Posted January 8, 2026 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
You can check out the 2026 Beat the Backlist Reading Challenge on their official site through either the graphic link or the text link below. Maybe you’ll want to join in, too.
I’ve made a commitment to myself for 2026 to whittle down my TBR tower a lot. I’ve discovered that several titles now have series or duet titles attached. In an effort to keep myself motivated and on track, I’ve joined several Reading Challenges for 2026. So, before I get into the details of the Beat the Backlist Reading Challenge for 2026, please allow me to say: Thank you to the Harlequin authors (or the publishing house itself) for putting so many Harlequin titles on Kindle Unlimited. Frankly, there is no way that I could afford to purchase every title that I’d love to read, many of which are now parts of duets, especially in Harlequin Presents. Being able to finish those duets or series through KU is such a help to my monthly book budget, allowing me to read even more of my favorite authors’ titles.
We all have favorite authors. I’ve several in various genres, so joining the Beat the Backlist Challenge 2026 is one way to keep a record and myself on track as I chip away at the backlists of many of those authors I’ll always one-click (when the book budget allows). I’ll be doing a combination of reading owned (TBR) titles and catching up on backlists through Kindle Unlimited. It’s a help that I can combine some of the titles in at least two different Reading Challenges this year.
I’ll be adding a Goodreads shelf below the Beat the Backlist Challenge on the sidebar, as well as listing the titles (on my Beat the Backlist 2026 Page), where I can see my progress… and perhaps you’d find a title or author there that you’ve yet to discover. Good luck to all trying to get through their books this year!
Posted January 7, 2026 by Marsha in Booksprout ARC, Mystery, Paranormal Romantic Suspense, Series, Small Town Romance, This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
A geologist with an unwanted psychic gift, a man on the run, a dead body, and a friend accused of…murder?
Geologist Petra Cloch can touch an object and sense the emotions of the people who’ve held it before. Although her paranormal powers are a burden, they’ve helped her solve several crimes and make friends in her new southwestern small town. She’s enjoying settling into her new job when her landlord, Shelley, introduces an “old friend.” Wayne seems cagey. He wants to keep his visit a secret and has recently adopted an energetic dog “for protection.”
When Petra stumbles over Wayne’s dead body, suspicions quickly turn to murder, with Shelley the prime suspect. Petra and her friends investigate and quickly uncover a slew of suspects, scams, and motives. Petra’s psychic abilities alone aren’t enough to reveal the true killer. To clear Shelley, Petra will need all of her cleverness, the help of her found family, some luck, and the dog that seems to have adopted her.
Titles in the Reluctantly Psychic Murder Mystery series include: A Stone Cold Murder ~ Death at Rock Bottom ~ Buried in Betrayal ~
This story may contain language, violence, and/or sexual situations intended for an adult 18+ audience.
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Posted October 26, 2025 by Marsha in Christmas Romance, Closed Doors/ Fade to Black, Contemporary Romance, Holiday Romance, NetGalley, This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Avery and Reed Bond grew up sharing a close-knit relationship, weathering life’s storms side by side. Even so, Avery often finds herself exasperated by her brother’s relentless matchmaking, while Reed can’t resist teasing his sister—after all, isn’t that what siblings do?
Facing their first Christmas without their beloved Grams, the woman who lovingly raised them, Reed and Avery decide to spend the holiday together at Reed’s home. However, their plans take an unexpected turn when the ferry Avery’s traveling on stalls in the middle of Puget Sound, stranding its passengers and leaving Reed waiting a now undetermined length of time for her arrival. What is at first an inconvenience threatens to ruin the plans of a number of commuters, but Avery and Reed soon discover that this unforeseen delay might end up being a perfectly timed blessing in disguise.
While stuck on the ferry, Avery meets a handsome sailor and witnesses a Christmas miracle that reignites her belief in the holiday spirit. Meanwhile, Reed runs into a coworker who’s also waiting for a family member to arrive, and sparks a surprising and delightful connection.
~Standalone~
This is a clean, sweet romance with either closed doors/fade to black, or only kissing.
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Posted October 2, 2025 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, NetGalley, Paranormal Romance, Series, Sexual Content, Small Town Romance, This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Collins Cartwright does not want to go home. Sweetwater Peak, Wyoming, was supposed to be in her rearview mirror, but when she finds out a developer is trying to buy her parents’ antiques shop out from under them, she doesn’t have a choice—at least, that’s what she tells her family. They don’t need to know she’s lost her job and is out of money. Or that the ghosts who have always been her companions have recently gone silent.
But just because she’s returned home doesn’t mean she has to stay with her parents or crash on her twin sister’s couch. Lucky for her, the new-to-town upholsterer has a room for rent above his store. Unluckily, it is absolutely crawling with more ghosts who are freezing her out. And Collins hates being ignored.
Brady Cooper is absolutely and totally fine. Seriously, there’s no secret reason why he decided to uproot his life and suddenly move to Sweetwater Peak. He just needed a change of pace. At least that’s what he tells himself. And everyone else.
When he agrees to let the elusive Collins Cartwright stay in his spare room, he doesn’t know that she’s absolutely bonkers—constantly talking to herself and having conversations with no one—or that she looks like that. But as they begin to get closer, the lines between them start to blur, leaving both of them—and the ghosts who have been pushing them together—wondering whether their temporary arrangement could be something more permanent.
Titles in the Sweetwater Peak series include: Soul Searching ~
This is an adult 18+ story that contains language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.
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Posted September 28, 2025 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
A kidnapper’s twisted game is on.
And a trusty K-9 won’t let him succeed.
Years after being abducted, Mckenna Parker’s worst nightmare has come true—her kidnapper is out on parole. And he’s after her again.
Now an FBI victim specialist, she and her crisis canine, Mocha, have been assigned to a case with FBI agent Evan Knox. Together, they must find two local girls who disappeared.
As passionate as Mckenna is about helping others, Evan is ambitious about his career. Both have sworn off love.
But when Mckenna vanishes into the mountain wilderness, it’s Evan—with Mocha’s amazing help—who braves danger at all costs.
Titles in the Colorado K-9 series include: Colorado K-9 Rescue ~
This is an adult 18+ story that contains language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.
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Posted September 5, 2025 by Marsha in Contemporary Romance, Crime, Mystery, Owned, Police Procedural, Series, Sexual Content, St. Martin's Press, This one's a Keeper, Thriller / 0 Comments
Manhattan is filled with galleries and deep-pocketed collectors who can make an artist’s career with a wave of a hand. But one man toils in obscurity, his brilliance unrecognized, while lesser talents bask in the glory he believes should be his. Come tomorrow, he vows, the city will be buzzing about his work.
Indeed, before dawn, Lt. Eve Dallas is speeding toward the home of the two gallery owners whose doorway has been turned into a horrifying crime scene overnight. A lifeless young woman has been elaborately costumed and precisely posed to resemble the model of a long-ago Dutch master, and Dallas plunges into her investigation.
Framed in Death is the sixty-first (61) title in the ongoing …in Death series. A complete list of titles is available at the Amazon In Death page.
This is an adult 18+ story that contains language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.
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Posted February 9, 2023 by Marsha in Crime, NetGalley, Owned, Police Procedural, Series, Sexual Content, St. Martin's Press, This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
It was a glittering event full of A-listers, hosted by Eliza Lane and Brant Fitzhugh, a celebrity couple who’d conquered both Hollywood and Broadway. And now Eve Dallas has made her entrance—but not as a guest. After raising a toast, Fitzhugh fell to the floor and died, with physical symptoms pointing to cyanide, and the police have crashed the party.
From all accounts, he wasn’t the kind of star who made enemies. Everyone loved him—even his ex-wife. And since the champagne cocktail that killed him was originally intended for Eliza, it’s possible she was the real target, with a recently fired assistant, a bitter rival, and an obsessed fan in the picture. With so many attendees, staff, and servers, Eve has her work cut out determining who committed murder in the middle of the crowd—and what was their motivation. As one who’s not fond of the spotlight herself, she dreads the media circus surrounding a case like this. All she wants is to figure out who’s truly innocent, and who’s only acting that way…
Encore in Death is the fifty-sixth (yes, 56th) title in the long, ongoing …in Death series. For a complete listing of all the titles (along with novellas) in this series please visit our J. D. Robb page.
This is an adult 18+ story that may contain language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.
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Posted October 13, 2019 by Marsha in Mystery, Paranormal Cozy Mystery, Series, This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Morgan Summers hates talking to ghosts, but when the victim of a ghastly murder asks her for help from beyond the grave, Morgan can’t say no.
Soon, Morgan herself is blamed for the murder, and the town is out for blood. Can Morgan clear her name, discover the real killer, and help her new ghostly friend cross over to the next life?
Titles in A Witch Myth Cozy Mystery series include – Witch Myth Yew Hollow (a combination book with #0 and #1 together) – Wild Fire – Witch Myth Christmas – Siren Song – Lost Magic –
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Posted May 29, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
DEFINITELY, MAYBE…OR LOVE, ACTUALLY?
English professor Bonnie Blythe expects her life to play out like her favorite novels, especially now that her long-term boyfriend has finally proposed. So when a shocking discovery leads Bonnie to end her engagement, she decides to close the book on love. But the plot thickens when a brand-new character enters the scene—and quickens Bonnie’s heart.
With his brilliant blue eyes, sexy accent, and irresistible charm, Theo Wharton is like a romantic hero straight out of a Jane Austen novel. When fate places Bonnie in England for a summer—conveniently close to Theo—she realizes a hot friends-with-benefits fling is exactly what she needs to start a fresh chapter. Just as Bonnie begins to believe she’s falling in love, an eye-opening revelation into Theo’s life makes Bonnie feel like she’s wandered into one of her favorite books. Will Bonnie have the courage to risk her heart and turn the page with the dashing Brit to find her true happy ending after all?
Titles in the Sometimes in Love series include — Getting Hot with the Scot – Smitten by the Brit – Once Upon A Bad Boy
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Posted May 8, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Sophia Dane’s life is back on track. After losing her husband in a horrible accident, she’s finally in a happy place. She turned her grief, guilt, and — most of all — the resentment her husband’s family heaped on her after Bryce’s death, into motivation to open a boutique on Main Street in the small town of Christmas, Colorado. Ready to start anew and ring in the New Year with her friends, Sophie never expects to come face-to-face with her brother-in-law, Adam.
Coming home to Christmas was the last thing that Adam Dane wanted to do. But when he bumps into Sophia — his brother’s widow who he’s been in love with since…forever — he realizes that making the trip home was fate giving him a second chance. Unfortunately, she wants nothing to do with him after the way his family treated her. Adam knows he has a lot of making up to do, but first, he needs to convince her to trust him — and his family — again.
Titles in the Christmas, Colorado series include — The Trouble With Christmas, Christmas In July, It Happened At Christmas, Wedding Bells In Christmas, Snowbound At Christmas, Kiss me In Christmas, Happy Ever After In Christmas – Miracle at Christmas – One Night in Christmas
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Posted April 9, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
If you don’t fight for what you love, you won’t know what you’ve lost
When Lauren Mackillop’s shady business partner gambles away her small business, she heads home to Surrender in Calamity Valley, Texas, to lick her wounds and plan her next move. But she walks straight into another battle to thwart a development company’s scheme to take over their charming Texas haven. Determined to safeguard her town, her senses are on alert when the sexy stranger she flirted with while briefly stranded at LAX turns up as the new owner of the saloon. Something’s going on, and this time, Lauren isn’t going to give in without a fight.
Mark Sterrett has trouble on his heels and more on the way. To protect his family’s reputation from ruin he’s been tasked with ensuring this land deal goes through. But he’s up against more than he bargained for. Making his life more complicated, he’s drawn to the intriguing and enticing Lauren and as their attraction simmers and the threat to the town heightens, Mark wonders if he can get through the next two weeks with his conscience and his heart intact.
Titles in the Calamity Valley series include — Lone Star Hero – Lone Star Protector –
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Posted April 7, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Hotel heiress Madeline Stone has always played it safe and been the good girl. Since the death of her mother, she’s let her father and older brothers dictate her life, but this is her last year of college and perhaps her last year of freedom.
So when she meets sexy star quarterback Jackson Rider, she’s tempted to take a risk. His sexy combination of bad boy and sweet makes her feel alive and reckless with a passion she never imagined. His encouragement and love help her develop the voice she never had. She knows Jackson checks none of the boxes on her family’s life plan. But she has new goals for herself and new dreams. Can she find the strength to stand up for what she wants?
Titles in the Love Offside series include — Rookie in Love –
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Posted April 2, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
My head is pounding. Yawning, I rub my hands over my face, and I’m surprised by the shiny gold band on my left ring finger. What the…
I’m Mac. But you know that, right?
You probably even recognize the sound of my voice…
Because I’m the radio host that wakes up most of Sacramento every morning. The DJ that most of the women in Sacramento lust after.
Everyone knows me, knows my reputation. Ladies’ man, bad boy, eternally single commitment-phobe.
I have my own reasons for needing to stay single, my own demons to battle with. Scars that don’t show, but that stop me from getting close to anyone.
Except, after one hell of a drunken accident, I’ve woken up married. To a gorgeous green-eyed girl, Kelley, who I only met yesterday in a coffee shop.
A killer hangover later, it turns out that this playboy is off the market. The only question is… for how long? Because no girl has ever been able to change my ways – and who says that Kelley is going to be any different?
Titles in the Accidental Love series include — Accidental Groom –
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Posted March 31, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
He’s the bad bachelor who inspired it all…
Annie Maxwell had her whole life figured out…until her fiance left her when his career took off. If that wasn’t bad enough, every society blog posted pictures of him escorting a woman wearing her engagement ring. To help the women of New York avoid guys like her ex, Annie created the Bad Bachelors app. But try as she might, Annie just can’t forget him…
For bank executive Joe Preston, his greatest mistake was leaving the love of his life when she needed him most. Now, all he wants is to make things right–and she won’t have him. But when Annie’s safety is threatened by a hacker determined to bring down her app, Joe is the only one she can turn to. He’ll have to lay himself on the line to prove to Annie that he’s a changed man. But will their hard-won bond survive the revelation that Annie is the one pulling the strings behind Bad Bachelors?
Titles in the Bad Bachelors series include: Bad Bachelor – Bad Reputation – Bad Influence
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Posted March 28, 2019 by Marsha in This one's a Keeper / 0 Comments
Two worlds in conflict
Two hearts intertwined
One love worth fighting for
Wealthy Englishwoman Lady Elizabeth Baylor longs for adventure. She leaves for America full of hope, only to lose everything to a villain hiding treachery behind his smile. Lost in this strange and lawless land, Elizabeth vows to track down the man who did her wrong…but she can’t do it alone. What she needs is someone hardened by the west and unflinching toward its dangers: notorious bounty hunter Logan Best.
Ill-mannered and seemingly ruthless, Logan exorcizes his dark past by throwing himself into his vengeful profession—hunting wanted men. There’s nothing about the pampered Englishwoman that should call to him, and yet as their adventure takes them across the wild and treacherous west, he realizes he’ll do anything to keep her safe…and defend his Lady to his final breath.
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