Books

Book 949: Apple-y Ever After (Apple Meadows #1) – Catherine Cloverdale

When this one landed in my inbox I got excited, a fall New England romance set in a small Vermont town obsessed with their local apple festival, sounds like the perfect summer read.* Unfortunately, it’s a big ol’ NOPE from me.

Apple-y Ever After features travel writer/photographer Adrian who has been assigned to cover the local Apple Festival and the only place left with space for him to lodge is a local B&B run by hopelessly scattered and accident-prone still grieving from the death of his fiancé, Julian. Now, this should be the perfect setup, a well-traveled city boy coming to a small town where he meets the still grieving country boy, and boom happily ever after, right? Right?

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Book 947: Hot Pursuit (The Hot Cannolis #3) – Eli Easton

It was a little surprising to see that this one was only written by Eli Easton but I found out that what I  believe will be the final book in the series, Hot Lips, will be authored by Tara Lain. That being said, it didn’t stop me from requesting this one when it landed in my inbox!* I knew Rick’s story would be good and it was definitely good.

Hot Pursuit is the story of Rick and John. Rick is Mike (from Hot Seat) and Donny’s (from Hot Wings) uncle and is a homicide detective and recently came out to some of his family in support of Donny. He’s assigned a new partner, John, who has a chip on his shoulder for some reason and caught Rick’s attention even before he was assigned as his partner.

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Book 946: Just by Looking at Him – Ryan O’Connell

If I’m 100% honest I first was drawn to this book because of the cover art, a cropped version of Henry Scott Tuke’s The Critics (Wikiart link). Tuke does water like no one else and they pumped up the blues and greens on the cover.

Then when you add the title of the painting to what the main character does for a living: mind blown. So THEN I realized this was the same Ryan O’Connell who created, wrote, and starred in Special on Netflix, and of course, I requested a copy.*

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Book 944: The Kingdom of Sand – Andrew Holleran

I wanted to like this book so much like really wanted to, because Holleran is one of those early LGBT authors whose work has stood the test of time for decades. And that’s why I requested a copy from NetGalley.*

What I didn’t expect was how similar to Mrs. Dalloway and A Single Man this would be. I think that bodes well for the longevity of the novel, but unfortunately, for me, it wasn’t the time or place to read it to truly appreciate or enjoy it. While there were some incredibly beautiful passages throughout, I struggled to get into the book and (for the most part) identify with the nameless narrator.

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Book 943: Aaron’s Awakening (Maine Men #6) – K.C. Wells

When this ARC landed in my inbox I recognized the series and the author, but if I’m 100% honest about why I decided to read this, it’s that gorgeous colorwork sweater Aaron is wearing on the cover.* Priorities right? I just finished knitting my first colorwork sweater and am in the process of workout the design of another from a TV show so obviously, it was already in mind!

I’m glad I decided to jump back into the series. I remember enjoying Finn’s Fantasy when I read it but hadn’t kept up with the series so of course had to rush through and read books 2-5 to catch up on the friend group! And the overall thought on this book is: I’m not sure how Wells is going to close out the series (aside from who she’s closing it out with), but after these last two she’s got her work cut out for her to make it even better!

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