Hide that wallet because we’re talking about new releases! The good news is that the rest of this month is looking pretty light. We get to take a nice little break and given our wallets and library holds a rest.
All we have are contemporary romances on our list this week, but they feature gaming, scene-stealing animals, and broadway performers.
What books are you excited for this week? Tell us in the comments!
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Game On
Author: Seressia Glass
Released: December 12, 2023 by Berkley
Genre: Contemporary Romance, RomanceWhen an unexpected Player Two enters her life, a gamer must decide if their relationship is worth leveling up in this new romance from the author of The Love Con.
Samara Reynolds has built a large following as a gamer under an anonymous screen name, and uses her skills as a DEIA consultant to advocate for equal representation in video games. When she posted a video critiquing the popular game Legendsfall, she knew she’d get a reaction from her fans, but the video leads to hundreds of female gamers critiquing the game and its company, Artemis Games. The only thing more unexpected than starting an online movement is getting a job offer from the handsome CEO of Artemis.
Aron Galanis has been on a mission to get his company certified to create gaming content for people with disabilities. When he sees Artemis trending online for all the wrong reasons, he’s determined to right his wrongs and offers the originator a mea culpa, as well as a job offer to overhaul the character options in Legendsfall.
Working together turns Aron and Samara from adversaries into allies, allies into friends, and after that—something more. But once their relationship goes public, will Aron and Samara be able to weather the storm and fight for their happy ending, or is it game over?
Amanda: Very interested in seeing more gaming communities and critique in romance.
Lara: I know next to nothing about gaming, so I’m super curious!
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Housebroke
Author: Jaci Burton
Released: December 12, 2023 by Berkley
Genre: Contemporary Romance, RomanceA millionaire and a woman who thinks he’s a house flipper are stuck living in a house together with a menagerie of rescue dogs as roommates, in this heartfelt romantic comedy from New York Times bestselling author Jaci Burton.
After her ex took all their money and bailed, Hazel Bristow is left broke and homeless. A kind friend whose home is on the market lets Hazel and her foster dogs stay there until it sells. It’s the perfect setup, until her friend forgets to tell Hazel she’s sold the house.
Linc Kennedy is shocked to find Hazel and her pups squatting in the house he just bought, but after some negotiating—she offers to cook amazing meals for him in return for a paycheck—he agrees to let her remain while he’s renovating the place. Linc tells Hazel he’s an investor who renovates homes for fun—he just leaves out the part about being wealthy.
Hazel’s intrigued by Linc. He’s funny, sweet, ridiculously hot, and loves dogs almost as much as she does. But her track record with men? Not great. She worries her trust meter isn’t in working order.
Linc’s never met anyone like the quirky beauty who puts everyone’s needs—human and canine—before her own. He didn’t tell her about his wealth because he’s been burned by women who only wanted him for his money. But with Hazel, he’s never felt more like himself. Now he has to figure out how to tell her the truth without losing her. Because Linc realizes what he feels for her isn’t puppy love—it’s true love.
Jaci Burton has a new contemporary romance coming out!
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Invisible
Author: Anna Larner
Released: December 12, 2023 by Bold Strokes Books
Genre: Contemporary Romance, LGBTQIA, RomanceViolet Unwin is convinced she is invisible. Overlooked by her adoptive family, her only solace is her uncle’s costume shop. By day, she’s an assistant no one remembers, but after hours, in the wonder of her imagination, she becomes explorer, warrior, queen. Devastated by news of the shop’s imminent closure, Violet finds comfort in an unlikely companion, the ghostly figure of her namesake, the suffragette Vi Unwin.
Medical school dropout Phoebe Frink’s life is in disarray. She has no idea who she is anymore, what to do about it, or how to tell her parents. Taken under the wing of the infamous drag king Mr. Duke, owner of the struggling Banana Bar, fate steps in when Phoebe seeks Violet’s help with costumes for the bar’s fundraising Christmas Ball.
Phoebe is captivated by beautiful, shy Violet, and for the first time in her life, Violet experiences what it is to be truly seen. But for love to be possible, Violet and Phoebe must take a risk on a future they’ve never dared to imagine.
Tara: A costume shop! Ghosts! Drag! This sounds like a whirlwind and I’m here for it.
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The Memories of Marlie Rose
Author: Morgan Lee Miller
Released: December 12, 2023 by Bold Strokes Books
Genre: Contemporary Romance, LGBTQIA, RomanceWould you want to forget the only woman you’ve ever loved? Marlie Rose does.
Everyone thinks Broadway legend Marlie Rose has it all: a fabulous career spanning over five decades, all the major awards, and a lifetime in the spotlight. Only Marlie knows the heavy weight of her memories. When a new, experimental procedure promises to relieve trauma and heartbreak by erasing unwanted memories, Marlie signs up, desperate to let go of her tumultuous childhood, grief, and broken heart.
As Marlie recalls her memories and decides which ones to keep and which to erase, she unexpectedly reunites with Eleanor Olson, the woman she’s been in love with for forty-seven years. As her heartbreak fades and her heart races anew for Eleanor, Marlie discovers their love isn’t as dead as she thought it was, and she starts regretting the procedure.
Eleanor might be the only person who can help her restore her memories, but remembering might break her heart all over again.
Tara: I’ve heard really good things about this one. Also, I wonder if it has a little Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind to it?
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Playing with Matches
Author: Georgia Beers
Released: December 12, 2023 by Bold Strokes Books
Genre: Contemporary Romance, LGBTQIA, RomanceCori Stratton’s a small-town girl. She loves making candles, and her little gift shop is her pride and joy. But when the shop’s building goes up for sale, she might lose her home and everything that makes her happy. The worst timing of all? Her landlord’s daughter Elizabeth Brennan—popular, smart, and oblivious to Cori’s existence in high school—has breezed back into town.
Life has not gone according to plan for Elizabeth. Laid off from her job in the city, she’s forced back home to help her mom run the family’s B and B during a week-long wedding celebration…for Liz’s ex. Not wanting the groom to know the shambles her life is, she grabs the nearest person—Cori—and tells him how happy they are together.
A chance to live out her high school fantasy of Liz as her girlfriend is unexpected, but it keeps Cori playing along. And helping her one-time crush survive this wedding? Just for the week? She can do that. Besides, there’s no way this fake relationship will turn into the real deal.
Tara: This sounds like Hallmark/Lifetime film levels of cute and it’s been a while since I’ve read anything from Georgia Beers, so this might have to be my next one!
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Because it appears that Amelia Wilde’s DEARLY BELOVED (scheduled for today) has been pushed back to December 30, the only book I have on my TBR this week is Skye Warren’s WHITE LIES, which drops today. WHITE LIES is the second book in Warren’s Cirque des Miroirs series about a woman who runs away from her abusive home and literally joins the circus (and falls for the circus’s enigmatic owner). The first book—RED FLAGS—ended on an anxiety-inducing cliff-hanger, so I’m eager to see how that gets resolved in WHITE LIES.
Loved Game On! The rest on my TBR!