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The Roses at Porthglen Manor (Love in Porthglen Book 1)
Author: Tamsin Bracknell
FREE
Contemporary Romance
A seaside town in Cornwall. A healing heart. A fresh start.
After Hailey loses everything, she lands her dream job as a rose gardener at a manor house in Cornwall. The locals are frosty, but she quickly befriends The Second Chance Book Club, a group of like-minded women with kind hearts and quick wits.
The views are beautiful, the weather is scorching and she’s got the fresh start she needed.
The only problem? World-weary Head Gardener, René, is against her at every turn.
With an important charity event looming, Hailey and René are stranded together on the hunt for a rare rose, and the frost starts to melt...
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What you can expect from this series:
Small seaside town setting
Sweet and cosy romance stories
Happy endings
Interlinked stories that can be read in any order
Tamsin Bracknell writes cozy contemporary romances set in Cornwall that emphasize community, second chances, and the healing power of finding your place. Her Love in Porthglen series has attracted readers who want their romance gentle, their settings atmospheric, and their supporting casts full of quirky locals and found family. The inclusion of The Second Chance Book Club as recurring characters signals that this is a series where friendship matters as much as romance.
What makes this special: The enemies-to-lovers dynamic between Hailey and René gets the gardening twist—she’s the enthusiastic newcomer with dreams of transforming the manor’s roses, he’s the world-weary head gardener who’s seen too many bright young things come and go. The forced proximity of hunting for a rare rose together (very Romancing the Stone but with horticulture) provides the perfect pressure cooker for melting René’s frosty exterior. Cornwall provides the quintessential British countryside escape—dramatic coastlines, historic manor houses, and small-town communities where everyone has opinions about everyone else. The Second Chance Book Club is exactly the kind of found family that makes cozy romance work, giving Hailey allies and comic relief while she navigates both her new job and her complicated feelings for her grumpy boss. If you’ve loved Kate Forster’s Australian small-town romances, Phillipa Ashley’s Cornwall-set novels, or anything by Jenny Colgan, this delivers similar comfort-read energy. And it’s free, making it a risk-free way to discover whether Porthglen becomes your next cozy romance destination.
The Mages of Starsea (The Starsea Cycle Book 1)
✨ Author: Kyle West
FREE
Space Opera Science Fiction
A mage’s fate is worse than death...
Lucian dreams of a new life outside the cesspool of Earth. Unfortunately, his wish comes true when the government identifies him as a mage.
No one knows why the mages are being born. No one knows why their powers lead to madness and death in a terrifying disease known as “the fraying”. The only solution is to quarantine the mages in academies.
When Lucian is exiled from Earth, he must travel to the distant world of Volsung to receive training. During the long passage, he meets a mysterious mage. She prophesies Lucian is marked by the Manifold, the reality that is the source of all magic. It is a destiny that requires Lucian to master abilities he never imagined he possessed.
But that’s the last thing Lucian wants. He faces a terrible choice. To accept his new reality as a mage. Or, to try and outrun destiny...
Kyle West writes space opera that blends traditional science fiction settings with fantasy elements, creating universes where advanced technology and magic coexist in uneasy balance. His Starsea Cycle combines the space academy tropes readers love from Ender’s Game with the magical coming-of-age journey of books like The Name of the Wind. West has built a following among readers who want their space opera to include genuine wonder rather than just military hardware.
Here’s what you’re getting: The premise brilliantly inverts the usual “chosen one discovers their powers” narrative—Lucian’s magical abilities aren’t a gift, they’re a death sentence. The “fraying” (magic leading to madness and death) creates urgency that most magical academy stories lack; this isn’t just about learning to control your powers, it’s about surviving them. Exiling mages to distant worlds for training creates the perfect isolated pressure-cooker setting, while the prophecy that Lucian is “marked by the Manifold” suggests he’s connected to the source of magic itself in ways that could either save or destroy him. The philosophical question at the heart—do you accept a destiny you never wanted, or spend your life running from it?—gives this depth beyond space battles and magical duels. If you’ve loved Pierce Brown’s Red Rising series, Brandon Sanderson’s Skyward, or the magical academies of Naomi Novik’s Scholomance trilogy transported to a science fiction setting, West offers that same combination of coming-of-age story and high-stakes adventure. And starting the series free means you can discover whether the Starsea Cycle becomes your next binge-read without any financial risk.
All I Want for Christmas
Author: Jennifer Gracen
FREE
Holiday Fiction
Cassandra Baines almost has it all: a flourishing career as one of the youngest English Lit assistant professors at NYU, an apartment in a city she adores, and a close circle of lifelong girlfriends that are like sisters. The only thing she doesn’t have is someone special to share it with. She’s been married to her work since Sean McKinnon broke her heart seven years ago.
Musician and bar owner Sean McKinnon keeps busy – too busy for a love life. He blew it with Cassie all those years ago, and no one has held a candle to her since.
But then one fateful night, of all the people in New York City, Cassandra walks into his bar, and he’s drawn to her as strongly as ever. She wants nothing to do with him, but he’s not going to give up so easily.
Can a bit of New York Christmas magic help two people take a second chance on true love?
Jennifer Gracen writes contemporary romance that captures New York City’s unique energy, particularly during the holidays when the city transforms into something magical despite its hard edges. Her second-chance romances emphasize both characters having grown and changed in the years apart, making their reunion about two adults choosing each other rather than just rekindling what they had before.
Why I’m including this: Second-chance romance works best when you understand both why they broke up and why they might work now, and Gracen delivers on both fronts. Cassie has built an impressive academic career but walled off her heart after Sean broke it seven years ago. Sean owns a bar and makes music but has never found anyone who measures up to what he lost. The “of all the gin joints in all the towns” setup—walking into his bar in a city of millions—feels like fate demanding they deal with their unfinished business. New York City at Christmas provides the perfect backdrop: twinkling lights, holiday crowds, that particular brand of loneliness that comes from being surrounded by people celebrating while you’re alone. The musician hero adds romantic appeal (there will definitely be a scene where he plays for her), and the tight circle of supportive girlfriends gives Cassie people to talk her through whether giving Sean another chance is brave or foolish. If you’ve loved Christina Lauren’s holiday romances, Emily Henry’s second-chance love stories, or Josie Silver’s One Day in December, this offers similar magic-of-the-season energy with the grittier authenticity of actual New York rather than a Hallmark version. And it’s free, making it the perfect holiday treat to get you in the seasonal spirit.
The Icing on the Cake (Otter Bluff)
Author: Linda Seed
FREE
Humorous Contemporary Romance
She’s a baker without a kitchen. He’s got a double oven to spare. It’s a recipe for success, until his mother starts stirring up trouble …
Cassie Jordan has a sweet dream to open a bakery specializing in wedding cakes. The problem is, the Airstream trailer where she lives has a kitchen the size of a postage stamp, and her job as housekeeper for a vacation rental agency doesn’t pay enough for her to find other arrangements.
When the renters at one of the houses in her care cancel their stay, leaving the house empty and its top-of-the-line kitchen unused, who could blame her for seeing it as an opportunity? But Cassie’s unsavory plan starts to look like a mistake when the owner’s son shows up unannounced, catching her with her pants down—literally.
If Cassie can sweet-talk her way out of trouble, setting up her business might be a piece of cake. If not, it’s going to be a bitter setback …
The Icing on the Cake is a stand-alone novel in Linda Seed’s Otter Bluff small-town romance series.
Linda Seed writes contemporary romances that balance humor with genuine stakes, creating heroines who are resourceful, flawed, and easy to root for. Her Otter Bluff series features interconnected stories set in a quirky small town where everyone knows your business, making both romance and comedy inevitable. Seed’s strength lies in creating meet-cutes that are genuinely funny while also establishing real obstacles the couple must overcome.
What makes this special: The setup is rom-com perfection—Cassie’s trying to illegally use a vacation rental’s kitchen to build her bakery business (morally gray but totally understandable given her circumstances), and she gets caught literally with her pants down by the owner’s son. That’s the kind of humiliating first meeting that rom-com readers live for. The baking element adds sensory appeal (you can practically smell the wedding cakes), while Cassie’s Airstream-living, housekeeper-working situation establishes real economic stakes beyond just “will they or won’t they.” The mention that his mother “starts stirring up trouble” promises the interference and complications that keep rom-coms moving. Seed’s decision to make this a standalone within a series means you get the cozy small-town atmosphere without needing to read books in order. If you’ve enjoyed Susan Mallery’s Fool’s Gold series, Jill Shalvis’s Heartbreaker Bay novels, or Kristan Higgins’s small-town romances, this delivers similar humor and heart. And it’s free, making it an easy way to test whether Otter Bluff becomes your next comfort-read location.
Cowboy Creed (Cooper’s Hawke Landing Book 1)
Author: Rhonda Lee Carver
FREE
Western & Frontier Romance
Second chances come in their own time for a cowboy. For Mindy and Creed the flame remains.
Newly divorced and empty nester, Mindy Sage, decided that her hometown might be the perfect place to reinvent herself, or at least find the wild and carefree girl she used to be before she moved away. She’s craving small town comfort, but the problem is, in Cooper’s Hawk, everyone knows everyone. Secrets can feel as tall and wide as the Montana mountains that backdrop the friendly, picturesque town where she’d left her heart in the hands of a handsome cowboy nineteen years ago.
Search and Rescue team member, Creed Hawke, understood more than anyone what saving a life meant, but who would save him from the one woman he’d never gotten over? He’d moved on—or at least he thought he had until those old emotions come tumbling back with the vengeance of a forest fire. He’s reminded of how much he’d loved Mindy, wanted her, swore to marry her. Why couldn’t he forget her? Resist her? Deny her his heart? Because he’d fallen for her at ten and never came back up for air.
How can he forgive her for stealing his daughter from him?
Is love stronger than the mistakes they’ve made? Or are they doomed before they find forever?
Rhonda Lee Carver writes Western romances that combine small-town Montana settings with emotionally complex second-chance love stories. Her Cooper’s Hawke Landing series features interconnected stories about the Hawke family and their search and rescue work, giving her romances built-in heroism and life-or-death stakes that elevate them beyond typical small-town fare. Carver doesn’t shy away from serious issues—secret children, long-held resentments, the cost of choices made decades ago—making her romances deeper than many in the Western subgenre.
Here’s what you’re getting: This isn’t just “former lovers reunite”—Mindy kept Creed’s daughter from him for nineteen years, which is the kind of secret that could poison any relationship permanently. That revelation (”How can he forgive her for stealing his daughter from him?”) transforms this from sweet reunion into something with real stakes: can love survive genuine betrayal? The fact that Creed has been in love with Mindy since he was ten adds both sweetness and tragedy—he’s been carrying this torch for decades while she built a life that included their child but excluded him. Mindy returning as a newly divorced empty nester looking to rediscover who she was before she left creates interesting parallels—she’s literally trying to go back to who she was at eighteen, but you can’t actually go back, only forward. Montana’s landscape and the small-town setting where everyone remembers what happened nineteen years ago creates pressure-cooker intensity. If you’ve loved Linda Lael Miller’s Montana Creeds series, Joann Ross’s small-town Western romances, or Diana Palmer’s cowboy heroes, Carver delivers similar rugged landscape and alpha heroes while tackling heavier emotional territory. And it’s free, making it risk-free to discover whether the Cooper’s Hawke Landing series becomes your next Western romance obsession.
Secrets of the Forgotten Heir (Witchlight Magical Mysteries Book 1)
Author: Heather G. Harris, Ella Stone
FREE
Urban Fantasy
PI by day, reluctant witch by necessity—Beatrix has a case to crack and a legacy to reclaim.
I walked away from my magic, my past, and the home I was born to protect. For the last decade, I’ve been scraping by as a PI in the non-magical world, solving human problems and ignoring the legacy that should have been mine. My magic is barely worth mentioning—unless you count my menial ability to sense emotions, which is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.
But then my oldest friend breaks into my flat with a desperate plea and I’m suddenly heading back to Witchlight Cove—a hidden magical town on the British coast I swore I’d never see again.
The Eternal Flame, an enigmatic magic that protects the town, has vanished. A ruthless property developer is circling my family home like a vulture. And a poisoning at the village fête proves there’s something far worse lurking in the shadows. If I don’t figure out what’s going on, I’ll lose everything—not just my inheritance, but the only people I’ve ever called family.
With my fiercely loyal retriever by my side, a murder to solve, and a smug, insufferably attractive rival getting under my skin, Witchlight Cove is about to test me in ways I never imagined.
Some legacies can’t be escaped. Some flames refuse to die.
Perfect for fans of strong heroines, lovable animal sidekicks, and heart-racing urban fantasy, Secrets of the Forgotten Heir delivers action, charm, and supernatural surprises.
Heather G. Harris and Ella Stone collaborate on urban fantasy mysteries that combine magical world-building with legitimate detective work. Their Witchlight Magical Mysteries series has attracted readers who want their urban fantasy heroines competent, their magical systems intriguing, and their mysteries genuinely puzzling rather than just excuses for supernatural action scenes. The British coastal setting distinguishes their work from the predominantly American urban fantasy landscape.
Why I’m including this: Beatrix is exactly the kind of reluctant heroine readers love—she walked away from her magical inheritance a decade ago and has been successfully ignoring it until circumstances force her home. The “barely worth mentioning” magic (sensing emotions) is a nice subversion of the overpowered urban fantasy protagonist; Beatrix will have to solve problems with detective skills and determination rather than magical firepower. The Eternal Flame vanishing, a property developer threatening her family home, and a poisoning at a village fête create multiple mysteries that promise to interconnect in satisfying ways. The “smug, insufferably attractive rival” signals romantic tension that will complicate everything, while the fiercely loyal retriever provides both companionship and the kind of animal sidekick that urban fantasy readers adore. British coastal magical towns hit differently than American urban fantasy settings—there’s history, tradition, and the sense that magic has been here far longer than any contemporary threat. If you’ve loved Ilona Andrews’s Kate Daniels series, Patricia Briggs’s Mercy Thompson novels, or Kim Harrison’s Hollows series, this offers similar tough heroines and magical mysteries with a distinctly British flavor. And it’s free, making it an easy way to discover whether Witchlight Cove becomes your next magical obsession.
Final Notice: A Damaged Goods Mystery
Author: Jennifer L. Hart
FREE
Amateur Sleuth Mysteries
FINAL STRAW
Dishing out bad news is Jackie Parker’s job until her boss grabs her assets one time too many and she serves him her notice and hopes he chokes on it. There must be a better way for a certified process server to make a living in Miami than working for a lousy lecherous lawyer. Whatever Jackie decides, her number one priority is spending time with her husband, Luke, preferably without his brother Logan—AKA the Dark Prince.
FINAL WARNING
Despite Logan’s objections, Luke asks her to join forces in their own property management team, Damaged Goods. Drawing the line between professional and personal lives proves challenging though, especially with Logan serving her an ultimatum—tell Luke the truth about what really happened the night they first met or he will. Sexual harassment is looking better and better.
FINAL NOTICE
Fester Gomez is three months behind on his rent for his pricey South Beach condo and Damaged Goods is on the job. Either they convince the tenant to pay up or he’ll face eviction. The simple task turns deadly when the team discovers Gomez missing and a Jane Doe slowly decomposing in his bathtub. Serving a killer up to justice, wrestling family secrets—it’s just another day on the job for Damaged Goods.
Jennifer L. Hart writes cozy mysteries with an edge, creating amateur sleuths who stumble into murder investigations through their decidedly unglamorous day jobs. Her Damaged Goods series combines the humor and relationship dynamics readers expect from cozies with grittier Miami settings and genuine stakes. Hart’s process server background gives her mysteries authentic procedural details that most amateur sleuth novels lack.
What makes this special: Jackie Parker is a refreshingly different amateur sleuth—she’s a process server turned property manager, which means she already has experience tracking people down and dealing with situations that could turn dangerous. The Miami setting provides sun-soaked noir atmosphere rather than the typical cozy mystery small town. The family drama adds soap opera appeal: Jackie is working with her husband Luke and his brother Logan (the “Dark Prince”), who’s threatening to reveal secrets about how Jackie and Luke actually met. That subplot creates tension beyond the murder mystery, making this feel more like a complete story rather than just a puzzle to solve. The decomposing Jane Doe in the bathtub of a tenant who owes rent transforms a mundane eviction into a murder investigation, showing how ordinary situations can spiral into something deadly. Hart’s structure (Final Straw, Final Warning, Final Notice) creates satisfying escalation. If you’ve enjoyed Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series, Jana DeLeon’s Miss Fortune mysteries, or Gemma Halliday’s comedic mysteries, this delivers similar humor and amateur sleuth energy with a distinctly Miami flavor. And it’s free, making it an easy introduction to whether the Damaged Goods team becomes your next mystery obsession.
Christmas at the End of Main Street (A Nestled Hollow Romance)
❄️ Author: Meg Easton
FREE
Sweet Small Town Romance
All either of them wants for Christmas are some jingle bells, to deck the halls, and for everyone to stop finding them dates.
Macie Zimmerman would love to get married and start a family. But after so much searching, she’s sick of having hope that something will work out. All she needs is a good six months of no dating— time she could spend building her business, Paws and Relax, and hanging out with the animals who show her all the love she needs— to be able to face it again. If only she can keep everyone in town from trying to find her a husband.
High school teacher Aaron Hall plans to never get married. He got engaged once, and it turned out as awful as his parents’ marriage had. But that doesn’t stop all his married friends from trying to convince him otherwise. And worst of all, his students are now determined to find him a wife before the end of the school year.
This Christmas, Macie and Aaron are teaming up to make everyone believe they’re dating each other so they’ll quit trying to line them up with others. But as this fake relationship takes them to holiday parties, events around town, and his school’s winter formal, and “fake” starts to feel “real,” can they overcome the obstacles in their way?
Meg Easton writes sweet small-town romances that emphasize community, clean content, and the kind of meddling neighbors who make fake relationships necessary. Her Nestled Hollow series has attracted readers who want their romance genuinely sweet, their heat level appropriate for all ages, and their small-town settings full of quirky locals who have opinions about everyone’s love life. Easton specializes in fake relationship plots that feel both organic and inevitable.
Here’s what you’re getting: The fake relationship trope is romance catnip, and Easton sets it up perfectly—both Macie and Aaron are being harassed by well-meaning matchmakers, giving them legitimate reason to team up. Macie runs “Paws and Relax” (presumably a pet-related business), which means adorable animals will feature prominently and provide comic relief. Aaron being a high school teacher whose students are trying to find him a wife is delightfully specific and creates built-in comedy as teenagers deploy their particular brand of romantic chaos. The fact that Macie actually wants marriage someday while Aaron has sworn it off creates real conflict—this isn’t just “will they realize they’re perfect for each other” but “can he overcome his trauma to give her what she needs?” The Christmas setting with holiday parties and a school winter formal provides romantic set pieces where fake couple behavior (holding hands, dancing together, strategic mistletoe) can blur into genuine feelings. If you’ve loved Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove series, Brenda Novak’s Silver Springs novels, or Carolyn Brown’s small-town Texas romances, Easton delivers similar comfort-read energy with the added appeal of fake dating that becomes all too real. And it’s free, making it the perfect holiday treat for readers who want their romance sweet, seasonal, and satisfying.
Once Upon a Duke (12 Dukes of Christmas Book 1)
Author: Erica Ridley
FREE
Regency Christmas Romance
A heartwarming, second chances, reunion romance from a New York Times bestselling author:
Due to the terms of an estranged relative’s will, the Duke of Silkridge must revisit the cold, unforgiving mountains where he lost everything he once loved. As soon as he restores his family legacy, he’ll return to London where he belongs. He definitely won’t rekindle the forbidden spark crackling between him and the irresistible spitfire he’d left behind...
Noelle Pratchett is immune to charming scoundrels like the arrogant duke. He stole her heart, stole a kiss, and then stole away one night never to return. Now he’s back—and they both know he won’t stay. But how can she maintain her icy shields when every heated glance melts her to her core?
The Twelve Dukes of Christmas is a laugh-out-loud historical romance series of heartwarming Regency romps nestled in a picturesque snow-covered village. After all, nothing heats up a winter night quite like finding oneself in the arms of a duke!
Erica Ridley is a New York Times bestselling author who has mastered the art of making Regency romance accessible, fun, and genuinely romantic. Her 12 Dukes of Christmas series has become a holiday favorite among historical romance readers who want their dukes charming, their heroines spirited, and their settings draped in snow and festive cheer. Ridley’s strength lies in creating chemistry that sizzles despite the formal constraints of the Regency period.
Why I’m including this: Second-chance romance in historical settings hits differently because social strictures make reunion more complicated than just saying “I’m sorry.” The Duke of Silkridge returning to cold, unforgiving mountains (both literal and metaphorical) to fulfill a will and restore his family legacy creates built-in stakes beyond the romance. Noelle being called an “irresistible spitfire” promises she won’t make his return easy, and the fact that he “stole away one night never to return” suggests a painful history that needs unpacking. The heroine’s name being “Noelle” in a Christmas romance is perhaps a bit on-the-nose but also completely delightful—this is historical romance that knows what it is and delivers with joy. The promise of twelve dukes across the series means interconnected stories set in this snow-covered village, creating a Regency Christmas universe readers can immerse themselves in. If you’ve loved Tessa Dare’s Castles Ever After series, Sarah MacLean’s Hell’s Belles, or Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton novels, Ridley offers similar sparkling dialogue and romantic tension with extra holiday charm. And starting the series free means you can discover whether these twelve dukes become your annual holiday reading tradition.
The Iliad & The Odyssey
⚔️ Author: Homer
FREE
Ancient, Classical & Medieval Poetry
⚔️ Before there were kings and empires — there were heroes.
In The Iliad and The Odyssey, Homer delivers two of the greatest works ever written — timeless epics of war, honor, vengeance, love, and the search for home that have shaped Western storytelling for over 2,500 years.
In The Iliad, the wrath of Achilles blazes across the battlefield of Troy, where glory and grief intertwine in a story of heroes and gods. It is a portrait of courage and pride — and the price both demand.
In The Odyssey, Odysseus, the cunning king of Ithaca, battles storms, monsters, and temptation in his perilous quest to return home after the Trojan War. Along the way, he discovers that the greatest journey is not across the sea — but within the soul.
Filled with divine intervention, mortal struggle, and poetic grandeur, The Iliad & The Odyssey stand as the foundation of epic literature — stories that continue to inspire every generation that dreams, dares, and endures.
Click “Buy Now” and relive The Iliad & The Odyssey — Homer’s immortal masterpieces of heroism, fate, and the unbreakable spirit of mankind.
Homer’s epics are the foundation of Western literature, composed around the 8th century BCE and influencing every story about heroes, journeys, and the costs of war written since. The Iliad and The Odyssey aren’t just ancient texts studied in classrooms—they’re living stories that still resonate because they grapple with timeless questions: What makes life worth dying for? What does it cost to come home? How do we maintain our humanity when forces beyond our control shape our fate?
Why I’m including this: If you’ve never read Homer, or only encountered these epics in high school when you were too young to appreciate them, getting them free is an opportunity to discover why these stories have endured for millennia. The Iliad isn’t really about the Trojan War—it’s about rage, pride, friendship, and the terrible beauty of warriors who know they’re marching toward death but go anyway. Achilles choosing glory over long life remains one of literature’s most profound explorations of what we’re willing to sacrifice for immortality of a different kind. The Odyssey essentially invented the “hero’s journey” that every adventure story still follows—but it’s also about a middle-aged man trying to get home to his wife while navigating temptations, monsters, and his own flaws. These aren’t dusty artifacts; they’re the templates for everything from Game of Thrones to The Hunger Games, from Star Wars to The Lord of the Rings. Reading them connects you to the source code of storytelling itself. If you’ve loved Madeline Miller’s Circe and The Song of Achilles, going back to Homer shows you the original material she so brilliantly reimagined. And getting these classics free means there’s no barrier to experiencing literature that has literally shaped civilization.
Lost Souls (Mending Magic Series Book 1)
⚡ Author: W.J. May
FREE
Dystopian Paranormal Teen Romance
USA Today Bestselling YA & Paranormal author, W.J. May takes you along a journey of finding oneself, finding your strengths and your weaknesses, of knowing who to trust and how far you are willing to go.
Your curse is your biggest strength.
I just didn’t know it yet.
Jamie Hunt’s the high school quarterback in his senior year. He’s popular, smart, got the prettiest girl in the school chasing him. Everything couldn’t be more perfect.
But a single mistake changes everything. His new “ability” puts him in the middle of a war he doesn’t want to be a part of, protecting a girl he barely knows and running from the one thing he loves—his family.
Never give up. Never give in.
W.J. May is a USA Today bestselling author who has built a substantial following in YA paranormal romance by creating worlds where supernatural abilities come with serious costs. Her Mending Magic series has attracted readers who love the “golden boy’s life falls apart when he discovers he’s different” trope, exploring how identity and power intersect when everything you thought you knew about yourself turns out to be wrong.
Here’s what you’re getting: Jamie Hunt is living the high school dream—quarterback, popular, pretty girl interested—until “a single mistake” activates an ability that destroys his perfect life. The phrase “your curse is your biggest strength” suggests his power is something initially perceived as terrible that will ultimately save him or others. Being thrust into a war he doesn’t want while protecting “a girl he barely knows” and running from his own family creates immediate high stakes and suggests his ability makes him a target by multiple factions. May’s framing—”finding your strengths and your weaknesses, knowing who to trust”—indicates this is as much about coming-of-age as it is about supernatural battles. If you’ve loved the X-Men comics’ exploration of mutation as metaphor for difference, Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters series, or Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy, May delivers similar themes of found family, dangerous powers, and choosing your side when war comes. And it’s free, making it risk-free to discover whether the Mending Magic series becomes your next YA paranormal obsession.
Duck Duck Danger (Ruff McPaw Mysteries Book 1)
Author: Max Parrott
FREE
Cozy Animal Mystery
A murder, a missing sculpture, and a nose for crime…
Angela Atkinson lives a peaceful life in the sleepy town of Hummings Hollow with her best friend and dog, border collie Ruff McPaw. However, life on Angela’s hobby farm at her little historic home might be too peaceful.
Barista by day in a town with no bars and approximately five-and-a-half churches, Angela and Ruff are the sympathetic ears that collect most of the town gossip—occasionally hearing things that were never meant for their ears—or anyone else’s. When not tending her farm in the rolling countryside, working in the coffee shop, or fending off concern from nieces who worry over their forty-years-old-and-still-single-aunt—Angela and Ruff are usually right on the tail of a mystery.
When Ruff finds retired-carpenter Randy Miller dead in the town lake following the disappearance of an expensive sculpture from a nearby exhibit, the dynamic duo believes there may be more to both crimes than meets the eye. With multiple leads and little cooperation from the police, will they be able to put the pieces together in time to keep an innocent person from going to jail?
Max Parrott writes cozy mysteries that put the canine sidekick front and center, creating mysteries where the dog isn’t just decoration but an active participant in solving crimes. The Ruff McPaw Mysteries have attracted readers who love their cozies gentle, their settings rural, and their detectives accompanied by loyal four-legged partners with names that are absolutely perfect puns.
What makes this special: “Ruff McPaw” is an S-tier cozy mystery pet name, immediately signaling this is a series that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Angela working as a barista in a town with “no bars and approximately five-and-a-half churches” (that half church is a brilliant detail) creates the perfect cozy mystery setting where gossip flows freely and everyone knows everyone’s business. The hobby farm gives Angela legitimate reason to be outdoors and stumbling across clues, while her status as “forty-years-old-and-still-single-aunt” who must fend off concerned relatives adds relatable humor. Ruff finding the body means the dog is integral to the mystery rather than just cute set dressing. The murdered retired carpenter and missing sculpture create dual mysteries that presumably connect in satisfying ways. Parrott’s light touch—the punny names, the specific details like “five-and-a-half churches,” the promise of a border collie’s detective skills—signals this is comfort-read cozy rather than anything dark or gritty. If you’ve loved Rita Mae Brown’s Mrs. Murphy mysteries, Spencer Quinn’s Chet and Bernie series, or Susan Conant’s dog-centric mysteries, this delivers similar animal sidekick appeal with extra small-town charm. And it’s free, making it an easy way to discover whether Angela and Ruff McPaw become your next cozy mystery obsession.
The Last Temptation of Christ
✝️ Author: Nikos Kazantzakis
Regularly $3.99, Today $1.99
Biographical Literary Fiction
The internationally renowned novel about the life and death of Jesus Christ.
Hailed as a masterpiece by critics worldwide, The Last Temptation of Christ is a monumental reinterpretation of the Gospels that brilliantly fleshes out Christ’s Passion. This literary rendering of the life of Jesus Christ has courted controversy since its publication by depicting a Christ far more human than the one seen in the Bible. He is a figure who is gloriously divine but earthy and human, a man like any other—subject to fear, doubt, and pain.
In elegant, thoughtful prose Nikos Kazantzakis, one of the greats of modern literature, follows this Jesus as he struggles to live out God’s will for him, powerfully suggesting that it was Christ’s ultimate triumph over his flawed humanity, when he gave up the temptation to run from the cross and willingly laid down his life for mankind, that truly made him the venerable redeemer of men.
“Spiritual dynamite.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“A searing, soaring, shocking novel.” —Time
Nikos Kazantzakis is one of the towering figures of twentieth-century literature, a Greek writer whose works grapple with spiritual crisis, existential questions, and the conflict between flesh and spirit. Best known for Zorba the Greek, Kazantzakis brought a philosopher’s mind and a poet’s sensibility to everything he wrote. The Last Temptation of Christ represents his most ambitious and controversial work—a novel that sparked protests, was placed on the Catholic Church’s Index of Forbidden Books, and inspired Martin Scorsese’s equally controversial 1988 film adaptation. Despite (or perhaps because of) the controversy, it remains essential reading for anyone interested in how literature reimagines sacred texts.
Why I’m including this: This isn’t a comfortable or reverential portrait of Jesus—it’s a wrestling match with the central paradox of Christianity: how can someone be fully human and fully divine simultaneously? Kazantzakis answers by showing us a Jesus tormented by doubt, tempted by ordinary human desires (marriage, family, escape from his destiny), and ultimately achieving divinity precisely by choosing the cross despite his terror. The “last temptation” isn’t sex or power—it’s the vision of an ordinary life, a fantasy of dying peacefully in old age surrounded by children rather than suffering on Golgotha. By making Christ’s sacrifice a triumph over genuine human weakness rather than a foregone conclusion, Kazantzakis gives the crucifixion devastating emotional weight. This is a novel for readers who want their religious fiction to ask hard questions rather than provide easy comfort, who appreciate beautiful prose wrestling with impossible theological problems. If you’ve read Shusaku Endo’s Silence, Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita, or Jose Saramago’s The Gospel According to Jesus Christ, you’ll recognize this as part of that same tradition of writers using fiction to interrogate faith. At $1.99, it’s an exceptional price for a controversial classic that remains as provocative today as when it was first published.
The Night Market (A Bound By Ravens Novel)
Author: Jesikah Sundin
Regularly $4.99, Today $2.49
Gaslamp Fantasy
A mortal seer enslaved by a traveling faerie market.
A Raven shifter selected in a lottery to save his Caravan tribe.
And a future not even the cards could predict . . .
Some children dream of running away to join the Night Market. I did so to escape a nightmare.
Still, being forced into an overheated tent to read fortunes until sunrise has its trials—naturally. But when he visits me, I suffer for entirely different reasons.
Stars above, Rhylen Lonan is the most beautiful faerie I’ve ever known. A Raven shifter with long black hair, dark purple eyes, and magic that stirs my own. Each Night Market, in exchange for a generous slice of cake and a delicious morsel of gossip, I read him three cards. And before the gates open, he breaks my heart with the same question.
“Does my mate love me back?”
Every time, I’m taunted with visions of Rhylen in love . . . with her. His mate. Until tonight’s reading, that is, when Fate takes a sudden dark turn. I see a devastating fire. He will be chosen to marry to save his tribe or face banishment. She will be hunted by other fae in a wedding game.
I do not see her face. I never have. Nor do I know her name.
But as Rhylen’s destiny continues to grip my Sight, I start to suspect it’s me. That I have always been his forbidden future. And I don’t know what terrifies me most—that I might be his downfall or that he might be mine.
Jesikah Sundin writes gaslamp fantasy—a subgenre blending Victorian-era aesthetics with magic, fae politics, and romantic tension. Her Bound by Ravens series has attracted readers who love the atmospheric world-building of traveling magical markets, complex fae hierarchies, and the kind of slow-burn romance where characters pine for each other across social divides that seem impossible to cross. Sundin’s strength lies in creating magical worlds that feel both wondrous and dangerous, where bargains have consequences and seeing the future doesn’t mean you can change it.
What makes this special: The premise is romance catnip for fantasy readers—a mortal fortune-teller who reads cards for a beautiful Raven shifter, watching him fall in love with someone else, until she starts to suspect the mysterious mate he keeps asking about might actually be her. The power imbalance is deliciously complicated: she’s enslaved to the Night Market, he’s fae nobility, and their connection is forbidden by the very rules that govern both their worlds. The wedding game and the fire she foresees add urgency to what could otherwise be endless pining, forcing both characters toward a reckoning they’ve been avoiding. Sundin’s gaslamp setting—somewhere between Victorian romance and dark fairy tale—creates the perfect atmosphere for a story about fate, forbidden love, and whether you can change a future you’ve already seen. If you’ve loved Kerri Maniscalco’s Kingdom of the Wicked, Stephanie Garber’s Caraval series, or Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood, this offers similar dark fairy tale vibes with the added appeal of a fortune-teller heroine who sees everyone’s future except her own. At $2.49, it’s an affordable entry into a fantasy world where markets travel between worlds and love might be the most dangerous magic of all.
The Orphans on the Train
Author: Gill Thompson
Regularly $4.99, Today $1.99
World War II Historical Fiction
1939.
A girl with auburn hair looks anxiously out of the train window, watching the mountains of Europe pass by. War is on the horizon at home, and Kirsty finds herself heading to neutral Hungary to help in a school for Jewish children. Little does she know that in leaving everything behind, she is about to find the most precious gift of all - a true friend in school pupil Anna.
1943.
When the Nazis invade Budapest, Kirsty and Anna are on their own, and Kirsty worries desperately for her Jewish friend. What lengths must they go to in order to survive, and, when they are separated, can the guiding light of friendship bring them back to each other?
Your favourite historical authors LOVE this moving and heart-wrenching novel:
‘A powerful, poignant story of survival’ KATE HEWITT
‘A different aspect of the Second World War to any I’ve read before . . . both heartbreaking and compelling, yet ultimately uplifting. I loved it’ DEBORAH CARR
‘This is a story of amazing courage . . . an extraordinary novel that has stayed with me long after I turned the final page’ CAROL McGRATH
‘Beautiful and evocative . . . an intelligent, thrilling novel which will stay with me for a long time’ LOUISE MORRISH
Gill Thompson writes World War II historical fiction that shines light on lesser-known aspects of the Holocaust, moving beyond the familiar narratives to explore the war’s impact in places like Hungary that often receive less attention in English-language fiction. Her novels are characterized by deep research, emotional authenticity, and a focus on female friendship as a force of resistance and survival. Thompson’s ability to balance heartbreak with hope has earned praise from established historical fiction authors who recognize her contribution to expanding how we understand this period.
Here’s what you’re getting: Hungary’s experience during World War II is criminally underrepresented in historical fiction, making Thompson’s novel both important and fresh territory for readers who’ve exhausted more familiar settings. The friendship between Kirsty, a gentile teacher, and Anna, her Jewish student, becomes the emotional anchor as Hungary’s brief period of neutrality collapses and the Nazi occupation brings all the horrors the rest of Europe has already suffered. The 1939-to-1943 timeline lets readers experience both the false security of the early war years and the desperate fight for survival once the Nazis arrive. Thompson doesn’t shy away from depicting the impossible choices people faced: how do you protect someone when helping them could mean your own death? How do you maintain hope when separated from everyone you love? The train imagery—Kirsty arriving by train at the beginning, the sinister implications of trains by 1943—adds symbolic weight to a story about journeys that lead both away from safety and, hopefully, back to each other. If you’ve loved The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris, or The Alice Network by Kate Quinn, this delivers similar emotional impact while illuminating a corner of Holocaust history that deserves wider recognition. At $1.99, it’s an exceptional value for a novel that fellow historical fiction authors describe as both heartbreaking and ultimately uplifting.
The Absolute Best Dump Dinners Cookbook: 75 Amazingly Easy Recipes for Your Favorite Comfort Foods
Author: Rockridge Press
Fryer Recipes
Regularly $9.99, Today $1.99
Prepare feasts for the family in a flash with dump dinners
Getting a home-cooked meal on the table after a hectic day is easier than you think. Just turn to The Absolute Best Dump Dinners Cookbook, and discover easy comfort food recipes featuring ingredients that can be “dumped” into a pan, pot, or skillet.
What sets this cookbook apart:
75 simple and satisfying recipes—From the tangy bite of Sweet Orange-Ginger Chicken to the gooey comfort of No-Boil Mac and Cheese, discover an array of hearty, wholesome recipes that take less than 10 minutes to prep and are guaranteed to delight the whole family.
Pantry picks—This cookbook offers curated lists of ingredients, pantry staples, and supplies to keep stocked, ensuring you’re always ready to whip up a delectable dish.
Time-saving tips and shopping hacks—Make the most of your time in the kitchen with surefire tips for meal prep and planning, buying in bulk, ingredient substitutions, and more.
Stop stressing over mealtime, and discover new family favorites with The Absolute Best Dump Dinners Cookbook.
Fiends In High Places (The Hipposync Archives Book 1)
Regularly $2.99, Today $1.49
Horror Comedy
Crime Action & Adventure
Seriously funny contemporary urban fantasy fiction.
Luck. If only you could bottle it...
Matt Danmor’s brush with death uncovers a fantastical truth, plunging him into a world of intrigue and chaos.
With his ex, Silvy, back at his side and Kylah from The Dept. of Fimmigration ever watchful, he stumbles into a plot to undermine civilisation across several worlds. Matt is faced with a simple choice. Believe that everything he sees is a figment of his traumatised imagination, or accept that it is all terrifyingly real.
In which case, he’s got a hell of a lot of catching up to do. Plus a whole hive of demonic zealots to fight.
The multiverse is holding on for a hero.
Trouble is, Matt never got the memo…
Fiends In High Places is the debut Fantasy Crime Thriller in the Hipposync Archives series.
Perfect for fans of Tom Holt, Jim Butcher, and Ben Aaronovitch.
‘Master of occult intrigue and wit, DC Farmer delivers supreme urban fantasy crime stories. Expect addictive, hilarious adventures…and not much sleep.’ 5★ AMZ.
‘looking for something different to fill the gaps between Tom Holt, Jim Butcher, and the late lamented Sir Terry? DC Farmer hits the ground running…’ 5★ AMZ
‘What a gem of a book. Interesting, engaging, daftly funny and captivating. A very welcome addition to the ranks of humorous fantasy. Well written with a lovely plot and I think Rimsplitter the vulture is one of the best comedic inventions...’ AMZ review
DC Farmer writes urban fantasy that refuses to take itself too seriously, combining supernatural threats with British humor and protagonists who are decidedly unheroic. The Hipposync Archives series has attracted readers looking to fill the gap left by Terry Pratchett while also scratching the itch for Jim Butcher-style supernatural investigations. Farmer’s strength lies in balancing genuine stakes with comic absurdity—the multiverse really is in danger, but our hero is so thoroughly unprepared that watching him survive becomes both hilarious and surprisingly tense.
What makes this special: Matt Danmor is the antithesis of the chosen one—he’s an ordinary guy who stumbles into saving the multiverse despite having no qualifications whatsoever. The “Dept. of Fimmigration” (presumably managing immigration between fantasy realms) is exactly the kind of bureaucratic supernatural absurdity that makes this type of humor work. Add in an ex-girlfriend who’s somehow still in his life, a character named Rimsplitter the vulture (which reviewers cite as comedic genius), and demonic zealots trying to undermine civilization across multiple worlds, and you have the recipe for madcap supernatural adventure. The comparison to Tom Holt, Jim Butcher, and Ben Aaronovitch is telling—this occupies the sweet spot between Holt’s absurdist fantasy, Butcher’s hardboiled supernatural noir, and Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London blend of police procedural and British magical weirdness. For readers still mourning Terry Pratchett and looking for that same combination of humor, heart, and genuine world-building, Farmer offers a fresh voice in humorous urban fantasy. At $1.49, it’s an incredibly low-risk way to discover whether the Hipposync Archives becomes your next obsession—and with the series already established, you’ll have plenty more adventures waiting if Matt Danmor’s reluctant heroism wins you over.
Tangled Vines
Author: Janet Dailey
Regularly $8.99, Today $1.99
Women’s Historical Fiction
From the New York Times–bestselling author, this vintage romantic thriller set on a Napa Valley winery “all but begs to be made into a TV miniseries” (Publishers Weekly).
A tough-as-nails reporter at NBC, Kelly Douglas is on her way to the top. Her latest story—a profile of the famed Rutledge Estate winery in Napa Valley—could make her career, but the dream assignment turns into a nightmare when it puts her face-to-face with the one man she hoped to never see again: her abusive father, Len Dougherty.
Len won a portion of the winery in a settlement with the family years ago. And he’s been a thorn in their side ever since. Kelly can only hope he doesn’t foul up her story—or her budding romance with the charming winery manager, Sam Rutledge. But when Kelly’s reporting uncovers a murder at the vineyard, Len threatens to ruin her life once and for all.
With over 300 million copies of her novels in print, New York Times–bestselling author Janet Dailey is a legend of romantic suspense. In this page-turning tale, she brings her “mastery of sweeping romance, divided loyalties, and searing passion” to Northern California wine country (Lanier County News).
Janet Dailey was a titan of romantic fiction who published over 90 novels and sold more than 300 million copies worldwide before her death in 2013. She pioneered the approach of setting romances in specific American locations, essentially creating the template for regional romance that countless authors have followed. Tangled Vines represents her at the height of her powers—combining family saga, romantic suspense, and the kind of glamorous setting (Napa Valley wineries) that makes for irresistible escapist reading.
Here’s what you’re getting: Dailey takes the dream assignment—profiling a prestigious winery—and turns it into a nightmare by making Kelly’s abusive father part-owner of the very place she’s covering. The setup is brilliant because Kelly can’t just avoid him; professional obligation forces her into proximity with the man who terrorized her childhood. Add a romance with Sam Rutledge (the winery manager) and a murder that Kelly’s reporting uncovers, and you have all the elements of a page-turning thriller wrapped in the seductive world of Napa Valley wine country. The “TV miniseries” comparison from Publishers Weekly is apt—this has the scope, the setting, and the intergenerational family drama that makes for addictive viewing. Dailey excels at creating strong heroines navigating both professional ambition and personal demons while also delivering the romantic payoff readers crave. If you’ve loved Nora Roberts’s family saga romances, Danielle Steel’s glamorous settings and complex family dynamics, or Susan Wiggs’s Sonoma-set novels, Dailey delivers similar pleasures with perhaps harder edges and higher stakes. At $1.99 (down from $8.99), you’re getting exceptional value for a novel from a romance legend whose work defined the genre for generations of readers.
Long Time Dead (Detective Sheridan Holler Book 1)
Author: T.M. Payne
Regularly $4.99, Today $2.49
Police Procedurals
A cold case that’s no longer cold. A suspect who’s been murdered. A silenced witness.
“A brilliant debut.” —Steve Cavanagh
“True fans of Val McDermid will love Payne’s writing.” —A.J. West
“One of the most exciting new voices in crime fiction.” —Kia Abdullah
DI Sheridan Holler is used to solving crimes on Liverpool’s streets, but after a decayed corpse turns up in a cemetery, she finds herself reopening not one but two cold cases. Seven years earlier, two women were gunned down and the only suspect, small-time drug dealer John Lively, was never seen again. Case closed. Until the body in the cemetery is identified as his.
Holler needs to work out if Lively was killed out of revenge, or was just a victim of the criminal world he inhabited. When shocking evidence is revealed about the murder weapon, Holler’s cold case starts to look hopeless once more.
But defeat is not an option. Driven by the unsolved and traumatic murder of her brother when they were children, DI Holler’s pursuit of justice is relentless. As old wounds are reopened, the police close in on the killer, but the threat of them striking again is all too real. Can DI Holler put the pieces of the puzzle together before anyone else winds up dead?
T.M. Payne debuts with Long Time Dead, earning immediate comparisons to Val McDermid from established crime writers who recognize authentic police procedural work when they see it. The endorsements from Steve Cavanagh and Kia Abdullah—both respected voices in crime fiction—signal that Payne is a debut author worth paying attention to. Her Liverpool setting and focus on cold cases that refuse to stay buried suggest a writer interested in how the past never really releases its grip on the present.
Why I’m including this: The setup is ingenious—a cold case where the prime suspect vanished seven years ago suddenly reopens when that suspect’s body turns up, revealing he was murdered too. This transforms the investigation from “did he do it?” to “who killed them all?” The revelation about the murder weapon (tantalizingly unspecified in the description) apparently upends everything Holler thinks she knows, creating the kind of twist that keeps readers guessing. What elevates this beyond standard procedural is Holler’s personal motivation: her own brother’s unsolved childhood murder drives her relentless pursuit of justice. That backstory adds emotional weight and suggests this isn’t just about solving cases—it’s about Holler working through her own trauma by ensuring other families get the closure she never had. The Liverpool setting provides gritty urban atmosphere, and the cold case structure allows Payne to move between past and present, gradually revealing how seven years ago connects to today. If you’ve loved Val McDermid’s Wire in the Blood series, Ian Rankin’s Rebus novels, or Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks mysteries, Payne offers similar British police procedural excellence with a protagonist whose personal demons make her both vulnerable and unstoppable. At $2.49, this is an affordable way to discover whether DI Sheridan Holler becomes your next favorite detective—and with the series launched, you’ll have more cases waiting if Payne’s debut hooks you.
The Wine Bible, 3rd Edition
Author: Karen MacNeil
Regularly $9.99, Today $3.99
Wine Tasting
It’s America’s bestselling wine book, now fully revised, updated, and in color!
Beloved and trusted by everyone, from newcomers starting their wine journey to oenophiles, sommeliers, restaurateurs, and industry insiders, The Wine Bible is comprehensive, entertaining, authoritative, beautifully written, and endlessly interesting. Page after page grounds the reader deeply in the fundamentals—vineyards and varietals, climate and terroir—while layering on passionate asides, tips, anecdotes, definitions, illustrations, maps, labels, and over 400 photographs in full-color. Plus this completely updated 3rd edition offers: New chapters on Great Britain, Croatia, Israel. A new section called In the Beginning… Wine in the Ancient World. New fully revised Great Wines section with recommended bottles to try for each country and region. Expanded chapters on France, Italy, Australia, South America, and the U.S. A deeper grape glossary including 400-plus varieties, and an expanded Mastering Wine Section incorporating latest science on taste and smell.
Karen MacNeil is one of the most respected wine educators in America, serving as chair of the wine program at the Culinary Institute of America and earning numerous James Beard Awards for her wine writing. The Wine Bible has been the definitive American wine reference since its first publication, achieving bestseller status by making wine accessible without dumbing it down. MacNeil’s gift is explaining complex concepts with clarity and enthusiasm, making readers feel like they’re learning from a knowledgeable friend rather than being lectured by a snob.
What makes this special: This isn’t just a wine reference book—it’s an argument that understanding wine enhances your appreciation of geography, history, agriculture, chemistry, and culture. MacNeil takes you from ancient wine production through modern viticulture, from famous French regions to emerging wine countries like Croatia and Israel. The 400+ full-color photographs transform this from a textbook into something beautiful you’ll want to browse even when you’re not actively researching a specific question. The expanded grape glossary (400+ varieties) means you can finally understand what you’re drinking whether it’s a mainstream Cabernet or an obscure Portuguese varietal. The updated science on taste and smell reflects how much our understanding has evolved since previous editions. What sets MacNeil apart is her ability to convey passion without pretension—she wants you to love wine as much as she does, and she’s willing to put in the work to make that happen. If you’ve been intimidated by wine culture or felt lost in wine shops, this is the book that will give you confidence. At $3.99 (down from $9.99), you’re getting America’s bestselling wine reference for the price of a single glass of decent wine—and the knowledge you’ll gain will enhance every glass you drink afterward.
Izzy and Her Off-Limits Love (Oakley Island Romcoms)
Author: Jenny Proctor, Emma St. Clair
Regularly $2.99, Today $1.49
Holiday Clean & Wholesome Romance
Getting over your childhood crush is never easy. Especially when your family is full of meddling matchmakers.
I’ve tried my whole life to curb my feelings for Liam, who is NOT my cousin, even if our family is like, well, family.
After he brought a girlfriend home for the holidays last year, I decided it was high time for my crush to finally die. And since we haven’t run into each other at all since then, it’s been easy. (If not altogether effective.) Even our family stopped trying to push us together.
But then Liam walks into my office just before Christmas and I find out he’ll be working here as a consultant. Oh—and he got special permission from my boss to have me directly under him.
Then, when my building suddenly (and somewhat suspiciously) has to undergo emergency fumigation and I need a place to stay, Liam offers me his guest bedroom.
Oh, joy and holiday cheer.
But finding out Liam is single and not practically engaged—it changes everything. Is it possible I just might get my longest-held Christmas wish?
Jenny Proctor and Emma St. Clair co-write the Oakley Island Romcoms series, specializing in clean and wholesome contemporary romances set in a small island community where everyone knows everyone’s business. Their collaborative style delivers the banter, humor, and emotional payoff that rom-com readers crave while keeping content appropriate for readers who prefer closed-door romance. The series has built a devoted following among readers who want romantic tension and satisfying relationships without explicit content.
Here’s what you’re getting: The childhood-crush-who’s-not-quite-family setup is romance gold because it combines familiarity with forbidden feelings. Izzy has been fighting her attraction to Liam forever, and just when she thinks she’s finally moved on, fate (or suspiciously convenient plot developments) throws them together with maximum forced proximity: he’s her workplace supervisor AND her temporary roommate. The “somewhat suspiciously” emergency fumigation is a nice self-aware touch—this is a rom-com that knows exactly what tropes it’s deploying and has fun with them. The holiday setting adds seasonal charm and a ticking clock (Christmas wishes must be fulfilled by Christmas, right?). The meddling family members who used to push them together but suddenly stopped creates an interesting dynamic—did they give up, or are they running a more subtle matchmaking scheme? For readers who love Christina Lauren’s workplace rom-coms, Emily Henry’s contemporary romances, or Hallmark movie energy in book form, this delivers comfort-read satisfaction with genuine romantic tension. At $1.49, it’s cheaper than a seasonal latte and provides significantly more feel-good entertainment—perfect for readers who want holiday romance that’s sweet, funny, and genuinely romantic without needing content warnings.
