Some Like It Scot by Pepper Basham

Some Like It Scot 

By Pepper Basham 

Published by Thomas Nelson Fiction 

Publication Date: April 8, 2025 

Description from the Publisher: 

She lives her life on the fly. His heart is double-knotted to home. Can two different souls create a life together? 

 Popular travel writer and podcaster Katie Campbell roams the world collecting other people's stories. She's built a career as "Miss Adventure," known for saying yes to anything new--country, food, or experience--and predictably finding those adventures taking a downward turn into misadventures. 

Offered the chance to explore her ancestral roots through a three-week Edwardian experience, Katie finds herself immersed in the beauty and eccentricity of Scotland. In her period attire, with traditional foods and activities, the opportunities for misadventures are endless, especially with the presence of a maniacal macaw, a jealous co-worker, and an all-too-surly Scotsman. 

Reclusive and protective Graeme MacKerrow doesn't venture far from his island home. A stoic Scotsman, Graeme's comfort zone has always been family, and after his sister's death, he's even more determined to save the MacKerrow ancestral home and keep those he loves close. The sudden intrusion of a six-foot-one American lass, famous for her traveling misfortunes, was far from his plan. 

As this world of folklore, community, and woodworkers-in-kilts tempts Katie to discover her own story, could this one grand series of misadventures lead her directly to where she belongs? And would a settled-in-Scot ever risk loosening his grip on what's familiar to allow a wanderlust writer a home in his heart? How could their very different worlds share the same page of life's story when "home" is in two very different places? But maybe home--and the future--isn't quite what either one imagined it would be. Maybe home is less about a place . . . and more about a person. 

My Review: 

I absolutey adored this book. Everything about it just worked completely for me. I loved Katie--her personality and her fears and her quirks just made her such a fun and relatable character, and her backstory made her believable and endearing. Graeme also stole my heart--his worries and his reactions were also believable. I appreciated how both characters were willing to do some self-examination and try to grow and not just hide away. Despite being a homebody at heart, all of the descriptions of Scotland (and the Scottish words thrown in!) made me want to book a trip to see the beauty of the country for myself. I also adored the supporting characters (at least, the Scottish ones. Some of the other participants in the Edwardian Experience had me shaking my fist at them!) All in all, this book was just delightful! I loved it. I'm definitely going to have to snag the audio version as well because I'm sure it will be even more fun to listen to! 

5 stars! 

I read a DRC provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

An Overdue Match by Sarah Monzon

An Overdue Match 

by Sarah Monzon 

Published by Bethany House 

Publication Date: February 18, 2025 

Description from the Publisher: 

Can a librarian's matchmaking mischief lead to a love that rewrites their stories? If the covers of every romance book ever published didn't convince librarian Evangeline Kelly that she isn't heroine material, her fiancé calling off their wedding when she lost her hair to alopecia did. But what's a girl head over heels for love to do when her feelings are unrequited? Matchmake, that's what. Armed with library patrons' check-out histories, she's determined to make at least one love connection--even if it's not her own. 

Tattoo artist Tai Davis is used to people judging him with a single glance, so it doesn't surprise him when the town's quirky new librarian believes his bad-boy reputation without giving him a chance. He can't help being intrigued by her, though, so when he discovers Evangeline's secret matchmaking scheme, he's not above striking a bargain with her. She just has to agree to one date with him for every time she uses his hometown knowledge to set up library patrons on a romantic rendezvous. The deal is made, but in the process, they both might learn you can't judge a book--or each other--by the cover. 

My Review: 

This book started out a bit slowly for me but I ended up really liking it. I liked Tai from the get-go but I wasn't quite as drawn to Evangeline. I thought having a character with alopecia was really interesting and I definitely felt for her with her past experiences and her fears regarding dating. I didn't quite buy into her desire to be a matchmaker, especially using patrons' checkout histories. As any librarian (including this one!) will tell you, it's not really ethical for librarians to look at patrons' histories (some library computer systems don't even have an option for storing them), so that was a bit off-putting to me. Once the plotline moved to feature her and Tai much more than the matchmaking efforts, the book picked up for me a lot. Evangeline's emotions and fears came through really strongly and realistically. The scene where she finally has to tell Tai about her illness--oh my! My heart hurt for her! There is a lot of great banter and fun book references that were super fun to read. Secondary characters were fun as well. 

4 stars. 

I read a DRC provided by the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.