What to Read & What to Skip: My March 2022 Romance Book Reading List
At She Reads Romance Books, I’m here to help my fellow romance book readers find the best books worth reading.
In this book list I share which romance books I read in March 2022. I give you mini reviews of each book and let you know which books I recommend you read and which books I suggest you skip.
*Disclosure: This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
I love putting these lists together because it forces me to look back over the books that I read each month. This month I was so happy to realize that I actually read quite a few and I’m back on track for what I consider my “usual” amount of reading.
It helped that our family went on a week’s vacation. Normally I don’t read a lot on vacation because we are off and having fun, but I was able to crank through an entire series in one week and I so enjoyed it because ALL of the books were incredible.
I love when that happens!
This month I found some real gems I can’t wait to tell you about. The rest were pretty good reads with only one that was slightly disappointing. Yay!
My March Romance Book Selections
This month I read one book from my Most Anticipated Romance Books of 2022 list and I LOVED it. You must read it.
Mafia romance was also a theme as I was preparing for that book list but then I threw in some sports romance as well.
Since we were in the car quite a bit traveling for our vacation, I actually listened to two audiobooks as well which is unusual for me but such a good diversion.
The March Romance Book Reading Challenge was to read one OFFICE romance and I took the opportunity to also use it to check out a new author to me.
Get your to-read list ready as you’re going to find a few books you’re going to want to read this month.
Romance Books to Read & Skip: My March Reads
Shenanigans
by Sarina Bowen
An Accidental Marriage Romance With the Best Couple
Published March 2022
4 stars
*ARC received
What I meant to do in Vegas: Let my hair down for once and celebrate winning a medal at my first women’s hockey all-stars competition. What I actually did: Got senior prom drunk and woke up married to Brooklyn’s star winger, the great Neil Drake.
He’s the heir to a billion dollars, and I barely survived my childhood. Our friendship is based strictly only on hockey, takeout food and smack talk. And now holy matrimony. Although we both know it can’t last, especially once his family gets wind of our Vegas shenanigans.
Just when I thought I couldn’t possibly fall for another hockey duo, she gives me Neal and Charli – swoon. I honestly fell in love with these two from the very beginning.
Bowen just wrote two completely amazing characters who had the best banter back and forth and yet also some really endearing qualities that they only shared with each other.
This book was just a joy to read from the great writing, to the great character development and engaging story. It’s definitely one of my favorite of these two series and one of my favorite couples!
I highly recommend it.
RELATED: Best Hockey Romance Books, Best Sports Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads | My Review
Twisted Games
by Ana Huang
A Royal Bodyguard Romance Book That Gives a Good Slow Burn
Published July 2021
3 stars
Stoic, broody, and arrogant, elite bodyguard Rhys Larsen has two rules: Protect his clients at all costs and do not become emotionally involved. Ever. He has never once been tempted to break those rules…until her.
Bridget von Ascheberg is a princess who dreams of the freedom to live and love as she chooses. But when her brother abdicates, she’s suddenly faced with the prospect of a loveless, politically expedient marriage and a throne she never wanted.
And as she navigates the intricacies—and treacheries—of her new role, she must also hide her desire for a man she can’t have. Her bodyguard. Her protector. Her ultimate ruin.
I was so excited to read this in anticipation of my bodyguard romance book list but was pleasantly surprised by the slow burn love story.
If you like stoic heroes who change their tune when they come face to face with the woman who captures their heart, you’ll enjoy this one.
RELATED: Best Bodyguard Romance Books, Best Slow Burn Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads | My Review
The Sweetest Oblivion
by Danielle Lori
A Mafia Romance I Couldn’t Put Down
Published June 2018
5 stars
Elena Abelli is the favored daughter, the perfect mafia principessa . . . or was. Now, all she can see in the mirror’s reflection is blood staining her hands like crimson paint.
In New York’s underworld, Elena’s sister is arranged to marry Nicolas Russo. A made man, a boss, a cheat. After his and Elena’s first encounter, she realizes he’s just as rude as he is handsome.
She doesn’t like the man but that doesn’t stop her heart from racing, nor the shiver that ghosts down her spine, making her feel hotter than any future brother-in-law should.
Elena may be the Sweet Abelli on the outside, but she’s beginning to learn she has a taste for the darkness, for rough hands, cigarettes, and whiskey-colored eyes.
Having already escaped one scandal, however, she can hardly afford to be swept up in another. Besides, even if he were hers, everyone knows you don’t fall in love with a Made Man . . . right?
I lost sleep thanks to this book because I couldn’t put it down! I loved the forbidden nature of this romance and how the tension and chemistry kept building between Elena and Nicolas.
You know I don’t give out 5 star ratings lightly but this one was so deserving.
RELATED: Best Mafia Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
The Maddest Obsession
by Danielle Lori
An Achingly Good, Slow Burn Romance
Published April 2019
5 stars
Her dresses are too tight, her heels too tall. She laughs too loudly. Little do most know it’s just a sparkly disguise, there to hide one panic attack at a time. Nobody can crack Gianna’s facade until he comes along.
Christian Allister may be a special agent upholding the law, but in the New York underworld, he’s a hustler who can make anyone disappear.
One winter night and their lives intertwine. She hates him—his stone-cold demeanor, his arrogance and too-perceptive eye—but over the years, even as their games consist of insulting each other’s looks and intelligence, she begins to live to play with him.
Nowhere in Christian’s plans had he ever prepared for Gianna. She’s chaos embodied, his frustration, his fascination. His maddest obsession.
To say that I became equally obsessed with this book as I did with The Sweetest Oblivion is an understatement.
It is the greatest slow burn romance, but with the perfect opposites attract story. Gianna is this less than perfect heroine who I adore and Christian was a man who defied his past and knew what he wanted.
And the sparks between these two – gah! So, so good!!
RELATED: Best Mafia Romance Books, Best Slow Burn Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
The Darkest Temptation
by Danielle Lori
A Darker, Mafia Romance That Hooked Me
Published December 2020
4 stars
Having always done what is expected of her, Mila dresses the part, and minds her papa’s absences and his refusal to let her set foot in her birthplace—Russia. That is until she boards a plane to Moscow.
She never expected to fall for a man on the way. One with unexplained wealth, tattoos on his hands, and secrets in his eyes. But it doesn’t take long for his caress to become a rough grasp muffling her screams.
Revenge is a dish best served cold. Unfortunately, a Russian winter is the coldest of them all, and Mila soon learns the only way to escape intact is to do the impossible and thaw her captor’s heart.
Oh boy did this go in some directions I wasn’t expecting. Can you fall in love with your protector or is it really Stockholm Syndrome?
Mila isn’t so sure in this mafia romance book that hooked me from the word go. It’s definitely a bit darker than the other two in the series but so worth the read!
RELATED: Best Mafia Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Brutal Prince
by Sophie Lark
A Mafia Romance With One Tough Heroine
Published July 2020
3 stars
Callum Griffin is the heir to the Irish Mafia. He’s ruthless, arrogant, and he wants nothing to do with me. But after I accidentally start a teeny, tiny fire, now our families believe a marriage pact is the only thing that will prevent all-out chaos.
I won’t go down without a fight, even if he is good-looking. I’ve got a lockbox around my heart. And even if I’m forced to marry him, I could never love a brutal prince.
Despite this being a mafia romance book, it definitely had a lighter feel to it.
I enjoyed the pranking between Callum and Aida at the beginning but the drama did get a bit over the top at times.
Check it out if you like a lighter mafia romance but if you don’t then it might not be one for you.
RELATED: Best Mafia Romance Books, Best Enemies to Lovers Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Bound by Honor
by Cora Reilly
An Arranged Marriage Mafia Romance ALL About the Marriage
Published December 2014
3 stars
Born into one of the leading mob families in Chicago, Aria Scuderi struggles to find her own path in a world where no choices are given. Aria was only fifteen when her parents betrothed her to Luca – The Vice – Vitiello, the oldest son of the head of the New York Cosa Nostra to ensure peace between the two families.
Aria is terrified of marrying a man she hardly knows. In her world a handsome exterior often hides the monster within.
The only way to escape the marriage to Luca would be to run away and leave everything she’s ever known behind but Aria can’t bear the thought of never seeing her family again.
Despite her fear, she decides to go through with the marriage; Aria has grown up among predators like Luca and knows that even most cold-hearted bastards have a heart and she has every intention of working her way into Luca’s.
This book was all about the upcoming arranged marriage between Aria and Luca and their road to consummating their marriage.
Luca is definitely the alpha hero you expect in a mafia romance while Aria is the 18yo virgin. I’m glad that Aria actually had a spine despite her youth and naïveté.
Warning: There is an instance of cheating so if that bothers you then be forwarned.
RELATED: Best Mafia Romance Books, Best Marriage of Convenience Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Always Only You
by Chloe Liese
A Quirky Hockey Romance With a Too Good to Be True Hero
Published August 2020
4 stars
(audiobook)
The moment I met her, I knew Frankie Zeferino was someone worth waiting for. Frankie has been forbidden since the day she and I became coworkers, meaning waiting has been the name of my game—besides, hockey, that is.
I’m a player on the team, she’s on staff, and as long as we work together, dating is off-limits. But patience has always been my virtue.
Frankie won’t be here forever—she’s headed for bigger, better things. I just hope that when she leaves the team and I tell her how I feel, she won’t want to leave me behind, too.
This was my pick for the March 2022 Romance Book Reading Challenge which was to read one office romance. I loved that it gave me a bit of hockey romance as well!
This was my first book by Liese and won’t be my last. I loved that this book is an #OwnVoices story for its portrayal of autism by an autistic author.
While I liked Frankie, Ren was really the stand-out because he is just the NICEST guy. You really have to like a nice guy hero to enjoy this book because he was just that – SUPER nice. Oh, and a virgin 😊
RELATED: Best Office Romance Books, Best Hockey Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Stuck With You
by Ali Hazelwood
A Cute, Forced Proximity Novella
Audibook Released March 2022
3.5 stars
(audiobook)
Logically, Sadie knows that civil engineers are supposed to build bridges. However, as a woman of STEM she also understands that variables can change, and when you are stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke your heart, you earn the right to burn that brawny, blond bridge to the ground.
While she refuses to acknowledge the siren call of Erik’s steely forearms or the way his voice softens when he offers her his sweater, Sadie can’t help but wonder if there might be more layers to her cold-hearted nemesis than meet the eye. Maybe, possibly, even burned bridges can still be crossed.
This is a novella that released first in audiobook (ebook releasing in June) so I snatched up the opportunity to listen to it since I loved Hazelwood’s debut novel, The Love Hypothesis. And I have to say that I enjoyed it because I’m a sucker for forced proximity romances.
However, audiobook are always hit or miss for me. The narrator’s voice really impacts whether I like characters or not- I can’t help it. Unfortunately, she made Erik sound so stuffy so that was hard to separate to believe his instalove. I’d wait and read the novella.
RELATED: Best Second Chance Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
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Ignite
by Melanie Harlow
A Neighbors to Lovers That Didn’t Quite Hit the Mark
Published November 2021
3 stars
My new neighbor is a firefighter—and a scorching hot single dad—but I swear I didn’t set off that smoke alarm on purpose. Nothing happened, of course—because I, Winnie MacAllister, romance junkie and owner of a constantly broken heart, have sworn off men for one solid year.
Until Dex kisses me one night, and I drop all my defenses. He says he’s not gentle, and he’s right. He says I should take the dream job I’m offered in another state, and he’s right. He says he’s too old for me and could never be the man I deserve. He’s wrong.
This is a great single dad, age gap romance with a bit of opposites attract love story.
I honestly think Dex’s two girls were the absolute cutest in this book. I thought that unraveling “princess and the ogre” story was cute too and stole the show.
I would rate this higher if I liked Dex a bit more. Sure he’s this grumpy, hot fire fighter but he was awfully forward in an ugh kind of way at the very beginning and one or two of his angry outbursts gave me pause – but that could just be me.
Amazon | Goodreads
In a New York Minute
by Kate Spencer
An Opposites Attract Romance That I LOVED
Published March 2022
4 stars
Franny Doyle is having the worst day. She’s been laid off from her job, the subway doors ripped her favorite silk dress to ruins, and now she’s flashed her unmentionables to half of lower Manhattan. On the plus side, a dashing stranger came to her rescue with his suit jacket.
Now Franny and her knight-in-couture, Hayes Montgomery III, are the newest social media sensation despite being a disastrous match. Only the more they keep running into each other, the more they like each other’s company.
This was the sweetest book! Such a good opposites attract, slow burn love story with a hero who is so endearing in his social awkwardness and a girl whose luck has definitely taken a dive as of late.
From the awkward meet-cute to their continued run-ins, I just shipped this couple so hard.
This book made my most anticipated romance books of 2022 and it is so deserving.
RELATED: Most Anticipated Romance Books of 2022, Best Slow Burn Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Grinder
by Marie James
A Hot and Heavy MM Hockey Romance
Published July 2018
3 stars
Senior year, two hockey championships under his skates, and parents who didn’t freak out when he swung the proverbial closet door open and stepped out. Damon Grant’s life couldn’t get any better. At least that’s what he thought.
When Jonah Kingston showed up at the barn as the new hockey coach, Damon couldn’t believe his luck. What was it about the dark-haired, bright-eyed, former hockey star that made him want to grind on and off of the ice?
Ok, this was definitely a hot, enemies to lovers, MM hockey romance. If you like all of that then dig in.
There really isn’t too big of an age gap but I was kind of shocked how easily Jonah (who presumably is straight when we first meet him) just went with it with Damon – the high school guy who seriously couldn’t keep it in his pants. But the two of the together was actually really great!
RELATED: Best Hockey Romance Books, Best MM Romance Books
Amazon | Goodreads
Famous in a Small Town
by Kylie Scott
A Small Town, Rock Star Romance That Missed
Coming April 7, 2022
2.5 stars
*ARC received
Two years after his wife’s passing, rock star Garrett Hayes hasn’t moved on. But he has escaped to the small town of Wildwood where he expected peace, not his new neighbor Ani.
Ani Bennet returned to her hometown for some much-needed serenity. The last thing she needs is a grumpy, too hot for his own good, rich and famous rock star living next door—who sets off her inner fangirl.
What chance does a small-town girl have with world-famous rock star? It’s time for Ani to set her fears aside and find out.
I was so excited to jump into a new rock star romance from Kylie Scott, and I really, really wanted to like this but this book felt like two completely different books merged into one which just did not work for me.
The first half or so of the book, I adored. I was really pulled into this small town and these two wounded souls.
But then the book took a complete turn into instalove and happyville where their issues were miraculously overcome overnight and everything became hunky-dory in a matter of days. The end.
If you like Kylie Scott, then check it out but otherwise I’d skip it!
RELATED: Best Rock Star Romance Books
