Annabelle Taylor works way too hard. She's close to reaching her career goals, but it has been at the expense of her personal life. What good is a corner office if you can't truly enjoy it? She has barely seen her family in a year, and she misses them dreadfully. Now she's home for the holidays, even though her smarmy boss gave her a bunch of crap about taking time off. She knew she was ready to take some time to wind down and relax, but what she didn't expect was the smoldering kiss beneath the mistletoe from long-time family friend, Rafe. She's known Rafe since they were kids, and has had a crush on him since she was twelve. Rafe had always thought of Belle as a little sister until five years ago at her law school graduation party, when he suddenly realized she had grown into a beautiful woman. Now he hopes there's room in Belle's life for him - forever.

To Do List starts out hot right out of the box, and then keeps getting hotter. Lauren Dane has a knack for making readers feel the passion and excitement of a new relationship. I love how Belle and Rafe are up front with each other about the attraction they've been feeling for a while. The dialog between them is inspired, as are the steamy fantasies they share with each other.

Belle is organized and goal-oriented. She's struggling with the idea of setting aside her professional goal, even though her current job is making her life miserable. She knows what she wants to do but it's hard for her to make what feels like an impulsive decision and a big change in her life. I think a lot of people can relate to that.

Rafe is the sweetest guy ever, so patient and understanding you just want to eat him up. To Do List is a story full of warmth and holiday family traditions, and it's easy to see why Lauren Dane is such a well-loved author. You'll definitely want to read this one.

5 Kisses, 1 Pepper

~Lindy
Reviewer, TwoLips Reviews, LLC
[...]

It had been almost a year since Belle had been home to see her family, but she was determined to spend Christmas with them away from the disillusionment she felt about her job and current life. She knew she had some serious decisions to make, but wanted to enjoy her family for just a little while. Belle hadn't had a life at all. She was working eighty hours a week with absolutely no friends or dates to take the pressure off.

Belle Taylor had always had a crush on Rafe Bettencourt since she was a little girl. They had been neighbors since before she had been born. Even now grown up as an attorney, she felt the same tug at her heart when she was near him. When she arrived home, her family was horrified at Belle's appearance. She had lost a lot of weight, looked overly tired, and had the darkest circles under her eyes. Rafe long considered family couldn't believe his eyes either. He had stopped thinking of her as simply family since she had graduated from law school, and decided this was the time to make sure she knew she was his. Rafe knew they had many issues to work out like the fact that they lived in two different towns, but he knew the time was right for them.

Good Christmas story. I liked both of the huge nosey overbearing families with deep connections to each other going back years. The romance between Belle and Rafe just further cemented the bond between those families.

Belle Taylor has spent the last year working eighty hour weeks without a single day off. It is now Christmas time and by God, she is going to visit her family for a week. She wants that corner office in the law firm in which she works but also wants to spend time with her family. When Rafe, her brother's best friend and the object of her late night fantasies since high school, kisses her under the mistletoe hanging in his hallway, Belle realizes that what she used to think was important, just might not be any longer.

Rafe Bettencourt has been in love with Belle since she graduated from law school. Finding himself in love with his best friend's baby sister is tough enough but Rafe has to compete with the lists and goals that Belle obsessively makes for herself. He needs to convince her that life with him would be way better than any list she could ever make.

To Do List was a new and fully anticipated experience for me. Lauren Dane is one of my favorite authors and I think this was the first totally contemporary romance that I have read written by her. To Do List made me giggle simply because I COULD HAVE BEEN Belle. Famous in my family for my lists, I so empathized with her need to be organized and loved how her quirkiness endeared her to Rafe. I simply loved Rafe because he loved Belle. His patience with her, even when he was dying for her to come to grips with their relationship, was appealing to me and I just simply desired him for my very own.

Readers used to reading Lauren Dane's outstanding fantasy and shape shifter novels need to give To Do List a try. I wholeheartedly adored it.

Talia
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Belle Taylor has her life carefully mapped out. She's been making goal oriented lists her entire life and never once has she failed to reach each milestone and feel a sense of accomplishment as she marks it off the `TO DO LIST.' For the first time ever her goal of a plush corner office and her name on the letterhead of the law firm where she's been working has her considering altering her plans. She's been working eighty hour weeks for the past year and Belle's just beginning to realize that the perks of her desired position may not be worth the sacrifices she's made.

Rafe Bettencourt, Belle's brother Brian's best friend, has been a longstanding friend of the family and the object of Belle's fantasies since she was twelve years old. It wasn't until five years ago that he began to view her as a desirable woman - before that she was simply Brian's little sister and a whole lot of fun to torment. Rafe's perfectly aware of Belle's anal retentive, control freak nature but that's a trait he's begun to find very alluring about her - there's nothing he'd like more than to strip her naked and make her lose control.

For the first time in a year, Belle has returned home to visit with her family for the holidays. She's thinner and paler than she had been on previous visits and everyone points out the fact that she's had no time for herself, family, or anything else that makes life worth living. Belle's perfectly aware of that fact but she's come so far and is so close to her goal - quitting now is simply inconceivable. Rafe proves to be a delightful distraction from her own troubles as he tempts her to be naughty with him. What better time to start up a little romance than Christmas and seeing as she'll be visiting for a full five days, he's determined to give her a good reason to make some adjustments to her `TO DO LIST.' Adjustments that include him, a happily ever after, and all the organizing and list making she could ever desire - as long as he can seduce her into giving up her `dreams' of success in San Francisco. Or had she already been coming to the conclusion that there's more to life than a corner office and empty apartment all on her own? Rafe just may provide that extra push she needs to take the leap of faith and move one of her long term goals up a few notches.

Lauren Dane will have readers smiling with this delightful tale of hope and promise. TO DO LIST captures Belle's single-minded pursuit of her dreams and her lists with humor and a little sadness. There's no doubt that she's well on her way to acquiring her goal, but she also realizes that it isn't worth giving up her `real' life to achieve and accepting that she isn't going to get to cross that goal off her list is difficult to accept. Rafe is willing to accept Belle exactly as she is - organized shoes and all - but he's also aware that the path she's on is a destructive and lonely one. Rather than try to tell her what she should do he presents her with feasible options which may make her happier. I had a great time reading TO DO LIST especially since I'm guilty of making these infamous lists myself. I loved the family aspect of this story and the way it makes you see that there are more important things in life than reaching every goal you set for yourself - there's health, family, love, and your own happiness.

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)