Category: 5 star Rating

Review: Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie: Phlox’s Story (Perfect Pixie Series Book 5) by M. J. May

Rating: 5🌈

Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie: Phlox’s Story is the perfect way to end this absolutely fantastic series, Perfect Pixies by M. J. May.

In this vividly realized, beautifully told story, May brings all the characters and couples together that we’ve met through each other’s stories and learned to love together to reveal and vanquish the series villains.

Each story has at its core a perfectly imperfect pixie who finds themselves in an embattled or troubled position which eventually leads them to their bonds of love and a HEA. We started with hearth and home pixie, Philodendron, whose unique size made him both an outsider and perfect for his Alpha mate and family. Then nature pixie, Peaches, with a mournful background and heart wrenching history that soon brings attention to gathering dark forces and the attraction of a powerful vampire. That mating has huge ramifications for many other otherworldly species.

Next May’s pairing and novel turns dark with the seemingly mysterious introduction of pixie trafficking and pixie dust addiction. This is Parsnip’s story and another sector of magic is heard from as Vander the warlock arrives. May is deepening the series themes, expanding the types of magic that exist in this universe, and types of found families we can expect.

The narrative themes and suspenseful atmosphere doesn’t even falter for a moment. It’s picking up momentum in emotional and well written story arcs.

Wendall’s unbelievable tale is next. It includes Hellfire Rayburn, Fairy Queen Silvidia’s most trusted and feared warrior, and Wendall, who undergoes one of the most poignant, heartbreaking moments and struggles amongst them all. Well, May is amping up to the end point. Making sure that the reader knows what at stake and we care so throughly for everyone here.

So that when a final pixie appears, one that isn’t who he seems, we are ready for the showdown .

That’s Agent Frost, aka pixie Phlox. Although he’s not exactly 100 percent pixie. What he is and his background is a huge part of the ongoing investigation and reason he’s arrived in town. The one assigned to help him? That’s 300 year old vampire, Leon McMillan, King Lucroy Moony’s second-in-command.

May does an excellent job of alternating between their burgeoning romance and the ongoing investigation into the pixie traffickers. The horrific storyline of pixie trafficking , which is widely explored through the main characters and story threads, continues to branch out to the wider threat to the community and all the couples involved.

May’s newest character is one I think will be a great reader favorite . That’s Erasmus, a young necromancer who has an intriguing , poignant backstory and a rich personality. I really can’t get enough of him. So many layers. And the other character who is equally and quizzically intrigued by Erasmus? That’s Aurelia, the djinn .

No spoilers but what an epic ending. And while I’m happy sad this superior series has ended, the author has left us with something new to anticipate.

That epilogue is everything! Why? Because it tells us that Erasmus and Aurelia are coming back in Summer/Fall 2024 in their own story. And now I’m so excited and happy for their new adventure to begin.

Read this incredible series in the order it’s written . It’s a top recommendation. So is it’s author.

Cover design by cheriefox. Absolutely splendid! Like all the other covers.

Perfect Pixies series:

✓ Perfectly Imperfect Pixie Book #1

✓ Perfectly Perfect Pixie: Peaches’s Story #2

✓ Perfectly Charmed Pixie: Parsnip’s Story #3

✓ Perfectly Perplexing Zombie: Wendall’s Story #4

✓ Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie: Phlox’s Story #5 – series finale

Buy link

Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie: Phlox’s Story (Perfect Pixie Series Book 5)

Blurb

Phlox isn’t your typical pixie, and his feisty shifter DNA might be the reason. Recruited by the Magical Usage Council, Phlox—who is now Agent Frost—is a pixie with a mission, and he’s not afraid to place himself in mortal danger to eradicate the latest pixie trafficking ring.

Despite being King Lucroy Moony’s second-in-command, Leon McMillan’s second life has become dangerously monotonous. For a vampire, boredom is as deadly as a stake to the heart. Three hundred years of existing has taken a mental toll—one that will eventually lead Leon into the sun’s deadly embrace. Leon needs a life raft; he just never imagined it in the form of a pushy pixie.

Phlox and Leon can’t deny their mutual attraction. However, in order for Phlox’s mission to succeed, he needs to appear helplessly alone, and Leon’s worried stalking isn’t aiding that mission.

But soon, the knowledge Phlox and Leon obtain leads to a dangerous, mentally unstable djinn, who has a vicious master holding its leash. Although history claims djinns are all-powerful, indestructible creatures, Phlox and Leon must find the secret to their destruction if they are to save Rutherford Haven’s citizens. If they can’t, Rutherford Haven will be the first to fall, but it won’t be the last.

Phlox will dig his shifter claws into anyone who dares threaten his mate and Leon will tear the heart out of anyone who dares threaten his beloved—his purrrfectly peculiar pixie.

Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie is the fifth and final book in the Perfect Pixie series. The books should be read in order. Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie features an emotionally constipated vampire, a pixie who’s far more than he appears, witches and trolls with questionable morals, an alpha werewolf whose time on planet Earth is precariously close to ending, a (questionably) good djinn, an (unquestionably) sinister djinn, an interesting necromancer, and all our previously beloved characters coming together to prove that teamwork really does make the dream work.

Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie also contains homicide of the fantasy kind (no humans were killed in the making of this book) with scenes describing death and killing.

• Publication date: April 29, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 343 pages

Review: Death In The Spires by K. J. Charles

Rating: 5🌈

K. J. Charles is such an incredible writer, a word artist with a passion for rich historical settings, layered characters, and complex plot development. All that is apparent here in Death in the Spires.

It’s a haunting story that Charles lays out for us immediately. And then in flashbacks. A man , Jeremy “Jem” Kite, is in the process of losing his job. It’s emotionally devastating. And it’s not even the first time.

His employer has received a letter accusing Jem of murder. A sensational murder that took place ten years earlier. A murder of a man Jem was close to. Went to Oxford with, and once was one of his close knit group of friends referred to as the “Seven Wonders” on campus. A murder that destroyed Jem and has remained unsolved.

Through memories of the past, and Jem’s new determination to find out who is behind the letters, Charles builds a layered historical narrative of differences in status, innocence, friendship, mystery, love, and murder. One that skillfully stretches over a ten year period from 1905 to 1915, moving from time frame to time frame with impactful results.

Charles brings all the laws and prejudices of this era vividly and thoughtfully into the various storylines, whether it’s about gender, race, sexuality, or birth control. I should also mention Charles includes the role of that primogeniture plays in this era with rights of inheritance . Repealed here in the US at the time of the Revolution, it was the foundation for the nobility, aristocracy or peerage abroad.

Then the author sets about weaving a tortuous tale of seven friends on the cusp of greatness. Some are innocent, there’s a difference in class status, relationships have complicated dynamics, but, seen through the lens of Jem’s early memories, it’s an idyllic place, a golden age of freedom, heights, and a future never to be recaptured.

Charles’ gift is the ability to make the reader feel Jem’s amazement at his time there in 1905 , and his absolute grief at it’s loss, at what he has become.

Every character is beautifully crafted in their details, from their past lives to the ones they are now living in. I can visualize each and every one.

That includes the dead man, Toby Feynsham, who gathered them all together and was finally responsible, in death, for their destruction.

The investigation, the growth and continued character revelations, the way in which Charles weaves twists and surprises into an already convoluted narrative made me appreciate more a novel I couldn’t tear myself away from.

Fabulous, fascinating. Ultimately incredibly satisfying. Death In The Spires by K. J. Charles is a must read!

Great cover. Cover design by Lisa Horton

Buy Links:

Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com › Death-…Death in the Spires: A completely gripping and addictive historical mystery

Blurb

The newspapers called us the Seven Wonders. We were a group of friends, that’s all, and then Toby died. Was killed. Murdered.

1905. A decade after the grisly murder of Oxford student Toby Feynsham, the case remains hauntingly unsolved. For Jeremy Kite, the crime not only stole his best friend, it destroyed his whole life. When an anonymous letter lands on his desk, accusing him of having killed Toby, Jem becomes obsessed with finally uncovering the truth.

Jem begins to track down the people who were there the night Toby died – a close circle of friends once known as the ‘Seven Wonders’ for their charm and talent – only to find them as tormented and broken as himself. All of them knew and loved Toby at Oxford. Could one of them really be his killer?

As Jem grows closer to uncovering what happened that night, his pursuer grows bolder, making increasingly terrifying attempts to silence him for good. Will exposing Toby’s killer put to rest the shadows that have darkened Jem’s life for so long? Or will the gruesome truth only put him in more danger?

Some secrets are better left buried…

From the bestselling, acclaimed author of The Magpie Lord and The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen comes a chilling historical mystery with a sting in the tail. You won’t be able to put this gripping story down!

• Publisher: Storm Publishing (April 11, 2024)

• Publication date: April 11, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 273 pages

Review: How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit: Bone 6 (How I Stole the Princess’s White Knight and Turned him to Villainy Book 12) by A. J. Sherwood

Rating: 5🌈

Finale time! And Steve’s gonna be a whole new dragon! Well, long dead and a skeleton one at that! But happy happy!

And that madcap murderous fabulous family of sorcerers and a King will adopt another into the fold.

And there’s many weddings!

Sherwood has written a warmhearted, if somewhat murderous tale of adventure, love, magic, and family. It’s been a wild and humorous journey. A absolute pleasure to read, a joy to have ventured into with along with the characters.

Will we see Tan, Devan, the kids, and the rest of the ever enlarging family? Sherwood doesn’t know. But I hope so. They have caught our attention and our hearts. That life and vivacity surely won’t be denied. Stay tuned!

Love these covers.

Series and side stories

💥How I Stole the Princess’s White Knight and Turned him to Villainy-6 books

💥How Tan Acquired an Apprentice

💥How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit:Bone series

Buy link

How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit: Bone 6 (How I Stole the Princess’s White Knight and Turned him to Villainy Book 12)

Blurb

Final boss fight! Fight necromancer? (yes) (NO)

Devan: I’m not beating up an old lady.

Tan: Pretty sure the old lady could take you.

Devan: Still not doing it. Time to negotiate.

Tags: dragon acquired keep as pet (yes) (NO), retired necromancers are BAMF, the kids adopt a necromancer grandmother, or a grandmummy if you will, all the weddings, pirates might be lost in the labyrinth, Steve is finally complete!, $$$, vacation time

• Publication date: April 26, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 51 pages

Review: Only Unity Will Spare Us: The Magi Accounts Book 5 by Michele Notaro

Rating : 5🌈

There’s always so many thoughts and emotions one has when approaching a finale novel in a beloved series. When that series is a dark urban fantasy about a particularly extremely violent, torturous dystopian world, the range of emotions will be deeply varied as the storylines. Especially here where in a world where a different US is at war. A almost recognizable one we’ve seen before where the humans in charge have used other species (or races) shifters and mages, as weapons and tools, things. Those in charge inhumanly categorizing them as objects to be abused, used and discarded as the humans wanted.

Make no mistake, as gorgeously written and powerfully conceived as The Magi Accounts series is, these books are often equally wrenching and disturbing to read. The compounds the magi are bred and raised in like stock animals, as well as the abusive, torturous, often deadly nature of the treatment they were subjected to there, is harrowing reading. And the subject of more than one trigger warning. The same is said about that of the narrative treatment of shifters, although not necessarily in the gore-ridden way.

Through four books, we’ve found all the members of the now combined Ono-Nai tribe, watched them grow, in some cases learning to deal with the pain and abuse that brought them into the tribe, and for others form mate bonds with each other, until this enlarged family has become a greater whole that means something deeply special to us as readers. It’s not just the mage dyads Madeo aka Mads and Jude. Or the main bonded pair of mage Mads and alpha lion shifter Cosmo Ono-Nai. It’s Jude, and his bond mates. And the rest of the tribe, shifters, mages, humans, even pets. All have made an indelible impression and contribution to the heartfelt rightness that has developed into the Ono-Nai diverse family/tribe. One of the unity of the title and one that Mads and his family is striving for their future.

It’s a truly agonizing epic showdown, one that’s been long awaited between Mads and his tribe and the horrific, terrifying Anderson, the Red Cloak witches, with their plan to destroy all the mages and shifters for a human only universe.

Did I end up sobbing buckets of tears? Yes, yes I did. As I expected to. There’s so much going on in the narrative. From beautiful scenes of family life and laughter, to sheer terror and heartbreak, memories of darkness and pain, blood and death, all that has to come , realistically in this world, before even large battles can be won.

Is everything solved at the end? No. But the majority of the problems are resolved in a manner that leaves the characters and readers in a better place . One that makes sense and leaves us with a sense of completion and satisfaction .

Only Unity Will Spare Us: The Magi Accounts Book 5 by Michele Notaro is a fantastic finale and a perfect way to end a magnificent dark urban fantasy.

I highly recommend this series. Read it in the order it’s written and with regard for its trigger warnings.

Just a side note. I wished for more for the Taragorians. Logan had it right. That the rift or a magical aspect of it seemed sentient was fascinating. I wish for more of this place please.

The Magi Accounts:

✓ The Scars That Bind Us #1

✓ The Shackles That Hold Us #2

✓ A Purpose That Restores Us #3

✓ A Ruse To Unchain Us #4

✓ Only Unity Will Spare Us #5 -Series Finale

The Magi Accounts Companion stories:

✓ Our Hearts That Tie Us: The Magi Accounts Prequel

✓ A Kiss To Revive Me: The Magi Accounts 1.5

✓ A Date to Impress Him: The Magi Accounts 2.5

✓ A Holiday to Sustain Us: A Magi Accounts Holiday

✓ An Embrace To Hearten Me: The Magi Accounts 3.5

✓ A Heart To Revitalize Me: The Magi Accounts 4.5

Buy Link:

Only Unity Will Spare Us: The Magi Accounts 5

Blurb:

I made a promise to the enemy… and I intended to keep it.

Thank the goddess I have my pride and my wonderful, amazing mate—whose patience matches no other—because the world is in chaos, and Cosmo is my rock, my safe place inside the storm. If only I could find the time between witches, work, politics, and family to prove it to him.

The Shifter and Magi Equality Act is in full effect, supposedly making us equals, but the people themselves—the humans—are still treating us as lesser. Every time I turn around, we’re running into trouble between humans and non-humans.

To make matters worse, witches are everywhere in Fairview City, and the Red Cloth is encouraging humans to join their forces and challenge the equality my people have fought so hard to get.

And now, Anderson is back. Back and gunning for me.

But he doesn’t realize I’m gunning for him, too.

Only Unity Will Spare Us is the fifth and FINAL book in the MM urban fantasy series, The Magi Accounts. It’s recommended to read the series in order because the romance and plot progress throughout the series.

*Intended for adults only. Please read the trigger warnings at the beginning of this novel.

• Publication date: April 19, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 417 pages

Review: A Spooky Legacy (The Spectral Files Book 5) by S. E. Harmon

Rating: 5🌈

If A Spooky Legacy is the finale novel for Rainbow “Rain” Christiansen and his husband, fellow cold case detective, Daniel McKenna, then it’s a fabulous story and sendoff to a compelling pair of characters and supporting cast that I have come to adore.

Five books that have taken them through all the stages of a remarkable relationship that has involved adapting to two widely different in-laws with their unique backgrounds, great law enforcement teams, and investigations into cold cases, and ghosts. Lots of ghosts, of the malignant, the uncooperative , and of the helpful kind.

It’s been such a great pleasure and one imaginative, magnificent journey.

So of course the last case will be that of a heartbreaker. For everyone involved.

Just as Rain and Danny are waiting to hear from the adoption agency on their application for approval and potentially getting a child, they will be handed a cold case of missing family.

So many feelings here. Harmon has Rain’s personal doubts and insecurities/fears over being a parent running concurrently with the real painful emotions of the investigation into a case that involves two young children and their parents. One we know didn’t end well.

As the case develops into something dark and far more complicated than expected, so does Rain’s feelings about the adoption and extending their family to include a child. It’s a realistic, emotionally tough but touching storyline. It takes work and commitment and communication on both sides of the relationship. That’s something I really appreciate here.

There’s also an unexpected helpful aspect for Rain to act as a bridge to understanding how it would feel to have someone else in the relationship.

There’s so many touching, moving elements and scenes here. I honestly felt both satisfied and wishing for more at the end.

Does this feel right? Yes. But, how I want a glimpse into their future lives.

This series has been distinguished by extraordinary characterizations, well woven storylines, and remarkable relationships that showed emotional maturity and growth.

That’s rare no matter the genre and I’ll miss them.

Read this in the order of release so not to miss out on the development of characters and relationships.

The Spectral Files:

✓ P.S. I Spook You #1

✓ Principles of Spookology #2

✓ Spooky Business #3

✓ The Spooky Life #4

✓ A Spooky Legacy #5

Buy link:

A Spooky Legacy (The Spectral Files Book 5)

Blurb:

Rain Christiansen is settling into married life with fellow cold case detective, Daniel McKenna, and life is good. Better than good, even. But when it comes to the topic of expanding their family, Rain isn’t so sure he’s ready. Yes, a new addition could enrich their lives. But it could also tear down the delicate balance they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Do they really want to take that risk?

He’d love to brood over that a little more, but murder never takes a day off. A decade-old mystery of the missing Parker family is heating up. Most seem to think the Parkers pulled a disappearing act to get out of financial debt. It isn’t before the PTU finds out the reality is far grimmer than that. It seems that Quinn stumbled upon something better left hidden. Now that Rain has stumbled upon it, too, he has to be careful that he doesn’t meet the same fate.

Sometimes it amazes him how far he’s come from strait-laced FBI agent who couldn’t admit—even to himself—that he saw ghosts. He’s done the work, learning to get some measure of control of his paranormal side. And while his relationship with ghosts may not be perfect, it’s evolved into something symbiotic…which is a very good thing. Because in order to protect himself from the living, he might need a little help from the dead.

• Publication date: April 9, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 382 pages

Review: Shadow & Ghosts: City of Shadows Book 1 by Lex Veia

Rating: 5🌈

I’m not sure how I stumbled across this amazing book and author but Shadow & Ghosts, the first novel in the City of Shadows series by Lex Veia is the urban fantasy universe that I was most in need of.

The world building here is astonishing. I’m so intrigued by the many different ways Veia has combined recognizable elements, such as authentic US geographical features and locations with the author’s own unique narrative storylines. That Veia incorporates fantastic twisted historical creations of warfare and demonic rifts, along with a dark capital city run and divided by gangs makes this a tale you cannot put down.

“The city of monsters, mobsters, and dark magic. Oh, I know all about the witch-gangs of Las O.”

That’s the voice of Kit Winter, thief extraordinaire, aka The Shadow, and a captivating figure at the heart of this story and series. Once we make the connection with him, we can’t pull away from his vibrant character, that energetic, magnetic force that is so full of emotional/personal layers, that the author is still peeling them away even at the end of the story. Kit is someone who has hidden so much of himself for so long that , even the act of remembering is a complex act . One that never comes to fruition.

His opposite is Zach Riley, The Ghost, leader of the Renegades, the Elite Team gathered by Captain Emilie Brodie to fight demons and witches.

Zach’s background and legendary status as The Ghost is another rock solid element of this story. Zach is a constantly evolving and changing character, in part due to the revelations that are a part of his growing relationship with Kit. The two men, both different and yet so similar in emotional makeup and personality.

This is a very slow burn romance. And it works beautifully as it’s built around the team’s chemistry and the heavy lifting that comes from the missions they are sent on and the mysteries that they find.

The action sequences and the entire suspense that’s being built around the missions and the evils that the team faces is indescribably powerful. I started to go back to look at a few things in the book and before I knew it, I was sucked in , rereading it as though it was my first time.

And loving it as much if not more.

This is a story where the reader will feel the grimy surfaces, the dark magic, and poisoning of the light of the dangerous city, Las Oscura. And the author makes us take an emotional journey with all the characters through this city and all the events that occur.

What a wild, dark, intense journey it is.

I can’t wait for the next book to come.

City of Shadows:

✓ Shadow & Ghost #1

◦ Shadow & Ghost 2: City of Ghosts-coming July 2024

Buy Link:

Shadow & Ghost: City of Shadows: A Slow-Burn MM Urban Fantasy

Blurb:

Kit Winter does not get caught.

As the most infamous thief in America, Kit enjoys a carefree, transient lifestyle—or, he did, until someone slapped a pair of handcuffs around his wrists and offered him an impossible choice: Rot in prison or join the most dangerous division of the Darkmagic Investigation Agency, the Renegades.

Kit’s pretty sure he chose wrong. The Renegades are the most elite fighters in the world—none more so than their legendary dark-witch-killing lieutenant, Zach Riley. Kit is utterly outmatched and unprepared for hunting witches and demons through the dangerous, magic-riddled city of Las Oscura.

But when a routine hellhound hunt turns fatal, Kit’s criminal skillset might be the Renegades’ best shot at tracking a deadly new killer through the shadowy underground—and Kit’s chance to earn his place on the team. However, hunting witches is worlds away from Kit’s old life, and if he wants to survive, he’ll need to learn to trust his team—and balance his burgeoning feelings for a certain lieutenant.

This is an action-packed urban fantasy with slow-burn romance culminating in spicy scenes. Each book in the series will be increasingly spicy as the romance builds.

• Publisher: (February 29, 2024)

• Publication date: February 29, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 391 pages

Review: A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall

Rating: 5🌈

“Do not embrace me till each circumstance

Of place, time, fortune, do cohere and jump

That I am Viola

Twelfth Night”

Regency romance has and is a great favorite of mine, starting from the first Georgette Heyer novel I read back in my childhood. And I have been steadily consuming different authors versions or interpretation of this genre, whether they stay true to the timeframe of the historical era or fast forwarded to a future world and space regency culture.

There’s some absolutely magnificent novels and series that capture the original spirit and style of those romances while letting the author explore them in their own unique, imaginative ways and with well written LGBTQIA characters.

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall is one of those extraordinary novels that pays homage to the original genre in multiple ways, by its inclusion of the time frame, the cultural context, and peerages, as well as minutia of the Ton that’s a given as part of a Regency romance. However, Hall, elevates his story by giving us a deeply moving, emotional story of complex themes. One of transcendent language, magnificent characters, and an ending that I have returned to more times than I can count.

If there be echoes of a Shakespearean character, it’s welcome. For Viola Carroll is unforgettable. Both for the reader, and for Gracewood, the Duke lost in mourning and grief for the only person who ever truly saw him and cared about him.

Viola is both the ghost of the memories of the person Gracewood is mourning but who never really existed, and the truth of who she is and sacrificed everything to finally get to be. It’s a wrenching, amazing portrait of courage, pain, sacrifice, strength, and love.

Justin de Vere, the Duke of Gracewood, is a believable, layered, damaged man. I’m not talking about the physical damage he’s suffered by his time in as a soldier in the past war. But the mental and emotional pain he suffered and carries due to his upbringing and the expectations of his station in life .

Hall’s narrative is a thoughtful exploration of roles and expectations that society places upon people. Especially those of a certain class and gender. Of genders and their places within society, this too will figure greatly here in the story, threaded through several characters perspectives.

Aside from the superbly written main characters, there are also many other outstanding characters to connect with here. The brother and sister-in-law, Badger and Louise, Lord and Lady Marleigh. I love them both deeply. Well defined, real, heartfelt characters. Then there is Mira, Gracewood’s sister who is desperate to connect with her brother. And the not to be forgotten , very bold , Lady “Stevie” Lillimere. She is a real favorite! So many outlying characters that are impactful and relevant to the story and readers.

At the very end, a two person POV changes, and we are given one final, extremely important perspective for the epilogue. This can sometimes be jarring and confusing. But here it feels natural and makes those last moments even more magical. And possibly poetic in their power and imagery.

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall is rated not just a top five book LGBTQIA or trans historical romance for me . It’s a top five book. All tropes.

Pick it up and discover why!

Buy Now:

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books-A-Million BookshopTarget Walmart

Blurb

From the bestselling author of Husband Material comes a lush, sweeping queer historical romance where sparks fly between childhood friends after a life-changing separation—perfect for fans of Bridgerton, Evie Dunmore, and Lisa Kleypas!

When Viola Carroll was presumed dead at Waterloo she took the opportunity to live, at last, as herself. But freedom does not come without a price, and Viola paid for hers with the loss of her wealth, her title, and her closest companion, Justin de Vere, the Duke of Gracewood.

Only when their families reconnect, years after the war, does Viola learn how deep that loss truly was. Shattered without her, Gracewood has retreated so far into grief that Viola barely recognises her old friend in the lonely, brooding man he has become.

As Viola strives to bring Gracewood back to himself, fresh desires give new names to old feelings. Feelings that would have been impossible once and may be impossible still, but which Viola cannot deny. Even if they cost her everything, all over again.

• Publisher: Forever (May 24, 2022)

• Publication date: May 24, 2022

• Language: English

• Print length: 481 pages

Review: Dead Serious Case #5 Madame Vivienne (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed) by Vawn Cassidy

Rating: 5🌈

How to review or even begin to describe absolutely magnificent heartbreakingly extraordinary narrative chaos?

Vawn Cassidy brings this incredible series to a close in a story that has a reader in gut wrenching sobs, for heartbreaking reasons and for ones that spring from immense joy. There’s scenes of such high comedy as well as low, drunken hilarity and madcap humor to go along with moments of heart stopping fright and one’s of such intense pain that you feel like you’ll break.

The relationships the author has built between the characters in this series covers so many facets of love. It’s the depth of love between a father and son, now at the end of the father’s life from a disease that’s slowly torn through his mind, losing himself and his memories. It’s the love between best friends who have been through the best and worst of times together and are still there for each other. It’s the love of found family and friends supporting each other and the bond between them. And the deep connection and romantic love that comes from being with the best person you know is the one who knows you and accepts you for who you are.

Cassidy has given the reader all of this through many characters and their relationships. We’ve come to know each of them, watch them grow and the relationships develop through story after story. Our emotions are heavily invested and, here, we are in every single moment and scene as the final chapter in this series plays out.

Did I laugh so much at a certain point that my dog left the room? Why yes, I did. And did I cry so much at a certain moment, that it brought her back into the room to check on me? Also yes.

But this is a journey that is one that ended beautifully. Even better than I had imagined.

No spoilers . And we will be seeing more of the crew in new adventures to come.

Dead Serious Case #5 Madame Vivienne (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed) by Vawn Cassidy is a gorgeous book. It’s emotionally compelling and an exceptionally well written finale that’s one of the top books in my recommendations list as well as the series.

Read them in the order they were written.

Love the covers!

Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed:

✓ Dead Serious Case #1 Miz Dusty Le Frey #1

✓ Dead Serious Case #2 Mrs Delores Abernathy #2

✓ Dead Serious Case #3 Mr Bruce Reyes #3

✓ Dead Serious Case #4 Professor Prometheus Plume #4

✓ The Grim Adventures of Death and Chan: Vol. 1 (a Dead Serious Companion novella) – Side story

✓ Dead Serious Case #5 Madame Vivienne – series finale but not the end

Crawshanks Guide to the Occult :

◦ The Little Shop of Curiosities Cursed Object #1 – coming 2025

Buy Link:

Dead Serious Case #5 Madame Vivienne (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed)

Blurb:

For one brief shining moment, the utter insanity that is Tristan Everett’s world makes sense.

He’s marrying the man he loves, has a dead drag queen for a bestie and is surrounded by an amazing found family. Okay, so his life isn’t exactly what you’d call normal. By day, he’s a quiet, mild-mannered forensic pathologist, but the rest of the time, he guides lost souls into the light. He’s also averted an apocalypse, stopped Chaos from coming through a magic door, and drunk tequila with Death.

It’s all a bit bonkers, but it’s his life… and he loves it.

He’s flying high but, like Icarus, it’s only a matter of time before he’s brought crashing down to earth with singed wings. The strange reality of his life intrudes once again when his friend, Madame Vivienne, is murdered, and it’s clear from the beginning that this is no ordinary killing.

Someone is using dark magic.

Viv’s soul has been bound, leaving her trapped and unable to communicate. Tristan, Danny, and their friends must uncover the truth and find the killer. But the deeper they delve into the old bookshop in Whitechapel, which has been in the Crawshanks family for generations, the darker and the more dangerous the secrets that begin to unravel.

And what they discover may just change their lives forever…

• Publisher: (April 3, 2024)

• Publication date: April 3, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 299 pages

Crawshanks Universe Novellas/ Spin offs

The Grim Adventures of Death & Chan Vol 1 (Website Exclusive)

Blue Thunder (Website Exclusive)”

Review: Gary the Once and Former King: MM Fantasy Romance (The Unwanted King Book 2) by Isabel Murray

Rating: 5🌈

Well, based on this series alone, Isabel Murray is a new must read/autobuy for me. These are simply breathtakingly memorable pieces of storytelling. At once brilliantly subtle works of characterization and yet still hilariously funny, threaded through with heartbreaking pathos, and sweet romance.

Such amazing work on the part of this author. From the subtle world building to deeply layered characters, from the laugh-out-loud scenes and dialogue to quiet moments of conversation and those of revelatory sexuality, it’s an amazing narrative journey Murray takes us and her characters through.

I so appreciate the subtlety with which Murray is able to create a depiction of her character’s background and the layers of that history without actually stating any specific facts or graphic details. We don’t have to know exactly what happened to Gary in his horrific adolescence, what abuses specifically he was subjected to, and we don’t have to. Thanks to Murray, it’s written into his demeanor, the manner and care in which those around him now treat him, the poor sense of self he carries. This is such an amazing portrait of a person that Murray has sensitively built that Gary speaks to us, engages with us on many emotional levels.

And it’s not just Gary. It’s every character. From the brilliant Magnus, whose history is one that’s enabled him to control a network of dubious spies and assassins to keep Gary safe to consorting with some unlikely friends. All this is guessing from the hints and subtle clues left by the author along with more new information about some beloved supporting characters and new friends as well. Truly astounding work here considering its peripheral role in the story but its bulwark narrative nature in Gary’s world.

I will be so disappointed if this series is really over at two books. Yes, sweet, beautiful Gary gets finally to be a Former King and live with Magnus in his new home. But Murray has gone and extended the already deeply loved family with new intriguing characters, mysteriously familiar looking lords, and possibly new connections. All important supporting characters or new introduced characters with impactful roles to play.

Yes, please, I want more.

Consider both stories a must read.

The Unwanted King:

✓ Gary of a Hundred Days #1

✓ Gary the Once and Former King #2

Buy Link:

Gary the Once and Former King: MM Fantasy Romance (The Unwanted King Book 2)

Blurb:

The Kingdom of Estla is in turmoil. Power plays, intrigue, and plots seethe in the corridors of power. And Gary of a Hundred Days, Last of the Tyrant Kings is…well.

He’s dead.

That’s what (almost) everyone thinks, anyway.

As far as Gary’s concerned, they can go ahead and keep thinking it. He’s busy living a whole new life with his beloved Magnus on a homestead in the heartland of Caithen—a kingdom where they don’t want to kill him—and he’s learning all sorts of interesting things about exactly what it means to be a husband and a bondmate.

Okay, he’s trying to learn. It’s turning out to be a lot harder than he thought.

Callin, the ex-stable lad and Gary’s new (first!) best friend, has been less than helpful when it comes to giving Gary the correct advice on how to proceed in intimate matters.

The books Gary ordered for instructional purposes are taking forever to arrive.

And just as he’s starting to make progress in the bedchamber, Gary’s past as the rightful King of Estla rises up once more…

Gary the Once and Former King is a sequel to Gary of a Hundred Days. It’s a low-angst fantasy romantic comedy in which a sheltered ex-king continues to undergo quite the awakening at the hands of his rugged ex-stable master, and everyone’s still way more interested in kissing and romance than in all that rightful heir to the throne business.

And this time?

Gary’s definitely getting his happily ever after.

• Publisher: (February 26, 2024)

• Publication date: February 26, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 242 pages

Review: Under a Spell: An MM Paranormal Romance (Mages and Mates Book 3) by Andy Gallo

Rating: 5🌈

Well, that was one fabulous romp through a fantasy romance! Mages and Mates has turned into a fantastic series, full of great characters, dynamic relationships, and an intriguing overall series storyline that’s continuing to bring new mysteries and magical elements with each novel.

Under a Spell starts with a murder investigation. A mage ambassador has been killed at the estate of the ruler of the dragons, a mysterious and deadly case for political and magical ramifications.

Sent by the Mage Council to run the investigation is two of the Hollen brothers, diplomat Otto Hollen and mage, Leothius Hollen. We’ve met both before, primarily Leo, but now, since the events of previous books, he’s matured and grown more serious about his profession.

Gallo’s ability to grab the reader’s attention starts immediately. It’s dramatic scenes, engaging personalities, and instant sizzling rapport between Leo and Gundhram, King of the Dragons. They go from awful first impressions to worse second impression and high drama to an unexpected twist that arises from slow revelations .

It’s such a wild and fast paced ride. Gallo weaves a fabulous romantic story with an ever growing darkness that threatens not just those present but the entire world.

It’s black magic, and ancient Guardians waiting to be replaced with their newly discovered counterparts, and the truest villain, who’s always eluding discovery. Gallo’s imaginative, hair-raising storylines weave with high energy and a lot of suspense towards an ending where everything points to even more disaster and chaos coming quickly for the remaining unbound Hollens and Guardian pairs.

It’s an extraordinary series and a fabulous tale. I highly recommend this and the series. Read them in order for events and relationships development.

Mages and Mates:

✓ Spell It Out, prequel

✓ Break the Spell #1

✓ It Spells Trouble #2

✓ Under a Spell #3

◦ Cast a Spell #4 – Nov 26,2024

Buy Link

Under a Spell: An MM Paranormal Romance (Mages and Mates Book 3)

Blurb

Leothius Hollen arrives in Presque Isle, Maine, home of the dragon rulers, to investigate the murder of the mage ambassador. The last thing he expects is to run into the sexy as sin guy who stood him up when he was in gryphon territory. No, that’s not true, the really last thing he expects is the guy is actually King Gundhram. Wait, nope, the absolute last thing he expects is that Gundhram is his mate. What did he do to the universe that the guy who humiliated him, turns out the be the guy he has to spend the rest of his life with?

Gundhram never wanted to rule, but the death of the mage ambassador left his sister in a bad spot, and he returned to Presque Isle to help her deal with the mage inquisitor sent to investigate the murder. How much did karma hate him that the inquisitor turned out to be the guy he’d rejected ten months earlier, but couldn’t get out of his thoughts? Or that this hotter than dragon fire mage still singed his scales like no one else. Finding out they were mates, however, was the ultimate pay back.

Before they settle into the whole mate thing, someone tries to murder Gund’s sister, and Leo nearly dies trying to save her. Once Leo recovers, he and Gund discover the attempted murder was just a diversion for the real threat. When they try to prevent that ultimate threat, they learn, there is an even more ultimate one waiting in the wings. With all the threats emerging, spending the rest of their lives together might not even be long enough to have a proper date.

Under a Spell is 75K word, fated mates romance with a grumpy dragon king, a snarky mage, and a guaranteed happily-ever-after. This is the third book in the Mages and Mates series and includes a jealous ex, some very revealing spandex, and a mystery with more layers than you’d need to wear to go outside on a frigid winter day in Maine.

• Publisher: ; 1st edition (March 26, 2024)

• Publication date: March 26, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 268 pages