Review: Heartless Game by Jo Brenner

May 13, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

HEARTLESS GAME
Series: Kings of Reina University #2
Author: Jo Brennar
Genre: Dark Romance
Release Date: April 27, 2025

The hottest hockey player at Reina U has dark plans for me.

Everyone on campus loves Isaac Jones. The gorgeous, dimple-cheeked charmer can do no wrong in the public’s eyes.

But they don’t know what I do.

I know the truth about his violent past. Exposing his real identity and his family’s crimes won’t just help me graduate with a journalism degree—it will save my mother’s life.

When Isaac discovers I’m writing an article that will ruin his hockey dreams and destroy his family, he’ll do anything to bury it—unleashing his deepest, darkest, most depraved desires on me.

Twisted battles in the locker room.
Wickedness on the ice.
Cruelty to keep my mouth shut.

The worst part? I’m starting to fall for him, even as I fight back.

And I’m not sure who will win our heartless game.

Heartless Game is a standalone romance in the Kings of Reina University series, and can be read independently of the others. It contains several dark themes that some readers may be sensitive to. For more information, please visit the author’s website at jobrenner dot com.

AMAZON

When I was done with Tovah Lewis, she’d be nothing more than a broken shell. And I’d be free, no longer haunted by her face, her voice, her goddamned scent.


After first discovering Jo Brenner with Brutal Game, I was itching to get my hands on Isaac and Tovah’s book. If you know me then you know that I love a spicy dark romance full of trigger warnings and a walking red flag of an MMC. And this certainly delivered on that. Isaac may seem like the more down to earth guy of the bunch compared to Jack, but boy did he give Jack a run for his money. This man was toxic with a capital T, jealous, possessive, and with a penchant for the kinky stuff. So of course I loved him.

Tovah, while I enjoyed her character, never fully clicked for me. I can’t put my finger on what it was exactly, but she frustrated me more often than not. And while I loved that she gave as good as she got, I also found that she gave in too easily to Isaac at times where I wanted her to make him crawl for some of the stunts that he pulls. One in particular was so bad that I fully expected Tovah to make him GROVEL. And while she did push back, it wasn’t as much as I would have expected.

The story itself was suspenseful and I loved the mysterious connection that these two share, unbeknownst to Isaac. You spend a good chunk of the book waiting for that other shoe to drop, because you just know that it will be GOOD. There were parts of the writing that did feel repetitive at times. I lost track for the amount of times that Isaac’s inner monster is referenced. And while the depth of his darkness was written well, the receptiveness of the “monster” just felt unnecessary.

As someone that enjoys a good push and pull, I didn’t mind Isaac’s hot and cold behavior towards Tovah. Though I will say that it also felt a bit much with the three times it happened. I felt that two would have more than sufficed. But as it is, I can’t say I minded it too much because it was still entertaining.

The spice was spicing and as a reader that thoroughly enjoys dub con in books, this one hit all the spots. I loved Isaac’s brand of psycho. These two were as toxic as they get, and this reader devoured it greedily. The story did begin to drag a bit towards the end, but I still devoured it in two days.

If you’re looking for a deliciously spicy dark hockey romance, you need to check this series out. Can’t wait for the next installment!

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Review: Just Say Yes by Lena Hendrix

May 12, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

JUST SAY YES
Series: The Kings #5
Author: Lena Hendrix
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Small Town
Release Date: April 25, 2025

Getting tangled up with an Olympic rugby player seems like the perfect way to forget about how my life is falling apart. Until I discover he’s my ex-boyfriend’s best friend.

Logan Brown walked into my small town with a charming grin and mischief in his eyes. He’s a world-class flirt and his confident masculinity is almost as distracting as those rugby thighs.

Given my inexperienced history, I’m no match for our undeniable chemistry. I vow to keep him at arm’s length. But with Logan, every lingering stare—every forbidden touch—awakens something inside of me I thought I had buried for good.

We both know we shouldn’t cross that line, but I have spent my entire life being a good girl, and suddenly I’m tempted to be very, very bad.

Especially when Logan tells me to just say yes.

AMAZON

It hit me like a punch to the gut that I wanted to be the only one who ever got to see her like this.

Save a horse, ride a mustached professional rugby player. Or, you know, however that saying goes. Just be prepared to fall and fall hard for the greenest flag that is Logan Brown. And I couldn’t imagine a better match for MJ. Oh the swoon of it all.

You can take from me whatever you want.” My cock. My heart. Fuck, I would have given MJ anything she asked for in that moment.

I have been waiting for MJ’s story and while my expectations were already high, her story still blew them away. I loved the journey to her HEA and it honestly couldn’t have been with a better man than Logan.

When I tell you that this had the cutest and funniest meet cute, I mean it was EVERYTHING. The sparks were instant and Logan definitely manages to step into it with MJ when they first meet. Nothing better than a man who can easily admit when he’s wrong and not afraid to apologize. And I loved the way that Logan pursued her.

MJ is still working through the broken pieces left behind the damage of her ex. But man oh man did I love how Logan showed her what a real man is supposed to treat a woman like. He’s a gentleman in the streets and a beast in the sheets, and I loved him HARD. I also loved the way he handled every challenge, including the surprising connection they find of Logan being the best friend of the ex that put MJ through the wringer.

The book deals with some heavy themes and I loved the way that Lena wrote it with her signature humor without taking away from the darker themes. I loved the growth that both of the characters go through and I loved their journey to a much deserved HEA. A big rec to all my small town romance lovers out there!

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Review: His Dark Vendetta by Katelyn Brehm

May 1, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

HIS DARK VENDETTA
Series: Bonded in Blood #2
Author: Katelyn Brehm
Genre: PNR
Release Date: May 1, 2025

SIOBHÁN

Once upon a time, I thought he’d be my happily ever after. Now, I’m not sure I’ll survive his dark vendetta.

I’ll never be safe. My found family is as dangerous as the one I escaped. I need to run, but Luca Moretti has other plans. My family murdered his father, and he wants me to pay the price.

Kidnapped and trapped by the man I wanted as a lover but is now my enemy, I wait for him to break me like he broke my heart.

We’re a modern-day Romeo and Juliet. Except in our version, Romeo tries to kill Juliet.

LUCA

Desire. Obsession. Revenge. The end of my blood feud is within reach. And it starts with her.

The New England dons granted their blessing—if I play by the rules, vengeance is mine. One life for my father’s.

But blood demons need Sources, and as a capo, I need to earn. Even with the feds breathing down my neck.

Each day I dodge bullets and the law, she chips away at my walls until there’s nothing left but the truth. An unwanted truth that shatters my resolve to break Siobhán Connelly and instead make her mine.

******

HIS DARK VENDETTA is the second book in the Bonded in Blood series. Each book is an interconnected standalone Paranormal Mafia Romance with a guaranteed HEA.

AMAZON

I’ve spent my whole life trying to get away from this world, and you keep running to it.”

If you haven’t started this series yet, this is your sign. If you like mafia and pnr, and you like your romance spicy, this is definitely your sign.

While this is a standalone in an interconnected series, I highly recommend reading in order. You will get a much better appreciation of the backstory of Luca and the betrayal that costs him everything. This book starts out in the aftermath of that, and if you haven’t read the previous book, you may not fully appreciate the redemption arc that takes place here.

I love the unique spin of vampires with the blood demons of this series. But I especially love the combination of dark mafia with spicy paranormal. Luca is a made man who has lived and breathed his revenge for years. He’s made mistakes that have cost him everything, including almost his life. And now, his vendetta is just a breath away. And the woman he once was drawn to is his ultimate Judas. Or so he thinks anyway.

I love a Romeo and Juliet vibe, and this brought it in spades. Luca and Siobhan are meant to be enemies. After all, Siobhan’s family is behind the death of Luca’s father. So what’s a man to do? Kidnap the woman he once lusted after with every intention to kill her, obviously.

This was such a wild and quick paced ride. I loved the warring families dynamic and I loved Luca’s redemption arc. The romance was romancing and I loved the slow burn of it.

If you’re looking for a unique PNR read, definitely check this out.

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Review: Crescent Kingdom by Tessa Hale

April 23, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

CRESCENT KINGDOM
Series: The Wolves of Crescent Creek #1
Author: Tessa Hale
Genre: Why Choose Romance, PNR
Release Date: April 23, 2025

Never stop running. And no matter what, never let the world know who you really are.

I’ve spent my whole life hiding. Training. Preparing. Hoping that no one will discover my secrets. What I can do. Who I am. And I’ve gotten so good at it, sometimes even I forget.

Until them.

The wolf pack with a ruthless reputation and a penchant for revenge. The protective fighter. The charming Brit. The shy hacker. The silent mercenary. The cruel assassin.

They see more than anyone ever has before. And even with demons of their own, they give me sanctuary. A place to hide, to rest, and maybe even a place to belong.

Only it turns into so much more. Because when they touch me, everything around me ignites, and nothing matters but them.

But these wolves have secrets. And those secrets bring enemies. And when they find out who I really am?

It’s not their enemies I need to fear. It’s them.

AMAZON

Fuck. This woman would ruin me. But I’d happily go down in the rubble. For her.

First of all, how is this my first Tessa Hale book and what rock have I been living under? Second of all, I may need to rock myself in the corner somewhere with a bottle of wine after that ending. But regrets? I don’t has them.

I genuinely can’t remember the last time I binged a book like this. The last few months I seem to be dragging ass with everything, even books I enjoy. And I forgot that giddy feeling of finding a book so addictive that you simply can’t put it down. This story had me in a chokehold from the first chapter and had me reading everywhere I can squeeze in a page because I simply couldn’t bring myself to put it down for even a minute. If you like a sexy why choose shifter romance, look no further.

Now do you know what I love more than tortured MMCs? Tortured FMCs. And Wren has not just walked through the pits of hell, she survived the devil himself. She’s been on the run for years, constantly looking over her shoulder and with plenty of secrets to stay buried about who she is.

She’s done her damnest to hide who she is, so when she lands in the crosshairs of a sexy stranger, she’s terrified to learn that he’s a wolf. And when that stranger has a pack of 4 more equally sexy and tortured in their own way pack mates? Well, stick a fork in me, I’m done. The chemistry was through the roof in this book. And I loved the layers to Wren’s character. She may keep to herself but still waters run deep with her and she’s a survivor through and through. The more you learn about her, the more you can’t help but love her.

Then we meet her 5 sexy shifters and I couldn’t get enough of them; especially my grumpy and thinks the worst of everyone Ender.

When I tell you that I devoured this book, I mean I binge read it in one sitting. I am so thoroughly hooked and can’t wait for the next installment. I now need to rectify my life choices and read the entirety of Tessa’s backlist because WHERE HAVE I BEEN.

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Review: Loving The Reaper by Lola King

April 22, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

LOVING THE REAPER
Series: Silver Falls University #2
Genre: Dark Romance
Author: Lola King
Release Date: April 22, 2025

An angsty, best-friends-to-lovers, dark romance from best-selling author, Lola King

He waited years for her to choose him. His patience has run out.
Welcome back to Silver Falls University. There is a murderer among us.

I’ve been best friends with Wren Hunter for sixteen years. The boy who chased me in our schoolyard, kissed my scraped knees, and always swore to protect me grew into the god of Silver Falls University: admired by his peers, desired by every woman on campus, and feared by anyone who gets in his way.
Wren knows me better than anyone. He sees through every wall I build. He can handle my fire and my stubbornness. Sometimes I believe he can even tame it. This is why I thought we would never cross the line between friendship and more, no matter how many times we teetered on the edge of it.
I was wrong.
The mask he wore around me is gone, and what’s underneath is dangerous, unrelenting, obsessive.
Wren doesn’t just want me—he decided I’m his.

And in his world, no one says no.

There’s a secret society behind him, powerful enough to cover up anything—or anyone—standing in their way. Now, I’m trapped in his game, bound to a man I don’t recognize, in a world where nothing is what it seems.

Bodies are piling up.
Trust is a luxury.
And Wren Hunter might be the one thing that destroys me.

Loving The Reaper is a dark romance intended for readers over 18 only. Please, read the trigger warnings in the book.
This is the second book in a series of 3 interconnected standalones.

AMAZON 

Penelope Peach Sanderson-Menacci. One of my best friends with a stupid nickname that reduces her to a part of her body. A name that caught on since high school and that I, of course, use without shame. Because calling her my love, baby, queen of my life, doesn’t exactly scream friends since elementary school, does it?

I have a confession to make. Wren and Penelope (Peach) were my least anticipated couple in the Silver Falls University. I. Know. Judge away. But in my defense, I was afraid that Penelope would be too brash for my taste as a main character. And also, friends to lovers is a trope I like, but I much prefer enemies to lovers. Well, who would be surprised that Lola King made me eat my words? No one. No one would be surprised. But also, when this is the friends to lovers vibe? I’m sat.

He inhales, and I barely catch the words he breathes out. “Fuck it.” His hand in my hair pulls me to him, and his lips press against mine with the strength of a hurricane. And it’s on a path to destroy everything. My sanity first. My anger. My reflex to push him away. It’s all gone as I melt into him and let him take over my mind.

Wren and Peach have been best friends since childhood, but Wren has always known he wants more. But where he pushes, Peach pulls. Peach knows that it would never work between them, because her independence is the core of who she is, and Wren would demand nothing short of total domination over her. So they dance this push and pull until circumstances are finally in Wren’s favor and he is more than happy to take it with all his force.

Where Peach annoyed me as a secondary character, I absolutely fell in love with her in this book. Being in her head, understanding what makes her tick and why she is the way she is was one of the most satisfying reading experiences. There are so many layers to her character, and as Lola peels back one layer after another, things begin to fall into place. But when we get one answer, another question comes into the story. And prepare yourself for one mindf*ck of a read because the twists in this book were jaw dropping.

Do you even need me to tell you that the chemistry between Wren and Peach were out of this word? Because my GOD. This man was giving dominance and adoration HARD.

Wren…” I moan. “That’s it, Trouble. Call my name when you come. And get fucking used to it.”

When Wren decides that the gloves are finally off, they were OFF. He was this delicious dichotomy of domineering a-hole and adoring best friend and I couldn’t get enough of his toxicity. And don’t get me wrong, the man was definitely toxic, and I loved every single one of his red flags (of which he had plenty)

Why are you always sending so much love my way, Wren Hunter?”
“Because keeping all that love to myself would be inhuman.”

The story was a thrill ride full of twists and turns, dark secret society, murder and family secrets. GOD but it was delicious. The romance was effortlessly woven in to give it that sizzle and a splash of angst made it entirely unputdownable.

Be prepared to pull an all-nighter with this one and to rock yourself in the corner when you finish because you’ll be that much more desperate for the next hit of this addictive series.

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Review: Nocturne by Karina Halle

April 21, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

NOCTURNE
Author: Karina Halle
Genre: Dark PNR Romance
Release Date: April 10, 2025

A vampire romance so dark it’ll bite.

He’s not just dangerous—he’s designed to destroy you.

Blood. Obsession. Murder.

And a love story twisted enough to hurt so good.


Los Angeles, 1947.
The city is drowning in secrets and blood—and Lena Reid just lost her best friend to the shadows.
Elizabeth Short is dead. The press calls her the Black Dahlia.
Lena wants answers. Closure. Revenge.
What she finds instead… is him.

Victor Callahan is danger in a three-piece suit. An ex-boxer with fists like thunder and eyes that promise ruin. He’s supposed to help her.
Instead, he haunts her. Follows her. Wants her.
He doesn’t remember what happens after dark.
The blackouts. The blood.
The hunger.

But Lena’s not afraid of monsters.
She falls for them.
She is one.

Now, with a serial killer circling closer and a secret society pulling strings behind the curtain, Lena has one rule
Don’t let a vampire fall in love with you.
Because once he does…
He’ll never let you go.

Seven meets L.A. Confidential with a vampire twist, in this true crime and film noir-inspired standalone dark romance from New York Times Bestselling author Karina Halle. This book contains mature content with potential triggers–please consult the Content Warning at the start of the book.

AMAZON

I’m going to ruin you… Ruin you for anyone else.”

I don’t know if you know this about me, but I’m a true crime addict. And the Black Dahlia cold case has been one that has fascinated me for years. So when one of my favorite authors writes a dark vampire romance set in 1947 LA, inspired by the Black Dahlia case, you best believe I’m going to devour it in one sitting.

This story was such a vibe. It was a moody, film-noir vibe with some secondary character appearances that those who read Blood Orange will surely appreciate. And I love that Karina is able to combine these worlds so effortlessly.

Nocturne takes a real life cold case and gives it a twist. We meet Lena Reid, a beautiful singer, deeply ingrained in the LA mafia underbelly. When her best friend is gruesomely murdered, she’s determined to find her killer and the answer for the mystery left behind.

Victor Callahan is a retired boxer turned PI who is hired to find Elizabeth’s murderer. But he doesn’t expect to fall for his main witness.

Did I mention that this story was a total vibe? I loved Victor’s intensity almost as much as I loved the aura of mystery around Lena. It was full of suspense, dark secrets and an even darker underbelly of crime. Victor and Lena are thrown into a dark world that neither knew existed. Their chemistry was incendiary and the suspense was an absolute page turner from beginning to end. There are some jaw dropping twists to keep you at the edge of your seat from cover to cover. And if you’re looking for a truly unique read, you definitely need to check this one out.

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Review: The Woman Left Behind by Kristen Ashley

April 15, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

THE WOMAN LEFT BEHIND
Series: Misted Pines #4
Genre: Thriller Romance
Author: Kristen Ashley
Release Date: April 15, 2025

The Woman Left Behind, an all-new, beautifully-crafted, compelling second-chance, thriller romance and the fourth book in the Misted Pines Series from New York Times bestselling author Kristen Ashley is live now!

There are two dead bodies in Idaho, and the gun used to kill them has been traced back to a sixteen-year-old robbery in Misted Pines.

Sheriff Harry Moran has a broken heart and a stack of case files on his desk that the corrupt sheriff who came before him might have bungled.

Or he may have framed innocent people.

The first case Harry dives into, the woman left behind lives just a block away from his office.

When Lillian Rainier opens the door to the sheriff, Harry, who’s been a dead man walking since his wife died, comes back to life.

As for Lillian, she’s had a crush on Harry for forever, Harry showing at her door, and how he is when he does only makes her fall deeper.

As Harry and his team dive into these suspicious cases, Harry and Lillian have to figure out what to do with all they feel for each other, how hard it hits them, and how deep it goes.

But as a voice from the past becomes a witness in the present, and Harry and his crew dig deeper, they sense something sinister happened years ago. As they weave together the threads of a cold case, they realize how messy it is.

Worse, the man behind the mess is desperately cleaning it up …

And no one in Misted Pines is safe.

AMAZON

I would love this man until my dying breath.

Prepare to judge me when I tell you that this was my first book in this series. I’m a die hard KA fan, so how this series skated under my radar is beyond me and I will rectifying it immediately by going back and reading the first three. However, I can also confirm that this book can be easily enjoyed as a standalone.

I’m so sorry you have to go through this with me.”
“Lilly,” he said sharply. At his tone, he felt her head move and her gaze on him through the dark. When he got the last, he stated, “I feel like the luckiest man on the planet that I get to be here for you while you go through this.”

This is a small town romantic suspense and while the romance was wonderful, it was secondary to the suspense plot of the cold case Harry is working on. I loved the way that the author effortlessly wove the romance into the plot without it overwhelming or taking away from the suspense. The connection between Harry and Lilly felt organic and developed realistically over time, considering that Harry is investigating a cold case that is so connected to Lilly.

Another thing I have to call out is how well Kristen handled Harry being a widower. So often you read characters who lost a spouse and villainizes them to make it easier for the character to move on. Not Harry. Harry loved his wife and he mourned her for years. He doesn’t discount what she gave him for the short time they were together but most importantly, Lilly doesn’t feel like a fill in or secondary prize. He fell hard for her but it took time and he didn’t rush it. I loved his maturity and sweet and protective nature.

I loved her. I married her. I was destroyed when I lost her. But that was years ago and something you need to know. I’m stubborn.”
Her eyes got big at this admission, and she mumbled, “Um… okay.”
“Being stubborn,” he went on, “I held on to her loss longer than I should.” He gave her a squeeze and warned, “I’m not over her, Lillian. I’ll never be over her. She’ll always be in my heart. But, not so recently, a friend told me Winnie would be pissed as shit I stopped living when she did. He was right. It took me until meeting you to understand how right he was.”

Harry has taken over as Sheriff and the legacy of the previous sheriff’s corruption still follows him, particularly with the recent cold case of a robbery and the finding of two dead bodies which seems to be linked. And they also seem to be linked to a woman who the entire town seems to know but has flown under his radar. But the minute he meets Lilly, he knows that she is so much more than just a victim of a crime. She’s a woman he wants in his life and who deserves answers which he will do everything in his power to get her.

I do wish that I knew the themes this book deals with because parental loss is a trigger for me having lost my dad a few months ago this was particularly difficult for me to read. I enjoyed it but it was an emotional read for me and took me a bit longer to finish because I had to pace myself. The pacing, the development, the secondary characters were all fantastic. While I didn’t expect a cold case to be wrapped up with a perfect bow at the end, I do wish we got a bit more answers, but it was still highly satisfying so I can’t complain.

If you’re looking for a small town suspense with a beautiful romance and the most swoon sheriff hero, look no further. Prepare to fall and fall hard for the sheriff.

For more information on Kristen Ashley, visit: https://www.kristenashley.net/

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Review: No More Spies by Lexi Blake

April 14, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

NO MORE SPIES
Series: Masters & Mercenaries: New Recruits #4
Genre: Romantic Suspense, BDSM
Author: Lexi Blake
Release Date: March 18, 2025

Kala Taggart has known she was in love with Cooper McKay since she was a young girl. But her wild-child ways sometimes clashed with Coop’s apple pie, all-American persona. After the worst night of Kala’s life, she decided to give up on having any kind of normalcy. She focused on her future and let the idea of Cooper go.

Cooper knows he screwed up with Kala when they were young, but the adult Cooper is unwilling to let their past rob them of a future. He joins her CIA team not for the thrill of the job but to be close to the woman he’s always loved. He spends night after night with her at the club, trying to fulfill her needs, to prove he doesn’t need some perfect partner. All he needs is her.

When Cooper and Kala are assigned to a mission, they find themselves locked together and forced to face their problems. As the truth of that long-ago night slowly comes to the surface, Cooper has to admit that Kala might be further from him than ever. And all his plans come crashing down as the elusive terrorist they’ve been hunting makes a move no one is expecting, but the real threat might come from within.

AMAZON

I want to be the man you come to when you need, Kala.”
“When I need sex?”
“When you need anything.”

Truth be told, I wasn’t sure how I would like Kala as an FMC. She’s a fun secondary character, but I was worried she may feel like she would be too much as an FMC. I am now humbly eating my own words, but this may have been my favorite book in this series so far.

He’s not the one who constantly gets told he’s too much. Cooper is the athlete golden boy everyone loves, and Kala is the weirdo everyone thinks will go psycho one day. Do you have any idea how hard it is to be the kid no one understands? You don’t have enough, Cooper? It’s not enough to be the most popular kid in school? You have to have her, too? But on your terms.”

Kala has loved Cooper since they were just teenagers. She knew at 15 that he was the guy for her. But the fateful night that Cooper broke her heart is also the night that changed everything for Kala. It titled her world on its axis and years later, she’s still fighting the demons it formed.

But Cooper is no longer the boy she knew. He’s a man who knows what he wants and is prepared to fight for it. And after watching Kala almost die in Sweet Little Spies, he knows that he refuses to waste any more time and he will do anything to get Kala to be his. Even if she fights him at every turn and only agrees on a guise of it being physical only.

But you should know what you’re risking, too.” Every word threatened to shred all her plans.
“What am I risking, Coop?”
“Me winning. You can try to fuck me out of your system, but the whole time I’ll be plotting and planning to find a way that I’m so burrowed in, you won’t ever be able to leave me behind. I’m going to make you love me, Kala Taggart. I’m going to be the one thing you can’t ever compromise on.”

I adored Cooper and the way he fought for Kala. But I especially loved his dynamic with daddy Ian. Ian is a forever favorite character of mine, but him as a protective dad is something else entirely. I just gobble it up.

Tell me you wore a condom.”
Sometimes it was best to be upfront with the man. He sank back into his seat, too. “Nope. I know my last tests came back healthy, and quite frankly, if she wants to baby trap me, I’ll walk right into it. I’ll happily provide logistics for her ops with one of those baby carriers strapped to my chest.”
“Damn it. I want to hate you,” Ian admitted.

There is so much that happens and is revealed in this book that took me completely by surprise. Some of the twists were absolutely jaw dropping. If you were hoping for more Zach like I was, this will make you happy because you get a whole lot insight on the mystery that is Zach. I can’t wait for his book next.

I adored Kala and Cooper together and I devoured this book in two days. It was a fast paced thrill ride with plenty of sizzle and a friends to lovers romance that had a splash of unrequited pining that I absolutely loved.

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Review: Enemy of the State by B.H. Eastwood

April 10, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

ENEMY OF THE STATE
Series: The Enemy Duet #1
Author: B.H. Eastwood
Genre: Dark Romance
Release Date: April 10, 2025

Ending up in a top-secret, maximum-security prison in the Pacific Ocean was not on my bingo card. Neither was having my entire world upended by the head torturer of said prison. Although, I suppose life would be boring without a little, albeit violent, excitement.

I simply need to be patient and wait for him.

They think they can break me. They think they can make me talk. They think I’ll crack. Well, the jokes on them. I refuse to bend. I refuse to shatter. I refuse to die—not here, not like this. I have too much to protect to be anything other than impenetrable. But, if anyone can do it, it’s him…the one in the mouthless mask, he’s the one to watch.

I’m biding my time. He’s coming for me.

Who will get to me first?

AMAZON

There’s a darkness inside you, Sean Diggory, and I’m going to dance within it.”

Prepare to be sick of me, because I’m about to make this book my entire personality. MY ENTIRE PERSONALITY. Because OHMYGOD. Where has this author been all my life?!

The primal look in his eyes spoke to my own inner animal, and the serpent living within me preened in response. She’s been dying to be released from captivity, and it appears that Diggory’s inner beast is rattling his cage door as well.

As a dark romance connoisseur, I find good dark romance books harder and harder to come by. When I saw the blurb to this book, I was immediately intrigued. But after finishing it, I am immediately adding B.H. Eastwood to my auto buy list, because what sort of book crack was this?!

Now if you’re like me and you love a morally gray and unhinged FMC, you’re going to LOVE Lou.

Did you know that female yellow fattails eat their male partners if they don’t satisfy them during mateship?” I ask, waggling my eyebrows.
“Uh, no, I didn’t know that.”
“I do the same thing.” I bare my teeth and clash my teeth together a few times in a mock display of biting.

Lou finds herself in quite the predicament when she’s captured and taken to an off the grid prison. As an assassin for hire and a bloodthirsty and ruthless personality, she’s no innocent. But is she guilty of the laundry list of crimes in her file? That’s to be determined by Sean Diggory “Digs”, the prison guard put in charge of torturing the answers out of her. What Sean doesn’t expect, is to be drawn to the unhinged female he’s been tasked in breaking.

Too bad for him that I will not bend; I will not break. I will not surrender; I will not shatter. Not for him. Not for anyone.

The writing was absolutely immaculate. I was immediately enraptured in the story and these characters. And the character development was pure chefs kiss. I love that the author gives you a full deep dive into both of their depravity and rawest selves.

Sean is a sadist with a broken moral compass and I loved every deranged part of him. He may think he’s one of the good guys, but the lines begin to blur the more time he spends in the presence of the mysterious Lou.

Right now, all I want is her: her body, her mind, her goddamn soul. I want her to languish in the pain I inflict, suffering as I dole out unspeakable things.

Lou is absolutely feral and unhinged and so full of sass that I was immediately obsessed with her. The romance is very much a slow burn that has a deliciously painful buildup with an absolutely explosive chemistry.

Scream my fucking name when you come, Lou. Remind this hell who’s making you feel like you’re in heaven.”

The mystery of Lou’s background is slowly peeled back, leaving the reader with more questions than answers. The story was addictive and gritty. And the romance was so spicy that it gave me full body tingles. If you’re a dark romance lover and you’re looking for a new author to obsess over, look no further. TRUST ME.

This is the first in a duet, but luckily the author isn’t as much of a sadist as Sean, because the ending is satisfying enough that the wait for book two won’t completely break me. But will I be stalking for news of the release, without a doubt.

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Review: Finding Forever by Natasha Anders

April 1, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

FINDING FOREVER
Author: Natasha Anders
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 1, 2025

Niall Caden Hawthorne—Cade—lives an exacting, uncompromising life. His only priorities are, and always will be, his family and his business. He’d do anything for them. This includes marrying a colorless, drab moth of a woman who leaves him physically and emotionally cold.

Fern Lambert is everything Cade has never wanted in a woman—timid, sheltered, shockingly inexperienced, and—after a night of uncharacteristically bad choices—pregnant with his baby.
She is also the key to securing an elusive business contract that Cade has been after for nearly a year. Marrying her means giving up three years of his life, it means acknowledging a child that he never planned on having… it means complications and disruptions to his well-ordered life.
But Cade knows it’s the right thing to do. It’s the only thing to do. That doesn’t mean he has to like it.

And—inexplicable fascination with her lush upper lip notwithstanding—it certainly doesn’t mean he has to like her.

AMAZON

I refuse to be your crutch. I don’t want to be your friend. Or your confidante. I don’t want to hear about your past, or your future aspirations. I don’t care about any of that. All I care about is getting through this marriage with as little emotional investment—from the both of us—as possible.”

When you want a true a-hole MMC, you look no further than Natasha Anders. As a long time fan and reader, she just has this skill of giving you heroes that you love to hate and then hate to love before you just love them. And boy did I love to hate Cade.

Now if you love a modern day cinderella retelling with a twist, this will be your new book crack. Take a wallflower FMC but instead of an evil stepmother, make it an evil stepfather and his two wretched daughters. But while the FMC is a wallflower and hasn’t experienced much of life because of her stepfather’s cruel bid to keep her rightful inheritance from her, she is no pushover. And if there’s one thing I love, is an FMC who is vulnerable, shy, but nowhere close to a doormat.

When Cade spots Fern at an event, effortlessly blending into the wall, there’s really nothing about her that should call to him. Yet he finds himself talking to the timid woman. And one catastrophically unmemorable encounter later, she finds herself pregnant with his baby. Fern, while inexperienced and with the odds stacked against her, is determined to get herself from under her stepfather’s thumb. So she makes Cade an offer he can’t refuse; marry her (in name only) and she will give him the company that he and his father have been trying to negotiate with her stepfather.

Now the one thing that I absolutely love about Natasha’s book, is her ability to take an MMC who seemingly has no interest in the FMC to the point you question how they’ll be together, and make him fall so hard that the MMC is as shocked by it as you are. And boy oh boy did I love Cade falling deeper and deeper. As much as he fought it, the woman was simply not at all who he underestimated her to be.

He’s cruel, and hot and cold, and some of the things that he said to Fern had me wanting to c*ck punch him. But I love and I mean LOVE the way that Fern makes him work for it in the end. She doesn’t just turn around and forgive him at the first sign of feelings. As a matter of fact, she makes him prove them at every turn. And I loved that for her.

We can be happy together,” he maintained. “I don’t think so. I think we can be content. But I don’t think we’d ever be truly happy together.”

This was a delicious slow burn full of tension and heartache, emotion and grit. I loved watching Fern come into her own almost as much as I loved Cade helplessness in falling for her.

I love Natasha’s brand of angst, and this book brought together everything I love about her writing. It hurt so good and I loved every emotional page of it.

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