A Merry Little Meet Cute by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (2022)
Contemporary romance on the set of a sweet holiday rom-com movie for a squeaky clean network. Our heroine is a plus-sized adult entertainer and our hero is an ex-boy band member trying to rehabilitate his reputation. And of course, they each have a pre-existing crush on each other, so sparks fly and they start secretly spending naked time together. This book had all sorts of great callbacks to boy band hijinks (reality TV shows, rabid fans, and sketchy managers). We get to meet the other boy band members as well and I’m looking forward to reading their future stories.
Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby. Print book provided by Avon Books and BiblioLifestyle.
Snow Place Like LA by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (2023)
Contemporary romance. Book 1.5 of the Christmas Notch series. Being in the same working circle (in the adult film industry), Luca has had a crush on Angel for ages and they finally hook up when working on the same movie set. After a month together, it seems that Angel has ghosted Luca, so Luca blocks Angel everywhere. Fast forward seven months and they’re stuck working on yet another film together and need to confront their feelings and what all went wrong. It’s a quick and dirty novella with lots of steam. Standout page of the book goes to Luca explaining to Angel what omegaverse and knotting is.
Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby.
A Holly Jolly Ever After by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (2023)
Contemporary romance. Book 2 of the Christmas Notch series. Ex-boy band member turned pizza mogul Kallum is set to star in a sexy Santa movie after gaining notoriety after a sex-tape was leaked. Former child actor and all-around good girl Winnie is in a tough spot following her divorce and an illness that prevented her from starring in last year’s Christmas movie, and is now given the opportunity to rebrand herself by co-starring with Kallum. She’s super hesitant at first, but finally decides to give it a try. Upon her first meeting with Kallum and the movie’s intimacy coordinator, Winnie soon realizes she’s totally in over her head and has no idea how to portray sexual satisfaction on screen (having never experienced it off screen). She’s got plenty of homework to do there, but her super conservative purity-based upbringing is definitely creating a lot of blocks there. Kallum has his own insecurities of being the least sought after boy band member and always being looked at as a hook-up rather than relationship material. He’s totally excited to work with Winnie after having had a crush on her since they were teenagers. With Winnie’s insecurities in the bedroom, she asks Kallum to help her in that department, agreeing that it’s all for the sake of research and her performance in the movie. There’s definitely a lot of steam in this book, as Kallum takes on the role of tutor for Winnie. While the physical attraction between Winnie and Kallum definitely exists, neither of them are sure about their long-term compatibility, being total opposites in personality and in family dynamics. It’s takes a bit of emotional growth for both of them: for Winnie to learn to trust someone and for Kallum to behave a bit more responsibly. A super humorous read with tons of support from our favorite characters from Book 1 of the series.
Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley.
Seas and Greetings by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (2024)
Contemporary romance. Book 2.5 of the Christmas Notch series. Quick and fun flirty steamy novella. Addison is set to launch the maiden voyage of her cruise line and she needs everything to go perfectly and not be distracted by her bodyguard Krysta. Except she is very much distracted by Krysta, who is authoritative in the most delicious way. And she may or may not have a stalker aboard the cruise ship. It’s really just a very quick and not super emotional read here with plenty of steam.
Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.
A Jingle Bell Mingle by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (2024)
Contemporary romance. Book 3 of the Christmas Notch series. We’re at the wedding of Bee and Nolan (from Book 1) and start with a second one night stand for adult film actor Sunny and widowed boy-band member Isaac. And then Sunny’s motel room floods and she ends up staying at Isaac’s mansion while she’s working on a screenplay. Meanwhile Isaac needs to finish writing one more album to fulfill his contract with his music studio and the dead wife card just isn’t working anymore. They peacefully cohabitate with Sunny’s cantankerous cat and try really hard not to fall in love. High steam, high chaos, and high emotion here with both Sunny and Isaac dealing with their separate feelings of grief and figuring out how to move on with their adult lives.
Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley. Audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.
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