friends-to-lovers

REVIEW: The Sparks Fly Upward by Diana Norman

Dear Mrs. Norman, When I heard you had a new book coming out, I skipped around the house for joy. Your books are like an entire box of dark chocolate covered caramel truffles. I want to eat the whole box at once but I force me to pace myself. It’s hard but it’s worth it(…)

REVIEW: Prince of Ice by Emma Holly

Dear Ms. Holly: This is probably my favorite book you have written so far. It’s a fairly traditional romance set in the Far East featuring young friends who have a close friendship and then are torn apart by one child’s family. While it is marketed as a paranormal and your worldbuilding is based upon the(…)

REVIEW: The Slightest Provocation by Pam Rosenthal

Dear Ms. Rosenthal, What a wonderful, challenging, envelope-pushing, smart and astonishing book you’ve written. Reading it wasn’t always easy or comfortable, but in the end, it was more than worth every penny of the $14 I spent on it and the effort it demanded of me as a reader. At first glance, the relationship between(…)

REVIEW: I’m in No Mood for Love by Rachel Gibson

Dear Ms Gibson, I’d have to say that most of your books have worked for me on some level and a few are favorites. But unfortunately while I enjoyed parts of this book, it doesn’t equal your past efforts. On the day of her best friend’s wedding, Clare Wingate is shocked to find her metrosexual(…)

REVIEW: Waking the Shadows by Elisabeth Drake

Dear Ms. Drake: Your novella has a little more going on in terms of characterization but again because of the length, 4558 words, there isn’t much more to this story. Arielle is a witch who works for the FBI. Her partner is Jackson, a vampire. They are sent out to investigate demon activity in the(…)

REVIEW: The Dream-Maker’s Magic by Sharon Shinn

Dear Ms. Shinn, Although The Dream-Maker’s Magic is the third book in your series of books that began with The Safe-Keeper’s Secret and continued in The Truth-Teller’s Tale, it easily stands on its own. And although, like the two earlier books, it is aimed at young adults, this adult enjoyed the book very much. Set(…)

REVIEW: Real Woman Don’t Wear a Size 2 by Kelley St. John

Dear Ms. St. John, As a woman of curves, I was happy to be offered the chance to read your book “Real Women Don’t Wear Size 2.” But while I enjoyed some things about it, there was an equal amount that just didn’t work for me. Clarise Robinson is tired of just wishing for a(…)

REVIEW: Seducing Simon by Maya Banks

Dear Ms. Banks, You know what made me buy this book? Some people had commented on how closely it paralleled Shiloh Walker’s My Best Friend’s Lover. I had to buy the book myself to see if those accusations were true. See how well controversy sells? Suffice to say that these two books were very dissimilar(…)

REVIEW: Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Dear Ms See, I thought about getting this in ebook form then pondered about it in the bookstore before finally breaking down and buying it. I enjoyed the story and your research but I never could get past the feeling that I was reading a book in order to do a book report. This isn’t(…)

REVIEW: Betting Hearts by Dee Tenorio

Dear Ms. TorinoTenorio: Jorrie Spencer mentioned on her blog (in the comments no less) that your book was inching its way up the bestseller list at Samhain. I went to your blog and saw that the book was a friends to lovers theme. I love those. Plus it also had a Pygmalion thread. To quote(…)

REVIEW: Mr. Harding Proposes by Catherine Dove

Dear Ms. Dove, What a delightful traditional Regency romance you’ve written. You have a good feel for the period and seem to have done your research. I enjoy friends turned lovers stories and hope that we hear from you for a long time. I like how you’ve made Mr. Richard Harding adhere to the standards(…)

REVIEW:  Promise Me Forever by Lorraine Heath

REVIEW: Promise Me Forever by Lorraine Heath

Dear Ms. Heath: I was lured into buying your book by positive reader comments and a $1.00 off coupon from Borders. I really have to work on the whole willpower thing. You see, I haven’t really been happy with you since you began transporting your characters from Texas to the Ton. I suppose in an(…)