Category: 5 star Rating

Review: A Clap of Thunder (Arcane Hearts #6) by Nazri Noor

Rating: 4.75🌈

When I finished a Hand of Glory, the fifth in Nazri Noor’s Arcane Heaets series, A Clap of Thunder was supposed to be the series finale and I was wondering how all the many complicated storylines were going to be resolved in one novel.

Turns out they aren’t and I’m thrilled the author chose this path rather then cram all the answers into a overly dense narrative where something has to give. There’s going to be another book after this one and after all the events that occur here? It’s got it’s own action packed mission to fulfill as well as wind down the series.

A Clap of Thunder continues to see Noor using his incredible imagination to bring new characters and elements into this universe. We get new schools of magic, their universities, and Professors. Each uniquely endowed with fascinating magical themes, beautifully defined elements, and mystical beings.

Noor has created different spells associated with each type of magic too, one’s that continually expand as our found family of mages and artificers grow their potential magically and become more powerful within their respective guilds.

This is a richly complex universe that contains multiple species, realms, even gods. And all the tortured, convoluted relationships that comes with all that.

Newly engaged couple Jackson Pryde and Xander Wright are happy, in love, and working on rebuilding the shattered home of the guild of artificers while still investigating the origin of the purple Chrysanthemum crystals which has terrorized their home, the Black Market, and the various universities.

Greyhaven, Xander’s university, was the recent site of a savage raid by infected Fae and now it’s headmistress intends to invade the Realm of the Fae.

It a painful tumultuous time for all and it’s captured vividly in scene after scene, from the Black Market to Greyhaven to Philippine jungles and beaches. Always keeping our group together and their dynamics front and center.

Still there is more here to uncover and investigate if they, including Lore, the first family AI, can get all the memories from the second newly found AI cube, Whitby. How I adore Lore. It’s a enormous mystery pertaining to Jackson’s parents deaths and the explosions that destroyed the artificers guild.

Then there’s the heart of Oberon. And the Fae themselves.

So many inventive, fantastic storylines here, and one great twist.

No cliffhanger. And we are ready for The Claws of Winter coming in February of 2023.

I can’t wait. This is a wildly entertaining and complicated story, with great characters , magical actions and battles! Dragons even!

Plus a loving couple with a bit of kink.

I’m highly recommending Arcane Hearts as it’s winding down, A Clap of Thunder is a highly entertaining read!

They must be read in the order they are written to understand the characters, relationships, and universe.

Arcane Hearts series, 6 of 7 books:

✓ A Touch of Fever #1

✓ A Stroke of Brilliance #2

✓ An Iron Fist #3

✓ A Velvet Glove #4

✓ Hand of Glory #5

✓ A Clap of Thunder #6

◦ The Claws of Winter #7 – Feb 24, 2023 (series finale)

https://www.goodreads.com › showA Clap of Thunder (Arcane Hearts, #6) by Nazri Noor – Goodreads

Some secrets are best left buried.

Jackson Pryde and Xander Wright are happier than ever. The guild of artificers grows stronger thanks to the Black Market’s masters. The second AI is awakening, closer to divulging its forgotten secrets. And most shocking of all, Jackson has finally invented something worth selling.

But war is brewing in the arcane underground. Madame Catherine Grayhaven does not forgive easily. The grand dame of the elite academy has rallied her students for a vengeful attack on the Verdance, the realm of the fae.

Jackson and Xander join the fight with their own motives: find King Oberon and hold him accountable for his crimes. But what awaits beyond the portal may shatter everything they believe in.

A Clap of Thunder is a 65,000-word M/M urban fantasy romance with a HFN ending. Join a fast-talking artificer and a snarky sorcerer, childhood friends who become bitter enemies, then lovers, as they explore a world filled with strange flora, mythical fauna, and magical murders. If you like your urban fantasy with humor, horror, and a whole lot of heart, you’ve come to the right place. Experience A Clap of Thunder today.

Review: Elusive Relations (Valor and Doyle Mysteries #2) by Nicky James

Rating: 5 🌈

From the seething long- standing animosity between their two departments, Homicide and MPC , has emerged an incredible series and two books to date focused on a detective from each department. Each man with his own personal traumas and battles, opposing personalities, differing family histories, as well as departmental bad blood between them.

From these basic elements, as well as cold cases and murder mysteries, James has built one of the most fascinating, compelling growing character dynamics I’ve read recently.

Temporary Partner, the first in the series, established the men’s background and departmental histories. A joint case, temporary partners and a cease fire within departments, meant these men had to work together to solve a complicated awful crime with emotional implications for both. It was revelatory for each, personally and professionally.

Shattering assumptions about each other, breaking personal boundaries, in ending up in a one night stand neither can forget about.

Elusive Relations begins as detectives Quaid Valor and Aslan Doyle return physically to their departments and lives, but emotionally it’s each other they’re trying not to think about. It’s all about denial.

Aslan’s coping with his alcoholism, his recovery, AA meetings, and his unhappiness with his social life. And exactly what that means. While Quaid is in a recovery of a different sort, that of having left an abusive relationship, feeling a failure, and alone.

James has created such rich layered portraits of men still working through fundamental issues within themselves, with grief, doubt, deep pain, and emotional resolve that you can’t help but believe in them completely. Whether it’s alone or with support, it comes across as absolutely raw and realistic.

These are elements that each man will continue to work on, grow with throughout both books and, I anticipate, the series. They are deep seated issues, and with alcoholism, a lifelong recovery.

As Aslan’s Homicide Unit arrives to investigate a crime whose victim has unexpected ties to Quaid, the men and departments join forces once more in a case that becomes increasingly convoluted. As well as deeply painful.

The author manages to balance a slow growing relationship between Az and Quaid, the detailed investigation with its revelations, and multiple other seemingly minor storylines that will swing back with a huge impact. There’s no holes, things that look like dead ends aren’t exactly, but just a sideways hill to the right direction. Great mystery btw.

But the heart is really the developing nature of the relationship between Az and Quaid that could so easily be derailed by a misstep by one person. It’s of such a tentative stage that it adds it’s own anxiety and suspense to the storyline.

And then that heartbreaking ending.

I am not a fan of cliffhangers. But this is different. Not one of action but of information. It’s shattering.

And I have to wait until October to see what happens next. But considering how the arc has played out so far, I’m not sure the mystery will be solved in that book either. It’s that’s deep, and has a long process behind it. I’ll be happy to have several more novels to go.

Until then, I’m highly recommending this series and absolutely Elusive Relations (Valor and Doyle Mysteries #2) by Nicky James.

It’s beautifully written, outstanding characters, fantastic arc, slow burn romance. The books must be read in the order they were written for characters histories, relationships, and arc development.

Valor and Doyle Mysteries:

✓ Temporary Partner #1

✓ Elusive Relations #2

◦ Unstable Connections #3 – October 17, 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showElusive Relations (Valor and Doyle Mysteries, #2) by Nicky James – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Life was easier when rival detectives, Quaid Valor and Aslan Doyle, kept to their own sides of the building. They could forget the one glorious night they’d shared and move on.

But when Aslan is called to a homicide and discovers one of the victims has a personal history with Quaid, he knows a confrontation is inevitable.

When news about the case spreads, Quaid can’t help but get involved. He wants answers; if not for himself, then for the families of the victims.

Joining Aslan and his partner, Quaid uncovers more than he bargained for—too many secrets and lies in a case that is dangerously personal.

Plus, the more time he spends with Aslan, the harder it is for Quaid to ignore his attraction to the playboy detective.

Aslan, who doesn’t believe in repeats, can’t seem to stop flirting with the grumpy MPU detective, and his rules go out the window as they’re drawn deeper into the case.

But what happens when one more night turns to two, and two turns into three?

Does Quaid want to risk his heart again?

Has Aslan developed feelings?

Can they put a stop to their fun and walk away?

Do they want to?

**The Valor and Doyle Mysteries are a same-couple, ongoing series and should be read in order. The main mystery plot of each book will be resolved within the story, but there are elements that are overarching throughout the series**

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Broken In by B.A. Tortuga

Rating: 5🌈

Broken In, B.A. Tortuga’s new release , is definitely my favorite of all her most recent stories.

It’s got all the elements I expect from a B.A. Tortuga tale, but elevated into well developed, beautifully defined book, where every aspect of the story and all the characters damaged past histories flow smoothly into a believable reunion and grounded heartfelt loving future.

The start doesn’t reflect the depth the story and characters will achieve as the story unfolds. First it’s a bit of the men’s combined past, their failure as Greyson Hayden is asked to leave his home and his lover of many years due to his alcoholism. Kyler Lassiter has packed up Greyson’s bags and told him to get help, get sober. Because he doesn’t love Kyler enough to do it together.

It’s a heartbreaking scene for all it’s shortness.

Fast forward to a successful now sober Greyson Hayden who’s returning to the small town he left as a drunk and the ex who asked him to leave.

Tortuga doesn’t shy away from the very human mixed bag of emotions Hayden is bringing with him to town. Tortuga writes believable people, and that means that they come with feelings and thoughts that aren’t always very admirable.

It’s all Greyson to begin with in the narrative. He’s been through the program, he’s got a sponsor he’s working with (we meet him later), he’s realistic about being a alcoholic. But he’s also someone who’s still hurting over the past. Right or wrong.

And just when the reader wants to give him a kick in the conscience about who’s to blame for his actions, Greyson himself gives himself a mental talking to, and corrects course.

Because he’s become a responsible adult. He’s grown up. And just like that , human foibles and all, you are in this man’s corner.

Which is exactly what the story and character needs when the reunion happens.

I won’t spoil Kyler Lassiter for you and his part of the story. It’s huge. It’s so emotional. It’s also realistic in keeping with the character and the setting. But how I love that man. He might be one of Tortuga’s finest characters.

I’ll leave it at that.

Showcased here at the highest level are the following elements:

⁃ The author’s ability to fully explore with grace and sensitivity important topics such as alcoholism and disabilities within the framework of her characters.

⁃ Tortuga’s regional knowledge of the land and culture to enrich the story and characters by creating a foundation so real it’s never in doubt.

⁃ This extended to the love of horses as well as bulls here. The horses were a living, breathing part of this book. I felt them as much as the people. Same went for Snow.

⁃ Food. Enchiladas, breakfast burritos, stuffed sopapillas, tacos, “Christmas flat enchiladas with an egg”, stuffed sopapilla with ground beef, guac, and Christmas”, and just like that my mouth is watering and I need to have a seat in that restaurant with them! Then honey and fried bread. Hmmmm.

⁃ Tortuga’s cellular level talent with colloquialisms. There’s the familiar Lord have mercy and God help me, but also the perfect

“Pie crust promises.”

Broken In by BA Tortuga

If that doesn’t describe a promise that’s temporary I don’t know what does.

I found a new one here, asking for Christmas as in:

““Do you want green, red, or Christmas?” “Christmas, please.” Ky beamed at him. “I love both types of chile.””

— Broken In by BA Tortuga

Again, don’t you just want to go ask for some of whatever they are having just to say that?

The author’s ability to craft dialogue that’s grounded in the region, as well as the people is outstanding. It contributes to pulling us into their lives, the universe, and all the emotions playing out in the situations they find themselves in.

One last thing. The realism as it pertains to the medical aspects of this story. That’s a raw deal for so many people who live in area like the ranches here where care is so spread out that what’s offered is almost nonexistent. It’s a reality faced here inside the story and for many in real life.

Combined with all the other elements here, it makes Broken In by BA Tortuga one of the most amazing contemporary romances I’ve read lately.

I’m highly recommending this. It went very quickly, including that wonderful epilogue.

Add this to your list of books to read!

https://www.goodreads.com › showBroken In by B.A. Tortuga – Goodreads

Greyson Hayden wants to prove to his ex that he’s made it. He’s a successful stock contractor with a couple of million dollar bulls, a ranch owner with more acres than he can count, and he stopped drinking when Kyler kicked him out. He’s had a lot to prove, but now he’s back in town to show Kyler that he has. And maybe rub it in.

The hardest thing Kyler Lassiter ever did was let Greyson go, and he’s lost a lot in his life, right up to his legs in a terrible accident. He’s willing to let Greyson one up him if it makes the man feel better, but when fate throws them together again in the most bizarre way, Ky isn’t sure he’ll survive it, or having to lose Greyson again when it’s all said and done.
Can these two hardheaded cowboys learn to forgive each other, and themselves in time to find something lasting, or are they more broken than broken in?

This is a MM cowboy romance with tough love, tough luck, and lots of learning to be something new.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Boyfriend Goals by Riley Hart

Rating: 4.75🌈

I was looking for a contemporary romance to read after finishing a urban fantasy, and picked up Boyfriend Goals by Riley Hart.

What a utter pleasure this was to read! Low angst, a plot driven by fully realized characters in situations that allows them to grow, finding home and true love in a totally relatable,real way.

I went to sleep thinking about Milo and Gideon, their happy life together, friends and family. And they are still with me now.

Hart’s decision to have Milo be neurodivergent is a great one although it might spark some confusion or controversy. Milo is a wonderful character, who’s neurodivergence has effected his life since birth. It’s how he handles it now that will speak to the reader and Gideon.

As I understand it, neurodivergence “now refers to any structured, consistent way that brains work differently for a group of people than they do for the majority of others.”The sources I referenced many different types of neurodivergence, including Autism, which is referred to a couple of times here.

I’m not in touch with the author so I’ve no idea what Milo’s character framework was when planning this story. Whatever it is works! Milo feels so believable and alive for me. His interactions with Gideon, and the others in the community are credible. Whether it’s a new one on one situation or one that’s got Milo in a very stressful place, Hart’s writing is so terrific that it easily conveys that’s this a real life event for him.

Gideon too is a beautifully layered person. His dynamics within his family and how it’s worked through emotionally is heartwarming and heartfelt. Insecurities have no age limit and that’s especially true here.

Hart could have made Milo’s mother more one dimensional instead we get a moving relationship, fundamentally strong with two people who love each other. Again, such a great element among many.

By the end of the story, I was absolutely in love with Milo and Gideon, their combined stores, INK & INK, their new lives together and their community. What a wonderful life!

What a grand story! And one I’m highly recommending!

https://www.goodreads.com › showBoyfriend Goals by Riley Hart – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Milo
Unusual. Quirky. Different. I’ve heard it all. I’ve accepted I’m not for everyone. Maybe not anyone.

When I find out I inherited a bookstore and apartment on a small East Coast island, I jump at the chance for a new life.

Turns out, I’ve also inherited a sexy, tattooed guy who not only rents the space next to my store for his tattoo parlor but my apartment too.

Did I mention he’s really hot?

And surprisingly sweet?

Gideon
I wasn’t looking for a roommate, but it’s not like I can stay at Milo’s place while he’s banished to a hotel.

Our unlikely friendship is instant. According to Milo, we’re bestie goals.

And if he doesn’t wear pants at home, who am I to complain?

Milo’s not like anyone I’ve ever known. I like laughing and flirting with him. He’s adorably honest, eager, and sexier than he realizes.

Now I just have to figure out how to convince him that maybe it’s time for an upgrade from bestie to boyfriend goals.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Malicious Midpoint (Demon Magic #3) by Alice Winters

Rating: 4.75 🌈

Malicious Midpoint is the third of Alice Winters’ Demon Magic series and it’s my favorite to date. It’s a great mixture of the author’s signature snarky dialogue, quirky likable characters, which is combined with a magically twisted dark plot that’s pulled from all the previous novels. One that unexpectedly eschews the expectations of humor, ending up with emotionally moving scenes that deepen our connections with this very odd group of beings.

Not that humorous elements are left out! Far from it. There’s a scene or two that actually causes a spit take ! Waterbeds indeed! The growing family of Miles, Havoc, Menace, and others who often end up in their home or part of the peculiar intimate circle of friends are added to and, have their bonds tightened by the events here.

And it all starts so easily. With just a book and a boom!

Winters weaves a tale of love, darkness, tortured pasts, loss, family, and reclamation into something extraordinary. Just when you think the pain and darkness is unrelenting, there’s that aspect of humor to pull everything up before it’s plunging back down again.

Then there’s that ending. It’s weighing on me. Everywhere I see this is noted as 3 of 3 books in the series but this is very much an unfinished arc with so many storylines left unresolved.

It’s why this isn’t a 5 rating. Will there be more books? Another related series? I don’t know. I do know if you’re like me you won’t feel completely satisfied by this ending.

I’m still thrilled by Malicious Midpoint. But is it really instead the midpoint of this series? Is that my takeaway?

If someone has the scoop, please contact me.

In the meantime, I’m highly recommending Malicious Midpoint (Demon Magic #3) by Alice Winters and all the books that preceded it.

Demon Magic series:

🔹Shadow’s Origin #0.5

🔹Happy Endings #1

🔹Familiar Beginnings #2

🔹Malicious Midpoint #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showMalicious Midpoint (Demon Magic #3) by Alice Winters – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Nothing can go wrong with being in love with a demon and having a dragon familiar whose idea of a fun time is watching me plummet to the ground, right? Now that things have settled down, I’m hoping to finally get some peace and quiet to spend with Havoc.

Instead, we get a guy who can walk the river of the dead, a centaur that seems allergic to pants, and an angel who has only one true love: himself.

This is the group of misfits I’ve been given to protect the district.

Sometimes I can’t help but wonder how we stopped an unbelievably powerful dark mage.

After finding a strange book in the middle of the woods that seems to be connected to curse magic, I find myself in the presence of someone from my past… someone I never expected to meet again. As the clues lead us into a district on the brink of destruction, Havoc and I realize that in order to stop the district from collapsing and taking down our friends with it, we can’t do it alone. With the assistance of my chaotic crew, we are going to stop this darkness before it consumes those we care about.

But everything comes at a cost because when you work with magic, nothing is predictable.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: A Shattered Silver Crown (San Amaro Investigations #4) by Kai Butler

Rating: 5🌈

What a moving, funny, and gobsmackingly magnificent book A Shattered Silver Crown is! It’s my favorite of four stories to date in Kai Butler’s fantastic San Amaro Investigations , a series that’s gotten more breathtaking in scope with each novel. Butler seems to be envisioning the future of the universe as well as character growth as something so wildly different, so unexpected that with every new case or turn in the story, the reader never knows what emotionally the impact will bring. On the characters and us.

It could be warm-hearted scenes between the growing found family living with Parker Ferro. It could be wildly humorous ones with brownies determined to have their be dazzling way, or heartbreaking ones as Parker deals with the emotional fallout of his past and his identity. All while investigating cases that could shatter worlds.

Butler’s writing here is just superb. The ramifications from the deep draining family issues that have come from the deaths and devastating events from the previous books are a major factor here. Lauren, Parker’s sister, isn’t right. How this is handled is incredible.

Love, whether it’s family or romantic, and it’s complications , especially when the Fae are involved is a enormous element here. Especially because Parker is Fae. The balancing act he has to make between his two lives is becoming more perilous and harder to do.

Butler’s ability to bring us inside Parker’s often anguished emotional state is heartbreaking and painful. We are so committed to him and want him to succeed even as the odds are increasing against him.

The magical scenes of battle are powerful and believable, imaginative and thrilling. You can feel the heat of the flames around the people you care about!

At the end, the case here has been resolved. But the cost has been high. And there’s hints of a high danger on the horizon. As well as one on the doorstep.

There’s another book, The Heart’s Blood Arrow, coming out Nov 7, 2022. It says it’s the 5 and last story in the series. But honestly, I can’t understand how this unbelievably complicated universe and themes can be wrapped up in one book. It seems unlikely.

I’m highly anticipating that book. But until then, this series is amazing. Read it in the order it’s written. They are not standalone books.

I’m highly recommending each and every one, especially A Shattered Silver Crown (San Amaro Investigations #4) by Kai Butler .

San Amara Investigations Series:

◦ A Haunting at Midnight #0.5

◦ A Debt Unpaid #0.75

✓ Wormwood Summer #1

✓ A Belated Burial #1.5

✓ The Oak Wood Throne #2

✓ A Gilded Iron Blade #3

✓ A Shattered Silver Crown #4

◦ The Heart’s Blood Arrow #5 – November 7, 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showA Shattered Silver Crown by Kai Butler – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Parker Ferro is fine.

Sure, he’s still recovering from his last case and his sister has started keeping secrets, but that’s just another day in the life of the Windrose of San Amaro.

Then the local werewolf alpha calls in a favor when he’s turned on by his own pack and the last thing Parker wants to do is get mired in the city’s pack politics. Throw in the recent murder of a local cult leader with disturbing connections to the hidden fae in San Amaro, a long lost relative showing up to reconnect, and a group of brownies taking up residence in his car, and Parker cannot catch a break.

Hopefully he can solve this case and figure out some family secrets before everything blows up in his face, taking the city along with it.

A Shattered Silver Crown is a 120k MM urban fantasy with a HFN ending and an ongoing storyline. It cannot be read as a standalone.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Killer Honeymoon (Sawyer and Royce: Matrimony and Mayhem #3) by Aimee Nicole Walker

Rating: 5 🌈

Killer Honeymoon wraps up the second series for the detective couple of Sawyer Key and Royce Locke. Their story starts with the wonderful Zero Hour trilogy and now, temporarily at least, concludes with their wedding and a honeymoon almost to die for in this last story of the Matrimony and Mayhem trilogy arc.

What a truly entertaining story Killer Honeymoon proves to be. Walker incorporates all the elements that we expect from the couple’s relationship, humor, thoughtful introspection, respect, and deep abiding love as well as a heathy sex life, and weaves a tale of murder carried out in a tiny resort town. One that they’re honeymooning in.

We get a moving wedding, a hilarious jaunt to their destination, and then a lakeside mystery and murder worthy of any fabulous cozy!

Walker never lets our focus off of the fact that it’s Sawyer and Royce’s honeymoon, with all the resplendent joy and happiness they have in the fact they are each other’s husbands, with a new future and family ahead of them. We get to revel in that along with them.

Whether they are investigating a element of the murder, or a break in, some aspect of the fact they are newly married threads into the picture. It’s lovely. Plus the manner in which they establish a pattern to investigate just says partners in every way. Walker’s writing is so amazing here pulling all the elements together on so many levels.

As always, the surrounding cast is a solid aspect of the story. They are well defined and just plain terrific characters. From the cranky Frank to the spiraling Evan, each is believable.

It’s a neat mystery and is wrapped up in a suspenseful, edgy climax. Outstanding.

The ending is so good. And leaves us and them in a great place with the ability to make a return sometime in the future. Honestly, we need now to see more of Dolly.

Walker has two more books in the works that relates to this universe, one specific to the end of this story.

The next will be Topher Carnegie’s story (and Julian Fine’s) in About Last Night. Expect to see that September 20, 2022.

Then finally Emilio Mendoza and Abe Beecham get their romance in Just Say When. That’s out on December 20, 2022. Be still my heart!

That’s two novels to look forward to!

And I expect Walker’s not done with these guys just yet.

I’m highly recommending this and all the series novels.

Read them in the order they are written for the full character relationship development!

❤️Sawyer and Royce: Matrimony and Mayhem series:

✓ The Magnolia Murders #1

✓ Marriage is Murder #2

✓ Killer Honeymoon #3

Same universe- pending releases

🔹About Last Night – September 20, 2022.

🔹Just Say When – December 20, 2022.

The Zero Hour Trilogy preceded this one.

https://www.goodreads.com › showKiller Honeymoon by Aimee Nicole Walker – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Honeymoon, happily ever after, and…homicide?

Newlyweds, Royce Locke and Sawyer Key, embark on a honeymoon road trip where their biggest threat should be dodging drunk tourists on golf carts. But their arrival on South Bass Island lands them in the middle of a contentious battle between lifelong islanders and a property developer who won’t accept no for an answer. Tempers soar as the barometric pressure drops, signaling a dangerous storm brewing on the horizon and across the street. Minding their own business becomes impossible when a homicide wrecks their vacation and puts Royce and Sawyer in the path of a twisted killer.

Will their honeymoon be two tickets to paradise or a one-way trip to the morgue?

Killer Honeymoon is book three in the Matrimony and Mayhem trilogy, the second story arc for Royce Locke and Sawyer Key. ** New readers should start with the Zero Hour trilogy before reading Matrimony and Mayhem. ** Killer Honeymoon is a continuation of Royce and Sawyer’s happily ever after as they move into the next phase of their lives—professionally and personally. Though some storylines span the trilogy, this book does not end in a cliffhanger. Heat, humor, heart, and homicide abound. You have been warned. 18+

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Rarely Pure and Never Simple (Varient Configurations Book#1) by Angel Martinez

Rating: 5🌈

Angel Martinez is a auto buy for me for a reason and Rarely Pure and Never Simple (Varient Configurations Book#1) is a fantastic example why.

We get a taste of the world the events take place so quickly. So typically Martinez. Breathtakingly simple in her ability to deliver a picture of a world rendered apart, catastrophically environmentally destroyed in the not too past, by some stark concise phrasing.

Same goes for the Varients. Humans , that appeared during the chemical wars, with genetic alterations that allowed each to have specific, if undetermined or not understood talents.

Varients are feared , misunderstood, and of course, used by various governments for their talents. Yes, the Varients vs Real Human movement should strike many nerves. It’s right on point.

This is outside or rather flows around the main plot of variant Damien Hazelwood. He’s a locator, only of humans. Damien’s a very damaged soul. His brutal background is one that will be revealed slowly over the story.

I love Damien. He’s broken, has so many layers, and yet still reaches out, despite himself. What an amazing character.

The other person to accompany him on the mission is another infamous variant. Blaze Emerson, a tracker and a person capable of handling dangerous situations they might come into contact with. Blaze has a reputation that precedes him as a angry personality and someone who’s hard to get along with.

It’s justified. He’s also had a past where he’s been unfairly judged , he’s been left, and hurt. He’s a complicated man. Blaze is so undeniably believable that you feel the anger and mistrust radiating off of him.

Their mission? Find 40 missing varient kids.

It’s a chilling mission made more so by the fact the men need to find a way to at least work together, tolerate each other’s differences, especially when things start to go wrong.

I really don’t want to say too much here. There’s another character that’s intriguing that’s brought into the mix. The dynamics that begin to grow between Blaze and Damien is halting and slow, as it should be due to each man’s tumultuous history and emotional damage.

But that ending. So full of hope. I need that next story. And I need it now. These are compelling people. And Rarely Pure and Never Simple (Varient Configurations Book#1) by Angel Martinez is proving to be one of those quietly moving but addictive starts to a new series I can’t and won’t resist!

So I’m highly recommending it! And anxiously awaiting the next in the series.

Varient Configurations :

🔹Rarely Pure and Never Simple #1

🔹From the Noblest of Motives – fall 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showRarely Pure and Never Simple by Angel Martinez – Goodreads

Description:

Variant children are vanishing at an alarming rate. It will take a uniquely mismatched pair of trackers to untangle a web of conspiracy and misdirection to find them.

In his isolated cabin, variant Damien Hazelwood avoids human contact as much as possible to prevent attacks of blind berserker panic. But his rare talent as a locator makes him the go-to contractor for tricky missing person’s cases and when agents bring him a troubling contract involving missing variant children, he finds it impossible to refuse.

Licensed tracker Blaze Emerson can’t help being irritated when he’s expected to follow the strange, twitchy locator’s lead on his latest case. He works alone, he’s damn good, and as a variant sparker, he has both the fire and the firepower to take on anything out there. Though he has to admit there’s something intriguing about a man who can find people with his brain.

With vastly different temperaments and backgrounds, Damien and Blaze need to negotiate quickly how to work together if they’re going to crack this case. Add in the sudden appearance of Blaze’s outlaw ex, the perils of tracking in the wilds, and a maddening lack of discernible motive or method, and they soon find themselves in as much danger as the kids they’re trying to rescue.

Variant Configurations takes place in a future Earth where humanity is reclaiming its spot in a gradually healing world. This book contains mentions of past abuse, action-adventure style mayhem, and the beginning sparks of a slow burn, series-spanning relationship.

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Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: The Doctor (Magic and Steam #3) by C. S. Poe

Rating: 5🌈

Sawbones. The doctor behind all the heinous experiments and the battlefield nightmares. A sadist now being hunted and who’s hunting.

The Doctor starts off on the cliffhanger of a heartbreaker of that ending in The Gangster. Then it ended with a explosive revelation by Gillian Hamilton just as the DC Special Agents were flooding the building he and his outlaw lover, Gunner the Deadly, were in. Gillian forced Gunner to leave for his safety, before turning to face the unknown.

Now we know the results that awful day. Gillian Hamilton has lost everything. He’s been imprisoned by the Council, under conditions that have him losing his sanity and hope.

It’s a truly chilling opener.

We’re inside his mind and just so devastated as he’s emotionally bereft without Gunner’s loving support. He’s isolated, tortured, and still aware of all the sinister elements and evil characters in play around him.

Poe’s writing distills the horrors of Gillian’s state of mind as well as his physical damage with a cold conciseness.

The complicated storylines and whereabouts of the characters we care about are threaded neatly through the plot as Poe advances Gillian’s plight from stage to stage.

The suspense is tight and fraught with anxiety for Gillian’s safety. Poe starts to introduce more steampunk elements as well as horror aspects as the plot expands to bring in more characters and bigger sinister details.

I am so addicted to this couple and series. So of course, The Doctor ends on a moment of heartbreaking revelation once more. One, however, the reader was somewhat prepared for this time.

The Councilman will do you need to go is that what you’re telling me OK

Magic & Steam series to date:

🔹The Engineer #1

🔹The Gangster #2

🔹The Doctor #3

🔹The Councilman #4 – Release TBD

Another outstanding cover.

Cover art: Reese Dante

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Doctor (Magic & Steam, #3) by C.S. Poe – Goodreads

https://www.cspoe.comC.S. Poe | Homepage

Synopsis:

1882—Gillian Hamilton, magic caster and Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Magic and Steam, has been stripped of his title, badge, and freedom. Gillian’s true name and powers have been exposed, so now he’s kept under lock and key. To make a tragedy worse, Gunner the Deadly has returned to his life out in the Wild West and has not been heard from since.

Rumors of a doctor, known only as Sawbones, with access to illegal magic have persisted into the new year. Gillian believes that violence, chaos, and certain death will befall New York City if this criminal isn’t apprehended. And despite having lost his sense of purpose, Gillian knows he’s the only one capable of confronting this new madman—with or without the backing of the FBMS.

But such dangers should never be undertaken alone. Gillian will need both Gunner’s deadeye marksmanship, as well as his love, if he’s to detain Sawbones before irreparable damage is done to the magic of his world.

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Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: A Mage’s Guide to Aussie Terrors (R’iyah Family Archives: Volume 2) by A. J. Sherwood

Rating: 5 🌈

It’s been waaay too long since the first time I met this zany, fabulous found family of MAD monster hunters. A Mage’s Guide to Human Familiars was the beginning of the R’iyah Family Archive series. It introduces us to Bel Adams, a red-eyed R’iyah mage who’s part demon, in need of a new familiar because of a traumatically bad first bonding.

He gets a fabulous BOGO in the forms of new familiar, Nico di Rossi, Army Ranger, who gets a change of pace and a new purpose in life. Then Nico brings into their mix, Garen Dallarosa, former Secret Service. He’s part Gargoyle and soon he’s also the other familiar. And lover to them both.

It’s a great triad of a mage with his new familiars/lovers.

But it’s not ending there. We get a team comprised of a totally entertaining Wicky, bonded with Lia , along with Bel’s foster parents. And of course Grandpa!

Honestly, the sublime joy that is that story!

How I missed all of them!

The book picks up on the anniversary of Bel’s devastating breaking of his first bond. That event left Bel comatose, and afraid to summon a new familiar until the organization he works for, MAD, forced his hand.

Bel’s trauma has left him with PTSD, and he’s kept these past damaging facts from his lovers/familiars.

The sexy, loving triad is a wonderful relationship here. Supportive, well defined according to each character’s changing needs , and personality. It’s so interesting and heartwarming, especially for Bel, who’s need for such depth of love and happiness is so strong compared to his upbringing.

The entire team is back, especially Wicky, who’s dynamic with Nico, his brother from another mother, has been one of the most entertaining aspects of the books. That continues here.

There are monsters to hunt, but the serious elements here are the personal ones. Dealing really with confronting the “monster “ from the past. The real one, the enormous emotional ones that have caused the continuing trauma to Bel and threatens his bond to his familiars.

That’s handled beautifully too. Not all monsters have enormous scales , some are human , selfish, impulsive brutes.

Did I love this book? Why yes I did. Again I was so excited to see everyone, including Grandpa! And the hounds.

Plus we get the news that the next story is Wicky’s. The anticipation is off the scales.

I highly recommend both books of the R’iyah Family Archives, including this one. There’s no date for Wicky’s story. Stay posted.

R’iyah Family Archives:

🔹A Mage’s Guide to Human Familiars #1

🔹A Mage’s Guide to Aussie Terrors #2

https://www.goodreads.com › showA Mage’s Guide to Aussie Terrors by AJ Sherwood – Goodreads

Synopsis:

One ghost from the past.

Two unknown Australian monsters eating people.

Three men who won’t let either problem win.


Tags:

Familiars of choice, healing old wounds, Australian mythology, yes Nico and Wicky are in Australia, that goes about as well as anyone expects, giant amphibians of unusual size, even the MAD research department is stumped, Wicky may have summoned Godzilla, in his defense he was left unsupervised, conversations via air guitar, the next time they have to travel to a different continent Bel is drugging Nico first

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Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.