Thank you Netgalley and Harlequin - Romance | Harlequin Feature for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Instantly fell in love with this book when there was spice in the first 40 pages. Forbidden Games follows adjacent characters to the first book, Make Me. The book is split in to two parts. The first part follows Gideon and Lucy as they navigate arranging a marriage and accidentally falling in love. I absolutely love the concept that SHE needs the fake marriage for a promotion, a slight nod to gender role reversal. The second part follows Roman and Allie. Roman is trying nail Allie down for a business deal but just ends up nailing her on a tropical island. I really love Katee Roberts writing style throughout this book. I love a quick and spicy read with a fun little plot. A great palate cleanser!!

Katee Robert Novels are always a good time for me. They are a mix of real-life issues, spicy sex scenes and developing relationships. Forbidden Games is part two of the “Make Me” series consisting of “Make Me Want” and Make Me Crave. Two novels that discuss what happens when you get involved with the right person for all the wrong reasons.
In Make Me Want, Lucy and Gideon are two friends that find their way to each other after a very unorthodox request is made. Lucy is in need of a husband and also wants Gideon to give her lessons on how to please a man.
Make Me Crave on the other hand introduces Allie and business headhunter Roman. Roman is determined to give Allie the assistance for her slowly failing gym and women’s shelter the financial boost it needs. Allie on the other hand is very resistant to receiving that help. While on a vacation that Roman crashed they tumble into bed together while refusing to deal with the realities of their situation.
Both of these novels were fun reads that allowed me to connect with the main characters. Lucy and Gideon’s story especially stuck with me because I understand how it feels for friends to grapple with the guilt of knowing that my significant other was big trash but they didn’t know how to tell me.

The perfect stories for those days when you want short and steamy reads. Both are about friends who each are finding their own love story, plenty of smut and not too much plot which just worked perfectly.
My favorite part is being able to keep a straight face in public while Roman is going down on Allie or the amount of times Allie mentions how large his member is *smirk face*

Two quick and spicy stories in one and they were great. I will scream from the roof tops that Katee can do no wrong when it comes to romance!

Amazon and Barnes & Noble reviews submitted, pending systems approvals
Blog post goes live Feb 18th
Imgur graphic goes to instagram post for Feb 3rd

**TL;DR**: Quick and easy, mostly smut with little story.
**Source**: NetGalley, thank so much to the publisher!

**Plot**: The plots on both of these are basically people just finding the time and self worth for love, filled with a ton of smut.
**Characters**: I can’t give you many details on these guys, they felt very similar.
**Setting**: One of these was set on a vacation island and the other just around town - they felt about the same.
**Romance:** I can’t say I totally bought it? But I enjoyed seeing the characters fall in love/admit their love. ****

**Thoughts**:

It’s been a few days since I finished Forbidden Games by Katee Robert and honestly I can’t tell you a lot of details on this one already. This is a bind of two of Katee’s earlier works that I believe were part of the Harlequin Dare line. They’re fast reads, making this bind-up a very fast read, and they’re fun though seemingly forgettable.

One story follows a woman who is seeking help finding a husband and help becoming better in the bedroom. She turns to an old friend, the one who broke up her and her ex, revealing his cheating to her. The second story follows another friend of our first pair as he attempts to buy a gym from a woman who wants nothing to do with him. He follows her to a tropical island vacation and they hit it off.

These go exactly how you might expect. Katee Robert’s characters are always fairly mature and open which is refreshing, but it’s definitely more smut forward than story. So while I enjoyed the characters and their journeys, I do wish there was more but I also recognize that’s just not the goal on these. It’s a fun fast read and if you like Katee you’ll likely enjoy this collection.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

These were all great. Super quick and easy read with great spice. If people wanted to try Katee Robert books before starting one of her big series, I would recommend this collection.

Forbidden Games by Katie Robert

4.5 ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and Katee Robert for providing me this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts!

I have never read a single book where there was 2 interconnected stories within but I surprisingly enjoyed this one! I really enjoyed reading about Lucy and Gideon’s encounters and loved the ending! This was a very quick paced reading yet Katee Robert’s always does a great job in ensuring her books have a captivating storyline.


Tropes:
- Enemies to Lovers
- Work Rivals
- Friends to Lovers

Forbidden Games by Katee Robert is a sizzling, high-stakes romance that grabs you from the start and doesn’t let go. Set in a world of dark family secrets, forbidden desires, and intense chemistry, the story follows two characters caught in a dangerous game they can’t seem to escape. Robert knows how to deliver on tension, steam, and raw emotion, making every page feel charged with anticipation. If you’re into slow-burn romances with a mix of danger, passion, and complex dynamics, this one will hit all the right notes. An addictive, unputdownable read! 🔥 #ForbiddenGames #KateeRobert #Romance

Forbidden Games is formed from 2 previously published novellas from Robert's "Make Me" Series. It's the combo of Make Me Want and Make Me Crave. In Make Me Want- we have the story of Gideon and Lucy. It's a friends to lovers story. Lucy is a lawyer who lacks the self confidence she used to have and is trying to get that back. Gideon is a smoking hot confidence coach (ironic huh?). He also just so happens to be Lucy's ex boyfriend's best friend. They have very intense chemistry and watching their romance unfold is amazing. In Make me Crave- we get the story of Allie and Roman. Allie is a gym owner and meets Roman on a vacation as perfect strangers, It just so happens that Roman is an investor and the two of them are actually business rivals. The mixing business with pleasure element is in full effect and makes it great. Loved it.

These are two steamy, satisfying romances in a collection of novellas perfect for quick reads. In "Make Me Want," a determined lawyer, Lucy seeks confidence lessons from Gideon, her ex’s best friend. Their chemistry ignites, leading to an unforgettable love story. "Make Me Crave" follows Allie, a gym owner whose vacation fling with Roman, an investor, turns complicated when they discover their business rivalry. Tropes like friends-to-lovers, enemies-to-lovers, and close proximity are woven with emotional depth and spice. Both novellas are compelling, with well-developed characters and sizzling romance, for fans of fast-paced, trope-filled romances.

Forbidden Games by Katee Robert was a perfect quick and easy read with enough spice to keep you wanting more! I really enjoyed this book and am excited to read more from her! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.

Two interconnected stories with all steam, angst, and yearning. I loved that even though the stories connected, they were still different enough to feel like two distinct books that stand on their own. Lots of spice, yearning, and great dialog.

2 quick and spicy stories in one and they were amazing!
They are short and fast and steamy and were easy to get into and enjoy.
Katee Robert is an auto buy for me, I have loved every book they have written and was so excited when I received an arc of this title!
Now I need the other two!

I devoured this book! It is classic Katee Robert, and I loved every minute of it. The character depth and level of spice was epic. I couldn't put it down. She has a way with word and her descriptive nature makes for an entertaining read. I was so happy to get this book because I am a fan of Robert's work. I can't wait to read more. I highly recommend this to the romance readers. Just warning the spice is hot!

Thank you Net Galley ARC, Harlequin Romance/Feature, and Katee Robert

This book is two previously published novellas from the Make Me series in one. In Make Me Want, Gideon fell for Lucy at first sight, but unfortunately his best friend got to her first. After years of mental abuse from Jeff, she finds out from Gideon that Jeff has been cheating on her. It's been two years since she's seen Gideon, but she needs his help. As a headhunter in New York, he has connections and she needs a husband fast in order to get a promotion. He has to find a way to convince her to choose him instead.
In Make Me Crave Allie's best friend finally convinces her to take a vacation from her women centered gym and shelter. When a stranger kayaks onto her island, they have a crazy night before they realize they're not strangers after all. Can they keep their business complications behind and enjoy a great vacation?
Of the two, I loved Gideon and Lucy best, but I liked the vacation atmosphere of the second book. Both books had plenty of spice and romance and a great story.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Katee sure does know how to pack a punch when it comes to her spicy level in books.

This is book 2 of 2. This is two separate short stories that interconnect. Illicit Temptations should be ready first!

This book features Lucy, a lawyer, who is trying to find her husband. Here comes Gideon to come and help her with this. Gideon just so happens to be her ex husbands friend.

The chemistry between Lucy and Gideon was off the charts!

The next story features Gideons friends Allie and Roman. These two meet on a vacation, have a one night stand, then meet at work. It's a classic done is a stunning way!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!

Not my favorite work by Katee Robert… This is two books in one. The first book, Make Me Want and the second, Make Me Crave. They were both shorter reads and spicy so there was that. I didn’t really feel like I connected with either couple from either book…. Both relationships seemed kinda superficial.

It is a cute steamy romance novel.

The characters are flawed and have fears but through a healthy relationship and honest talks they find love and lots of sex.

I did enjoy the showings of all the green flags in relationships. How you should be treated, should feel, how it’s okay to be insecure and you don’t have to always apologize, and how a healthy relationship is about trust and communication.

It was a very cute novel with lots of healthy relationships which I loved.

I was so excited to get this ARC from NetGalley/Harlequin since I've been going through Katee Robert's backlist. I would recommend reading this before Illicit Temptations since these two stories take place before those ones. In the first part, Lucy hires Gideon to headhunt a husband for a marriage of convenience. She also has a fling with him as a way to get back in the saddle after a bad breakup. The chemistry between these two was hot from the get-go, and I couldn't get enough. The second part, follows Allie and Roman in a business-turned-pleasure vacation. This was a fun, spicy beach read. Both couples had miscommunication, but we were able to see enough character develop that I was really invested in seeing the resolutions. Katee Robert remains one of my automatic "add to wishlist" authors.

I've said it before and I will keep saying it: if Katee writes it, I will read it and that absolutely includes gruff millionaires and workplace romances and books filled with heat and heart in equal measure.

Make Me Want: bedroom lessons? say less
Make Me Crave: give me no strings attached vacation shenanigans all day every day but oops the shenanigans' become feelings, oh no!