Review: Princes of Chaos by Angel Lawson & Samantha Rue

PRINCES OF CHAOS
Series
: Royals of Forsyth University #7
Genre: Dark Romance
Author: Angel Lawson & Samantha Rue
Release Date: May 31,  2023

“Tonight embarks your journey as the vessel for the next great heir. Any woman can have a womb, but yours has been chosen.” He steps forward and presses a hand to my stomach. “Blessed.”

When I received the invitation to the Princes’ masked ball, I assumed it was a mistake. Possibly a prank. Why would East End Royalty invite West End trash for an opportunity to become their Princess?

The bigger question: Why would I take it?

I was raised to be the Dukes’ Duchess, but that dream came to an end when they chose a different woman. I had everything it took to be a house girl, including my innocence, something the Princes not only hold in high regard, but explicitly require.

It’s not the title that scares me.

It’s the men who have been chosen by the King. His adoptive sons.

Whitaker would fit the textbook image of Prince Charming to everyone but me. Gorgeous, athletic, and obnoxiously promiscuous, it only takes a few days as his Princess to realize the flirtatiousness in his eyes is a mask for what’s haunted beneath.

Believing me to be responsible for the two years he’s spent in prison, Pace harbors a grudge that’s as unyielding as his determination to know my every move. Even when he’s locked himself away, his eyes are everywhere. Watching. Waiting.

Lex, a moody, high-strung student on a straight shot to become a gifted surgeon, would rather have me under his scalpel than his body. Treating me like the subject of his experiment with fertilization is the closest I’ll come to having him as a lover.

These three have been trained to excel, endure, and maim, be it on in the hockey rink or down in the Palace’s dungeon. But most of all, they are Princes with one duty: to produce the next heir.

To Create is to Reign.

Princes of Chaos is book 7 in the contemporary, dark, reverse harem, traumatic romance, Royals of Forsyth U series by best-selling authors, Angel Lawson and Samantha Rue. Please read the foreword for all content warnings and details.

AMAZON 

The Prince might not belong to his Princess, but his dick sure as hell does.

My god. How is it possible that this series only keeps getting better? You would think that 7 books in, this would start to get formulaic. But it’s not even close. If anything, this was even better than the lords and dukes, and I LOVED those trilogies.

First of all, if you’re planning to read this without first reading the other books in this series, don’t. You will be completely lost. This is not a series that is meant to be read out of order. It’s a saga that has a continuing story arc. Each house getting three books. So far we got The Lords, The Dukes, and now the long awaited Princes.

Admittedly I wasn’t sure about this installment because I’m not huge on the breeding kink. And considering the entire purpose of the Princes is to knock up their reigning Princess, well, I dunno. But I trust the process so in I dove. And nothing, and I mean nothing, would prepare me for the level of obsession that would begin with this story.

We were molded to hurt, cut, and deceive, but no matter how much Father hoped it’d be against each other, it never has been. We made that pact years ago. In blood. In darkness. In agony. We’re a Cerberus–three heads, one heart.

Now if you’ve read this series than you’re already bracing yourself to hate to love the 3 MMCs. But these three? They blow the Dukes and Lords out of the water with their brand of vicious. Wicker, Pace, and Lex were on a whole other level of fucked up. The three adopted sons of the head of their house, the relationship with their father is contentious at best. And it becomes even more so when he blindsides them with his announcement making them the three new Princes.

You’ll remember the heroine as one of the most memorable secondary characters from The Dukes and the daughter of the house mother. This girl has a spine of steel and the things she survives are also on a whole other level. Nothing prepares her for the hell her Princes will rain on her.

This book was easily the darkest of the series. There was no redeeming factors to these men yet. None. And I for one cannot wait to see how they redeem themselves in the next one. Because the ending here was brutal to say the least. And I thought the frat scene in Lords of Pain was bad. WOW.

My only problem? Surviving until the next installment. This wait will be pure hell and October can’t get here soon enough.

 

 

#DGRFave & Review: A Ship of Bones and Teeth by Karina Halle

A SHIP OF BONES AND TEETH
Genre: 
Fantasy Romance
Author: Karina Halle
Release Date: May 25, 2023

A STANDALONE gothic dark fantasy pirate romance re-telling of The Little Mermaid from the New York Times Bestselling Author of River of Shadows and Blood Orange .

Princess Maren is a woman with a secret.
 
When she was just 16-years old, she sold her soul to the sea witch Edonia, giving up a life underwater in exchange for the love of Prince Aerik on land. But after a decade of abuse and misery inflicted by the cruel prince, Maren wants nothing more than to leave him and her royal role behind and find Edonia to reverse the spell.
 
An opportunity for escape presents itself when the prince and princess are traveling overseas and are taken hostage by a band of notorious pirates, led by the fearsome Captain Ramsay “Bones” Battista.
 
Maren has heard the sordid stories about the infamous pirate–not only is his ship supposedly haunted and crewed by the damned, but that no prisoners ever survive. Fortunately for Maren, she learns that the captain also has a score to settle with the sea witch. With any luck, Maren may be able to get her old life back, even if it’s being held in the captain’s wicked hands.
 
But Ramsay gets more than he bargained for when he learns who–and what –Maren is, and that her appetite for revenge, freedom, and bloodlust rivals his.
 
Meanwhile Maren finds herself falling for the pirate’s dark nature, even as she discovers that Ramsay has a secret more deadly than her own.

When it comes to the high seas, not all monsters lurk beneath the surface.

Content Though this is a fantasy, it is also a dark romance with potential triggers. A full list can be found inside the book or on the pinned cover reveal post on IG (authorhalle)
 

AMAZON 

“You are a stunning abyss of a creature,” I tell her. “One that I could spend eons swimming in and never get to the bottom of.”

I’m going to make a bold statement right now. But this book? Hands down my favorite read of 2023 so far! Holy book crack, batman! This was a page turner that I never wanted to end.

I have been salivating for this book ever since Karina announced it. I mean, Pirates of the Caribbean meets Little Mermaid? Yes please and thank you. And did this meet my high expectations? Heck no! It blew them out of the water. I am shooketh. SHOOKETH I tell you.

Maren is a syren (mermaid) who dreams of a different life. When she sees a prince on the shore, she dreams of a life among humans. And when a witch offers her the chance, she’s not prepared for the soul crushing decision she makes. Because her prince turns out to be nothing more than a monster. And her salvation just might be at the hands of a ruthless pirate who takes her and her husband captive.
You’re a monster!” she says to me, struggling against me, but I quickly pull her arms up over her head, securing them with the rope that I’ve already attached to my waist. Can’t be too careful now.
“A monster?” I repeat, pressing my body against hers until she can’t even move an inch. “Tell me more, darling. I always fancy a compliment.”

Captain Ramsay “Bones” Battista is everything my bookish dreams are made of. He’s a touch ruthless, revenge seeking pirate who happens to have a dirty mouth of a sailor (ha! see what I did there) and a possessive and protective streak that runs deep, even for his captured princess.

This story was a non stop, action packed ride that honestly unraveled like a movie reel behind my eyes. The world building, the characters, the romance, it was everything. Pirates, kraken, sirens, sea witches, and so much more filled the pages. I was so obsessed and I still can’t stop thinking about it. If you’re looking for something unique, unforgettable, and completely unputdownable, look no further.

#DGRFave & Review: Liars Like Us by J.T. Geissinger

LIARS LIKE US
Series:
Morally Gray #1
Genre: 
Contemporary Romance
Author: J.T. Geissinger
Release Date: May 25, 2023

A young woman on the verge of bankruptcy.
 
A mysterious billionaire with an offer that will change her life.
 
An obsession so powerful, it could destroy them both.

Sex
Lies
Secrets
Passion

What Callum McCord wants, he takes.
 
No matter what he has to do to get it.

~~~~~~~~~~

Author’s note: Liars Like Us is a standalone marriage of convenience romance with an obsessive & possessive morally gray hero and spicy bedroom scenes intended for mature readers only.
 

AMAZON 

You’re something much better than beautiful. And when we’re married, I’ll tell you what it is.”
The queen of sass and banter is back with a vengeance with a new series that will set your kindle on fire and make your ovaries tinge! When I tell you I devoured this book, I mean I devoured this book. I couldn’t put it down and read it in one sitting with a ridiculous grin on my face the entire time.

If there’s one thing that JT always delivers, it’s amazing characters. She brings uber alphas, sassy heroines, and all the banter. Now the thing with the sass is it’s not easy to pull off. It can be over the top, annoying or brash when not done right. But Geissinger hits it out of the park each and every single time.
I say drily, “If you think that was interesting, wait until I tell you what he said to me in the car after the ceremony.”
“What?”
“That he wanted to spank my p*ssy until I squirted on his hand.”
After a moment of silence, Dani breathes, “There is a God.”

I loved everything about this book, starting from the friendships, to the romance, and to the surprise cameos (OMG the cameos!). Wait until you get to this plot twist. This woman’s mind is brilliant the way she brings everything together.

This is a marriage of convenience with a layer of suspense and man oh man did I love it.

Emery is a down on her luck business owner who is facing bankruptcy and having to close her family’s bookstore because of a string of bad luck and a competitor next door. Enter Callum, mysterious billionaire that needs a wife for his inheritance and offers her the deal of a life time. Only Emery is no pushover and she makes the man WORK to take him seriously. I loved that about her. This is no push over and even when facing bankruptcy and failure, she never loses her spark and tenacity.
That dress is incredible.”
“Oh, this old thing? I bought it with your ridiculous limitless credit card at some fancy boutique in Beverly Hills where the salespeople looked at me as if I’d given birth to Satan’s scaly, forked-tongue baby and was dragging it around by its bloody umbilical cord. So charming, those boutique ladies. They made me feel as if suicide was my only viable option.”

Of course in typical Geissinger fashion everything is not as it seems but that’s a whole experience so enjoy the ride spoiler free. Trust me.
His heated gaze rakes over my breasts. “Careful, wife.”
“No, you be careful. Because if you think you married a pushover, think again.”
“I know exactly who I married,” he says softly, his eyes piercing. “Do you?”
“Yes. A psychopath with too much money, too little patience, and too much
confidence for his own good.”

All I will tell you is that I’m practically vibrating in fingerling glee that this is the first in a series and we’re getting more. Because this set up? Delicious. Absolutely dellcious.

If you’re looking for a wild and sexy romp with plenty of witty banter, suspense, and heat, look no further. This is what they mean when they say book crack. This book was everything and entirely too addictive. I can’t wait for more in this series!

 

J.T. Geissinger is a #1 international and Amazon Charts bestselling author of thirty novels. Ranging from funny, feisty romcoms to intense erotic thrillers, her books have sold over ten million copies worldwide and been translated into more than twenty languages.

She is a three-time finalist in both contemporary and paranormal romance for the RITA® Award, the highest distinction in romance fiction from the Romance Writers of America®. She is also a recipient of the Prism Award for Best First Book, the Golden Quill Award for Best Paranormal/Urban Fantasy, and the HOLT Medallion for Best Erotic Romance.

 

Connect with J.T. Geissinger

Website: www.jtgeissinger.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5865943.J_T_Geissinger

Amazon: http://amzn.to/1xQN4za

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

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1546609172103644

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jtgeissingerauthor

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

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/j-t-geissinger

Text BOOK to 844-946-2079

 

DGRFave & Review: For The Fans by Nyla K

FOR THE FANS
Genre: MM Romance
Author: Nyla K
Release Date:
February 23, 2023

Kyran Harbor is everything I’m not.

Rich. Popular. A superstar football player who’s awfully broody for someone who has it all. Basically, he’s a preppy jock who hates me. Oh, and he’s also my stepbrother.

That’s right. We’re stuck together, sharing a school, a house… A bathroom. Honestly, I wouldn’t care… If he wasn’t such an uptight control-freak who messes with me just because we’re different.

I had every intention of avoiding him when we got to college… Until abrupt misfortune forces us both into a compromising position.

Now the grouchy jerk I was hoping to evade might be the only person who can help me out of it.

Avi Vega is everything I despise.

A dreamer. A flake. An artist who smokes too much weed and thinks aliens exist. And by some sick cosmic joke, he’s now my stepbrother, following me on what should’ve been my escape plan.

It was already a disaster. Add a sudden financial disruption to the mix, and let’s just say my options are heavily limited.

If I want to stay an all-star quarterback on the way to the NFL, I’ll need to do something drastic. Unfortunately for me, and my desperate desire for control, the perpetually smiling stoner has a plan.

Maybe we can stop hating each other just enough to pull this off. As long as we remember we’re only doing it… for the fans.

** For The Fans is a full-length standalone MM forbidden romance with an HEA. This book contains sensitive subject matter that could make some readers uncomfortable. Please heed foreword warnings and proceed with caution.

AMAZON

This is for the fans, right?”
He nods again. “For the fans.”
Moaning softly, he whispers, “Suck on my ear.”
A slightly triumphant smirk tugs at my lips while I move them up to his ear. “Say please.”

I am shooketh! SHOOKETH! This was, hands down, my favorite Nyla K book to date. But it was so much more than that, too. It was emotionally charged, packed with feels, banter, and romance so sizzling it was incendiary. And easily one of my favorite enemies to lovers romances I’ve read. It was everything.

This always seems to happen to us. It’s like something about our molecules in close proximity melts hate into desire, and I just don’t get it. It makes no sense, but it feels good. And I hate that it does, because he’s such a raving jerk.

Kyran and Avi are as polar opposite as they get. Avi is the easy going stoner, who loves art and has no interest in most things school related. After losing his father at a young age, his mom became his best friend, and the relationship Avi had with his mom was easily one of my favorite things. Then Avi’s word gets turned upside down when he learns his mom is engaged and he’s going to have a stepbrother. Except the second they lay eyes on each other, the hate and animosity between them is instant.

Kyran is a typical jock. The popular kid, the people pleaser, the one with daddy issues that hide a dark pain. He’s a football star who is well on his way to his NFL dreams and his new stoner stepbrother is the last thing he needs, with his stupid backwards cap, ever present smirk, and irreverence.

They meet in high school but then fate puts them in the same college, still hating on each other. Until a family revelation leaves them reeling and desperate to make ends meet. And Avi decides to put his good looks and chemistry with his stepbrother to use on his OnlyFans.

Fuck, I don’t know what it is about his dominant side that destroys me so damn good. Maybe it’s because he’s not like that in regular life… So it’s like there’s a side of him that only I get to see. His regular cockiness is turned up to the max when we’re alone, and he becomes this demanding, growly, filthy-talking beast with a huge dick who orders me around. And something about it calls to my submissive side I never let out… For anyone but him.

I loved watching these two guys discovered themselves in their on way. Avi who embraces his bisexuality with the easy nature that he has, and Kyran who has a more troubled road to his own sexuality.

While Nyla knows how to write one heck of a sizzling love scene didn’t hold back on the emotion and boy did this story pack it. Kyran may be the football college superstar, but his wounds run deep. And the more you learn, the more your heart hurts for him. The more his animosity and hate to his stepbrother makes sense too.

Maybe the reason I’ve been fighting this so hard is because I knew it was inevitable… The chemistry of hate was never strong enough to overpower the hunger of want.

Yes this book is long. Like super long. Like crazy long. But there’s not one wasted page. I devoured this book and dreaded finishing it because I didn’t want to leave these two.

I fell so hard and fast for Kyran and Avi. There was something so vulnerable about Kyran beneath his typical jock persona. And the way Avi loves him and helps him melted my cold black heart. I swooned, I sweated, and I cried. I loved absolutely every single page of this book and cannot recommend it enough. And if Nyla doesn’t give us a book for Theo and the coach next, I will riot. That is all.

DGRFave & Review: Powerless by Elsie Silver

POWERLESS
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Chestnut Springs #3
Author: Elsie Silver
Release Date: February 10, 2023

Two childhood friends. Two broken hearts. One impromptu road trip to get away from everything. That’s all this was supposed to be. Afterall, I’ve been living in the friend zone for years now.

But hockey heartthrob Jasper Gervais isn’t looking at me like a friend anymore. And he isn’t touching me like one either.

To his fans, he’s the handsome, talented athlete on TV. But to me he’s still the lost boy with sad eyes and a heart of gold.

The man I’ve loved in secret for years.

So when my life falls apart on my wedding day, it only makes sense that he’s the one to swoop in and save me. And when his world comes crashing down around him, I’m there to return the favor.

But the more time we spend alone, the more Jasper doesn’t feel like a friend at all. He feels like everything I’ve ever wanted and thought I could never have.

Our feelings aren’t straight forward though. They twist and turn around the pain of his past and the reality of my present.

Jasper Gervais acts like he wants me.

But after years of turning me away, he’s going to need to prove it.

AMAZON

I can’t ever lose you,” he growls.
“You won’t,” I reply quietly, right as the tip of his nose traces the shell of my ear.
“I might.”
“Nev—” Before I can say never, he cuts me off with, “Because I think I’m about to fuck everything up between us.” And then he kisses me.

OHMYGAWD! The level of obsession I now have with this series known no bounds. NONE. Obsessed is an understatement.

Let me start off by saying I’m not really a friends to lovers girly. This trope has always been meh to me. Like I don’t gravitate to it but I will read it from select authors. But after Heartless, I knew that Elsie can write a grocery list and I’ll read it. And you know what? I think I’ve changed my mind on the friends to lovers trope. Because this book? It was EVERYTHING.

Jasper Gervais and I are friends. Good friends. He’s made that clear a couple times over now. And I’m not enough of a masochist to go for the hat trick.

I was already obsessed with Jasper before reading this book. But now? I bow down at his alter, because the man is a god. He’s everything I didn’t know I needed and I will never have enough. Jasper and Sloane (Sunny) have been friends since childhood. Jasper is the epitome of tortured, with his brooding and his troubled childhood. Sunny has always been his happy place (with his found family of course) but he never looked at her as more than a friend, while Sunny has been in love with him for most of her life. When Sunny finally has a wake up call about her douchebag of a fiancé and leaves him shortly before their wedding, Jasper is right there to help her escape. The escape leads to a journey neither of them expected.

Times have changed, Sloane. I’m not scared anymore. You’re not my fucking friend. You’re just mine.”

Sloane soon learns that she hasn’t been beyond his notice, he just hadn’t dared to really look. Never feeling good enough and he hides a secret of what made him back down. But when I tell you that this man is obsessed with Sunny, I mean you can see that the sun rises and sets with her for him.

But what I really loved about this is that Sunny doesn’t immediately jump for joy to have Jasper’s affections. She makes him work for it. And even though she accepted her douchebag ex’s treatment, she’s no pushover when it comes down to it.

They’ve always felt this way for me!” she explodes, arms flung wide, eyes shining with emotion. “And you’ve never noticed. But now you do? What am I supposed to do? Jump for joy and say thank you for blessing me with your interest?”

And when I tell you that still waters run deep with Jasper, I mean the man caught me completely by surprise. The mouth on him. And did I mention the intensity? Good lord!

I point at the floor beneath my feet and say, “Lose that fucking ring and crawl.”

Yeah. Uh huh. Exactly.

This book was everything. It was swoony, heartfelt, heart breaking, heart warming, and with enough steam to set your kindle on fire. These two were incendiary together and I couldn’t get enough. Their friendship, their bond, their love for each other was almost as amazing as their chemistry.

Jasper may have a dirty mouth but the man has a heart of gold. He loves and he loves hard and he would move mountains for Sloane. God but I melted for him. Goo. Pure goo I tell you.

And if you haven’t yet read this series, I simply cannot recommend it enough. Trust me. Do yourself a favor and read it!

Elsie Silver is a Canadian author of sassy, sexy, small town romance who loves a good book boyfriend and the strong heroines who bring them to their knees. She lives just outside of Vancouver, British Columbia with her husband, son, and three dogs and has been voraciously reading romance books since before she was probably supposed to.

She loves cooking and trying new foods, traveling, and spending time with her boys-especially outdoors. Elsie has also become a big fan of her quiet five am mornings, which is when most of her writing happens. It’s during this time that she can sip a cup of hot coffee and dream up a fictional world full of romantic stories to share with her readers.


Connect with Elsie

Website | www.elsiesilver.com
Goodreads | https://bit.ly/3WSjFlR
Amazon | https://amzn.to/3BR6HwY
Facebook | https://bit.ly/3YIJwia
Facebook Group | https://bit.ly/3YJuOYk
Instagram | https://bit.ly/3VeTlS3
TikTok | https://bit.ly/3VifDCH
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Bookbub | https://bit.ly/3jnBTh9
Pinterest | https://bit.ly/3Vi25ai
Newsletter | https://bit.ly/3BU0sbN

 

#DGRFave & Review: Happenstance by Tessa Bailey

HAPPENSTANCE
Genre: Contemporary, Why Choose Romance
Author: Tessa Bailey
Release Date:
November 7, 2022

From #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Happened One Summer comes a romantic comedy about an accidental relationship between three smitten men…and one commitment phobic woman.

Elise Brandeis has never won a Pulitzer—and she never will. At least not while she’s delivering sandwiches at the Gotham Times, instead of working there as an actual reporter. Her only shot at seeing her byline in print is to prove to the no nonsense managing editor that she has a nose for news. And she’s got just the story to grab her elusive attention.

Right after she delivers this turkey on ciabatta.

Chasing down leads brings Elise to Roosevelt Island, but just when the trail of clues begins to take shape, she gets stuck. Literally. On a cable car with three strangers who couldn’t be more different. An uptight rugby coach, a construction worker and a former adult film star she pretends not to recognize a little too well.

At first, Elise wants nothing more than to be rescued ASAP.

An hour later, everything has changed. By pure happenstance, four separate journeys have collided in an intense, meaningful way. Suddenly, disentangling their lives feels more impossible than winning that Pulitzer. Good thing Elise is too busy proving herself at work to consider three boyfriends. Nobody has time for that—even if they make giving in feel oh so right. But three heads are better than one and these loners will teach themselves to work together to win Elise over forever…

And more importantly, keep their dirty socks off her floor.

AMAZON | KOBO | IBOOKS | B&N 

“Just a brief rundown. You’ve come here to ask for a foursome.” I look each of them in the eye. “In broad daylight. Stone cold sober.” They trade glances and nod.

This cover is the Trojan horse of smut. You look at it and think, oh look, a cute little rom com. Or you would, if Tessa Bailey didn’t write it. But she did. And the woman is the queen of dirty talk for a reason. But this book? Oh this one may be her hottest yet. And having read her entire backlist, that’s saying something.

“You’re staring, love,” taunts the British man.

He’s right. I’ve been staring at him in the glass reflection. Because there is something familiar about him. Something I can’t quite put my finger on. Did he bartend at that hotel where I trained as a concierge three years ago before getting bored and throwing myself into the natural deodorant space? No, that’s not it. Where do I know him from?

“Porn,” he says from his elegant lean against the interior wall of the tram. “You know me from pornography, darling,” he drawls, his mouth spreading into a grin. “The good shit.”

Happenstance was the most fun I’ve had reading in book, like ever. It had everything you could possibly want; laugh till you cry humor, amazing characters, romance hot enough to singe your fingers when you turn each page, and a story fun and gripping enough to keep you glued to the pages from beginning to finish.

“My God,” Tobias says on an exhale, his hair in disarray. “I’ve seen it all, but I’ve never seen anything like you.”

We have Elise, a commitment phobic heroine who becomes the sheer obsession of not one, not two, but three men. And each of them was EVERYTHING.

We have Tobias, the British porn star who hides his pain be behind smarmy sexual jokes. Gabe, the sweet cinnamon roll construction worker who is obsessed with Elise from first sight and with debilitating confidence issues from his previous marriage. And Banks, the quiet and intense rugby star turned locally famous rugby coach with mommy issues.

“Gabe makes me wish for lazy Sunday mornings in bed with coffee and the smell of cinnamon in the kitchen. Sweet. Tobias is Saturday night. Strobe lights and moaning and…that tipsy feeling, like if you have one more drink, you’ll be sorry.” “And me?” “You are…” I swallow. Being open and honest to someone about how I feel on the inside is harder than I remember. I’ve been out of practice so long. “You’re real life. The place where I’m in my pattern and feel safe. You’re not a detour, you’re a path forward.”

I went through a ringer of emotion reading this star of a book; I laughed, I swooned, I squirmed uncomfortably, I simply devoured it.

The pacing, the humor, the romance, the character development, all of it was utter perfection. It was one of those reads where you can just shut your brain off and enjoy something that just absorbs you completely. And no one delivers that better than Tessa Bailey.

If you’re looking for sizzling hot romance with three men and one woman who they are utterly obsessed with but still packs humor and even a splash of suspense, you need this book in your life.

These men are desperate to praise me. And I let them, because my heart demands it.

#DGRFave & Review: The Mindf*ck Series by S.T. Abby

THE MINDF*CK SERIES
Series:
The Minds*ck Series (entire collection)
Genre: Dark, Romantic Suspense
Author: S.T. Abby
Release Date: November 29, 2016

They took too much.
Left too little.
I had nothing to lose…until him.
*****************
~Lana~
I didn’t expect him.
I didn’t want to fall in love.
But I can’t let him go.
Logan Bennett makes the world a safer place.
He’s brilliant.
He’s a hero.
He locks away the sick and depraved.
But while he’s saving lives, I’m taking them. Collecting the debts that are owed to me.
Ten years ago, they took from me. They left me for dead.
They should have made sure I stayed dead.
Now I’m taking from them.
One name at a time.
I’ve trained for too long.
I’ve been patient.
I can’t stop now.
Revenge is best served cold…
They never see me coming, until I paint their walls red.
Logan doesn’t know how they hurt me. He doesn’t know about the screams they ignored. He doesn’t know how twisted that town really is.
He just knows people are dying.
He doesn’t know he’s in love with their killer.
No one suspects a dead girl.
And Logan doesn’t suspect the girl in his bed.
They’re looking for a monster.
Not a girl who loves red.
Not a girl in love.
I’m a faceless nightmare.
At least until I tell them the story they’ve pretended never happened.
But in the end, will Logan choose them? Or will we watch them burn together?
**Graphic
**Adult language
**Some triggers could be too much for the easily disturbed reader
**Sexual content
**Fucked up moral compass; read at your own risk.

AMAZON

It’s all cloak and dagger right now. That’s what happens when you’re a serial killer dating a FBI profiler who hunts serial killers.

Have you ever had someone recommend a book to you and think, there’s no way this is as good as they say it is? No? Just me, then? Because I wear the cone of shame for letting the covers to these books sway me for entirely too long. Considering how much hype this story gets, you’d think that may sway me? But nope. I’m leery of surer popular books because I’m so tired of them not living up to their promise for me. But after losing the entirety of my day to binge reading this entire series in a day, I will tell you that I’m not seriously kicking my own ass for not believing what everyone was trying to beat me over the head with. This book doesn’t just live up to the hype, it blows it out of the water.

There’s a certain high you get from fooling the world into thinking you’re the lamb instead of the rabid wolf.

First of all, if you look at my shelf, you’ll see I’ve read a lot of romance, and dark is where it’s at for me. So please take that into consideration when I tell you that Lana Myers is easily my favorite FMC I have read. Ever. Period. No competition.

I’m a 5’4 package of vengeance that no one sees coming.

I was completely sucked into this story from the very first chapter. And after I finished the first book?

Oh.
My
GOD
Are you kidding me?

A female serial killer with a vendetta she’s plotted for years falls for an FBI profiler who hunts serial killers and is actively investigating her victims? Yes, please, and thank you. This is like the sexy love child of Criminal Minds and Dexter and I was so here for it, it physically hurt to put the book down for anything. Like I will now refer to things as life before Minfuck and Life After Mindfuck, because this story changed me. I don’t think I’ll stop thinking about it for years to come.

It’s one thing for the burn the world down if you hurt her trope, but when it’s reversed and she’ll burn the world down for him? GAH. And don’t get me wrong, Logan is no beta. This is a man who crackles with intense energy himself. But what made this book for me is not even the romance, which was absolutely epic. No. It was the actual plot. The mystery of Lana’s past that slowly gets unraveled with each book. The flashbacks of a night ten years ago that unequivocally changed the entire course of her life. And with every new kill she makes, more of those details become unraveled to paint a grizzly tale that’s full of corruption, evil, and revenge.

This is not your typical morally gray character. Lana is not an anti-heroine in my opinion. This is a woman who takes justice into her own hands knowing that the legal system won’t. And she’s who I want to be when I grow up. *dreamy sigh*

But I digress. I can talk about the brilliance of the plotting, the story telling, the clues hidden in plain sight, and the clues that get unveiled in time. I can talk about the incredible romance. I can talk about the friendship between Lana and Jake and all the amazing secondary characters like Hadley and Leonard, but I won’t. You need to discover it for yourself.

So if you’re an idiot who like me left this book skate right under your radar, get your life together immediately and read it. You can thank me after.

Review: Misfit by Elle Kennedy

MISFIT
Series: Prep #1
Genre: New Adult Romance
Author: Elle Kennedy
Release Date:
July 26, 2022

Welcome to Sandover Prep, where the delinquents roam…and you can’t trust a soul.

Finding out your mom is marrying some rich dude you’ve never met is enough to make any eighteen-year-old guy’s head spin. But for RJ SHAW, it only gets worse: he’s being sent to Sandover Prep for senior year. If there’s one place a misfit hacker like RJ doesn’t belong, it’s an ivy-covered all-boys boarding school for rich delinquents.

RJ knows his stay at Sandover will be temporary. Which means there’s no point making friends or trying to fit in. But the plan to remain antisocial goes awry when he meets a gorgeous girl in the woods on campus. SLOANE TRESSCOTT is pure temptation, with a sharp tongue and an ice princess attitude RJ’s determined to crack. Except there’s a catch. Sloane is the one girl he is forbidden from touching.

The headmaster’s daughter.

Good thing RJ doesn’t believe in rules. Sure, Sloane insists she’s swearing off guys this year, but their connection is impossible to deny. He wants her bad, and he’s going to win her over if it kills him.

Unless her ex-boyfriend kills him first.

The ruling king of Sandover will stop at nothing to get rid of his competition. Luckily, RJ’s unwittingly made some friends—his new stepbrother FENN, a pretty boy with a self-destructive streak; LAWSON, self-proclaimed agent of chaos; and SILAS, the All-American Good Guy who can’t actually be as nice as he seems.

If RJ wants to survive prep school and win Sloane’s heart, he’ll need to adapt—and fast.

AMAZON

What,” I say innocently, “you’re not confident about your dick game? Pity”
RJ’s gaze transforms from hot to molten. “Sweetheart, my dick is always the most confident motherfucker in the room.”

Having read and obsessed over Paper Princess, when I tell you I may have peed a little in excitement when Elle Kennedy announced this new series may be an understatement. There’s just something about rich kid drama that takes me back to my obsession roots of Cruel Intentions, Gossip Girl, and 90210. This book was like a mashup of all of them and I was HOOKED.

It’s been a long time since I read a book that hooked me so thoroughly within the first few pages. But not only did this book hook me, it kept me glued to the pages until the very end.

Now usually I’m not a fan of the multiple POVs in romance books. And most books I’ve read that had this lost the romance along the way. The multiple character POVs got confusing and watered down the plot. This was definitely not the case here. If anything, the additional character POVs enriched and added to the plot to make it all the more delicious. Particularly the hedonistic Lawson with his evil intentions. God, I can’t wait until his book. But I digress.

While it sounds cliche, outcast loner meets the headmaster’s daughter, forbidden romance thing. This book was anything but. RJ and Sloane were such charismatic personalities that I couldn’t get enough. I love reading about females in NA romance that own who they are and they’re also not shy virgins. I seriously loved how confident Sloane is with her sexuality and appeal to men. She knows she’s attractive and she makes RJ work for it. And god did I love how he chased her.

RJ’s flighty mother marries a rich guy and suddenly he’s immersed in an entirely different world of prep school, private schools, and a new step brother. A loner by his own admission, RJ doesn’t like to form ties because he knows it won’t last. After all, the guy has switched schools 5 times in the last 3 years due to his mother’s moving around. He’s a rebel without a cause and I fell head over heels for him immediately.

We get introduce to the cast of enigmatic characters like his step brother Fenn, his friends Lawson and Silas. As well as Sloane and her sister Casey. Did I also get intrigued by Sloane’s douchey ex, Duke? Yes, yes I did. But that’s a discussion for another day.

Misfit was a finger licking mix of drama and romance and man was I here for all of it. If this book is any indication we’re in for a heck of a ride with this series, and I can’t wait for more. We get Fenn’s story next and after the jaw dropper of an ending to hook his book, I’m absolutely dying for it. This is a full standalone romance with what shows to be a continuing story arc that will go into the next book. I’m totally and completely hooked!

#DGRFave & Review: Brutal Vows by J.T. Geissinger

BRUTAL VOWS
Series: Queens & Monsters #4
Genre: Mafia Romance
Author: J.T. Geissinger
Release Date: April 28, 2022

An Irish mobster with a brutal grudge.
An Italian mafia princess with a dark secret.
Two enemy empires joined in sacred marriage vows.
Let the hating games begin.


Reyna

If this arrogant Irish mobster my brother sold my niece to thinks I’m going to play nice over this arranged marriage BS, he should think again.
I don’t care if this match with the Mob will make my brother capo of the Five Families.
I don’t care how much money, territory, or power it will gain us.
I especially don’t care that the Irishman is the sexiest man I’ve ever seen.
I won’t allow my innocent niece to suffer the same way I did.
Even if I have to kill him.

Spider

I’m supposed to marry sweet, beautiful Lili. So why can’t I stop thinking about her swamp witch of an aunt?
Reyna who hates me. Reyna who challenges me. Reyna with the guts of a Viking, the body of a fertility goddess, and the attitude of a feral cat.
Nothing good can come of what I’m feeling for a woman who’s not the one in the wedding contract I signed.
A woman I want so much, I’ll have to burn the whole world down to get.
If she doesn’t kill me first.

AMAZON

He’s a riptide and I’m swimming far out in dangerous waters, getting pulled under fast no matter how hard I fight to stay afloat.

This book was hands down. MY. TOP. FAVORITE. IN. THIS. SERIES. And quite frankly one of my top reads of the year. OMG. This banter. It was finger licking good! UTTERLY DELICIOUS!

She glares at me. “Your charm could sweep a girl right off her feet, you know that?”
“Wait till you see my cock. Then you’ll really be swooning.”

Did I mention the banter?

Careful. You’re dangerously close to breaking your promise about your temper already.”
“That’s because you could turn Father Christmas into the Grinch, woman.”
“What did I tell you about using the word ‘woman’ as a pejorative?”
“Something I couldn’t hear over how loud your resting bitch face was screaming.”

Because oh my GAWD the banter!

His voice low, he says, “I’ve been thinking.” “Really? Did you borrow someone else’s brain?” “Very funny, viper.”

Who would have thought that a man who was mostly unassuming until Savage Hearts would come in to steel the show like this? And here I thought no one could top Declan for me!

But you know what I love the most about this series? The sassy, spitfire heroines. And Reyna? How could one possibly top the sassy that was Sloane? With the black freaking widow! MY GOD. This woman was everything. A cosa nostra widow, who holds down the family while making her brother think she does. The woman who lived through hell and rose out of the ashes a fierce warrior who has no desire to rely on a man, god forbid ever marry one. So when her beloved niece gets arranged to wed a Irishman, she has some opinions about it. And the immediate chemistry between her and the man her niece is betrothed to? Highly inconvenient.

You bring out the bastard in me. Now let’s see if I can get you to do something with that mouth other than slice me to ribbons.”

I had no idea how the author would bring these two together, but it was the most satisfying thing I’ve ever read. Their chemistry, their banter, their BANTER. MY GOD THEIR BANTER. I lived for it.

THIS is the kind of heroine I love to read about. A woman with a set of brass ones that gives men a run for their money. And a hero who would burn down the world for her. I. AM. OBSESSED.

If you haven’t read this series, you haven’t lived. And if you haven’t read this book, I don’t even want to talk to you. I question your life choices.

DGRFave & Review: Hunting Adeline by HD Carlton

HUNTING ADELINE
Series:
Cat and Mouse Duet #2
Genre: Dark Romance
Author: H.D. Carlton
Release Date:
January 28, 2022

The final installment to the Cat and Mouse Duet…

The Diamond

Death walks alongside me,
But the reaper is no match for me.
I’m trapped in a world full of monsters dressed as men, and those who aren’t as they seem.
They won’t keep me forever.
I no longer recognize the person I’ve become,
And I’m fighting to find my way back to the beast who hunts me in the night.
They call me a diamond,
But they’ve only created an angel of death.

The Hunter

I was born a predator,
With ruthlessness ingrained in my bones.
When what’s mine is stolen from me in the night,
Like a diamond hidden within a fortress,
I find that I can no longer contain the beast.
Blood will paint the ground as I tear apart this world to find her.
And bring her back to where she belongs.
No one will escape my wrath,
Especially not those who have betrayed me.

Warning: This is the second and final installment to the Duet. You must read Haunting Adeline first.

AMAZON  

I may own every breath in your body, but make no mistake, Adeline, you own mine, too. I am yours to command. To bend and break. To mold and manipulate. Do you think that makes me weak? Or do you think I’m strong enough to admit that even though my body can physically live on without you, I would never get my fucking soul back?”

It’s a rare occasion that I get to say this, but I loved this book even more than the first. And considering I 5 star loved the first book, that’s really saying something. For the hours that it took me to devour this book, it owned me. Fully and completely. And when I finished, I simply didn’t know what to do with myself. How do you even move on from this? How, I ask you?!

You’ve never been a good man,” I whisper, reiterating the exact words he’s told me so many times before. “No,” he agrees. “But I have always been yours.”

While I found Haunting Adeline to be more gray than dark, this book made me eat my words. This was dark. Like the very pits of hell dark. Like sick to my stomach, goose bumps, fist in my throat sort of dark. It was pitch fucking black, okay? And holy shit, did I love it!

We’re all fucking damned anyway, forced to live outside of heaven’s gates. I find I like it better living in the darkness next to my shadow.

Am I going to tell you anything about this book that you can’t get from the blurb? Absolutely not. You want to go into this blind. Trust me. But be prepared for one rollercoaster of emotion, because this story puts you through the ringer and then some.

This story was truly the evolution of Adeline. It’s one thing to deal with her obsessed stalker. But when she gets thrown into the pits of hell with true monsters, it’s the true test of her sanity and strength. And this woman has strength. One thing I’ll say is that I loved that Carlton didn’t shy away from the details. She didn’t graze over the difficult things, and go from one extreme to the other. You get to see and experience it all. But what I loved the most, is the aftermath. This isn’t glazed over as it can be in some dark romance. You get to experience all of it with Adeline, the ups and the downs, the painful and gut wrenching. All of it.

Heaven isn’t a place you go to when you die, it’s inside the person that’s worth dying for.

Zade is just as captivating and intense as ever. I fell even harder for this man here. This is the man that will happily walk into hell for his woman, and take on the devil himself. Some may even argue that Zade is the devil, and I loved that about him. This is a man with many layers. He’s firmly rooted in the gray, because while he has a good cause, he’s not a good man by any means. This is a man that does bad things for a good reason, but never loses any of his intensity.

Jesus,” I breathe.
He smirks…“He’s not the one you should be praying to,” he murmurs darkly, sending shivers rolling down my spine. “Only I will be your salvation.”

Now let’s also talk about the secondary characters because OH MY GOD. I’ve always been intrigued by Sibby, and I think that’s now turned into a full obsession. But we get additional secondary characters like a particularly bad man, and some brothers, that I’m desperate for a story for. I won’t tell you the names, because I don’t want to spoiler anything, but GOD. I’m desperate for a certain someone’s book. Talk about your broken men that do bad things for a good reason. I will sell my soul for his story. *desperate sob*

If you’ve been as eagerly anticipating this conclusion as I have, it is worth every painful second of the wait. HD Carlton knocked it out of the park with this book, and I am fully obsessed!


Copyright © 2015 · Dirty Girl Romance

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