This audible post is a long one – I haven’t shared a new post since Oct. 2021! This one is a mix of all types of genres and all of my synopses are pulled directly from amazon’s descriptions. I tend to favor romance/romantic comedy and “feel good” books because they help with my anxiety. There’s a place for fine literature, but I tend to prefer lighthearted reads, though I also love a thriller once in a while to mix things up!
I hope you find some good reads and you can go here to read all of my previous audible reviews!
The Cityscape Affair Series (trilogy)
Synopsis: He’s her soulmate. She’s another man’s wife…Olivia Germaine has already found love. Devoted wife, loyal friend, determined career woman—she’s created the life she always envisioned…until she locks eyes with a handsome stranger across a crowded room.
David Dylan, alleged playboy and Chicago’s most eligible bachelor, awakens a passion in Olivia she buried long ago. He’ll do anything to prove to her that despite his playboy ways, he’s worth leaving behind the stable future her husband can offer her.
But in order to accept a love she never thought possible, with a man who could be her soulmate, Olivia will have to let go of deeply rooted fears that could ruin everything.
Everything is what David wants to give her, and it’s what he demands in return. But even as an alpha male who always gets what he wants…this time, David may be fighting for something unattainable.
My rating: 5/5. OH MY GOSH. This series y’all. I cannot recommend it more. It’s steamy and I love the entire storyline. It’s the one book where I’m like “yay, adultery!” I mean…not actually, but you’ll know what I mean when you read it, just trust me!
Getting Schooled
Synopsis: Garrett Daniels has this whole life thing figured out. The cocky, charismatic former high school star quarterback is an idolized football coach and “cool” teacher in the hometown where he’s not just a golden boy — he’s platinum. He has good friends, a great house on the lake, and the best damn sidekick a man could ask for: Snoopy, the albino beagle.
Then…Callie Carpenter comes home. And knocks him right on his tight end zone.
Callie has a pretty sweet life herself…on the other side of the country. But circumstances — that she’d prefer to never speak of again — have brought her back home, helping out her parents and substitute teaching at her old high school. Now she’s facing bickering, raging hormones, constant gossip, awkward weirdness, and drama galore…and that’s just the teachers.
When Garrett offers to show his former high school sweetheart the secrets of his winning teacher ways, Callie jumps at the chance — and then has to stop herself from jumping him. Good friends are all they can ever be. Or…these teachers just might end up getting schooled — hard — by love.
My rating: 4/5. I really enjoyed this author’s work (the next book is by her too!) They’re sweet, lighthearted romances and overall have that “feel good” vibe.
Synopsis: Dean Walker is all about keeping life simple. He’s effortlessly talented and intelligent – spending his summers playing drums in the local band and the rest of the year teaching high school in the same Jersey town where he grew up. He likes his love life simple too, enjoying the commitment-free hook-ups his good looks and sexy charm have always made oh so easy.
Then he meets Lainey Burrows. And his simple, easy life gets turned upside down.
One wild one-night stand was all it was ever supposed to be, so Lainey is shocked when she discovers that her sizzling summer fling is also her son’s new math teacher. But that’s nothing compared to the most unexpected twist of all – their hot hook-up left Lainey knocked up, and now they’re about to become parents. Together.
What ensues is an addictive, insatiable, sweet and tender romance that won’t be simple, but it will be more than worth the fight.
My rating: 4.5/5. I liked this book even more than Getting Schooled! The main character is a DIY/home content creator so it was fun to read about her career – something you don’t see represented in books often. I loved the entire plot and how it all came together in the end. Truly a happy read with a lovely ending.
Layla
Synopsis: When Leeds meets Layla, he’s convinced he’ll spend the rest of his life with her – until an unexpected attack leaves Layla fighting for her life. After weeks in the hospital, Layla recovers physically, but the emotional and mental scarring has altered the woman Leeds fell in love with. In order to put their relationship back on track, Leeds whisks Layla away to the bed-and-breakfast where they first met. Once they arrive, Layla’s behavior takes a bizarre turn. And that’s just one of many inexplicable occurrences.
Feeling distant from Layla, Leeds soon finds solace in Willow – another guest of the B&B with whom he forms a connection through their shared concerns. As his curiosity for Willow grows, his decision to help her find answers puts him in direct conflict with Layla’s well-being. Leeds soon realizes he has to make a choice because he can’t help both of them. But if he makes the wrong choice, it could be detrimental for all of them.
My rating: 3.75/5. This Colleen Hoover book is VERY polarizing – it’s not my favorite of hers because many of her books are freaking incredible, but I enjoyed it and am glad I listened. I will say this plot is very interesting…if you’re not into paranormal stuff, you probably won’t like it. Heck, I’m not into paranormal stuff at all, but the way Colleen wrote the book kept me engaged and interested.
You Loved Me Once
Synopsis: I’m losing myself trying to save everyone else….As a doctor, I walk a dangerously delicate balance of being compassionate but not overly invested. The same is true in my personal life – love is a luxury I can’t afford.
It isn’t until Dr. Westin Grant breaks down all my walls and offers me a future, I find myself wondering if I’m brave enough to risk my heart. When who I was and who I’ve tried to become collide during my clinical trial, the fate of one patient changes everything.
In a single moment, everything I’ve worked for is jeopardized. My integrity, my career, and even my relationship with Westin. He loved me once. I just hope he can love me always.
My rating: 2.75/5. This book didn’t wow me. It wasn’t bad, it’s just not something I’m excited about recommended as a must-read. Ultimately I didn’t feel like it was great or bad – just somewhere in the middle.
Synopsis: More than 20 years ago, Claire and Lydia’s teenaged sister Julia vanished without a trace. The two women have not spoken since, and now their lives could not be more different. Claire is the glamorous trophy wife of an Atlanta millionaire. Lydia, a single mother, dates an ex-con and struggles to make ends meet. But neither has recovered from the horror and heartbreak of their shared loss — a devastating wound that’s cruelly ripped open when Claire’s husband is killed.
The disappearance of a teenage girl and the murder of a middle-aged man, almost a quarter-century apart: What could connect them? Forming a wary truce, the surviving sisters look to the past to find the truth, unearthing the secrets that destroyed their family all those years ago…and uncovering the possibility of redemption, and revenge, where they least expect it.
Powerful, poignant, and utterly gripping, packed with indelible characters and unforgettable twists, Pretty Girls is a masterful novel from one of the finest writers working today.
My rating: 2.5/5. This book is…disturbing AF. I’m not easily triggered and don’t mind reading books with topics that are triggering, but I was truly not prepared for this level of gore. This book is violent, okay? Like descriptions of violence and sexual abuse that are horrific. While it’s gripping in the sense that you want to know what happened in the end, it’s very graphic. And I have read some disturbing and graphic books like Too Late and Behind Closed Doors, but for some reason, I loved those and this book was just a lot as you got further and further in and realized how bad everything was.
Synopsis: It’s the most wonderful time of the year…but not for Maelyn Jones. She’s living with her parents, hates her going-nowhere job, and has just made a romantic error of epic proportions.
But perhaps worst of all, this is the last Christmas Mae will be at her favorite place in the world – the snowy Utah cabin where she and her family have spent every holiday since she was born, along with two other beloved families. Mentally melting down as she drives away from the cabin for the final time, Mae throws out what she thinks is a simple plea to the universe: Please. Show me what will make me happy.
The next thing she knows, tires screech and metal collides, everything goes black. But when Mae gasps awake…she’s on an airplane bound for Utah, where she begins the same holiday all over again. With one hilarious disaster after another sending her back to the plane, Mae must figure out how to break free of the strange time loop – and finally get her true love under the mistletoe.
Jam-packed with yuletide cheer, an unforgettable cast of characters, and Christina Lauren’s trademark “downright hilarious” (Helen Hoang, author of The Bride Test) hijinks, this swoon-worthy romantic listen will make you believe in the power of wishes and the magic of the holidays.
My rating: 1/5. I feel SO BAD giving this rating because I LOVE other books by these authors but this one was, IMO, a bust. I just wanted it to be over and regretted using a credit on it. It’s not horrible or anything, it’s just, meh. I of course had to finish it because I cannot let a book go un-listened, but overall there are much better holiday fun/romance books.
Synopsis: Two people. Ten chances. One unforgettable love story.
Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn’t exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there’s a moment of pure magic…and then her bus drives away.
Certain they’re fated to find each other again, Laurie spends a year scanning every bus stop and cafe in London for him. But she doesn’t find him, not when it matters anyway. Instead they “reunite” at a Christmas party, when her best friend, Sarah, giddily introduces her new boyfriend to Laurie. It’s Jack, the man from the bus. It would be.
What follows for Laurie, Sarah, and Jack is 10 years of friendship, heartbreak, missed opportunities, roads not taken, and destinies reconsidered. One Day in December is a joyous, heartwarming, and immensely moving love story to escape into and a reminder that fate takes inexplicable turns along the route to happiness.
My rating: 3.5/5. This book was really sweet – I loved the British narrators, too! I wouldn’t say this was one of my favorites, but it was a cute story with a sweet ending. Definitely a feel-good read.
Confess
Synopsis: From number-one New York Times best-selling author Colleen Hoover, a new novel about risking everything for love – and finding your heart somewhere between the truth and lies.
Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight, and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.
For once Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover that Owen is keeping some major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.
The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin.
My rating: 4.5/5. Colleen Hoover is just the BEST. This was another great read of her with the twists and turns you expect in her novels. She just has a way with building relationships with her characters that is so special.
Synopsis: Tessa Bailey is back with a Schitt’s Creek-inspired rom-com about a Hollywood “It Girl” who’s cut off from her wealthy family and exiled to a small Pacific Northwest beach town…where she butts heads with a surly, sexy local who thinks she doesn’t belong.
Piper Bellinger is fashionable, influential, and her reputation as a wild child means the paparazzi are constantly on her heels. When too much champagne and an out-of-control rooftop party lands Piper in the slammer, her stepfather decides enough is enough. So he cuts her off, and sends Piper and her sister to learn some responsibility running their late father’s dive bar…in Washington.
Piper hasn’t even been in Westport for five minutes when she meets big, bearded sea captain Brendan, who thinks she won’t last a week outside of Beverly Hills. So what if Piper can’t do math, and the idea of sleeping in a shabby apartment with bunk beds gives her hives. How bad could it really be? She’s determined to show her stepfather — and the hot, grumpy local — that she’s more than a pretty face.
Except it’s a small town and everywhere she turns, she bumps into Brendan. The fun-loving socialite and the gruff fisherman are polar opposites, but there’s an undeniable attraction simmering between them. Piper doesn’t want any distractions, especially feelings for a man who sails off into the sunset for weeks at a time. Yet as she reconnects with her past and begins to feel at home in Westport, Piper starts to wonder if the cold, glamorous life she knew is what she truly wants. LA is calling her name, but Brendan — and this town full of memories — may have already caught her heart.
My rating: 4.5/5. I really loved this! It was witty, sweet, fun and steamy. A great romance – and yes, the main character is totally similar to Schitt’s Creeks’ Alexis – I love that show! Definitely recommend this one.
Synopsis: He might not be the devil, but working under him for six weeks is my idea of hell.Hayes Flynn is an arrogant jerk known best for his scotch habit and the way he spreads his British “charm” all over Hollywood, never with the same woman twice.
He’s the last person I want to work for – except he has a face I can’t look away from, and the longer we’re together, the harder he is to hate. Because under that smug exterior is a heart he doesn’t want to show – one that was badly broken a decade earlier.
A part of me wants to fix it for him before I leave…but can I do it without breaking my own in the process?
My rating: 4/5. I liked this a lot! It was a slow burn, which was kind of nice! I liked their connection right off the bat and I enjoyed the ending as well!
I hope you enjoyed my audible reviews! What books have you read and loved lately?
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