Month: June 2025

Swept Away by Beth O’Leary | Book Review

Posted June 26, 2025 by Jana in Adult Fiction, Book Review / 1 Comment

Swept Away by Beth O’Leary | Book ReviewSwept Away by Beth O'Leary
Published by Berkley on April 1, 2025
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Romance
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher (Netgalley)
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Two strangers find themselves stranded at sea together in this epic new love story by bestselling author Beth O’Leary.

What if you were lost at sea…with your one-night stand?

Zeke and Lexi thought it would just be a night of fun. They had no intentions of seeing each other again. Zeke is only in town for the weekend to buy back his late father’s houseboat. Lexi has no time for dating when she needs to help take care of her best friend's daughter.

Going back home with a stranger seems like a perfect escape from their problems. But a miscommunication in the dark, foggy night means no one tied the houseboat to the dock. The next morning, Zeke and Lexi realize all they can see is miles and miles of water.

With just a few provisions on the idle boat, Zeke and Lexi must figure out how to get back home. But aside from their survival, they’re facing another challenge. Because when you’re stuck together for days on end, it gives you a lot of time to get to know someone—and to fall in love with them.

Ok look. This cover, combined with the fact that it’s a survival at sea romance had me salivating. This kind of story is my kryptonite, but goodness me this was soooooo messy. By the end of this review, you will be wondering why I didn’t DNF and my answer is simply that I couldn’t bring myself to look away because I had to know how it all worked out.

The entire book felt like a fever dream. You’ve got a one-night stand between Lexi and Zeke that occurs on a houseboat that drifts out to sea because communication? Who needs it? So they’re just bobbing out there in the North Sea on a boat that’s barely floating and can’t run that they both think is theirs. I was beginning to struggle at this point because I had a hard time believing this could realistically happen, but I hung in there. And then all the things start happening. If something could go wrong, it went wrong. And if something could conveniently happen to move the story along, it did. You’ve got an accidental gaping, festering wound and a concussion between these two people. This boat is covered in sweat and vomit due to the concussion… or maybe food poisoning… sea sickness? All of the above? Probably. They’re living off spoiled food that somehow Zeke is able to whip up into a hot meal even though there’s no running water or electricity on this boat and they’re rationing crackers with old sweaty cheese and cookies the rest of the time. They’re plugging holes with cotton t-shirts and tape and catching rain water in a tarp and bowls that sometimes slide right off the deck into the sea. There’s an outlandish oil rig situation and an injured seagull who they rescue from the water and feed their very meager rations to. Because if the seagull doesn’t survive this, we don’t want to either! And honestly, that would probably be me too so I can’t fault them for that, I guess!

There’s a lot of info dumping and repetition about their individual past struggles (some of which are disturbing… like Zeke’s first love who was well into adulthood while he was only 16 years old… ick). Both of them also have very intense family/found family situations and spend their time discussing them ad nauseam (either out loud or in their heads) when they’re not in the process of potentially succumbing to their individual injuries. And honestly, the dialogue had me cringing at times. Lexi is older than Zeke and will never let anyone forget it. She’s only 31, but you’d think this woman was 75 for how old she keeps telling Zeke she is. I got so tired of her making some self-deprecating comment about her age or her aged body (again, she is THIRTY ONE), just so he would come back and reassure her that age is just a number and she’s beautiful no matter what. He’s known her for less than two weeks and can’t stop thinking about what a beautiful puker she is. Meanwhile, his gaping wound is seeping pus from infection and they really just wish they were making out right now. I’m absolutely sure that no real humans would be lusting after and craving sex from one other under these dire circumstances. I struggled to believe the romance so much because they clearly only bonded over a shared traumatic experience. The chemistry between the two of them was lacking, and I had a hard time picturing them ever falling in love in the real world. They just don’t match, and my mind was never changed on that. These people needed medical attention and therapy, not romance. And then there’s a twist that made me throw the book across the room. Seriously?? What in the Days of Our Lives drama is this? Everyone in this book needs to take a very big step back and do some reassessing.

All in all, I was super intrigued when I read the synopsis. What a unique and interesting sounding story! But there was too much going on here. I enjoyed the parts of the story where survival instincts and ingenuity took over for a little while. It was interesting reading about what they did to try make life easier for themselves and find help, and if this had been just a survival story I think I would have liked it a lot more (especially if it were more believable). But there was a lot of drama layered on top of that surrounding them and their families as well as their individual pasts. I wish the romance aspect hadn’t been there at all and that this was a story about two strangers (or even friends) trying to make it out alive. The romance, family drama, and the comedy of errors throughout their journey to survival was too much for me and I had a hard time suspending the amount of disbelief necessary to fully immerse myself in this story.


My Top Ten Most Anticipated Books Releasing in the Second Half of 2025

Posted June 23, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 19 Comments

Welcome to another TTT! This might be my favorite topic. I love sharing my most anticipated releases, even though it can be hard to narrow the list down to only ten picks. I can’t wait to come visit so many blogs, because I love finding new books to add to my ever-growing to-read list!

1. Love and Lattes at Pumpkin Hollow by Victoria Walters (August 4, 2025)

I remembered my mum telling me that autumn was a chance for nature, and for people, to let go of anything that was holding them back…

Willow Connor has one shot to save her family’s farm – turning it into Birchbrook’s first ever pumpkin patch. There’s just one she has exactly zero pumpkins and only six weeks to make it happen. Everyone in the close-knit town thinks she’s crazy, but she’s determined to prove them wrong.

Enter Dylan Henderson, a hotshot property consultant with a clipboard full of reasons why selling is the smarter choice. Determined to stand her ground, Willow makes him a bold offer – stay and watch her turn the farm around. To her surprise, he agrees.

Now, as Willow throws everything into making her pumpkin patch a success (even if it means buying every pumpkin in the county), she also finds herself learning a thing or two from Dylan – about business, about ambition… and maybe about love?

Will she save the farm and prove everyone wrong? And when the deal is up, will Dylan walk away – or has he found something worth sticking around for?

A cosy, small-town romance full of autumn vibes, opposites-attract chemistry and a guaranteed HEA!

2. Last Stop on the Winter Wonderland Express by Rebecca Raisin (August 13, 2025)

A honeymoon for one on the most romantic train journey in the world… what could possibly go wrong?

When Aubrey’s fiancé dumps her – literally at the altar – just days before Christmas, her first thought is for the honeymoon. A luxury snow train, winding through Europe’s most beautiful Christmas markets, stopping in places like Paris and Stockholm, before ending in Lapland, to stay in igloos under the Northern Lights.

It was meant to be the most romantic ten days of her life. And now she has to go it alone. But arriving on the train – where, not wanting to be known as someone who was jilted, she might have accidentally implied her new husband died in a horrible accident – she finds she’s not the only singleton on board.

The group of single passengers quickly nickname themselves ‘The Unlucky in Love Travel Club’… But – as the train gathers pace – so do Aubrey’s feelings for absurdly handsome travel journalist, Jasper.

And she starts to wonder – as fireworks explode over the snow – whether her magical Christmas honeymoon-for-one might be just what she needs. And if she might not be as unlucky in love as she’d thought…

3. The Secret Book Society by Madeline Martin (August 26, 2025)

A captivating new historical novel from Madeline Martin, set in Victorian London about a forbidden book club, dangerous secrets, and the women who dare to break free.

You are cordially invited to the Secret Book Society…

London, 1895: Trapped by oppressive marriages and societal expectations, three women receive a mysterious invitation to an afternoon tea at the home of the reclusive Lady Duxbury. Beneath the genteel facade of the gathering lies a secret book club—a sanctuary where they can discover freedom, sisterhood, and the courage to rewrite their stories.

Eleanor Clarke, a devoted mother suffocating under the tyranny of her husband. Rose Wharton, a transplanted American dollar princess struggling to fit the mold of an aristocratic wife. Lavinia Cavendish, an artistic young woman haunted by a dangerous family secret. All are drawn to the enigmatic Lady Duxbury, a thrice-widowed countess whose husbands’ untimely deaths have sparked whispers of murder.

As the women form deep, heartwarming friendships, they uncover secrets about their marriages, their pasts, and the risks they face. Their courage is their only weapon in the oppressive world that has kept them silent, but when secrets are deadly, one misstep could cost them everything.

4. Wild Reverence by Rebecca Ross (September 2, 2025)

Born ​in the firelit domain of the under realm, Matilda is the youngest goddess of her clan, blessed with humble messenger magic. But in a land where gods often kill each other to steal power and alliances break as quickly as they are forged, Matilda must come of age sooner than most. She may be known to carry words and letters through the realms, but she holds a secret she must hide from even her dearest of allies to ensure her survival. And to complicate matters . . . there is a mortal boy who dreams of her, despite the fact they have never met in the waking world.

Ten years ago, Vincent of Beckett wrote to Matilda on the darkest night of his life―begging the goddess he befriended in dreams to help him. When his request went unanswered, Vincent moved on, becoming the hardened, irreverent lord of the river who has long forgotten Matilda. That is, until she comes tumbling into his bedroom window with a letter for him.

As Fate would have it, Matilda and Vincent were destined to find each other beyond dreams. There may be a chance for Matilda to rewrite the blood-soaked ways of the gods, but at immense sacrifice. She will have to face something she fears even more than losing her magic: to be vulnerable, and to allow herself to finally be loved.

5. We Met Like This by Kasie West (September 16, 2025)

Beloved author Kasie West’s sparkling adult rom-com debut about a hopeless romantic falling for the one man she never expected

Can a swipe right turn into swept away?

Margot Hart is a hopeless romantic. That’s why she wants to be a literary agent—to help bring romance books to the world. It’s also why she hates dating apps with all her romance loving soul. She wants her own love story to be just as much fun as the books she reads—a mixed up coffee order, a mistaken identity. She’s not going to tell the story that she swiped right on future husband’s shirtless pic for the rest of her life.

The problem is that her most consistent relationship over the last several years is with Oliver, a guy she keeps rematching with on the apps. They’ve only been on one date and it was a disaster…well, until the make out session in the car before parting ways. But, she keeps reminding herself, a make out session does not a relationship make. And so there will not be a date two regardless of how witty their app banter is.

When Margot gets fired from her job on the same day she meets Oliver again, her life becomes a veritable shit show. Her dream career is dying right before her eyes, and Oliver thinks she’s interested in only one a repeat of the hot make out session they had three years ago so she can get him out of her system. And maybe that is all she wants from him, because she and Oliver are definitely not compatible—he doesn’t hit the snooze button, he runs five miles every morning, he reads nonfiction, and worst of all, she didn’t meet him in cute way! But in her scramble to keep her dream career alive, by opening her own agency, Oliver is there with his golden retriever energy, more steady and helpful than any man she’s ever dated. Just when she thinks she’s overcome her app bias, she realizes that maybe it’s not her who’s holding back, but him. And his reasons are more than she bargained for.

Kasie West’s romantic and sexy adult debut is full of witty banter, meet cutes gone awry and, ultimately, true love.

6. You Make It Feel like Christmas by Sophie Sullivan (September 23, 2025)

All bets are off when a single-minded photographer and a professional hockey player are forced to spend a week together on his sister’s Christmas tree farm, perfect for fans of Jenny Holiday and Maggie Knox.

Maisie Smart doesn’t look back. Not on the choice she made to be a photographer, and not on the one-night stand she had six months ago. But sleeping with a professional hockey player who bolted the morning after is a whole new level of embarrassing. Now she’s about to spend the week at Tickle Tree Farms with her family this Christmas—and then the universe throws a Grinch in her festive plans.

Nick King is a mess. After a significant injury benches him, he has more time to dwell on his anxieties and the one-night stand he can’t get out of his head. With the holidays around the corner, he figures visiting his sister and nephew at their Christmas tree farm will be a good way to sort himself out. That’s impossible when he learns Maisie is there, still beautiful and justifiably angry about the way he left. But Christmas is the time for second chances, and the forced proximity may help Nick and Maisie unwrap feelings neither of them can walk away from twice.

7. Overdue by Stephanie Perkins (October 7, 2025)

A SPARKLING ADULT DEBUT FROM BELOVED NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR STEPHANIE PERKINS

Is it time to renew love or start a new chapter?

Ingrid Dahl, a cheerful twenty-nine-year-old librarian in the cozy mountain town of Ridgetop, North Carolina, has been happily dating her college boyfriend, Cory, for eleven years without ever discussing marriage. But when Ingrid’s sister announces her engagement to a woman she’s only been dating for two years, Ingrid and Cory feel pressured to consider their future. Neither has ever been with anybody else, so they make an unconventional decision. They’ll take a one-month break to date other people, then they’ll reunite and move toward marriage. Ingrid even has someone in her charmingly grumpy coworker, Macon Nowakowski, on whom she’s secretly crushed for years. But plans go awry, and when the month ends, Ingrid and Cory realize they’re not ready to resume their relationship—and Ingrid’s harmless crush on Macon has turned into something much more complicated.

Overdue is a beautiful, slow-burn romance full of lust and longing about new beginnings and finding your way.

8. And Then There Was the One by Martha Waters (October 14, 2025)

From Martha Waters, the author of the “enchanting” (Entertainment Weekly) Regency Vows series, a new historical romance set in 1930s England with a murder mystery twist.

In a quaint village in the Cotswolds, Georgiana Radcliffe has accidentally become an amateur detective after helping solve four murders in a single year. When the chairman of the village council turns up dead, everyone agrees with the official ruling of a heart attack, but Georgie can’t help but suspect that the council chairman is a fifth victim. Now, murder tourists are flocking from around the country, in hopes of becoming sleuths themselves.

Along with her reporter friend, she reaches out to a famous London detective for assistance in ascertaining why they have become a magnet for murder. But the fancy detective is simply too busy—or can’t be bothered—to help, and instead dispatches his secretary, Sebastian Fletcher-Ford—a posh womanizer who, truthfully, is just trying to get out of his hair, much to practical, no-nonsense Georgie’s dismay. But as they investigate in the charming Buncombe-upon-Woolly—with plentiful scones, sheep on the village green, and murder tourists at every turn—Georgie finds that her previous assessment of Sebastian may have been wrong, and rather than solving a murder, she may be solving for love instead.

9. The Eight Heartbreaks of Hanukkah by Jean Meltzer (October 21, 2025)

Can these exes rekindle their love this Hanukkah?

Evelyn Schwartz has the perfect Hanukkah planned: eight jam-packed days producing the live-action televised musical of A Christmas Carol. Who needs family when you’ve got long hours, impossible deadlines, and your dream job? That is, until an accident on set lands her in the medical bay with one of her chronic migraines, and she’s shocked to find her ex-husband, David Adler, filling in for the usual studio doctor.

It’s been two years since David walked away from Evelyn and their life in Manhattan, and his ex-wife is still the same workaholic who puts her career before everything else—especially her health. But when Evelyn begins hallucinating “ghosts” tied to her past heartbreaks, and every single one leads to David, he finds himself spending much more time with her than he anticipated. And denying the still-smoldering chemistry between them becomes impossible.

As Evelyn revisits her ghosts of Hanukkah past, she and David both begin to wonder if they can have a Hanukkah future. But with a high-stakes production ramping up the pressure on Evelyn, and troublesome spirits forcing them both to confront their most difficult shared memories, it might just take a Hanukkah miracle for these two exes to light the flame on their second-chance at love.

10. The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer (November 4, 2025)

Mallory Fontaine is a fraud. Though she comes from a long line of witches, the only magic she possesses is the ability to see ghosts, which is rarely as useful as one would think. She and her sister have maintained the family business, eking out a paltry living by selling fraudulent spells to gullible buyers and conducting tours of the infamous mansion where the first of the Saphir murders took place.

Mallory is a self-proclaimed expert on Count Bastien Saphir – otherwise known as Monsieur Le Bleu – who brutally killed three of his wives more than a century ago. But she never expected to meet Bastien’s great-grandson and heir to the Saphir estate. Armand is handsome, wealthy, and convinced that the Fontaine Sisters are as talented as they claim. The perfect mark. When he offers Mallory a large sum of money to rid his ancestral home of Le Bleu’s ghost, she can’t resist. A paid vacation at Armand’s country manor? It’s practically a dream come true, never mind the ghosts of murdered wives and the monsters that are as common as household pests.

But when murder again comes to the House Saphir, Mallory finds herself at the center of the investigation—and she is almost certain the killer is mortal. If she has any hope of cashing in on the payment she was promised, she’ll have to solve the murder and banish the ghost, all while upholding the illusion of witchcraft.

But that all sounds relatively easy compared to her biggest learning to trust her heart. Especially when the person her heart wants the most might be a murderer himself.

What 2025 book releases are you still looking forward to over these next six months?
Do we have any picks in common?


The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain by Hannah Brown | Book Review

Posted June 19, 2025 by Jana in Adult Fiction, Book Review / 0 Comments

The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain by Hannah Brown | Book ReviewThe Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain by Hannah Brown
Series: Mistakes We Never Made #2
Published by Forever on June 24, 2025
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Romance
Pages: 320
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher (Netgalley)
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Starling Ranch Inn promises to be a tropical paradise, and Sybil can’t wait to escape there, all expenses paid. Well technically the expenses were paid—last year, when she was supposed to go to Hawaii for her honeymoon with her then-fiancé Jamie. But the wedding didn’t go as planned (or at all), and now she’s decided to use those hotel vouchers alone, before they expire.

Sybil’s expecting mai tais, med spas and me-time, so she nearly plunges backwards into the infinity pool when she sees that Jamie has had the same idea! His family business is thinking of buying the resort, so he’s here with a gorgeous, tangerine bikini-clad “colleague” to give the property a once-over.

Desperate to save face in front of the ex who broke her heart at the altar, Sybil accidentally-on-purpose blurts out that she’s here with her boyfriend. But what starts as a harmless lie to spare her dignity soon spirals into an ex-fiancé fiasco when Sebastian—the second of Sybil’s three failed engagements—pops by fresh off a photography gig. Seb’s always up for a good time, and happy to play along ...sparking unexpected jealousy in Jamie.

From snorkeling snafus to stunning vistas to staff parties at the beach, Sybil does her best to juggle two ex-fiancés, but it’s becoming clear that her past of broken promises must be reckoned with once and for all—including that first fiancé, Liam, the one she never talks about…

Is the notorious free-spirit, life-of-the-party, runaway bride Sybil Rain ready to heal from her three past engagements and make room in her heart for a fourth and final chance at love?

Ok. I’d like to preface my review by saying I watched Hannah Brown on The Bachelor and then I watched her season of The Bachelorette. I like Hannah! She’s fun and will never pretend to be someone she’s not. Well, except for an author. I think this is the first celebrity book I’ve read before, and it taught me that I don’t like the idea of ghostwriters. I know that people sign up for this. They go into things knowing that they are writing a book for someone else and that that “someone else” will be taking all the credit. I didn’t know I hated the idea of this until I was reading the book and trying to picture Hannah having written it and not being able to. I’ve gotten to know well enough on TV and then on social media to know that this book does not sound like her. Why did she need to write a book so badly? Like, if she couldn’t or didn’t want to write it herself then why have someone else do it for her? I just don’t get why this is a thing and why people then flock to the celebrity and say things like, “oh you’re such a good writer I loved your book!!!” and they feel confident and happy enough to say “thank you!” when they didn’t write it. I could never! The imposter syndrome would be too severe for me. lol. BUT that’s just me. I would love it if you shared your thoughts on ghostwriters in the comments below.

This book has some undisclosed trigger warnings that blindsided me and could be upsetting to certain readers. I consider these warnings to be spoilers, but I absolutely wish I’d known about them before going in and these aren’t even my personal triggers. If you want to skip my warning, scroll past the pink arrows and italicized words below and pick up with “Review time!”, which has been bolded for your convenience.




There’s a lot of discussion about the main character’s previous miscarriage
that occurred before the book begins, as well as infertility due to her chronic health condition (PCOS).

These topics are broached without any warning and the discussions are
plentiful enough that they’re unavoidable. Please read with care. 




Review time! Let me start out with what I liked, because I have some conflicting feelings that I’m struggling to organize. I did not realize that The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain is a companion novel to Mistakes We Never Made. I have not read MWNM and didn’t feel the least bit lost reading Sybil’s story, so go forth and be unafraid if you’re in the same boat I was in. I love a travel romance, and Sybil’s solo vacation really intrigued me. I wanted to escape to the beach, and I enjoyed the snorkeling and horseback riding and sunsets. The descriptions of the scenery were lovely, and I felt transported to Hawaii. I’ve been through a lot in my dating life, and the idea of making up a new boyfriend in order to save face in front of an ex-fiance is exactly the kind of idea I’d come up with but be too afraid to carry out. The fact that her fake boyfriend ended up being another real ex-fiance of hers was the cherry on top. This. Was. Messy! I’m willing to rip my hair out while I watch The Bachelor franchise shows, so obviously I enjoy drama. And the drama did its thing really, really well. I couldn’t look away and had to know how this all turned out.

But then… there were quite a few things I didn’t like. You can tell that this book was written for a celebrity influencer. There are a lot of brand names and discussions on content creating. Sybil is a content creator for a company that makes period panties and is not just in Hawaii to use her expiring travel vouchers, but to cover a blood moon for her company (because periods…). There’s a lot of talk of harnessing your feminine power from the moon and mentions of a holistic positivity coach when Sybil really should have just been in real therapy instead. Both Sybil and her most recent ex, Jamie (the one she’s lying to about her fake boyfriend), are extremely shallow and immature and go through no growth throughout the story. Sybil in particular is incredibly self-centered and feels she’s perfect and that everyone else she associates with is the problem. She takes no accountability for her choices and actions, and just when I thought she might grow up a bit she slid right back to where she was. I liked Seb, Sybil’s other ex and the one she’s pretending to date, but he’s a caricature of every free-spirited photographer I’ve ever seen in fiction and lacked the emotional depth he easily could have been given. I was excited about the promise of the fake dating trope, but quickly grew disappointed when it took a turn and ended up not being a true “fake dating” romance. This chaotic romance also leans very heavily into the miscommunication trope, which I never enjoy. The pacing felt very off. I got tired of the long passages about Sybil’s previous relationships that were oddly placed randomly throughout the story and threw me out of the present. I have a few more complaints about the actual romance that I consider to be spoilers, so I won’t share them… but yeah, I was disappointed with the ending and really wasn’t rooting for anyone by then.

All in all, this was a big disappointment for me. It started off strong, and I loved the summer vacation vibes and the promise of a fun fake dating romance, but was instead presented with a lackluster second chance romance between two characters who were way too immature to enter a relationship and some emotional content I wasn’t expecting that really dragged things down for me.


Top Ten Books on My Summer 2025 to-Read List

Posted June 16, 2025 by Jana in Top Ten Tuesday / 17 Comments

Welcome to another TTT! Before jumping into this week’s topic, I wanted to thank those of you who sent me books during last week’s bookish wishes prompt. Thank you so much to Michelle M. @ To Everything There Is a Season for sending me Stranded Ranch by Cindy Steel, Lillian @ Mom With a Reading Problem for Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood, and R (I can’t figure out who you are!!) for A Christmas Spark by Cindy Steel! I’m so excited about these books, and can’t wait to read them all! I did my best to thank you individually, but just in case you didn’t see my thank you’s I wanted to add them here, too! Thank you for your kindness and sending me a surprise!

This week’s topic is another seasonal to-read list! I can’t believe it’s summer! I love reading light, fun books during this time of year. I love romances that allow me to go on vacation to real or magical places especially, but I’m a mood reader so I’ve planned for everything!

Never Been Shipped by Alicia Thompson
If All Else Sails by Emma St. Clair
The Loathe Boat by Cindy Dorminy
The Enchanted Greenhouse by Sarah Beth Durst
Swept Away by Beth O’Leary
A Perfect Story by Elísabet Benavent
The Scandalous, Dissolute, No-Good Mr. Wright by Tessa Dare
Total Dreamboat by Katelyn Doyle
Problematic Summer Romance by Ali Hazelwood
A Beginner’s Guide to Forever by Kendall Ryan

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Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross | Book Review

Posted June 12, 2025 by Jana in Book Review / 2 Comments

Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross | Book ReviewRuthless Vows by Rebecca Ross
Series: Letters of Enchantment #2
Also in this series: Divine Rivals
Published by Wednesday Books on December 26, 2023
Genres: Fantasy, Fantasy Romance, Historical Fiction
Pages: 420
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Unlimited
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Torn apart by war. Reunited by love?

Two weeks have passed since Iris returned home bruised and heartbroken from the front, but the war is far from over.

Roman is missing, lost behind enemy lines, with no memory of his past, or Iris. Hoping his memories return, he begins to write again – but this time for the enemy.

When a strange letter arrives through his wardrobe door, he strikes up a correspondence with a penpal who seems at once mysterious… and strangely familiar.

As their connection deepens, the two of them will risk their very hearts and futures to change the tides of the war.

Wow, what a satisfying ending to this duology! Ruthless Vows was exactly what I wanted it to be. I jumped in immediately after finishing Divine Rivals, and only a couple weeks have passed since the events of that book so you’re really just thrown right back in to the thick of it. I recommend going into this story blind. Do not read the synopsis (but obviously read DR first. lol). You can expect even more action in this book than the first, which I loved. I could not pull my eyes away to do or read anything else. I loved how the romance progressed in this story, and how deep and raw it was. Iris and Roman go through so much, and are changed forever. Their growth and evolution was lovely to see. I enjoyed seeing what was in store for the supporting characters as well. What a wonderful cast of people! We meet someone new, Tobias, and I adored him. I’d love a spin-off series featuring him because he’s amazing. Rebecca Ross’s writing is so beautiful. I just love sinking into her stories because they’re so lush and detailed. I highly recommend this magical pair of books if you’re looking for something different that will make you feel everything before wrapping you up in a warm hug.