Books to Binge On: April 2017

Posted April 3, 2017 by Rowena in Features | 3 Comments

Books to Binge On

Rowena: I can’t believe that we’re already in April. Where does the time go? Seriously. April brings with it a lot of new releases that I’m pretty stoked about. Here is a list of books that we’re looking forward to.


The Thing about Love by Julie James.

Two undercover FBI agents can hide who they are from everyone but each other in the latest novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Suddenly One Summer.

FBI agents Jessica Harlow and John Shepherd have a past. The former lawyer and cocky Army ranger clashed during their training at Quantico, gladly going their separate ways after graduating from the Academy. Six years later, the last thing either of them expects is to run into each other again–assigned to work as partners in a high-profile undercover sting.

For both of them, being paired with a former rival couldn’t come at a worse time. Recently divorced from a Hollywood producer and looking for a fresh start, Jessica is eager to prove herself at her new field office. And John is just one case away from his dream assignment to the FBI’s elite Hostage Rescue Team. In order to nail a corrupt Florida politician, they’ll have to find a way to work as a team–a task that becomes even trickier when they’re forced to hole up at a romantic, beachfront resort as part of the investigation. Suddenly, the heat behind their nonstop sparring threatens to make the job a whole lot more complicated. . .

Rowena: Julie James is an auto buy author for me and I’m definitely going to be purchasing this book on the day of release because I thoroughly enjoyed reading the eARC for this book. John and Jess were a great couple and Julie James wrote another fabulous contemporary romance that I will re-read over the years.

Holly: James always delivers a fresh, exciting read. This book was no exception. I’ve already pre-ordered my copy.


Walk of Shame (Love Unexpectedly #4) by Lauren Layne.

Sparks fly between a misunderstood New York socialite and a cynical divorce lawyer in this lively standalone rom-com from the USA Today bestselling author of Blurred Lines and Love Story.

Pampered heiress Georgianna Watkins has a party-girl image to maintain, but all the shopping and clubbing is starting to feel a little bit hollow—and a whole lot lonely. Though Georgie would never admit it, the highlights of her week are the mornings when she comes home at the same time as her uptight, workaholic neighbor is leaving to hit the gym and put in a long day at the office. Teasing him is the most fun Georgie’s had in years—and the fuel for all her naughtiest daydreams.

Celebrity divorce attorney Andrew Mulroney doesn’t have much time for women, especially spoiled tabloid princesses who spend more time on Page Six than at an actual job. Although Georgie’s drop-dead gorgeous, she’s also everything Andrew resents: the type of girl who inherited her penthouse instead of earning it. But after Andrew caps one of their predawn sparring sessions with a surprise kiss—a kiss that’s caught on camera—all of Manhattan is gossiping about whether they’re a real couple. And nobody’s more surprised than Andrew to find that the answer just might be yes.

Rowena: Lauren Layne is another auto-buy author for me. Her books never fail to bring me such reading joy. I already inhaled this book and enjoyed the heck out of it so I’ll be purchasing a final copy for my personal library. If this book isn’t on your TBB list, you should fix it. It’s a good one.


The Hot Shot (Game On #4) by Kristen Callihan.

First we were friends. Then we were roommates. Now I want more…

What can I say about Chess Copper? The woman is capable of bringing me to my knees. I know this about five minutes after getting naked for her.

No one is more surprised than me. The prickly photographer my team hired to shoot our annual charity calendar isn’t my usual type. She’s defense to my offense, a challenge at every turn. But when I’m with her, all the regrets and darkness goes away. She makes life fun.

I want to know Chess, be close to her. Which is a bad idea.

Chess is looking for a relationship. I’ve never given a woman more than one night. But when fate leaves Chess without a home, I step up and offer her mine. We’re roommates now. Friends without benefits. But it’s getting harder to keep our hands off each other. And the longer we live together the more I realize she’s becoming my everything.

Trick is… Now that I’ve made her believe I’m a bad bet, how do I convince her to give this player a true shot at forever?

Rowena: I’m really enjoying this series so of course this is on my wish list. The only problem is, I’m starting to mix up characters from this series, the Off Campus series by Elle Kennedy and the Woodlands series by Jen Frederick. I’ll need to do a re-read of the previous books in this series but that shouldn’t be a problem since I have loved them all. So because I loved those books, this is automatically on my to buy list.

Holly: Like Rowena, I keep getting these series mixed up! I need to do a re-read before this one releases so I can get all the characters straight in my head. I’m excited for a new release in this series.


Midnight Target (Killer Instincts #8) by Elle Kennedy.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Score and Midnight Revenge…

Four years ago, Cate’s entire life changed when she discovered she was the daughter of a supersoldier. But Jim Morgan’s overprotectiveness has pushed her away. These days, she’s working as a freelance photographer and living the dangerous life Jim never wanted for her.

When Cate snaps a photo linking a corrupt South American politician with the leader of a notorious drug cartel, her mercenary father leads a team to rescue her—only to get shot and critically wounded in the process.

As Morgan’s operatives rally together on a revenge mission, they’re faced with new alliances and old heartaches. Cate is forced to work with David “Ash” Ashton, the man who broke her heart two years ago, while Liam Macgregor and Sullivan Port resurface after years apart to finally try to deal with everything they’d left unsaid.

Soon it’s all-out war between the cartel and the mercenaries—with two couples caught in the middle of the blood feud. Love and redemption are within their reach…but first they have to make it home alive.

Rowena: This is the final book in the Killer Instincts series and I’m really sad that it’s over and done with. I read an eARC of this book and overall, I thought it was a good read. The heroine pissed me off in the beginning. So much so that I wanted to throat punch her for like five straight chapters. Still, everything else was great. Sully and Liam? Seeing the entire team come together to help Jim out? Loved all of that.

Casee: I read an eARC of this book and I loved Liam and Sully. The heroine totally pissed me off. Like, I wanted to wanted to throat punch her throughout the whole book. Liam and Sully though? Loved them.


Blame it on the Duke (The Disgraceful Dukes #3) by Lenora Bell.

Have you heard?
The future Duke of Barrington has just been gambled away by his father. To an heiress!
The delicious details thus far…

Nicolas, Lord Hatherly, never intended to marry—nor add to the “mad” Hatherly line—but now he must honor his father’s debt to a social-climbing merchant or lose the family estate.

A notoriously wild marquess, won by her father at a game of cards, is the very last thing Miss Alice Tombs wants. She’s spent the last three seasons repelling suitors in spectacular fashion so she’d be at liberty to explore the world. She’ll just have to drive this one away as well.

Until Nick proposes an utterly tempting arrangement: one summer together to prove the legitimacy of their union, then Alice is free to travel while Nick revels in the time he has left before the Hatherly Madness takes hold.

It will be easy to walk away after a few months of make-believe wedded bliss—won’t it? Alice and Nick are about to find out…one sultry night at a time.

This ought to be fun . . .

Rowena: I glommed this series last week and really enjoyed it. This book included so I’m including this book on this month’s list because I will be purchasing a final copy and think that everyone should add this to their buy list because it’s a good one. Lenora Bell did a fabulous job with this series and I really enjoyed Nick and Alice’s story. They were such a great couple!


The Day of the Duchess (Scandal & Scoundrel #3) by Sarah MacLean.

The one woman he will never forget…
Malcolm Bevingstoke, Duke of Haven, has lived the last three years in self-imposed solitude, paying the price for a mistake he can never reverse and a love he lost forever. The dukedom does not wait, however, and Haven requires an heir, which means he must find himself a wife by summer’s end. There is only one problem—he already has one.

The one man she will never forgive…
After years in exile, Seraphina, Duchess of Haven, returns to London with a single goal—to reclaim the life she left and find happiness, unencumbered by the man who broke her heart. Haven offers her a deal; Sera can have her freedom, just as soon as she finds her replacement…which requires her to spend the summer in close quarters with the husband she does not want, but somehow cannot resist.

A love that neither can deny…
The duke has a single summer to woo his wife and convince her that, despite their broken past, he can give her forever, making every day The Day of the Duchess.

Rowena: When I first saw that this was Seraphina’s book, I gasped out loud because…HOLY SHIT! This is Seraphina’s book! The same Sera right smack in the middle of the big scandal that started this series off with a bang! I didn’t think we were going to get her story or that her story was going to feature a hero…who broke her heart in front of the entire ball. Holy cow, this book is going to be the death of me. I just know it. I cannot freaking wait to read this book.

Holly: I still have the first two books TBR, but they’re nearing the top of the pile. I plan to dig in soon.


Always and Forever, Lara Jean (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before #3) by Jenny Han.

Lara Jean’s letter-writing days aren’t over in this surprise follow-up to the New York Times bestselling To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before and P.S. I Still Love You.

Lara Jean is having the best senior year a girl could ever hope for. She is head over heels in love with her boyfriend, Peter; her dad’s finally getting remarried to their next door neighbor, Ms. Rothschild; and Margot’s coming home for the summer just in time for the wedding.

But change is looming on the horizon. And while Lara Jean is having fun and keeping busy helping plan her father’s wedding, she can’t ignore the big life decisions she has to make. Most pressingly, where she wants to go to college and what that means for her relationship with Peter. She watched her sister Margot go through these growing pains. Now Lara Jean’s the one who’ll be graduating high school and leaving for college and leaving her family—and possibly the boy she loves—behind.

When your heart and your head are saying two different things, which one should you listen to?

Rowena: I’ve been enjoying this series ever since I read the first book so on one hand, I’m happy to have another book but on the other, I’m low key ready for this series to end. Lara Jane is a great character and I adore Peter so even though I don’t think more books are needed, I’m still going to read them.


Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer.

Juliet Young always writes letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother’s death, she leaves letters at her grave. It’s the only way Juliet can cope.

Declan Murphy isn’t the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he’s trying to escape the demons of his past.

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can’t resist writing back. Soon, he’s opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither Declan nor Juliet knows that they’re not actually strangers. When life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, sparks will fly as Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart.

Rowena: I’ve been reading some really great early reviews for this book and I’m mighty curious to read the book for myself. This went straight on to my wish list when I read Nick’s review of this book on her blog. She gives it 5 stars and that’s high praise coming from one of my favorite book pimps. I’m so in for this book.


Alex, Approximately by Jenn Bennett.

In this delightfully charming teen spin on You’ve Got Mail, the one guy Bailey Rydell can’t stand is actually the boy of her dreams—she just doesn’t know it yet.

Classic movie buff Bailey “Mink” Rydell has spent months crushing on a witty film geek she only knows online by “Alex.” Two coasts separate the teens until Bailey moves in with her dad, who lives in the same California surfing town as her online crush.

Faced with doubts (what if he’s a creep in real life—or worse?), Bailey doesn’t tell Alex she’s moved to his hometown. Or that she’s landed a job at the local tourist-trap museum. Or that she’s being heckled daily by the irritatingly hot museum security guard, Porter Roth—a.k.a. her new arch-nemesis. But life is whole lot messier than the movies, especially when Bailey discovers that tricky fine line between hate, love, and whatever-it-is she’s starting to feel for Porter.

And as the summer months go by, Bailey must choose whether to cling to a dreamy online fantasy in Alex or take a risk on an imperfect reality with Porter. The choice is both simpler and more complicated than she realizes, because Porter Roth is hiding a secret of his own: Porter is Alex…Approximately.

Rowena: This is another book that is getting some pretty great reviews around blogland and I’m mighty curious to try it out for myself. I’m ready for a You’ve Got Mail retelling in a contemporary YA setting. Bring this one on!

The Chosen by J.R. Ward.

Xcor, leader of the Band of Bastards, convicted of treason against the Blind King, is facing a brutal interrogation and torturous death at the hands of the Black Dagger Brotherhood. Yet after a life marked by cruelty and evil deeds, he accepts his soldier’s fate, his sole regret the loss of a sacred female who was never his: the Chosen Layla.

Layla alone knows the truth that will save Xcor’s life. But revealing his sacrifice and his hidden heritage will expose them both and destroy everything Layla holds dear—even her role of mother to her precious young. Torn between love and loyalty, she must summon the courage to stand up against the only family she has for the only man she will ever love. Yet even if Xcor is somehow granted a reprieve, he and Layla would have to confront a graver challenge: bridging the chasm that divides their worlds without paving the way for a future of even greater war, desolation, and death.

As a dangerous old enemy returns to Caldwell, and the identity of a new deity is revealed, nothing is certain or safe in the world of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, not even true love . . . or destinies that have long seemed set in stone.

Casee: Everyone knows of my love/hate relationship with J.R. Ward. That doesn’t stop me from reading her books. Xcor is your ideal anti hero. I’m sure the book will suck me right in.

Wicked Abyss by Kresley Cole.

The terrifying king of hell…

As a boy, Abyssian “Sian” Infernas had his heart shattered by a treacherous fey beauty who died before he could exact vengeance. Millennia later, a curse has transformed him into a demonic monster—just as she’s been reincarnated. Sian captures the delicate but bold female, forcing her back to hell.

Meets his match.

Princess Calliope “Lila” Barbot’s people have hated and feared Abyssian and his alliance of monsters for aeons. When the beastly demon imprisons her in his mystical castle, vowing revenge for betrayals she can’t remember, Lila makes her own vow: to bring down the wicked beast for good.

Can two adversaries share one happily-ever-after?

As Calliope turns hell inside out, the all-powerful Sian finds himself defenseless against his feelings for her. In turn, Lila reluctantly responds to the beast’s cleverness and gruff vulnerability. But when truths from a far distant past are revealed, can their tenuous bond withstand ages of deceit, a curse, and a looming supernatural war?

Casee: I adore the Immortals After Dark. There isn’t one book in the series that I haven’t loved.


The Deep End by Kristen Ashley.

Enter a decadent sensual world where gorgeous alpha males are pleasure slaves committed to fulfilling a woman’s every desire. At the elite Honey club, no boundary will be left untested, and one’s darkest desires will become a sensual reality.

Olivier isn’t sure what he’s gotten himself into when he joins the Honey Club, only that a dark part of him craves the lifestyle offered by this secret, exclusive club.

When Amèlie invites Olivier to surrender, she pushes him to explore his deepest desires as a submissive. As they grow closer and find themselves falling harder than either of them anticipated, the truth about Olivier’s past could threaten the budding relationship they both long for.

Gripping and seductive, The Deep End is the first book in a sensational new series from bestselling author Kristen Ashley.

Holly: I’m still on the fence about this series. Ashley usually works for me, but I’m not really a fan of BDSM. I’m going to reserve judgement for now.


Hard-Hearted Highlander by Julia London.

A indomitable governess…a brooding Highlander…a forbidden affair…

An ill-fated elopement cost English-born governess Bernadette Kent her reputation, her fickle lover and any chance of a future match. She has nothing left to fear—not even the bitter, dangerously handsome Scot due to marry her young charge. Naive wallflower Avaline is terrified to wed Rabbie Mackenzie, but if he sends her home, she will be ruined. Bernadette’s solution: convince Rabbie to get Avaline to cry off while ignoring her own traitorous attraction to him.

A forced engagement to an Englishwoman is a hard pill for any Scot to swallow. It’s even worse when the fiancee in question is a delicate, foolish young miss unlike her spirited, quick-witted governess. Sparring with Bernadette brings passion and light back to Rabbie’s life after the failed Jacobite uprising. His clan’s future depends upon his match to another, but how can any Highlander forsake a love that stirs his heart and soul?

Holly: I took a long break from historical romance, but I’m starting to pick it up again here and there. I have a lot to catch up on, including this series. London always worked for me in the past, so I’m looking forward to it.


Tempted by Fate by Cynthia Eden.

You can’t cheat Fate…and for the record, she really doesn’t like it when you betray her, either.

Leo is used to having power. After all, he carries the title Lord of the Light for a reason–he’s a supernatural powerhouse and his job is protect all of the “light” paranormals in the world. He’s used to snapping his fingers and getting anything–or anyone–he wants. But when he fell for Fate, Leo learned that power didn’t get a man everything. In fact, it didn’t even get him the one woman he wanted most…

Fate…AKA Mora (that’s the name she prefers to use–a lot less weighty on her shoulders) has spent centuries hiding from her supernatural ex-lover, Leo. Most people fear Leo and rightly so. He’s got immense power and a definite date with an unfortunate end-of-the-world calamity. When Leo seduced Mora and promised to put the world at her feet, she actually thought the guy had fallen for her. Too late, she discovered he was just using her in an attempt to change his destiny.

And Leo’s destiny? It’s not pretty. Some very, very bad things are coming for him. Mora shouldn’t care about the danger he faces. She should turn her back on her ex. His heart is ice cold, she knows that, but her own heart…it’s still a little weak where Leo is concerned.

Leo has tried to walk on the side of good for a long time…but his sins are coming back to haunt him. A darkness is trying to consume him, and if Mora can’t help him…then it’s not just Leo who will pay the price for his past. The whole world will change.

You think you know the Lord of the Light? Think again.

Holly: This series has been hit or miss for me, but I’m intrigued by this one.


My One True Highlander by Suzanne Enoch.

Rugged highlander Graeme has one thing on his mind—take a stand against the horrible Englishman Lattimer and he will be rewarded with enough money to be set for life. But when his reckless younger brothers take it one step too far and kidnaps a young woman on her way to see Lattimer, Graeme has to intervene. He cannot send the lady back without his kin getting in trouble. And when a damsel this beautiful is dropped into your lap, it’s hard to let her go…

Marjorie should be terrified she’s been captured by highland scoundrels, but it’s hard to live in terror when your captor is a devilishly handsome and sinfully tempting as Graeme is. She cannot stay by his side forever—no matter how her heart may pound at the thought—but Graeme seems to have other plans. This wicked highlander is out to seduce her and doesn’t plan to stop until she’s in his arms…forever…

Holly: Enoch has long been a favorite. I’m excited for more highlanders.


Twist by Kylie Scott.

When his younger brother loses interest in online dating, hot, bearded, bartender extraordinaire, Joe Collins, only intends to log into his account and shut it down. Until he reads about her.

Alex Parks is funny, friendly, and pretty much everything he’s been looking for in a woman. And in no time at all they’re emailing up a storm, telling each other their deepest darkest secrets… apart from the one that really matters.

And when it comes to love, serving it straight up works better than with a twist.

Holly: I’ve been on a contemporary romance hiatus, but I’m still stockpiling these for when I’m in the mood again. I loved Scott’s Stage Dive series.


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3 responses to “Books to Binge On: April 2017

  1. Kareni

    Lots of interesting choices above! I’m eager to read the new books by Julie James and by Kristen Callihan. Letters to the Lost sounds like my cup of tea.

  2. Jen

    Oh yes, the Julie James one is so good! The new HelenKay Dimon one is also coming out at the end of the month (Enforcer) and tbh I’m sad I didn’t get an ARC because I really want to read that now, ha.

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