Tag: first in a series

Review: The Hitman’s Guide to Making Friends and Finding Love (The Hitman’s Guide #1) by Alice Winters

by Alice Winters

Rating: 5 🌈

I’ve been on a fantasy binge lately and when I realized I couldn’t remember if a incubus character was one that needed a hug or shouldn’t be touched, it was time to return to contemporary fiction.

I pulled up Alice Winters because she’s a author I not only adore for her terrific well written tales but honestly, I know I’m in for a rollicking hilarious great “game on” of a read when I grab for one of her stories.

That’s exactly what I fell into with The Hitman’s Guide to Making Friends and Finding Love. It’s one of three novels about a hitman and his hunny with a side story that’s equally amazing.

But The Hitman’s Guide to Making Friends and Finding Love is the beginning. A laugh out loud, gut wrenchingly hilarious book about a hit man named Leland who’s career takes an unexpected turn when he spies a PI awkwardly scaling a fence to gain access into a house he’s monitoring.

I won’t go further. That’s definitely a scene to be savored in the book.

Much like their tangled relationship and Leland’s oversized personality.

Every time I start a Winters story it’s almost a given I’ll end up at after 3am … eyes still glued to the Kindle until it says… the end….

From the droll descriptions of the characters, current remarks dropped into snappy dialogue, and conversations that veer from pithy to deep emotions and back to full on hilarity with the speed of a Mach one racer, this story ( and all the rest) are flat out fantabulous!

Age gap, humorous action packed mayhem romance, complete with Randy the blowup Sex doll and adorable doggies.

I’d only complain if there wasn’t a follow up story but there is. Happy dance!

So this is an absolute must read if you love to guffaw with your contemporary romance, need spot on dialogue with characters so memorable that their staying power is all the way to 11 (movie reference).

Highly recommending the author and series! A must read!

The Hitman’s Guide series:

✓ The Hitman’s Guide to Making Friends and Finding Love #1

◦ The Hitman’s Guide to Staying Alive Despite Past Mistakes #2

◦ The Hitman’s Guide to Tying the Knot Without Getting Shot #3

Side Story:

😎The Former Assassin’s Guide to Snagging a Reluctant Boyfriend

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Hitman’s Guide to Making Friends and Finding Love by Alice Winters – Goodreads

Synopsis:

What happens when a snarky hitman and a by-the-book PI cross paths?

Leland
Being a hitman has its perks, but I never thought getting an accidental mooning by an attractive PI while he’s caught on a fence would be one of them. While it’s not exactly love at first sight, he’s captured my interest and won’t let go.

Suddenly, I find myself caught in a game of cat and mouse, determined to attract the attention of Jackson, the PI who should be my enemy. He pretends like he’s not flattered by my flowers and the mentions of my totally-not-fictitious blow-up doll Randy (or was it Dandy?), but I know better. Why else would he be teaming up with me to bring down Hardek, one of the city’s most ruthless criminals?

Jackson
Even though the cops are telling me that the hitman is a notorious contract killer, I can’t help but admit that I’m drawn to him. He’s funny, charismatic, and attractive. There’s no way this ridiculous man can be the person the cops are after.

But when Leland ends up at my doorstep injured, I’m faced with a tough choice. It’s my duty to hand him over to law enforcement, but my heart has other plans. I want to keep him. To protect him. To be with him.

Though one question remains: why in the world does the man have so many d*mn guns?

Contains: shenanigans on a swing that you would NOT find at a playground, a car chase that sadly doesn’t have flips or explosions, a horsey ride sans horse, cuddles, an exuberant mutt, a suspicious chief of police, and lots and lots of laughs

Review: Logan (Chosen Champions #1) by Macy Blake

Rating: 4.25 🌈

Once again I seem to have stumbled onto a new author and new series with quite a few established characters, and a solid fantasy foundation set in place by multiple series that were released prior to this one. It’s a prospect that’s full of potential for a long and happy reader relationship if I love what I find here.

Turns out I do.

Blake gives her readers the essentials of her world building here at the beginning. The magical seal, the now divided realms with the human realm now hosting, without humanities knowledge , a wide spectrum of supernatural beings caught unawares when the door home “slammed shut”as it were.

It’s how those are doing here and who’s monitoring them that’s the series. And the prior ones as far as I can tell.

Blake breaks down her different series into factions dealing with this huge closure between worlds. I’m still a little vague on the Chosen Champions thing and how they factor into the big picture. Maybe that’s coming.

Logan starts the beginning of the Chosen Champions. Each of the supernaturals who are already a secret police team are individuals that have made appearances elsewhere in other series.

Since I’m new to it all, I can say it doesn’t make a huge difference not to have read those stories prior to this one. It’s other parts of each man’s/beings past that will become a pivotal storyline in each novel.

For Logan, it’s his pack-less status, the history behind that, and his lack of mate. Those huge issues drive him emotionally, including denying his instincts as a Alpha to form a pack.

Macy Blake has a interesting group of supernaturals as Logan’s friends and team. From a dragon, a griffin, a vampire, a wolf from another family, and an enigmatic boss who’s only heard but never seen, it’s a tight knit grab bag of talents and history.

Bailey Cairn on the other hand is all human, a talented chef, exhausted student about to graduate with a business degree, loyal friend, and a bit insecure about himself.

Blake’s characters are well crafted, and relatable, whether they’re human or supernatural. Bailey comes with a small close group of college friends who’ve formed a found family amongst themselves with Bailey as the centering force. We soon find ourselves as familiar with this small human “family “ as we are with Logan’s team.

A linked series of horrific attacks pull both groups together.

A two person pov format works very well , especially in a story with a suspense element. Blake gives each character plenty of narrative time to explore their personality, history, and current situation before moving to the other person. It moves between them as needed while remaining balanced.

Blake does tackle the damage past trauma inflicts on a person and the continuing pain it carries. I appreciate that’s an element the author carries from one story to the next. These men understand how attacks this brutal traumatize people and bring up therapy to try to heal the pain within.

There’s humor to allay the suspense, sexy heat to go along with high action. Logan is an exciting, fast-paced supernatural romance. I enjoyed it immensely.

Moving now to Gideon! That’s the sexy vampire in Logan’s pack….

I’m thrilled to find a new series and author! I’m recommending both

Chosen Champions series:

✓ Logan #1

◦ Gideon #2

◦ Aleron #3 – coming March 22, 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showLogan (Chosen Champions #1) by Macy Blake – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Logan Moore is a leader without a pack…

And after the rejection he faced from his last pack, he’s not sure he wants one. But when a mysterious benefactor he nicknames The Oracle offers Logan the chance to use his military expertise to lead a group of misfit shifters to protect the creatures of the magical realm, Logan’s wolf won’t allow him to say no.

Bailey Cairn is a man without a protector…

And for the entirety of his very human life, he hasn’t needed one. But when his friend is attacked at a bar, sweet, caretaker Bailey is drawn into a world he hadn’t known existed. A world full of secrets, and magic. A world full of danger… and gorgeous, protective Logan.

But if Bailey and Logan want to break the chains of the past, they’ll have to learn to trust each other and themselves, and start to believe in things that are bigger than they are…

That magic exists.

That packs are about more than blood ties.

That sometimes true love is a matter of fate.

And that heroes aren’t made…they’re Chosen.

Review: Misfit Mage (Fledgling God #1) by Michael Taggert

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Misfit Mage, the first book in the Fledgling God series by Michael Taggert , is a brutal, vastly entertaining, and imaginative introduction to this new to me author and great universe.

A world where the supernaturals are ruthlessly hunting for power or power sources, with methods brutal, cruel, and often final, those recently awakened to those powers don’t have long to grow into them. Often too weak to survive, they are easy prey , power fodder for those stronger then themselves.

But the mundane world hasn’t a clue such viciousness exists.

Taggert creates one young man about to find out in the worst manner possible, exactly how close the magical world exists to his.

Jason Cole is a survivor. He’s also inventive, amusing, kind, and emotionally a walking soul bruise. His past has left him damaged but scrappy. In short, Jason is someone we can easily connect with.

And we do. Especially as Jason is put through rather a lot. Physically and emotionally. But mostly physically. When I say parts of this book are brutal, I mean it. Jason is attacked and the descriptions are harsh and raw. He takes a real beating. More than once. On the page. So if this is a issue or trigger , be prepared to skip over this section.

What you will delight in? The magic here. Taggert doesn’t just have a character wave a hand … and then there’s magic. Nope!

This author decided to go into the mechanics of his magic, which is fascinating. It’s on a cellular level plus there’s another element that’s tonal. So many outstanding magical threads here. Plus Taggert does so without taking away any of the wonder and awesomeness that makes a urban fantasy so unforgettable.

Taggert gives us matrixes, dancing pink cells, magical flying Grannies with Dustbusters, zooming Red energy Dots with feathers, Miniature Magical Miners, and so much more. It’s incredibly entertaining, vastly amusing, and so inventive that as a reader I’m just waiting to see what Taggert and his characters come up with next!

There’s a found family being established within a sentient House, a foundation of magic and history that’s slowly being rolled out too.

Oh there’s cats and kittens. Kittens are Life. And hugely important as characters. You will adore them, especially one.

It’s almost as though we get a magical cultural smorgasbord in some respects to entertain us. For me it absolutely works. I can envision it and it makes me laugh.

Misfit Mage is primarily concerned with Jason’s intro into his new world and the people that will become his found family. It’s also his first real look at its realities and the enemies he and his friends face.

A harsh new yet amazing world. One that gets steadily better as we advance into the next installment, Melee Mage.

I’m steadfast in my love for this small group of people who are still revealing themselves and growing their powers. So it’s a winner and one I’m definitely recommending!

Fledgling God series:

Misfit Mage #1

Melee Mage #2

https://www.goodreads.com › showFledgling God #1 – Misfit Mage – Goodreads

Synopsis:

He went searching for a fresh start. He didn’t expect to find unusual friends, fierce enemies, and primal powers.

Jason thought that it was the end of his life after being hunted and attacked by a band of ruthless thugs. Instead, he tapped into the source of creation and emerged from his Death Experience with magical powers.

As a new mage, Jason finds himself part of a wonderful – and dangerous – new supernatural world. He also finds himself in the middle of a mage war as he becomes part of an unlikely group of protectors who are defending a mystical mansion from those who want to destroy it.

Jason has little power, and the band of misfits are on the losing side, until he discovers he can see and manipulate magic at a remarkable level. What he detects begins his journey into discovering how his new powers really work, and just might be the edge that they need to survive.

If you like witty dialogue, diverse characters, magic that feels real, and intense action, then you will love this LGBTQ urban fantasy. Buy Misfit Mage today and step into a new enchanted world.

Review: Never Stay Gone (Big Bend Texas Rangers #1) by Tal Bauer

Rating: 4.5 🌈

I’ve been so busy with fantasy and contemporary romances that I’ve neglected one really great action suspense author. Tal Bauer.

Tal Bauer writes just amazing stories. Ones that might include such elements as government agencies and military spies, secret missions, and any number of inside sub terrorist organizations to deal with. Along with folding in a wonderful romance to boot.

Never Stay Gone is the author’s first story in his new Big Bend Texas Rangers series and it’s great. Jam-packed with so many of my favorite tropes, it’s a fast paced murder mystery and a second chance at a revived passionate relationship as two men race to find a killer. All throughout the unforgettable location of Big Bend Texas.

It’s starts with a terrifying find of a body dump by Deputy Shane Carson out in the desert wilds of Big Bend country Texas. It’s our initial introduction to the murder victims and one of the main characters.

Shane Carson is a small town’s native son who’s never lived up to its and his family’s huge expectations for him. He carries the years of his “failures” heavily. But Bauer’s created a more damaged man then evidenced on the outside.

Only by flashes of his past and glimpses into bits of his relationships with those outside of work does the reader realize Shane’s floundering there too.

It’s a realistic, painful portrait of a man deeply in trouble.

The reason why appears in the form of Texas Ranger Dakota Jennings, who’s been pulled by the Governor herself to handle the investigation into the multiple murders.

One reason? His history with the region and people. Second? One of the bodies worked for the Governor.

Dakota Jennings is as complex a man, albeit in a completely different way then Shane. Each man was damaged by their past with each other. Neither has ever moved forward.

How Shane and Dakota handle their reunion amidst murder, multiple investigations, heartbreak, forgiveness and redemption is a remarkable story.

It’s so compelling from just the personal elements alone as each man grapples with the past and the trauma it’s done to them. Add to that the police work as they track the killer and trace the identities of each victim. So gritty and tough.

This has first/only love, coming out, lovers reunited, second chance at love, hurt/comfort…all set in the dry open spaces of Big Bend country in Texas as a murderer tries to escape justice. It’s thrilling, heartbreaking, and an amazing suspenseful read!

I can’t wait to see where the series takes us!

If you’re not familiar with Tal Bauer, this is a wonderful place to start. I’m highly recommending this!

Big Bend Texas Rangers series:

Never Stay Gone #1

https://www.goodreads.com › showNever Stay Gone (Big Bend Texas Rangers #1) by Tal Bauer – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Six bodies in a single grave… in the same West Texas country where Dakota left everything behind.

Every beat of my heart belongs to you.

Thirteen years ago, Dakota Jennings thought he’d found his forever when he fell in love with Shane Carson. But one afternoon shattered their love story, and both Dakota and Shane left Rustler, Texas, with broken hearts. Even now, Dakota is still feeling the agony of losing Shane. Sure, he’s a Texas Ranger, but that’s not how he wanted to live his life. All he ever wanted was to love Shane.

Loving you is the only time I feel alive.

Shane’s life was supposed to be different than this. There’d been a plan, ever since he was knee-high to his father. But falling for Dakota spun Shane’s world upside down, and for years, Shane has had nothing but the memories of all that he lost: Dakota’s gentle touch, and the sweetness of his lips, and the star-strewn nights they spent wrapped in each other’s arms.

West of the Pecos, there is no law.

When the Rangers get the call about six bodies being pulled out of a mass grave in West Texas, the governor sends Dakota to run the investigation. Dakota heads back to his hometown and comes face-to-face with the last man he ever expected to see again: only now, he’s Deputy Shane Carson… Dakota’s local partner assigned to the case.

There’s nothing Dakota wants more than a second chance with Shane, but so much is stacked against them: six corpses, a murderer on the loose, and history that refuses to stay buried. And the bodies keep piling up as Dakota and Shane try to run the killer down across the West Texas plains.

In a moment, everything changes: the hunters become the hunted, the past fractures, and all Dakota thought he knew comes tumbling down. Secrets break wide open as Dakota remembers–

This is West Texas, and out here, nothing is as it seems.


Big Bend County is a place of beauty and desolation, of secrets and small towns. Where the past and the present collide, and where nothing stays hidden forever.

This MM romantic suspense is the first in the new Big Bend Texas Rangers series. Come along for the West Texas sunsets, the heart-pounding thrills, and the hard-won Happy Ever Afters.

Review: The Enchanter’s Flame (The Ellwood Chronicles #1) by Michele Notaro

Rating: 4.5 🌈

It was a gorgeous cover that drew me to another new fantasy series and new author. It’s glorious colors and outstanding design had me stopping and grabbing the synopsis.

Never underestimate the power of a great cover!

Michele Notaro’s first installment absolutely lives up to that cover! Full of magical characters, a plot full of mystery and murders, and a universe that has a foundation that expands to embrace each new revelation as the story continues.

And it starts so mundanely. With a series of murders and a detective looking for clues to the identity to the serial killer.

That’s our introduction to Det. Sebastian Fitz, ex Special Forces, now a recently transferred Detective who’s been assigned a murder investigation that soon turns into that of multiple murders, with the same weird MO.

Drained blood, tortured victims, and symbolic markings bring Ailin Ellwood, a specialist, into Seb’s case and life.

The story and characters start off slow but as the author builds more of her universe and the characters get more involved in both the investigation and each other, then it starts to come together.

The further I read , the more the characters revealed about themselves, the more I connected with everyone and this story until at parts I was sobbing.

The ending sets up the plots and major conflicts coming for the next story. I’m headed that way.

I’m definitely recommending The Enchanter’s Flame (The Ellwood Chronicles #1) by Michele Notaro. What terrific characters!

The Ellwood Chronicles series:

✓ The Enchanter’s Flame #1

◦ The Witch’s Seal

◦ The Enchanter’s Soul #3

◦ The Witch’s Blood #4

◦ The Enchanter’s Heart #5

◦ The Enchanters New Kids #6

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Enchanter’s Flame by Michele Notaro – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Strange things are happening all around Brinnswick. Things that remind me of a piece of my past I’d rather forget. Girls are being killed, drained of blood, and left with strange markings on their bodies. When I finally connect the cases together, a specialist is called in—though, what he’s a specialist of is beyond me.

When the chief assigns him as my new partner for the case, I can’t help but groan on the inside. Why of all people would I be assigned to Ailin Ellwood? The man is a disaster waiting to happen and a jerk to boot. A sexy jerk, but a jerk nonetheless.

What will Sebastian think when he discovers Ailin’s specialty? Will he make a run for it or will he stick around and discover a world of magic hidden beneath the city’s surface?

***The Enchanter’s Flame is the first book in the Ellwood Chronicles. It’s a paranormal romance that contains explicit material and is intended for mature adults 18 and over.***

Review: The Fantastic Fluke by Sam Burns

Rating: 5🌈💫

The first in a series, The Fantastic Fluke is another one of those magical tales that author Sam Burns writes so beautifully.

From the opening sentence and our introduction to mage Sage McKinley, we have an immediate understanding of this man’s current situation, his thoughts on his past, his present predicament, even his self image. It’s intimate and concise. And it serves as both a foundation and way to connect the reader emotionally to Sage.

How could it not? Then we get thrown further afterwards as it gets more evidenced that this story is firmly bound to the magical world by ghosts, mages, familiars and murders most supernatural!

Not all the great characters are human, some are delightfully foxy! Or ghostly! Burns has built this story around multiple magical murder mysteries (alliteration is not a key), fantastic layered characters, and a romance.

The story is so well plotted that it moves along smoothly, all the elements coming together at the end for a perfect “aha” revelation or two!

I was just captivated the entire story. Whether it was Sage’s ghastly adolescence, the trauma he endured, or his future path that was happening , whether he wanted it or not. Magic was coming for him.

The Fantastic Fluke is just the first of The Fantastic Fluke series by Sam Burns. I can’t wait to read on and see where this journey takes Sage and his companions.

I’m highly recommending this. And the author, Sam Burns.

And btw? That cover is gorgeous! Love it.

The Fantastic Fluke Series:

✓ The Fantastic Fluke #1

◦ Fluke and the Failthless Father #2

◦ Fluke and the Faultline Fiasco #3

◦ Fluke and the Frontier Farce #4 – coming in 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Fantastic Fluke #1 – Goodreads

Synopsis:

A lost fox. A gorgeous ghost. And an unlikely partnership to stop a murderer.

Since his mother’s murder, Sage McKinley doesn’t live, he exists. His weak magic has made him an outcast, shadowing his life with self-doubt. All that changes when the spirit of a gunslinger appears in his bookstore with a message that will flip Sage’s world upside down. According to the mesmerizing apparition, a powerful magic lies within Sage… if he can find a way to tap into it.

But dastardly threats accompany this untapped power. Bodies are piling high as a killer hunts for the secrets of the mage that now course through Sage’s veins. Can Sage find the confidence to embrace all he’s capable of? Or will the next life snuffed out be his own?

Review: Origin (Scales ‘n’ Spells #1) by A.J. Sherwood and Jocelynn Drake

Rating: 4🌈

When I saw that two of my go to authors had co-writtten a series together, I needed to check it out. Especially a fantasy series.

Origin, the first in A.J. Sherwood and Jocelynn Drake’s Scales ‘n’ Spells series is a terrific story. It overflows with dragons, magic, and romance.

The world building is straight forward and, unless the authors intend to throw substantial twists into the upcoming novels, without the multiple complexities and overall murkiness I’ve had in my other sagas. This contributes to a lighter narrative, that moves the plot swiftly along. Germany makes for a rich location in terms of language and culture and both are put to excellent use by the authors.

The Park Twins, both Cameron and his sister Cassie are charming and well conceived. In fact, the entire all the Noh family, including the wonderful grandmother are such a plus! I gravitated to them all. More so then any of the other characters. Hopefully we will see more of them in the upcoming novels.

The arc story threads is set forth almost immediately as are the stakes for all the beings involved. The action scenes are well done but I want more of the dragons. Balancing mage and dragons here isn’t a easy task.

Alric and Cameron make a relatable couple. I think his sister Cassie and her mate make an even more adorable one, and wanted to see more of them too.

Origins was a very good start to a new series and I look forward towards the rest of the series.

As a lover of fantasy, I’m recommending it.

Scales ‘n’ Spells series:

Origins

Breathe

Wish: a Novella

Blood

Embers

https://www.goodreads.com › showOrigin (Scales ‘N’ Spells, #1) by A.J. Sherwood – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Cameron wants to make it clear that he did not go into the festival to find a dragon mate.

Germany is supposed to be an escape. With a new mechanical engineering degree, a new job looming, and a whole life planned out that isn’t his, Germany seems like the best place to find himself.

So, how does he end up discovering his lost magic heritage, running from bad guys with a secret agenda, and being adopted by the not-so-extinct Fire Dragon clan?

Cameron blames tall, dark, and sexy Alric, King of the Fire Dragons. His fated mate. Because of course he is, and mates are meant to take the blame, right?

It may take a hot second, but as Cameron learns more about the scarred Alric and the life he’s landed in, Cameron realizes that perhaps this is where he’s meant to be, magic and mates and kidnapping and all.

Turns out coming to Germany wasn’t an escape but his awakening.

Tags: Not-so-extinct, Shifter dragons, mages, fated mates, secret clans, epic libraries, hurt/comfort, not mpreg, age gap, not that Alric cares, magical heritage, mechanical engineers being BAMF, grumpy dragon kings being protective of their cute mates, really the cuteness is downright criminal, we might need a firehose for these two, or not, sass, so much sass, Ravi and Cameron are no longer allowed to be alone together, for reasons, dragons hoarding, when you live long enough statistics will get you, bats named Cheryl, beheadings, no damsels in distress here, just very unhappy mages, with trigger fingers, anyone have life hacks on how to get rid of kidnappers, Cameron is open to suggestions.

Review: Steal The Wind (Godstone Saga #1) by Jocelynn Drake

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Again I’ve fallen into a new fantasy epic and new author with Steal The Wind (Godstone Saga #1) by Jocelyn Drake. I’m so happy with both new additions to my reading and author lists.

We meet our important quartet of main characters immediately

Prince Carlen of the Kingdom of Erya, with his royal companion and best friend, Drayce. Also there Royal advisor Lord Rayne Laurent and Royal Bodyguard Lord Eno Bevyn

With Caelan at the pivotal narrative point and the others as his important support, Drake builds a epic fantasy tale, full of tragedy, magic, gods, misfortune, kingdoms lost… and waiting to be won once more. With romance and love woven throughout.

I was absolutely pulled into the first installment and Caelan’s journey. Drake’s ability to make even the smallest of characters memorable as well as the briefest of scenes made me stay connected to the group’s struggles to battle through heartbreak, weariness, deception, and shattering revelations.

Each character is given their own pov which works given each man’s importance to each other and the developing saga storylines.

While it ends on a cliffhanger, it feels right and I’m eagerly moving forward to the next book.

The author intends this to be a six book series. There’s three currently released with the fourth out next month.

I’m happily anticipating some busy nights ahead.

In the meantime, if you love fantasy fiction and romance, put Steal The Wind (Godstone Saga #1) by Jocelyn Drake on your TBR list. It’s a winner!

https://www.goodreads.com › showSteal the Wind (Godstone Saga, #1) by Jocelynn Drake – Goodreads

Godstone Saga Series:

✓ Steal The Wind #1

◦ Breathe of Life #2

◦ Wake the Dead #3

◦ Wings of Fire #4 – coming January 22, 2022

Synopsis:

Everything Caelan knows about his world is a lie.

A war is brewing. As the crown prince of Erya, it’s only natural that Caelan is sent on a secret diplomatic mission to support one of the kingdom’s allies. With his advisor, his bodyguard, and his best friend as traveling companions, what could go wrong?

Everything.

Everything goes wrong.

Now they are on the run, dodging assassins, setting secret meetings, and even making deals with a sleeping god.

So, this is probably a really bad time to cave to feelings he’s been fighting for his best friend. But Drayce has owned his heart for more years than he can count and if he’s going to die, shouldn’t he have just one kiss?

The fate of the world is on the line, and only Caelan holds the power to save them all.

Steal the Wind is the first book in the six-book Godstone Saga fantasy series and is not a standalone. The story contains explosions, secrets, cranky gods, hidden romance, a prince on the run, a possessive ex-boyfriend, magic, and lots of delicious angst.

Review: A Ferry of Bones & Gold (Soulbound #1) by Hailey Turner

Rating: 5🌈

I absolutely love it when I stumble across a book by a new author and become a fan of the writer as well as a reader highly invested in a series and characters after only finishing book one.

That’s what occurred after Hailey Turner’s A Ferry of Bones & Gold got it’s narrative hooks into me. Once I found myself absolutely engaged with the lives of Patrick Collins, Jono, and all the rest of the beings fighting against the Dominion Sect , I was full on part of that universe and fight as well.

Turner has a terrific way with dialogue and descriptions that makes these people. beings, crackle with life, energy, vibrancy or in the case of the vampire s, chilling magnetic power, that flies off the pages.

And the sense of urgency, and suspense is incredible when it comes to the battles and chases. Whether it’s mundane or magical. From great fight scenes to the devastation left behind, the author brings a sense of authenticity to her writing that makes us believe!

The plots here are many and varied. Also as convoluted as the famous Labyrinth of Crete, which is perfect because on top of werecreatures, vampires, elves, dragons and such, the story’s man elements include the gods of various mythologies. Albeit vary much alive.

The first book deals primarily with Greek although the Egyptian Ra and Norse gods are mentioned.

Here they are quite the meddling group, and the layers (as well as god pantheon politics) flow through the story.

That’s a lot to pack into a story and this book holds that weight easily. Along side a beginning relationship with Patrick with a were, and a small group of beings as he starts to find himself a unofficial “team” and circle of friends.

However, the author also allows a continual thread of loss, death, isolation, to run faintly through. It’s in Patrick’s history, and the reader is aware is most likely in the fighting still to come.

A sobering awareness that never leaves, giving this story a severity and somber note you hear over the laughter.

I appreciate that and wonder how this extremely complicated relationship and many layered arc storylines will play out.

I can’t wait to read on and find out.

What an amazing start.

Highly recommend this story and author.

Soulbound series:

✓ A Ferry of Bones & Gold #1

◦ All Souls Near & Nigh #2

◦ A Crown of Iron & Silver #3

◦ A Vigil in the Mourning #4

◦ On the Wings of War #5

◦ An Echo in the Sorrow #6

◦ A Veiled & Hallowed Eve #7

Synopsis:

When the gods come calling, you don’t get to say no.

Patrick Collins is three years into a career as a special agent for the Supernatural Operations Agency when the gods come calling to collect a soul debt he owes them. An immortal has gone missing in New York City and bodies are showing up in the wake of demon-led ritual killings that Patrick recognizes all too easily from his nightmares.

Unable to walk away, Patrick finds himself once again facing off against mercenary magic users belonging to the Dominion Sect. Standing his ground alone has never been a winning option in Patrick’s experience, but it’s been years since he’s had a partner he could trust.

Looking for allies in all the wrong places, Patrick discovers the Dominion Sect’s next target is the same werewolf the Fates themselves have thrown into his path. Patrick has been inexplicably attracted to the man from their first meeting, but desire has no place in war. That doesn’t stop Patrick from wanting what he shouldn’t have. Jonothon de Vere is gorgeous, dangerous, and nothing but trouble—to the case, to the fight against every hell, and ultimately, to Patrick’s heart and soul.

In the end, all debts must be paid, and Patrick can only do what he does best—cheat death.

A Ferry of Bones & Gold is a 115k word m/m urban fantasy with a gay romantic subplot and a HFN ending

https://www.goodreads.com › showA Ferry of Bones & Gold (Soulbound, #1) by Hailey Turner – Goodreads

Review: Fractured Souls (Fallen Messengers #1) by Ava Marie Salinger

Rating: 4.25 🌈

Fractured Souls is the first book I’ve read by author Ava Marie Salinger but it definitely won’t be the last, if for no other reason that Fractured Souls is the first in a series.

But after reading this imaginative and gripping fantasy story (non-stop btw), I’m ready to rush headlong into the second round and more in this universe and series.

Salinger starts us off in a world where a cataclysmic event has already occurred hundreds of years ago. Then a tear in the void between worlds saw demons, angels and a host of otherly beings from all Realms fall to Earth. After much warring a peace was brokered and all species co-exist, tentatively side by side.

That’s the interesting basis that the author then starts really building her edifice upon. Salinger does so through her strong characters as they navigate her incredibly dark and complicated storyline, which includes murder, sacrifices, humor, action, surprise revelations, and just plain great plotting.

Much like her universe, we get a basic understanding of who her characters are and then the author proceeds to show us that’s just a mere outline she’s using to create something astonishing. Not just for one major character but for many as the revelations, small and large, stumble out .

What’s more remarkable is that not only is the reader highly surprised by each change or new element with regard to the characters but the characters themselves are shocked!

Yes The Fall wiped out most memories of past existence for those who survived it. Talk about a great concept! So both the readers and characters find out the new details about themselves at the same time. Love it.

Salinger has so many great details here to go along with a heinous murder spree. A series arc that’s delicious , devious, and dangerous in its own right. And characters that are just memorable in every way.

If I have a issue here it’s with the language or descriptions. While Salinger’s plots are stellar, the writing sometimes gets a little less tidy. Some characters get the same words used to describe them repeatedly.

Poor Adrianne. She comes to mind the most.

Adrianne said dully.

Adrianne said leadenly. (She does this a lot)

Adrianne snarled.

There’s also a lot of “muscles jumping in cheeks’ of both sexes when upset. Including Adrianne’s. It’s as though the author knew she didn’t want her characters muscles to “tick” so they “jump”. Often, sometimes in the same paragraph. SMH. Anyway.

The plot kept my interest glued as the pace is fast and the events occurring are action packed. Had that not been the case, verbiage like those examples above would soon drag your attention out of the storyline.

Luckily, a great concept and enough mystery keeps your mind centered on the characters.

Here there’s no demons versus angels but all factions actually work together. More or less, power struggles not withstanding. Nice change that.

Cassius Black and Morgan King are perfect for each other. And their chemistry grows along with their complicated relationship.

All the support characters are equally strong and have the potential for more growth in the future. They make up a great team, one you connect with and invest yourself emotionally in.

I’m heading now quickly over to book 2 in the Fallen Messengers series. That would be Spellbound.

I’ll let you all know what I find. This was an terrific , exciting, sexy fantasy novel. And a great start and introduction to a new author and universe.

I can’t wait for my journey to continue with both.

Definitely recommended.

Fallen Messenger series:

Unbound #0.5

Fractured Souls #1

Spellbound #2

Edge Lines #3

Oathbreaker #4

Synopsis:

Humans are dying in San Francisco. The most shunned angel on Earth may very well hold the key as to why…

When Cassius Black moves to San Francisco for a fresh start, the angel’s hopes of staying below the radar of the supernatural organizations that oversee the otherworldly and magic users in the city are dashed when he stumbles across a dead body in the sewers. His grim discovery soon puts him in the sight of the Argonaut Agency and Francis Strickland, the bureau director who knows his darkest secrets. 

Morgan King and his team of Argonaut agents have been hunting for the culprits behind a series of gruesome killings that have rocked the city all summer. Killings that bear sinister hallmarks of sacrificial rituals where the victims’ souls have been ripped from their bodies. When Fate brings Cassius in Morgan’s path, he realizes the angel everyone likes to call The Devil may very well be the only person who can help them track down the murderers.

Morgan and Cassius soon find themselves chasing down a sect of black magic sorcerers and cross paths with a mysterious warlock whose actions evoke disturbing echoes of an incident from Cassius’s past. As rumors of a potential plot to tear the Nether reach their ears, Cassius and Morgan must work together to defeat their common enemy and save the city from destruction, all while fighting their growing attraction for one another.

Fractured Souls is the first novel in the MM urban fantasy romance series Fallen Messengers. If you like action-packed paranormal adventures with romance and snark, then get this pulse-pounding book today and enter a world you won’t want to leave! 

https://www.goodreads.com › showFractured Souls (Fallen Messengers #1) by Ava Marie Salinger – Goodreads