Berkley Archives - The Litertarian

Book Review:: Ghost Business | Jen DeLuca

Welcome back to Boneyard Key, where the kitchy beach town theme is actually rooted in truth. Boneyard Key is haunted by a wide array of ghosts, and Sophie has dedicated her business to digging up the truth about each of their stories.

Out of nowhere comes a cute newcomer who turns out to be a businessman in the ghost tours business. Sophie’s business. And he’s coming for her market. Trouble is, he doesn’t care if the stories are real or not as long as the customers keep coming. His mentality causes natural clashing between himself and Sophie – a rivalry with an undertone of admiration on his side, and heat on hers. And what happens when Tristan finds out the ghosts in this town are real?

There wasn’t much new or surprising or endearing really about the little town of Boneyard Key that wasn’t already there in Haunted Ever After. I think it certainly fits in the same world, but I was hoping for a stronger story for book two. The romance wasn’t particularly swoony, there wasn’t much new about the ghosts or hauntings of the island that wasn’t in book one…it was okay.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Ghost Business (Boneyard Key #2)
Author:: Jen DeLuca
Genre:: Paranormal Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 368 pages
Audio Length:: 11h
Audiobook Narrator:: Jeannie Sheneman
Published:: September 9th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 3-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Haunted Ever After | Jen DeLuca
The Battle of the Bookshops | Poppy Alexander
Battle of the Bookstores | Ali Brady

Book Review:: Save You | Mona Kasten

Save You is the second book in the popular teenage drama saga Maxton Hall. If you’ve not yet read book one, please start there. My review for Save Me can be found here. (Book one spoilers are present in this review)

Well well well, James has a lot to answer for if he ever wants to get back into broken-hearted Ruby’s good graces. She’s never felt betrayal this deeply, and she still doesn’t know why he was so far gone that night he kissed someone else. That’s not the only secret flying around. His sister Lydia is hiding something life changing from everyone, except ironically, Ruby. And Ruby’s sister Ember is acting more evasive than ever.

Okay, okay, I’m warming ever up to this incredibly dramatic hormone-fueled saga. The characters have worked themselves into some very juicy tangles and everyone has a different motivation informing their erratically impulsive decisions.

I would say this book suffers a little bit in terms of development, but it does a lot to set up for the rest of the character’s stories launching into the third book. There are a lot of very grown up themes being handled in this series, but it feels like they’re being handled well. There are a lot of big emotions that need to be worked through until we get any resolution for the events that transpired in book one, and that takes time.

The two sisters were actually the highlight of this book for me. I liked that Ember is beginning to play a role here. She seems like she’s got a great head on her shoulders and her body-inclusive fashion blog sounds really great. I’ll be interested how her new story line plays out. Lydia’s story is also very compelling, and she’s got so much at stake.

In terms of if I’ll be continuing this series? Absolutely I will. Enthusiastically!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Save You (Maxton Hall #2)
Author:: Mona Kasten
Genre:: Teen Drama/Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 352 pages
Published:: September 2nd, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 4-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Save Me | Mona K a sten
It’s All Relative | Rachel Magee
Before We Were Us | Denise Hunter

Book Review:: Love at First Sighting | Mallory Marlowe

Love at First Sighting is no ordinary romance. You might say…ahem…it’s out of this world.

Just kidding. It takes place on Earth. But it is tightly wrapped up in a mystery that has more at stake than broken hearts. It’s fun, it’s a little bit silly, it’s tender-hearted, and absolutely worth a read.

Love at First Sighting by Mallory Marlowe Book Cover

Mallory Marlowe is also the author of Love and Other Conspiracy Theories, so I think she’s nicheing down into a pretty distinctive brand here, and I love that for her.

A close encounter of the romantic kind?

Come on. Pure gold.

El is an influencer who encounters something she cannot explain. An Unidentified Flying Object. Naturally, she livestreams it following her. Carter is the agent assigned to her case, but this time it’s different…because it’s the very same thing Carter saw the night his father died. Together they uncover the truth of what it really was up there.

So it’s a little cheesy, but this book will leave you with a full heart by the time you’re done turning pages. Carter’s story is tragic, and completely entwined in the plotline. It’s El’s background and profession that is honestly kind of hilarious. There is certainly some mild commentary about the career of an influencer, but when it comes up in the climax crisis, it just had me rolling.

The best part of this novel, as all romances should be, is the budding romance between El and Carter. Their connection is genuine and so sweet, and is what will bring me to pick up this book again in the future for a reread. It’s exciting, it’s action-packed, and it has a big, mushy, heart at it’s center. Can’t go wrong!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Love at First Sighting
Author:: Mallory Marlowe
Genre:: Romantic Comedy Mystery
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 352 pages
Published:: August 12th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 4-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Sounds Like A Plan | Pamela Samuels Young & Dwayne Alexander Smith
Burn for Me | Ilona Andrews

Book Review:: Save Me | Mona Kasten

If you’re a fan of teen dramas, buckle in, because Save Me by Mona Kasten is the broody romance series you’ve likely been waiting for. Fist published in German, the book series the Prime series Maxton Hall is based on is now available in English!

Ruby is the Rory Gilmore of Maxton Hall, except she doesn’t have a wealthy benefactor family paying her way into the distinguished private school. She has a dream extensively planned out, and that is to go to Oxford. She’s not at school to party or socialize – in fact, she keeps her school life strictly separate from home life, because she’s not like the other students at school – she’s had the same ruddy backpack for years. Everything is just as she likes it, until she witnesses something she shouldn’t in one of the classrooms, and another student, the heir to a billionaire business, confronts her about keeping quiet. She doesn’t want a bribe, she’s happy to keep quiet, and he can’t understand that at all.

After that, Ruby and James are officially on each other’s radars, and are thrown together in unexpected ways. James is the opposite of Ruby in so many aspects, and their clashing together is delicious fodder for drama.

I can confidently say my high school experience was nothing like the extra-cirricular lives of these Maxton Hall kids. It’s typical rich-kid shit as portrayed in pop culture. These parties are laden with sex, drugs, and bad decisions.

There are a lot of really sweet moments while Ruby and James dance around getting to know each other, and always tainted by this knowledge that their lives are too fundamentally different to be anything more than friends. So will they? Or won’t they? You’ll have to read to find out!

Save Me covers most of Ruby and James’ senior year, as they’re navigating college admissions and face the possibility of their futures. One thing this book is sure to remind you of is hard it can be to be a kid. So much pressure, so many opportunities that will take your life in one direction or another. The weight of expectations. It’s not easy.

I’m certainly interested in what comes next for Ruby and James. We’re left off at quite a dramatically intricate scene and I’m nervous what lies in store!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Save Me (Maxton Hall #1)
Author:: Mona Kasten
Genre:: Young Adult (YA) Drama
Publisher:: Berkley (English) LYX (German)
Length:: 416 pages
Audio Length:: 9h 53m
Audiobook Narrator:: Will Watt & Marisa Calin
Published:: July 1st, 2025 (English) February 23, 2018 (German)
The Litertarian Rating:: 3-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Adam and Evie’s Matchmaking Tour | Nora Nguyen
Steal My Breath Away | Sarah Castille
Songs of Summer | Jane L. Rosen

Book Review:: First-Time Caller | BK Borison

When I heard BK Borison was coming out with a new series based on all of our favorite Nora Ephron Rom-Com movies of the 90s I was ALL IN. And when I say that, I hope you realize that I mean I felt fully take-my-money feral. Book #1 in what she’s calling the Heartstrings series is First-Time Caller, based on the Tom Hanks & Meg Ryan classic: Sleepless in Seattle.

First-Time Caller by BK Borison Book Cover

Lucie’s daughter calls in to a late-night radio show based around love, and hosted by a man who no longer believes in it.

After the impressively accomplished Business Casual, Borison’s previous release, I had the highest of hopes for this book. It was good, but it wasn’t on the same level. More than anything, First-Time Caller felt indulgent.

Aiden had character, but for me it wasn’t nearly strong enough. I’d have vastly preferred more scenes with character development for Aiden than have the two of them locked in storage closets for far too many pages dry humping and ignoring their problems. Were there great scenes in this book? Of course. And I enjoy the prose style. The struggle for me this time was all story. It just felt unbalanced, focusing far too much on the sexual tension, and eventually, the actual sex. It’s something Borison does well, the almost visceral sexual tension, but too much of even a good thing eventually sours, and that’s how I felt about First-Time Caller.

Still, BK Borison remains an auto-buy author for me…for now. We’ll see how I feel about her next few releases, beginning with an October release titled Good Spirits. Personally, I’d rather have one great book release a year instead of two mediocre ones. I hope my fears about that are unfounded and this was a fluke. And hey, many others seriously adore this one. Unfortunately, I can’t call myself one of them.

Details

Title:: First Time Caller (Heartstrings #1)
Author:: BK Borison
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 448 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 54m
Audiobook Narrator:: EJ Bingham & Hathaway Lee
Published:: February 11th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 3.5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Thank You For Listening | Julia Whelan
This Summer Will Be Different | Carley Fortune
Wild Love | Elsie Silver

Book Review:: Finders Keepers | Sarah Adler

Welcome home to your parent’s house, Nina Hunnicutt! That’s where catching your long-term boyfriend with someone else just as they’re supposed to be moving in together will get you. Rock bottom.

Finders Keepers by Sarah Adler Book Cover

But wait! Her once-best-friend is in the same boat at the same time. Burned by his ex-fiancé and home from abroad to sell the house next door, Quintin Bell might just be there to secure Nina’s own version of personal hell. Once upon a time, Nina and Quintin were as close as two friends can be, bonded over talking through their open windows, which face one another. In their last summer after high school graduation, they undertook the task of finding real-life treasure from an eccentric rich dude in town. They never found it, instead, it ended up breaking whatever connection they might have had at the time just before he left town. The wounds have calcified since then, but are not forgotten, and when Quintin brings up hunting for the treasure again now, as adults, she wants no part of it. That is, until she finds out there’s money in it no matter what, and that, just now, as an unemployed dweller in her parent’s metaphorical basement, is not something she can say no to.

This is a fun little summer adventure story. It’s not often one has real treasure to hunt for, and Nina and Q have to work together to make progress. This of course is perfect fodder for all sorts of rom-com shenanigans.

There were a lot of cute moments between Nina and Quintin. It was very clear that they had a long-standing friendship as kids that felt very authentic. Personally, I didn’t get as invested as I like in the romance of it. Maybe the treasure hunt took away from it for me, but it is still a fun summer read I would recommend if you’re someone who enjoys rom-coms.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Finders Keepers
Author:: Sarah Adler
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 400 pages
Audio Length:: 9h 30m
Audiobook Narrator:: TBA
Published:: June 24th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 3-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

PS I Hate You | Lauren Connolly
Wish I Were Here | Melissa Wiesner
Perfect Fit | Clare Gilmore

Book Review:: People We Meet on Vacation | Emily Henry

How is everyone sleeping on People We Meet on Vacation?! This is the last book on Emily Henry’s backlist for me to read and you know what? I’m just going to say it. It’s my favorite.

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Book Cover

Poppy is living her dream life as a travel writer in New York City but for some reason, she’s not happy. She hasn’t been, actually, since she and her best friend Alex had a falling out a few years back. They used to go on vacation every year, scraping together their pennies in college to go anywhere-but-here. That’s when she fell in love with travel. So she bites the bullet and sends that first awkward hey-haven’t-talked-to-you-in-years-but-what’s-up text and to her delight and surprise, things pick up as if no time at all has passed. Texting soon leads to planning a new trip, and this one will fix everything for good. Hopefully.

My god there is something about a years spanning will they won’t they best friends with a little something more MFEO romance novel. Seriously, send me every rec you can think of that follows this same trajectory because MY HEART IN THESE NOVELS JUST CANNOT. If you’re chasing that same feeling, read this one, but also In the Likely Event by Rebecca Yarros. That one is darker than this, but it’s the same can’t-put-it-down-gah-get-your-shit-together energy this one has. Both of these…they just have their own electricity.

Poppy and Alex are opposites. She’s talkative and friendly and wants to get the most out of life. Alex is quiet and reserved and is happy with the life he has at home with his brothers. They had a little when-harry-met-sally style meet-cute and a life-changing friendship was born. Poppy and Alex are more fun than Harry and Sally, if it’s not blasphemous to say (H&S is one of my favorite movies too – clearly I have a type), but their problems also run deeper and had my heart in my throat so many times.

I’m telling you, this book had me in a chokehold. The timing of the flashbacks building up all those ‘almost’ moments and the ones that were so close and personal and foundational to their friendship that also make the possibility of ruining what they have too much to risk…I mean, it was just *chef’s kiss*

It is turning into a movie (screenplay by Yulin Kuang who’s debut novel came out last year, How to End A Love Story), but I’m not sure if I can bear to watch it. This book has buried itself into my heart and has become a part of me. That’s what a good book feels like. And I’m going to sit with that awhile before I risk tainting it (ha!).

Seriously though, if you’ve been putting off reading People We Meet on Vacation because you haven’t seen it hyped at all compared to the great Emily Henry’s other works, stop it. Pick it up right now. It’s phenomenal. Get the audiobook, too. Julia Whelan makes everything better.

Details

Title:: People We Meet on Vacation
Author:: Emily Henry
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 400 pages
Audio Length:: 10h 46m
Audiobook Narrator:: Julia Whelan
Published:: May 11th, 2021
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Book Review:: Sounds Like Love | Ashley Poston

The Dead Romantics by Ashley Poston was one of the most surprising delights when I was first getting heavy into romance. The voice, the concept, the execution – 10/10. I was recently provided an early copy of her latest novel, Sounds Like Love, and at first I was just as delighted. In fact, I immediately wrote down “Da**it Ashley Poston, your prose is impeccable”. I still stand by that, but the story this time didn’t hold up as well.

Sounds Like Love by Ashley Poston Book Review

Joni Lark is a songwriter in a rut. She’s had some hit songs, but the creative well is all dried up and it terrifies her. She’s hoping her annual summer trip back home to North Carolina will rejuvenate her and she’ll get back on track, but her mother is sick, her best friend is hiding something from her, her ex-lover happens to be in town, and there’s this new melody she just can’t get out of her head.

This book has a heavy dose of magical realism. Turns out the tune in her head is actually attached to a voice. Of a man. They literally read each other’s minds.

For me, this element could have maybe been okay if executed a little better. But the communication felt very heavily one-sided. Joni wasn’t reading much of Sasha’s intimate thoughts, only ones that made him more mysterious and wounded. I didn’t like that. It felt unrealistic for her own parameters of her story. Apply a rule and apply it to all.

There are certainly some sweet and swoony moments in this book, but for me there just wasn’t a strong enough foundation to make this work. I don’t think the ever-sacred logic was actually broken at any point, but my believeability was stretched to the point of buckling a few times.

It’s not a complete dumpster fire though. Joni’s family owns a music hall/dive bar, and that holds a lot of significance to her too. There is plenty of personal development for the characters (mostly Joni), and it does feel like a pretty full little world. It’s a nice atmospheric book to read, especially if you’re a music aficionado.

I’m honestly surprised by myself for dropping two stars on this, usually great prose trumps all for me (looking at you Carley Fortune), but part of the magic was just lost on me this time, and the writing wasn’t enough to save it for me.

Now, should you read this book? Yes! But if you’ve never read Ashley Poston before, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recommend The Dead Romantics first!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Sounds Like Love
Author:: Ashley Poston
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 384 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 25m
Audiobook Narrator:: Patti Murin & Ashlley Poston
Published:: June 17th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 3-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

Wish I Were Here | Melissa Wiesner
If I Were You | Cesca Major
Songs of Summer | Jane L. Rosen

Book Review:: Never Been Shipped | Alicia Thompson

Music is a powerful phenomenon. It can transport us to a place or time, if only in our minds. For Micah and John, it brings them back together after years apart to play music from when they made it big once upon a time on a nostalgic cruise.

Never Been Shipped by Alicia Thompson Book Cover

Micah and John grew up together, bonded over music, started a band, and eventually made it big. They were as close as close gets until she started dating another one of the band mates, which eventually led to the downfall of the band entirely. Now they’re face to face for the first time in years, and John is tired of living without her, but will learning what happened back then change the way he feels?

Overall, this is a cute story with a side of spice. I think most who read romance will enjoy it, but it wasn’t ultimately one of my favorites.

I’m not sure how realistic it is for one band member to be able to dissolve a band’s record deal, and for literally none of them to communicate about any of it at the time? It eventually gets explained, and it makes sense from a character perspective, but does it make real world sense? For me, that’s iffy.

However, we’re not reading romance for the logic of it all, are we? We’re reading for the longing, the angst, the…well, romance of it all. And Never Been Shipped covers those bases well. This book does the friends-to-lovers trope justice. I believed the past connection between these two characters and I was rooting for them to sort through their issues and commit the whole time. There could have probably been some more talking and mending things than there was, but we get the gist. I just feel like for this to have reached 5-star territory there would have had to been much more opening up and honesty and just…deeper emotion. It wasn’t absent entirely, but with backstories like theirs I was kind of left wanting more.

This was my first Alicia Thompson novel. I have another lined up on my Audible TBR already. I’m always on the lookout for great romance writers, and I’ll certainly be following Ms. Thompson’s bibliography!

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Never Been Shipped
Author:: Alicia Thompson
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 400 pages
Audio Length:: 12h
Audiobook Narrator:: Ellie Gossage
Published:: June 10th, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 4-Stars

If you liked this book, check out…

In the Likely Event | Rebecca Yarros
How to Hide in Plain Sight | Emma Noyes
Perfect Fit | Clare Gilmore
Catch and Keep | Erin Hahn

Book Review:: Battle of the Bookstores | Ali Brady

Well well well, if it isn’t a battle between the battle-of-the-book-selling-establishment books this year. As soon as I noticed both Berkley and Avon were coming out with books with a similar title in 2025, I knew I had to read them both – especially because those titles include the word Battle. I mean, come on! They’re asking for it, right?

Berkley is up first, with Battle of the Bookstores by Ali Brady releasing June 3rd. The Battle of the Bookshops by Poppy Alexander (Avon) will be coming out August 19th. Keep your eyes peeled for that one too if you like a bookish romance!

Battle of the Bookstores by Ali Brady Book Cover

Battle of the Bookstores seems to be loosely based around the plot of the Nora Ephron classic 90s film You’ve Got Mail. Josie and Ryan are both running bookstores right next to one another (with a coffee bar just between). The big corporate a**hole isn’t our male romantic lead though, it’s the guy who owns the whole strip of shops, and he’s consolidating. Who needs two bookstores when one, with a coffee bar inside, makes way more sense? One bookstore only needs one general manager, so Josie and Ryan are pitted against one another, competing for the job as construction begins and their two stores become one. There is also an online relationship element to the story reminiscent of the movie.

You may wonder how in the world two bookstores ended up literally next door to one another. I wonder the same thing. Both have long histories, though, and they are focused on different clientele. Ryan’s bookshop is focused on romance, while Josie’s is more literary fiction/high-brow literature. I guess that’s enough explanation for how this situation is possible at all? Maybe I’m forgetting a passage that explained that to a more satisfying degree, but I was left with the feeling that the whole premise was a bit of a stretch, and I hate that feeling.

Unfortunately, I have more gripes than just that, and maybe it was timing and the books I read before and after this (though I don’t think so), but this ended up as a two-point-five-star read for me. I’m just tired of the convenient set-up, instant inexplicable attraction, misunderstandings that take far too long to clear up for the sake of pacing and conflict…I could just see right through to the mechanics of this one, and I didn’t like it. I have one more spoiler-y but major complaint I will leave at the end of the review for those interested.

Now, the things I did like.

The characters. I thought Ali Brady did a great job with the two lead characters. Both of them have great backstories about how and why reading is so important to them and how they ended up where they are, and why they want to keep their jobs so badly. Besides the insta-attraction that bugged me, they have a lot of interactions that become meaningful and build a genuine connection between them, even though they’re rivals. They honestly didn’t need the hot and steamy thoughts while they actually didn’t like each other. There was plenty of opportunity for those to develop naturally. Sigh.

The writing itself was clear, enjoyable, and engaging. I’d love to read more books from Ali Brady, this one just felt too by-the-book and convenient. If you have a rec for me, please leave a comment so I know where (or if) I should start!

Now for the spoiler::

The last thing that rubbed me the wrong way was the online thing. At first, neither Ryan or Josie knows it is the other behind their bookish online friendship, but Ryan figures it out pretty quickly. Then he uses the online platform to find out more about Josie and…I don’t know…lead her on? Either way they’re forging this special emotional bond and she thinks it’s a whole ass other person but he knows it’s not. It was just wrong, and kind of creepy. If their roles were reversed and Josie was the one who knew and Ryan was basically pursuing a relationship with both Josie in-real-life and some online friend who had a genuine emotional connection – for the whole book – I think we’d all be uncomfortable.

Note:: I received an early copy of this book from the publisher through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Details

Title:: Battle of the Bookstores
Author:: Ali Brady
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 432 pages
Audio Length:: 12h
Audiobook Narrator:: Karissa Vacker & Bandon Francis
Published:: June 3rd, 2025
The Litertarian Rating:: 2-Stars