“The Little Mermaid” gets a modern, gender-bent twist in the humorous Jersey Shore Merman series launch from Duke (Vampires Never Say Die). Ten years before the start of the book, Hannah was saved from drowning by a boy with a fishtail who promptly vanished without a trace. Now she helps run Sunny Side Bed-and-Breakfast, and her parents are finally giving her a chance to prove she can handle the business on her own. Hannah is quickly distracted by the reappearance of her savior, Xander, who is not only a merman but from another world entirely. With zealous treasure hunters hot on his tail, he can’t stay long—but maybe just long enough to fall in love. Hannah and Xander’s romance is somewhat rushed and occasionally cheesy, but their genuine care for each other shines through amid all the fish puns and relationship hurdles. A heartwarming if underdeveloped subplot about a bid to save local businesses from corporate development helps fill out the world, creating a lived-in feel. This “gill-ty” pleasure of a paranormal rom-com is sure to please fans of My Roommate Is a Vampire by Jenna Levine and The Fake Mate by Lana Ferguson. Agent: Maria Napolitano, Bookcase Literary. (May)

Reviewed on 03/06/2026 | Details & Permalink

Loosely riffing on The Scarlet Letter, Mare (Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon) delivers a sweeping sapphic tale of generational trauma and boundary-breaking love. The Prynnes and the Steadfasts have been feuding for 400 years. Every generation, a Prynne gains the power to steal the souls of unwary dreamers, and a Steadfast gains the power to stop them. Lucy Prynne and Ashes Steadfast grow up as inseparable best friends despite their fathers’ enmity, and eventually become young lovers—though they can feel their destinies waiting. When Rye Steadfast’s heart stops and Draven Prynne disappears, Ashes and Lucy are called to take their place and realize how little their fathers told them about the real scope of the powers they would gain and the way the battle would consume them. Forced to be mortal enemies against their will, their only hope is to break the curse that defines both their families before they destroy themselves by destroying each other. The women’s cat-and-mouse dynamic entices, and Mare’s examination of family legacy and inheritance goes deep. It’s irresistible. (May)

Reviewed on 03/06/2026 | Details & Permalink

Martin (How to Sell a Romance) sparkles in this cute western romance. When cowboy romance enthusiast Luna Starr buys a farmhouse in Celestial, Tex., sight unseen and relocates from Denver, her best friend Gabby thinks she’s lost her mind. But after the death of Luna’s mother, she needs an escape, and small-town Celestial feels “like a Hallmark movie come to life”—especially when she meets two smoking hot bachelors, Silas and Tate Jacobs, who happen to be somewhat-estranged fraternal twins. Silas is Luna’s new neighbor, owner of the successful Starlight Ridge Ranch, while Tate is a high school football coach and handyman. As Luna works to transform her new home (she wants it to look like “if Barbie were to buy a farmhouse”), she’s plagued by problems big and small, including a bathtub falling through the ceiling, Gabby’s overprotective worrying, and the lingering grief she can’t outrun. Getting involved with the perpetually bickering Jacobs twins will only add more chaos to her life, but the more she comes to know them, the harder she falls for one of the brothers. The leads charm, and a cast of lovable, folksy locals adds to the fun. Readers will be eager to return to Celestial. (May)

Reviewed on 03/06/2026 | Details & Permalink

Bestseller Monaghan (It’s a Love Story) takes on the fake-dating trope in this heartening summer romance. Single mom Dolly Brick returns to Whitfield, R.I., for a few weeks each summer to help her father at their family’s business, the Brick Fish House. This year, after a fire breaks out in her childhood home, she agrees to stay longer to assist with cleanup. Hardworking Dolly reckons with her place in the family as she works with her father; cares for her brother, who has schizophrenia; and tries not to resent her more easygoing younger sister, Patsy. Meanwhile, Stewart Whitfield, the handsome but hapless heir to the famous, old-money family for whom the town is named, faces personal and professional challenges after a very public breakup with his fiancée. After Dolly helps Stewart with a flat tire, their photo is printed in the tabloids and he proposes a PR relationship to improve his public image, offering a hefty payout. Through fake-dating, the pair open up about their vulnerabilities and family struggles, strengthening their bond and boosting Dolly’s confidence. Monaghan’s sunny tale expertly balances the joy of falling in love with the realities of making difficult life decisions, dealing with anxieties, and managing stress. Throw this one in the beach bag. (May)

Reviewed on 02/27/2026 | Details & Permalink

Dripping with suspense and sensuality, this standalone Regency from bestseller James (the Accidental Brides series) proves she remains at the top of her game. Genevieve “Evie” Hughes marries the decades older, thrice-widowed Lord Burnsby, whom she believes to be kind and harmless, in exchange for his agreement to put up the dowry for her younger sister, Rosie. She travels with her new husband to his hunting lodge, a converted abbey in the Scottish Highlands, to celebrate his 70th birthday. The servants say the lodge is haunted by Burnsby’s previous wives, and Evie immediately begins searching for the ghosts. Also in attendance are Burnsby’s heir, Lance; his wife, Colette; and Lance’s friend, Sir Godric Everley, a solicitor with ties to the British government, who makes clear his negative opinion of both Burnsby and fortune-hunting Evie. Worse, Evie discovers that her husband’s mistress, Sophonisba Ainsworth, has lived at the abbey for years, causing Evie to question her previous assessment of Burnsby’s character. As the intrigue ramps up—complete with death, scandalous revelations, criminal allegations, and the potential for supernatural interference—sparks fly between Evie and Godric. The gothic abbey proves a perfect backdrop to their tumultuous and compulsively readable romance. It’s an unmitigated delight. (May)

Correction: An earlier version of this review misidentified the book as part of the Accidental Brides series.

Reviewed on 02/27/2026 | Details & Permalink

Saldivar follows up Play You for It with an endearing, long-simmering love story between two softball players whose undeniable on-field chemistry pushes them together off-field, too. Insley University shortstop Kate Hutchins, raised by conservative Christian parents and a proud member of Collegiate Athletes for Christ (where she met her boyfriend, Blake), is recruited by her coach to give an extra hand to Abby Cruz, a transfer student who’s joining the team and whose mom’s recent death has led her into some self-destructive behaviors. The women’s opposite personalities initially clash, but through competing together, they find common ground. Readers follow Kate and Abby through their final two years of college, marked by mutual pining and poor timing, and then as their paths cross through the ensuing six years, when at times the only constant is softball. While there is plenty of tension between the heroines, with Saldivar doing an especially good job capturing their youthful yearning, their romance remains low heat, with a single sex scene that leans more into tenderness than spice. (“The curves, lines, joints, the plush and taut that could only be of a woman, left her ravenous.”) With dynamic leads and a sweeping scope, this is sure to reward fans of sapphic sports romance. (May)

Reviewed on 02/27/2026 | Details & Permalink

Combining rodeo and reality show tropes, the diverting first installment of the Emerald Lake series from bestseller Silver (Wild Card) proves wonderfully entertaining. Bull rider Emmett Brandt performs as Emmett Bush and has cultivated a reputation as a playboy. At home on his family’s British Columbia ranch, however, he can drop his stage persona and cultivate his sensitive side. His worlds collide when the ranch lands in financial trouble and, to save it, Emmett agrees to star on the new reality dating show Romance Ranch, and allow it to film on his property. The producers want the full, raunchy Emmett Bush experience, but he can’t stop the real Emmett from shining through—especially after he meets Julia Silva, the sister of one of his biggest rivals and a location scout for the show. A parade of prescreened beauties vie for his heart, but he quickly falls for Julia instead, much to the dismay of the crude head producer, who threatens both Julia’s job and Emmett’s payday. A bevy of stellar supporting characters, especially a true crime-loving contestant who proves to be a valuable ally to Emmett and Julia, and a deeply hateable villain add to the fun. Silver’s fans will be well pleased. (May)

Reviewed on 02/27/2026 | Details & Permalink

In Eng’s dry debut, two New York City workaholics learn there’s more to life than their jobs. Mei Li, a senior director of brand marketing at Livin, an “experiential lifestyle company” offering long- and short-term rentals around the globe, works 70-hour weeks. She believes the grind will be worth it in the long term, hoping to become one of the only women or people of color in the C-suite. Her immature fiancé Joey DiGiacomo is likewise a long-term investment, as she arranges for him to study for and complete certifications in his IT career. Now, however, she’s facing burnout. Her sister’s brother-in-law, Alexandre Brodeur, knows a thing or two about burnout himself. He’s “starting from scratch” in a teaching position at SUNY New Paltz after 20 years researching zebrafish failed to earn him tenure at the University of Oregon. Mei and Alexandre struggle against mutual attraction, complicated by their familial relationships, Mei’s impending nuptials, and their conflicted feelings about the value of carving a new path or sticking to what they know. The frustratingly one-dimensional characters read like LinkedIn profiles, and while Eng makes an admirable attempt to tackle workplace racism, the novel doesn’t get much deeper than what might be found in HR compliance training. Readers will be disappointed. (May)

Reviewed on 02/27/2026 | Details & Permalink

Kincaid (the London Ruthless series) titillates in this rocky erotic romance. Vigilante billionaire Lincoln Knight, 42, has spent 18 years picking off members of the Brotherhood, the criminal syndicate that killed his sister, and rescuing the women they sell at auction. Twenty-one-year-old Imogen DeMotta is one such woman, the orphaned daughter of a notorious traitor to the Brotherhood. Motivated by a mysterious connection to her family, Lincoln bids on Imogen, unwilling to let her fall into crueler hands before he can save her. He whisks her to his mansion, essentially imprisoning her in a gilded cage. Kincaid doesn’t shy away from the power imbalance and consent issues inherent in the premise, but nor does she dig into them enough to be truly satisfying. Imogen comes to trust and lust after Lincoln somewhat too easily, while Lincoln’s struggle to resist their connection grows repetitive. Imogen is so sheltered and naive as to verge into the “born sexy yesterday” trope: she knows nothing of culture or technology; she’s confused by the definitions of feminism and rape; Lincoln even has to show her how to insert a tampon. Meanwhile, the reveal of Lincoln’s link to her past doesn’t land as a twist because of the choppy way his backstory is meted out. The cliffhanger ending is a somewhat more successful shock—and there’s plenty of spice and angst leading up to it. This is best suited for dark romance diehards. (Apr.)

Reviewed on 02/20/2026 | Details & Permalink

The final installment of Hall’s London Calling series (after Boyfriend Material and Husband Material) delivers diminishing returns as, this time out, Luc and Oliver consider the next step in their relationship: caring for something more than each other. The couple gets a dog, Spud, to “take the first step towards building the life and the family that [Luc] sort of never quite dared to hope for.” The pet training, however, leads to disagreements, as Oliver is all about discipline and boundaries whereas Luc is characteristically more lax. Their different parenting styles become a source of even greater contention when the couple become foster dads to “porcupinish” 14-year-old Jasmine, aka Jaz. As Jaz gets in trouble with the neighbors, suspended from school, and implicated in car theft, Oliver fears he’s a bad dad, while Luc is more open to the “learning process” of raising a sullen teenager. Adding to Luc’s stresses, however, is that he may lose his job unless he can convince an obnoxious benefactor to support his dung beetle charity by staging a rock music festival. Hall crams in a few too many subplots and running gags that drag on far too long. There are some heartfelt messages about love and parenting along the way, but as a whole it’s overlong and underwhelming. (June)

Reviewed on 02/20/2026 | Details & Permalink