New Romance book Release’s 27th September : Nix’s Top Picks of the week

Top Picks is a weekly meme that I do here at Scorching Book Reviews.

In this post, I highlight the Romance books that I want to read that are released this week. I have been lazy of late with not going past Tuesday – that has changed and I now look for books up to Sunday.

They are all books on my TR pile and only books I am interested in spending money on. I do not ask people to recommend books or highlight releases for author promo. I research each book before it I put it on here to look for reviews, series connections and author bio.

I feel I have to point out that books in a series are only going to be featured on here if I have started the series or am interested in doing so.

I don’t read NA. I do not read reverse harem. I also do not read Pandemic romance.

I also don’t recommend books from authors who have engaged in awful behaviour or have bigotted views – I chose not to give them my money so you won’t find them on here. If I make a mistake and feature an author who is an awful person, tell me in the comments and the book will be removed.

I have made the decision to add amazon links and links to twitter profiles on this post however they are not affiliant links as I CBA with amazon.

Status on the TR list : I love this series and this author. I have no doubts this book will wreck me …

Date of release : 30th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.21

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $4.11

Rory has grown up in a small North Carolina town. In high school, he was the popular football player. When he graduated, he saw himself running the general store his father started. Maybe eventually getting married to one of the pretty cheerleaders who liked him in school, having kids. His siblings can live big lives in big cities. He’s not that complicated.

Then an accident puts him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. And Daralyn, a neighbor with a horrific past, comes to live with his family. Everything is suddenly a lot less simple. Because the way Rory wants her is keeping him up at night.

He wants her to belong to him. He wants to command her, protect her. Hell, he can barely say it to himself. He wants to dominate her. The craving is a primal drumbeat in the center of his soul.

How does he deal with that? Especially when her need to trust is so desperate, and her eyes are so full of hunger for what love should be. But he’ll figure it out. He’s going to make sure Daralyn finds everything she needs in his arms.

Status on the TR list : This just looks cute … I have it marked as TR

Date of release : 29th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £4.70

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $6.11

What happens when the search for the perfect date goes perfectly wrong?

Declan has commitment issues. He’s been an office temp for literally years now, and his friends delight in telling people that he left his last boyfriend at the altar.

And that’s all true. But he’s starting to think it’s time to start working on his issues. Maybe.

When Declan meets Sidney—a popular nonbinary YouTuber with an advice show—an opportunity presents itself: as part of The Love Study, Declan will go on a series of dates arranged by Sidney and report back on how the date went in the next episode.

The dates are…sort of blah. It’s not Sidney’s fault; the folks participating are (mostly) great people, but there’s no chemistry there. Maybe Declan’s just broken.

Or maybe the problem is that the only person he’s feeling chemistry with is Sidney.

Carina Adores is home to highly romantic contemporary love stories where LGBTQ+ characters find their happily-ever-afters.

Status on the TR list : How gorgeous is this cover? And it sounds fabulous .. on the list.

Date of release : 29th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.32

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $4.29

Fans of Mary Jo Putney and Sabrina Jeffries will fall for this delightful story of a high-spirited lady determined to marry for love—but betrothed to a tempting spy whose work has put them both their hearts…and their lives…on the line.
 
Betrothed to a man she has barely met, Lady Faith Landon calls upon her three best friends—the self-proclaimed Wallflowers of West Lane—to help uncover the secrets of her mysterious fiancé. Her suspicions are aroused when she learns that he has recently returned from France. Is he a traitor to his country? The truth is quite the opposite. Nicholas Ellsworth, Duke of Breckenridge, is a secret agent for the English Crown who has just completed a risky mission to infiltrate Napoleon’s spy network.
 
After his adventures, Nicholas craves the peace and quiet of the country and settling into domestic bliss with his bride. Until he discovers Faith’s deceptive investigation. How can he wed a woman who doesn’t trust him? But a powerful spark has ignited between Nicholas and Faith that could bring about a change of heart. Faith seizes her second chance to prove to Nicholas that they are a true love match but his past catches up with them when three French spies come to exact revenge. Surviving rather than wooing has become the order of the day.

Status on the TR list : I’m using this for the Fall into Romance bingo … it looks so cute.

Date of release : 1st October

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.00

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $3.84

It’s officially the worst Hallowe’en ever.

First, Sophia Ando gets a demotion at her big law firm. Then she discovers her boyfriend making out with another woman at a Hallowe’en party. The cherry on top of her disastrous evening is that her rideshare home is driven by Henry MacDonald—her childhood friend and secret crush. Dejected and dressed as a goofy anime character was not the look she wanted when she saw Henry again.

Henry MacDonald isn’t thrilled to see Sophia either. He’s just quit the indie rock band he spent the last decade with. He’s turning thirty, has zero career prospects, and worst of all—he’s lost the spark that inspired his music. Being her chauffeur won’t impress the most accomplished person he knows—even if she is dressed as a rain-soaked Pikachu.

As a distraction from her disastrous life, Sophia decides to make Henry her next project: helping him find work, a recreational hockey team, and even a girlfriend. The only problem is that Henry prefers the matchmaker to the matches.

My Hallowe’en Heartbreak is the second book in the Holiday Hat Trick trilogy, but can be read alone. The first book is My Viral Valentine. These romcoms feature three close girlfriends, crazy hijinks in the pursuit of love, and beer league hockey—all set in the wintry capital city of Ottawa. Each story is set around a holiday.

Status on the TR list : I haven’t read book one but I do love Darynda Jones. On the list.

Date of release : 28th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.28

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $4.12

A Paranormal Women’s Fiction with a bit of class, and a lot of sass, for anyone who feels like age is just a number!

Forty-something Defiance Dayne only recently discovered she comes from a long line of powerful witches. Added to that was the teensy, infinitesimal fact that she is what’s called a charmling. One of three on the entire planet. And there are other witches who will stop at nothing to steal her immense power, which would basically involve her unfortunate and untimely death.

No one told her life after forty would mean having to learn new lifeskills—such as how to dodge supernatural assassins while casting from a moving vehicle—or that the sexiest man alive would be living in her basement.

Whoever said life begins at forty was clearly a master of the underappreciated and oft maligned understatement.

Status on the TR list : A beautiful cover and a whole host of good reviews – I can’t wait to read it. Price is a bit high though

Date of release : 29th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £7.99

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $9.55

When a Nigerian woman falls for a man she knows will break her mother’s heart, she must choose between love and her family.

At twelve years old, Azere promised her dying father she would marry a Nigerian man and preserve her culture, even after immigrating to Canada. Her mother has been vigilant about helping—well forcing—her to stay within the Nigerian dating pool ever since. But when another match-made-by-mom goes wrong, Azere ends up at a bar, enjoying the company and later sharing the bed of Rafael Castellano, a man who is tall, handsome, and…white.

When their one-night stand unexpectedly evolves into something serious, Azere is caught between her feelings for Rafael and the compulsive need to please her mother. Soon, Azere can’t help wondering if loving Rafael makes her any less of a Nigerian. Can she be with him without compromising her identity? The answer will either cause Azere to be audacious and fight for her happiness or continue as the compliant daughter.

Status on the TR list : I think this is a new author but I do like the cover. The blurb caught my interest…

Date of release : 30th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £1.49

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $1.25

Dumped by her longtime boyfriend, Katrina Love bolts back to her hometown to deal with her heartbreak. Determined to win her ex back, despite the one thing he suddenly wants that she can’t provide – biological children – she sets out to show him exactly what he’s missing out on by reinventing herself into a more exciting person.

To help fund her new mission and life, she reluctantly agrees to become a guest columnist at a local magazine, writing about how to move on after a broken heart. As if she knows anything about that! To make matters worse, she discovers the editor she must work with is her old high school frenemy, Boston. The universe really must hate her.

Despite both their misgivings, Katrina and Boston end up rekindling their friendship, and when old feelings resurface, making them impossible to ignore, Katrina learns that moving on might not be what she expected.

Status on the TR list : I really enjoy Chencia C Higgin’s books – this one looks like I will enjoy too.

Date of release : 30th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.99

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $3.99

What is a man to do after ending a vow of abstinence?

Three years ago, Lewis St. James vowed to abstain from sex in what was initially a show of support for his baby brother. The decision took him on an unexpected journey of self-realization that he never would have experienced on his own. His very understanding of intimacy and relationships was challenged, morphing into a new normal as he evolved into someone who was no longer interested in casual hookups for the sake of getting off—as getting off for the sake of getting off no longer interested him.

Now that the reason for his abstinence has disappeared, his status as a single man needs to be corrected and he has just the woman in mind to help him facilitate that change. Hopefully, the Toy he’d put on the shelf was still ready to be played with.

Status on the TR list : I’ll be honest, I just really like the cover. Marked to look at some reviews.

Date of release : 29th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £3.05

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $3.99

Kyra Grace-Riley

In all of two weeks, my life has been turned up side down. One minute, I was happily married to the man of my dreams and living my best life. The next minute, hidden lies shattered everything I’ve done to build a happily ever after.
My secret past, which had catapulted me into an executive role at work, came to light.
But as pandora’s box opens, I’m forced to reveal everything to my husband Marcus.
Now I can’t help wondering if we’ll survive the “for better or worse” part of our vows…

Marcus Riley

Every man knows when he’s found “the one.” From the minute I’d set eyes on Ky, life made sense, and I thought it would be till death do us part.
Filled with beauty, brains and the fiercest love for me, I never imagined things would ever turn south. Suddenly, she starts becoming distant by the second only to reveal our foundation is a lie.
So, I’m ready to walk away. But I can’t help but wonder if this love is truly worth fighting for.

Status on the TR list : Cowboys? Christmas? sold….. This is book 7 in the series and I’ve read none of them. I’m not sure I care about that …. 🙂

Date of release : 29th September

UK Amazon link : HERE

UK Price : £5.92

US Amazon link : HERE

US Price : $7.99

Have yourself a Smokin’ Hot Cowboy Christmas

It’s been one fiasco after another for newcomer Belle Tarleton since she began trying to turn her ranch into an arts center. Local workers seem determined to ruin her Christmas party plans, and she hopes bringing in down-on-his-luck Rowdy Holloway to help with renovations will get things back on track.

Rowdy is the unluckiest cowboy in the whole of Wildcat Bluff County, Texas, and things are not improving this holiday season. Sure, he’s the object of many local women’s drool-worthy fantasies, but the town has decided he’s the man who should stop Belle’s renovation plans.

It started as a simple mission, but now Rowdy’s so twisted up he doesn’t know whose side he’s on. With only days until Christmas, Rowdy and Belle need to tap into their fiery personalities and off-the-charts chemistry if they’re ever going to find a way to thaw the ice on this reluctant town’s heart.