Photo Credit: Lisa Fotios @ Pexels.
The Weekly Book Date is where I talk all things books from the previous 7 days.
Last week (19-25 February 2024) featured another victory for Me vs My TBR because I read 4 and didn’t buy or pre-order any new books. OK so I downloaded a couple from Kindle Unlimited but I’ve only got that until 9 March and everybody knows KU books don’t count towards your TBR.
The other bookish highlight from last week was putting together last Friday’s blog post with 15 Secret Baby Trope Recommendations.
All the best, Louise x
Currently Reading (1):
(1) The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren (2023)
Felicity “Fizzy” Chen is lost. Sure, she’s got an incredible career as a beloved romance novelist with a slew of bestsellers under her belt, but when she’s asked to give a commencement address, it hits her: she hasn’t been practicing what she’s preached.
Fizzy hasn’t ever really been in love. Lust? Definitely. But that swoon-worthy, can’t-stop-thinking-about-him, all-encompassing feeling? Nope. Nothing. What happens when the optimism she’s spent her career encouraging in readers starts to feel like a lie?
Connor Prince, documentary filmmaker and single father, loves his work in large part because it allows him to live near his daughter. But when his profit-minded boss orders him to create a reality TV show, putting his job on the line, Connor is out of his element. Desperate to find his romantic lead, a chance run-in with an exasperated Fizzy offers Connor the perfect solution. What if he could show the queen of romance herself falling head-over-heels for all the world to see? Fizzy gives him a hard pass—unless he agrees to her list of demands. When he says yes, and production on The True Love Experiment begins, Connor wonders if that perfect match will ever be in the cue cards for him, too.
Tags: Favourite Author / Reality TV
What I Read This Week (4):
(1) Taco Bout Love (The Donovans #1) by Lily Kate (2023) 
My name is Lucas Donovan, and I’m a sucker for a great taco.
No, that’s not an innuendo, though I do like my women like I like my tacos: extra spicy. So when a brand new food truck rolls into our sleepy little town of Fantasie, Maine, I know I’m in trouble. I just don’t know how much trouble.
Things go downhill fast when I meet Chloe Brown, the sizzling hot and super sassy owner of Taco Bout Love who is as extra as guac. Then out of the blue, Chloe plops her huge purple eyesore of a truck in my designated parking spot. I’m sorely tempted to have her truck towed, and her right along with it.
Unfortunately, Chloe’s as fierce as a ghost pepper, and she’s not going down without a fight. Before I know it, the only thing I’m certain of is that this woman drives me crazy… in the best way possible. What’s more is that I’m beginning to think I just might miss her when she’s gone.
Suddenly, I can’t seem to keep my hands off Chloe Brown… or her tacos.
Last week, I’d only just started reading Taco Bout Love and I already felt at home in Fantasie, Maine. After I’d finished, I enjoyed it so much that I extended my stay for another 2 x books (it would’ve been 3 but I’d already read Flower Girl (#2) last year). Fantasie is a cosy, everybody-knows-everybody’s-business, small town with quirky characters like town psychic, Clarice. Lucas is just the kind of MMC I want to read about. He’s a gorgeous alpha male with a squishy marshmallow heart. He’s so protective of his family and Chloe. Chloe’s a sassy FMC with an intriguing back story that took her from being a fancy chef in Manhattan to driving a dilapidated food truck into Fantasie. If you haven’t already read The Donovans Series, I definitely recommend checking them out and they’re all available through Kindle Unlimited.
(2) You Are My Sunshine by Lily Kate (2024)
Finn DiMaggio is a man who likes his coffee black…just like his heart. At least, that’s Josie Andrews will tell anyone who listens.
As the owner of Fantasie’s only flower stand, Josie has harboured a not-so-secret rivalry with Finn for decades. Not even the nosiest busybodies in town know what happened to cause the catastrophic rift between the grumpy sheriff and the sunny flower-slinger, but one thing that’s clear is it’s only a matter of time before the two’s spicy bickering leads them to a fiery combustion…in one way or another.
Finn DiMaggio can’t seem to keep his guard up when it comes to Josie Andrews. He’s either head over heels in love with her…or her sworn enemy. But when circumstances change and Josie’s left vulnerable and broken, Finn can’t stand on the sidelines and watch. However, the more time Finn spends with Josie, the more the sheriff realizes that maybe it’s not Josie who has needed rescuing all along. Maybe she’s the one who’s been saving him this whole time.
Tags: Enemies-to-Lovers / Florists & Gardeners / Grumpy-Sunshine / Second Chance
Although You Are My Sunshine isn’t technically part of The Donovans Series, it’s still related because it’s set in Fantasie and Lily, who’s the matriarch of The Donovans, her maiden name was DiMaggio so Finn is a cousin of the Donovans. After finishing Taco Bout Love, I immediately downloaded You Are My Sunshine because I really enjoyed the banter between Josie & Finn and wanted to know what their history was. It didn’t disappoint and it’s a toss-up between Chloe & Lucas and Josie & Finn who my favourite Fantasie couple are. There’s no pre-order available yet but I’m really hoping we get Poppy and Dr Cutie’s story next.
(3) Jingle Bell Rock (The Donovans #3) by Lily Kate (2023)
Fresh out of high school, I—Tara Kendrick—was madly in love with Gavin Donovan. Until one day he disappeared in a web of secrets, and I never heard from him again.
Fast forward thirteen I’m stranded at a rundown bed & breakfast during a snowstorm, and guess who’s the new owner? Merry Christmas to me. While I’m locked up with my ex-flame and the current thorn-in-my-side, I’m reminded of the laundry list of items that are hard on Gavin Donovan—his biceps, his abs, his thighs…and now the massive diamond rock he slips onto my finger when I agree to be his fake fiancé for reasons I’m not comfortable repeating aloud. But I have as much incentive to make this arrangement work as he does, so falling into bed with the enemy is not on my to-do list.
As the jingle bells start to chime, however, the huge rock on my finger isn’t the hardest thing between us. It’s hard to keep my hands off Gavin. It’s hard to pretend this relationship isn’t real. It’s hard to remember how I ever fell out of love with him in the first place. You can read between the lines when I say Merry Christmas and Jingle Bell… well, rock.
Tags: Christmas / Fake Dating / Second Chance
This was probably my least favourite of the 4 x Fantasie books so far. I still enjoyed it but I didn’t connect with it in the same way as the other 3.
(4) Unravel Me (Playing for Keeps #3) by Becca Mack (2023)
When it comes to dating, Adam Lockwood wouldn’t know luck if it hit him in the face. After an epic failure of a relationship and a string of dates gone wrong, the thought of being vulnerable with someone is terrifying – most people only see him as a professional athlete. But when his dog runs down Rosie, a beautiful woman with a blush as pink as her hair, she doesn’t seem to have a clue who he is, and Adam seizes the opportunity for what it a chance to be himself. Rosie Wells has her hands full as a single mother and fourth-year veterinarian student, and she certainly wouldn’t know a hockey player if she ran into one. She doesn’t have time to date, and she’s fiercely protective of her little family. But when a chance encounter leads her to Adam, she knows he’s worth risking her heart. The only problem? Adam is used to wearing a mask – he’s a goalie, after all. And as he holds onto a secret that threatens to unravel him and destroy his new family, he’s at risk of losing more than ever before.
Tags: New-to-Me Author / Pink Hair, Don’t Care / Pupsters / Sports Romance (Ice Hockey)
Unravel Me was my 2nd impulse purchase at the airport in December last year (along with This Spells Love by Kate Robb). It’s difficult to write a review though because I’m kinda torn. There are parts of it that I loved like the bond Adam has with his Vancouver Vipers’ teammates and their wives and girlfriends. It reminded me of Sarina Bowen’s Brooklyn Bruisers and Helena Hunting’s All In Series. I get my floofy fix through books so I immediately fell in love with both pupsters, Piglet and Bear. Josie’s young son, Connor is adorable and it was so sweet watching his and Adam’s relationship develop. In fact, I liked almost everything about Unravel Me apart from the sex. It’s probably a personal preference but there were just way too many sex scenes for me and I found myself skimming several of them. It’s a shame because if some of the sex scenes had been taken out, it could’ve been 5 Stars.
Louise Hall 