Romance Unzipped

NBA highs, grief lows, and Sid King—the world’s greatest baller—drive Ty 'Pretty Boy' Washington’s story in Loving the Legend, by Kit Grey. An M/M sports romance with high steam, high angst, and a (newly coined trope just for this book!) very hot Gentle Sports Daddy in the spectacular form of Sid King. As Sid and Ty’s love unfolds, Ty works to grow from a young heartbroken man to a top-tier NBA st...

Who doesn't love a good ol' age gap romance? We explore the high paced fashion world of Vivian Carlisle, the powerful editor-in-cheif of a fashion magazine giving shades of Anna Wintour meets Miranda Priestly. Things get interesting when she finds out she's pregnant in the midst of a contentious divorce and she pulls her devoted assistant, Julia, into an increasingly personal and vulne...

Need M/M second-chance fake-dating? Julian Winters delivers. Braylon + Denz, two super attractive college exes turned, ‘holy sh*z heartbreaker, it’s been literal years, but my fake date flaked on me, my parents are walking up to meet the relationship I lied about to trick them into believing I’m emotionally mature enough to vie for CEO of the family empire, and I am in a BIND. So, although it’s ou...

Ready to be immersed in a lyrical world of familial ties, cultural reverence and comforting food? Join us on the Bunchberry reservation in Dani Trujillo's Lizards Hold the Sun. Xiomara and Callehan are instantly connected, but they hold their cards close for an achingly sweet slow burn as they navigate through their own grief and family responsibilities. This is a beautiful debut novel that&#3...

Cozy stoner monster romance? Berries and Greed, by Lily Mayne, a m/f, soft femdom munchie-heaven escapism love fest turns it all upside down w/ 35-year old accidental ingenue bailing on her sex cult via a 7-foot, outwardly sexy, inwardly socially dying monster of a man. Late night snacks ensue. Then some very creative sexy times. Join us on Romance Unzipped where we're bookclubbing the H-E-Dou...

Penny sees the best in everyone - her terrier with two legs, her goat with indigestion, and especially Gabriel Duke, the hunky grump next door who has a reputation for ruining lives. If you are looking for a fun way to kick off the new year, join us in #WalkYourPetMonth as we talk about the menagerie of outcast animals in Tessa Dare's The Wallflower Wager. We get a light-hearted peak into the...

Holiday Romance! Friends-to-lovers ! Soft steam,* sweet, M/F contemporary race-to-make-Christmas-in-Ireland travel disaster, mistletoe-kissing, happy family-full, feel good romance. Listen up and get your holiday tank filled up with all the charm and banter of Molly + Andrew in Holiday Romance, by Catherine Walsh. This episode unzips the classic 'Friends to Lovers' trope, explores the impact of fa...

What does a bounty hunter even do? We still don't know, but that didn't stop us from flying through Cynthia Eden's Holding Out for a Holiday Hero, watching Jake protect True and get to the bottom of the mystery of the dead man lying beneath her Christmas tree. We discuss the comfort in reading an easy novella to get into the Christmas spirit. Then we take a moment to dig into our writing process a...

🎧 Fated shifter mates, a lady assassin on the lam, a besotted wolf, and some seriously villainous family-enemies. 'Nothing But the Wolf In Me,' a contemporary M/F shifter romance by Nikki Clarke, dishes out spicy adventure and a huge plot with tons of characters packed surprisingly well into a ~200 page story. And this is just one of a 12-part series. So. You might as well start your binge now....

Pay-per-Heart by Grace McGinty. Contemporary, why choose, F/MMM, rom-com featuring three Beverly Hills cam boys and one sausage king, all with goldarn hearts of gold. And Blake, the sweet, small town girl they all fall in love with. Shenanigans ensue. Join our raucous fun as we explore the playful and cheeky writing style of Grace McGinty, celebrate the downright bananas premise of the book, and r...

Have we ever met a book boyfriend quite so lovable and charismatic as Dalton Cavendish? Step-siblings or not, we wanted Essie and Dalton to get together right from the start. We talk all about masks, camming, and the detailed anatomical descriptions of Dalton as we review Rebecca Kinkade's Masks and Mishaps. * We're Annie + Hollie and we're co-writing our first romance. We mention our writing proc...

We enjoyed a cozy read this week, living vicariously through Nicole as Ian doted on her every move in Sophie Andrew's Right Next Door, a low angst literary hug that delivered on simps and cinnamon rolls. For those playing romance bingo, this book has a hunky tattoo shop owner, a quirky independent book store, and a cat. What more could we ask for? * We're Annie + Hollie and we're co-wr...

Swoony duke meets b*dass doctora in Tropical Rebel Gets the Duke , a smart + sexy M/F historical romance by Adriana Herrera. There are back alley escapes and sexual trysts and nary a corset bone in sight. Set in Paris, 1889, the scalpel-sharp defenses of penniless Mexican-born heiress, Dr. Aurora Montalban, get steamrolled down by the newly aristocratic Colombian-born Duke of Annan, Apollo César S...

STEM meets BDSM in Deep End, an M/F college athlete contemporary romance, by Ali Hazelwood. Damnnnnn y’all. It's even better than you thought. Unprecedented spice, complex characters, grade A+ writing, and an actual Swedish swimming caretaker god who loves up Scarlett hella hard. It’s not often we claim a book boyfriend, but when we do, it’s Lukas Blomqvist. Treat your brain and read this book...

After the (literal) cliffhanger of last week, we're reviewing Sins of Silas, the second book in Kylie Snow's Otacian Chronicles . Everyone loves Lena, but her heart will always belong to Silas. As the gang goes on their epic journey to build allies and defeat King Ulric, the romantasy gets darker and more magicy. This week we are joined for the entire episode by a softly snoring Sofie! * We're Ann...

Dive into the world of Otacia with us, in Kylie Snow's dark romantasy Lies of Lena. We can't help but root for Lena and Silas, even though they both hurt each other deeply. This book kicks things off in the Otacian Chronicles and we discuss what makes it such a polarizing pick on BookTok. The world-building and pacing are first class, which makes this book imminently readable. * We're...

Secretly shy, 6’7”, serious n’ sexy rancher Jesse Pleasant has his stoic walls shredded when Lily-Grace Leroux returns to Charming in a blaze of emotion. This M/F romances is a small town, slow burn with spice, enemies-to-lovers, 37-year-old inexperienced man hunk trading swim instruction for sex lessons with The Only Girl He’s Ever Wanted. Shenanigans ensue. Emotional needs are met. Ex-boyfriends...

Lola loves Alphas, but so far, they don't love her. In Lola & The Millionaires, by Kathryn Moon, this lovely Beta has lost all confidence, and her beauty career is down the drain. Her road to love recovery is sweet and sexy and full of fabulous fashion. A chance meeting with Leo, the packs' bossy babe Beta, and a blooming relationship with Rake, the male model Omega dream, have Lola (and us) d...

Sexy mascots, minor league baseball life, and sweet slow burn romance in KT Hoffman's The Prospects , an M/M baseball sports romance . Luis, a cisgender man, and Gene, our endearing narrator and a trans man, are rivals to lovers who overcome internal fears and professional funks to embrace true love. All the while, their team—the Beaverton Beavers— fights for wins and their Portland Major Leag...

Ethical vampire seeks hot blood mate 🩸 Contemporary M/F vampire romance slow burn with Amos, a 150-year old vamp with a powerful thirst, and Tessa, an ER nurse in need of income who signed up for a blood donation service. Amos—who hasn't had human blood in 100 years—battles the feral nature fighting to break free when he discovers Tessa, his curvy bombshell blood donor is real reactive to vam...

Ready for Romeo—a disillusioned a-hole with a broken inner child? Neither is Dallas—the pretend ditz being pawned into marrying him. There's high-stakes revenge, light kidnapping, semi-consensual nuptials, and more daddy issues than you can shake a Lambo at in My Dark Romeo , by LJ Shen & Parker S. Huntington . Come for the enemies to lovers banter and stay for the hard-won romance between the...

Rafa Romero—The Gentleman Mafioso—always gets what he wants. And after nearly hitting the innocent, far-from-home Guinevere—when she darts from dark fields on a starry Italian night, this hardhearted criminal decides he wants her. That's right friends, your mafia trope has arrived! My Dark Fairytale , by Giana Darling, (one of Annie's fave authors) is a M/F Mafia romance and Giana's first in the m...

We covered a blockbuster! Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry is a M/F Contemporary Romance featuring, you guessed it, two writers! The divine Emily Henry loves to write some writers and her latest, GBBL, delivers on just that. It's a bold merge of romance and a sweeping multi-generational family drama. If you love Emily's broody hunks and competent ladies, plus quirky characters and artist an...

A tender-hearted and tattooed ex-con, a gang playing for keeps, a vibrant East LA neighborhood, and the woman who has Sal's heart. Join us on our journey through Thirsty, by Mia Hopkins. With top-notch writing, complex characters, and a triumphant storyline that made us work for that HEA, we fell in love. Thirsty is an M/F Contemporary Romance. Come along and read with us. We're Annie + Ho...

Craving the hot impact of a legit Enemies-to-Lovers M/M Hockey Romance ? Friend, look no further. We've never read such a delicious clash of two alpha athletes or such a full-on ride from enemies to lovers. We LOVED Poetry on Ice by Jesse H. Reign . It's dirty, it's darling, the dialogue is so darn clever. Come swoon with us as Robbie charm bulldozes his love all over Ant's life. * We're Annie + H...