en-US Wed, 07 May 2025 21:23:17 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 232984802 If at first you don’t succeed, DO NOT try, try again. At least not when it comes to dating a hockey player.

When Naomi met Camden Cole on Oakley Island, she assumed he would be gone in a week or two like any other tourist passing through.

Perfect for a fun summer relationship. A temporary one.

As a single mom to ten-year-old Liam, she’s not holding out hope for husband material and is way too skittish about commitment to consider more.

So when both Naomi and Liam start getting too attached, she cuts Camden loose. Better to end things before either of their hearts could get broken.

But the joke’s on her—they broke anyway.

As an added punchline (and gut punch), her job relocates her to the town of Harvest Hollow—where Camden plays for the Appies.

It’s FINE, Naomi tells herself. He’s a professional hockey player with a busy career. Their paths will never cross.

And they probably wouldn’t have—if not for Liam’s newfound hockey obsession.

Now, Naomi is right back where she was last summer—with the same feelings and the same desire to protect her and Liam.

But when Camden wants to go all-in with her and Liam, is Naomi ready to stop running?

As You Ice It is a closed door hockey romance with all the sizzle and swoon, but no spice.

This is part of the Appies hockey romance series, featuring Just Don't Fall, Absolutely Not in Love, a Groom of One's Own, Romancing the Grump, Runaway Bride and Prejudice, and When Alec Met Evie. These books are standalones but may be best read in order. Related If All Else Sails.
]]> 334 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 currently-reading 4.59
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.59
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rating: 0
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date added: 2025/05/07
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]]> 227996930 Unlucky in love Sophie Stewart might need a miracle to find her one true love…or maybe just a little bit of magic.

Sophie Stewart knows a lot about plants. The rooftop garden she tends and beautifies is ample evidence of that. What she doesn’t know is anything about love, not with her long track record of always picking the wrong guy.

But then a mystery flower pops up in her garden—a flower that only blooms in the presence of true love.

Never one to shy away from a little magic, Sophie convinces her best friend, Peter, to help her use the flower to find her soulmate.

But after an unexpected kiss with the one man she never thought she’d fall for, Sophie starts to wonder if she’s looking for love in all the wrong places.

The flower has a plan, but only Sophie can decide if she wants to trust it or take fate into her own hands.

Best friends turn to lovers in this heartwarming romantic comedy about love and choice and making your own destiny.]]> 260 Jenny Proctor Torie 0 4.30 2025
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/05/07
date added: 2025/05/07
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]]> 203147386
Evie Sage has never been happier to be the assistant to The Villain. Who would have thought that working for an outrageously handsome (shhh, bad for his brand) evil overlord would be so rewarding? Still, the business of being bad is demanding, the forces of good are annoyingly persistent, and said forbidding boss is somewhat…er, out-of-evil-office.

But Rennedawn is in grave trouble, and all signs―Kingsley’s included―point to catastrophe. Something peculiar is happening with the kingdom’s magic, and it’s made The Villain’s manor vulnerable to their enemies...including their nemesis, the king.

Now it’s time for Evie to face her greatest challenge: protecting The Villain’s lair, all of his nefarious works, and maybe (provided no one finds out) the entire kingdom. No pressure, Evie.

It’s time to step out of her comfort zone and learn new skills. Like treason. Dagger work. Conspiring with the enemy. It’s all so…so…delightfully fun.

But what happens when the assistant to The Villain is ready to become his apprentice?]]> 368 Hannah Nicole Maehrer 1649377177 Torie 0 4.07 2024
author: Hannah Nicole Maehrer
name: Torie
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/05/04
date added: 2025/05/04
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]]> 220543398
Bram Webb is under immense pressure to find proof of a legendary Christian Roman settlement in an attempt to conceal his uncle's deteriorating memory from the Trinity College disciplinary board and save both of their jobs. When Eva steps into Bram's office, old sparks fly, rekindling memories that are both fond and painful. The excavation is fraught with challenges from the start, and as Eva and Bram work together with time running out, they must confront their pasts, face the growing attraction between them, and decide whether their love is strong enough to overcome the buried truths that threaten to tear them apart.

Award-winning author Michelle Griep transports you to Victorian-era England with a gripping romance.]]> 368 Michelle Griep 0764242571 Torie 0 to-read 4.44 2025
author: Michelle Griep
name: Torie
average rating: 4.44
book published: 2025
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/05/04
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]]> 222246827 Can their love conquer pride and prejudice?

Ever since I first read Pride and Prejudice at twelve years old, I’ve dreamed of being Elizabeth Bennet. That dream is now about to come true. I, Monroe Wilde, the woman some could argue isn’t exactly Elizabeth Bennet material, have been chosen to play the beloved heroine for one week at Pride and Prejudice Park, a destination experience for Jane Austen devotees. To make this dream even more amazing and surreal, my best friend, the Duke of Blackthorne, Alastair Fitzroy, has volunteered to play my Mr. Darcy.

If this wasn’t fantastic enough, it appears my broody and ridiculously attractive best friend, who I’ve done my best not to fall in love with, wants to be my real-life Mr. Darcy as well. But there are some gigantic obstacles standing in our way. For starters—I’m not exactly duchess material, and we run in very different circles. Dating me would most certainly make him a social pariah. But the biggest problem of all is that, well . . . I don’t know exactly how to explain it, but somehow after a horrible mishap at the park, I find myself more than just pretending to be Elizabeth Bennet—I land smack dab in the middle of the actual Pride and Prejudice story.

So since I’m here and unsure whether it’s a dream or if Pride and Prejudice really is heaven, I figure I’ll just help move things along and make sure everyone gets a happy ending, even Mr. Collins. But leave it to me to mess up the quintessential love story of all time. What happens if I can’t get Mr. Darcy to fall in love with Elizabeth? Will I ever get back to Alastair? Will I ever become the Elizabeth I so wish to be? And I have to can my world exist without Pride and Prejudice?

USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Peel presents an enchanting friends-to-lovers story with a Pride and Prejudice twist.]]> 316 Jennifer Peel Torie 0 4.21
author: Jennifer Peel
name: Torie
average rating: 4.21
book published:
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date added: 2025/05/03
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]]> 228039565 Some love stories are written . . . this one is magically delivered.

Iris Ellington isn’t looking for love. Not even a little bit. With a long list of failed relationships behind her, she’s decided to reinvent herself as a person who doesn’t fall head over heels on the first date.

New town, new job, new Iris.

But someone—or something—has other plans.

When her neighbor’s newspaper lands in front of her door, Iris has no choice but to return it. And when she does, she comes face to face with a ridiculously handsome but very grumpy chef who all but slams the door in her face.

Matteo Morgan just wants to be left alone. He’s loved and lost and has zero interest in ever doing that again. Which is why it makes no sense that The Serendipity’s magical newspaper has decided to turn him into an unwilling Cupid. Matchmaking is hardly in his wheelhouse.

And yet, for the last three years, that’s exactly what he’s done. And he’s always done it alone.

Until now.

When the newspaper pulls his bubbly neighbor into its matchmaking schemes, Matteo has no choice but to go along with it, hoping that maybe—finally—he can pass Cupid’s bow and arrow on to her.

Thrown together by fate, they must navigate the newspaper's increasingly absurd demands while trying to resist the undeniable spark between them.

Will Iris melt the ice around Matteo's heart and embrace the magic? Or will Matteo scare her off with his grumpy demeanor and ruin any chance of happiness? In a building where anything is possible, Iris and Matteo might just find that the greatest magic of all is finding love when they least expect it.]]> 318 Courtney Walsh Torie 0 4.41 2025
author: Courtney Walsh
name: Torie
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/05/02
date added: 2025/05/02
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]]> 180427559 320 Michelle Griep 1636097944 Torie 4 4.38 2024
author: Michelle Griep
name: Torie
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/29
date added: 2025/04/29
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]]> 123257687
ASSISTANT WANTED: Notorious, high-ranking villain seeks loyal, levelheaded assistant for unspecified office duties, supporting staff for random mayhem and terror, and other Dark Things In General. Discretion a must. Excellent benefits.

With ailing family to support, Evie Sage's employment status isn't just important, it's vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer―naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain―and his entire nefarious empire―out.

Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

After all, a good job is hard to find.]]> 342 Hannah Nicole Maehrer 1649375808 Torie 0 3.88 2023
author: Hannah Nicole Maehrer
name: Torie
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/25
date added: 2025/04/25
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]]> 195790586 She’s rewriting his love story. But can she rewrite her own?

Emma Wheeler desperately longs to be a screenwriter. She’s spent her life studying, obsessing over, and writing romantic comedies―good ones! That win contests! But she’s also been the sole caretaker for her kind-hearted dad, who needs full-time care. Now, when she gets a chance to re-write a script for famous screenwriter Charlie Yates―The Charlie Yates! Her personal writing god!―it’s a break too big to pass up.

Emma’s younger sister steps in for caretaking duties, and Emma moves to L.A. for six weeks for the writing gig of a lifetime. But what is it they say? Don’t meet your heroes? Charlie Yates doesn’t want to write with anyone―much less “a failed, nobody screenwriter.� Worse, the romantic comedy he’s written is so terrible it might actually bring on the apocalypse. Plus! He doesn’t even care about the script―it’s just a means to get a different one green-lit. Oh, and he thinks love is an emotional Ponzi scheme.

But Emma’s not going down without a fight. She will stand up for herself, and for rom-coms, and for love itself. She will convince him that love stories matter―even if she has to kiss him senseless to do it. But . . . what if that kiss is accidentally amazing? What if real life turns out to be so much . . . more real than fiction? What if the love story they’re writing breaks all Emma’s rules―and comes true?]]> 336 Katherine Center 1250283809 Torie 0 4.05 2024
author: Katherine Center
name: Torie
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/23
date added: 2025/04/23
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]]> 227916359 He’s a no-nonsense businessman. She’s a free-spirited baker. But the magical building they live in seems to think they’re a perfect match�

When billionaire Archer Gaines needs to escape his father’s corrupt shadow and a related scandal, he purchases The Serendipity, a historic apartment building far from New York City.

He believes in bottom lines and big business deals, definitely not in the local folklore surrounding the town of Serendipity Springs. So he’s eager to move forward with plans to flip the building into luxury lofts.

But The Serendipity doesn’t particularly care what Archer believes, and the building has plans of its own.

Willa never believed in the rumors about her “magical� building. But that was before she walked into her closet looking for a sweater and found herself in another apartment altogether—in the penthouse closet of the grumpy and unfortunately attractive new building owner.

This is less of a meet cute than a meet ugly, and things only go downhill from there.

When Archer announces sweeping changes that include a rent increase, he becomes public enemy number one for the residents. And by charging Willa for use of the commercial kitchen, he puts her fledgling baking business at risk.

With his progress being (magically) blocked at every turn, Archer grows desperate for help.

But the bewitching woman he found hiding in his closet seems to present both the answer and a larger because Archer never planned to fall in love or stay in Serendipity Springs forever…]]> 296 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.14 2025
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/21
date added: 2025/04/21
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]]> 53902073 The old gods are growing restless...

Mercenary Casia Greythorne cares about two things: completing her latest job and earning enough coin for the expensive medicine that's keeping her mentor alive.

So when the king commands her to investigate a strange plague devastating the empire, she can't resist the massive reward he offers - even if it does mean working with the arrogant and infuriating Captain Elander.

But as the death toll rises and strange monsters wreak havoc across the realms, Cas and Elander find themselves up against meddling gods and very old magic.

Because an ancient evil is stirring in the shadows.

And their empire will not survive its full unleashing.

The first book in the thrilling Shadows & Crowns series - perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas' Throne of Glass and Leigh Bardugo's Six of Crows!]]> 437 S.M. Gaither Torie 0 currently-reading 3.91 2020
author: S.M. Gaither
name: Torie
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2020
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/19
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]]> 60624919
I've always done things by the book--that's the burden of being the heir to the Elsinorian throne. So when my father grows ill and my coronation seems imminent, I intend to find my future queen the same way ... with logic and a list of eligible women who fit a detailed set of data points.

My brother agrees to cover for me at the court, and I set out to offer a common woman the chance to be something more.

Only ... nothing goes according to plan.

Alessia is far more than she seemed on paper, and she stirs feelings I never imagined having. The next thing I know, I'm washing dishes in her grandfather's restaurant, hoping to win her hand and her heart.

Meanwhile, my absence in Elsinore has been noticed and the whole kingdom is wondering if I'm abdicating the throne. Though I love the simple village life, I need to return home, and I won't do so without Alessia.

The only problem: I might not have mentioned the fact that I'm the crown prince of Elsinore.

Royal Gone Rogue is the second in the Sweet Royal RomCom series with laugh-out-loud humor, heart-warming love stories, and sizzling chemistry that keeps the bedroom door closed.]]> 366 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.24
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.24
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/18
date added: 2025/04/18
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]]> 220543414
In the wake of a devastating fire, Kiernan Shanahan sees a shrewd opportunity to invest in a clay mine and brickyard to aid the city's rebuilding. To secure his venture, he seeks a wealthy bride with a substantial dowry. However, the matchmaker he consults has different plans. As danger looms and Alannah fights to keep her brother safe, Kiernan's protective instincts draw them closer together, but a future with him seems too far out of reach. It will take a miracle--or a wager with the wily matchmaker--to bring the unlikely couple together.

Be swept away in a tale of love, danger, and destiny in this captivating historical romance from bestselling author Jody Hedlund.]]> 352 Jody Hedlund 0764241982 Torie 0 to-read 4.56
author: Jody Hedlund
name: Torie
average rating: 4.56
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]]> 21853621 Der Weltbestseller � die Nr. 1 aus den USA.
Zwei Schwestern im von den Deutschen besetzten Während Vianne ums Überleben ihrer Familie kämpft, schließt sich die jüngere Isabelle der Résistance an und sucht die Freiheit auf dem Pfad der Nachtigall, einem geheimen Fluchtweg über die Pyrenäen. Doch wie weit darf man gehen, um zu überleben? Und wie kann man die schützen, die man liebt?
In diesem epischen, kraftvollen und zutiefst berührenden Roman erzählt Kristin Hannah die Geschichte zweier Frauen, die ihr Schicksal auf ganz eigene Weise meistern.]]> 564 Kristin Hannah 0312577222 Torie 5 4.63 2015
author: Kristin Hannah
name: Torie
average rating: 4.63
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/12
date added: 2025/04/12
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]]> 56569600
An arranged marriage isn’t the worst fate for a princess like me. Especially because I’ve been in love with my intended groom since we were children.

But when my prince shows up with an American girlfriend instead of an engagement ring, all arrangements are off.

The clock is nearing midnight--I won’t turn into a pumpkin, but if I’m not wed by summer’s end, I’ll forfeit my kingdom.

Just your typical royal dilemma.

Out of sheer desperation, I make a deal with a devilish duke. Rafe de Silva is the prince’s rival and has a plan so ridiculous it just might work.

One moment, Rafe seems to relish making the prince jealous.

And the next� he’s making me question everything with his words, his touch, and his ability to melt my Ice Princess persona.

I’m not always given the luxury of choice, but now I have a huge one to make. I only hope I don't lose my crown, my heart, or myself in the process�

Royally Rearranged is a sizzling, swoony, closed-door romantic comedy.]]> 405 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.05
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.05
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/08
date added: 2025/04/08
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]]> 62816044 Two villains, one girl, and a deadly battle for happily ever after.

Evangeline Fox ventured to the Magnificent North in search of her happy ending, and it seems as if she has it. She’s married to a handsome prince and lives in a legendary castle. But Evangeline has no idea of the devastating price she’s paid for this fairytale. She doesn’t know what she has lost, and her husband is determined to make sure she never finds out . . . but first he must kill Jacks, the Prince of Hearts.

Blood will be shed, hearts will be stolen, and true love will be put to the test in A Curse for True Love, the breathlessly anticipated conclusion to the Once Upon A Broken Heart trilogy.]]> 386 Stephanie Garber 1250851203 Torie 4 4.14 2023
author: Stephanie Garber
name: Torie
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/04
date added: 2025/04/04
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]]> 223641077
Maggie Hope has come a long way since she was Mr. Churchill’s secretary. In the face of tremendous danger, she’s learned espionage, sabotage, and reconnaissance. But things are different now that she has so much to lose, including the possibility of a family with John Sterling, the man who’s long held her heart.

British Intelligence has ordered Maggie to assassinate Werner Heisenberg, the physicist who may deliver a world-ending fission bomb for she’s shaken by the assignment. An assassination is unlike anything she’s ever done. How can the Allies even be sure Nazi Germany has a bomb? Determined to gather more information, Maggie travels to Madrid, where Heisenberg is visiting for a lecture.

At the same time, couturier Coco Chanel has requested a meeting with the undercover agent. Chanel, a spy in her own right, with ambiguous loyalties, is meeting with the British Ambassador in Madrid—and has requested Maggie join them. And Chanel provides the perfect cover for Maggie’s trip to Spain. The two play cat and mouse as Maggie tries to get a better understanding of Heisenberg. But the most shocking curveball is from the most intimate Maggie’s own mother has kept a hand in the war—and has secrets of her own to share.

Maggie desperately wants to find her “happily-ever-after,” but as the war reaches a fever pitch, the stakes keep rising. Now, more than ever, the choices she makes will reverberate around the globe, touching everyone she loves—with fateful implications for the future of the free world.]]> 304 Susan Elia MacNeal 0593157001 Torie 0 to-read 4.17 2024
author: Susan Elia MacNeal
name: Torie
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2024
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/04/04
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]]> 213078625
She's sworn an oath. They'll all be brought home.

The Raven is coming.

November 2024]]> 440 Carrie Cotten Torie 5 4.82
author: Carrie Cotten
name: Torie
average rating: 4.82
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rating: 5
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]]> 59808071 Not every love is meant to be.

After Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, betrays her, Evangeline Fox swears she'll never trust him again. Now that she’s discovered her own magic, Evangeline believes she can use it to restore the chance at happily ever after that Jacks stole away.

But when a new terrifying curse is revealed, Evangeline finds herself entering into a tenuous partnership with the Prince of Hearts again. Only this time, the rules have changed. Jacks isn’t the only force Evangeline needs to be wary of. In fact, he might be the only one she can trust, despite her desire to despise him.

Instead of a love spell wreaking havoc on Evangeline’s life, a murderous spell has been cast. To break it, Evangeline and Jacks will have to do battle with old friends, new foes, and a magic that plays with heads and hearts. Evangeline has always trusted her heart, but this time she’s not sure she can...]]> 416 Stephanie Garber 1250268427 Torie 0 4.49 2022
author: Stephanie Garber
name: Torie
average rating: 4.49
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2025/04/03
date added: 2025/04/03
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]]> 221762855 Getting over your childhood crush is never easy. Especially when your family is full of meddling matchmakers.I’ve tried my whole life to curb my feelings for Liam, who is NOT my cousin, even if our family is like, well, family.

After he brought a girlfriend home for the holidays last year, I decided it was high time for my crush to finally die. And since we haven’t run into each other at all since then, it’s been easy. (If not altogether effective.) Even our family stopped trying to push us together.

But then Liam walks into my office just before Christmas and I find out he’ll be working here as a consultant. Oh—and he got special permission from my boss to have me directly under him.

Then, when my building suddenly (and somewhat suspiciously) has to undergo emergency fumigation and I need a place to stay, Liam offers me his guest bedroom.

Oh, joy and holiday cheer.

But finding out Liam is single and not practically engaged—it changes everything. Is it possible I just might get my longest-held Christmas wish?

Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love is a second-gen novella in the Oakley Island Romcom Series. Books in the series are full of sizzling chemistry and tension with just kisses. ]]> 134 Jenny Proctor Torie 0 4.22
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 4.22
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/24
date added: 2025/03/24
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]]> 61252380
Thanks to house tamer Hulda Larkin, the mischief infesting Whimbrel House has calmed. But if Hulda’s job is done, what does that mean for Merritt Fernsby, inheritor of the remote Narragansett Bay estate, who’s only now coming to terms with his enchanted place in the world?]]> 300 Charlie N. Holmberg 1662508689 Torie 0 currently-reading 4.17 2023
author: Charlie N. Holmberg
name: Torie
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2023
rating: 0
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date added: 2025/03/21
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]]> 55987278 How far would you go for happily ever after?

For as long as she can remember, Evangeline Fox has believed in true love and happy endings... until she learns that the love of her life will marry another.

Desperate to stop the wedding and to heal her wounded heart, Evangeline strikes a deal with the charismatic but wicked Prince of Hearts. In exchange for his help, he asks for three kisses, to be given at the time and place of his choosing.

But after Evangeline’s first promised kiss, she learns that bargaining with an immortal is a dangerous game—and that the Prince of Hearts wants far more from her than she’d pledged. He has plans for Evangeline, plans that will either end in the greatest happily ever after or the most exquisite tragedy...]]> 408 Stephanie Garber 1250268397 Torie 0 4.06 2021
author: Stephanie Garber
name: Torie
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/21
date added: 2025/03/21
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]]> 24397043
Meanwhile, there are reports of many new hauntings, including a house where bloody footprints are appearing, and a department store full of strange sounds and shadowy figures. But ghosts seem to be the least of Lockwood & Co.'s concerns when assassins attack during a carnival in the center of the city. Can the team get past their personal issues to save the day on all fronts, or will bad feelings attract yet more trouble?

Danger abounds, tensions escalate, and new loyalties form in this third delightfully terrifying adventure in the critically acclaimed Lockwood & Co. series.]]> 374 Jonathan Stroud 1484709683 Torie 0 4.36 2015
author: Jonathan Stroud
name: Torie
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/20
date added: 2025/03/20
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]]> 122752787
Love and happily-ever-after? It’s not for me. I’m much happier keeping everyone at arm’s length, focusing on my government cybersecurity work.

But then I push things a little too far and hack my way into trouble. When I need to lay low and stay off the radar for a bit, what better place to do so than on Oakley Island with my sisters?

With limited housing options, I reluctantly agree to stay on the yacht of the very annoying Benedict King—the billionaire who has been messing—flirting?—with me since we met.

I did NOT agree, however, to a voyage out to sea.

But I wake up to find the yacht that should be docked and empty somewhere in the Atlantic with two government agents tasked with babysitting me and one Benedict King.

Who also lied about being my boyfriend.

Typical rich man—thinking he can take whatever he wants.

But he won’t take my heart. Not even when I see his softer side, see behind his walls, see the real man behind the reputation.

Honestly, this might be more dangerous than any of the other trouble I stirred up. Because if I fall for Benedict King, I’m not sure there’s any hope of rescue.

Sadie and the Bad Boy Billionaire is a closed door romantic comedy with mild suspense, sizzling kisses, and a boat full of witty banter. The Oakley Island Romcoms follow three very different sisters as they renovate the house they inherited and find love on the island along the way. The stories are standalone, but if you like continuous stories, we recommend reading them in order. Each book is closed-door, with sizzling chemistry and swoony kisses only.]]> 282 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.21 2024
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/20
date added: 2025/03/20
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]]> 61986930
After graduation, I thought I’d be off to grad school, doing research on my favorite poet. Instead, I’m renovating my late grandmother’s home and posting about the process on Instagram. Talk about a detour �

But here I am. Turning Gran’s beach house into a bed and breakfast--a process that would be a lot easier if I didn’t have to deal with the grumpy lawyer living next door. It doesn’t help that the night Jake and I met, I got a little tipsy, and he had to carry me back to my hotel.

But the longer I stay on Oakley Island, the more I feel a connection to my childhood and to my grandmother. This isn’t the life I dreamed of, but dreams can change. Especially when new dreams include a future with Jake. On the outside, he might be pricklier than a puffer fish, but I catch glimpses of a delicious, cinnamon roll center.

Did I mention the tattoos he hides underneath those crisp button-down shirts? Yowza.

When I’m suddenly presented with the academic opportunity of my dreams (former dreams?), my picturesque life on Oakley starts to unravel.

A part of me wants to stay. If only a certain tattooed grump didn’t seem so determined to send me away �

Eloise and The Grump Next Door is a grumpy sunshine, closed door romantic comedy. The Oakley Island Romcom series follows three very different sisters as they renovate the house they inherited and find love on the island along the way. Each book will have sizzling chemistry but no spice.]]> 334 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.00 2022
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/12
date added: 2025/03/14
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]]> 62248411
I’m a high achiever. Driven. Maybe a little TOO driven.

So when my boyfriend confesses to cheating AND steals the promotion I’ve been working toward for years, I do the unthinkable for someone like me.

I break.

But the timing couldn’t be better for me to fall apart—I can escape to the idyllic Oakley Island and oversee the renovations on my late grandmother’s estate.

There’s just one tiny, massive, little problem: no one told me the contractor is the grown up version of the boy I fell in love with years ago.

He was my first love. My first kiss.

My first heartbreak.

Now, I’m faced with seeing Hunter daily. Being his boss. Forging a new dynamic that fits our adult selves.

Hunter is bigger. Bearded. Talks in grunts rather than words.

And has just as much hold on me as he ever did.

Trouble is, Hunter’s life is on Oakley. His daughter is on Oakley. And it was never my plan to stay here permanently.
Do I really want to risk having my heart broken a second time? More importantly, do I want to risk breaking his?

Merritt and Her Childhood Crush is a second chance at childhood first love romantic comedy. The Oakley Island Romcoms follow three very different sisters as they renovate the house they inherited and find love on the island along the way. The stories are standalone, but if you like continuous stories, we recommend reading them in order. Each book is closed door, with sizzling chemistry but no spice.]]> 324 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.17 2023
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/12
date added: 2025/03/12
shelves:
review:

]]> 203840597
Adena and Paedyn have always been inseparable. Fate brought them together when they were young, but friendship ensured they would always protect each other and the home they built in the slums of Loot. But now Paedyn—an Ordinary—has been selected for the Purging Trials, which means almost certain death.

Now alone in Loot, Adena must fend for herself. After attempting to steal, she's rescued by a mysterious man from the market. Mak's shadowy past and secretive power set him apart from the other low-level Elites of Loot. And as the pair team up to see their loved ones before the Trials, the quest tests their loyalty, their love, and their lives.]]> 272 Lauren Roberts Torie 0 4.13 2024
author: Lauren Roberts
name: Torie
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/08
date added: 2025/03/08
shelves:
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]]> 183086339
After surviving the Purging Trials, Ordinary-born Paedyn Gray has killed the King, and kickstarted a Resistance throughout the land. Now she’s running from the one person she had wanted to run to.

Kai Azer is now Ilya’s Enforcer, loyal to his brother Kitt, the new King. He has vowed to find Paedyn and bring her to justice.

Across the deadly Scorches, and deep into the hostile city of Dor, Kai pursues the one person he wishes he didn’t have to. But in a city without Elites, the balance between the hunter and hunted shifts � and the battle between duty and desire is deadly.

Be swept away by this kiss-or-kill romantasy trilogy taking the world by storm.]]> 396 Lauren Roberts Torie 4 4.07 2024
author: Lauren Roberts
name: Torie
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/05
date added: 2025/03/05
shelves:
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]]> 53420360
But danger follows her, as does Prince Percy. Daria thought she'd left the complications of balls and royalty behind her, but she can't hide as a servant forever--not when whole kingdoms are in peril. As the threat grows, so do the risks Daria is willing to take. But even as she puts herself in danger, Daria doubts she could ever be enough--for the people who need saving or the prince himself.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Cinderella, the overworked orphan must face dangers, doubts, and traitors before she can hope to triumph in a ballroom.

f you enjoy clean romance, adventure, and intrigue, then try the books in the Return to the Four Kingdoms series now! These interconnected fairy tale retellings each feature a different heroine who finds herself friendless in a strange land and who must fight to save her new home and win her happily ever after.]]> 284 Melanie Cellier 1925898318 Torie 4 4.23 2021
author: Melanie Cellier
name: Torie
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/10
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
review:

]]> 63354425 336 Colleen Coble 0785253785 Torie 4 4.22 2023
author: Colleen Coble
name: Torie
average rating: 4.22
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/26
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
review:

]]> 62664364
The wealth inside is enough to transform anyone’s life, but Zaria isn’t the first to find it. A gang of cutthroat thieves got there first, and their behavior makes Zaria question everything she sees. With an unknown enchantment at work, and forty criminals desperate to protect their hoard, she doesn’t want anything to do with the gold.

But when her royal friends reappear, Zaria discovers the cave is the key to defeating a threat to the entire kingdom. She can’t turn her back on her people, even if that means facing thieves and traitors with Crown Prince Tarek at her side. Zaria thought she’d found peace with her past, but now she isn’t sure if she’s more in danger of losing her life or her heart.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, a servant girl must outwit a cunning adversary before she can claim the treasure her heart truly desires.]]> 336 Melanie Cellier 1922636525 Torie 4 4.34
author: Melanie Cellier
name: Torie
average rating: 4.34
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/22
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
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]]> 58018433
When her plans go awry, Cassie finds herself living on the streets in a distant city. But despite the passing years, she hasn’t given up on her dream. Kingdom-shaking danger is brewing in these lands, and if she can save them—and the Four Kingdoms with them—Aurora will have to offer her a position in her network. Cassie won’t let anything stand in her way—not the biting heat of the desert, not the prince who keeps showing up at inconvenient moments, not the layers of secrets hiding beneath the surface of her new home.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, Aladdin, a girl from the streets must work with a prince if she wants to rescue herself and save both their lands as well.

If you enjoy clean romance, adventure, and intrigue, then try the books in the Return to the Four Kingdoms series now! These interconnected fairy tale retellings each feature a different heroine who finds herself friendless in a strange land and who must fight to save her new home and win her happily ever after.]]> 298 Melanie Cellier 1922636002 Torie 4 4.33
author: Melanie Cellier
name: Torie
average rating: 4.33
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/18
date added: 2025/02/26
shelves:
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]]> 210002401
As a girl, Astrid washed up on the shores of the Picts, haunting memories of her homeland locked deep inside. She began a new life serving Queen Cyrene, ultimately becoming her dearest friend and the captain of her army. But when Cyrene’s unexpected marriage unites her people with the enemy realm of Tràigh, only Astrid’s dedication to the crown can help her battle her mistrust of these rival forces, especially their maddening captain, Eowin.

Trusted as a brother, Eowin can imagine no life other than serving his king. As TrĂ igh struggles to hold its place amid tumult, a mysterious Viking warrior and his men sail in with a claim that will change everything. Sent to far lands on an impossible mission, Eowin finds his courage, integrity, and wisdom stretched to the limits.

Will he sacrifice everything for this warrior maiden he can never have?]]> 442 Carrie Cotten Torie 5 4.70
author: Carrie Cotten
name: Torie
average rating: 4.70
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves:
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Oh my goodness! I loved this book so much! Stories of restoration, sacrifice and forgiveness are so very beautiful and this one even had sweet romance and adventure. At one point my watch thought there was too much adventure because it buzzed and said “Stop and breathe with me.� Thank you, Carrie, for a well written epic adventure that was more than just a “good story,� but where Truth was seamlessly woven into the pages without being overly preachy. Thank you.
]]> 194802722 A shimmering, joyful new novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Emily Henry.

Daphne always loved the way her fiancé, Peter, told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it... right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra.

Which is how Daphne begins her new story: stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak.

Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned-up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them?

But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex... right?]]> 400 Emily Henry Torie 3 4.21 2024
author: Emily Henry
name: Torie
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/17
date added: 2025/02/17
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]]> 53380968
Giselle is determined to prove herself a true princess--in action as well as in name. But to do so she must uncover a conspiracy that threatens far more than her own future. With her life in danger and only a talking horse and an irritable goose boy at her side, she needs assistance. One of the servants is willing to help her, but Philip's attractive smile hides yet more secrets, and Giselle is running out of time.

In this reimagining of the classic fairy tale, The Goose Girl, the wronged princess must prevail in a deadly game of identities with the fate of kingdoms at stake.]]> 317 Melanie Cellier 1925898296 Torie 4 4.26 2020
author: Melanie Cellier
name: Torie
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/08
date added: 2025/02/08
shelves:
review:

]]> 60693379 The law is about justice—not grace. But perhaps ranger Annie Pederson can find a way to have both.

As if the last few months haven’t been hard enough—complete with threats on her life and the return of her first love, Jon—Annie has to figure out whether or not to believe a woman who claims to be her sister, Sarah, who was abducted twenty-four years ago at age five. Annie’s eight-year-old daughter, Kylie, has plenty of questions about what’s going on in her mother’s life—but there are some stories Annie doesn’t want uncovered.

As Annie grapples with how to heal the gulf between her and her would-be sister and make room in her daughter’s life for Jon, she’s professionally distracted by the case of yet another missing hiker in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. A woman named Michelle Fraser has now been abducted, and though the woman’s estranged husband is at the top of their suspect list, Annie and her colleagues will need to dig deeper to determine whether these recent mysteries are truly as unrelated as they seem.

In this second novel of bestselling author Colleen Coble’s latest romantic-suspense series, Annie and Jon must fight for the future—and the family—that could once more be theirs.

“This fresh, addictive mystery delivers thrills, compassion, and hope.� �Publishers Weekly for Edge of Dusk


Second installment in the Annie Pederson series:
Book One: Edge of Dusk

Book Two: Dark of Night

Book Three: Break of Day (available July 2023)


Includes cameo appearances from beloved characters in Colleen’s Rock Harbor series
Also by Colleen Coble: A Stranger’s Game, One Little Lie, Without a Trace

Includes discussion questions for book clubs]]> 352 Colleen Coble 0785253742 Torie 3 4.15 2023
author: Colleen Coble
name: Torie
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2023
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/08
date added: 2025/02/08
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]]> 44767458
When House Atreides is betrayed, the destruction of Paul’s family will set the boy on a journey toward a destiny greater than he could ever have imagined. And as he evolves into the mysterious man known as Muad’Dib, he will bring to fruition humankind’s most ancient and unattainable dream.]]> 658 Frank Herbert 059309932X Torie 4 4.33 1965
author: Frank Herbert
name: Torie
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1965
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/07
date added: 2025/02/07
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]]> 60596112
Hulda Larkin of the Boston Institute for the Keeping of Enchanted Rooms has been trained in taming such structures in order to preserve their historical and magical significance. She understands the dangers of bespelled homes given to tantrums. She advises that it’s in Merritt’s best interest to make Whimbrel House their ally. To do that, she’ll need to move in, too.

Prepared as she is with augury, a set of magic tools, and a new staff trained in the uncanny, Hulda’s work still proves unexpectedly difficult. She and Merritt grow closer as the investigation progresses, but the house’s secrets run deeper than they anticipated. And the sentient walls aren’t their only concern—something outside is coming for the enchantments of Whimbrel House, and it could be more dangerous than what rattles within.]]> 347 Charlie N. Holmberg 1662500335 Torie 0 4.14 2022
author: Charlie N. Holmberg
name: Torie
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/27
date added: 2025/01/27
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]]> 223634485 Evie told herself not to fall for her pro-hockey crush. But when she sees him holding her baby girl, all bets are off.

When Evie moves South to the same mountain town where her childhood crush plays pro-hockey, she arms herself with all the reasons why she can’t fall for him again.

Number one: Alec is her best friend’s much older brother.
Number two: She’s recently divorced and does not need another man in her life. At least not anytime soon.
Number three: With a four-month-old daughter, she has zero time for dating.

Trouble is, Evie doesn’t know another soul in North Carolina, so when her rental floods before she’s even moved in, her only option is to crash with Alec for a few weeks. When she protests, he insists it’s what he’d do for his sister, and that’s basically what she is to him.

But all these years later, the unexpected chemistry between them definitely says otherwise.

A new relationship is risky when Evie is still licking her wounds from her divorce, and she has no idea if Alec has any desire to be a dad. His sister already warned he isn’t the type to settle down.

But she can’t make herself care about any of that. Not until she’s already fallen, and it might be too late to save herself from another heartbreak.]]> 331 Jenny Proctor Torie 4 4.36 2025
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 4.36
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/25
date added: 2025/01/25
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]]> 219793833 A footman turned earl's son and a lady with her nose in a book—could they possibly find love amidst the whispers of the ton?

Lady Juniper Amberton is content to live in the shadows of high society, much preferring the company of a good Gothic novel to the endless parade of suitors. Her creative spirit and quiet charm make her unusual among the ton, but Juniper knows the rules of her daughters of earls marry well, not for love. That is, until the son of an earl—once the humble servant to a duke—steps back into her life.

John "Jack" Sterling has spent years guarding nobility, never imagining he would one day become part of their ranks. Now, elevated to a new social station, Jack finds himself navigating the murky waters of London society, where his family is closely scrutinized. He never expected to cross paths with Lady Juniper as equals, but the same woman who once painted his portrait is now the one captivating his heart.

As their worlds collide once again, Jack and Juniper must walk the fine line between what society demands and what their hearts truly want. But with gossip swirling around Jack’s family and the weight of their past roles looming over them, can they find the courage to rewrite their futures together?

This novel is a sweet Regency romance that can be enjoyed as a stand-alone, but readers of the previous books will delight in seeing familiar faces and settings once more.]]> 280 Sally Britton 1685270565 Torie 0 4.43
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.43
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/01/24
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]]> 59608952 Even though secrets lie off the coast of Rock Harbor, the truth will set Annie Pederson free—if it doesn’t kill her first.

Nine-year-old Annie Pederson’s life changed the night her sister was kidnapped. The two had been outside playing on a dock, and Annie never forgave herself for her role in her sister’s disappearance. Twenty-four years later and now a law enforcement ranger, Annie is still searching for answers as she grieves a new loss: the death of her husband and parents in a boating accident.

But Annie and her eight-year-old daughter, Kylie, aren’t the only people in the town of Rock Harbor , Michigan, whose lives have been marred by tragedy. While managing the property around the Tremolo Resort and Marina she inherited, Annie discovers a dead body floating in the cold Superior surf and begins to work with the sheriff’s office to tie the death to a series of other mysterious reports in the area.

At the same time, her first love, Jon Dustan, returns after nine years away, reigniting the town’s memory of a cold case he’d been suspiciously linked to before he left to pursue his orthopedic residency. For the sake of her investigation and her heart, Annie tries to stay away. But avoiding Jon becomes impossible once Annie realizes she is being targeted by someone desperate to keep secrets from the past hidden.

In this new series, bestselling romantic-suspense author Colleen Coble returns to one of her most beloved towns, where familiar faces—and unsolved cases—await.]]> 352 Colleen Coble 078525370X Torie 4 4.03 2022
author: Colleen Coble
name: Torie
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/21
date added: 2025/01/21
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]]> 200643628
When a handsome stranger from the kingdom that betrayed them falls injured at the boundary of her village, she’s forced to choose between mercy and duty.

The second son of a ruling monarch, Duncan would never be considered for the throne, neither did he wish to be. But when a plague sweeps through the land, he is the only one of royal blood left standing. Returning to the tower that holds too many dark memories, the truth of his father’s tangled reign begins to unravel and Duncan is once again forced into a role he never wanted.]]> 391 Carrie Cotten Torie 5 4.48 2023
author: Carrie Cotten
name: Torie
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/19
date added: 2025/01/19
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]]> 53288434 A female apothecary secretly dispenses poisons to liberate women from the men who have wronged them - setting three lives across centuries on a dangerous collision course.

Rule #1: The poison must never be used to harm another woman.
Rule #2: The names of the murderer and her victim must be recorded in the apothecary’s register.

One cold February evening in 1791, at the back of a dark London alley in a hidden apothecary shop, Nella awaits her newest customer. Once a respected healer, Nella now uses her knowledge for a darker purpose - selling well-disguised poisons to desperate women who would kill to be free of the men in their lives. But when her new patron turns out to be a precocious twelve-year-old named Eliza Fanning, an unexpected friendship sets in motion a string of events that jeopardizes Nella’s world and threatens to expose the many women whose names are written in her register.

In present-day London, aspiring historian Caroline Parcewell spends her tenth wedding anniversary alone, reeling from the discovery of her husband’s infidelity. When she finds an old apothecary vial near the river Thames, she can’t resist investigating, only to realize she’s found a link to the unsolved “apothecary murders� that haunted London over two centuries ago. As she deepens her search, Caroline’s life collides with Nella’s and Eliza’s in a stunning twist of fate - and not everyone will survive.]]> 301 Sarah Penner 0778311015 Torie 4 3.72 2021
author: Sarah Penner
name: Torie
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/01/11
shelves:
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]]> 26032825 Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.

As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.]]> 370 Holly Black 0316310271 Torie 0 4.01 2018
author: Holly Black
name: Torie
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/11
shelves:
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]]> 86495898
Katie knows she should tell the Martinezes the truth, but when they immediately embrace her, Katie is reluctant to let her fantasy of a family holiday go. And then there's Juan's brother, Mateo, whose smile tugs at her heartstrings just right—and who tells her perfect Juan might not be everything he seems.

Second son Mateo Martinez loves his brother, but Juan's plan to "rebrand and expand" Los Cielos Cellars has cost their family too much and put its entire tradition in jeopardy. Katie seems to understand, but she's still committed to Juan� even when Mateo starts to wish her gentle heart and beautiful smile were committed to him instead.

With the winery at stake, secrets on all sides, and Juan due to wake up any day, can Katie and Mateo follow their hearts to a Christmas miracle, or will this mix-up ruin their chances?]]> 350 Ginny Baird Torie 0 3.23 2023
author: Ginny Baird
name: Torie
average rating: 3.23
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/10
date added: 2025/01/10
shelves:
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]]> 62611306
Lamont Booker's bold faith has gained him a platform, and the authenticity of his faith is well known . . . until the tabloids cause the world to question everything he claims to be. With his reputation on the line, he finds himself hearing out his agent's push for a fake relationship--something he never thought he'd consider in a million years.

With their careers at risk, Nevaeh and Lamont have to convince the world that their scripted romance is more than just an act. But when fake seems to turn into something real, can Nevaeh trust her heart in a world where nothing is ever as it seems?

Toni Shiloh dazzles in this irresistible red-carpet romance with spotlight-stealing laughter, faith, and a happily ever after.]]> 384 Toni Shiloh 0764241508 Torie 0 4.02 2023
author: Toni Shiloh
name: Torie
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/07
date added: 2025/01/07
shelves:
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]]> 59117640
US-based Elle is a social-media influencer. But sometimes online attention isn't all it seems from the outside; with a family who are constantly on the move, and so-called friends putting pressure on her to increase her following, she decides to swap places with one of her followers for the holidays.

Holly lives in a small village in England, and LOVES christmas more than anything else. Nothing is going to get in the way of this year being the BEST Christmas ever . . . Nothing! But when her mum announces she's selling their house, and Woody decides they should go on a "break", her plans for the perfect Christmas start to crumble like overbaked gingerbread people.

Will swapping with Elle be Holly's perfect opportunity to escape? And far from home, will they both find all they want for Christmas?]]> 290 Beth Garrod 1728248981 Torie 3 3.29 2020
author: Beth Garrod
name: Torie
average rating: 3.29
book published: 2020
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/03
date added: 2025/01/03
shelves:
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]]> 65214218 From Mary Kay Andrews, New York Times bestselling author of The Homewreckers and The Santa Suit, comes a novella celebrating love and the warm, glittering charm of the holiday season.

When fall rolls around, it’s time for Kerry Tolliver to leave her family’s Christmas tree farm in the mountains of North Carolina for the wilds of New York City to help her gruff older brother & his dog, Queenie, sell the trees at the family stand on a corner in Greenwich Village. Sharing a tiny vintage camper and experiencing Manhattan for the first time, Kerry’s ready to try to carve out a new corner for herself.

In the weeks leading into Christmas, Kerry quickly becomes close with the charming neighbors who live near their stand. When an elderly neighbor goes missing, Kerry will need to combine her country know-how with her newly acquired New York knowledge to protect the new friends she’s come to think of as family,

And complicating everything is Patrick, a single dad raising his adorable, dragon-loving son Austin on this quirky block. Kerry and Patrick’s chemistry is undeniable, but what chance does this holiday romance really have?

Filled with family ties, both rekindled and new, and sparkling with Christmas magic, Bright Lights, Big Christmas delivers everything Mary Kay Andrews fans adore, all tied up in a hilarious, romantic gem of a novel.]]> 288 Mary Kay Andrews 125028581X Torie 0 3.74 2023
author: Mary Kay Andrews
name: Torie
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/03
date added: 2025/01/03
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]]> 5890 Librarian note: Alternate covers can be found here and here.

'In one moment, every drop of blood in my body was brought to a stop... There, as if it had that moment sprung out of the earth, stood the figure of a solitary Woman, dressed from head to foot in white'

The Woman in White famously opens with Walter Hartright's eerie encounter on a moonlit London road. Engaged as a drawing master to the beautiful Laura Fairlie, Walter becomes embroiled in the sinister intrigues of Sir Percival Glyde and his 'charming' friend Count Fosco, who has a taste for white mice, vanilla bonbons, and poison. Pursuing questions of identity and insanity along the paths and corridors of English country houses and the madhouse, The Woman in White is the first and most influential of the Victorian genre that combined Gothic horror with psychological realism.

Matthew Sweet's introduction explores the phenomenon of Victorian 'sensation' fiction, and discusses Wilkie Collins's biographical and societal influences. Included in this edition are appendices on theatrical adaptations of the novel and its serialisation history.]]> 672 Wilkie Collins Torie 0 4.00 1859
author: Wilkie Collins
name: Torie
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1859
rating: 0
read at: 2025/01/01
date added: 2025/01/01
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]]> 181110045 A haunting and powerful story of female friendships and secrets in a Washington, D.C. boardinghouse during the McCarthy era.

Washington, D.C., 1950. Everyone keeps to themselves at Briarwood House, a down-at-the-heels all-female boardinghouse in the heart of the nation’s capital, where secrets hide behind white picket fences. But when the lovely, mysterious widow Grace March moves into the attic, she draws her oddball collection of neighbors into unlikely friendship: poised English beauty Fliss whose facade of perfect wife and mother covers gaping inner wounds; police officer’s daughter Nora, who is entangled with a shadowy gangster; frustrated baseball star Bea, whose career has ended along with the women’s baseball league of WWII; and poisonous, gung-ho Arlene, who has thrown herself into McCarthy’s Red Scare.

Grace’s weekly attic-room dinner parties and window-brewed sun tea become a healing balm on all their lives, but she hides a terrible secret of her own. When a shocking act of violence tears apart the house, the Briar Club women must decide once and for all: Who is the true enemy in their midst?]]> 432 Kate Quinn 0063244748 Torie 0 4.26 2024
author: Kate Quinn
name: Torie
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/29
date added: 2024/12/29
shelves:
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]]> 195487194
Christian’s fed up of being on his own every Christmas. He doesn’t mind being alone , but he hates his family’s sad eyes and soft tones as they sit around coupled up. Because he’s actually, totally, fine.

So when Megan literally bumps into Christian in a Dublin pub, they come up with a pact to see them through the holiday season. They’re going to be the very best fake dates for each other, ever .

Rules are drawn up, a contract is signed on a wine-stained napkin. They will sit through each other’s family gatherings and be outrageously in love until freed from their annual obligations. After all, it’s only for a few weeks.

But with everyone home for the holidays, two big families to deal with alongside old friends, old flames and old feelings, things are bound to get messy. And when a snowed-in cabin and a little Christmas magic are added to the mix, anything could happen�

A swoonworthy and utterly gorgeous romantic comedy that will make you laugh out loud and fall completely in love. Fans of Emily Henry, Sophie Kinsella and Abby Jimenez won’t be able to put this down!]]> 384 Catherine Walsh 1837906653 Torie 0 4.08 2023
author: Catherine Walsh
name: Torie
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/25
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves:
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]]> 220506847
A Christmas mission�

Mirren’s beloved great-aunt Violet is seriously ill. Her one Christmas wish is to be reunited with a long-lost hand-illustrated book from her childhood, a challenge Mirren gladly accepts to give Violet some much-needed festive cheer.

An enchanting journey�

With no sign of the cherished volume online, Mirren falls into the fascinating world of rare books. From London to snowy Hay-on-Wye and Edinburgh’s cobbled streets, she chases leads from bookshop to bookshop—and bumps into mysterious, charming Theo, who, unbeknownst to her, is searching for the same book for reasons of his own�

The start of a new chapter?

As the two join forces to track the book down before time runs out for Violet, will Mirren find her Christmas miracle—and maybe even a kiss under the mistletoe� ?

For fans of Josie Silver, Jill Mansell and the Queen of Christmas herself, a snow-swept love story to warm even the coldest winter’s day.]]> 127 Jenny Colgan 1662522576 Torie 0 3.73 2024
author: Jenny Colgan
name: Torie
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/25
date added: 2024/12/25
shelves:
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]]> 202944855 Can an old letter spark a new flame?

When Tess Ravenel gets herself stuck inside a bathroom stall in one of Charleston’s most historic buildings, she isn’t exactly thinking about her dating life. But then the paramedic who comes to her rescue has a voice that sounds like butter and enough charm to make her forget she’s seconds from having a panic attack.

If only he were interested.

Andrew McKay has a mysterious Christmas pen pal, a woman who replied to a newly found letter he sent to Santa back when he was a kid. After weeks of correspondence, it’s clear she’s funny, smart, interesting...and an awful lot like Tess Ravanel—the woman he’s already blown off twice for good reason.

Tess and Andrew couldn’t be more different, but when their worlds collide, fate (and a little Christmas magic) set them on a crash course for love.

The Christmas Letters is a closed door sweet holiday romance with lots of chemistry but no spice. This book was first published in 2019 but has been heavily revised and updated. ]]> 277 Jenny Proctor Torie 0 4.30 2023
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/21
date added: 2024/12/21
shelves:
review:

]]> 28502761 Continuing in a festive annual tradition, #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber returns with a new original holiday novel full of romance and cheer—and the magical prospect of finding love in the most unexpected places.

Friendly and bubbly, Julia Padden likes nearly everyone, but her standoffish neighbor, Cain Maddox, presents a particular challenge. No matter how hard she’s tried to be nice, Cain rudely rebuffs her at every turn, preferring to keep to himself. But when Julia catches Cain stealing her newspaper from the lobby of their apartment building, that’s the last straw. She’s going to break through Cain’s Scrooge-like exterior the only way she knows how: by killing him with kindness.

To track her progress, Julia starts a blog called The Twelve Days of Christmas. Her first attempts to humanize Cain are far from successful. Julia brings him homemade Christmas treats and the disagreeable grinch won’t even accept them. Meanwhile, Julie’s blog becomes an online sensation, as an astonishing number of people start following her adventures. Julia continues to find ways to express kindness and, little by little, chips away at Cain’s gruff façade to reveal the caring man underneath. Unbelievably, Julia feels herself falling for Cain—and she suspects that he may be falling for her as well. But as the popularity of her blog continues to grow, Julia must decide if telling Cain the truth about having chronicled their relationship to the rest of the world is worth risking their chance at love.]]> 288 Debbie Macomber 0553391747 Torie 0 3.81 2016
author: Debbie Macomber
name: Torie
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/21
date added: 2024/12/21
shelves:
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]]> 214974537
As Europe hurtles toward World War I, Benedict's determination to keep America out of the conflict adds to the already tense atmosphere. Despite their relentless sparring, Inga and Benedict succeed in keeping the embassy afloat through one crisis after another. But when they run out of diplomatic options, a marriage of convenience between them may be Inga's only hope of escape from the impending war.

In this entrancing Gilded Age romance, Inga and Benedict will be swept into a dangerous world on the brink of war, where two hearts must navigate shadows of uncertainty when stars light the sky.]]> 352 Elizabeth Camden 0764241729 Torie 0 to-read 4.41 2025
author: Elizabeth Camden
name: Torie
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/21
shelves: to-read
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]]> 206318178 From the author of the viral TikTok sensation, The Pumpkin Spice Café, comes the only spicy grumpy x sunshine Christmas romcom you need this year!

Kira North hates Christmas. Which is unfortunate since she just bought a Christmas tree farm in a town that’s too cute for its own good.

Bennett Ellis is on vacation in Dream Harbor taking a break from his life in California. And most importantly, taking a break from his latest run of disastrous dates.

After a run in with Kira in her fields, Ben has no intention of offering to help the grumpy owner set up her tree farm, despite the fact she’s clearly got no idea what she’s doing.

Kira knows she should stop being so stubborn, but her farm is not all cute and cozy like people always show on social media, it’s borderline dangerous with no heating, and she’d rather no one saw it.

But somehow fate finds Ben at Kira’s farm once more, and as Kira watches him swing an ax at the first tree, she finds herself appreciating his strength and questionning why she refused help in the first place..

The Christmas Tree Farm is a spicy romantic mystery for fans of Gilmore Girls with a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:

� grumpy x sunshine
� small town
� forced proximity
� one bed]]> 369 Laurie Gilmore 0008610738 Torie 0 3.66 2024
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Torie
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/17
date added: 2024/12/17
shelves:
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]]> 58352726 It should be the perfect start to the perfect love story.

But real life is far messier and more complicated than in the pages of the books in Megan Taylor's family bookshop � the last few years have left this young widow in no doubt of that. Moving back home to York should have been a fresh start, but all it did was allow her to retreat from the world.

When prize-winning author Xander Stone rams his supermarket trolley into her ankles and then trashes her taste in books, Megan is abruptly awoken from her self-imposed hibernation. It's time to start living again, and she's going to start by putting this arrogant, superior � admittedly sexy � stranger in his place.

Just as she is beginning to enjoy life again, the worst happens and Megan begins to wonder if she should have stayed hidden away. Because it turns out that falling in love again is about more than just meeting under the mistletoe...]]> 226 Rachel Burton Torie 0 3.78 2018
author: Rachel Burton
name: Torie
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/16
date added: 2024/12/16
shelves:
review:

]]> 448873 Instead of Three Wishes, the first book by Megan Whalen Turner. Her second book more than fulfills that promise.

The king's scholar, the magus, believes he knows the site of an ancient treasure. To attain it for his king, he needs a skillful thief, and he selects Gen from the king's prison. The magus is interested only in the thief's abilities. What Gen is interested in is anyone's guess. Their journey toward the treasure is both dangerous and difficult, lightened only imperceptibly by the tales they tell of the old gods and goddesses.

Megan Whalen Turner weaves Gen's stories and Gen's story together with style and verve in a novel that is filled with intrigue, adventure, and surprise.]]> 280 Megan Whalen Turner 0060824972 Torie 0 3.86 1996
author: Megan Whalen Turner
name: Torie
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1996
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/13
date added: 2024/12/13
shelves:
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]]> 217074562 Unexpected sparks fly and a back seat gets put to good use when a small-town sweetheart falls head-first for her ride-share driver.

I’m supposed to be dating. Doing my level best to find The One�

While I try to give all the guys on my dating app a fighting chance, I might accidentally be falling in love with my ride-share driver instead.

Between disaster first dates and getting stood up and ghosted, I’ve become friends with one of the only car service drivers in my tiny hometown of Cozy Creek, Colorado.

Maybe I’m looking forward to my dating fails because it means more time with Noah, the guy I can’t stop thinking about. While guarded and cautious, he draws me in with his dry humor and reluctant smiles. But for some reason, Noah’s presence in town is a mystery--a secret he isn’t ready to tell.

You’re not supposed to fall in love with the guy driving you to your potential happily ever after. But, unfortunately, nobody told my heart that.

Fall Me Maybe is part of the Cozy Creek Collection of small-town standalones. It is a steamy, full-length romantic comedy.]]> 276 Laney Hatcher Torie 0 3.89
author: Laney Hatcher
name: Torie
average rating: 3.89
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/11
date added: 2024/12/11
shelves:
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]]> 61401417 She’s meant to be catching flights, not catching feelings�

Molly and Andrew are just trying to get home to Ireland for the holidays, when a freak snowstorm grounds their flight.

Nothing romantic has ever happened between them: they’re friends and that’s all. But once a year, for the last ten years, Molly has spent seven hours and fifteen minutes sitting next to Andrew on the last flight before Christmas from Chicago to Dublin, drinking terrible airplane wine and catching up on each other’s lives. In spite of all the ways the two friends are different, it’s the holiday tradition neither of them has ever wanted to give up.

Molly isn’t that bothered by Christmas, but—in yet another way they’re total opposites—Andrew is a full-on fanatic for the festive season and she knows how much getting back to Ireland means to him. So, instead of doing the sane thing and just celebrating the holidays together in America, she does the stupid thing. The irrational thing. She vows to get him home. And in time for his mam’s famous Christmas dinner.

The clock is ticking. But Molly always has a plan. And—as long as the highly-specific combination of taxis, planes, boats, and trains all run on time—it can’t possibly go wrong.

What she doesn’t know is that, as the snow falls over the city and over the heads of two friends who are sure they’re not meant to be together, the universe might just have a plan of its own�

A totally gorgeous and escapist friends-to-lovers festive romance with a swoon-worthy hero. Perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella, Mhairi Macfarlane, and Christina Lauren.]]> 354 Catherine Walsh 1803145455 Torie 0 4.01 2022
author: Catherine Walsh
name: Torie
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2024/12/09
date added: 2024/12/09
shelves:
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]]> 195967140 A mind-bending, psychological thriller from Freida McFadden, the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Housemaid!

Lesson #1: trust no one

Eve has a good life. She gets up each day, gets a kiss from her husband Nate, and heads off to teach math at the local high school. All is as it should be. Except�

Last year, Caseham High was rocked by a scandal involving a student-teacher affair, with one student, Addie, at its center. But Eve knows there is far more to these ugly rumors than meets the eye.

Addie can't be trusted. She lies. She hurts people. She destroys lives. At least, that's what everyone says.

But nobody knows the real Addie. Nobody knows the secrets that could destroy her. And Addie will do anything to keep it quiet.

From the New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden comes a story of twisting secrets and long-awaited revenge.]]> 379 Freida McFadden 1728296218 Torie 0 to-read 3.82 2024
author: Freida McFadden
name: Torie
average rating: 3.82
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/12/06
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 217074850 The grumpy recluse begrudgingly rents me his guest house if I agree to leave him alone. Too bad I've never been good at doing what I'm told.

I am in desperate need of a place to live when my ex-boyfriend unceremoniously kicks me out weeks before a huge break in my career. Things look hopeless until I find a listing for a home that would be perfect, complete with a concise list of dos and don'ts. All I have to do is ignore the alarmingly good-looking owner, Levi, and follow his strict rules.

As the days pass and I continue to push boundaries it gets harder to avoid his sweet compassion, capable hands, and attractive glower. The lines of our strict owner/tenant relationship continue to blur as the truth behind his protective shell is uncovered.

Can I let him be or will my instincts for information trample the intense attraction growing between us?

I'm under deadline, over my head and (F)all shook up thinking about Levi.

FALL SHOOK UP is a charming autumn-inspired small-town romantic comedy about a reclusive artist and the nosey journalist who wants answers. Grab a pumpkin spice latte, a warm fuzzy blanket, and make your way down to Cozy Creek. Each book in the series is a complete stand alone with a happily ever after. ]]> 288 Piper Sheldon Torie 0 3.78
author: Piper Sheldon
name: Torie
average rating: 3.78
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/29
date added: 2024/11/29
shelves:
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]]> 16333
When Miss Marple comes up from the country for a holiday in London, she finds what she's looking for at Bertram's: traditional décor and impeccable service. But she senses an unmistakable atmosphere of danger behind the highly polished veneer. Not even Miss Marple can foresee the violent chain of events set in motion when an eccentric hotel guest makes his way to the airport one day late!

Librarian's note: this entry is for the novel, "At Bertram's Hotel." Collections and other Miss Marple stories are located elsewhere on Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ. The series includes 12 novels and 20 short stories. Entries for the short stories can be found by searching Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ for: "a Miss Marple Short Story."]]> 223 Agatha Christie Torie 0 to-read 3.72 1965
author: Agatha Christie
name: Torie
average rating: 3.72
book published: 1965
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/28
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 210163199 From the author of the Sunday Times bestseller and viral TikTok phenomenon, The Pumpkin Spice Café, comes a brand new spicy romance set in Dream Harbor!

When a secret message turns up hidden in a book in the Cinnamon Bun Bookstore, Hazel can't understand it. As more secret codes appear between the pages, she decides to follow the trail of clues� she just need someone to help her out.

Gorgeous and outgoing fisherman, Noah, is always up for an adventure. And a scavenger hunt sounds like a lot of fun. Even better that the cute bookseller he's been crushing on for months is the one who wants his help!

Hazel didn’t go looking for romance, but as the treasure hunt leads her and Noah around Dream Harbor, their undeniable chemistry might be just as hot as the fresh-out-of-the-oven cinnamon buns the bookstore sells�

The Cinnamon Bun Book Store is a cozy romantic mystery with a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:
� opposites attract
� small town
� forced proximity
� he falls first]]> 370 Laurie Gilmore 0008641579 Torie 0 3.90 2024
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Torie
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/26
date added: 2024/11/26
shelves:
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]]> 139391940 A spicy small-town romance and TikTok phenomenon, perfect for fans of Hannah Grace and Stephanie Archer.

When Jeanie's aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job.

Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor's gossip at all costs. But Jeanie's arrival disrupts Logan's routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.

Will Jeanie's happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won't fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes�

The Pumpkin Spice Café is a cozy romantic mystery for fans of Gilmore Girls, with a grumpy x sunshine dynamic, a small-town setting and a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:

� grumpy x sunshine
� small town
� found family
� spicy]]> 373 Laurie Gilmore 0008610665 Torie 0 3.36 2023
author: Laurie Gilmore
name: Torie
average rating: 3.36
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/22
date added: 2024/11/22
shelves:
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]]> 5297 272 Oscar Wilde Torie 0 4.13 1890
author: Oscar Wilde
name: Torie
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1890
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/16
date added: 2024/11/16
shelves:
review:

]]> 217075054 My boss's hot, chaotic son just crashed my luxury art retreat. I feel like running for the hills, but he’s begging for my help, and I can’t afford to lose my job.

An all-expenses-paid autumn break in the mountains at a luxury art retreat? As a broke single mom, I can’t believe my luck. Until my ˛ú´Ç˛ő˛ő’s whirlwind son crashes my private cabin.

Charlie is my work problem, the rockstar Creative Director with a Kickstarter addiction and a charmed life. The man I can’t stand� or stop thinking about.

For two years, I’ve hidden my feelings. But as we explore the experimental art classes, small-town magic, and the wilderness, truths are exposed. Heat turns up and fake dating turns real.

I find myself falling for my office nemesis, but there’s something I don’t know. Charlie is keeping a secret, and it could ruin everything...

---

Falling Slowly is part of the Cozy Creek Collection of small-town standalones. It is a steamy, full-length romantic comedy.]]> 312 Enni Amanda 1067023526 Torie 0 3.50
author: Enni Amanda
name: Torie
average rating: 3.50
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/15
date added: 2024/11/15
shelves:
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]]> 217072099 I should’ve married my childhood best friend, but I chose another man. Now I’m a single mom, back in my hometown trying to make ends meet, and my ex-bestie is my new boss�The moment our eyes meet, I know I’m the last woman on earth Nash McCreedy wants to see. Now we’re forced to work together and face old memories I’ve avoided for years.

Everywhere I look, he’s there, and it doesn’t help that he’s the only man I’ve ever loved. I ignore him and the bubbling feelings for as long as I can, but fail.

Lines are crossed and we work on rebuilding our relationship and broken hearts. When I think we might actually have a chance at forever, my ex wreaks havoc on my life, sabotaging whatever he can. But Nash is there for me, saving me, something he does (f)all too well.

Fall Too Well is a second chance, workplace romance in the Cozy Creek series that features ranch life and a broody cowboy who only has eyes for her. Each book in this small-town series is a standalone with a happily ever after.]]> 350 Erin Branscom Torie 0 3.86
author: Erin Branscom
name: Torie
average rating: 3.86
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/12
date added: 2024/11/12
shelves:
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]]> 43722578
Frances Wynn, the American-born Countess of Harleigh, enjoys more freedom as a widow than she did as a wife. After an obligatory year spent mourning her philandering husband, Reggie, she puts aside her drab black gowns, leaving the countryside and her money-grubbing in-laws behind. With her young daughter in tow, Frances rents a home in Belgravia and prepares to welcome her sister, Lily, arriving from New York - for her first London season.

No sooner has Frances begun her new life than the ghosts of her old one make an unwelcome appearance. The Metropolitan Police receive an anonymous letter implicating Frances in her husband's death. Frances assures Inspector Delaney of her innocence, but she's also keen to keep him from learning the scandalous circumstances of Reggie's demise. As fate would have it, her dashing new neighbour, George Hazelton, is one of only two other people aware of the full story.

While busy with social engagements on Lily's behalf, and worrying if Reggie really was murdered, Frances learns of mysterious burglaries plaguing London's elite. The investigation brings death to her doorstep, and Frances rallies her wits, a circle of gossips, and the ever-chivalrous Mr. Hazelton to uncover the truth. A killer is in their midst, perhaps even among her sister's suitors. And Frances must unmask the villain before Lily's season - and their lives - come to a most unseemly end.]]> 9 Dianne Freeman Torie 0 3.54 2018
author: Dianne Freeman
name: Torie
average rating: 3.54
book published: 2018
rating: 0
read at: 2021/02/04
date added: 2024/11/09
shelves:
review:

]]> 62342319
But then . . . I find a mysterious fifty-dollar bill with a handwritten note on it that was donated to my family’s pumpkin patch by accident. And wouldn’t you know it, the mystery man it belongs to is emotionally unavailable, albeit freakishly attractive. I keep telling myself to walk away, but there’s something about Aidan St. Claire that makes me want to unravel all his secrets. All I know is he sure can heat up the cozy fall nights. I can’t help but think that maybe this time I’ll get to keep Prince Charming for myself.]]> 237 Becky Monson Torie 0 3.67 2022
author: Becky Monson
name: Torie
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/07
date added: 2024/11/07
shelves:
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]]> 209351087 A surprise homecoming tests the bonds of sisterhood as a hidden past comes to light. . . .

Disgraced eldest sister Claire Summers has been living in exile as companion to a stern great-aunt in Scotland. About to lose her place and longing to be reconciled with her estranged family, Claire sees an advertisement from someone looking for a "respectable female partner" in a Sidmouth boarding house. Is it a sign? She answers the ad, hoping she has not made another reckless mistake. When she meets the handsome, secretive proprietor, she wonders what he's hiding and if he's any more trustworthy than the nobleman who betrayed her years ago. Claire is drawn to him even though she fears he will reject her when he discovers her genteel façade hides a less-than-respectable past.

Meanwhile, the Summers family learns their great-aunt has died and Claire has disappeared without a word. The sisters rally together to find their lost sibling, but will their unexpected reunion heal old wounds and rekindle their bonds . . . or deepen the divide?

Return to the picturesque Devonshire coast as the Summers sisters navigate romance, second chances, and the enduring strength of sisterhood in the face of adversity.]]> 384 Julie Klassen 076424101X Torie 0 to-read 4.26 2024
author: Julie Klassen
name: Torie
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/11/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 102777361
There’s just one problem: she can’t seem to stop killing off her main characters.

After accepting that a genre change is in order, Juniper sets out to do some research. What’s the best way to carry a dead body? How exactly does one pick a lock? Juniper is going to find out—with the unwilling help of her new roommate, Aiden.

But Juniper’s plans go haywire when she stumbles across an actual, real-life dead body—and before she knows it, she and Aiden are thrust into the middle of a murder mystery that seems suspiciously tied to Juniper’s past.

Who killed the girl in the woods? Can Juniper ever get the hang of mystery writing? And, perhaps the biggest question of all: Why the heck does Aiden look so good in a tweed jacket?]]> 368 Gracie Ruth Mitchell Torie 5 4.02 2023
author: Gracie Ruth Mitchell
name: Torie
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2024/11/05
date added: 2024/11/05
shelves:
review:
Wow. This book was not at all what I was expecting. Loved it. Maybe I didn’t read the book description very thoroughly before I picked this one up, but it really surprised me. I don’t want to say too much because most anything I would say will spoil the book, but this was a heartfelt, quirky, entertaining read. I really enjoyed it.
]]> 200120988
Aspiring author Charlie Blaire never expected to stumble across her own novel at her favorite bookstore. Except this novel isn’t hers. Published under someone else’s name, the book she wrote to cope with the loss of her missionary parents is already topping charts. Irate, confused, and determined to regain the rights to her book, Charlie leaves her idyllic life in the countryside of Vermont to set things straight in The Big Apple. When she crashes into a charming stranger who offers to help, her faith in humanity and God’s handiwork is restored. But when secrets unravel and the final pages have been turned, what’s too good to be true may turn a blossoming love story into a star-crossed tragedy.

Andrew Ketner has it charm, good looks, a sizable inheritance, and an almost-guaranteed future at the helm of one of New York City’s most prestigious publishing houses. While life looks perfect from the outside, living in the shadow of an overbearing father while reeling from the faith-crushing weight of personal loss has left him feeling like he’s hardly living at all. When he stumbles across a discarded manuscript he is convinced will be an instant success, it sparks an ember of hope he thought was long extinguished. The world looks brighter until he finds himself thrown into an impossible situation. Will he protect his family’s legacy or end up falling in love with the woman whose novel they’ve unwittingly plagiarized?]]> 342 Erica Dansereau Torie 0 4.19
author: Erica Dansereau
name: Torie
average rating: 4.19
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/11/03
date added: 2024/11/03
shelves:
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]]> 61361968 Reece the Rogue Pirate girl, instead of Josie Peterson. Why couldn’t I be known for all the cute children’s stories I’ve written about my family’s pumpkin patch?

Tragically, the torrid story I wrote as a teen was based on a real person, Reece Cavanaugh. And guess what? He grew up to be a pirate—okay, lawyer. Same thing. To make matters worse, the man is representing my ex-fiancé who wants to steal my treasure, aka engagement ring. If that wasn’t the icing on the cake, Reece has an adorable daughter who happens to be my new student. That’s right, I must now have actual conversations with him after avoiding him for half my life, even by hiding behind banana displays when needed. But the more I get to know Reece—the real version, not the imaginary one who ravishes me on sandy beaches—I can’t help but wish we could roll around in the sand together. There’s a problem though, the school I work for frowns upon relationships between parents and teachers. And it’s pumpkin season, which means all my free time is spent on the family farm. But when he kisses me, I can’t help wanting to break all the rules and get tangled up in the barn. The burning question is, am I brave enough to make my story a reality or will it be another bad ending?

From USA Today bestselling author Jennifer Peel comes a curl your toes and cuddle up with your favorite blanket and cocoa romantic comedy.]]> 307 Jennifer Peel Torie 0 3.90 2022
author: Jennifer Peel
name: Torie
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2022
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/28
date added: 2024/10/28
shelves:
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]]> 217241182 The brokenhearted billionaire visits Cozy Creek to escape. I never expected to become his fake girlfriend or fall madly in love...but here we are.

My first impression of Zane Alexander isn't great. The second is worse, but when he forces me to hang out with him, I can’t say no. We quickly go from familiar strangers to flirty friends.

When my ex returns, Zane flawlessly pretends to be my boyfriend to protect me. He’s so damn good at it, I almost believe it. Afterward, we devise a plan to fake date through the holidays. I become his plus one and he becomes mine.

I don’t know when our relationship moves from pretending to passionate, but I catch feelings. As our exes desperately crawl back into our lives like zombies, I realize there is only one man for me, and (f)all I want is him.

FALL I WANT is a spicy autumn-inspired small-town romantic comedy with a billionaire who falls first and harder. Grab a pumpkin spice latte, a warm fuzzy blanket, and make your way down to Cozy Creek. Each book in the series is a complete stand alone with a happily ever after. ]]> 476 Lyra Parish 1961229455 Torie 0 3.48
author: Lyra Parish
name: Torie
average rating: 3.48
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/10
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]]> 216968429 Is it rational to hate my billionaire boss because he’s too nice ?

Maybe not.

However, it’s definitely rational to apply to become a billionaire stranger’s housewife so I can quit being a personal assistant.

When—in a shocking turn of events—I encounter billionaire scarcity and learn I’ve signed up to become my ˛ú´Ç˛ő˛ő’s wife before Christmas, I backpedal so hard I’m liable to pull something.

Shame indeed my too nice boss picks this moment to blackmail me.

The agreement is I date him; he pays off my crippling debt; I have until the end of November to decide whether or not I’m saying “I do.�

It’s one measly autumn, and then I’m free.

There’s no way I'll fall in love before this contract’s up�

Even if Finnegan Marsh proves to be so much more than nice.

Hating the Cinnamon Roll CEO is a laugh-out-loud romantic comedy with cozy autumn vibes, office romance, and plenty of closed-door sizzle.

~

Enjoy the other full-length books in the Cinnamon Rolls and Pumpkin Spice series, which can be read in any

Hating the Cinnamon Roll CEO by Camilla Evergreen

Falling for Autumn (Again) by Jen Atkinson

Paris, Pumpkins & Puns by Marion De RĂ©

Fall With Me by Amanda P Jones

Cinnamon & Spice Conundrum by Leah Busboom

Cinnamon Roll Set Up by Genny Carrick

Coffee Break with the Billionaire by Holly Kerr

The Friendly Fall by Kristine W Joy]]> 234 Camilla Evergreen Torie 0 4.14
author: Camilla Evergreen
name: Torie
average rating: 4.14
book published:
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]]> 57737439
Reverend Augustus Shackleford’s mission in life (aside from ensuring the collection box was suitably full every Sunday) was to secure advantageous marriages for each of his eight daughters. A tall order, given the fact that in the Reverend’s opinion they didn’t possess a single ladylike bone in the eight bodies they had between them. Quite where he would find a wealthy titled gentleman bottle headed enough to take any of them on remained a mystery and indeed was likely to test even his legendary resourcefulness.

Grievously wounded at the Battle of Trafalgar, Nicholas Sinclair was only recently returned to Blackmore after receiving news of his estranged father’s unexpected death. After an absence of twenty years, the new Duke was well aware it was his duty to marry and produce an heir as quickly as possible. However, tormented by recurring nightmares after his horrific experiences during the battle, Nicholas had no taste to brave the ton’s marriage mart in search of a docile obedient wife.

Never in his wildest dreams did Reverend Shackleford envisage receiving an offer for his eldest daughter from the newly appointed Duke of Blackmore. Of course, the Reverend was well aware he was fudging it a bit in describing Grace as respectful, meek or dutiful, nevertheless, he could never have imagined that his eldest daughter’s unruliness might end up ruining them all�

Alternate cover edition of ASIN B08LNJCYNR]]> 186 Beverley Watts Torie 0 3.98 2020
author: Beverley Watts
name: Torie
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/12
date added: 2024/10/23
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]]> 200034606
Holly is dealing with the impending death of her grandmother and still reeling from a bad breakup. One bright spot: a Valentine’s Day card on Holly’s windshield—even if it wasn’t meant for her. An amusing mistake soon turns into a lovely exchange of anonymous notes, little acts of kindness, and a growing affection between two strangers. What happens when one of them has to say goodbye?]]> 61 Abby Jimenez 166251963X Torie 0 3.99 2024
author: Abby Jimenez
name: Torie
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/23
date added: 2024/10/23
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]]> 181857655 Miss Clara Marie Stanton's family may be eccentric, but they certainly aren't insane.

London, England, 1860
When Clara's ex-fiancé begins to spread rumors that her family suffers from hereditary insanity, it's all she can do to protect them from his desperate schemes, society's prejudice, and a lifetime in an asylum. Then Clara's Grandfather Drosselmeyer brings on an apprentice with a mechanical leg, and all pretense of normalcy takes wing.

Theodore Kingsley, a shame-chased vagabond haunted by the war, wants a fresh start far from Kingsley Court and the disappointed father who declared him dead. Upon returning to England, Theodore meets clockmaker Drosselmeyer, who hires him as an apprentice, much to Clara's dismay. When Drosselmeyer spontaneously disappears in his secret flying owl machine, he leaves behind a note for Clara, beseeching her to make her dreams of adventure a reality by joining him on a merry scavenger hunt across Europe. Together, Clara and Theodore set off to follow Drosselmeyer's trail of clues, but they will have to stay one step ahead of a villain who wants the flying machine for himself--at any cost.]]> 379 Angela Bell 1493445111 Torie 4 3.95 2024
author: Angela Bell
name: Torie
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2024/10/22
date added: 2024/10/23
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I enjoyed this fun, sweet, imaginative book. Not only was there adventure, there were nuggets of wisdom through out.
]]> 58490567 The New York Times bestselling author of The Rose Code returns with an unforgettable World War II tale of a quiet bookworm who becomes history's deadliest female sniper. Based on a true story.

In 1937 in the snowbound city of Kyiv, wry and bookish history student Mila Pavlichenko organizes her life around her library job and her young son--but Hitler's invasion of Ukraine and Russia sends her on a different path. Given a rifle and sent to join the fight, Mila must forge herself from studious girl to deadly sniper--a lethal hunter of Nazis known as Lady Death. When news of her three hundredth kill makes her a national heroine, Mila finds herself torn from the bloody battlefields of the eastern front and sent to America on a goodwill tour.

Still reeling from war wounds and devastated by loss, Mila finds herself isolated and lonely in the glittering world of Washington, DC--until an unexpected friendship with First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and an even more unexpected connection with a silent fellow sniper offer the possibility of happiness. But when an old enemy from Mila's past joins forces with a deadly new foe lurking in the shadows, Lady Death finds herself battling her own demons and enemy bullets in the deadliest duel of her life.

Based on a true story, The Diamond Eye is a haunting novel of heroism born of desperation, of a mother who became a soldier, of a woman who found her place in the world and changed the course of history forever.]]> 435 Kate Quinn 0062943510 Torie 5 4.26 2022
author: Kate Quinn
name: Torie
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2022
rating: 5
read at: 2024/10/16
date added: 2024/10/18
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I have liked every Kate Quinn book I have read, but “The Diamond Eye� has now become my #1 favorite by this author. Maybe knowing it was based on a real woman changed the way I viewed the main character (I LOVED Lyudmila!), but all the characters were deep and believable, and I was invested. I am sure Ms. Quinn took some artistic license with the events, but I love stories where people are unwavering in their pursuit of what is right, who protect those they love and are willing to sacrifice for others. It was a great book and I imagine I will be thinking about it for a long time.
]]> 50398 Northanger Abbey is often referred to as Jane Austen's "Gothic parody." Decrepit castles, locked rooms, mysterious chests, cryptic notes, and tyrannical fathers give the story an uncanny air, but one with a decidedly satirical twist.

The story's unlikely heroine is Catherine Morland, a remarkably innocent seventeen-year-old woman from a country parsonage. While spending a few weeks in Bath with a family friend, Catherine meets and falls in love with Henry Tilney, who invites her to visit his family estate, Northanger Abbey. Once there, Catherine, a great reader of Gothic thrillers, lets the shadowy atmosphere of the old mansion fill her mind with terrible suspicions. What is the mystery surrounding the death of Henry's mother? Is the family concealing a terrible secret within the elegant rooms of the Abbey? Can she trust Henry, or is he part of an evil conspiracy? Catherine finds dreadful portents in the most prosaic events, until Henry persuades her to see the peril in confusing life with art.

Executed with high-spirited gusto, Northanger Abbey is a lighthearted, yet unsentimental commentary on love and marriage.]]> 260 Jane Austen 1593082649 Torie 0 3.85 1817
author: Jane Austen
name: Torie
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1817
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/16
date added: 2024/10/11
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]]> 217078156 The swoony single-dad firefighter needs my help, but he might be too hot for me to handle. I’m in Cozy Creek for two To get over my breakup and help my grandmother run her bakery while she recovers from a sprained ankle.
I am absolutely not here to fall in love.

But my grandma’s smoking hot firefighter neighbor keeps rescuing me—from the side of the road, from a tree (don’t ask), and then finally from my ex with a steamy kiss in a bar.

So when he needs my help, how can I say no?

As a party planner, I’m the perfect person to step in and work with him on preparations for Cozy Creek Fire Brigade’s Fall Fundraiser.

Sparks fly as we spend more time together, but we’ve both been burned by love before.
I do my best to beat the heat, but then he kissed me for real, and (f)all at once, I realize we might just be perfect for each other.

Fall at Once is part of the Cozy Creek Collection of small-town standalones, it is a steamy, full-length romantic comedy.]]> 260 Nora Everly Torie 0 3.80
author: Nora Everly
name: Torie
average rating: 3.80
book published:
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]]> 75513900 She is the very thing he’s spent his whole life hunting.
He is the very thing she’s spent her whole life pretending to be.

Only the extraordinary belong in the kingdom of Ilya—the exceptional, the empowered, the Elites.

The powers these Elites have possessed for decades were graciously gifted to them by the Plague, though not all were fortunate enough to both survive the sickness and reap the reward. Those born Ordinary are just that—ordinary. And when the king decreed that all Ordinaries be banished in order to preserve his Elite society, lacking an ability suddenly became a crime—making Paedyn Gray a felon by fate and a thief by necessity.

Surviving in the slums as an Ordinary is no simple task, and Paedyn knows this better than most. Having been trained by her father to be overly observant since she was a child, Paedyn poses as a Psychic in the crowded city, blending in with the Elites as best she can in order to stay alive and out of trouble. Easier said than done.

When Paeydn unsuspectingly saves one of Ilyas princes, she finds herself thrown into the Purging Trials. The brutal competition exists to showcase the Elites� powers—the very thing Paedyn lacks. If the Trials and the opponents within them don’t kill her, the prince she’s fighting feelings for certainly will if he discovers what she is—completely Ordinary.]]> 523 Lauren Roberts Torie 0 4.17 2023
author: Lauren Roberts
name: Torie
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at: 2024/10/03
date added: 2024/10/03
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]]> 18126604
Knowing that their children would have no future under the new government, the Chungs decided to flee the country. In 1979, they joined the legendary "boat people" and sailed into the South China Sea, despite knowing that an estimated two hundred thousand of their countrymen had already perished at the hands of brutal pirates and violent seas.

Where the Wind Leads follows Vinh Chung and his family on their desperate journey from pre-war Vietnam, through pirate attacks on a lawless sea, to a miraculous rescue and a new home in the unlikely town of Fort Smith, Arkansas. There Vinh struggled against poverty, discrimination, and a bewildering language barrier--yet still managed to graduate from Harvard Medical School.

Where the Wind Leads is Vinh's tribute to the courage and sacrifice of his parents, a testimony to his family's faith, and a reminder to people everywhere that the American dream, while still possible, carries with it a greater responsibility.]]> 368 Vinh Chung 0849947561 Torie 0 to-read 4.38 2014
author: Vinh Chung
name: Torie
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/30
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]]> 204783155
The day I clean the Winchesters' beautiful house top to bottom. I collect their daughter from school. And I cook a delicious meal for the whole family before heading up to eat alone in my tiny room on the top floor.I try to ignore how Nina makes a mess just to watch me clean it up. How she tells strange lies about her own daughter. And how her husband Andrew seems more broken every day. The Housemaid's hard to find an employer who doesn't ask too many questions about my past. So I thank my lucky stars that the Garricks miraculously give me a job, cleaning their stunning penthouse with views across the city and preparing fancy meals in their shiny kitchen. I can work here for a while, stay quiet until I get what I want. It's almost perfect. But I still haven't met Mrs Garrick, or seen inside the guest bedroom. I'm sure I hear her crying.

The Locked door eleven-year-old Nora Davis was up in her bedroom doing homework, she had no idea her father was killing women in the basement. Until the day the police arrived at their front door. Decades later, Nora's father is spending his life behind bars, and Nora is a successful surgeon with a quiet, solitary existence. Nobody knows about her past, and she'll do anything to keep it that way.]]> 1361 Freida McFadden 0433869100 Torie 0 to-read 4.45
author: Freida McFadden
name: Torie
average rating: 4.45
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]]> 200033357 New York Times bestselling authors of The Unhoneymooners.

One typo, and a boy and girl connect by chance. Wishing each other a happy Valentine’s Day isn’t the end. In fact, it becomes a friendly annual tradition—with rules: no pics, no real names, nothing too personal. As years pass, the rules for their email “dates� are breaking, and they’re sharing more than they imagined—including the urge to ask�what if we actually met?

Christina Lauren’s The Exception to the Rule is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute, irresistibly romantic stories about finding love when and where you least expect it. They can be read or listened to in one sitting.]]> 101 Christina Lauren 1662519893 Torie 0 4.21 2024
author: Christina Lauren
name: Torie
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/27
date added: 2024/09/27
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]]> 203765563 Once upon a time, she slept with his poster beside her bed. Now he's all grown up, hiding behind a burly beard and lots of flannel ... and she doesn't have a clue.

Eight years ago, Adam Driscoll walked away from his stage name—Deke—and the boyband that turned him into an international star before his eighteenth birthday.

And he never looked back.

It didn’t even matter that everyone blamed him for the band’s breakup. He might miss making music, but he had good reasons for walking. Give him solitude over thousands of screaming fans any day of the week.

These days, the only company he’s truly interested in is that of the vet who works closely with his dog rescue—Dr. Laney Lawson. She’s brilliant, funny, beautiful, and best of all, she has no idea he used to be a pop star.

But then Adam’s bandmates reach out about a one-time reunion concert benefiting a charity that’s close to his heart, and he starts to wonder if some things are worth a little extra attention. He loves the idea of singing again, but saying yes would out him to the small mountain community that has become his refuge. Worse, it would out him to Laney.

But old hurts can’t stay buried forever. And something tells Adam that scary or not, saying yes is the decision he needs to make. He just has to hope he doesn’t lose the life—or the woman—he loves in the process.]]> 358 Jenny Proctor Torie 5 4.34 2024
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2024/09/20
date added: 2024/09/20
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]]> 203367047
Me and the twins—my adorable five-year-old charges—have turned guessing the source of his inexplicable wealth into a game. (Trust me...if you live at the Belvedere, exorbitant wealth is a foregone conclusion.) But the more we guess, the more I wish I knew Reese's actual story.

It doesn't help that he keeps smiling at me. Like, really smiling. He's interested, and I am more than ready to climb aboard that train and ride it to the happily-ever-after I've always wanted.

Except, Reese is a man of mystery. A man with secrets. Weird work hours. A strange cat he doesn't like but keeps around anyway. There has to be something he isn't telling me.

When the truth finally comes out, will it bring us closer or derail my happily-ever-after plans for good?

Love Beginning is the prequel to the first novel in the Some Kind of Love series, Love Redesigned, but also stands alone as a sweet romantic comedy novella. Books in the series can be read in any order. ]]> 88 Jenny Proctor Torie 0 3.94
author: Jenny Proctor
name: Torie
average rating: 3.94
book published:
rating: 0
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]]> 211759836 Bound by her family’s expectations, Lady Ivy never though freedom would come in the form of a charming Irish baron with a penchant for flirtation.

Lady Ivy Amberton, weighed down by her family’s expectations, has often struggled to navigate the complexities of high society—until the arrival of Lord Dunmore, a dashing Irish baron whose open charm and spirited view of life turn her world upside down. As Ivy grapples with the unfamiliar thrill of attraction, she is compelled to reconsider her understanding of what it means to truly be herself.

Teague Frost, whose tenure in Parliament has cemented his views on the rigidity of the English, finds himself unexpectedly captivated by Ivy's intelligence and grace. Her sincerity challenges his prejudices and sparks an affection he had not anticipated. Together, they explore the surprising depths of their connection, each learning to appreciate new truths about themselves and the world.

As their relationship deepens, Ivy and Teague are confronted with the profound implications of their attraction. Can Ivy embrace her true desires and the possibility of a love that defies her family’s plans? Will Teague allow his unexpected love to transform him, fighting for a future that honors both his heritage and his heart?

Set against the elegant backdrop of Regency England, "Lady Ivy and the Irishman" is a tale of self-discovery and unexpected love.]]> 242 Sally Britton 1685270530 Torie 0 4.32 2024
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/14
date added: 2024/09/14
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]]> 123978759
Gregory Dinard, a young and inexperienced duke, finds himself in need of a companion to help him navigate the intricacies of his new role. Uncertain of his abilities and unwilling to take a chance at love, he looks for a marriage of mutual benefit rather than a match of mutual affection. A woman of grace and intelligence, Lady Cecilia never expects to catch a duke’s eye. Despite her surprise, she agrees to the arrangement when the duke proposes an alliance with her, knowing it would allow her the freedom and opportunity to explore her love of architecture. As they embark on their new life together, Gregory discovers both an affection for and an undeniable attraction to his wife that he cannot ignore. But can a practical marriage become something more, or will he face a future of unrequited love for his duchess?

~

In this prequel novella to the Regency romance series, Clairvoir Castle Romances, you are invited to see how it all began with a duke, his duchess, and an old stone castle.

This novella can be enjoyed on its own, but those familiar with the Clairvoir Castle Romances will find the story of the duke and duchess especially satisfying. This is a sweet romance, kisses and closed door only.

Full-length novels in the series include:
Mr. Gardiner and the Governess
A Companion for the Count
Sir Andrew and the Authoress
Lord Farleigh and Miss Frost]]> 109 Sally Britton Torie 0 4.34
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.34
book published:
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date added: 2024/09/11
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]]> 60692093 An Irish miss and a duke's son have little in common, but Christmas at the castle has a way of bringing the most unlikely people together.

Isleen Frost wishes her family had stayed in Dublin for Christmas but understands it would have been folly to decline an invitation to the Duke of Montfort’s Christmastide house party. Isleen refuses to allow the opulent castle and powerful duke to impress her. But the duke’s eldest son, Lord Farleigh, is another matter entirely.

Raised as the heir to a duke, Simon Dinard, Lord Farleigh, has learned to project a calm self-assurance despite an inner fear he will never be as confident a leader as his father. When a friendly wager and a spirited Irish lady challenge all his unspoken thoughts, he determines to prove her wrong—and ignore the growing attraction between them.

Christmas celebrations at the castle are always full of surprises, but Isleen and Simon are not at all prepared for the feelings the season inspires between them. An Irish miss and a duke’s son have no business falling in love. But the magic of sleigh rides, snow-covered hills, and mistletoe might change their minds...

This novel is a sweet Regency romance and can be read as a stand-alone, though readers of the previous books will enjoy seeing old friends again.]]> 253 Sally Britton 1685270093 Torie 0 4.36
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.36
book published:
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/07
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]]> 57426616 Lady Josephine, the duke's eldest daughter, has a secret. When her brother's horrid best friend discovers what she's been hiding up in the castle tower, she has no choice but to take him into her confidence.

As the daughter of a duke, Lady Josephine has a long list of responsibilities, and an even longer list of things she must never do to dishonor the family name. Josephine knows exactly which side becoming an author falls upon, but she's determined to try her hand at it anyway. For months she has worked on her novel in secret, writing chapter after chapter of intrigue and romance. Unfortunately for Josephine, her sworn enemy stumbles upon her secret.

Sir Andrew Wycomb's close relationship to the Duke of Montfort's family and heir gives him more than one advantage in life. His loyalty to the family is absolute, even if he finds at least one of its members an annoyance. He and Lady Josephine have never seen eye-to-eye. But when he discovers that she's written a novel upon a subject she knows nothing about, he cannot help but sympathize with her dream. This creates an unlikely ceasefire between them.

But things at the castle are always changing, and when a determined suitor arrives to court Josephine, Andrew has to decide which secrets he's going to keep. Especially when he discovers the one he's kept even from himself - that perhaps he doesn't find Josephine an annoyance at all. In fact, she is quite charming. The more time they spend together, the more he hopes she will realize they aren't enemies, and they could be so much more...

As the third stand-alone novel in this sereis by author Sally Britton, this story continues the Clairvoir Castle romances. This is a light-hearted, sweet romance series set during the Regency era in England.

The Series:
Mr. Gardiner and the Governess
A Companion for the Count]]> 234 Sally Britton Torie 0 4.26
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.26
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/04
date added: 2024/09/04
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]]> 2731673 104 Matthew Gregory Lewis 1419155172 Torie 0 3.24 1805
author: Matthew Gregory Lewis
name: Torie
average rating: 3.24
book published: 1805
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/09/03
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]]> 217517030 There's one rule smart hockey players know not to break: never, and I mean, NEVER date the coach's daughter. But no one ever accused Van of being smart.

When the mouthy bad boy of the Appies catches the groom cheating on the coach's daughter, he can't just walk away. Not on her wedding day.

Maybe his own relationships are casual, but he would never cheat and never treat wedding vows so carelessly. Not after he and his sisters watched their divorced parents cycle through marriage after marriage.

But forcing the groom to come clean sets off a chain reaction Van couldn't have expected.

Ending with a black eye, an unexpected trip to Florida with one runaway bride, and a secret bargain struck with Coach.

A bargain that may just jeopardize the very real and very inconvenient feelings he's developing for the very last person he ever should.]]> 418 Emma St. Clair Torie 0 4.32 2024
author: Emma St. Clair
name: Torie
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at: 2024/09/02
date added: 2024/09/02
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]]> 36329818
After being swept up in the magical world of Caraval, Donatella Dragna has finally escaped her father and saved her sister, Scarlett, from a disastrous arranged marriage. The girls should be celebrating, but Tella isn’t yet free. She made a desperate bargain with a mysterious criminal, and what Tella owes him no one has ever been able to deliver: Caraval Master Legend’s true name.

The only chance of uncovering Legend’s identity is to win Caraval, so Tella throws herself into the legendary competition once more—and into the path of the murderous heir to the throne, a doomed love story, and a web of secrets…including her sister's. Caraval has always demanded bravery, cunning, and sacrifice, but now the game is asking for more. If Tella can’t fulfill her bargain and deliver Legend’s name, she’ll lose everything she cares about—maybe even her life. But if she wins, Legend and Caraval will be destroyed forever...

Welcome, welcome to Caraval . . . the games have only just begun.]]> 451 Stephanie Garber 125009531X Torie 5 4.11 2018
author: Stephanie Garber
name: Torie
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2024/08/20
date added: 2024/08/29
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]]> 40381392 A love worth fighting for. A dream worth dying for. An ending worth waiting for.

It’s been two months since the Fates were freed from a deck of cards, two months since Legend claimed the throne for his own, and two months since Tella discovered the boy she fell in love with doesn’t really exist.

With lives, empires, and hearts hanging in the balance, Tella must decide if she’s going to trust Legend or a former enemy. After uncovering a secret that upends her life, Scarlett will need to do the impossible. And Legend has a choice to make that will forever change and define him.

Caraval is over, but perhaps the greatest game of all has begun. There are no spectators this time—only those who will win, and those who will lose everything.

Welcome, welcome to Finale . . . all games must come to an end.]]> 478 Stephanie Garber 1250157668 Torie 4 4.14 2019
author: Stephanie Garber
name: Torie
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2019
rating: 4
read at: 2024/08/29
date added: 2024/08/29
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]]> 55771956 Emma Arlen has spent a decade as a member of the duke’s family, in the position of companion to his daughter and ward to the duke himself. She would do anything to show her support to the ducal family for their love and kindness. When Lady Josephine begs Emma to distract a most determined Sicilian suitor, she agrees at once. How hard can it be to keep one man entertained for a few weeks?

Luca, the Conte di Atella, left his home in the newly formed Kingdom of the Two Sicilies under the direct orders of King Ferdinand I. Luca’s duty as ambassador to England includes everything from negotiating better trade agreements to strengthening the bonds between the two nations. If possible, by marrying a lady of high birth. When he optimistically sets his sights on Lady Josephine, Miss Arlen consistently disrupts his plans. The more time that passes, the more he realizes he does not mind at all.

Continually in the conte’s company, Emma recognizes in him a spirit of adventure and nobility like she has never witnessed before. When the time comes for him to go, will she be able to part with him and keep her heart intact?

As the second stand-alone novel in a new series by author Sally Britton, this story continues the Clairvoir Castle romances. This is a light-hearted, romantic series set in the Regency period.]]> 249 Sally Britton Torie 0 4.19
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.19
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2024/08/29
date added: 2024/08/29
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]]> 543686
Set on the eve of the 1715 Jacobite uprising, Rob Roy brilliantly evokes a Scotland on the verge of rebellion, blending historical fact and a novelist's imagination to create an incomparable portrait of intrigue, rivalry and romance.]]> 501 Walter Scott 0140435549 Torie 0 3.70 1817
author: Walter Scott
name: Torie
average rating: 3.70
book published: 1817
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/28
shelves: to-read, reads-mentioned-in-other-books
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]]> 417549
Preached for its morality, and denounced as pornography in disguise, it vividly describes a young servant's long resistance to the attempts of her predatory master to seduce her. Written in the voice of its low-born heroine, Pamela is not only a work of pioneering psychological complexity, but also a compelling and provocative study of power and its abuse.

Based on the original text of 1740, from which Richardson later retreated in a series of defensive revisions, this edition makes available the version of Pamela that aroused such widespread controversy on its first appearance.]]> 592 Samuel Richardson 0192829602 Torie 0 to-read 2.79 1740
author: Samuel Richardson
name: Torie
average rating: 2.79
book published: 1740
rating: 0
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date added: 2024/08/28
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review:

]]> 55377889 As the new governess to the duke's family, Alice Sharpe must learn to control her impulsiveness. Employment in the duke’s household is a once in a lifetime opportunity, and could mean living in comfort the rest of her days. Unfortunately, her first encounter with the duke's houseguest, a handsome gentleman obsessed with insects, proves she may not be ready for the austere role of governess.

Rupert Gardiner has one goal: to have his work in entomology and botany published by the Royal Society. He is fortunate that the Duke of Montfort, believes in him and enlists Rupert to make a record of all the flora on the castle grounds. But Miss Sharpe’s spontaneity and continual appearance during his work is an annoying distraction. At least, that’s what he tells himself.

While Alice struggles to adapt to her new role, constantly striving to go unnoticed while still being herself, she cannot help but admire Rupert’s intelligence and focus. The more often they fall in together, the more her admiration deepens. But could a gentleman such as he ever fall in love with the governess?

As the first stand-alone novel in a new series by author Sally Britton, this story begins the Clairvoir Castle romances. This is a light-hearted series set in the Regency period.]]> 228 Sally Britton Torie 0 4.16 2020
author: Sally Britton
name: Torie
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2020
rating: 0
read at: 2024/08/27
date added: 2024/08/27
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review:

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