Pancakes and Puppy Love by Joanne Machin and Sarah Estep After a brutal break-up while overseas, Robby returns home without a girlfriend to find a woman staying in his apartment. He tries to kick her out, but instead, they strike a deal.
Murphy’s Valentine by Lyssa Charles In a battle of Murphy’s Law vs finding love, Grace is ready to concede defeat, until her sexy neighbor steps in.
The Startup by Caitlin Sinead Can Flynn shed her skepticism of meet-cutes in order to open herself up to a stranger after a vending machine snafu?
My Sunny Valentine by J.E. Martin After her boyfriend ditches her on Valentine’s Day, Sunny takes a chance on a dream date with her brother’s best friend.
The Subtle Art of Shapeshifting by Rose O'Brien A powerful shapeshifter must stop a supernatural creature that is attacking humans and threatening to turn Valentine's Day into a bloodbath. Too bad the only person who can help is the guy that ghosted her.
Clerical Error by Kerri Keberly Cupid's worst Valentine’s Day ever.
Whether you like your stories smoking hot or sweet and gentle, there's a little bit of something for everyone in this Valentine's Day anthology. Much like a sampler of your favorite chocolate, you'll find plenty to enjoy in all flavors. Whether you're up for a romance featuring friends-to-lovers or enemies-to-lovers, long-time pals who finally take the plunge or new flames, fully human folks or shape-shifting supernatural lovers, or want to know more about exactly what Cupid's really got in those darn arrows, there's lots to love. Each author takes their own approach to Valentine's Day, love and romance, offering plenty of sweet (and a little bit of heat!) to entice and ensnare. You'll find yourself rooting for each of these heroes and heroines to finally give in and confess their love, no matter how you really feel about Valentine's Day and its many mixed messages. Up with love, and up with this wonderful Valentine's Day anthology!
3.8 average rounded up Here's what I thought of each story:
Pancakes and Puppies: 3.0 sorta cute, but pretty basic. There's a big timeline gap, along the lines of "a miracle occurred here" then a fast ending -- a little disappointing.
Murphy's Valentine: 4.75 cute, funny, clever, sexy. I love the history between the MCs as neighbors and best friends. The truly heinous blind date with a douche canoe and his reactions the next day were pretty awesome, too!
The Startup: 3.5 cute, but duh, of course he was the guy...still, decent writing.
My Sunny Valnentine: 3.75 very sweet, but smart, too
The Subtle ARt of Shapeshifting: 4.75 great story, both in pacing and the fully developed characters. I'll be looking to find the earlier story in this world!
Clerical Error: 3.0 meh, not much development to it, and it ended pretty abruptly