Tag: LGBTGIA fantasy romance

Review:  The Hidden God of Open Doors by Tavia Lark

Rating: 3🌈

It didn’t immediately register but I had read this before as a short story in the Heart2Heart Valentine Day’s Anthology.  It worked there, surrounded by other like stories and given a foundation by the Anthology basis of the Heart2Heart matchmaking process, a well established tradition and built upon by each story. 

As a standalone? Removed from that structure and foundation? Unfortunately,  without a solid narrative support, it doesn’t really make the type of satisfying story you would expect from Tavia Lark. 

I love the premise and the potential of this story. That someone has been imprisoned for an indefinite amount of time within a small room for a unknown reason is horrifying. Especially as we get glimpses into his tiny room and his personality. Then Lark flips over to Raider, who, along with his sister Val, owns and runs a shop for magic items and are newly immortal. 

Ruin finally gets to communicate with someone else when mysteriously they are hooked up via the Heart2Heart dating app.  

I can’t see where this was expanded from the original version. The story is still a good concept but given the trauma of being held prisoner for thousands of years and then having a relationship, albeit a verbal one? I would have thought Rune’s reactions to have been considerably more intense and internalized.  

The backgrounds of the locals or location need further explanation, especially as that’s where Rune was imprisoned. As it was there is so many unanswered questions.

The Hidden God of Open Doors by Tavia Lark is a sweet paranormal short story.  A quick read that needs more attention to detail and depth of character. 

Cute. 

Buy link 

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.comThe Hidden God of Open Doors – Kindle edition by Lark, Tavia. …

Blurb 

Forget finding his perfect match. Rune is just desperate to talk to someone.

Rune is lonely, immortal, and trapped in a mysterious prison. Objects appear and disappear as the decades pass, and his only companions are the books and television. He hasn’t spoken to a real, live person in over two hundred years.

Until one day a phone appears, with a magical dating app already installed.

The app promises to find Rune’s perfect match for Valentine’s Day. Rune is tempted, even though he knows that’s impossible. Nobody wants a perfect match they can’t meet.

Then he matches with Raider—a confident ex-treasure hunter who shamelessly flirts past Rune’s loneliness.

And Raider doesn’t believe in impossible.

The Hidden God of Open Doors is a short Valentine’s Day MM romance about a trapped immortal, the flirty treasure hunter who wants to discover everything about him, and the dating app magic that brings them together. 

Previously published in the Heart2Heart Volume 7 Paranormal Anthology 

  • Publication date: January 24, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 62 pages

Review:  Deadly Deception : Necromancer Tales Book 2 by MJ May

Rating: 5🌈

Superlative. Once again May is building a suspenseful, dynamic, thrilling new series by introducing a villain that’s truly horrifying by its  truly threatening but yet unknown nature.  But first, a fantastic well crafted, compelling murder mystery, full of secrets, bodies, ghosts, another necromancer , more world building, and just a outstanding story. 

Have to wait until the end but by the scenes described, the reader can imagine the scope of its plotting. One so immense that’s been unknown,  whose power and potential to harm this series’  world and characters will hang over each story.

Fabulous.

It starts with May taking her Erasmus Boone and Franklin O’Hare out of their homes and comfort zone, away from their jobs, family, friends and the warmth of the Mississippi , back to Chicago and the Midwest where Detective Franklin O’Hare came from and still has ties. 

It’s a great way to start. It’s cold. The Chicago PD murder case is fraught with danger, both in terms of emotional distress and the likelihood of prejudice against Boone. And then there’s the question of Franklin’s family who wants to meet Boone for the first time as well since they became a couple. 

The characters May creates for the Chicago PD and at every other aspect of the story are just as well defined, beautifully executed as any that’s come before. Their personalities develop and grow as the cases and investigations become more complex, just as you would imagine. 

Series characters are also evolving. Aurelia the djinn is finding new facets to her personality, possible emotions to figure out, and those are her struggle with her increasing unpredictability.  May’s strength in writing otherworldly beings that are absolutely at their core non human make her books magical, powerful, and often terrifying.  For the reader and the characters in the stories.

I can’t wait for this series to continue. What an amazing, scary journey lies ahead.  Highly recommended!  And I love seeing crossover characters from the Pixie series make connections here!

This is a must read, as it the series before it. 

Another excellent cover design by cheriefox

Related/Preceding Series:

Perfect Pixie Series 

🔹Perfectly Imperfect Pixie 

🔹Perfectly Perfect Pixie: Peaches’s Story 

🔹Perfectly Charmed Pixie: Parsnip’s Story 

🔹Perfectly Perplexing Zombie: Wendall’s Story 

🔹Purrfectly Peculiar Pixie: Phlox’s Story—End

Necromancer Tales:

Deadly Lineage #1

Deadly Deception #2

Buy Link:

        Deadly Deception: Necromancer Tales Book II

    

Blurb 

Necromancer Erasmus Boone’s life is better than he ever imagined. Bucking the typical necromancer storyline, Erasmus has managed to carve out a life filled with love and purpose. With Halloween fast approaching, Erasmus is ready to enjoy his favorite time of year. Unfortunately, Detective Franklin O’Hare’s Midwestern past has other ideas.

Covered in blood and found wandering the streets surrounding Chicago, a necromancer is being accused of murder—the victim and circumstances unknown. Mentally unstable, this unfortunate necromancer is in jeopardy of being railroaded for a crime he may or may not have been involved in. Franklin O’Hare’s former captain doesn’t want to witness another victimized necromancer. Aware of Franklin’s association with Erasmus, he calls on them for help.

Now headed for chillier climes, Erasmus and Franklin need to figure out if a crime has been committed, and if there’s one thing Erasmus excels at, it’s finding where the bodies are buried. Only Erasmus doesn’t just fine one victim; he finds several. When the souls of the departed blame their deaths on a long dead bogeyman, it becomes clear the local sheriff has a problem and a necromancer accused of murder is just the tip of the iceberg.

Between bringing back the dead, dealing with local prejudices, and meeting Franklin’s family, Erasmus has his plate full. Add on a worried warlock father and more than one attempted assassination, and Erasmus is more than ready to pack it up and head back to the warm Mississippi breeze. 

Deadly Deception is the second book in the Necromancer Tales series and should be read in order. This series is a spin-off of the Perfect Pixie series and takes place in the same world but can be read as a stand-alone series. Deadly Deception is a m/m romantic fantasy mystery with an unusually sane necromancer just trying to make a living, a humble human detective attempting to keep his necromancer boyfriend alive, an arrogant but redeemably overprotective warlock father, a deceptive killer, a questionably moral all-powerful djinn, a kitten who can’t figure out how it wound up in a backpack, let alone staring through a plastic bubble, humans—some redeemable and some not, a chilly Chicago fall, and a playfully bloodthirsty vampire. Deadly Deception has a HFN ending as it is part of an ongoing series. 

Mentions of violence, murder, souls brought back from the beyond, spaciest bigotry, and a few characters of questionable morals and sanity.

  • Publication date: January 21, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 335 pages

Review: Dauntless (Luckless Book 2) by Cari Z

Rating: 5🌈

The second book in Cari Z’s excellent fantasy series, Luckless, about dragon rider Evan Luck , his mate/dragon Lee Caldwell, known in his dragon form as Ladon and his son Jason. 

Dauntless builds on the foundation that the first novel laid out, but now the author has relationships and a mystery to explore further.  There’s also Jason’s unique physiology that’s a major dramatic element here, for his family and the story. It’s superb as the boy’s struggles and deep pain for acceptance is relayed by the author’s scenes so beautifully. 

There’s new monsters to fight and the action sequences are suspenseful and compelling. All the while, the Fortress City of Forge, formerly Denver, Co, the location for books 1 and 2, is a bigger presence. The author gives us more details, including possible dragon politics to how the very structures of the Forge, making it more a reality.

By the ending, a family struggles become a wider story, new insights into the world are added, new characters introduced and a mission launched.   I’m even more invested than ever before. 

What an amazing story and series. Highly recommended! 

Cover Art by Vivid Covers

Luckless series:

Luckless #1

Dauntless #2

Reckless #3

Buy link

        Dauntless: Book Two in the Luckless Series

    

Blurb 

Evan Luck is a dragon rider who, after years of thinking he’d never bond with another one, now has a dragon again. His empathic connection with the powerful silver dragon Ladon, known in his human form as Lee Caldwell, has made them the most valuable defenders of the city of Forge against monstrous invaders. The fact that they love each other and dote on Lee’s ten-year-old son, Jason? Those are blessings Evan never saw coming. He knows life is good…even as he realizes that the world is becoming more dangerous by the day.

With monsters leaving the mountains of the Front Range to roam the plains for food and the influx of refugees to Forge increasing by the day, Evan has his hands more than full defending the city and training new recruits to fight. When Jason, desperate to bond with a dragon of his own but continually refused by the dragons of Forge, begins to lose control of himself, Evan and Lee make plans to do the unthinkable: leave Forge to fend for itself and take their son to Chicago, the nearest human and dragon stronghold to their own city.

But Chicago has its own terrors to deal with, and their last hope for Jason’s future might be lost before they can save it.

  • Publication date: September 21, 2021
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 133 pages

Review: Luckless (Luckless Book One) by Cari Z

Rating: 4.5🌈

Luckless, a fantastic fantasy short story from Cari Z, reads like a much longer novel.  It’s got a depth of characters, and its world building surpasses its length in exploration and dimension. 

A absolute fan of anything dragon or dragon rider related, the tale of Evan Luck, now called Luckless because he survived the unimaginable. The loss of his dragon and their bond. 

The author brings Evan grief and shattered memories vividly, painfully to life, including the hate and fear that comes from the people around him.

It’s a dystopian Earth fighting for survival against monsters and humanity’s only major hope is the dragons who came and fought with them. 

Told completely from Evan’s perspective, we see the remnants of the city, the creatures they are fighting, the dragon and rider pairs, and Lee Caldwell, a new important arrival.

Lee and his young son are both great characters. They balance out Evan in multiple ways, and while it’s easy for a reader to understand or guess about Lee’s role, nothing takes away from the story and the journey that these characters have to go through. 

While, the end is a bit abrupt, it helps to know that there’s 2 more books ready to read in this series.  

I highly recommend this excellent book, with its fantastic characters and terrific story. 

Great cover too. 

Luckless series:

Luckless #1

Dauntless #2

Reckless #3

Buy link 

        Luckless (The Luckless Series Book 1)

    

Blurb 

Evan Luck is a dragon rider with no dragon. Five years ago, his dragon gave her life defending the monster-ridden remnants of Marble, and ever since, his ability to connect empathically to another dragon had been as broken as his heart. Now he spends his days dodging his disappointed mayor, crafting arrows, fighting off the not-as-legendary-as-they-should-be beasts that’ve overrun America, and just trying to get by in the city of Forge.

But when he meets newcomer Lee Caldwell, Evan thinks his lonely luck might be changing. Lee is the only person in the city who doesn’t blame Evan for his dragon’s death, and he welcomes Evan into his own little family. There’s more to Lee than meets the eye, though, and between his refusal to talk about himself, pressure from the mayor to split them up, and a monster attacking the city’s foundations, Evan isn’t sure he’ll live long enough to learn the truth. But not learning the truth will almost certainly be fatal, both to Evan and Lee’s budding relationship, and to the entire city.

  • Publisher: Cari Z. (June 1, 2020)
  • Publication date: June 1, 2020
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 80 pages

Review: The Pastel Prince (Crowns of Melowynn #1) by V.L. Locey

Rating: 4🌈

V.L. Locey has written a new MM fantasy romance in The Pastel Prince, the first novel in her Crowns of Melowynn series.  

It’s an age gap, slow burn romantasy that’s setting the stage and foundation for the world and stories to follow.

Locey has managed a magical horrifying journey, a terrifying mystery, an epic adventure, and a developing relationship to engage the reader’s imagination and hold our attention. 

Mages, elves, pixies, and various other creatures and types of magical elements that will continue to be explored as the series deepens its knowledge of the political system and its history, little of which is set down here.

Kenton, the young Druid and Beirach , the archdruid , were a solid well written couple and strong start to a new series.

If you love fantasy romance, check them out and this series from VL Locey!

Fabulous Cover by Meredith Russell

Crowns of Melowynn:

The Pastel Prince #1

The Ivory King #2 – 2/6/2025

Buy Link

https://vllocey.com/Pastel_Prince

Blurb 

The fate of the wilds is in his hands.

Kenton, a young druid prince, feels trapped in the bustling city life, a world away from the forests of his birth. Despite his royal duties keeping him tethered to the urban sprawl, his spirit remains tangled with the whispering trees and the ancient, mystical rhythms of the forest. But when a sinister threat endangers his people’s land and lives, Kenton embarks on a perilous journey to track down a powerful and ancient being; the lone archdruid powerful enough to stop the darkness.

Only, Beirach is nothing like the archdruids of old tales. Instead of withered and world-weary, he is younger than expected, vital, and has a magnetic charm that Kenton can’t ignore. Thrown together by fate and bound by a shared mission, Kenton and Beirach find themselves in the heart of a battle to save nature. As the dark mage’s shadow looms over the forest, they fight together and find a love as raw and wild as the forest itself.

The Pastel Prince is an M/M age gap romantasy set in a faraway land with magicks and mythical beasts, a belligerent pixie, a young druid on an epic quest, an older archdruid who’s not as washed up as he thought, Elven castles, long glances over a campfire, and a fey-tastic happily-ever-after.

  • Publication date: January 17, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 223 pages

Review:  A Spell for Heartsickness (The Rune Tithe #1) by Alastair Reeves 

Rating: 3.5🌈

Spoilers 🚨 

A Spell for Heartsickness (The Rune Tithe #1) by Alastair Reeves is a fantasy romance or romantasy written by an author I’ve never read before.  

The story is preceded by a lengthy author’s note, which I always read. This one was informative, but somewhat overly detailed, especially equating curses to debilitating illnesses. More on this later.

For two thirds of this story, Reeves had me absorbed into the lives of the characters and the magical mysteries of the island of Coill Darragh. There’s well crafted engaging ghost witch, Gretchen. She’s a character with a huge role here, as well as part of a horrific mystery needed to solve that’s got multiple layers to it. 

The main characters start out astonishingly well. Witch Briar Wyngrave’s personality and character is reflected by his painful reality and dire circumstances. He’s cursed which has resulted in a incurable physical illness . And Briar wants to achieve his life goals within a certain time period. 

The history and the ramifications of this curse will be revealed slowly by events and by Briar, the narrator of the story. How Briar handles living with his increasingly debilitating physical condition, the impact of his curse has on his life emotionally and mentally, is very well written. It helps bring him closer to the reader’s perspective, understanding his mindset as he deals with his life as the curse worsens. 

However , there’s a flip side to this approach. As the only pov , to stay connected, Briar’s actions need to be relatable and consistent with his personality and storytelling. . By making Briar carry the sole responsibility and weight of this narrative, the author risks losing some appeal to the readers when Briar’s actions become either mind numbingly inconceivable (read SMH dumb) or ones certain readers won’t get over (like knowingly sleeping with the villain). 

That starts to happen just as he’s gotten to the point this reader was able to understand his background and his new positive life choices. 

The others characters , including damaged Rowan , the mysteriously scarred alderman,his wonderful sister and her family, are fantastic in their vivid characters and beautifully crafted locations.   Plus let’s not forget Gretchen, the ghost witch whose involvement starts strong and then storyline goes sideways. That’s a real shame.

The wild, enraged magical forest, the angry vines, all these elements are wonderfully brought to life, vibrant and horrifying. 

I wish I could say the same about the villain. From the moment he appears he’s got a capital V stamped on him that inescapable. It’s a matter of oh yeah, there the bad guy immediately which makes Briar’s actions even worse.

So there’s much here to enjoy and admire. There’s also quite a bit of elements in the characters and storytelling that make the narrative puzzling and less appealing.

If the author and their books are in your TBR folder, add this to it. 

The Rune Tithe series:

A Spell for Heartsickness #1

A Hex for Hunger #2 – July 15,2025

Buy link

        A Spell for Heartsickness: A Romantasy (The Rune Tithe, 1)

    

Blurb 

In this charming MM romantic fantasy, cursed witch Briar Wyngrave has a date with destiny―but isn’t totally sure which man that date is with.

Witch Briar Wyngrave’s time is limited. The wasting curse that killed his mother is coming for him too, consuming his magic bit by bit. At least he’ll have the chance to make his name as a magical fashion designer with an elite placement in Pentawynn, the country’s glittering capital, after graduation. Until, that is, a prophecy sends him to the remote island of Coill Darragh instead, in search of a predestined lover with a mysterious mask.

When Briar arrives with his grumpy magpie familiar, Vatii, he finds an unwelcoming town, a murdered poltergeist named Gretchen in his apartment, and a handsome alderman named Rowan with a haunting scar. He also gets pulled into the mysterious magic of the darkly enchanted forest that surrounds the town and seems to have something to do with his curse . . . As if all that weren’t enough, famous witch Linden Fairchild has come to town, complete with a charismatic smile, an unreadable aura, and a surefire plan to cure curses.

How’s a cursed witch to know which enchanting man is his destiny? And can Briar possibly make an impact as a magical fashion designer in this tiny town? One thing is certain: a witch’s magic requires a tithe―a berry, a feather, a cut into flesh―and Coill Darragh may take tithes Briar isn’t ready to give . . .

  • Publisher: Podium Publishing (October 15, 2024)
  • Publication date: October 15, 2024
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 330 pages

Review:  Prince, Charmed by Duckie Mack

Rating: 3🌈

Prince, Charmed by Duckie Mack has a very strong start on a potentially engaging fantasy romance but several elements ending up making it fall short.

The storyline revolves around an embittered witch who lives on the edge of a forest. Florian once was a young child in the castle and best friend of Prince Malachi. Until he was thrown out into the streets, when he was 13, sick,  and without resources or some place to go. He faced twenty years of fighting homelessness, poverty, and finding himself isolated and a witch in a world that didn’t understand magic.

That’s a good plot and character. Florian has many character traits that make him relatable to the reader and a strong background.

Then Malachi appears, and what could be a terrific romance starts to lose its appeal.  This is a 20 year old separation, a traumatic one and the scene should be emotionally reflective of the situation.  It’s not. They could be coming off a misunderstanding over a bagel choice. It’s that low key.

The rest of the author’s story takes the same approach.  A high drama plot that has little of that in the narrative.  It’s so low angst that even the mystery maladies that affect the Prince are comical. 

The Queen is the final issue here. And I’ll admit that in her behavior she’s a personal flag for me. 

After chucking a hurting, sick 13 year old out of the only home he’d ever had and never following up on him afterwards, what does this person say 20 years later to him. Any apologies? No. Just this . Framed out that she’s feeling better about herself now that she’s sees that her son is determined Florian is staying so as he’s the next King there’s little she can do. 

“For what it’s worth, I really am happy to see you again, Florian. It broke my heart to send you away, but seeing you two together again has mended a tiny piece of that.””

— Prince, Charmed by Duckie Mack

It’s basically oh, you survived being tossed out, suffering homelessness as a sick child. Then poverty and discovering that you are a witch in isolation. We lied about you and no one , except for our son, cared. It ends well, so I can feel better about myself and my despicable actions.  

For me, I’d rather they tossed her out. But no. And it appears Florian gives us his cottage to treat all the castle royals. 

There’s just too much that’s unexplored or left at a one-dimensional element while being a subject that requires a deeper or more detailed explanation. 

On one side a child thrown away, suffering and hardship. The other ? Magical hilarity from parsley and croaking frog noises.  Child abandonment and years of trauma versus instant love and quirky humor.

It’s too incongruous. To work well, imo, this needs more layers and exposition.  Just way more length. 

Read it because you’re a fan of the author. Or reading the series.

Cauldrons and Kisses (8 books):

🔹Love Potions and Moonlight by Kota Quinn

🔹Charmed by Rainbow by Jax Stuart 

🔹Prince, Charmed by Duckie Mack

🔹Enchanted Hearts by Jacey Davis 

🔹Oral Hex: An MM Omegaverse Romance by Salem Jack 

🔹How To Summon A Memory by Morgan Lysand

🔹 Half Past Hex by Toby Wise

🔹 The Trouble With Spells by Raiven Matthews 

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Prince-…Prince, Charmed – Mack, Duckie: Kindle Store

Blurb 

Malachi is a prince and next in line for the throne, but as his coronation gets closer, strange things keep happening to him.

Florian grew up in the palace alongside the prince. The two were always together until it was discovered that Florian had magic.

The young witch was torn away from his friend and cast out from the only home he’d known. Despite the turn his life had taken, he has worked hard to build a reputation for helping people.

When Malachi realizes his problems are magical, he seeks out his childhood friend. As Florian works to undo the charms controlling the prince, that bond they once had comes back even stronger than before.

Prince, Charmed is a low angst MM friends to lovers romance. Cauldrons & Kisses is a multi-author series of MM magical standalone stories. Each low angst read will feature a witch finding love.

Review:  An Unwitting Bargain by Grae Bryan

Rating: 4🌈

Well, this was just adorable. Like holding a lively lovable golden retriever but in narrative form .  Grae Bryan’s short fantasy story is a quick delight of a romance.

That’s totally due to the author’s engaging couple and a common theme given a fun twist. 

Benny, the human golden retriever main character, is one who has appeared in this author’s other terrific series, Demon Bound. I’m so delighted that Benny gets his HEA here.  Benny is a joy. Bryan has created in Benny someone who’s enthusiastic about everything new that comes his way. His brilliant positive energy jumps off the page. 

So of course, he doesn’t really know what he’s getting into when he meets this gorgeous man in a bar who’s paying attention to him. Helio, someone who listens and asks questions, and lets him do his thing.

Helio is that other hilariously funny character, a frustrated Fae where nothing he’s doing is working on the happiest human he’s ever seen. 

There’s not a lot of world building or layers to the backstory but it’s short and honestly, these two (plus a misbehaving villa) are fabulous together.

I loved it and would hope they pop up together in the Demon Bound series in some future roles.

Or maybe a tiny sequel. Highly recommended! Just adorable.

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Unwitt…An Unwitting Bargain – Kindle edition by Bryan, Grae. Romance …

Blurb

Never give your name. Never accept a gift or favor. Never eat the food of the realm.

Benny is having the best summer ever. He’s made a new friend, and now he’s getting an extended vacation at a private island. And sure, his buddy didn’t ask Benny’s permission before taking him there, but what could be so bad about exclusive sandy beaches and a free stay in a fancy villa?

Helio is having the worst time of his life. Here he’s gone to all the trouble of kidnapping a human to the fae realm, and the man doesn’t even have the decency to be afraid. Benny’s broken all the rules, and Helio has a right to keep him, but his prey doesn’t even realize he’s been captured. Is this human messing with Helio, or is it truly possible for one man to be so damned oblivious?

AN UNWITTING BARGAIN IS A 15K NOVELLA FEATURING AN OBLIVIOUS HIMBO HUMAN AND THE MORALLY GRAY FAE HE’S ACCIDENTALLY DRIVING A WEE BIT MAD. THERE’S A KIDNAPPING THAT GOES UNNOTICED, A MAGICAL VILLA WITH A CRUSH, AND AN EXTREMELY WHOLESOME HUMAN WHO JUST WANTS TO MAKE HIS NEW FRIEND HAPPY.

  • Publication date: January 3, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 68 pages

Review:  The Last Gargoyle’s Christmas Wish (MM Monster Christmas Book 3) by Gigi Rivers

Rating: 4.5🌈❄️

Gigi Rivers’ has such a captivating, warmhearted series with her Berry family of hearth and kitchen witches and their assorted otherworldly mates.  With every member finding their love at Christmas, during the same time period, it’s been a joy to watch the same events from the various family members perspectives.

Dragons, gargoyles, werewolves, cat shifters, and orcs! It’s all about love and acceptance in a large family that’s been through so much pain and sorrow, stayed together, and still has room and love in their lives and hearts for more.

Grady is the oldest of the Berry family. He’s the one who remembers, who was there when everything fell apart, and the one who held them together as a family and kept their family bakery from being sold.  The responsibility and the feeling that he is the guardian of them and everything that keeps them safe is pressing in on him as the stress of the years is getting to him. 

Looking down upon the Berry family activities, of their bakery and home, is Uzoth, the last of the gargoyles. Perched high over the town, he’s fascinated by this family, Grady in particular.

Rivers writes an emotional story of two guardians, one increasingly overwhelmed by his own family and his inability to step back from his past, and the other slowly becoming stone, because he’s without a mission, and family, having lost both long ago. 

How they come together at Christmas is a hard won, absolutely magical tale.  I loved it. And them. 

Grady’s struggles are so real, the pressures he puts on himself are so intense and relatable. And the loneliness that is Uzoth is heartbreaking. 

This is another marvelous story in a terrific series and Rivers intends to bring them all back next season. I can’t wait!

Pick them up and dive into a magical seasonal wonderland of Christmas markets, otherworldly beings in love, and magic!

Great covers!

AN MM MONSTER CHRISTMAS 

🔹A Werewolf Mate for Christmas 

🔹The Orc Who Hated Christmas 

🔹The Loneliest Dragon at Christmas 

🔹The Last Gargoyle’s Christmas Wish 

AN MM MONSTER CHRISTMAS SIDE STORY 

🔹Me and My Christmas Familiar

Buy link

        The Last Gargoyle’s Christmas Wish (An MM Monster Christmas Book 3)

    

Blurb 

An ancient gargoyle. A hearth witch baker. They’ve always looked after others. Is it time to look after themselves… and their hearts? 

Uzoth is the last of the gargoyles. He sits on rooftops as snow gathers on his wings. But Uzoth is used to the cold. He once had people to protect and brethren to stand beside, but that is all gone. Still, he continues his silent watch, wishing he had a purpose once again.

Strung-out and overworked, Grady is the eldest of ten children. Since his parent’s death, he’s dedicated himself to caring for his siblings and running the family bakery. He hasn’t had a moment for himself. Or for love.

One night, thieves attack Grady. Uzoth swoops in and rescues him. An unusual and tentative friendship forms between them. Soon, feelings and desires grow. Still, Grady has so much responsibility. Can he find time for a relationship with Uzoth? Or will he end up sacrificing a chance at love for the sake of others?

The Last Gargoyle’s Christmas Wish is a cosy fantasy romance with plenty spice. It features an ancient gargoyle, an older sibling who takes on too much responsibility, cosy Christmas vibes, inappropriate uses of a tail, and a guaranteed HEA.

  • Publication date: December 13, 2024
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 174 pages

Review:  Where There’s Smoke (Elementally Yours, #4) by F. N. Manning 

Rating: 4🌈

Where There’s Smoke continues F.N. Manning’s Elementally Yours series about elemental mages learning to use their powers, get their brand, and finding love in the process.

Where There’s Smoke is about two supposedly opposite elements, Fire and Water.  Water is represented by the exiled Argyle, half-water nymph and half-human, who is on campus taking courses to help him and others like him adapt to their magic. That’s where he meets with Samson, a fire mage who can’t control his element.

Manning puts together a wonderful romantic story, with well defined magical elements, a horrific magic themed mystery that has huge implications for Argyle and Samson. In the course of investigating the mystery, the story provides the necessary background and missing family information for them both.

I really enjoyed this story and couple.  It was very well plotted and the couple was engaging and easy to relate to. 

Absolutely looking forward to the next one in this series.

Elementally Yours:

  • Frost or The Bite #1
  • Strikes Twice #2
  • Bold As Brass #3
  • Where There’s Smoke #4

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        Where There’s Smoke: M/M Paranormal Romance

    

Blurb 

When fire meets water, can love extinguish the turmoil?

Argyle is more familiar with schools of fish than a college education. Half-water nymph and half-human, Argyle is building a life on land for the first time at age 42, which includes taking classes in order to help others with his magic. But when his studies hit rough waters, he partners with an irresistibly hot fire mage for tutoring.

Samson knows how to bring the heat. The 26-year-old fire caster seems interested in Argyle despite their age difference and he’s quick to flirt, but the man has trouble opening up about his own magical issues. And while the chemistry between them is undeniable, their fire and water powers clash, creating only smoke.

Just as their bond begins to blossom, trouble brews under the surface in Argyle’s seaside home. Cruel magic poisons the water and threatens Argyle’s family. Argyle and Samson may be the key to combating the damage, if they can find a way to unite their conflicting elements. Will their connection save everyone, or will it all go up in smoke?

  • Publication date: January 5, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 196 pages