Funny Story by Emily Henry (2024)

Daphne always loved the way her fiancé Peter told their story. How they met (on a blustery day), fell in love (over an errant hat), and moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their life together. He really was good at telling it… right up until the moment he realized he was actually in love with his childhood best friend Petra. Which is how Daphne begins her new story: Stranded in beautiful Waning Bay, Michigan, without friends or family but with a dream job as a children’s librarian (that barely pays the bills), and proposing to be roommates with the only person who could possibly understand her predicament: Petra’s ex, Miles Nowak. Scruffy and chaotic—with a penchant for taking solace in the sounds of heart break love ballads—Miles is exactly the opposite of practical, buttoned up Daphne, whose coworkers know so little about her they have a running bet that she’s either FBI or in witness protection. The roommates mainly avoid one another, until one day, while drowning their sorrows, they form a tenuous friendship and a plan. If said plan also involves posting deliberately misleading photos of their summer adventures together, well, who could blame them? But it’s all just for show, of course, because there’s no way Daphne would actually start her new chapter by falling in love with her ex-fiancé’s new fiancée’s ex... right? [**Funny Story PDF**](https://chesserresources.com/doc/funny-story-by-emily-henry-pdf/)

Play Along by Liz Tomforde (2024)

Kennedy I’m the only woman on staff for the Windy City Warriors baseball team, and after years of putting up with a sexist lead doctor, I’m desperate to land my dream job with a new team next year. All I have to do is maintain my professional reputation for my final season in Chicago. But a Las Vegas run-in with the team’s shortstop threatens it all, leaving me with a fuzzy memory and a ring on my left hand. Now, not only am I legally bound to the most persistent man I’ve ever met, but thanks to Isaiah’s scheme to save my job, I have to pretend the whole thing was a planned elopement and not a drunken mistake. Isaiah Rhodes is reckless, impulsive, and frustratingly charming. He’s also my brand-new husband. They got the saying wrong. What happens in Vegas doesn’t always stay in Vegas… sometimes it follows you right back home. Isaiah As the shortstop for Chicago’s professional baseball team, I’ve had my fair share of fun. But that all ended the day Kennedy Kay became a single woman. I’ve crushed on the team’s athletic trainer for years. I’ve flirted to no avail, so imagine my surprise when I woke up in Sin City with a ring on my finger and my favourite redhead in my bed. We agree to stay married for one baseball season, just long enough to keep her job safe, but in my mind, I’m using our time together to prove to her I’m husband material. Kennedy might be reluctant to join in on our game, but it’s one I refuse to lose. So come on, wife… play along.

Ancient Wisdom Modern Love by Cassindy Chao (2024)

A third-generation matchmaker and former Goldman Sachs investment banker applies classical Chinese chengyu wisdom to modern dating. Sharing personal stories of her family and own upbringing and raising 3 children with her husband of over 26 years, she shares wisdom and honesty.  Written for high-achieving singles seeking lasting relationships, this book combines Eastern philosophy with practical advice for finding love.

Puppy Love by Elle Sprinkle (2024)

Cameron Miller hates change. It makes her sweaty, tongue-tied, or worse- silent. Her anxiety doesn’t help, leaving her expecting disaster around every corner. And finding out that her almost one-night stand is her new boss only confirms her fears. Violet Wolfe isn’t looking for love. In fact, due to her impending divorce, she plans to stay far, far away from it. Luckily, love, and a close encounter in a bar bathroom, don’t bear many similarities. But when the woman from last night turns up as her work’s newbie, Violet realizes she’s accidentally violated her boss’ #1 rule: No dating colleagues. The chemistry between them is undeniable, sure, but it’s just a physical attraction- or so they tell themselves. Yet as they start to consider breaking workplace policy, as well as the boundaries they’ve set for themselves, they start to wonder if it really is just “puppy love”, or if something larger is pulling them together.

The Pairing by Casey McQuiston (2024)

Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other's lives once and for all. Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It's in the past. All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately. It's not until they board the tour bus that they discover they've both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they're trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It's fine. There's nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition? But sometimes a taste of everything only makes you crave what you can't have.

I Will Mend You by Gigi Styx (2024)

**My worst nightmare finally stepped out of the mirror.** **And the only man who can save me is a ghost.** *Prey* I'm trapped in a forgotten nightmare with the monster I most fear. The key to my freedom lies behind a wall of memories. Xero's specter invades my mind, whispering both vengeance and salvation. He insists he's real, yet I can't trust my shattered psyche. But as my tormentors draw close, I must rely on the phantom I betrayed for protection—and for revenge. *Predator* She’s ensnared by darkness, and only I can set her free. To save her, I must become the vengeful spirit she fears. Amethyst’s mind is a maze of terror and confusion. Freeing her will mean confronting the darkest parts of my past. Vengeance will be mine, but first, I must earn redemption. Because if fail to save my little ghost, I will reduce the world to ashes.

Illicit by Arianna Fraser (2024)

It may be 2024, but when a MacTavish wants a bride, he steals her. **Dougal** The Blackwood Mafia are swine, but when they send their daughter Isla to steal from me, she's surprisingly effective. She doesn't realize the true value of what she's taken, so to keep it out of the Blackwood's hands... I steal her. **Isla** "Get in, get out," my father says. "Nothing to it," he says. Well, I'm the one trapped in this giant hunting lodge that looks more like some medieval fortress, and it's apparently been built to keep people from escaping, rather than getting in. Dougal is about to learn that nothing can hold me. Not this fortress, and not the ring he forced on my finger.

Depraved by Arianna Fraser (2024)

I went searching in the darkest place in Scotland to find the assassin who would save my family. Instead, he found me. What starts as a case of mistaken identity turns into an insane sham of a marriage when the ring is shoved on my finger. I've got to find a way out of this and back to Canada. I watched her stride into my club like she owned it. Of course, I'm intrigued enough to hear her proposal. She'll get what she wants, but there's a different kind of price to pay for it. I'm going to enjoy taking it from her body. ***Depraved - A Dark Scottish Mafia Romance*** can be read as a stand-alone with a HEA and no cheating for 18+ readers only. Please read the trigger warnings in the preface. Depraved is the third book in the MacTavish Stolen Brides Series.

Auctioned by Arianna Fraser (2024)

**I did everything I could to run away from my past, but my past came for me anyway.** *Sorcha* To the world, I'm sarcastic, sassy Sorcha, the only daughter in the powerful MacTavish Scottish Mafia. I hide my terror of my past with a constant smile. But I can't make myself step foot off our estate. I haven't left the grounds since I was kidnapped at twelve. But here I am, standing on a stage with vile, anonymous men bidding on me. I could never escape my past after all. *Alastair* While I never come to auctions like these, I can do business anywhere, even amongst the lowest of the low in our world. But once the deal is done and I'm ready to leave, I spot her: a head of flaming red hair and fierce blue eyes that could only belong to a MacTavish. There's a dozen men in this audience who will pay anything to take revenge on the MacTavish Clan. Unfortunately for sweet little Sorcha, I'm one of them. ***Auctioned - A Dark Scottish Mafia Romance*** is Book Four in the MacTavish Stolen Brides Series. It can be read as a standalone with no cheating and an HEA. If you love morally grey men, you're going to love Alastair! This is a dark romance.

Captivated by Arianna Fraser (2024)

I’m a billionaire. I’m not letting some endangered bird stop me from building my massive computer server plant. When these ridiculous environmental protestors interfere with my building site, I humiliate them before throwing them out. But when Fee, the feisty head of the group, uses her charms (and my intoxicated state) to kidnap me, I’m entertained enough to allow her to hold me on her Irish grandfather’s farm. When we’re attacked by an enemy intent on ending me, she realizes for the first time that I’m not just a businessman. I’m the head of one of the most powerful Mafias in Europe. Now, I have to kidnap and marry *her,* kicking and screaming, to keep her safe. She is utterly captivating. There’s a goat living in my mansion and a woman who despises everything I stand for… unless we’re in bed. I have to take out my vicious new enemy, deal with my irritating insta-family, and make my new wife fall in love with me. Nothing to it.

Malice by Arianna Fraser (2024)

I may be a Bratva Princess, but I'm not going to end up as a babymaker for some spoiled Russian heir. Named after the God of War, the Ares Academy doesn’t teach math or literature. Students here are the monstrous offspring from the most powerful families in the world of organized crime, they come here to learn how to terrorize, murder, extort, and find their seat of power. I'm one of a handful of women who have made it this far in our brutal "education," and I'm not letting that smug, arrogant Konstantin Turgenev ruin this for me. Even if he's beautiful. Even if I want him. Even if he's my Bratva fiancé. He doesn't own me yet.

Perilous by Arianna Fraser (2024)

Just for one night, I didn't want to be a pure Mafia Princess. When I - quite literally - ran into the insanely hot Scottish mystery man on a London street, we agreed to spend the night together. No backstories, no history, no names. This was a huge mistake. When I arrived back at the Ares Academy, the brutal college for the offspring of crime families, guess who's my new professor? He's not happy about this discovery, but neither am I. He thinks he can just dismiss me. We'll see who lasts the entire year. Because I'm not giving up.

Common Goal / Role Model / The Long Game by Rachel Reid (2024)

***Common Goal*** Veteran goaltender Eric Bennett has faced down some of the toughest shooters on the ice, but nothing prepared him for his latest challenge—life after hockey. It’s time to make some big changes, starting with finally dating men for the first time. Graduate student Kyle Swift moved to New York nursing a broken heart. He’d sworn to find someone his own age to crush on (for once). Until he meets a gorgeous, distinguished silver fox hockey player. Despite their intense physical attraction, Kyle has no intention of getting emotionally involved. He’ll teach Eric a few tricks, have some mutually consensual fun, then walk away. Eric is more than happy to learn anything Kyle brings to the table. And Kyle never expected their friends-with-benefits arrangement to leave him wanting more. Happily-ever-after might be staring them in the face, but it won’t happen if they’re too stubborn to come clean about their feelings. Everything they both want is within reach… They just have to be brave enough to grab it. ***Role Model*** The hits just keep coming for Troy Barrett. Traded to the worst team in the league would be bad enough, but coming on the heels of a messy breakup and a recent scandal… Troy just wants to play hockey and be left alone. He doesn’t want to be in the news anymore, and he definitely doesn’t want to “work on his online presence” with the team’s peppy social media manager. Harris Drover can tell standoffish Troy isn’t happy about the trade—anyone could tell, frankly, as he doesn’t exactly hide it well—but Harris doesn’t give up on people easily. Even when he’s developing a crush he’s sure is one-sided. And when he sees Troy’s smile finally crack through his grumpy exterior, well… That’s a man Harris couldn’t turn his back on if he wanted to. Suddenly, Troy’s move to the new team feels like an opportunity—for Troy to embrace his true self, and for both men to surrender to their growing attraction. But indulging in each other behind closed doors is one thing, and for Troy, being in a public relationship with Harris will mean facing off with his fears, once and for all. ***The Long Game*** Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov have been seeing each other for ten years and have kept it secret. From friends, from family…from the league. If Shane wants to stay at the top of his game, what he and Ilya share has to remain secret. He loves Ilya, but what if going public ruins everything? Ilya is sick of secrets. Shane has gotten so good at hiding his feelings, sometimes Ilya questions if they even exist. The closeness, the intimacy, even the risk that would come with being open about their relationship…Ilya wants it all. It’s time for them to make the call and decide what’s most important—hockey or love.

Guardaespaldas / the Bodyguard by Katherine Center (2024)

Antes de ella by Flor M. Salvador (2024)

Antes de Hasley Weigel, existió Bella Adams: el primer amor de Luke, la chica que creyó que el tiempo podía construir un «para siempre». Durante casi dos años, Bella peleó contra el muro que Luke levantó para no sentir, hasta que se cansó de romperse en silencio y decidió dejarlo ir… Esta historia demuestra que el destino no se mide en tiempo ni en promesas. A veces, puede llegar una persona y hacerte sentir en un instante lo que no habías sentido en años.

How We Named the Stars by Andrés N. Ordorica (2024)

When Daniel de La Luna arrives as a scholarship student at an elite East Coast university, he bears the weight of his family’s hopes and dreams, and the burden of sharing his late uncle’s name. Daniel flounders at first—but then Sam, his roommate, changes everything. As their relationship evolves from brotherly banter to something more intimate, Daniel soon finds himself in love with a man who helps him see himself in a new light. But just as their relationship takes flight, Daniel is pulled away, first by Sam’s hesitation and then by a brutal turn of events that changes Daniel’s life forever. As he grapples with profound loss, Daniel finds himself in his family’s ancestral homeland in México for the summer, finding joy in this setting even as he struggles to come to terms with what’s happened and faces a host of new questions: How does the person he is connect with this place his family comes from? How is his own story connected to his late uncle’s? And how might he reconcile the many parts of himself as he learns to move forward?

The Highlander's Return by Lynsay Sands (2024)

Graeme Gunn is a warrior through and through. Content for his brother William to hold the title of clan chief, he left home years ago, battling his way through Scotland as a mercenary. When news arrives of William’s death, Graeme is forced to return to everything he left behind, including his brother’s shy young widow, Annella Mackay. But the beautiful, determined woman he finds at the keep is nothing like the quiet virgin he remembers… Annella Mackay once had hopes for a loving marriage, a dream that shattered when her husband abandoned her. Hiding her pain, she took on the responsibilities of both laird and lady for the Gunn clan with spirit. But when she learns her husband is dead, she realizes she finally has a chance at a new dream, and she won’t let anything deter her plans. Not even Graeme, no matter how strong her attraction to the gruff and stubborn warrior… It's a clash of will and passion unlike anything they’ve known, especially when Graeme decides to stay and claim his title. But as the clan faces the threat of a hidden enemy, Graeme and Annella must fight for their home together…and they realize they are also fighting for their love.

Death Behind Every Door by Heather Graham (2024)

In the shadows of a Scottish castle, something deadly is lurking in every corner… When FBI special agent Luke Kendrick discovers chilling evidence of dozens of victims at a crime scene in London, he recognizes the calling card of the notorious H.H. Holmes Society. Named for the nineteenth-century monster regarded as America’s first serial killer, the society is comprised of a twisted web of killers, working to carry out heinous murders in Holmes’s memory. And now the group’s been linked to a Scottish castle turned B and B—where guests check in but never check out. Arriving at the sinister Graystone Castle posed as a tourist, Luke is joined by Special Agent Carly MacDonald, and the pair is immediately confronted by dangers hidden in the castle’s depths. With guests disappearing and a network of killers closing in, Luke and Carly have only each other to rely on—and they’ll have to race to cut off the head of the snake before the blood trail of the past can culminate in a very real and deadly present.

The Housemaid's Wedding by Freida McFadden (2024)

The Housemaid’s Wedding is a **winter-themed short story** meant to fill in the long gap between Book 2 of the Housemaid series (The Housemaid’s Secret) and Book 3 (The Housemaid is Watching). It can be read either between Book 2 and Book 3, or after Book 3. Today is supposed to be the happiest day of my life. I'm **engaged to the man of my dreams**, and in a few short hours, I'm going to stand before a judge, who will declare us husband and wife, till death does us part. Despite some bumps in the road, this day is everything I dreamed it would be. There's only one problem: **Someone out there doesn't want me to live long enough to say my vows.** And if I'm not careful, **they may very well get their wish.**

The Boyfriend by Freida McFadden (2024)

**She's looking for the perfect man. He's looking for the perfect victim.** Sydney Shaw, like every single woman in New York, has terrible luck with dating. She's seen it all: men who lie in their dating profile, men who stick her with the dinner bill, and worst of all, men who can't shut up about their mothers. But finally, she hits the jackpot. Her new boyfriend is utterly perfect. He's charming, handsome, and works as a doctor at a local hospital. Sydney is swept off her feet. Then the brutal murder of a young woman―the latest in a string of deaths across the coast―confounds police. The primary suspect? A mystery man who dates his victims before he kills them. Sydney should feel safe. After all, she is dating the guy of her dreams. But she can't shake her own suspicions that the perfect man may not be as perfect as he seems. Because someone is watching her every move, and if she doesn't get to the truth, she'll be the killer's next victim...