A Mika Review: Run With the Moon by Bailey Bradford

Rating: 3 star out of 5 stars

Two species that have always kept themselves separated are about to collide and create a new world.

Two species that have always kept themselves separated are about to collide and create a new world.   Humanity almost managed to do itself in. Ravaged by wars and plagues, the human population on earth has been bordering on extinction, although pockets of people have been forging on over the past few hundred years. It’s a hard life, and one Aaron Olsen fears he doesn’t fit into. As a son of a village leader, there are pressures on him he can’t manage, and things he keeps hidden, desires he doesn’t know how to express that keep him up many nights as he worries over them.

Valen is an alpha, born with the crescent moon mark on his chest. It means he’ll have to leave the pack he was born and raised in. It is the way of the wolf, and the only way to prevent it is to fight his father. Valen has no intention of doing such a dishonorable thing. He leaves as he’s supposed to, only to find himself the victim of thievery. When he hunts down the party responsible for stealing his belongings, Valen finds himself attracted to the human Aaron Olsen.   Now, if they can only survive their own pride and insecurities, and an attack that threatens everything they love, they just might have a chance at happiness in Valen’s Pack.

I’m on the fence about this story. I can say the one person who made me finish it was Rivvie. I liked his energy, positivity and just him in the story. It was suppose to be a futuristic setting shifter story, and I didn’t get it. If anything I felt like this could be almost a caveman story. Valen in the beginning seemed overwhelmed, sweet, and humble.

When the story starts progressing alone we get this caveman instead. I didn’t follow. It was simple things he did or said. His actions with Aaron were definitely caveman style it seemed. I’m not saying it was bad, but it was really. I liked that Aaron’s family were respectful to him, even though in his mind something else was happening. I do feel like it was holes in the story about the epidemics, and the shifter’s staying away from humans. I didn’t believe that village with both humans and shifters allowed some humans to come and destroy them. If this was the future, you are telling me they don’t know anything about a Molotov cocktail used as an accelerant.. I didn’t find that believable at all. My only other issue is that I wanted to see some sort of future for Aaron & Valen. What happened when both tribes intertwine? I would have loved the epilogue to be about them as mates. It fail short in that part.

Cover Artist by Posh Gosh, I’m a little on the fence about the cover too. I thought it was nice cover don’t really know if it goes with the story in my mind. I don’t see this guy as Valen. To me Valen, was this big guy almost caveman like because that’s how he is portrayed in the story.

Sales Links: Totally Bound

Book Details:

ebook, 144 pages
Expected publication: February 6th 2015 by Totally Bound
ISBN139781784303945
edition languageEnglish

A Mika Review: We Found Love by Kade Boehme & Allison Cassatta

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

It’s no surprise Riley Connors is dealing with issues. He was kidnapped as a young boy, and his parents abandoned him after his newsworthy return. He bounced from foster home to facility and back. Now an adult, ghosts from his past continue to haunt him. After a suicide attempt, he is locked away in Hartfield so that people can make him tune in to emotions he has tried to bury.   Hunter Morgan had the kind of love that spans ages. But the stress of college and adulthood became too much to handle, and the love of Hunter’s life turned to drugs. After he overdoses, Hunter finds himself soaring out of control on the same miserable path. His brother finds him and calls an ambulance, and the sister Hunter would rather not have calls it a suicide attempt, landing Hunter in Hartfield.   Finding love isn’t easy, but it can happen under the most dire circumstances. Together Hunter and Riley may be able to grow from their pain. But they will need to learn to live for themselves, letting love come second.

Kade Boehme & Allison Cassatta are one of my new favorite writing duos, oh man, the potential that comes out of their stories are so exciting. Best description for this story is Rihanna’s song “We found Love”. How could two people survive love in this situation? They survived and came out on top. My emotions were all over the place with this one. For the life of me I couldn’t see an outcome for these two with the situation that was presented. Riley and Hunter were such sweet guys who met at their worst but made it until the best of them was okay. I loved how the authors presented each guy with different reasons of being institutionalized. I really enjoyed the concept, damaged guys are my weakness. These two hit all the marks for me.

Riley had such an angry disposition about himself but it’s totally understandable seeing as what he went through. I hated that he basically had given up on life because of his past until Hunter came along. I’m glad he did who knows what would Riley have done if not. I wanted Riley to get better for himself instead of his love for Hunter, but he did what he needed to do. I do think it was harder for him because of the letdown his life has been up to this point. One of the most emotional parts of the book was when Hunter told the story of Cory which started his self destruction. I cried super hard through it, it was so sad to see a young person go through that. That event shaped his life into something he wasn’t happy with. I was extremely happy to see the outcome of these two, and wanted more from them as far as their future plans. I know they both had to work on themselves but I would have appreciated a longer ending.

Cover Artist Allison Cassatta’s cover was amazing! Both guys definitely portrayed the guys to a T. I love this description of these two it made them more human on cover, the scars, tattoos and gruffness was accurately portrayed.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press All Romance (ARe) Amazon buy it here

Book Details:

ebook, 214 pages
Published January 5th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632166777
edition languageEnglish
url

A Mika Review: Love Lies Bleeding by Remmy Duchene

Rating: 3 star out of 5 stars

When literature professor Anderson Williams arrives late to a father/son date to find his father dead, his world collapses around him. Now, not only is he mourning his father, but he’s scared for his life while trying to make sure his father’s face doesn’t become one of the thousands of cold cases in some dusty room. Then he meets NYPD officer, Leo Sung Kim, and he isn’t prepared for his body’s reaction to the cop.   Leo Sung Kim’s seen horrible things as a cop. But the latest serial killer is worse than anything he’s encountered. To make things worse, he’s instantly in lust with Anderson which makes staying professional almost impossible.   Even as Leo fights his emotions, the killer gets bolder. When the smoke clears, Leo could not only lose his heart but his life.

This actually wasn’t a mystery to me. I kind of figured out the “who dun it” right in the middle. It just made sense, no other person was interest or remotely interrogated. If you put aside the mystery. I kind of liked both guys being inexperienced with this level of passion with each other. Anderson was so focused on his career that he didn’t see Leo coming a mile away. Leo I think had settled in his mind that being a detective in a 2 bedroom apartment was all he was getting for the rest of his life.

These two met at the most inopportune time ever. It was hard seeing them fall in love with tragedy all around them. I think Anderson was very lucky to have Leo in his life fighting with him so he wouldn’t drown in despair. I think Leo needed Anderson in his life so he could see he actually did want the happy household and partnership. I do think it was cliché to pronounce they felt some sort of love about each other when one was sick in the hospital. I wish it could have been longer and I would have loved to see an epilogue about these two, and their respective best friends relationships as well.
Wilde City Press created this cover. Besides the flower which plays a major part in the story, I don’t really know who the guy is suppose to be. One guy is Asian, the other is African American. I think it would have looked better with both of those guys with the flower.

Sales Links: Wilde City Press

Book Details:

ebook, 2nd Edition
Published November 18th 2014 by Wilde City (first published January 2009)
original titleThe Orchid Murders

Previously published at Silver Publishing in 2009

A Mika Review: Captive To His Wonder by Remmy Duchene

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Shipped off to boarding school at a young age, Bradley Ellesbury Jr. lacked for nothing, except the love and approval of his father. Now with his father’s recent passing, Bradley feels the sting of disapproval one last time with the reading of the will.   Forced to leave behind his glamorous Parisian lifestyle, Bradley returns to the small town of Foster Creek to do precisely what his father forbade—sell the ranch. Meeting the infuriating cowboy his father hired to run the place only makes him more determined to go against his father’s wishes.   Too old to be playing mind games with twenty-something know-it-alls; Jace Cornielle stays only because he promised the old man. Somewhere between picking fights and making snarky comments, Jace and Bradley move from annoyance to attraction. Then Bradley learns losing the cowboy means he loses everything.

This was my first Remmy Duchene novel and I liked it a lot. I might be slightly biased because a character is name Jace just like my hubby, but oh well. I really liked this Jace though, with his kind heart, and temperament he was fine cowboy! Bradley on the other hand was a mess. He was such a QUEEN with an attitude from the beginning until the end. Yes, might have redeemed himself, but sometimes how he acted was totally unnecessary. I would have liked to known some more history on Bradley’s parents and their involvements. Most likely I could have seen the reasoning behind his ways. I mean, he just wasn’t spoiled, he was rude and mean for no reason. Sometimes he could be down right heartless, and in a split second be the sweetest thing walking.

I knew right off the back that Jace was going to win me over. He had the “grown man” attitude about himself. He was really awesome, even with the quick temper and nonchalant attitude about some folks. I do think it went from hatred to insta-love quickly especially the amount of blow ups the two had. I liked the flow of the story. You could see the chemistry between the two immediately. I didn’t like Bradley expecting to get everything his way. He needed to grow up quick. Honestly by the end of the book I don’t know if he grew up enough. Maybe he will realize being selfish isn’t going to help with Jace at all. I also loved the interracial relationship. I’d recommend this to cowboy lovers, enemies to lovers as well as people from opposite sides of life coming together to fall in love!

L.C. Chase created this cover. I really liked this cover, both guys were gorgeous, and you could see this happening while reading the story.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) Amazon Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 216 pages
Published December 19th 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN 1632164752 (ISBN13: 9781632164759)
edition languageEnglish
urlhttps://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5824

A Mika Review: In Too Deep by Kate Sherwood

Rating: 4 stars out of 5:

At first glance, Cade and Aiden hardly seem like a match made in heaven. Their worlds couldn’t be further apart. Cade is quiet, serious, and determined to succeed; Aiden’s a party-loving frat boy. Cade comes from a rough home and worked hard to get the scholarships that make it possible for him to attend college; Aiden’s had it all thrown in his lap by supportive, kind, and wealthy parents. Cade wants nothing to do with Aiden, but from the moment they meet, Aiden is determined to find a way to bring their different worlds together.   Aiden manages to persuade Cade he’s a decent guy, and a tentative friendship becomes much more. But a trip to Aiden’s family cottage puts Cade in the path of a ghost from his past, and a dark secret he never expected to face again. Cade did what he had to do to escape his dead-end life, but now he sees he didn’t leave it as far behind him as he thought.

First off, it needs a really good proofreading. That’s first, besides the grammar issue this is one of the best Kate Sherwood books IMO. I truly loved these two. It was definitely angst filled all throughout the story. Both boys were truly lovable. I think I heart Aiden, because he was so persistent in what he wanted. He didn’t take no for an answer, and yes it was times that he should have walked away and forgot about Cade, but I understand wanting to love that 1 person who inspires you to be a better person. Aiden was very brazen to keep going after someone who seemed so stand offish from the beginning. I liked Cade, I hate what he had to go through as a child and young man, but I applaud him for never giving up. His adolescence was super hard, but it didn’t deter him from wanting to be a better human being.

Once again we see people who have children, but can’t stay safe enough to raise them. I know a ton of people probably would have DNF the book because of the attraction seemed so one-sided, but the introvert that Cade was needed someone to fight for him. Cade needed someone to care enough to break him out of his comfort zones, and I loved that about Aiden. Aiden is super nice, comforting, he’s sweetheart. I didn’t see a mean bone in his body, I liked that he stood up for Cade in front of his mom. I even adored him for not apologizing for being fortunate in his life to never have to want.

I knew reading this there was something that Cade was hiding about himself, and the big reveal was realistic, things like this happen in every day life. I liked how the author wrote the scenes after everything came to play out. I do wish we had some epilogue to see how they are a year later. I really enjoyed reading this book. I recommend this book to all angst readers, and people who like HFN or HEA, people are fight for their great true loves!

Cover Artist Christy Caughie created this cover, I don’t quite know if I pictured Aiden as a blond even though Cade referred to him as the”golden boy”. I do think boy guys were represented well, and it fits with the story.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) Amazon Buy It here

Book Details:

ebook, 234 pages
Published December 1st 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632161253
edition languageEnglish

A Mika Review: All That Heaven Will Allow by D.W. Marchwell

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5:

Jimmy Campbell has owned his own bar for the past twenty years. While his past is troubled, his present and future make life worth living. He has good friends, more than enough money, and he volunteers—along with his Yorkie, Bozo, and his Maine coon cat, Miss Alicia—at the local hospital every Friday. He couldn’t ask for more. That is, until he meets Derek “Dizzy” Roberts.  Derek is a musician who tours the country with his band. He’s an ex-cop, was married once, and has the bitter ex-wife and two spoiled children to prove it. He’s finally living his dream, and that includes bedding all the groupies who think he’s every bit as good as his music. He doesn’t worry much about the future, until he meets Jimmy.  The two men begin a long-distance romance, sneaking weekends here and there, until a tragedy forces them to realize they might lose the only thing they both want–a future together. Now, they’re asking for everything heaven will allow.

I loved everything about these two. I liked that it was 2 guys over 40 years old. Yes both had bad previous relationship but they came into this one only with each other in mind. It was definitely instant love, but at their respected ages I’m pretty sure they knew what was what. This was my first read by this author and I’m glad I really enjoyed it. It felt really slow paced in the beginning, more character driven than the romance and I was okay with that.

Both mc’s were equally great in their own ways, but Jimmy definitely stole the show for me. I’m not an animal person by far but what Jimmy was able to do with his heart and for other people is amazing. He was super patient, honest, loyal, and all about second chances. He was super caring, and he just came off as the perfect guy. I mean I don’t think he said one negative thing the entire book, and he definitely pulled at my heart strings for sure. Sure he had his issues, damages and reasons for wanting to start something with Derek but I’m super happy he gave into it, because it made him a happier man.

When Derek is first introduced it’s him offering himself as a player name Dizzy. LMAO, I thought he was super charming, but of course all that charming was just a facade for the man underneath. Their first interaction with each other had me rooting for Jimmy and snorting at Dizzy because he just got served big time.

All in all, they made their romance work for them. Dizzy finally got the family he wanted, James finally had someone who love and appreciated him. A couple things bothered me, Derek’s previous relationship and children story line didn’t get wrapped. I felt like it was just left off, and I would have liked to seen some type of mending of the sorts. It was a lot of misspellings in the book; I did think they needed a better proofreader. I didn’t tear up surprisingly. I would recommend this book to CR readers, just an easy read between two older guys. I like reading about older guys. I find that they tend to communicate a lot better, and that’s mostly what I’m looking for.

The cover artist Bree Archer created this cover, and I liked the picture because it was full circle for the two guys. I did feel like the one portraying James wasn’t since in the book he was a full blond, other than that I really liked it.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) amazon buy it here

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Published November 21st 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632161673
edition lang

A Mika Review: Truth in Lace (Desires Entwined #3.5) by Tempeste O’Riley

Rating: 3 stars out of 5:

When Alexander James Noble looks in the mirror, he sees a freak looking back at him. Despite his high grades and plans for culinary arts school after graduation, his parents would hate him if they really knew him.  Forced on a shopping trip with his twin sister, Lyric, and her friends, Alex eyes the girls jealously, longing to be able to dress like them—to be them. The constant struggle of being “gender fluid,” wrestling with an identity that seems to change daily, begins to wear on Alex. But all those questions and fears seem more manageable when his sister gives him his first skirt and lace panties.

When I say this was a shortie, this was a shortie. I didn’t know how to rate this because it’s literally under 25 pages. Its 24 pages to be exact. I liked it, because it was when Alex first understood what being gender fluid meant. I didn’t understand the author only producing this short novella as I felt like it could have been more with this subject. What did Alex do, following this coming of age sort of moment? More of his story would have been great. I liked him and Lyric. I liked Lyric supporting him, it was a rarity at their age to understand and accept Alex with no qualms, or restrictions. It was a nice short story and with a nice prologue.

Reese Dante created this cover, and like the previous covers it had symbolism written all over it I liked this cover the best, I really went in with happiness because I thought it would be thoroughly talked about.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook (free) All Romance (ARe) (free) amazon buy it here for $1.99
Book Details:

ebook, 24 pages
Published November 5th 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632165213
edition languageEnglish
seriesDesires Entwined #3.5

Books in the Desires Entwined series in the order they were written and should be read:

Designs of Desire (Desires Entwined, #1)
Bound by Desire (Desires Entwined #1.75)
Desires’ Guardian (Desires Entwined, #2)
Temptations of Desire (Desires Entwined, #3)
Truth in Lace (Desires Entwined #3.5)

A Mika Review: Temptations of Desire (Desires Entwined, #3) by Tempeste O’Riley

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5 :

Alexander James Noble is a gender fluid gay man who gave up on finding Mister Right a long time ago. He’s not asking for much, though. He just wants a guy who loves all of him and appreciates his feminine form too.  At the local LGBTQ center where Alex regularly volunteers, he meets Dal Sayer, an officer of the Milwaukee PD. Because he’s been rejected one too many times, Alex doesn’t trust the huge cop and the interest he shows in him, but once Dal sets his mind on something, he goes all out. Pushing aside his preconceived notions, Alex opens up just a little and soon caves.  From their first date—while dealing with his father’s failing health and his parents’ demands for him to settle down and have children—Dal never takes his eyes off his goal of making Alex his. But proving to Alex he isn’t like all the men who couldn’t see him for who he truly was and only wanted to hide him away is harder than he thought.

Temptations of Desire is book 3 in the series,Desires Entwined, and I have finally fallen in love with one of the couples. I adore Dal and Alex. They both were a breath of fresh air. One of the biggest themes in the book was gender fluidity, something I love reading about in books. I honestly don’t think we get enough characters like it. This book coincides with things from the previous book we get to see certain things from Dal’s perspective.

Of course both guys had their issues with being in a relationship, but the thing that got me was they “TALKED” like grown people do. When one, had an issue he didn’t over react, he waited so he could talk it out. Sure no relationship is perfect. Dal has a great relationship with his brother Rhys, but they are totally different. He was such a sweetheart, gentle and completely calm whenever he approached Alex. I thought Alex was skittish at times, but it made sense seeing as he was victim of abuse before on multiple accounts. One thing I loved about his was his determination, and strength. Alex was amazingly strong, he didn’t waver on his feelings sure he was unsure about how Dal was going to react to him being gender fluid.

I wish this book was much longer, and I appreciated the epilogue but I wanted more of them. I want to know how their little family is going to be. I want to know their feelings of living in Chicago and with each other. I’m very happy with the outcome of this book. Hopefully book 4 is based on Kai; he is one character who I really wanted more time of all. I wouldn’t read these out of order, but this book was much better. I really enjoyed the writing and the relationship.

The cover artist Reese Dante. Like the previous covers it had symbolism written all over it. I can appreciate the cover based on the feelings both mc had when the scarf was presented in the book. I liked the simplicity and acceptance of it as well.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) amazon buy it here

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Published September 22nd 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781627989305
seriesDesires Entwined #3

Books in the Desires Entwined series in the order they were written and should be read:

Designs of Desire (Desires Entwined, #1)
Bound by Desire (Desires Entwined #1.75)
Desires’ Guardian (Desires Entwined, #2)
Temptations of Desire (Desires Entwined, #3)
Truth in Lace (Desires Entwined #3.5)

A Mika Review: Desires’ Guardian (Desires Entwined #2) by Tempeste O’Riley

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Most people see Chase Manning as the party-boy twink he seems on the surface. Only James, Chase’s BFF, knows the depth of his loyalty and the extent of the wounds Chase carries inside. When Chase meets Rhys Sayer things don’t go well, but he can’t shake his attraction to the huge, sexy man.   Rhys is a man of contradictions and fear—a strange combination for a PI and bodyguard. He’s in a bad place emotionally when he sets eyes on Chase for the first time. When Chase puts the moves on him, Rhys insults him, thwarting any possibility of a relationship. Rhys doesn’t see himself as a complicated man, but he dreads the very kind of connection he desires.   Just as they’re trying to overcome their uncertainties, Chase is put in harm’s way. Luckily Rhys and their friends have all the right talents to help Rhys save the man of his dreams.

While this was a big step up from Designs of Desire (Desires Entwined, #1), it still left me unsure of some things about the characters and their relationship. I liked Rhys and Chase from Designs of Desire. I honestly felt like this was one big role reversal in this book. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not basing it on both of their physical appearances either. I felt like Chase’s character in the first story was so approachable and happy all the times. I understand people aren’t always happy and he was a secondary character. It wasn’t alot for me to base much on Rhy’s character because he just seemed like a body guard.

I liked the story a lot. However it felt like the mystery was just thrown in there for aesthetics purposes only. I understand Rhys needing a reason for Chase being in his life because of his work, but I felt like there were other ways it could have happened.

My biggest issue with the story was the lack of communication. Come on, you want me to believe that you two weren’t able to talk about why you weren’t talking to each other after 1 night of coming together. I didn’t feel like these two would have that issue. They just seemed to fix their issues magically. What did Rhys exactly do, because based on few terms he used I felt like the “issue” didn’t get rectified.

I did like how protective Chase friends were, oh my goodness. It was like the Twink Gang, they were all over threatening Rhys about treating their friend right. I appreciated it a ton, I loved how both guys had supportive families on both sides. Rhys parents were amazing, and sure his dad giving Dal an ultimatum hurt but we’ll see where that leads in Temptations of Desire (Desires Entwined, #3) . With the intensity of these two, I was happy with the ending. They both wanted to pace their relationship and just get to know each other well.

I recommend this for people reading the series; we do get to see some of Seth and James from Designs of Desire (Desire Entwined #1). I definitely noticed the author’s growth as far as the writing went.

Reese Dante created this cover, and like both previous covers it had symbolism written all over it. The cuff meant something, I would have liked bikes instead but I could appreciate the cuff based on the “mystery thriller” aspect of the book.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) amazon buy it here

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Published June 6th 2014 by Dreamspinner Press (first published June 5th 2014)
ISBN 1627989277 (ISBN13: 9781627989275)
edition languageEnglish
urlhttp://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store
seriesDesires Entwined #2
setting Milwaukee, Wisconsin (United State

Books in the Desires Entwined series in the order they were written and should be read:

A Mika Review: Bound by Desire (Desires Entwined #1.75) by Tempeste O’Riley

Rating: 4 stars out of 5:

Despite his past abuse, James has come to terms with his relationship with his Dom and lover Seth. Seth treats James with all the trust and love his sub desires. There is only one thing left to do to make it all complete: Seth needs to put a collar on James.

I honestly liked the novella much better. I felt like James knows and has agreed to the relationship and situation he’s in. That aspect is something I felt was missing in the first story. It was so nice to see James confident and loved by Seth. Seth’s character too showed an improvement from Designs of Desire, the first novel. Seth felt far less exasperating. I think both characters made great progress in this one. I’ll continue on with these two. I want to see how their relationship develops further.

I definitely recommend this story. Just be aware of the bdsm components to this story and series. Now on to the next installment in Desires Entwined series by Tempeste O’Riley.

The cover artist Reese Dante. I think the cover was fitting based on the last book big announcement at the end. It was nicely done, and I really liked it.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press (free download) All Romance (ARe)– free not available at amazon

Book Details:

free ebook, 5000 words
Published May 30th 2014 by Dreamspinnerpress (first published May 1st 2014)
ISBN139781632160393
edition languageEnglish
seriesDesires Entwined #1

Books in the Desires Entwined series in the order they were written and should be read:

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