Review: Sweet As Pie by Beth Bolden

Rating: 5🌈

Beth Bolden’s Sweet As Pie is everything I needed and all I love about contemporary romances. This genre is able to encompass so many different styles, elements, types of characters and storylines that I can choose right now between a beautifully written novel about grief and loss or this heartwarming tale of family, food, and two chefs in need of each other.

Bolden’s story called to my heart at the right time. Letting me know I needed her superbly written tale of a romantic journey between two lonely hardworking chefs. One from a large Italian family of California restaurateurs and the other a baker of exquisite pastries in a small South Carolina town , Indigo Cove, with a romantic legacy that bears his family name.

Luca Moretti, a family of restaurateurs we’ve met before in Food Truck Warriors, is instantly recognizable as the overworked (self induced) , tightly controlled brother who sees himself as the person who has sacrificed himself for his family. He’s intense and very stubborn.

And believable. I’m sure there’s some readers who are able to see him as someone they know. Bolden makes his personality and our ability to further understand him enlarge when he meets baker Oliver Billings.

Oliver, a genuine creative genius with baked goods and a fine businessman, understands Luca in a way his own family hasn’t been able to. Kindred spirits from opposite sides of the country.

They bond over food, Luca’s mission to save his aunt’s deli, their love of family with all its attending issues, and finally their love for each other.

I was so caught up in their love story, this small world of people, and , yes, the food they were creating, that I hardly noticed the time.

The author is able to pull me into this world so completely for so many reasons. One it’s her love of her subject matter. Not love, but food.

Beth Bolden is an excellent conveyor of her passion for food and its chefs. Whether she’s writing about bakers or sous chefs, chefs in fine restaurants or those madly cooking fare in food trucks, it always feels, passionate, authentic , exhilarating, with the aromas and , yes, flavors, coming through the pages.

I’ve drooled while reading these pages.

And her characters are rich with warmth, lively with humor, living, breathing human beings that capture your heart and mind.

This is a book that will be a comfort read for me. Give it a chance. I bet it will be for you too.

It’s a must have and must read!

Sweet As Pie is everything!

Related Series:

Food Truck Warriors series

Buy Link:

Sweet as Pie: a MM Grumpy/Sunshine Standalone188Kindle Edition$5.99

Description:

Luca Moretti is grumpy—and he wouldn’t have it any other way.

Wrangling six—Italian—siblings and the family’s restaurants would make anyone cranky. But when his mother requests that he save his aunt’s struggling Italian deli in charming, picturesque Indigo Bay, he has no idea that he’s about to overdose on sweetness.

Luca expected his aunt’s stubbornness—she’s a Moretti, isn’t she?—and his cousin’s resistance to actual work, but the last thing he expected is the absolute ball of sunshine known as Oliver Billings.

Oliver loves Indigo Bay. Loves owning his small artisan bakery, Sweetie Pie’s. Helps nice old ladies cross the street. Even volunteers for the local Sweethearts Festival.

Sweet isn’t really Luca’s style, or so he thinks. But when he discovers Oliver can be a little spicy too, his prickly exterior begins to crumble like a well-baked crust.

If Luca isn’t careful, he’s going to develop a taste for sweets—and a particular baker’s pie.

And one or two servings will never be enough.

Review: In-Laws Vs Outlaws ( Hitman Vs Hitman Book 5) by Cari Z and L.A. Witt

Rating: 4.75🌈

Say it isn’t so! The final story In authors Cari Z and L.A. WItt series, Hitman Vs Hitman is here. Those two irascible, delicious, utterly murderous, incredibly wealthy couple, August Morrison and Ricardo Torralba, are getting married.

Of course, it’s utter mayhem and madness when you have the large, warm hearted Torralba family hosting the wedding and meeting August’s parents, the patrician and decidedly less enthusiastic billionaire business billionaires for the first time.

Add in a ex wife, ex detective, ex Mafia boss, all friends now, and what could go wrong?

The authors lay in the humorous aspects of this story but also, not surprisingly, give us the doubts, the family dynamics issues, and all the deeply human elements that erupt during such a momentous time. Areas where the men need to examine their own lives and relationships in order to move forward.

I adored this. It showcased exactly why we’ve come to love this couple and continue with their journey book after book.

So, do I believe the authors are really done with them? Hmmm. Let’s just say if the men start speaking loudly after retirement, I won’t be surprised to see another story eventually emerge.

They are truly hard to say goodbye to.

I’m recommending you read the series and then this story. It’s got the best of both men, the heart and the soul. Great way to see them out.

Hitman Vs Hitman series:

✓ Hitman Vs Hitman #1

✓ Sniper vs Spotter #2

✓ Killer vs Kingpin #3

✓ Cop vs Capo #4

✓ In-Laws vs Outlaws #5 – finale. That’s what they said.

Buy Link:

In-Laws vs. Outlaws (Hitman vs Hitman Book 5)

Description:

Really, guys? Seriously?

A fifth book after we said you were getting a standalone?

Oh, and now you want a wedding. Because you’ve made it through four books and—

You know what? Fine. But we’re not going easy on you.

Bet you wish you’d just gone to Vegas don’t you, August and Ricardo?

In-laws vs. Outlaws is the final—so help us, it really is the final—book in the Hitman vs. Hitman series.

Review: Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7) by Casey Cox

Rating: 4.5🌈

Got Me Talking is the penultimate story in Casey Cox’s heartwarming series about a small Virginia town Veterinary Clinic’s doctors search for and finding their HEA.

You can feel the series winding down as the last of the characters find their partners and lasting relationships. Yet Cox’s stories remain strong and compelling, with each person getting a new chapter of their lives to move forward with their biggest dream, a person to love who loves them back.

Jeremy has been a staple in the series as this quiet baker behind the wonderful baked goods at Daley’s Bakery, a place that’s been featured throughout the series. He’s grown as a character but now gets his story and HEA.

One of the major element here is stuttering. Jeremy has suffered in the past because of the rejection and mistreatment he’s endured due to his struggles with speech. Only with Tyler, a former Vet Shop Boy veterinarian and his best friend, and the other vets and partners, does he feel accepted.

The newest hire at the Vet Shop Boys is an older English veterinarian, who’s relocating to the US for personal reasons. Montgomery is in storage, emotionally and almost physically. He’s committed to a rental property and still grieving the loss of his mother, as well as getting over his divorce.

Cox sets up a chance meeting with both men that’s believable, incredibly sexy, and lets us inside each of their minds as something unexpected happens between them.

It also helps us understand the need for communication when the logical moment arrives where they meet again. And the difficulties that arise when it doesn’t happen.

I love the way Cox is able to pull the reader into the world of these characters to the point where we sense their insecurities, their need for shielding themselves from being exposed emotionally. That’s on both sides. Montgomery is also frail, but his quiet, almost frozen demeanor hides the turmoil threatening to come out whereas Jeremy’s fears carry forth with every word he utters.

Their relationship is slow and moving. I wish it was longer. The age gap and health issues had some surprises towards the end.

It’s that ending that’s shows more than anything the series is almost at a close. We’re not in Virginia anymore.

And that’s ok.

One more unhappy vet to get his HEA in Got Me Feeling and then the series is done.

It’s a lovely show. I’m thrilled to see Jeremy get his romance and happy ending. There’s realistic elements but I expect that from the series and author.

It’s why I’m recommending this and the entire series. Well written, wonderful characters and plots of interesting elements, moving scenes, sexy, and warm-hearted. Love it!

Vet Shop Boys series so far:

✓ Got Me Hoping #1

✓ Got Me Wishing #2

✓ Got Me Looking #3

✓ Got Me Thinking #4

✓ Got Me Going #5

✓ Got Me Merry #6

✓ Got Me Talking #7

◦ Got Me Feeling #8 – finale Oct 23,2023

Buy Link:

Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7)

Description:

What do you call a herd of rhinos? A crash. That about sums up my life, too.

Having spent the last three years caring for my dying mother, I need a new leash on life. So I say goodbye to the UK and take a job opening at a small-town vet clinic in the US.

Via a layover in New York. Where I get, ahem, laid over.

With a man.

Not something I’ve ever done in my forty-three years.

Not something I intend on repeating.

Which won’t be a problem since I’ll never see the guy again… Until I step into the local bakery.

There’s no way anything can happen between Jeremy and me. I’m lost, grieving, and, oh yeah, straight. He also happens to be fifteen years younger than me. So what is it about the sexy baker that’s suddenly got me talking?

Got Me Talking is book 7 in the Vet Shop Boys series and can be read as a stand-alone. Expect a silver fox British vet having a bi awakening, an adorable baker with a stutter, age gap, plenty of humor, found family, and a heartwarming happily ever after!

Review: Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7) by Casey Cox

Rating: 4.5🌈

Got Me Talking is the penultimate story in Casey Cox’s heartwarming series about a small Virginia town Veterinary Clinic’s doctors search for and finding their HEA.

Cox sets up a chance meeting with both men that’s believable, incredibly sexy, and lets us inside each of their minds as something unexpected happens between them.

It also helps us understand the need for communication when the logical moment arrives where they meet again. And the difficulties that arise when it doesn’t happen.

Their relationship is slow and moving. I wish it was longer. The age gap and health issues had some surprises towards the end.

It’s that ending that’s shows more than anything the series is almost at a close. We’re not in Virginia anymore.

And that’s ok.

One more unhappy vet to get his HEA in Got Me Feeling and then the series is done.

It’s a lovely show. I’m thrilled to see Jeremy get his romance and happy ending. There’s realistic elements but I expect that from the series and author.

It’s why I’m recommending this and the entire series. Well written, wonderful characters and plots of interesting elements, moving scenes, sexy, and warm-hearted. Love it!

Vet Shop Boys series so far:

✓ Got Me Hoping #1

✓ Got Me Wishing #2

✓ Got Me Looking #3

✓ Got Me Thinking #4

✓ Got Me Going #5

✓ Got Me Merry #6

✓ Got Me Talking #7

◦ Got Me Feeling #8 – finale Oct 23,2023

Buy Link:

Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7)

Description:

Review: Murder Without Magic (Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery Book 3) by Ripley Hayes

Rating: 4.75🌈

Murder Without Magic is a stellar story. Third in Ripley Hayes’ Tuder and Stewart Cosy Mystery series, it’s one that is so much more than its 169 pages numerically would have you believe.

Within a plot to find out who murdered the person in the garden next door to their new home, Hayes’ story encompasses a newly established relationship that deepens through adversity, personal differences over things held basic to Lorne like magic and ghosts, emotional doubts , and abiding love.

Yes , there’s a ghost. Our favorite horse from Abergwyn makes a hugely important contribution, as does Uncle Wint.

The mysteries, multiple, are poignant, terrifying , and fascinating. Hayes’ narrative lays out this element so well that it’s easy to get involved in the process of discovery. Ade, our detective from Abergwyn, is also part of the supporting cast.

But the heart is our couple, Peter and Lorne. Having a new home, establishing themselves in place where they don’t know anyone, a new dream job for Peter with all its stresses, a dream kitchen for Lorne. Only to have everything start to come apart.

That personal struggle to grow together as a couple while solving the mysteries is what makes me love this story, this series and author so.

The people have flaws, they don’t always react well, but because they do love each other, they eventually find a way to make it work and get the culprits.

I think this might be the final book in the series. Hope not. But if it is, I’m happy to see them off in their new kitchen and place by the sea.

Highly recommend this entire series. Read them in the order they are written.

Also don’t miss the recipe for Lorne’s Emergency Refrigerator Cake at the end! It’s a winner!

Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery series:

✓ No Accident at Abergwyn #1

✓ No Friends at Abergwyn #2

✓ Murder Without Magic #3

Buy Link:

Murder Without Magic: Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery 3 (Tudor and Stewart Abergwyn Mysteries)

Description:

Peter and Lorne have taken the plunge: moved in together in a little house by the sea.

Peter has his dream job, and Lorne has his dream kitchen, and so what if things go bump in the night next door? they can ignore it. The ghost with a violent streak isn’t so easy to ignore. Nor is the dead body in next door’s garden.

Much against their better judgement, and the advice of their friends, Peter and Lorne are dragged kicking and screaming into another investigation.

Only two questions remain: do the bad guys have any idea how hard it will be to to defeat Peter and Lorne, and second, has Peter finally started to believe in magic?

Review: Reckless Roulette (The Elite Book 1) by Alice Winters

Rating: 3🌈

Reckless Roulette is Alice Winters offering in the multi author series, The Elite. Per the series description:

“What links these books together is The Anonymous, a club beneath the gritty city where only the elite are welcome.”

Nebulous enough, the characters met briefly in the club here seem nasty, entitled, and of a semi lawful nature. So the books could have a wide range of themes.

Here it’s Kade, a casino owner being threatened by a brutal thug. The thug wants everything Kade has, starting with the casino, and there’s a timeline to turn it over before everyone dies. Including Kade.

The reader should immediately feel sympathetic, right? Be on Kade’s side?

And that’s one issue for me. Alice Winters can create snarky, sometimes sarcastic, self indulgent characters and still make them endearing or connectable. See her Hitman series for starters.

But here? The minute we enter the ugly life and identical mind of casino Kade, it’s an unpleasant, unending cesspool of selfishness, rage, and arrogance. A mind unmarred by thoughts of any kind of concern for others or even the most minuscule of ripples that he’s responsible for his actions and their consequences/impacts on others. Kade is completely contemptible, so spending pages with him becomes almost impossible.

Len, the hitman, a gamer, with a hoodie and a attitude is a better character but given the personality he’s to play off of and the short time in which to make his redemption believable, it just never feels right.

It’s a short story to begin with, with problematic characters, a lot of twisted emotions and dark reveals that needs a larger narrative to get the depth to handle the themes here.

That HFN ending, the irredeemable, contemptible person now so loving and happily generous to one and all? I just felt Winters never sealed her plot development along with the character growth.

It’s interesting, has promise. But in the end just didn’t deliver.

If you’re a fan of this author, or love to read entire series, then you might want to check out this book. Otherwise, I’d recommend Winter’s’ Hitman series where I feel this type of character was given a far better treatment.

The Elite Multi-Author series (9 Books):

✓ Reckless Roulette by Alice Winters

◦ Leave No Trace by Michelle Frost

◦ Ace of Maids by K.L. Hiers

◦ Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody

◦ Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox

◦ Dealer of Secrets by Davidson King

◦ Bullets & Butterflies by Maz Maddox

◦ Love for the Reaper by Charlie Cochet

◦ Chance Encounter by Luna David

Buy Link:

Reckless Roulette (The Elite Book 1)

Description:

Seven days until game over.

Len

Kade has seven days left to live… unless I do something about it. I am one of the best assassins around, after all. But… I’m not sure I exactly care what happens to Kade. He’s rude, only cares about himself and his casino, and did I mention he doesn’t know a single thing about video games?

Okay, okay. Maybe that’s not enough of a reason to watch him dash headlong into danger while I kick back and enjoy the show.

It’s kind of fun though.

Now I know what you’re thinking… doesn’t that make me the selfish one? See, I don’t mind helping people—it’s kind of my thing. But the ones I help aren’t anything like Kade.

They’re people who have nothing left who are willing to go to great lengths to save those they love, even at the cost of losing themselves. Still, maybe Kade can show me that beneath his icy exterior is a man worth saving. A man worth loving. And maybe even a man worth risking everything for.

Issue is… he only has seven days to do it.

Reckless Roulette is a part of the multi-author series The Elite. Each book can be read as a standalone and in any order. What links these books together is The Anonymous, a club beneath the gritty city where only the elite are welcome.

Review: Stealth (Operation Justice Force Book 5) by Reese Knightley

Rating: 4.25🌈

These books pick up pretty much where the events in the preceding stories left off. So if you’re looking to understand the characters, the relationships, even the agency itself, then you’ll need a prior history and knowledge coming into Stealth. Because, honestly, I couldn’t remember who was who and from where at times here. Too many overlapping series and books and too much time in between reading them.

That said, these two characters are among my favorites here. They have just started a relationship, and despite the difficulties of their circumstances, their chemistry is still outstanding, and they are in sync with each other in every way.

Knightley really brings us into their relationship and unique dynamic, the intrigue, the missions, and now with Seven, his tragic family situation and history. The author has a twofold plot ongoing. One that involves Seven looking into the murder of his younger sister and the disastrous home life his brother is forced into with his father. And an internal conspiracy that will involve multiple agencies and countless characters from crossover series.

Both are so complex and intriguing that I kept wishing for more narrative time spent on each element. But probably would have doubled the size of the book. Still I felt that with such complicated storylines also comes the expectations that an equally layered exposition would follow each thread to its conclusion. Instead I’m left with questions about each plot line and wondering if we’re going to get the answers in future books.

From the epilogue, it seems not. At least on Seven’s personal side.

I really wavered over the rating. I loved the main characters. They and their relationship is so well written. They balance each other out. However, weak points like Theo (very annoying, a one note character given too much page time), the suddenly appearing villain on Seven’s element, works against the good aspects of the story.

Overall, a hugely entertaining, and often enjoyable story, another in a terrific series.

If you have issues with overlapping characters, a multitude of characters, crossed paths with other series, then this might not be the best thing for you.

However, if you’re a fan of the author, her related series, and this series already, then it’s one I recommend. I love this couple and it’s great to see them get a HFN!

Operation Justice Force :

✓ Lethal #1

✓ Rough #2

✓ Honor #3

✓ Rebel #4

✓ Stealth #5

Buy Link:

Stealth (Operation Justice Force Book 5)

Description:

Hunter –

Seven is hot as hell, possessive, and dangerous—his perfect match. Except Seven is not into long-term commitments. So, when the man is still in his bed one morning, Hunter thought they’d have a couple of perfect days together. Hunter wants to share about his past. Then again, maybe he shouldn’t say a word since his secrets could get both of them killed.

When Hunter’s past rears its ugly head, he is out of time.

Seven –

Hunter is sexy, lethal, and irresistible. Seven can’t decide which trait is more appealing. There’s something else, though—something dangerous simmers beneath Hunter’s surface that intrigued him and has brought him back for more. Seven can’t stay… he won’t commit until he finds his sister’s killer. He needs to take care of that before he can make promises. Best-laid plans don’t always work out and staking his claim can’t wait when assassins come gunning for Hunter. Seven will need to pull out every trick from his arsenal to stop them.

Because nobody is going to take Hunter from him.

-Shadows emerge from the darkness and hitmen suddenly have faces, and Seven is thrust into a world he knows nothing about. What the hell is going on…

Related Series:

Cobalt Security2 booksReese Knightley

Out for Justice7 booksReese Knightley

Code Of Honor8 booksReese Knightley

Review: No Accident At Abergwyn (Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery Book 1) by Ripley Hayes

Rating: 4.25🌈

What a delightful find! New to me author! Small village Welsh location, with all that entails. And it’s a cosy mystery.

That means the following elements. Busybody main characters, small community’s over abundance of gossip and intrigue, a murder or more , a romance however slow to build, and animals. A dog, cat, or in this story a charming dog and a horse!

Both of those belong to a bit of a magical man, Lorne Stewart, who along with Enzo the horse and Charlie the dog, have invaded the quiet village of Abergwyn, and settled into his field, and started baking his acceptance into the villagers hearts.

Recently returned home to Abergwyn is Peter Tudor. Once a A&E nurse but now a rural district nurse in order to return home to live with his disabled mother, diagnosed with MS. A mother who decidedly needs less help from Peter than he realizes.

The mother/son relationship is real, warm, and loving. Peter almost blindly not accepting the truth of the degree his mother is able to do on her own. The strong support system in place from neighbors and friends he’s been unaware of away from home.

Peter’s situation too is believable. He’s suffering from leaving a position and type of ER job he thrived in to go to one where his skills are wasted and he’s feeling cut off from others and maybe even depressed.

Hayes’ realistically, and with gentle humor and care, builds up her foundation and the personalities of the people who will make up the series and the stories we will invest our time in.

I was entertained, really got into the village life and people, and saw the start of the romance that will build.

I thought it ended abruptly. The villain was caught but there was still questions left over for the next book to dive into. Plus personally, Peter has much to ponder at the end.

I’m thrilled to find this author and new cosies to read. Definitely a recommendation! Plus great covers!

Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery series:

✓ No Accident at Abergwyn #1

◦ No Friends at Abergwyn #2

◦ Murder Without Magic #3

Buy Link:

No Accident at Abergwyn : Tudor and Stewart Cosy Mystery 1 (Tudor and Stewart Abergwyn Mysteries)

Description:

Meet Peter Tudor. Nurse. Gay. Twenty-nine years old…and living with his disabled mother in the village where he grew up.

Only, it’s not that simple. His mother doesn’t really need his help. Peter’s given up the job he loves to move ‘home’ so now he’s drowning his sorrows in gin and cake. It doesn’t help that his schoolboy crush is still around, working for the police and handsomer than ever.

With the big birthday coming up, it’s time to take action. It’s on with the running shoes and onto the beach … where there is a fabulous sunrise. There’s also a dead body, and a man with a horse.

Publisher: cabins and mystery

Review: Westin’s Prince (Shadow Elite #4) by Jocelynn Drake

Rating: 4.5🌈

Westin’s Prince is the finale for Jocelynn Drake’s marvelous Shadow Elite series . It’s fitting it goes out on the story for Westin St James , the former marine, former CIA, now member of the mercenary Shadow Elite Unit. West’s been the one quietly in the background, the deadly sniper who can be counted on to have the team’s backs every dangerous moment of their outings. He’s a damaged man, and he’s been a mystery until now.

Who knew West could turn into such a favorite for me? A weird assassin contract that’s rejected by Justin and Gabriel is turned over to West by their joint handler because the target and terms are just too “off”. Something’s obviously wrong and the situation needs to be at least researched.

Drake creates a island kingdom that’s a supposedly combination of Chinese culture with Japanese influences. Honestly other than a mention that the language was a combination of Mandarin and Japanese languages there was little indication of anything Japanese to reference.

The other major characters are , and quite frankly, very engaging ones too:

🔷Jin Long Wei, Dianxia or Your Royal Highness , the target of the heart of the contract

🔷Prince Jin Ming Tao, younger brother to the heir.

🔷Qin, all around PA, to Long Wei

West lands into a kingdom who’s in love with its royal family, The Jins. Drake lays a good foundation for this, allowing the reader to see the people’s reactions to their Prince and interact with him as West and Long Wei themselves meet, discuss, and discover a deeper connection between them.

The island, it’s peace, and it’s Prince represents a powerful hope for West , if only that pesky contract is eliminated first.

The conflict is convincingly escalated, all the great team members and their new partners/husbands appear to help save the Kingdom, the Emperor, and the newly formed couple. Even the retired killer uncles are there, to back up West.

As it’s the last, there is betrayals, bloodshed, high suspense, and lots of action to take place along side the romance and relationship drama of acceptance and anxiety over the question of time.

The author’s able to work some of the readers own doubts about their relationship into the discussion process this way and it smoothly turns us into supporters of their romance and this book’s main theme.

The oddity for me remained that “forced melding” Asian influences when actually there were none. It was a mention and then used later in the story as a reference for the lack of aggressive behaviors in the island because as a nation long overrun by wars, only by cooperation can they succeed. So that’s all they do.

Nice thought for the faux Gaoxing, placed between China ,Japan, and Russia. But as I said I found little cultural aspects here other than Chinese seem to be represented.

The Chinese elements are:

🔷Chinese names for the characters, including grandfather, dad, etc.

🔷mah-jongg playing aunties

🔷The historically accurate headwear and manner in which the royal family should have their hair worn:

◦ Xiaoguan-(small guan) headwear worn around the topknot, typically held in place with a hairpin to help stabilize the topknot”

◦ Touji-topknot

🔷The mythology included, which is definitely Chinese (kitsune is Japanese):

“The huli jing is just a fox spirit, but after a thousand years of cultivation, it can become a juiwei hu. A nine-tailed fox, which is what the statue is in the old square.”

The Chinese elements gave Gaoxing a realistic impression and firm vision for its people. The idea of a mixture was immediately lost.

So I throughly enjoyed the romance, the plot, seeing the entire team form up against a common enemy to save one of its own, and finally a rewarding ending for them all.

There’s a free second epilogue that shouldn’t be missed showing the happy family six years down the road. It’s a heartwarming read and makes this even better.

So really, loved everything but had questions about the world building of Gaoxing.

Definitely recommending it, especially if you’re a fan of the series and author.

Don’t come at this cold. Read the series first in the order that they were written.

Shadow Elite series:

✓ Stephen’s Translator #0.5

✓ Charlie’s Doctor #1

✓ Kairo’s Billionaire #2

✓ Edison’s Professor #3

✓ Westin’s Prince #4 – finale

Buy Link:

Westin’s Prince (Shadow Elite Book 4)

Description:

The contract on the prince’s head was only the beginning…

This was supposed to be a quick job.

Pop in. Check out the prince. Alert his security that someone wanted him dead.

Easy.

But a chance meeting in a tea shop left West unable to walk away.

Crown Prince Jin was far too sweet and trusting to be left unattended.

(Not to mention devastatingly handsome and mind-blowingly sexy.)

However, Prince Jin has a dark secret that leads to even bigger problems. West is going to need the entire team for this one…and maybe even those crazy assassins.

Oh God, and a makeover as he goes undercover in the elite world of royalty.

Westin’s Prince is the fourth and final full-length novel in the Shadow Elite series and features mercenaries, assassins, royalty, a sassy assistant, conspiracies, danger, insta-swoon, yet another cinnamon roll, a fish out of water who will do anything for his prince, a “fake” boyfriend but nobody believes them, and love on the run in Asia.

Review: Adverse Conditions (Reclaimed Hearts Book 1) by Elle Keaton

Rating: 3.5🌈

Adverse Conditions is the first in a new small town mystery romance series by Elle Keaton, a story that’s stacked with elements. There’s a enemies to lovers trope, returning small town son, multiple murder mysteries, heartwarming family with it’s own complicated backstory, bi-coming out, single dad, rescue dogs, conniving ex , and that’s not all.

The small town of Cooper Springs is a focal point too. From the beach to the forests to the bar where all the town hangs out, the preservation of Cooper Springs and how best to save it is front and center. It probably will be a major theme for all the novels.

But as Keaton’s packed such a huge amount of elements into this first book, it’s no surprise that some feel less polished/finished than others.

The need to lay the foundation for the series is obvious, get the background down. Cooper Springs is beautifully rendered. You can see the small town as it was. And as it is now. The ramshackle resort absolutely in need of renovation that a new owner could supply and the revenue it could bring in that the town is counting on, along with the beautiful location. Also the long term familiarity of Cooper Springs’ citizenry feels believable, whether they are on good terms or bad.

Next up, the romance. Vincent Barone is a single dad to daughter Romy, herself a delightful character. He’s holding down two jobs, he’s a shop teacher at the High School, and a part time Real-Estate Appraiser, which brings him clashing back into his old high school nemesis, Xavier, recently returned to town, as a real estate agent. Vincent is a terrific character, stressed out by bills, his jobs, life, and wanting to be the best dad to a great kid. He’s relatable in all his irritable moments.

Xavier could use some more of that depth. It helps base him when we meet Xavier’s mother and brother Max. But Vincent still feels grounded in a way Xavier doesn’t. They have a old sexual tension that’s dealt with a little too quickly but the relationship is a emotional, thoughtful one.

There’s a ex here (Xavier’s) that appears and disappears for no reason to be annoying unless he’s going to be a part of a storyline further down the series. Now he’s a dropped element, one of several that aren’t fully developed for reasons other than perhaps they are part of a larger arc theme. They include the murders, missing wives, and why anyone would want an aggressive antisocial man with known anti development views to be a long term rental resident of a property up for sale. That last sounds more like a author’s needing a dramatic narrative item than something realistic.

Let’s see.

“We need to sell this property. Let’s have an aggressive nutcase with a baseball bat live there and challenge everyone who wants to sell it with threats and promises of bodily harm.”

Um no. And no one does anything about it.

Plus there’s the fact that a person that’s been missing for a while (dead) and no one has been able to find can be found easily.

So I find elements like this problematic.

I realize that murder plots and mysteries here seem to be intended to play out over the series but either we need more mystery or more substance or subtly or something.

The ending comes abruptly, moving Vincent and Xavier’s relationship forward that we miss out on the growth moments. The parts that bring all three, four counting the dog, together as a family.

So while I feel that the story has some wonderfully interesting elements, really promising moments between all parties , and a couple and family I enjoyed, I’m not sure it all came cohesively together in one first book of a series.

The next book is a different couple altogether. Which is odd when this one didn’t feel complete.

I’ll continue on to see how it all flows into the next episode. And what the author intends for the mysteries.

If you’re a fan of Elle Keaton, and contemporary mystery romance, I’m sure that you have already put this on your TBR list. For the rest, it’s a entertaining read.

Reclaimed Hearts:

✓ Adverse Conditions #1

◦ Below Grade #2 – May 25,2023

Buy Link:

Adverse Conditions: Small Town Silver Fox Gay Romance (Reclaimed Hearts Book 1)

Description:

The town is worth saving, as long as conspiracy theorists, serial killers, and Vincent Barone all stay out of Xavier’s way.

Xavier swore he’d never move back to the flyspeck of a town he’d grown up in and he kept that promise for over twenty years. Now he’s back for good.

Vincent never left. After earning his teaching certificate, he stayed in town to be close to his elderly parents. These days he’s the single dad of a fifteen-year-old daughter and working two jobs to make ends meet. He’s perfectly happy with his life.

Xavier’s mission is to save Cooper Springs. But his efforts are being hindered by his stodgy, straight-laced, rule-following neighbor, Vincent Barone. Dark-eyed, broad-shouldered, and muscly Vincent, who Xav stealthily ogles when he toils in his yard sans shirt. For a high school shop teacher, Vincent is too sexy. And he has a kid. And he infuriates Xavier. And anyway, love is for suckers.

Vincent doesn’t have time to date. And he certainly wouldn’t date his flashy, arrogant, neighbor who he absolutely did not have a crush on in high school. Who did Xavier think he was, moving back to town and throwing his weight around, causing butterflies in Vincent’s stomach, and making his stupid heart beat faster every time he saw him?

Cooper Springs has changed since they were kids, and maybe two guys can move from hate to love. But are they ready? Will Vincent bend a few of his rules? Will Xavier reign in his chaotic tendencies? Is love in the air?

Then there’s the matter of the grisly discovery in the woods, murder is bad for business.

Welcome to Cooper Springs, home to UFO chasers, Sasquatch believers, conspiracy theorists, chainsaw artists, and regular folk just trying to make a living. And, quite possibly, a killer.

Adverse Conditions is the first in the Reclaimed Hearts series, set in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, it is an opposites-attract, older lovers, silver fox, enemies to lovers, small-town romance, with a little murder. HEA guaranteed.

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