Trope
Heat Factor: Blowjob reciprocity
Character Chemistry: The relationship development did not take a back seat to the suspense plot, so I feel like this worked well.
Plot: Smiley Face Killer drowns young men in Boston, bringing together the FBI agent handling the case and his former best friend/secret crush for the first time in 8 years
Overall: I was not bamboozled
A Little Village Novella
Heat Factor: Sweet little kisses
Character Chemistry: They actually interact very little, but the way the story is told made me really want this for them
Plot: Man has had a secret crush on his former physiotherapist since physiotherapy started, and it gets blown wide open when his friend plays an April Fool prank on him
Overall: Some people might be super stressed by this prank, but I thought this story was ADORABLE
Higher Education, Book 2
Heat Factor: 🍆🍆🍆🍆
Character Chemistry: These guys care about each other deeply
Plot: Deion and Carlton are best friends, so when Carlton needs a pretend boyfriend to smooth the process of his niece’s adoption, Deion doesn’t hesitate to agree.
Overall: I was extremely emotionally invested in this book
Holidays with the Wongs, Book #3
Review of Holidays with the Wongs, Book #1
Heat Factor: Oops! We kissed in the ice skating forest, so now we should probably also have all the sex…just to get it out of our system, of course
Character Chemistry: Apparently I’m a sucker for the best friends-but-one’s-secretly-in-love trope
Plot: Zach and Jo bonded over beers and broken engagements four years ago and have been friends ever since. After Zach’s family set up him and his siblings on dates at Thanksgiving, he won’t put it past them to do something wild at Chinese New Year, so he asks Jo to be his fake girlfriend.
Overall: It’s like a warm hug
Wild River, Book #2
Heat Factor: Once they hop in the sack, it’s like bunnies
Character Chemistry: I’m not entirely sure that the chemistry is as good if you haven’t read the first book in the series.
Plot: She’s been pining for him for five years. Now that he might be ready to make a move, his daughter’s mother comes back to town.
Overall: I can’t deal with emotional angst when it’s just wrong.
