I do not have time for monsters who flirt with their eyes and unpack your trauma with cocoa-dusted confidence. I especially do not have time for Santos Wildmere, Wren’s Hollow’s dangerously tender Velvarkin chocolatier whose magic-infused truffles taste like everything I’ve tried to forget.
My boundaries are ironclad. My wards are gnome-certified.
And I’ve never once accidentally made out with a man behind a bookcase.
Until now.
Because the soulbond between us? It’s real. It hums beneath my skin every time he looks at me like I’m made of sugar and starlight. And when ancient tomes go missing from the Loreloft, stirring long-buried magic in Wren’s Hollow, I’ll have to work with the one monster who makes my knees weak and my shields glitch.
Together, we’ll chase down forbidden magic. Unravel the mystery. And I absolutely will not kiss him in the back of the library.
Or the chocolate shop.
Or… okay, listen. This is getting very inconvenient.
A spicy cozy monster romance about a feral librarian, a chocolate empath Velvarkin with wreck-me eyes, and the most dangerously sweet soulbond Wren’s Hollow has ever seen.
This is filled with very whimsical similes and metaphors that mean we can only guess what. But I like them. It makes me feel immersed, like I’m part of this world, so I should know what they mean. For example, “Sharp with cinnamon want. Laced with spice and sorrow.” And, “And it tasted like library dust and bare skin, whispered arguments and pressed spines.”
This is a very sweet romance and is SAFE. No cheating, Other Person Drama, or coercion. Santos is very patient and waits for Ros to come to him.
Because he’s patient and tender and absurdly respectful and I HATED HIM. (Not really. Just enough to want to climb him again and set myself on fire.)
Ros takes an emotional journey to get to Santos, cheered and jeered along by a great many gnomes, small creatures that can hide within bread boxes or ride dogs. They have a Smut Book Club and provide commentary. I feel like the gnomes are us readers. “your gnomes are reading reverse harem again.”
“You’re the future star of this week’s reading,” Letty said cheerfully.
“I am not in the book,” I said immediately.
Every gnome screamed like they’d been hit with a romance novel cliffhanger.
It’s filled with terrific humor. I highly recommend this for a feel-good, entertaining read. I really liked it and will definitely read more in the series. But I don’t think it’s a future re-read for me, so 4 stars.
When her mating contract is sold to the highest bidder, her future and freedom are uncertain until she falls for an alien diplomat that would scour the universe to keep her.
Protective partners, bonding rituals, power dynamics, fated mates, wrapped into a spicy alien romance!
Evie joined the H.E.T. (Human Exchange Trade) to marry an alien trill diplomat after her miscarriages on Earth have led to her housing credits being revoked. Shortly after her arrival, her husband sells her contract at the Blue District where she is to be mated to a stranger or struggle to survive after a terrorist attack on the latest human trade ship, making humans a target for abduction, or death. Her trill husband comes back to forcefully mate with her, but she is saved by a warrior species called the unGor that help heal the betrayal of her last alien mate. Only, the unGor believe the best way to care for their mate is to share the responsibility of her happiness with more than one unGor, and she may have not one, but three fated mates who will stop at nothing to keep her.
A standalone sci-fi fated-mates alien romance from Sky Roberts. This steamy, page-turning romance between three diplomat aliens and the smart human that captures their hearts and tentacles, will have you devouring every morsel towards their HEAFN.
World building sci-fi adventure but with a sexy twist. Strong females, and possessive (but respectful) love interests. For all you alien lovers out there that like vibrating, pulsating extremities, and mates that bond for life. The steamy bare chest should be evidence enough of what you are getting yourself into.
Sky Roberts continues to give us truly alien aliens, but this time we’ve got a human to look at the novelty of it through. I enjoyed this one a lot more than “Her Alien Starbreaker”, with much less confusion.
The Trillume Universe is extremely creative with unique alien species and far-out customs. I did find myself struggling to picture some of descriptions given, but I identified with Evie, her confusion, and the misunderstandings this very alien universe occasioned. It’s truly culture shock. I definitely understood Evie’s emotional journey, and that is the core of this story. It’s an emotional comedy of errors rather than an action story— mistaken identity and misunderstood intentions everywhere.
There was some good humor sprinkled around, but I wouldn’t call it a full-on romantic comedy. I appreciated what there was, especially the very funny AI computer and Vaquel, one of the unGor suitors.
The spicy scenes were hot! Everything was consensual, respectful, and very inventive!
I do join other reviewers in wishing the cover more clearly illustrated the tentacle-like hair. The current cover has hair that is too wispy to match the written descriptions, and it doesn’t have any of the objects that are supposed to be woven in them.
Contains graphic sex scenes.
1st person past tense from Evie and Broma.
Errors: Too many to count. Misspelled, wrong, extra, and missing words. Sudden changes in tense. It wasn’t unreadable.
253 Pages
$3.99 at Amazon.
I received an review copy for free from BookSirens, and I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.
Desire is my downfall. Vengeance is my weapon. And trusting him could be my ruin…
Vengeance fuels me, desire tempts me, and trusting him could be my greatest mistake…
Greywood University was never meant for someone like me. Getting in was a miracle; surviving premed unnoticed was the plan, but life had other ideas.
A lawyer approaches me with an astonishing offer to lead a lawsuit that could dismantle some of the most corrupt corporations in the country. Saying yes could change everything—saying no would mean forfeiting the justice stolen from me years ago.
Then there’s Seamus. The most dangerous student on campus, he’s feared and worshipped in equal measure. His voice is silk, his smile sunlight, but beneath the golden veneer lurks darkness. Seamus is part of a vigilante legion that thrives on chaos and wreaks havoc. He says he wants something real with me, but I know better. Falling for him isn’t just reckless—it could be deadly.
When a demon from my past resurfaces, threatening to drag me back into the life I barely escaped, the pressure around me builds. The walls close in. Yet every time I teeter on the edge of a breakdown, Seamus is there, promising I’m worth fighting for.
As the ghosts of my past collide with my present, I’m left with only one option. I give myself to Seamus, trusting his protection…
… even as I question if he’s the mistake that’ll cost me everything.
I love “The Beekeeper” movie and recommend it to anyone who has been scammed. This reminded me of that, a cathartic daydream of justice and revenge for victims of RTCs (Residential Treatment Centers) – horrific forced “rehabilitation” of “out of control” teens. We discover in the ending Author’s Note that Rose was trapped in one of these for most of her young adult life. I felt that in the realistic emotional journey of the FMC, Valerie.
My only previous knowledge of RTC’s was years ago, watching Dr. Phil shows where teens were often “transported” (kidnapped) and forced into vans heading to these places while tearfully begging and/or threatening their parents. So midway through this novel, I watched the documentary “The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping”. It was eye opening and horrifying.
I hope there are other cathartic release books without BDSM and explicit content for those who don’t enjoy reading these things. But this content did bring notice to the topic from me, someone who didn’t have much knowledge of it before.
Trigger Warning given at the beginning of the book:
Please be advised that this book contains some dark and triggering content. If any of the following triggers bother you, this book probably isn’t a good fit for your library.-Mentions and depictions of the abuses that take place at Residential Treatment Centers (RTC’s).-Obsessive anti-hero.-Mentions of sex trafficking (not perpetrated between MCs).-On-page depictions of anorexia nervosa.-On-page depictions of reactive attachment disorder (RAD).-Gun fights, knife fights, and gore. Seamus is a character with questionable morals and a skewed perspective of the world. Valerie has endured intense emotional traumas and struggles on a daily basis because of her past. Only proceed if you enjoy your MMC’s morally grey.
This contains explicit scenes of consensual BDSM. But I would not call it hard core. I’m not a frequent reader of this content, having wound up here because I liked the first book in the series. Book 2 focuses on two of the secondary characters in Book 1, so we get snippets of updates on the first couple. I’m not a fan of pain, so I wasn’t excited by some of the acts depicted. But I was excited by the dialogue! And the acts didn’t bother me. They contained no degradation, which would have turned me off it.
The graphic content spiced up an otherwise terrific depiction of survival, emotional growth, and strength for Valerie. I really enjoyed this character. She’s far from perfect, which makes her realistic and relatable. Seamus is a bit less fleshed out of a character but an ideal rock for Valerie who pushes when he should and always supports. He comes up with a nickname for Valerie, which I loved:
“Valk is short for Valkyrie. Legendary female warriors known for slaying thousands of men. Seems appropriate.”
There is a lot of humor in this. Seamus is hilarious.
Valerie: I give my head a shake. “I’m… happy to see you.”
Seamus: He tilts his head to the side. “Why do you make it sound like such a surprise? I’m marvelous, I f–k like a god, and I make you smile.”
I like that these two don’t have instalove but have actually gotten to know each other a bit before feelings developed.
Valerie went through horrific abuse at a Troubled Teen Center that her mother sent her to. They have been slowly working on their relationship. While there, they broke her ankle and withheld proper medical care until she was sent to a hospital and her mother arrived. The story begins with Valerie speaking to a lawyer who is representing her case against the center.
I’m used to the disbelief of others; it’s one of the fears that was ingrained in me. After all, Wasatch staff members told me that nobody would believe me as they were abusing and neglecting me. At the time, I was a minor, and Wasatch was a reputable treatment center for troubled youth, protected under the umbrella of the Troubled Teen Industry, commonly referred to as the TTI. Their word would always be taken over mine.
The lawyer fortunately does believe her, and the case moves forward. It dregs up issues Valerie was previously fighting, including anorexia. Valerie believes she is incapable of having a serious romantic relationship because she can’t trust anyone enough. I found this storyline very believable and thoroughly enjoyed Seamus’ tempts, nudges, and fights with Valerie over it. Valerie has the chance to walk away but doesn’t take it. There is no dub-con here.
I don’t want to give spoilers, but I was thrilled at the ending. Valerie is a strong character who doesn’t require a man to save her. There is a partnership between Valerie and Seamus rather than a hero-victim dynamic.
Contains graphic sex scenes.
Frequent foul language.
1st person past tense from Valerie and Seamus.
Errors: There were a couple of contradictions in the text, frequent capitalization errors in the dialogue formatting especially towards the end, 2 misspelled words, 1 missing word, and an extra comma.
388 Pages
$4.99 at Amazon and part of Kindle Unlimited.
Received free from BookSirens for my honest review.
A deadly secret. A dangerous captor. A dark love that teeters between obsession and salvation.
A simple night hike turned into a nightmare…
I stumbled upon something I was never meant to see—a deadly secret hidden deep in the forest. Before I could escape, Dorian Acheron—Greywood University’s notorious vigilante—chased me down. His hands pinned me to the cold ground, and his piercing gaze promised retribution for my unwelcome intrusion.
The choice he gave me was no choice at all: vanish into the grave he’d dug for someone else or become his temporary captive.
Now, I’m confined to his gothic home, and every breath I take is steeped in unease. Dorian watches my every move, a predator lying in wait. His unseemly roommates threaten me each time I cross paths with them, convinced that my silence can never be trusted.
Dorian promises I’ll be free after a week—as soon as he’s sure I’ll keep his secrets. But as the days drag on, I begin to see cracks in his icy armor. Beneath the terrifying façade lies a man capable of tenderness, even vulnerability. Against all logic, I find myself drawn to him. Yet his dark world suffocates me, so I yearn for the moment I can escape.
Unfortunately, my past resurfaces. When Dorian discovers that I’m far more than a quiet college student, his fixation on me transforms into a dangerous obsession.
Now, I no longer know whether he’s keeping me captive to protect his secrets… or because he’s claimed me as his woman.
Luminaries and Legionaries is a spicy dark college romance featuring a morally grey MMC and a shy, intelligent FMC. If you enjoy Rina Kent’s Legacy of Gods or Shantel Tessier’s LORDS, you’ll turn feral for the men in Greywood Legionaries!
It’s not the most realistic narrative, but I don’t think we expect that with a college mafia novel. It’s a fun, entertaining, spicy, quick-paced, escapist read. I enjoyed and recommend it, but I don’t think it’ll be something I want to re-read, so 4 stars from me. Well worth your time once, if you like this type of story. I intend to try the remaining books in this series.
It’s billed as “dark” and contains dubious-consent scenes. Unwanted touching of a sexual nature occurs but no actual rape. There is seduction but not coercion. The woman does not feel violated.
Warning Included:
Please be advised that this book contains some dark and triggering content. If any of the following triggers bother you, this book probably won’t be for you.-Dub-con.-Mentions and depictions of child abuse (flashbacks to abuse).-Alpha-hole, domineering hero. Dorian is a character with questionable morals and a skewed perspective on the world. Only proceed if you enjoy your MMC’s morally grey.
The FMC, Mira, is empathic, seeing energies on people and animals, and highly perceptive in an almost paranormal-genre way. It’s not totally realistic, but I’m okay with it. I loved The Mentalist and Medium TV series, so I’m not averse to believing someone could have these abilities. Wild animals are drawn to Mira, which I found very cool.
The alpha’s head lifts from the ground and he turns around to give me a narrow-eyed look, letting out a growl of warning. It’s as if he’s saying, “stay right the fuck where you are, and don’t you dare stop petting me.”
Mira is on her way to becoming a vet. She’s independent, strong, skilled in firearms, and damaged by previous abuse. She has her coping mechanisms and is usually very quiet. I found the believability stretched when this was contradicted by her word vomit and oversharing.
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re fucking fascinating, love?” Brit questions, gazing at me with a deepening interest.
“Usually, they tell me that I’m insane.” I can’t exactly disagree, since I’m yet to meet anyone who can feel other people the way I do. Cara swears I’m an empath, but I don’t like the supernatural connotation around that word. It’s not like I see dead people or smell emotions, I just sort of… sense them.
The Brit walks behind me, and I feel his gaze burning a hole into the back of my head. I think he’s trying to figure me out—both men are—and that confuses me. Most people don’t care to figure me out. They catch a whiff of my brand of crazy and run in the opposite direction. I prefer it that way, since I’m not very good with people. I get along much better with animals.
“I think I like you,” Dorian says, sounding perplexed by the prospect.
“Please don’t. I’d rather you disliked me and wanted to get rid of me as soon as possible. Not in the permanent way, but in the Jesus fuck this girl is so annoying I’m gonna let her go back to her dorm room way.”
The MMC, Dorian, is billed as morally grey and that holds up. Murder when justified, theft, and drug business is okay, but hurting “innocents” is not. The organization he belongs to seeks to destroy sex trafficking operations. Dorian and his “legion” started out as vigilantes, cleaning up their college town. Overall, I found Dorian likeable.
There’s something panicked in her eyes that I really don’t like. I’m not a rapist, I’m not someone who will ever get off on forcing women. I have my fair share of kinks and taboo enjoyments, but desire on both sides is a must for me, otherwise I don’t have any interest.
It looks like other books in this series will have other dominant-submissive kinks, but Dorian’s is orgasm control. No beating or degradation required.
I live in a house with dominant guys. Connor is the type to spank a girl’s ass until she’s sobbing for mercy, then squeeze it while he’s fucking her—sadist through and through. He needs to deliver pain to really get his blood rushing. Seamus, on the other hand, likes scenes of all kinds—tying a girl up any number of ways and playing with her however he feels like in the moment. It changes from person to person and scene to scene. He leaves his bedroom door open, enjoys other people watching him work, so I’ve witnessed him do a whole range of shit with girls. I think the thing that really gets him off is begging.
As for me… I certainly have particular tastes, and all of them center around the pleasure of my partner.
“So many men are terribly unoriginal. Disappointingly so. A punishment is easy when you redden someone’s ass, but pain tolerances build. That gets old. Forced orgasms? Not so much, that’s an entirely different form of torture.”
Everyone is amazingly gorgeous, except the bad guys who always have oily hair. The sex scenes are hot and interesting. There are quite a few, but the story is definitely there and interesting in its own right. Dorian is built like a porn star god with the huge package to match, which felt farfetched. At least Mira has some scars to prevent her from being physically flawless.
This contains insta-love on part of Dorian and almost-insta-love on the part of Mira. I noticed it, but it didn’t bother me. The action scenes are pretty good but end too fast. They could use more suspense and detail. There is humor sprinkled throughout, which I appreciated.
Contains graphic sex scenes.
Frequent foul language.
1st person past tense from Mira and Dorian.
Errors: 10 – Misspelled words, 1 set where the space was in the wrong place between them, 1 missing space between words, 2 missing quotation marks, a few capitalization inconsistences, 1 subject-verb disagreement, the color of an object changes, and the name of the cat is spelled differently a couple of times.
406 Pages
$4.99 at Amazon and part of Kindle Unlimited.
Received free from BookSirens in exchange for my honest review.
Fun bickering in this hate to love contemporary romantic comedy
Blurb:
It all started with a mysterious blue note sewn into a wedding dress.
Something blue.
I’d gone to sell my own unworn bridal gown at a vintage clothing store. That’s when I found another bride’s “something old.”
Stitched into the lining of a fabulously feathered design was the loveliest message I’d ever read: Thank you for making all of my dreams come true.
The name embossed on the blue stationery: Reed Eastwood, obviously the most romantic man who ever lived. I also discovered he’s the most gorgeous. If only my true-love fantasies had stopped there. Because I’ve since found out something else about Mr. Starry-Eyed.
He’s arrogant, cynical, and demanding. I should know. Thanks to a twist of fate, he’s my new boss. But that’s not going to stop me from discovering the story behind his last love letter. A love letter that did not result in a happily ever after.
But that story is nothing compared to the one unfolding between us. It’s getting hotter, sweeter, and more surprising than anything I could have imagined.
Something new.
But I have no idea how this one is going to end…
The best part of this is the bickering the main characters get into.
I sat up straighter in my chair as Reed closed the door behind his brother. Unlike Max, he didn’t take a seat on the couch. No, this brother preferred to stand with his arms crossed while looking down his nose at me. And I wasn’t putting up with it anymore. I stood, kicked off my heels into the air, and climbed up on top of my chair.
“What do you think you’re doing?” He squinted at me.
Mimicking his posture, I folded my arms across my chest and glared at him over my nose. “I’m looking down at you.”
“Get down.”
“No.”
I loved how Charlotte stood up to Reed at every turn, pushing him past his fears. He’s not commitment-phobic, but he a burden to carry that he doesn’t think is fair to share with a partner. I don’t want to give any spoilers, so I can’t give any more specifics on that. It was a good twist that added depth to an otherwise sweet, light read.
Overall, it’s a feel-good romantic comedy that kept me turning the pages quickly. If you like to keep it light or need a break from drama and gore, I highly recommend it.
4 stars – It doesn’t get 5 because I don’t think it will stick with me and make me want to read it again. But well worth my time!
Contemporary romantic comedy, one story told by 13 authors
Blurb:
***13 Authors put their brains together to write ONE story***
Verity Michaels is new to New York City, but even she knows riding in a stolen cab is not a normal way to meet someone. Damn it if that tattoo-covered would-be felon isn’t everywhere now, and lighting everything on fire under her skirt.
His name is Hudson Fenn, and he’s frustratingly impossible to pin down. He works as a bike messenger, but has the manners of a prince—along with a strange tendency toward breaking and entering. As much as Verity knows he’s not her type, and likely to land her in jail, she can’t help but find her truest self when they’re together.
Can she be brave enough to give Hudson a real chance? Will he be bold enough to reveal the man beneath the ink, or will his secrecy doom their connection? Also, WTF is the deal with Verity’s boss? No less than thirteen of your favorite romance writers have teamed up to tell this sexy, wacky, snort-inducing tale. With them you’ll visit the world’s most irritating office, a VIP room of questionable cleanliness, and the fanciest apartment a bike messenger has ever inhabited, but you’ll still never see this ending coming.
This was hilarious and cute. A lot of laugh out loud moments. I liked both Verity and Hudson, and they were great together.
I’ve read many collections of short stories from different authors and boxed sets of novels, but this is completely different. I was surprised not to feel any disconnect or distracting differences in style moving from one author to another. It was a great idea getting one or two chapters from each author and stringing them together. It was executed very well. It was also very well edited. I only found 3 errors in the whole book! The overarching plot with the mystery of the boxes was interesting and funny. Definitely not something I have seen before!
Contains several graphic sex scenes that were also very hot.
Occasional foul language.
3rd person past tense, all from Verity.
Currently free on Amazon.
Favorite Quotes:
“You’re the only Verity Michaels in the United States. It wasn’t that hard. And I wasn’t stalking you. I looked your name up once, and bam—your Twitter account popped up, along with the hashtag ‘pound Hudson’.”
The cats silently judged her. “What?” she asked. “Like you’ve never had a sex marathon with a hottie in an alley and then binged on kibble. Please.”
Does he have his claws in her for good? Or is she just yanking his tail?
Elena Demos’s life has been turned upside down. Her mother has passed away, leaving Elena and her two half-sisters to deal with their mother’s will and the crazy stipulations it contains. For the three sisters to inherit the substantial amount of money left behind, they have to go to work with two aunts they’ve never met in a family business—Amazons Inc.—they know nothing about. If that isn’t bad enough, Elena runs into the man who once broke her heart, and it’s only their first day on the job.
Gage Ivanov is a stupid beast. He let the woman who should be his mate go because she couldn’t be told of his Other identity. Now Elena’s back, but she refuses to give in to his demands for her to be his mate. The timing for all of this couldn’t be worse, either, because Gage and his circle of friends are trying to subdue a rogue pack of wolf shifters in Germany who threaten to out the Others to the world of humans. Will he be able to juggle the oncoming conflict and win back his mate?
Claws, love bites and handcuffs – OH MY!
We met Gage in Big Bad Bite. He is a hot alpha tiger shifter who is 262 years old. Gage and Elena dated for a while, but he ran because he was getting too attached to the fragile human who he couldn’t tell about being shifter. Two years later, Elena just found out she is an Amazon, and now she knows what Gage is.
…Amazons, which was a species of human that was genetically superior to those around them. As a result, while they still lived an average human life span, everything else in them was wired for survival. They were literally born and bred with unique traits that made them the ultimate fighters. Every single one of them had been endowed with either a unique understanding for strategizing, an uncanny ability with fighting and the use of weapons, or extreme intelligence. It was Mother Nature’s way of taking the next step in human evolution.
I liked this one a lot better than the first because it didn’t have all the infodumps of the first and it had a lot less errors! No problems with the formatting here.
I liked both Elena and Gage. There was a lot of great humor.
I didn’t like that we didn’t progress very far into the overall plot that started in the first book. The action was very quickly completed, and there was lot less of it than in the first one.
There are a couple of graphic sex scenes, but sex is not a big part of this novel.
It was hot! Here’s a snippet:
Needing to do something—anything—to stop this manipulation of her body and hopefully get him away from her, Elena said the very thing she had to convince herself of. “I wouldn’t fuck you again if you were the last man on Earth.” Gage stopped grinding his cock against her and Elena felt both relief and regret. Her relief, however, was short lived. He leaned into her, completely covering her body with his own so that she felt him everywhere. Placing his lips against the shell of her ear, he whispered, “It’s a good thing I’m not merely a man then, isn’t it, my little wildcat? Since I’m more animal than man I can smell how much you want me right now. The scent of your pussy weeping for me is making my mouth water. I can’t wait to taste it again, and I will be tasting it because I’ll be eating you for a meal, Elena. I’m going to bury my face between your thighs and lick all of that sweet cream because it belongs to me, just like you do. I may have pushed you away once, but I realized my mistake a long time ago. You. Are. Mine. If I have to tie you to my bed and fuck you senseless until you’re unequivocally addicted to me, I will.”
Occasional foul language.
SAFE – no cheating, OM/OW drama, or abuse.
3rd person past tense from both Elena and Gage.
Errors: 13 (wrong words, missing words, subject-verb agreement, words switched around, several words that are one work broken into two like sidearm)
Favorite Quotes:
He really didn’t want to have to lower himself to the disgusting practice of a date to get her in bed. It was ridiculous and unnecessary. Not to mention he had better things to do with his spare time; there had to be a way around all of that.
Curious as to what had riled her lover up, she tiptoed to the closed bedroom door and convinced herself it was not wrong to eavesdrop on the man you had elevated to boyfriend status, a fact she planned on informing him of shortly. Being someone’s girlfriend gave you rights to snoop a little. It was written down in the women’s laws somewhere, she was sure.
Delta looked at her and deadpanned, “You’re like the Amazon version of RoboCop with your ridiculous mission speak and small armory hidden away in your bedroom. I watch movies like Friday and asked a vampire once if I could rub his fangs all in the name of research. Are any of us normal?”
What they found was Delta laying stunned and confused, sprawled on the ground on her stomach. Lulu had collided into her and then landed with her face down in Delta’s derriere and the rest of her body pinning poor Delta’s legs down so she couldn’t move. The tigress’s nose was buried right in the crease of Delta’s backside, creating a sight neither Chloe nor Elena would be forgetting anytime soon.
When you loved a woman who had the heart of a warrior, you couldn’t try to wrap her in bubble wrap and put her on a shelf. You had to let her be who she was or you’d end up suffocating her fiery spirit. Gage refused to do that to his mate. Besides, he had ways to protect her from the potential dangers. “Don’t worry about Elena. By the time I’m done outfitting her with weapons, she’s going to be a one woman army. If I were you though, brother, I’d stay away from her after she has fire power. I can’t guarantee she won’t shoot your annoying ass.”
She was exiled at birth. He terrifies the other monsters. Can two outsider wereleopards overcome prejudice and find their own way to love?
Los Angeles. MacKenzie is a loner by necessity, not choice. Hiding from the intolerance of the shifter world by living among humans, she’s terrified when she accidentally kills her date and blows her cover. Not only does she have to elude the LAPD, she’s on the run from the most feared bounty hunter in the were community.
Ramone Hernandes sees his own struggles reflected in his prey’s captivating eyes. So after tracking her down, he abandons his snatch-and-grab mission and instead attempts to clear her name. And the more time he spends with the alluring outcast, the stronger his urge to claim her as his chosen mate.
Confused by her attraction to the beast sent to take her in, MacKenzie must weigh her precarious state as a fugitive against the calls of her heart. And although he’s willing to do anything to protect her, Ramone’s failure to do his job threatens both their lives.
With their enemies aligning against them, can they survive long enough to heal their wounded hearts?
Rare Breed, formerly published as Wereleper, is the first book in the spine-tingling Leopards Unleashed paranormal romance series. If you like tough heroines, steamy scenes, and unexpected twists, then you’ll adore Dina Haynes’s suspenseful saga.
This is a romance, but it takes a while to get there. This was good. I liked it a lot, but I don’t think I would want to re-read it, so 4 stars. I read it fairly quickly, but it did drag in some parts, possibly because I wanted to get to the romance already. The romance is more of an end game thing. It is more suspense and action than romance.
Dina Haynes has built a unique shifter world here and did very well with that world-building. I’ve read many shifter romances and always enjoy the tweaks authors make to the standard shifter lore out there. In this world:
Humans know about shifters and live in relative peace with them. There is prejudice and hate like racism in the real world.
Shifters live very long lives, seems like at least 150 years.
Shifters can fully shapeshift from human to their were-species. There are big cats (leopards, lions), wolves, and bears mentioned.
Shifters heal completely if they shift from one form to another.
Shifters can heal with their saliva. Mates “tend” to each other this way, creating a stronger bond.
I was confused about how two shifters become mates. Early on, it is said one male is always careful to pull out during sex because not doing so would tie the pair together for life. This is a common part of general shifter lore, usually accompanied by a bite, which is not part of the lore here. But later in this novel, someone does not pull out, and nothing happens immediately. Beyond that, we are also told that wereleopards don’t always mate for life. I never got a clear idea of the “rules” here.
This is the story of MacKenzie, Mac, a “mutant” born to two wereleopards. Mac can’t fully shift into a leopard, so she also can’t heal quickly by shifting forms. This also makes her very weak in comparison to other shifters. Most were parents would kill a “defective” child like this at birth. Mac’s mother wanted to kill Mac, but her father refused.
Mac’s unique condition means she has almost no shifter scent, making it easy to hide from other shifters among humans. Mac had been living among humans for a long time at the start of the story. She had gotten so “human”, that she has a dog! It is very odd for a cat shifter to have a dog, but I love Chunk, the French Bulldog. He adds a lot of humor to this story.
I liked the characters. They are far from perfect, but that makes them interesting. Mac is a strong, independent woman who consistently saves herself. Her struggle is allowing emotional connections with others and accepting help.
At the beginning, Mac has a casual sex relationship with “the male”. We later learn his name is Doug. I was amused that Mac keeps thinking of Doug as “the male” long after learning his name. It was obviously a ploy to distance herself from him emotionally. From the blurb, I expected the male romantic lead to be Ramone, so I was confused and put off by the sex and other intimacy with Doug. It’s not cheating, but I still only want intimacy with the main romantic partner. This is a strong preference of mine.
There are some trigger warnings. Mac was abused by her parents. She was sent to the were-jail when she was 16, and she was routinely beaten and raped there by the guards. There is also dubious consent in some of the sex scenes – Mac is physically restricted from moving, and her partner is not taking no for an answer, but intercourse does not happen until Mac is fully along for the ride.
Some graphic sex scenes. Scenes with the male romantic lead don’t occur until after 50%. They aren’t very explicit. Common language used in erotic novels is not used here.
Occasional foul language.
HEA.
1st person past tense, all from MacKenzie.
This is very well edited. I only found 11 errors.
323 pages. $2.99 on Amazon and part of Kindle Unlimited.
I downloaded this for free via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review.
Favorite Quotes:
I pulled off the 10 freeway and rolled down the window so Chunk could suffocate himself in the wind. After a bout of snorting and hacking, he stepped back inside and looked at me as if to say, Did you see how I almost died there? I glanced at him and said, “Glutton and punishment. Put them together in a sentence and that’s what you are, buddy.” He stood back up and stuck his face out the window again.
The old me was thinking, Don’t trust that bitch. But the new, emotional me was like Sex is good, let’s keep him.
He caught my leg as I crawled away and pulled me to him. Chunk let go a whine. “Hey, mutt,” he said. “I’m about to do stuff to your mommy you won’t like.” As if Chunk understood every word, he threw me a worried look, then jumped off the bed and left the room.
Sweet western contemporary romance – Currently free on Amazon
Blurb:
Trevor Callahan’s grandfather is dead. As a kid, living with the stern old man had been a pure living hell. Trev returns to Stone Creek for one reason and one reason only: To sell the Rocking C Ranch. Maybe then he can put his past behind him and move on.
Beth Evans once confused lust for love and vows never to let it happen again. The bookmobile driver is trying to raise funds to build a new library. The late Hank Callahan bequeathed one million dollars for the project, but he attached one stipulation: Do not let his grandson sell the ranch.
HER RELUCTANT RANCHER Contemporary Western Romance Novel 65,000 words/204 pp Heat Index: Hot and Steamy
Listed on Amazon as 301 pages.
Currently free – May 2021
Beth is 24, so Trevor is 36.
Beth has a 5-year-old daughter.
Several detailed sex scenes, but they aren’t truly graphic. Sensual language is used (I wouldn’t call it flowery) instead of slang for body parts. The F word is never used.
It’s sweet, a good, fast-paced read. The characters are likeable. Both Trevor and Beth grow emotionally, which they have to do to really let someone in. HEA. SAFE. Very good grammar.
You can be a Normal—a cheerleader, jock, member of the debate team, or on the yearbook committee. You pretend everything is normal.
Or you can be crew. You insult us? We hurt you. You hurt us? We really hurt you. And if you f*ck with us, we will end you.
My name is Bren. I’m the only female in the Wolf Crew—the best, fiercest, and most dangerous crew there is—and we have a rule: There’s no falling in love.
Well… too late.
This series is loosely related to the Fallen Crest series and set after it. You should read the Fallen Crest series first if you don’t want to encounter spoilers here. Rousseau is a poorer, neighboring town to Fallen Crest. If you have read the Fallen Crest series, you will have heard the term “Crew” as it was mentioned there. Crews are a little like gangs but nowhere near as rough and criminal-leaning. They are more like tight friend groups with people who will always back each other up. Loyalty is number one. They aren’t cliques because their members do socialize with people outside their crew. People who don’t join crews are called Normals.
Bren is one of only two females in the crew system. She is in a four-member crew called the Wolf Crew. This novel is really about how Bren grows and evolves, becoming emotionally stronger, finally speaking about her past and accepting the love that has always been waiting for her.
I liked it a lot. It was fast paced, interesting, and enjoyable. There wasn’t too much violence for my tastes. I liked being in Bren’s head and how things were slowly revealed. Bren is a strong character but not maxed out unrealistically. She had learned to stuff things down to survive, but she wasn’t happy. Her growth was in starting to unpack and deal with things. I also liked the secondary characters and felt I got to know them even though we get everything from Bren’s point of view. All the characters are complex with both good and evil inside them.
There are some sex scenes, but they aren’t long or very graphic.
Lots of good humor, which I loved. Zellman cracked me up.
No cheating or Other People drama.
There are a bunch of catty Normal girls. I liked how Bren dealt with them.
Lots of foul language.
1st person past tense, all from Bren.
This is well edited. I found only 10 errors.
372 pages. $2.99 on Amazon.
Favorite Quotes:
Zellman: Good head is like an animal on the endangered list.
Cross chuckled. “My point still stands. Zellman has no taste in women. He’d bang a door if it had a hole his prick wouldn’t get a sliver from.
Bren: “…There should be a rule where teachers and staff can’t leave the school. When you enter, you deal with them there and only there. It’s too much, thinking of all of them having their own lives.”
Cross: Walking backward, he winked as his back hit the screen door. “And just so we’re clear, I’m intending to grab your tits someday. I’ve been intending for a long time.”
Zellman: “You’re like my sister now. Crew family. But no lie, I’m hoping to see your tits someday. And it’s probably going to happen, since we all scrap.”
Being crew is walking between two worlds. One world is normal: Prom. Parties. College. Those are the concerns they worry about.
In our world, we deal with other situations. Cops. Drugs. Brawling. That’s a typical day for us.
But what if it wasn’t?
What if there came a day when you stopped? When you considered letting your enemies win? When you didn’t fight back? When you chose a different path?
First I lost my family. Then I got the Wolf Crew. I couldn’t lose them too.
But what happens when Cross, Zellman, and Jordan keep going… …and I don’t?
In Crew Princess, the adults are after the Crew system again, and Bren grows up emotionally, getting ready to face her future. There is more drama, parents divorcing, surprise family members, and a conspiracy to be solved. Bren and Cross are going strong, and Jordan has a girlfriend. Zellman is still funny, but we don’t get as much of him in this one.
For the longest time, I was Bren Monroe. I lived in Roussou, California. I had no parents, no brother, but I had a crew.
Then things started to change. I never planned for any of it. I didn’t think I’d fall in love. I didn’t think I’d have a relationship with my brother again. I didn’t think that he’d come back.
Now I’m in Cain. My crew is in college. They’re growing, going through their own things. And here I am, figuring out my life.
There’s always hurdles and obstacles to overcome. That was never my hardship. That was my regular. But living? Being content? Being happy? Those were my challenges now.
Everything was going well… Until it wasn’t. Again.
This one is about Bren finding her career path, drama between Cross and his surprise family member, and romantic relationship drama for Jordan and Kellman.
In this, Blaise and Aspen are together. They have their own book. So I think that one should be read before the Crew series. Maybe? I haven’t read it yet to know. But we always assume there is going to be a HEA, so it’s not that much of a spoiler.
We get several chapters and sections from Cross and a chapter each from Zellman and Jordan.
This one had a bad problem with two different speakers in the same paragraph. The paragraph break was just weirdly missing 12 times! I only found 2 other errors.
364 pages. $4.99 on Amazon.
Favorite Quote:
Zellman: Each person should get their rocks off as many times as they could. I felt it was a worthy mission for the world’s population.
V. B. Law 