June has got to have some of my most anticipated romance reads in it. From Take a Hint Dani Brown to The Marriage Game to Daring and the Duke, I am so ready! Pull up a chair, grab a hot drink, so we can chat steamy romances. Keep reading if you want to get a peek at some of the best upcoming romance books.
The Marriage Game
A high stakes wager pits an aspiring entrepreneur against a ruthless CEO in this sexy romantic comedy.
After her life falls apart, recruitment consultant Layla Patel returns home to her family in San Francisco. But in the eyes of her father, who runs a Michelin starred restaurant, she can do no wrong. He would do anything to see her smile again. With the best intentions in mind, he offers her the office upstairs to start her new business and creates a profile on an online dating site to find her a man. She doesn’t know he’s arranged a series of blind dates until the first one comes knocking on her door…
As CEO of a corporate downsizing company Sam Mehta is more used to conflict than calm. In search of a quiet new office, he finds the perfect space above a cozy Indian restaurant that smells like home. But when communication goes awry, he’s forced to share his space with the owner’s beautiful yet infuriating daughter Layla, her crazy family, and a parade of hopeful suitors, all of whom threaten to disrupt his carefully ordered life.
As they face off in close quarters, the sarcasm and sparks fly. But when the battle for the office becomes a battle of the heart, Sam and Layla have to decide if this is love or just a game.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Edelweiss. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Marriage Game was one of those books which kept me reading past my bedtime. It’s a fun story about family, forgiveness, and second chances. Dual POV, I loved how much I adored both Sam and Layla. Whether it be Sam’s commitment to his sister, or Layla’s huge family, I loved how detailed they were – like Layla’s love of dal and donuts! Entirely quirky and with fabulous chemistry, reading The Marriage Game was entertaining! Wonderfully diverse, and full of fantastic banter, this book will have you laughing and swooning.
I also loved that The Marriage Game had a fair amount of individual character development for Sam and Layla. We can get so immersed in our senses of guilt or in our not knowing. How can we balance our desire for honoring our family and traditions, with our own goals? To honor the past and to live for the future? Opposites attract and sparks fly all over the place!
Find The Marriage Game on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.
Take a Hint Dani Brown
Danika Brown knows what she wants: professional success, academic renown, and an occasional roll in the hay to relieve all that career-driven tension. But romance? Been there, done that, burned the T-shirt. Romantic partners, whatever their gender, are a distraction at best and a drain at worst. So Dani asks the universe for the perfect friend-with-benefits—someone who knows the score and knows their way around the bedroom.
When brooding security guard Zafir Ansari rescues Dani from a workplace fire drill gone wrong, it’s an obvious sign: PhD student Dani and ex-rugby player Zaf are destined to sleep together. But before she can explain that fact, a video of the heroic rescue goes viral. Now half the internet is shipping #DrRugbae—and Zaf is begging Dani to play along. Turns out, his sports charity for kids could really use the publicity. Lying to help children? Who on earth would refuse?
Dani’s plan is simple: fake a relationship in public, seduce Zaf behind the scenes. The trouble is, grumpy Zaf’s secretly a hopeless romantic—and he’s determined to corrupt Dani’s stone-cold realism. Before long, he’s tackling her fears into the dirt. But the former sports star has issues of his own, and the walls around his heart are as thick as his… um, thighs.
Suddenly, the easy lay Dani dreamed of is more complex than her thesis. Has her wish backfired? Is her focus being tested? Or is the universe just waiting for her to take a hint?
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Edelweiss. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I fell in love with Take a Hint Dani Brown from the first chapter. The characters and the narrative voice are amazing. Dani Brown doesn’t believe she can be a good girlfriend and her relationships with men and women have seemed to prove her right. Zafir is a hopeless romantic with a tragic past that has him trying to focus on being emotionally open. What could go wrong when they have to pretend to date? We become introduced to Dani and Zaf from their witty banter, their clever retorts, and the way they are drawn to each other. And what ends up happening is we quickly fall in love with them as characters. It’s a dual POV so you’re really able to get to know both Dani and Zaf and I couldn’t decide who I loved more! If you’ve been searching for more Brown sister interactions – this is certainly a win!
There were so many moments I laughed out loud and I stayed up till 2am multiple nights to finish this. I barely took notes I was so absorbed in their interactions. Throughout the entire book, I never got tired of these characters. It’s a wonderfully balanced romance that looks as coming to terms with our past, love which inspires compromises and acceptance, and the necessity of taking a hint from the universe. The writing is clever, things falling into place almost cosmically, and never feeling forced. If you loved Get a Life Chloe Brown, this will be an instant win for you. While you can read Take a Hint Dani Brown without the first, do yourself the favor and read them both. They’re one of my favorite romance novel series ever!
Find Take a Hint Dani Brown on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.
Daring and the Duke
Grace Condry has spent a lifetime running from her past. Betrayed as a child by her only love and raised on the streets, she now hides in plain sight as queen of London’s darkest corners. Grace has a sharp mind and a powerful right hook and has never met an enemy she could not best, until the man she once loved returns.
Single-minded and ruthless, Ewan, Duke of Marwick, has spent a decade searching for the woman he never stopped loving. A long-ago gamble may have lost her forever, but Ewan will go to any lengths to win Grace back… and make her his duchess.
Reconciliation is the last thing Grace desires. Unable to forgive the past, she vows to take her revenge. But revenge requires keeping Ewan close, and soon her enemy seems to be something else altogether—something she can’t resist, even as he threatens the world she’s built, the life she’s claimed…and the heart she swore he’d never steal again.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Edelweiss. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
I have adored the Bareknuckle Bastards series and I am so happy that Daring and the Duke is from Grace’s POV. I have loved every scene with Grace in it from the first two books and so a whole book of Grace is amazing. All the things I loved about Grace is only heightened as she reflects of her memories of growing up, her past with Ewan, and her own business pursuits. She’s worked hard, put in blood, sweat, and tears for her own Empire. And she remains true to herself, to her ambitions, and to her past in Daring and the Duke.
There’s been such a build up to Grace and Ewan’s story in the first two books. It’s a story charged with vengeance and forgiveness. There’s undeniable chemistry and a long history with which to reckon. If we let go of the hate, the anger, and the resentment who are we? While change has been a huge theme in all the Bareknuckle Bastard books, it comes to a conclusion in Daring and the Duke. What truly lies beneath the face of Ewan, of Grace?
It’s such a brilliant finale to what is one of my favorite romance series. Summing up all these threads, Daring and the Duke delivers a sizzling romance, story of change, and also tackles some of the sexism against women’s pleasure. If you haven’t read this series, please go check it out!
Find Daring and the Duke on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.
Although I don’t normally read much from the adult genre, these three books sound absolutely fantastic and I’ve added them to my TBR shelf on Goodreads. I’m glad to hear you’ve enjoyed them and your enthusiasm makes me look forward to reading them more. Loved your reviews! 😀
YAY I’m so glad that you added them to your TBR, Thanks for commenting!