Contemporary Romance Review: Authentically Izzy by Pepper Basham

What it’s about:

“Dear Izzy—I feel certain there’s a book-loving man living relatively nearby waiting to speak bookish to you ’til death do you part. You just haven’t met yet.”

Izzy Edgewood is a wannabe bookstore owner, quote queen, and Lord of the Rings nerd who has been waiting for Prince Charming to sweep her off her sneakered feet. But it’s hard to meet people when you spend more time with fictional humans than real ones. Which is why her pragmatist cousin Josephine decides to take Izzy’s future into her own meddling hands and create an online dating profile for the hopeful romantic.

To Izzy’s shock (and suspicion), Josie’s plan works. Soon, she’s dialoguing with a Hobbit-loving man named Brodie who lives in a small town an ocean away from her home in the Blue Ridge Mountains. But is their shared love of books, family, and correspondence enough to overcome Izzy’s fear of flying and the literal distance between them? And is a long-distance relationship even worth considering when a local author has been frequenting the library where she works and is proving to be a perfectly fine gentleman?

In this epistolary novel from award-winning author Pepper Basham, bookish dreams and happily-ever-afters collide to create a beautiful sort of magic that’s even better than fiction.

My Thoughts:

If you are a lover of literature and books, like I am, you’ve got to read Authentically Izzy. It took me a bit to get used to reading the epistolary style, but I’m so glad I kept reading. I absolutely loved the characters. Izzy is adorable and so smart. Brodie will sweep readers off their feet. And the cousins are a hoot. Truly, if you enjoy a story with lots of book references, this is the one for you. Plus the description gave me the desire to visit Brodie’s island. Much of the story brought smiles to my face as I followed Izzy on her dating journey. If you read and enjoyed Katherine Reay’s The Printed Letter Bookshop and Of Literature and Lattes, you’ll enjoy Pepper Basham’s latest. I received a free copy of the book with no expectations. The opinions here are mine.

Book Review: Tacos for Two by Betsy St. Amant

Book Description:
Rory Perez, a food truck owner who can't cook, is struggling to keep the business she inherited from her aunt out of the red--and an upcoming contest during Modest's annual food truck festival seems the best way to do it. The prize money could finally give her a solid financial footing and keep her cousin with special needs paid up at her beloved assisted living home. Then maybe Rory will have enough time to meet the man she's been talking to via an anonymous online dating site.

Jude Strong is tired of being a puppet at his manipulative father's law firm, and the food truck festival seems like the perfect opportunity to dive into his passion for cooking and finally call his life his own. But if he loses the contest, he's back at the law firm for good. Failure is not an option.

Complications arise when Rory's chef gets mono and she realizes she has to cook after all. Then Jude discovers that his stiffest competition is the same woman he's been falling for online the past month.

Will these unlikely chefs sacrifice it all for the sake of love? Or will there only ever be tacos for one?

My Thoughts:
Tacos for Two is a delightful tale with a You've Got Mail vibe. I love that texts and messages between Rory and Jude quoted the movie. Rory is a spitfire who loves her family dearly. Jude is a disgruntled member of his family. The two of them show a very different side to their online counterparts than in person. Of course they don't know who the other really is and that's where the fun begins. If you want a light-hearted story with family insights and yummy food talk, you'll love Tacos for Two. Not to give anything away, but the heart of the story lies in a sweet Hannah. Read to find out who she is and why she's a blessing. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Daisies