Review: The Astronaut and the Star by Jen Comfort

February 14, 2023February 13, 2023 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

The Astronaut and the Star
Jen Comfort
Publisher: Montlake
Publication Date: March 1, 2022
Series or Standalone: Standalone
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads – StoryGraph
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Kidnapping; threats of gun violence

Jen Comfort is a true writer of rom-coms. So many books nowadays get slapped with the rom-com label, which is so often misleading. But with Jen Comfort, her books are actually funny and are actually romance. After reading and loving Midnight Duet, I wanted to pick up her first book, The Astronaut and the Star. I enjoyed this one as it’s super cute, but it didn’t capture my heart quite like Midnight Duet did.

Review: The Worst Guy by Kate Canterbary

February 8, 2023February 8, 2023 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

The Worst Guy
Kate Canterbary
Publisher: Vesper Press
Publication Date: December 28, 2021
Series or Standalone: Vital Signs #2
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads – StoryGraph
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Eating disorder; abandonment; strained parental relationship

If you’re looking for a good hate-to-love, enemies-with-benefits, “good girl” filled romance that delivers on the sexiness and the emotions, look no further than The Worst Guy. I can understand why so many people have been talking about this book. This was my first Kate Canterbary book, but it won’t be my last.

Audiobook Review: The Siren of Sussex by Mimi Matthews

December 5, 2022December 4, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

The Siren of Sussex
Mimi Matthews
Narrators: Vidish Athavale & Lydia Hanman
Publisher: Berkley
Publication Date: January 11, 2022
Series or Standalone: Belles of London
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads – StoryGraph
Overall Rating:

Performance Rating:

Story Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Racism/racial slurs; misogyny/sexism; sexual harrasment; colonization; death of parent; references to suicide, pregnancy, abandonment

The Siren of Sussex was not as tempting as I hoped it would be. First, it should be said that while this is marketed as a romance, it is a closed-door romance. Second, it felt much more like historical fiction than historical romance. And third, listening to this as an audiobook was not the right move.

Review: Texas Glory by Lorraine Heath

October 26, 2022October 27, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

Texas Glory
Lorraine Heath
Publisher: Avon Books (Topaz originally)
Publication Date: April 1, 1998
Series or Standalone:Texas Trilogy #2
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Domestic violence (physical abuse); rape; gun violence; torture; miscarriage; infertility; pregnancy; child abuse; forced child prostitution; pedophilia; murder

I mustache you to read this book. Sorry – it had to be done as I cannot believe I fell in love with a character with a MUSTACHE.

Words fail to express how much I adore Dallas Leigh – he made this book for me. And boy, Lorraine Heath takes you on a journey with this book. This book is filled with so much love, yet so much heartache and pain – very typically Lorraine. But it’s so beautifully done that I cannot fault her for the sad bits.

Review: MacRieve by Kresley Cole

October 11, 2022October 11, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

MacRieve
Krelsey Cole
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication Date: May 9, 2013
Series or Standalone: Immortals After Dark #13
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Rape; child molestation; grooming; trafficking; toxic relationship; kidnapping; emotional abuse; murder; references to suicide, cancer, alcohol abuse, gang rape, depression

After taking a little break from the Immortals After Dark series, MacRieve was the perfect book to welcome me back. Despite the major content warnings (this book tackles some very HEAVY topics which won’t be for everyone), this book was a lot of fun! I had a smile on my face while reading it, yet also found myself constantly going WTF at some of the crazy – so, you know, pretty typical of an IAD book.

Review: Texas Destiny by Lorraine Heath

October 5, 2022October 25, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

Texas Destiny
Lorraine Heath
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: June 1, 1997 (republished May 29, 2018)
Series or Standalone: Texas Trilogy #1
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: War; panic attacks; gun violence; kidnapping; references to suicide, rape, murder, slavery, physical abuse

I am finally starting my deep dive into Lorraine Heath’s back catalog as she’s quickly become one of my favorite authors, and let me tell you – Texas Destiny did not disappoint. This book was the first book in her first-ever series, Texas Trilogy, and has all the hallmarks of what I’ve come to love about Lorraine Heath’s books. Fantastic characters, a romance filled with lots of pining and angst, so many feelings, unconventional situations, and so much more! Despite publishing over 25 years ago, this book is still worth picking up today.

ARC Review: How the Wallflower Was Won by Eva Leigh

September 26, 2022September 25, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

How the Wallflower Was Won
Eva Leigh
Publisher: Avon Books
Publication Date: September 27, 2022
Series or Standalone: Last Chance Scoundrels #2
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Sexism; ableism; misogyny

Oh boy – I struggled with this book. I had such high hopes for this as I adored Finn, but Tabitha ruined the whole thing for me in the end. I’m still angry at how this story played out. If I could, I would rate the beginning of this story 3 stars, but I’d give the ending zero stars.

Review: How the Marquess Was Won by Julie Anne Long

September 13, 2022September 14, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

How the Marquess Was Won
Julie Anne Long
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: December 27, 2011
Series or Standalone: Pennyroyal Green #6
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: bullying; gun violence; sexual assault

This book. THIS BOOK! Unputdownable. Fan-freaking-tastic. This is my favorite thus far of the Pennyroyal Green series. I had actually read this book way back in 2016, but forgot I had read it before, so I loved rediscovering the story as bits and pieces came back to me as I started reading.

Review: Forbidden by Beverly Jenkins

September 11, 2022September 12, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

Forbidden
Beverly Jenkins
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: January 26, 2016
Series or Standalone: Old West #1
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

CW: Slavery; racism; racial slurs; gun violence; death; reference to suicide, rape, war

Forbidden was my first Beverly Jenkins book, but it won’t be my last! I adored Jenkins’ writing style and how all her characters and settings are imbued with such life and personality that they jump off the page.

Forbidden is also my first adult Western romance, a subgenre I am now fully exploring with my reading as I’m fascinated by it, and it’s nice to escape from the ballrooms of Regency England for a change. However, Westerners can be very fraught given the legacy of slavery in this country. I know that not everyone is comfortable reading stories set in that era for that reason.

Review: What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long

September 9, 2022September 9, 2022 Dani @ Overflowing ShelfLeave a comment

What I Did for a Duke
Julie Anne Long
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: February 22, 2011
Series or Standalone: Pennyroyal Green #5
Links: Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Goodreads
Rating:

MY REVIEW

What I Did for a Duke is a delicious historical romance. I don’t think I’ve ever described a book as delicious before, but that’s the perfect word for this one. And with every book I read in the Pennyroyal Green series, the more I fall in love with the characters and series as a whole.