GIVE ME A REASON
Series: Redemption Hills #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: A.L. Jackson
Release Date: August 30, 2021
From NYT and USA Today bestselling author A.L. Jackson comes a single-dad, enemies-to-lovers stand-alone romance about a jaded club owner and his son’s teacher…
Eden Murphy came into my club looking to make some extra cash.
A girl like her didn’t belong in a place like this.
She’d get ripped to shreds.
Most likely by me.
There’s nothing but sweetness dripping from her sexy little body, and I’m the monster who’s salivating to get a taste.
Trent Lawson is the last man I should want.
Dark.
Dangerous.
So wickedly gorgeous he makes my knees weak.
He’s also an arrogant jerk who happens to be my new boss.
When I discover his adorable son is also in my kindergarten class, I know I have to keep my distance.
But neither of us can ignore the attraction that flames.
One glance, and our hearts race.
One touch, and we’re aching for what we can’t have.
One night, and we’re falling fast.
Dragging her into my sordid world is wrong.
It doesn’t matter.
Eden Murphy is mine.
You are everything I didn’t know I needed.” Her words were panted into the thick air. That connection a glimmer in the room. Throbbing. Consuming. Binding us whole. I burrowed my face under her chin. My confession was pressed to her skin. “And you are everything I will never deserve.”
If you’ve read this author before, then you already know her lyrical writing style. I’m not a reader that enjoys prose, yet somehow when A.L. Jackson writes it, I can’t seem to get enough of it.
I’ve been salivating for this book ever since she announced it. The premise for the series sounded amazing, and now that I’ve been introduced to the Lawson brothers, I’m completely hooked. I’m so here for this gritty and emotional series.
Now as for this book, well it had me at enemies to lovers. And then sealed the deal with single daddy and son’s teacher. Trent is a MC that’s impossible not to fall for. Trent first meets Eden when she comes to his club for an interview. But he can smell her innocence a mile away and refuses to give her the chance, even when there’s an underlying attraction that simmers beneath the surface. Eden may look sweet as sunshine, but this is also a woman with a backbone. She’s not afraid to stand up for herself, even if it’s with the tatted and jaded club owner who refuses to give her the time of day. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and she needs the money to help her father.
I loved the dynamic between these two. Eden is sweet and wholesome, but she’s also a woman with a past. I loved the relationship she develops with Trent’s sweet son. And his son! Oh man. He may have been my favorite secondary character with his burst of sunshine, chatty demeanor, and sweet nature and open heart.
Trent is the definition of tortured. This is a man who is still running from his past and feels that it continues to taint him. He’s the son of a ruthless MC president and a man with blood on his hands who had to do what he needed to ensure his brothers’ safety and his own. Right now, all he cares about his protecting his son, and he can’t let any woman distract him. He doesn’t have anything left to give. Especially to a woman like Eden.
The enemies element of this book didn’t last long, though I wish it was a bit longer. It went from one to the other fairly quick, though I didn’t mind too much. I loved their chemistry and connection. I suppose I just wanted a bit more burn. Having said that, their relationship development was so organic and felt so right. I loved the way that Trent couldn’t stay away from her and the way that Eden sees past his dark and broody exterior to the tortured soul beneath.
There’s also a suspense element that I lived for and a twist at the end that I never saw coming. I’m completely hooked and desperate for more. I cannot wait till the next book!!
THE DON
THE BASTARD’S BETRAYAL
Having said that, I loved the first half of this book. The kidnapping, the push and pull, the hate lust, the second chance romance vibes. All of it just did it for me. But then the story lost a bit of steam for me. I wanted more mafia action, but most of it was a bit on the meh side. Outside of a few brief glimpses and instances, not much else happens. I began to grow bored and to skim. I also found myself wishing we got some glimpse of how these two got together. That all takes place off the pages, and I would have loved a bit more fleshing out of their original connection. Don’t get me wrong, I still loved their chemistry, I just also wished for at least a flashback or two.
BOND OF DESTINY
Sold into slavery mere hours after his birth to werewolf parents, Tracker spent decades in service to cruel underworlders. Then the fallen angel Harvester transferred his ownership to a human woman who gave him as much freedom as the unbreakable bond would allow. Still, thanks to his traumatic past, he’s afraid to trust, let alone feel love. 
THERE WITH YOU
Now look, books like this are not my usual reads. I don’t gravitate towards stories that hurt my heart. But when I tell you this was one of the most beautiful, mesmerizing and unforgettable stories of love I’ve read, I mean it was IT. It was that book for me. It was a book that I will never forget and yet will never put myself through reading it again. Because it broke me. It was this ying and yang sort of dynamic. Beauty with pain. And you really can’t have one without the other.
KL Kreig sets the stage right away. This story doesn’t sneak up on you with the feels. It’s a steady build up and I’m not going to lie, I spent most of it in tears. Do I regret reading it? Absolutely not. Would I read it again? Absolutely not. Do I recommend it? ABSOLUTELY.
RUTHLESS CROWN
CLAIMED
THE SINNER
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Author: Emma Scott
Release Date: August 15, 2021
WILD CARD
