The Sapphire Affair by Lauren Blakely

Rating: Three stars
Series: Jewel #1
Date published: July 12, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Bounty hunter Jake Harlowe knows how to track a criminal. So when a group of swindled shareholders hires him to trail their former CEO, Jake expects a quick trip to the Cayman Islands to close another case. Until a devastatingly beautiful woman gets in the way.
Steph Anderson is visiting the Caymans for a rock climbing and dive trip—or so she tells Jake. She’s really trying to find out whether or not her stepfather embezzled money from his company. The last thing Steph needs is the distraction of a sexy, charming man whose kisses drive her wild.
Soon, the pair discover they’re after the same target—and millions in jewels. While Jake can’t be certain Steph isn’t working for her stepfather, and Steph can’t be certain Jake isn’t after the diamonds for himself, they can agree the heat between them is intense, and neither can deny the passion for long.
But the morning after, Steph discovers that she just might have slept with the enemy, and now she’ll have to outwit him to get everything she needs…

So Much More by Kim Holden

Rating: Three stars
Date published: March 29, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Love is strange. It comes out of nowhere. There’s no logic to it. It’s not methodical. It’s not scientific. It’s pure emotion and passion. And emotion and passion can be dangerous because they fuel love…and hate.
I’m now a reluctant connoisseur of both—an expert through immersion. I know them intimately.
When I fell in love with Miranda, it was swift and blind. She was the person I’d elevated to mythical status in my head, in my dreams.
Here’s the thing about dreams, they’re smoke.
They’re spun as thoughts until they become something we think we want. Something we think we need.
That was Miranda. She was smoke.
I thought I wanted her. I thought I needed her.
Over time reality crept in and slowly dissected and disemboweled my dreams like a predator, leaving behind a rotting carcass.
Reality can be a fierce bitch.
So can Miranda.
And I can be a fool...
who believes in dreams.
And people.
And love.

Cream of the Crop by Alice Clayton

Rating: Three stars
Series: Hudson Valley #2
Date published: July 12, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis from Goodreads:

New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Alice Clayton brings her trademark blend of funny and sexy to this second contemporary romance in the brand-new Hudson Valley series!
Manhattan’s It Girl, Natalie Grayson, has it all: she’s a hot exec at a leading advertising firm, known industry-wide for her challenging and edgy campaigns. She’s got a large circle of friends, a family that loves her dearly, and her dance card is always full with handsome eligible bachelors. What else could a modern gal-about-town wish for? The answer, of course, is...cheese.
Natalie’s favorite part of each week is spending Saturday morning at the Union Square Farmer’s Market, where she indulges her love of all things triple cream. Her favorite booth also indulges her love of all things handsome. Oscar Mendoza, owner of the Bailey Falls Creamery and purveyor of the finest artisanal cheeses the Hudson Valley has to offer, is tall, dark, mysterious, and a bit oblivious. Or so she thinks. But that doesn’t stop Natalie from fantasizing about the size of his, ahem, milk can.
Romance is churning, passion is burning, and something incredible is rising to the top. Could it be...love?

Fantasy Friday: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.
When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is the first book in a trilogy. I loved the characters and the world Taylor created. I also love that this isn't just a romance novel. There's a big plot to this one, some of which involves otherworldly creatures. I don't think I have the words to properly describe Daughter of Smoke and Bone. It's just a win in my book.

Moonshot by Alessandra Torre

Rating: Three stars
Date published: July 4, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Mystery

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Baseball isn’t supposed to be a game of life and death…
The summer that Chase Stern entered my life, I was seventeen. The daughter of a legend, the Yankees were my family, their stadium my home, their dugout my workplace. My focus was on the game. Chase... he started out as a distraction. A distraction with sex appeal poured into every inch of his six foot frame. A distraction who played like a god and partied like a devil.
I tried to stay away. I couldn’t.
Then, the team started losing.
Women started dying.
And everything in my world broke apart.

Romance Reveal box - July 2016

While I was on vacation this week, my first ever Romance Reveal Book Box came! I found this one shortly after I subscribed to The Bookworm Box and I was surprised to find that both boxes offer the same things, but Romance Reveal is nearly $20 less (counting shipping). My total came out to be $31.90 for the box. For something you're going to subscribe to every month, that is a huge difference in price. Romance Reveal also offers two different choices for your monthly subscription - an individual signed book for $12.95 plus shipping or the box for $24.95 plus shipping. In the box are two signed books, book related swag, and a product sample. What's in the boxes varies for each person, which is a concept I for the most part enjoy but also dread, since there's always that one book you're going to want and there's a chance you won't be one of the ones to receive it.

Fantasy Friday: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Fantasy Friday is a day to spotlight any fantasy book and for my very first Fantasy Friday, I'd like to spotlight my very first Leigh Bardugo read.

Here's the blurb:

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can't pull it off alone...
A convict with a thirst for revenge.
A sharpshooter who can't walk away from a wager.
A runaway with a privileged past.
A spy known as the Wraith.
A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums.
A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes.
Kaz's crew are the only ones who might stand between the world and destruction—if they don't kill each other first.

Six of Crows completely blew me out of the water. I loved the description, but I didn't feel like it really prepared me for just how great it was going to be. The writing was fantastic and so was the world-building. The characters felt so real and I loved their interactions with each other. The plot is an interesting one; a love a good story of a heist and this is one of them. I think the one thing that surprised me the most was how little romance there was and wonderful that choice was. I actually like that there's only a hint of romance in the novel. It's refreshing and means more characters are focused on instead of just the two main ones. Six of Crows is a must read and I really can't wait for the next book in the series.