I just finished Relationship Goals by Brittany Kelley and here are my thoughts. Abigail dreams of making it big and when she is offered a breakout role, it comes with homework.. Shadowing her real-life counterpart to be able to act the role with authenticity. She doesn’t expect to meet Luke, soccer player and all around asshole.. Things begin to sizzle and Abigail cannot believe how happy she is. That is, until she discovers the truth, Luke was coerced into fake dating her for ticket sales so he could be traded. She isn’t just angry… She is going to make him pay in the funniest of ways. I did not expect a sports romance to be so good. I am not a massive fan of all the sporty stuff usually but I was fully invested in both of the characters and the soccer stuff really added to the story in my humble opinion. It was a seriously entertaining book. I love how extreme the grumpy sunshine was. Luke was such a bummer at first! I don’t find negative people attractive so he set my teeth on edge from the get go but the more you learn about him, the more you start to understand him. Abigail had things to prove but she didn’t let it dull her shine and I felt honest to God… extreme anger that Luke didn’t just tell her he needed to fake-date and why. Having said that, had he said something, she may not have opened up the same so while I am glad they did break past it, it really rubbed me the wrong way. The chemistry was amazing and the build up was decedent. I loved how light and playful the whole thing was. It was definitely one of my faves of the month. 4 sexy stars Thank you to @berkleypub and @netgalley for my gifted copy. #relationshipgoals #brittanykelley #sportsromance #fakedating #booklover #bookalorian #litdulterous #bookpodcast #bookinfluencer #literaryinfluencer #bookishreview #booksbooksbooks #tiktokbooks #booktok #bookstagrammer

I just finished Mob Queen by Erin Bledsoe and here are my musings. Virginia is worried. Her friend is missing and she knows it's something to do with the mob. What she doesn’t expect is to climb the ranks within the organization and amass power no one could have foreseen. She is ruthless because that’s how you survive in the dark world of organized crime. YEEE-FING-YAWWWWWWW This audiobook was too brilliant. I loved how I was transported to the 1930s and wish I had dressed for the occasion. Virginia really changed over the course of the book. It was amazing. I loved watching the evolution. The girl who was terrified for her missing friend but needed to know the truth so she took a step into the seedy underbelly of Chicago… Into the self contained woman who became an integral part of the mob’s operation. She is based on a real person and her life was totally fascinating. I love historical fiction like this. It was gritty and raw. I felt like I was really taken back in time and I was fully immersed into a world of murder, money laundering and mob bosses. There is some abuse in here so be mindful. I love books based on real events and the author did an amazing job of researching all the key players back then while staying true to who Virginia Hall was. Couldn’t have loved it more. 5 stars Thank you to @netgalley and @blackstonepublishing for my gifted alc #blackstonepublishing #themobqueen #Erinbledsoe #historicalfiction #bookreview #bookishreview #bookblog #readervlog #bookalorian #litdulterous #bookishpodcast #bookpodcast

I just finished Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure by Rhys Bowen Ellie never expected her morning to start with her Husband asking for a divorce. 30 years of her life to a man who throws her away for a younger model. Deciding to leave their home with a great alimony and taking the bently, she takes her house keeper and her old friend on an adventure across Europe. Women traveling alone in the 1930s wasn't the norm, but Ellie wasn’t going to live her life that way anymore. When the bently breaks down during their adventure, they can’t help falling in love with the hamlet. For Ellie, her life hasn’t ended… it has just begun again. I absolutely enjoyed this book!! The writing was absolutely incredible and I was hooked from page 1. The best part of the book was watching all 3 women, who felt hopeless, find a new lease on life and really warmed to each other the longer they were together. I was beautiful. The friendship of all 3 women was the best part of the whole story and Dora.. I loved Dora! The descriptive scenes of their travels through France and the little hamlet they end up in where absolutely spectacular. It has some really humorous moments, some really sweet moments and some tearjerking moments. It really did bring all the feels. One of the best historical fictions I’ve read, which has some of it set during WW2 without being a really heavy book. Genius! 5 stars. Thank you for my gifted copy, @rhysbowen And this book is out today! Run don’t walk! #mrsendicottssplendidaventure #rhysbowen #historicalfiction #ww2 #ww2novel #friendship #bookalorian #litdulterous #readersofig #bookishblog #readerblog #blogforreaders #5starbook #goodreads

I just finished Maid for Each Other by Lynn Painter and here are my musings. Abi has a dream and it is not to be a professional cleaner for the rest of her life. When her apartment has an infestation she needs to find somewhere to stay.. One of her clients is away and she thinks… What's the harm in just crashing in his empty place… What she didn’t expect is to come face to face with his parents and she just so happens to have the same name as the elusive girlfriend of the owner of the place she is crashing at. When Declan discovers she's been staying in his home he hatches a plan… She plays his fake girlfriend and she can stay in his place until hers is safe again…. Win win… What could go wrong? I LOVED THE BANTER. I think this book might have had the best witty back chat of any book I have ever read. The characters were so much fun. I loved Abi! Would I have fake dated Declan? Damn straight I would have and the fun she had playing his girlfriend had me giggling my face off. I am not a massive fan of the fake dating trope but this one was quite excellent because the underlying attraction was always there and it felt natural. I always find it odd that people lie about dating people which is why the trope never normally sits well with me but Declan.. I kinda get it. He’s not normal and it shows but he is perfect for Abi and the hopeless romantic in me loved the chemistry. I like how it ended too. It was very pretty woman! 4.5 stars Thank you to @netgalley and @berkleypub for my gifted copy #lynnpainter #maidforeachother #romcom #romanceread #romancereader #romance #bookreview #fakedating #booklover #bookalorian #bookish #bookblog #litdulterous #bookishpodcast

I just finished Diamonds, Deception and Destiny by Pia Mia and here are my musings. The latest single is a hit and Princess is floating on cloud 9. Her relationship with Win is going well but she has other things to deal with. Her ex can’t keep it professional and fulfilling her contract is becoming problematic… The single her record label wants to release could be her downfall…. I am loving this series. I like the fact the book is a quest for identity which is something we all go through when we are young adults. It's relatable and humanizes celebrities. I love it. I got sucked right back into Princess’ world. The writing style is so subversive and engaging. The narrative has such depth that it was a brilliantly unique coming of age story. I love the characters, I love how they interact and I felt invested in what they were doing and how they were. I felt rather protective of Princess and what she was going through. I often find that the next installment of books tend to not be quite as good as the first but this wasn’t the case here. The pace was on point and I really enjoyed the storyline. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think if you are looking for a YA with some razzle dazzle, you should grab this series. 4 stars Thank you to @wattpadbooks and @piamia for my gifted copy. #diamondsdeceptionanddestiny #piamia #comingofage #yanovel #bookishreview #booklover #bookalorian #bookblog #readervlog #booktokbooks #bookstagramreader #readersofig #igbooks #wattpad #readreadread #litdulterous #bookishpodcaster

I just finished A Witch's Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna and here are my thoughts. Sera used to be one of the most powerful witches in England. That is until she cast a forbidden spell and her magic all but disappeared. The Guild… refuses to give her powers back and exiles her. She finds herself running a magical inn. When Luke and his little sister arrive with a need at the inn, the keys to unlocking her powers lie within his knowledge but trying to reverse the spell is almost easier than thawing Luke out but something more is blooming and they both can’t seem to fight it. THIS BOOK WAS TOO CUTEEEEEEE. I have a real love for the way Sangu Mandanna writes.. I felt like I was in the inn. I felt like I was wrapped up in the coziness of the friendship and love that came from the mismatch of people under the same roof. Sera is amazing. She is one of those people who comes across as hostile and moody but really.. She feels it all. She loves deeply. She reminds me of my mum. She is all hard edges but really, she's a gooey teddy bear! I loved the magic in this book. It was a really great story. I enjoyed how all the characters were so different but they all had such great chemistry together. I really loved how Luke's sister is on the spectrum. As a mother with 2 sad kids… I love how well the author incorporated it into the story. I cannot sing the praises of this book more. Beautifully written, wonderfully paced and so so beautiful. 5 stars. I don’t give those out often but this book…. MY JAM!! Thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley for my gifted copy #awitchsguidetomagicalinnkeeping #berkleybooks #berkleypublishing #betgalley #bookreview #bookishblog #bookloversofig #romance #fantasybook #booksbooksbooks #bookalorian #litdulterous #cuteread #romancereader

I just finished Confessions of a Grammar Queen by Eliza Knight and here are my thoughts! Bernadette has a dream. To be the first female CEO of a publishing house but it's the 60s and even getting fair wages is a struggle. Navigating a chauvinistic world where being a female copy editor means making the coffee and looking pretty is all the men in the office want. Finding support from a clandestine book club and knowing at least one man in the office sees the real her, has Bernadette crashing through that glass ceiling with panache. OK the best part of the whole book was the POV of the dog! I did the audiobook and he was absolutely hilarious! Frank is my favorite book character. The book was light while it covered some tough topics, fun, quirky and thoroughly entertaining. What did I love? That women came together even after tearing others down. It was a really solid audiobook. I loved the flow, the pace was a bit slow but I think it did a great job of story building. I liked the ending too but it felt a tad farfetched. A woman who only held a position for a moment gets to run the whole place? I don’t think so but if you can suspend your disbelief, this book has real charm. I didn’t connect with Bernadette. I don’t know why, I should have but I felt she was a tad underdeveloped and that was my biggest issue with the book. She felt a tad unrealistic I guess. All in all a solid book and I gave it 4 stars! Thank you to @netgalley and Tantor Audio for my gifted copy! #confessionsofagrammarqueen #elizaknight #womensfiction #historicalfiction #bookreview #readerreview #bookalorian #litdulterous #igbooks #igrecs #bookrecs #bookrecommendations #bookinfluencer #readersofinstagram #bookpodcast #bookishsmallbusiness

I just finished Jill Is Not Happy by Kaira Rouda @kairarouda and here are my musings. Jill thinks her marriage can be fixed with a road trip with her husband.. Her husband knows nothing will fix it and cannot wait to get away from her. Trouble is she knows things about him and at this point… If she can’t have him… No one can… Oh man Jill is a wacko!!! She is absolutely terrifying. I am seeing a lot more books with crazed women and they are always intelligent and calculating. The trouble is I didn’t like anyone in this book and it's a necessary evil for me… Needing to care about at least one person. I hated Jill, her husband and I wasn’t a fan of their daughter but I was sucked right in anyway. The audiobook was great. It brought the underlying creep factor in spades. It was like a bus crash you couldn’t stop watching. Rubber necking haha Oh and the fact they are Jack and Jill… THUMBS DOWNNNNNNNN. We get the story from Jack and Jill’s perspective and I didn’t trust either of them. They are both as bad as each other and they were made for each other. It had a lot of dark humor which I did really enjoy. I really did enjoy it. It was well done, well paced and as someone who isn’t a massive fan of unreliable narrators, this one was still entertaining. The ending bothered me a bit. I wouldn’t have ended it that way and that’s why it only got 4 stars. Thank you to @netgalley and @highbridgeaudio for my gifted copy #jillosnothappy #unreliablenarrator #kairarouda #thriller #thrillerreader #thrillerreads #netgalley #audiobook #audiobookreview #audiobook #audiobooksofig #bookalorian #litdulterous

I just finished The Baker of Lost Memories by Shirley Russak Wachtel and here are my thoughts. Lena has a dream.. Of being a baker like her parents before world war II. Living in Brooklyn in the 60s, anything is possible but her parents are distant. The loss of a sister she never knew lingers. The only comfort she had was her best friend Pearl, who disappeared when she was a child. Lena’s dreams are coming true but the past is still in her present and there are things she doesn’t even know about herself. I didn’t read the synopsis so this wasn’t what I was expecting. While this book is a historical fiction, I was hoping it was all based during the war and I thought the baker… lost memories, that she would bake to help people grieve losses during the war with baking…. That would have been great… The story may have been different than expected but it was still very enjoyable. The audiobook was a lot better than I was expecting too. The narration was solid. You get the story of the parents at first. How they survived the war and the loss of their pride and joy Ruby. They make it to the USA and have Lena. You get to see the differences in their parenting and it makes Lena, who is a tad unlikeable, more understood. They keep her at a distance. The lack of affection and you cannot help feeling angry on Lena’s behalf but the ending really rounds out the why at the end and I loved that. I went through every emotion with this one. Definitely a 4.5 star book. I think the pacing was a tad slow but all in all entertaining book. Thank you @netgalley and @brillianceaudio for my gifted copy #thebakeroflostmemories #shirleyrussakwachtel #historicalfiction #wwII #audiobookreader #audiobooksofig #igaudiobooks #bookalorian #litdulterous #reading #bookrecommendations #readreadread #booksbooksbooks