KCBR Blog

Crooked by Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward needs to be your next book purchase.  Crooked is straight-up addictive. Pure #ViPen magic. I loved it so much that I actually listened to the audiobook — which was a first for me! Check out my spoiler-free review.

Synopsis

A new, sexy standalone from New York Times Bestsellers Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward

The last thing I needed was a live-in bodyguard. And I definitely didn’t want him. Six foot two, with broad shoulders that were impossible to ignore and a talent for getting in my way, Wes Callahan was a walking bad decision.

But when you’re the daughter of a notorious mob boss, apparently your opinions stop mattering the moment your father ignites another war. I’d spent my entire life trying to escape that crooked world—new name, new city, newfound freedom. At least until I was suddenly shacked up with my new bodyguard.

Wes knew exactly how to push my buttons. He was also infuriatingly protective. And smart. And funny. And thoughtful when he thought I wasn’t paying attention. Little by little, the walls I’d built started to crack, and falling for the bodyguard became the most dangerous thing I’ve ever done. Because if my father found out, Wes wouldn’t just lose his job. He’d lose his life.

Getting involved with him was reckless, yet I couldn’t find a way to stop it, no matter how hard I tried. But while I was busy losing my heart, the man who took it was hiding a secret.

And it turned out, the most dangerous man in my life wasn’t my father after all—it was the one who threatened to break my heart.

Crooked features TWO stunning paperback covers, will be available in Kindle Unlimited, and has a simultaneous audiobook release! 

 ✔️ Live-in bodyguard

 ✔️ Mob boss’s daughter

 ✔️ Forced proximity

 ✔️ Forbidden attraction

Amazon: https://amzn.to/45Q5CEO

Alt cover: https://amzn.to/4koxCph 

Audio: https://amzn.to/41gbtkh

Crooked by Vi Keeland
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward announced their first mafia romance, I knew I had to get my hands on it. These two have co-written some of my favorite romances, so seeing them step into the “darker” mafia bodyguard world with Crooked immediately had my attention.   I knew this book wasn’t going to be your typical mafia dark romance.  It’s Vi a Penelope, so you know this book is going to be a sexy and fun one-of-a-kind adventure.  

Juliette is the daughter of a notorious mafia boss with a target on her head.  Her father assigns Wes, one of his men, to become her live-in bodyguard to protect her full-time.  Wes has his own secrets and skeletons in his closet to deal with. Juliette wasn’t happy about her new house super hot guest —until she wasn’t.
Crooked delivers that perfect Vi-Pen blend of the feels, tension, humor, and heat, with a dangerous mafia edge that makes everything feel more intense. The chemistry and banter between Wes and Juliette were so addictive. I loved these characters so much that I finally busted my audiobook cherry and WOW. Hearing Wes and Juliette’s characters come to life took this story to a whole new level.  Great, I think I have a new audio book obsession thanks to these two.

Crooked is worthy of date night with a book. Reading Crooked wasn’t just another romance book—it was a full-on reader experience.  Crooked is easily on my top reads of 2026 romance book list. 

 

The Exception by Vi Keeland is exceptional. Check out my spoiler-free review of the sweet and sexy romance.  This book made me forget the world. Download The Exception now using Kindle Unlimited.

Title: The Exception

Author: Vi Keeland

Genre: Standalone Contemporary Romance

Tropes: Boss/Intern, Dominant Hero, Billionaire

Release Date: January 11, 2026

BLURB

He lives by a set of rules. She might be his one exception.

I just wanted a distraction, something to take the edge off before facing a wedding I was dreading. So on the flight back to New York, I signed up for a dating app. Harmless enough, right?

Wrong.

Turns out, it wasn’t just any app—it catered to people with very specific tastes. By the time I realized it, I was already on my date.

Tall, confident, and sinfully handsome, Jagger Langston seemed like the full package. The chemistry between us was instant—electric enough to burn the whole city down. Though things took a turn when we figured out I’d misunderstood who should join the app. We laughed it off, said goodbye, and went our separate ways.

Or so I thought.

Until I walked into my new internship Monday morning, ready to put the weekend behind me, and there he was—my boss.

Now I’m caught between the rules he lives by—and the temptation to make him break every single one of them.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/243784977-the-exception 

BOOKBUB LINK: https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-exception-by-vi-keeland 

Kindle https://amzn.to/47EHcQ2

Audio: https://amzn.to/4nZnqU1

Paperback: https://amzn.to/47N7ONp

PURCHASE LINKS

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/47EHcQ2
Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/4otS0Gw
Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/4nLuzax
Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3LrK4XU

Free in Kindle Unlimited

Also available in audio + print

Narrated by Sebastian York and Andi Arndt 
Audio: https://amzn.to/4nZnqU1
Special Edition Paperback: https://amzn.to/47N7ONp

Spoiler-free Review of The Exception by Vi Keeland 

The Exception by Vi Keeland
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Exception by Vi Keeland was truly exceptional — a little kink, a lot of laughs, plenty of tension, and just the right amount of the feels to make you forget the world for a while. This workplace, opposites-attract romance is everything.

Sutton is a smart and sassy algorithm expert who meets Jagger on a dating app called DARE. They figure out pretty quickly that Sutton isn’t into Jagger’s brand of fun. They part ways until her internship begins. Enter Jagger: Sutton’s spicy, demanding new boss who will have you swooning from page one.

I also adored Sutton’s best friend, Miles. Everyone needs a Miles in their life. His banter with Sutton about Jagger is hysterical. He’s the ultimate best friend: loyal, chaotic in the best possible way, and the comedic relief we all need.
I would share my favorite quotes, but I don’t want to spoil the fun for you.

The Exception, releasing January 11, 2026, is another unputdownable and addictive romance from Vi. It has officially earned a spot on my Best of 2025/26 list.

AUTHOR BIO

Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria, Israel, and Hungary. Three of her short stories have been turned into films by Passionflix, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.

AUTHOR LINKS

Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/vi.keeland 

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Vi-Keeland/435952616513958 

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ViKeelandFanGroup 

Website: http://www.vikeeland.com 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@vikeeland 

Instagram: http://instagram.com/Vi_Keeland 

X: https://x.com/ViKeeland 

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6887119.Vi_Keeland

Denim & Diamonds by Penelope Ward AND Vi Keeland is LIVE and available on Kindle Unlimited.  I absolutely loved this standalone opposites-attract small-town romance.  Check out my spoiler-free review.

Buy Links: 

Amazon US: https://bit.ly/44g41GF

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/4luY2VH

Amazon CA: https://amzn.to/3ZPdfs7

Amazon AU: https://amzn.to/3T9zipO

Audio: https://adbl.co/45HhQ3w

Paperback (Alternative cover): https://amzn.to/3I0a22T

Bookshop.org https://fave.co/3J3YvzT

Affiliate

Synopsis:

From New York Times bestselling authors Penelope Ward and Vi Keeland comes a new standalone romance. When the board of directors of my company mandated that I go to a wellness facility in small-town Maine to recharge, that shouldn’t have included:

1.) Using a ladder to sneak out of the bedroom window at night and going to the local bar.

2.) Getting so drunk that the bar owner brought me upstairs to sleep it off in his bed.

3.) Waking up staring at the taxidermy moose head on said bar owner’s wall.

4.) Falling for said bar owner who was the most drop-dead gorgeous man I’ve ever seen.

But Brock Hawkins was so much more than just the hot bar owner. He owned half the town, built log cabins with his bare hands, and was apparently the most eligible man in all of Meadowbrook.

He was also a cinnamon roll despite his seemingly rock-hard exterior.

And the last man I should’ve been falling for—because my time in this small town was limited.

I had to head back to my life in New York City, one that was the complete opposite from the kind Brock lived.

He was denim. I was diamonds.

The problem was, the sexy lumberjack wasn’t the type of man who was easy to walk away from. Hell, I couldn’t even part with his plaid shirt that had become a constant fixture wrapped around my shoulders most days, let alone think about erasing him from my life.

A life with Brock, though, would have to be all or nothing.

Go big or go home.

 Spoiler-free review

PENELOPE WARD

Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal bestselling author of contemporary romance.

She grew up in Boston with five older brothers and spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor. Penelope resides in Rhode Island with her husband, son, and beautiful daughter with autism. 

With millions of books sold, she is a 21-time New York Times bestseller and the author of over thirty novels. Her books have been translated into over a dozen languages and can be found in bookstores around the world.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/penelopewardauthor 

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/PenelopesPeeps 

Website: http://www.penelopewardauthor.com 

Instagram: http://instagram.com/PenelopeWardAuthor 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@penelopewardofficial 

X: https://twitter.com/PenelopeAuthor 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7105545.Penelope_Ward 

VI KEELAND

Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times, #1 Wall Street Journal, and USA Today Bestselling author. With millions of books sold, her titles are currently translated in twenty-seven languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in the US, Germany, Brazil, Bulgaria and Hungary. Three of her short stories have been turned into films by Passionflix, and two of her books are currently optioned for movies. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.

Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/vi.keeland 

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Vi-Keeland/435952616513958 

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ViKeelandFanGroup 

Website: http://www.vikeeland.com 

Instagram: http://instagram.com/Vi_Keeland 

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@vikeeland 

X: https://twitter.com/ViKeeland 

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6887119.Vi_Keeland 

Someone Knows by Vi Keeland is LIVE.  An English professor’s deadly past comes back to haunt her in this chilling and sexy thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Vi Keeland. Check out my spoiler-free review of Someone Knows.

Synopsis:

As a college English professor, Elizabeth looks forward to the start of each new semester teaching her creative writing seminar. At least until she reads chapter one of The Reckoning, a tale about a high school senior who has an affair with her teacher. To anyone else it would be the beginning of a great page-turner, but to Elizabeth it is the beginning of the end.

She knows this story. It’s all familiar because she lived it. The girl in the story was her best friend Jocelyn, and Elizabeth knows exactly how the story will end—with the teacher dead. Because she was the one who killed him.

Someone knows what Elizabeth did twenty years ago and her secret is about to be exposed, but who is the mystery student submitting the chapters? In an effort to find out, Elizabeth returns to her Louisiana hometown where it soon becomes clear that no matter how many years have gone by, she can’t escape her past.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3YwhGGK

Apple Books: https://apple.co/3YIu3ku

BAM: https://fave.co/3YNCb3f

B&N: https://fave.co/3YIPemu

Bookshop: https://fave.co/4f4fw8x

Spoiler-free Review of Someone Knows

Bramble Publishing's first never-before-published title from #1 New York Times bestseller Vi Keeland is Jilted, a slow-burn, swoon-worthy romance where 27 Dresses meets The Hating Game. Jilted by Vi Keeland is releasing on May 6th! Check out my spoiler-free review.

Download an extended preview of Jilted for FREE https://books2read.com/Jilted-Vi-Keeland

Blurb:

Weddings. I spend every working minute thinking and talking and writing about weddings, when the very concept makes me want to scream. After my fiancé abandoned me at the altar last year, my dream job at Bride magazine has turned reoccurring nightmare.

To add insult to injury, I’ve been conscripted into the bridal party of some bridezilla just because she knows the owners’ son. So of course I spend all afternoon bickering with one of the groomsmen and all evening making out with him.

Things only get better when I learn that of course he’s the owner’s son and I’ll have to spend the rest of the season working with him at every single wedding I cover this year.

Can the jilted bride and the man who is afraid of love find a way to heal each other?

Pre-order now: