Archives de catégorie : Contemporary Romance

HOW TO GRIEVE LIKE A VICTORIAN d’Amy Carol Reeves

A fun, escapist, romantic, travel wish-fulfillment book about a woman who happens to be a widow.

HOW TO GRIEVE LIKE A VICTORIAN
by Amy Carol Reeves
Canary Street Press/HarperCollins, December 2025
(via Context Literary)

Dr. Lizzie Wells, a Victorian Literature professor and bestselling author, is grieving her husband the Victorian way. She is keeping locks of his hair around her neck and dressing in black and jet and tulle–and amusing herself by refusing all but paper letters from her colleagues.

But then she’s offered a trip to London for escape and healing, where she befriends fellow bestselling novelist AD Hemmings. Rakish and handsome, Hemmings pushes her out of her comfort zone. She attends a Victorian-style séance, gets pulled onstage at a burlesque bar, sight sees with her son, and befriends the London row house housekeeper.

All the while, back in South Carolina, her late husband’s best friend and lawyer, Henry, peels back layers behind her mother-in-law’s trust. There’s a dark family secret her mother-in-law has been hiding for decades, the kind of thing that will change not just their family, but their town.

And with all of Henry’s caring and kindness, Lizzie fears she’s falling in love with him, too.

Amy Carol Reeves is a novelist, Victorian Literature professor, and widow. She grieved like a Victorian, but she did not meet a bestselling, handsome author in London–yet.

THE PHONE SWAP de Lia Louis

When a scientist and movie star accidentally swap phones on a busy flight, they must oversee each other’s digital lives until they meet again to swap them back.

THE PHONE SWAP
by Lia Louis
Zaffre (UK)/Emily Bester Books (US), July 2025
(via Mushens Entertainment)

Private, never-been-love scientist Allie Lake is on a busy held-up flight on her way back home when she is seated next to troubled, hopeless romantic movie star Milo Ford. She is in no mood to talk. Her most recent project at a research station has just come to an end and she really doesn’t want to go home. Especially to what’s waiting for her.

As for Milo? Milo wants nothing more than to be at home hiding out with a little normality. Instead, he has to go and film a movie in the Romanian mountains… all the while, the press are getting closer, circling his secret. A secret he’s scared will come to light.

Allie lands and goes home.
Milo lands and heads to the mountains.

And both quickly realise they don’t have their phones – except they’re not lost. They’ve just picked up each other’s, forcing them to stay connected as they try to find a way to swap back.

Lia Louis has written five books, Better Left Unsent, The Key to My Heart, Eight Perfect Hours, Dear Emmie Blue and Somewhere Close to Happy. Somewhere Close to Happy was pre-empted in Italy and sold at auction in Spain, and Dear Emmie Blue took the rights world by storm and has sold in a total of 16 territories apart from the UK, including Germany where it became a bestseller.

THE OTHER LATA de Kirthana Ramisetti

A compulsively readable romcom of mistaken identity set within high society New York and the sacrifices made to keep up appearances.

THE OTHER LATA
by Kirthana Ramisetti
Grand Central/Hachette, April 2025
(via Harvey Klinger, Inc.)

Somewhere in New York City, Lata Murthy knows there is another person with her name living a much more interesting life. That’s because Lata often receives the other Lata’s emails: invites to Hampton soirees, fundraising appeals from the New York City Ballet and reminders about sample sales at Soho boutiques.. Lata’s own life—working in digital content, watching Food Network marathons, spending recklessly on clothes she can’t afford—feels pathetic in comparison. So, one day she decides to take on this other Lata’s identity and jumps headfirst into the glamorous New York lifestyle … but not without consequences. 

At first, it all feels like a fairy tale. Lata learns that the invites were meant for a Mumbai socialite who shares her name, and finds a way to step into the woman’s shoes. In doing so, all of Lata’s NYC dreams come true: she gets a higher-paying job, moves into a chic Chelsea apartment and is embraced by an elite friend group that includes Rajeev, an up-and-coming fashion designer intent on making a splash at New York Fashion Week.

But Lata doesn’t just catch the attention of the handsome fashion designer—she also incurs the wrath of the mysterious woman she is impersonating. And this Other Lata wants Lata to pay…but in the oddest of ways. Other Lata’s blackmail seems designed to humiliate Lata in front of her wealthy new circle, and Lata has no choice but to submit to her demands if she doesn’t want to lose her new friends and lifestyle.

Despite Other Lata’s machinations, Lata and Rajeev’s romance finds ways to blossom. But when Other Lata’s demands change from mischievous to illegal, Lata must find a way to extricate herself from Other Lata’s control once and for all.

« Kirthana Ramisetti is a gifted storyteller, and Advika and the Hollywood Wives is such a gift. The glitz and underlying darkness of Hollywood make for a setting as complex and compelling as Ramisetti’s characters, and every page of this smart, sharply observed novel rings with insight – and with heart. » ―Meena Harris, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Kirthana Ramisetti earned her MFA in creative writing from Emerson College, and has had her work published in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and more. Her debut novel, Dava Shastri’s Last Day, was a Good Morning America Book Club Pick and is currently in development as a television series for HBO Max. She lives with her husband in New York City.

Série SKY CIRCUS d’Ayla Dade

I’m meant to trust him. But will he catch me when I fall?

THE SKY CIRCUS SERIES
by Ayla Dade
Penguin Germany, 2025

Book 1: A MILLION STARS ABOVE (January 2025)

Trapeze artist Heaven, daughter of a circus director, has dreamt all her life of becoming the star attraction at Sky Circus. The spectators waiting with bated breath and shining eyes, glittering costumes and dangerous acts – this is where she feels at home. But despite all her hard work, she hasn’t made it to the top yet. Only when her rival is injured does Heaven finally have a chance to prove herself. Overnight, she becomes the star of the show – but being in the limelight comes at a price: she is told to pretend that she and her professional partner, the recently hired strongman Hell, are romantically involved. But she can’t bear him: he’s brash, arrogant, and clearly thinks he’s irresistible, what with his big muscles and tattoos. Heaven has taken an instant dislike to him – and how is she meant to train with someone like that, let alone trust him with her life? But the more often he throws her high into the air and catches her, the more often she has to tell herself that the fire in his eyes and the wild pounding in her chest are just for show…

Book 2: A THOUSAND FLAMES BELOW (March 2025)

Will Heaven recover from her accident and will she find true love with her trapeze partner?
She was the star of the show, but now she’s nothing. Ever since her accident at the big Sky Circus show in Las Vegas, trapeze artist Heaven can remember nothing about the past few months. Not being able to trust her memory – or her body – is the worst feeling in the world. Because she has to relearn everything from scratch, Heaven joins a beginners’ trapeze class. Then irresistibly handsome strongman Hell unexpectedly offers his help. Despite the critical looks he gives her, and although he drives her hard, she realises that they’re the perfect partners on the trapeze… and when he wraps his strong arms around her, she finds it hard not to give in to the chemistry between them. But the more her body recalls the sensuous movements of the past, the more Hell pulls back – almost as if he were afraid of what else she might remember…

• Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Fake Dating, Bad Boy x Good Girl, Forced Proximity, circus setting without animals

Ayla Dade is a star of the New Adult genre. Her Winter Dreams and Frozen Hearts series have won her a large fan base, and every single one of her novels is a bestseller, staying at the top of the charts for weeks. The secret to her success is her addictive mix of art and glamour, secrets and intrigue, love and spice, often set in high society. Her latest series, Sky Circus, invites you to a breathtaking show that promises drama, passion and magic moments.

NOBODY IN PARTICULAR de Sophie Gonzales

Young Royals meets The Prince and Me when a disgraced princess falls for a new student at their all-girls boarding school, but the two must hide their forbidden love at all costs.

NOBODY IN PARTICULAR
by Sophie Gonzales
Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s, June 2025

Princess Rosemary of Henland can’t afford distractions. She’s working tirelessly to repair her image following a scandal that lost the trust of both her country and her best friend. Unfortunately, when a beautiful and funny new student joins her boarding school, Rose finds herself quite distracted indeed.

Attending Bramppath College on a music scholarship, talented pianist Danni expects to be an outcast amongst the wealthy children of the elite, but she is pleasantly surprised to be taken in by the ex-best friend of the princess. The more Danni gets to know her new classmates, the more intrigued she becomes by Rose.

When somebody sees something they shouldn’t and rumors circulate throughout Henland, Rose and Danni must either find a way to deflect the ever-increasing eyes on their relationship, or end it altogether. Because one thing is clear: if Rose’s fragile reputation takes any more hits, the palace will do whatever they must to separate Rose and Danni. Forever.

Sophie Gonzales is a young adult contemporary author. She graduated from the University of Adelaide and lives in Adelaide, Australia, where she can be found ice skating, painting, and practicing the piano. She is also the author of Perfect on Paper, Only Mostly Devastated, and The Law of Inertia, and If This Gets Out with Cale Dietrich.