Category: Review

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Laney Hatcher’s Last on the List, the final book in the Bartholomew series ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: A-

Tropes: surprise pregnancy; best friend’s brother; sister’s best friend; banter; enemies to lovers to vibes; found family

Laney Hatcher has definitely saved her best for last. Last on the List, the final story of her Bartholomew series, offers an apt end to this touchingly irreverent historical romance series. The Bartholomew siblings have definitely captured my heart, and Silas and Mary are the cherry on the hot fudge of this delicious romantic sundae. 

Whenever you write a couple with the type of fiery banter that Mary and Silas engage in, you know the story will be engaging. Hatcher deftly carries us through their “hate to love,” fiery attraction, friends with benefits, and angsty romance. I loved the pacing of their journey even though Mary’s secrecy and want to protect Silas would frustrate any reader. Yet, this is the crux of the surprise pregnancy trope, and Hatcher allows us to rest in that tension for much of the book. She needs this space, however, to help Silas recognize his love for Mary (no surprise!), but even more, understand her background and its impact on Mary’s sense of self so he can love her the best. Even more, Hatcher grants them the space to learn to “see” the other better than anyone else. This takes a careful hand and decided storytelling to do it well, and Hatcher, in my opinion, has done it in Last on the List. 

The ending of this story is poetry as we say goodbye to the Bartholomew siblings while also celebrating who Mary and Silas have become as a couple and parents. Laney Hatcher has done nothing more than make me fall deeper in love with her brand of historical romance. Hoping for more stories from her soon.

In love and romance,

Professor A

Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Skye Warren’s White Lies, book 2 of her Smoke and Mirrors trilogy ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B- / C+

Tropes: age gap; dark romance; small town vibes; found family; circus romance

Skye Warren’s White Lies is the second book of her newest Smoke and Mirrors trilogy. It features the commanding Logan and the beguiling Sienna embroiled in test after test of their love. White Lies handles the cliffhanger left at the end of book 1 of the series, Red Flags, but it inevitably leaves us on another one at the end of this story. 

I want to be frank. I struggled with White Lies. I love Skye Warren’s brand of dark romance, and I’ve read most, if not all, of her book list. I’ve been consumed with her Tanglewood world romances in the past, and I will never forget the impact of those stories on my sense of dark romance. I share this because I will continue to read her even though White Lies is one of the most inconsistent stories I’ve read from her. It felt cobbled together, and there were transitions between certain chapters that slowed her narrative pacing. Several chapters of White Lies were repetitive: Logan asking for forgiveness and Sienna vacillating between continuing to distrust him or granting it. Warren tethers Logan and Sienna together with $ex, and it’s difficult to understand and accept Logan’s undying love for her. In a word, White Lies felt rushed. 

Here’s the thing: I want to love this trilogy (it’s my first one set in the realm of a circus, and that intrigues me), but thus far, I’ve been underwhelmed by it. I will continue to read Skye Warren because I know she’ll pull it all together in Black Sheep. I was simply disappointed with White Lies. Sienna and Logan’s story deserves better.

In love and romance,


Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Jolie Vines’s Save Her from Me, book 2 of the McRae Bodyguards series ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B

Tropes: bodyguard MMC; close proximity; romantic suspense; brother’s best friend; band of brothers; found family

Jolie Vines’s Save Her from Me provides another exciting story in her McRae Bodyguards series. Jackson, her bodyguard MMC, and Ariel, the FMC with a streak of moxie and independence, create a combustible romance from its very first chapter. Vines has deftly and consciously progressed in her capacity to write an erotic story. In her journey as a romance writer, she has developed a distinct writing voice: creating reticent heroes who fall deeply for their heroines at almost first glance and heroines who find themselves under the protection and love of their partner. 

What I loved:

*The chemistry and reticent connection between Ariel and Jackson. This provides the energy of Vines’s romance.

*the connections between current and past characters in the world of the McRaes. Getting peeks of former McRae heroes and heroines reminds us of this intricately woven universe that Vines has carefully crafted. This is one of the many reasons Vines’s star has risen in romancelandia.

*the forward motion of this narrative. There is a resolution to the issue of Ariel’s father and the shadow who threatens her for most of the story.

What I thought could use a bit more work:

*There was an inconsistency in Jackson and Ariel’s progression at times. One minute, there appeared to be a path forward which becomes erased by the overthinking of the other one. 

*The resolution to the story felt rushed. It seemed like an easy resolution that could have been meted out sooner. Ariel held the power all along, meaning she could have resolved her confinement sooner. Granted, we would not have been gifted Jackson and Ariel’s story, but this underscores the quick remedy to the issue of her father.

Jolie Vines continues to wow her readers crafting romances in a beloved world. This newest series offers reticent MMCs who can’t help but fall hard for their FMCs. Her Save Her from Me ties together a swoony romance, a community of people who fight for each other, and an edge-of-your-seat romantic suspense into one. I have been honored to read her since almost the beginning, and she continues to grab my attention with her storytelling.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Devney Perry’s Sable Peak, the final The Edens series romance ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: A

Tropes: unrequited love; small town romance; found family

Without a doubt, Devney Perry’s Sable Peak, the final book of her The Edens series, is phenomenal. In totality, this series has been a breath of fresh air in romance reading over the past year as it focuses on a generational family, the central focus of a small town in Montana. But Sable Peak did something that the other books in the series, even more than the other books in Perry’s booklist, don’t: change her formula.

For the most part, Perry follows a pretty standard 3 act structure with some type of separation of her MMC and FMC at the 80% mark. Many romance authors follow this narrative structure, and we, the readers, love it…except that it can be tiresome. With Sable Peak, Perry’s structure still follows a 3 act structure, but the packaging looks a bit different. Add to it the unrequited love of Vera, an exceptionally complex character in her stable of characters, and it makes for emotional peaks and valleys between Mateo, her MMC, and Vera. Perry first creates the tension through Vera’s point of view when she realizes Mateo only sees her as a friend or sister-figure. Perry stays away, at the beginning of the story, from flipping between Vera’s and Mateo’s points of view, instead building the tension of her story solely through Vera’s point of view. I found it compelling. Once the inciting incident begins, the story between Vera and Mateo ignites and turns into the type of story we love from Perry. Adding in the complication of Vera’s relationship with her father simply adds another layer of tension to the story, actually drawing Vera and Mateo closer together. 

Everything you love about a Devney Perry romance is found in Sable Peak: a sweet, yet spicy romance set in a small-town setting, a family that loves beyond its members, and an ending that steals your breath as her FMC and MMC find their way to an epic happily-ever-after. This time, Devney Perry broke her mold a bit, and it worked for her (at least it did for this reader). Here’s to hoping for more story experimentation while offering the type of romances we expect from her.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Rebecca Jenshak’s In Your Wildest Dreams, a Wildcat Hockey series story ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B/B-

Tropes: pro hockey romance; troubled ex-; he falls first; cinnamon roll hero; found family; band of brothers

Rebecca Jenshak’s next story in her Wildcat Hockey series, In Your Wildest Dreams, is an apt reminder that a golden retriever/cinnamon roll hero who falls first is a pure delight. Jenshak’s newest book focuses on the difficulty of her hero, Ash Kelly, falling for her heroine, Bridget, first. Jenshak deftly takes her readers through Bridget’s story about relationship violence and a manipulative ex. She complicates it for Ash when she makes the ex-boyfriend, the newest assistant GM for Wildcat Hockey. This sets in motion a secreted relationship with tons of spicy. In fact, that’s the failsafe for In Your Wildest Dreams. Ash and Bridget are pure fire. 

Where I think the story finds trouble is the machinations of the ex. Yes, Jenshak highlights the power of relationship abuse to keep a victim silent. Bridget’s eventual willpower and courage are commendable. However, throughout the story, I thought Ash’s inaction was a flaw. He has power through the entirety of the story, and it’s his agent and/or manager. Yes, Ash struggles with understanding his role on the team and the power of his generosity with his teammates. However, it was difficult to accept that he’d readily allow a new assistant GM to harm his professional life. With so many hockey books in the romance market, it’s difficult to accept this narrative flaw. 

That being said, I did enjoy Ash and Bridget’s journey in In Your Wildest Dreams. It’s possible that I loved the band of brothers trope even more, as Rebecca Jenshak has crafted a hockey series that underlines the power of brotherhood.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Kristen Ashley’s Sharing the Miracle ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: A+

Tropes: surprise baby; novella; found family

As a novella form goes, Kristen Ashley’s surprise release, Sharing the Miracle, is a treasure. I adore Kristen Ashley as an author in how she mixes the unreality of life through the ways she expounds on designer clothing and extravagant living with the reality of life: messy relationships and situations. In this newest story, she returns us to Hale and Elsa, one of the most profound stories in her beloved River Rain series. In this book, Hale and Elsa receive surprise news: a baby. What Kristen Ashley does with the short space of this novella is inspired. She illustrates the profundity of female relationships in discussing and processing female issues, the largesse of a found family for a character who is seemingly alone but not really, and the reality of the emotional daring required of parents. But it was Sharing the Miracle that truly showed me the underlying and decided detail of the River Rain series: Kristen Ashley’s knowledge and capacity for drawing the unevenness of grief. Kristen Ashley’s talent in storytelling is marrying fiction with the realism of life. I realized as I teared up over Hale’s experiences with grief that she captures so beautifully the complications we encounter as we continue to live after the loss of someone we love. It’s the ups and downs of that grief that make it palpable and ever-present. I reflected on the stories thus far in the River Rain series as I was reading Sharing the Miracle, and I recognized this to be true of every character of the series thus far. Life must be lived with or without Corey, and his absence as life goes on lays heavy on the various characters of this series. That Kristen Ashley can capture that reality without heavy-handedness but with a quietude through the development of her narrative is exquisite and impressive and another important reason to dive into her stories.

Can Sharing the Miracle be read alone? Sure, but you’d be missing the gradient of color that is the prism of the River Rain series. If you have yet to jump into this world, don’t wait. Hale and Elsa’s story in Fighting the Pull will always be my favorite story of this series, and this inspired novella is the frosting on the delectable cake of their romance.

In love and romance,

Professor A

Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Ilsa Madden-Mills’s My Darling Bride ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B

Tropes: marriage of convenience; grump/sunshine; pro football MMC; soulmates

Ilsa Madden-Mills will always be a must-read author for this reader. Her stories hit you right in the heart and tend to last long past their reading. Her newest romance, My Darling Bride, is an engaging, yet uneven marriage of convenience romance. When her MMC, Graham, requires a bride to acquire an inheritance as help for his brother, he chooses Emmy, the woman who “borrowed” his Lamborghini, as her penance. There is actually more to it, but Graham, the ever-serious grump who is too focused on football, cannot admit his attraction and interest in her. Madden-Mills’s story is a journey of tears and smiles as Graham comes to recognize his need for Emmy.

There is much to love about My Darling Bride:

*Emmy and Graham’s chemistry is at the top of this list. It’s clear from their meet-cute in the hallway of a motel in Arizona. Their attraction to each other is undeniable, and Madden-Mills deftly builds on that attraction throughout their story, turning up the heat once they return to New York. It is everything you expect from one of her romances.

*Graham’s struggles with life change make for an emotional read. Through his character’s journey, Madden-Mills is able to highlight the inherent danger of football, notably CTE. She has written Graham to struggle with his identity and whether he can be more than football. It’s this struggle that infuses him with the “grump” trope so many of us love in romance; however, he is more cinnamon roll hero as he becomes Emmy’s protector, even when he can’t explain the “why” behind it. Even more, Graham’s family life is fraught, and Madden-Mills uses it as a contrast to Emmy’s loving family, one she created.

*I connected the most with Emmy. She’s the woman who has taken care of everyone around her. Through her journey, Madden-Mills interrogates the trauma of DV in one’s past. There is nothing overt about it in the story, so I don’t think Madden-Mills’s book requires a content warning, but it’s good to acknowledge. With Emmy, we receive the warmth of the story. She loves and is loved, but she sacrifices her comfort for the lives of those she loves. This reality allows Graham to swoop in and care for her. It’s here where Madden-Mills builds the emotion of her story. When Graham cares, it gives Emmy (and the reader) hope for their future. However, Madden-Mills doesn’t make it easy on her reader, and Graham’s subsequent disinterest in hiding his feelings breeds the angst of the romance.

I state all of this to show My Darling Bride‘s beauty, but I struggled with this story. There is something missing from this book: a disconnect at moments in the story. While I clearly understood Graham and Emmy’s relationship, Graham’s indecisiveness throughout much of the story undermines the development of feelings in their relationship. When they are first intimate, I was confused because it was difficult for me to accept they’d move so quickly given Graham’s insistence on space. I found this occurring at different moments through their journeys. And it made the believability of their coupleship difficult.

Ilsa Madden-Mills’s My Darling Bride is a beautiful story about recognizing what matters in life: love and family. But it doesn’t quite have the same magic as her former stories, and I wonder if Graham and Emmy just needed a bit more spark to pull this book together.

In love and romance,

Professor A

Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Helena Hunting’s Where It Begins, an origin story for Hunting’s Pucked series ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: A

Tropes: single mom; single dad; insta-attraction; prequel

Helena Hunting’s Where It Begins is the romance you didn’t know you needed. This engaging novella, a tome under the 1001 Dark Nights press, is the prequel story of Skye, Violet’s mom from Hunting’s beloved Pucked, and Sidney, Miller’s father from that same book. There isn’t much complication in this story; it’s one of those reads that will put a smile on your face because it breeds nostalgia for one of Hunting’s favorite series. Skye is the OP to Violet’s characterization. If you loved Violet in Pucked, you will adore Skye because Violet is a carbon copy of her mother. This means lots of nervous, inappropriate chatter, gut problems, and huge ti…knockers. Sidney’s characterization is underwhelming in this story because he’s simply her love interest. That isn’t to undermine his character development. Where It Begins is a love note to Hunting’s Pucked series fans. It’s intended for you to read and feel nostalgic for that series (at least that’s the case for me). I finished this fun and entertaining novella, pining for a re-read of Pucked. And that is the brilliance of this story.

Even if you haven’t read Helena Hunting’s Pucked series, you can read Skye and Sidney’s story. When you’re done, jump into the Pucked world. You will not regret it.

In love and romance,

Professor A

new release, Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Meghan Quinn’s He’s Not My Type ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B+

Tropes: he falls first; close proximity; friends to lovers; pro hockey/sports romance; roommates; found family; band of brothers

I had eagerly anticipated Meghan Quinn’s He’s Not My Type, mostly because I’ve enjoyed her Vancouver Agitators series and secondly because I’ve been intrigued with Halsey Holmes. Insight into Professor A’s romance loves: broody, quiet, emotionally complex heroes/MMCs are my favorite. Hence, other than Silas Taters, I’ve hoped for Halsey’s story. 

For the most part, Quinn doesn’t disappoint with him. For one, what’s not to love about a “he falls first” trope for Quinn’s most internal character? Halsey falls deep, at first sight, for Blakely, her FMC. This creates two situations: his unrequited love grows to the point that he becomes awkward (very funny stuff) when he finally has the opportunity to date her, and two, his friends, the foundation of this series, are enlisted to help him. This provides pages upon pages of hilarious banter with this band of brothers we’ve all come to love. You’ll laugh out loud at their antics as they seek to aid Halsey in his pursuit of Blakely. Honestly, it’s the best part of He’s Not My Type…which is where the problem of this story lies.

You see, as much as I anxiously awaited this book, some aspects disappointed me…or, more concisely, confused me. For one, the pacing was strange. If you’ve read the first books of this series, you know that Halsey’s twin brother has died. I had wanted the background as well as the emotional journey that Halsey must undertake to work through the grief at the loss of his brother. Quinn does proffer that up, but she spends the last ten percent of the book working out Halsey’s emotions about it. What happens is a strange pacing situation in her book. The second issue is Blakely’s chemistry with Halsey. It’s clear that he pines for her. He’s attracted to her into speechlessness, but Blakely doesn’t return it until much later in the book. In fact, Blakely’s character journey feels pretty flat in contrast to Halsey’s, and it makes it difficult (at least for me) to accept her change of interest in Halsey…at least at first. Their physicality changes her impression of him. Quinn has Halsey morph from awkward broody quiet guy to alpha stud in the sheets. It’s not hard to understand Blakely’s change of heart, but it causes you to consider her reasons behind it. Then, when Halsey has his breakdown (again, in the last ten percent of the book), she’s all in and his emotional support. The emotional development of their relationship lacks the depth necessary to pull off the last portion of the story. At least, that’s how I felt in reading it. 

He’s Not My Type is less about the romance between Halsey and Blakely. That’s a foregone conclusion. Instead, it’s about the band of brothers and its impact on helping Halsey grieve. Much of that is couched in some delicious funny banter, but it’s more a deflection to the heart of this story: the love shared with teammates. Is this book typical Meghan Quinn? Indeed. Is it spicy? Absolutely! Halsey Holmes is a beast in the bedroom. But does the storytelling match the quality of the other Vancouver Agitators books? I’m not so sure. I am absolutely ready for Posey’s story; Quinn has set that up well. I’m thinking we might also get another character in this world, thanks to a crossover with the other books in her universe. I just hoped Halsey’s story would have had a stronger emotional impact than Meghan Quinn gifted us.

In love and romance,

Professor A

Review

✍🏻 Professor Romance’s Review: Adriana Locke’s Flame, a Carmichael Family series book ✍🏻

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Overall Grade: B

Tropes: second chances; bodyguard; forced proximity; marriage of convenience; band of brothers

I have loved Adriana Locke’s Carmichael Family series from its first book, Flirt. I was ready for Foxx Carmichael’s story because he’s been the most mysterious, very little of his story divulged throughout the series. With mysterious texts about an animal to his brothers in the first four books of the series plus the Carmichael matriarch insisting on a new couch, there were mysteries to be divulged in this final book of the series. So many expectations in a single book, and Locke meets them, but I’ll be honest, the answers to these enduring questions are answered, but they aren’t as impactful as I had anticipated. Even more, while Foxx Carmichael shines in this book, his second chance/marriage of convenience romance with Bianca, the object of his undying affection, was a bit underwhelming. The necessary tension found in the earlier books of this series was profound. In this one, it seemed like a machination to move through the book. I didn’t believe the reason Foxx denies a relationship with Bianca at first, even more so, when Foxx and Bianca must marry each other, essentially deflating their emotional struggle. Locke deftly adds tension through Bianca’s relationship with her father, but, for me, it wasn’t enough to resurrect the necessary tension and resolution of this story. 

Did I fall in love with Foxx Carmichael? Indeed.

Was Bianca the perfect FMC for Foxx? For sure.

There was something missing, though, from Flame, this final book in Adriana Locke’s Carmichael Family series. I believe it was the pacing as it felt rushed, and it lacked the emotional punch of the first books of the series. Adriana Locke will always be a must-read author for me. I was just hoping for a bit more for our silent but deadly Carmichael brother.

In love and romance,

Professor A