ARC Review: “Zora Books Her Happy Ever After” by Taj McCoy

“Zora Books Her Happy Ever After” by Taj McCoy

Publishing Date: April 25, 2023

Genre: Romance, Contemporary, Fiction

Page Length: 400 pages (electronic review edition)

Synopsis:

Zora has committed every inch of her life to establishing her thriving DC bookstore, making it into a pillar of the community, and she just hasn’t had time for romance. But when a mystery author she’s been crushing on for years agrees to have an event at her store, she starts to rethink her priorities. Lawrence is every bit as charming as she imagined, even if his understanding of his own books seems just a bit shallow. When he asks her out after his reading, she’s almost elated enough to forget about the grumpy guy who sat next to her making snide comments all evening. Apparently the grouch is Lawrence’s best friend, Reid, but she can’t imagine what kind of friendship that must be. They couldn’t be more different.

But as she starts seeing Lawrence, and spending more and more time with Reid, Zora finds first impressions can be deceiving. Reid is smart and thoughtful—he’s also interested. After years of avoiding dating, she suddenly has two handsome men competing for her affection. But even as she struggles to choose between them, she can’t shake the feeling that they’re both hiding something—a mystery she’s determined to solve before she can find her HEA.

Review:

Zora Books Her Happily Ever After is a fun, flirtatious, and entertaining novel from beginning to end. I enjoyed McCoy’s first novel so much that I was excited to read the sequel. Set in the Washington DC area Zora is a bibliophile that owns her own bookstore and does her best to give back to the community through it while also spreading a deep love for literacy. When her favorite author comes to town she is fascinated instantly by him and his handsome best friend. However, Zora soon gets caught up in a love triangle between the two. Who will she choose?

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m iffy about love triangles in my romance novels but this one was done very well. And the mystery and sub-plot twist added to the reading experience. Both men are friends which complicates things and so Zora has to follow her heart, while also getting help from her grandma and best friend Emma. I loved the dynamic this trio of strong women has in the book and I enjoyed it just as much if even more than the romance. They are tight-knit and supportive, and their colorful banter definitely made me laugh and smile throughout the book. I hope that we’ll get to read a book about Emma in the future (she definitely deserves her own novel). The romance was very steamy!

I was also highly engaged in this novel due to its bookish setting and it will speak to any bibliophile.

She’d (Zora) dive into different worlds and chase the characters through their discoveries and challenges; her vivid imagination helped her picture everything transpiring on the page. Books helped her grieve and reflect on special memories.

The bookstore seemed like a literary safe haven for books and I appreciated how Zora put so much effort into helping young, local Black and Brown writers get their start. It really connected with me. This is a fast-paced novel that’s a page-turner and the characters, as well as Zora’s journey in love, were well-written. I can’t wait to see what McCoy will write next.

Final Verdict: