Tempting Fate by Stacy Finz

In earlier Nugget books, Raylene Rosser was decidedly the villain. And in this book, she's the heroine. It's a long slog to get her there but Stacy Finn manages to do it well. Raylene is back in town for her brother's wedding and literally no one is happy. And she really deserves it. Not only was she kind of a bitch, she was an alcoholic, and  almost helped to put an innocent man in jail for murder.
Gabe Moretti is in town because he helped open up a security business with Raylene's half-brother, Logan. And when Logan asks Gabe to keep an eye on Raylene, Gabe takes that very seriously. Even though he's very attracted to Raylene, he tries to keep his distance. Though he will help her search for the gold that her ancestor supposedly buried.
There are definitely some rough spots in this story but it was, overall, lovely.

Three stars
This book came out December 11
ARC kindly provided by publisher and NetGalley

The Accidental Beauty Queen by Teri Wilson

Charlotte Gorman doesn't understand her twin sister. An elementary school librarian, Charlotte doesn't often get dressed up as opposed to her sister who regularly competes in beauty pageants. Ginny is REALLY into beauty, even keeping a popular Instagram series about her competitions. She throws herself into her causes, just recently adopting a dog in order.
Charlotte always internally (sometimes externally) rolls her eyes when they talk about the competitions but when Ginny has a horribly allergic reaction that causes her face to swell, it's going to be up to Charlotte to step in and keep her sister in the competition.
This book created some great characters, both A and B. It was very light and just what I needed during a heavy time in my life. It was a little shallow as well but as to be expected.

Four stars
This book came out December 4
ARC kindly provided by publisher and NetGalley

Decoy Date by Mira Lyn Kelly

Gwen Davis has been in love with her best friend Ted since they were teenagers. But he doesn't even seem to notice that she's there.
Brody O'Donnel doesn't think that Ted is half the man that Gwen believes him to be. And he's sick of watching her woebegone face in his bar. He suggests a bet. The two of them pretend to be hot and heavy and see if Ted reacts how Brody predicts therefore showing Gwen that he's never been in love with her. After some arguing, Gwen agrees. But will being in a pretend relationship with Brody show her exactly how much she'd be missing in a real relationship with Ted?
The first half of the book was exactly as I expected from Ms. Kelly. The second half... was not as good as usual. It was still okay but she was trying to twist a trope and it didn't quite work for me. I'm not sure if there are any more books in the Wedding Date series but I will be on the look out for those and other books by Kelly.

Three stars
This book came out December 11
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley and publisher

Slay in Character by Lynn Cahoon

Another Cat Latimer book, another group of writers at her B&B writer's retreat. This time, it's historical romance writers and they're ready for a day out at the local tourist town set in the Old West. When they go, they meet the roommate of the current student writer at Cat's retreat. Like Jessica Ball, the student, her roommate works at the town as a saloon girl. But it's the roommate, rather than the wealthy and "connected" Jess who ends up murdered.
Was she killed because of something she did? Or because someone mistook her for Jess?
I think you will definitely want to have read previous books in the series because a few of the plot points build on previous books. I wish we had seen a bit more of the "series regulars" and the ending was somewhat fairly clued but I wish there had been a little bit more for background.

Three stars
This book came out November 27
ARC provided by NetGalley; Opinion is my own

The Coloring Crook by Krista Davis

Florrie Fox and the Color Me Read characters are dealing with another murder. This time, it's one of their own. Coloring club member Dolly Cavanaugh loves to attend garage sales and she has an eye for a bargain. At the latest sale, she snaps up a rare book infuriating the previous owner, the man who was directing the estate sale, and any number of people who read about her find when she posted it on various social media platforms.
When Dolly turns up dead, it appears to be a heart attack. But Florrie knows better. And she's going to make sure that her friend gets justice.
I wish we could have seen more of Dolly's life and even had more development of some of the other suspects. It felt like we glance off of all of them.

Three stars
This book came out November 27

Followed by Murder Outside the Lines
ARC provided by NetGalley; Opinions are my own

Someone to Trust by Mary Balogh

Elizabeth, Lady Overfield had a horrible marriage. Her husband abused her to the point that her family actually not only took her in, they kept her. Something unheard of in their time. But she's relatively happy where she is. In her mid-thirties, she can't ask for much more.
Colin Handrich, Lord Hodges, is twenty-six. And he decides to use the holiday house party to start looking for a wife. He's known Elizabeth from previous parties and has always been inspired by her quite confidence. She may not be a raging beauty but she is striking and has a pull. When circumstances make it so that they are sort of forced into marriage, he's not upset.
In most Balogh stories, I feel like there is so much character development, which we do see here, and so much romance building, which I missed.

Three stars
This book came out November 27
ARC kindly provided by NetGalley; Opinions are my own

The Duke That I Marry by Cathy Maxwell

Willa Reverly won the most points in a game with her friends when the Duke of Camberly proposed marriage. But she hasn't seen the man since and she's ready to call off the marriage so she sends him a note.
That note sends Matthew Addison into a panic. He needs her money. The ducal estate should be very much more profitable than it is but it is actually deep in debt. In meeting with Willa again, Matthew realizes that there might be more to his soon-to-be-bride than he had thought, even more than he had hoped for.
A little thin on the "loss of money" plot line but otherwise a good book.

Four stars
This book came out November 27
ARC kindly provided by Edelweiss; Opinions are my own