KCBR Blog

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 

Check out my spoiler-free review and read an excerpt from The Drummer's Heart by Penelope Ward.  This rock star romance is on my Best of 2025 list and total Kindle Crack!  This is a standalone/no cliffhanger. Read it using Kindle Unlimited on 2/23.  

Affiliate Pre-order Buy Links:

• Kindle: https://amzn.to/4kbx3yA
• Special Edition Paperback: https://amzn.to/3D1GorQ
• Amazon Paperback: https://amzn.to/4bhmyFU
• Audio: https://amzn.to/3EIa79F for the Feb 29th audio release with Angelina Rocca and Sebastian York narrating Atticus and Nicole's story.
• Bookshop.org Special Edition Hardback and Paperbacks! https://fave.co/4bgbgl1
• Barnes and Noble Special Edition: https://fave.co/41qfAuE
• Books-a-Million HARDCOVER SPECIAL EDITION: https://fave.co/4b7rs8l
• Walmart HARDCOVER https://fave.co/434WFa4

COVER CREDITS:

Cover Photography: © Wander Aguiar Photography

Cover Model: Jerrin Strenge

Cover Design: Letitia Hasser, RBA Designs

Don’t say her name.

That was the one rule my bandmates followed, because they knew how much it messed me up to think about her, especially on tour.

My ex, Nicole.

The one who got away and the woman who still owned every piece of my heart.

After our divorce, I threw myself into the rock scene, trying to forget my heartbreak.

Three years after we split, a phone call from Nicole changed everything.

She told me her grandmother wasn’t doing well.

Mimi was still family to me, and she apparently had one wish before dying: to spend time with us—Nicole and me.

With Mimi’s caretaker away on vacation, it would be the ideal time for us to move in with her for a couple of weeks.

Of course, I couldn’t refuse.

But there was a catch.

Nicole apparently never told her that we’d gotten a divorce.

She hadn’t believed Mimi could handle it, because her grandmother loved me so much.

So, not only would I have to see Nicole again, but I’d be pretending to still be her husband.

Two weeks in a tiny house in a small town with the woman who broke my heart. Or was it me who broke hers?

It was complicated.

And it was about to be a heck of a lot more complicated sharing one bed in the guest room with a woman who wasn’t mine anymore.

Spoiler-free review:

The Drummer's Heart by Penelope Ward
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was up until 4 a.m. binge-reading The Drummer’s Heart by Penelope Ward. This book was utterly addictive and unputdownable—I couldn’t stop even if I tried. It consumed me. A week later, I’m still dealing with a massive book hangover, and I can’t stop thinking about Atticus and Nicole and their hard-earned journey to finding themselves—and each other again.
We first met them in The Rocker’s Heart, the first book in this series of standalones. You don’t have to read The Rocker’s Heart before diving into The Drummer’s Heart (but you should because it’s also AMAZING). Atticus is officially my second-book husband, lol. Some readers fall for the MC and call them book boyfriends—well, Atticus is book husband-worthy. In my heart, he now stands beside Jake Green from Penelope’s Jake Undone/Jake Understood series. Books like The Drummer’s Heart are exactly why I love reading romance books. This story will pull on your heartstrings and never let go—or, in my case, my drumsticks (yes, I play too). The Drummer’s Heart has already secured a spot on my Best of 2025 list. Thank you for this incredible story, Penelope. This book is pure perfection!

Sneak Peek of The Drummer's Heart.

Copyright © 2024

By Penelope Ward

While she was out of the room, I prepared her coffee just the way she liked it. I’d nearly forgotten just how much I loved taking care of her. I felt nostalgic for a moment as I poured in just the right amount of sugar. But taking care of her wasn’t my job anymore. I couldn’t help enjoying these little moments of delusion, though, while I still had them. In less than two weeks, we’d be apart again, and I’d go back to my life without her. This time here would seem like a dream.

Nicole emerged again wearing a cute, floral dress that was almost worse than her shirt with no bra. It had a low neckline and her beautiful breasts were practically busting out of it. I had to wonder if she’d selected that outfit to torture me. She’d also sprayed on a fresh burst of Egyptian musk. I licked my lips.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize my not wearing underwear was that noticeable.” She looked down at her chest. “I’ll cover up from now on,” she said. But the glimmer in her eye told me she had no real intention of accommodating my request.

Okay. She’s definitely f*cking with me. “You drive me crazy,” I growled under my breath.

Suddenly, my attention was diverted to Mimi’s room. I heard voices. I narrowed my eyes. “Who the hell is here?”

“I don’t know.” Nicole walked down to her grandmother’s room as I followed.

There was a woman standing there talking to Mimi.

“Hi there.” She smiled. “I’m Lori McFadden. I live next door.”

“Oh…” Nicole tilted her head. “Hello.”

“I hope you don’t mind. Adele gave me a key a while back, and I check in on her from time to time. It’s good to see you both. She’s always talking about her granddaughter and grandson-in-law.”

“Aren’t they the most beautiful couple you’ve ever seen?” Mimi beamed.

Nicole looked over at me. I was still fired up by her little dress and wanted an excuse to touch her. I decided to play the part for a moment. “Thank you so much,” I said. “It’s our pleasure to be here with Mimi.” I wrapped my arm around Nicole, bringing her close. She flinched at first but then relaxed her body into mine.

I rubbed my thumb along her waist.

Nicole squirmed and cleared her throat. “I’m sorry if I seemed surprised to see you here, Lori. I didn’t realize she’d given anyone a key.”

“Only recently. Just in case her worker can’t be here or is running late. She has my number if she ever needs me.”

Nicole nodded. “Well, I appreciate that so much.”

I tightened my grip around her waist and pulled her closer. “We appreciate that.”

Nicole looked up at me; her face was beet red, and I f*cking loved it. I leaned in and kissed her softly on the forehead. Her eyes were still slightly closed when I pulled back to look at her. As much as I wanted to hang on, I let go and put her out of her misery.

Nicole couldn’t get away fast enough as she rushed past me through the kitchen and into the bedroom. She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. “Don’t do that again.”

My stomach sank. It hurt to hear her say that, even if I had crossed the line. “Don’t…what specifically?”

“Touch me.” She lowered her voice. “Don’t touch me again like that.”

That felt like a knife to the heart. “I thought we were pretending to be married,” I whispered. “Married people touch each other.”

Her chest heaved. “Yeah, well, I can’t handle that.”

“Your nipples can’t handle it, at least. They’re hard as f*cking rocks right now. It’s obvious why you don’t want me to touch you, Nicole. It isn’t that you can’t handle it. It’s that you like it. And you don’t want to like it.”

She looked down as her cheeks turned pinker by the second.

My voice was strained. “You tell me not to touch you. And yet you’re intentionally trying to torture me. That f*cking dress. You wore it on purpose because you knew it made your tits look so damn good. And you wanted me to suffer.”

Her gaze lifted to meet mine. “Maybe…”

“You don’t think I’m tortured enough? You put that damn dress on and tell me not to touch you?” I leaned in so she could feel what she was doing to me. “You get off on edging me?” As her breathing became heavier, I inched closer. “You don’t want me to touch you because it makes you feel things you’re trying not to feel? Is that what it is?”

She looked away. “I don’t know…”

I placed my hand on her chin, moving her face to look at me again. “You used to beg me to touch you.”

She licked her lips, and it made me yearn to do the same, to taste her again.

“For the record, Nicole, I will nevernot be yours to touch. Nor would I be able to pretend for a second that I don’t want you to touch me. You never have to ask permission.” My chest pressed into hers. “You were looking at me our first night here like you wantedto touch me. When I came out of the shower, I could see it in your eyes. Desire. You weren’t happy about it, but it was there. Tell me I’m wrong.”

When Penelope Ward showed me the cover for The Drummer's Heart a few weeks ago, my heart skipped a beat. I'm a drummer, and I approve. I can't wait to read this book on Feb 23rd! You can also read The Rocker's Muse FOR FREE for the next five days!   Both books are complete standalones.   The Drummer's Heart is available for pre-order and available on Kindle Unlimited. 

Buy Links: 

#affiliatelinks

Preorder Ebook Now: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DC4MHQ2M/

Special Edition Paperback The current paperback preorder is for the special-edition floral cover only. A model-cover paperback will be live on release day as well.: https://www.amazon.com/Drummers-Heart-Special-Penelope-Ward/dp/1959827812/

Audio (pre-order link available this Wednesday) for the Feb 29th audio release with Angelina Rocca and Sebastian York narrating Atticus and Nicole's story.

***Own the first standalone in the series, The Rocker’s Muse FREE for five days only!  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DF65ZC18/

What You Can Expect:

• ROCKSTAR HERO

• “MY WIFE”

• SMALL TOWN

• CLOSE  PROXIMITY

• SLOW BURN

• ONE BED

• SMALL TOWN

SYNOPSIS:

From New York Times bestselling author Penelope Ward comes a new, STANDALONE novel…

Don’t say her name.

That was the one rule my bandmates followed, because they knew how much it messed me up to think about her, especially on tour.

My ex, Nicole.

The one who got away and the woman who still owned every piece of my heart.

After our divorce, I threw myself into the rock scene, trying to forget my heartbreak.

Three years after we split, a phone call from Nicole changed everything.

She told me her grandmother wasn’t doing well.

Mimi was still family to me, and she apparently had one wish before dying: to spend time with us—Nicole and me.

With Mimi’s caretaker away on vacation, it would be the ideal time for us to move in with her for a couple of weeks.

Of course, I couldn’t refuse.

But there was a catch.

Nicole apparently never told her that we’d gotten a divorce.

She hadn’t believed Mimi could handle it, because her grandmother loved me so much.

So, not only would I have to see Nicole again, but I’d be pretending to still be her husband.

Two weeks in a tiny house in a small town with the woman who broke my heart. Or was it me who broke hers?

It was complicated.

And it was about to be a heck of a lot more complicated sharing one bed in the guest room with a woman who wasn’t mine anymore.

COVER CREDITS:

Cover Photography: © Wander Aguiar Photography

Cover Model: Jerrin Strenge

Cover Design: Letitia Hasser, RBA Designs