Maybe it’s time I start admitting that I’m a romance reader. Not a “I just read these for a brain break” reader. An actual, unashamed, will-read-the-whole-series-in-a-week romance reader.
Kinda like how I pretend I don’t enjoy reality TV. Some things you just have to come clean about eventually.
Anyway. March reading round-up. It’s much better than February’s effort, and I’m actually posting this on time! I’m on a 30-day tracking streak in Storygraph, which I’m pretty chuffed with…
I’m always really impressed with the people who can make a lot of time to read during the day. For me, I tend to get my reading in when I’m folding clothes (propping my Kindle up on the table in front of me), or as a wind-down before bed. The only problem with that is it means I manage to get about 10 minutes of reading in before I’m starting to go cross-eyed trying not to fall asleep.
Except, this month I lucked onto some good books that all I wanted to do was read. I’ve given myself the challenge this year to not eat lunch at my desk. When I hit on one of those good books, then you bet I was spending my lunch eating and reading!
Each day, I enter the percentage of where I’m at in the book, and Storygraph automatically calculates the number of pages that I’ve read. Check out that huge spike in the middle!
I went back to look at which book it was, and had a bit of a giggle to myself. I thought it would be the most popular book I read this month, but nope, it was just a brilliant romance series *grin.
This month, I read 5 books – all fiction, and all on my Kindle. And according to the wrap-up graphics, nearly all of them were romance.
Books I read this month
Mile High – Liz Tomforde
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Link: amazon.com
I really enjoyed this book. It’s a sports romance, where an air hostess meets an egotistical ice hockey player (at least that’s what he seems on the surface, anyway).
This book is fun. In all of Tomforde’s books that I’ve read so far, she writes alternating chapters from the point of view of one of the main characters. You get to know enough about their flaws and insecurities that it makes you really understand and appreciate each character. And by the end of it, you’re rooting for them.
This book was recommended to me by Kindle Unlimited, so I had no clue that it had taken off on TikTok (is that where “Booktok” is a thing? I’m so uncool). And what a great recommendation it was.
Right Move – Liz Tomforde
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (and a half)
Link: amazon.com
Notice the author’s name? Yeah….once I realised that Mile High was the first in the series, I was back for more.
This one is about the twin brother of the Air Hostess in the first book, who just happens to be an NBA Superstar. The sister begs him to let her best friend stay while she deals with the fallout of a nasty breakup.
Again, alternating character point of view, and enough depth and detail that you love the characters.
I really enjoyed this book, but I did find at the end that I was desperate for a bit of a break from the romance genre and ready to get into something a bit grittier.
Brimstone – Callie Hart
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (and a half)
Link: amazon.com
Enter the grit, and the fantasy, with a bit of romance (er, a lot of romance).
I’ve also come to accept that I enjoy fantasy novels, and this was no exception. It’s the second in the series, following Quicksilver, and the next one is due in November 2026.
This has a lot of the fantasy elements – magic, vampires, queens of courts, world-building, etc. If you’re into fantasy, you will likely really enjoy it.
The only thing that made me drop it by half a star is that it can be a little slow, and I don’t love it when it feels like once a male main character is in love, he “softens” (I had no idea how to word that). But I feel like this series drops little easter eggs along the way that make it interesting, like there’s still enough of a mystery to solve.
I enjoyed this one, and it kept me captivated enough.
Order of Battle – David Bruns and JR Olson
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (and a half)
Link: amazon.com
We know that the world has gone to shit right now, right? And typically, the last thing anyone would want to do is surround themselves with more politics and war.
But…somehow, I’m finding that reading it, where it’s fiction, feels better. I think that’s because it’s escapism, and in the books, the “bad guys” lose. Everything works out OK in the end (though, like in war, there are lives lost in the novel).
I’m slowly working my way through this series, and really enjoying it. It provides enough of a break from too many “fairytale endings”, and a bit of a touch back to reality, without having to accept the horrors that are our reality right now.
It’s a great series.
Racing Into Love – Laney Kate
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Link: amazon.com
I’m not entirely sure why I got this book, rented through Kindle Unlimited. I think it was an attempt to find another sports romance that wasn’t ice hockey.
Spoiler: it didn’t scratch that itch.
What I didn’t clock at the time was that it was a short story. And short it was. Guy sees girl, girl sees guy, they decide they need to be together at all costs. In about 5 pages. Well…longer than that. But not much.
I need romance to feel believable. I need to actually care whether these two people end up together. This one didn’t give me enough time to give a damn.
It took me nearly a week to read, which honestly says everything. Read a couple of pages, keep the streak alive, move on. Not exactly a ringing endorsement.
The Reading Calendar
Here’s how the calendar looked for the month.
Mostly great books, and a miss.
Does anyone else get annoyed by fake, too-fast romances?
