Catching up on my reviews and sharing my thoughts on some romances. I enjoyed them all, some more than others.

Fake It Till You Bake It (Fake It Till You Bake It, #1) by Jamie Wesley, Kassiopia DeVora (Narrator)

Published June 21st 2022 by Griffin, July 12th 2022 by OrangeSky Audio

4 Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Fake It Till You Bake It was a fun romance starring a social media/reality TV star and a football player. When Jada Townsend-Matthews turns down a proposal on a reality dating show, she becomes instantly hated. She heads home to San Diego to lick her wounds and finds herself in the newest cupcake bakery. She and the owner/baker, have a run in that leads to a further relationship. Her grandma owns the football team that Donavon works for and she asks him to give Jada a job. Jada must work and learn the job if she wants her inheritance. Nothing could go wrong, could it.

I enjoyed this story, it was a lot of fun. We have a fake dating trope as well and an enemies to friends to lovers one. Jada is one of those characters that if I met her in person, I would not want anything to do with her. Donovan is so patient with her, that she can not help but develop feelings for him. I liked them both eventually and wanted their relationship to work out. Jada also has low self-esteem, because of the way her parents look at her and her life choices. They have never encouraged her in her chosen pathway and they really made me angry, especially because it effected the way Jada looked at herself. There are a few misunderstandings and roadblocks that almost derail the relationship, but this is a romance and I enjoyed seeing Jada’s and Donovan’s journey. Kassiopia DeVora narrated this audiobook and I enjoyed her voice. She is a new narrator for me and I will not hesitate to listen to her again.

Summer Reading by Jenn McKinlay

Published May 16th 2023 by Berkley

4.5 Stars:

Summer Reading was one of those books that I was so happy to finally read. Samantha Gale has dyslexia and has struggled all her life to be successful. She is a chef that recently lost her job and she is at the family cottage on Martha’s Vineyard trying to resurrect her career, whole supervising her half-brother for the summer. While there she meets Bennett Reynolds, a man who is trying to find his father. He’s taken a temporary job on the island, managing the library and the summer program, while trying to research the summer his mother spent there when she got pregnant with him. Neither Ben or Sam are looking for a relationship, but when Sam knocks his book into the ocean, they are both attracted to one another. Ben finds out about Sam’s dyslexia, he encourages her to author that cookbook she has always wanted to write, and a relationship develops.

This is a rom com that pulled me in from the first page until I closed the book with a sigh and a smile. I liked the balance of romance, mystery, drama and family. I liked the realistic way that Jenn McKinlay portrays Sam and her dyslexia. It often causes low self-esteem, poor school performance and effects the way people look at you. Although there were some roadblocks along the way, I enjoyed this slow building relationship. There were some funny situations and great dialogue. I haven’t read Jenn McKinlay for a long time, but I will be checking out her backlist. This was a delightful HEA story that I enjoyed.

Kiss the Girl (Meant to Be, #3) by Zoraida Córdova, Narrated by  Inés del Castillo & Anthony Rey Perez

Published August 1st 2023 by Hyperion Avenue

3.5 Stars:

Kiss the Girl is the 3rd book in Disney’s Meant to Be series, but each book is a standalone and can be read independently. If you are a Disney movie fan, you should recognize the title as one of the wonderful songs from The Little Mermaid. This is a retelling with Ariel, aka Melody the lead singer in the sister band, “Siren Seven”. They have just finished a two year farewell tour and are looking forward to a year off. Her father, Teodoro del Mar is the King Triton character, who has plans for his daughter, to launch her solo career. Sneaking out with her sisters to attend a concert for a new Colombian band, Star Crossed, she meets lead singer, Eric Reyes. He doesn’t recognize her without her signature red wig, and she ends up going on the road with his band, as a merchandise seller. She wants to get away from her father, and have her time off. So, with this being a retelling of The Little Mermaid, you need an Ursula character and she is the manager of Star Crossed. She recognized Ariel and allows her to stay on the tour, but steals her voice by making her promise not to have a relationship with Eric, not tell him who she is. Hiding her identity when she knows everything about the business and wanting to help the band proves to be harder than she thought.

This was a cute retelling that blended the fairytale aspects with a modern setting, multi-cultural themes and clean longing and romance. Will Ariel be able to keep quiet, or will her desire for a new life win out. Out long will it take for Eric to “Kiss The Girl”. Both Eric and Ariel had some problems to deal with, but nothing to deep. They handled things in a rational way without a lot of histrionics, which made this an easy romance. It fit the rom-com vibe well. Eric, was handsome, driven, and didn’t really ever get upset or stressed, a perfect Disney Prince. Ariel, was beautiful, sheltered and naive, typical for that Disney princess, but she was also independent and able to deal with whatever came her way. This was an easy story to read and/or listen to with likable characters, and a predictable storyline with a modern twist. The narration by  Inés del Castillo and Anthony Rey Perez was enjoyable. Having both a male and female narrator was a good choice and added to my enjoyment of this audiobook.