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Bella Heartwood Romance Book Reviews
💌 Bookish thoughts, cozy vibes, and honest feelings — all in one place. I review romance books, from sweet to steamy (and all the messy feelings in between!). I hope my reviews help you discover your next favorite read! 📚✨
Bride
Author: Ali Hazelwood
Rating: 5 ⭐️ (I’d give it 1000 if I could!)
Wow. I absolutely loved this Ali Hazelwood book — that’s now 2/2 five-stars from her for me! 🤗 Bride is a total page-turner: a paranormal romance that entertained me on every single page and kept me wanting more.
Misery (our FMC) is such a hilarious, unfiltered, and effortlessly cool character that I couldn’t help but root for her from the beginning. Even though she’s a vampyre supposedly born without feelings, Misery is caring to her core and would do anything for the few people she lets into her heart. After spending years as collateral in the humans’ territory, she finds herself in a similar situation again — but this time, it involves the weres (werewolves).
Lowe (our MMC) starts out serious and not-exactly-fun-to-be-around, but as the story unfolds and we get his backstory piece by piece, everything about him starts to make sense. He cares deeply for his pack and is determined to be a better Alpha than the one before him, which makes him incredibly compelling in his own steady way.
Misery and Lowe enter a marriage of convenience to help form a new alliance between vampyres and werewolves, fully expecting it to be something to simply get through and move on from. They never imagine that spending time together — living in were territory, learning each other’s rhythms, and letting their walls down — would change everything. Oh boy… how much it does change.
I LOVED these two together. Every moment, every interaction, every shift in their relationship had me completely hooked. And beyond the romance, the individual growth each of them goes through is beautiful to watch. The secondary characters are also wonderfully written — each one adding something meaningful to the story and helping it move forward in a way that feels natural.
There’s mystery, humor, tension (including the steamy kind 😉), and so much heart.
I highly recommend Bride for anyone who enjoys paranormal romance, vampyres and werewolves, political alliances, a dash of mystery, Ali Hazelwood’s signature charm, and especially for those who love a queen FMC who doesn’t fit the traditional mold — an outcast trying to find her place in the world. Bride is book one in the Bride series, with the sequel Mate now available.
Genres: Fantasy · Romance · Paranormal · Romantasy
Rating: 5 ⭐️ (I’d give it 1000 if I could!)
Wow. I absolutely loved this Ali Hazelwood book — that’s now 2/2 five-stars from her for me! 🤗 Bride is a total page-turner: a paranormal romance that entertained me on every single page and kept me wanting more.
Misery (our FMC) is such a hilarious, unfiltered, and effortlessly cool character that I couldn’t help but root for her from the beginning. Even though she’s a vampyre supposedly born without feelings, Misery is caring to her core and would do anything for the few people she lets into her heart. After spending years as collateral in the humans’ territory, she finds herself in a similar situation again — but this time, it involves the weres (werewolves).
Lowe (our MMC) starts out serious and not-exactly-fun-to-be-around, but as the story unfolds and we get his backstory piece by piece, everything about him starts to make sense. He cares deeply for his pack and is determined to be a better Alpha than the one before him, which makes him incredibly compelling in his own steady way.
Misery and Lowe enter a marriage of convenience to help form a new alliance between vampyres and werewolves, fully expecting it to be something to simply get through and move on from. They never imagine that spending time together — living in were territory, learning each other’s rhythms, and letting their walls down — would change everything. Oh boy… how much it does change.
I LOVED these two together. Every moment, every interaction, every shift in their relationship had me completely hooked. And beyond the romance, the individual growth each of them goes through is beautiful to watch. The secondary characters are also wonderfully written — each one adding something meaningful to the story and helping it move forward in a way that feels natural.
There’s mystery, humor, tension (including the steamy kind 😉), and so much heart.
I highly recommend Bride for anyone who enjoys paranormal romance, vampyres and werewolves, political alliances, a dash of mystery, Ali Hazelwood’s signature charm, and especially for those who love a queen FMC who doesn’t fit the traditional mold — an outcast trying to find her place in the world. Bride is book one in the Bride series, with the sequel Mate now available.
Genres: Fantasy · Romance · Paranormal · Romantasy
Leather & Lark
Author: Brynne Weaver
Rating: 4.5 ⭐️
Spoiler-free review
Leather & Lark was such a great sequel to Butcher & Blackbird! Fun, witty, sexy, and filled with strong character development, this book delivers exactly what dark romance readers love while giving us a whole new side of Lark to enjoy.
From the beginning, we get to explore a different layer of Lark, and it’s so refreshing to see her take center stage as the FMC after being an outstanding secondary character in the first book. During one of her “activities,” she crosses paths with a not-so-nice man hired to clean up her mess — and let’s just say their night ends on very bad terms for both.
Fast forward, and Lark discovers that this annoying, not-likable man is actually Lachlan, her best friend Sloane’s brother-in-law. Their relationship doesn’t improve at all… at first. But life has other plans, and circumstances push them into a fake-marriage arrangement that is challenging, chaotic, and hilarious at times. Forced to spend more time together, they start uncovering unexpected traits in each other — the kind that make their connection impossible to ignore.
Lark and Lachlan are such a great couple, and their interactions are raw, vulnerable, exciting, and packed with delicious sexual tension. The secondary cast adds fantastic layers to the story, but the true standout is Aunt Ethel — fierce, brave, saucy, and exactly the chaotic family energy Lark needs. Their relationship has its own unique flavor of love, and it’s one of the highlights of the book.
While I had fun with this story overall, there were a few slower moments, and some of the miscommunication between the FMC and MMC didn’t always land for me. Still, this is a wonderful read for anyone who enjoys dark romance with vengeance, blood, sharp humor, and explicit sexual content. Butcher & Blackbird remains my favorite in the series, but Leather & Lark is an amazing addition and absolutely worth reading.
Please read the trigger warnings before diving in!
Rating: 4.5 ⭐️
Spoiler-free review
Leather & Lark was such a great sequel to Butcher & Blackbird! Fun, witty, sexy, and filled with strong character development, this book delivers exactly what dark romance readers love while giving us a whole new side of Lark to enjoy.
From the beginning, we get to explore a different layer of Lark, and it’s so refreshing to see her take center stage as the FMC after being an outstanding secondary character in the first book. During one of her “activities,” she crosses paths with a not-so-nice man hired to clean up her mess — and let’s just say their night ends on very bad terms for both.
Fast forward, and Lark discovers that this annoying, not-likable man is actually Lachlan, her best friend Sloane’s brother-in-law. Their relationship doesn’t improve at all… at first. But life has other plans, and circumstances push them into a fake-marriage arrangement that is challenging, chaotic, and hilarious at times. Forced to spend more time together, they start uncovering unexpected traits in each other — the kind that make their connection impossible to ignore.
Lark and Lachlan are such a great couple, and their interactions are raw, vulnerable, exciting, and packed with delicious sexual tension. The secondary cast adds fantastic layers to the story, but the true standout is Aunt Ethel — fierce, brave, saucy, and exactly the chaotic family energy Lark needs. Their relationship has its own unique flavor of love, and it’s one of the highlights of the book.
While I had fun with this story overall, there were a few slower moments, and some of the miscommunication between the FMC and MMC didn’t always land for me. Still, this is a wonderful read for anyone who enjoys dark romance with vengeance, blood, sharp humor, and explicit sexual content. Butcher & Blackbird remains my favorite in the series, but Leather & Lark is an amazing addition and absolutely worth reading.
Please read the trigger warnings before diving in!
Fall I Want
Author: Lyra Parish
⭐️ 4.5 / 5
Spoiler-Free Review
Fall I Want is set in a small town with two main characters destined to meet and experience a love like no other.
After a messy, very public breakup that’s not good for his image, the male main character, Zane, decides to go back to Cozy Creek for some much-needed alone time, away from the spotlight that surrounds his family. Cozy Creek holds special childhood memories — a place where Zane and his family used to spend time together.
Shortly after arriving, he meets Autumn, the female main character. She works at the town’s café alongside her best friends, Blaire and Julie. Autumn has lost faith in true love after a long and difficult relationship, which has also affected her motivation to write and her dream of becoming a romance author.
What starts as a fake relationship between Zane and Autumn — set to “expire” when Zane has to return to his normal life — quickly turns into something that feels far more real. Their relationship is passionate and full of explicit desire, which at times made me question the “fake” part of the relationship (and the trope itself). Even with that, I really enjoyed reading Fall I Want — especially the small-town setting and the fun interactions between Autumn and her best friends, Blaire and Julie.
Both main characters have flaws and backstories I loved getting to know, and I genuinely liked them together. While the book has a few cliché or predictable moments, I still found myself wanting to keep reading to see how the story would develop. I rooted for both Zane and Autumn — and even the secondary characters, who were really well done.
There are a few over-the-top moments as part of the billionaire trope that might not be for everyone, but I really liked them and I was totally here for them.
Final Thoughts:
Fall I Want is the perfect fall read for anyone who enjoys billionaire, small-town, and fake dating tropes — plus plenty of steamy moments. It’s cozy, romantic, and fun, with just the right amount of heart.
⭐️ 4.5 / 5
Spoiler-Free Review
Fall I Want is set in a small town with two main characters destined to meet and experience a love like no other.
After a messy, very public breakup that’s not good for his image, the male main character, Zane, decides to go back to Cozy Creek for some much-needed alone time, away from the spotlight that surrounds his family. Cozy Creek holds special childhood memories — a place where Zane and his family used to spend time together.
Shortly after arriving, he meets Autumn, the female main character. She works at the town’s café alongside her best friends, Blaire and Julie. Autumn has lost faith in true love after a long and difficult relationship, which has also affected her motivation to write and her dream of becoming a romance author.
What starts as a fake relationship between Zane and Autumn — set to “expire” when Zane has to return to his normal life — quickly turns into something that feels far more real. Their relationship is passionate and full of explicit desire, which at times made me question the “fake” part of the relationship (and the trope itself). Even with that, I really enjoyed reading Fall I Want — especially the small-town setting and the fun interactions between Autumn and her best friends, Blaire and Julie.
Both main characters have flaws and backstories I loved getting to know, and I genuinely liked them together. While the book has a few cliché or predictable moments, I still found myself wanting to keep reading to see how the story would develop. I rooted for both Zane and Autumn — and even the secondary characters, who were really well done.
There are a few over-the-top moments as part of the billionaire trope that might not be for everyone, but I really liked them and I was totally here for them.
Final Thoughts:
Fall I Want is the perfect fall read for anyone who enjoys billionaire, small-town, and fake dating tropes — plus plenty of steamy moments. It’s cozy, romantic, and fun, with just the right amount of heart.
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