What's more romantic than a wedding? Romance novels with a wedding theme, of course! And here are some great ones that'll make you want to say "I do"...to one-clicking them, at least: 

Get 'em while they're cheap, folks. You know what to do:

So, Twitter put out a call for hot himbos, and I felt the need to put together a "best of" list. That's just how I roll.

Some of you might ask, what's a himbo? Well, a himbo is a sweet, cinnamon roll of a hero. He's basically a golden retriever in human form. Think Chris Evans and/or Chris Hemsworth. In my mind, a great himbo in romance meets at least 2 of these criteria: 

1. He's big, hot, and muscle-y
2. He's a nice guy. Sweet--never an alphahole. (That's not to say he can't be powerful. He's just not a dominating jerk.)
3. He might not be the smartest guy in the room, but he's not dumb, either (because THAT would be tedious). 
4. He's HYPER aware of and in tune with his love interest. And if his partner wants to dominant him in the bedroom, he'll happily let them.  

​That said, here are but a few of the awesome himbos I've encountered in romance:   

Just because I cut back on reviews a while ago doesn't mean I cut back on reading. In fact, all that time I save on NOT doing reviews has really freed me up to read even more. So, with that in mind, here are a few AMAZING romances I've read lately, and reasons why I think you should read them, too:   

Y'all said you wanted romances with sweet, heartwarming Hallmark plots and Outlander/Bridgerton sex scenes, right? Well...here you go:

I don't know about you, but I love the "I'm looking to shed my image/treat myself/experience something sexy, so I need a bad boy, but I definitely won't do anything dumb like FALL for him in the process" trope in romance novels. I just love how these adorable idiots think they can have all these sexy, intimate times with someone who is PERFECT for them and NOT catch feelings. The moment when they realize they're in love is just... *chef's kiss* With that in mind, here are a few AWESOME good girl/bad boy romances:  

*Graphics courtesy of Elle Woods PR. 

Contemporary romance/Rom com
Publication date: ​10/29/2021
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Cliffhanger: No

Oh, the fun I had with this one, y'all...

So, after Bridgerton and Virgin River became a huge successes for Netflix, romance readers started wondering what other books and series would be adapted for the big and little screens. Hollywood's answer? Well, they picked a book from 2012 that has...let's just call them "problematic" themes from an equally problematic author. I won't go into all the details here, but The Mary Sue did pretty informative article about it here if you wanted to check out the response this movie is getting. Of course, my big fear is that if this movie flops, Hollywood will throw up their hands and say, "Whelp, audiences don't want romance novel adaptations. Let's give them another Batman prequel and a few more Fast and Furious films." That's not the case, Hollywood! We DO want romance novel adaptations. In fact, here are a few that I'd hock a kidney for:  

First responders are real life heroes, and I don't know about you, but I can't get enough of them in romance novels. So, here are just a few of the FABULOUS first responders in Romancelandia that I'd let rescue me ANY time:   

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I'm SICK of publishers (traditional publishers in particular) marketing darker romance and books that are more women's fiction than romance under those cutesy illustrated covers. If a book has one of those covers, I expect there to be laughs, fun, and hopefully (fingers crossed) a little sexiness. So today, I'm going to list some of my favorite romance novels with cutesy illustrated covers that don't fail to deliver on the promise those covers make. These are fun, sexy romances WITH HEA ENDINGS that you'll love. So, without further ado, here they are:   

Look, I'm not a huge fan of Hallmark Channel movies. BUT...I totally get the appeal. There's a wholesome sweetness to them that's super comforting. I also understand the appeal of the from-the-female-gaze, incredibly intimate sex scenes in Outlander. So, when I saw a tweet last month from an ingenious person who said romance readers want Hallmark Channel movie vibes but with Outlander sex, I thought, "That's a Friday book recommendations list!" That said, here are my picks for reads that give off sweet, warm, comforting Hallmark vibes (low-angst, light-hearted, pure sunshine books) but that include the kind of steam you usually have to turn the channel to get. You're welcome:  

Yes, I know Dirty Dancing is a movie, not a romance novel. No, this list doesn't have anything to do with the always-fabulous Patrick Swayzee (may he rest in peace). But whenever I think of dancers in romance, this movie always comes to mind, OK? So, anyhoo, here's my picks for the BEST romance novels about dancers that'll definitely kickstart your TBR list: 

If you're like me, your TBR list is a mile long, and contains more books than you could probably read in two lifetimes. With that kind of list, it's hard to decide which new releases to devote your attention to. I'm here to help. You're welcome. Here are the new release romances I instantly fell in love with--and maybe, just maybe, they deserve to be bumped up on YOUR mile-long TBR list:  

New Adult Romance 
Publication date: ​09/21/2021
Kindle Unlimited: No
Cliffhanger: No

Another great, fun read from Helena Hunting. No surprise here, really. Here's the scoop:

I've learned a few things over the DECADES I've been reading romance novels. Most importantly, I've learned to spot some glaring red flags. These red flags tell me that certain books aren't for me, and I REALLY pay attention to them. So, if I see these things in a book's blurb, marketing, or sample chapters, I bail with a quickness (and you might want to do the same):