Weekly Reads: September 8 to 14, 2025

The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman (2025)

Contemporary romance. Book 1 of the Honeycrisp Orchard Romance series. Super cute little small town romance. Ellie has a dramatic firing from her big city job and luckily has a place to land at her family’s small town inn, where she’ll be helping to plan the autumn harvest festival. But she’s paired up with grumpy apple farmer, Aiden, who is skeptical of her return. They were childhood friends who drifted apart in high school and he’s a bit resentful that she left for the big city and never looked back, even though he’s stuck around and supported both their families’ businesses. It’s tons of flirty banter here, even with very different dreams and goals. We’re mostly just waiting for Ellie to realize she can achieve her dreams right there in town, with a built-in partner and community.

Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley. Advance audiobook provided by Libro.fm.

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Is This Real or Just Pretend by Emily Sullivan (2025)

Historical romance. Victorian-era England. Follow up to Duchess Material. I love a fake courtship romance, especially one with a virgin MMC. Lucien is back in town after his supper club business collapses in Paris (not his fault, his partner did him dirty) and instantly becomes re-smitten with his longtime crush Freddie, the daughter at the estate where he grew up. But Freddie is nearly engaged to someone else and her big sister Alex wants to keep it that way. So Alex declares that there’s nothing going on between Freddie and Lucien because he’s courting her instead. She somehow manages to convince him to go along with the fake courtship so that he can make some business connections in London and so that Alex can continue working for her father’s company without as much criticism. And of course these two are attracted to each other and fall in love along the way. It seems that Alex is the insecure one in the relationship though, knowing that Lucien has long crushed on her sister and believing that she’s only good for business and not for love. It’s heartbreaking and emotional to see her suffer here, but also lovely to see her soften and fall in love.

Advance ebook provided by Forever Books via NetGalley. Audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

Game Point by Meg Jones (2025)

Contemporary Romance. Book 2 of the Game, Set, and Match series. Ooh, I loved this friends to lovers romance. Dylan is a tennis star who has lost so many grand slam finals and is almost ready to quit the sport. Somehow, she strikes up a friendship with Oliver, who also somehow convinces her to let him coach her. The development of their friendship and the slow burn into more is so good. The banter, the flirting, the ease of communication and joking. I loved it so much. Not much to say except it was an excellent read.

Advance ebook provided by Avon Books via NetGalley. Audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.

People Watching by Hannah Bonam-Young (2025)

Contemporary romance. Standalone novel. Watch out for heavy themes amidst the flirty banter here. Prue has lived the small town life working at her family gas station and grocery store and caring for her mother with early-onset Alzheimer’s. Her father is trying to encourage her to get a bit more of a life, and she finds that in Milo, new to town to help his brother open a brewery. Milo has his own issues with emotionally and physically abusive parents and guilty at leaving his younger sister behind when he left the family home. But he’s a massive flirt and definitely makes Prue’s life a bit lighter. They embark on a friends-with-benefits scenario and try real hard not to catch feelings. Except the feelings are blooming strong and there are these bits of fate tying these two together. Loved this book.

Ebook borrowed from my local library via Libby. Audiobook provided by Penguin Random House Audio.

How to Sell a Romance by Alexa Martin (2025)

Contemporary romance. Standalone novel. Super steamy one night stand romance. Emerson is a kindergarten teacher who gets recruited into a skincare company by her boss and school principal and meets a stranger at a rooftop bar after the convention. Luke is all sorts of skilled and handsome and it all blows up when she realizes that he’s got disparaging things to say about the new company she just joined. Oh, and then we find out that he’s the father of one of her students. Oops. We get to navigate the world of sisters in skincare and learn just how sinister these companies can be, all while dealing with all of that tension between Emerson and Luke. Lots of cute and flirty banter here and everyone is probably a little too good to be true.

Ebook and audiobook borrowed from my local library via Libby.