Release Day for Girl on a Layover!

It’s release day for my novella, Girl on a Layover (Girl on a Plane series #2) and I’m excited, people!

#2 – Girl on a Layover

The ebook is out now at major online bookstores and I’ll be getting the paperback version ready to go soon. Sometimes it takes a little longer to format the paperback for print and to get the distribution channels to display the book online. Anyway, it won’t be too long for my print readers. I will also have copies available to buy at any book signing events I attend next year, including A Romantic Rendezvous in March (Melbourne, Australia)!

When Yuki met Declan . . .

There were times when I never thought I’d be able to publish any other stories in this ‘world’ and I’m so glad I finally have the opportunity. I just really like these characters and the themes of travel, finding love and a sense of home, and I hope you will too. Of course, this story is also heaps of fun.

When I released the ebook of Girl Under The Christmas Tree, the prequel novella in December 2020, I was rapt with the chemistry on the page between characters Yuki and Declan. I knew I’d have to revisit them as a couple and work out how they could get to their happy ever after, without making it too easy, because where is the fun in that?

I decided to skip ahead a few years when revisiting this series, as I’d regained the publishing rights for Girl on a Plane and wanted to extend the series. I moved forward so the events in newer books would occur in current times, more or less. When Yuki and Declan first met, I was writing about events a few years in the past, but I wanted them to meet again sooooo . . . TIME JUMP!

Six years have passed since Yuki and Declan first met, in the story timeline at the start of Girl on a Layover. Both characters have been through some stuff (no spoilers!) that have left them bruised and battered by love, in a metaphorical sense. But they are now ready for a real chance at love, and their second chance romance was a joy to write.

Blurb

Yuki Yamimoto has a problem with billionaires. If only she wasn’t stuck in a luxury resort with one billionaire in particular!

Yuki agrees to be her friend Sinead’s bridesmaid at her second wedding in a heartbeat. She’s a flight attendant and used to jetting around the world, but staying at a luxury resort in Thailand for Sinead and Gabriel’s renewal of vows sounds amazing – like a mini vacation. The only problem is. . . Declan Moriarty.

Years ago, Yuki and Declan shared a mind-blowing one-night stand and a few weeks of bliss, and then nothing. Nada. Was it all a dream? Or a nightmare? Because he cheated on her with his ex-fiancée and Yuki left before he could break her heart. Declan was Yuki’s big fish, the one who got away. An Irish IT geek and billionaire built like a pro rugby player with bonus soulful blue eyes and dark wavy hair.

Yuki has a sinking feeling Declan will also be at the resort for the wedding celebration. Declan is a good friend of Gabriel’s after all. But she won’t have to hang out with him, surely? Yuki doesn’t believe in second chances anymore. Besides, Yuki’s just been dumped and humiliated and all she wants is rest and relaxation on this layover.

Declan no longer believes in love. In fact, he’s probably cursed. Yuki isn’t the only woman who ran from him or broke his heart. When he sees Yuki at the airport, he can’t take his eyes off her. She’s as gorgeous as ever. Maybe his luck is changing. Another fling might be just what fate has in mind!

A feel-good, second chance romcom novella with steamy scenes. And a monkey. This book is #2 in the Girl on a Plane series.

Buy now from major ebook stores including Apple Books, Amazon, Google Play Books, Kobo or check the universal link for more!

Note: I earn from Amazon Associates links on my website.

Dating Little Miss Perfect – Cover Reveal!

Exciting news, book lovers! My next full-length contemporary romance novel is nearly ready to fling into the world, or in other words, release it wide!

Many thanks go to my fabulous Australian book cover designer and illustrator, Kylie Sek, who was an absolute star and totally got what I was looking for. I said, 90s romcom movie vibes, bright colours, a scientist heroine who rides a Vesper scooter, and an Aussie hero who looks like a Hemsworth brother. Nailed it!

Without further ado, here is the gorgeous cover:

Dating Little Miss Perfect by Cassandra O’Leary. Cover design by Kylie Sek.

Blurb

The perfect romcom read for fans of The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren and The Hating Game by Sally Thorne . . .

On an anonymous online dating app, LittleMissPerfect meets HotAussie007 and it’s love at first click. In real life, a smart but spiky woman in STEM, research scientist, Dr Eden, meets a laid-back Aussie marketing manager, Finn, at the big pharma company where they both work in California. They’re forced to compete for special projects funding, and both their jobs are on the line.

Eden just wants to win at science and in life. It’s not happening! She can’t stand Finn’s too-cool-for-school, nice guy act, or his delectable forearms that keep invading her space. While Finn is stupidly attracted to Eden, when she’s not telling him off, he isn’t free to pursue her. He’s stuck in the worst position in his professional life, and doesn’t see a clear way out. He can’t tell her the whole truth about what’s going on at work or in his personal life. . . or it could all blow up in his face.

When they realise the truth about their online alter egos, dating is off the table. Can they ignore their inconvenient attraction, and work together to take down their unethical boss? Or will intense rivalry cause their IRL work lives and online love lives to collide and explode like a science experiment gone wrong?

Note: Dating Little Miss Perfect is an updated take on You’ve Got Mail for lovers of online dating romcoms, with added science, cupcakes and old movie references! This new novel from award-winning author Cassandra O’Leary is a stand-alone contemporary romance of approximately 95,000 words.

I have put it up for ebook preorders (paperback links coming soon) and I do hope you’ll all enjoy reading it when it’s released on 24 May 2023.

Preorder Dating Little Miss Perfect now!

Friday I’m In Love is out now

I’m so excited to release this surprise novelette at the end of the year, like a mini Christmas present for readers! Friday I’m In Love: A Sweet and Saucy Novelette is a super cute and funny short read, which I first published in the Hot In The City collection in June 2022. I thought some readers would prefer a short stand-alone ebook, so here it is!

It’s only 99c from major ebook sites so grab it now…all links on my Books page.

Friday I'm In Love book cover by Cassandra O'Leary. Features an illustration of a young couple with dark hair dancing, with a heart as a background image.

Blurb

A girl couldn’t help spying sometimes. Surely if she ever met him, he’d understand…

Megan Macauley looks forward to her private rendezvous with her ridiculously hot, across-the-road-from-work neighbour. Every Friday morning, Megan and her inappropriate older colleague Jean, stop work on the company website to stare goggle-eyed at the vision of manly beauty in the apartment across the street. When he returns from his gym sessions and strips off his shirt, Megan can barely keep her tongue in her mouth.

Megan didn’t mean to become a voyeur. It was an accident! She’s always had a feeling the situation might rear up and bite her. One Friday, fate proves her right. The hottie from across the road shows up at her office as the new auditor, in other words, the man with the power of hiring and firing.

Cruz Ono is even more smouldering hot up close. A prime example of Japanese-Australian beefcake and smart as a whip. When he invites her to a private meeting, Megan nearly faints. He could either fire her or let her keep her annoying, underpaid job. Which would it be?

When Cruz reveals he knows Megan has been watching him, she knows it could be the end of her career. But the way he smiles and flirts with her says it could be the start of something else…

Note: Friday I’m In Love is a short read or novelette of approximately 10,000 words. It’s also available in Hot In the City: A Romantic Comedy Story Collection in both ebook and paperback formats.

Buy Now!

More news coming soon…

Hot in the City release day!

Hot In The City: A Romantic Comedy Story Collection releases today, 30 June, as an ebook!

Description

Hot In The City is a collection of short romantic comedy stories and novellas from award-winning author, Cassandra O’Leary. Perfect for reading on your lunch break, on the go or anytime really!

Hot In The City by Cassandra O'Leary, ebook cover design. Features an illustration with a city skyline and a couple sitting on the floor in an apartment.

Never before published in one book, this collection includes:

– Chocolate Truffle Kiss: A Romantic Comedy Novelette – An older woman meets a younger man in a story full of pining. A lonely writer, a hot rockstar barista, a cafe setting with stolen moments, poetry and chocolate. . .

– Tree Love: A Romantic Short Story – A short story with a sweet second chance romance, an urban lumberjack and emails to trees!

– Girl Under The Christmas Tree: A Steamy Holiday Romance Novella – A prequel to the novel Girl on a Plane, featuring Yuki, a hotel staffer looking for adventure, and Declan, an Irish IT CEO with a broken heart. They come together right before Christmas for just one night. . .

– Friday I’m In Love: A Short and Sweet Story – A brand new story set in a pyjama company in the middle of the city. Featuring a Japanese-Australian beefcake, a wacky computer nerd, workplace romance, spying and wardrobe malfunctions.

. . . and a new novelette. . . Girl On A Babymoon! Sinead and Gabriel from Girl on a Plane return, five years later. It’s their anniversary, and Sinead has a big surprise for Gabriel. A romantic getaway and steamy role-playing feature in this laugh-out-loud story of a marriage in trouble, or maybe, a marriage that will be stronger than ever!

Each story is set in the author’s home city of Melbourne, Australia, with a cameo or two from other fabulous destinations around the world. Whether the setting in a central city cafe with a smoking hot barista, or a Santa-packed hotel in the lead-up to Christmas, these stories will introduce you to a world of steamy kisses, swoony couples and funny love stories each with their own a happy ever after (or happy for now) ending.

Buy Now

Universal ebook link!

Girl on a Babymoon excerpt

Read on for a short excerpt of Girl on a Babymoon, the new novelette in Hot in the City!

Melbourne, Australia

Sinead had no hope of containing her giggles as she stared at her phone’s screen, but she slapped a hand over her mouth anyway. She half snorted, half coughed into her palm before shaking her head to get herself under control. The Uber driver would think she’d lost her mind, but who cared about that? Not today, she didn’t.

She clicked out of the amazing image on her phone screen and stared out the car’s passenger side window instead, watching the streetscape whiz by in a blur of colours, sky blue, white and grey. The warm fuzzies in her belly settled, fluttered and subsided.

Gabriel was going to absolutely love her anniversary surprise. Love. Adore. Worship at her feet and hopefully worship every last nook and curve of her whole body in minute, sensual detail. Several times. Oh, yes. This anniversary trip had been an excellent idea. How could they have been married for five years already?

She didn’t know how her news would go down with Gabriel. Hopefully, he’d be on board. All she had to do was let him know what she wanted and fill him in on the plan. She sighed, exhausted suddenly. He would be pleased, wouldn’t he? Happy? It was a lot to take in. She’d had a minor freak out already.

He’d be okay, she was almost positive. He’d research this like he would with a business deal or an investment. He was good at details, her Gabriel. The best at everything he did. Having a man like him, so focused and determined in everything, work and play, had turned out very nicely in their relationship so far, especially in the bedroom. The only problem was, sometimes he was a wee bit put off by spontaneous changes of plan.

He’d love her surprise. And if he didn’t bloody love it, she was possibly going to have him killed. Or at least torture him in a sexy way until he admitted he loved her and her surprise, and then he could do the minute detail worshipping of her body.

Yes, that was a plan. She grinned and rubbed her hands together with pure, undiluted, only slightly evil glee.

She gave a nod and word of thanks to the Uber driver, a very sweet man named Aziz who often drove her home from work at the luxury travel agency she ran at Gabriel’s office building in the city. She straightened out her shirt and threw her phone in her bag. The car rolled to a stop.

In one mostly elegant motion, she launched herself and her handbag out of the car and onto the footpath, then she was clacking along in her electric blue high heels. Her phone was in her hand, tapping on her husband’s name and he answered the call before she’d even taken five steps towards the front door of their beachfront townhouse.

“Hello, Irish.” His voice was gravelly and rumbly, pinging her pleasure centre and tugging at something in her abdomen. She bit her lower lip and almost tripped over the spiky plant near her front steps.

Sinead pressed her lips together before the exciting words exploded out of her in a great rush.

Control. Plan the announcement. Don’t freak him out.

Sinead nearly peed herself from the effort of keeping it inside. She released her lower lip and took a shuddery breath. “Ah, it’s the man himself. Are you looking especially handsome on this fine day? I’ll bet you are.”

“I was just thinking about you.”

She grinned so hard her cheeks ached. “All good thoughts, I hope. Maybe naked thoughts?”

He chuckled, deep and low in her ear. “Always good, and many naked thoughts of you, my love.”

What happens next? Read Hot in the City to find out…

P.S. Don’t forget to follow me on social media for more updates. I’m now on TikTok too for bookish content and a laugh!

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok

Hot In The City!

Hot In The City preorder header graphic

I’m so excited to announce that I have a new story collection coming out on 30 June 2022. Hot In The City: A Romantic Comedy Story Collection is a new book collating some of my previously published short stories and novellas, and featuring a brand spanking new novelette! Preorder the ebook now!

This collection will also be available in a print edition, so keep your eyes peeled for more news coming soon.

Description

Hot In The City is a collection of short romantic comedy stories and novellas from award-winning author, Cassandra O’Leary. Perfect for reading on your lunch break, on the go or anytime really!

Never before published in one book, this collection includes:

– Tree Love: A Romantic Short Story
– Chocolate Truffle Kiss: A Romantic Comedy Novelette
– Girl Under The Christmas Tree: A Steamy Holiday Romance Novella
. . . and a new novelette. . . Girl On A Babymoon!

Hot In The City by Cassandra O'Leary, ebook cover design. Features an illustration with a city skyline and a couple sitting on the floor in an apartment.

Preorder Ebook

P.S. Don’t forget to follow me on social media for more updates. I’m also on TikTok now, just for fun!

Heart Note paperback out for Christmas!

I’m very excited to announce that I’ve published a paperback edition of my book, Heart Note: A Christmas Romcom Novella, just in time for the holidays! This is a favourite work of mine, based on my experience working as a perfume counter sales assistant many years ago. Set in the hustle and bustle in one of Australia’s largest department stores in the lead up to Christmas, Heart Note is both funny and heartfelt, with a little romance and mystery thrown in.

It took me a little while to learn the whole self publishing process including paperback print production, but I’m glad I’ve got the print edition of this book out into the world. The ebook was published in late 2017, but I always wanted to see this one in paperback too. Thanks to the cover designer, Lana P., who did a sensational job and my writer friend PJ Vye who helped with the book layout. This book looks absolutely gorgeous and so festive in real life.

I hope some of my readers will order the paperback version now. It would also make a fabulous Christmas gift!

Blurb – Heart Note: A Christmas Romcom Novella

A Christmas romcom with heart.

When a curvy redhead meets a possible Greek god, it’s like all Lily’s workplace dreams have come true…except she has to wear a ridiculous Santa dress and stop a department store heist! This Christmas, will Lily find love under her tree or just a box full of heartbreak?

The first time I met Christos, I fell into his arms. I didn’t know what to do with myself when the department store security guard and chief hottie, volunteered to catch me as I fell off the stage at the staff training day. My heart thundered inside my (ample) chest, my knees turned to liquid but I managed not to swoon or have a heart attack. It was a close thing.

Workplace relationships are fraught with danger, I know this. I’m the perfume counter manager at one of Australia’s biggest department stores and I need this job, need to get my life and my sister’s on the right track. I don’t need a distraction in the form of a brooding, overprotective but undeniably sexy man. Or do I? Christos is a mystery box I’d love to unwrap…and the tall, dark and impossibly handsome thing is working for me, big time.

All I want for Christmas is the perfect perfume, a chance to kiss Christos, to help him catch a band of thieves running amok in the department store, and to live happily ever after. Is that too much to wish for?

Buy now from major print book retailers:

Universal link for ebooks

More news is coming soon, but until then, happy holidays and Merry Christmas!

Note: I am a member of the Amazon Affiliate program and I earn a small amount if you click and buy from one of the Amazon links on my website.

Girl Under The Christmas Tree – new release out now!

I’m so excited to share my new release with all of my readers. Girl Under The Christmas Tree is a steamy holiday romance novella, guaranteed to add a smile to your face. This novella was a joy to write, and I hope my you all find it just as much fun to read.

Blurb

A hilarious holiday romance on the steamy side, featuring a girl who won’t say no to a fling, a guy who needs some holiday fun, one naughty night in a hotel suite… and a conga line of Santas!

Yuki Yamimoto isn’t the kind of girl to say no to opportunity, especially when it comes swaggering into the five-star hotel where she works, dressed in a three-piece suit. The handsome wavy haired man with a movie star smile and charming Irish accent is almost irresistible… If only he wasn’t a hotel guest!

Declan Moriarty can’t keep his eyes off the gorgeous girl at hotel Reception. Her wide eyes and flirting have him wondering, should he dare ask her out? When his whole life has fallen into the cosmic toilet the past year, it seems too much to ask for a dream girl like Yuki for Christmas. But maybe just this once, luck might be on his side.

A steamy Christmas Eve date has them both wanting more, but Yuki isn’t supposed to fraternize with hotel guests. Not even a cheeky, handsome guest who also happens to be one of the youngest tech CEOs in Ireland. She definitely isn’t supposed to stay in his hotel suite, even if it is just a fling for one night only. What if she loses her Christmas bonus or gets fired?

Declan wants nothing more than to keep Yuki, the girl under his Christmas tree. But he only has days in Melbourne, Australia before he has to fly back to Ireland for Christmas, then back to work. Is it foolish to risk putting his heart on the line again, when it was recently battered and bruised by his cheating ex-fiancée?

Yuki’s about to embark on a life full of adventure…but will she get to keep Declan as part of the package deal? She hopes so. It’s her number one Christmas wish.

Note: Girl Under The Christmas Tree is a holiday romance novella of approximately 18,000 words, written as a prequel or companion story to Cassandra O’Leary’s novel, Girl on a Plane. This novella has a Happy For Now (HFN) ending, leaving Yuki’s future wide open.

Buy Now!

Universal link – books2read.com/GirlXmasTree

Available at the introductory price of 99c / 99p on all major ebook sites.

—

I’ve had a bit of a break from writing, not only because of the super long and hard lockdown where I live in Melbourne, Australia (but it was super long, and hard), but because of some ongoing health issues. Anyway, it seems my brain is back in action for now, so I’ll look forward to working on some more new releases for 2021. Here’s hoping the new year will be a new beginning, in lots of ways.

Happy reading!

Another Little Piece of My Heart

I was asked to write a blog on the theme, ‘What touches my heart?’ and it’s a tricky one, because the answer is many things, many people, books, movies, music… There isn’t only one answer. There isn’t only one thing to feel or to love. This post is dedicated to all the little things that add up to something joyful and touching in our everyday lives.

A quiet sunset

My last little family getaway was to Lakes Entrance, a few hours away from where I live in Melbourne, Australia. One of the highlights of the trip was staying across the road from a lake with a pier, just right for fishing with the kids. Watching the sunset over the lake was so relaxing, it made me want to go for sunset walks more often.

A funny movie

Is there anything better than snort-laughing along to a funny movie? I think not! This week I watched Pitch Perfect, a film about the exploits of competing Acapella singing groups at a university campus. It stars the wonderful Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson (Aussie and funny, yeah!) and is chock full of silliness and great songs. Yes, I was singing along to the Ladies of the 80s songs in the riff-off scene. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s great fun.

A great piece of music

I’m remembering the concert I went to last year, sitting in the front row at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival. The great sax player and composer, Branford Marsalis, was on tour all the way from New Orleans. One of the songs he played was an original composition with multiple layers and a few classical bits and pieces thrown in…amazing! His quartet absolutely killed it too.

This YouTube clip of In The Crease is an example of the type of tune, or more like an immersive experience. When you’re right up close to musicians in this league, it’s emotional and intense. This piece is not quite the same as the show I saw, but I hope you enjoy it.

My kids laughing

Honestly, sometimes my boys behave like little monsters, but other times they are completely adorable and hilarious. Is there anything cuter than kids laughing so hard, they’re in hysterics with tears running down their faces? Lately I’ve been thrilled to see my kids reading funny books to themselves, and then just busting out laughing. Latest #kidlit recommendations are Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, anything by Tom Gates, and of course we’re re-reading Harry Potter.

A good book and time to think

The time after everyone else goes to sleep and I read a good book, just because I can and it gives me pleasure. Lately I’ve enjoyed reading these fabulously fun romantic comedies:

The Austen Playbook by Lucy Parker

On The Same Page by (fellow Aussie) Penelope Janu

A Girl Like Her by Talia Hibbert

Grab one of these books for a few laughs and some happy sighs!

And a puppy?

Yes, my family have decided unanimously to become a dog family. We already have quite the menagerie, with a cat named Tom Sword, a parrot named Storm, many fish, and eight chickens of various sizes and stages of cluckiness.

My kids adore animals and we thought…why not? It’s good for kids to learn about looking after a pet, the responsibility it entails, but also having a new friend to love. This could be an absolutely manic and crazy choice. Will the dog attack the cat? Or vice versa? We shall see.

Please enjoy our first photo of our puppy, coming to live with us in a few more weeks. We’re thinking of calling him Archie.

Another little piece of my heart…

All of these things are little pieces that make up a whole lot when added together. What makes your heart fuller, more capable of love, or reminds you to live life to the fullest?

Note: This blog was originally published by Romancing The Genres on 28 February 2019. Copyright remains with the author, Cassandra O’Leary. Amazon affiliate links are used on this page.

Holly Jolly Hop!

The holidays are just around the corner, which means it’s time for Chick Lit Chat HQ’s annual Holly Jolly Chick Lit Hop and this year it’s bigger and better than ever! 63 bestselling and award-winning authors in the Chick Lit and Romantic Comedy genres are participating in this fun-filled event and each one is doing a fantastic giveaway. Books, author swag, gift cards, and other assorted holiday treats are all up for grabs. This event runs from 3-9 December 2018.

My prize giveaway…

I’m giving away a holiday reads prize including:

1 x paperback copy of Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding (to be mailed to the winner from Book Depository UK)
1 x ebook gift copy of my holiday romcom, Heart Note.

I thought, why not give away one of my all time favourite chick lit books? It’s full of holiday fun and terrible Christmas jumpers too. I’m sure Bridget and my heroine, Lily Lucas, would be great friends.

Heart Note is based at the perfume counter manager at one of Australia’s largest department stores, where Lily is the counter manager. In the lead-up to Christmas, Lily has to wrap approximately eleventy billion gift sets and pander to some very odd customers. But all she really wants is to unwrap Christos, the smokin’ hot ex-cop security guard, and maybe have him cuff her to a Christmas tree…

By the way – my holiday romcom novella, Heart Note, is on sale for 99 cents or FREE in Kindle Unlimited. Go to Amazon to check it out!

See the post on my Facebook author page for details of how to enter my giveaway.

Note: my giveaway is open internationally but is not endorsed by or associated with Facebook. The winner will need to provide a postal address to receive the paperback book prize, and an email address to receive the ebook prize.

More prizes…

But wait! There’s much, much more. On the hop’s Facebook group page, you can enter to win our Grand Prize—a large holiday gift box filled to the brim with a fabulous variety of holiday and winter-themed goodies (the darling, KitschNStyle gingerbread house apron, Snoozies! sherpa socks, Calvin Klein cashmere pom-pom beanie in petal pink, Too Faced sugar cookie eye shadow purse palette, Sally Snowflakes mug by Bella Pilar, Well Read Women: A Reader’s Journal, and handmade chocolate soaps shown in the graphic below are just a few of the items included in the box!).

We’ll also be handing out four Runner-Up Prizes. Each one is a pair of Fitz & Floyd holiday mugs that will be accompanied by a canister of Williams-Sonoma classic hot chocolate as well as a tin of The Republic of Tea’s Hallmark Channel Countdown to Christmas Tea. So, you’ll have delicious, warm beverages to keep you cozy all winter long!

The celebration runs from Monday, Dec. 3rd through Sunday, Dec. 9th, so head on over to the Holly Jolly Chick Lit Hop Facebook group for some lively conversation with both authors and readers, incredible prizes, and lots of holiday fun! You’ll find each day’s featured authors, along with the links to their pages/giveaways, in the pinned post at the top of the group. We look forward to seeing you there!

*The Grand Prize giveaway is open to US residents only. However, all of the individual author giveaways and the Runner-Up Prize giveaway are open internationally.

Get Lost in a Romantic Comedy Book

Sometimes you need to escape in a funny, light-hearted book without the angst. The world news is getting the better of your peace of mind and you don’t want any more dark, tragic reads. So, it’s time to turn to romantic comedy. The only problem is, the best romcom books can be hard to find.

When is a romcom not a romcom? When it’s labelled as chick lit, women’s fiction or a romance novel, of course. It doesn’t really matter what category or genre it’s labelled under, in my humble opinion, if it has these essential elements:

At least one main character who is ‘played for laughs’ with a funny voice, witty dialogue or hilarious internal monologue
A central romance or love story (other stuff can also be happening)
A happy ever after (HEA) or happy for now (HFN) ending – ‘everybody dies’ books are not welcome here…

Wacky plot details and accidental misunderstandings are entirely optional! So without further ado, here’s a few of my favourite romcom books, or whatever you want to call them.

Marriage of Inconvenience by Penny Reid

Penny Reid has become one of my favourite romantic comedy authors over the past year or so. I stumbled across recommendations of her writing from a few sources, including the fabulous Kylie Scott, so I thought I was on a winner.

This book is the last (probably?) in the outstanding Knitting in the City series. I have been hanging out to read this one, so much that I tried to pre-order it twice. Take my money, Ms Reid!

Anyhow, Marriage of Inconvenience is the story of Kat and Dan, secondary characters in some of the previous stories. Kat is a secret heiress to a big pharma company and Dan The Security Man is well, a security man! It’s an opposites attract set-up with characters from two different worlds who nonetheless have a real connection from the first time they see each other. Kat has to marry Dan to secure her company and her freedom, fighting off her terrible cousin who’s just after the family fortune.

If you’re new to the Knitting in the City series, I recommend starting with Neanderthal Seeks Human. You’re in for a treat reading about brilliant and eccentric Janie, purveyor of useless but fascinating facts.

The Hating Game by Sally Thorne

I read this one a few months ago and absolutely loved it. The Hating Game is the debut novel from Australian author, Sally Thorne, and she absolutely nails the enemies to lovers trope. It’s very funny, from the moment the two lead characters appear on the page, glaring at each other across the partitions in their fictional publishing office.

The white water rafting, corporate team-building scene is particularly memorable in a cringe-worthy ‘how embarrassing’ way. Highly recommended! I can’t wait for her next book…

Playing House by Amy Andrews

This is an unusual Aussie choice from one of my favourite authors, Amy Andrews (who I’ve shamelessly fan-girled at the Romance Writers of Australia conference more than once).

Playing House is the latest instalment in a series of romantic comedies set in the world of Australian rugby. I absolutely adore her writing, which is both super funny and super sexy. Playing House has a wonderful blend of light-hearted humour around a virgin heroine with a Mr Darcy fixation, a one-night stand and a best friend’s brother trope, and more serious issues which totally snuck up on me — yes, I cried when reading this one. You have been warned!

Don’t be put off if you’re not a fan of sports-themed books or if you don’t really know anything about rugby (Who does? Not this little red hen!) because this is all about the tough guy heroes who have it all in a wordly sort of way, with fame and fortune, but who need love in their lives. The interconnected stories are great fun and easy reading, but start with Playing By Her Rules if you want to read the entire series.

Content warning: this book contains a pregnancy loss/miscarriage that may be difficult reading for some.

**NEWS FLASH** — Amy Andrews has just been announced as a double RITA Award finalist! Congratulations, Amy!

Lingerie Wars by Janet Elizabeth Henderson

An ex special forces operative, Lake Benson, buys a lingerie shop in a remote Scottish town. Because of course he does! There’s a goregeous ex-lingerie model to compete against, and tactics get dirty. I love all the wacky characters in the town who add a great fun element to this book. There are tartan undies and a hilarious fashion show attended by the whole town.

I’m going to continue reading this whole series by New Zealander (from a Scottish background) Ms Henderson, and I’m really looking forward to it.

Girl on a Plane by Cassandra O’Leary

Yes, I included my own book. Shameless self-promotion alert! I’ve been inspired by many awesome chick lit and romance writers and of course, romcom movies. There are quite a few references to these in Girl on a Plane. Careful readers will spot the When Harry Met Sally and Love Actually references, but can you spot more?

I loved playing with the balance of humour and emotion in this book, and also the themes of travel and finding home. My Irish flight attendant character, Sinead, is played for laughs. Mostly. Aye, there’s a bit of the craick. And some sexytimes.

Romcoms to be read…

I’ve got a huge To Be Read list already, but let me know your romcom recommendations in the comments below!

Note: This blog post was originally published on the Romancing The Genres site, 22 March 2018.