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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Review: The Venom We Bleed by Lucy Smoke

March 14, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

THE VENOM WE BLEED
Series: Scorpion Kings #1
Genre: Dark, Why Choose Romance
Author: Lucy Smoke
Release Date: March 14, 2025

Silverwood Public: Home to liars, thieves, and worst of all … the Scorpion Kings.

I was the Queen at my old school.
Born into wealth and power.
Now, thanks to my family’s deceit, I’m a pariah and a target.

I’ve got no friends. No parents. No money. And no fucks left to give.

If the Scorpion Kings want to damage the new outcast of Silverwood, they’ll soon learn that anyone can be a killer if you give them the right incentive.


*This is a Dark Enemies to Lovers WhyChoose Romance*
*Trigger Warning: If you are sensitive to content common in dark romance (content such as SA, graphic depictions of violence, murder, drug and/or alcohol abuse, physical abuse, mental and/or emotional abuse, traumatic events, unhealthy coping mechanisms, dubious consent etc.) then this book may not be for you. Please read responsibly.*

AMAZON

Love? Hate? It doesn’t matter anymore. What we feel can’t be described by the written word or a simplified emotion. What we feel transcends conscious thought and all that’s left is fire and ice.

You ever added a book to your TBR based on the cover alone? Because, guilty. But the second I saw the title and the cover to this book, I knew it would be my first Lucy Smoke book. And clearly I have been sleeping on this author, because the way I devoured this book obsessively was no joke.

Need convincing? Because I can save you the review by this quote alone:

What’s my name?”
“W-what?” I stare at him, confusion pushing aside the panic.
“What is my name?” he repeats the question calmly.
“Lex.”
He nods. “Good. Remember that when I make you come so hard you forget everything else. I want to hear you screaming my name when you see God so he knows who sent you.”

I mean, what else do you need here? But I suppose I’ll give you more.

I am a sucker for the rich girl and boy(s) from the wrong side of the track trope. But this one is made even juicer because the rich girl has a dark fall from grace when her father is sent to jail and she’s left to pick up the pieces of her life and to bear the brunt of the blame of the people that her father ruined.

Juliet was once the princess in her school, albeit it was all an illusion and she wasn’t truly happy. But now, she finds herself on the other side of the tracks, where fights are fought with fists and not money, and her father’s name is nothing but a stain that she wants desperately to shed. All she has to do is skate under the radar, survive one year, get her diploma and get the heck out of dodge. Easier said than done when she lands in the crosshairs of everyone.

Juliette was impossible not to love. The girl has brass ones on her. She’s no society princess. She’s a fighter through and through and she doesn’t take any shit from anyone. Rather than take the easy way out and except the help from anyone, she ventures on her own. But the last thing she needs is to get in the crosshairs of the Scorpion Kings, the trio who rule the school and get whispered about for their criminal ties; Nolan, Gio and Lex.

I love that the author gives us a peek inside each of the guys’ heads though the predominant POV is Juliette’s. The story is deliciously gritty, violent, and full of dark secrets that we just get the surface of. The romance is a slow burn that I couldn’t get enough of. And the ending left me a shaking mess, desperately anticipating the next installment because I need answers!

If you’re looking for a steamy, dark and gritty why choose romance, look no further!

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Review: Pretty Little Threats by Daria Quinn

February 22, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

PRETTY LITTLE THREATS
Genre: Dark Romance
Series: Princes of NYC #1
Author: Daria Quinn
Release Date: February 20, 2024

A dark secret. A corrupt marriage. And a beast who might just fall for the beauty.

DARE
Power. Control. Darkness.
I’ve built an empire with those three things, and I’ll destroy anyone who tries to threaten it.
When Rose Miller’s father announces her arranged marriage to a man far worse than me, I step in. She needs my protection. But she doesn’t know the price of my help.
We share a secret, one that could ruin us both. A crime that ties us together in ways she doesn’t understand.
I’ll marry her, keep her safe, but make no mistake, she won’t just be my wife. She’ll be mine, body and soul.

ROSE
I’ve spent my life following every rule my father set. But when he tries to give me to a monster, I realize I’ve been trapped in a gilded cage.
Dare Richardson might be the only one who can protect me, but he’s ruthless. A dangerous beast I’ve always despised.
The truth is, we’re both running from something darker than either of us, and when he offers me a way out, I can’t help but accept.
The man I once swore to hate is now my husband.
And the beast within him? He’s the only one who can set me free.


This is a dark contemporary MF romance. It is the first standalone in the Princes of NYC series

AMAZON 

 

She’s the daughter of my enemy, and I’ll fu*ck her like she’s one.

In my constant search for new to me authors to obsess over, the blurb to Pretty Little Threats immediately had my attention. And now that I’ve finished, I’m already desperately anticipating the next release in this series.

I love a good hate to love romance and boy do these two fiery characters bring that trope to life.

Can’t keep your hands off me?” he asks.
“If you wake up one morning without your tongue, don’t be surprised.”
Dare laughs—like he thinks I’m joking, when I’m already planning how to do it. I glare at him. His lips press into a wider grin. I almost trip, but years of practice in heels and Dare’s hand on my waist keep me steady. That smile is disarming. Beautiful. Dangerous. “I like it when you threaten me.”
What? Is he insane?

The story of Dare and Rose was full of delicious banter, hate lust, and a marriage of convenience with a bit of bribery and blackmail thrown in.

Rose is the daughter of Dare’s biggest adversary and to say that there is no love lost between these two, is a mild understatement. Dare is a cold and ruthless business man who is known as the Beast of NYC for good reasons. Rumors of murder and dark secrets circle around him.

Rose is a woman who is desperate for her father’s approval. But when her father locks her into an arranged marriage with a man she despises, she realizes that her freedom was nothing more than a hopeful illusion. And the answer to her problem may be a deal with the devil himself.

If you’re looking to dip your toes in the darker romance, this is a perfect gateway book. It’s gritty and has plenty of darker themes but without going full black. Definitely morally gray and with plenty of suspense thrown in.

The writing was quick paced and I found myself easily enraptured by the story. I also really loved both characters; Rose may have grown up as the daughter of a rich businessman, but she’s no naive or sheltered woman. There’s a bite to her that I really enjoyed. Dare immediately had my attention because the man simply draws you in with his magnetism that just jumps off of the pages.

I devoured this book and loved the chemistry between Rose and Dare. I would have loved a bit more meat to the ending, because it seemed like Rose got over the shock of what she learned a bit too fast. But it definitely didn’t take away from my enjoyment.

If you’re looking for a super spicy hate to love romance with plenty of banter and all the chemistry, you need this book on your TBR!

Meet Daria Quinn:

Daria Quinn is a pen name for a USA Today Bestselling Author who realized her story telling passions stray a little in the morally grey. 

Daria Quinn love cats, dark chocolate, earl grey tea, and heart stopping romance. 

Connect with Daria Quinn:

https://www.instagram.com/dariaquinnauthor/



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DGRFave & Review: On Loverose Lane by Samantha Young

February 20, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

ON LOVEROSE LANE
Series: Return to Dublin Street #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Samantha Young 
Release Date: February 20, 2025

Imagine my surprise when my new neighbor turns out to be one of Scotland’s most famous (and hottest) professional footballers, Callan Keen. I’m even more shocked to discover that the brooding player is still holding a grudge for something that happened (or didn’t happen) between us years ago.

Too busy trying to take my social media management company to the next level, I don’t have time for this gorgeous blast from the past. Or at least I shouldn’t. Yet whenever I see him, I can’t help but engage in a battle of wits with the grump upstairs.

When a huge client opportunity arises, circumstances force me to enlist Callan’s help. I require a fake date and Callan needs me to facilitate a meeting with my dad to further his own business interests.

The deal between us should be simple. Except, of course, the blazing chemistry we’ve shared since the moment we met. We can’t deny it, we can’t control it, and soon we’re agreeing to six weeks of no-strings-attached, mind-blowing, steamy shenanigans.

I told myself I was too smart to catch feelings. But when Callan finally finds out the truth about our past, he becomes the guy I used to know. And that man is way too easy to fall for.

The problem is that Callan has vowed to never let another person close enough to break his heart again.

It just might prove impossible to show my stubborn Scotsman I’m worth the risk, especially when old wounds are re-opened and threaten to wreck any chance of a future together…

The #1 International bestselling author is back with this emotional and steamy sports romance in which ambitious entrepreneur, Beth Carmichael, meets her match in the grumpy football captain who moves into the apartment above hers.

AMAZON

I barely knew her, but somehow I knew even then at sixteen, Beth Carmichael would ruin me. Either in a good way … or the worst way imaginable.

On Dublin Street was the first Samantha book I ever read and it was also the book that made me fall in love with her writing. So it really should come as no surprise that I loved this book as much as I did because not only is it set in the same world but it also features the next gen with the daughter of Braden and Jocelyn. And dare I say that I think I may have loved Beth’s story even more than her parents? And considering that On Dublin Street is still one of my absolute favorite books over 10 years later, that’s saying something.

I want all of you to be mine. Every fucking inch of you, Beth, inside and out. Until we don’t even know where I begin and you end.”

Prepare to fall head over heels for Beth and Callan because I know I did. When Beth walks out of her apartment to three guys bringing up a couch, she’s not entirely prepared for the blast from the past in the shape of Callan. But while it’s clear that these two have a past, you don’t entirely know the depths of it or why there’s such animosity between them now. Well, the animosity is mostly from Callan, but animosity nonetheless. And beneath that animosity is the most sizzling chemistry that you can’t wait but for them to give into.

Beth is the daughter of two well known parents and while she grew up with everything, she takes none of it for granted and determined to pave her own way in building her company. She’s impossible not to love with her easy wit, quick humor, and endearing personality. Much to Callan’s displeasure, she also has the immaculate skills to quickly befriend all the one night stands he brings over.

Callan is no longer the poor boy with nothing to his name. He’s the next hot thing in sports and a professional footballer whose name everyone chants on the field. A blast from his past is the last thing he needs, especially when it’s one of Beth. And as the story progresses, we get snippets into their past to see just what happened between these two. I personally loved the pay that the flashbacks were so shameless woven into the story.

The chemistry between them is immaculate and I was on bated breath for the inevitable to happen. When an opportunity presents itself for a mutually beneficial arrangement, Beth and Callan agree to fake date. Callan needs an in for a meeting with Beth’s father, and Beth needs the illusion of a boyfriend to get a potential big client’s handsy son to get off her back.

It’s mutually assured destruction, Captain.

But of course with the more time they spend together, the harder the tension and chemistry between them becomes to ignore. While the chemistry between their teenage selves was hot, as adults, it’s absolutely incendiary.

I loved absolutely everything about this book; the characters, the romance, and especially the cameos of some of my favorite Samantha Young characters. If you haven’t read her Dublin Street series, I can’t recommend it enough. And if you haven’t yet read a book of hers, there is no better one to start with than this one.

I fell head over heels for Callan and Beth and their story is forever engraved in my memory banks. I am so excited for the rest of this series because it’s simply one of my favorite worlds from Samantha and everyone needs to experience it. I loved it beyond words!

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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Audio Review: Blood of Hercules by Jasmine Mas

February 17, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

BLOOD OF HERCULES
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Series: Villains of Lore #1
Author: Jasmine Mas
Release Date: November 26, 2024

The overnight viral sensation everyone is talking about, Blood of Hercules, is a sarcastically funny, dark fantasy romance reimagining of Hercules from bestselling author Jasmine Mas.

I’m just a girl. And it turns out, I’m Hercules.

I’m struggling to survive in a Titan infested world where Spartans, immortals from twelve royal families who have god-like powers and obscene wealth, rule over all. A shy-stammering foster child with nothing, I keep my head down, cover my scars, and focus on excelling in school. At least, I try to. Then it happens.

My blood test reveals I’m part of the powerful elite. I’m one of them. A Spartan.

Forced to attend the Spartan War Academy, I undergo the most harrowing test of all time to see if I have what it takes to be an immortal. There’s just a few problems. Achilles and Patro are my scary mentors. Kharon, the ferryman of death, and Augustus, the son of war, are my terrifying professors. Also, I’m pretty sure either someone’s stalking me everywhere I go, or my sanity’s slipping––I have a bad feeling both are true.

I’m surrounded by Villains and they’re smothering me with their hate, obsession, and dark possessiveness. Too bad for them, they have no clue just who they’re messing with.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

Perfect for listeners who love:

“Who did this to you?”
  • Extreme Enemies to Lovers
  • Morally Gray Alpha Heros
  • Stories where the Villains get the girl
  • Greek Myths and War Academies

AMAZON 

 

During the day, the feminine urge to lead a fictional revolt plagued me.”


I am not usually an audio girly because for whatever reason, I tend to check out when I listen to a book. But there was something about this one that just clicked with me. Interestingly enough, it took me a bit to get into (around 20%). But after that, I was completely obsessed and incapable of setting it down for even a minute and ended up binge listening to it in one day. Suffice it to say, I was obsessed.

Having read and absolutely LOVED Jasmine’s Cruel Shifteverse, I was so excited for this new world and I was not disappointed. I love Mas’s combination of self depreciating humor, wit, and world building. And I especially love how she crafts these fierce FMC who survive hell to become legends. And Alexis has definitely survived hell. As an abandoned baby, she grows ups with abusive foster parents who she finally escapes at a young age when her foster mother brutally dies at the hands of a mysterious entity and her father is blamed for the death. Being left homeless with her foster brother, she is desperate to finish school so she can place herself in a situation to provide for them. But then she receives the shock of a lifetime when a standard school test finds her to have spartan blood and placed in the midst of a grueling challenge.

I enjoyed the narrator bringing Alexis to life with personality and found it fun and engaging. But I especially loved when we finally get the small trickle of POVs from 3 of the 4 men. We have Alexis’s two mentors; Achiles, who doesn’t speak because of his voice powers and muzzle and Patro. And then we have Augustus and Kharen, who we get the most of. There’s a small snippet of Patro’s POV in the end which I definitely devoured.

The story and world building was deliciously enchanting and gripping. And the romance is very much slow burn. If you’ve read anything by Jasmine, you’re already familiar with her brand of humor. And I for one enjoy it thoroughly.

I hope book two brings us more of the male POV because I am absolutely dying to hear Achiles. If you’re looking for a slow burn romantasy with unique spin on greek god mythology, this one hits just right. 

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Review: Savage Lands by Stacey Marie Brown

February 9, 2025 by · Leave a Comment

SAVAGE LANDS
Series: Savage Lands #1
Genre: Dark Fantasy Romance
Author: Stacey Marie Brown
Release Date: October 20, 2020

Almost twenty years after the barrier between Earth and the Otherworld fell in the Fae Wars, Budapest is balancing on the precipice. A battle for dominance is brewing between the elite fae and the privileged humans in Eastern Europe. The prejudice between the sides is bubbling with hate and violence.

Nineteen-year-old human, Brexley, has grown up in privilege, but not without heartbreak. After being orphaned, she is taken in by General Markos, living in a walled city rife with power grabs and ruthless political games. Then one night the course of her life changes, and Brexley is thrown into the most feared prison in the east. Halalhaz, the House of Death—where you go in but don’t come out.

She must learn to live with the worst of fae and human criminals. The rule of hierarchy puts humans on the bottom, where the only way to survive each day is to make alliances with the fae.

Here she meets the sexy, vicious legend, Warwick Farkas. A myth among man and fae. He is as brutal, cruel, arrogant, and as lethal as the lore says he is, ruling the prison with unchallenged authority. Brexley can’t deny an intense draw to him, one that might cost her life.

If The Games don’t take her out first—A fight to the death where only one survives.

AMAZON 

I would kill Warwick Farkas. It was a promise I would not break. I would become the very monster the House of Death created.

I have been eyeing this series for what feels like forever but was always intimidated by the size of it. But I find my greed for addicting stories spans multiple books as of late and so I decided to finally dive in. And holy gasp, batman. This was one killer story.

Will you retaliate?”
“Yes.” I snarled. That bitch stole my blankie.

Now admittedly, it took me a bit to get into the story. I’m not sure why, because the pacing, character development and world building was well paced. I wasn’t bored or disconnected by any means but I wasn’t fully immersed. But boy did that take a turn after the 20% mark. Because from there, I couldn’t put the book down and found myself binge reading it on sitting.

Brexley was exactly the kind of FMC I love reading about. She’s fierce with just the right touch of vulnerability and absolutely kick ass. She’s a warrior in her own right but nothing could prepare her when one fateful night lands her in a place nightmares are made of; Halalhaz, the House of Death. It’s a prison that you go into but never come out of that houses both fae and human. And this is where the story really begins to take of. As Brexley navigates survival in the brutality of Halalhaz. This is also where she meets the man she thought was made up to terrify both human and fae; Warwick.

Now brace yourself because 80% of this book is brutal as hell. Pun intended. Brexley is forced into a brutal world where only the strongest survive and a human is the very bottom of that totem pole. Warwick is mystery until the last page but oh my god did I fall for him. I was desperately grabbing at any morsel of detail about this man. Especially when the mysterious connection between him and Brexley begins to make itself known.

Now this is very much a slow burn so don’t expect much romance in this book. It’s brimming with tension and chemistry, but considering the size of the series, we don’t get much romance here, which is just fine with me. I devoured this book and was left with a jaw dropping ending which makes me so glad that the rest of the series is already out because I will be immediately jumping into the next book. I NEED ANSWERS!

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Review: Bourbon & Secrets by Victoria Wilder

December 8, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

BOURBON & SECRETS
Series: The Bourbon Boys #2
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Author: Victoria Wilder
Release Date: December 6, 2024

In Fiasco, Kentucky, there is one rule: never fall for a Foxx brother.

Any woman who did, ended up dead. It wasn’t just a rumor. It was my reality. I buried my wife along with too many secrets surrounding the night she died.

Now, I’m a single dad with two priorities above everything else: raising my two girls and making great bourbon.

But when Faye Calloway returns after I ran her out of my small town—looking like a fantasy on stage and nothing like the cop she was trained to be—I know for a fact that she’s hiding more secrets than the one she blackmailed me to keep.

While everyone is focused on the teasingly beautiful burlesque dancer, I’m distracted by the woman with a hidden agenda. The smart-mouth, who says what she wants. And the instigator, who prefers a very specific way to drink her bourbon.

But as secrets begin to unravel, I realize she’s fiercely protective of the ones she loves. When she puts herself in danger to right the past, the rules stop mattering.

Only two things have the power to keep my family from falling apart and losing the woman I love—bourbon and secrets.

Romantic Suspense
Single dad
Small town
Secrets & Blackmail
Hate-to-love
Returning home
Found Family
Bourbon “Tasting”

AMAZON 

I started falling in love with Faye Calloway on the edge of a cornfield, on a stage, over a bottle of bourbon, and every time she’s been in my arms since.

Did I add this book for the cover aline? Absolutely I did. The intriguing blurb was just the cherry on top. Did I also do things in my usual back @sswards way and read book 2 in the series before reading book one? I did indeed and I have no regrets! But also, I will immediately be reading the first book. But I digress…

You sound so pretty when you’re pissed off and moaning for me.”

As a lover of small-town romance, suspense, dirty talking MMCs, kickass FMCs, single dad and hate to love tropes, boy did this book hit the spot for me. And it hit it so hard!

The second Lincoln and Faye appear on the pages together, I was instantly sucked in! And when Faye comes back to the town she grew up in and no longer welcome in for a secret job, I was completely enraptured. This woman was so fascinating with her sass and strength. She was impossible not to love. And even though there was no love lost between her and Lina, he couldn’t stay out of her orbit for too long either. No matter how he tried to fight it.

Oh my god,” I moan. He smiles up at me. “Yeah, Peach, I can be that for you too.”

The suspenseful plot and the mystery that unravels in parallel to the romance was perfectly paced. And the romance was perfectly sprinkled in so you get a great dose of both story and spice. And let me just tell y’all, the spice was SPICING.

Don’t you fucking stop, Foxx. I want to hear you moan like a man.”

Did I mention that I absolutely loved Faye?

I really enjoyed this story and especially the secondary characters of Linc’s daughters. The family dynamics are fascinating and the story managed to also take me by surprise in parts, which rarely happens to me these days.

I’m definitely hooked hard on this series now and can’t wait for Ace’s book next. These Foxx boys are so addictive!

Connect with Victoria Wilder:
https://beacons.ai/authorvictoriawilder

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Review: Wrath of an Exile by Monty Jay

October 29, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

WRATH OF AN EXILE
Series: River Styx Heathens #1
Author: Monty Jay
Genre: New Adult Romance
Release Date: October 28, 2024

In Ponderosa Springs, this version of Romeo and Juliet isn’t a tragedy. It’s war.

Jude Sinclair is West Trinity Falls’ favorite exiled loner.

Cocky. Insufferably hot. Family foe.

Raised across the tracks in a rival town, he reeks of trouble. Which is the one thing I’ve always had a problem avoiding and now that he’s just down the hall, it’s harder to resist the pull.

My father made one rule when Jude moved in, never trust a Sinclair.

The last thing I need is for my new foster brother to make me question my loyalty with his filthy smirks and poet tongue. But with every forbidden kiss and secret hookup, I quickly find myself faced with two options.

Betray my family? Or betray my heart?

AMAZON

The Capulets and Montagues may have been Shakespeare’s famous foes, but in Ponderosa Springs? It was the Van Dorens and Sinclairs.

I feel like I have been waiting for this book for my entire life. It was pure, dark tinged and grungy poetry and man but I loved every page of it.

Now if you haven’t yet read Monty Jay’s Hollow Boys series, do yourself a favor and read that series first. While you can definitely still enjoy this without having read that series, you would have a much finer appreciation for these characters having met the first generation. This is the next gen spinoff as it is. Plus Hollow Boys is simply a deliciously addictive series that I can’t recommend enough if you need another reason.

Now if you have read Hollow Boys, then you already know the history between Sinclairs and Van Dorens. Rook (The Truths We Burn) was one of my favorite characters and books in that series and I couldn’t wait to meet his daughter, Seraphina, who I just knew would be as lethal as her parents.

You see, I’ve got this thing. This appetite for boys’ hearts. It’s impossible to survive my brand of chaos. I like bad decisions. Fast cars. And sex. Anything that makes me numb.

Now as a self proclaimed enemies to lovers connoisseur, a true enemies to lovers romance is hard to come by. But boy did this one deliver. And if you love the whole star crossed, Romeo and Juliet vibe? Well, it’s extra delicious. Because Jude is not just the bad boy from the wrong side of the tracks. His last name carries a dark cross that isn’t his to bear but bear it he does. Jude just so happens to be the son of Easton Sinclair, who also happened to be Sage’s horrible ex from The Truths We Burn. But let’s talk about this book, shall we. Because when you highlight this much in a book, you just know you’re reading a five star. And the level of obsession I now have with these characters knows no end.

Phi’s misery tastes like it could sustain me for an eternity.
“I hate you.”
“Right back at ya, sweetheart.”

To say that there’s bad blood between the Van Dorens and the Sinclairs is putting it mildly. But the amplifier to that is the particular history between Phi and Jude personally. This is a mystery that slowly unravels during the course of the book and had me in a complete chokehold.

Seraphina is not known for her soft heart. She’s known for her love them and leave them mentality. But deep down, this is a girl who has some dark scars and even darker secrets. Jude is the quintessential tortured bad boy who I fell for instantly. He lived through hell with his father, and the stain of his family’s last name carriers into his every day. And when his father suddenly dies and suddenly he’s the foster of the Van Doren family, let’s just say things get sticky. And the hate lust between him and Phi certainly doesn’t get better when they’re living under the same roof.

You think you like it rough ’cause a few guys tugged your hair, Van Doren?” I whisper. “You’ll carry my bruises for a goddamn lifetime.”

And did I mention the hate lust? Because oh my god the tension between these two was everything. EVERYTHING.

How long do you think it’ll take before you give in and let me fuck those pretty little lies out of your mouth, sweetheart?”

I loved everything about this book; the characters, the pacing, the mystery, the secrets, the history. All of it was effortlessly and masterfully intwined for an absolutely unputdownable reading experience. And that’s what this book was; an experience.

You’re a goddamn tragedy, Van Doren. But fuck, you’re beautiful.”

I devoured the book in one sitting. I was both rabid for the ending and dreading it because I didn’t want this book to ever end. The story was perfectly paced with a haunting romance full of pain and second chances. And the new generation characters already have me rabid for their books…especially Ezra. If you’re looking for a dark and gritty new adult romance, you simply need to read this one. Full stop.

We’re not made for soft endings. We’re made for catastrophe, for the kind of connection that leaves scars, the kind that haunts you long after the final page is turned.
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Review: Tore Up by Abbi Glines

October 23, 2024 by · Leave a Comment

TORE UP
Series: Mississippi Smoke #1
Author: Abbi Gaines
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: October 23, 2024

Calculating, cold, often without emotion was how I was described by those closest to me. I had thought perhaps there was truth to their depiction until this endless searing pain took the place in my chest where my heart used to be. Vengeance now ate away at my soul. The wrath I planned to unleash would make the demons in Hell appear mild.

At least, that was until…

The twisted crux came in the form of eyes bluer than the sky on a warm summer day, a slightly upturned nose with a scattering of freckles, a pink cupid bow mouth, and a smile that made a man’s knees weak.

The events that brought us here meant I should loathe her existence for eternity, yet my need for her grows with each passing day. She’s too young, she’s vulnerable and broken, but somehow, she’s not damaged. She was the cause of what had left me with this raging agony, and yet, the balm that eased my soul. Still, I can never forgive the destruction she caused me and those I love.

I had become a mockery of my revenge because holding her at night while she slept was the only thing keeping me sane. She’ll pay the price through my cruelty, never knowing that while she dreams, I find my solace.

My story begins with my worst nightmare.
And she’s the reason behind all of it.

AMAZON

There were only so many things I was willing to do when it came to her. Forgiving her was not one of them.

If you’ve read Abbi’s Smoke and Georgia Smoke series, then you will definitely love the Mississippi branch spinoff.

Abbi’s formula just always hits the spot for me. She writes some of the best toxic, walking red flags of alpha MMCs and I am so here for it. And while the super forgiving and at times overly innocent heroines would grate on me anywhere else, in her books it just works. Don’t ask me why or how. It just does, ok.

Those eyes of hers were a weapon. The damn sky on a clear day couldn’t even compete.

This is the Mississippi branch of the souther mafia so expect some cameos from past favorites as well as the introduction of plenty of new and intriguing characters. If you’re expecting a lot of mafia elements, it’s not really that. They’re more like morally corrupt, Yellowstone kind of ‘mafia’. Ya know? And this girl has no complaints.

Now the premise of this story is a HUGE spoiler, so I won’t tell you much but I will say that my jaw was on the floor on chapter one. And it takes a lot to catch your girl by surprise.

Our MMCs is the type of morally gray fictional man that I love. He’s ruthless, cold, unfeeling, and as homicidal as they come. The man is a walking red flag if there ever was one, so naturally I fell for him. Fictionally speaking of course. Halo is her name personified. This girl is innocent and sweetness all wrapped up into one eager to please FMC. And she was the perfect balance to the MMCs craziness.

She wasn’t mine, and I had no right to do this, but I couldn’t seem to stop it.

This is a forced proximity so it also had a slow burn element to it which I loved. It burned so good, even when there were moments that I wanted to c*ck punch our MMCs. But I digress.

This pull she had on me was owning me.

There is just something about Abbi’s books that are just pure book crack for me. I read them in one sitting and while there’s definitely a formula to them, it just always hits and hits the spot. It’s quick paced, spicy, with just the right amount of grit.

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