Overall Grade: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2

At first glance, CD Reiss’s Mafia Bride is simply a mafia romance, complete with an arranged marriage or kidnapped bride, a groom both violent and compassionate in equal measure, and a world replete with the customs and traditions of the “old country.” As you read, it feels 100% like a CD Reiss romance, a promise of sexualized violence at every turn of the page. Yet…yet, over halfway through the book, there is a change, a profundity slithers through the story. It becomes more insightful, and if you’re paying close enough attention, you’ll read Reiss’s tertiary intent for Mafia Bride. It becomes more quizzical and questioning. And it’s there where the heartbeat of this story lies, I believe. Reiss has a distinct voice in romance: aggressively alpha heroes with heroines who are intelligent but also a bit haphazard in their sense self. She mixes her heroes and heroines into worlds where $ex is supreme and aggressive and possessive, meant for the pure titillation of her readers, and you find yourself like any voyeur watching an accident on the highway/freeway – you can’t turn away because the destruction is delicious. But…but there is always some gravity floating beneath the surface of her stories, something “more” than pure titillation and destruction. For me, Reiss is a romance writer who uses the framework of romance to challenge societal ills. A book such as Mafia Bride (and the other two books of the DiLustro Trilogy) is never “just” a mafia romance; it’s an opportunity to magnify something deeper than the brazen acts of fornication that you’ve come to expect from her stories. In Mafia Bride, she is challenging the ideas of tradition and culture, gender norms, and identity. 

Everything you love about mafia romance with an arranged marriage is here: the violent challenges of the mafia world, the scared and virginal, but also defiant heroine, and the mafioso hero who is ready to raze the world on her behalf even though he hides that weakness. In Mafia Bride, Violetta’s voice is the strongest, mostly because Reiss provides her with more chapters than the hero, Santino. This does two things: (1) it leaves the reader in the dark for a majority of the story, and (2) it makes you pine for Santino’s POV. There is one word for this first book of the trilogy: slow. Unlike her other stories, the physicality of Mafia Bride is more threat than reality. You will wait. Additionally, in offering more of the story through Violetta’s voice, like Violetta, we are not instantly privy to the details. The pace of the story feels fast, even though the details are divulged slowly. In fact, in the end, in the face of a devastating cliffhanger, you still don’t know too much about Santino. For me, this feels natural to this trilogy. Mafia Bride is delicious decadence in its storytelling. 

Now…the depth of the story is its charm. So, we live in a society right now that is trying to find better ways of viewing tradition and culture. In upending pervasive cultural norms, people are attempting to find new identities, new ways of thinking about identity. In a way, Reiss considers this challenge and journey through the scope of Violetta. There are epiphanies in this story that rock Violetta’s foundational beliefs, and it allows the story to explore mafia romance in more meaningful ways. It is in this space where I fell in love with Mafia Bride. Until these moments, I weaved through Reiss’s story, fully expecting more but ready to accept the story she wrote. I know there are two more parts of the story for Violetta and Santino, but at the beginning of Mafia Bride, it was like every other mafia romance. 

Until it wasn’t. 

Reiss does what she does best: she surprises you. She made my lit brain turn on, and, whether it was her intent or not, I started to see allusions to the challenges of our society. It was there where my excitement and interest in this trilogy grew.

Needless to say, I’m ready for more of the DiLustro Trilogy. Be prepared: you will not have the answers to this story. You will end CD Reiss’s Mafia Bride with more questions and a greedy soul, ready for more Violetta and more Santino. 

In love and romance,

Professor A

MAFIA BRIDE (The DiLustro Arrangement #1) by CD Reiss

Release Date: March 16th

Genre/Trope: Arranged Marriage/Mafia Romance

Add to Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56884152-mafia-bride

MAFIA BRIDE from New York Times Bestselling author CD Reiss is now available! Make sure you grab this dark mafia romance and get lost in book 1 of THE DILUSTRO ARRANGEMENT!

AVAILABLE NOW!!

Amazon: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideAmazon

Apple Books: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideApple

Nook: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideNook

Kobo: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideKobo

Google: https://geni.us/MafiaBrideGoogle

Blurb:

An epic mafia romance trilogy that sets a new bar for just how dark a hero can get, from NY Times Bestselling author CD Reiss.

Some girls dream of marrying a prince, but I never imagined I’d be sold to a king.

Santino DiLustro.

The king.

The monster.

The keeper of secrets.

When he forced me to marry him, I cried for love I’d never know.

When he locked me away, I cried for the freedom I lost forever.

Every other tear I’ve shed is for my soul, because I’m falling for the devil himself.

About the Author:

CD Reiss is a New York Times bestselling author. She still has to chop wood and carry water, which was buried in the fine print. Her lawyer is working it out with God but in the meantime, if you call and she doesn’t pick up she’s at the well hauling buckets.

Born in New York City, she moved to Hollywood, California to get her master’s degree in screenwriting from USC. In case you want to know, that went nowhere but it did give her a big enough ego to write novels.

She’s frequently referred to as the Shakespeare of Smut which is flattering but hasn’t ever gotten her out of chopping that cord of wood.

If you meet her in person, you should call her Christine.

To find out when her next book is coming out, sign up for her mailing list at cdreiss-dot-com.

Connect w/CD Reiss:

Website: http://www.cdreiss.com

NL Signup:

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/CDReiss.writer

Instagram:https://instagram.com/cdreiss/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CDReisswriter

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/CD-Reiss/e/B00AYLW7T2/

Give Love a Chai, an all-new charming second-chance romance from Nanxi Wen, is LIVE EARLY on AppleBooks, Nook, Kobo, and GooglePlay! 

Tia Wang’s Wedding Planning To-Do List:
1. Find the perfect dress
2. Win her future mother-in-law’s approval
3. Divorce her not-so-ex husband, Andrew Parker

When she fell in love and married her childhood best friend on a whim in Vegas, Tia innocently thought love conquered all. Turns out, that was a crushing lie. Her world shattered as she and Andrew were torn apart by secrets and mistakes.

Ten years later, Tia has left the pain behind and carved out a new life with Mr. Perfect. The only thing standing between her and happily ever after? A divorce from Andrew.

It should have been easy for Andrew to sign his name on the dotted line. Independent, prickly, and always in control, Andrew has done everything to escape his past. But seeing Tia on his doorstep after all these years? He can’t help wondering what might have been. Andrew has never forgotten Tia and vows to fight for their relationship this time around. If he has to hold those divorce papers hostage to get his second chance, he will.

Feelings resurface, stronger and more complex than ever. But Tia and Andrew have more than Mr. Perfect between them. Can they overcome past mistakes to forge a future together, or will new threats ruin their second chance at forever?

‘Give Love a Chai’ is a full-length contemporary romance, and can be read as a standalone. Book #2 in the Common Threads series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe. 

Download your copy today!

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/3nQ3Paf

Nook: https://bit.ly/33bWTfJ

Kobo: https://bit.ly/3pUetPg

Google Play: https://bit.ly/36ZJ70Z

Coming March 18th to Kindle Unlimited!

Pre-order your copy TODAY!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/36ZjKwl

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/3fojKK4

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/396yb4k

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3nTJPUr

Amazon Print: https://amzn.to/3rCsula

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/3b7rRui

About Nanxi Wen

Nanxi Wen thought she was going to write the greatest historical novel. Turns out, her characters decided that they want to be in the 21st century with modern plumbing, online shopping, and reality TV shows. Her first book comes out in February 2021 – Give Love a Chai.

She lives in New England with her husband and two clingy monkeys (aka toddlers). When she is not despairing over word count, she enjoys reading, snacking, drinking coffee, sitting by the fireplace, hanging out with friends (far apart and with masks) and daydreaming.

Find Nanxi Wen online

Newsletter: https://bit.ly/3rSuyFZ

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NanxiWrites/

Facebook Reader Group: http://bit.ly/3nb3Kxp

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nanxiwenauthor/

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/3o9oDKs

Website: https://nanxiwen.com/

Connect with Smartypants Romance

Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kvDnb4

Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzyduO

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lGdIMQ

Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kwKsYK

Website: https://smartypantsromance.com/ 

Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/

Mad About Ewe, an all-new heartwarming second-chance romance from Susannah Nix, is LIVE EARLY on AppleBooks, Nook, Kobo, and GooglePlay! 

Dawn Botstein is doing just fine after her divorce, thank you very much.

She’s got her yarn store to run, her house to herself for the first time in her life, and no use for men anymore. That is until the hottie silver fox who walks into her store turns out to be her old high school crush—the guy who rejected her 30 years ago.

No way is she going to lose her head over him this time, no matter how well he wears that salt-and-pepper lumberjack beard. Okay, so he’s the opposite of her ex in every way, and his attention gives her a thrill she thought she’d never feel again. She’s not risking her heart again.

Mike Pilota is having a mid-life crisis.

Only instead of buying a red sports car he can’t afford and dressing like a 25-year-old who’s time-traveled from the 1990s, he quit his job after his second divorce to move closer to his recently widowed mother.

He didn’t expect to run into Dawn again, but as soon as he lays eyes on her he’s utterly smitten. So he sets out to make up for past mistakes and prove he can be the kind of man she deserves.

But is it too late for second chances? Or will these two lonely hearts find a way back to each other?

‘Mad About Ewe’ is a full-length contemporary romance and can be read as a standalone. Book #1 in the Common Threads series, Seduction in the City World, Penny Reid Book Universe.  

Download your copy today!

AppleBooks: https://apple.co/2UW3TJo

Nook: https://bit.ly/35XQN4p

Kobo: https://bit.ly/2UUvrik

Google Play: https://bit.ly/394eBWq

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/3ockxRN

Coming March 18th to Kindle Unlimited!

Pre-order your copy TODAY!

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/399SCgE

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/35Wn4Zz

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/394iuuu

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3fpPfDs

Amazon Print: https://amzn.to/3l7pbQf 

About Susannah Nix

Susannah Nix is an award-winning author of contemporary romances featuring smart women and swoony men, including the Chemistry Lessons series of romcoms about women who work in STEM fields and the Starstruck series of movie star romances. 

Susannah resides in Texas with her husband, two ornery cats, and a flatulent pit bull. When she’s not writing, she enjoys reading, cooking, knitting, watching stupid amounts of television, and getting distracted by Tumblr. She is also a powerlifter who can deadlift as much as Captain America weighs.

Find Susannah Nix online

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B072KHZS5W 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/susannahnix/ 

Facebook Reader Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/160037207970579/ 

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/susannah-nix 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susannahnixauthor/ 

Goodreads:https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16880740.Susannah_Nix 

Twitter: @Susannah_Nix 

Website: https://www.susannahnix.com/ 

Connect with Smartypants Romance

Facebook: http://bit.ly/2kvDnb4

Twitter: http://bit.ly/2lzyduO

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2lGdIMQ

Instagram: http://bit.ly/2kwKsYK

Website: https://smartypantsromance.com/ 

Newsletter: https://smartypantsromance.com/newsletter/

Overall Grade: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2

Annabeth Albert’s Featherbed is the perfect start to the Vino & Veritas series in the Sarina Bowen World of True North universe. This series features MM and FF stories, thus adding a level of diversity to this particular universe. As its first book, Featherbed treats us to the story behind the man (and mother) responsible for opening and owning Vino and Veritas, a bookstore/coffee bar/wine bar. This business is a place where diversity is celebrated. 

Harrison is a Manhattan transplant and everything you expect of an uptight, former lawyer, city transplant. He’s sophisticated and severe. The story begins when he accidentally receives a shipment of chicks. After some investigation, he determines that these chicks were meant to be delivered to Finn Barnes, the owner of a family farm, Puddlebrook Farms. On meeting, Finn and Harrison are attracted to each other; however, neither of them is interested in a relationship, but it doesn’t mean that they can’t explore something more casual. As the story progresses, what happens is they realize a growing need for the other. There are issues, though. Finn’s farm is his priority, while Harrison has a fear that keeps him from wanting more from Finn. At least, until he can no longer deny his growing interest in him. 

What is most lovely about Featherbed is its introspection about the idea of living. In Finn and Harrison’s lives, they have made choices that have kept them closed off from living a full life, more specifically, a life of love. There are reasons which this book divulges that make sense to Albert’s heroes. These reasons make for the connection between the book’s ideas and its readers. We have all lived in fear, and that fear has kept us from making choices for deeper relationships with others or new jobs or new experiences. Albert deftly illustrates the danger of wrapping ourselves in that fear as a denial to living more abundantly. It’s an essential message in any book, as it’s a challenge to be open to new experiences and people. 

Additionally, I am a massive fan of the opposites attracting trope. Finn and Harrison are so entirely different, but they challenge the other to be better. From the chemistry wrought through this type of coupling to the steam of the bedroom, Albert electrifies her story through Finn and Harrison’s undeniable attraction. 

As my first Annabeth Albert story, Featherbed was a delight. Acting as the foundation for the Vino & Veritas series, this book has set the bar high for the undeniable attraction of future stories in this world. There are a vulnerability and sweetness to Albert’s Featherbed that will absolutely steal your heart. 

In love and romance,

Professor A

FEATHERBED BY ANNABETH ALBERT is LIVE!

Release Date: March 15, 2021
Purchase here: https://geni.us/AmazonFeatherbed
Add to Goodreads here: https://bit.ly/3mKWKXJ Vino & Veritas Series Page: https://hearteyespress.com/wotn#/vino-and-veritas/
Cover Design: Christine Coffey

Blurb:

When a bookworm on borrowed time meets a younger, free-spirited chicken farmer, sparks and feathers fly…
Harrison Phillip Fletcher, III isn’t supposed to be here. Not in Burlington, Vermont, not running Vino & Veritas, a quaint inclusive bookstore and wine bar, and definitely not still alive, at forty-two. Also not supposed to be here? An unexpected delivery of chickens.

Finn Barnes knows chickens. The burly organic farmer knows all about rare breed poultry, but dealing with a hot, older bookseller is an entirely different matter. City slicker types like Harrison never end up staying in Vermont for the long-term.

They should steer clear of each other. But the flare of attraction is mutual. And somehow amid book discussions and farm tours, they discover plenty in common. Now they’re stealing kisses in Finn’s barn, sneaking out like teens, and burning up the sheets.

What starts as a fling brings very real feelings for two lonely souls, but a future together seems as unlikely as chickens in a bookstore. Feathers may be flying, but learning to trust takes time neither may have. Can they take a leap of faith together before it’s too late?

Featherbed is a stand-alone novel in Sarina Bowen’s World of True North. This opposites-attract, age-gap romance features a low-angst, fluffy—and feathery—romp as a fish out of water discovers the home he never thought he’d find.

Excerpt

“What’s next?” Harrison was so serious that I wasn’t sure whether he meant us or the shelf project, but I couldn’t resist messing with him a little.

“Screwing,” I deadpanned.

Predictably, Harrison made a sputtering noise. “Pardon?”

“With a drill, Harry.” I held up the trusty cordless I’d retrieved. “With a drill.”

“No one calls me Harry.” His mouth pursed. I wanted to kiss it. Perversely, the more uptight he got, the more I wanted to unravel him.

“Not even your mom?” I found the correct drill bit for the project and slotted it in.

“Ha.” Harrison had locked his gaze on my hands in a way that made me both self-conscious and more than a little turned-on. “I call her Mom only because she dislikes the formality of Mother.”

“Whereas you love the formality. I get it. Harry.” I put deliberate emphasis on the nickname, so that I could categorize all the different shades of pink and purple he was turning. Besides, it was a good distraction from how his shrewd eyes made me feel.

“I said—”

“You’re fun to harass.” I grinned at him, which earned me an eye roll in return.

“I try. Now give me something to do.”

“Okay, okay. Back to work. You can help by measuring to mark each of the screw holes.”

“Why do construction terms always sound so suggestive?”

“Because you have a dirty mind, Harry.” I gave him an exaggerated leer.

“You better stop that.” He didn’t sound particularly convincing.

“Stop teasing or stop looking at you?” Laughing, I waggled the drill in his direction. “I’ll remind you that I’m the one holding power tools.”

“So you are.” Harrison kept holding my gaze, eyes soft and expectant behind his glasses, tongue darting out to lick at his lips. In that moment, he was infinitely appealing and nothing at all like Astin.

Maybe I’d been mistaken in thinking he was a branch of the same tree of rich dudes who had no issues taking what they wanted. Like him, Astin had favored designer clothing, pricey-looking watches, and the same luxury brand car, and had also dropped clues about inheritances. But unlike Astin, there was a certain humility to Harrison, and he didn’t try to tell me how to do my job.

Oh, Harrison was still a city slicker, and probably not sticking around, but he wasn’t an entitled asshole either. He wanted to kiss me. That want was all over his face, but so was his restraint. As with the woodworking, he’d let me lead. He’d wait for me to make my move and didn’t have a ready arsenal of slick lines. His uncertainty was perhaps the most charming thing about him.

And so, still meeting his eyes, I set the drill back down on the workbench. “No power tools now. You still want to shut me up?”

I stepped closer, in case he had any doubt as to my intent. He smelled good. Expensive, like someone had married delicate herbs and leather scents in an aftershave that probably cost more than a year’s supply of my soap.

“Yeah. I think I do.” His cultured voice had gone husky, but still contained that vulnerability I found so damn intoxicating.

“Show me.” Touching the sleeve of his waffle-knit sweater, I turned him toward me. There. I’d made my move. The next was his. 

️ ️ ️

Football club lawyer, Santino Rossi is known in the locker room as the two-month chump. For years he’s been on a mission to find someone he can share his basil plant with and cure him of his former playboy ways. So when he ends up stuck in an elevator with the one that got away, the thinks a replay is a great game plan.
Preorder Now

Title: REPLAY
Author: Amy Daws
Genre: Sports Romance
Release Date: April 8, 2021
Cover Designer: Amy Daws️ ️ ️

Not all players deserve a second chance… no matter how hot their first chance was.

Football club lawyer, Santino Rossi is known in the locker room as the two-month chump. For years he’s been on a mission to find someone he can share his basil plant with and cure him of his former playboy ways.

Tilly Logan is a fiery, Scottish lass who didn’t bat an eye five years ago when a smoldering Italian pulled her into a nightclub bathroom. He was dark, dangerous, and exactly the good time Tilly was looking for—even if he worked for her over-protective brother’s team.

But a lot has changed and when Tilly returns to London five years later only to find herself trapped in an elevator with the smoldering Italian, it isn’t a happy reunion. Especially because her brother blames Santino for her high tailing it back to Scotland in the first place.

Tilly doesn’t want a replay of past mistakes and reconnecting with Santino is playing with fire.

But if they keep their relationship a secret, it could be worth the burn.️ ️ ️

Preorder Here

️ ️ ️

Replay reads GREAT as a standalone, but if you’re looking for something to binge while you wait, check out Payback and Blindsided, a couple other spin off characters that are featured in Replay! You’ll be fully prepared for April 8 if you read these two hot footballers! Available in Kindle Unlimited

Payback
Allie Harris thinks a one-night-stand with a hot South African soccer player would be the perfect revenge against her cheating ex. But when her night of passion turns into an ill-conceived payback plan, things take an unexpected twist. Especially when that South African wants more than one night. Read Now

Blindsided
What happens when an almost thirty-year-old virgin agrees to let her Scottish best friend take her virginity? A whole lot more than either of them bargained for… Read Now

️ ️ ️

Check out Amy’s Facebook page for an awesome giveaway!

️ ️ ️

Amy Daws is an Amazon Top 13 bestselling author of sexy, contemporary romance novels. She enjoys writing love stories that take place in America, as well as across the pond in England. When Amy is not writing in a tire shop waiting room, she’s watching Gilmore Girls, or singing karaoke in the living room with her daughter while Daddy smiles awkwardly from a distance. For more of Amy’s work, visit: http://www.amydawsauthor.com

️ ️ ️

️ ️ ️

“An expert at the dark and sexy anti-hero, Shen brings her seductive prose to an
irresistible ‘second chance romance’.”– Oprah Magazine

The Devil Wears Black, all new enemies-to-lovers, fake fiancé standalone romance from USA Today bestselling author L.J. Shen is available now!

Maddie Goldbloom stitched up a plan to ensure everything in her life was perfect—from a career in fashion to a chic NYC apartment to a pediatrician boyfriend.
When her ex, Chase Black, storms back into her life with an outrageous request, her immediate reaction is to refuse him. But he only wants to fulfill his father’s last wish. So even though he’s the man who broke her heart, playing his fiancée shouldn’t be hard, especially if it means she gets to watch the arrogant devil squirm a bit.
What ensues is a chain of events that detonates Maddie’s life—and when Chase’s walls come down, they both are forced to face reality.
They say keep your enemies close. But what if your enemy is also the man you love?

Download your copy!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/35mycgA
Amazon Worldwide: http://mybook.to/devilblack
Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/3jOHfO9
Audio: https://amzn.to/2CPy9Ad

Add The Devil Wears Black to Goodreads: https://bit.ly/2KSYbTj

Excerpt

I fished for my keys in my little clutch, stomping my way up the stairs. He was still on the first step, his eyes burning a hole through my back. The one time he looked at me with anything but frost, and I was completely immune to it.  pushed the building entrance door open, ignoring his plea. 

Funny, I’d always thought it’d feel divine to dismiss him the way he’d dismissed me. But right now, my feelings swirled among hurt, anger, and confusion. Triumph was nowhere in sight, and glee was miles away. I was almost past the threshold when his next words gave me pause. 

“Too scared to give me ten minutes of your time?” he challenged, the smirk in his voice like a stab in my back. I froze. Now I recognized him. Cold, calculated. Playfully ruthless. “If you’re so over me and not at all tempted to be under me once we get upstairs, you can go back to your blissful, Chase-free existence after I say my piece, no?” 

Scared? He thought I was scared? If I were any more immune to his charms at this point, I’d actively throw up at his sight. 

I swiveled, jutting my hip out, a polite smile on my lips. “Cocky much?” 

“Just enough to get your attention,” he deadpanned, looking awfully like a man who didn’t want to be here. 

What is he doing here, anyway? 

“Five minutes will do, and you better behave.” I pointed at him with my clutch. 

“Cross my heart and hope to die.” He put a hand on his chest mockingly. 

“At least our hopes are aligned.” 

About LJ Shen
L.J. Shen is a USA Today, Washington Post and Amazon #1 best-selling author of contemporary, New Adult and YA romance. Her books have been sold to nineteen different countries.

She lives in California with her husband, son, cat and eccentric fashion choices, and enjoys good wine, bad reality TV shows and catching sun rays with her lazy cat.

Connect with L.J. Shen
Facebook: http://bit.ly/2OhSvp1
Twitter: http://bit.ly/36ELHZc
Pinterest: http://bit.ly/2oMbFsu
Instagram: http://bit.ly/2AIOiTo
Stay up to date with L.J. Shen by signing up for her mailing list:
http://bit.ly/36MnmAQ
Website: http://www.authorljshen.com/

Fiona Cole has revealed the cover for Just for a Little While!

Releasing: April 8, 2021

After a year of traveling abroad, my parents finally trap my free-spirit into college. Even worse, my dad’s former-stepbrother has a room with my name on it.

The only thing I remember about Uncle Willem is his boring button-down shirts and quiet demeanor.

Except the rugged man who opens his home to me—filling out his t-shirt better than any person should—is not the man I remember. Standing here drooling over his easy dimpled smile, I wonder if I really looked at him at all.

Because Willem is anything but boring and, based on the way his eyes linger on my ripped jeans and thin shirt, he is anything but bored by me.

Add in that he’s a professor at my college and my major went from ‘undecided’ to ‘him’. He tries to hold back, but I have other plans in mind.

College can’t start soon enough. I can’t wait to misbehave and get sent to the professor’s office.

One touch. One kiss. Each starts with a simple promise: Just for a little while.

*Previously published in the USA Today Bestselling anthology, Stories of September. Now with bonus chapters and an extended epilogue.

Pre-order today or read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3qGq43K

Amazon Worldwide: mybook.to/JustForALittleWhile    

Add to Goodreads: http://bit.ly/JFALW_GR

Fiona Cole is a military wife and a stay at home mom with degrees in biology and chemistry. As much as she loved science, she decided to postpone her career to stay at home with her two little girls, and immersed herself in the world of books until finally deciding to write her own.

Connect with Fiona

Website: www.authorfionacole.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14212528.Fiona_Cole

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2sys7gg

Facebook: www.facebook.com/authorfionacole

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/254919681647995/

Instagram: www.instagram.com/authorfionacole

Twitter: www.twitter.com/authorfionacole

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/fiona-cole

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/authorfionacole

Overall Grade: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2

One of the challenges facing college students is mental health. There is much being written about the need to improve the mental health of our college students. With Allie Winters’s Under Pressure, the hero and the heroine’s story elicits thoughts about overcoming mental health challenges brought on by anxiety and the impact of past trauma. When you enter this story, you are met with a hero with so much disdain for life that it seems unbelievable that he’ll ever find anything interesting about Winters’s heroine. Except that Winters’s heroine is extraordinary. Under Pressure utilizes the classic trope of opposites attracting with a grumpy, loner hero and a vibrant, intelligent heroine whose example challenges our hero to be better. 

Under Pressure tells the story of two psychology students vying for the opportunity to intern in their university’s Stress Center. For each of them, this would be a perfect stepping stone to launch themselves into their grad programs after graduating. Mia, the heroine, notices the hero, Tyler, in a mutual class the semester before. She is drawn to his intellect and his voice. On meeting him face-to-face, she is also enamored with his eyes and his good looks. Unfortunately, Tyler is rude and only interested in school and a possible position in the Stress Center. When Dr. Pierce, the faculty member who oversees this opportunity, determines that Mia and Tyler should work together on their respective studies, merging their ideas, Mia and Tyler must determine if they want the opportunity or pass on it. Knowing that the experience would be an important one, they agree to work together, but there are complications from the start. For one, Tyler prefers working alone, and he now has to include Mia, and whether he wants to admit it or not, Tyler is drawn to her just as Mia is drawn to Tyler. As their experience progresses, things turn hot and heavy under the guise of friends with benefits as Tyler has no interest in girlfriends and relationships. Unfortunately for Tyler, Mia gets under his skin and everything becomes complicated. 

Like the other Smartypants Romance books, Under Pressure inspired by one of Penny Reid’s worlds. Under Pressure is the first book of the newly created Lessons Learned series. Inspired by Reid’s Hypothesis series, the focus of this book, mental health, is grounded in a new adult world. As Tyler and Mia traverse their story, the reader is met with the challenges of anxiety and past traumas in the lives of the characters. As a response, Winters shows how one of them uses therapy and meditation to confront their mental health crisis while the other character tries to power through it to no avail. When that character finally embraces the need for help in overcoming their mental health challenges, the story becomes righted suggesting that Winters’s message focuses on the need for outside help to alleviate mental health issues. 

This book has one of my favorite tropes: opposites attract. Especially in the case of Under Pressure, Tyler is such a difficult character to like as he struggles with maintaining anger and loneliness to handle life. When faced with a character like Mia who takes each challenge as it comes with grace and tenacity, there is no way that he can continue in his ways. Winters does a superb job in pacing out their journey, making us wait for Tyler to recognize a need to change. Winters deftly crafts their experience to both repel and attract the reader. There is just something special about Tyler and Mia together, and you can’t help but root for them to the very last page. 

Allie Winters’s Under Pressure feels like an important book in the Smartypants Romance universe at a time when mental health challenges are a serious focus. To illustrate this message through the course of her story feels necessary. That message, however, never overpowers the romance of Tyler and Mia; instead, it highlights the capacity of love to support us when we don’t feel very together. I think that’s the big takeaway from Under Pressure, and it makes for a compelling read. 

In love and romance, 

Professor A