So, every month I put a list together of the books that I either need to read for review or the books that I want to get around to reading (finally). I’m also trying to be more responsible with my Kindle Unlimited and Audible Romance Package subscriptions so I’m going to post my TBR Pile on the blog so you guys can keep me honest. Before we get to my list for next month, let’s see how I did in February.
Previous Month Stats
Books to Read: 10
Books Read: 8
Books Unread: 2
Pages Read: 3,168 | Hours Listened: 18 hours, 86 minutes
Favorite Read: Huge Deal by Lauren Layne, Devil’s Daughter by Lisa Kleypas
Least Favorite Read: The Assist by Rebecca Jenshak
Once again, I read all but 2 books from my TBR pile for February. I was on track to read them all but I got really sick last week and took an unexpected week-long hiatus to get back on my feet. In that time, I didn’t read much so I fell behind some. Oh well, I’ll just tack those last two books onto my TBR pile for this month.
My favorite reads of the month go to Huge Deal by Lauren Layne, Devil’s Daughter by Lisa Kleypas, and The Risk by Elle Kennedy. I enjoyed all three of these books but I think I enjoyed the first two titles a smidge more than the last but still, all books were fabulous! Loved reading them all so much.
My least favorite read of the month goes to The Assist by Rebecca Jenshak. The writing was a little clunky for me and I didn’t connect with the characters and what happened in the book as much as I was hoping to though I am still planning on reading the next book in the series so that’s something.
I have loads of books to read in March and I’m barely hanging on to my GoodReads Challenge for this year so I need to up my game. I’m looking forward to challenging myself a lot more this coming month than I did last month. Here’s a list of books I plan on reading in March.
March’s TBR Pile
Team Player by Julianna Keyes
Releases on March 28, 2019
Publisher: Self Published
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 291
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Don’t hate the player…
BOTTOM NINE
Gwen Scott wants to love her job with the Charleston Thrashers, the MLB team she’s worshiped since she was a kid, but she can’t. Hateful colleagues and mind-numbing work make her days unbearable—until her head for baseball gets her exclusive access to the Thrashers’ clubhouse and she comes face-to-face with Tyler Ashe, the team’s sexy shortstop and baseball’s most ineligible bachelor.
BASES LOADED
Ty has sworn off relationships in order to focus on his all-star career, but with his best friend gone, his team struggling, and the press blaming him for every loss, the most recognizable man in the majors is in a slump. Until he starts spending his time off the field with a stern blonde who recites baseball stats for kicks and sees through his arrogant façade.
TWO OUT
As the Thrashers’ season gets into full swing and Gwen adjusts to her new job, their fun banter and friendly teasing turns into stolen kisses and countless steamy nights. The team’s strict policy against player-staff relationships throws a curve ball into the mix, but they can’t hide from their feelings any more than the most famous man in baseball can hide from the spotlight…
I need to play catch up this month on my review pile. I read some books outside of my TBR pile last month and then I went through a week or two of not reading much of anything which put me behind so this is going to be one of the first books I pick up off my review pile. I enjoyed the one book that I read by Keyes and this one sounds like my kind of romance so I’m all over this one.
Eyes on Me by Rachel Harris
Releases on March 26, 2019
Publisher: Entangled, Entangled Teen
Genres: Young Adult
Pages: 320
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Look up the word “nerd” and you’ll find Lily Cooper’s picture. She’s got one goal: first stop valedictorian, next stop Harvard. Until a stint in the hospital from too much stress lands her in the last place a klutz like her ever expected to be: salsa dance lessons.
Look up the word “popular” and you’ll find Stone Torres’s picture. His life seems perfect—star of the football team, straight-A student, lots of friends. But his family is struggling to make ends meet, so if pitching in at the Torres dance studio helps, he’ll do it.
When Lily’s dad offers Stone extra cash to volunteer as Lily’s permanent dance partner, he can’t refuse. But with each dip and turn, each moment her hand is in his, his side job starts to feel all too real. But in dance, as in life, one wrong move and someone could get hurt.
I meant to read this last month but that didn’t happen and I’m blaming the time that I got royally sick over some issues I was having with my new prescription. That put me out of commission for an entire day and the rest of the week, I wasn’t feeling too hot so my desire to do anything was next to nil and reading was included in that mess. I’ll knock this one off this month, definitely.
The Austen Playbook (London Celebrities #4) by Lucy Parker
Releases on April 22, 2019
Publisher: Carina Press
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 400
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
In which experienced West End actress Freddy Carlton takes on an Austen-inspired play, a scandal at a country estate, an enthusiastic search for a passion outside of acting…and the (some people might say icy*) heart of London’s most feared theater critic.
*if those people were being nice
Freddy Carlton knows she should be focusing on her lines for The Austen Playbook, a live-action TV event where viewers choose the outcome of each scene, but her concentration’s been blown. The palatial estate housing the endeavor is now run by the rude (brilliant) critic who’s consistently slammed her performances of late. James “Griff” Ford-Griffin has a penchant for sarcasm, a majestic nose and all the sensitivity of a sledgehammer.
She can’t take her eyes off him.
Griff can hardly focus with a contagious joy fairy flitting about near him, especially when Freddy looks at him like that. His only concern right now should be on shutting down his younger brother’s well-intentioned (disastrous) schemes—or at the very least on the production (not this one) that might save his family home from the banks.
Instead all he can think of is soft skin and vibrant curls.
As he’s reluctantly dragged into her quest to rediscover her passion for the stage and Freddy is drawn into his research on a legendary theater star, the adage about appearances being deceiving proves abundantly true. It’s the unlikely start of something enormous…but a single revelation about the past could derail it all.
We’re getting Freddy’s book and I’m super excited about it. This is on my review pile for March and I’m stoked because I’ve been looking forward to Freddy’s book since the last book in this series. This is a fun and pretty addicting series and I’m so looking forward to more.
You’d be Mine by Erin Hahn
Releases on April 2, 2019
Publisher: Indie Published
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
Pages: 304
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Annie Mathers is America’s sweetheart and heir to a country music legacy full of all the things her Gran warned her about. Superstar Clay Coolidge is most definitely going to end up one of those things.
But unfortunately for Clay, if he can’t convince Annie to join his summer tour, his music label is going to drop him. That’s what happens when your bad boy image turns into bad boy reality. Annie has been avoiding the spotlight after her parents’ tragic death, except on her skyrocketing YouTube channel. Clay’s label wants to land Annie, and Clay has to make it happen.
Swayed by Clay’s undeniable charm and good looks, Annie and her band agree to join the tour. From the start fans want them to be more than just tour mates, and Annie and Clay can’t help but wonder if the fans are right. But if there’s one part of fame Annie wants nothing to do with, it’s a high-profile relationship. She had a front row seat to her parents’ volatile marriage and isn’t interested in repeating history. If only she could convince her heart that Clay, with his painful past and head over heels inducing tenor, isn’t worth the risk.
Erin Hahn’s thrilling debut, You’d Be Mine, asks: can the right song and the perfect summer on the road make two broken hearts whole?
I’ve had this book for review for a few months now and it’s time to get this one read. March is the month that this book will be read and reviewed.
When We Left Cuba by Chanel Cleeton
Releases on April 9, 2019
Publisher: Penguin, Berkley
Genres: Historical, Fiction
Pages: 368
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
In 1960s Florida, a young Cuban exile will risk her life–and heart–to take back her country in this exhilarating historical novel from the author of Next Year in Havana, a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick.
Beautiful. Daring. Deadly.
The Cuban Revolution took everything from sugar heiress Beatriz Perez–her family, her people, her country. Recruited by the CIA to infiltrate Fidel Castro’s inner circle and pulled into the dangerous world of espionage, Beatriz is consumed by her quest for revenge and her desire to reclaim the life she lost.
As the Cold War swells like a hurricane over the shores of the Florida Strait, Beatriz is caught between the clash of Cuban American politics and the perils of a forbidden affair with a powerful man driven by ambitions of his own. When the ever-changing tides of history threaten everything she has fought for, she must make a choice between her past and future–but the wrong move could cost Beatriz everything–not just the island she loves, but also the man who has stolen her heart…
Another review book but it’s also a book that I’ve been seeing such great early reviews for so I’m pretty stoked to be getting to this one. I’ll probably be reading the first book too. I can’t wait.
The Key to Happily Ever After by Tif Marcelo
Releases on April 23, 2019
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Gallery
Genres: Contemporary, Women’s Fiction
Pages: 320
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
A charming romantic comedy about three sisters who are struggling to keep the family wedding planning business afloat—all the while trying to write their own happily-ever-afters in the process.
All’s fair in love and business.
The de la Rosa family and their wedding planning business have been creating happily ever afters in the Washington, DC area for years, making even the most difficult bride’s day a fairytale. But when their parents announce their retirement, the sisters—Marisol, Janelyn, and Pearl—are determined to take over the business themselves.
But the sisters quickly discover that the wedding business isn’t all rings and roses. There are brides whose moods can change at the drop of a hat; grooms who want to control every part of the process; and couples who argue until their big day. As emotions run high, the de la Rosa sisters quickly realize one thing: even when disaster strikes—whether it’s a wardrobe malfunction or a snowmageddon in the middle of a spring wedding—they’ll always have each other.
Perfect for fans of the witty and engaging novels of Amy E. Reichert and Susan Mallery, The Key to Happily Ever After is a fresh romantic comedy that celebrates the crucial and profound power of sisterhood.
I’ve been looking forward to this book for some time as well and it’s up for review so I’ll be knocking this one out, hopefully.
Fumbled (Play Book #2) by Alexa Martin
Releases on April 23, 2019
Publisher: Penguin, Berkley
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 336
Format: earc
Source: NetGalley
A second chance doesn’t guarantee a touchdown in this new contemporary romance from the author of Intercepted.
Single-mother Poppy Patterson moved across the country when she was sixteen and pregnant to find a new normal. After years of hard work, she’s built a life she loves. It may include a job at a nightclub, weekend soccer games, and more stretch marks than she anticipated, but it’s all hers, and nobody can take that away. Well, except for one person.
T.K. Moore, the starting wide receiver for the Denver Mustangs, dreamt his entire life about being in the NFL. His world is football, parties, and women. Maybe at one point he thought his future would play out with his high school sweetheart by his side, but Poppy is long gone and he’s moved on.
When Poppy and TK cross paths in the most unlikely of places, emotions they’ve suppressed for years come rushing back. But with all the secrets they never told each other lying between them, they’ll need more than a dating playbook to help them navigate their relationship.
I love me some sports romances and this one sounds like a good one so I’m going to be all over this one, for sure. If I can fit in a read of the first book before I jump into this one, that will be ideal but more than anything, I need to read this one so wish me luck on that.
Overnight Sensation (Brooklyn Bruisers #5) by Sarina Bowen
Released on January 22, 2019
Publisher: Indie Published, Tuxbury Publishing LLC
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 338
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Everyone knows the girl is off limits. But it’s so good to be bad.
There’s this girl…
Heidi and I have been trading hungry looks all year, and everything she does makes me smile. But I don’t do girlfriends, and I certainly can’t get involved with the league commissioner’s daughter. I need shots on goal, not a hookup and a widely misunderstood paparazzi photo.
Can I resist her, though? The way she teases me should be a game penalty for interference with my libido.
There’s this guy…
Jason wants me, but he won’t admit it. That man looks at me the way a hockey player eyes the lunch buffet after practice—and I love it.
But when victory is finally within my grasp, I blow it and humiliate myself. Even then I can’t even avoid him—as the team intern, I’m in constant view of his hard body and cocky smile.
I need another chance. Jason Castro is about to learn the true meaning of an overnight sensation.
Holly and I will be reading and reviewing this book together on Book Binge next month so be on the lookout for that. I’ve been meaning to read this ever since it showed up on my kindle, on the release day but I never got around to it. Coulda, shoulda, woulda but didn’t but not anymore…I’m reading this shit in March.
The Right Swipe (Modern Love #1) by Alisha Rai
Releases on July 2, 2019
Publisher: Harper Collins
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 384
Format: eARC
Source: Edelweiss
Alisha Rai returns with the first book in her sizzling new Modern Love series, in which two rival dating app creators find themselves at odds in the boardroom but in sync in the bedroom.
Rhiannon Hunter may have revolutionized romance in the digital world, but in real life she only swipes right on her career—and the occasional hookup. The cynical dating app creator controls her love life with a few key rules:
– Nude pics are by invitation only
– If someone stands you up, block them with extreme prejudice
– Protect your heartOnly there aren’t any rules to govern her attraction to her newest match, former pro-football player Samson Lima. The sexy and seemingly sweet hunk woos her one magical night… and disappears.
Rhi thought she’d buried her hurt over Samson ghosting her, until he suddenly surfaces months later, still big, still beautiful—and in league with a business rival. He says he won’t fumble their second chance, but she’s wary. A temporary physical partnership is one thing, but a merger of hearts? Surely that’s too high a risk…
I’m putting this book on my TBR pile for March because dude, I didn’t know that the hero in this book was Samoan. I’m Samoan and I’ve been dying for romances with characters just like me so I’m making room for this one on my TBR pile for next month because finally, my brown folks are getting some love and I’m itching to see how this Samoan character plays out. I’m excited!
The Last Letter by Rebecca Yarros
Released on February 26, 2019
Publisher: Entangled, Entangled Amara
Genres: Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 432
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Beckett,
If you’re reading this, well, you know the last-letter drill. You made it. I didn’t. Get off the guilt train, because I know if there was any chance you could have saved me, you would have.
I need one thing from you: get out of the army and get to Telluride.
My little sister Ella’s raising the twins alone. She’s too independent and won’t accept help easily, but she has lost our grandmother, our parents, and now me. It’s too much for anyone to endure. It’s not fair.
And here’s the kicker: there’s something else you don’t know that’s tearing her family apart. She’s going to need help.
So if I’m gone, that means I can’t be there for Ella. I can’t help them through this. But you can. So I’m begging you, as my best friend, go take care of my sister, my family.
Please don’t make her go through it alone.
Ryan
Ames and I will be reviewing this together here on this blog in the month of March as Ames has chosen it for our buddy review. I’d never heard of this book or this author before so it’ll be a new to me delight, fingers crossed. Stay tuned for that.
Magic Bites (Kate Daniels #1) by Ilona Andrews
Released on March 27, 2007
Publisher: Penguin, Ace
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 260
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Atlanta would be a nice place to live, if it weren’t for the magic…
When the magic is up, rogue mages cast their spells and monsters appear, while guns refuse to fire and cars fail to start. But then technology returns, and the magic recedes as unpredictably as it arose, leaving all kinds of paranormal problems in its wake.
Kate Daniels is a down-on-her-luck mercenary who makes her living cleaning up these magical problems. But when Kate’s guardian is murdered, her quest for justice draws her into a power struggle between two strong factions within Atlanta’s magic circles.
The Masters of the Dead, necromancers who can control vampires, and the Pack, a paramilitary clan of shapechangers, blame each other for a series of bizarre killings—and the death of Kate’s guardian may be part of the same mystery. Pressured by both sides to find the killer, Kate realizes she’s way out of her league—but she wouldn’t have it any other way…
The last book on my TBR pile for this month is my featured review book for Book Binge. Casee, Holly, and I will be reading and reviewing this together over there so I’ll definitely be reading this one. I’m pretty stoked about this read because I’ve been wanting to start the Kate Daniels series for ages and now I have to. Yippy skippy!
What books are on your TBR pile for March? Anything good that I should keep my eye out on? Please share the books you have on deck to read next month.
