Review: Scorched (a Lunar Wolves novel) by Kiki Burrell

Rating: 3.5🌈

Scorched by Kiki Burrell is my first visit into this author’s Lunar Wolves series. It is described as a standalone novel so I approached it from that perspective, wanting to see what sort of story comes from such a interesting melding of elements.

There’s magic, solar wolves from another dimension/world/planet, fragile peace between humans and paranormals, a witch/wolf maté bond, a gate the alchemists/witches/scientists are trying to build to get the Solar Wolves home. There’s a city for the paranormals called Crescent City with self governing rules. And unbelievably even more.

Much of the above doesn’t come with much explanation or foundation. I cobbled that together from things mentioned throughout the book. So I really don’t think this exists as a standalone except perhaps if the author is talking about the couple.

And we need more here because the Wolves society seems to be a very rigidly conservative group at the highest levels, with a cultural outlook and ingrained values ,that to outsiders and those of status below them , seem not just imperious but richly oppressive. That seems to include a witch society too, but I’m not sure.

The two main characters of Scorched are from widely different backgrounds as well as cultures. One, Magnus, is a struggling human alchemist. He’s overwhelmed with bills, family obligations, and a adolescence full of secrets that he’s still carrying around.

The other is Calore Fier, first generation Solar, billionaire, retired at 45. Powerful, restless, and sure he’s discovered his mate in a human that wants nothing to do with him.

Burrell does an good job with the characters but she starts out with too many elements and then just doesn’t have the narrative time or space to carry out on these aspects. So they get dropped.

That’s not a bad thing. Just something I noticed. In the case of Magnus, early on the author said his upbringing had instilled a need for “humiliation and submission “.

That need for submission is started to be addressed in the first stages of a relationship with Calore. But any need to be humiliated is forgotten. And then submission aspect is relegated to a tiny corner of the development of the story.

Burrell has so many good ideas and storylines to work through that other threads started get lost. Like the ones above. There’s a shattered peace between races? Not sure. Issues with building the gate? I don’t know. Do witches and wolves have to mate? Don’t know. None of those things are certain or anything but hints here.

The ones that remain are wonderful and really require more page space. Magnus’s family, the painful loss of his mother, his father’s health and stance against the supernatural, and all the warm-hearted scenes with Magnus, Calore, and the siblings. Yes, pls. Couldn’t get enough. They were so well written with the characters, children especially, being fully fleshed out.

Scenes with Calore trying to adjust to Magnus and the opposite, also felt like a couple making tentative moves towards a mutual goal.

But for all that well developed narrative, Burrell gives us scenes with Lunar Wolf society which pulled the exposition rug out from under the reader. Suddenly we meet a “close friend “ of Magnus’ who’s a Solar/Lunar ? wolf too ( not sure how he fits in other than he’s a scientist), unheard of grandparents suddenly appear, we get a mating ceremony we have no idea about, as well as references from the gathered high society about the Solar Wolf world, which apparently still exists. Why everybody is on Earth I’ve no clue. Plus there’s hints some do want a gate home and others not so much. But that too disappears, another thread gone.

The characters were very good. As I said, Burrell didn’t have the chance or space or , to be honest, need, to follow through on all the character traits she intended for Magnus. It worked out fine. He was overloaded and we didn’t get enough of the man the alchemist, especially as he was so famous for his skill. I wish that had been explored more.

Same for Calore. We didn’t get enough of him personally. More of his background, his personality, his interests. He wasn’t anywhere near as multi dimensional as Magnus was. Only in the scenes with the family did he become a person with depth.

So how to sum up a book I very much enjoyed but got occasionally frustrated with? Don’t treat this like a standalone. I’m going to have to go back to the series and get more of the world building to get answers the the questions this book raises.

If you’re a fan of Lunar Wolves, you should be fine. And you’re probably going to enjoy the story as I did. More so because you have the background I was missing.

I’m recommending Scorched (a Lunar Wolves novel) by Kiki Burrell with some asterisks.

Buy Link:

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Scorch-…Scorch: Lunar Wolves Novella – Kindle edition by Burrelli, Kiki. Paranormal …

Description:

Magnus’s human family would despise him if they found out how deep he’s fallen into the supernatural world. The witching world had been nothing but cruel to his late mother and now his human family wants nothing to do with it. But with an ailing father and siblings who need his help, Magnus doesn’t have a choice. He can’t make enough outside the magic world to support them but he refuses to watch them suffer over something as stupid as money. He’s lucky to live safe and isolated in Crescent City among other witches and werewolves where he has a steady stream of both income and men to call when he needs to let off steam. Magnus never lets himself become overly attached to any one partner, his life is stressful enough without the addition of emotions.

Calore Fier is a billionaire werewolf with his sights set on Magnus. The sexy witch calls to him in a way no one ever has, except, Magnus is resistant to Calore’s charms. He claims he can’t feel the draw that Calore can’t ignore but he didn’t build his empire by giving up. Calore will find out why Magnus is holding back and he’ll tear down those walls until nothing stands between him and his mate.

Every second near Calore is a mistake. The older wolf is pure desire and Magnus’s body aches whenever he is around, but they could never become more. Calore has no idea who Magnus really is or the baggage he carries, and as a solar werewolf, Calore’s life is about elegance and luxury. He wouldn’t understand Magnus’s generic brand upbringing, his need to hide his magic, nor his penny pinching ways. Besides, if his family ever found out he’d embraced the witching world, they’d hate him more than Magnus would hate himself.

Scorch is a standalone novella in the gay, paranormal romance series, Lunar Wolves. It features a sarcastic, proud witch and an arrogant wolf who won’t stop until he gets what he wants.

Other books in the Lunar Wolves series:
Pressure
Tension
Force
Thrust

Review : Stitched Under Fire (Paranormal Investigative Service Book 2) by Cassidy K. O’Connor and Sheri Lyn

Rating: 4.5🌈

Stitched Under Fire takes place relatively close to the ending timeline of the first book, Faeted Under Fire. That’s where the formerly human Det. Tristan James died, becoming reborn as a phoenix shifter and federal agent in the Paranormal Investigative Service, aka P.I.S. Yes, the series has a sense of humor.

He also gained a new perspective on paranormal beings he’d been phobic about, gained a partner and boyfriend in fellow Agent Maddox Smith, half orc/half Fae.

We dive back into their world where Tris has become acclimated enough to consider his new Agent Pod/group friends and he’s moved into a house with Maddox, getting ready to met the parents.

The authors do such a great job in creating the paranormal experience for Tristan James. He’s new to everything so we get to see and learn about it along with him. Honestly, the human side pales a bit by comparison.

Tristan is thriving even if he’s at level one with regard to his shifter abilities and new identity as a phoenix shifter. The fact that phoenix shifters are rare means that even his own teammates and boyfriend aren’t exactly positive about what Tristan can do , other than the vaguest ideas.

O’Conner and Lyn are on a slow path here with Tristan’s shifter transition. I’m not sure how many books they have planned for the series, but at this point, for Tristan to gain full access to his phoenix abilities, it will be at book 10. But oddly, the cases become so big and the victims so important, that Tristan’s shifter journey can safely be relegated to a lower storyline status without hurting the character or the book.

It becomes all about the characters, the relationships, the realness of their lives and the pain of their loss. That’s what we feel as does those investigating the cases.

The side storyline about , Tallie,the young teenage prostitute who’s basically family, Maddox’s mom, and Silas, the Fae father , is heartwarming and a wonderful element that helps ground Tristan in this new world and relationship.

This book and series is one I’m enjoying so much for its well developed characters, well plotted storylines, rich world building, and expanding new information into the exploration between human and paranormal phenomena and physicality.

Bring on book 3. I’m highly recommending this and the series. Read them in the order they are written to understand the events and character development.

Paranormal Investigative Service series:

✓ Faeted Under Fire #1

✓ Stitched Under Fire #2

◦ Taken Under Fire #3 – June 8, 2023

Buy Link:

Stitched Under Fire (Paranormal Investigative Service Book 2)

Description:

Paranormals left for dead, parts of them missing. When bodies start piling up, the agents of Paranormal Investigative Service quickly realize the killings aren’t random and they are escalating.

Life is never dull as an agent of P.I.S. but Tristan James didn’t expect his fourth week as a newly turned phoenix shifter and federal agent to be spent hunting for the person who was dissecting paranormals. If that weren’t enough, he was also moving in with Maddox, his partner at P.I.S. and he had it bad for him.

Maddox Smith was going monogamous. If that weren’t shocking enough, Tristan was also moving in with him. Add to that the man of his dreams was still getting used to being a shifter and getting over old prejudices about their kind. Taking it slow was never in Maddox’s vocabulary before, but Tristan was worth the wait. A new case was exactly the distraction he needed.

They have to work quickly to stitch the pieces together if they want to stop the madman hurting their kind.

Book 3 ‘Taken Under Fire’ releases June 8th, 2023 and continues Maddox and Tristan’s story.

Review: Dangerous (Shifter Scoundrels #2) by Charlie Cochet and Macy Blake

Rating: 4.5🌈

Shifter Scoundrels is a wildly imaginative , heave everything the multi era/trope sink has to offer into the adventure/romance world as conjured up by Charlie Cochet and Macy Blake. Part paranormal universe, it also includes such features as a Regency era monarchy, a royal society with the accompanying aristocracy events. To say nothing of the Regency societal laws such as rigid dress codes to go with the peerage rankings. All of these adopted by the Dragon Shifter King and the rest of the shifter world that lives invisibly along side the human one. It’s so marvelously descriptive and realized.

All of that serves as a foundation for mystery, murder, and magical mayhem as well as romance from book to book, with each novel featuring one couple involved in and investigating the overall series arc mystery. That being the murder of Prince Brandr, the son of the King.

I enjoyed the Regency relationship , romantic gameplay and subterfuge of the first story. It was all very in keeping with the theme and types of storytelling that the genre does so well.

But Dangerous goes in a different direction, romantically speaking, with its couple. And while it kept some of the Regency parameters intact, it also borrowed from the contemporary genre too. The combination is one is I found engaging and wonderfully entertaining. Because this other main character is oh so human, and comes with a very serious heart condition.

Jason Reaves is a surprise in every way. Jason has POTS, Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. He also has a wonderfully realized service dog, a German shepherd, Mouse, who’s a great character. The authors, both of whom own GSDs, show us exactly how Mouse helps Jason with his disability and their partnership in letting Jason lead a wider life. This is such a superb element of this book and it’s worked so perfectly to elevate Jason as a multi-dimensional character including great backstory. As is Mouse who’s so much a part of him.

Cormac Donegan, Duke of Everard, is bringing heavyweight Regency energy here to his part of the relationship. Cormac is in recovery from a traumatic event, the losses which still haunt him. We’ve seen this event and connected events in the first book (which is running concurrently in terms of timeframe). So we have some knowledge about what’s happening and the details around the events.

Cormac and his team of valets/soldiers are absolutely fantastic characters. Cormac as he starts to understand Jason’s predicament and fall for the human he’s bound to protect. Vega and Sillian ,the manservants , who are fabulous in their roles as foils for each other and for Jason as he becomes part of the household and their world.

The mystery and fast paced action is fantastic. The narrative runs along at near breakneck speed to match the scenes unfolding on the pages.

There’s humor, some pathos, passion, and action, along with great support cast and main characters.

I honestly couldn’t put this down.

The setup for Scandalous, the third installment and romance is smoothly executed. Now to wait until next year.

I’m highly recommending this story but read the series in order first so you understand the events and backgrounds as it all comes together.

What a wild whacky mashup! I love it.

Shifter Scoundrels series:

✓ Notorious #1

✓ Dangerous #2

◦ Scandalous #3 – Feb 29,2024

Buy Link:

Dangerous (Shifter Scoundrels Book 2)

Description:

New Paranormal Romance from Bestselling MM Authors Charlie Cochet and Macy Blake.

A grumpy lion shifter duke with secrets, a sassy human who knows nothing of the shifter world, and a fiery arrangement neither of them expected.

Cormac Donegan, Duke of Everard, is all too familiar with the perils of his shifter world, especially as a Dahlia, one of the dragon king’s elite spies. After a mission nearly costs him his life, Cormac is sidelined, healing and grieving his heavy losses. Then a different kind of trouble shows up on his doorstep, a human claiming to be his fiancé.

When Jason Reaves is nearly killed in a house fire, it becomes clear that someone is trying to murder him. With his already fragile health deteriorating, Jason’s only hope is to call in the debt a stranger owes his father– a favor that promises safety, protection… and marriage.

Jason’s escape leads him and his service dog, Mouse, to an impressive country estate. He’s expecting the older man who’d made the promise, not his ruggedly handsome son–who happens to be a Duke, as in rich and royal.

Will this Cinderfella find his happily ever after in the arms of a dashing–if somewhat irritable–duke? Or will Cormac’s secrets prove to be more dangerous than the shifters hunting him?

Review: Scout (Chosen Champions Book 4) by Macy Blake

Rating: 4🌈

Chosen Champions exists within Macy Blake’s extended and ever expanding Chosen universe. Consisting of five book’s total when complete, Scout’s story is full of revelations about the series mysteries, the characters, and pushes everything forward towards the series finale coming in book five.

The Chosen Champions is one of my favorites among a group of connected series. The characters are strong and interesting, and come with well developed personalities and backgrounds. Scout is a wolf shifter we’ve followed from the very beginning when he and his siblings were rescued and adopted by Sam and Alpha Vaughan Jerrick (Sweet Nothings). Readers have watched through many stories, as Scout and his other 5 siblings grew up, establishing themselves as strong pack members and individually memorable characters .

Scout has achieved special status as being the only one to have become a part of two packs. One his family pack with his dads and now the Chosen Champion pack with Logan as a Alpha.

He’s so easy to connect with because if you’ve read any of the books in this universe, you’ve heard or are already aware of Scout. Maybe are very fond of him.

Coal Volsunga is a dragon and teammate of Scout’s. Both characters are connected to The Chosen by way of marriage through Henry (on Scout’s side) who is married to Draco, Coal’s cousin. It’s all very complicated and intertwined.

There’s strong repressed sexual tension happening between Coal and Scout that neither feel can be acted on, until , of course, they do.

Blake writes a terrific chemistry laden romance for Coal and Scout. It helps believe in them when they slide quickly into a new maté relationship.

There’s a overall arc mystery here that now narrows the focus on who the big mastermind is behind the attacks on the Champions and other weres.

A FYI trigger warning, there’s a torture scene and mention of previous kidnappings that happened as children.

The story is full of suspense and horror as Blake heads the series towards the final book to come.

I found this excellent and the romance engaging with all the family members and allies involved in the events and subsequent fallout.

Plus Ben. Ben is just being so extraordinary and showing off such growth in terms of personality development.

This isn’t a story to come at cold. A reader needs the knowledge of the previous storylines as well as a good understanding of The Chosen One universe to fully grasp the events that are happening here.

If you have such a background, then you will love the book. And more importantly the series. I do and I do.

And can’t wait for the final book to be released.

Chosen Champions:

✓ Logan #1

✓ Gideon #2

✓ Jamal #3

✓ Aleron #4

✓ Scout #5

◦ Oracle #6 – Feb 22, 2024

Scout: Chosen Champions Book Four

Description:

Scout

Coal Volsunga is a dragon convinced he’s better off alone…

As alone as a dragon who is part of a pack can be, that is. Although he loves the work, his feelings are starting to get involved, especially for a wolf entirely too involved with pack life for a loner like Coal.

Jack “Scout” Jerrick is a wolf with two packs, but only one heart…

Dividing his time between his father’s pack and his new one hasn’t been an issue for Scout. He’s learning to protect the secrets of the shifter world and the innocents involved in a dangerous war over magic and power. But when he develops feelings for the cantankerous dragon in his new pack, things begin to get a whole lot more complicated.

After Scout is kidnapped by the mysterious threat hunting their pack, Coal realizes being alone isn’t his life’s mission after all. If he and Scout are able to survive, they must

…put aside their preconceived notions and work together to save their pack,

…learn to love and heal when nothing is as it seems,

…and realize when it comes to being mates, there’s nothing they won’t do to save each other.

Buy or KU Scout

Review: Cherries Worth Getting (Keith Curry’s Case Files Book 1) by Nicole Kimberling

Rating: 4.5🌈

Nicole Kimberling is such an amazing author. I adored her Bellingham Mysteries and then lost track of her writings. But happily I’ve found her again through her series about a other-realm investigator who used to be a chef. That’s Keith Curry’s Case Files.

I believe the series started in a collection called Irregulars, 4 short stories by 4 authors about NIAD. That’s NATO Irregular Affairs Division. They police other-realm traffic, beings, and artifacts that come through portals to this world. The division’s are made up of many species including Faerie lawyers, rumpled magicians, business witches and weary specialists human agents.

That’s where Keith Curry comes in.

We get Keith’s dramatic and sickening introduction to the agency and how he came to be recruited here. To be honest, parts of the book aren’t for those who have a weak stomach or are highly sensitive. We are talking about cannibalism here as part of the mystery and narrative. Just a Fyi.

There’s several elements that are raised throughout the narrative that challenge Keith’s vision of himself as a neutral investigator. Species bigotry is brought up and examined through the viewpoint of different characters, very effectively. Whether it’s goblins or vampire, it forces Keith to look at his own judgments and review them for reactions he’s thought he’d worked through.

There’s reasons for his reasons. It’s in his past. And understandable by any standards.

It’s his new teammate and former hookup , Gunther, who has been assigned to help Keith figure out where the human dead (and butchered) bodies are coming from. A fellow agent who will make Keith aware of his suppressed feelings towards other species.

Kimberling sets her story in and around Portland, Oregon and her familiarity with the city and deep roots with the place shows. From the markets to the food trucks, it’s realistic, even when run by goblins. I found the idea of a goblin race that transformed to conform in utero a thought provoking idea. I’m certain this is just the beginning of this thread.

The author crafted so many interesting elements to fold into the story and world building of the series. We got just hints here and there about a topic, enough to pique our interest and imagination, but not enough to satisfy. Hopefully we’ll get more in the coming stories.

The mystery and investigation was crisp and complicated. I loved following the clues along with Keith and Gunther, his fellow investigator and perhaps future boyfriend.

Especially as the relationship that’s just starting here between Gunther and Keith continues.

Now I really need to locate that original collection as well. I’m sure that’s Keith’s origin story. Yikes.

And I’m onto the next in his series. But do be aware, unlike the Bellingham Mysteries, Keith Curry seems to see the absolute worst and often stomach churning cases . Be forewarned.

If you’re ok with that, I’m highly recommending this!

Keith Curry’s Case Files:

✓ Cherries Worth Getting #1

◦ Magically Delicious #2

◦ Grilled Cheese and Goblins:

Adventures of a Food Inspector

◦ Irregulars -a 4 story collection

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Cherries…Cherries Worth Getting (Keith Curry’s Case Files Book 1) – Kindle edition by Kimberling …

Description:

NATO’s Irregulars Affairs Division is a secret organization operating in thousands of cities around the globe. Its agents police relations between the earthly realm and those beyond this world, protecting us from terrible dangers as well as enthralling temptations. Agent Keith Curry is a former carnivore chef turned vegetarian. Keith must navigate Portland, Oregon’s culinary underworld to catch a killer bent on harvesting human flesh. But things get complicated when he hooks up with an old flame who he’s never been able to refuse.

Review: An Embrace To Hearten Me ( The Magi Accounts #3.5) by Michele Notaro

Rating: 4.75🌈

An Embrace To Hearten Me is the novella that’s the romance/relationship story for River/Jude/Kulani the author has been working towards in the last books.

A M/M/X , the X stands for non-binary, romance that’s been slowly building between the characters of Cheetah shifter Kulani, magi Jude (half of the dyad pair with Mads), and snow leopard shifter River. To say slow is to say that molasses runs slowly in the winter. Here it’s a absolute must that we get a three person perspective but a triad that forms at a glacial rate.

The reasons why is the tormented histories the author has created for each individual here. Ones that have damaged them to the point that trust, insecurities, and trauma are the main factors in determining their relationships to date.

Jude ,a demisexual, has a unique history. Traumatized in the compound with Mads, his other dyad half (with us now finding out the exact extent of the sacrifice he’s was forced to make), Jude’s had Mad’s feelings as his own all his life. River and Kulani had no one until Cosmo found them. That doesn’t make for easy understanding when it comes to relationships between the friends. Even with the shifter extraordinary senses, actions can become misunderstood with no real foundation for understanding the actions of others.

Notaro gives us three perspectives of friends wobbling about in the fog of uncertainty and confusion. Their new feelings , fears, and ignorance keeping them from communicating while nightmares from their past’s shut them down into their own prisons.

It’s a haunting narrative and a thoroughly disturbing story at times. But one Notaro threads with hope. With the introduction of a young child, someone from the past, and a newly formed family of three that finally finds its way together.

While An Embrace To Hearten Me has a HFN element for our triad, this is a horrific and dangerous society they all live in. One in which every single one is still tagged and registered, and regarded as disposable.

We have 2 more books to go until the end. I expect it to be bloody, heartbreaking, heartfelt, and to leave me sobbing. It’s that kind of series.

So I leave Kulani, River, and Jude momentarily happy.

I’m highly recommending this series. Read them in the order they are written for character development and events. Put some tissue near by. FYI.

The Magi Accounts:

🔹The Scars That Bind Us #1

🔹The Shackles That Hold Us #2

🔹A Date To Impress Him #2.5

🔹A Purpose That Restores Us #3

🔹A Holiday to Sustain Us: A Magi Accounts Holiday

🔹An Embrace To Hearten Me: The Magic Accounts 3.5

🔹A Ruse To Unchain Us: The Magi Accounts # 4 – TBD 2023

Buy Link:

An Embrace To Hearten Me: The Magic Accounts 3.5 (The Magi Accounts Companion Stories)

Description:

I can’t seem to choose between the two shifters who mean the world to me… but what if I can have them both?

Trying to navigate my feelings has never been easy. Growing up, I had to keep my emotions locked down and hidden from the world or suffer the consequences. But now, well, now I’ve had a taste of freedom, and with it, my heart has been running wild.

Between trying to find witches—members of the Red Cloth—at work and sifting through my overwhelming emotions, I’m a mess. And two certain shifters seem happy to help sort me out, which is great, but it’s making all these feelings hit me at once.

How in the world can I tell River and Kulani that I… that I like them? Both of them. At the same time. This is going to end in disaster with one, two, or three hearts broken. But what if it doesn’t? What if there’s a way for all three of us to get what we want?

An Embrace To Hearten Me is a MMX (male/male/nonbinary) urban fantasy romance companion novel meant to be read AFTER A Purpose That Restores Us (The Magi Accounts 3). This is Jude, Kulani, and River’s story and takes place between books 3 and 4 of the main series. It’s meant to be read as part of the series, not by itself, although the love story is resolved in this book.

Review: Smoulder (Drake Security Book 2) by Mika Nix

Rating: 4🌈

It’s that cover! Couldn’t resist. So while I wasn’t really buying into some of the themes the authors (K.M. Neuhold and Mia Monroe are Mika Nix) created in book one, I went on and picked up the second novel in the series, Smoulder.

Turns out, it’s missing most but not all of the elements I had issues with and I found this entertaining and a fast, enjoyable read.

For starters, this dragon brother’s character is one that I really found interesting and more nuanced. Whereas Nico was all hot headed , action without thought, Hemingway is almost his opposite. A collector of antiquities, gems, and, most importantly, books, Hemingway is a thoughtful and layered personality.

Dempsey Ryan, Drake Security’s newest client and Hemingway’s future mate here is a terrific character in his own right. In his early forties and a collector of rare and unusual items, especially books and jewels, his personality and interests are crafted by the authors to mesh well with Hemingway’s so their chemistry and instant attraction to each other makes sense on multiple levels.

The readers just like them together and we just get it. The strongest part of this story is the romantic relationship, with Hemingway’s attitude towards and attempts at wooing Dempsey.

The mystery that has Dempsey needing protection is probably the weakest part of the narrative. It builds backwards, filling in facts just when the reader is asking questions about where that aspect of the story came about. It feels hurriedly filled in instead of part of a plot. And the ending was anticlimactic for all the events and drama building up to it. While it was a nice surprise and added a new powerful character to the group, it wasn’t the ending that fit the storyline that lead up to it.

Smoulder finishes with a wedding, a new start for a couple I throughly loved, and a hint as to who’s going to be next in line for their mate and novel.

As much as I enjoyed this I’ll be heading into the next episode to see how it all goes down.

I’m recommending this book and romance.

Drake Security:

✓ Hot Head #1

✓ Smoulder #2

Buy Link:

Smolder (Drake Security Book 2)

Description:

I was hired to protect him, but will our smoldering attraction ignite into love?

When my hot headed brother found his fated mate, a deep, aching desire opened up inside of me for my own. Everyone knows dragons are covetous, jealous… possessive. I am all of these things, but never more so than when I set my eyes on Dempsey for the first time.

Beautiful. Awkward. Sweet. Shy. Perfect. My dragon wants to wrap himself around him the moment he bumps into me outside of his antique shop. Dempsey, however, is not as keen on that idea as my inner beast is.

He hired Drake Security for protection, and he needs it even more than he realized. Unfortunately, we specialize in brute strength and burning sh*t to the ground, and the problem Dempsey has is way out of our league.

Is he my fated mate or am I just so desperate for one that I’m falling for him too fast? Either way, I’ll move heaven and hell to protect him, even if the forces that are after him are unlike anything I’ve dealt with before.

I’ve spent thousands of years hoarding books and storing their words close to my heart. Will the love stories that live inside my soul be enough to woo him? Is it too much to hope that fate has chosen him for me?

**** Smolder is book 2 in the Drake Security series and has a reluctant fated mate, dragon shifters, book swooning, ancient mysteries, and magic. Each book can be read on its own, but is so much better if read in order. The series is all dragons, NO MPREG.

Review: The Alpha Experiment (Mismatched Mates Book 5) by Eliot Grayson

Rating: 4.5🌈

Mismatched Mates is a series I stopped because one book , First Blood, in it just disconnected me from the arc in that it was more of a side storyline. Unlike the other couples and relationships, that one of a sex worker and enforcer just wasn’t fully developed and I lost the momentum to continue onto the rest of the series.

It’s taken a while but I’ve meandered, via the story , Twice Bitten, back to the Armitage pack, related packs nearby and mismatched matings. So now I’m picking up where I left off earlier with The Alpha Experiment .

It’s a wonderful best friends to lovers or mates in this case storyline, with a sideline of drama, a morsel of clueless scientist, hot sex, and HEA. No mpreg.

A human born into a werewolf family by virtue of a human mother and were father, Dr. Newton McEwen has felt weaker, somewhat less than the rest of his family, although they’ve never given him reason to think that they love him any differently from his sibling because he was born without the werewolf genes. So his research has been to further develop human healing and other properties using shifter DNA. Research that’s brought shady tech company executives to his door.

Poor Newton. You feel for him immediately. He feels inadequate next to his shifter family, even his human mother. His research isn’t conclusive and he’s frankly living in a dump. Next comes the threatening emails.

I do like that he’s smart enough to realize he requires help and asks for it. And then agrees, mostly, with Colin’s advice about how to proceed with the situation.

So many times I’ve read stories where the MC blindly goes ahead putting everything and everyone in danger, earning them a TSTL title from me. Thankfully it’s avoided here. There’s a tiny section where you think it’s happening but all isn’t lost.

Newton makes mistakes. But it’s his trust , faith , and feelings for Alpha werewolf Colin Kimball that holds true. Colin, a known figure here, is a lifelong best friend of Newton’s. It’s easy to pickup on the vibes that Grayson’s written into the dynamics here for the couple. We know what they don’t early on, and have the enjoyment of watching the clueless mating dance.

Grayson builds a great bit of tension into the narrative. Sexual tension between the two main characters, the tension and suspense involved in the blackmail plot, and schemes to overturn it.

The author does all this while working to build a romance within a long-standing friendship and sorting out new conflicting emotions.

If it all came together a bit quickly, well, it was so satisfying that I was willing to look beyond that because the resolution was not a simple one and contained multiple elements to meet the conflicts that led into this situation.

I was left feeling happy, satisfied, and looking forward to the next installment.

I’m recommending this book. I like the series but recommend that you read the reviews as not all need to be read as a part of the arc flow. I have now read a couple out of order, Twice Bitten being the most recent. So the book order seems to be a suggestion rather than a requirement.

See the list below.

Mismatched Mates:

🔷The Alpha’s Warlock #1

🔷Captive Mate #2

🔷A Very Armitage Christmas #3

🔷First Blood #4

🔷The Alpha Experiment #5

🔷Lost and Bound #6

🔷Lost Touch #7

🔷The Alpha Contract #8

🔷Twice Bitten #9

🔷The Alpha’s Gamble #10

Buy Link:

The Alpha Experiment (Mismatched Mates Book 5)

Description:

Studying shifter genetics takes brains, patience…and sometimes simulating mating rituals with your alpha-werewolf bestie. You know, for science…

Brilliant geneticist Newton McEwen, the only human in a family of werewolves, has devoted his life to researching the scientific key to shifter magic. Now he’s being blackmailed and his life’s work is threatened if he can’t produce results.

Alpha werewolf Colin Kimball is a newly-minted pack leader with a mountain of responsibilities, but when his lifelong best friend tells him he needs help, Colin drops everything to run to his aid. But Newt’s not just looking for a brawny bodyguard to watch his back—he needs help with an experiment, one he can’t carry out alone.

Out of academically approved methods, and desperate to accelerate his research, Newt’s trying a last-ditch approach, with himself as the test subject. And the very alpha Colin as the catalyst.

Determined to succeed, Newt’s willing to get up close and personal with Colin as many times as it takes. Only feelings weren’t a variable logic-minded Newt took into account. Now not only is Newt’s career on the line, his most important relationship is at stake. Can they outwit Newt’s blackmailer and move on from their experimentation…or will they lose the friendship that means everything to them?

The Alpha Experiment features not-so-scientific mating rituals, magical handcuffs, some very inappropriate outdoor activities, knotting, and a guaranteed happily ever after. Even though it’s number five in the Mismatched Mates series, it can be read as a standalone. The series does not contain mpreg.

Review: Redeeming Nick (Dark Forest Pack Book 2) by Annabelle Jacobs

Rating: 4.5🌈

I’m so enjoying this series. I believe I found Redeeming Nick even more my favorite because of the characters and chemistry Jacobs creates here.

One caveat, a reader must bring a certain amount of information about the universe and characters history with them into each story. If you are new to Jacob’s’ werewolves world (and connected series), you will feel a bit lost or without a good foundation for the magic, politics, and overall series arc. That includes the Fae Realm.

That’s hugely important here when one of the main characters is a Fae guard, Dathal. Dathal is charged with the investigation into how such a rare powerful, lethal substance from the Fae Realm was smuggled through a portal into the human one, with deadly consequences.

Those events began in Claiming Rys Book 1 and the investigations continued here as it becomes apparent there’s a more complex plot behind the smuggling operation.

Dathal, cousin to Axel, a sexy, gorgeous Fae who’s been a part of the series from the beginning, is a great character. More serious, less aware or knowledgeable of the human world than Axel who lives here, Dathal’s personality and viewpoint is both humorous and fascinating. He’s definitely Fae, whereas some of the other Fae characters have softer “edges” to them from living in the human realm.

One of a two person POV format, Dathal’s perspective is distinctly Fae, with a genuine focus for his work and love for his realm, which contrasts well with that of Nick, a witch whose magical abilities hold a secret from his past.

Nick is also a terrific character. He’s demonstrated personal growth and courage in the course of this investigation as well as betrayal. He’s greatly invested in how the scheme has been implemented and who’s responsible.

When the two come together, the physical and emotional charge is remarkable. Jacobs does such a fantastic job in making this almost instant connection feel hot and genuine . That they fight it and fail comes across as absolutely believable.

I could have done with even more of their relationship but there did need to be some kind of storyline to move the smuggling theme forward and it does. Onto the next book. It’s turning out to be a very interesting and layered affair.

Next up is Axel’s story, hints of which we get here in this book. I can’t wait to read it.

Due to the series arc and story structure and character development, the books should be read in the order that they were written.

I’m highly recommending this series and book for all lovers of paranormal and fantasy fiction and romance.

Dark Forest Pack series:

🔷Claiming Rys #1

🔷Redeeming Nick #2

🔷Guarding Axel #3 – June 27, 2023

Buy Link:

Redeeming Nick (Dark Forest Pack Book 2)

Description:

A witch with a secret, a fae guard with a job to do.

Nick
As the new manager of paranormal club, Midnight, Nick Parker has his hands full. What he doesn’t have time for is an inconvenient attraction for the mysterious fae with violet eyes and the kind of magic that Nick yearns for.

Dathal
A fae guard with an affinity for seeking out the truth, Dathal has one purpose—to catch those responsible for smuggling a deadly plant out of the fae realm, and then return home. Falling for a witch isn’t on the cards, but something about Nick calls to him in a way he’s powerless to ignore.

Their paths cross as Nick is drawn into the investigation, and their connection is inevitable, but the consequences of being together are something neither of them could have foreseen.

Redeeming Nick is an MM paranormal romance featuring a hot, tattooed witch with attitude, and a silver-haired fae with a disdain for human rules. Full of magic, mystery, and sizzling UST, with a guaranteed HEA.

* For maximum enjoyment, the series should be read in order.

Review: Wolf Soul (Outcast Pack, #3) by T. J. Nichols

Rating: 4.5🌈

Wolf Soul , third in the Outcast Pack series, is my favorite to date. It changes up things by introducing a cat shifter, in this case, a leopard shifter as a mate. It also brings in toxic male sexual stereotypical roles, hypermasculinity, all within a werewolf pack or rigid community.

And the idea of what constitutes a leader within that rigid hierarchy.

So yes, this story covers a lot of ground with a short amount of length and does a great job of describing the issues and resolutions. It , the drama, will be also carried over to the next book.

Kyle Ashfield, supposedly head of the Outcast Pack , but not officially, as the group has not been recognized by the Coven, the Paranormal governing board. With all the attacks on its members and home, the Coven is sending a agent to investigate the situation and make recommendations.

That’s Cooper Badr, the leopard shifter.

The romance and relationship that comes from a meeting between Kyle and Cooper is sexy and full of emotion, especially when it’s fraught with questions about leadership roles and toxic masculinity from past history.

I read the story right through. It’s exciting, full of a great action and excellent relationship growth. The characters are very well written and the supporting cast are equally memorable.

It makes me want to reach for the next book immediately.

If you’re a fan of paranormal fiction and romance, here’s a series you will want to check out.

Read them in the order they are written for events, and relationships growth and development:

Outcast Pack:

✓ Wolf Heart #1

✓ Wolf Blood #2

✓ Wolf Soul #3

✓ Wolf Mate #4

◦ Wolf Lust #5 – March 28, 2023

Wolf Soul: mm opposites attract wolf shifter romance (Outcast Pack Book 3)

Description:

With the rival wolves closing in, fighting attraction is one battle they can’t win.

For the last couple of years, Kyle Ashfield’s friends have used his rural property as a place to gather and run beyond the territory of the official wolf packs. But now, their numbers have attracted attention, and some packs are not happy that a bunch of outcast wolves are living so freely.

Cooper Badr is a leopard shifter and the Coven agent tasked with interviewing and investigating the pack so the Coven can make an informed decision about its future. He’s supposed to be impartial, but around Kyle, he wants to do other things than talk.

Will Coven grant the pack of gay wolf shifters territory, or will they be shut down and banned from running together?

Discover the Outcast Pack mm paranormal wolf shifter romance series. Join the wolves as they fight to make their pack official and fall in love along the way. Each book has a new couple and a HEA/HFN with no cliffhangers and no mpreg.

Wolf Soul is a steamy, gay opposites attract, age gap romance between a wolf who should know better and a leopard who has to learn to fight for what he wants.

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