Review: The Magic of Revenge (Emerald Lakes Series Book 3) by Britt Andrews

The Magic of Revenge by Britt Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Excellent Urban Fantasy Reverse Harem Series

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

This is the third book in the series and you need to read the first books to understand this one. There is a cliffhanger, but the next book is already published.

Saige has met her father, Khol, learnt his story and she has reached her age of maturity and manifested. She, Khol and her new mate Bram have had to escape the demon realm where Saige is under threat. She returns to find her mates scattered and gone making her heart break, unleashing her new powerful magic in unexpected ways.

In order to find her mates, she must tap into her new magic and her bonds, whilst they try to rescue themselves from a new unexpected and very dangerous enemy.

Throughout this book, we learn more about each of the histories of the people involved and what makes them tick. Woven between the strands of the emotional evolution between the characters we are treated to an interesting and intriguing plot that is uncovered by the protagonists.

Though this is a reverse harem romance novel it’s also a very good urban fantasy novel with plenty to keep you engaged, with a well-structured world, magic system and excellent plot construction. The romance and the very spicy sex scenes are the icing on the cake.

This is a very enjoyable series and I look forward to finding out how the cliffhanger at the end of this book is resolved in the next one.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: The Magic of Betrayal (Emerald Lakes Series Book 2) by Britt Andrews

The Magic of Betrayal by Britt Andrews
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Emotional

This book is the second in a continuing series, which means you need to read the previous book before enjoying this one. It also ends on a cliffhanger, but the next book is already available so you can’t get too mad!

TRIGGER WARNING: This book contains instances of sexual assault, emotional abuse and physical assault from outside the harem. If these subject matters affect you adversely, you may want to avoid this book/series.

Saige has been swept off her feet by the new men in her life; Cam, Kai and Fischer, and maybe there’s a possibility of Sloane joining them. However, her magic is failing her, her ex is still causing her emotional damage and she keeps dropping into a strange world in her sleep. Life is complicated and confusing, but she grabs hold of her newfound happiness with both hands.

What she doesn’t know is that her men are lying to her, and Sloane is lying more than the others. Her three boyfriends are very conflicted about lying to Saige and are trying to find a way to be with her when their job is over. They are opening up their hearts to her and beginning to share their history and pain without betraying their mission.

There are a lot of emotions flying around in this book. A lot of trauma is revealed, not just Saige’s that was/is caused by her ex, but also a lot of history is shared as we get to know the men a lot better. As a reader, I feel a bit bounced around as more of the plot is revealed and we learn more about all the players involved and preconceptions are turned on their head. It’s an exhilarating ride as things keep changing and twisting. I felt like I’d been on an emotional rollercoaster with the highs and lows of how the characters all feel.

This is an excellent second book and I’m now heavily invested in the very interesting characters and the complex story. These characters are all well developed and fascinating in their strengths and flaws. It’s the characters that drive this plot and make it so complex because it is their history, personality and secrets that cause the plot to shift at the turn of each page. This author has created intriguing characters and woven a story around them.

I can’t wait to read the next book. It’s hard to believe that this is the author’s first series.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: The Games We Play (The Path of Temptation Series Book 3) by Auryn Hadley

The Games We Play by Auryn Hadley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Initiates

This book is the third in a five-book fantasy series. The previous books need to be read in order to understand the contents of this book.

This book is all about the second part of the main characters' first year of their Initiate years. Nari and Talin return from the Darkest Day festivities at his brother, the Baron of Temptation’s, Residence. The visit wasn’t much fun because the Baron is a very unpleasant man. However, the visit seemed to shine a spotlight on Nari, with the rumour mill going overtime assuming the visit was about Nari instead of Talin. The only good thing to come out of the visit was Maela, the Baron’s wife, reaching out tentatively in friendship to Nari.

Everyone seems to have stepped up their game to force Nari to declare a single Path or to cause her to step down a Path by failing her courses. The pressure is causing her to doubt herself and her ability to succeed in saving Zeal and his brothers and sisters from disappearing completely. Her lovers all want to protect her from the stress and try to find ways to help.

In this book, we get more insight into some of the other Paths, in particular the Path of Obligation. Nari is being exposed to different people around the Temple and spreading her belief in Zeal and the evidence of his existence is worn on her skin. More people are being swayed towards belief in his existence because of her role as his Voice. Still, Nari and her lovers are all being forced to play politics and are being manipulated by those in power far too much.

This book is fantastic. It’s full of emotion, politics and passion. The world-building for the series becomes richer and more detailed as we learn more about Zeal and his siblings. The education of the Initiates becomes more complete and through that education, we get a picture of what it will be like for the students after they become fully-fledged priests and priestesses.

The plot is carefully constructed, as always, to build tension and weave information around the emotions that keep you captivated. Throw in the politics and the passion and you have a winning formula for an incredible book within an amazing series. There is a lot more sex in this book, not only between the main group but as part of their training so there are scenes with people outside the romantic core that surround Nari. This is expected and is warned about early in the series, so it shouldn’t be any big surprise at this stage.

One of the things I really love about this series is the focus on love being many things to different people. There is the love of the parent or mentor, the love of friends and confidants, romantic love, passionate love, the love of brothers-in-arms and the love of their god. There are so many types of love in this book, some even overlap, but it is the thread that runs throughout the series. There is a bond created by love that is stronger than anything their opponents can throw at them.

When I finished this book, I almost want to read it all over again to see the fine nuances that I know this author placed in this book. Whenever I re-read a book by Auryn Hadley I always find more the second or third time around. This book will be no exception as there is such richness in the details of plot, emotions and background. I hate that I have to wait another few months for the next book, but at least it’s up for pre-order!

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Shadow Reaper (Shadow Riders Series Book 2) by Christine Feehan

Shadow Reaper by Christine Feehan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Shadows and Shibari

This is the second book in a series and though it can probably be read as a standalone novel, there is information in the first book that makes the second book more easily understood. In the first book, we hear about the years away from the family they did as teenagers, training, and this book explores what happened to Ricco when he was sent to Japan for his training.

Ricco interested me a lot in the first book as he was always the ‘edgy’ brother who drove cars really fast and was into extreme sports and threesomes with twin actresses. He was not a happy person and we find out why in this book.

Ricco has been unhappy for a long time and things have reached an impasse. Nothing he does to make himself less unhappy is working anymore. Then he has a racing car accident and it’s a wake-up call. He decides that one night stands are not helping and he wants to have a long term contract with a shibari model to practice his art. At the last minute, Mariko turns up with no experience except she’s a shadow rider and she calls to him.

Mariko is half Japanese and half American but raised in Japan by a Japanese family. She was treated as less than a servant and the family claimed that they found her and her baby brother abandoned on the street and took them in out of the goodness of their heart. Mariko was given training as a shadow rider but was never accepted by the community. The only thing she has confidence in is her ability as a shadow rider.

When Mariko applies for the job with Ricco she is desperate. She needs to find out enough about him as a man to make a decision on whether to kill him or not in order to save her brother’s life.

I much prefer Ricco and Mariko as characters to Stefano and Francesco as they both have interesting personalities without being caricatures. Both are loyal and honourable people who have been hurt by the actions of others, but they have not completely broken.

The plot for this book is interesting, with plenty of mystery to keep you entertained. I will however say that I felt there was a little too much shibari content. I find it interesting as an art form but focusing on this made the sex scenes a little too cerebral rather than passionate to me. I still enjoyed the book but found myself skipping over some of the shibari scenes, and that’s not something I usually do. Usually, if I’m reading a book I either DNF it or I read every word. I’m hoping the next book engages all part of my brain again. Going on my past experience with this author I’ll give the next book in the series a go and see what happens.

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: The Crown of Fools (Underestimated Series Book 5) by Candice M Wright

The Crown of Fools by Candice M. Wright
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

SOOOOO Much Information

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

For most of this book, it seemed to be going in one direction, then it took a swerve around 75% in, then, at around 90% in it did another even bigger swerve. I’m sitting here with my head in my hands, moaning with brain whiplash. I’m not even sure I can give a coherent review because my brain is still stuttering with ‘WTF just happened????’

This book covers Kat, or Sunshine as she is known by Carnage. Her soulmate got killed in the last book, just after she found out she was pregnant. Raised in foster care she has no one, not even Carnage really because Pike, her man, was a prospect and as such she couldn’t be an Old Lady. Plus there was the whole ‘you need to have an extra partner in the relationship to be part of Carnage’ thing. Sunshine was grieving and trying to keep going for the sake of her baby and Inigo and Conan are trying to look after her as best they can, as they are both smitten with the young woman.

Sunshine has more bad luck than anyone should rightly have, but she is tough and she always keeps managing to stay afloat by the skin of her teeth. Sunshine is made much darker by the death of Pike and the instances that seem to be following her around, but underneath it all she is still the same warm and loving woman that brought light to the darkness for Pike. As always in this series, she is seriously underestimated and is much stronger than even she suspects she is.

Both Conan and Inigo are in their 40s and Sunshine is much younger, in her 20s. This age difference doesn’t seem insurmountable because Sunshine has had a lot of life experience especially whilst growing up in foster care. Both men are dominant in the bedroom and think they are going to be the same way in Sunshine’s life. She’s not keen on that! Her fighting for her right to be treated as an independent entity isn’t as large a part of the book as it could have been.

I really enjoyed the majority of this book. It has everything going for it, older men, pregnant younger woman, mysterious stalker, bad guy landlord and big strapping bad*ss MC members. I even took the first swerve in the plot in my stride, thinking ‘well that’s interesting, I didn’t see that coming'. I think I just became overwhelmed with the information dump that was thrown at me in the very latter stages of the book. That sense of being overwhelmed definitely reduced my enjoyment of the book. I don’t know if I’ve been left reeling because of the book and the great writing or because I’ve not had enough sleep lately. I think I’ll have to do a re-read before the next book comes out because I think it’s the only way my brain will be able to parse all the information dumped in the last couple of chapters.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: The Price We Pay (The Path of Temptation Series Book 1) by Auryn Hadley

The Price We Pay by Auryn Hadley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fantastic Introduction To A World Of Gods

This book was fantastic from the first page. I’ve been really excited about this book from the first time we got a teaser of the first chapter on the author’s Facebook Group a few months ago and the rest of the book did not disappoint, rather it exceeded my expectations.

This is a story of a small girl, Nariana, who taken to the temple on the one day of the year a child can be surrendered for service to the gods in exchange for a gold mark. It’s a day when families can save their starving children by giving one to the gods to make what they have go further and with the extra money feed the rest of the family through the winter.

Claimed by Zeal, the God of Temptation, Nariana is introduced to a world filled with his priests and priestesses. She is educated and loved by her mentor and her guardian who form a little family inside a greater one.

This book is really about Nari’s education from the time she enters the temple, and the people she meets throughout that time. The alliances and enmities she makes during her education help shape who she is and her devotion to Zeal. Her education also teaches us about the world in which the series is set. As a child, Nari is taught about the world as well as her role within it in a way that is clearly laid out for us. At the same time as we are being entertained by the plot, we are learning about Nariana’s world and her place within it.

This is a complicated fantasy world, filled with gods and magic and the science and fashion of the Victorian era. It’s a decadent dive into passion, rage and the temptation of greed.

This is a reverse harem story and there is plenty of passion as the children grow into adults. As older teens there is fooling around but no actual sex until they are around 19-20 years old. The sex scenes that are included are very well written, tender and still fan-your-face hot. The relationships are not just about passion but about friendship, love, acceptance and a shared path.

I loved all the characters, who are wonderfully well rounded and flawed in a believable and consistent way. There are some different points of view during the book, but it is mainly from Nariana’s POV. The alternate POVs are enlightening both in terms of plot and allowing us to see things in a different way.

The book doesn’t finish on a cliff hanger, but a natural break. I was still gripped with a fierce desire to know what comes next because the plot is wonderfully compelling. Once you start reading this story you won’t be able to stop. Thankfully the whole series is already written, I just have to wait for each book to be published on the due dates. It’s nice to have things to look forward to and know that your expectations will be met!

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Witch's Transformation (The Naked Truth Series Book 2) by Candi Fox

Witch's Transformation by Candi Fox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Plot Thickens

In this book, we see a smooth continuation of the previous one as Harley starts a new case after finding an email from a potential client who wants a ‘magic stick’. She finds out her client is transgender and wants something more than the usual surgical options for a transgender man. Fascinated by the concept Harley dives in by taking a drive up to Dallas to meet with the young man.

In Dallas, things get a bit tricky when the diner they meet in gets blown up. This is not the end of the attempts on her life. Supported by Lt Meyers, her contact with police and his new witch employee, she tries to keep under the radar whilst still working her case and trying to find out who wants her dead.

In this book, we find out more about the world in which the book is set and it becomes more and more interesting. We also find out a little bit more about why Niccolo might be interested in Harley, apart from wanting her in his bed. We find out a lot more about Harley’s magic and see why she is a bit different from other magic workers.

There is plenty of hot sex scenes in this book and I really like how polyamory is worked in this book. It could be labelled a Reverse Harem book, but it isn’t really. It’s more about a witch who is sexually self-aware, knows what she wants, is open and honest with her partners and uses sex to heal herself!

The cliffhanger on this book is a bit of a doozy, but it’s more of an emotional one than a perilous one.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Harlequin's Deception (The Naked Truth Series Book 1) by Candi Fox

Harlequin's Deception by Candi Fox
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Interesting World Building

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

Harley is a powerful generational witch (one who inherits their powers), who gained strength when the shift happened 10 years ago and magic surged into the world. Paranormals finally got rights in the US 2 years ago. Harley has a successful paranormal consulting business and often consults with the police.

She is called in to consult on the report of a gargoyle attack and heads out, where she finds that all is not what it seems. She gets sucked into the sphere of Niccolo an ancient and powerful vampire who has plans for the powerful witch that don’t all include the bedroom. Niccolo introduces her to Aiden, a jester who is someone who's laughter can incapacitate, who is his hitman, but Harley is strangely drawn to the young man.

As well as dealing with these two new men in her life, she also has her Cowboy, her friends with benefits, who likes to dominate her. Cowboy is a werewolf and is not happy about the vampire showing such an interest in someone he wants as his.

There was a lot to like in this book. The world-building was interesting if a little fuzzy around the edges. The characters were strong if lacking a little depth and the plot was intriguing. However, the style of writing was a little choppy. Things didn’t seamlessly lead into each other and they changed direction quite abruptly which sometimes meant you had to think a little harder about what was going on.

This is the first book in the series and I think some of the gaps in character building and the world structure may be filled in with future books, but I can’t say that for certain.

There is a cliffhanger because this is an ongoing series of events and the original ‘case’ is not solved. The next book in the series is already out, so at least I won’t have to wait to find out what happens next.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: The Magic Of Discovery (Emerald Lakes Series Book 1) by Britt Andrews

The Magic Of Discovery by Britt Andrews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Enjoyable Debut Novel

I really enjoyed this novel and was surprised to read it was the author’s debut. It was very well paced and the characters were exceptionally well developed. I also really liked the world building and plot.

Saige is a witch. She’s 27, lived in her small town for her whole life and actually likes it there. She owns a magic shop and spends much of her time gardening and making things for her shop, using her green magic. Raised by her sex obsessed grandmother, who Saige adores, she is happy, friendly and open despite her previous poor relationship choices.

Then four mages, Cam, Kai, Sloane and Fischer, come to town and rent the apartment above her shop and there is instant chemistry, however I like that the involvement with the men progressed at different rates. Her relationship with each man is unique and stands separate from the rest, as well as being interwoven with them all, as all men have been friends since childhood. However, Saige doesn’t know that the mages are in her small town to investigate the sighting of a missing woman for their boss.

On top of the insta-lust and unknown undercover investigation, there is something screwy with Saige’s magic, her psycho ex is creeping around and she just became part of a weird prophecy.

I think this book has the potential to turn into a very good series if the rest of it builds on what this first book has established. The progression of building tension was done very well, starting out slowly and gradually ramping it up to the cliffhanger ending. The heat starts out quite early though and that part of the book is nice and spicy with MM, BDSM and Ménage scenes.

I won’t say the storyline is terribly unique and nothing really surprised me greatly, but this is a very good example of hot Paranormal RH done well and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Borrow Free From Kindle Unlimited

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Siren Unleashed (Texas Sirens Series Book 7) by Lexie Blake Writing as Sophie Oak

Siren Unleashed by Sophie Oak
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Freed From Slavery

This is part of a series that is related to another series, but you can still follow the story without being too confused if you read this as a standalone novel. If you enjoy this one, I recommend starting at the beginning and working your way through, because it's a good series.

Natalie grew up in the D/s lifestyle. Her mother is a sub and her father is her dom. Nat didn’t want to be a slave and live 24 hours in the life but she was looking for a good dom. That was until she was kidnapped and ‘trained’ by a sadistic man. After killing him to free herself she was helped get back on her feet again by Julian Lodge a dom, who is involved with someone else and only interested in her in a big brother kind of way.

Now she’s been free for several years and she and one of the women held with her, Gretchen, are working as massage therapists at a exclusive BDSM resort. Then one day, she goes into wake a client who liked to doze after his massage and found him dead.  The local sheriff is a little lazy and sees Nat as an easy target and makes her his main suspect. Julian Lodge sends in two investigators, Ben and Chase, identical twins, both doms and very skilled investigators. 

When Nat and Chase meet, Chase feels a deep emotional connection with a sub for the first time. Chase makes Nat feel safe and is finally able to try to get over her experiences by having sex for the first time since her abduction. Due to mistaken identity she ends up with Ben, but as Ben and Chase like to share their women, could Nat be the woman they are looking for?

I enjoyed this book, it had mystery, murder and some great D/s scenes. To be honest this book is more about the emotional connection between the main characters and overcoming their own demons to try and make it work. It’s a bit insta-love, but there are still problems that need to be sorted.

This series is fun and looks more at the domestic side of BDSM, rather than pure club hook-ups and I like that. There are also high levels of intrigue. An enjoyable book.

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Desolation Road (Torpedo Ink Series Book 4) by Christine Feehan

Desolation Road by Christine Feehan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dark Paranormal MC Romance

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

I’ve been reading Christine Feehan books for years, starting out in my library days. Some of the series are better than other and I think this one is one of my favourites. The books are kind of standalone, but you will be confused at times if you haven’t read the other books in the series.

Absinthe is a member of Torpedo Ink, an MC that started with a core of 18 members. Those members escaped from Russia where they had been tortured and trained as children to be assassins. In order to survive they developed their physical, mental and psychic skills, working together to gain their freedom.

Absinthe’s skills often leave him overwhelmed by images of not only his past but the horrors of his brothers’ past too. In order to get away and find peace he finds libraries and one day he walked into one where Scarlet, the librarian, works. Immediately drawn to one another, Absinthe takes his time to make his first approach, never dreaming that her need for him is as great as his for her.

One of the things about these books is that they good long books. They don’t try and cram everything in at under 250 pages. You get slow build up of tension and the characters are given time to breathe. The characters within Torpedo Ink are all incredibly close to each other because of what they have endured, and the way they relate to each other is fascinating. Their interactions form the backbone of the series and time is spent on their relationships with each other, as well as focusing on the romance.

As I said in the header, this is a dark book. There are explicit depictions of torture, rape, murder and child abuse. If these subjects make make you uncomfortable you have been warned. However, the author does not revel in the darkness, in fact these images and facts are used to show how far the characters have come. Nonetheless I feel it necessary to make a point of warning people about those images.

I really enjoyed this book and was drawn into the story very quickly, as the plot was interesting. There are lots of hot scenes, including bdsm, which were fun to read. I have pre-ordered the next book because I don’t want to miss what happens next with this unusual MC.

Buy From Amazon UK

Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.

Review: Duplicity (Victory Lap Duet Book 2) by Mercedes Jade

Duplicity by Mercedes Jade
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Slight Let Down

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

I’m not sure how I feel about this second book in the Victory Lap Duet. It seemed to take a long time to resolve the danger that Tess and her siblings were in and quite a lot of the resolution was under-explained.

The four friends and Tess are now in a committed poly relationship. Things are becoming more dangerous now Tess’ father is back on the scene, and the Twins Dad and Bastion’s Dad and step-mother are causing problems. War takes them all to stay on his Dad’s island for a weekend and his parents seem to be much more supportive.

It takes an awful long time for everything to get sorted out and most of that is taken up by sex. Lot of gratuitous teenage sex. If this bothers you, don’t read this book. I have to say that I’m old enough to feel slightly uncomfortable at teenagers discussing kink and having safewords, mainly because when I was a teenager being kinky meant doing it with the lights on. I don’t have a problem with teenagers being in a poly relationship but to be accomplished sexual practitioners before the age of 25 still seems unlikely to me. Maybe I’m just out of date, and the internet has made all teenagers advanced masters of kink. Anyway, it just spoiled my enjoyment of the book a little bit. It’s a shame because the story had lots of promise.

Borrow Free With Kindle Unlimited
Buy From Amazon UK
Buy From Amazon US

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, made after using the above links.