Published by Avon on May 5, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Rating:
Goodreads
In this heartwarming, bookish debut, a young widower of a famous children’s fantasy author teams up with a down-on-her-luck MFA dropout to write the final book in his late wife’s series ... and find their own perfect ending along the way.
Whit Longacre has a monumental task and a looming deadline. After his wife, Helen, died of cancer, she left him with their grieving eight-year-old daughter and a surprise in her the small task of writing the final book in her mega-popular children’s fantasy series for her legions of waiting fans.
Whit is the author of moderately successful (but well-received!) literary mysteries. He doesn’t have the first idea of how to complete Helen’s beloved series, and his enigmatic wife seems to have left no clues behind on how the story is supposed to end. Writer’s block is one thing, but to fail in fulfilling his wife’s last wish? Whit is guilt-ridden and dodging calls in the school pick-up line from Helen’s publisher and agent as the deadline fast approaches.
Then Whit meets Merritt Pryor, who works at the local bookstore in their small New England town. Merritt has moved back home after a disastrous affair led to her dropping out of her prestigious MFA program. When Whit realizes that Merritt is a superfan of the Greenwood Castle series, they come up with a plan to tackle the book together. For the first time in years, Merritt finds herself falling back in love with writing … and perhaps with the coauthor offering her the opportunity of a lifetime.
But when Whit uncovers a buried secret about Helen’s final wishes, he questions everything about what he and Merritt have created together, endangering the tender, electrifying partnership that has transformed their lives.
Can Whit and Merritt come up with an ending that feels right … for both a beloved series and for their battered hearts?
While grieving the loss of his wife, Whit was left to fulfill her final request - to write the last book in her beloved children's series. Unfortunately, Whit had been unable to write since losing his wife, and even more unfortunate, he had no idea how she wanted the series to end. In a stroke of luck, Whit meets Merritt who is a HUGE fan of the series and also an aspiring writer. She agrees to cowrite the book in this exercise that proves to be healing for them both.
I really liked the concept of this book. Whit was under the gun here trying to live up to the expectations of his late wife and all her fans while also trying to handle his and his daughter's grief. The pressure was immense, and Merritt was a saving grace. I will admit, I hated the storyline she was given about dropping out of the MFA program for "reasons", but I loved her, and I was excited to see her writing again. I did think she was a little young, but she definitely was a positive force in Whit's life. I enjoy watching them work together to figure out how the story should end while also falling in love.
Published by Dell on March 3, 2026
Age/Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Rating:
Goodreads
Sparks fly between a lively debut author and her grumpy publicist on book tour in this sizzling rom-com from a fresh new voice in contemporary romance.
Despite her popular podcast and sold-out speaking events, Ana Movilian still feels like she has to prove herself. To her family, who can't believe she quit med school to build an influencer career, and to literary snobs, who decry her buzzy self-help book. Happily, her upcoming book tour is the perfect chance to show the world just how bright her star can shine.
That is, until her beloved publicist resigns the night before their plane is set to take off, announcing that her replacement is none other than Ryan bleeping Grant.
Ryan specializes in highbrow, "important" books, and his perma-scowl in every interaction with Ana makes one thing clear: he does not get her book. Or her. He’s the last person who should be promoting her work, the last person she should be stuck with for two weeks . . . and the last person who should look that damn good in business casual.
As they travel from city to city, however, Ana's assumptions about Ryan take new shape. A decidedly more appealing shape. Soon, their growing attraction starts to feel like a ticking time bomb. But crossing that line could derail each of their careers faster than you can say "conflict of interest," and they both have bigger dreams at stake than the bestseller list.
When podcaster Ana goes on the road to support her self-help book, she is paired with a new publicist who is know for looking down on less than literary books. Somewhere along the way, these two find a middle ground where these rivals turn to lovers.
Reading reviews of this book reminds me how critical readers can be of strong female characters. Some of the criticism was about how self-involved she was, but she did realize that she was making things all about her. She grew and became more aware. Keep in mind, she started this whole movement to encourage people to chase their own wants and dreams. I don't know, Ana grew on me. I especially loved when she had her eureka moment concerning Ryan. He was largely misunderstood by her at first, but being together on tour allowed Ana to peel back the layers and actually have conversations with this man who was her champion and biggest fan. Loved him!
Overall, I was entertained and had a great time on this book tour.
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