Tag: LGBTQIA Contemporary Romance

Review: Liar’s Gambit ( The Elite Universe) by Kelly Fox

Rating: 5🌈

10/10 Fabulously Recommend!

Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox is one of the top highlights of The Elite series, nine novels written by different authors. At the heart is The Anonymous, a mysterious club housed in a historic art deco hotel that caters to the needs and whims of the wealthy, who are often of the blackest or at least grey natures. That extends to their businesses, professions, and perhaps proclivities.

Within the boundaries of The Anonymous, all are protected.

Liar’s Gambit begins where a Hitman’s job ends. Nigel , a hitman with a sorta conscience, heads towards a potential new assignment and company that his handler has passed on to him. It’s shortly after his latest job ends, and he’s in need of a hotel room, something to eat , to go along with his meeting.

It’s all about to take place at The Anonymous. His client , Wilhelm, a gorgeous billionaire, with a mission that’s a bit quirky, retrieve a rare coin, maybe hit a couple of people. All sounds very nebulous, and yet he’s still on board with the idea. Must be Wilhelm.

I have to say Kelly Fox must be inundated by now with requests to write further novels about these characters. They definitely deserve it. They are simply sublime.

From their dangerously wry and sometimes disturbing inner commentary, about the events and each other, to the kinky , hot sex, and fast paced games of thrilling suspense and violence, this is an incredible story!

The men, their swift building relationship, and , that stunning “I never saw THAT coming “ twist at the end which made you go immediately back to the beginning and start all over.

Do NOT read anything with spoilers because that ending shouldn’t be given away. It’s that great!

What can I say? Outstanding characters, tightly packed and plotted storylines, an out of this world twist, and fabulous ending.

Liar’s Gambit ( The Elite Universe) by Kelly Fox is top notch entertainment! I wish I could rate it higher!

The Elite Multi-Author series (9 Books):

✓ Reckless Roulette by Alice Winters

✓ Leave No Trace by Michelle Frost and Sammi Cee❤️

✓ Ace of Maids by K.L. Hiers

✓ Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody❤️

◦ Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox❤️

◦ Dealer of Secrets by Davidson King

◦ Bullets & Butterflies by Maz Maddox

◦ Love for the Reaper by Charlie Cochet

◦ Chance Encounter by Luna David

Buy Link:

Liar’s Gambit (The Elite Book 1)

Description:

He’s a liar. I’m a hitman. And there’s a game afoot.

After seeking sanctuary at The Anonymous, an elite club for lawless types, the elegant, beastly Wilhelm invites me to help him with a simple mission: retrieve the priceless artifact that was stolen from one of his billionaire friends.

I’m bored, there’s potential for violence, and his terms are generous, so why not?

I quickly discover, however, that Wilhelm has been slightly mischievous with the details, and there’s nothing simple about this mission. He’s betting I’ll go along with his insane plan; I’m still deciding whether or not to slit his throat.

Could be fun either way.

Liar’s Gambit is a 22k-word novella that is part of the multi-author series The Elite. Each book can be read as a standalone and in any order. What links these books together is The Anonymous, a club beneath the gritty city where only the elite are welcome.

Review: The Handy Nanny (Nannies of New York Book 3) by K. Sterling

Rating: 4.5🌈

I love K. Sterling’s contemporary romance series, Nannies of New York. Each story is a moving tale of love found and new families formed among Manhattan’s single parents/guardians of young children.

Sterling’s romances are gently choreographed tales of love and found families, with its characters often being people of different backgrounds with hidden emotional struggles and fears as well as strengths.

No where is all of this showcased so well as in the latest book The Handy Manny. The themes of this book are hard emotionally. Sterling goes right into the heart of some of people’s worst fears and those moments of despair and loss. The death of those we love the most. Whether it’s a twin sister, or beloved father or mother. Whether they have died in the past, recently died, or because of their illnesses, know that they won’t live much longer.

The characters here are in various stages of loss, and grief. For a recent death of a sister who was half of him, and who can’t find his way out of his grief. The one called on to help him and his daughter? Penn has dealt with this in the past but has known it’s coming as his father’s fighting cancer.

Yet for all the darkness of the themes and subject matter, the characters and their journey towards a relationship is one of food, laughter, tears, and compassion. It’s not perfect. Each man has a history and their own personal experiences that makes them struggle with this relationship.

But because of the group we’ve gotten to know from the previous novels, another found family of nannies, and families of the men who share a special connection, the doubts, the challenges each face and deal with, feel believable and satisfying at the end.

For people dealing with loss, especially that of a loved family member, this book might be too raw to read at the moment. Morris Mosby’s deep grief and black hole of loss is so well done that as a reader it’s as though you feel his pain and his rage and his inability to comprehend life without her. And his resentment of Pennsylvania Tucker when he arrives to take over until Morris can finally begin to recover. He doesn’t want to recover.

As I said. A tough book .

Pennsylvania Tucker is a complicated man for someone who seems like a happy hippie who care for everyone, a fixer. He’s also someone haunted by his own losses and a loss yet to come.

How they start to heal each other while forming a family over one adorable baby is a gentle, complicated story about recovery, grief, loss, and love.

Just wonderful. And that the next in the series The Enchanting Nanny features Penn’s sister? I can’t wait. Because it’s also got the corporate older scary sister from the second book as a main character as well. One wild ride.

I highly recommend the entire series and this book too.

Nannies of New York :

✓ The Last Nanny In Manhattan #1

✓ Giles Ashby Needs A Nanny #2

✓ The Handy Nanny #3

◦ The Enchanting Nanny #4 – Aug 17, 2023 (f/f)

Buy Link:

The Handy Nanny: Nannies of New York Book 3

Description:

They call Pennsylvania Tucker the human Band-Aid because he can fix just about anything and make anyone feel better, but can Penn mend a broken heart? Reid Marshall thinks so and sends his master nanny on a very important and sensitive mission. A close friend is grieving and caring for his newborn niece after losing his twin sister.

Shy and quiet outside of the studio, Morris Mosby has been a myth in the music industry since he was sixteen. But his sister was the brains behind the “Mosby Machine” and Morris is tempted to walk away from his career and focus on his family. He’s got to put his life back together and raise a baby without his best friend and half of his heart.

Not if Morris’s parents and Penn have anything to say about it. The three of them team up to help Morris heal and rediscover his passion for music. Things heat up between Penn and Morris, but our handy nanny has some old wounds that need mending as well. Can two broken hearts heal each other or has Penn finally found a problem he can’t fix?


*Paperback includes additional illustrations, playlist, bonus epilogue, recipes, and more!

Review: Poison Hearts (The Elite universe story) by Jennifer Cody

Rating: 5🌈

Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody was a real winner for me. It’s so entertaining, it’s characters so outrageously out there and engaging that it cries out for more adventures.

Pls pls I desperately need more stories of the merry insanity that is Orlando, Shannon, Minion , and hopefully, Linus.

Do not deprive us of this!

And it all starts so not so innocently with the blow dart murders of some bad guys in the Old Defiance neighborhood being protected by Orlando Ludovici, your neighborhood vigilante ninja assassin .

Cody has created a fabulous character in Orlando, complete with a fascinating family background and creative methodology for dealing with the baddies. There’s several authors that jump immediately to mind with their similarly charismatic assassins and Orlando easily ranks right in there with that crazy murderous fictional group.

Then there’s the fabulously insane scientist Shannon Mayburn, the tool peddler, brilliant inventor of tools of murder and mass destruction . He loves to dance and soon, he loves Orlando.

Plus his Minion. Whose name isn’t really minion and may kill Shannon at any moment because his boss annoys him so. I adore Minion. Who’s full of revelations and a delightful character in his own right.

Did I mention Linus the coroner who gets texts from Orlando about the bodies he’s about to receive? Theirs is a funny complicated anonymous relationship.

Ah, The Anonymous ! The elegant extremely private club where a crème colored invitation ushers you into a world of an utter criminality. The urbane of the world’s rift raft or this section’s of it, all secretly having cocktails and making connections in a lavish atmosphere in an art deco hotel.

It’s the meet cutely dangerous for Orlando and Shannon (as well as being the theme for the series). The characters Cody creates for the reason for Orlando’s entrance are mysterious and so beautifully written they scream for a story of their own. Especially since they come with such a scrumptious companion/bodyguard to boot.

Honestly, there’s no aspect, no element that Cody used in the many storylines that wasn’t a money maker in terms of its narrative use here. Thrills, excitement, more dead bodies, smooches and love talk ala crazy people. Yes! All there along with some explosions. And frogs.

I love this story and all the characters. Well, not the dead ones. The very much alive and deadly ones. And need more of them.

Hopefully Jennifer Cody is listening.

Yes this is a highly recommended read.

The Elite Multi-Author series (9 Books):

✓ Reckless Roulette by Alice Winters

✓ Leave No Trace by Michelle Frost and Sammi Cee❤️

✓ Ace of Maids by K.L. Hiers

✓ Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody❤️

◦ Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox

◦ Dealer of Secrets by Davidson King

◦ Bullets & Butterflies by Maz Maddox

◦ Love for the Reaper by Charlie Cochet

◦ Chance Encounter by Luna David

Review: Bring Me Home (Safe Harbor Book 1) by Annabeth Albert

Rating: 4.75🌈

I probably wouldn’t have picked up this story except that the author is Annabeth Albert, an auto read.

While age gap is a trope I read, something about dating the sons of best friends hasn’t set right with me, especially when paired with a substantial age gap. Add in other factors of familiarity of knowing the person as a child and those stories ride a fine line.

But Albert’s story, the first of a new series, successfully addresses every aspect of those issues and has written a very moving romance. It’s also a fascinating one, in that one element, a ongoing cold mystery case investigation, is left to run into the next novel and appears to be a connecting bridge to all the books in Safe Harbor.

Give me a mystery and I’m a happy reader!

Albert has always been able to get intimately into the mindset of military men. Whether they are still in service, or in the case of Monroe, a recently retired Lieutenant in the NCIS unit of the Navy. He’s returned to Safe Harbor, near Portland, Oregon, to handle the sale of the old Victorian he inherited from his great aunt and then move to San Francisco, where he plans to live an anonymously contented gay life.

Albert paints Monroe’s return to Safe Harbor as a choice both joyous as he connects with his friends and tumultuous as aspects of his plans start to become less manageable. And things he thought he knew about his aunt and life make him rethink his perspectives.

Monroe is a multifaceted person. Far from the expected textbook of a naval officer, Albert gives us a man of emotional riches and dimensions. Those sensitive layers are revealed from the beginning. And to a person we absolutely know to be Knox. Whose own personality and character traits are the yin to Monroe’s yang.

Love Knox as deeply as I do Monroe. He’s another well crafted character who keeps revealing more depths and details to his personality and background as the story progresses.

Albert is able to build a believable relationship between two men, equal in intensity and intelligence, whose passion for each other overrides any consideration for age differences.

The reader gets invested in the relationship because of the chemistry and excellence of the dynamics being shared between them. The history of needing to feeling safe as a child that’s never left behind as an adult. That deep desire to have a true home. That all rings true.

As does the power of the fear of rejection that comes from losing the love of a friend or parent who doesn’t approve.

All this great storytelling that encompasses a romantic relationship, a town and its people, and an ongoing mystery. I’m 100 percent in and invested.

I can’t wait for the next book to be released. The listed books can be found below.

Until then, I’m highly recommending Bring Me Home (Safe Harbor Book 1) by Annabeth Albert.

Note. Two person POV until it switches at the end to include a third person to set up the next story in the series. I understand why but it’s still strange to switch format that late in the book.

Safe Harbor:

✓ Bring Me Home #1

◦ Make Me Stay #2 – June 15, 2023

◦ Find Me Worthy #3 – Sept 7, 2023

Buy Link:

Bring Me Home: A Dad’s Best Friend Small Town MM Romance (Safe Harbor Book 1)

Description:

Help!

I’ve inherited my aunt’s historic house in small-town Oregon, and I need to fix it up and sell it fast before I move on to my big-city dreams. I’m one of the navy’s best investigators, but twenty years of living in base housing means DIY isn’t part of my extensive skill set.

Luckily, my best friend has the solution: his twenty-three-year-old son. Knox recently graduated from college, needs a room for the summer, and comes with a giant cat and years of remodeling experience.

Not only is Knox all grown up and hot as sin, but I recognize him. He’s the bossy, bearded guy I shared the hottest kiss of my life with. No way can my buddy find out I’ve got it bad for his son. But with all the stripping, hammering, and drilling, my defenses crumble one dance break at a time.

As our sexy secret summer fling continues, Knox also proves himself handy at fixing my grumpy mood and wounded heart. Now I can’t imagine a future without him. I can solve any problem the navy throws at me, but I have no clue what to do about loving Knox or the damage this could do to my decades-long friendship.

Can we build a forever together, or are we destined to go our separate ways?

BRING ME HOME is a small-town Dad’s-best-friend MM romance. It features a forty-something grumpy former naval investigator, a much younger ray of sunshine, a matchmaking cat, sexy times in unusual locations, enough heat to burn the neighborhood, and a warm fuzzy hug’s worth of found-family feels. Dual point-of-view and big fluffy HEA guaranteed!

BRING ME HOME launches the brand-new Safe Harbor series from acclaimed author Annabeth Albert. Knox, Monroe, and the rest of Safe Harbor, Oregon, welcome readers to a historic town with a tight friend group, memorable secondary characters, quirky businesses, and long-held secrets. Each book stands alone with a fresh couple, but the background mystery of the town’s secrets ties the series together.

Review: Renovating the Model (Forestville Silver Foxes Book 1) by Nora Phoenix

Rating: 4.75 🌈

Nora Phoenix has released the first book in her new series about older men finding their HEA and it’s a sweet , smartly crafted romantic read.

I found myself liking every aspect of the world building she’s putting in place for her series and the small engaging group of long term friends I’m sure she will pull from to get her stories.

The location is Forestville, Washington. A small town with a river dissecting its Main Street from its outlying edge with some houses, park edge , and auto shop. The author has supplied a charming hand drawn map that helps place all the houses, and really shows how small Forestville is. I love that detail.

Then comes the foundation group of school friends. Boys that have been essentially family to each other since childhood. The story begins in the past, at their senior prom. We see the group dynamics, who they are hooking up with, and plans for their future. Tiago and Tomas , the gorgeous Banner twins are already headed for model fame and fortune. Two other friends,Essex and Auden, are headed into different branches of the military. Marnin’s future was unsettled.

Flash forward 30 years to a class reunion that brings those left together again and we see what the years have changed those teenagers into.

Tiago, along with his twin, are still internationally recognized and sought after super models. But for Tiago, the lifestyle has become increasingly difficult and one he’s tired of.

Renovating the Model Is a smart contemporary romance that contains elements of personal struggles with a learning disability and power inequality within a brotherly dynamic. It’s done with a realistic portrayal of a loving but insecure person who’s been made to feel inferior his entire life because of his severe dyslexia.

There’s other strong aspects to consider here in the narrative, each with varying levels of complexity. Cas’ scars, an inner circle character’s bullying, and even a minor character’s domestic abuse. Each one woven into the story with a gentleness and attention to detail that makes it seem as though they have the emotional impact that they should.

This story is sweet, sexy, convincing, and engaging. I loved the characters, the age gap , here Tiago is 47 or 48 with Cas , the contractor being 18 years younger. But as written, the deep connection and great chemistry between them makes any age gap seem insignificant.

Two final notes. Authors often say books like these are or can be read as standalone stories within the series. But I disagree. There’s a personal connection, emotional history that’s being built into the narrative here. Lines of dialogue and friendship that dates years of change between people who will have important relationships with each person even if it’s not the romantic ones. So read them in order, it just makes sense.

A word choice that bothered me. The author used unpractical. That word by any dictionary’s definition should be impractical.

“Trust me, most of the stuff I model is unpractical, and I’d never wear it in private.”

That’s it. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this book and absolutely recommend it for all lovers of contemporary romance. I can’t wait for the next story to be released.

Forestville Silver Foxes:

✓ Renovating the Model #1

◦ Awakening the Sheriff #2 – July 29, 2023

Buy Link:

Renovating the Model (Forestville Silver Foxes Book 1)

Description:

Everyone knows my face. No one knows the real me.

All people see when they look at me is a beautiful man, a supermodel, half of the world’s most famous twins. No one sees the man underneath.

When I return to Forestville, the small town I grew up in, for my high school reunion, I impulsively decide to stay.

I’m now the proud owner of a house, an absolute fixer-upper. Never mind that I have two left hands.

Thank god for Cas, the local contractor, who agrees to help me out. We come from completely different worlds and are almost twenty years apart, yet we somehow connect.

Cas sees me, the real me.

We hook up…

Then become friends…

With benefits (courtesy of a snowstorm)…

And a fake relationship (long story)…

But when fake becomes real and pretending turns into feelings I can’t deny, I’m left wondering if what we have stands a chance.

Renovating the Model is the first book in the new Forestville Silver Foxes series, a contemporary small-town MM romance series featuring hot silver foxes and the men who fall in love with them. Each book can be read as a standalone.

Review: Murder on Milverton Square (The Milverton Mysteries #1) by G. B. Ralph

Rating: 4.5🌈

I love a good cosy mystery! Especially when it brings me a new author and a new series to explore.

Murder on Milverton Square is the first book in The Milverton Mysteries, written by G. B. Ralph. This is Ralph’s first published novel and it’s absolutely marvelous.

Set in New Zealand, it’s primarily focused on a Wellington marketing consultant named Addison Harper. His life is in the doldrums. He’s been dumped. He needs a shake up and he gets it when an unknown uncle dies and leaves him everything.

In a small town called Milverton two hours away from Wellington.

Ralph has written a charming, well plotted mystery with an independent surprisingly optimistic Addison Harper journeying to Milverton to hear about his late uncle’s will and his shocking inheritance.

It wouldn’t be a cosy without the quirky towns’ personalities and remarkable relationships. Ralph has imbued this town with plenty of dramatic moments, gossipy ladies who embrace Addison immediately and enough chaotic town dynamics to fill a tv drama.

Plus a good looking Sergeant Jake Murphy, who seems to like Addison even when he’s the primary suspect.

Yes there’s a murder, several other elements of high suspense. A town and its people to explore and get to know.

And plenty of decisions to make. Or at least ponder. Like if Addison is staying.

The dialogue is quite well done, the characters are beautifully executed, and the place so visually rich in its descriptions that it’s easily seen in the mind.

I loved the cast of characters. They’re what make a cosy so warm-hearted as well as funny. I can’t wait to get to know them all further.

This is a slow burn romance. Honestly, they are taking their time. I expect everyone around will have to get involved at some point.

I’m definitely recommending Murder on Milverton Square (The Milverton Mysteries #1) by G. B. Ralph . Be on the lookout in October for the next in the series.

The Milverton Mysteries:

✓ Murder on Milverton Square #1

◦ Poison at Penshaw Hall #2 – TBR Oct 25,2023

Buy Link:

Murder on Milverton Square (The Milverton Mysteries Book 1)

Description:

Addison Harper is abruptly summoned to Milverton at the behest of an abrasive lawyer. He plans to be in and out, back to the city lickety-split. Instead, he finds himself charmed by the small town with its delightful and eccentric residents, not to mention the rather easy-on-the-eye Sergeant Jake Murphy.

Despite the rocky start, Addison admits he’s had a pleasant day out. That is, until returning to find the prickly old lawyer on the floor, and very much dead. Worse, it looks like murder, and Addison’s fingerprints are all over the crime scene.

Murder on Milverton Square is the first in a wonderful new cosy mystery series set in an enchanting small town nestled amongst stunning New Zealand scenery. The Milverton Mysteries features a chaotic cast of local busybodies, delicious baked treats, a demanding and disdainful ginger cat, a very slow-burn romance with a rather appealing policeman, and of course, murder…

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

Rating: 4.75🌈

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

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

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

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

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

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

They are truly hard to say goodbye to.

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

Hitman Vs Hitman series:

✓ Hitman Vs Hitman #1

✓ Sniper vs Spotter #2

✓ Killer vs Kingpin #3

✓ Cop vs Capo #4

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

Buy Link:

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

Description:

Really, guys? Seriously?

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

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

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

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

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

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

Rating: 4.5🌈

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And that’s ok.

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

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

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

Vet Shop Boys series so far:

✓ Got Me Hoping #1

✓ Got Me Wishing #2

✓ Got Me Looking #3

✓ Got Me Thinking #4

✓ Got Me Going #5

✓ Got Me Merry #6

✓ Got Me Talking #7

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

Buy Link:

Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7)

Description:

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

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

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

With a man.

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

Not something I intend on repeating.

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

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

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

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

Rating: 4.5🌈

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

And that’s ok.

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

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

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

Vet Shop Boys series so far:

✓ Got Me Hoping #1

✓ Got Me Wishing #2

✓ Got Me Looking #3

✓ Got Me Thinking #4

✓ Got Me Going #5

✓ Got Me Merry #6

✓ Got Me Talking #7

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

Buy Link:

Got Me Talking (Vet Shop Boys Book 7)

Description:

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

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

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

With a man.

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

Not something I intend on repeating.

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

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

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

Review: Leave No Trace (The Elite book 2) by Sammi Cee and Michelle Frost

Rating: 4🌈

Another in the multi-author thriller series, The Elite, I found Leave No Trace to absolutely be a fun, sexy murderous romp of a novella.

A young cute man, who dearly needs someone to take care of him ISO assassin. Killer Daddy pls apply!

Well actually he goes on the hunt for the killer to hire him and finds a Daddy to love. The Daddy finds a boy with an obsession to do good. What could go wrong?

This story is way too short for these wonderful characters and great premise. It’s needs more exposition and maybe a sequel. I’m up for both.

It’s a definite recommend!

The Elite Multi-Author series (9 Books):

✓ Reckless Roulette by Alice Winters

◦ Leave No Trace by Michelle Frost and Sammi Cee

◦ Ace of Maids by K.L. Hiers

◦ Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody

◦ Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox

◦ Dealer of Secrets by Davidson King

◦ Bullets & Butterflies by Maz Maddox

◦ Love for the Reaper by Charlie Cochet

◦ Chance Encounter by Luna David

Buy Link:

Leave No Trace (The Elite Book 2)

Description:

A hitman with a reputation. A boy with a past.

Trace took a job at The Anonymous—the most exclusive club in the city—for a very specific reason. Only now that he’s there, he’s not sure how to get what he needs. He sure didn’t expect a killer Daddy to help him figure it out.

Kol always closes his contracts, and he never leaves loose ends. The powerful families of the city pay him to clean up their messes and keep their secrets—an arrangement that only works because he gives his allegiance to no one. Being a lone wolf has kept him alive, but even lone wolves get hungry.

A simple contract and one wrong turn bring Trace and Kol crashing together with a twist neither of them saw coming.

Leave No Trace is a novella in the multi-author series The Elite. Each book can be read as a standalone and in any order. What links these books together is The Anonymous, a club beneath the gritty city where only the elite are welcome.