Review: Edge Of Darkness (Arrow's Edge MC Series Book 2) by Freya Barker

Edge Of Darkness by Freya Barker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Tricky Second Book

Sometimes I think I do the second book in a series a disservice, particularly if I really liked the first one. I do this by reading the second book immediately. This is fine if it is a second book with an ongoing storyline revolving round the same main characters, but if it’s different characters I’m nearly always slightly disappointed. I always want to know how the characters from the first book are doing. I really need to disconnect before trying to enjoy hearing about others in the same group of friends. It makes it harder for me to know if I’m being fair and honest with myself about how I actually feel about a book, or if I’m constantly comparing it with it’s predecessor.

This book is part of the continuing story arc from the first book, but told from the point of view of different people. This book focuses on Yuma, Nosh and Momma’s son. He hit 40 and finally woke up to the fact he’s an alcoholic and been throwing his life away.

Lissie is a new detective with Durango PD and has moved into the apartment complex that Yuma has been managing for the club since he returned from rehab. She moved to the area and seems to have ulterior motives that revolve around the club.

Lissie comes from a family of cops and Yuma comes from a family of bikers and it would seem that on the surface they have nothing in common, but it turns out they have more things that connect them than is first perceivable.

One thing I felt was lacking a little in this book is the way alcoholism is depicted. It didn’t really cover very much of the emotional impact of getting treatment and how difficult it is to maintain sobriety in challenging situations. I don’t have personal experience of this, but I know people who have and it seems that it was glossed over a little, which is disappointing.

There’s tonnes of really good plot to follow in this book, and plenty happens regarding the racist organisation from the first book. I don’t know what direction this series is going to take next and part of me wants to read the next story immediately whilst the other part wants to read a couple of different books first!

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Review: Daughter of the Alien Warrior (Treasured By The Alien Series Book 3) by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn

Daughter of the Alien Warrior by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

More Kidnappings

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

In this third book of the series we follow the story of Inzen, the Chief Engineer from the first book. When he chose to move to the planet with the rest of the humans they rescued, he wanted to support Cassie, as she’d had so many problems on Earth. He treated her like a daughter, as he had lost his child and his mate during the plague. He also took on one of the babies that were stolen during the first kidnapping. Separated from her mother, he wanted to raise little Lily and help Cassie and her daughter at the same time, so they all moved into the same building, with Inzen devoting all of his time to raising his precious little girl.

Jade was rich and successful, with a husband and baby when the unthinkable happened. Her husband was out taking the baby for a walk in the park when she was stolen and her husband killed. A year later she has taken self defense and firearms training and patrols the park where her daughter was stolen from. She is determined to stop it happening to anyone else. It also gets her kidnapped by the same race that stole her daughter.

I love both these characters. Jade is strong and determined and fierce in defending herself and others. Inzen is the same. They both have a devoted and tender side and are loyal. Jade also has a bit of a temper!

I enjoyed the push and pull of these characters and the work they all had to do in order to settle into a new life. I really hope that there is another book in this series because I really like the world building and the characters.

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Review: Edge of Reason (Arrow's Edge MC Series Book 1) by Freya Barker

Edge of Reason by Freya Barker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A Well Written and Thoughtful MC Romance

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

There are some instances of racial violence described in this book, though not in visceral and emotional detail, but more a reciting of the facts. One of these instances was violence on a child. If these subject matters are triggering for you, then you may wish to skip this book. As I am not a person of colour I can’t say how well these issues are handled from that perspective either. However, it is my belief that the author put a lot of care into how it was handled and the matter of race was discussed thoughtfully. If you have a different point of view after reading this book, I am always grateful to hear from people who have different experiences of life than I do.

Though this is set in an MC, it is not a 1%er club. They have legitimate businesses and also provide housing, care and support for teenage boys. In order to provide that support they hired Trunk, a child psychologist, and when he got hired he joined the MC. The president or ‘Chief’ as they call him, is married to an FBI agent. This gives you some information on the type of characters we are dealing with here. Whilst I like a good MC book, I really don’t like it when the so called good guys are pretty bad so this is the kind of information I like before going into a book. (You’re welcome 😉)

Trunk is a 44 year old black man, who had a pretty hard childhood. He was a street kid for a while and his mother was a junkie. He basically raised his sister, despite being a child himself. He dragged himself out of poverty by getting to college and helped his sister do the same. Because of his experiences he is often able to reach kids that are more closed off. He’s pretty self contained and comes across as a bit gruff and tends to live in the moment. However, he adores his sister and her new baby.

Trunk’s sister is a writer and her PA is Jaime. Jaime is a 38 year old white woman and has a 6 month old son. Her ex-husband is in prison after it was discovered he was a white supremacist who planned to do very bad things. Jaime is definitely NOT a racist and was surprised to hear her husband was as he managed to hide it well.

Jaime and Trunk are very attracted to each other but neither really wants to act on it for various reasons. Obviously they finally get their act together after a few false starts, but it is a gradual build up, which is always fun.

The book has a lot of interesting plot twists and I was kept on the edge of my seat trying to figure out what was going to happen next, and alongside that there was the sweet love story and the gentle relationship between Trunk and River, Jaime’s son as contrast.

I really liked that this was an MC book about people who weren’t in their twenties. The characters have lead interesting lives and had experiences that have altered them. I liked that Trunk was aware of his flaws and addressed them head on and tried to work on them to protect his relationship. They had arguments as they are both strong willed and independent people but those disagreements were handled well.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author and it will not be the last. I will definitely be downloading the next book in this series.

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Review: A Son for the Alien Warrior (Treasured By The Alien Series Book 2) by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn

A Son for the Alien Warrior by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Search For Family

This is the second book in the series and it follows on after the first. However, you don’t really need to have read the first book to follow the story, it just helps establish the scene in which it’s set.

Mariah’s sister and nephew went missing exactly 12 months ago. She travelled to the site of their last known whereabouts to mourn their loss. Whilst there she sees a space ship and smuggles herself onboard, sure that this how her sister was taken.

Luckily she is discovered by the one person on board who wants to help her, as he is there to try and stop the slave trade himself. He keeps her hidden until he can find a way to get her off the ship and to find someone who can help her.

Mariah finally finds help in the form of ship’s captain, Cestov, who is looking for his own sibling, who left after an argument 5 years earlier. Mariah and Cestov’s connection is instant, even if they both know they have to put their siblings first.

This book is a little more plot heavy than the first, because a lot of the world building had taken place in the first book. This gave the authors space to explore a bit of a ‘whodunnit’.

There are some really sweet moments in the book, and any sadness isn’t overwhelming, it just provides a counterpoint to the sweet so it doesn’t get too sickly.

There is one more book out at the moment, I don’t know if more are planned, but I will definitely be reading that third book soon.

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Review: This Time Is Different by Mae Woods

This Time Is Different by Mae Wood
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Gentle, Warm and Sweet

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

This is a really lovely book. It’s real, warm, painful and funny. It’s not filled with vast excitement or hot and steamy passion, but it’s filled with tenderness, delight, Dad jokes and negotiating the minefield that is dating with grown up children.

Amy is a dentist. She’s 38, has a 17 year old son and has been divorced for 3 years. She has a slightly awkward relationship with her ex-husband but there is still genuine affection between them and they navigate co-parenting well.

Thomas is a COO at the local hospital. He’s 52 and was widowed 8 years previous. His children are all in college and are starting to move onto living their own lives without him. He’s very focused on his career after his kids have achieved independence.

Amy and Thomas meet when Thomas gets hit in the face with a softball bat at a work function. He gets hopped on pain meds and is awkward and adorable. That doesn’t change the fact that he is captivated by the wide smile of his Doctor Dentist Angel.

This story is fairly straight forward, there are no ups and downs, dramatic splits and passionate make up sex. It’s about liking each other, making each other laugh and wanting to spend time together both in bed and out of it. It’s about making time for each other and understanding that kids come first and careers are important. It’s about a very grown up relationship and all the joys that they can bring.

This book is beautifully written and perfect for when you are in the mood for gentle, sweet and warm narratives. It’s perfect for having characters you’d like to spend time with and be friends with because though they’ve had the normal difficulties in life they are not ‘broken’. It’s about watching two nice and interesting people find each other and make space for each other in their own worlds even when it’s a little uncomfortable doing so. It’s a perfect portrait of having a second big relationship in their lives and doing it differently this time, even if the first time round was wonderful.

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Review: Mama and the Alien Warrior (Treasured By The Alien Series Book 1) by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn

Mama and the Alien Warrior by Honey Phillips and Bex McLynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Sweet Alien Abduction

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

I was in the mood for an alien romance and this popped up as a recommendation. I wasn’t sure but the more that I read the blurb the more I was interested.

Abby runs a maternity home and is currently looking after three new mothers and two pregnant women. At the same time she adopted her niece after the death of her sister. She’s happy with her little girl and helping other young women who find themselves without support at a really difficult time, but her partner left her when she took on Lucie and decided to quit corporate life.

When she and her charges are kidnapped by aliens they are informed that they, and their children, are now products, to be sold for profit.

Hrebec captains a ship with other members of his dying race. Wiped out by plagues there are no women left of his species and to escape the trauma of failing to protect his race he and his crew decided to leave their home world and travel as reservists for the Confederated Planets Patrol. When they come across a slave ship they free the human women and find a baby girl of their own race, giving them hope for the first time in years.

This was a really sweet book. Everyone was really gentle with each other and respectful of each other’s ways. There weren’t great alien misunderstandings, just everyone trying to do their best for each other.

Lucie and Hrebec’s relationship was adorable and the big green skinned alien was so tender with her. I liked that Abby wasn’t 20, she had a corporate career and changed jobs to look after her younger sister’s child. She’s got a good heart and she is strong. She was very much the matriarch of the humans.

There was some steam but it was the sweet I remember more than anything. The steam was simply part of the relationship between Abby and Hrebec, which steadily built through the book.

I wasn’t sure how they would reach their HEA, but I was pleased that they did, and that all the other young women got what they needed too.

I’m looking forward to reading the next book, as they are nice and bite sized.

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Review: Magic awakening (Bound To Stone Series Book 1) by Alina Giuchici

Magic awakening by Alina Giuchici
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Has Potential

I really wanted to like this book. It had so many things in it that I like, gargoyles, witches, vampires and elves. It has good and evil and unknown magical powers coming to life. It’s also got the promise of it being a Reverse Harem, which is a bonus. Sadly it’s got lots of ‘bits’ to it and those bits don’t necessarily hang together smoothly.

I feel like this book could have benefitted from a different editor. There was lots of promise, the characters were interesting and the world building was quite strong but it just needed all the rough edges smoothing so it all hung together better. The plot was a bit jumpy as it skipped between POV with no warning and those jumps also seemed to skip key bits of plot, when a few sentences would have made things a bit clearer.

I am surprised that this isn’t a first book, because it reads like one, but apparently there are several other books by this author that have been published. As this is the case, I don’t think I’ll try any others in this series, because I can’t see the annoyance I felt from reading this book being removed in the next one.

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Review: Beth's Stable (Stolen By An Alien Series Book 6) by Amanda Milo

Beth's Stable by Amanda Milo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ridiculous Space Pirates

I’d seen this book bandied about on various threads and finally decided to give it a go and I have to say it’s one of the most ridiculous RH book I’ve read. When I say ridiculous what I mean is pretty darn funny. I will preface this by saying that I normally get a bit squicked out by abduction romances because really that isn’t any way to start out with a fun story line. However, this book got around that by abducting a human who was happy to leave Earth to get away from an abusive ex and ended up being bought by aliens who look after her. Having that emotional chicanery allowed me to relax and enjoy the book.

Beth wakes up in an alien auction house at least 6 months pregnant when the last thing she remembered was being significantly less so and being on Earth. Bought by a hyperactive toddler hopped up on caffeine and sugar, otherwise known as Ekan an alien from a race of space pirates, Beth spends much of the next few weeks in a state of confusion.

Ekan and his shipmates come from a race that form crews around one female mate. They seem to spend all their time in space and relish the challenge of theft, be it gems, food or time with their mate. I like how though all the crew are the same race and have overarching behavioural traits, they are all distinct personalities, with different relationships with Beth.

This was decent sized book and filled with witty banter and miscommunications of things that get lost in cultural translation. Beth is a movie fanatic and spends a lot of time relating things to her favourite characters and scripts and as a movie fan it all made sense to me, though someone who is less aware of movies may miss some of the references, but I don’t think it would stop the enjoyment of it.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but I’m certain it won’t be the last because I loved the way she looked at the world and spent a lot of my time during my read laughing.

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Review: Lead Player (Everyday Heroes World Series) by Alex Grayson

Lead Player by Alex Grayson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Predictable But Enjoyable

I’d probably give this book 3.5 🌟 if I could.

I decided to have a dip into the Everyday Heroes World books and try some of the novels by authors I’d not come across before. As I was enjoying some rock star books at the moment I decided to try this one.

I like the concept of Enzo being the lead guitarist and main songwriter for a rock band and wanting to leave because touring was miserable. Basically the novel is set at a time of change for someone who has been living life one way for 10 years and is about to try something different. Enzo has had his heart burned a bit before in the past and because of that has been reluctant to get into anything serious with anyone since. It’s made easier to do this because of, you know, him being a rock star and all.

Alaina has been single for a year and is actually looking for a long term relationship. She’s tried dating apps and it’s been miserable. She’s also really missing sex so sets out to have a one night stand and when she meets a handsome guy in a bar proceeds to have one. Both of them giving false names.

When they meet several days later at a wedding function, Enzo is delighted at the opportunity to see Alaina again. Alaina isn’t as sure when she finds out who he really is.

Basically the story continues in this fairly predictable way. This is a well worn path for a reason. The set up works. The only difference is Enzo retiring. Alaina is the magic special person who converts Enzo into something other than the determined bachelor and Enzo is the magic special person that makes Alaina give up her plans to try with the ‘bad boy’ because he’s super special.

Though it’s a slightly tired trope, it was a still a well written one. The plot was well constructed and the characters thought out really well. It was an enjoyable read, and sometimes predictable is what you want from a romance novel. Especially when the world isn’t a great place to be, it’s nice to have a safe and well constructed HEA.

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Review: Rocked (The Everyday Heroes World Series) by Julia Wolf

Rocked by Julia Wolf
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Rock Star Meets An Every Day Hero

One of the things I really liked about this book was that the Everyday Hero, Kat, is a paramedic single mom. She’s strong both physically and mentally. She’s a hardcore rock climber and incredibly fit. She is calm in a crisis and helps people every day in her job. She is also a reliable and loving mother.

Kat’s daughter, Ellie, is 12 years old and allergic to every thing, in a life threatening way. She’s also brave and as strong as her mother. She is confident, bright and talented and she has been Kat’s whole world since she had her at age 20. I have to say that Ellie is a stand out character for me in this book and loved everything that included her, and her goofy dog.

Devon is a rock star. He’s 35 and his career is on the way down as he’s tried to keep up with music trends and found they don’t fit his style at all. He’s also made some really BIG mistakes in his private life, most revolving around drugs, alcohol and infidelity. He’s driving cross country trying to find his way through the mess that is his mind when he hears about a music star who has moved to a tiny town in California where everyone treats her like a regular person. So as he is close by he drives there and ends up renting the house next door to Kat.

The story that unravels is fairly predictable but the way it is told is so satisfying. You know there is going to be a HEA but you aren’t quite sure how it’s going to get there, though the options narrow the closer to the end you get. However, what you do get is a really lovely story about two people who are learning to forgive themselves for past mistakes and take a chance on letting someone in.

I really enjoyed this book and definitely plan to read more of Julia Wolf’s books and also from Everyday Heroes World.

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Review: The Devil's Advocate (The Devil's Advocate Series Book 1) by Michaela Haze

The Devil's Advocate by Michaela Haze
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Being Queen of Hell Isn’t All It’s Cracked Up To Be

I decided to read this book after reading Red City, a more recently written book, as I wanted to know more about the world in which it was set.

This author has a great imagination, with some decidedly dark turns to it. This book is probably not for people of slightly nervous constitutions, or probably around meal times. We are talking about demons here and they author doesn’t shy away from the basic evil of them as a species, though she does imbue them with more human emotions too, that are quite a lot less evil, such as love and loyalty.

Two hundred years ago Lucifer banished his consort, Dahlia, to the human realm. He gave no explanation why, after more than a millennia together, he cast her out. She has been working as his broker with humans ever since because he can only come to the human realm for 66 minutes and 6 seconds each day. Though Dahlia is banished from hell she is still fed by it and is infinitely more strong than many other demons and than all daemons (humans changed by demon blood and sin into immortals that need to feed on sins directly created by humans). Dahlia is still devastated at the loss of Lucifer and hates him for casting her out at the same time as longing for him.

This author conveys loss and longing so brilliantly you can understand how someone who has been betrayed can still want the person who betrayed them. Lucifer’s motives are unclear almost until the end of the book and following Dahlia’s confusion and reactions to his actions leaves you at as much of a loss as she is.

For a demon queen, Dahlia is a very sympathetic character. This is probably because she doesn’t come across as outright evil. She appears to have a little empathy, which is surprising.

The plot is complex and compelling and draws you in. I devoured the book as the story was excellent. I will say though that there are lot of typos and grammatical problems in the book. I don’t think I noticed this problem in Red City, so it may be that because this was an early book there wasn’t enough money for an editor. It’s only a little distracting, but I know someone people hate books like that so I wanted to give the information in case it’s important. I think it would be a shame if this put you off, because it’s an imaginative and interesting novel.

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Review: Bulldozer (Tobin Tribe Series Book 6) by Caitlyn Coakley

Bulldozer by Caitlyn Coakley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fun With a Side Order of Trauma

As with all these books, the author has managed to blend funny, witty banter with difficult and emotional subjects. It’s a fine line to walk but she manages it well.

Quinn is the last remaining bachelor of the five Tobin sons. He’s used to being the runner up as the second born and wants someone to put him first. The woman he loved didn’t wait for him to get his act together and married someone else and no one has ever lived up to her since. So, he has spent his life in short meaningless relationships and one night stands, exploring his kinkier side.

Nicole is Lissa’s sister. After the disappearance of her father and the alcoholism of her mother, she and Lissa were placed in foster care. They were bounced around, managing to stay together until she aged out and in the months before she was able to claim custody of Lissa, something awful happened to her. Nicole never felt worthy of happiness after that. She loved someone who didn’t know she existed and she punished herself by never allowing herself to love or be loved.

When Lissa fell in love with Shane, Quinn’s youngest brother, they decided to try and match up their siblings by forcing them together through the many long and detailed wedding plans. It seems like it works but they are both still hiding behind walls and rules and games, until someone slashes Quinn’s tyres.

I love how sex positive this series is. Even Mama Tobin, a staunch Catholic, refuses to allow any of her family to slut shame, mainly because she can’t stand hypocrisy. Nicole and Quinn are honest about their needs and desires and there is no shame. The whole series has a healthy attitude to non-vanilla sex that is appealing.

Through all the sex and banter there is a strong thread of emotion and need for connection that is subtly woven throughout, and keeps the book from being too predictable. This emotional content and the appealing characters are the reason I will keep reading this author, because she always entertains without forcing me to switch off my brain.

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Review: Bryce (Sexton Brother Series Book 2) by Jeannine Colette and Lauren Runow

Bryce by Jeannine Colette and Lauren Runow
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Changing Lifestyles

This is the second book in a series, but as it was free I wasn’t going to quibble, especially when the blurb said it could be read as a standalone, which is true.

Bryce owns, with his family, a media company that sells both digital and hard copy news. His family is troubled, which happened after his mother died 8 years previous and he had to step up age 22 to head the company, when it became obvious his father couldn’t. Bryce loves his job and that he’s keeping his mother’s company going but he doesn’t love that he isn’t getting the help he needs and is working himself to death.

Tessa’s mother is a hard line feminist campaigner for women’s rights and a equal rights lawyer. She isn’t particularly impressed with men and had Tessa through a sperm donation. Then Tessa got pregnant and had a child aged 19. The father of the child did not want to be involved. She’s a make up artist and has recently got a great job and has been able to move out of her mother’s house with her 5 year old son, to another city.

When Bryce and Tessa meet at a gala that Tessa gate-crashed with her friends, there is an instant connection. Tessa doesn’t want a man, but Bryce really wants Tessa even though his work has taken over every spare minute.

I really loved how real this book felt, despite it being based on a billionaire falling for a single mother. Their difficulties weren’t about his money but about the stupid hours he worked and family issues. I also liked that the relationship wasn’t all about hot sex, but about conversations, eating food together and taking Tessa’s son out to Cub Scouts. Bryce’s relationship with Tessa’s son was as important and his relationship with Tessa.

This was a really well thought out book, with lots of interesting plot developments and the characters were completely believable and easy to relate to. I’m quite tempted to read the other books in the trilogy because the characters in this one are really interesting and the ongoing plot is intriguing.

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Review: Watch Me Unravel (Blue Is The Colour Series Book 2) by Julia Wolf

Watch Me Unravel by Julia Wolf
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having a Grown Up Relationship

Julia Wolf writes fantastic romance novels that happen to be about rock stars. The fame and fortune part of the stories seem to be incidental the relationships and I quite like that. This book is actually about what happens away from the touring, interviews etc whilst the band is on hiatus for a while.

David is a bit of a ass. He likes to wind people up, he’s pretty selfish and a bit lazy. However, he’s a talented musician, really cares about the people he loves, even if he’s rubbish at doing the hard work usually, and he loves deeply.

David has a 15 year old daughter. She was the product of a one night stand. Though he adores his daughter he has never done the hard work of being a parent until he got a phone call telling him his daughter had been in accident.

The accident forces Sylvia, his daughter's mother, to take up David’s offer of staying with him because he doesn’t have stairs and they can care for their daughter together at his house. Forcing the family together for the very first time is eye opening for all concerned.

It felt like the main theme of this book was parental redemption. It was about people who had been rubbish parents but were trying to get their act together, or had already done so. It talks about the sacrifices parents make for their children and how good people can be poor parents if circumstances make them that way. This is not purely about David, but also about how Sylvia, David and his band mates were raised.

This is a complex story of parenting, love and making of families. It’s about making decisions to work hard at relationships to make them succeed and make your loved ones happy. Once again Julia Wolf writes multi-faceted characters who are believable and engaging and then sets them up in unusual situations for us to be captivated. She does write very good romantic fiction .

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Review: Dissonance (Unrequited Series Book 3) by Julia Wolf

Dissonance by Julia Wolf
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Frenemies To Lovers

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

I’ve fallen quite hard for the Unrequited boys and their loved ones. This book follows the relationship between Alex and Yael. Yael is feisty, collected and ice cold. Alex is a skater boy, rock star, guitarist goofball who everyone loves. In previous books, no one could understand why Yael seemed to dislike Alex so much and in this book we find out.

We learn about their hidden history that no one knew about, from meeting at 16 years old, right through to today. We learn about how what could have been a wonderful friendship changed early on into something bitter and hurtful.

When Yael is invited to a friend’s wedding she intends to decline because her ex would be there, but somehow after a few drunken texts she ends up saying she would be going with Alex as her plus one. When Alex agrees to the scheme and says they have to fake date they learn to start communicating and putting aside their hurts.

It’s a beautiful story with some witty banter soothing the sadness of two people who keep damaging each other despite themselves. We get to peel back the layers on these two key characters from the previous books and it’s obvious how much thought the author has put into these two because they leap off the page.

I really enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it as a great trope-mashing read.

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Review: Red City by Michaela Haze

Red City by Michaela Haze
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Hell on Earth

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

I tried this book because it was free and sounded quite interesting. I’m really glad I did because I really enjoyed this journey into a demon city on earth. I have a feeling that though this is a standalone, it may have made more sense if I’d read the books set in the same world previously. However, I enjoyed the journey into understanding this darkly captivating world.

Jane Doe is a prisoner who has chosen to transfer her sentence to a place in Red City, the city for demons, and to become their plaything and their food in exchange for no longer living in a cage. Jane has no memory beyond waking up in the psych ward in the prison 5 years ago and has been tormented every day since waking back up. She was so sure that Red City couldn’t be worse, but then she is bought at auction by the head of one of the houses in the Lust sector and she is terrified of what is to come.

But whilst there is beauty in cruelty and the warmth of friendship in the cold and the dark, there is also fear and weakness in a world of power where she has none.

This book created a dark and captivating world that really drew me in. I also really enjoyed it was written by a fellow Brit. It did my heart good to see the word ‘bum’ used in a ménage book!

The characters themselves were intriguing on so many levels. The initial rush of introduction hooked me and as each page turned and more about each of them was revealed, the more I needed to learn about them.

The plot was different enough to keep me reading late into the night and wake up early to finish the book. I wanted to know what was going to happen next as it was carefully, slowly and tantalisingly revealed. It was gripping at the same time as tortuously slow. It was an interesting dynamic that I really enjoyed.

I will definitely be looking out for the other books set in this world because I think I will enjoy learning more about this wonderfully dark world created by Michaela Haze.

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Review: Geek Chic (Bleacke's Shifters Series Book 2) by Lesli Richardson

Geek Chic by Lesli Richardson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Beck Finds a Mate

This second book in the series continues on from the first book, only this time it’s more focused on Beck and him meeting his fated mate.

One thing I really like about this book is that Beck is 49 and his fated mate is 38 and has raised her three siblings after the death of her mother when she was 21. She’s a strong, loyal and determined black woman who has kept her siblings out of trouble despite living in the projects. She works two jobs and life is a little easier now that the siblings are older, but she still doesn’t let herself relax.

Obviously Beck as an alpha wolf shifter knows exactly what is happening when he meets Nami, even if she is human and doesn’t know. Theirs isn’t the usual courtship and I like Beck a lot for it. I also like how the rest of the pack jumps in and tries to make things easier for Beck and Nami. The pack is a big part of their story and this enriches it.

It’s an entertaining read without being too filled with angst. It’s interesting without being too challenging. I enjoyed it and will probably continue reading the series.

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Review: Dodging Calamities (Artemis University Series Book 7) by Erin R Flynn

Dodging Calamities by Erin R. Flynn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fighting The Good Fight

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

I really enjoyed this book. As usual it was filled with mayhem, angst and busting the bad guys. There is a LOT of plot happening, with alliances being made and poor Tamsin facing down all sorts of conspiracies and attempts on capturing her and her assets. At the same time as finishing her high school certification and attending her college classes she is sneaking around breaking out enslaved hobgoblins.

Tamsin is still dealing with her guys, they keep letting her down, or climbing back into her heart and then letting her down. I honestly don’t know why she bothers with them sometimes, even if they do love her, they are completely hopeless a lot of the time.

One thing I really liked about this book is that Tamsin uses her human contacts and knowledge of the human world in order to get one up on the supes. She uses their prejudices against them. I like that Tamsin doesn’t defeat everyone single handed. She is very powerful but it useless without people to train her and support her. She cannot stand alone against the entire supernatural world and her allies are very important to the story. It’s not just her overpowering all her enemies to get what she wants, she has to be clever and work hard and be able to work as part of a team.

There is a lot in this book about the way supes treat females. This is a recurring theme within this series, but it seems much more prominent in this book in particular. Tamsin is single handedly trying to bring the supernatural world out of the dark ages and encourage women to embrace feminism. There are quite a lot of articulate arguments and reasoning from her to the male supernaturals she encounters about why sexism is rife and good men don’t seem to see it.

I have two little niggles about these books and they are the same for all of them. Firstly, there are often really obvious typos or words missing here and there. I think this is partly because the author has a really really tight publishing schedule and this means that some things get missed. Secondly, when her main characters get on an angry rant, they all sound the same, across all of the books, and series. They use the same sort of slang and verbal short cuts. It’s a little thing, but it bugs me a little because her characters are not all alike, but when they rant, they could be the same character. That’s it, those are my two niggles. Everything else is addictive reading. I can’t stop and often re-read series because I enjoy the stories so much. This author is a great story teller, even if her proof reading isn’t perfect!

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Review: Wolf's Pack (Wolves Next Door Series Book 3) by Auryn Hadley

Wolf's Pack by Auryn Hadley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The HEA

This third book in the trilogy is very meaty. So much happens it almost feels like two books. This is not uncommon for this author. I love how this series is essentially a YA Paranormal Reverse Harem, told from the point of view of the parents of the kids. It’s a brilliant concept and something I loved so much. I’m in my 40s and I don’t want to read about 15 year old werewolves, I want to read about how their parents are handling their crazy kids and trying to keep them alive, despite their antics.

In this book Elena comes into her own as Alpha Female. She steps up and becomes a true Alpha. She takes the authority she has been gifted as mate to the Alpha and makes it her own. She does it in a unique way that reflects who she is rather than the traditions that came before her. She and Gabby are changing Wolf’s Run in a way that people are coming to embrace.

In the aftermath of the shooting at the high school and subsequent ‘fake’ video, there has been interest in other species of shifters in joining Wolf’s Run because they are desperate for safety and they don’t have packs, the way wolves do. Elena and Gabby, being minorities themselves have brought their experience of being outsiders to the table and demanded that the pack help others in need.

The path to becoming fully integrated is not an easy one, especially as Elena is learning how to move and live as a wolf, whilst Gabby is learning what it takes to be a proper Pack Alpha. Karen and her new mate are also still causing lots of problems, which is making everything that little bit harder.

As I said, a lot happens in this book, not just the expected bit of plot revolving around conflict and integration, but all the sub-plots too. Everything included is important and invaluable in telling the story.

I really do hope that in the future Auryn writes a spin off series, because there is so much that can be done with this amazing cast of characters, that I’m really not ready to say goodbye to, because as always they are written so well they feel real. I really enjoyed this book and the rest of the series, and I know I’ll re-read it in the future, because I enjoyed it so much. Knowing this author I’ll probably enjoy it more the second and third time round because there will be little hidden gems I didn’t notice on the first pass through.

If you want to read about adult romance, where the protagonists have to juggle careers, friendships and kids, as well as taking on the monsters and fighting for compassion, justice and integrity then this series is definitely one you should read.

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Review: The Gritty Truth (The Whiskeys: Dark Knights at Peaceful Harbor Series Book 7) by Melissa Foster

The Gritty Truth by Melissa Foster
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Love Whilst In Recovery

It was so good to finally read Quincy’s story after falling for this family in Tru Blue. Quincy’s start in life was so terrible and he’s had such brutal things to cope with, that becoming an addict probably felt inevitable. His journey into recovery was covered in Tru Blue and he was so brave that wasn’t hard to fall for his character a little during that book. Seeing the man he became during recovery, in other books about this great group of people, was also a wonderful part of the series.

We first meet Roni in Dixie’s book, when her friends buy her a date with Quincy at the charity auction. Roni was resistant and put him off, especially after her grandmother, who raised her, died. They spent months texting and getting know each other and when Quincy was finally 2 years clean he started to pursue her more romantically.

This was a really really good book. It didn’t shy away from how difficult recovery from any addiction can be. I loved that Quincy was so dedicated to staying clean not just for his friends and family, but for himself. I loved that he also sponsored Simone through NA and ran meetings. This book showed that staying clean is a journey that never ends and that getting into a relationship with someone on that journey is not easy.

Roni has her own recovery from an accident which ended her very promising dance career. She spent a lot of time working her body to it’s limits to be able to dance again, even if it wasn’t professionally. I loved how she was with the kids in the dance classes she taught and with the kids in the Whiskey family, who are as always in the series, totally adorable.

This was a beautiful book about hard work, stretching for what you want and falling into the support of loving family and friends. It’s a very warm and loving book, with plenty of passion, but, most of all, hopes and dreams and fighting for them. You can’t help but feel warm and fuzzy after reading this book and I’m so pleased this is not the end of this series, even if I’ll have to wait until next year for the next full sized novel.

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Review: Wolf's Call (Wolves Next Door Series Book 2) by Auryn Hadley

Wolf's Call by Auryn Hadley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Finding Her Strength

Now that Elena is acknowledged as the Alpha Mate at Wolf Run, she’s got a few more problems than before. However, she has the support not only of her mates, but of her friends too.

With an ex-girlfriend running around causing problems, Elena has to rely on being guarded from harm and being helped in handling malicious gossip. The one thing she can’t do, is fight back because she isn’t a wolf.

Trying to come to terms with being in a relationship with men who have a sexually transmitted disease is not easy, especially if becoming exposed could lead to her death or being trapped as a wolf, leaving her wolf daughter to be raised by a negligent father.

In this book we see Elena start to grow into her new role and make her own circle of friends in the pack. Instead of trying to do everything herself she is learning to rely on others, which is a difficult lesson to learn after 40 years.

We also see Elena and her daughter, Gabby, learn to communicate and become closer. It’s a lovely part of the story filled with embarrassment and tenderness. Gabby’s relationships within the pack also grows and changes in this book as she steps forward into her new wolf role as daughter of the Alpha Mate.

The relationships are what make this book great. They are nuanced, realistic and filled with mistakes and stumbling, which makes them a joy to engage with. Aside from exploring the romantic aspects of this book, there are plenty of other relationships to explore, with friendships, a kind of sisterhood and the role of real and pseudo parents/grandparents. I love that this book does not solely focus on romance but all the relationships between the main and supporting characters.

There is definitely tension created by plot twists and character clashes, which provide dynamics to the story. It’s a gripping book and I couldn’t stop reading it once I started - thanks Auryn another 4am finish!!!! I can’t wait for the next book.

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Review: Awoken (The Ascension of Meghan May Series Book 1) by Jaya Moon

Awoken by Jaya Moon
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Imaginative Paranormal RH

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

I was really surprised to find out that this book was the debut by this author. This book was well constructed, imaginative and really well written, it had the assurance of a much more experienced author.

Meghan lives a lonely life in the city, after losing everything precious to her. She works in a bar, has one measly friend and tries to keep to herself to keep her heart safe. She lives in a world where angels are real and police the streets, keeping humans safe from harm. They even come into the bar where she works.

One night everything about her safe routines changes when she saves a shifter from harm. A shifter she didn’t know could exist. Everything she knew about the world was overturned and the only thing keeping her on her feet are three men, the shifter she saved, his human friend and their angel ally.

The world building for this book was very different. In this world angels and shifters are at war. Angels see shifters as tainted by the devil and have been trying to kill them for generations, along with any ally they might have. It’s a dangerous and secretive world, hidden from humans. I really liked the way this world was revealed to the reader, done slowly, with each new piece of information building on the previous one.

The characters are all three dimensional and intriguing. We only get to see the first layers of all of them in this first book in the series, but what we see makes me want to read the next book immediately, because I want to know more about them and what happens to them next.

The plot isn’t high action, but there is plenty of tension and dynamic emotional interaction. It kept me gripped by what was happening and the pages just disappeared quickly until I hit the end. There is a slight cliffhanger because the story is obviously not over, however the end of the book didn’t leave me wanting to throttle the author. Also, the next book is out already so I don’t have to wait to find out what happens to the characters next.

I recommend this book if you like your RH to have plenty of emotion and imagination.

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Review: Krimson Run (Krimson Empire Series Book 1) by Julia Huni and Craig Martelle

Krimson Run by Julia Huni and Craig Martelle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Evading Certain Death Whilst Having a ‘Mom-Bod’

If you liked The Space Janitor Series, you’ll enjoy this just as much. It has the same lightness of touch, humour and incredulity at what the universe has thrown at the poor protagonist.

Quin is a retired Lt with the Federation. She’s married to a current officer and they have two children. Quin loves her children passionately, her husband less so. When the base they are living on is evacuated she is separated from her children and then abandoned. Dubbed a Krimson Empire spy, she will do anything in her power to get her children back, no matter the cost.

I loved that Quin had a Mom-Bod and barely remembered the military training she had, but she still stepped up when she needed to and her old command presence reasserted itself. She’s a strange mixture of confident and assertive in a professional setting and submissive in a private one.

I loved the supporting characters in this book a lot. Tony is a fantastic friend to Quin and goes above and beyond to help her and her kids. His family of criminals is entertaining and tightly woven together.

This is a really promising start to a new series and the world building is pretty tight, with hints of what’s to come. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book, despite the HFN ending.

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Review: Captive (The Danans Series Book 1) by Nhys Glover

Captive by Nhys Glover
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Alien Abduction

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

Bronwyn is a shy, insecure woman who feels out of place and invisible. She isn’t close to her family, she has no friends, all she does is work as a computer developer. She has accepted that she will probably spend her life alone, until she is kidnapped.

Waking up in an strangely dreamlike environment with a hot metallic blue alien looking guy freaks her out, especially when he talks about their captors wanting them to mate!

This is a fated mates, reverse harem, alien abduction story and that pretty much describes the plot, with a few extra twiddles to keep you entertained. It’s a pretty straight forward book, but I give the author credit for having the characters show doubts about what they are experiencing, and about whether they want it or not, which is a nice change from this sort of book where everyone involved seems happy to jump from insta-lust to happily ever after. This is why this book is better than a lot of similar ones of the same genre.

The author did a good job of differentiating the males involved in the relationship. This is often where shorter, fast burn RHs fall down, but it isn’t the case with this book.

The world building was interesting but not massively detailed. There was lots of information missing, and some questions dangled but not answered, which annoyed me because Bronwyn was a very inquisitive character and she would definitely be bugging her guys for an answer to those questions.

I was entertained by this book, and would probably read another book from the series if I was in the right mood, especially as the next book seems to have better ratings than this first book, so it might be fun to see where the improvements are made.

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Review: Straight Arrow (Tobin Tribe Series Book 5) by Caitlyn Coakley

Straight Arrow by Caitlyn Coakley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Lost Child Is Found

I’d probably give this book 4.5 ⭐️ if I could.

Knox Tobin is pretty miserable and has been for the last 5 years. He was last happy on the day he planned to propose to his high school sweetheart, after his final exam. When he got to her house she was gone. No one would tell him where she was and she wouldn't answer her phone. It was the ultimate ghosting and he hasn’t been happy since, endlessly searching for someone to take the pain away.

Five years ago Charlie was forced to make the toughest decision of her life. She was forced to leave the US and hide from the man she loved in order to keep him and their unborn son safe. The only happiness she’s had since has been from their son.

Then one day their son is in an accident and the rare blood condition to which every Tobin male seems susceptible means that he needs his father’s frozen blood supply and Knox finally discovers the truth of his son’s existence.

I enjoyed learning about the mysterious past that broke Knox, that has been referred to all through the rest of the series. Having it explained helped soothe an aching curiosity. Finding out helps the reader to understand Knox and the gaping hole in his heart.

I also liked learning more about the QRK Internet News Station that had been referred to in previous books and about the rivalries between the Clausens and the Tobins.

I felt like a lot of foreshadowing was tied off in this book, which is always satisfying and probably part of what I enjoyed about it. I also enjoyed the way Knox and Charlie interacted with both of them terribly wounded by each other and failing to communicate properly whilst family and friends stood by wringing their hands unable to help mend their loved one’s hearts.

The plot was well paced and there was plenty of room for the emotional growth of the characters. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series which comes out in a couple of weeks. I don’t know what will happen when the author runs out of Tobins!

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Review: Triana Moore, Space Janitor: The Complete Humorous Sci Fi Mystery Series by Julia Huni

Triana Moore, Space Janitor: The Complete Humorous Sci Fi Mystery Series by Julia Huni
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Fun Sci Fi

I really loved the concept for this series. The main protagonist, Triana, is a janitor on a space station. She programs and maintains the bots that keep everything running. She leads a quiet life down in maintenance, surrounded by screens and no one else and that’s how she likes it. Until one of her bots gets caught on a dead body, then her previously quiet life gets hijacked by a handsome station security officer, Ty.

Ty needs her help because she knows the station like the back of her hand and the systems are something she flips her way through with ease. She’s also worked in nearly all the departments on the station until she finally settled in maintenance. In other words, she’s a great resource, the fact Ty thinks she’s interesting and attractive is beside the point!

There are quite a few plot twists through this series and it’s fun watching them unravel. The world building is at times a little silly, but that adds to the fun, as the whole thing doesn’t take itself too seriously.

There is some very very slow burn low key romance with some kissing and not much else. This is a sci-fi series where plot and humour come first, romance is WAY down the list of the author’s priorities.

It’s an entertaining series and I devoured the box set in one chunk and was done in a couple of days (I read all day, every day and quickly, so bear that in mind) and I recommend it for a bit of escapism and easy reading.

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Review: Worth It by S M Shade and C M Owens

Worth It by S.M. Shade & C.M. Owens
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Funny, Weird and Sweet

I bought this book when it first came out and never got around to reading it. I thought I would love it but didn’t want the disappointment if it didn’t live up to the hype. Now enough time has passed for the anticipation to have died back to normal proportions. I now know I’m daft for waiting so long because I could have been on the second read through by now if I’d read it when I got it!

This book was hilarious; laugh out loud, snort drink out your nose funny. The set up is simple enough, three friends go to a wedding week. One of the friends, Lydia, is the ex of the groom and he’s marrying the woman he cheated on her with. One of the friends, Kasha, is the step-sister of the groom. The other friend, Henley, is there for moral support. Neither Henley or Kasha really understand why Lydia is there, but they are there to support her.

Then Henley meets her first love and Kasha meets a guy she knew of at school and their interest in staying at the wedding increases enormously. The book is filled with hot encounters, hilarious sabotage endeavours and fantastically funny banter. The authors are incredibly creative and the situations the friends find themselves are mind-boggling. I honestly can’t comprehend how their minds work. However, when one of the authors also writes the Violent Circle Comedy Series Box Set books it’s not surprising what her brain comes up with.

The relationships between the friends is lovely. Supportive, funny and believable. The relationships between Kasha and Roman and Henley and Davis are sweet, hot and funny. I also like that the relationships between Kasha and the members of her family are explored.

I know I’m late to the game but this book is a perfect pick me up in a rubbish year and in a way I’m glad I saved it for when it was really needed! I recommend it highly, it’s a perfect Rom-com!

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Review: Doo Wop (Tobin Tribe Series Book 4) by Caitlyn Coakley

Doo Wop by Caitlyn Coakley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Family Upheaval

The Tobin clan is going through the mill. Deb and Brian are still barely speaking because Brian refuses to apologise. The tension is felt throughout the whole family. On top of this, there seems to be problems with Clausen Construction, one of the family businesses.

For Riley, the middle child and mediator of the family, life is even more stressful than normal, because he’s stuck in the middle of all the tension, trying to smooth things out. As well as being a mediator Riley has a reputation in the family for indulging in free range sexual encounters, the less private the better. At the same time he wants a wife, family and children. Finding a woman who fits both criteria is a bit tricky to say the least.

At the latest Clausen Construction charity project he’s all set to find a lady to share his outdoors hobby, when he encounters Aubrey, a company accountant, who surprises him by informing him that looking for a wife amongst women who enjoy risky sexual behaviour with a virtual stranger is probably going to be very difficult.

This encounter intrigues Riley and leads him to rethink his approach to finding someone to love. Aubrey is definitely someone he would like a chance to woo.

I enjoyed this book but felt it was a little weaker than the others. The plot seemed like it skipped a few bits and you had to wait for an explanation about what happened in the missed section. Whilst this can be an effective narrative device in certain situations, I’m not sure it worked here. There was also an awful lot going on plot wise in this book. This seemed to slim down the amount of time we spent getting know Riley and Aubrey as a couple, and I felt a lot of their early relationship was missed out on.

All that being said, I still really enjoyed the book, as I do love the Tobins. I liked Aubrey and think she will be good for Riley. (I can't believe I just wrote that sentence, I think I'm spending too much time with fictional characters!)

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Review: Touched by Fire (Demons of New Chicago Series Book 1) by Kel Carpenter

Touched by Fire by Kel Carpenter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hell on Earth

This book has an interesting premise. It’s set decades after a supernatural war that pretty much upended modern society and left the non-humans in charge. In New Chicago lives a female bounty hunter. She’s unusual in that she is human and takes down supernaturals at a rate much higher than any of her competitors.

Then one day she is a given a job that could make her a fortune. She’s to stop a coven summoning a demon and she’s to kill the entire coven. Only Piper really needs some information from the demon being summoned and so she waits a few seconds longer than she should and it all goes horribly wrong. All of a sudden Piper is on the receiving end of the might of her boss.

Piper is a really interesting character. She hates the supernatural and really hates magic. She’s strong, determined and fearless. She also has zero social skills and is all around unpleasant sometimes. She has big trust and anger issues too.

The world building is done slowly and cleverly. I sucked down each drop of information about Piper’s backstory eagerly and woven into that backstory was careful world building.

The plot was fast paced, with brief interludes as we got to know Piper and Nathalie, Piper’s unwelcome witchy sidekick. I really loved Nathalie, I know I’m going to really enjoy getting to know her more as the series progresses as she has a lot of hidden depths that have been barely touched on during this first book.

The book is intriguing and I think the budding friendship between Piper and Nathalie will be interesting to watch too as Nathalie seems determined to teach Piper how to engage with society!

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Review: Omens (Dark In You Series Book 6) by Suzanne Wright

Omens by Suzanne Wright
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Imp and The Incubus

I listened to this book on audible, and as such, the review reflects that experience and includes information about the narration.

This book is part of the Dark In You series and has the same characters as earlier books, but focuses on different protagonists than the first few books. This book focuses on Khloe, Harper’s cousin and co-worker, who is an Imp and Keenan, an incubus who is one of Knox’s sentinels. They have been dancing round each other for a long time but they have both got serious fears about commitment and that has kept them apart. Finally, a bet tips them over the edge and they realise that they fallen into something they can’t control, for once.

It’s no secret that I love Suzanne Wright’s work and this has to be one of my favourite series. I find the idea of demons being bonded with their human side fascinating, add in the idea of an anchor to help balance the demon, often becoming almost like a sibling, and the obsession of the demon when it claims it’s mate, plus random powers and the politics of demon Lairs and you have a great mix for paranormal romance.

Khloe is a character that could drive some readers crazy. She’s quixotic and annoying (on purpose). However, she’s loyal, amusing and unassumingly powerful. Keenan is one of the more rigid characters in the series. He’s usually quite serious and has iron control on himself. Pushing those two characters together has always created fireworks and this book is no exception.

One thing I liked about this book was learning more about Khloe’s Lair, which is headed up by her and Harper’s grandmother, Joleen. It’s nice to visit with her family and find out more about their relationships with each other as imps are hilarious.

As always, Cat Doucette does a great job narrating. She captures the characters’ personalities really well and is engaging to listen to. The narration definitely adds to the enjoyment of the book, and I recommend listening to it instead of just reading it.

There were a few hints dropped about who might be in the next book and I’m intrigued as to how that might go, but I’ll have to wait patiently for it to come out to see if I’m right.

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Review: Heart of Vengeance (Alice Worth Series Book 6) by Lisa Edmonds

Heart of Vengeance by Lisa Edmonds
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fantastic Venture into Other Realms

I love this series. It’s fantastic. It’s inventive, nuanced and filled with convincing emotion. It’s pretty much an ideal Urban Fantasy book.

This book is the sixth in the series and instead of doing a straight continuation of the plot, there is a big side trip into another realm, for Alice. Valas had been dangling the journey through a mirror into another realm for several books now. Alice agreed to make the journey in order save Sean a while ago and Valas decided now was the time to make the journey. Still filled with the dark magic from the sorcerer she fought in the previous book and accompanied by Malcolm the ghost and her golden wolf, the manifestation of her shifter magic, and loaded up with spells from her witch friend, Alice sets off into the unknown.

When Alice arrives she meets Lucy a Guardian, or someone who fights the nasties that inhabit the realm. Her wolf also manifests and stays manifested. The realm is broken and the magic is strange but it seems like her wolf knows where to go and Lucy is willing to give them a ride in the right direction. This however is the easy part of the journey.

This was an epic journey in the grand style of fantasy novels of the past. Alice found companions, dug deep into herself, faced the temptation of darkness and battled the big bad monster. It was fabulous.

Though I missed Sean and the other members of the pack, in a way it was nice to take a sideways trip into uncharted territory and the Alice of book 6 is a much more amenable character than in book 1, and accepts help with a lot more grace. I love how this series has shown Alice changing and growing through her experiences. She isn’t static and predictable which makes her far more interesting to spend time with.

I can’t wait to see what happens next, as her story seems to get more and more interesting as she has more to lose. I’d also love to see a companion series that delves into life in the Broken Realm and follows Lucy, Ronan the bounty hunter and the alternate version of Charles. I think that would definitely be a series worth reading.

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