Top Picks 10th May 2020 : New Romance book releases from Sarina Bowen, Maisey Yates, Sajni Patel & a MAMMOTH anthology

Top Picks is a weekly meme that we do here at Scorching Book Reviews. In this post, I highlight the Romance books that I want to read that are released this week.

They are all books on my TR pile and only books we are interested in spending money on. I do not ask people to recommend books or highlight releases for author promo.

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. I can’t recommend a series at book 14 when I haven’t read the others. I don’t read NA. 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.

Status on the TR List : This book is a collection from some of my favourite new to me authors. The great thing about Anthologies is they give you a sight into new authors. I have bought.

For him, control is everything…until it shatters, and now he’s come undone.

“Appassionata” by Emma Barry
Piano technician Brennan Connelly lives to control details: the tension on a piano string or the compression of hammer felt. But he’s never faced demands like those heaped on him by Kristy Kwong, the diva who’s haunted his dreams for two decades. Kristy’s got her own secrets–the debilitating stage fright that’s kept her from performing publicly for years to start–and this concert is the last chance to save her career. But can he locate her lost passion without losing his precious control?

“Unraveled” by Olivia Dade
Math teacher Simon Burnham–cool, calm, controlled–can’t abide problems with no good solution. Which makes his current work assignment, mentoring art teacher Poppy Wick, nothing short of torture. She’s warm but sharp. Chaotic but meticulous. Simultaneously the most frustrating and most alluring woman he’s ever known. And in her free time, she makes murder dioramas. Murder dioramas, for heaven’s sake. But the more tightly wound a man is, the faster he unravels–and despite his best efforts, he soon finds himself attempting to solve three separate mysteries: a murder in miniature, the unexplained disappearance of a colleague…and the unexpected theft of his cold, cold heart.

“Caught Looking” by Adriana Herrera
When best friends Yariel and Hatuey’s gaming night turns into an unexpected and intense hook up, Hatuey can’t wait to do it again. Yariel is less certain–the major leaguer might seem to all the world like he has a heart of stone, but he’s been carrying a torch for his friend for years, and worries this will ruin the most important relationship in his life. That means Hatuey has to do all the work, and he’s planning to give it all he’s got. After all, Yariel may be the one hitting home runs on the field, but Hatuey is playing a game of seduction. Yariel may be made of stone, but Hatuey knows exactly how to make him crumble.

“Yes, And…” by Ruby Lang
When rheumatologist Darren Zhang accidentally sits in on acting teacher Joan Lacy’s improv class, he’s unprepared for the attraction that hits him–and he’s a man who likes to be prepared. Joan is caring for her ailing mother and barely has time to keep up her art, let alone date. But as the pair play out an unlikely relationship during stolen moments, they both find themselves wanting to say yes, and…much more.

“Tommy Cabot Was Here” by Cat Sebastian
Massachusetts, 1959: Some people might accuse mathematician Everett Sloane of being stuffy, but really he just prefers things a certain way: predictable, quiet, and far away from Tommy Cabot–his former best friend, chaos incarnate, and the man who broke his heart. The youngest son of a prominent political family, Tommy threw away his future by coming out to his powerful brothers. When he runs into Everett, who fifteen years ago walked away from Tommy without an explanation or a backward glance, his old friend’s chilliness is just another reminder of how bad a mess Tommy has made of his life. When Everett realizes that his polite formality is hurting Tommy, he needs to decide whether he can unbend enough to let Tommy get close but without letting himself get hurt the way he was all those years ago.

Status on the TR List : I like this series. It’s sexy and fun ..  on the TR list.

A new stand-alone hockey romance from USA Today bestseller Sarina Bowen.

On the eve of her thirtieth birthday, sports agent Bess Beringer is ready to make some changes. Armed with a five-year plan—indexed and color coded—she’ll tackle her personal life with the same zeal that she brings to her successful agency.

A big, tall, ripped hunk of hockey player who’s just been traded to the Brooklyn Bruisers is not a part of that plan. Mark “Tank” Tankiewicz has a lot of baggage. He’s a ride-or-die loner with a bad reputation. He’s on the rebound. He’s also the sexiest thing on two legs, and for some crazy reason it’s Bess that he wants.

She knows better. But then she falls stupid in love with him anyway. And for a while it seems like maybe he’ll do the same.

Until she asks him for the one thing he can never give her…

Status on the TR list : I read everything that Maisey Yates writes but this feels very womens fic which makes me wary … on the TR list with a view to reading some reviews.

New York Times bestselling author Maisey Yates’s new novel introduces the women of the Lighthouse Inn B&B. They might not have it all together, but this summer, they’ll discover that together, they might still have it all…

Rachel Henderson’s family is falling apart. Becoming a widow—especially at this age—is heartbreaking. With her teenage daughter, Emma, leaving soon for college, Rachel needs a friend—but local diner owner Adam is the last person she ever thought she’d lean on.

From the outside, her little sister, Anna, has a picture-perfect marriage. But the weight of it is suffocating her. The only way for her to breathe again comes at a high price, one she’s not so sure she can pay.

After raising two daughters on her own, their mother, Wendy, knows just how hard life can be. She’s done things she’s not proud of, things she desperately wants to keep from her girls—until keeping quiet is no longer an option.

As long-held secrets bubble up and their old lives unravel, this family will need all their strength to start again and open their hearts up to the possibility of more. But most of all, they’ll need each other…

Status on the TR list : How great does this sound? Woman in stem, hot-shot lawyer hero … I’m on the TR list to read some reviews.

Strong-willed and proudly single, an engineer walks out when her parents set her up with a lawyer — but when work brings them together again, she just might give love a second chance.

Liya Thakkar is a successful biochemical engineer, takeout enthusiast, and happily single woman. The moment she realizes her parents’ latest dinner party is a setup with the man they want her to marry, she’s out the back door in a flash. Imagine her surprise when the same guy shows up at her office a week later — the new lawyer hired to rescue her struggling company. What’s not surprising: he’s not too thrilled to see her either after that humiliating fiasco.

Jay Shah looks good on paper . . . and off. Especially if you like that whole gorgeous, charming lawyer-in-a-good-suit thing. He’s also infuriating. As their witty office banter turns into late night chats, Liya starts to think he might be the one man who truly accepts her. But falling for each other means exposing their painful pasts. Will Liya keep running, or will she finally give love a real chance? Find out in this laugh-out-loud romantic comedy debut about first impressions, second chances, and finding the love of your life in the most unexpected way.

Status on the TR list :I’m totally behind on this series but I enjoy it. This is on the TR list.

Montgomery Ink: Boulder Book 3

The Montgomery Ink saga continues with an unforgettable romance where two best friends make a bet that could change their lives forever.

Bristol Montgomery and Marcus Stearn have been best friends for so long, they sometimes forget when they weren’t as close as they are now. While friends and family think there’s something beneath the surface of their friendship, the two have always been steadfast in their stance on no heated looks or deeper feelings.

The problem? Years ago, they promised each other that if neither of them was married by the time Bristol turned thirty, they’d marry each other.

Even though both have long since decided never to force the other into an arranged marriage, circumstances and sheer stubbornness force them to refuse to back out of their deal.

Now, they’re determined to get married—even as dangerous exes and feelings they deny, block their path.

Status on the TR list : I really enjoy Tigris Eden’s stuff  … this one looks fab. I want to read some reviews.

Tilting my world on its axis, a mysterious visitor changed my life forever.

Revelations of my true origin threaten my view of the reality I’ve always known.

Newly accepted into the Academy of the Gods, I am now faced with separating fact from fiction.

Hi, my name is Nenet Summers, and I’m an Xtheo—whatever the hell that means.