A breezy romantic romp with plenty of heat.
An aspiring writer and a shop owner figure out how to fall in love in Hall’s romance series installment.
Mistletoe, Idaho, seems like the perfect small town in which to fall in love; things have worked out for siblings Merry, Nick, and Holly Winters, who are all happy in their respective relationships (as seen in other books in Hall’s series). But for Delilah Gill, Holly’s best friend, the burg feels more like a series of dead ends. No publisher wants her romantic fantasy book series, her parents nag her about getting a real job, and she’s sexually unsatisfied. Meanwhile, Anthony Russo is dealing with his mother’s death and has sworn himself to celibacy until he can find true love and build a life with someone. He and Delilah saw potential in each other the year before at a bachelor party and shared a promising kiss before insecurities and misunderstandings drove them apart. Anthony thought Delilah seemed hung up on his best friend Pike Sutton, and Delilah thinks Anthony doesn’t want her because she’s a plus-size woman, but they’re both wrong. After a night out (and puking incident), the two get closer, initiating a sexual and emotional connection that supersedes decorum and friendship, leading to some friction between them. As the holiday season progresses, however, and new obstacles arise, the intensity of their passion can’t be denied. Both Delilah and Anthony have believable emotional baggage that hinders their ability to effectively communicate. The timeframe means that the pace at which they go from acquaintances to lovers is quick, but their chemistry, rendered with brazen flourishes, makes their compatibility clear. Hall’s dialogue excels at conveying Delilah and Anthony’s wit, though it can sometimes veer into excessively quippy territory with Anthony dispensing lines like “does this earn me a check mark in the romantic column or the crazy-and-insecure column?” The small-town cozy atmosphere and the sprawl of secondary and tertiary characters set up plenty of future relationship opportunities, and readers will be eager to see how Delilah and Anthony grow beyond their initial coupling.
A breezy romantic romp with plenty of heat.Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2024
ISBN: 9781039478190
Page Count: 280
Publisher: Podium Publishing
Review Posted Online: Aug. 26, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A charming love story that absolutely radiates warmth.
A single mom winds up fake dating an incredibly wealthy man in her hometown.
Dolly Brick is back in her hometown of Whitfield, Rhode Island, for the summer to help her dad and disabled brother manage their house and family business. As a 39-year-old single mother with multiple jobs—which now include working at the Brick Fish House—Dolly is always busy. When her mom left their family years ago, Dolly took over caring for her siblings and father and never really stopped. When she runs into Stewart Whitfield after making a shrimp delivery to his family’s mansion, she doesn’t think they could be more different. She’s had to figure out how to do everything by herself, and he can’t even change a tire. That’s why Stewart’s proposal that she pretend to be his girlfriend feels so unbelievable—but it comes with a hefty check that she desperately needs for home repairs. So she becomes the fake girlfriend of Stewart Whitfield (as in, the Whitfields her town is named after; his real fiancée just dumped him and it’s a bad time for him to be single) and experiences what it’s like to walk into fancy buildings through the front door instead of the service entrance. More than the boats and helicopter and expensive dinners, though, Dolly is impressed by what a kind man Stewart is—and how it feels to let someone else take care of her for a change. Soon, their relationship starts to feel more real than fake. Monaghan creates an impossibly winning story with a charming, lovable heroine. Dolly is capable, hardworking, and will do anything for the people she loves. She and Stewart both possess real flaws, and while their relationship begins with one of the most beloved rom-com tropes, their challenges feel like realistic adult obstacles rather than easily solved miscommunications. It’s also refreshing that, even though Dolly must learn to allow other people to help her, she never views her caretaking responsibilities as burdens. She deeply loves her family, and that love carries through the entire story.
A charming love story that absolutely radiates warmth.Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9780593853979
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Jan. 19, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2026
SEEN & HEARD
PERSPECTIVES
A deliciously dramatic look at how one woman’s past influences her future.
A happily engaged woman is pulled back to her hometown—and her first love—when tragedy strikes.
Billie Wright is living her dream, running a thriving fertility clinic in New York City and engaged to a wonderful trauma surgeon named Dean. Her happily-ever-after meant giving up her life in Wisconsin, where she left behind many friends as well as her high school sweetheart, Mick. Although they’d been deeply in love, when Billie’s ambition pulled her away from home and toward the city, Mick couldn’t handle either the distance or her busy schedule. Billie has finally moved on from that heartbreak—but then she receives a phone call from Mick, the first communication between them in years. Her best friend, Erin, died in a car accident, leaving behind an 11-year-old daughter, Phoebe. Now Billie must return home to help sort Erin’s affairs and provide some kind of comfort to Phoebe while grieving the loss of her best friend. Of course, being back home also means being in close contact with Mick. Their feelings for each other may not have ever gone away, and their proximity leads to big decisions for Billie. Can she ever reconcile her current life in Manhattan with her past in Wisconsin? And which one will be her future? Giffin knows how to do drama, and she ratchets up the stakes with every page as she continues to reveal new obstacles for Billie. The ending wraps up quite neatly, but the nostalgia-filled ride is full of twists and turns that will keep readers flipping the pages.
A deliciously dramatic look at how one woman’s past influences her future.Pub Date: July 7, 2026
ISBN: 9780593600320
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: April 6, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2026
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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