Offline For a While

Just thought I’d post a quick note to let you know that I have moved house. This has cut down on my reading time because of unpacking boxes and exhaustion. I also have no WIFI so all internet access is limited to my phone. This means annoyance of a level I haven’t experienced since the death of dial-up internet access. Obviously this means that the reviews are being held back and thus the blog posts.

In the meantime if you want to recommend books for me to read whilst I’m offline, hop onto my Facebook Page and let me know, because I can get that on my phone!

I hope you can bear with me and I will be trying to catch up with my reviews once I’m up and running on 31st August (fingers crossed). Hopefully there will a post up on that day and all the ones to follow.

See You Soon x

Review: Call Her Mine (Harmony Pointe Series Book 1) by Melissa Foster

Call Her Mine by Melissa Foster
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Two Best Friends and A Baby

This is book was given to me as an Advance Reader Copy by the publisher through NetGalley. The review is my own honest opinion of the book written in my own words.

Melissa Foster is a prolific romance novelist and I often find it hard to keep up with her books, but I’m always glad when I find the time to read one of them. This is no exception. This book is the first in a new spin off series ‘Harmony Pointe’. The protagonists are Ben Dalton who appeared in previous books about his sisters and Aurelia, his best friend.

Both Ben and Aurelia have loved each other since they were youngsters but as the older of the two, Ben knew he had too much to do to be a good boyfriend whilst he was at college. He left it too late and then their timing was never right. Years later Aurelia gave up on waiting for Ben because she thought he would never commit to anyone because he enjoyed being a bachelor so much, so moved to a different town to remove the temptation to pine over him. However, she still ends up asleep on his sofa on a regular basis, wrapped up his arms.

It was a morning just like this when Aurelia was leaving to go home and to her soon to be opening bookstore when she found a basket on the steps of Ben’s house. Inside was a baby and a note saying that Ben was the father. Finding the baby meant that Ben was completely out of his depth and leaned on his best friend in desperation, bonding them together into a tight unit.

This is not a book that is heavy on plot. It is, however, a lovely romantic tale of two people who have known each other for years and their shared love for a gorgeous baby. It’s a story of two really decent people in a strange situation doing their best for a defenceless baby. It’s a story about loving families who support each other at the same time they tease and mock. It’s sweet and funny and sad in places. There are no major fallings out or misunderstandings but it’s still an enjoyable and entertaining read. I definitely recommend it for when you are in the mood for a relaxing read and a Happy Ever After.

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Review: The Dark Orchid Omnibus Edition

The Dark Orchid Omnibus Edition by Auryn Hadley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Superb Polyamorous/Reverse Harem Fantasy Series

I’ve reviewed all three books in this trilogy individually before and as can be read, if you choose, I really enjoyed all the books. It’s definitely one of my favourite Reverse Harem series and it’s really more of a Polyamorous series than a Reverse Harem one.

This box set has recently come out and as a subscriber to Auryn Hadley’s newsletter was able to get my hands on the box set at a severe discount on it’s launch day. Of course I got the box set as I’d only read the books on Kindle Unlimited and knew I’d want to re-read them in the future.

I decided to re-read the box set almost straight away and I’m so glad I did. This series is wonderfully written. I love the idea of the gods dying and the magic being passed onto mages over recent years. The system of magic is very clever and well thought out. The magic system sits along side the world building that is Auryn Hadley’s true strength. Her imagination knows no bounds and she is always consistent within her created social, political and magical creations.

The book is about a prostitute, Jaeda. She lived in a town that is being attacked by a mage, to conquer it for his Sultan. She doesn’t know which mage it is but after living through two other such events before landing in this town she’s not keen to go through it again. She is captured and brought before the mage, Lord Jackal, the Lord of Lust. In order to protect a young girl she captures the Lord’s attention and volunteers to be part of a spell that binds the town to the mage. As you can imagine the spell requires her to incite the lust of members of the town.

This spell is the start of Jaeda’s adventures. Her whole life is transformed by that one act of trying to protect a young teen. After meeting the mage she realises that the mage’s are not as all powerful as they would have normal people believe and their lives are dangerous and difficult. Jaeda finds herself befriending the mage and his assistant and they form a tight bond based on acceptance and understanding. They help Jaeda grow into her strength as a woman who owns her own sexuality and uses it.

If you want to know more about the individual books, then you can read the reviews for those books, but I do recommend you buy the box set because these books really shine as a trilogy read back to back. It’s more a story in three parts than three books.

As you can tell from the subject matter, this is a very sexual series, however it is also about love, friendship and community. It’s also about society and the power of the individual. It’s quite a deep set of books so if you are just interested in a smutty read you may feel a little overwhelmed and alternatively if you are interested in a straight fantasy you may find all the sex a bit in your face. If you can accept both sides of the coin you will relish this series as much as I did. It’s a fabulous read that I know I will read again and again.

Reviews of the individual books can be found here:

Power of Lies
Magic of Lust
Spell of Love

Review: Suffer Less By KB Everly

Suffer Less by K.B. Everly
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A Contemporary Reverse Harem

I’ve not read anything by this author before, but someone on one of my Facebook groups asked for recommendations of books with a disabled protagonist. As I’m disabled myself, reading about characters who face similar struggles to my own is always interesting to me. One of the things about books is it enables the reader to feel the same things the character feels, because you see inside their mind. It opens your eyes to their reality in a different way to watching them on tv or film. I don’t believe there are enough disabled characters in the media but wish even more that there were more in books.

When this book was listed in the recommendations, I decided to read it, especially as it’s a Reverse Harem book (always a winner for me) AND it’s on Kindle Unlimited. Basically I HAD to read it and I’m really glad I did, especially as the book was written by an amputee, so it was someone who really knew what they were talking about when writing about the reality of dealing with the loss of a limb.

The book is about Alessa, a 22 year old woman who has had a very hard life. Her parents were killed in the same accident that took her leg when she was a teenager and she had lived with her drug addicted aunt ever since. Alessa worked two jobs trying to save up money to leave her small town, where she’d been so miserable but her aunt made it difficult for her. It was at one of her jobs that she met three gorgeous men on motorcycles, Grey, Nash and Jude. Three friends who were touring around on their annual break visiting unusual pubs.

The three guys are not the usual motorcycle club members with being a therapist, paediatrician and a firefighter, but their club is just a riding club. This is not really an MC romance, though there is an issue with another club.

I really liked Alessa, she’s feisty even when she’s not feeling particularly brave. She picks herself up every day and does her best to get things done and she is compassionate even when some people would be bitter with the way life had turned out.

I liked the way the relationship was handled. There were open communications between them all, everyone was pretty honest and straightforward and despite this being a romance it wasn’t overly emotional. There were some sex scenes but there weren’t too many and they weren’t long and explicitly detailed either.

I really enjoyed this book. I will definitely be keeping a look out for others written by the same author.

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Review: Dark Dancer (Rosie O’Grady’s Paranormal Bar and Grill Series Book 3) by BR Kingsolver

Dark Dancer by B.R. Kingsolver
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

More Fun in Westport

As always, BR Kingsolver has written a creative and entertaining read. The third book in this urban fantasy series continues the story established in the first two books.

Erin is still working at Rosie O’Grady’s Paranormal Bar and Grill as a bartender and is happier than she thought possible. For the first time in her life she has friends and she is helping people rather than killing them. She is looking for love, but as yet hasn’t found it, but in the meantime she has her friends and that’s more than she’s ever had before.

There seems to be a problem still in Westport, with young people going missing and vampires causing trouble. There also seems to be a distinctly alarming number of Hunters in town, leaving Erin panicking about what or who they want. However, she has friends in various parts of the paranormal community who she can ask for help or information. She’s no longer alone in facing off against her old organisation, and that makes them slightly less scary.

Erin is an interesting character who is at once naive and very very worldly wise. She has lived through real trauma during her training and also been kept very isolated. This leads to an interesting dichotomy in her character. With this third book she is more educated in the ways of ‘normal’ people and has learnt how to trust others. This book shows how all the hard work, she’s put in over the previous books to understand her new reality, has paid off.

I also really enjoy reading about the paranormal community in Westport. The characters written to surround Erin are entertaining and well thought out. Erin’s friends are written to be well rounded, consistent and they are fully fleshed out.

The writing in this book is as good as always. The standard of story telling employed by this author is very high and I enjoy reading her books tremendously. Whenever a new book comes out I try and read it within the first week. This book is another example of why I will continue to do so.

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Review: What the Fox (The Chaos of Foxes Series Book 3) by Emma Dean

What the Fox by Emma Dean
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Perfect Ending

I loved this series from start to finish, but this ending was perfect. This book wrapped up everything neatly, but still managed to give several big surprises.

It’s in this book that the mate bonds needed to be established between Kenzie and her foxes and she needed to learn about her new magical abilities.

I love how Kenzie finally gets to make the family that she needs, even if most of it isn’t blood family. In particular I love her demon godfather, who has taken her under his wing.

This books shows us who the foxes really are, we see them in all their twisted, feral, unbalanced glory and we can love them for it, in the same way Kenzie does. There is nothing they won’t do in order to protect Kenzie, and she feels exactly the same way. There is also plenty of heat in order to balance out the stress of everything being played out.

This series has been really well constructed from start to finish, the characters are well developed and consistent (which always pleases me), and the world building really makes me want to learn more about all the other supernatural races that we don’t read about in this series.

I will certainly be looking into the other books that are set in the same world, by this author, as I believe there are several. I always love it when I find a new author to enjoy.

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Review: All Foxed Up (The Chaos of Foxes Series Book 2) by Emma Dean

All Foxed Up by Emma Dean
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Plot Heats Up

Whew! This is a rollercoaster ride for sure! This book is fast moving and filled with captivating plot twists.

In this book Kenzie moves in with the foxes as payment for giving the potion to her in order to save her sister’s life. She welcomes it as a chance to get to know her mates and to see if they all decide to give the mate bonds a chance to take.

After moving in, Kenzie goes on dates with her mates, which are fantastic ways to get to know them better and understand some of their history

Alongside the relationship stuff, Kenzie and her sister have to help the Alpha Tiger secure his labs from vandalism, as payment for stealing the potion from his safe, and they have to find a way to destroy Brad whilst protecting his victims.

It’s a plot filled book, with romance and steamy scenes thrown in for good measure. The characters in the book are really starting to shine

This series just keeps getting better. Roll on book number 3!

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Review: For Fox Sake (The Chaos of Foxes Book 1) by Emma Dean

For Fox Sake by Emma Dean
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Great Reverse Harem Urban Fantasy

This author is new to me and I just downloaded this book based on the blurb. I’m really glad I did because it was a very enjoyable read.

Kenzie is a witch who was born without power. Treated abysmally by her coven, she has only ever loved two members of her family, she’s either ignored or berated by the rest.

Whilst Kenzie has no magic, she is incredibly intelligent and physically fit with many martial arts under her belt. She overcompensated for being without power, by pushing herself to her limits.

Kenzie’s sister is a powerful witch who has had her powers stolen with a curse. In order to prevent her sister’s eventual death she tries to steal a potion that will give someone magic powers. When she’s in the midst of stealing it, a group of three fox shifters instead steal it from her. In order to get the potion back, she agrees to help with a contract they’ve taken on.

I loved the concept of this book, a witch with no powers is a very interesting main female character in a paranormal book. Kenzie has been hurt tremendously by the people who are supposed to love her, but she has remained strong and independent despite it. She has compensated by using charms made by her sister and creating tech-magic in tandem with her as well.

The three foxes are interesting characters too. None of the foxes are related, and the way they met is part of what makes intriguing. Each of the three is vastly different and speaks to different parts of the Kenzie’s character. It’s enjoyable watching her start to bond as they work together.

The world building for this book is very well done. I really like how the author explains about the covens and how they are run, over the course of the book. We also have to learn about shifter culture too, which is done as we hear about the foxes and their history.

What makes me classify this book as an Urban Fantasy, as opposed to a straight paranormal romance, is the plot. The plot is complex and interesting and would stand alone even without the romance part of the book.

This is the first book in a trilogy, and I’ll definitely be reading the rest of the series, as I really want to know what happens next.

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Review: Nine Lives (The Caelum Academy Series Book 3) by Serena Akeroyd

Nine Lives by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An Action Packed Final Book

Wow, what a finale! This final book of the series is full of action. We finally learn what Eve is and what her purpose, and it’s pretty huge. Eve and her Chosen have a mammoth task to undertake that involves travelling around the world and taking on the biggest and scariest ghouls going.

In order to undertake their mission, Eve and her Chosen need to be unified and each chosen must be Claimed. Whilst some Claims are easy on the heart, others are not as simple. I like that not all the Claims are made instantly and that there issues that need to be resolved with some of the Chosen. Seeing multiple POV in the book, helps with understanding some of the issues the guys have as we learn more about their pasts.

There is quite a lot of monotheism in the book, so if you have problems with reading about non-traditional views on God then this isn’t the book for you. I will state that I don’t think it’s offensive though and it’s handled with respect.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and the entire series. It was an usual concept from start to finish and I really enjoyed that. As usual, I can heartily recommend Serena Akeroyd’s work.

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Review: Eight Souls (The Caelum Academy Series Books 2) by Serena Akeroyd

Eight Souls by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Soooo Good!

I enjoyed the first book quite a lot but this second book is enthralling! The plot is captivating and draws the reader in, chews them up and then spits them out on the last page. I couldn’t stop reading this book from cover to cover. The plot isn’t so much external with the outside world, but internal to the characters and their interactions with each other.

It’s in this book that Eve’s abilities start to show to her men. She draws the two Packs into one and it’s getting hard to hide that from others. Women in particular are jealous of the attention Eve is getting from the top men in Academy.

I love how the various personalities of the men who surround Eve are explored in this book. The book is written from multiple POV which opens up the inner workings of each character. We get to understand some of their histories a bit more and how they have shaped their characters. As we learn more about the origins of the men we see how Eve helps change the men she cares about, not only through her abilities, but because she cares about them. Those changes help tighten up their connections to one another. That’s something they will need in the days to come.

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Review: Seven Wishes (The Caelum Academy Series Book 1) by Serena Akeroyd

Seven Wishes by Serena Akeroyd
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Unusual Slow Burn Reverse Harem

Eve is nearly 18. She is terrified of reaching that age and being married off to the 78 year old leader of the cult she was born into. With no access to television, radio, the internet or even books outside a heavily redacted dictionary and the Bible, Eve has no knowledge of the outside world. However, she still plans to try and escape. Eve has a secret. She is filled with ‘moods’ that she has to keep tightly locked down or it’s likely she will be killed by her community.

One day a woman comes to take her away to an Academy for people like her, creatures with seven souls.

On arrival at the Academy she is thrown into an awkward limbo because she is much older than their usual new students. She has private tuition and devours every book in sight, thanking her lucky stars she has a photographic memory. Luckily three guys are drawn to help her and they become her guides in her new life where she not only has to know about her abilities but also the world at large, a daunting task for anyone.

I really like Eve’s character. She is incredibly strong to have survived her teens by herself without becoming mentally unstable. She is incredibly practical and doesn’t get upset about things she has no control over. She is a loyal and giving friend and is grateful for the support the guys are giving her. The three men who help her all have interesting histories and lead very difficult lives before being brought into the Academy. However, the fourth member of their pack is very unpleasant to Eve and sees her as a drain on their group who could hold them back.

It’s nice to see a different concept for an alternate race of beings on Earth. Serena Akeroyd has crafted an unusual world for her characters and I’m interested to see what happens next, because as always this author writes a really good story.

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Review: Out to Find Freedom by Lila Rose

Out to Find Freedom by Lila Rose
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sweetness After Pain

I really enjoy Lila Rose’s books. They are about rough and rugged men, but they have a sweet quality about them. The writing style is plain and straight forward and the plots aren’t overly complicated, but her characters are wonderful.

This book is about Warden, a support character from previous Hawks MC books. He was in the army and after getting discharged he trained to be a private investigator. He’s pretty self contained and private but he has been longing for a woman of his own after he fell for someone who didn’t feel the same as he did. She’s still his friend but it hurts to see her sometimes.

Emerson lived a happy life with her Dad. Her mother died when she was a toddler and subsequently she was especially close to her Dad. He had a farm and a few businesses, he was busy but he still loved his daughter. Life was good until she 16 or so and her Dad died. This is when her happy life was over.

After the death of her father Emerson’s life turned very bad indeed and it was after only a few glimpses of her new neighbour, Warden, that she began to wonder about a different life.

A lot of the book is hard to read, because there were some difficult subjects handled, but they were done well and the horrors didn’t swamp the story. It is only in the latter half of the book that we get the sweetness that I love about Lila Rose. She’s an expert at covering a horrible subject and then giving something sweet and wonderful to the victims.

The book is a quick read, and will leave you smiling at the end. I always read a Lila Rose book when I need a good HEA. She’s a one-click author for me.

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Review: Hypnos (Seeking The Zodiacs Book 1) by RJ Blain

Hypnos by R.J. Blain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

High Paced Urban Fantasy

I decided to read this book based on the fact that Faith Hunter (one of my favourite authors) likes this book. It’s tenuous I know but I really really like her books. This one is pretty good.

Olivia is a woman of dual cultures, with her mother being born in China and her father being American. She looks like her mother and thinks like her father, much to her mother’s dismay. Both parents adore their daughter but they are slightly crazy and bicker. Olivia’s father is a Police Commissioner and is disappointed his daughter joined the FBI rather than become a cop.

The world in which they live is one riddled with magic, caused by the dropping of nuclear bombs during World War III. Olivia is a rare survivor of the bomb that took out New York. Those that survived were very high powered magic users. Olivia is a supervisor of magic units called Quads made up mainly of drafted magic users. Olivia works incredibly long hours, can get by with little food and was at the limits of her body and power when disaster struck her city of San Francisco.

I liked how the book started out with her being weakened and struggling to stay awake. It showed that she wasn’t all powerful right from the beginning. I also liked how her main team flocked around her to try and make her take care of herself. It showed a strong woman, who is respected and cared for. I like it when the main characters are already established in their powers.

The world building was very good and the characters were all interesting. The plot was complex and kept me reading late into the night. However, the level of banter felt a little excessive to me. It was over the top and felt forced. It dropped off a little as the book went on, which made the read much more enjoyable, but it did make me hesitate a bit at the beginning. I’m glad I stuck with it.

I think future books in this series would make for a good read and will definitely read one when they become available.

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Review: Times Like These: A Rock Star Romance (Blue Is The Color Series Book 1) by Julia Wolf

Times Like These: A Rock Star Romance by Julia Wolf
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Really Enjoyable Rock Star Romance

I love a rock star romance. This was a pretty good example of the genre. I’d not read any Julia Wolf before but I liked the look of the blurb.

The story revolved around Dahlia a mature(ish) student. She’s 25 and about to embark on her last semester at college after working all the way through to fund her education. She lives with her younger sister who is also at college. She has a fabulous French Bulldog called Flamingo or Mingo for short. She has crazy red curly hair, wildly colourful tattoos and is incredibly outspoken and acts without worrying what other people think. Dahlia certainly didn’t think about other people's thoughts when she tweeted a video and ranted about a member of her sister's favourite band keeling over during the concert she was dragged to.

As a result of that ranting tweet, Nick, the lead singer of Blue is the Color, called her a really bad swear word, that lead to her being hassled on twitter, and at work by reporters and finally by her boss when he fired her.

As a result Dahlia ended up on tour with the band to work as a PA. Nick was not happy about her being there and gave her a hard time, even when the rest of the band really took to her.

This was a great set up for enemies to lovers romance and I like that though this story had predictable elements to it, the way those elements were handled were done in a way I really liked. For instance, Dahlia thought Nick gorgeous but was really turned off by his attitude. She stood her ground but didn’t attack.

I like that both characters spent time apart whilst on tour and we got to know their full personalities through their interaction with other people. They were fully rounded people that slowly got to know each other.

The story was a slowly evolving one which is much more believable than insta-love and feels more satisfyingly real to me. The book wasn’t completely serious and there were times I sat grinning like an idiot whilst reading - I’m thinking of Dahlia’s penguin impersonation here. So there was fun as well as the usual romance angst.

As a result of my enjoyment of this book, it is very likely that I will read the next in the series when I’m in the mood for another good Rock Romance.

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Review: Antidote (Love and War Series Book 1) by R A Steffan

Antidote by R.A. Steffan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Straight Forward Sci-Fi Romance

I’d probably give this 3.5⭐️ if I could.

This is a straight forward sci-fi cross species romance. Skye is human and is on course to crash on a moon. Her father has just been killed in front of her and she has vital life saving information on her person, only she doesn’t think she’ll have a chance to save herself, let alone anyone else.

On the moon, she is about to crash into, is Hunter and his small group of friends, who make up Shadow Wing, those fighting against the oppression of The Regime. Hiding from The Regime on a moon in the middle of nowhere sounds like a good idea until a shuttle crashes into it.

Hunter decides to rescue the lone occupant of the shattered shuttle, in order to find out how she found them and if anyone is following her. When he discovers a very battered human female, something awakens in him, a primal need to protect her.

From this introduction you can pretty much tell how it goes. The plot is very straight forward, there are no real surprises, however the author’s writing style is fluid and easy to read and the characterisation isn’t bad either.

This is a fun easy read, and as I got it for free, I’m certainly not complaining!

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Review: Blackthorn Grove (Katie Bishop Series Book 2) by Luanne Bennett

Blackthorn Grove by Luanne Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

More Dragon Fire

This second book in the series is as enjoyable as the first. The writing style is smooth and the characters compelling. My personal favourite is Sugar, a larger than life drag queen with a voodoo Mama, who still calls her Raymond. Sugar is protective of her friends and has no respect for those who treat her with none, and isn’t shy about saying it.

In this book a dead witch is trying to come through the Crossroads, using the bones of a dead god, to wreak vengeance against the individuals who have treated her line with disrespect. The dead witch is channelling power through the unsuspecting and people are dying. The dead witch is a fire witch and The Society believes that Katie’s dragon may be the only thing that will save Savannah when the witch comes through to their realm.

Amongst all the trials and tribulations of Savannah as a whole, Katie is having her own problems with balancing her human and dragon half and learning how to take help when it’s given.

The plot in this book is well constructed and nothing is obvious at the outset, which I enjoy very much. It’s a great urban fantasy series and I will continue to read it.

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Review: Crossroads of Bones (Katie Bishop Series Book 1) by Luanne Bennett

Crossroads of Bones by Luanne Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dragons, Tattoos and Voodoo

This book was an unexpected gem. I picked up the book for free because it sounded ok and I’m so glad I did. I love Urban Fantasy and this was right up my street.

Katie Bishop is a tattoo artist who owns her own shop, in Savannah. She also happens to have an amazing dragon tattooed on her back, that occasionally moves around. She hasn’t lived in Savannah long but has made a few good friends, including her employee Sea Bass (Sebastian) and Lady Sugar a big, beautiful, black trans-gendered woman.

Katie has been keeping her dragon a secret from her friends but one day a man walks into her shop asking for a strange tattoo, she has seen in her dreams, and everything about her life in Savannah changes.

This is my favourite type of Urban Fantasy, with a strong female protagonist with a good group of friends around her. I particularly like that Katie has such good friendships with Sea Bass and Sugar, both of whom are fantastic characters who really care about her well being.

I like that we learn about Savannah’s supernatural community and history alongside Katie as it is revealed to her throughout the book, as she is a recent transplant, but I feel that there are some things that are half explained about Katie’s past. I felt that there was some information I was missing and it was a little annoying.

I can see from the Author’s Goodreads page that she has a series set in New York, so I wonder if Katie’s character was introduced in that series as a support character, as that is where she originally lived. Plus, there are references to all the weird stuff that happened in New York, so this is what has led me to make assumptions about previous books. I’d be interested to know if I’m right, but not interested enough to read the other series, just to find out.

I really enjoyed this book as it has an interesting plot and the characters are great. The world building isn’t perfect but it’s still good enough to keep me within the moment as I read. I will definitely be reading the rest of the series.

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Review: Envy (The Deadly Seven Series Book 1) by Lana Pecherczyk

Envy by Lana Pecherczyk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Really Good Superhero Romance

I really enjoyed this book. Lana Pecherczyk knows how to write a good story. Not only does she know how to write a good story, she knows how to write good characters.

It’s the hottest day in UK history when I read this book and it was good enough to distract me from melting into the sofa. I think that speaks volumes about how good the plot is!

This book is the first in a series about the 7 Deadly Sins. There are 7 siblings who were bio-engineered in a lab to epitomise their individual sin and be able to trace it.

The Deadly 7 had been fighting crime in Cardinal City until a family rift tore them apart and left only Envy working alone to help the public. Envy was the youngest of the Sins and as his alter ego Evan is an artist and owner of a tattoo parlour. When he is injured he meets Grace, an ER doctor and he instantly falls for her. He found his perfect balance and his abilities increased because of it.

I love the relationship that Grace and Evan fall into. It is supportive, loving and kind straightaway. Grace is a gentle soul, who has been through hell over the last few years and has learnt how to forgive. She tries to pass that on to Evan and he wants to learn. I also love that she has doubts, about loving a superhero, because who wouldn’t? Evan has always tried his best but blames himself for the family split. He is seeking redemption and Grace helps him get it.

I love the potential for this series. There is an ongoing enemy and each sibling brings a different set of problems to the table. Plus there is the ongoing interaction between the siblings that is interesting.

I will definitely be reading the next in the series.

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Review: Sinner (A Deadly Seven Series Origins Novella) by Lana Pecherczyk

Sinner by Lana Pecherczyk
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Excellent Introduction To A New Series

I’m not usually a huge fan of novellas but this one was crafted brilliantly. This book is a prequel to a new series and explains the set up for the series really well.

Flint works for a big firm working on innovative ideas that are supposed to make the world a better place. He is very intelligent and is an inventor using electronics and computer science to make robotics and other such wonders. He has also fallen for Sister Mary a young nun who works on a secret project, and despite not acting on his feelings, he can't seem to help himself.

Sister Mary isn’t really nun, she’s a designated Sinner for her Order which wants to fight misogyny and uses her skills to do so. She is in place to watch over a secret project that has bio-engineered children to be weapons against the 7 deadly sins.

This book is about what the future of those children looks like. The book is very well crafted and the characters are great. I really liked both Flint and Mary and the characters of the children were shown briefly. We are made to understand the nature of the world, that these characters exist in, and the sense of a failing society is outlined clearly. The children are pivotal to the future of this world, and this period of a couple of days, that the book recounts, determines their future.

The author has a great ability to create tension, without going overboard, and quickly induces empathy for the characters. I am really looking forward to the series, if this brief taste is an example of what is to come.

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Review: Blazing Petals (The Anomaly Series Book 2) by Aster North

Blazing Petals by Aster North
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was given this book as an Advance Reader Copy, by the author, but all opinions are my own.

After the great first book in this series, I was really hoping I wouldn’t be disappointed with the second book. I’m so relieved that I’m not. In fact I would say that this book is even better. Aster North has an incredibly creative mind that crafts plots and hones them like a sharp blade. Everything is carefully constructed and nothing is carelessly placed.

In my review of the first book, I stated that I wished there had been more about Cassie, but now I am pretty sure that the omission of information about her past was done on purpose. I don’t know what that purpose is yet, but there are mysterious hints in this book about what it might be. This is just one example of the careful construction of the plot in this series.

This second book in the series is all about how the relationship between Everly and the guys is working. It’s about them learning to communicate, understanding each other’s weaknesses and catering to them. The heat level is also elevated in this book, with several more scenes to charge the blood! I really like how the heat levels have slowly built through the two books, in tandem with the emotions, in a way that feels believable

In this book we also learn a little bit more about Everly and her powers, as she learns about them. In the last book Mr Li explained about how he’d witnessed her existence at the dawn of the Earth, but there is still so much to learn about Everly, both for us and for her.

We also get to see the action levels elevated in this book.  There are battles to fight and bad guys to squish and learning to do it as a team is paramount. It’s a lesson that Everly has to decide whether she is prepared to learn or not, because if she wants to keep the guys around, she’s going to have to change some things.

This really is a very good book. It’s excellently written and well edited and the style of writing is easy to read and flows beautifully. I love the characters that Aster North has created and as each book progresses they flesh out more and more, slowly taking shape as they open up to each other and the reader. I’ve already stated my appreciation for the author’s plot creation, but it bears repeating because it really is very good.

Read this book, but only after you’ve read the first one or you won’t have a clue about what is going on. I can’t wait for the third book in the series, I just know it’s going to be a corker!

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Review: Fallen Elemental (Elemental Series Book 1) by Tamara White

Fallen Elemental by Tamara White
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Interesting Story

I really liked the story, but the execution is a little clunky in places. The narrative is a little stilted at times, which is frustrating, because much of the time it flows well. This makes the stilted chunks stand out much more sharply.

I liked the world building a lot, with the idea of fallen angels having children with humans and creating elementals. I like the idea of heaven versus hell and the struggle for the waning power of the elementals leading to corruption of the race.

Much of the focus on this book is on Evie’s life and history. This means there is less time spent on the four men in her life. I’m hoping that the next book will address that imbalance because whilst I really like Evie’s character I want to know about the guys and why they are the way they are. I also want to know more about the elementals’ society and culture.

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Review: The Complete Lion Mistress Collection

The Complete Lion Mistress Collection by R.A. Steffan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent Follow Up To The Horse Mistress

This trilogy is a continuation of the first four books in the Eburosi Series. The trilogy is self contained but the first four books give a great deal of background and world building, plus we are introduced to many of the main characters in this book when they were younger.

The story focuses on three individuals Favian, a young novice priest, Ithric, a lion shifter and Kathrael, an ex-slave/prostitute. Favian and Ithric have known each other for years and have a very difficult relationship. They have feelings for each other but Favian ran away from it because it scared him and felt it took him away from his need to serve the gods. Favian is a Seer and has true dreams, one of the main reasons he wants to be a priest.

We first met Kathrael in The Horse Mistress books when Carivel, Andoc and Senovo travelled to Rythe. Senovo stopped Kathrael getting a severe beating and allowed her to escape her slave master. Ending up alone she became a prostitute to stay alive. She hates Senovo who was prophesied to rescue Rythe and lead a slave uprising. He never returned to save her and her loved ones and believes that he turned away from his fate. Her hatred leads her to travel far North, to confront and kill Senovo, who she believed destroyed her life.

These three very different people end up working together towards helping the North, by helping the South free themselves.

It’s a really good story and the three main characters are well written and believable. The sex scenes are steamy and this is a true polyamorous relationship, with equality between the people involved, both in the relationship and in bed.

I enjoyed the world building in The Horse Mistress and my enjoyment continues in this trilogy as we get to know more about the various gods that are worshiped in Eburosa and how the societies of the various parts of the country have altered the way those gods are worshipped.

Some parts of the story are not easy to read because they are about slavery and the reckless disregard for life shown by those in power in Rythe. These horrors add to the story and show the strength that those fighting against their oppressors have.

As this is a trilogy there is space for the story to grow and we are shown really interesting supporting characters that enrich the story. Showing the environment in which the three lead characters exist gives their relationship depth.

A very enjoyable read. I’m sure I’ll read more in this series.

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