The Collagen Diet: A 28-Day Plan for Sustained Weight Loss, Glowing Skin, Great Gut Health, and a Younger You. By Josh Axe.

The Collagen Diet: A 28-Day Plan for Sustained Weight Loss, Glowing Skin, Great Gut Health, and a Younger You. By Josh Axe. 2019. Little Brown Spark (ARC eBook).

Supported by research, Dr. Axe lays out the importance collagen plays in creating and maintaining healthy joints, hair, gastrointestinal tract and more. And as the title suggests, there is a diet plan included which aims to guide readers in which foods to include or eliminate while incorporating collagen-rich foods or supplements into their daily consumption. Overall, The Collagen Diet will act as a good reference book for collagen research and recipes. 

266 pages

Wildcrafted Fermentation: Exploring, Transforming, and Preserving the Wild Flavors of Your Local Terroir. By Pascal Baudar.

Wildcrafted Fermentation: Exploring, Transforming, and Preserving the Wild Flavors of Your Local Terroir. By Pascal Baudar. 2020. Chelsea Green Publishing (ARC eBook).

A colorful and informative foray into fermentation. I was looking forward to learning recipes beyond kombucha and traditional sauerkraut and boy does this book deliver.

304 pages

Z is for Zoom: A Scientific Alphabet of How Things Go, from Alternator to Zerk Fitting (Baby University). By Ashley Malec, Illustrator: Teresa Bellon.

 

Z is for Zoom: A Scientific Alphabet of How Things Go, from Alternator to Zerk Fitting (Baby University). By Ashley Malec, Illustrator: Teresa Bellon. 2020. Sourcebooks eXplore. (ARC eBook).

What a great way to structure a book so that it can be revisited over time, introducing new elements as the child grows. And the illustrations of rabbits, foxes and alligators cruising down the road are adorable and also clearly demonstrate the parts, mechanisms and actions of each A-Z word. 

26 pages

The Friend Zone (End of the Line #1). By Sariah Wilson.

The Friend Zone (End of the Line #1). By Sariah Wilson. 2019. Montlake Romance. ASIN: B07L5M7DYY (Kindle).

An entertaining read it if you like the slow burn, college jock/tutor & forbidden relationship tropes.

299 pages

Fair Weather Enemies. By Sawyer North.

Fair Weather Enemies. By Sawyer North. 2020. Entangled: Scandalous (ARC eBook).

After several harsh winters in which crops and mills have suffered, Adam Ashford and Jane Hancock have found themselves in debt to a London creditor and a dismal future awaiting both of them. The Ashfords and Hancocks of Oxfordshire have long feuded between their families and Adam and Jane have vexed each other since they were children, but when secrets of their shared history are unearthed, the two adversaries enter into a contract that has them trekking across England in search of a long lost treasure. Along the way, their respect and attraction for each other grows and they begin to wonder whether it’s too late for new beginnings.
 
Fair Weather Enemies is a delightful debut in the historical romance genre for North. Adam and Jane are such likeable characters and if you like the enemies to lovers trope, road trips, riddles and colorful characters popping up along the way, you’ll want to pick this book up. This was a fun read from start to finish! 

289 pages

 

The Highland Rogue (Lords of the Highlands #7). By Amy Jareki.

The Highland Rogue (Lords of the Highlands #7). By Amy Jareki. 2020. Forever (ARC eBook).

Left by her clan on the desolate Scottish isle of Hyskier, Divana Campbell has survived the last two years on her own by digging up clams and pelting birds with rocks. Now there is an injured man on her beach and she has seen too much of death to not help him.

Sir Kennan Cameron’s ship and crew were set upon by the notorious pirate Jackson Vane and Kennan would not have survived the aftermath if not for the fiery and compassionate Divana. Kennan knows they must leave the isle. Divana deserves a real home within the safety of his clan, and he has every notion to set sail after Vane to get his revenge. As the heir to a powerful chieftan, Divana knows Sir Kennan can not marry someone of her lower station. But she can’t stand to part from him, so she find herself taking to the high seas with Kennan on an adventure full of dangerous pirates and powerful desire.

Looking for a well-crafted Scottish historical romance with a capable and endearingly flirtatious heroine and a rugged Highlander, then look no more. An entertaining read and another great installment in the Lords of the Highlands world! 

352 pages

Scot Under the Covers (Wild Wicked Highlanders #2). By Suzanne Enoch.

Scot Under the Covers (Wild Wicked Highlanders #2). By Suzanne Enoch. 2020. St. Martin’s Paperbacks (ARC ebook).
 

Miranda Harris is known for her charm and good-standing in London society. She is also, as Aden MacTaggert quickly learns, strongly opinionated on gamblers--quite frankly, they are a blight. But when she should be celebrating with her family over her brother’s engagement to Eloise MacTaggert, she is instead horrified to learn that her brother, Mathew, has incurred a devastating debt to Captain Robert Vale, and has promised her hand to the vile man in order to negate the debt. Up til now, Miranda has been able to solve any problem she has encountered, but she is going to need help in order to save her brother’s future happiness, her family’s reputation, and herself..

Miranda approaches the elusive and crafty Aden MacTaggert, her future brother-in-law, and proposes a partnership—she will teach him how to navigate the ton in exchange for him teaching her everything he knows about wagering and how the gambling mind works. With Miranda and Mathew’s secret, Aden has a way to prevent his sister from marrying and thereby escaping his mother’s manipulation, but the more time he spends with Miranda, the more determined he becomes to make her his Sassenach bride.

The first chapter will snare and reel you in with rowdy kilt-wearing, boot-throwing brothers, a scruffy mutt, and a stuffed deer in the foyer collecting ascots and ear bobbers. Scot Under the Covers delivers an engaging pairing with Aden, who is slow to let his heart trust, and Miranda, who always follows the rules. And the plot that plants three highlanders in the midst of London society produces a lively secondary cast and a nice mix of both Regency and Scottish romance elements. Sexiness, charm, and entertaining brogue abound in this fun read by Enoch.

352 pages

All Fired Up (Road to Love #3). By Lori Foster.

All Fired Up (Road to Love #3). By Lori Foster. 2019. HQN Books (ARC eBook).

Working as the office manager at Mustang Transport and considered a part of the Crews family, Charlotte Parrish has seen more than a fair share of trouble follow Brodie and Jack around. And as much as she loves them, she resolved long ago that the man she will give her heart to will be the exact opposite of the “bad boy.” But then Mitch Crews arrives in town.

Mitch is looking for a new start. He’s chosen Red Oak to begin a business and so that he can introduce himself to the two half-brothers he has never met. Mitch is a lot like Brodie and Jack, with a strong physique and protective nature, but he hasn’t had a lot of kindness shown to him in his life. So when Charlotte and the whole Crews bunch rally around him when his past comes after him, he’ll do anything to keep them out of harm’s way.

With this series, Foster delivers on tough, sexy and totally stand up guys. And I’ve loved the dynamic she’s set up between the love interests in each book. And whereas with the first two romances, where the Crews brothers coax their ladies into dropping their shields and accepting love, in All Fired Up it is Charlotte who convinces Mitch, who’s never felt like he belonged anywhere, that he’s found his home.

384 pages

 

Whiteout (Survival Instincts #1). By Adriana Anders.

Whiteout (Survival Instincts #1). By Adriana Anders. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC eBook).

 

As summer at the South Pole is coming to an end, Angel Smith heads out to the supply arch the morning of her planned departure with plans to leave the winter-over crew of Burke-Ruhe a well-stocked kitchen. But in the dark tunnels among preserved food and ice cores, she witnesses a violent scene and barely escapes the attackers.

Suspicious of a series of events that began after he collected some ice cores, glaciologist, Ford Cooper, returns back from the ice fields only to find the station has been abandoned and all communications and power sources sabotaged. When he finds Angel and learns that the attackers did not retrieve what they were looking for, the two have no choice but to set out for another station, as they will soon become the hunted. In the most inhospitable place on earth, Angel and Ford push their strength and resilience to the limits in order to save themselves and thwart the plans of the mysterious Chronos Corporation.

From the first chapter I didn’t want to put this story down. With twists and turns along the way, Anders masterfully layers the tension generated not only by ruthless acts of people, but the very elements that surround Angel and Ford. Snow, ice, wind, frostbite, hypothermia, deep crevasses and the disorienting whiteness the vast Antarctic landscape presents, all works to elevate the world-building and the deepening relationship between two people forced into survival mode. Definitely a must for those who want an edge of your seat suspense with chemistry that burns.

**Does not include bonus novella by Katie Ruggle

412 pages

The Bachelor (Duke Dynasty #2). By Sabrina Jeffries.

The Bachelor (Duke Dynasty #2). By Sabrina Jeffries. 2020. Zebra Books (ARC eBook).

Jefferies’ lively bunch of step-siblings are back and this time it is Lady Gwyn Drake’s turn at finding love. Days away from her long-delayed debut, Gwyn is approached at the Armitage estate by a former suitor who blackmails her over a past affair she has kept hidden. When the meeting turns threatening and Joshua Wolfe, the family’s gamekeeper, intervenes, Gwen’s twin brother, Thorn, asks Joshua to travel with Gwen to London and act as her bodyguard during her debut season. And from there Jefferies delivers a charming romance with a bit of scandal and sabotage.

In The Duchess Project, there was the beginnings of Joshua and Gwen’s interest in each other. And as elusive and temperamental as Joshua proved to be, Gwen was as equally stubborn and provoking, so I was looking forward to their book. And in The Bachelor, Jeffries is deft at transitioning sweet and playful moments into steamy ones between the two.

288 pages

Hero’s Haven (Dark Protectors #11). By Rebecca Zanetti.

Hero’s Haven (Dark Protectors #11). By Rebecca Zanetti. 2020. Lyrical Press (ARC eBook).

For centuries, vampire-demon hybrid, Quade Karys, has been in another dimension, far away from Earth and his family. As a member of The Seven, his purpose was to keep a dangerous enemy imprisoned within a pocket between worlds. But just as Quade feels his body and mind failing and succumbing to delusions of a beautiful woman that visits him, the dimension collapses. He is saved by his beautiful stranger by traveling back to Earth through a portal of her creation. Now, he and Haven Daly are being are being pursued by Ulric’s followers, who want to use Haven’s abilities to return Ulric to Earth.

Quade’s reintegration into a world he has long been parted from leads to some humorous scenes, especially his discovered fondness for eating mint toothpaste. And as the two search for the surviving members of Quade’s family, Haven discovers that she is a part of a world she never knew existed; one that has vampires, demons, shifters, fae and more. All the while, the two of them have to adjust to each other and Haven is as stubborn as Quade is overprotective.

The world Zanetti has created is full of action, romance and humor that will keep readers coming back to this series.

306 pages

Project Duchess (Duke Dynasty #1). By Sabrina Jeffries.

Project Duchess (Duke Dynasty #1). By Sabrina Jeffries. 2019. Zebra Books. AISN: B07HVXS62T (Kindle).

This charming duke, turned reluctant amateur detective, keeps losing focus of his investigation when he falls for Beatrice, his mother’s “project” and his suspected murder accomplice.

Jeffries weaves flirty banter, fun family drama, and a bit of mystery into this endearing romance.

Entertaining, Happily Ever After, Page-turner, Romantic, Steamy, Wonderful characters

352 pages

Chasing Cassandra (The Ravenels #6). By Lisa Kleypas.

Chasing Cassandra (The Ravenels #6). By Lisa Kleypas. 2020. Avon (ARC eBook).

A brilliant and wealthy railway magnate, Tom Severin is calculating and ruthless in his business dealings. And he has his mind set to approach marriage in the same fashion. After all, in his mathematical brain, love just doesn’t compute. But when he attends the wedding of Pandora Ravenel to Gabriel St. Vincent, he meets Cassandra Ravenel and is besotted by her beauty. Seeing a challenge, Tom sets out to contract himself a wife.

As Cassandra begins her second season, she is saddened by the loss of her twin Pandora by her side and unsettled by the intrigue Tom stirs in her. She has always dreamed of finding love, so why is she considering a marriage that is promised to be advantageous, but never a love match?

Tom and Cassandra are delightful surprises. Both have been a part of the series since the beginning, but Cassandra was the quieter and more introspective of the three sisters; and unlike, West, who we got to see matures and transform into a worthy hero, Tom remained callous in business and friendship alike. But as the two spend more time together, Cassandra’s inquisitiveness about Tom’s work begins to endear her to him and her patience buys him time to explore and act upon the depth of his emotions until others begin to see what she does; that Tom Severin has a compassionate heart. In addition, we get a ridiculous contract, an adorable orphan named Bazzel, and playful and insightful pop ins from the assorted Ravenel/in-law bunch.

Kleypas is masterful as always and the romance never fails to take center stage. If you like stories about finding love where you least expect it, pick up this book, along with books #1-5!

384 pages

Dark Alpha’s Temptation (Reaper #9). By Donna Grant.

Dark Alpha’s Temptation (Reaper #9). By Donna Grant. 2020. St. Martin’s Paperbacks (ARC eBook).

Grant's Reaper series features a brotherhood of dark and light fae, who work as Death’s assassins, and the women who win over their stoic hearts.

As I have only read book #2 and book #4 leading up to Temptation, I would recommend reading the series in order, and especially not to skip book #8. Right away it is referenced that A LOT has happened in between #4 and #9, with book #8 ending a major part of the over-arching plot and players. Aside from Kyra and Dubhan’s story, Temptation sets up the next big threat; the Others, an old and mysterious group prejudiced against the protectors of the human realm, the dragon kings. At one point, the book drags heavily with exposition, but Grant’s mix of mythology and ever changing politics in her paranormal world can be appreciated.

Still, there are a lot of tie-ins with Grant’s other series, of which I’ve not read, and it can get a bit overwhelming. But Duban is my favorite reaper to date and that is what basically kept me in the story. Like with Kyran and Fintan, he has no real familial ties except with the brotherhood, and that leads to internal conflict that he would rather leave buried, but in order to protect Krya, has to confront. More than with the other reapers and their heroines, Dubhan seems to soften around Krya a bit more and I liked that because the romances in this series seems to unfold rather rapidly. Overall, it’s an enjoyable read that will have fans wanting to see what comes next now that the Others are in the mix.

182 pages

Obsidian Son (The Temple Chronicles #1). By Shayne Silvers.

Obsidian Son (The Temple Chronicles #1). By Shayne Silvers. 2012. Argento Publishing. ASIN: B009NNHPIA (Kindle).

When the owners of Temple Industry are murdered, prodigal son, Nate Temple must return to the fold in order to unravel the mystery of his parents’ deaths. But when weredragons come to town in search of an old and mysterious tome purportedly detailing a dangerous ceremony, Nate must try to intervene. Because if the weredragons are successful, St. Louis, if not the entire world, will fall to the Obsidian Son.

Fire-breathing shapeshifters, werewolf best friend, free-lancing hunters, magic in flux and the Minotaur, Nate has an exiting go of it in the first book of this fun urban fantasy/supernatural thriller series. 

 

328 pages

Risk It All (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #2). By Katie Ruggle.

Risk It All (Rocky Mountain Bounty Hunters #2). By Katie Ruggle. 2019. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC eBook).

Cara Pax aspires to be a Kindergarten teacher, not a bounty hunter like the rest of her sisters. She’s uncomfortable with confrontation, so she contributes to the family business by doing behind-the-scenes computer research to help trace the skips. But ever since their own mother jumped bail and left the sisters in a jam, she has been feeling like she should do more to help. She probably shouldn’t have chosen to go after Henry Kavenski though. On paper, Kavenski would bring in the most money. Also on paper, Kavenski is a suspected murderer.

What is a man suppose to do when an earnest Cara Pax keeps interrupting his secret rendezvouses in parks and bars? As it turns out, he'll risk it all to keep her out of harm's way.

Cara is so darn nice, and Henry is a man of few words, but there is a clever charm about the pair. If you like Carol Higgins Clark’s Regan Reilly books, you’ll enjoy this series.

352 pages

Wicked Cowboy Wolf (Seven Range Shifters #3). By Kait Ballenger.

Wicked Cowboy Wolf (Seven Range Shifters #3). By Kait Ballenger. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC ebook).

Years ago a young Jared Black was cast from the Grey Wolf pack for a crime he took the fall for. Surviving the years that followed shaped the boy into a hardened criminal. As the leader of misfit wolves, he is known only as Rogue, and he is now offering a solution to the oncoming vampire threat to Maeve Gray, the sister of the Grey Wolf pack's alpha. All she has to do is ally herself with the mysterious wolf with as many scars on his soul as his body.

A new author and series for me, Ballenger delivers a story full of banter, misfits, secrets, chemistry and an ornery pet pig. I will be picking up more books in this series. Fans of paranormal romance and shifters will enjoy the protective alpha hero and feisty heroine in Wicked Cowboy Wolf.

While I think this romance can be read as a standalone, it is important to note that it is the third book in the series and involves an overall threat and story arc to the series’ plot.

352 pages

An Inconvenient Duke (Lords of the Armory #1). By Anna Harrington.

An Inconvenient Duke (Lords of the Armory #1). By Anna Harrington. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca (ARC eBook).

Recently returned from war and appointed Duke of Hampton, Marcus Braddock is a man on a mission. He is still mourning the death of his sister, Elise, and believing her death was not an accident, the former general sets his sights on Elise’s best friend, Danielle, to get his answers.

Danielle has secrets of her own she must keep. She is torn between soothing Marcus’s pain over the loss of his sister and keeping her work of helping abused women secret. But once a solider, always a soldier, and Marcus is determined to unravel the secrets that span from the underbelly of London to the ton. 
As the plot thickens Marcus and Elise become loose ends to tie up.

An entertaining read that blends romance, action and mystery. Marcus is a charming hero and I especially enjoyed scenes with him and his young niece and ward, Pippa. Danielle proves to be brave for her dangerous work of helping others, and her headstrong nature is just what is needed to meet Marcus on the battlefield. Together, they share some great chemistry.

384 pages

I Love You Like No Otter. By Rose Rossner, Illustrator: Sydney Hanson.

I Love You Like No Otter. By Rose Rossner, Illustrator: Sydney Hanson. 2020. Sourcebooks Wonderland (ARC eBook).

My special little

SQUEAK-heart.

A Step above the rest.

An adorable children’s board book that combines purrrfect messages for parents to read to their children and beary beautifully illustrated animals.

24 pages

The Kissing Game. By Marie Harte.

The Kissing Game. By Marie Harte. 2020. Sourcebooks Casablanca. (ARC eBook).

Yeesh, this was all over the place and more disappointing than the previous stand-alone I read by Harte.

320 pages