Review: Careless by Carrie Ann Ryan
Careless
Carrie Ann Ryan
Ashford Creek Series, Book 0.5
102 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 10, 2025
On my 21st birthday, I know there’s only one wish I’m making when I blow out my candles.
A chance with him.
Only I’m his best friend’s little sister, so that means I’m beyond off limits.
And did I mention he’s older?
I’m ready to be seen as my own person and to take the next step.
But I know it can’t be with him.
Yet when I’m backed in a corner, there’s only one person I can call for help.
Him.
Careless is the prequel to the Ashford Creek series. Learn how Callum Ashford and Felicity Carter fall into a careless mistake before their full story in Legacy.
4 Stars
Carrie Ann Ryan just delivered an amazing set up for her new Ashford Creek series with Careless.
Felicity is home from college celebrating her 21st birthday. Celebrating with her family and college friends and a bit too much. Alcohol makes for a fun evening but the next night turns very drastically. When what should’ve been a friendly date turns to something very different. The first person she calls is not her brother but his best friend.
Callum is totally the person that you want to have on your side. He’s an amazing big brother who stepped up and took care of his siblings, an extremely loyal friend and protector. When his best friend asked him to check on his little sister after a hard night of drinking, there was no way he could say no. Even though he may have had some alternative reasons for saying yes. When she calls him in a panic asking for help he couldn’t move fast enough to save her. Callum has had a hard life and even though his heart may want more he pushes her away.
Talk about a set up. Carrie Ann Ryan hits hard and fast with this prequel to what I’m sure will be an emotionally charged story. Careless is the perfect set up for what’s to come.
Cover Reveal: Blood King by Natalie Kane
♦️♦️ Blood King Cover Reveal ♦️♦️
Blood King, book two in the Kings of Vegas series, releases on April 2, 2026.
Photographer: Michelle Lancaster
Cover Design: Hang Le
Narrators: TBA
Blurb & Tropes will be announced at a later date.
Review: You Can Scream by Rebecca Zanetti
You Can Scream
Rebecca Zanetti
Laurel Snow Series, Book 5
320 pages, Paperback
First published December 16, 2025
Mountains of Washington State in New York Times bestselling author Rebecca Zanetti’s heart-pounding series about an FBI profiler and her equally brilliant sister on the wrong side of the law.
Laurel’s family was never simple—but her half-sister, Abigail, a brilliant, unpredictable psychopath, just made it lethal. Accused of murdering their father, a man she always called a monster, Abigail claims self-defense. As the trial unfolds and long-buried family secrets explode into headlines across Washington State, Laurel’s hard-won privacy is shattered. And the nightmare is just beginning.
Even as Abigail’s trial consumes public attention, new dangers close in as the murder of a prominent scientist and the illegal poaching of a rare Pacific plant point to something insidious. Laurel turns to Washington Fish and Wildlife captain Huck Rivers, her partner in work and life, for help. But the deeper they dig, the more the case seems to echo the chaos unraveling Laurel’s world.
With danger tightening around her, Laurel faces an impossible choice: trust Abigail in one crucial, treacherous alliance, or risk losing everything. Her career, her relationships, even her life hang in the balance. The clock is ticking—and if the threat breaks loose, nothing will be fast enough to stop it.
4.5 Stars
Rebecca Zanetti kept me on the edge of my seat with the fifth installment of the Laurel Snow series You Can Scream.
Laurel Snow has earned the reputation of an excellent FBI profiler. She is an extremely intelligent woman who can peace things together, unlike anyone else. With You Can Scream things are hitting very close to home for Laurel. She and fish & wildlife detective Huck River, or navigating through some personal devastation, Laurel’s half sister is accused of murdering their father and her FBI partner becomes a suspect. Laurel’s got a lot on her mind and in her hands. The twist and turns come from every direction and just when they think they have it figured out something else happens to twist it once again.
You Can Scream is a psychological suspense story with a romantic element. Rebecca Zanetti keeps the reader on their toes throughout the entire book. I have personally found this series quite addicting. Ms. Zanetti keeps the series fresh and going with every book. Life would not have gotten in the way I could have very easily read this book in one sitting. And when I wasn’t reading it, I was definitely thinking about it.
Review: Where You Belong by Kristen Proby
Where You Belong
Kristen Proby
The Blackwells of Montana Series, Book 5
355 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication December 11, 2025
From New York Times bestselling author Kristen Proby comes the final installment of the Blackwells of Montana series, Where You Belong, a small-town, second-chance romance set in Bitterroot Valley!
Brooks
Fifteen years ago, I’d planned a romantic proposal, but that was the day Juliet walked out of my life and never looked back. I never wanted to see her again and decided that love wasn’t for me. But now, Juliet has returned to Bitterroot Valley and opened a restaurant. Catching glimpses of her around town makes my heart ache. I want to hate her. I wish she’d do what she does best and go away.
Instead, I find myself wanting to be near her. Helping her. Touching her perfect skin. I don’t want to love her. I don’t want to need her.
Juliet
Coming home to Bitterroot Valley might have been a mistake. Just because I grew up here doesn’t mean I belong here. Honestly, I’ve never felt like I belong anywhere. But once I was finally free from the man who lied and controlled me, I knew I needed to be in Montana. My new restaurant, Sage & Citrus, is a big hit, and I’m making friends. But more importantly, Brooks is here.
I know he doesn’t want me, but having him nearby is a balm to my jagged heart. The more I see him, the more I’m reminded that Brooks Blackwell is my soulmate. But has too much time passed? Or will we finally get our happily ever after?
5 Stars
Where You Belong is the wonderful conclusion to the Blackwells of Montana series. This is one of those bittersweet stories. Bitter because our time in Bitterroot Valley is coming to an end but yet it’s the story that I personally have been waiting for. Kristen Proby did absolutely amazing with Juliet and Brooks’s story.
Brooks is that gruff and brooding guy. 15 years ago, his world was shaking upside down. He thought he had it all figured out. He had the love of his life, a plan and a lot of dreams. Unfortunately, all of that came to an abrupt stop when the woman he thought he was going to share his life with decided to help a friend instead of staying. Present day, Brooks owns a garage. He has an amazing soft spot for his niece and nephew, and his an extremely loyal brother. The person who has haunted his dreams for over a decade has returned to town. Once again, Brooks has had his world shaken. Living in a small town is impossible for them to avoid one another, which has emotions all over the place. Brooks being the man that he is can only take so much and once he opened the door there was no turning back.
Juliet made a decision that changed her life 15 years ago. She walked away from the man she loved to go and help a friend who was on the edge. Little did she know that that decision would truly change her world. Over the course of 15 years, Juliet got married, was lied to and manipulated and had to deal with the fallout of her husband dying. Her ex uses trauma from her past as manipulation that he knew would hold her in place. She decided to start over at home. Returning to Bitterroot Valley was not an easy decision. Knowing what she walked away from all those years ago, the feelings that still lingered and it being a small town there is no avoiding the man that she loved. Still loves. Brooks made it very clear that he wanted nothing to do with her, yeah, begins to make subtle changes that maybe he doesn’t hate her quite so much.
Where You Belong is five star plus fantastic. I absolutely devoured this story. Kristen Proby gives us an emotional, passionate, and oh my goodness grab a fan hotter than hot story. That is a fantastic conclusion to the Blackwells of Montana series. I love the fact that Brooks and Juliet never stopped, loving each other. Brooks, swoon! The things this man does and has done, would have any woman melting into a puddle. He had every right to be hurt, but in the end, he knew she was the one for him. I love how Jules’ heart would pound whenever focus was around. The two never fell out of love with one another. It took time. There were challenges and a whole family of people rooting for the two of them. Kristen Proby created something extremely special with the Blackwells of Montana series. I absolutely loved living in this small town for a while.
Review: We Are Yours by M. Robinson
We Are Yours
M. Robinson
We Are Yours Book 1
440 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 26, 2025
From Wall Street Journal and USA Today Bestselling Author M. Robinson comes an angsty, forced proximity love triangle where secrets test brotherly bonds and music brings them together, only to have destiny threaten to tear them apart.
I’ve loved two men in all my life.
Two extremely different men.
Where Julius and I blossomed from a loving friendship, Kraven and I stemmed from nothing
but hatred. A very thin line exists between love and hate, and I crossed it with both.
I fell in love with each of them at different times, in different ways, and with different words
and actions. Cause and effect has always been our problem.
This isn’t just a love triangle between the two men I love.
It’s worse.
Because misery is the only certainty when you”re in love with two brothers.
And now I’m faced with the impossible choice. Though nothing could’ve prepared me for the devastation when they both declared, “We are yours.”
Then, all in one breath, they begged…
“Now… say you’re mine.”
4 Stars
Looking for an angsty, love triangle? Well, my reading friends look no further. Author M. Robinson delivers just that with the raw and emotional We Are Yours.
I’m gonna try to do this without giving away any of the story, considering this is the first book of a duet. I know that sometimes it is easier said than done, but I’m gonna try and focus on my feelings towards the book as opposed to what’s happening in the book.
First of all, we definitely get all the fields. If you do not like angst in your romances, this one might not be for you. However, if you do, grab your box of tissues, get a drink and settle in. This is a story of three people who have already been dealt a pretty bad hand. Each carrying emotional baggage that affects them. A story of when no one else was there for them. They had music. Music as an escape. There is a fine line between love and hate, and the Author very much puts us right in the center of it.
I felt, I cried. The betrayal and the passion bleed through the pages that you can’t help but feeling everything the story has to offer. I have to say this is a very intense story and we do have debt cliffhanger at the end, but it is well worth it. And I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Review: When We Breathe by Kristen Proby
When We Breathe
Kristen Proby
The Blackwells of Montana Series, Book 4.5
192 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 6, 2025
Hotter than a heat wave and sexy as sin. Break out those fans ladies, this one sets the pages on fire.
One night of fun that became so much more. Adam and Gabe are in a loving, fun and committed relationship. You can tell these two men completely adore one another. Adam is in finance and Gabe is a mechanic and you would think that each hung the moon for the other one.
Alex is a journalist and carries a good bit of baggage. She had the worst kind of father a person could ever have, but through the love of her brother and sisters. She has become a resilient, strong and independent woman.
There are so many things about When We Breathe that I just love. For a short story, this one packs such an amazing tale of love. Alex has her issues. She knows what her issues are. She owns them and she still holds her head high and does her best to make it through every day. She has commitment issues, but with her past, we can understand. Adam and Gabe are a force. Everything good that you would want in a man is embedded in these two men. The chemistry between the three of them together off the charts. This may be a very emotional story, but yet the heat and spice are off the charts. Kristen Proby has once again given us another story for us to get lost in.
Review: If You Were Mine by Carrie Ann Ryan
If You Were Mine
Carrie Ann Ryan
The Cage Family Series, Book 3
376 pages, Paperback
First published October 27, 2025
The last words I said to my best friend were “I trust you”. Then the world went dark, and I nearly lost everything.
While my best friend’s little sister lost even more.
I promised him that I’d take care of her—but if he knew my current thoughts when it came to Harper, he’d have never trusted me.
She’s too young for me. Too bright to my shadows. And too tempting.
Now I’m stuck in our small town, and I can’t escape her. I’d rather hide in my cabin, restoring what was one lost. Only Harper won’t let me.
I’ve already held onto more secrets than my family knows. I don’t know if I can keep what I feel about her secret too.
She sees beyond my scars and anger, and I know she hides her own just as tightly.
When one kiss changes everything, there’s no going back—even if it shatters everything in our wake.
**If You Were Mine is an age gap, best friend’s little sister, tortured hero, small town romance featuring Dorian and Harper. Each book can be read as a complete standalone. An HEA is guaranteed!**
4 Stars
Carrie Ann Ryan draws you in with emotion, drama, and love in If You Were Mine.
Dorian‘s life changed in a blink of an eye. After a tragic accident took the life of his best friend and left him with life-changing wounds and scars both physically and emotionally. After a year he returns to. Cage Lake to heal in peace and quiet.
Harper has been going through the day-to-day motions since she lost her brother. With the last of her family gone Harper struggles. Just getting through the day is sometimes hard. A year later Dorian, her brother‘s best friend returns to town. Which brings up mixed emotions.
Harper has had a crush on Dorian for as long as she can remember. Dorian thoughts of Harper are not the purist. He promised her brother that he would take care of her, but would he want him to if he knew the thoughts that we’re going through his head.
They both struggle to get through the days, but what a single kiss brings things to light. It begins to change everything. It’s a test to themselves and what they feel as they both tried to navigate the emotions in chemistry that they are feeling. Carrie Ann Ryan hits another one out of the park with If You Were Mine. Be prepared to feel all the emotions.
Like is short, buy the book! Or the bookish goodies.
I treated myself to a special addition book box bundle that had some adorable things in it, and I just wanted to share. As we say life is short by the book or the cute stuff to go with the book.
About a year ago on Facebook, I was scrolling and came across a reel of an author packing mystery book boxes. I thought to myself this is an awesome way to be able to gain new readers and to introduce them to several of your works.
That Author was Willow Winters. I quickly purchased one of her mystery boxes and I was not disappointed. I have purchased several of them and have a nice collection of not only her books, but useful and cute bookish items. I always say I am a sucker for pretty package and Willow definitely has a pretty package on her brand.
Pictured above is the latest box I have received. I love that they even wrap the books, even though I know what was included. It’s all the makings for a cozy night of reading. Willow and her team do an amazing job with all these boxes.
Review: When You Blush by Kristen Proby
When You Blush
Kristen Proby
The Blackwells of Montana Series, Book 4
420 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 2, 2025
Blake
I don’t do relationships, but I’m excellent at casual hookups. That’s not to say I’m a jerk. Not at all. I respect women—all women—and I know the value of love. But I’m married to my job as a physician. In fact, I’m married to the hospital, having a full-time affair with the clinic, and my family is my side piece. I don’t have time for a relationship with a woman.
But then the most beautiful human I’ve ever laid eyes on walks onto my plane, and my world tilts. Thanks to a Montana snowstorm, I spend one incredible night with Harper but wake up alone. She never told me her last name. She’s just … gone. It would figure that the one woman I could see myself breaking my own rules for is the one I can’t have.
Harper
It’s time for me to come home to Montana to help take care of my dad and pick up the slack for my siblings. I’ve been gone for a long time, but this beautiful corner of the world is my home. I’m excited to start my job as a NICU nurse at Bitterroot Valley General and begin a new chapter in my life. A fresh start. A clean slate.
Then he walks into the room, and it’s suddenly hard to breathe. Blake was the one-night stand who still haunts my dreams. The man can do things. Amazing things. But I never thought I’d see him again. Okay, that’s a lie. I knew he worked at this hospital, but he’s an ER doctor. I’m in a different department, so I planned to avoid him. Yet that didn’t last more than the first hour of my first shift.
Now, he’s pursuing me and saying things like forever. But with a past like mine, can I trust that he won’t tire of me and leave? Or is this finally my happily ever after?
5 Stars
Just when I think Kristen Proby cannot come up with another male lead that is going to make me go super swoony, she releases another book that tops the last one. Blake Blackwell is seriously my new book boyfriend and maybe the best fictional man ever written.
When You Blush is a small town, one night stand, forced proximity, he falls first type of romance story. Blake Blackwell admits he is married to his job. Being a doctor consumes almost all of this time and what spare time he does have he is dedicated to his family. He is an honest man and is upfront about what his intentions are from the get-go, but when he meets a certain woman on a plane, she stops him in his tracks. After a fantastic night together, she is gone when he wakes in the morning, yet Blake swears, he will never forget her.
Harper we’re returning to her adoptive family to help take care of the man who helped raise her. On a flight she meets a doctor, and they share an intense and scorching night together. They may have fallen asleep together, but as soon as Harper wakes, she is out the door. A few weeks later they come face-to-face while at work no less when all kinds of thoughts take over Harper’s head. Slowly, Harper learns that they truly are some good men left in this world.
Chemistry explodes from the get-go. Blake and Harper connect so naturally. Their attraction is undeniable. One night of passion made a lasting impression on both of them. In the not-too-distant future, the last place either one of them expected to run into each other would be at work. Both of them understand the nature of having a health field career and how important that job is. Blake is so patient and caring. Harper finds a confidence within herself just from Blake being the wonderful man that he is to her. There are two moments in this book that are so over the top in the best ways for me that truly has made my heart go pitter patter. It just goes to show that the little things truly do add up to big ones. Whether it be covering for a friend on the fly or a quick moment shared in the pouring rain. It’s undeniable that Kristen Proby knows how to make your heart swoon in all the best ways.
Review: Endlessly Yours by Carrie Ann Ryan
Endlessly Yours
Carrie Ann Ryan
The Wilder Brothers Series, Book 10
235 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 21, 2025
Four years ago, I promised my dying wife that I’d do one thing: I’d move on.
And I knew as I took that oath, I would break it.
Then I saw Rory. The woman I’d met on one of my darkest nights, and the woman I can’t ignore. Our one night is a secret we swore we’d never tell.
When I see her, I see a glimpse of what could be in the fire in her eyes.
When she sees me, she sees the grumpy, annoying Wilder brother who could shatter her dreams and her heart.
With one stolen kiss, we both know we have a choice: to keep running or finally give in.
Only when she suddenly finds herself the guardian to her two nieces, the world crumbles around us once again. She needs to protect her family, and I know I can’t let her do it alone.
The pull between us refuses to go away, but now I’ll have to choose which promise to break. And if I’m strong enough to be the final Wilder to fall.
**Endlessly Yours is a single guardian, widow’s second chance, one night stand romance in the Wilder Brothers series featuring Brooks and Rory. Each one can be read as a complete standalone. A HEA is guaranteed!**
4.5 Stars
You might wanna grab the tissues for this one. EndlesyYours is not only the last book of The Wilder Series, but Carrie Ann Ryan does what she does best and gives us a highly emotional read.
Brooks is a widower who lost his wife due to cancer. He made her promise that he would move on. When he made the promise, Brooks knew it was a lie because the love he had for her could never be replaced. Ever since his law, Brooks has been the quiet one of the brothers. That is until a particular woman walks into his life and then he has two things, haunting him instead of just one.
Rory is an illustrator for books. She self-employed and quite good at what she does. She is also a good friend of the wilder women. Roy’s life too, has taken a turn for the worse because of a tragedy. Losing her sister, and her brother-in-law in an accident leaves her becoming the guardian of two young girls. It’s very easy to say her life has had a dress change. Little did you know that Brooks and the entire Wilder family would step up and come to help her in the most amazing way as possible.
Anyone who’s picked up a Carrie Ann Ryan book Will know she likes to send us on an emotional ride. Endlessly Yours was truly just that. I also believe she saved the best for last. Remember those tissues I was talking about. Yeah you truly just might need them. Brooks and Rory are both suffering from hurt and loss in deep ways. Their lives are an emotional roller coaster. The way that Brook steps up is so swoony, my goodness it made my heart go pitter patter. This is not just a story of love, or a second chance at love. It’s the story of healing from loss discovering you have more than what you think and becoming a family. What a high note to end this series on.
Coffee Books Life 