Summer 2020 Recommended Romance Reads
In this blog post, you’re going to find some of my recent steamy 5-star romance reads that I recommend all lovers of romantic fiction pick up this summer.
To make sure there’s something for everyone, I included a few sub-genres, and many of these books are on Kindle Unlimited. However, I highly urge you to invest a bit of coffee money and buy yourself a copy, especially if you read it on KU and liked it.
Being a romance writer myself, taking the time to read work by my peers is a big part both of staying in touch and involved with my community and part of my non-stop research and self-improvement as a writer.
Before I was a writer, I was an avid romance reader, and since I’ve become a writer, giving back to this wonderful community of romance indie authors.
If you enjoy these books as much as I did, please-please-please leave a review.
It takes one minute to write a short review and it means more to us indies than you could ever imagine.
The Finding Series by Halo Roberts
The series opens with Finding My Night, a sweet and steamy take on the Cinderella billionaire-boss trope. This was one of my top 2019 reads and what introduced me to Halo both as an author and a person, and let me tell you – she is one special lady.
To top the amazing story of Bree and Nick, you get a bonus story that doubles up the fun with another couple.
Finding My One is rich-city-girl meets butter-my-biscuits any day of the damn week cowboy Shane (seriously, this guy is as book boyfriend material as they make them), and discovers she’s more resourceful and independent than she thought.
Book three, Finding My Safe, is about two star-crossed lovers finding their way back to each other after too many years apart and is by far my favorite.
Don’t get me wrong – I loved both of Halo’s previous installments in the series, but this book has depths to it that pulled me in and had me sitting until 2 AM riveted.
Number four of the five books announced for the series is Finding My Sun. It’s all about that sunny island vibe and one hot, swoon-worthy surfer that sweeps you off your feet. Trey wasn’t the only one who captivated my heart, but also Laurel, who was the female lead I most identified with.
K&S Security Series by A.J. Andersen
Her characters are always well developed with a great background that makes them relatable and easy to root for.
We’re introduced to the K&S world in Finding Faye. Faye is a young woman on the run since she was sixteen, and Travis is her childhood friend, eight years her senior, who is trying to find and save her.
Some would say this is an age gap romance, I say this is of those rare occasions where a writer so skillfully weaves us characters that have a true, deep connection, who are dedicated to loving each other so completely your heart melts every time.
While we read about Faye and Travis’s journey, we’re introduced to Analise, also a young woman on the run but for very different reasons.
In the second book of the series, Acquiring Analise, we dive deeper into her story and the relationship between Ana and her former mafia prince husband, Xavier.
Like any couple Ana and X face communication issues that cloud their relationship, top that up with X’s mafia uncle chasing them and you’ve got a couple who is winning in the sweet, supportive, steamy category.
Ellie and Blake’s story is much lighter than the other books in the series since the focus is more on the love story than the thriller aspect of the series.
More than anything, this is a sweet love story with relatable characters and a real-life situation, which isn’t something we usually see in suspense romance. Some found it a hindrance, I loved every perfect second of them together.
Phoenix Crew Series by Miri Stone
You know how you see a cover that makes you all tingly cause it’s just that gorgeous, and then read the blurb which makes you jump around in anticipation waiting for the book you just pre-ordered to finally be released?
That’s how I felt about Pyro, Pyro, Burning Bright.
And Miri Stone not only delivered she did so with a punch to the gut.
PPBB introduces us to Mac, a young woman who wakes up, naked, in front of a burning apartment with amnesia and a voice in her head telling her to run.
She finds herself in the small mountain town of Bear Falls, where we meet Ryan, the local Fire Chief and bear shifter alpha, who is on the hunt for the arsonist who’s stalking his town.
I admit that PNR romance isn’t my go-to read, for the most part, but this book swept me away and I will recommend any lover of thrillers and romantic fiction to read it.
Becoming The Chief meets us where Pyro, Pyro, Burning Bright left, bridging to the next books in the series, but it also weaves in an origin story of how Ryan became The Chief three years prior to the events of the first book.
The entire novel is told from Ryan’s POV, no complaints there, he is officially my #1 book boyfriend of 2019, I love this growly bear and his spitfire girl and their entire crazy crew.
I admit I was a bit wary going in, I’m not a big fan of origin novels, knowing what’s going to happen next always seems to damper my emotional and intellectual investment.
But Stone just grasps you with a clever, heart-wrenching story of fear, friendship, family, and a fate that calls us even as we try to ignore it, and doesn’t let up the entire read sending her readers on a roller coaster of emotions.
If in PPBB I was in awe at how a paranormal shifter novel can be so realistic in its human interactions, BTC has reduced me to a puddle on the floor with raw and intense emotions.
Hands down, this is one of my best reads for the decade, not just the year.
The Inferno Pack Series by AJ Blackburn
Her stories veer into the darker side of paranormal and deliver a pointed criticism at social structure and hierarchy, both inside and out of the wolf pack.
This book fascinated me, I read it in one sitting and could not put it down.
The focus on female alpha-born twins and their attempt to navigate a male-dominated society was refreshing, and those two are definitely a force to be reckoned with.
I also loved the introduction of alchemy and a more scientific look at the world of werewolves.
This book is a great start to a new series, and it comes highly recommended.
If you have read a book, any book, by an indie author, then leave a review.
As I mentioned earlier, this is our soul-food. Reviews not only motivate us to continue but when written with constructive criticism reviews also helps us improve as writers.
And to top it off, there’s a rumor of a unicorn involved at some point.
Stay Foxy, my beautiful people.
XOXO
Kyra Fox
Recent Comments