July 23, 2026

* Review * DRIVING BEATS by Arell Rivers

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

Driving Beats by Arell Rivers
Series: Untamed Coaster #6
Published by Tarnished Halo Publishing LLC on July 23, 2026
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One introverted guitarist with a retired heart.
One uncontrollable, rebellious stylist.
And one perfectly raked Zen Garden about to be utterly destroyed.

At thirty-one, guitarist Coop O’Shea is the steady, meditative backbone of Untamed Coaster who guards a private past—a life-altering betrayal that left him convinced his own happily-ever-after was already behind him. He’s content with his quiet, celibate existence until a baggage mishap upends his world.

Enter Nese Dalton, the band’s youngest, loudest, and most infuriatingly beautiful stylist, assigned to help him rebuild his wardrobe.

Nese doesn't do “steady,” and she certainly doesn’t do “rules.” She’s spent years overcoming a dark past, fighting too hard for her freedom to let anyone close. When a temporary housing arrangement puts her in Coop's personal space, she kicks things off by dragging her heavy luggage straight through his prized Zen Garden.

Living under the same roof, their opposites-attract chemistry quickly becomes impossible to ignore. Beneath Coop's guarded exterior, Nese finds a deeply protective man who makes her feel safe for the first time.

When the walls between them lower, Coop's old fears resurface. Positive he's already had his shot at love, he begins pushing her away. But Nese refuses to be an afterthought, forcing Coop to decide whether holding onto the past is worth losing the woman who could change his future.

Coop meets his match! The sixth book in Rivers’ Untamed Coasters rockstar romance centers around guitarist Cooper O’Shea and band stylist Nese Dalton. He’s lived with betrayal and chose to distance himself from temptation by immersing into a zen lifestyle of calmness while she rebelled against the constrictions put on her growing up and enjoys living wild and free. When circumstances lead them to have to intermingle, sparks quickly fly and a connection is born that neither was expecting. They are both easy enough to like and a satisfying love story. I’ve really enjoyed this entire series!

* Review * KNIGHTS LIKE THESE by Kendall Ryan

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book.

Knights Like These by Kendall Ryan
Series: Off the Ice #3
on July 23, 2026
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He was my first kiss.
My first everything.
And then he married someone else.

I've been in love with Archer Lockwood since I was fourteen years old. I've never told him. I stood at his wedding, held his newborn twins in the hospital, and cried in my car afterward. I smiled through every moment that should have been mine—because that's what best friends do.

Now Archer is divorced, overwhelmed, and raising two three-year-olds alone during an NHL season. When he calls for help, I pack a suitcase and fly to New York.

The plan was simple: help with the kids, keep my distance, and don't fall in love.
The plan lasted about seventy-two hours.

Because his twins have me wrapped around their fingers. His house feels like home. And he keeps looking at me like he's finally seeing something he missed.

I've waited years for Archer to look at me like that.

I just wasn't ready for what happens when he finally does.

A slow-burn, best friends to lovers hockey delight! The third book in Kendall Ryan’s Off the Ice series brings us Archer’s story and continues to deliver on delightful hockey players who fall hard when they least expect it. Archer is newly divorced with twin toddlers to contend with and calls on his best friend to lend a helping hand. Said best friend has been secretly in love with him since they were teenagers. The characters are both really down to earth and easy to like. The story is extremely slow burn with a lot of the past coming into play before their true romance begins in this story. I wanted a little more of them at the end once they truly decided to make this thing work as more than friends to make me fully invested in their future, but I enjoyed them a lot overall.