Loved this Valentine's romantic anthology. All three stories were well written and a joy to read. I would love to see sequels to all three. Two of the authors I have read before, but Anne Shade surprised me. I will definitely be checking out some more books from this author I really liked her writing style and the story she wrote for this book was so romantic and sweet, I actually didn't want it to end. The first story by Julie Cannon was great as well and the second story by Erin Dutton was really good as well. I would definitely recommend this book to all my friends and family and I look forward to what these authors write about next.

All 3 novellas in My Secret Valentine are well-written, with likable characters, and perfectly doused in just the right amount of romance – and yet.

I couldn’t get into them.

There’s nothing wrong with any of the stories, technically or otherwise, but that click wasn’t happening for me. I put this book down so many times and had to push myself to finish and I don’t know why.

I Met Someone by Julie Cannon is the story of Hayes and Claire, both business-minded women who meet while taking a statistics in economics course and instantly hit it off. It’s a will they/won’t they, slow burn friends-to-lovers story that has you rooting for them both to just give in to the obvious spark smoldering between them.

Erin Dutton’s Taking a Risk has newly transplanted police officer Jo getting used to small town life while also trying to keep a respectful distance from pretty widow Kayla who runs the town’s hardware store. (spoiler alert, she fails, but only because Kayla makes the first move.)

Bouquet of Love by Anne Shade might just have been my favorite novella in the collection. Alyssa, a widowed English teacher, is finally maybe ready to dip her toe into possibly dating. Fellow teacher Collette, who’s been in love with Alyssa for years, jumps at the opportunity and pulls out all the stops to shower her skittish crush with romantic gestures under the guise of a secret admirer.

Would I read more by these authors? Absolutely.

I think maybe I was in an instant gratification mood when I picked up this book and so the slow burn was just not hitting for me, like the reading equivalent of “it’s not you, it’s me”. I would still rate this collection very high and recommend it to anyone looking for some good slow burn romance.

Love this collection of stories revolving around Valentine's day. They were all so different, but still so good.

This book has stories by different authors about Valentine's Day romances. They are very sweet and cover a variety of themes. One is friends to lovers and another is an age gap romance. I found the plot interesting and the characters good.
I recommend this book for lovers of Valentine's Day romance.
I reviewed My Secret Valentine by Julie Cannon; Erin Dutton; Anne Shade. #MySecretValentine #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I really enjoyed this compilation. Wonderful stories that are very different.

The first story is about a friend, Hayes who has been haboring feelings for her best friend, Claire for years. Hayes is finally going to tell her despite the repercussions that might happen. This was my favorite story of the three presented here.

The second one is a small town has a new cop, Jo. The new cop meets Kayla, who is widow of a fallen cop from several years ago. She is told to keep her distance from Jo, However, fate has different plans for both women.

The final story is about Collette who has kept her distance from her crush, Alyssa, for years. That is until Collette finds out Alyssa's wife has passed and she unexpectedly lands a job at the same school that Alyssa works at. One day she overhears Alyssa saying that she would like another relationship and would like to be wooed. This gets Collette thinking and a plan emerges. What Alyssa doesn't know is that Collette's pen name is her favorite lesbian author. With a little help from Alyssa's friend, this might be the best plan ever.

I would recommend.
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Well we have another book made up of three novella’s by some of our favorite authors.
‘Julie Cannon ‘ gives us ‘I Met Someone’. A short story about best friends who don’t really share as much as they think. Like Hayes Martin who has been carrying around the secret that she's in love with her BF, Claire Wheeler. Now has come the time to come clean. Actually a very entertaining read.
Erin Dutton ‘Taking a Risk’ As with most of Ms Dutton's books involve characters who work in ‘first responder’ careers. This book tells the story of Kayla McCall, owner and operator of a small hardware store. Everyone knew her, mainly because the community was small and she’d been the wife of a police officer who had lost her life while working the job. When Jo Forsythe accepted a job with the local police all she wanted was quiet. Living and working in Atlanta has taken its toll on her. Now she’s found what she’s looking for but wouldn’t it be nice to share with someone else. But how to approach Kayla wasn’t going to be that easy. Nice page turner.
Anne Shade, ‘Bouquet of Love’ I thought this was going to be a book about flowers but in fact it’s a story about a woman, Alyssa Harris, who didn’t see herself ever having a relationship after she lost her wife, Shauna. What she doesn’t know is that one of her students, Collette Roberts, from a course she taught six years ago fell in love with her. But she had been in love and very married. Now by chance they find themselves both teaching at the same school. Does Collette have the nerve to approach Alyssa and is Alyssa willing to let her. Another nice read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bold Stroke Books

3 Stars
Queer rep: lots of sapphic women

I loved the idea of three novellas in one, especially right about Valentine’s Day. They all tie into the date somehow, so they all take place in February, all in different places. I did love the diversity in the stories and the characters, as it was clear they were all different, and loved the little blurbs before each, explaining some significance from the respective author. The three novellas are all based around women in their 30s-50s, all with their chances at love.

The first one is written in first person, in one perspective, about meeting another student at school as they’re both looking to advance their education and careers, and how what started as a friendship turns into the lesbian falling in love with her straight best friend.

The second one is written in third person, and alternates perspectives, but not quite 50/50. It follows a police officer who is new in a small town, and meets the only other lesbian there to find out she is married. Then ultimately to find out she is a widow.

The third one is written in third person and alternates perspectives, but very loosely, sticking largely to one character. It follows a widow as she thinks about dating again and ends up wooed by a secret admirer.

All in all, I enjoyed getting to read three different love-centered novellas, all tying into Valentine’s Day. Erin Dutton’s stood out to me the most out of the three, and I would say it was my favorite. I personally didn’t love it a ton. I definitely don’t love the “lesbian falls for the straight girl” trope, so that might explain my disinterest in the first one. It also felt uncomfortable as it felt like the straight girl was constantly sexualized and like the lesbian couldn’t handle herself. The third novella I did enjoy, as we got to see the secret admirer, but I think it would’ve been a bit more impactful without the alternating perspectives.

Overall, I loved the sapphic portrayal, where it has nothing to do with coming out or feeling comfortable in their identity, and all about their loves.

'My Secret Valentine' is a collection of romantic novellas by three award winning authors. Each novella is about two women who find their true love with Valentine’s Day and books playing a part.

All three stories give the reader a chance to enjoy their favorite tropes. ‘I Met Someone’ by Julie Cannon gives us a friends-to-lovers tale with Claire Wheeler and Hayes Martin. They meet in a graduate class and become BFFs before they finally admit their real feelings for each other. ‘Taking a Risk’ by Erin Dutton is not only a small town romance but a second chance story with a bit of angst for police officer Jo Forsythe and the widow of a police officer, Kayla McCall.

‘Bouquet of Love’ by Anne Shade is an age gap and former student/teacher love story between English teacher Alyssa Harris and tennis coach Collette Roberts. This novella has quite a bit of angst as well.

All are lovely tales with realistic characters, well described settings and really sweet plots. I loved reading all three novellas, but I think my favorite story is Anne Shade’s ‘Bouquet of Love’. The touch of old fashioned “wooing” by Collette and the slightly bittersweet flavor of the story really touched my heart. It even made me tear up a bit.

You can’t go wrong with these stories. They are well-written, short enough to be read in one sitting each, and well worth your reading time. I had a great time reading them, and I think you will too.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.

This was a sweet collection of Valentine’s Day themed novellas. Julie Cannon’s story was my favourite out of the three - I liked the others but they were not as memorable for me. All three were well written though and overall it was a nice rainy day read.

Lovely collection of short stories for Valentine's Day. I enjoyed myself with these..ofcourse you will always have a favorite but because of the diversity in the stories I think there will be at least one for everyone to enjoy. Just take into account that it's a short story so some things may go a little bit quicker than usual or less fleshed out. But if you want a few hours of feelgood reading injected with lots or romance this is the book to pick up.

***Thank you Netgalley and Bold Stroke Books for the chance to read and review this book***

My Secret Valentine is a collection of three novellas centered around mainly thirty-five year old plus women looking for romance and hopefully love. Each story was well written and personal preference will dictate which story each reader enjoys the most, but each of the novellas made a special contribution to the search for that special person.

I am a Julie Cannon fan so I enjoyed I Met Someone where two longtime friends, Claire Wheeler and Hayes Martin, have feelings for each other and both are blissfully unaware. My only issue with that novella is the abrupt ending. Since Julie Cannon is known for some sexy scenes, a different ending may have been more appreciated. Overall the three novellas rate 4 stars.

I received an ARC from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this Valentine’s Day collection of three novellas. I don’t want to give too much away in each story so I’ll keep my reviews of them a bit general. One small change that could have possibly been made was that 2 out of the 3 stories are about people who’s partners have passed away. The stories are back to back, a bit of spacing between the two would have been a better order for the stories, just for a little emotional reprieve.

The first novella is by Julie Cannon, I Met Someone. Two friends Claire Wheeler and Hayes Martin, have feelings for one another and both are unaware. The story was cute and had a great build up. My only complaint, which isn’t really a complaint, was that the story faded to black. Julie cannon writes steam so well, I would have loved for it to have ended with a love scene. The overall story was delightful and compelling. I was rooting for the main characters to get together.

The second novella is by Erin Dutton, Taking a Risk. This story is about a big city police officer, Jo Forsythe, moving to a small town and meeting someone that she probably shouldn’t be interested in. According to her new coworker the woman Jo has set her sights set on is “off limits.” Kayla McCall owns a sporting good store and has a few ghosts from her past preventing her from wanting to date. This story went in a different direction than I anticipated, Kayla eventually decides she’s ready to date but Jo has been overly warned and decides that she isn’t going down that road. Watching these two circle around one another was charming. There are a few sad parts but there is a happy ending. It's a Valentine's Day novella, of course there’s a happy ending.

The third and final story is by Anne Shade, Bouquet of Love.
First, this story is about 2 women of color which made me so happy. More of this please! This story pulled on my heart strings. Alyssa Harris, has been out of the dating scene for too long. Collette Roberts has had her own run in with heartbreak and is ready to move on. It is about the loss of a partner and finding a way to love again. Grab a tissue since there are some emotional scenes but the overall story is very sweet. The characters are likable and I wanted them to get together. It’s emotional and there is a very good boy named Max who sounds like the cutest dog around. I really enjoyed this story and I don’t want to give too much away. It’s a great end to a very enjoyable book.

Lovely short stories - if you want to spoil yourself for Valentines' Day, or just enjoy romance, and enjoy FF stories, these short stories are for you! Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In these short story collections, you always have a standout and a story you don't like much at all.

Taking a Risk by Erin Dutton is my favourite, for a short story, it has everything and leaves me wanting more without me actually needing it to feel this is a complete story.
My least favourite Bouquet of Love by Anne Shade. It's just a bit much and not believable at all. Bit stalkerish perhaps but they all seem to be into it? Not for me. I think over the past week I learned Anne Shade's writing just isn't for me.
I Met Someone by Julie Cannon is a friends-to-lovers short story, one of my favourite tropes, but in this it just ended too abruptly. Maybe an additional chapter, a couple of pages could have fixed that.

Overall this collection is ok, but not as heart-warming and sappy Valentine's Day as I was sort of hoping for.

I'll start with the positive: Erin Dutton's entry in this lesbian romance anthology is a cute little tale of two women finding new love. I'll definitely check out some of her other work on the back of this.

Unfortunately, I was not so enamoured of the other two tales. I have read and enjoyed Julie Cannon's work in the past, but found her offering here a little on the weak side. It tells too often, rather than showing, and the passivity of the main character - while understandable - grew a bit wearisome to me.

Finally there is Anne Shade's entry. I liked the premise and wanted to like the story, but unfortunately for my tastes it was overwritten, overwrought and unconvincing..

Three Valentine's Day themed novella's from author's I've read and enjoyed before.

I Met Someone: Hayes and Claire are professionals and meet at a business class. They become good friends spending more and more time together. Will one take a step to more beyond friendship?

In Taking a Risk: Jo is the newest police officer moving from Atlanta to a small town in Georgia. She meets and feels an instant connection to store owner Kayla. But Kayla's is a widow and she has a very protective town watching over her.

In Bouquet of Love: Alyssa is a school teacher and lost her spouse to cancer. When she is finally ready to look for love again a secret admirer starts sending beautifully written letters.

As with novellas you always wish you could have more time with the characters. My personal favorite is the middle story. Erin Dutton has a gift when writing about police romances. But for other readers I think it really is storyline preference. The third story is more building up to a romance as the two MCs only interact at the end. I enjoyed this anthology and it was nice to have a no angst afternoon. Thank you to NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Three novella involving Valentines Day involves taking a chance.

I Met Someone: Hayes and Claire are best friends but Hayes have been hiding her feelings for Claire. Hayes decides to take a chance and confess her feelings to Claire what happens next surprise her.


In Taking a Risk: Jo is a police officer when she meets Kayla who she feels a attraction to. Jo wants to get to know Kayla but she guarded and the town is very protective of her. This is story about opening yourself to love again after losing it.


In Bouquet of Love: Alyssa is a teacher who getting back into the dating game. She might get a second chance at love with a secret admirer with element of magic that makes it’s sweet romance.

This was a nice collection of Valentine’s Day stories. All three were a little gushy and lovey dovey but that’s Valentine’s Day right? All three were well written and nicely paced considering they were all novellas. I enjoyed all three and would recommend to anybody looking for a warm Valentine’s Day read.

Three beautiful love stories at different stages of life by three incredible writers
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The first is 'I meet someone' and it is a Friends to lovers so cute and so well written that I am left wanting to continue reading more, Julie Cannon has that effect on her readers. A story about how to say what we feel even with fear of losing a unique friendship
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'Taking a Risk' is the second story and it is about finding the opportunity to love again after the loss of a partner and great love in a small town where love and warmth can become suffocating, a beautiful message about taking chances and go for what we want
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'Bouquet of love', is a story with an age gap where years after losing her partner a shy teacher receives gifts from a secret admirer who plans to woo her slowly but must overcome her fears and prejudices about the age difference, is a story about patience, respect and love wrapped in a bit of mystery
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The three stories have Valentine's Day as a link and are accompanied by words from each writer and a small anecdote from that day
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For me the hook was Julie Cannon, a book of hers is always a sure 'yes' to buy and it was also my favorite story of the three
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It is an ideal book to read in February and each story has something for each reader, each Sapphic Romance has different characters but the perfect intensity of emotions for every romance lovers
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Thanks to Julie Cannon, Erin Dutton , Anne Shade and Bold Stroke Books for give me this beautiful book in exchange for my honest opinion
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Three short stories focused on Valentine’s day.

I Met Someone- Such an abrupt end, I would have liked a bit more balance between the body of the story and its conclusion. 3 stars

Taking a Risk- best of the 3 for me. Small town and a bit of angst I enjoyed it. 4 stars

Bouquet Of Love - A little intrigue in the form of a secret admirer and an age gap. Nice to see women over 45 portrayed in romance books. 4 stars

Free ARC provided by BSB via NetGalley.