Professor Romance

Love on the Lake, a beautiful small town standalone romance filled with laughter and tears from New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting, is live now!

Read my 4.5 ⭐️ HERE.

Teagan Firestone has always been the dutiful daughter, especially since her mom died. But as her father finally begins to move on, it’s her turn to do the same. Her destination: Pearl Lake, a close-knit community with an entrepreneurial spirit and secrets of its own.

One of them is Aaron Saunders, who dropped out of college to work construction for Pearl Lake’s upper class. He’s a mystery and has a playboy reputation—that is, until he meets Teagan. Neither of them is looking for love, but in a town this small, it’s hard not to let your heart get involved.

As their romance heats up, Aaron’s elusive past comes to light and Teagan is there for him, bringing them even closer together. But when Teagan is forced to face her own demons, her inability to accept the support of friends and family threatens the life she’s worked so hard to build.

Can Aaron love her, even when she can’t love herself?

Fall in love today exclusively on Amazon or read FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
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Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/LoveonLake
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Excerpt

She crooks a finger, beckoning me closer. But there’s only six inches separating us. If I take a step forward, my boots will touch her toes. So I bend instead, until my ear is next to her lips, like I’m waiting for her to tell me a secret.
For a moment I consider the fact that I’ve been up and down the stairs to the loft at least a dozen times. The only air circulation in here is from a portable fan, so I’ve been sweating and shirtless for several hours. I might not smell all that fresh.
But that thought disappears when her fingertips drag along my collarbone and I feel the warmth of her breath at the edge of my jaw.
“Aaron.”
Her palm wraps around the back of my neck. So soft. So warm.
I swallow and grind out, “I’m listening.”
Her thumb finds that spot between my ear and my jaw, and she presses, gently at first and then more firmly. Her lips brush the shell of my ear, and she whispers, “Look at me.”
I feel like a marionette, and she’s pulling all my strings. I turn my head toward her, and her lips brush across my cheek, sending a hot shiver down my spine, lighting me up like a pinball machine.
Teagan Firestone is a dangerous woman. Sweet, beautiful, broken, and yet . . . bold and resilient. She’s a lethal combination, and it’s all compounded when those soft lips meet mine.
I don’t even know what’s happening. Well, I know. I’m kissing her. Or she’s kissing me. She definitely started it.
It’s like an explosion. Like an entire warehouse of firecrackers igniting at the same time. I groan into her mouth and wrap an arm around her waist, pulling her flush against me.
Our tongues tangle, and her other hand grips my biceps, sliding up and over my shoulder. She knocks my hat off my head, and it drops to the floor behind me. And then both of her hands are in my hair, sliding through the damp strands, gripping at the crown, angling my head farther to the side. Deepening the kiss.
Dragging it out.

About Helena Hunting

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of PUCKED, Helena Hunting lives on the outskirts of Toronto with her incredibly tolerant family and two moderately intolerant cats. She writes contemporary romance ranging from new adult angst to romantic sports comedy.

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Say It’s Forever

A Close Proximity, Single Parent Romance from A.L. Jackson

Coming March 28th

“You matter, Salem. You matter. Look at you, darlin’.”

There was the charm all mixed up with the disorder that was at the heart of this man. 

My chest squeezed and the blood thundered through my veins. 

“Beauty. The meaning of it.” The words fell on a harsh exhale from his lips, and the air that was barely skating up my throat died right there when he slowly toed off the dress shoes he wore. 

Obsidian eyes flashed like a rush of the darkest night, rough as they devoured me from across the space.

Without looking away, he leaned down and peeled the socks from his feet.

I gulped, then I was nearly passing out when he ticked through the buttons on his shirt and peeled that off, too. 

The man was nothing but wide, wide shoulders. Muscle everywhere, bulky on his arms and chest, his abdomen packed, tapering down and narrow at the waist. 

Most all of his skin was covered in ink that seemed to scream the same as the walls, though it remained indistinct in the minimal light cast down from the rafters. 

But I could make out enough to get the intonation.

The pure intimidation. 

Menace and peril and life. 

The mountain of a man stood there for a moment, then he took a step forward. 

Energy rushed across the floor.

He approached like a phantom. Like a painting that had come to life. 

It covered me whole and caressed me in shadows. 

I was right. This man was definitely, definitely dangerous.

There was no question about it then.

And still, I remained there, held in his gaze, feeling the safest I’d ever felt. 

I thought he was coming for me, only he slipped by on his bare feet. 

Desire rippled through on his wake. 

God, that was sexy, too. 

Jud Lawson was an anomaly.

Conflict and peace.

Harmony and dissention. 

A blinding light in the longest night. 

Stealer of heart and sanity and good sense.

Because remaining there on the ground like an offering? 

Posing for him? 

There was no question I’d lost my mind.

His aura rippled through the room as he moved over to the wall that I faced. He pulled an easel closer, and the canvas he set on it looked like it’d been painted over a thousand times. He knelt to open a few jars of paint. 

He picked up a brush and studied me.

I trembled beneath his watch.

“Beauty,” he rumbled. “Second I saw you out in the rain. Thought I had to be imagining things. Hallucinating.” 

“I was terrified,” I admitted, our voices dancing through the condensed air. 

Louder than they should be. 

The thrumming of our hearts was palpable.

Frantic beats that echoed against the other. 

A smirk ticked at the corner of his sexy mouth, then it slipped when he glanced at me then to the canvas. He began to paint. Quick, sweeping strokes, as if the images fell from him without thought. “I felt your fear, Salem. I felt your desperation. Wonder if I felt it then, that we were bound to be more than strangers. Wonder if I knew you were supposed to be on the back of my bike that night. Wonder if I knew you were going to become something that mattered in my life.” 

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“If you want a book that will wreck you in the best way possible than grab this UNPUTDOWNABLE, HEARTBREAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL story that will leave you with ALL THE FEELS!” 

— Melissa, Book Addict Fanatic

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Not only do we have the AMAZING release boxes up, but the alternate cover is now available to pre-order as well. I am IN LOVE with both covers and can’t choose a favorite!

If you can’t choose either – I also have hardbacks that feature both!

Want a Say It’s Forever Release Box? It includes a signed paperback, premium merchandise, and goodies! This box is even better than the last and I CAN’T WAIT for you all to see what’s inside!!!

Quantities are limited and boxes sell out fast, so reserve yours now!

SAY IT’S FOREVER PAPERBACK & RELEASE BOX PRE-ORDER

GIVEAWAY

Signed Give Me a Reason & Absolution Gift Set

ENTER HERE

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A.L. Jackson is the New York Times & USA Today Bestselling author of contemporary romance. She writes emotional, sexy, heart-filled stories about boys who usually like to be a little bit bad.

Her bestselling series include THE REGRET SERIES, CLOSER TO YOU, BLEEDING STARS, FIGHT FOR ME, CONFESSIONS OF THE HEART, FALLING STARS, and REDEMPTION HILLS novels. Watch out for her upcoming stand-alone, SAY IT’S FOREVER, releasing March 28th!

If she’s not writing, you can find her hanging out by the pool with her family, sipping cocktails with her friends, or of course with her nose buried in a book.

Be sure not to miss new releases and sales from A.L. Jackson – Sign up to receive her newsletter http://smarturl.it/NewsFromALJackson or text “aljackson” to 33222 to receive short but sweet updates on all the important news.

Connect with A.L.

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Overall Grade: 4.5 ⭐️

I’m certain that the ability to become vulnerable will forever be a keen romance trope. Vulnerability is difficult for anyone; it requires you to trust that someone won’t take advantage of one’s willingness to show their fears. Charli, Sarina Bowen’s heroine in Shenanigans, her newest Brooklyn Bruisers’ story, has had to build tall emotional walls as protection. As a young girl and then a young woman, she has been taken advantage of, physically, emotionally, and mentally, by so many in her life, some of whom should have protected her. When we meet her in Bombshells, she’s fierce and funny and independent and willing to put anyone in their place. She’s also protective to a fault. Her banter with Neil in that book made me curious about Shenanigans. How would Sarina Bowen take a seemingly clueless hockey player, one who can’t seem to filter his thinking, and pair him with this brilliant woman? Well, if I had any doubts, they were wiped away within the first couple of chapters of Shenanigans. 

You see, underneath their seeming differences, lies a couple who enchant you. Charli and Neil together are a revelation. For one, Neil brings light to Charli’s heavy world. Charli challenges Neil to think beyond himself and his own experiences. Neil is actually passionate about more than hockey. And Neil has the capacity to love the hardest parts of Charli. It’s those moments that make you fall in love with them. In fact, there are two moments between these two, one where Neil challenges Charli to live life fully and one where Charlie reminds Neil that hockey is all his own that best illustrate their friendship before their romance.

I think what I loved the most about Charli beyond her ferocity at living life on her own terms is her struggle with being vulnerable. Her story arc is painful because she’s been hurt so much in the past; she’s been made to feel like she is no one’s “first choice.” Living with that message, your heart hurts for her. Bowen makes that struggle palpable. 

Neil is a soft landing space for her. He’s funny and cute and charming. He’s also rich, so he can spoil her, but he knows that can’t be his default with her. It takes him a bit to also be vulnerable with Charli. Once he determines his plan, though, Neil is a swoon-fest. 

Sarina Bowen’s Shenanigans brought some light into my busy days. I didn’t think Neil and Charli’s story could achieve that. I was waiting for Neil to insult Charli more, but the laughter and fun between them, along with their steam, I couldn’t help but devour this book. Sarina Bowen fans, this is exactly the book you expect from her. There is so much more to it that my review will do it justice, but it’s exactly the story you should read right now. 

In love and romance,

Professor A

Overall Grade: 4.5 ⭐️

From the second chapter of Helena Hunting’s Love on the Lake, I knew I was a goner for it. Early in the book, Teagan, the sister of Van, the hero in her Love Next Door romance, shows us clearly her people-pleasing ways. Interestingly, as she wins over almost everyone in Pearl Lake, she can’t seem to get a smile from Aaron, a local construction worker who works for the construction company of Teagan’s future sister-in-law, Dillion. Always the people pleaser this gets under Teagan’s skin. It is there where Helena Hunting tugged at my heart. From its outset, Teagan grabs you. As a fellow people pleaser, I saw parts of myself in Teagan. Her story is bigger than that, and I won’t divulge her story arc here, but the deft way that Hunting has crafted her makes her believable. Aaron is important too; however, Teagan burrowed under my skin from the beginning of the book. 

In a few ways, Aaron too is a people pleaser, namely with his mother. This causes him to live with a secret, one that is divulged eventually in the story. That seems to be Aaron’s big moment. Once his secret is revealed, he becomes more flat, simply a love interest. In my opinion, Love on the Lake is Teagan’s story, and it’s an important one. 

Helena Hunting has crafted a romance in her newest book that asks some of us to consider the lengths we go to to feel at peace. What happens when overwork and life challenges compound our inner turmoil? Teagan and Aaron’s story suggests that it takes loving yourself first before loving another. I liked Hunting’s Love Next Door, but I truly adore her Love on the Lake. I think I see myself reflected so keenly in Teagan’s story. 

In love and romance,

Professor A

Fair Catch by Kandi Steiner is now live!

As if things aren’t already tough enough as the only girl on a college football team, Coach had to go and assign Zeke Collins as my roommate.

A cocky kick returner and my brother’s best friend who should have been ripped of that title years ago, he’s as infuriating as he is undeniably sexy.

I hate him, and for good reason — reason I won’t ever let him forget.

He thinks because we grew up together that it’s his role to protect me, but all he does is get in my way, make me look weak, and piss me off more.

I tell him I can handle myself, and I’m hell-bent on getting that point across to him and the rest of the nation watching the only girl in collegiate football.

The pressure doesn’t get to me. The scrutiny? I’m ready for.

But sharing very thin walls with Zeke Collins? I wasn’t prepared for that.

And the more we’re forced together, the harder it is to distinguish that pencil-thin line between hating him… and wanting him.

Download today or read for FREE with Kindle Unlimited

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 Meet Kandi

Kandi Steiner is an Amazon Top 5 bestselling author and whiskey connoisseur living in Tampa, FL. Best known for writing “emotional rollercoaster” stories, she loves bringing flawed characters to life and writing about real, raw romance — in all its forms. No two Kandi Steiner books are the same, and if you’re a lover of angsty, emotional, and inspirational reads, she’s your gal.

An alumna of the University of Central Florida, Kandi graduated with a double major in Creative Writing and Advertising/PR with a minor in Women’s Studies. She started writing back in the 4th grade after reading the first Harry Potter installment. In 6th grade, she wrote and edited her own newspaper and distributed to her classmates. Eventually, the principal caught on and the newspaper was quickly halted, though Kandi tried fighting for her “freedom of press.”

She took particular interest in writing romance after college, as she has always been a die hard hopeless romantic, and likes to highlight all the challenges of love as well as the triumphs.

When Kandi isn’t writing, you can find her reading books of all kinds, planning her next adventure, or pole dancing (yes, you read that right). She enjoys live music, traveling, playing with her fur babies and soaking up the sweetness of life.

Kandi Steiner may be coming to a city near you! Check out her “events” tab to see all the signings she’s attending in the near future:

www.kandisteiner.com/events

Connect with Kandi

Website: www.kandisteiner.com

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Can Aaron love her, even when she can’t love herself?

Love on the Lake, an emotional small town, standalone romance from New York Times bestselling author Helena Hunting is live now!

Teagan Firestone has always been the dutiful daughter, especially since her mom died. But as her father finally begins to move on, it’s her turn to do the same. Her destination: Pearl Lake, a close-knit community with an entrepreneurial spirit and secrets of its own.

One of them is Aaron Saunders, who dropped out of college to work construction for Pearl Lake’s upper class. He’s a mystery and has a playboy reputation—that is, until he meets Teagan. Neither of them is looking for love, but in a town this small, it’s hard not to let your heart get involved.

As their romance heats up, Aaron’s elusive past comes to light and Teagan is there for him, bringing them even closer together. But when Teagan is forced to face her own demons, her inability to accept the support of friends and family threatens the life she’s worked so hard to build.

Can Aaron love her, even when she can’t love herself?

Fall in love today exclusively on Amazon or read FREE on Kindle Unlimited!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3sv3Rbd
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/LoveonLake
Audio CD: https://amzn.to/3g870sK
Paperback: https://amzn.to/3sn7Lmo

Add Love on the Lake to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/3iU4rfi

About Helena Hunting

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of PUCKED, Helena Hunting lives on the outskirts of Toronto with her incredibly tolerant family and two moderately intolerant cats. She writes contemporary romance ranging from new adult angst to romantic sports comedy.

Connect with Helena
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kN5wdZ
Twitter: http://bit.ly/2mloUim
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/Zt1xm5
Facebook Fan group: http://bit.ly/2kN5yCD
Website: http://www.helenahunting.com/

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Sarina Bowen’s Shenanigans is LIVE. Are you ready to return to her Brooklyn Bruisers?

RELEASE DATE: MARCH 15, 2022

What I meant to do in Vegas: Let my hair down for once and celebrate winning a medal at my first women’s hockey all-stars competition.

What I actually did: Got senior prom drunk and woke up married to Brooklyn’s star winger, the great Neil Drake. 

He’s the heir to a billion dollars, and I barely survived my childhood. Our friendship is based strictly only on hockey, takeout food, and smack talk. 

And now holy matrimony. Although we both know it can’t last, especially once his evil family gets wind of our Vegas shenanigans… 

Contains: Meddling teammates, meddling parents, ugly jewelry, and a pretend-kiss that nearly sets the world on fire.

Cover Design: Hang Le
Cover Photo: Wander Aguiar Photography

Grab it HERE 👇🏻

Amazon: https://geni.us/AmazonShenanigans
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Overall Grade: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Tia Louise’s newest romance, Fearless, is one of her steamiest romances to date. She wastes very little time moving her heroine, Blake, and her hero, Hutch, from disdain to physicality. From the Prologue when Blake is but a sixteen-year-old bent on saving her family, the chemistry between Blake and Hutch is undeniable. In that chapter, their age difference (he’s twenty-two, I believe) keeps them from acting upon their instant connection. Yet, Hutch, exuding his alpha maleness, initially makes an enemy in Blake when he intercedes and foils her plans to help her sister and save her family’s financial interests. 

In the early chapters of Fearless, these two misunderstand the other. She sees him as an enemy to her family interests, while he sees her as a vapid, lazy New York princess. When these two finally recognize their misjudgments of the other, they quickly fall into their attraction, and they can’t keep their hands off of each other. 

Belying Hutch and Blake’s romantic journey is a romantic suspense that includes a missing uncle, a dead socialite, and a cadre of other menacing Russian mafia types. At the end of this story, you’ll find some resolution to a few of these plot points. However, there is still more to this story, and by extension, the series born from this first book. As such, my biggest criticism for Fearless is its pacing. Hutch and Blake’s relationship arc never hits an impactful zenith, and it slides into their happily ever after around the 88ish percent mark (I think). The last couple of chapters read as the furtherance of their happy ending, but there are still so many questions to the suspense aspects of this story. What Hutch and Blake seem to have the most of in Fearless is physicality, which is fine if that’s your favorite part of romance. For me, however, I love a well-developed story that doesn’t leave me with more questions than answers. 

Fearless starts out on fire. The ire between Hutch and Blake light this romance fire, and that’s where it tends to stay. For me, there isn’t a bonfire here. It’s a steady burn keeping the reader warm, but I think there could be more here. I’m hoping future stories in this series of standalones will brandish the pyre to set it ablaze. 

In love and romance,

Professor A

Overall Grade: 4.5 ⭐️

Autonomy and agency are the big takeaways of Lexi Blake’s The Man From Sanctum, her newest Masters and Mercenaries: Reloaded story. This book follows Deke, everyone’s favorite “uncle” around  McKay-Taggart. Deke’s former high school love and the one who “got away,” Madeline “Maddie” Hill shows up on his doorstep with the proposition to pose as her Dom. Decades before, Deke made the decision to walk away from Maddie so that she would go to Yale and realize her dreams. Broken-hearted, they spend years away from each other. Now, Maddie is concerned that her boss, Nolan Byrne, is intent on using their company’s technology for no-good, and she needs Deke to pose as her Dom so she can gain access to Nolan’s private office. If they act like a couple in the BDSM lifestyle, they can help grant Nolan access to the private, yet storied The Reef, a BDSM club that Nolan wants to join. The problem, though? Can Maddie work through her hurt from the past to trust Deke as her Dom, or are they fated to be “found out” and Maddie and Deke’s life put into jeopardy?

As is the case with Blake’s Masters and Mercenaries series, The Man From Sanctum is equal parts community, suspense, and eroticism. Blake packs so much punch with her stories that you find yourself enveloped into the fold of her McKay-Taggart flock. With so many characters and so much action, you find yourself maniacally turning each page to get to the end, where, in this case, Deke and Maddie, find their happy ending BUT she keeps additional threads open for future stories. 

The meat of The Man From Sanctum is Maddie’s agency. In this story, Maddie is intelligent and independent. However, Deke, due to his insecurity and immaturity, takes her authority from her in decision-making. In doing so, it catapults them onto a different trajectory which impacts their future. When granted this opportunity to reconcile and see if a future is possible, Deke finds himself falling into old patterns, denying Maddie a voice for their future. Blake peppers ideas about women and choice throughout this story, and it adds depth to this action-packed romantic suspense. 

Look, if you love suspense, espionage, eroticism, and charm with a side of BDSM, then you have to jump into Lexi Blake’s Masters and Mercenaries series. There are multiple iterations of it, which means a universe of characters with a deep bench of stories. Honestly, I can’t help myself from reading Blake’s stories. Her newest story, The Man From Sanctum, is simply more of what I love about Lexi Blake’s storytelling. 

In love and romance,

Professor A