From Bad to Cursed

 From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper, 368 pages.

Isidora Avramov is the child of a family of powerful necromancers, one of the four founding families of the the witchy town of Thistle Grove as a matter of fact. She has a passion for demon summoning, fashion design, and rescuing small animals. When a witch from the rival Thorn family is attacked by a mysterious curse during a Beltane event she is suddenly forced into the role of detective as well, to clear her family's name for the necromantic hex. The Thorn representative assigned to help for the investigation is of course no other than Rowan Thorn, hated nemesis and general good-two-shoes. But as they spend time together the loathing quickly starts to bleed away, leaving room for something new. 

This was a surprisingly good mystery for a romance novel. The plot was interesting, the romance wasn't bad, and the setting was neat. I don't know if this is a book that's worth writing home about, but I enjoyed it. 

Right on Cue

Right on Cue by Falon Ballard, 336 pages

The daughter of two Hollywood acting legends, screenwriter Emmy Harper is the ultimate nepo baby, though she hasn't acted since her disastrous debut at the age of 15. But when she and her co-producers can't find a leading lady for her new romantic comedy, Emmy reluctantly steps back into the spotlight. Unfortunately, her leading man is none other than Grayson West, the action hero heartthrob who broke her heart on set when they were both teenagers. Will they be able to put aside their rocky past and at least act like they like each other for the cameras?

Since this is a romance novel, you know the answer to that question. The enemies-to-lovers trope is one of my favorites in the genre, and this one definitely does that well. However, more than once this book falls victim to the "if you would only talk for five minutes, all problems would be avoided" pitfall, which happens way too often in romance novels. But it was a light, quick read, and certainly spicy, so if that's what you're looking for, this is the book for you.

Love, Theoretically

 Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood (2023, 400 pages)

If you are looking for a spicy, sciencey romance, look no further. Ali Hazelwood creates adorable, funny characters in a classic enemies to lovers scenario full of physics jokes and puns.

Elsie is an up and coming theoretical physicist, always trying to please everyone. She's also a girlfriend-for-hire, supplementing her horrible academia pay with pretending to be whoever her fake date of the night needs. Jack is an established tenure professor of experimental physics with a grudge for theorists. And also her favorite fake-boyfriend's brother. He's obnoxious, pompous, protective, and oh so handsome. She doesn't even like blonds. But the way those heterochromatic eyes look at her...

Their worlds intertwine when Elsie applies for a tenure-track position at MIT, where Jack runs the physics institute. He can't stop looking at her, and she can't stop hating him. Right?