbreak. 

She was my star, but even the brightest of stars eventually burn out.

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M. Piper’s love for romance came at a young age when she would steal her mom’s Nora Roberts novels and read them at bedtime. She’s been writing for years and has over twenty romance novels published, as well as a line of co-authored books. Her novels have topped Amazon and iBooks lists in multiple countries. When she’s not pouring her heart into her next novel, she’s playing taxi to her two boys, being a kickass wife to her husband, and trying to keep up on laundry while holding down a day job teaching tiny ninjas. She lives off coffee and smartass remarks twenty four seven and won’t turn down a good beer or anything that includes Fireball.

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Release Blitz: Red Door by Emery Jacobs

 

Title: The Red Door

Series: Love in Limestone Novella #1

Author: Emery Jacobs

Genre: Small Town Contemporary Romance

Release Date: December 30, 2020

BLURB

There's a bar on the outskirts of Limestone, Louisiana that serves an unusual type of whiskey. Some call it magic. Others claim it’s a scam. Yet rumors of its mystical properties keep people coming in from far and wide. 

Luck. 

Wealth. 

Happiness. 

Health. 

These wonders can be found by those who believe... and take a shot. 

Ten o’clock in the morning, New Year’s Day. Two down-on-their-luck strangers enter The Red Door Bar. Both are searching for a miracle. What they find when they reach the bottom of that glass will eventually change their lives forever. 

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Free in Kindle Unlimited

AUTHOR BIO

Emery grew up in Southern Arkansas and has lived most of her adult life in Northern Louisiana. She spends her days working as a Nurse Practitioner in rural health and her nights reading, writing, and occasionally sleeping. 

She loves real life romance…lots of angst and heartbreak, but always a happy ending.

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NEWSLETTER

Book Review: A Midwestern Cinderella by Krista Lakes

                For this review, I chose A Midwestern Cinderella by Krista Lakes.

I received an ARC copy of the ebook for an honest review of this book.

Here is a brief description from Goodreads:

“I don’t care if you’re not royalty. You’re my princess.”

Zoey is hardly what you’d consider princess material. Born in flyover country, she never learned how to curtsy, let alone walk in high heels. And when she literally trips into the arms of a handsome stranger at her friend’s wedding, she thinks she’s finally found love.

Freddie Prescott is a charming prankster. Despite his carefree attitude, he pursues Zoey with an intensity that shows he can be serious when he needs to be. And with those rock hard abs and rippling biceps, his pursuit of Zoey is a satisfying one. Without realizing it, Zoey finds herself falling in love.

There’s only one problem: Freddie is a prince.

Spending a week without Internet access or phone reception has left Zoey in a weird predicament. He certainly left enough hints that he was rich and famous, but he never outright said it. And when the time comes for him to leave their vacation getaway, he asks her to come with him to the kingdom of Paradisa.

But Zoey can’t use the right fork, put her pinkie up for tea, or any of the things expected of a princess. Plus, there are those in the kingdom who don’t want an American close to the throne. How can she hope to keep Freddie’s love if she’s a stranger to his royal world?

NYT Bestseller Krista Lakes brings you this brand new sweet-and-sexy royal romance. This standalone novel will have you cheering for an American princess’s happily ever after. (less)

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I love books with a prince and a woman who has no idea of who he truly is, a prince. Cried, laughed and loved this book! Beautifully written!! 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Recommend this book? Yes! Author? Yes!

Read more from this author? Yes!

Happy Reading!

Melissa 

Review coming next: 

FTC Disclosure: The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company has provided me with a copy of this book for review or I have purchased the book with my own funds.  The opinion I share about the story are mine and have not been influenced by the The Publisher/Author/Book Tour Company if received for review.

Teaser Blast: Control by Tracie Delaney

 Control by Tracie Delaney is releasing January 21, 2021!

Pre-order your copy today!

https://geni.us/ControlDW

  

Goodreads: www.smarturl.it/ControlGR

Blurb

Control by Tracie Delaney is a fast-paced, angst-ridden, steamy contemporary romance written in K. Bromberg’s Driven World project.

Life has a way of kicking you in the nuts right when you're riding an unstoppable wave.

I know, because it happened to me.

In one split second my entire existence came crashing down. Setting up a school to teach underprivileged kids the art of motor racing was just the distraction I needed.

And it worked, until she arrived with her sea-blue eyes, her soft smile, and her determination to fix me.

My advice, sweetheart? Take your altruistic attitude and shove it. I'm broken beyond repair.

***

Life has a way of presenting the solution to an unsolvable problem when you least expect it.

Yet in my wildest dreams, I never imagined the beautiful but damaged Nico Palmer would offer the answer to all my prayers.

The way he is with my son--patient, kind, understanding--tells me he's salvageable. Somewhere deep inside his black heart there's a chink of light. All I have to do is find a way to smash through the barriers he's erected.

He's not making it easy, but I've never run from a challenge.

And I don't intend to start now.

Teaser Blast: Whatever You Need by S. Jones

 Whatever You Need by S. Jones is releasing January 11, 2021!

Pre-order your copy today!      

US: https://amzn.to/2IycwXm

WW: mybook.to/wynsj

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3k6RzRm

Blurb

A one-night stand wouldn't hurt, right? That's what I told myself while I was stranded at the hotel bar in the middle of a snow storm. I thought indulging in a night of passion with the good-looking detective would be a great idea. I couldn't have been more wrong.  

Apparently, seeing him again was inevitable, especially when fate kept putting him in my path. 

I didn't have time for a relationship. I had a business to run and obligations to honor. But as it  turned out, resisting him required more restraint than the set of handcuffs that brought us together in the first place. 

I convinced myself that it was the perfect arrangement. He wasn't looking for a commitment and I wasn't in a position to give him one. That was already promised to someone else. 

We might have agreed to keep things simple, but sometimes rules are destined to be broken. 

He told me he would give me Whatever I Need. How can I bring myself to tell him what I need is for him to let me go? 

Release Blitz: A Midwestern Cinderella by Krista Lakes

 

Title: A Midwestern Cinderella

Author: Krista Lakes

Genre: Contemporary Royal Romance

Release Date: December 28, 2020

BLURB

Zoey is hardly what you'd consider princess material. Born in flyover country, she never learned how to curtsy, let alone walk in high heels. And when she literally trips into the arms of a handsome stranger at her friend's wedding, she thinks she's finally found love.

Freddie Prescott is a charming prankster. Despite his carefree attitude, he pursues Zoey with an intensity that shows he can be serious when he needs to be. And with those rock hard abs and rippling biceps, his pursuit of Zoey is a satisfying one. Without realizing it, Zoey finds herself falling in love.

There's only one problem: Freddie is a prince.

Spending a week without Internet access or phone reception has left Zoey in a weird predicament. He certainly left enough hints that he was rich and famous, but he never outright said it. And when the time comes for him to leave their vacation getaway, he asks her to come with him to the kingdom of Paradisa.

But Zoey can't use the right fork, put her pinkie up for tea, or any of the things expected of a princess. Plus, there are those in the kingdom who don't want an American close to the throne. How can she hope to keep Freddie's love if she's a stranger to his royal world?

NYT Bestseller Krista Lakes brings you this brand new sweet-and-sexy royal romance. This standalone novel will have you cheering for an American princess’s happily ever after.

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99c for a limited time!

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AUTHOR BIO

New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Krista Lakes is a thirtysomething who recently rediscovered her passion for writing. She is living happily ever after with her Prince Charming. Her first kid just started preschool and she is happy to welcome her second child into her life, continuing her "Happily Ever After"!

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