Claire Marti, $2.99, ISBN 978-1-7372993-7-0
Contemporary Romance, 2022

Camille Taylor is super mad.

The heroine of Claire Marti’s Holiday Queen caught her boyfriend with his pants down—with his new boss, no less. How dare he! Doesn’t he understand that only romance heroines have the right to sleep with their bosses?

So now, she’s ignoring her ringing phone until she finally gives in and oh, it’s a wrong number. Still, he is kind enough to listen to her as she unloads all about her miserable good for nothing ex, and when they do meet up, he’s a hot guy instead of a fat plain Joe, so hurrah for rebound romances.

That’s what this one is: a rebound. I’m not sure if I buy the happily even after, even if the epilogue cuts to a year later to prove to me that these two are still at it, as the heroine basically leaps from one relationship into another without taking a breather to analyze her feelings and work out whatever leftover issues she may have from her previous relationship.

Still, the author has served up a pleasant read. The characters are fine, the chemistry is there, and the conversations flow well and natural with the humor not coming off as forced or trying too hard.

Hence, there is a nice story about two likable people falling in love here. I just wish the author hadn’t included the bad ex thing. Why not just let the heroine just meet the hero without dragging any baggage along with her? That would have lend the romance a great deal of credibility and even resonance.