Review: Sizzling by Abbi Glines

May 26, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

SIZZLING
Series: Georgia Smoke #3
Author: Abbi Gaines
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: May 26, 2024

Briar

Running. It seems that’s all I ever do. I’ve been running since I was fifteen. Some days I wonder if I’ll ever be able to stop. Would I even know how to live a normal life if I could? Doubt it. No reason to waste good time thinking on it either. Sitting around wishing for something never did anyone a favor. If you want it, then you go and get it. By any means necessary. And I was an expert at using my strengths. I’d been born with beauty, and it had been a curse that haunted me until, one day, I grabbed it and used it to my advantage. Don’t judge. You have no idea the demons I’ve fought… and the ones I still do.

Storm

Sure, I was raised to kill when needed and to protect the family. However, my momma also taught me to open doors for women and respect them unless they prove they’re not ladies. It was a damn shame the sweet little piece I’d been unable to get out of my head had never been a lady a day in her life. That gorgeous face and mouthwatering body were real nice wrapping paper to distract men. Briar Landry was a liar, a thief, a cheat, and a very talented gold digger. She disgusted me. The more I was forced to be around her, the more I hated her. I knew the evil inside her and I had enough twisted darkness of my own. Treating her with cruelty, I hadn’t known I possessed, was the only way to keep from letting her pull me inside her web.

AMAZON


Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, and I’ll cut your dick off.

Look, I don’t know what Abbi puts into these books, but they are the best form of book crack that I devour in one giddy sitting. And you know what the funny thing is? I could sit here and probably nitpick at plenty of things, and maybe if it was written by anyone else, I would. But when Abbi writes it, it just works.

That wasn’t the kind of woman you got out of your system. She was the kind that took your soul.

This is the next couple’s story in Abby’s Smoke series spinoff, Georgia smoke. And if you want to appreciate the story that much more, I highly recommend reading in order, because many characters are introduced early on and their story arc continues until their book. Such is the case of Briar, who we learned about in Slay King. Briar is a bit different from the other heroines that Abbi has written in these two series, because she’s self assured. She’s gorgeous and she knows it, and she uses it to survive. It was a refreshing change of pace to read. Having said that, while she puts up a good fight, sort of, she is still not able to resist the chemistry and attraction to Storm even when she should.

Storm thinks Briar is a gold-digger and takes every opportunity to judge her loudly for it. But even that judgement doesn’t lessen his attraction and pull to her. It’s also ironic that a man firmly rooted in the opposite side of the law would judge anyone, but here were are. As hard as he tries to fight the pull, he’s irrevocably drawn to the beauty and it doesn’t take long for their sizzling chemistry to finally implode.

What’s funny is that I would usually want to junk punch someone like Storm, but his hot and cold attitude just worked for me here. I would also want to judge how easy Briar gives into their pull no matter how crappy Storm treats here, but here were are. I just couldn’t seem to care because it just worked. Don’t ask me how or why, but I enjoyed the heck out of their dynamic. I could also nit pick into Storm’s sudden about face when it comes to Briar, but I couldn’t even bat an eye lash at it.

It was just one of those perfect, shut off your brain and enjoy sort of reads and I loved the heck out of it for it. It’s not a standalone and their conclusion will be with the next book, but it also doesn’t leave you on a painful cliffhanger. It ends at a satisfying point where you want the next book but you also get just enough of a good ending to be able to tolerate the short wait until the next installment.

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Review: So Hectic by Eve Dangerfield

May 24, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

SO HECTIC
Series: Silver Daughters Ink #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Eve Dangerfield
Release Date: May 23, 2024

A Super Spicy, Enemies to Lovers, Playboy, standalone romance from critically acclaimed author Eve Dangerfield

Tabby DaSilva’s life sucks. Her dad’s AWOL, her Prosecco-themed music festival ‘Sparkling Whine’ bombed and her big sister’s pregnancy means she’s officially transitioning from ‘youngest kid’ to ‘weird aunt.’
But hardest to take is her best friend Toby Tennant going pure evil.
Taking his virginity was supposed to seal their alliance. Instead, Mr. Nice Guy vanished only to resurface as a full-blown finance douche, complete with Lamborghini and a podcast shilling creatine every five minutes.
Frankly, it’s a fate worse than death.
But Tabby has the perfect solution; run away! All she needs is enough cash to start a new life in Colombia and since Toby’s petitioning for her to tattoo him, what’s a girl to do but slowly inject ink into her enemy’s rippling Ken doll torso?
Little does she know that her ex-best friend doesn’t really want a tattoo. Toby wants her, mind, body, and soul. He’s spent the last two years becoming the Sugar Daddy of Tabitha DaSilva’s dreams and he’s finally ready to show her that he can take care of her, and dominate her, in the ways she’s only ever imagined…

SO HECTIC is a full-length contemporary novel and is the third and final book in the Silver Daughters Ink Series.

AMAZON

She was an agnostic, but she’d happily praise at the altar of Toby Tennant’s God complex.

Ok so two things.
#1. If you haven’t read this series yet, you’re seriously missing out and
#2. This was the most fund I had reading a book in a long while.

Now for a serious question to Eve. Ma’am, can you kindly explain how it’s possible to create an MMC who is both a simp golden retriever and an uber possessive, dirty talking BEAST of an alphahole at the same time? Because I am unwell. UNWELL. And head over ovaries for Toby.

Tabitha,” he said slowly. “Either admit you want a fuck and come upstairs and sit on my dick or get the hell out of my house.”
She gasped, her bag strap sliding off her shoulder, the whole thing hitting the floor. “You’re such a cunt!”
“Yeah, and that’s got you soaking, hasn’t it? So, what’ll it be?”

Now the DaSilva sisters are a riot in their own right. Admittedly I wasn’t sure if I’d like Tabby’s book because she’s always seemed like the craziest of the three but oh how I am humbly eating my words. Because Tabby just so happened to be my favorite DaSilva sister of the series. I love her brashness that hides a soft center that is her heart. I loved her sassy mouth. And I also loved her journey back to Toby.

Toby and Tabby (hehehehehe I love saying that out loud by the way. But I digress) were best friends until one drunken night where Tabby offered to take Toby’s virginity and everything came to a screeching halt. Well, not the sex. that was hot, but the friendship. I’m not sure why but I really connected with Toby and his plight to be the man he thinks he needs to become for Tabby even when I wanted to junk punch him for it too. It’s a conundrum, what can I say.

Toby reappears in Tabby’s life two years later an entirely new man; a self made millionaire with a dirty talking mouth and only one agenda, to get her back into his bed. But Toby also has ulterior motives and has every intention to use the opportunity to weave his way into Tabby’s heart, not matter how hard she fights him or the connection that still tethers them together.

Shall I sit next to you?” Toby leaned back in the booth, and she noted how powerful his thighs looked in his blue suit pants.
“You’ll sit right here,” he growled. “And if I don’t?” He eyed her up and down as though considering whether it was even worth answering. “I’ll tear your fucking dress off.”

Now if you like your MCs mean and I mean MEAN, Toby is going to hit every spot. He’s mean only in bed and beneath the dirty talking exterior with bossy tendencies and a penchant for D/s is a heart of gold and a man who is obsessed with his woman. But holy mother was their role playing hot. I feel like I burned my fingers just turning the pages on my kindle kind of hot. Ya know what I mean? WOWZA

I loved seeing all my favorites from the previous books. And if you really want to enjoy this story to the fullest, I highly recommend reading them in order. This book had everything; emotion, humor, sizzle, and all the feels. It was Eve’s signature sort of delicious chaos and I loved it! Her characters are just so incredibly colorful and memorable and I enjoy the hell out of them, these two in particular. If you’re looking for something fun and super spicy but with a wonderful story and plenty of heart, you need this book.

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Review: When Lies Unfold by RC Boldt

May 23, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

WHEN LIES UNFOLD
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Author: RC Boldt
Release Date: May 23,  2024

USA Today bestselling author RC Boldt delivers a seductive new romantic suspense filled with twists in WHEN LIES UNFOLD…

The moment I witness a murder, my quiet, careful existence goes up in smoke. I’m thrust into the world of Santiago Hernández, Central America’s most ruthless cartel leader.

In exchange for my life, I’m placed under his watchful eye. Day in and day out, he waits for me to betray my promise of silence.

The longer I stay in his world, the deeper I fall for the glimpses of the man beneath that handsome yet cunning exterior. The man whose possessive touch ignites a long-lost part of me.

But I should know better than to open my heart to a cold-blooded criminal with a laundry list of deadly sins and secrets. Especially when he has no idea who I really am.

Because when the lies unfold, he’ll discover I have a list of sins and secrets of my own.

TROPES:
Alpha hero
Anti-hero
Heroine in danger
Close Proximity
Forced Proximity
Enemies to Lovers
OTT Possessive Hero
Mafia/Cartel
Found Family
On-the-run
Opposites Attract
Tortured lead
Tragic past
Revenge
Redemption

AMAZON 

The freedom I’ve fought so hard for has vanished in the blink of an eye. All because I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

O
B
S
E
S
S
E
D

You think I do horrible things to people?”
“I’m sure of it.”
“Mm.” That rumble in his throat holds the barest hint of amusement, and a glint of something far more dangerous edges its way into his gaze. “But you see, Miss Arias, I don’t always do ‘horrible things.’ In fact, certain people like what I do.” His voice drops an octave, skittering over me, and his fuller bottom lip grazes mine with each syllable. “Sometimes, they even beg me for more.”

When I tell you I devoured this book in one heart pounding sitting, I mean I never wanted it to end. And if you’re a fan of a sizzling romantic suspense with a morally gray anti hero and a fierce, survivor heroine who fights her own battles? Well, welcome to your next addiction, my friend.

If I believed in witchcraft or voodoo shit, I’d be convinced she practices it. ’Cause every fuckin’ time I put my mouth on this woman, I’m an addict who needs even more.

I simply adore everything RC Bolt writes. She has this knack for writing some of the most addictive, twisty suspense stories with the most incredible romance intertwined. What I appreciate most about her writing is the incredible ability to balance both those elements effortlessly and flawlessly. You get the perfect combination of a heart pounding suspense with twists and turns along with the most sizling romance. And the story of Santiago and Lola was nothing if not sizzling.

Need you to know somethin’.”
A trace of apprehension has her brows creasin’. “What?”
“I don’t get on my knees for nobody.” She swallows hard as the weight of my words settles between us. I lower my face closer to where I can’t wait to bury my tongue. “But I’m doin’ this for you.”

Lola is desperately trying to stay under the radar. You know she’s running from something and her secrets run deep, but the truth unravels slowly and in a way that has the reader so engrossed, it’s like you’re living her story. Lola is a house cleaner who happens to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and witnesses a murder. And when that murder is tied to one of the biggest narcos in Central America? Well, he’s not about to take her word for her silence. All of his attention is now on Lola and even though she fights him at every turn, her hands are tied…so to speak. *saucy grin*

Only a person with a dark, bloodstained soul can recognize another. They can easily identify the sacrifices made and understand the reasons behind them.

I absolutely loved the story arc between these two. Lola hates everything that Santiago stands for. But the longer she spends in his overwhelmingly intimidating presence, the more layers she peels back to discover there is so much more to the man. And unfortunately for her, the tether of mutual attraction and chemistry is at the center of it.

I truly mean that I devoured this book. I couldn’t stop reading. The story, the mystery, the slow burn romance, the chemistry, the enemies to lovers vibes, all of it was simply phenomenal. I cannot recommend this book enough. And that ending? *chefs kiss*

RC Boldt is a USA Today bestselling author currently living in part of the Costa Rican jungle with the love of her life and her mini-me.

If you’re in the mood for some killer mojitos or can’t recall the lyrics to a particular 80s song, she’s your girl.

Connect with RC Boldt 

Website: http://www.rcboldtbooks.com

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14543027.R_C_Boldt

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Kq1H9C

Facebook: http://bit.ly/RCBoldtFB

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

Instagram: http://bit.ly/RCBoldtIG

Bookbub: http://bit.ly/RCBoldtBB

Verve: https://bit.ly/3jEf18z

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Review: Heart Sick Hate by Eva Simmons

May 11, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

HEART SICK HATE
Series: Twisted Roses #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Eva Simmons
Release Date: January 12, 2024

I chose wrong.

While my future is promised to one man, my heart wants Crew Kingsley.

My enemy. My addiction. My boyfriend’s brother.

Crew isn’t the prince in any girl’s story. He doesn’t want to win my love, he wants to steal it—simply so he can make me regret ever letting him.

If only I wasn’t addicted to his pain.

Crew’s hate burns too hot.
His heart is too cold.
But his punishment… is just right.

When given two choices, a smart girl picks the safest. But Crew made me sick, I made my choice, and even if they think they already wrote our ending, the story is about to change.

 

AMAZON

My last piece of innocence, and I just offered it to a devil.

Have I already mentioned my newly found obsession with this series? I dove into Crew and Echo’s story immediately after finishing Lies Like Love. As an intriguing as Crew was as a secondary character, he stole the show as the main one. And while this is a standalone in a series, I highly recommend you read it in order because the story arc for these two begins in the first book.

The animosity and lust between Crew and Echo is obvious from the first time they appear on the pages. But Echo is with Crew’s brother, Rhett, and I couldn’t wait to dive into this deliciously twisted story. Now if you’re thinking this is a love triangle, it’s certainly not. The relationship between Rhett and Echo is in name only, for an arrangement and agreement made 8 years ago. Desperate to help her sick father, Echo agrees to tie herself to Rhett. Though, admittedly, outside of Rhett’s own ambition, I never fully connected to why Rhett’s father is so committed to this lie, but I digress.

As the day that she has with her life being her own disappearing looms in front of her, Echo is desperate to part with one last pesky piece of her past, her virginity. And who best to offer it to? Her “boyfriend’s” brother who seems to hate her. All joking aside, the connection between her and Crew has always been there so while it sounds outlandish it also made sense that she would go for him. And for those of you that like your MMCs obsessed and falling first and hard, you’ll love dirty talking Crew.

Now admittedly, there were parts of the story development that at times got overshadowed by the sex scenes for me. Don’t get me wrong, not to the point that I skimmed, because they were hot, and I’m not complaining. But I wished we got a bit more meat to the story. Both Echo and Crew were very complex characters, but I never fully connected with Echo the way I hoped I did and the way I did with Fel in the previous book.

That aside, I still binge read this book in one sitting. It was a fast paced, addictive type of read. And while the ending was mostly predictable, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. And now I immediately need Sage’s book because I have a feeling his story may be my favorite in the series. Because that set up at the end of this book? NEED.

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Review: Lies Like Love by Eva Simmons

May 10, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

LIES LIKE LOVE
Series: Twisted Roses #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Eva Simmons
Release Date: September 29, 2023

 

I made a mistake.

Hearts are the most fragile part of the body, and I trusted mine with Jude Carlisle.

My villain. My weakness. My stepbrother.

Fairytales have a way of turning the most innocent things wicked.

Jude lied through his teeth, and I fell for every word. Then he burned both our families to the ground in a sick game of revenge and never looked back.

When I see him again years later—tattooed, pierced, as vicious and lethal as ever—I should know better. Except this time, I’m not the girl looking for a hero. And I’m tempted to let Jude eat me alive if it means I’ll finally be his.

I thought I knew the truth.
I thought I unmasked all the monsters.
I thought I understood how our story would end.

But the trouble with wolves is they’re always lying. And what big lies mine told.


Lies Like Love is an emotionally twisted, dark, fairytale inspired romance with a morally grey hero, heavy subject matter, mature content, and explicit scenes. Content/TWs (which contain spoilers) can be found on author’s website. 18+ only.

AMAZON

Hearts aren’t born broken. They’re carved in the hands of those who aren’t careful with fragile things. And Jude is an expert at ripping holes in mine. He’s ruthless. Brutal.

This was my second Eva Simmons book, and y’all! I. Am. Shooketh. First of all, if you haven’t read this author yet, take my advice and have this one be the first one. Especially if you love suspenseful twisty plots with sassy MFCs and obsessed dirty talking MMCs.

Oh, god,” she moans, as I shove a finger inside, and her p*ssy tightens. “Cute.” I shove another finger in and appreciate how she loses her breath with my touch. “But I promise no one hears you like I do. So if you want your prayers answered, you better fucking pray to me, Red.”

Indeed. But I digress.

Jude and Felicity have a convoluted history. When they were teens, Felicity had a crush on Jude until she discovered he’ll be her new stepbrother and became the ultimate forbidden. But then Fel’s life tilted on its axis. Now eleven years later, Fel is trying to make a life for herself outside the influence of her wealthy family. In the hopes of selling her body jewelry, she allows her best friend to talk her to take a meeting with a popular tattoo parlor. But the last thing she expects is to see the blast from her past, only he’s not the same 17 year old boy she once knew. Jude is harder, darker, and he’s no longer her stepbrother.

This was such a deliciously entertaining story, told primarily in the present with glimpses into the past that are intricately woven in to peel back the layers of the mystery of why Fel hates Jude and what he’s ultimately hiding from her. The story definitely is true to its title and that’s all I’ll say because I don’t want to ruin it for you. Jude is a part owner in the successful Twisted Rose tattoo parlor along with his friends and he happens to get his kicks by fighting in an underground club. So obviously I was obsessed with him. Felicity may seem like a princess who was born with everything, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. And the more you learn about their past, the more you fall for these characters. Their romance was absolutely sizzling and their chemistry was incendiary. I loved the two of them together.

And that ending?! Holy wow! I love when a story manages to catch me by surprise and boy did it. I am officially obsessed and diving immediately into Crew’s book now!

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Review: Skies Over Caledonia by Samantha Young

May 9, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

SKIES OVER CALEDONIA
Series: The Highlands Series #4
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Samantha Young 
Release Date: May 9, 2024

 

He’s a down-to-earth highland farmer. She’s the rebellious daughter of Hollywood royalty. They might seem like they’re from different worlds, but that won’t stop them from engaging in a marriage of convenience…

It’s been five years since Jared McCulloch’s grandfather Collum passed away and he inherited his farm in the Scottish Highlands. After his grandad saved him from his past life, Jared is determined to honor Collum’s legacy. But not only has a series of bad luck put him in danger of losing the farm, his estranged father is disputing the will. In a desperate situation, Jared realizes he’ll do just about anything to save the land.
Even marrying Allegra Howard, a woman he’s avoided at all costs.
A woman who tempts him beyond reason.

There’s only one place that makes Allegra Howard feel safe; one place that feeds her artist’s soul. Allegra wants to settle down in Scotland and expand her business. But there’s a hitch: immigration intends to return her to US soil.
Panicked, Allegra finds the one person just as desperate as she is. The same person she’s lusted after for years. In exchange for marrying her, she’ll invest financially in Jared McCulloch’s farm.

However, living together only forces them to acknowledge their searing mutual attraction. And with it comes an undeniable emotional connection Jared’s not sure he’s ready for.
Yet, blurring the lines of their arrangement is the least of his concerns when someone begins terrorizing the farm.
Allegra and Jared came together to save what matters most and now that might just be each other. And unless they can figure out which of their pasts has returned to torment them, they could lose their chance at a real future together…

AMAZON

Jared was the first man I’d ever met who I just wanted to jump because I was attracted to him on a level I couldn’t explain. I didn’t know him or what his thoughts were on the world. I just wanted him. And for a few exhilarating moments, he’d wanted me too.

This was, hands down, my absolute favorite book in the series. And I’ve loved every book, including the one it spins off from, so that’s saying something. Jared and Allegra’s story was both beautiful and unforgettable. I fell hard and fast and was so thoroughly sucked into their story that I never wanted it to end.

Allegra is Aria’s younger sister from Among the Heather. Stunningly beautiful but highly misunderstood, Allegra is painted to be the spoiled vagabond in comparison to her sister. With a problematic past, she seems to flit from one place to another. But oh, Allegra is so much more than that and when this story begins to peel back the complex, multifaceted layers of her character, I was riveted. My heart broke for her but I also connected with her because she was easily one of the most endearing characters I’ve ever read. Allegra has had a crush on Jared for over 5 years, and at one point, their instant connection at a bar almost led to something. That is, until Jared found out who she was, and has dutifully avoided her with a cold aloofness since.

When faced with being forced to leave the place she’s fallen so deeply in love with because she needs a visa, she only sees one answer. Knowing that Jared is on the verge of losing his beloved grandfather’s farm, she offers him a deal. He marries her for her to get her visa, and in exchange she’ll help him financially with everything he needs to save his farm. What starts as a lie, soon turns into something more because while Allegra thought her feelings were one sided, Jared has been doing his hardest to suppress his attraction to her for years. But forced to live together soon makes hiding their mutual attraction impossible.

My skin flushed hot at the dark, hungry look he threw my way. No one had ever stared at me with such abject longing and desire. I whispered his name. His nostrils flared. “Fuck it,” he snarled as he charged me. He hauled me against his body as his lips crashed down over mine.

I loved their journey as a fake couple to real friendship and then to something so much more. I loved watching Jared’s unwillingly fall harder and harder for his fake wife. And I absolutely loved the realness and vulnerability that was Allegra. This is a woman who has been through so much, yet she fiercely hides it to protect those she loves. And oh my god did I love watching Jared fight for her and stand up for her. GAWD. They were perfection.

You’re on my mind all the time. You’re all I can think about. Your smile, your laugh, your body. I want to fuck you hard every minute of every day so you know who you belong to and who belongs to you.”

Their chemistry was incendiary and their romance was heart wrenchingly beautiful. The story was perfectly paced and I absolutely devoured it cover to cover. I am so in love with this series and this book proves exactly why Samantha Young is one of my auto buy authors. Perfection. Just sheer perfection. And I cannot recommend it enough.

Samantha Young is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author. She’s been nominated for several Goodreads Choice Awards. Samantha writes adult contemporary and paranormal romance, YA urban fantasy and YA contemporary fiction and is currently published in 31 countries.

She resides in Scotland.

 

Connect with Samantha

Website: http://authorsamanthayoung.com

Goodreads:  http://bit.ly/2FWgYdn

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2H47kEP

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

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1520019958258238/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AuthorSamYoung

Bookbub: http://bit.ly/2D241eO

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/samyoungauthor/

Verve: https://www.ververomance.com/app/authorsamanthayoung

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Review: A Vengeful Occasion by Kristy Marie

April 27, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

A VENGEFUL OCCASION
Series: The Fallen Kings of Eden #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Kristy Marie
Release Date: April 26, 2024

Urban legend.
Ruthless Attorney.
Hateful Billionaire.

Tobias Hale is surrounded by rumors, most of which are true. Underneath that three-piece suit is a cold, callous man who rules the courtroom with an iron tongue. Judges hate him with the same passion he hates me.
He hasn’t always been that way, though.
We were once star-crossed lovers who sat by the water’s edge—me wearing his jacket and him dreaming about a future far away from my family—a place where I wasn’t American royalty, only his queen.
I never thought I would see him again.
Years later, a chance encounter brings us face to face.
The sweet and compassionate man I once knew is long gone. The man before me now is a vicious and calculated billionaire.
Once upon a time, he was my fairytale prince.
Now, he has become the legend everyone knows as Tennyson—my husband, my killer.

A Vengeful Occasion is a second chance, romantic suspense standalone.

AMAZON 

They say the sins of the father are the debt of his children. For Spencer Pemberton, that’s exactly the case—plus more.

I was immediately intrigued by these brothers in A Vicious Proposal but when we got a sneak peek into Tobias Hale, suffice it to say I was feral for his book. This series just keeps getting better with each book! I live for a second chance romance trope, and when you throw in suspense, revenge, and a lovers to enemies to lovers vibe? I am SOLD.

I’m sorry, what? Did you say that your wife is in your trunk?” Maybe calling Van—or Alistair, as most people know him—wasn’t such a great idea.
“Don’t get all righteous on me, brother. As I recall, you kidnapped your wife, as well.”
“Blackmailed,” he corrects. “I blackmailed her into marrying me. I didn’t toss her in my trunk the second I saw her.”
“I didn’t take her the minute I saw her,” I retort. “I grabbed her after I stalked her for a week!”

This is the story of Tobias and Spenser, and as much as I loved Tobias, I was absolutely obsessed with Spencer and her sassy fierceness. Twelve years ago, Tobias was her escape and love of her life. But when her life tilted on its axis because of her dangerous family, the last thing Spencer expected is to see the man again. Even though she never stopped loving him.

Spenser was a firecracker. This is a woman who survived hell at the hands of her family and never stopped fighting. She also never stopped trying to escape her circumstances and the life that she never wanted. But when the latest attempt suddenly lands her in front of the only man who ever meant anything to her, it’s not exactly a happy reunion. Spencer has secrets she can’t share and an agenda that is life or death for her. And Tobias is determined to make her pay for what he thinks was her role in ruining his life all those years ago.

We were a cliché poem, fighting for the past we had lost in a future we didn’t trust.

The chemistry between these two was incendiary. Theirs is a slow burn but when it fires up, it crackles!

I’m going to fuck you out of my system,” I warn. “I’m going to fuck you how you make me feel: unhinged.”

I absolutely loved this book. It brought a bit of everything; suspense, action, a fiery romance, and so much hate lust. And you know that I love me some hate lust. My only quibble is that the ending felt a bit rushed after all the build up and I would have loved to see the impact on the pages rather than off. But it was still seriously satisfying and was an absolute page turner of a read.

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Review: Where We Promise by Ashley Munoz

April 26, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

WHERE WE PROMISE
Series: Stone Riders MC #3
Author: Ashley Munoz
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: April 26, 2024

In a tangled mess of betrayal and chaos, I was moved almost overnight onto rival territory under the protection of the one man I never wanted to be a burden to.

Jameson King.

In order to keep me safe, he handed me a ring and told me I’d become his wife. It’s a marriage made of convenience, but there’s a thread of truth neither of us want to examine. The past we’re ignoring, the almost we could have had if our lives were different.

If I hadn’t chosen wrong.

I keep trying to convince myself it doesn’t matter, not when we hold hands, or sleep in the same bed. Because Jameson has always held me at arms length, and my ex is coming for me…we’re just biding our time before this all comes to a messy end.

This is where we promise to hold, to honor and cherish…but what are vows made from lies?

Jameson will stay long enough to ensure I’m safe, and then he’ll let me go, just like he always did before.

AMAZON

He’d given me the world today, only to remind me it was manufactured and on loan. One day he’d belong to someone else, and I would simply be a fulfilled promise, checked off a list.

Truth be told I had conflicting emotions starting this book; equally anticipating a new installment in what’s come to me a favorite series of mine and also dreading it because I wasn’t sure this trope would hit for me. I am not a fan of a baby with another character trope. I love the single parent trope, but something about the baby with another character who’s still very much in the picture just never worked for me. That is, until this book.

You’re a tragedy in your own way, just hanging around in my chest like a poison, slowly infecting my heart.”

One word of advice is that you definitely want to read this series in order. Because while each character has their own standalone romance per book, there is very much an overarching story arc throughout each book that you would appreciate much more reading in order. We get a good peak into Jameson and Penny’s story in Where We Belong as secondary characters and they absolutely stole my heart with their own story.

Penelope and I had a complicated past. One full of unspoken truths, missed chances, and stolen moments. I’d hurt her. She had hurt me. It was fate’s twisted sense of humor that we were now thrown together in some odd, domesticated role. The irony was cruel.

Penelope has been in love with Jameson for as long as she’s known him. He went from the alluring teenage boy to strong and brooding man, but in all of those forms, he’s never given her the time of day. He struggles with his own emotions and so he pulls hot and cold, until Penelope finally has enough and gives up on any hope of anything with him.

There, on a cold October night, Jameson King stole my first kiss in the middle of the street. I wish he hadn’t.

But when her boyfriend and Jameson’s former club VP throws her out when he learns she’s pregnant, she’s left with nothing but tatters of her former life. And Jameson is determined to help her and protect her from his old club. Best way to do that? A marriage in paper only so she has his protection. The problem? He’s been secretly in love with Penelope as long as she has, but he’s been fighting his feelings just as long. Until he is not able to and gives into the fiery chemistry between them.

Admittedly, at first I struggled to understand why Jamie was so adamant to push Penny away when they were young. But the more I read and the more layers that were peeled back, the more I understood the heart of this man. And oh my god, he was everything. The way he loves fiercely and protects fearlessly. This book packed an absolute punch in emotion and good dash of grit that just hit the spot so right.

I devoured this book in a sitting and couldn’t believe that a trope I once hated, I loved oh so much in this story. And the set up for the next book? OH.MY.GOD. The desperate level of need I have for that story is unreal!

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Review: The Wildflower by JL Beck

April 26, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

THE WILDFLOWER
Series: Oakmount Elite Book 2
Author: JL Beck
Genre: Dark, New Adult Romance
Release Date: April 26, 2024

Lies. Betrayal. Loss.

They’re all I know, see, and feel.

I don’t know what is true, or a lie. I don’t know who to believe or who what is real.

Broken and grieving I find refuge in an unlikely foe.

A man who claims to be my brother, who vows to protect me, and destroy those that hurt me.

But not even he can’t protect me from the nightmare that is Drew Marshall.

Deranged. Psychotic. Immoral.

He broke my heart, and publicly humiliated me. Leaving me shattered and broken when I needed him most.

I should hate him, and I do, but a sick twisted part of me craves him as well.

The harder I fight to escape him, the deeper he digs his claws into me.

They say the truth will set you free, but ours didn’t do that.

It locked us inside the cage, and tossed away the key.

AMAZON

Hard-edged and cutting, or soft and sensual, it doesn’t matter… I’m always his willing victim somehow. His voice ignites the embers of desire deep in my gut.

After the jaw dropping cliffhanger in book one, I was chomping at the bit to get my hands on the conclusion. And it did not disappoint! Because even groveling Drew is still in top form and while he may have caught feelings, he didn’t lose any of his edge.

You want me to take it from you so you don’t have to admit how much you wanted me in the first place, and that’s fine. You can hate me for it, hate me as you come all over my cock, because to me, your hate and love taste the same.”

There is quite a bit that happens in this book and I found myself falling even harder for Sebastian, seeing him as the uber protective older brother. I also really enjoyed Bel’s growth in this book. She went from unassuming and shy to fierce and fiery with a backbone and a mouth to go along with it. It felt like a switch was flipped for her and I was totally here for it.

The story itself was fun, steamy and entertaining. The ending, while I thought I knew what was coming, managed to catch me by surprise, which I really appreciate.

And the set up for the next book? Utterly delicious.

If you read and enjoyed the first book, you’ll definitely appreciate the fiery conclusion. Bel and Drew are incendiary together and while their romance is all kinds of toxic, that’s what I loved most about them.

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Review: Puck Block by SJ Sylvis

April 25, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

PUCK BLOCK
Series: Bexley U #3
Author: SJ Sylvis
Genre: New Adult, Sports Romance
Release Date: April 25, 2024

Ford Collins is my brother’s best friend and Bexley U’s favorite defender on the ice. Unfortunately, he feels the need to block much more than the puck.

Namely, ME and any chance I have with a guy.

Encouraged by my older brother, Ford has ruined every single date I’ve ever had. With his hot smirk and sly maneuvers, he has made it his mission to make me the most unattainable female college student in the world—that is, until I have a brush with death, and I beg him to help me.

After all, he owes me. And I’ve come to collect.

Determined to rid himself of the guilt, Ford promises to help me score a boyfriend—or two—and swears he won’t interfere.

But the more time I spend learning from one of Bexley U’s most desirable playboys, the more I start to question the real reason why he’s been sabotaging my dates over the years.

With the lingering touches, heated stares, and sizzling chemistry between us, we both know we’re playing with fire. What happens when our game of “practice” and Ford’s spicy lessons become something real that we not only need to hide from my older brother, but from each other?

Puck Block is book #3 in the Bexley U series and CAN be read as a standalone in this interconnected series.

AMAZON

because tonight you’re not my best friend’s little sister.” Her wrists are trapped in my hand, and I pin them to the pillow. “Tonight, you’re mine.”

Best friend’s little sister trope is one of my favorites. And when you combine that with a steamy hockey romance? I. Am. PUTTEH.
This was Ford and Taytum’s story, Taytum being Emory’s sister. And when I tell you that Ford was impossible not to fall in love with, I mean I was obsessed with this man.

She has me in the palm of her little hand, and I’m not even sure she knows it.

The way he cares for Taytum and the way he takes care of her even when she fights him tooth and nail on it was perfection. But Taytum took me a minute to warm up to admittedly. While I understood her struggle with the Type 1 diabetes diagnosis, I couldn’t understand her petulant and almost blasé attitude to it at first. She does everything, it seems, to not take it seriously at first. Until a hospital visit forces a much needed dose of reality. And Ford comes to the rescue.

What begins as Ford helping Taytum experience college dating outside of her brother’s strict sheltering, soon turns to something much more. But boy did I love their fumbling through this experience. Taytum is desperate to get out from the shadow of her big brother’s overprotectiveness that has foiled all male interest and dating prospects in high school. She doesn’t want her diabetes to stop her life and she wants to experience going out and getting guys and hooking up. Her brother’s best friend is her unlikely partner in crime. The only problem? The chemistry that just so happens to brew between these two.

Why her? Why now?” I peer over my shoulder at my best friend. “How could there be anyone else when she exists?”

And while I’m not usually a fan of seeing the MCs dating others, it just worked for me here. Yes Tay had some chemistry with a certain secondary character who I hope will get a book later in the series, but it was nothing in comparison to what sizzles between her and Ford. And the more each of them fought it, the more invested I became.

This was a slow burn that had me wanting to shake both Ford and Tay at times, but when it finally happened, WOWZA. It was worth every agonizing minute of the wait. I’m seriously so obsessed with this series and can’t wait for the next book!

 

S.J. Sylvis is an Amazon top 50 and USA Today bestselling author who is best known for her angsty new adult romances. She currently resides in Arizona with her husband, two small kiddos, and dog.

She is obsessed with coffee, becomes easily attached to fictional characters, and spends most of her evenings buried in a book! 

 

Connect with SJ

Website | https://www.sjsylvis.com/

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