Review: Three Hearts Hideaway by Luna Day*

 *I received a copy of this book in eBook format via NetGalley in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity.

Title: Three Hearts Hideaway
Author: Luna Day
Genre: Romance

Trigger warnings:  Verbal Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Kink Shaming, Slut Shaming, Physical Violence, Gambling Addiction, Narcissistic Behaviour

Rating: ★★★★★

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Explicit & Plentiful Open Door)

When Ava stumbles into sleepy Little Greenfield with nothing but a suitcase and humiliating voice message on her phone, the last thing she expects to find is Roman—a tattooed B&B owner who offers her a place to stay.

After dumping her narcissistic boyfriend and running away from the embarrassment he caused her, she needs to focus on herself. It’s up to her to puzzle out what she truly desires in a partner, and the sparks flying between her and Roman—and his broody best friend Logan—are too tempting to pass up.

But when her past comes knocking, it’s hard not to crumble to the familiar cycle of cruelty, even when things feel so right in this small town—with both these men.

Could Roman and Logan be her soulmates? Or will Ava prove she’s exactly what her ex says she is? A deviant.

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Three Hearts Hideaway is the spicy fast burn debut contemporary romance from author Luna Day. It’s a sizzling fast burn why choose MFM romance with off the charts spice and a really sex positive theme, which is absolutely brilliant to see. I absolutely devoured this book in a single sitting and loved every aspect of the strangers to lovers to found family story.

Ava was a brilliant, sexy and strong-willed FMC whose resilience and eventual self-love and self-empowerment will really empower female readers. I saw another Goodreads reviewer say they couldn’t decide if they wanted to be Ava or date Ava and I couldn’t agree more.

We also get to enjoy two swoon-worthy MMCs and I fell in love with both of them. Roman was a brilliant golden retriever boyfriend and Logan a brooding and grumpy alpha; you truly get the best of both worlds with this two absolute hunks. Ava had sizzling chemistry with both of them and the three of them complemented each other really well. Their open communication was also a breath of fresh air to see within a romance novel and there’s no third act breakup in the story.

This is a fast-paced quick read which is predominately made up of spicy scenes and let me tell you they are HOT. There’s a real variety of scenes with the three partners exploring a range of kinks and the book is packed full of blush-inducing dirty talk.

There is potentially triggering content including kink shaming, slut shaming, verbal abuse and emotional abuse, all from a narcissistic partner/ex-partner (please see a full list of triggers at the top of this review). This was well explored and I loved that we got to see Ava start to process this trauma and get to a place of self-love. This is a really sex positive book and over the course of the story Ava starts to really understand what she wants and needs physically and emotionally from a sexual/romantic relationship and she also starts to feel confident enough to communicate this within said relationship. There’s a real theme of overcoming shame culture which is really excellent to see within romance fiction.

I loved the charming Canadian small town setting of Little Greenfield. I really didn’t feel ready to part with it by the end of the book so would love to return in some capacity in a later book from the author.

You will love Three Hearts Hideaway if you fancy a light-hearted read which is the perfect combo of sweet and spicy. This is a brilliant debut from Luna Day and I can’t wait to read more from her. In fact I’m off now to read Three Hearts Hideaway again (and probably again); I just can’t get enough.

Review: The Upper Crush by Evie Alexander*

*I received a copy of this book in eBook format in return for this review. All reviews published on Yours, Chloe are completely honest and my own, and are in now way influenced by the gifting opportunity. This review is being posted as part of the The Upper Crush blog tour hosted by Rachel's Random Resources.

Title: The Upper Crush
Author: Evie Alexander
Genre: Romance

Trigger warnings:  Parent Arrested, Children Taken Into Care

Rating: ★★★★★   

Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Explicit Open Door)  

He wasn’t banking on someone else taking the reins…

Lady Estelle Foxbrooke is done cleaning up the mess left by her wild parents. She’s got a plan: take the reins and save the family estate her way. But then she’s saddled with a business partner she’s hated all her life. He’s her twin brother’s worst enemy and looms in her path like a six-foot-four hurdle.

After a catastrophic business failure, rich and successful James Hunter-Savage has watched his dream life in London crash and burn. Forced to ditch the city for the Somerset countryside, he’s now living with his parents and expected to work with the infuriatingly attractive Estelle. She’s sharper than a whip, pushes all his buttons, and seems determined to break him.

As Estelle and James jockey for position, their explosive personalities combust into passion, sending Estelle’s plans to the edge of ruin. With James’s flimsy reputation in tatters, and the biggest event on the Foxbrooke calendar on the brink of collapse, will they realise their love is worth fighting for? Or are their hearts and hard work heading for the ultimate fall?

The Upper Crush is the latest instalment in Evie Alexander’s Foxbrooke series. Fans of enemies to lovers, workplace romances, forced proximity and small country town settings, with tons of spice, laugh out loud humour and ‘Britishness’ thrown in for good measure, you will adore The Upper Crush just as much as I did.

I’m a sucker for a good enemies to lovers romance and Evie Alexander writes this trope impeccably well. It was combined beautifully with the forced proximity and workplace romance tropes through Estelle and James being forced to work together organising a new music festival. They start to try and get under each other’s skin by pulling pranks and jokes on each other and this really made me laugh out loud, as did their witty (and very British – which I loved!) banter. The increasingly sexual tension between them was also SUPERB.

The Upper Crush is a couple hundred pages longer than the romance books I am typically drawn to but I just could not put it down so completely flew through the story. Evie Alexander has such an engaging writing style that puts you right into the Somerset countryside setting and the story was brilliantly paced.

Although this is the third instalment of the Foxbrooke series, with all the books set in the fictional Somerset village of Foxbrooke and the characters from the previous books featuring in minor supporting roles, the story also works well as a standalone story. The Upper Crush was my introduction to the series but it has made me desperate to sink my teeth into the earlier books, particularly An Unholy Affair to find out more about Eveline and Jack’s love story.

Estelle and James have sizzling chemistry from the very start of the story so it came as no shock when the spicy scenes practically set the page on fire they were so hot. Something I really like in a romance story is when we get to explore spicy scenes from the perspectives of both partners and this was done really well within The Upper Crush. James’ perspective - and in particular the way he described Estelle in those moments – was incredible. I also loved the amount of variety we had within the spicy scenes, including some solo scenes from both James and Estelle.

Alongside all of this incredible steam, there are some really romantic heartwarming moments which just made me melt. If your love language is gift giving you’ll particularly love this story.

Estelle was a strong, badass FMC. I loved the little insights we got into the internal conversations she was having with herself when she was trying to be stubborn and not fall for James. James was your typical charming alpha MMC who had a softer side that you gradually got to see as the novel progressed. As I hadn’t met him before, unlike other readers who had read the earlier books in the series, I didn’t have that pre-judgment of him going into the story and that did mean that I did fall in love with him quite early on, without him having to redeem himself too much.

The Upper Crush also has a fantastic cast of supporting characters who brought so much to the story, particularly both James and Estelle’s families. We have diverse family types represented in the story, particularly through Estelle’s three parents who are in a polyamorous relationship. There’s also lots of scenes with dogs; enough said.

Overall, The Upper Crush is a gorgeous spicy romance read. I’ve been absolutely hooked on Evie Alexander’s writing and the inhabitants of Foxbrooke and can’t wait to read more of the series.