banter

Changing on the Fly

by Em Maddax

Tropes: enemiestolovers, humor, athlete

Hunter Valentine is a junior at North Chicago University. He spends his college days playing ice hockey, hanging out with his best friend and getting tormented by his team captain. The kid who was once a prodigy with promise is now a bench-warming, insecure center who sees the puck even less than he sees a good night's sleep. For a reason Hunter can’t figure out, his captain has made it his mission to make sure the younger player hates the game even more than he hates himself. When one ice-shattering lapse of judgement leads to a brutal fight with even worse consequences, Hunter is faced with the truth of his teammate’s intentions. He’s now forced to decide if he should let the echoes of self-doubt or the pleasure of a forbidden touch dictate his next move. CHANGING ON THE FLY is a queer love story about trusting yourself, listening to your heart and going for what you want, no matter the risks. [Read More]

The Sicilian Trap: A Grumpy Coach World Cup Spicy Soccer Rom-Com

by Mara J. Ova

Tropes: forcedproximity, firstperson, forbiddenlove

He demands absolute control to win the World Cup. She is the sunshine that refuses to bend. Grumpy Meets Sunshine • Forced Proximity • Steamy Soccer Romance • Opposites Attract • Workplace Romance • Protective Hero • World Cup Stakes • Slow-burn With Sparkling Chemistry • Hilarious Banter • Found Family • Italian Vibes Vincenzo Messina is a tactical genius who demands absolute control to win the World Cup, but his new PR director is a walking distraction. Armed with weaponized sunshine, Sofia Hofer threatens his sacred locker room, igniting a fiery clash of wills and sizzling chemistry they both refuse to acknowledge. Arriving at the secluded Base Camp, Sofia's relentless optimism immediately collides with Vincenzo’s dictatorial temper. She treats football as a passionless branding puzzle to protect, while the volcanic coach fiercely shields his squad from the media. Bound by a lucrative Armani sponsorship, they are forced into thirty days of inescapable proximity within a secure compound and high emotion during the matches. As the grueling tournament progresses, their battle lines blur. Sofia discovers the devout heart beneath his melodramatic touchline theatrics, while Vincenzo realizes her efficiency actually protects his players, shattering his defenses. He engineered the perfect tactical trap on the pitch, but her weaponized sunshine cornered his heart. With the championship final looming, they must choose between maintaining their rigid professional boundaries or risking a catastrophic public scandal for a passion they cannot control. The Sicilian Trap is a standalone, fast-paced, steamy soccer romantic comedy by Mara J. Ova featuring grumpy-meets-sunshine and forced proximity tropes. It is a perfect read during the US-hosted World Cup, and the Italian vibes make it an ideal summer escape. Scroll up and look inside to experience the explosive chemistry and high-stakes tension. [Read More]

Invisible

by Sonja J. Kaye

Tropes: slowburn, firstperson, magic

Life’s a mess for seventeen-year-old Olivia: she lost her mother, is sent to live with a foster family in England, and now her heartbreak unlocks a dormant Talent, a supernatural ability no one else in the world has. Turns out, that little sleepwalking problem she’s had all her life is a fickle teleportation skill that promptly ejects her into the Alaskan wilderness. Thanks a lot. Much to the dismay of her feminist pride, a grouchy bear puts her in dire need of saving—by a guy. Brilliant. Nineteen-year-old Jo has secrets he can’t ever share. If he does, he’s dead. Keeping hidden is the only way to free himself from the person forcing him to live in the woods. His rules for survival: stay invisible, stay focused, and for the love of life, do not talk to anyone. Easier said than done when this beautiful, sad girl keeps bouncing back to Alaska, cracking his locked heart wide open. Drawn deeper into Jo’s secretive spell and the inexplicable bond they share, Olivia investigates why her Talent keeps dragging her back to him, only to suspect he might be connected to the mystery surrounding her missing father who disappeared before she was born. When Jo, desperate to escape the life he’s trapped in to be with the soulmate he never thought he’d find, confronts the person behind his deadly secrets, he’s faced with a Talented mastermind whose blood runs in his veins. Now Olivia must save the boy in the wild from a killer, even when they turn their eyes on her. In this wildly romantic YA/crossover cozy fantasy, emotions and mystery weave into an unforgettable tale of love and loss, secrets and suspense, and intrigue and magic. Ideal for fans of deep yearning, atmospheric nature settings, and heart-shattering romance. [Read More]

Gold

by Runa Saevik

Tropes: forcedproximity, adventure, characterdriven

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Six weeks, a book about wine, no complications. That was the plan. Luca Casini's father left him one word before he died. Luca followed it across the border into Slovenia, telling everyone, including himself, that the trip was about research. Matej Kos makes cheese in a cave older than the border itself. He speaks rarely, builds walls that outlast empires, and has built a life in which no one can let him down, because no one is in it. Neither man came looking for company. Something fits almost at once, easy in a way neither trusts yet: coffee that goes cold while they talk, jokes pitched between insult and affection, whole days that fall into a rhythm before anyone decides they should. The wanting arrives, blunt and physical and impossible to talk their way around. But when a key hits the floor, everything quiet turns loud, and what the stone has been holding changes everything they thought they were building. Some places are inherited. Some are found. [Read More]

Valley's Salvation, Book 2 of Valley's Rise

by Gina V. Badd

Tropes: forcedproximity, firstperson, darkromance

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Valley Bates and her fiance, Bryan LaCoste, are left reeling after multiple shocking events. can they push past the trauma and fear to reach their own black rainbow? Book 2 in the duet, Valley's Rise. [Read More]

The Sniper and the Swan

by Halle Macpherson

Tropes: slowburn, firstperson, characterdriven

Five years ago, the mysterious masked musician known as Il Cigno vanished. Her disappearance has haunted him ever since. Matteo Rossi has two equally challenging roles: mercenary assassin and guardian to his boisterous thirteen-year-old niece, Alessandra. He knows how to track a target, take down a threat, and disappear without a trace. What he doesn't know how to handle is a teenager who has started breaking the rules—or the feisty music teacher who is encouraging her to do so. When Mia Mills built her new life as a music teacher in the Italian lakeside town of Lacustria, she had one rule: keep her head down and stay out of trouble. But Mia has never been the type to walk away from someone who needs her help. When her talented student Alessandra secretly applies for a prestigious music summer camp, Mia is determined to help her chase her dreams—even if it means going head-to-head with her overprotective guardian. Mia knows getting close to people only puts them in danger. But as she is drawn deeper into the Rossi household, she finds herself wrapped in the warmth of a family she never expected to become part of. With each day she spends there, she indulges in the most dangerous ideal of all: hope for the future. As Matteo and Mia try to resist the magnetic pull between them, the truths they are both hiding threaten to destroy everything they've built. Because some truths can set you free. And some can get you killed. [Read More]

The Rival Hearts

by Anne Nikolaiken

Tropes: forcedproximity, firstperson, dualpov

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A steamy Married in Vegas Formula One romance featuring Rivals to Lovers. The race weekend plan didn’t include waking up married to the rival rookie driver. What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right? Ethan Ethan St-Pierre is used to living in his brother’s shadow, but now he has no other option but to shine on the racetrack...and keep the St-Pierre legacy alive. Sharing his rookie season with his biggest rival shouldn’t be that difficult. They only have to interact on racetracks–and that’s plenty, thank you very much–but now sponsors are suggesting joint photoshoots with Maggie. Their rivalry is fuelling sales, sparks are flying, and Ethan wonders if there’s something more behind their shared, sizzling glances captured in photographs. Maggie Maggie Hoffsommer is the first female race car driver with a chance to win the Drivers’ Championship and prove her critics wrong. Her surprise debut at Kestrel Racing caused a media frenzy; her repeated pole positions and podium finishes created turmoil in the paddock, but the greatest shock is the one Maggie experiences when she wakes up married to Ethan St-Pierre in Vegas… and he suggests they give it a go? He’s the steamy distraction on track, putting everything she’s worked for in jeopardy. How can she consider staying married to him? This season, they have nothing left to lose but their hearts. Will Maggie and Ethan’s competitiveness put what they desire most at risk? This is a high-octane contemporary sports romance filled with open-door spice, swoon-worthy moments, and a guaranteed happily ever after. The Rival Hearts is book #2 in The Racing Line series. Each book can be read as a stand-alone, and do not need to be read in order to be enjoyed. [Read More]

The Roman Prince of Chaos: A Spicy Slow-Burn Italian Football Romance

by Mara J. Ova

Tropes: slowburn, firstperson, multipov

He’s every woman’s dream. I’m just scared of what happens when I wake up. Alessandro Moretti is the most dangerous striker in Italy, a Golden Ball winner, and the Sexiest Man Alive. Watching him on screen has been my guilty pleasure for more than ten years. Then he became the face of my Baroque restoration campaign, said some stupid things about Baroque that I couldn’t let stand, and I corrected him. In front of a hundred people. It became a meme on Instagram. Now he wants me to teach him history—officially, so he doesn’t make an idiot of himself again. But I know why he suddenly pretends to admire Roman architecture. He wants me. On the pitch, Alessandro is hungry, aggressive, and used to taking what he wants. Off it, he’s a master seducer who knows exactly how to make a woman feel like she’s the only person in the room. But I mean to resist him, no matter how my pulse quickens when I feel his warmth. Because Alessandro Moretti loves the chase, and I refuse to become just another conquest. Except he says this isn’t about conquering me. He says he wants me. All of me. And he wants to make me happy. How am I supposed to believe that a man who has had a roster of supermodels on his arm could truly want a curvy scholar with limited time in Rome? And even if he does, the whole world will be watching, ready to decide whether I’m worthy of him. I’ve spent years building my professional reputation. I will not risk it for one charming, adorable footballer. Even if the most wanted man in Italy seems determined to prove that, for once, he isn’t playing to win. He’s playing for keeps. The Roman Prince of Chaos is a slow-burn, spicy sports romance packed with hilarious banter, irresistible pursuit, and electric chemistry, all against the beauty and chaos of Rome. Because Rome has been messing with young lovers since the beginning of time. Take a look inside and discover what happens when a legendary striker finally meets the one woman he can’t simply win. [Read More]

Masks and Moonbeams

by Kanika Singhal

Tropes: magic, characterdriven, dualpov

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To be loved is to be known. Princess Lata moonlights as a vigilante and finds an ally worth dying for. But what does this man have to do with her good-for-nothing fiancé? Chakor captures the Moon God. Now she needs to let him go. Or watch him die. To keep her promise to her dying queen, General Ria lives her life under a mask. But an old friend returns, and now she has a choice – lose her heart or break her oath. Chitrani falls in love with a Snake prince as a child. Years later, why does her fiancé look so much like the boy she lost? And Kalindi – the village healer – tries to evict a long-healed warrior from her hut by making him do housework. She doesn’t know he is a prince. “... being truly seen beneath expectations, titles, and carefully guarded secrets.” – Amazon Reviewer, Canada “The romances are tender without being cheesy and the mix of mythology and folklore gives it personality.” – Amazon Reviewer, Spain In this collection of clean fantasy romance, five women find themselves seen — truly seen — by the last person they expected. Five stories. Five happy endings. No cliff-hangers. Masks and Moonbeams is the first book in the Of Queens and Rascals series — fantasy romance rooted in Indian mythology, folklore, and history — fierce heroines, heroes who earn their place, and love that sees through every mask. “... a shiny gate to escape from the reality of modern, fast-paced life.” – Amazon Reviewer, Germany [Read More]