Brothers of the Vine
Forever Evermore
Women of W.A.R.
Autumn has arrived, bringing crisp air, falling leaves, and shorter evenings—the perfect time to curl up under a cozy blanket with a captivating romance novel. Whether you’re drawn to the thrilling world of ice hockey, enchanting romantasy sagas, charming small towns, or beloved tropes like marriage of convenience, grumpy/sunshine pairings, or swoon-worthy cowboys, there’s something here for every romance lover.
Small-town romance: Nine Month Contract by Amy Daws
Help Wanted: Grumpy mountain man seeks baby mumma. Job is an incubator position only. Surrogate must be impervious to grunting as the form of communication and nosy brotherly neighbours. Rustic mountain range housing available upon request.
I wanted to pummel my irritating brothers when they posted their own version of a wanted ad to help me with my life.
But I can’t fault the results once the right woman lands in my lap.
Becoming a single father is not a decision I made lightly. In fact, it’s the biggest decision of my entire life.
Which is why when I interview Trista, I know she’s perfect.
She’s wild, she’s opinionated, she wears cowboy boots. Even my pet goat loves her…
She’s the exact type of person I was holding out for.
And to my great horror, I realise on our first night of attempting this baby-making dance — when the lights are low, the cheap wine is flowing and the home-insemination supplies are laid out on the kitchen counter — I want to do a lot more than just make her my surrogate.
I want to make her mine.
Grumpy/sunshine: The Grump Whisperer by Katy James
Keep calm and ride on…for fans of Elsie Silver and Hannah Grace comes a charmingly engaging story about tumbling down, falling in love, and getting back into the saddle when it counts…
Horse barn manager Bronwen Jones is just about at her wits end. The barn is under new ownership, and things are going downhill fast. Now the situation is dire: bills are unpaid, they’re low on feed and hay, and the mountain of manure is the stuff of nightmares.
Which is when he arrives. Ex-show jumper Ian Kingston is an absolutely gorgeous wreck of a man with a deep scowl. He had the career she always dreamed of, until his most recent injury destroyed any hope of professional riding. Ian wants nothing to do with the responsibilities for horses, Bronwen, or anything that reminds him of what he’s lost.
Only Bronwen isn’t about to let their resident Mr Rochester off easy. Not when there are horses that need tending. And when a glorious but skittish stallion arrives, they’re forced to work together — even as attraction crackles between them. Both Ian and Bronwen must face the pile of crap that’s keeping them from moving forward…and the outcome may be the greatest ride of their lives.
Ice-hockey sports romance: Shoot Your Shot by Lexi La Fleur Brown
Don’t miss NHL insider and #BookTok influencer Lexi LaFleur Brown’s steamy and superstitious hockey rom-com debut!
When Jaylen Jones doesn’t secure an NHL contract at the end of training camp, he worries his hockey career is over. But after an anonymous one-night stand on his last night in town, his luck turns around and a last-minute roster spot opens up on the Seattle Rainiers. Connecting his fortune to the girl he spent the night with, superstitious Jaylen is suddenly desperate to keep her around.
Aspiring tattoo artist Lucy isn’t so sure about the proposition to remain Jaylen’s lucky charm — she’s been called a lot of things in her life, but good luck has never been one of them. But stuck in a career slump, Lucy has everything to gain. Hoping for an apprenticeship at a tattoo parlour hasn’t offered her much stability, and Jaylen is willing to pay any price to get Lucy to agree…so maybe sending him a routine text message before each game won’t be too hard.
What starts as an agreement to trade favours — a good luck text for an appearance at a charity event, or well wishes in exchange for prime game tickets — quickly turns into sizzling chemistry that’s too delicious not to give in to. But Lucy’s been in too many situationships to even think about getting attached again, and Jaylen is clearly only with Lucy as long as it’s helping his career…neither of them expecting getting lucky could be so complicated.
Epic romantasy: Lady of Ashes by Melissa K. Roehrich
She will not be the same as when she left
Scarlett Semiria sacrificed everything to keep her family, her Courts, and her twin flame safe. But the cost was more than she could have ever anticipated. And now she finds herself once again forced to make a terrible choice that could leave her so broken, even the stars won’t be able to bring her back.
Crown Prince Callan is more than happy to leave the Fire Court behind, along with the woman who chose someone else. But to protect his people and his kingdom, he is forced to enter into a dangerous deception that could cost him everything.
Fae Queen Talwyn Semiria has been waiting for decades for Scarlett to return home. She had expected to find a kindred spirit. What she got was a brash assassin who does things her own way and flouts all traditional decorum. She might play nice for now, but when faced with the evil that resides across the sea, she’ll take it all and sacrifice everything.
Everything hangs in the balance
One wrong move, and the scales will tip
Only ashes will remain
Marriage of convenience: Finding Hayes by Laura Pavlov
The marriage was fake, but my feelings were real …
***
Savannah Abbott was my best friend growing up, and the reason I could be the best version of myself.
But then, without warning, she was gone. And my life began unravelling the day she left. My guard went up, and my ability to trust people disappeared.
But now, Savannah is back in Magnolia Falls, and she’s acting like I’m the enemy.
That is, until she needs a favour. A temporary husband …
I may fight flames for a living, but my new wife is the fire that’s been missing all along. None of this is real, we remind ourselves while we’re playing house.
But maybe, for her, I’m willing to bend the rules …
Anti rom-com: Unromance by Erin Connor
Sawyer Greene is done with romance.
Once a bestselling author of the genre, she’s been left with nothing but heartbreak and bitterness.
Mason West is a hopeless romantic.
He has a habit of falling in love with all the wrong people. So when the two find themselves stuck in a lift together, Sawyer is determined this will not be their meet cute.
But the universe has other plans.
Sawyer and Mason make a plan to cure him of his hopeless romanticism, her of her writer’s block. It’s simple. Sawyer will become the romcom love interest of Mason’s dreams and ruin romance for him one trope at a time…
There’s just one rule: do not fall in love.
What could go wrong?
Rural romance: A Snowy River Summer by Stella Quinn
A heartwarming story about finding love where you least expect it from Stella Quinn, bestselling author of The Vet from Snowy River.
Lady mechanic seeks love in the country.
Kylie Summer loves her hometown in the Snowies, and life would be wonderful if only her workshop would turn a profit (she’s broke) and Hanrahan would recover from its shortage of eligible blokes (unlikely).
But then an arrogant city lawyer turns up. Is he in Hanrahan to stay? Not at all. He’s charming and he’s good-looking but he’s a bad decision waiting to happen. If only he didn’t make her feel so … wonderful.
Damon Johns hasn’t lost a court case in months, so he’s mad as fire when his colleagues ban him from work. Sure, he’s had a run-in with a traffic cop … and a judge … but banning him? What his colleagues don’t know is that Damon’s past is about to catch up with him and his career may not be the only thing set to implode.
A chance request to organise the sale of a country property is good news: he’ll need a distraction if he can’t work, and soon he’ll be back in the city where he belongs. The bad news? The place comes with a special-needs labrador and a girl-next-door mechanic who both conspire to give his lonely heart crazy ideas about sticking around …
Hot cowboy: Brokedown Cowboy by Maisey Yates
If practice makes perfect, Connor Garrett should be world champion of being alone. Since losing his wife he’s concentrated exclusively on his family’s ranch.
Until Felicity Foster needs a place to stay and Connor invites her to move in temporarily.
That’s what friends do.
What friends don’t do? Start fantasising about each other in their underwear.
Or out of it…
Since high school, Liss has kept her raging crush in check.
But helping Connor rebuild his life only reinforces how much she longs to be a part of it.
One explosive encounter, and she’ll discover that getting what you always wanted can feel better than you ever dreamed…
European escape: A Mediterranean Affair by Ally Blake & Suzanne Merchant
Dating The Italian – Ally Blake
Do opposites really attract?
Band manager Sutton has heard her parents’ love story hundreds of times. Only, when she arrives at the bar where her late mother first met her father, instead of finding her own love story, she’s greeted by the world’s grumpiest barman: Dante. His past wounds run so deep that a romance with Dante simply isn’t on the cards…though that doesn’t mean sunshine personified Sutton can’t still persuade him to create a singles night at his bar! But while they’re busy bringing couples together, will they be able to stay away from their irrefutable chemistry?
Cinderella In Paradise – Suzanne Merchant
Temptation under the Turkish sun…
Left homeless and unemployed, Beth just wants to escape. And when a friend offers her an isolated villa on the idyllic Turquoise Coast, this Cinderella can’t believe her luck! Until her solitude is interrupted by the arrival of handsome CEO Jensen. It’s clear he’s fleeing demons of his own, yet they soon find themselves gravitating together as the spark between them grows. Can Beth step out of her comfort zone and into the adventure of a lifetime?
Happy reading!