Category: Review

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Karla Sorensen’s Promise Me This ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A

Tropes: best friends to lovers; roommates; grump/sunshine; single mom; very slow burn

Karla Sorensen is a good picker. You might question my choice of words to grab your attention for this review. You may be thinking, “of what, her nose?” Maybe, maybe not. That’s a personal choice. I suggest that Sorensen’s capacity to make the best choices in her romances is the draw to them. Her ability to create realistic characters (save for the always handsome, well-built men) and the story arcs keep readers such as myself returning to her books with an almost rabid hunger. The Wilder Family or the Ward Family or the Washington Wolves Family aren’t interchangeable. Yes, they have her voice stamped into their books, but they are distinct. They tug at our experiences because they think and feel like us. They might be professional football players, but Sorensen humanizes them in a way that makes us believe we could be their friends. Over and over again, I find this trait in her writing, and it compels me to read every book she writes. 

With her newest book, Promise Me This, Sorensen has a challenge. I’ve heard in many a reader group that the “friends to lovers” trope can be a difficult sell. I’ve even heard authors state this explicitly as their least favorite trope. They struggle with finding the tipping point: what compels two people who have been friends for a long time to finally realize they are attracted to or in love with each other. I’ve read it numerous times, and I will say right here: Sorensen has written it well. When I tell you the why behind that, you’ll understand, but I have to imagine that she struggled to get this “right,” and her “choices” are the compelling reasons why she has done it well. 

  • It’s the time between the last time her characters saw each other and their present. The intentionality of keeping them apart for seventeen years, many of those years without contact, is important. In that time, Ian and Harlow maintain the character traits that make them beloved, but they mature into different people. Ian can still feel protective of Harlow in the present, but Harlow, as a single mother living in New York City, has also learned to care for herself. The present-day protectiveness becomes less a habit and more a gift, something to be attracted to versus a survival mechanism. The decidedness of Sorensen’s choice to keep them apart allows for her best friends to become attracted to each other and eventually become forever in a way that makes it believable. This is important to the success of this trope in Promise Me This.
  • It’s the slow burn. For readers of smut, this book, quite frankly, might not be for you. Promise Me This is a SERIOUS slow burn (80ish% in for the deed). I’m a personal fan of slow burn as I need the space for the attraction and chemistry to burn. And Sorensen does this well. It never felt manipulative or egregious; it felt necessary as Harlow and Ian MUST understand the change in their relationship and be ready to accept the consequences. Had she been haphazard in their physicality, it would have reduced their story, and their story holds so much power as it speaks to the capacity to love a person beyond the nostalgia of friendship. Sorensen took the space of her story to guide her characters into the truth about their love for each other; that it transcends friendship. The slow burn of Ian and Harlow is my favorite part of this story

Another compelling choice of Sorensen’s in this book is the magnification of relationships within time. The juxtaposition of Ian and Harlow’s long-time friendship and the familiarity of it against Harlow’s relationship with her parents and their routine of living is compelling. As Ian and Harlow try to find equilibrium as their feelings progress, and Harlow recognizes the rigidity of her parents’ routine and way of life, you can see the importance of embracing change. Without that realization, Harlow and Ian can never take the leap into loving each other as more than friends. Instead, if one can imagine it, their friendship might become as staid and comfortable as her parents’ way of life. This entire book underscores the necessity of remaining flexible and open, to allow something bigger and better, and to be both retrospective and introspective in the present. 

And finally, Harlow’s daughter, Sage, along with the Wilder family, continues to remind us of the love of family to support us during the best and most difficult of times. As I entered Promise Me This, I grieved the loss of Tim. His heart-to-heart talks with his children and their love interests have been some of my favorite moments of this series. However, Tim is not lost in Promise Me This. He is stamped into the hearts and minds of his children, so we continue to receive Tim Wilder-isms throughout the book. Even more, Sorensen gifts us with Sage-isms and Sheila-isms throughout her romance. Sorensen’s “choice” to write a family as foundational as the Wilders tethers this series. 

Karla Sorensen simply knows how to choose words, phrases, sentences, characters, and plot lines/devices, creating stories that don’t let go of your heart. I will say it right here: Promise Me This is my favorite book of the series. That’s a difficult choice, but 65 highlights of prose later and a heart so full of Harlow, Ian, and Sage tells the truth. This book absolutely stole my heart. And the extended epilogue is pure emotional perfection.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Kilby Blades’s Young Buck, a Green Valley Heroes romance ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A-/B+

Tropes: close proximity/neighbors; age gap; small town; he falls first; grump/sunshine; golden retriever MMC; girl squad

Kilby Blades’s contributions are among the best things that have happened to Smartypants Romance. Don’t get me wrong; I have a lot of authors whom I love writing in this world, but Kilby Blades has a way of bringing more to her romances, and it brings added layers to this world. In Young Buck, Blades introduces us to neighbors, Buck Rogers (a nice throwback to one of my favorite 80s shows) and Loretta. These two have a wild meet-cute that makes you laugh and feel bad for Buck. As the story progresses, Blades gifts us with Loretta’s capacity as an independent, intelligent woman who transcends a traumatic background to succeed in her present day. She wraps Loretta’s story in the genuine adoration of Buck, who falls first. The PR machine behind this book considers Buck the sunshine of the tale and Loretta the grump, but I think the reality is a golden retriever/black cat trope. Loretta, as a PI of cheating spouses, has seen the worst of relationships while also living through it. It isn’t that she’s grumpy; she’s careful and decisive about relationships. With his privilege, Buck has been less thoughtful about it, but a situation in his life allows him an understanding of Loretta’s past. Buck must also navigate a new job in leadership at the Green Valley Fire Department, which brings tension. Blades challenges him throughout this story, and it adds gravity to his “golden retriever” vibe. 

Throughout all of this is an underlying story about Buck’s family that surprises him and the reader. This plotline drives the story forward and keeps the readers engaged. As Buck and Loretta grow closer, their romance becomes the sweet essence of the book. It’s also here where my one criticism of the story lies. Blades makes a choice about Buck that threatens his relationship with Loretta, and I understand its need to create tension in their relationship. However, given how Blades develops Buck’s character, it is “out of character” for him and seems inconsistent. 

With Young Buck, Kilby Blades shows us why we should read her more. She crafts entertaining characters and draws us into her romantic stories. The ending of Young Buck is precisely what is needed to put a smile on your face for the day, the weekend, or your week. Smartypants Romance is better for having her on their author list.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Lexi Blake’s The Accidental Siren, book 1 of her Texas Sirens: Legacy series ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: B

Tropes: MFM; who did this to you; dom/sub; small town romance; found family

Lexi Blake’s The Accidental Siren, the next generation of her Texas Sirens/Nights in Bliss series, is everything you love about those series. The MFM drama, two of the throuple needing the steadiness of the alpha, some romantic suspense, and the healing nature of the found family trope are wrapped up in spicy, curl-your-toes romance. Blake isn’t trying to rewrite her MFM romances; instead, she’s welcoming us into another generation of throuples surrounded by people who love and protect them. In this book, much like the others of this ilk, Blake plays with the societal dilemma of a throuple in a small town filled with people who accept the three, narrow-minded people, and people who use religion to reduce the autonomy and authority of others. She magnifies the double standards of ‘acceptable’ behavior for men and women, as well. Blake wraps these heavier messages in the $exual yearnings of, in this book, Jared “Grim”, Josh, and Nicole, while weaving in characters from several of her series. She loves to remind us that Big Tag is only a call away, but there are a plethora of Blake universe characters in this story. I oftentimes have to remind myself of them because her prolific book list keeps her readers on their toes. 

I enjoyed the easiness of Lexi Blake’s The Accidental Siren. It wrings emotions from you as Grim and Nicole struggle to accept the found family of the Barnes-Fleetwoods. Once they accept their fate to be loved, it’s a no-holds-barred tale of spicy love-making and happily ever afters.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Jewel E. Ann’s I Thought of You ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A

“It’s okay that love is messy and complicated. If loving too much or too many people is my biggest offense, I’ll die with no regrets.”

“We have a beautiful life. I don’t know how long it will last. We lie a day at a time, grateful for each miraculous moment.”

Since 2020, I have lost three important people in my life, one of those being my dad. Each of them left this world in a different way, but they left it nonetheless. I also serve as a director of Guest Services at my large church of over 5000 people, and I’m surrounded by life, love, and loss on any given weekend. I have a volunteer staff of 160 people, and my current prayer request list is filled with 20 people needing prayer, most of them for situations closely related to death and dying. What I know, what is promised in our time, is that our lives are but a vapor. And how we live our lives between birth and death falls on us. 

Jewel E. Ann’s I Thought of You transcends the labels of romance or love story or women’s fiction or fiction. It’s a beautifully written, emotionally evocative manifesto on the fragility of life and the need to be present in it. It’s full of big emotions, deftly written prose (my highlights number 107), and a story that scores your heart and soul. 

Usually, I write longer reviews, but I won’t for Scottie and Price and Koen. They are purely types inhabiting the three-act structure of Jewel E. Ann’s story. What bleeds between her words, sentences, and pages is about life. It made me sob because it reminded me of some harsh truths of my own life that I’ve been wrestling with, and it challenged me to consider being brave amid my fear. To do so might bring bigger dividends than the comfortable, controlled, but sadly lonely life I lead today. 

This book has left an indelible mark on my soul, resonating with my personal journey and experiences.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: J. Saman’s Undeniably Convenient ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A-/B+

Tropes: second chances; age gap; boss/employee; forced proximity; grump/sunshine; workplace romance

J. Saman’s newest story, Undeniably Convenient, invites us into the next generation of characters from some of her beloved series: Boston’s Billionaire Bachelors and Irresistibly Yours. Nothing excites me more than diving into the kids’ lives and loves of past characters. And this newest book doesn’t disappoint. 

Undeniably Convenient is one of J. Saman’s most intense and passionate stories yet. The characters, Katy (Callan’s niece from Irresisibly Wild) and Bennett ignite the pages with their fiery attraction. Their building chemistry and the complex situation that leads to a baby contract drive the story forward at every turn. Their inability to keep their hands off each other and Bennett’s alpha-male tendencies, especially in the bedroom, make for a captivating, explosive narrative.

Adding some of the other next-generation characters ignites an interest in future stories in this new series. We are granted access to the “bachelors” and the “irresistibly yours” series which grounds us in Saman’s universe. I love it when authors create universes to inhabit because we continue to get glimpses of some of our favorite characters. Saman has shown a penchant for this strategy, and I’m all in. 

Above it all, though, is a complicated storyline in Undeniably Convenient that is tricky as Katy and Bennett reconcile and realize they can have a child together. All of this is fraught with some past villains who threaten their future and a denial of their mounting emotions, holding its readers enthralled. At least, I was engrossed in Katy and Bennett’s rollercoaster of a journey.

I will say that there are a few inconsistencies throughout the story that pulled my attention way. There was simply so much going on with this story because J. Saman’s book packs it all in. 

I am ready for more of this new series. J. Saman knows exactly how to entice her audience, and Undeniably Convenient does not disappoint.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Rebecca Jenshak’s Burnout ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A-

Tropes: bad boy/good girl; opposites attract; grump/sunshine; sports romance; alpha-hero; band of brothers

Who knew how refreshing an Olympic gymnast FMC and a motocross MMC could be as romantic characters? Let’s face it; there’s a run on hockey romance right now in romancelandia. Rebecca Jenshak has inhabited the world of college basketball, college hockey, and professional hockey at great length. Bringing us into the worlds of motocross and gymnastics was refreshing, and it raised the level of her storytelling. 

I couldn’t put down Jenshak’s Burnout for the first time in a bit. Knox and Avery’s banter, their compelling attraction, and the complication of their friends-with-benefits/situationship are enticing. I hated to leave them because Jenshak has created a chemistry between the two that is undeniable and engaging. Highlighting the tension of Knox’s need to care for his family is the emotional foundation of this story, and it draws the reader in. The way that Jenshak takes her reader to almost the end for Knox’s revelation about his feelings for Avery keeps you glued to the book. My one criticism is the ease at which Knox realizes this. He moves from failing to communicate with Avery to being all in which created a bit of a continuity issue for me. However, his profession of love is magnetic and romantic. Even more, the ending of Burnout and its bonus epilogue are adorable. 

Rebecca Jenshak earned a gold medal with Burnout. She should stand proudly on the podium and accept all the accolades for a compelling new story.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Nora Everly’s Passing Notes, book 1 of the Green Valley High Teachers’ Lounge series ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: B-

Tropes: second chance romance; single divorced dad; close proximity – neighbors; soulmates

Nora Everly has been a staple of the Smartypants Romance world. Her Oh Brother! Series is a favorite, as it’s easy to fall hard for the Monroe brothers. Everly continues this world in her newest story, Passing Notes, book 1 of the new Teachers’ Lounge series. In this book, Nick and Clara are high school sweethearts, split apart by some manipulations, only to be reunited years later. When Nick moves next door to Clara, their latent chemistry is ignited, and they must decide if they want more. 

Clara is the sister of the FMCs in the Monroe brothers’ stories, and I love that Everly found a space for her to inhabit. I loved her edginess; she’s the grump of this story. It’s Nick’s almost golden retriever, pining characterization that humanizes her. My issue with Everly’s book, however, is her choice to delay a talk about the past. In my opinion, it was delayed too far into the story, and it felt manipulative to me. Instead, for me, there was a repetition of Nick and Clara’s struggles. As they grow close, one or both of them push the other way, which grows tiring after a while. They simply needed to talk, and Everly kept that from happening with too much delay. 

Does Passing Notes have the charm of Smartypants Romance’s small-town world? Indeed. Am I looking forward to more stories in the Teachers’ Lounge series? For sure. Do I think Nora Everly could have taken Nick and Clara in a different direction, granting us more spice and more development of their relationship? Absolutely. She wrote a beautiful ending for this couple, and you’ll end the story with a swoony sigh. It’s the middle of the book that needs a bit more focus.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Max Monroe’s What I Should’ve Said ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: B-

Tropes: runaway bride; single dad; small town romance; hate to love; enemies to lovers; grumpy/sunshine; “I’ll kill anyone who hurts this woman”

Let me begin with this: I adore Max Monroe. From my head to my toes, I have loved their stories. I have felt, however, that some of their humor had become a bit staid. It didn’t have the same punch as their earlier billionaires’ books, and I was excited by how they talked about What I Should’ve Said, their newest book. This is a single dad, runaway bride, small-town romance at its most basic level, but they (they being Max Monroe) are right: it is something they haven’t written in a while. I’m an unusual Max Monroe reader because my favorite Max Monroe book is The Girl in the Painting. It’s unlike much of their book list, and something about it grabbed me. It’s hung onto my soul even though it’s been a couple of years since its release. For me, What I Should’ve Said feels shaded in the same feelings as The Girl in the Painting, which made me think I would love this story beyond measure. While I was caught in the thrall of Norah and Bennett and felt the tense emotion of this story, I struggled with this story. Not because I needed it to have the humor of the billionaires or the Winslow brothers or the funny stories series. One part of this book was developed in a way that caused one of the most important parts of the book, the chemistry and relational development of the couple, to be underdeveloped. The plotting and development of the story were uneven, ticking me off. Why? Because Max Monroe have found another place to inhabit in romancelandia, and I love it when authors try something new. 

I can’t divulge details even though I’m sure the emotional gravitas of this story has been revealed elsewhere. However, I can speak to Norah and Bennett’s story. You see, their initial hate-to-love was developed well and intentionally. It made sense that Bennett would be annoyed with Norah; she represents aspects of his past. And his present is taken up with his daughter. The more Max Monroe had them cross paths and fight their attraction, the more I was enticed into the story. When Norah meets and falls in love with Bennett’s daughter, Summer, the story becomes more complicated, and I was curious how they’d bring Bennett and Norah together because it seemed so complicated. Except in dealing with Summer’s emotional storyline, they gave up the tension between Bennett and Norah. They attempt to resurrect it later in the story, but by then, the ship has sailed, and it reads as more manipulative of the readers’ emotions than congruent with the story. And it saddened me.  

There is a depth of emotion in What I Should’ve Said that is striking and looks good on Max Monroe. I want more of these stories. I think the stories can be balanced, and this one got away from them given the plot line regarding Summer. The ending of this book is absolutely beautiful, and you will end it feeling bittersweet, a great emotion to feel at the end of a book. There is much more to cull from this small-town world, and I am ready to see where Max Monroe takes us.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Kandi Steiner’s Learn Your Lesson, book 3 of her Kings of the Ice series ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A

Tropes: single dad; teacher/nanny; forced proximity; hockey romance; band of brothers; forbidden; grump/sunshine; age gap; opposites attract; spicy lessons

Two weeks out and Kandi Steiner’s Daddy P still sits with me. Learn Your Lesson, book 3 of her Kings of the Ice series, is my favorite. Why? Well, for a number of reasons.

  1. Kandi Steiner’s writing voice has evolved. I’d like to think it has more to do with her personal life, but the angst of A Love Letter to Whiskey seems a thing of the past. Is there angst in Learn Your Lesson? Why yes there is! However, this isn’t “steal-your-soul-angst”; Steiner recognizes that people are fraught and it affects relationships. Every relationship has ups and downs, and as Will allows himself to love and be loved, he and Chloe must struggle through his battle. This is organic to Learn Your Lesson, and one of the reasons I adore their journey.
  2. Add a kid, and I’m in. Create an unique relationship between the kid, in this case, Ava and Chloe, and the emotional gravitas is built. Ava is everything you love in romance: precocious, adorable, and also fraught like her daddy. Like Chloe and Will, she also undertakes a character journey. While it isn’t the most important journey of the story, Steiner uses it to build Chloe’s character as the true hero of Learn Your Lesson.
  3. Steiner’s craftsmanship of Chloe is my favorite. She is a woman battling the matriarchal rule of her childhood and finding herself. She’s insightful, joyful, and independent. Her tenacity to bring joy into Will and Ava’s life is one of the draws to this story. She knows herself and her wants, and she goes after it. She’s the type of female character romance readers are drawn to.
  4. The band of brothers of the hockey team adds layers to the story. For one, it allows us to revisit the characters of the series’ first two books, but it evolves the characters who have stories to come. Steiner entices and invests us deeper into her series by bringing the old while mixing it with the future. I cannot wait for Aleks’s story based on how much more Steiner gifts us about him in this story.

I’m invested. Daddy P (Will) currently owns my heart in this series. What’s not to love about a recovering grump who falls hard for his sunshiney nanny? Everything!

In love and romance,


Professor A

new release, Review, Smartypants Romance

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Reviews: Lissa Sharpe’s Nun Too Soon, book 1 of the Bad Habit Book Club, a Smartypants Romance story ✍🏻

professorromance

Overall Grade: A-/B+

Tropes: forced proximity; romantic suspense: former nun, librarian, virgin FMC; bounty hunter MMC

Lissa Sharpe’s Nun Too Soon, book 1 of the new Bad Habit Book Club series under the Smartypants Romance universe, was a delightful read. I was worried that the former nun, virgin librarian FMC, Helen, would be too virginal. However, Sharpe has crafted her in such a way that she’s compelling. She’s a moonlighting romance writer who simply wants to experience all that $ex entails; she’s not intentionally forgoing it based on her past occupation. Instead, it’s just an inconvenience. Sharpe is smart in adding an MMC with all the experience but a reticence for relationships. This creates romantic tension between Thad, Sharpe’s MMC, and Helen, driving the story forward. 

Honestly, I couldn’t put Nun Too Soon down. As the second release of the Spring season, I was excited to read this new-to-me author, but also a story that grabbed my attention. I’m excited for the stories in this new series because there is such great potential with characters who are former nuns and priests finding love after that experience. It’s creative and a win for the Smartypants Romance world.

In love and romance,

Professor A