contemporary

Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth

I absolutely loved this book. I listened to the audio and the narrators did a fantastic job. They instilled the perfect mixture of sweet, snarky, and sarcastic into their voices to bring Elsie/Mabel to life. The story is told in two storylines, present day and Mabel as a young girl. In present day the main character goes by Elsie and as a young girl, she goes by Mabel. Elsie is 81 years old and has lived on her street for over 60 years. She’s the neighborhood curmudgeon that has an opinion about everything and everyone. Her peace is disrupted by the appearance of a little girl named Persephone who relentlessly inserts herself into Elsie’s life.

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May 6, 2026 0

We Burned So Bright by T.J. Klune

4.5 stars (release date 4/28/26)

This is a beautiful, emotional, heartwarming, sad book that will give you all the feels. I love this author’s writing and I’m not surprised that he made a story about the end of the world feel like a warm hug.

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April 26, 2026 0

Test of Time (Blossom Peak #3) by Harlow James

This is book 3 in the Blossom Peak series but can be read as a stand alone. This time it’s sheriff and single dad Rhonan’s time to fall in love. He meets Vienna in a bar while playing wing-man for a friend. They have an instant connection, but before they can act on their attraction, she disappears, leaving Rhonan confused and quietly obsessing about her.

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April 24, 2026 0

Kace (Pittsburgh Titans #20) by Sawyer Bennett

I love this book series and the author has done a fantastic job building a wonderful, supportive, and loving found family amongst the players and their wives and girlfriends. In this book it’s goalie Kace’s time to fall in love. His teammates don’t know it, but Kace is a genius in applied physics and his “side hustle” is working as researcher “William” for Dr. Laurel Kent, a fellow scientist at a university. They’ve never met, but work very well together and respect each other’s skills. They’ve formed a fun and flirty relationship and Kace wants nothing more than to take it to the next level, but Laurel made it very clear that she’d never date another athlete. So, when an opportunity arises for him to meet her, he decides he’ll try to date her as Kace and see if he can win her over, and if so, he’ll tell her about his William persona.

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April 5, 2026 0

Mistakes Were Made (Story Lake, #2) by Lucy Score

4.5 stars

I love this book series and reading how Zoey and Gage find their HEA was so fun. Zoey is broke and needs to hang on until her BFF and only client Hazel’s new book comes out. Until then, she hunkers down in Story Lake and tries not to go crazy. Ever since his brother’s engagement, Gage has not stopped thinking about finding the perfect wife to start the perfect family and life together. Zoey is pure chaos and Gage is as steady as they come. They could not be more opposite and are looking for completely different things, but sparks fly whenever they get close to each other and it’s hard to ignore.

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March 31, 2026 0

Here Lie All the Boys Who Broke My Heart by Emma Simmerman

This was a fun and twisty mystery/thriller set during the FMC’s senior year of college. Sloan is a pretty good student and has a close group of friends. Her relationship history is not so great and she frequently gets her heart broken. To cope, she writes a fake eulogy in her journal about the boy to put to rest the relationship.

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March 31, 2026 0

Most Likely to Murder by Lish McBride

This is a pretty good YA mystery/thriller about an alleged yearbook prank gone terribly wrong. Best friends Rick and Martina are outcasts and they’re ok with that. Labeled by the Principal as troubled for previous pranks they’ve pulled, when yearbook pictures are labeled with gruesome titles like Homecoming’s Cutest Corpses, he immediately tries to pin it on them. But they didn’t do it (this time) and their pranks have never been gruesome or cruel. When a guidance counselor is found dead in the same manner as his new yearbook label, police name Rick and Martina as their prime suspects. When another body turns up, the duo realize they need to find the killer before they spend the rest of their lives behind bars.

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March 27, 2026 0

Fire Line (The Griffith Brothers, #3) by Maggie C. Gates

I love this book series and am so sad to see it end, but I’ve had a great time seeing the Griffith brothers fall in love and find their soulmates. This time, it’s the last single brother CJ’s turn to meet his spitfire of a woman and fall in love. CJ meets Lennon in a bar where they have a steamy one-time encounter and never expect to see each other again. That doesn’t stop them from thinking back at their time together on more than one occasion. So, when CJ is introduced to Lennon as the executive chef of the restaurant at the lodge built on their land that he despises, he explodes with resentment.

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March 16, 2026 0

Top Shelf Stud (Chicago Players, #3) by Kate Meader

This is the third book in the Chicago Players series but can be read as a stand alone. Franky is the daughter of a hockey legend. She’s a member of a wonderful found family amongst the various hockey players and their spouses. She’s an academic expert in snails and slugs, seen as the “quirky one”, and doubts she will find anyone to settle down with and have a family. So, she puts in the science, creates a spreadsheet, and sets about doing it alone. With the help of some sperm from one of the men on the list of perfect candidates she’s created, of course.

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February 24, 2026 0