A Bookish Story
By Heatherly Bell
March 2026
Contemporary Romance
Luci Santana was a romance writer. She may not have published her book, but she loved the whole genre. She had become a successful ghostwriter, but that was under a different name that she couldn't share. She believed in love. She had seen the love between her parents before her father's untimely death. She had thought she had found her own Happily Ever After, until he had left for the Peace Corps and left her with the cancelled wedding bills and unable to afford their apartment. And although she’d been welcomed in the main house, she was living her abuelita’s backyard shed, lovingly fixed up by her uncle Eddie. But she needed a job, and working as an assistant to a history professor was perfect.
The job was going as expected until she learned the truth about her new boss Ryan Brady. He was happy with his moderate success as an author of historical fiction, but he had unintentionally published the newest hottest romance. It had been published under a woman's name, and now Luci was being asked to be the face of the author. It was a wonderful opportunity for Luci, and she is effusive of her love for romance, except his book was NOT a romance. Not in the least. She was now having to promote a book she hated.
The book didn't end. Ryan disagreed. It wasn't their only professional disagreement. The more they work together, the lines between employer and employee start to blur. But it isn't just Ryan's misunderstandings causing Luci problems. Her mother, who had left her with family to pursue her acting career, was back in town. Her friend couldn’t understand why she had lied about the book, which was in truth a lie. And life in general was chaos, with the occasional family karaoke party thrown in for fun.
A Bookish Story was simply a fun romance to read. Lovers of big ethnic family stories will enjoy the Santana clan and wish for a karaoke invite. I loved getting in Luci's mind and seeing her thoughts. Especially when they were about different authors we all know and love to read. Not that she kept them to herself. It was a pleasure to see the romance build between Luci and Ryan. I did find it difficult to believe that nobody could foresee the mess that would be a result of her pretending to be the author, but it was still exciting to see what would happen next.
Kathy Andrico - KathysReviewCorner.com
FTC Disclaimer: I did receive a copy for review. However, this website only posts "good" reviews. If I cannot post a positive review, I notify whoever has provided me with the book/ARC/ebook.