by Shirlene Obuobi
Avon, 2024. 357 pages. Romance.
As influencer Dr. Jojo, Josephine Boateng is a champion of self-love and overall health. In real life, Josephine is hung up on her best friend, and she struggles with depression. When Josephine meets debut author Malcolm Waters at a party, she takes the chance figure out what she really wants. But in a world where the lines between private and public are as blurred as those between friendship and love, can Josephine and Malcolm risk it all for something real?
In the hands of a different author, this book would have mostly been about a love triangle with a fake dating element (two tropes I usually love). Obuobi avoids leaning into these tropes, however, and in the process she hits on more truth about life and love. I appreciated that while this is a romance novel, falling in love doesn’t fix any character’s problems. Instead, it gives them someone to lean on when life gets hard. Malcolm and Josephine encourage each other to reach further than they would have on their own. This has been one of my favorite recent romance reads!
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by Danielle Allen
Bramble, 2024. 360 pages. Romance
After a one-night stand with her clingy ex, Aaliyah James has an epiphany: this ain't it. She knows what she wants, and she's ready to move past casual hookups, flings, and situationships. But for her family, the clock is ticking—after all, she's almost thirty. And when they imply that her personality (and her body) might be too big to land a man, she lets them know they've gone too far—and her (nonexistent) man loves her curves, thank you very much. Now, she has seven weeks to find the perfect boyfriend to rub in their faces at the birthday celebration she's been planning.
by Jasmine Guillory
Jove, 2018. 310 pages. Romance
On the eve of his ex's wedding, Drew is minus a plus one. Until a power outage strands him with the perfect candidate for a fake girlfriend. From the best man's toast to the bouquet toss, Alexa and Drew have more fun than they ever thought possible. But before they know it, Drew has to fly back to Los Angeles and his job as a pediatric surgeon, and Alexa heads home to Berkeley, where she's the mayor's chief of staff. Too bad they can't stop thinking about the other. They're just two high-powered professionals on a collision course toward the long distance dating disaster of the century.
by Abby Jimenez
Forever, 2023. 398 pages. Romance
After a horrible first meeting, Dr. Briana Ortiz is not impressed with Dr. Jacob Maddox. But just when all systems are set to hate, Jacob completely flips the game by sending Briana a letter. And it's a really good letter. Worse, he might be this fantastically funny and subversively likeable guy who's just terrible at first impressions.
MB
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