Book Details
Author: Sarah Monzon
Title: Bookmarked for Love
Series: Checking Out Love #3
Release Date: July 21, 2026
Genre: Fiction / Romance
Publisher: Bethany House Publishing
What the Book is About: ( Tagline & Blurb)
Can a jeopardized children’s library program spark a partnership that saves their careers but costs them their hearts?
When children’s librarian Martha Aldridge learns about budget cuts that will not only put her out of a job but also shut down the library’s children’s programs, she’s determined to raise the funds needed to save both. The good news is, she knows just who to ask for a large donation on the library’s behalf. The bad news? She swore she’d never step foot in his office again.
Julien King has been groomed to one day run his family’s publishing empire, and now he must prove he’s ready to take the helm by turning around the company’s languishing children’s imprint. That wouldn’t be a problem, except he doesn’t know the first thing about children’s literature. So when Martha waltzes into his office, he sees an opportunity and makes her an offer she can’t refuse. He’ll give her the money she needs for the library in exchange for her help in acquiring a bestselling manuscript that will resurrect the dying imprint. The longer they’re forced to work together, however, the more they come to realize their jobs may not be the only thing on the line.
Get your copy here!
https://bakerbookhouse.com/products/9780764243769_bookmarked-for-love
Getting to Know the Author:
Winner of the Holt Medallion and Selah Award, Sarah Monzon is a stay-at-home mom who makes up imaginary friends to have adult conversations with (otherwise known as writing novels). As a navy chaplain’s wife, she resides wherever the military happens to station her family and enjoys exploring the beauty of the world around her.
My Impressions
“The high-rise linen pants with the bow belt and cream-colored wrap top with a cinched waist make me look the part of a publishing gatekeeper, but really, I’m just a backwoods girl with a love of books and not enough formal education to keep her job.”
Sigh! Finding the storyline of Bookmarked for Love by Sarah Monzon was like finding a lost treasure. I don’t watch many movies, but Bookmarked for Love, as it tells the romance of the third Little Creek, TN, librarian, is a retelling of Sabrina. Be still, my heart!! To make my experience even richer, I tried listening to the book I purchased on Audible along with the kindle ebook I purchased. What a double treat the reading/listening combination was! I navigated through the book at a quick rate, alternating between swooning and laughing.
Julien King was the rich, much older boy next door that the groundskeeper’s daughter, Martha Aldridge, develops a crush on from a distance. Now, years have passed, and Martha has bravely approached publishing giant King Enterprises (where she finds Julien standing in for his father, the elder Mr. King) to support her library children’s programs that are about to undergo budget cuts.
Julien agrees, but on the condition that Martha freelance for him as he tries to salvage Squire, the children’s publishing imprint of King Publishing. As Martha and Julien work together, they are both surprised at the history that crops up between them and try to ignore the draw they feel for the other. “…he seemed powerless to extinguish the spark that ignited whenever they interacted.” Yet, though this is America and not England, there are constant reminders that they belong to different worlds.
I loved that there is a plus-sized female main character who is considered beautiful. I was happy to see that though some couldn’t see beyond the fact that she wasn’t a size 4, Martha has long since realized she can be happy as she is. She is comfortable with her body. Happiness goes beyond a number on the scale.
I loved the pond scene and the bracelets explanation. We begin to see the formation of an easy, deep friendship that has actually had roots in their youth, and lay dormant, waiting years for circumstances to awaken and develop even further.
I also loved how the trio of librarians have become really close and support each other as only best friends do.
What will happen as Martha and Julien face their feelings? Any thoughts of a future between them are met with enough roadblocks to make a high skyscraper.
Monzon does a wonderful job of retelling Sabrina. I also enjoyed the pop-culture references. Discussion questions at the back help make the novel suitable for a bookclub.
I received a copy of the novel from JustReads via NetGalley. I also bought my own ebook and Audible versions. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.
Notable Quotables:
“He’d been practically carrying around a piece of her for most of his life, and he’d never even realized it.”
“…sometimes looking at a problem from a different angle opens our eyes to avenues we weren’t aware of before.”
“Happily-ever-after isn’t the destination. It’s the journey.”
My Rating
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Such a gem of a book! For me, I visualized Sabrina in all its wonder and romance all over again in a fresh setting.
Your Turn
What makes Bookmarked for Love earn a space on your TBR? Tell me in the comments!
Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions 