kerosenelit's reviews
171 reviews

Welp. After loving Mrs. Nash's Ashes last year, I was really excited about this one. Gretchen Acorn was just a hard character to like. She's literally a fraud, conning wealthy clients into believing she can communicate with their deceased loved ones. She isn’t an inherently terrible person, but the reasonings for her actions didn't really land with me.

When Gretchen is hired to rid a farm property of a ghost, she gets a rude awakening. The farm's owner, Charlie Waybill, is less than thrilled to see her and immediately demands she leave. Even more surprising for Gretchen, however, is the discovery that there actually is a ghost wreaking havoc on the farm—and she can see him! This mischievous spirit cheekily ropes Gretchen into staying to help solve the mysterious Waybill family curse.

I know Everett the Ghost was intended to be funny, but I found his childish antics a bit annoying. And overall, the solution to the curse felt oddly drastic and hard to believe, likely because I didn't feel any chemistry between Gretchen and Charlie. Moments intended to deepen their connection—like Gretchen confessing all her secrets during a sex scene—felt more awkward than romantic.

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, explicit details)

I first read this back in 2022 through Kindle Unlimited and absolutely loved it. Since then, it's always been my favourite Lynn Painter book. If you’re unaware, this is a revamped version published by Berkley! You can expect a POV change, new characters, and additional chapters!

There’s something really special about Lynn Painter’s writing. Her dialogue is so addictive. I practically inhale her stories! This one begins with a stolen latte, sparking an instant connection between Izzy and Blake (a.k.a. Amy and Mr. Chest). But when they discover Izzy works under Blake at her new job, they have to get extra creative to continue their newfound friendship.

Izzy is such a memorable character! Her sense of humour is utterly chaotic, but I adored her for it. I loved how Blake totally embraced her quirks, even playing into them. Their texts and banter were so funny! And I must add, Blake spoiling his cats was definitely a highlight.

But for some reason, I didn't enjoy this updated version as much. Was it the switch to first person POV? Or maybe my preferences have just changed? The romance itself felt much more lusty and erratic than I remember. It’s still a very fun and silly read—I'm just surprised that my opinion changed. I really wish I had my original copy to compare and contrast!

3.5 ⭐

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, mild to moderate details)

Thank you Berkley Romance for the gifted copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Two years after purchasing, I'm finally giving this one a read. And it was so good. From a young age, Beth has been in love with her best friend's brother. But alas, the day of his wedding to another woman has arrived, and Beth acknowledges it's finally time to move on.

Spanning five winters, Beth experiences tremendous heartbreak, reflection, and personal growth. It’s a difficult but heartwarming journey as she figures out what she wants in life, dates along the way, and ultimately finds herself exactly where she’s meant to be. Happy tears!

The romance is an incredibly slow burn—sometimes frustratingly so—but I mean that in a positive way. You know I love angst, and this story delivers plenty! The ending of each year left me desperate to find out what happens next. With relationship dilemmas, loss, and the journey to motherhood, there was always something compelling to keep the story moving!

(heat level: closed door)

I really love flawed characters and challenging topics, so I had a feeling I’d like this one. But gosh, it was even better than I expected. The story follows Emma, an alcoholic who has just reached one year of sobriety. While Emma can admit her life is undeniably better and richer than before, it very thoughtfully explores how sobriety isn’t the blissful experience she had imagined. 

It was such a raw, real look at alcoholism. And I like that it didn't rely on external conflicts to threaten Emma's sobriety. Instead, the focus was on Emma embracing her new life, seeing the world through a different lens, moving on from her mistakes, and learning to open up the most messy parts of herself to others.

It was both wonderfully emotional and funny, with Emma navigating newfound friendships, major family challenges, and even the expectations within her AA group. The romance with Ben, the charming IT guy at her office, was beyond sweet and perfectly placed within the story. I truly loved everything about this one!

(heat level: one open-door scene, mild details. language throughout)

This book feels impossible to review. It was packed with twists and turns!

In a brief summary, the first chapter opens with Mina reflecting on the death of her husband. Alternating between events before and after his death, the story unravels an incredibly angsty, undeniably messy, and dramatically charged reveal about the truth of her marriage and the man she thought she loved so deeply.

The romance was really intense, bursting with emotions that felt fervent and frantic. It's almost overwhelming at times, but in the best way, making it nearly impossible to put down. I do think a certain suspension of disbelief is required, but I absolutely loved the twisted way everything came together! What a gripping emotional rollercoaster. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

(heat level: multiple open-door scenes, mild details)

This was a cute surprise! Bonus points for being set in Canada! If you're looking for something lighthearted, slightly festive, and relatively low on drama, this brother’s-best-friend romance was great. Really, the main conflict is Beth and Foster hiding their relationship. Catch me in a different mood, and I might have complained about the lack of angst. But not today. I adored this! 

 

Beth never expected to get close to the Ottawa Otters' goalie, but when she becomes the victim of a rental scam, Foster steps in and offers her a temporary place to stay. These two were precious together! I loved seeing Foster fall for Beth, coming in hard with cute texts and affection. It was also incredibly refreshing to see them discuss conflicts together. A+ communication! 

 

As for the hockey aspect, the Ottawa Otters' teammates and their locker room banter was a really fun time! You get just enough of a taste of each of their personalities. I'm already claiming Austin as my favourite. I’m very much looking forward to more in this new series!

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, explicit details)

This truly felt like a love letter to romance! The message sometimes felt a little heavy-handed, but there’s some genuinely insightful commentary on the genre, particularly the stigma surrounding it. And dare I say, I actually enjoyed all the pop culture references. They really worked for me here!

Sophie, a primary school teacher by day, is hiding a big secret from nearly everyone around her: she’s the mega-successful, renowned romance author Este Cox. While it was frustrating to see Sophie unable to own her secret, I completely understood her hesitation. For one, her judgemental parents work within the book industry. But not just that—many look down on romance entirely.

When Sophie meets Joe, an arrogant marketing director who unknowingly criticizes her work, it is obviously hate at first sight. It was a little jarring sometimes how quickly they'd flip between arguing and flirting, but once Joe steps up to help Sophie in a big way, I was all in. The building sexual tension was especially good. The timeline is technically fast (spanning just a weekend, if I'm remembering correctly), but it somehow didn’t feel rushed, even with the juicy third-act conflict. A true sign that the chemistry was on point and believable!

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, mild to moderate details)

It was nice to see a character not just with anxiety, but specifically social anxiety! It's a representation you don't see very often. I feel the portrayal could have delved way deeper, exploring more aspects beyond just feeling anxious around people, but there were definitely moments that resonated.

The romance itself didn’t spark overwhelming chemistry for me, but I thought Hunter was a great love interest for Britt. Their dynamic was really cute, with Hunter offering to help Britt with her anxiety in exchange for art lessons. Hunter’s backstory as a recovered alcoholic with a prison record added real depth to his character too, especially in how it mirrored the life of Britt's father.

An unexpected yet welcomed surprise was the perspective of Britt’s mother. At first, I wasn’t sure why it was included, but as the connections between characters and conflicts unfolded, I loved how it all tied together. It was clever! And the overarching theme of forgiveness and personal growth was really lovely!

(heat level: kissing only)

Aside from the random bout of explicit spice toward the end that felt completely out of left field, I absolutely loved this! It's one of those books where my brain wants to nitpick, but my heart is shouting five stars. Over the years, I’ve realized I’m an absolute sucker for storylines that balance grief and humour, and this one has solidified its place on my list of books that left me positively aching.

A stipulation in her brother's will sends Maddie on a journey to scatter his ashes across eight states, joined by his best friend, Dom—the very man who abandoned her after one of her most vulnerable moments. The travels are as much about adventure and reminiscing as they are about unraveling years of family trauma (Maddie's mother is truly wretched) and addressing a deeply layered, genuine miscommunication between Maddie and Dom.

Dom had such a steady, calm, and protective presence. He tends to care for others to a fault, often forgetting to care for himself in the process. And this ties into why I really loved the single POV here, with the story told solely through Maddie's perspective. While it’s very much Maddie’s experience with loss, it’s also about her learning to share her grief and realizing the profound impact her brother had on others too. It was such a beautifully unexpected, bittersweet ending. You bet I cried.

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, explicit details)

As soon as Emily feels a tingle between her legs while looking at the statue of Sir Griffin de Beauford, I knew I should have put this book down. And I probably should have put it down again when Griffin declared, “[...] and at your temple, I shall worship.”

I knew this story was going to be silly—and that wasn’t necessarily the problem. I promise I went into it with an open mind, ready to embrace the absurdity. I can appreciate a playful, campy vibe, but this ended up being far cornier than I expected.

Emily, a conservator at the Art Institute of Chicago, unexpectedly brings a statue to life—a statue that was once human in 1428 but cursed into stone. There’s plenty of humour as Griffin adjusts to modern times, and I found it sweet how much he cared for Emily and wanted to do right by her, but the insta-love and the oddly rampant sexual tension just weren’t for me.

(heat level: a few open-door scenes, explicit details)