The beginning of the year I have been swamped in real life. When I looked back, I was like WOW!! I did read a lot more then I remembered reading. The books I have picked aren’t really all over the place like in previous years. I have done lots of Paranormal/Dystopian reading as of late and so it seems to have taken over my top 5….errrr….6
I am going to start my top 5…errr…..6 with my authors who will be attending Writers on the River. This is the charity event my blog supports each and every year. We are the main blog hosts. More information or ticket information on the event held in Peoria, IL on Jul 20th is HERE
Melanie Jayne, Mary Martel, Maggie Adams, and Valerie Twombly
Feel Me- M Jayne/Melanie Jayne
Goodreads HERE
TRIGGER WARNINGS
This is book 2 and you must read book 1 to follow the story.
Sometimes, Goodbye is the Only Way
Raider Black, Leader of the Novus Pack, will do anything for his people. His word is his bond no matter the sacrifice. Novus has always come first.
Theodora Morrissey is a gift from The Goddess to the Lycan world. It doesn’t take someone with her psychic abilities to see that her future is in jeopardy.
When Theo is discovered bloodied, beaten, violated, and broken, Black must find a way for her to be healed or his dream for their future will be destroyed.
Lord. I finished this book last night and I am still having a hard time trying to figure out how to word my review. This book is absolutely everything a person who loves paranormal will want and need to read. The emotional build of this story is so overwhelming I was in tears by 7% of the story and again I was bawling by 30%. There is so much that happens to Theo and Raider. SO much happens to the Novus Pack plus all the friends of the couple in this story. It is impossible to read the story and leave it without being utterly stunned by the genius writing and flow.
I KNEW going in this book would have hard and difficult content. Melanie kept apologizing to me for what I was about to read. But the journey the couple takes IS needed for them both to realize they need the other to complete themselves.
Raider is so selfless in worrying for his people first he does the hardest thing he has ever done by letting Theo go. Theo knows Raider and the Pack will not be ok unless she leaves so she makes the decision to leave for another Pack. These two make the ultimate sacrifice, putting aside their love and desire for the other for everyone one else so Raider can keep his promise to another Pack. When that sacrifice ends up costing Theo, she pays the highest price a women can pay, Raider and the pack come to aide THEIR Seer.
The couple deal with A LOT. They deal with the guilt they both have. They deal with the inability to express themselves for fear of what the other might be thinking or wanting. They deal with miscommunication over everything they have been through.
This book is absolutely about love and the price people pay. It’s about commitment and how you don’t turn your back on those you love when times get hard. It’s about loving people even when they don’t love themselves. It’s about FAMILY and how even when you fight, you never really turn your back on those you love.
The emotions run deep in this story. The laughs are hard to come by at times, but the bonds of love and family are throughout the story. I will say seeing the set up for Lore’s mate……my heart was going pitter patter. That mass murdering wolf, personal guard and tutor of Theo’s has a special place in my heart. Also seeing Tex will be having a story later on down the road too made me happy.
I cannot wait for another book in the series. I cannot wait for more from this pack and the characters. It makes me so happy to be privileged to get early copies even if life sucks and I have to wait 2 weeks to read it.
Ashes, The River Ash Pack Book 1 by Mary Martel
Goodreads HERE
TRIGGER WARNINGS
Cordelia has never known anything but the safety of her fathers guarded compound where she’s lived her entire life. A life that, as the alphas daughter, has always been a privileged one, albeit an incredibly sheltered one.
Until one night, life as she knows it, is flipped entirely upside down when she’s promised to another alpha in order to buy safety for her father’s pack. This doesn’t exactly sit well for Cordelia seeing as she has different plans for her life, even if she doesn’t know what those plans are just yet. Out of fear of what she doesn’t want her life to become, she does the unthinkable and tells her father the one thing he’ll never tolerate from anyone in his pack, especially not his daughter. She tells him no.
As a result, Cordelia learns just what kind of depraved man and alpha her father is and is left a broken, bleeding mess because of it.
After finding kindness and compassion from two strange men who show up at the compound and help her when she is no longer capable of helping herself, Cordelia does the only thing she thinks she can do in order to survive and not be stuck in a world of abuse and misery.
She runs.
Unfortunately for Cordelia, she doesn’t make it very far before she finds herself in trouble again and at the mercy of another male with alpha tendencies. This alpha also comes with a brother by blood and one by choice.
The problem is, Cordelia’s not so sure she could ever find a place in a pack again after everything she’s survived. She won’t have long to figure it out though because, no matter the cost, her father is determined to find her and bring her home.
Warning – Due to certain sensitive sexual subject matter and abusive situations, this book may contain triggers for some people.
It’s also a Reverse Harem book.
I received this book from the author for an honest review.
Jesus lemme get my head straight after reading this book. If there are a few things you need to know about Mary and her stories here they are…..Her men love FIERCE, Her Women are NOT WEAK, The chemistry is crazy in all the right places, and there will be blood…LOL …but I am serious!!
Now if you read the trigger warning I will say it’s not AS ROUGH of a scene as I was expecting or have read in the past but friends, its hard. Its hard because how can someone who should love and protect you, do that to you!! Its also quickly done and done well so we feel for Cordelia, but mainly so we can understand the shape that Cal and Luca find her in…it was bad…….
Cal, Luca and Darius……they are all so special to Cordelia for their own reasons, but this book is owned by Darius. Dude, he was so scary and then so sweet but so fierce. I mean I don’t think I knew how menacing he was until we see him with his old pack….dang he was hawt!!!
Cal and Luca long for their time for Cordelia but understand and show true patience to be with their girl because make no bones about it, SHE. IS. THEIR. GIRL!
Seeing the story of the impending war due to everything that plays out in the book is making me on edge because the 4 of them need to be on the same page to stick together and to make sure no one feels left out of this unusual mating!!
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Uprising: Dark Horizons Book 1 (Eternally Mated Book 7) by Valerie Twombly
Goodreads HERE
“We can’t fight evolution, only ride it out and hope the ending is in our favor.” Ryder Mattis
As a former Navy Seal, beating the odds is something Ryder excels at. However, the world has changed and his transformation into a vampire gives survival a whole new meaning. If that isn’t enough to ruin his life, a plague unleashes utter destruction on humanity. He knows he has what it takes to protect those who survive even if they don’t like his rules. What he doesn’t count on is a female with stormy eyes and a will to live getting under his skin.
Kayla has lost everyone she loves to the red death. Surviving the plague is one thing, but a vow made to her dying father puts her under the protection of a predator. Surprised at how her body reacts to Ryder when he feeds, she has a hard choice to make. But when tragedy strikes and forces the vampire to give her his blood, she morphs into something no one could ever predict.
The new world doesn’t come with a handbook and when fate brands them as potential mates, they are not prepared. They can either battle each other, or band together in a fight for survival. The future holds no guarantees, but being alone might be worse than death.
This is a spin-off series and can be read as a standalone or, with the Eternally Mated series.
I received this book from the author for an honest review.
I know I saw this every time I read a paranormal but It’s my JAM!!! I love love love me some paranormal. I love shifters, vampires, demons, angels, and all the possible additions to a storyline. This book, which is a spin off series, was just what I needed and loved.
I am going to start by saying I have NOT read the Eternally Mated series. However, I will be rectifying that soon. I did not feel I missed anything or was lost at any point of the story. I think the storyline was filled in during this book about what happened in the other series. SHEW right!!!!
So this book is taking place during the end of the world essentially. Ryder and his group of Navy Seals are set to protect the last few remaining humans to help repopulate the world after The Red Death has destroyed everyone. He is one of the original vampires and he has turned a few of his trusted men into vampires to help get the job done. He only asks that females who do stay with them, help feed his men to keep them alive. Pretty decent trade off…surviving death for a few sips of your blood right???
Ryder is getting ready to leave when a sassy, pink haired beauty who is also a pain in his ass shows up and informs him he needs to protect her. Seems Ryder and her dad were Navy buddies. From the start of Kayla and Ryder meeting, the sparks and chemistry sizzle!! I mean they are so hilariously attracted and annoyed by the other it makes for great reading.
Kayla has lost everyone and is bound and determined to make it to this Ryder guy for protection. She surely did not plan on the attraction to the alpha male and his over the top protection of her.
Kayla and Ryder plus another couple soon find a strange mark that they have no clue what it means. Kayla and another soon find out they too have another secret about why they have survived the Red Death when everyone else has died.
On top of all the couple drama, we are dealing with rogue vampires, gross looking demons running amuck annnnd the portal to hell being opened to rid the Earth of humans in general….Yup LOTS happening in the story!!!
I can not wait to read the next story but I will be trying to get the other 6 books of the other series read ASAP too.
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Minx by Maggie Adams
Goodreads HERE
A romantic comedy about friendships, flirtations, and the elusive “Fantasm!”
Hi! I’m Miranda Blake and this is my story. Well, sort of. It’s more like a twisted fairytale, if you believe in them. Except there’s no beautiful, young princess with perky breasts, perfectly coiffed hair and a sassy attitude. I’m closing in on fifty, thirty pounds overweight according to Weight Watchers, and, after nursing two kids and that bitch, gravity, doing her job, I’m lucky the ladies don’t hit my knees. The gorgeous brown mane of hair is slightly frizzy from my ridiculous attempts to recapture my youth by dyeing the hell out of it. As for sassy attitude, well, it wasn’t so long ago that I was a doormat. And the charming prince who sweeps me off my feet into the life of my dreams? I have a dog called Prince, German Shepherd, who knocks me on my ass if I’m in the way when the doorbell rings. Does that count?
I received this book from the author for an honest review.
OMG this book was hilarious!!! I seriously LOVE the characters of the story. Miranda and her crew of best friends were so awesome to read. But the temptation tug of which brother, Reed or Ritter, was great too! Miranda’s friends are seriously the best people around. They lover her 110% and are going to do anything and everything to make sure she gets the HEA with a good guy this time around.
Miranda legit is told by her DB future ex its over. They are getting ready to leave for a cruise when he drops the bomb, she is being replaced by a younger woman and she is to get outta their family home ASAP. Miranda rallies her troops and they set to help her find herself and pick herself back up after 20 years of marriage.
What skills does an outta work housewife, stay at home mom have? Well she has enough to charm a playboy named Ritter into hooking her up with a job at his company. When she meets his very stuck up brother, Reed, she is confused as to how they can be so different.
As the story unfolds, we begin to see different sides to both men. Neither is who we thought they were. Is Ritter the good guy or a DB? Is Reed really an uptight jackass or just a guy protecting his heart????
I seriously snickered so many times reading this book and loved, loved, loved how it all played out.
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Revenge, Revenge Series book 1 by Christine Besze
Goodreads HERE
Six years they stole from me.
Six years I’ve done my time.
Six years I’ve waited.
Six years I’ve heard her screams over and over.
No more.
It’s time to collect.
And it’s their blood that will be spilled.
Asher Savage spent his life protecting the innocent, taking monsters off the streets. He never thought he’d become one.
Charlee Vega was a pawn in a game she never knew she was playing. An innocent caught up in a war of greed and hate.
Revenge has fed his monster for years, but it comes at a price. Is it one he’s still willing to have her pay?
She’s a means to an end. A complication he never saw coming. And sometimes those are the most deadly of all.
***This book is a standalone and contains mature/graphic subject matter. For readers 18+***
I received this book from the author for an honest review.’
The blurb totally got me for this book. I have never read anything from this author, but the book was so ANTI-HERO that I had to read it. I mean the main dude was going to be totally broken and ruthless so what girl wouldn’t fall in love with him??? I am here to say this book did NOT disappoint at all. I was totally glued to my kindle and could not put it down. The story flowed so well and I was so engaged with each additional characters….gah I need more from this family of brothers!! I mean Ax …come one….Zane…what makes him tick but Asher…holy mother of hotness!!!
So the story starts and we are in picture perfect world. Asher is running home with flowers for his wife and pretty quickly it alllllll turns bad….like real bad. Then we see Asher sitting back and waiting…waiting…waiting. When he is out of prison, he and his brother begin the revenge of Lauren. Poor Charlee is the means to an end for Asher but when he falls for her spirit and fire…he soon realized, with the help of a few punches by his brother, maybe she is more than just the end but maybe she is the beginning he needs???
Charlee loves her papa, but she knows he is an evil man. She knows he is not a good man by any stretch of the imagination but he is her papa!! No matter what, she will love him even when he is a bit possessive of her and over-protective.
When Asher and Charlee meet, the chemistry is oooooooofffffff the charts!! Holy Cow!! The more they trust and respect the other they soon start to care which is totally crazy but then they soon start to lean and rely on the other….People!! This book was crazy good!!!
I LOVED the twist at the end and I cannot wait for more because like I said the brothers need a HEA as well!!
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Lone Survivor: An After Zombie Tale of Love & Survival (Last of Us Book 1)
by Nikki Landis
Goodreads HERE
The world has gone to shit and the zombie apocalypse is now responsible for wiping out humanity.
One girl believes she’s all alone and the world’s last hope for survival . . . but is she the key, a threat, or something else entirely?
*** Book 1 of a new series, contains mature content ***
I received this book from the author for an honest review.
Zombies make my heart so happy. When my blog got a request to share this books release, I was super excited and reached out to ask for a review copy. OMG am I so happy I did. This book hits all my zombie book expectations…..Zombie encounters, feisty heroine, alpha hero, and plot twists and turns galore! Man was I loving it and unable to put it down!!!
Our heroine, Bailee, is alone after the world went to crap for a year exactly when she stumbles into the hands of the local military group (and uber alpha bossy Sawyer) during a failed scavenger mission. The men know a secret about Bailee, but Sawyer is kinda interested in our feisty girl and wont follow orders just yet to turn her over to the main operations.
We see a lot of push and pull between Saw and Bailee which creates a lot of chemistry!!! But what also is amazing to read, the ZOMBIE ATTACKS!! Yes folks there are a lot of zombies in the book and many different kinds of zombies….this totally made my heart happy. We’ve got slow zombies. We’ve got fast zombies. We’ve got tracker zombies!!? Yikes!!
The books momentum and flow were great for reading. I mean the group was always under attack or in conflict, so it was very fast paced, and action packed!!
My ONLY issue with the book….it seems to flip from 3rd POV to 1st POV through the story. At first, I thought I was a weirdo and reading it wrong, but I found it a few times in the story. I am not a fan of 3rd POV so it took me out of the reading element and then it would drop you back in to 1st POV. Honestly this small issue will not stop me from reading the other books in the continuing series because after the way the story ended I NEED to know what happens to our team of misfits.
