Halluci-Dating A Demon by Ashlynn Mills is part of the multi-author paranormal romance series, Monster Match, Season 2.
Itâs a sweet romantic story made all the more interesting by the authorâs use of her own history with narcolepsy to endow one of her main characters with this illness and have her other MC be the nightmare demon that is the one that helps him with his nightmares but adjust to his illness.
Elias, the human whose life is being consumed by guilt ridden nightmares and his narcolepsy and Arien, a dream demon who has been assigned to help Elias are a delight. Arien, especially comes across as a cotton candy ball of sunshine, taking a deep joy in everything on this âsideâ of the things. For me, he made the story.
Elias was interesting but his history was confusing. Did he forget about the accident? Was it something else? How was he able to recover? That left a few questions in the plot.
But the romance was sweet and the couple were interesting in their elements.
This series is always worth reading as itâs going to have some good stories and fascinating aspects to the characters. Grab them up.
When my hallucinations while falling asleep and waking up turn from my worse nightmares to a cute purple demon who won’t stop eating my food and stealing my hoodies, I can’t decide if he’s a problem or something I’m hoping isn’t only a figment of my imagination.
Helluci-dating is book two in Monster Match season two and ends with a sweet, fluffy HEA.
Shadowy Solutions is a great series and in this story James has not only a terrific murder investigation but a case that will let a newly formed couple show individual development as well as their partnered maturity show.
It also allows for other aspects of Diemâs personal life to change for a more positive outlook instead of the same negative status and brutality itâs been at for the last books.
The case that draws Diem and Tallus out of town is a call from a heart broken mother whoâs convinced that her son, now on life support, was murdered. But no one will believe her.
With little to show for her belief, sheâs willing to pay enormous sums of money to have the case investigated by Diem and Tallus. Money Diem desperately needs.
The investigation is a complicated process, and James uses it to show the tremendous amount of growth for Diem personally as well as the potential for a larger healthier relationship between them as a couple. Diemâs working on his trauma and anger issues, and letting Tallus into his own life.
The mystery is one where I had several people pegged as the ultimate villain, an aspect of a story I liked.
And I canât giveaway one element I both love and wanted a deeper dive into. I honestly donât think James could have done that given the storyline and stakes as they were, but, going forward, I canât wait to see this side character fit in with Diem and Tallus again.
This series is shaping up to be such a stellar series and with such outstanding characters. Itâs a must read.
Shadowy Solutions:
Invisible Scars – prequel
Skeletons in the Closet #1
Power of the Mind #2
Reading Between the Lines #3
A Breath of Life #4 – Sept 18,2025
Connected and preceding series in the same universe:
One headstrong boyfriend I canât function without.
Iâm doomed.
Without solving a peculiar out-of-town case, Diemâs career is over. He canât afford to live, let alone pay bills and run the business.
The case involves a mostly dead teen and a small-town police department who are convinced the boy suffered an accident.
All hope lies on the hunch of a grieving mother.
Unable to handle such a delicate situation on his own and unwilling to go bust, Diem invites his boyfriend/almost-partner along to make sure his rough edges donât cost them a payday.
What he didnât expect was a high school full of secrets and suspects, a bed-and-breakfast from hell with only one m*#@er f*#@ing bed, and danger around every corner because someone doesnât want the truth to be unveiled.
Diem can handle threats. Risking life and limb to get answers is part of the game. But as the mystery unfolds, he realizes there is one thing not worth jeopardizing for a case: Tallus.
Iron & Embers picks up four years after the end of events of The Legends of Thezmarr series and Wren Embervale has been quietly working her way through the list of people who were responsible for the deaths of so many of those she lost. Sheâs anonymously become The Poisoner, an assassin traveling through the Kingdoms eliminating various targets never held accountable for their actions and crimes in the recent war.
Wren was an excellent, well written character we got to know in the first series . But next to the brilliant driven warrior that was her Warsword sister, Thea, and her powerful storyline, even with that magical role towards the end, itâs clear that she had more to say and depths to her character.
Scheuerer starts here by sending an embittered Wren off to an alchemy academy of Drevenor, an ancient school where sheâs going to be taught spells and learn areas of alchemy sheâs never heard of.
The school has been mentioned before in the previous series and several strong women characters are back in impactful roles here.
The romance is between Warsword Torj Elderbrock, a man who was forever changed by his and Wrenâs last battle with the Dark forces. Channeling Wrenâs lightning power changed his hair silver and left him with lightning made scars across his chest. And it has left other deeper changes.
I expect that the author will keep the main characters apart from each other as part of a frustrating series romantic storyline. Wren starts off with a noncommittal idea about love and affection with regards to romance and the book ends on a note that for me feels more âcontrived â then one that feels more a naturally flowing piece of the same plot.
A âoh no, I need to pull them apart. This should doâ sort of moment in the story. When if they actually chatted it would have been resolved.
The Academy is a grim institution, instead of a place of learning. Think more body parts and bags than plants, marigolds, and medicine. So yes, scenes of torture and death ensue.
Which brings me to another point. In the first series, the women were coming together as a powerful force , a team and family. Here just the opposite seems to be happening. Itâs disappointing and discouraging to see women characters I admired change and lessened here for plot purposes.
So, yes, I like Wren as a character. Vote is out on most of those characters around her, including Torj Elderbrock, a fascinating character who hasnât yet learned to communicate.
Thereâs an overall series mystery developing around anti- magic, anti-royalist sentiment groups that might be more than just what they appear.
I admit Thea is an almost impossible act to follow. She is a Legend after all. So Iâm onto the next when itâs released to see what legacy Wren makes for herself.
Recommended. Read The Legends of Thezmarr first. Excellent reads every one.
Great covers continue in this series.
The Legends of Thezmarr (4 book series (foundation series)
âIâve made no secret of what I want… You. Itâs always been you.â
Wren Embervale, alchemist-turned-assassin, finds solace in only one thing: seeking vengeance for the death of her friends. The wars of the past may be over, but her thirst for revenge is far from quenched.
For years, she has been content with her poisons and potions for company, but when an unknown form of alchemy is used to attack a king of the midrealms, Wrenâs time in the shadows comes to an end.
Sheâs offered a place at the ancient alchemy academy of Drevenor to find a cure to the dark magic threatening the kingdoms. To win her spot, she must conquer the Gauntlet, a grueling series of deadly trials that could cost her sanity, or her life.
More is at play than sabotage from fellow competitors. Magic wielders are being targeted and Wren becomes tangled in a dangerous web of deception and bloodshed that puts the entire realm at risk.
But the biggest threat of all might come from the man assigned to protect herâTorj Elderbrock, the silver-haired war hero who has hated her since she assassinated his last charge.
Their shared history ignites a simmering tension that threatens to consume them both.
Peace is fragile, trust is scarce and enemies lurk around every corner⌠Will love heal all woundsâor will it be the most lethal poison of all?
Iron & Embers is the breathtaking first installment in the epic fantasy romance series, The Ashes of Thezmarr. With its lush world-building, sizzling chemistry, and heart-pounding action itâs perfect for fans of Fourth Wing, From Blood & Ash, and The Bridge Kingdom.
I really wanted to like this story but issues just kept creeping into the narrative that stopped me from being fully invested in the characters, their relationships and motivations as well as the mythology that Linde insists on using as a framework for her storyline.
Itâs not the dark fantasy, because Iâm a true fan of the genre, itâs in the manner that the author is constructing the characters and storylines.
Kierse, the damaged thief with the abusive background from her criminal mentor is the Belle substitute here. Sheâs the thief whoâs caught in the Holly Library the âMonsterâ (itâs in the description) , also known as Grave .
Their relationship is part of the issue. Or maybe her treatment is. There isnât much chemistry between them and the romance just seems to appear, albeit with Kierse making the obligatory resistance response.
Sheâs got a bisexual background with a missing ex girlfriend that is part of an underdeveloped storyline. As well as a well described traumatic history that gives her the realistic, raw foundation her character would require.
But how the dynamic plays into the physical abuse and the future degradation that is inflicted upon her as part of her ârolesâ with Grace starts a strange division and changes her past/current personality and the new narrative path of the authorâs without the needed context.
Grave, the mage âMonster â , is a person who has an otherworldly framework around him thatâs easily recognizable ,as is the other main enemy MC. This aspect of his character and storyline is primarily due to the many hints and story Easter eggs the author has scattered throughout the book. Grave just isnât someone who is an engaging personality. Again, Linde works against the story romance by having every single character (Kierseâs friends and frenemies) repeatedly telling Kierse exactly how untrustworthy Grave.
After a while we have to figure this is a major plot point.
Then for me itâs the mythology and underdeveloped magic which didnât really make sense. Linde chose to use certain snippets or aspects of certain myths of Irish or Celtic culture but itâs not clear or successful. Especially with her usages of wrens. Sheâs partly using St. Stephenâs , a tale of unfortunate timing, as well as some Druids mythology that includes wrens, none of which translates well to a North American continent where our numerous species of wrens do just fine in winter and this aspect of the book would have not context. So without going beyond the surface or substance or making the material adjust accordingly ( as other authors have in great detail and depth), this just doesnât work.
This came very close to a DNF but I wanted to see where Linde was going with the characters and story. Disappointing and not sure Iâm going forward with the series. Too bad because it had such potential.
Cover art and design by Bree Archer Deluxe Limited endpaper illustration by Melanie Korte Deluxe Limited case design by Elizabeth Turner Stokes
The Oak & Holly Cycle series is best read in order.
Can you love the dark when you know what it hides?
Some things arenât supposed to exist outside of our imagination.
Thirteen years ago, monsters emerged from the shadows and plunged Kierseâs world into a cataclysmic war of near-total destruction. The New York City she knew so well collapsed practically overnight.
In the wake of that carnage, the Monster Treaty was created. A truce…of sorts.
But tonight, Kierseâa gifted and fearless thiefâwill break that treaty. Sheâll enter the Holly Library…not knowing itâs the home of a monster.
Heâs charming. Quietly alluring. Terrifying. But he knows talent when he sees it; itâs just a matter of finding her price.
Now sheâs locked into a dangerous bargain with a creature unlike any other. Sheâll sacrifice her freedom. Sheâll offer her skills. Together, theyâll put their own futures at risk.
But heâs been playing a game across centuriesâand once she joins in, there will be
no escape…
The Oak & Holly Cycle series is best read in order.
Reading Order:
Book #1 The Wren in the Holly Library
Book #2 The Robin on the Oak Throne – June 17,2025
Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books (June 4, 2024)
Alphas Never Hide brings Lori Amesâ wonderful Willow Lake Supernaturals series to a end by featuring the reluctant Alpha Hayden finally accepting his mantle as the Alpha of the Willow Lake Supernaturals and finding his fated mate in a newly discovered hostage, Ryley, a faun.
Iâll be the first to admit I was finding Hayden tedious. His constant denial about his Alpha status and the continuing pity party about how everything was his fault was off putting. And Ames starts off with Hayden in the same pattern here. Lone wolf, whining about the past and his criminal brother. Got it.
Thankfully, a new character offers a change in direction and growth for Hayden. Thatâs Ryley, a faun whoâs been abducted as part of Robbieâs supernatural trafficking operation and freed himself.
Ryley has some speciesism issues due to his dreadful herdâs behavior and the author works through these issues skillfully to highlight whatâs special about Willow Lake and to recap the inhabitants of the community. Really good work!
I absolutely loved Ryley and thought this character redeemed Haydenâs, allowing some long overdue personality growth and character development.
One of my highlights is the scene where we see the magic of the moment when Hayden accepts his Alpha status flowing through the air and the community. Thatâs was remarkable.
Iâm not sure if this is the end of the trafficking storyline or not. Itâs the end of Robbieâs part in it. But there is a sequel series coming out soon. The Willow Lake Pack series and the fated mate romance of Parker and Levi launches that one.
Stay tuned!
Iâm sure the characters will cross over and be in everyoneâs business and storylines. Iâm definitely looking forward to this.
I enjoyed seeing Hayden accomplish his goal and become the Alpha and get such a fantastic fated mate in Ryley.
A definite winner.
Willow Lake Supernaturals Series
Note: Books in this series are best enjoyed when read in order.
Hellhounds Never Lie #1 (Ash and Dillon)
Wolves Always Bite #2 (Jeremy and Adrian)
Oracles Always Win #3 (Jake and Gage)
Cats Never Fly #4 (Simon and Ogden)
Alphas Never Hide #5 (Hayden and Ryley) – series finale
Hayden Walker might be trapped in Willow Lake by guilt and duty, but heâs no oneâs alpha. It doesnât matter how many times people call him Alpha, with a capital A like itâs his name, he just isnâtâjust ask his last pack. They had no problem rejecting him to follow his traitorous brother, Robbie, twelve years ago.
Hayden thought heâd come to terms with what happened back then, but it turns out some things donât get easier to accept with time. After discovering his brotherâs latest sinister activities, Hayden canât hide from the truth anymore. He has to stop him, particularly when Ryley Bell, his fated mate, is his brotherâs latest victim.
Hayden canât let his brother harm anyone else. Robbie wonât take anyone else from him. Not again. Never again.
Tags: MM Fated Mates Paranormal Romance, a wolf who refuses to be Alpha, a faun who doesnât put up with his mateâs nonsense, letâs pretend a kick in the face is a sign of love at first sight, the Eternal Magic is a persistent diva, the confrontation between brothers weâve all been waiting for, Hayden has a pack whether he wants one or not, he will also get his happily-ever-after whether he wants one or not, wolves should listen to their clever mates, and, most importantly, not all fauns play flutes.
Willow Lake Supernaturals Series
Note: Books in this series are best enjoyed when read in order.
Book 1 – Hellhounds Never Lie (Ash and Dillon)
Book 2 – Wolves Always Bite (Jeremy and Adrian)
Book 3 – Oracles Always Win (Jake and Gage)
Book 4 – Cats Never Fly (Simon and Ogden)
Book 5 – Alphas Never Hide (Hayden and Ryley)
Alphas Never Hide is the fifth and final book in the Willow Lake Supernaturals series, but DON’T WORRY! We aren’t leaving Willow Lake, not when there are still so many characters waiting for their happily-ever-afters! Levi and Parker’s book will be the first release the new
I rarely rate books I donât finish but Iâm making an exception here .
This book had a lot of potential and at the very least, a strong storyline and woman character.
Right up to the SMH moment of the narrative.
The MFC has an extremely ill mother who needs constant care, an absent father, and no money to feed them . They are starving. In a fit a rage over their circumstances, she knocks over the cross on her fatherâs grave and finds a forbidden dragonâs egg.
Weâve been given a loose history of dragons and the current Kingdom, but dragons are outlawed. And itâs a death sentence to have the egg.
Anyway, her mother eventually says something like find your ex boyfriend and take the egg/baby dragon back to Dragon Lands. Then dies in as the house goes up in flames.
Baby dragon is cute and Katerina Blackwind, is resourceful. So far so good. Unfortunately they find her ex boyfriend and things go downhill fast. Cole is one of those types that is always wanting to save the woman while constantly putting them in danger. And she lets him. And then puts the dragon in danger too while continuing to do things contrary to instructions laid out by her deceased father and , honestly, common sense.
But everything in the narrative comes to a screeching halt for me at 35% when this occurs:
Daeja, now a pretty big dragon and Katerina are in the woods outside an iffy camp and having this conversation . Mind you, they should have been on their way to Dragon Lands but Cole keeps delaying them because itâs too âdangerous â.
Katerina is speaking on page 154 of 427:
âWhy did you want me to ride you?â She shifts her body, somehow managing to edge even closer to me. âI thought we could get to the Dragon Lands faster if we could fly there.â
I gaze up at her. â
âWe canât go without Cole.â
âAnd why not?â
âBecauseââ I pause, wracking my brain for my own reasoning.
Because my mother said so.â It sounded pathetic.
â Of Flames and Fallacies by Courtney Whims
Yes, they can just zip-a-dee-doo-dah right there by directly flying. Boom done. No problem. Have new adventures in Dragon Lands and, oh yes, your dragon would be safe.
But nope, with more than 300 pages to go, that doesnât happen. SMH
So what do you expect from the reader , especially me every time Cole or someone betrays them or does something that is unbelievably stupid? Welp, they should have just flown outta there to begin with.
Yes, if you are an author donât write an out at the beginning of the book.
So hereâs a buy link. Itâs a DFN and a 2 for that SMH element.
Possession of dragon contraband in the Arterian kingdom is a guaranteed brutal execution.
When twenty-two-year-old Katerina Blackwind finds a dragon egg buried in her fatherâs grave, she begins to question everything she thought she knew. She must return the forbidden dragon hatchlingâDaejaânorth to the secretive Dragon Lands: where dragons roam free and a rebellion group resides.
But she canât do it on her own â smuggling a dragon hatchling across the realm during a war between Arterians and rebels means she can be killed by either side. She knows thereâs only one person she can truly trust, her old flame, Cole Ashbourne.
Yet, Cole is much different than the last time Kat saw him: deliciously chiseled in all the right places with a raw power lingering beneath the surface. Cole is torn between his responsibilities as a newly-promoted Captain in the Kingâs military, and his heart.
Kat works on a plan to get Daeja to the Dragon Lands while keeping a low profile at the military outpost. Though, having a room next to the sinisterly provocative Darian Raventhorn proves to be anything but easy.
Danger lurks at every turn, and as more secrets are unearthed, Kat is left to question everything she thought she knew about dragons, her family, love, and the kingdom.
I forget how much I love this series until I read another book about that fabulous all inclusive diner in Boston and the people who live near it and have found their authentic selves and love there.
Cramming at Randyâs is one of my favorites. Alex Silverâs characters and their stories are so beautifully written and believable, funny, raw, young and compelling.
Ray, coming from the large loving Quebec home, to go to college in Boston, is everything. Heâs a fully fleshed out person, multilingual, fearfully setting out to find his true identity and the ability to live as he knows he is, a man, not the girl his family thinks of him as.
He encounters Jordan, a student, whoâs secure in their own right, but has struggled with their past romantic relationship. Together, they find themselves first friends helping each other out in classes and with Rayâs new transition.
Then it turns into romance.
Everything about them and their storyline is beautifully written. It sensitive and funny, moments where they become awkwardly young adults yet itâs sexy and loving. And it has one of the funniest scenes of coming out to a family I can remember.
And these families? Totally supportive and just as respectful and wonderful as the main characters.
Honestly, I could have done with a longer version because I enjoyed it so much.
This is a series not to be missed and this is a must read among them!
Highly recommended!
Great cover!
Cover design by Cormar Covers
Diner Days series -11 books:
đˇWritten at Randy’s by Katherine McIntyre
đˇFinal Boy at Randy’s by Loren Leigh
đˇCramming at Randy’s by Alex Silver đŠˇđđ
When Ray transfers to university in Boston, he has every intention of using his new start in a new city to step out of the closet. His family knows heâs bi, but he hasnât quite figured out how to tell them he isnât the daughter they always thought of him as. His first new friend, Jordie, is the one who gives him the courage to follow through on living as himself. Ray has Jordie pegged as the one he wants to take from study buddy to steady dateâhe just needs to figure out how to get Jordie to see him as partner material.
With graduation in their sights, Jordie isnât looking to mentor another baby queer. Let alone get tangled up in a messy crush after he imprints on them. But thereâs something intoxicating about helping Ray embrace his gender euphoria. Is it really such a wild idea to turn their study dates at Randyâs into a love connection?
Love beyond the binary: serving up low angst trans romance at Randyâs Diner.
Cramming at Randyâs is an X/X friends to lovers standalone romance between a newly out demiboy transfer student and an openly genderqueer older student who helps him find the confidence to be himself.
The Grip of Death does it job! It pulls together all the many fabulous characters, various universes, and multiple storylines to give the long term romance of Jackson Pryde and his fiancĂŠe, Xander Wright, the wedding of Jackson âs wildest dreams and end the series longest running mystery.
Thatâs a lot of elements and stuff to jam into one book. Because at eight books, this couple has had a lot of fun, many adventures, and the Black Market itself is full of the most memorable Masters of the most interesting fields of magic one could imagine.
Every one, including the Goddess Hecate and the adorable sentient AI family members, Lore and Whitby, are present at the goings on, new mystery, and a relocation of the wedding to, where else, the Summer Palace, courtesy of King Oberon.
The author balances the storyline of the many characters and elements involved in the coupleâs wedding with the ongoing process of completing the arcane engine his parents had started as well as launching the guild of artificers. This arcane engine process brings the story back to the original mystery of the original destruction of guild of artificers and the deaths of Jacksonâs parents.
The story is highly entertaining, extremely suspenseful, and action packed. But Noor never forgets about the emotional impact of family and relationships , writing moments of genuine poignancy and deep love.
Iâm thrilled with the ending and this book and series are a definite recommendation for me.
Arcane Hearts:
A Touch of Fever #1
A Stroke of Brilliance #2
An Iron Fist #3
A Velvet Glove #4
Hand of Glory #5
A Clap of Thunder #6
The Claws of Winter #7
The Grip of Death #8 – finale
Cover art by Christian Bentulan coversbychristian.com
Jackson Pryde and Xander Wright are hard at work preparing for their upcoming wedding. Good thing they have everything they need right in the Black Market, whether itâs an enormous cake or the perfect wedding rings.
Jack is working on an incredible project, too: an arcane engine inspired by his parentsâ schematics. If it works, artificers and mages alike will unlock untold stores of energy, making it the guildâs greatest discovery to date.
But itâs not all wine and roses. Echoes from the past point to dark secrets still lurking within the Black Market. Jackson and Xander must unearth these mysteries before they wreak havoc and ruin the wedding… or put their very lives in danger.
No, our favorite triad, Adam the surprising non-human, Victor aka Fancy Fangs, and Zee the fabulous incubus, arenât done yet!
After all the explosive and deadly events of Your Final Resting Place #7, where they vanquished the Big Bad and saved the SOS Hotel and Lost Ones as maybe the world, youâd think theyâd be able to rest.
But Adamâs story isnât finished. And his history is coming for him and those he loves.
So Adam does what he does best and runs. With Victor and Zee together on the road, destination unknown.
I really loved that their relationship has grown so that Adam trusts them with his highly problematic history and the danger thatâs following them.
Of course, they encounter strange events and a few bodies with a murder to solve.
Entertaining, sexy, formidable challenges again to face, and a wild ride for all involved. So happy to see them back!
Cover design by Ariana Nash
SOS Hotel:
For a Supernaturally Safe Stay #1
Friendly Sanctuary for the Fiendishly Fabulous #2
Sleep with Us #3Â
Great Service from Top to Bottom #4
No Rest for the Wicked #5Â
Ho, Ho, No #5.5
Luxury To Die For #6
Your Final Resting Place #7 -ends this sequence of events.
On The Road #8 – starts a mini-trilogyÂ
Icy Reception #9 – coming soonÂ
Holiday release!
SOS HOTEL: Ho, Ho, No by Adam Vex, Ariana Nashâ¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸â¤ď¸
Did you think it was the end of our wild hotel adventures?
Yeah, us too.
The Big Bad is gone. Weâre heroes! Adam, Fancy Fangs, and me (Zee, obvs) are long overdue some downtime. Iâd also like a foot rub, a string of Tomâs hallucinationâinducing cocktails, and endless hours of some much needed personal time between the sheets with my two favorite people. And my pole.
Hello, happy ever after!
But it turns out, fate ainât done with us yet.
Everyoneâs favorite sunshine twink is great at unexpectedly unaliving folks who probably deserve it. What heâs not great at is keeping secrets. So when Adam packs our bags and springs a surprise vacation on us, itâs obviousâeven to senile ancient vampires like Lord Fancy Fangsâthat something is up.
Weâll play along and wonât ask questions, because itâs Adam. Heâll tell us whatâs really going on . . . eventually.
But as we take the SOS Hotel team on the road and the weirdness stacks upâbikerâgang werewolves, psycho witchy influencers, trolls, fairy souls, and sinkholesâthereâs one question Fancy Fangs and I canât shake.
What the f*ck do dragons run from?
(Weâre back in a new three part mini-series! Ha, didnât see that coming did you? Yeah, neither did we. I still donât get a book about ME, but the author âallowedâ me to write this blurb, so long as I donât f*ckinâ swear. Pfft. So buckle up, b*tches, the ride ainât fuckinâ over yet. You think youâre ready? Think again, cupcake. The crazy just got crazier.)
Welcome to the SOS Hotel ~ Where weâre definitely not on the run.
Another new series and book by another new to me author, Abigail Owenâs. The first in Owenâs The Crucible series, The Games Gods Play is reimagining of Greek mythology and the Greek pantheon crossed with a Hunger Games along with a slow burn romance that ends on a cliffhanger.
I really enjoy how different Authors put their own vision into the recognizable Greek mythology to make the Gods and Goddesses as well as their respective relationships acquire a new histories and dynamics. Owenâs book does this while retaining some of the old foundations and essential elements key to the Greek pantheon.
I quickly found myself engaged by the premise and main characters. Primarily Lyra, a young woman cursed at birth and part of a Guild of Thieves. Sheâs one of the 13 human champions chosen by a Greek God or Goddess. They then represent each of them in The Crucible, a series of trials set by the same Gods, the winner of this will have unimaginable honors and their God will rule Olympus for the next 100 years.
Thatâs the barest of things. But the storyline is so great. Primarily due to the fact that the other main character is Hades, God of the Underworld, and Lyra already has an unfortunate relationship with the Gods.
The trials that the champions have to compete in are well crafted, terrifying, and make for a fast paced storyline, full of exactly what you might expect, characters that donât survive, bloodshed, and heartbreak.
As Lyra is navigating the intricacies of Olympian pantheon dynamics, and that of her fellow champions, thereâs a slow burn romance trying to happen with Hades.
Owenâs has some terrific support characters including Charon and Cerebus the three headed dog of Hades.
I could wish that more of the other characters were better layered or the Gods/Goddesses had been more defined, but itâs a wild ride with a good many mysteries involved and a new twist on the Hades/Persephone relationship mythology that I loved.
Actually, itâs more Percy Jackson than Hunger Games. I believe it is fine for young adults as it is for adults. Very engaging , well written, and highly entertaining. Iâm onto the next book when itâs available to see what happens!
A definite recommendation! What a wonderful book.
Cover art and design by Bree Archer and LJ Anderson, Mayhem Cover Creations
The gods love to play with us mere mortals. And every hundred years, we let themâŚ
I have never been favored by the gods. Far from it, thanks to Zeus.
Living as a cursed office clerk for the Order of Thieves, I just keep my head down and hope the capricious beings who rule from Olympus won’t notice me. Not an easy feat, given San Francisco is Zeus’ patron city, but I make do. I survive. Until the night I tangle with a different god.
The worst god. Hades.
For the first time ever, the ruthless, mercurial King of the Underworld has entered the Crucibleâthe deadly contest the gods hold to determine a new ruler to sit on the throne of Olympus. But instead of fighting their own battles, the gods name mortals to compete in their stead.
So why in the Underworld did Hades choose meâa sarcastic nobody with a curse on her shouldersâas his champion? And why does my heart trip every time he says Iâm his?
I donât know if Iâm a pawn, bait, or something else entirely to this dangerously tempting god. How can I, when he has more secrets than stars in the sky?
Because Hades is playing by his own rulesâŚand Death will win at any cost.
Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books (September 3, 2024)
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 