Cold Blooded Liar Book Tour & Review

Author Karen Rose

Series: Romantic Suspense #27; San Diego Case Files #1

Genre: Romance Suspense

Publisher: Berkley Publishing

Release Date: Feb. 28, 2023

Order Link: Amazon

Big thank you to Berkley Pub. for an advanced readers copy!

 

Review published in Mystery & Suspense Magazine

Brace yourself for a scorching new series from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Karen Rose, where San Diego means sun, surf, sand…and serial killers.

Review:

Psychologist Sam Reeves is deeply disturbed after a court-ordered client - a pathological liar - starts talking about a 'pretty young thing' in a park. Sam can't break doctor/patient confidentiality, but he's compelled to make an anonymous phone call to the San Diego Police Department telling them of a potential grave site in a park.  He leaves his message for homicide Detective Kit McKittrick because of her reputation to stand for victims no matter what.  After a second alarming session during which the patient becomes belligerent and threatening toward Sam and a potential new victim, he phones in another tip via a payphone to McKittrick hoping to remain nameless.  Unfortunately for Sam, a short while later, he finds himself a suspect, spread-eagled on the floor of his apartment with Det. McKittrick slapping handcuffs on his wrists.  After being released for lack of evidence, Sam begins an ill-advised investigation of his own in an effort to protect his own hard earned reputation and livelihood as a reputable psychologist and overall decent human being.  When more girls are murdered with the same m o (modus operandi), it becomes apparent that a serial killer dating back a couple of decades is back in action.  Evidence begins stacking up against Sam, and he doesn't have any believable alibis.  Det. Kit McKittrick is inexplicably drawn to believe Sam, cutting him some slack much to the surprise of her partner and co-officers.  Kit's instincts and gut are telling her something is off about this investigation, and she won't stop until justice is served.

 Karen Rose's Cold Blooded Liar is a fantastic introduction to a new spin off series, San Diego Case Files.  Rose renders a dark tale of the abuse and horrific murders of young teenage girls over several years, all with dreams of becoming big time actresses.  McKittrick suspects this is the bond that the killer uses to draw them into his lair.  Readers are quickly transported into the story through the terrifying sessions of a killer with his psychologist and the investigation.  Tension escalates quickly and the tone is dire as the police always seem to be one step behind the killer even as the media is one step ahead.  As in all of this author's books, the small details are extremely important.  As a reader, I've learned to look for and follow the small crumb trail the author sprinkles throughout her stories as they prove to be important later on.

 Cold Blooded Liar is a tense, complex, emotionally charged story that kept me turning pages in an effort to figure out what I was missing . . . who is the killer?  I felt sure of who it wasn't, but while there are a couple of possibilities, I couldn't zero in on the person I thought was the most likely suspect and that's due to Rose's expert manipulation of both characters and readers.  Characters are convoluted and well developed and are introduced with just enough background information to draw you in, and yet remain elusive enough to peak readers curiosity - leaving this reader looking forward to what happens in future books in this series.  Fans of the Romantic Suspense series will enjoy appearances by past characters.  As for the romance, there's a strong attraction between Kit and Sam, but as readers quickly learn, the baggage Kit carries makes her skittish about relationships which results in her attempting to hold Sam at arm's length.  I loved the final line of the book with its implications that we'll see more sparks between this couple in future books which can't come soon enough.  Highly recommended to fans of suspense and psychological thrillers.  You don't want to miss this one!

 Synopsis:

Sam Reeves is a kindhearted psychologist who treats court-ordered clients. After one of his patients—a pathological liar—starts revealing plausible new details from a long-unsolved serial murder case, he’s compelled to report anonymously to the SDPD tip line, though his attempts to respect patient confidentiality land him facedown and cuffed by the aggressive (and cute) Detective McKittrick.

San Diego homicide detective Kit McKittrick loves the water. She lives on a boat, and when she’s not solving crimes with the SDPD, she’s assisting her foster sister with her charter fishing business, scuba diving, or playing with her poodle. But there’s nothing that intrigues Kit more than a cold case, so when an anonymous caller leads her on the path of a wanted killer, she’s determined to end the decade-long manhunt.

Sam is soon released but goes home with both a newfound distaste for the SDPD and a resolve--not unlike Kit’s--to uncover the truth. Kit and Sam repeatedly butt heads in their separate investigations but are forced to work together to find one of the deadliest serial killers the city has faced in a decade.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
www.karenrosebooks.com

Internationally bestselling, RITA-award winning, author Karen Rose was born and raised in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC. She met her husband, Martin, on a blind date when they were seventeen and after they both graduated from the University of Maryland, (Karen with a degree in Chemical Engineering) they moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. Karen worked as an engineer for a large consumer goods company, earning two patents, but as Karen says, “scenes were roiling in my head and I couldn't concentrate on my job so I started writing them down. I started out writing for fun, and soon found I was hooked.”

Her debut suspense novel, DON'T TELL, was released in July, 2003. Since then, she has published fifteen more novels and two novellas. Her seventeenth novel, ALONE IN THE DARK, will be released in 2016.

Karen's books have appeared on the bestseller lists of the New York Times, USA Today, London's Sunday Times, and Germany's der Spiegel (#1), and the Irish Times, as well as lists in South Africa (#1) and Australia!

Her novels, I'M WATCHING YOU and SILENT SCREAM, received the Romance Writers of America's RITA award for Best Romantic Suspense for 2005 and 2011. Five of her other books have been RITA finalists. To date, her books have been translated into twenty-four languages.

A former high school teacher of chemistry and physics, Karen lives in Florida with her husband of more than twenty years, her two daughters, two dogs, and a cat.

COLD-BLOODED LIAR by Karen Rose

Berkley Hardcover | On sale February 28, 2023

Excerpt:

Longview Park, San Diego, California

Monday, April 4, 5:30 p.m.

Kit pulled the handkerchief across her nose and mouth as she watched the two CSU techs

meticulously uncovering what was, indeed, a grave. Based on the odor, the body had been there

awhile.

They'd arrived at the mystery caller's coordinates to find that the ground had settled somewhat,

creating a slight depression that measured five and a half by two and a half feet.

Ground-penetrating radar had shown a body.

The victim had been small.

Kit slipped her hand into her pocket, finding the little cat-bird figurine. Stroking it with her

thumb. Please don't be a child.

"I hope it's not a kid," Baz murmured, echoing her thoughts.

All homicides were difficult. Even drug dealers murdered on the street had been loved by

someone. Were missed by someone.

But the child homicides were a completely different level of hell.

She looked away from the grave to where Sergeant Ryland, the CSU leader, was making a

plaster cast of the only footprint they'd found in the area. It was a man's shoe, size eleven.

"You got anything for us, Ryland?", she called.

"I just might."

She and Baz walked from the grave site to where someone had stepped off the asphalt path,

leaving the single footprint in the strip of ground between the path and the field of grass.

Ryland finished pouring the plaster over the footprint, smoothed it out, then set the timer on his

phone. 

"Thirty minutes for the plaster to set. Come see the photos I took of the print while I

wait".  He retrieved his camera and beckoned them closer. "There was lettering on the sole of the

shoe-likely a brand name. I can't quite make it out in the photo, but I'm hoping to get detail from

the plaster cast."

"I'll be seventy-two hours or so," Baz said and Ryland nodded.

Kit leaned closer to the screen. "Can you zoom in on it?"

Ryland did, handing the camera to Kit. "I can make out what looks like a Y at the end of the

brand name, but-"

"Sperry," Kit said. "Sorry to interrupt, Sergeant. I recognize the logo. They're Sperry Top-

Siders." She gave him back his camera. "My sister runs a charter fishing business and sometimes

I first mate for her on my days off. A lot of her customers wear them."

Ryland studied the photo. "You could be right."

She was, Kit was certain. "Trouble is, that's a popular shoe. I've even got a pair."

"So do I," Baz said. "Tracking those will be nearly impossible."

Kit shrugged. "But when we find the guy who owns these shoes, we can put him at the scene.

Any way to get a weight estimate on the wearer?"

Ryland shook his head. "Ground's too hard. Barely enough sinkage to get the plaster cast. I'll let

you know when I have something definite."

"Detectives?" one of the techs at the grave called, his tone urgent. "Something over here you

need to see."

"Thank you, Sergeant," Kit said, then approached the grave alongside Baz, schooling her

expression. If it was a child's grave, she would maintain her professionalism. She'd let herself

react later, when she was alone.

"Victim's a postpubescent female," the tech said when they were graveside. "The ME will be

able to give you a better age than I can, but I'm guessing somewhere between fourteen and

eighteen."

Feeling Baz's eyes on her, Kit reassured him with a quick glance. She was fine.

He always worried about her reaction when the victim was the same age that Wren had been

when she'd been murdered, but after four years as a homicide detective, Kit had seen far too

many victims who'd been Wren's age. It never got easier.

She hoped that it never would.

Excerpted from Cold-Blooded Liar by Karen Rose Copyright © 2023 by Karen Rose.

Excerpted by permission of Berkley. All rights reserved.

Good Dog, Bad Cop Review

Author: David Rosenfelt

Series: The K Team #4

Genre: Mystery Thriller

Publisher: Minotaur Books

Release Date: March 14, 2023

Order Link: Amazon

Many thanks to Minotaur Books for an arc.

For the K Team, playing "good dog", "bad cop" is all fun and games... until there's a body on the scene, in the next K Team Novel by bestselling author David Rosenfelt…

Review:

Retired Detective Corey Douglas is a member of the K Team - a group of investigators hired as consultants by the New Jersey Police Department to solve cold cases.  The team sorts through the cold case files applying different criteria to decide which cases they'll accept.  With backing from the police department, they have access to records and experts to utilize as needed in solving cases.  Corey is determined that his team take on the cold case murder of his original police mentor Danny Avery - a detective who was shot execution style while working solo on a case he shared with no one.  Unfortunately, that means that clues are scarce and/or nonexistent as no one has any idea why he was parked on the dark street down from a restaurant on the night he was murdered.  Stranger still is the fact that both his wife and friend Jimmy Dietrich are found dead a few short weeks later in what appeared to be a murder-suicide.  Are the three murders connected?  Corey knows in his gut that Jimmy didn't commit suicide so the K Team take on all three cold cases.  Things quickly heat up as it becomes obvious they're rattling skeletons and coming dangerously close to secrets that someone will kill to keep buried.  What follows is a convoluted mystery with more twists and dead-ins than a curvy country road.  

Good Dog, Bad Cop is a highly entertaining crime thriller with a healthy side of humor which I wasn't expecting.  While I haven't read but one of the previous series books, I had no issues settling right in with this motley crew and following the clues.  However, I'm sure one would greatly benefit from reading the series in order while getting to know the characters as they're introduced and developed.  The who-done-it presents quite the challenge to both the K Team and readers as red herrings are plentiful even if motives are not.  Characterizations are spot-on with a hefty team of support characters helping carry the load.  The main characters are unique and well-developed with their own set of skills to bring to the team.  And I'd be amiss if I didn't mention Simon Garfunkel, the retired police dog now part of the K Team.  I've read some of the Andy Carpenter series books by this author, and I know fans of that series are going to love the appearance of those characters in this one especially Andy as the husband of K Team member Laurie.  I really enjoyed the addition of wry humor in Good Dog, Bad Cop as it lightened the mood as team members grow frustrated at their lack of progress in the ongoing investigation.  

David Rosenfelt's Good Dog, Bad Cop is an intriguing crime procedural that challenges readers to solve the cold cases right alongside the K Team.  The story line flows swiftly even when the investigation doesn't.  I wasn't sure where this one was going until near the end as the clues are few and far between for both the team and readers.  Highly recommended to fans of lighter crime thrillers!

 

Missing Clarissa Review

Author: Ripley Jones

Genre: YA Mystery

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Release Date: March 7, 2023

Order Link: Amazon 

Special thanks to the publisher for an arc.

Reviewed at Mystery & Suspense Magazine

In a gripping novel perfect for fans of Sadie and A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, two best friends start a true crime podcast—only to realize they may have helped a killer in the process.

Review:

Cam and Blair are high school juniors who decide to make a true crime podcast for their journalism class project.  Their subject matter is the mysterious disappearance of cheerleader Clarissa Campbell over twenty years ago.  Clarissa vanished in the wee morning hours after reportedly fighting with her boyfriend at an after graduation party deep in the woods where local teenagers escape to drink and party hidden away from the eyes and reach of parents.  Her disappearance garnished national attention, but with no clues the case went cold.  Her story, however, has never completely died down as the internet is still buzzing with speculation.

Cam and Blair start researching the disappearance of Clarissa seemingly sure they can do what authorities couldn't . . . solve the mystery.  They begin conducting interviews with players including suspects from that time - some of whom speak freely while others shun the spotlight with veiled threats.  During the course of the filming of their podcast, the girls unwittingly rattle some old skeletons, making some people unhappy.  Questions arise about some of the small town's prominent people, including the local sheriff and an old art teacher.  It seems the girls have dared to poke a hornet's nest, letting a swarm of dark, dirty little secrets escape.  Will their podcast end up getting one of them murdered?

Missing Clarissa is an entertaining, young adult mystery with an intriguing plot line.  While Blair and Cam start out motivated by earning an A in their journalism class and gaining followers, they quickly become addicted to finding real answers to the mystery of Clarissa's disappearance.  Characters are well-defined and developed with the main characters empathy-worthy with representation of different social groups including LGBTQ, social class and color.  Jones's writing flows smoothly as the story unfolds at a steady pace.  The intensity and anticipation increase as the girls dig deeper into the mysterious disappearance, serving to sound a warning bell in readers.  Several red herrings are evident as possible villains, and I wasn't exactly certain of where this one was going until the reveal.

Ripley Jones's debut novel Missing Clarissa is an intense, young adult mystery rendered through multiple points of view.  While it seems the utilization of a podcast to tell stories is becoming common now, the premise is well done and appropriate within the boundaries of two teenage girls for delivering the story in Missing Clarissa.  Fans of young adult mysteries will enjoy this one.  I'm looking forward to seeing what's next for this talented author.

Synopsis:

In August of 1999, dazzlingly popular cheerleader Clarissa Campbell disappears from a party in the woods outside the rural town of Oreville, Washington and is never seen again. The police question her friends, teachers, and the adults who knew her—who all have something to hide. And thanks to Clarissa’s beauty, the mystery captures the attention of the nation. But with no leads and no body, the case soon grows cold. Despite the efforts of internet sleuths and true-crime aficionados, Clarissa is never found—dead or alive.

Over twenty years later, Oreville high-school juniors and best friends Blair and Cameron start a true crime podcast, determined to unravel the story of what—or who—happened to this rural urban legend. In the process they uncover a nest of dirty small-town secrets, the sordid truth of Clarissa’s relationship with her charismatic boyfriend, and a high school art teacher turned small-town figurehead who had a very good reason for wanting Clarissa dead. Such a good reason, in fact, that they might have to make him the highlight of their next episode…

But does an ugly history with a missing girl make him guilty of murder? Or are two teenage girls about to destroy the life of an innocent man—and help the true killer walk free?

Beyond That, The Sea Review

Author: Laura Spence-Ash

Narrator: Ell Potter

Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance

Publisher: Celadon Books

Release Date: March 21, 2023

Order Link: Amazon

Special thanks to Celadon Books for an audio and physical arc.

A big shout out to my fellow Bookstagram Buddy Readers for a great discussion! #SQAF

5 Beautiful Hearts

A sweeping, tenderhearted love story, Beyond That, the Sea by Laura Spence-Ash tells the story of two families living through World War II on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean, and the shy, irresistible young woman who will call them both her own.

Review:

Beyond That, The Sea shines a light on the heart breaking plight of many families desperate to protect their children during WWII in Europe.  Parents were forced to make the agonizing decision to send their children across the sea to live with strangers to keep them safe until the war was over.  For a scared, resentful eleven-year-old Beatrix Thompson, the journey would land her with the Gregory family in Boston and last for five of the most formative years of her young life.  Bea's new life in America is idyllic and vastly different than the life she left behind in London and she soon becomes an intricate part of the affluent family.  Mr. & Mrs. G and sons William and Gerald welcome her with open arms as Bea struggles with guilt over her fading memories of the mother and father she left behind in London.  Newly formed bonds strengthen over time, and her happiness is marred only by the knowledge that she'll have to return home to London someday soon.  On the other side of the sea, a crushing sense of loss overwhelm Bea's parents even though they know they sent  their daughter away for the right reasons.  Try as they may, it's hard to control the havoc the void plays on their lives and marriage.  Their only contentment comes from the fact they believe their daughter is safe even as mother Millie hides the growing resentment she feels over the better life Bea is living in America as relayed through Bea's letters home - a life they couldn't give her.  These scenes are highly emotional, grief stricken and heart-breaking.

The first part of Beyond That, The Sea follows Bea's life in America with all the personal relationships forged that will remain forever in her heart throughout her life.  The author excels at rendering fully fleshed, believable characters that quickly stole my heart.  Relationships are multifaceted and continuously evolving as Bea matures into her teenage years with all the emotional highs and lows.  Every day is a new adventure, a new experience for the once sheltered Bea.  The desolation experienced by all involved is heart breaking when time comes for the now young lady Bea to return home. Settling back into her former life will prove even harder than she imagined as Bea finds things vastly different then when she left, and she yearns for the life and family left behind in America.

Spence-Ash's vivid, lyrical prose conveys all the emotions - the highs, the lows, the tears, the laughter, the hope & despair - experienced by each player in this story spread over several decades.  The utilization of short chapters and multiple points of view through which readers come to know individual characters' true thoughts and feelings is perfect.  Each family member's life after Bea's return home is portrayed in Parts Two and Three, and I found myself drawn deeply into the hopes and dreams both realized and lost of each one.  It's seldom that I can say that every character in a book touches me deeply, but in Beyond This, The Sea they do.

Beyond That, The Sea is a beautifully rendered story that quietly packs a powerful punch.  While it doesn't delve deep into the physical destruction of war, it speaks volumes about the chaotic effects it forces upon families on both sides of the sea - most especially on displaced children and the families left behind.  The harrowing, emotional turmoil of all involved permeates every single page with emphasis on the true meaning of family, both by blood and by choice.  It's a coming of age story about the meaning of true love and sacrifice, love found and lost and forgiveness.  As much as I loved this book, I was left feeling a bit forlorn and melancholy after finishing - I think mostly due to Spence-Ash's unique ability to fully immerse me into the lives of these families that I came to care about on both sides of the sea.  It'll be a long time before I'm able to let Beyond That, The Sea go.  Highly, highly recommended to fans of historical fiction.  Don't pass this one up!

Note: While I received both a physical and audio copy, I highly recommend the audio version if you get the chance to listen to Beyond That, The Sea.  The narrator's English accent and word choices are perfect for this story, pulling me into this world very quickly.  Excellent job by Narrator Ell Potter!

Synopsis:

As German bombs fall over London in 1940, working-class parents Millie and Reginald Thompson make an impossible choice: they decide to send their eleven-year-old daughter, Beatrix, to America. There, she’ll live with another family for the duration of the war, where they hope she’ll stay safe.

Scared and angry, feeling lonely and displaced, Bea arrives in Boston to meet the Gregorys. Mr. and Mrs. G, and their sons William and Gerald, fold Bea seamlessly into their world. She becomes part of this lively family, learning their ways and their stories, adjusting to their affluent lifestyle. Bea grows close to both boys, one older and one younger, and fills in the gap between them. Before long, before she even realizes it, life with the Gregorys feels more natural to her than the quiet, spare life with her own parents back in England.

As Bea comes into herself and relaxes into her new life—summers on the coast in Maine, new friends clamoring to hear about life across the sea—the girl she had been begins to fade away, until, abruptly, she is called home to London when the war ends.

Desperate as she is not to leave this life behind, Bea dutifully retraces her trip across the Atlantic back to her new, old world. As she returns to post-war London, the memory of her American family stays with her, never fully letting her go, and always pulling on her heart as she tries to move on and pursue love and a life of her own.

As we follow Bea over time, navigating between her two worlds, Beyond That, the Sea emerges as a beautifully written, absorbing novel, full of grace and heartache, forgiveness and understanding, loss and love.

Where Darkness Blooms Review

Author: Andrea Hannah

Genre: YA Thriller

Publisher: Wednesday Books

Release Date: Feb. 21, 2023

Order Link: Amazon

Special thanks to Wednesday Books for an arc of this book.

Reviewed in Mystery & Suspense Magazine

Andrea Hannah's Where Darkness Blooms is a supernatural thriller about an eerie town where the sunflowers whisper secrets and the land hungers for blood.

Review:

Where Darkness Blooms is a young adult thriller/horror story set in the bizarre mid-western town of Bishop - an eerie place with a reputation for devastating wind storms, endless fields of anomalous sunflowers . . . and a long history of women mysteriously disappearing without a trace.  The story follows the lives of four unique girls (two are twins) who've all lost their mothers to a mysterious phenomenon.

Bo, Whitney, Jude and Delilah lived together with their mothers on the outskirts of town until the day their mothers vanished.  Now, two years later, the girls gather to honor their mothers' memories at a memorial when disaster strikes.  Long buried secrets blowing on the wind escape leaving the girls questioning everything they thought they knew about this creepy, supernatural town with sunflower fields that appear to be threatening.  It's soon apparent that each girl has her own buried demons and secrets that threaten to destroy them all.  However, it's what the girls don't know that has the most power over them.

Where Darkness Blooms is a supernatural horror story that gives off vibes of The Handmaid's Tales as well as Children of the Corn.  Readers are immediately drawn in by the super creepy prologue and then thrust full force forward into an unearthly tale of corruption, murder and patriarchy.  The author's expertise at creating an immersive setting through her descriptive prose is nothing short of brilliant.  The town's buildings and surrounding land and plants take on a menacing, blood thirsty life of their own.  I swear the hair on my neck stood up as I raced through some of the scenes, losing myself in this strange little town alongside the characters.  The imagery evoked transports readers to a mysterious, magical place where all is not as it seems.  The characters are well fleshed out and authentic.  I found the girls' relationship with each other to be a strength that garnishes empathy for their collective struggles as they investigate the murders of their mothers.  Readers are privy to their dark secrets even as each one is forced to face some terrifying truths.

Where Darkness Blooms is a dark, twisted, eerie paranormal thriller that fans of the genre will devour.  Hannah's control of setting, plot and characters is highly impressive as is her descriptive prose.  I have to say that I'll be keeping a wary eye on my own garden of sunflowers this summer.  While their heads may follow the sun, I'm now aware they're also watching me!  Highly recommended to fans of young adult fantasy and horror.

Synopsis:

The town of Bishop is known for exactly two things: recurring windstorms and an endless field of sunflowers that stretches farther than the eye can see. And women—missing women. So when three more women disappear one stormy night, no one in Bishop is surprised. The case is closed and their daughters are left in their dusty shared house with the shattered pieces of their lives. Until the wind kicks up a terrible secret at their mothers’ much-delayed memorial.

With secrets come the lies each of the girls is forced to confront. After caring for the other girls, Delilah would like to move on with her boyfriend, Bennett, but she can’t bear his touch. Whitney has already lost both her mother and her girlfriend, Eleanor, and now her only solace is an old weathervane that seems to whisper to her. Jude, Whitney's twin sister, would rather ignore it all, but the wind kicks up her secret too: the summer fling she had with Delilah's boyfriend. And more than anything, Bo wants answers and she wants them now. Something happened to their mothers and the townsfolk know what it was. She’s sure of it.

Bishop has always been a strange town. But what the girls don’t know is that Bishop was founded on blood—and now it craves theirs.

The Chemistry of Love Review

Author: Sariah Wilson

Genre: Romance

Publisher: Montlake

Release Date: Feb. 1, 2023

Order Link: Amazon

Special thanks to the publisher for an arc.

3 Fake Hearts

Review:

Anna Ellis is a talented cosmetic chemist working at Minx Cosmetics where she struggles with a misogynist supervisor who refuses to listen to her great ideas - one of which she's sure will revolutionize the cosmetic industry. Ann is secretly "in love" with the company's boss Craig, although he's only actually spoken to her twice in the two years she's worked there. We're talking fantasy land here.  After a nasty confrontation with her supervisor, Anna up and quits her job determined to start her own company, but she still goes to the company's big staff party that night on the chance she'll run into Craig . . . who'll realize he's loved her all along, right? In reality, Craig announces his engagement to someone else, and Anna drowns her sorrow in alcohol while sitting crying on the men's bathroom floor. Enter Prince Charming who just happens to be the CEO of the cosmetic company, Craig's older half-brother. Marco is gorgeous, but also kind and caring, and he steps in to offer his help to Anna. After learning of her infatuation with Craig, he offers her a fake relationship to make Craig jealous upon which time, he'll come and swoop her off her feet with a glass slipper no doubt. As the story unfolds, the chemistry between Anna and Marco intensifies as they bond over their mutual love of all things nerdy including Star Wars. While Marco recognizes the real thing when he sees it, Anna is confused by her growing feelings for him while clinging to her puppy love for Craig. Will she come to her senses before she loses her shot with Marco?

The Chemistry of Love is a cute, fake dating romance albeit a bit unrealistic. Anna is an immature geek with stars in her eyes and totally blind when it comes to scumbag Craig, and Marco is almost too good to be true. I enjoyed the banter between Anna and Marco even as I wanted to scream at Anna to wake up and smell the roses - to grab the prince in front of her if she wanted a real glass slipper. There are some interesting side characters, and I found myself laughing out loud a time or two. While the plot is predictable, The Chemistry of Love is highly readable and entertaining. Highly recommended to fans of romance and the fake dating trope.

Synopsis:

How can Anna Ellis, a geeky, brilliant, and hopelessly smitten cosmetic chemist possibly win over Craig Kimball, the man of her dreams—who also happens to be her boss? The answer is Craig’s empathetic (and handsome) CEO half brother, Marco. The makeup mogul knows Craig for the ridiculously competitive rival he is. Whatever Marco has, Craig wants. That can be Anna, if she’s game to play. All Anna and Marco have to do is pretend they’re falling in love and let the rumors begin. If the experiment in attraction works, a jealous Craig will swoop in and give Anna her happily ever after—if it weren’t for one hitch in the plan. There’s more to Marco than meets the eye. With every fake date, Anna’s feelings are starting to become dizzyingly real.