this was an arc read, and i think what surprised me most about vera stein is fine by julie murphy was how much bigger the story felt than just the romance.

vera has spent so much of her life taking care of everyone else that she really doesn’t know what her own life is supposed to look like anymore. watching her start over at 40, find a new job, make new friends, and slowly figure out who she is outside of the people she spent years caring for was probably my favorite part of the story. i loved the reminder that life does not end at 40 and that you’re never too old to reinvent yourself or take a completely different direction.

and then there’s eli. obviously i’m going to love a second chance romance, especially when the two people have all this history between them. the fact that they were college flings, accidentally became ex-husband and wife, and then find themselves back in each other’s lives years later was such a fun setup. i really enjoyed watching them slowly unpack the past and realize that maybe some of the things vera thought she knew weren’t exactly the way she remembered them.

but honestly, the starlight palms community might have been my favorite part. the residents were hilarious, chaotic, and somehow so wholesome at the same time. i loved the friendships and found family throughout the story and how everyone seemed to show up for each other. it gave the book so much warmth and made starlight palms feel like a character of its own.

i also really appreciated vera’s journey with her confidence and learning to take up space. her insecurities felt very human, and i liked that her body was never treated as the entirety of who she was. she got to be funny, complicated, ambitious, romantic, insecure, and confident all at once.

there were definitely moments where i wanted a little more from the romance, but overall i really enjoyed what this story was trying to say.

this was such a good reminder that sometimes the life you thought you missed out on wasn’t actually the life meant for you. sometimes you just need a new chapter, a little chaos, and maybe an accidental ex-husband to figure out what comes next.

this was an arc read, and i went into student union by julie murphy expecting a fun college romance, and honestly, it was exactly that. the whole idea of getting married just to qualify for student housing is so ridiculous, but somehow it made for a really entertaining story.

clover and bennett definitely had an interesting history, and i liked seeing them find their way back to each other after everything that happened between them. the fake marriage, forced proximity, and only one bed situation gave us plenty of cute and spicy moments, and their banter was definitely one of my favorite parts.

i also really enjoyed clover’s friendships throughout the book. the friendships between the girls added so much fun to the story and honestly made me just as excited to see more of them in the rest of the series.

i think my biggest thing was that there were moments where i wanted a little more from the romance and the emotional side of their relationship. there were parts of their history that i wanted to explore more, especially because so much of their relationship was built around what happened in the past.

overall, this was a fun and easy college romance with plenty of chaos, banter, spice, and a very questionable marriage proposal. it definitely has that light, bingeable feeling that makes it easy to fly through, and i’m curious to see where the rest of the undergrads series goes..

this was an arc read, and honestly i went into breaking new ice by evie keaton not really knowing what to expect because this was my first hockey romance, but now i totally understand why people love this genre so much !!

cassie and cole’s dynamic was definitely my favorite part of the book. the grumpy x sunshine energy was so good, especially with the added tension of her basically being assigned to babysit him while also trying very hard to ignore the fact that he used to be her celebrity crush. their banter was sharp, funny, and honestly carried so many of my favorite scenes.

i also really liked that beneath all the tension and chemistry, there were bigger emotional moments too. cole’s struggles and the mental health rep added more depth to the story and made him feel more real beyond just being the grumpy hockey star.

also that, bonus chapter evie, wowwwwww, iykyk!!!!

the slow burn worked really well for me because you could feel the buildup between them the entire time, and once things started shifting, i was fully invested. the off-limits aspect also made everything feel even more intense because both of them had actual things to lose.

overall, this was such a fun introduction to hockey romance for me, and i fear this book may have started an obsession. if you like grumpy x sunshine, slow burn tension, sharp banter, and emotional romance with spice mixed in, i definitely think this one is worth picking up.

⭐️: 3.5/5

this was an arc read, and honestly i went into Icing on the Cake by Amanda Uhl expecting a cute little romance, and it ended up being exactly that in the best way.

this follows bethany and hank, and i actually really liked how their story starts. him literally hiding out in her kitchen to escape fans was such a chaotic first meeting, but it worked and set the tone for their dynamic right away.

their whole situation with the building added a fun layer to the story. bethany trying to protect something she’s worked so hard for, while hank is coming in with completely different priorities, made their interactions a mix of tension and chemistry. i liked that it wasn’t just romance, there was something actually at stake for both of them.

their banter was one of my favorite parts. it felt playful but also a little stubborn on both sides, which made their dynamic more entertaining. you could tell there was attraction there pretty early on, but they both fought it in their own ways.

overall though, i still enjoyed it. it’s light, fun, and has that mix of tension and cute moments that makes it a good quick read.

this was an arc read, and overall i thought Unfinished Business by Zoey Ford was a really cute, easy romance with a lot of moments i enjoyed.

the story follows margot and ethan, who start off with a boss/assistant dynamic but slowly turn into something more. i really liked how their relationship developed over time, especially because it didn’t feel rushed. it definitely leans more slow burn, and you can feel that build up between them.

their banter was probably my favorite part. it felt natural the whole way through, and i liked that even as things started to change between them, they still kept that same dynamic. also the whole him helping her with dating while clearly catching feelings himself… yeah i ate that up.

i also liked margot as a character. she’s coming out of a difficult relationship and trying to figure herself out, and i appreciated that her growth was a big part of the story. it made everything feel a little more real and not just focused on the romance.

for me personally, it was a bit slower than i expected. i liked it, but i wasn’t fully hooked the entire time. there were a lot of cute moments, i just didn’t get that “can’t put it down” feeling consistently.

overall, i still enjoyed it. it’s a light, feel-good workplace romance with good tension, a slow burn buildup, and characters that are easy to like.

if you like slow burn, workplace dynamics, and a mix of friendship and romance, i think you’ll enjoy this one.

This was an ARC read

I went into Motion to Claim by Dani Loughary not really knowing what to expect since this was my first omegaverse, and honestly it was a pretty solid intro to the genre for me. Ava and Mark are rival lawyers, and when I say they do not like each other… they really don’t. the enemies-to-lovers tension was there immediately. The courtroom scenes especially were so good. You could feel the tension through the pages, and it carried into everything else.

The chemistry between them is instant, but what I loved the most was the banter. It was sharp, funny, and didn’t disappear once things started shifting between them, which I really appreciated. They still felt like themselves even as their relationship changed.

Also, the fact that everyone else could basically see what was going on between them before they did… I loved that. The denial phase did not stand a chance. And the fated mates aspect just made everything more intense, especially since they didn’t even realize it right away.

I also really appreciated that the story touched on deeper topics like mental health and eating disorders. It added more depth to Ava’s character and made her feel more real.

For me personally, it did take me a little while to fully understand the omegaverse world. But overall, I did enjoy it. It’s fast-paced, has really good tension, and the dynamic between Ava and Mark is what carries the story. If you like enemies-to-lovers, fated mates, and lots of tension and banter, I think you’ll have a good time with this one, especially if you’re new to omegaverse like me.

OK this is a very cute Boston based romance book. It's very much force proximity and a slow burn which I didn't mind because I really liked how you literally can see that they're building up their feelings for each other it wasn't rushed whatsoever which I appreciate it. It's also very grumpy x sunshine vibes with them. It's overall a very good read and I loved getting to know Julian and Willa. I also very much enjoyed their views on like a new perspective as she's from a small town in another state that she escaped to a bigger city to sort of like run from a personal issue and although he was from there he also went through personal issues that kind of made him like be closed also both of them navigating this new perspective of not running away was very good to read. I also very much enjoyed that there were still more to the book after they got together which is very different and I feel like typically as soon as the main characters get together that's kind of where the book ends and if we're lucky we get like a epilogue chapter so it was very nice to see that it didn't immediately end after and we got to see how they progressed in their relationship. 

I'll attach my favorite quote of the book.

"I want you," I said again, more quietly now. "And that terrifies me, because I can’t control any part of it. But I’m done pretending that means it isn’t real." - Julian Vance, everybody !!

honestly this book had me gushing and giggling my feet at times. i definitely feel like it shouldn't have taken me this long to read this book like, i wish i read it sooner it was very cute and sweet and sort of this like innocence of love which I feel like a lot of books don't necessarily have anymore. which nothing wrong with that I love reading me some smut books but this was like very much not that and it was just the way that it was written and the way they talked about each other that literally had me gushing. and then he literally wrote a poem book for her like omg and in french at that like honestly I loved the book it was such a great read. levi coldwell, you are definitely one of my top fictional man.