The Prince's Abducted Bride

 The Prince's Abducted Bride

Cathleen Ross

Reviewed by Helen

What happens when you come from a land that is bound in the old ways, that custom must be adhered to and arranged marriages are still favoured, Prince Hamid of Barhari is soon going to find out when, he is made to search out runaway promised bride Princess Aleena of Thenin, who has been a close friend of his for many years and they have just spent five years studying architecture in London together and maybe Hamid is feeling more than friendship, but he knows he must adhere to the ways of his people, sadly.

Princess Aleena has been bartered into an unwanted marriage by her uncaring father to a Sheikh much older that her and with the suspicious deaths of his first two wives, after completing her architecture degree Aleena runs as far away as she can she wants freedom but Hamid finds her and is bound to escort her home to her father on the Barhari yacht this will see them alone only with servants and bodyguards for a couple of weeks and what Aleena wants is Hamid and a chance to find out what love can be before she settles for her sad life.

There is a lot thrown in the path for this journey to a HEA for Aleena and Hamid, duty, honour and their upbringing the feeling of betrayal but will love and desire win through, will they find a path to a beautiful HEA without being hurt along the way?

A story that takes in a few continents with characters that were very easy to make friends with I was cheering them on through this one, Aleena is so very strong and Hamid a caring and loving hero, written with love and romance in mind this is one that I would recommend to any lover of a good romance.

5 stars

October 3, 2025

Stolen Pregnant Bride

 Stolen Pregnant Bride

Annie West

Reviewed by Helen

Annie West you melt my heart with your fabulous stories, this one is awesome, I loved Stella and Gio, I loved their journey and my trip to Italy, this one is moving and emotional and a must read, come along and meet them.

Stella White was born in Australia but when she lost her mother at the age of ten she was sent to Italy to live with the father she never knew and her two half- brothers and now a grown woman she asks for something from her father and he gives her an ultimatum. Stella takes a trip to Rome and here her life will change forever when she meets Gio and spends the most fabulous week with him but consequences abound.

Gio Valenti runs a hotel empire and when he discovers the daughter of his family’s enemy is staying under a false name he is not taking any chances but instead gets to know her and then whisks her away to his villa and there the passion ignites for both of them can he get over his trust issues? Then she runs, maybe he was right.

A couple of months later Stella needs to make sure her life and that of her unborn baby are safe and agrees to marry someone of her father’s choosing, but Gio is never far from her mind or heart. Gio has done his best to get Stella out of his mind and that is not easy when he hears that she is marrying and he will anything to stop the wedding he is not going to relinquish Stella especially when he realises that she is pregnant with his child.

I loved this one from start to finish, it is passionate, moving and fabulous, Annie West never fails to bring happy sighs and smiles from this reader with her wonderful stories, characters that are so easy to love, settings that open up a whole new world for me. I do highly recommend this one. Huge congratulations MS West on your 60th book I look forward to many more.

My thanks to the author for my copy to read and review.

5 Stars

October 28, 2025 by Harlequin Presents

Kidnapped For Her Secret

 Kidnapped For Her Secret

Lela May Wight

Reviewed by Helen

WOW another spectacular, passionate, deep, moving and emotional story from MS Wight, two people scarred from their pasts but two very different people from different worlds will unite but will it create love or will it break one of them more?

Aurora Arundel is an heiress who is alone after losing her parents and her brother but she wants more she feels so much guilt over her brother’s death and now she thinks that she can help in a small way and attends a mystic masquerade art auction it is time she broke the rules that she lived all her life under her parents rule, but this night will change her world in so many ways, when she meets a man in the garden the recluse artist Sebastian Shard and together they become one but only for a short time.

Six months later Sebastian is in his castle in the Scottish Highlands but his hands are not working for him everything has changed since that night in the garden and then he sees a clip from a newspaper and there she is, pregnant is that his baby?

He must have her and the baby he must protect them and keep them safe and soon Aurora finds herself in a castle but she wants more than Sebastian can give but she is determined to break his walls down, together they heat the bed and the room but can she get him to open up and find the love and happiness they deserve?

Yep I loved this one from start to finish, a fabulous read, I loved MS Wight’s stories her deep take on people and their feelings, they pull me in and leave me sighing at the end. I do highly recommend this one.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

October 1, 2025 by Mills & Boon Modern

A Country Practice Christmas

 A Country Practice Christmas 

Stella Quinn Penelope Janu Pamela Cook Reane Black

Reviewed by Helen

The Christmas Cake War
Stella Quinn

This is fun and moving there were lots of laughs and smiles from me as I got to know Jodie a physiotherapist who has been sent to Clarence to help her aunt move in an aged care home but there will be problems because Aunt Carol and the president of the Clarence Gardens Home, Joan Sloane have a past and it is about the Christmas Cake recipe, throw in publican Will who played a bit in Jodie’s past and just maybe there could be a HEA for everyone,
I loved this one so much, I loved Jodie and Will they are the best and deserve to have a beautiful HEA, it really is a beautiful story about pasts and a gorgeous romance between two people who need love and happiness.


The Night Before Christmas
Penelope Janu

Moving, emotional and fabulous, Penelope Janu takes us back to Summerfield with Amelie Peterson, Amelie has returned to the place she spent many years growing up to help the doctor who helped her all of those years ago. Amelie has worked hard these past years and is now a Vet and Summerfield needs one the only problem now is a place to live while the residence is renovated. This brings Amelie close to Cameron McLeod the boy she hated all those years ago but also the son of the doctor, where will this lead them both while Amelie rents his small cabin? How did Cameron feel when Amelie arrives back in town?
I loved firstly being back in Summerfield and having Keith Urban there as well and I loved Amalie and Cameron their journey to a HEA has a few hurdles to cross and some issues from the past that need to be sorted, truly a must read, this reader is a happy one.


The Ghost of Christmas Past
Pamela Cook

Hannah Rasmussen is a Psychologist and likes her time to herself, especially at Christmas she has recently moved to the small country town a Yarrabee a fresh start and new business, it is just before Christmas and Hannah is planning her annual country camping trip for the couple of days over Christmas she has reasons for this, but when a dear friend wants to visit Hannah must put her plans on hold and then a new patient a young teenager brings up bad memories for her and not only that but his brother, Farrier Cole Harrison sets sparks of within her like never before, could there be a chance that Hannah could possibly find true love and happiness and put her ghost of Christmas past to rest with the handsome Farrier?
A beautiful written with heart and feelings and I loved getting to know Hannah and Cole and Lenore and Nancy and Owen as well, this one is a must read, left this reader with smiles.


A Rush Creek Christmas
Renae Black

No one does Christmas like Rush Creek and Piper Hendrix is just about to find that out when she leaves the big city hospital she has been working at as a nurse to take up a post in the small Rush Creek Hospital, she has bought a kombi, named Connie and she is determined to make a happy time of it there are reasons she is leaving the city, mainly her ex, it is time for a change but the last person she expected to meet on her first day is her brother’s best friend and the guy she had a crush on all those years ago.
Emmett Coleman is a paramedic in Rush Creek and has been for two years and he loves it but when he discovers Piper there as the new nurse he is stunned, he has not seen her for years she was always happy and caring but she is his best friend’s brother a no go even now, but when he convinces her to stay in his spare room instead of camping, My Grumpy as he is known is finding it harder to not think about Piper in other ways, could there be a chance and on Christmas Eve that chance may just arrive.
Another beautiful story that kept me smiling throughout, I loved Rush Creek and Piper and Emmett and the other wonderful characters that added to this story, one I highly recommend.

This is a gorgeous book of four Christmas stories that I highly recommend especially if you love Christmas, Rural Romance, Gorgeous heroes and beautiful heroines, stories that have meaning are moving and filled with emotion, all four of these authors have bought to life people and small country towns and left this reader feeling very happy. I loved them all, don’t miss this one.
My thanks to the authors and Harper Collins AU for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 30, 2025 by HarperCollins AU

Healing the Veteran by Ciara Knight

 Reviewed by Nas Dean

Healing the Veteran is a touching and beautifully written story about second chances, emotional scars, and the power of love to heal. Author Ciara Knight does an excellent job of portraying the struggles veterans face while balancing it with hope, resilience, and tender romance. The characters felt genuine and relatable, and their journey kept me turning the pages late into the night.

If you enjoy small-town charm, heartfelt storytelling, and a romance that feels both real and inspiring, this book is a wonderful read.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Helen's Review

This is a sweet and moving romance that is filled with emotion, come along and meet injured vet Ace Gatlin and physiotherapist Jolene Pearl.

Ace has returned home wounded, he has become a recluse wants no help from anyone and feels guilty about what happened in the last mission but it appears that his neighbour Jolene has no intentions of leaving him alone when she arrives with a dog, Bear who is also wounded and suffering PTSD and Jolene thinks that they would make a good pair, only Ace has other ideas.

Jolene is never one to give up she is a very caring and determined woman she has many clients and people that she cares for and she is determined that Ace and Bear will be happy together, the more time she spends with Ace the more their friendship grows could this lead to more?

There was a lot of healing and support in this one I loved watching Ace open up with the help of Jolene and working together to help Bear this is truly a beautiful emotional romance, will they find their way to a HEA, one they both very much deserve?

I do highly recommend this one, it is heartfelt and heart-warming.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

4 stars

September 30, 2025 by Love Inspired

Forever Cowboy

 Forever Cowboy

Montana's Rodeo Cowboys #4

Nan Reinhardt

Reviewed by Helen

This finishes off The 87th Copper Mountain Rodeo series and it was fabulous, will we find out what happens to Rascal the kleptomaniac dog? Meeting forty three year old Beth Dykeman and thirty six year old bronc rider Del Foster was lovely both of these people deserve a HEA will they find it?

Beth has moved back home to the family orchard in River’s Edge after the break-down of her twenty year marriage, grieving not being able to have a family she leaves Nashville to start over again with her family but it just isn’t working and her friends and family convince her to take a trip to Montana and the Aspen Mountain Spa but that goes a little wrong when Beth books herself a short holiday at The Aspen Spring Ranch so now it appears she will be at a dude ranch, but could this mistake change her life when she meets handsome Del Foster?

Del left his home in Boston seventeen years ago and moved to Montana and has been working on the Aspen Spring Ranch and bronc riding he has enjoyed his life but when his best friend is seriously injured in a fall from a bronc perhaps it is time to hang up his spurs and settle down because he wants his own ranch and a family will he find the love he wants, just maybe when he picks up a new guest at the airport, when he meets Beth the sparks abound.

Neither has ever felt this type of attraction before but finding love and happiness for them will throw a few ups and downs along the way but I loved this one Beth and Del are fabulous couple and I was cheering them on, it is a beautiful romance and one that I highly recommend.

My thanks to Tule Publishing for my copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 25, 2025 by Tule Publishing

Tall, Dark and Dangerous Cowboy

 Tall, Dark and Dangerous Cowboy

Grit and Grace #5

Leah Vale

Reviewed by Helen

This was such a fabulous end to a fabulous series, I have loved getting to know the girls of Grit and Grace and the last one solved the mysteries that have been happening over the first four books, come along and meet Meira Ware and Dillion Johnson.

Meira has finally found her home, her family after growing up an only child in a family with its mind set on academia but after she loses her job as a genetic researcher, she finds bronc riding in a TV series and now she is partners with four other strong and beautiful woman with their own Rodeo Roughstock Company but over the months since they have started there have been numerous incidents that are starting to cause problems, Asher Halliday brings in a PI ex- Navy Seal Dillion Johnson and Meira is instantly attracted.

When Dillion is asked to come to Grit and Grace to investigate incidents he never realises that he just might find true love when he meets the beautiful ex bronc rider Meira as he investigates, he gets to know Meira and learns about her past and the fear she has that she is the cause of these incidents and as they find more clues the danger is building and Dillion must remember to keep his mind on the case and not Meira but that is impossible to do.

This is a moving and beautiful romance throw in a little suspense and danger and a growing respect and trust between them and I was turning the pages, I loved both Meira and Dillion they are both wonderful people that were easy to make friends with, I would highly recommend this one and the series to any love of a good romance, I loved it.

My thanks to Tule Publishing for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 23, 2025 by Tule Publishing

Inconveniently Wed

 Inconveniently Wed

Filthy Rich Italians #1

Pippa Roscoe

Reviewed by Helen

I loved this one from start to finish come along and meet Ivy McKellen and Antonio Gallo it is sure to leave you smiling.

Antonio Gallo needs to marry to keep The Gallo Empire in the family, according to his grandfather and he wants him to marry his cousin and Antonio is determined not to, having coffee in London Antonio meets waitress Ivy McKellen after talking to her he thinks she will be the best option for a convenient wife and for six years they are married without seeing each other but now he needs a divorce but the judge has other plans.

Ivy McKellen agrees to marry Antonio this is going to turn her life around she can help her brother buy a flat to call her own after the life she has had she breathes easy until an accident changes all of that again but she is happy to divorce six years later but when they go before the judge he wants them to do everything they can to make it work, Antonio takes her to Italy and for two weeks they do what they can to convince an assessor that they are incompatible but really the sparks fly and they decide to have a fling, but will they be able to end it?

Ivy is such a beautiful person inside and outside and yes Antonio has his flaws but he also is caring and loving their journey to a HEA was beautiful and emotional and a story that I do highly recommend to any lover of a fabulous romance.

5 stars

July 1, 2025 by Harlequin Presents

Rogue Cowboy

 Rogue Cowboy

Montana's Rodeo Cowboys #3

Sinclair Jayne

Reviewed by Helen

This is a moving, emotional and beautiful romance, six years ago special- forces soldier Cole Jameson stepped up when a friend asked him to check up on his sister, Riley Telford in LA that weekend and what happened later made a big difference in his life and now all these years later Cole is in Marietta for the Copper Mountain Rodeo but more to check up on Riley Telford, it is time for them to move forward as a married couple but can he convince her to let the past go and look to the future?

Riley has been back home in Marietta for six years now, training horses on her family ranch, she has grown up a lot since what happened back in LA but Cole Jameson will always be her white hatted hero the man who was there when she needed him and the man who holds her heart but Riley feels that she cannot be the wife he should have, and now he is here in Marietta and her heart is filling again, can she with his help open up about the past and see the love that is there for them?
This really is a beautiful story, can their marriage of convenience go forward to a marriage of love, trust and respect, this is one that I highly recommend I loved Riley and Cole and was cheering them on through this emotional journey, a must read that is sure to leave any romance reader smiling.

My thanks to Tule Publishing for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

September 18, 2025 by Tule Publishing

Second Chance Under the Mistletoe by Kandy Shepherd

 Second Chance Under the Mistletoe

Family Reunion in London #1

Kandy Shepherd

Reviewed by Helen

My first Christmas story this year and what a beautiful one it is, second chance romance for Natalie and Jon, set in London at Christmas time and I thoroughly enjoyed touring all the Christmas delights that London has to offer, come along as well.

Natalie married at the age of eighteen to the man she loved Jon, they were so young, Natalie was pregnant and her parents insisted that they marry, the pregnancy was not an easy one and when Clementine arrived it was hard and with the constant pushing by her parents, Jon soon took a job in Australia to earn enough money for a place of their own but in the end that pulled them apart and Natalie married Hugo who took on being a father to Clem, now Natalie is widowed and Clem wants a true family Christmas with her father, Natalie is not impressed with this but will not hurt her daughter.

Jon was devastated all those years ago when Natalie and he divorced he got on with his life missing not only Natalie but his daughter Clem as well but now he is a very wealthy man and when Clem wants him to spend Christmas with her and her mother Jon agrees but wonders how it will all turn out.

They decide to spend some time together before Christmas Day to ensure things run smoothly but this in the end just ramps up the pull they still have between them they both have never forgotten each other and finally see that the interference from other people caused a lot of hurt in their marriage will a holiday fling fix that or make them want more?

I loved this one from start to finish, filled with emotion it is a moving and beautiful story in such a glorious setting, Jon and Natalie are fabulous as is Clem their daughter, I do highly recommend this one to any lover of a good romance with Christmas thrown in.

My thanks to the author for my digital copy to read and review.

5 stars

October 28, 2025 by Harlequin Romance 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Reviewed by Nas Dean

Second Chance Under the Mistletoe is a beautiful holiday romance set against the charm of London at Christmas. Natalie and Jon’s story is filled with emotion — regret, longing, and the hope of love rekindled. Kandy Shepherd captures the magic of second chances perfectly, wrapping it in festive lights, city sparkle, and heartfelt moments.

If you love Christmas stories with warmth, forgiveness, and a romance that feels both tender and real, this is a perfect holiday read.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~