A little later than usual, dear readers, but our monthly review of our favorite romances is here, bringing some new suggestions for you, and offering you plenty of dirt in which your mind can grow!

Bridget:

Just One Night by Lauren Layne

I fully realize that I am developing into a total Lauren Layne groupie, but her romances are so charming, her characters so real, and their relationships so engrossing that I just can’t get enough.  Fortunately, the Library has a wide selection of her works, and her e-book only series, Sex, Love, and Stiletto is available on Overdrive.

Riley McKenna has made her career on sex.  As the official sex columnist for the sizzlingly hot magazine, Stiletto, Riley is known far as wide for her prowess.  The only problem?  It’s all a lie.  For as long as she can remember, Riley has been in love with Sam Compton, her brother’s best friend.  And no matter how hard she tries, no other man measures up to Sam.  So when her editor at Stiletto demands a tell-all article for the magazine’s big anniversary issue, Riley is stuck…does she admit her true lack of skill…or convince Sam to teach her all she needs to know?   Sam has had it bad for Riley for ages, but the McKenna’s were the family he always wanted and never had.  He’d never risk their trust, or risk breaking Riley’s heart….Right?

I really liked the way this book dealt with issues of male and female promiscuity, and didn’t shy away from the painful details in both Riley’s and Sam’s past, making it evident why they were the way they were, and what it cost both of them to make the leap from friends to lovers.  And, as someone who appreciates the written word, the ending was just pitch-perfect.

Kelley

 Luck is No Lady by Amy Sandas

In this first book in a new series from Amy Sandas, when a charming gambling hell owner and a responsible family-focused spinster play cards, everybody wins!

When Emma Chadwick, a gentleman’s daughter, finds her family facing ruin due to her deceased father’s unpaid gambling debts, she is forced to take a job. Thanks to her exceptional mathematical skills, she quickly finds work as a bookkeeper. The catch? The bookkeeping job is at Bentley’s, one of London’s most notorious gambling hells and certainly no place for a lady. The other catch? Her boss is Roderick Bentley, a man she’s met once before, and their attraction to each other is difficult to ignore.

Sandas develops the characters in this book beautifully. Emma is strong and independent, and takes her responsibility to her sisters very seriously, but we see her sacrifice her own needs and desires for love of her family. And yes, Roderick is a classic rogue in many ways, but he is also a caring man who is most proud of the fact that he’s created a business where his employees treat each other like family, which is something he has never had. The two come together as they try to surmount the danger of Emma’s financial troubles, and their interactions run the gamut from guarded to playful to sexy, but are always sincere.

Luck is No Lady was a perfect weekend-read romance that I didn’t want to put down. I look forward to seeing what the next two books in the series have in store.

Until next time, dear readers, we hope your July makes your heart skip a beat!