Friday, May 1, 2020

Melinda's Mini Reviews for May

Melinda has a few mini reviews for you today, from DNF to 4 Stars.



Dear Enemy by Kristen Callihan
Publisher: Montlake (March 31, 2020)
Genre: Contemporary Romance (M/F)


From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Callihan comes a smart, emotional contemporary romance about finding love with the most unlikely of people.

As kids, they hated each other. Macon Saint was beautiful, but despite his name, Delilah knew he was the devil. That he dated her slightly evil sister, Samantha, was no picnic either. When they broke up, it was a dream come true: Delilah never had to see him again.

Ten years later, her old enemy sends a text.

Delilah’s sister has stolen a valuable heirloom from Macon, now a rising Hollywood star, and he intends to collect his due. One problem: Sam has skipped town.

Sparks still sizzle between Macon and Delilah, only this heat feels alarmingly like unwanted attraction. But Delilah is desperate to keep her weak-hearted mother from learning of her sister’s theft. So she proposes a deal: she’ll pay off the debt by being Macon’s personal chef and assistant.

It’s a recipe for disaster, but Macon can’t stop himself from accepting. Even though Delilah clearly hates him, there’s something about her that feels like home. Besides, they’re no longer kids, and what once was a bitter rivalry has the potential to be something sweeter. Something like forever.



Where to Buy*:
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Melinda's Review:



This is a super slow burn enemy to lovers book that completely worked for me and a different take on a bully book, which almost never works for me. And I can see why the book may not – and has not – worked for everyone. I love banter and this banter worked really well for me. Delilah’s sister, Samantha, is irredeemable to me, and she winds up as a personal assistant to a movie star she has a past with, Macon Saint to basically save her sister’s ass. They have a lot of history and baggage to work through – and for me – it just worked as the tension ratcheted up. There is a subplot of a stalker that honestly I didn’t care about and that’s where I think any of the stumbles were. But the chemistry is delicious.



4 STARS!







American Sweethearts by Adriana Herrera
Publisher: Carina Press (March 30, 2020)
Series: Dreamers, 4
Genre: Contemporary Romance (Queer, M/F)


Juan Pablo Campos doesn’t do regrets. He’s living the dream as a physical therapist with his beloved New York Yankees. He has the best friends and family in the world and simply no time to dwell on what could’ve been.

Except when it comes to Priscilla, the childhood friend he’s loved for what seems like forever.

New York City police detective Priscilla Gutierrez has never been afraid to go after what she wants. Second guessing herself isn’t a thing she does. But lately, the once-clear vision she had for herself—her career, her relationships, her life—is no longer what she wants.

What she especially doesn’t want is to be stuck on a private jet to the Dominican Republic with JuanPa, the one person who knows her better than anyone else.

By the end of a single week in paradise, the love/hate thing JuanPa and Pris have been doing for sixteen years has risen to epic proportions. No one can argue their connection is still there. And they can both finally admit—if only to themselves—they’ve always been a perfect match. The future they dreamed of together is still within reach...if they can just accept each other as they are.



Where to Buy*:
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Melinda's Review:



This is the conclusion of Adriana’s debut Dreamers series and it’s just all so, so good. The entire series is such a delicious steamy read while also doing important social justice work and she does an amazing job walking that fine line. In this finale I loved Prisilla’s internal conflict of loving her work of helping people on the police force and not wanting to let her parent’s immigrant American dream down but also wanting to follow her OWN dream. It’s complicated and messy, which I’m always a fan of because life is complicated and messy and Adriana Herrera writes that perfectly. JuanPa was excellent as a supportive MC who has learned his lesson and just wants to show her that he has. And how much he is into Pris is just seriously the hottest thing ever.



4 STARS! 







Hearts on Hold by Charish Reid
Publisher: Carina Press (February 3, 2020)
Genre: Contemporary Romance (M/F)


What happens in the stacks stays in the stacks…

Professor Victoria Reese knows an uphill battle when she sees one. Convincing her narrow-minded colleagues at the elite Pembroke University to back a partnership with the local library is a fight she saw coming and already has a plan for. What she didn’t see coming? The wildly hot librarian who makes it clear books aren’t the only thing he’d like to handle.

When a tightly wound, sexy-as-hell professor proposes a partnership between his library and her university, children’s department head John Donovan is all for it. He knows his tattoos and easygoing attitude aren’t quite what she expected, but the unmistakable heat between them is difficult to resist.

And then there’s the intriguing late fee on her record. For the Duke’s Convenience… A late fee and a sexy romance novel? There’s more to Dr. Reese than she’s letting on.

John might like to tease her about her late fee, but when he teases her in other ways, Victoria is helpless to resist. Mixing business with pleasure—and oh, it is pleasure—always comes with risks, but maybe a little casual fun between the sheets is just what Victoria needs.




Where to Buy*:
More Info:



Melinda's Review:



I did really enjoy the heroine’s work as a Black professor in an elite private college and her fight with discrimination – this felt extremely realistic to me. I loved that aspect of the book. However, I had heard there was a librarian overstep with a librarian getting a reader’s information but I honestly assumed people were overreacting to it so I picked up the book anyways…I was wrong. The male MC (the librarian) gets into the female MCs library account and sees that she never returned a book and then brings it up in a non-library setting, at their FIRST meeting. And then repeatedly brings it up. It just really bothered me because librarians take privacy very seriously. I couldn’t overcome how much this bothered me so I finally DNFed this one.



 DNF 







Thanks for the reviews, Melinda!

And don't forget that CaribBelle did a full review on American Sweetheart, if you want to learn even more about the book!



Enjoy!



Until Next Time,











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