bookishbethanyerin

[bookishbethanyerin]

• march reading + writing wrap-up •

well, march brought me pneumonia and my birthday, the return of f1 and an f1 fantasy team that has only delivered negative points so far—but it also brought lots of great books (You Between the Lines was the stand-out, I am enjoying the hell out of the Artefacts of Ouranos series, and I have a lot of thoughts about This Book Will Bury Me) AND ALSO!!!! I FINISHED MY F1 ROMANCE!!!!

It is a very ridiculous 123k words at the moment, but it is finished and I can now edit my little heart out.😍

[bookishbethanyerin]

• drive me home •

f1 is so back (but no, i don’t want to talk about ferrari), and so is carly robyn!🏎️

with drive me home, the third and final book in her drive me series, she serves up a frothy and oh-so fun f1 driver x teammate’s little sister story that does a great job of balancing the slow-burning attraction between Lucas and Charlotte, the on-track action, and off-track drama.

You can expect:

⛅️grumpy x sunshine

🛍️ fashion-forward fmc

🏁 tattooed mmc

❤️he falls so hard

🔥a slow burn worth the wait

If you’ve read the other books in this interconnected series of standalones, you’ll see many familiar faces throughout drive me home – but if not, never fear, you won’t be lost!

If you’re looking for some f1 romance reads that are a breeze to read, accurately portray the sport (though there is *some* creative license, and author notes that explain), deliver swoony love stories, and bring the heat, then grab these now!

[bookishbethanyerin]

• whet (aka, deep end) •

If there’s one thing about me, it’s that if Ali Hazelwood wrote it, I’m going to enjoy it. So, yes, of course I loved this, the horniest and angstiest of her books yet that is basically a blend of the best parts of Check & Mate and Not in Love.

I love that this not only tackles all of the messiness and awkwardness of being in the weird limbo of adulthood that is college, from juggling a grueling schedule and attempting to take care of your mental health to navigating complicated friendships, exploring sexuality, and learning the value of trust.

And ofc Ali manages to do all of that while also making you laugh out loud, feeling like an Olympic-level diver who is also a genius is relatable, weaving in some familiar faces (!!!!!), and having you going *oh* in a very italicized way, if you know what I mean.

(Also, I def stopped to look up different kinds of dives while reading, and omg pro divers might just be magic??)

Also: Lukas Blomqvist supremacy. Seriously.

[bookishbethanyerin]

• february wrap-up •

i don’t know about y’all, but the last couple weeks of feb (and mars retrograde) *really* did a number on me, and i am SO GLAD we are through with that.

luckily, i had some great books to escape into, made a lot of headway on my F1 romance draft (THE END IS IN SIGHT!!!!), got some feedback on my rivals-to-lovers draft and have an edit plan (i think, i hope), AND i think i have an idea of what might make my popstar-returns-to-her-hometown draft really sing.

so february, though truly terrible for my mental health, seems to be catapulting me into some serious productivity. fingers crossed, at least.

[bookishbethanyerin]

• back after this •

I’ve been a fan of Linda Holmes for years—but I was introduced to her work through Pop Culture Happy Hour, her podcast with NPR. So when I heard her new novel was based in the world of podcasting, I was absolutely over the moon—and I”m very pleased to say that I adored this book as much as I was hoping to.

The story follows Cecily Foster, a career-focused perfectionist in her mid-30s who works as a podcast producer for years. When her boss asks her to host a podcast, she’s excited—but less so when she finds out she’ll be working with an influencer who wants to break into life coaching by helping women boost their self-confidence and find their perfect partner. Still, Cecily agrees. But her dating show is derailed when she keeps running into Will, a man she seems to have a real connection with, but who is decidedly not one of the matches from her new dating coach.

Holmes’s writing throughout this book is easy to read and filled with wit, the characters are nuanced and interesting, the themes regarding career and what success looks like are grounded in reality and extremely resonant—and, of course, there’s the very fun treat of the true-to-life insights at what it takes to produce audio stories.

I loved Cecily, and her journey toward learning how to identify—and ask for—what she wants; appreciated the care Holmes took in crafting the layered influencer/dating coach, Eliza; and found Will, with his easy-going charm, quietly amusing banter, and perfect one-liners so refreshing.

This was an absolute delight from beginning to end!

4.5🌟

🎧A huge thank you to Ballantine Books an Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy!🐾

[bookishbethanyerin]

• romance book recs •

happy valentine’s day, here are some book recs based on beloved movies.💕✨

[bookishbethanyerin]

• emily wilde •

The Emily Wilde books have been on my TBR for *a while*—I picked up the first two after basically all of my bookish friends were like “hi, you need to read these IMMEDIATELY” and then did that thing where I *saved them* for when I deserved an especially wonderful little treat.

And then, I miraculously was granted an advanced of the third book—Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales—and proceeded to absolutely devour these delightful books that follow the titular scholar on her adventures to study the Folk.

Charming, fantastical, and amusing, these books are truly a delicious little treat and everyone who told me to read them was absolutely right. Dr. Emily Wilde is a true INFJ queen, Wendell is the best kind of maddeningly insouciant love interest, and the way these books are told and woven together beautifully pay tribute to the fascinating, sometimes shockingly cruel, and ever-beguiling style of folktales.

Here’s what you can expect from this series:

📚light academia

🏡found family

🏫workplace rivalries

💕opposites attract

🐾a very good dog

🌱outdoor adventures

I have a feeling that I’ll find myself returning to the world of Emily Wilde often in the future.

🐌A huge thank you to Del Rey and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy of Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales!🌳

[bookishbethanyerin]

• dream girl drama •

Tessa Bailey is back with another hockey romance – and this one comes with her take on a trope that verges on taboo.

🏒over-protective hockey player

🎶overly sheltered musical prodigy

❤️‍🔥forbidden romance

🧐future step-siblings

🐾a very cute dog

With Dream Girl Drama, Tessa delivers a story that feels a bit reminiscent of It Happened One Summer. We have a spoiled, sheltered blonde in Chloe, a harp prodigy, and an overprotective, self-sacrificing dark-haired hero in Sig, a professional hockey player.

But though the character sketches are a bit similar, the rest is not. Sparks fly, mouths meet, and then Sig and Chloe have a very rude awakening when they discover their parents are getting married.

I enjoyed the heightened angst and yearning that Tessa worked into this story, providing more of a slow-burning romance than we usually see from her. I also thought this book was very funny—Chloe’s moments of sharp humor were a delight, and the antics from some of the supporting characters genuinely made me laugh out loud.

That said, Sig’s overprotective tendencies grated on me, I wish Chloe had more room to develop as a character, and thought the resolution of a major storyline was too rushed. But overall, this was a quick, easy read that delivered exactly what I expected: a not-quite taboo rom-com chock-full of humor and spice.

3.25🌟

A huge thank you to Avon for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy!

[bookishbethanyerin]

• january wrap-up •

at it’s-been-84-years long last, january is officially over. i don’t know about you guys, but i have been dissociating hard.

i made it through a whopping 11 contemp romance and fantasy books and 9 historical romance – and none of them were onyx storm because my copy is STILL on its way to me (*shakes fist at january*).

on the writing front…things have not been great. i’m at nearly 90k words in my popstar romance, am nowhere near the third act (🫣), and it feels like i’m forcing the leads to have chemistry at the moment, so i need to take a step back, identify what isn’t working, and then reasses. BUT! i have started working more on my F1 romance and am feeling good about it! So fingers crossed things stay that way and I can finish up this first draft this month (right ahead of actual F1 season starting up)🏎️🤞

What were your fave reads this month?

[bookishbethanyerin]

• unromance •

When I heard about Unromance – a cheeky romp of subverted tropes and elder Millennial references – I immediately added it to my 2025 tbr.

The story follows Sawyer Greene, a successful romance author struggling to finish a draft while grappling with her own heartbreak and loneliness who finds herself in the midst of a classic elevator meet-cute with a man who turns out to be Mason West, a mildly famous actor known for dating his costars and simping hard. After a (very hot) one-night stand, they decide they can help each other during the holiday season: he can inspire her to finish a new holiday romance while she’ll ruin romance for him.

There is much to admire in Erin Connor’s debut. I adored the humor and banter, and was often delighted by the amusing “definitions” of classic tropes that began each chapter. But as tongue-in-cheek and witty as this book often was, as much as I liked the main characters, as much as the tension sizzled (the tights scene!!!), and as much as I enjoyed that many of the scenarios felt very grounded and realistic, I wanted a little bit more from the emotional beats.

Still, I did enjoy the exploration of Sawyer’s writing process in how they relate both to her work and relationships, and overall I really liked Erin’s voice and sensibilities. I will look forward to more books from her in the future!

3.75🌟

💋A very hearty thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read abs review an advanced copy! Unromance is available now.❤️

[bookishbethanyerin]

solidly in my historical romance era🎀🎩

i’m very much still new to the genre, but have been devouring everything Lisa Kleypas has touched (and am even enjoying audiobooks, who even am I!!), have Loretta Chase in my Libby holds, and added Tessa Dare, Sara MacLean, Alexandra Vasti, Amalie Howard, and Erin Langford on my TBR.

The quote in image nine is from the one and only West Ravenel, who very quickly made it into my top five fave male book characters ever.

who are your go-to historical romance authors?

[bookishbethanyerin]

Good morning!✌️

[bookishbethanyerin]

• near miss •

I am nothing if not a sucker for an emotionally slow-burning, character-driven, black cat x golden retriever book, and y’all, Near Miss by Haley Warren checked basically every box for me.

The story follows Beckett, a hugely beloved and absurdly talented NFL kicker suffering PR backlash after missing a very important kick, and Greer, a serious and closed-off transplant surgeon trying to cope with stress and career uncertainty. They meet at the hospital – twice – and then an unlikely friendship forms between them.

When I tell you I adored this, I mean it very seriously. Though this can be heavy at times – both Beckett and Greer carry trauma from their pasts – it’s balanced with fantastic banter, laugh-out-loud moments, charming character quirks (Beckett is very into facts about Napoleon Bonaparte) swoony gestures, and, oh yeah, sizzling spice.

I loved this *so* much – and if you also have a thing for prickly ladies, self-deprecating guys with knowing grins, and romances that are a little more grumpy than sunshine, then you’ll definitely want to add this to your TBR.

4.5🌟

🏈A massive thank you to Haley Warren for the opportunity to read and review an advanced copy! Near Miss is available on KU now!🩺

[bookishbethanyerin]

Good morning!🧋

[bookishbethanyerin]

Good morning!🤎

[bookishbethanyerin]

• 2025 book releases •

Behold, a few (ahem, nearly 30) books that are on my radar for this year! As ever, there is romance and romantasy and dark academia, but also some YA, some thrillers, some cozy reads, and *two* Dramione repackages, for good measure. So, you know – my usual fare.

Which books are you most looking forward to this year?

[bookishbethanyerin]

Good morning!🚞