Wednesday, 5 May 2021

Review: Hit & Run (PASS Series Book 1) by Freya Barker

Hit & Run Hit & Run by Freya Barker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Mature Romantic Suspense

I like Freya Barker’s work because she tends to focus on slightly more mature protagonists, in this case 38 and 42. Both have lived fairly solitary lives up until their meeting. In the case of Jake, his parents died when he was young and after meeting his best friends in foster care, went into the military. When he came out he joined up with his best friends and started working for PASS (Protection and Security Services). He is a loner, who has never been interested in romance or relationships. He didn’t avoid them, they just never even entered his head.

On the other hand, Rosie had wanted a chance for a family and relationships but got sucked into a long term relationship with a married man and believed all his lies. Her Dad, with who she had a great relationship, died when she was 20 and her mother criticised her endlessly.

Eventually returning to Grand Junction to look after her mother who had rapidly worsening dementia, Rosie found herself working in housekeeping on a night shift in order to look after her mother during the day and have someone sleepover at night for less money than a nurse would charge for watching her mother when she was awake. She was exhausted, harried, miserable and alone, apart from her friend Grant, a gloriously camp black man, who was also kind of isolated.

Jake ended up meeting Rosie when he was based at the hotel she worked in, whilst he worked security for a film that was shooting nearby. They both had separate run-ins with the star of the film and they were not happy occasions. Rosie witnessed the star doing something they shouldn’t and Jake ended up having to find out whether she would keep her mouth shut.

This book was interesting because it not only dealt with a romance between two older and more experienced people, but it also dealt with the moral ambiguity involved with working with the rich and the powerful and how the downfall of one important part of the puzzle would mean hundreds, if not thousands of people being affected financially. Having the backdrop of their newly flourishing relationship being lies and coverups doesn’t make for an easy start.

I liked this book because the heroes weren’t ‘good’ people. They were ordinary people forced to see things in grey rather than black and white. These characters were interesting, flawed and normal. Added to the interesting characters was a diverting plot, to keep you guessing until the end.

All around, this was an entertaining book, and I’ll definitely read the next in the series.


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Tuesday, 4 May 2021

Review: Boss (Time Served MC Series Book 1) by Cee Bowerman

Boss: Time Served MC Book 1 Boss: Time Served MC Book 1 by Cee Bowerman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Different Kind of MC

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

I really enjoy Cee Bowerman’s books that are set in Rojo, TX. This is the start of a new series, with no connection with Rojo. It’s about the Time Served MC, which is an MC made up entirely of felons, that have been helped to go straight by Pop, who lost his own son after he got out of prison and had no help.

The president of the MC is Boss and Pop and his old cronies who practically run the town decided that he should be the new chief of police, because he used to be a cop, despite serving 10 years for murder. Somehow they manage to get him elected and a friendly judge got his record expunged, and voila, he’s the chief of police. Once he starts his new job Boss finds that the police department is a dark and messy place, which explains why the crime rate is so high and the arrest rate so low.

Jenn is very intelligent, has three degrees, and is successful. She’s fairly wealthy but she hated her old life. She decided to divorce the cheating husband, took him for every penny and kicked him out of their shared company. She then put her assistant in charge and left the state. She wound up in Tenillo, TX. She had a great house built, adopted a whole farm's worth of animals and set up a food truck selling amazing drinks and desserts. She didn’t need to do it, it was just fun because she loved baking so much.

When Boss pulls up at the truck’s window, sparks fly! It turns out despite their apparent differences they may have more in common than is obvious at first.

I really enjoyed this book. I like that there is an undercurrent of a long term plot that will flow between this series and the one being written by Ciara St James. There is more darkness in this book than previous ones by this author and I think I enjoyed the book more because of it, especially when contrasted with the pithy humour, which is so evident in the author's other books. The plot was interesting and I fell in love with all the characters really quickly.

I think it’s an interesting approach taking two MCs written by two different authors but with a continuous timeline. Ares Infidels are an MC made up of ex-military and provide support to Boss as he tries to clear up the darkness in their town, left behind by the old Chief of Police, and this MC will be the focus of Ciara St James.

I am really looking forward to the next book being released next month by Ciara St James as I am looking forward to getting to know the Ares Infidels better.

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Monday, 3 May 2021

Review: Pooh (The Devil's Angels MC Series Book 3) by Lola Wright

Pooh Pooh by Lola Wright
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Pooh Finds A Family

Pooh is a really nice guy, who has enjoyed the MC lifestyle until recently. Recently he’s seen his President, VP and one of his best friends, settle down with really great women and they seem to be happier than they’ve ever been. He finds himself wanting what they have, one woman who adores him who he adores back and that they can make each other happy.

Then he’s asked to deliver a load of furniture to a women’s shelter that the MC is supporting through donation. He comes face to face with the muddiest boy in the world with the foulest mouth, Craig, and Craig's nemesis, the woman threatening to clean him, Pippa. This introduces him to two people who are to become really important to him.

Pippa runs the shelter and Craig is a little boy who is staying at the shelter with his mother after being beaten by her husband. His mother seems to be taking advantage of the babysitting services offered by the shelter and Craig is being looked after primarily by Pippa and her foster mother Tammy. Though Pooh asks out Pippa, she is reluctant to get involved with anyone. Pooh takes the rejection in good spirit and then sets about trying to help the shelter, along with the rest of the MC.

Once again this is a sweet and funny book. There is darkness but it’s not focussed on, so the book retains it’s sweetness. We get to spend time with all the other characters that have been in previous books and get to know some of the supporting characters better. We also get to know how Pooh got his nickname, it’s quite gross and pretty funny.

This is an entertaining and easy book to read. It’s great for when you don’t want to tax yourself too much and just want to be diverted from life.

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Sunday, 2 May 2021

Review: Get Your Rocks Off Series Books 1-3 by Sam Hall

Get Your Rocks Off Books 1-3 Get Your Rocks Off Books 1-3 by Sam Hall
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fae Shenanigans

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

This omnibus of 3 books is the start of the series. I believe there are already or going to be 2 more books after this volume. I’m so glad I read these books all in one chunk because I think I would have thrown my kindle at the wall at the ends of each of books 1 and 2, due to cliffhangers. The three books merge together as a seamless whole.  The three books included are; Book 1 - Away With The Fairies, Book 2 - Riding For A Fall, Book 3 - Star On The Rise.

Kira is a young woman who has never lived independently. She has a fine arts degree, earns a living by her production of stock photographs but she lives in a cottage on her parent’s land. She suffers from severe visual disturbances and migraines. Her condition doesn’t have a confirmed diagnosis but it is debilitating, which is why she lives in a small town where everyone knows who to contact when she collapses in pain. Her one diversion is her photography and her one friend is Jen.

Jen is the daughter of an exceptionally wealthy and powerful man. He is a successful music executive and his home is filled with powerful, beautiful and debauched people on a regular basis. Kira tends to avoid these beautiful people because she feels that she is unattractive and uninteresting. Jen is always trying to get her to appreciate her own beauty but she fails.

Jen finally convinces Kira to take a job photographing a party for her father. At the party she meets The Changelings, the band that have visited her dreams, loving and seducing her, for months. As well as photographing them, she interviews them and in doing so, the band decide they want her on their tour with them.

Everything is changing for Kira, her world is being shaken to the core. She is going out to explore the world, without parental support, to live a rich, distracting and chaotic life. Then her world is turned over even more, as she discovers the world isn’t what she thought it was, and neither is she.

This is a darkly seductive book. The people in this book are damaged and damaging. They lash out and hurt those around them because they have been hurt. So much is hidden about the characters and their motivations that we have no idea why everyone is acting the way they are acting, or how they are going to act at any given point. The plot is filled with twists and turns, beauty, passion, power and pain.

This book is principally about power and love. The characters strive for both and it’s hard to tell which characters strive for what. Kira is thrust into a confusing and difficult world and we are forced to watch as she is put through the mill as she tries to find her balance and hopefully work towards her happiness.

The world-building in this book is rich and complex. We initially see the dark beauty of the fae world and marvel at its decadence and debauchery. Then the author gradually peels back the layers so we can see the rot behind the glittering mask. We learn about the courts and the gods and the fae and how they all interact. We learn about power and how everything fae is related to who has it, who can generate it and who can use it.

The plot is a dark and twisted thing that skitters and dances as you read, never knowing which direction it’s going to turn next. It’s complicated and intriguing and I couldn’t stop reading because I HAD to know what was coming next. I couldn’t predict what would happen next and that rarely happens to me, so when it does I LOVE it.

The plot was principally driven by the characters, their history and personalities. Their complexity is what created the unpredictable plot. Each character is cleverly constructed, with a rich back story and personalities. Their relationships with each other are a tangled web of unknown events in the past that we can only guess at, though the author slowly reveals some key points that help explain some of their motives and why the plot is so unpredictable.

I will say that I didn’t actually like quite a lot of the characters. Personally, if I were to meet them I wouldn’t give them the time of day, and in the blurb at the back of the book, the author echoes that statement, which makes me like her that much more. So many of the characters are seriously damaged individuals and they lash out like toddlers in their fear and their rage. Because we understand their pain, doesn’t mean they don’t inflict their own brand of damage on others. It does make them fascinating to read about though.

Kira is a very interesting MFC. She’s spent most of her life being powerless and uninteresting. Then she is thrust into a world that insists that she has power and is beautiful and fascinating. She is confused and seduced by the passion and beauty that now surrounds her and is at the same time terrified of it.

This book is filled with passion and heat and if you are easily offended by sex in any of it’s forms you will probably hate this book with a fiery passion. There are some trigger warnings throughout the book but I didn’t really feel uncomfortable reading and I usually at least feel slightly uneasy through most books that offer trigger warnings, even if they don’t trigger me personally, however, these triggers are not my triggers and I can’t comment about how that might affect another reader.

All in all, it’s a really good read if you enjoy slightly darker, edgy and sexy fae shenanigans!

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Saturday, 1 May 2021

Review: Tormented Girl (Neighpalm Industries Collective Series Book 3) by Lexie Winston

Tormented Girl Tormented Girl by Lexie Winston
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Plot Thickens

This really is a multi-faceted story. There is the complexity of Harlow finding her new family and her place within it. Then there is the story about making new friends and becoming more confident in herself. On top of that layer we have the romantic relationships that are developing with the adopted sons of her father. Finally we have the story about the stalker.

After the last book’s ending, it should come as no surprise that there is a horrendous cliffhanger at the end of this book too. Just putting that out there, in case it’s something you can’t tolerate, but if that were the case you wouldn’t have got this far, so I don’t know why I’m worried about it.

As I was reading this book I was in awe of the author. I’m absolutely stunned that she managed to make me believe that a strong and independent thinking woman like Harlow would forgive the way she has been treated by her new ‘family’. The very clever writing had me understanding and sympathising with the transgressors and accepting that Harlow could forgive them. They all moved forwards towards forgiveness at their own pace, on individual journeys. I also liked how Jacinta did her own soul searching.

At the end of book 2, I was so sure I knew who the stalker was, but by the end of this book, I haven’t got a clue. There seem to be all sorts of conflicting situations that confuse who could be to blame and why. No one has a clue and there are all sorts of mysteries surrounding Harlow’s mother’s death too.

Basically, there is tonnes going on in this very cleverly structured book, and as I get to know each character I find myself learning to love them a little bit more. Every character is complex and interesting. I love the way they all interact with each other. I also appreciate there is some actual sex in this book, as after all the fooling around in the previous two books, there needed to be some action in this one. It was worth the wait! (fans face with the heat!!!)

This series just keeps getting more interesting and I can’t wait to see where the next book takes us.

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