Tag: #newbookreleases

Review: Drop Dead Demon by (Possessive Love) by B. Ripley

Rating: 4.25🌈

Ripley’s Drop Dead Demon is another good installment in the Possessive Love collection.

It starts with a familiar thread about a young boy , a toddler, in an impoverished situation . His young mother needs to work so leaves him alone in a poor hotel for long periods of time. He’s scared and unhappy until out of the dark his imaginary friend comes.

Usually in other books it’s an adult but here, what emerges from the darkness is a little being the same age as himself.

What a great idea and way for the narrative to go forward.

Both Brady, the human, and Roth, the demon, interact as children at the beginning of the story. While Roth has more knowledge about what Brady is to him, he’s still a child, and he’s listens to Brady with a child’s heart, however otherworldly.

That Ripley lets us meet them at this stage makes the next step in their journey even more painful.

The narrative necessarily moves ahead in time to Brady as a successful model.

What happened to Roth is something I’ll leave to the story.

Ripley does a good job reacquainting the main characters with each other but there’s so much else going on, that it’s pushed back to make page time for other elements to be addressed. There’s a prophecy, a demon brother for Roth who’s been “topside” for years with a sudden dramatic backstory to deal with, and Legion , an entity who is literally a cast of thousands.

Somewhere, our main focus , the bond between Brady and Roth, starts to get a little bit fuzzy.

When the story pulls back towards them, it refocuses our connection to the characters, their relationship, and the perils they face.

There’s several twists that Ripley has in store for the readers and characters. A few were, I thought, bittersweet at the end but realistic given the damage done. One wasn’t as thought through or as well executed as it seemed. A all powerful being that couldn’t fully set everything right or destroy the one thing that set things up? I wondered about that.

Anyway, I was left with a few questions about the overall storytelling that I felt was unresolved at the end.

But the relationship, the main characters, how it all began? Wonderful. And so many other smaller things that made this a really enjoyable read.

Check it out. The entire collection is listed below.

Check out the rest of the Possessive Love series! 15 books by 15 authors

◦ A Slice For My Demon by K.L. Hiers & Mozzarus Scout

◦ Cuddly Demon by Aster Rae

✓ My Demon Husband by Jax Stuart ♥️

✓ Exercising A Demon by H.L Day ♥️

✓ Drop Dead Demon by B. Ripley

✓ The Demon’s Dealbreaker by Delaney Rain ❤️

◦ My Demon Rebound by Ashlynn Mills

◦ Curiosity Caught the Demon by Travis Beaudoin

◦ My Saintly Demon by RM Neill

◦ Terrible Lovely Demon by Odessa Hywell

◦ Son of the Arch Demon by Amanda Meuwissen

◦ Recalling My Demon by Colette Davison

◦ The Demon Undertaker by Alex J. Adams

◦ Gift for a Demon by Emily Alter

Buy Link:

Drop Dead Demon: An MM Paranormal Romance

Blurb:

Roth

From the moment I first saw Brady, I knew he was my mate. He thought I was just his imaginary friend and I let him believe that because at his side, I felt more complete than I ever had before. I didn’t mean to ever leave him, but I didn’t have much of a choice. I may be a Prince of Hell, but my father’s rule is absolute and out of his fear that I will someday overpower him, he had me imprisoned when I was just a child.

But, I was freed.

Rescued from where I’ve been held for far too many years, the only thing on my mind is claiming Brady as mine. I have lingered in the darkness without him for so long that seeing him now is like a breath of fresh air, but he’s starting to change. My father may have worried about who I would become, but it’s my mate he truly should have feared.

He is beautiful.

He is terrifying.

He is mine.

Brady

As a lonely child, Roth was the only thing I could count on. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t real, my imaginary friend was there when I needed someone. Roth meant everything when nobody else would let themselves get close to me. When I got older, he disappeared as make-believe things are supposed to and I put childhood behind me, moving on into a career on the runway as a sought after fashion model.

But Roth is back.

He says he’s a demon and I am his mate. We were created for each other, he tells me, but there are beings conspiring to keep us apart. They’re scared of what he will become when he claims me, but they should have feared me instead because I am no longer the lonely little boy I once was.

I am loved.

I am powerful.

I am his.

Review: The Demon’s Dealbreaker (Possessive Love) by Delaney Rain

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Books like these are a reason I enjoy reading collections. The Demon’s Dealbreaker (Possessive Love) by Delaney Rain is written by an author I’ve never read before and now I can add them to my list of writers I whose works I find very entertaining.

It starts with what should be a heartbreaking story and reveal to the main character on his birthday. His parents have sold him eight times to eight different otherworldly beings in exchange for various gifts/items. Without his knowledge and without each of the other beings knowing about the deals his parents made with the others.

It’s a dramatic open onto the moment where Dwyer Eamonn’s life shatters with the knowledge of his parents actions and the fact he’s been sold. To more than one person. To be specific to a witch, two fairies, a minor god, and four demons all of which have arrived to claim him.

To say they aren’t happy with the situation and his parents is an understatement.

Rain immediately sets about introducing the reader to all the claimants as well as giving us insight into Dwyer and his family history. It’s clear from the beginning that Dwyer’s parents have viewed him not as a child but as an asset and treated him just as coldly.

The format the author has constructed to allow him and us to learn more about the other characters brings a sense of urgency and connection to his fate. He has to learn about them and so must the reader. It’s a wonderful element.

However, it comes with the trigger warnings mentioned. There’s a scenario with a non con sex scene. I have issues with the ramifications from this episode in that I don’t think it shows the being ever realizing the cause and effect of his actions. And, imo, this is the only aspect of the storyline where I think the author doesn’t either fully explore here the gravity of a non consensual moment or it’s so weakens it with other elements that it might as well not have been used as all.

I think it’s supposed to be that, yes, all these otherworldly beings aren’t exactly “nice people” or have the greatest of personalities, at least on the surface. Our impression of them evolves as Dwyer spends time getting to know each of them in their respective worlds.

Some naturally are more powerful as characters because of the fact that they have bigger roles in the storyline and in Dwyer’s present life. But each of them is interesting and layered with a unique background.

Rain is also fond of creating unusual sexual body shapes for the beings here, tentacles do sort of make an appearance, even if it’s just one. Just an fyi.

I so enjoyed the ending. Did I wish for a bit more of a revenge aspect? Sure but it still feels very satisfying. And I could certainly do with seeing more of the rest of the crew.

The collection is an odd mix but this one is a definite winner. Grab it up but do heed the warnings.

Check out the rest of the Possessive Love series! 15 books by 15 authors

◦ A Slice For My Demon by K.L. Hiers & Mozzarus Scout

◦ Cuddly Demon by Aster Rae

✓ My Demon Husband by Jax Stuart ♥️

✓ Exercising A Demon by H.L Day ♥️

✓ Drop Dead Demon by B. Ripley

✓ The Demon’s Dealbreaker by Delaney Rain

◦ My Demon Rebound by Ashlynn Mills

◦ Curiosity Caught the Demon by Travis Beaudoin

◦ My Saintly Demon by RM Neill

◦ Terrible Lovely Demon by Odessa Hywell

◦ Son of the Arch Demon by Amanda Meuwissen

◦ Recalling My Demon by Colette Davison

◦ The Demon Undertaker by Alex J. Adams

◦ Gift for a Demon by Emily Alter

Buy Link:

The Demon’s Dealbreaker: An MM Paranormal Romance

Blurb:

A witch, two fairies, a minor god, and four demons walk into a bar and suddenly Dwyer Eamonn’s life will never be the same.

Turns out that Dwyer’s parents promised him—their firstborn—as payment when they made eight different deals with various supernatural beings. At the stroke of midnight on his twenty-first birthday, every single claimant comes calling, ready to make Dwyer their heir.

Unable to deny them all, it’s up to Dwyer to choose which supernatural being he wants to become by spending time with each of them. What does a witch do all day? Do crossroads demons really hang out on street corners? He has eight hours to learn about them one at a time before he must make a decision.

Right away, one of them draws Dwyer in like no one ever has. He doesn’t want to become a demon, but he does want to be with one. Is that even possible? And since choosing an heir means these people want to shuffle off their mortal coil, is love reason enough to make one of them stay? After all, they’ll have forever once Dwyer makes his choice.

The Demon’s Dealbreaker is a M/M paranormal romance featuring a cranky cast of supernatural beings who thought they’d all made deals for a firstborn son, a human man who knew magic existed but not at this level, parents who deserve what they get, and the revelation of several incredible secrets as the dealbreaker becomes who he was always meant to be.

Content Warnings: See my website, gaymonsterromance.com

Review: Teighan (Veiled City #2) by Eryn Hawk

Rating: 4🌈

Teighan is another story whose potential for a greater layered narrative isn’t entirely realized. Hawk has two far more compelling and complex characters than the original story. Plus the elements that make them so intriguing are ones that derive from their equally dysfunctional, cold-blooded family dynamics and treatment. That one’s human and one a Fae, matters little. Both have and are suffering under parental control and abuse .

It’s how that has affected them that’s the issue and an emotional element that’s explored. For some readers, this might be problematic. Read the trigger warnings.

I think that Hawk does a really good job in creating in Alex Lawrence, a rich young man who has been emotionally abandoned by his family for his sexuality and artistic life, yet remains under a tight restraining control that borders on a financial prison. One he acknowledges he accepts which leads to self loathing and a certain amount of self harm. Why he accepts is one best discovered within the story. The more the story unfolds and the strange relationship between Alex and Teighan develops, the author’s definition of this character really changes and becomes so much understandable and compelling.

Teighan also is an emotional minefield. And everything about Alex , including preconceived notions, sets Teighan off. I find that this half brother to Cair far more interesting than the other half. Perhaps Hawk does too because the background created for him as revealed slowly here, asks more questions, has me wanting to know more about him and his mother than I did Cair. Maybe we can get another novel about him from the author down the road.

Their relationship is tempestuous. There’s hate sex, physicality pain kink, all of which are asked for btw. It makes perfect sense considering Alex, his emotional state, and needs. Again see trigger warnings.

Mild Daddy kink that came and went and was never seen again. But some mild D/s and spanking is found here.

There is an odd dramatic element here which seemingly came out of nowhere. Honestly, couldn’t figure out why the author included this because there’s so much else going on that this aspect of the story felt superfluous.

The two trying to figure out they were actually a good match for each other, as well as mates? That’s high drama enough considering their backgrounds and who they are.

Luca and Cair pop in and out with regularity with updates on their lives and the search for Luca’s father.

But I stayed connected to Teighan and Alex. And wondered if Alex’s brother would show up one day soon.

Like I said, the potential this couple and this story showed wasn’t really reached, so I’m hoping that Hawk will extend the storylines into a second book of their own.

If you enjoy paranormal fiction or romance, this is a series to check out. Read them in the order they are written. It’s a definite yes from me.

Veiled City:

✓ Cair #1

✓ Teighan #2

◦ Luca #3 – tbd 2024

Buy Link:

Teighan: MM Paranormal Romance (Veiled City Book 2)

Blurb:

Alexander Lawrence is bored. At twenty-seven, his life is an endless loop of painting and teaching—and lots of mind-numbing sex to distract himself from the fact he’s trapped in a gilded cage of his mother’s making. That is, until his best friend goes back to the Fae realm, leaving a seven-foot hunk of grumping gorgeousness to act as Alex’s bodyguard, and he suddenly finds himself totally uninterested in anyone else. It’s challenging, pursuing a guy who seems to hate his guts, knowing it might well end in disaster, but Alex never could resist the thrill of the chase.

Teighan Haryk is the half-blood son of a King, and a war-hardened Fae Captain to boot. Babysitting humans isn’t part of his resume. But he made a promise to watch over Alex—and he never goes back on his word—so for the time being, he’s stuck guarding the insufferable artist with the smart mouth and pretty eyes. It’s infuriating, but he’s oddly enthralled by the creature, and after learning that the boy’s life isn’t as easy as he assumed, his protective streak awakens. Teighan’s resolve is tested to its limit, and despite his efforts to stay indifferent, he’s forced to admit that he may have met his perfect match.

Alex struggles to deal with his issues while Teighan tries to pretend his feelings don’t exist. Their chemistry is scorching, but there’s no way their attraction will ever be more than physical.

Will it?

TEIGHAN is a MM paranormal romance with spice, size difference, and soulmates. It features a sunshine human using flirting in place of therapy, and a surly Fae whose plans of a peaceful life take a mate-shaped detour. TEIGHAN is second in the VEILED CITY series, which is best read in order due to the overarching plot. Each book focuses on its own pair and their HEA.

If you want to know more about this story’s tropes, kinks and warnings, visit my Instagram (authorerynhawk) for a full content list—or check the content warning at the beginning of the book.

Review: Body Count (Wayward Sons Book 1) by L Eveland

Rating: 4.5🌈

The blurb for the book is what drew my attention immediately. The subject matter and characters of L Eveland’s series are so dark and detailed in their histories that my mind made a swift connection to another author’s terrific books that offer up the same type of murderous psychopaths (Onley James’ Necessary Evils series).

I was so excited to see what Eveland did with this terrifying type of character and found family, and how given the same traits and motivations, what twists this author took their story.

It doesn’t take long to see the differences and similarities. When you are writing a psychopath realistically, there’s defining characteristics built into the personality. That includes an inability to understand love as a normal person would. None of the characters in this book, and I expect, the series, will fall within the category of normal human emotional development.

There’s a long list of trigger warnings at the beginning of this book and if a reader is even a tad squeamish, this isn’t the story and series for you. This is dark fiction about psychopaths killing people, and maybe eating them.

The family that forms the basis for the individuals is a very different and unique group of people. One, it’s a polycule, the likes of which I haven’t read about in a story before. Those strong men and women ,who have big backgrounds of their own, are people who the reader will get to know more about over the series. From them comes the adult children , natural and adopted, who will get their own stories. Their legal business? A funeral home.

Wayward Sons’ Body Count begins with adopted son, mortician River Laskin on the prowl in a sketchy dive bar at the edge of town. One of the book’s two pov’s, his voice is telling the reader of his need for violence but not the a clear target until he spies a group of men and a collared youth cowering at their feet. That’s our second main character, Theo of no last name.

Theo is a victim of child trafficking from a very early age, 5 years old. He’s been in the custody of the same trafficker since he was sold and his mental state is that of someone who has been broken down to the barest extent that even when River “frees” him, Theo finds he can’t cope with his new situation and world that’s open to him.

Nor can River bring the person he is have the empathy to help him but he does have the support system.

Eveland does a remarkable job getting into the headspace of both men as they navigate through the process of their relationship and Theo’s trauma. That it happens to include finding out that the murderous psychopath who rescued you is part of a larger group of people who exhibit a range of abnormal psychological disorders which are slowly revealed in the book. That’s in addition to the mafia family connections they rely on heavily.

I’m actually astonished that Body Count moves along so quickly and isn’t weighted down by the author getting dragged into clinical details about the different disorders the brothers have been diagnosed with. Whether it’s the triplets’ schizophrenia or Shepherd’s DID, multiple personality disorder, it’s folded into the narrative in such a way that it’s natural for Theo to hear it, and not a info dump. Eveland’s narrative flow is due to such great depth and writing choices in how these elements are handled.

Theo and River’s relationship is rife with trigger potential for readers, however much it makes sense within the dynamics that Eveland is framing out for the couple. Does Theo understand the concept of consent? Maybe, it’s a very gray area. Would River be able to let him go? Maybe not. So how free is he? There’s pain play involved here but it’s brought into the equation in a way that makes it easier to see how much trauma Theo is trying to process.

Towards the end I felt that Theo’s “recovery “ was more advanced than an actual traumatized person in this situation would be. Maybe not.

Theo became a member of a family of traumatized individuals who were able to support him and his unique relationship with River.

Eveland took a dark topic and even more twisted characters and is giving them a very interesting look in this series, complete with mushrooms with have a revolting starter. Word to the wise. Don’t eat anything with mushrooms from this family.

I’m so sorry that I have to wait until next Spring for the second installment in this series. I could have easily binged this had the books been written.

It’s an absolute recommendation. But only for those who want to read dark fiction and appreciate the more murderous of natures in the characters we read. The list of trigger warnings is at the beginning and it’s appropriately long. Read them first before making your decision. It includes torture, child sexual abuse, murder, and hints of cannibalism.

Wayward Sons:

✓ Body Count #1

◦ Skin Deep #2 – April 30,2024

Buy Link:

Body Count: A Dark MM Romance (Wayward Sons Book 1)

Blurb:

Death is his business, and I live to serve.

Theo

Mortician River Laskin is a monster, a narcissistic sociopath with blood on his hands, but he’s also my savior.

When he rescues me from a human trafficking ring, the last thing on my mind is vengeance. I need to pull my life together and figure out how to survive in a world where I don’t exist. Without someone to tell me what to do, I’m lost. River is all I have to cling to, the only thing that makes sense in this terrifying new world.

But he and his family of murderous psychopaths have other plans, mafia connections, and murder on their minds.

River Laskin

I knew from the moment I saw him that Theo was mine. Mine to protect, mine to break, mine to put back together again.

My favorite toy.

I will use every resource at my disposal to find the men who hurt him and make them pay, whether he wants me to or not. It’s not up to him.

I’ll burn every bridge, turn over every stone, dig up every body until I get what I want.

And what I want now is vengeance for Theo. The Devil himself couldn’t stop me. I dare him to try.

Body Count is the first novel in the Wayward Sons series, a series standalone of dark MM romances that follows the Laskin brothers as they battle their inner demons and find love.

Review: Perfectly Charmed Pixie: Parsnip’s Story (Perfect Pixie #3) by M. J. May

Rating: 5🌈

May’s Perfect Pixie series just took a decidedly darker turn in an already beautiful and layered world. Much like the vibrantly colored, glittery pixies the stories have been written about, Perfectly Charmed Pixie has at its heart, one Parsnip, a well known social pixie, as famous for his unusual aquamarine color as he is for his cable television series.

But the truth is on the cover. Parsnip’s fabulous Aqua is a fake. In reality, he’s faded to a ombré grey shadow. The lack of color born of trauma and the fact he was a prisoner of a pixie dust addict for months who drained him.

Yes, this story has a pixie dealing with his ongoing struggles with depression, PTSD, anxiety, and the very real consequences of his past. All by staring in a mirror. Plus Parsnip is fighting multiple internal and external battles here. With his fans and the Network over the expectations for his appearance, his insecurities, and his real fears for himself.

May has really outdone herself here. Because the series themes and world building just expanded in several quiet horrific ways.

Addiction to pixie dust has been mentioned before in the previous books but now we see the consequences. And worse . Because Parsley, Parsnip’s brother, is running a recovery home for those pixies saved from trafficking operations. But that’s still a minor aspect of the narrative.

A huge one is the warlock, Vander Kines, a fantastic character. Guardian to a young brownie, Byx, Vander owns a small shop that makes magical charms and he’s barely making ends meet. Mostly due to the fact he’s got a strong moral compass and won’t take jobs he feels is wrong or unlawful.

Vander and his ward, Byx, have a warm family relationship with a loss of a loved one that connects them. That beautiful dynamic carries over into the one that starts when Parsnips contacts Vander out of desperation.

Vander and Parsnips emotionally exist, at the beginning, outside of the circle of friends who form the basis of the strengths of the strange pairings here. But the subtle similarities in Parsnip’s relationship and personality bring them together with pixies Phil and Peaches, along with their fated mates. I loved this journey and all the tiny elements that the author wove into it. Btw? Those hair clips of Byx’s are incredible!

May’s attention to detail, however, is never lost by the sheer texture and depth of the new storylines being added into the universe, the darkness that is now so much closer to the characters than we thought, and new awareness of old dangers brought to light.

The different Pixie relationships are loving and unusual, the many beings who are important to the inner circle are expanding their storyline, and a new realm has opened up.

There’s so many key issues that May puts into play at various stages in the narrative that it’s chilling watching how they slowly develop into something more complex and threatening than has ever been hinted at before. It happens with whispers and the occasional nod from the characters that something is definitely amiss and will need to be investigated. Or something even more serious.

I got delicious shivers and a whole new appreciation for this author’s style and craftsmanship in this book and series.

The fourth book has a title. Is it part of a new series or this one? It’s most definitely connected. I needs it now I do.

Not familiar with this author? This is a fabulous place to start, with this series. But they really must be read in the order they are written in because of the relationships and events that occur that are building the foundation.

If I could give higher ratings I would.

Perfectly Charmed Pixie: Parsnip’s Story (Perfect Pixie #3) by M. J. May is a must along with the prior stories!

Absolutely gorgeous covers!

Perfect Pixie:♥️

✓ Perfectly Imperfect Pixie #1

✓ Perfectly Perfect Pixie #2

✓ Perfectly Charmed Pixie #3

Next: and part of this series/universe

◦ Perfectly Perplexing Zombie: Wendall’s Story – late fall/winter 2023

Buy Link:

Perfectly Charmed Pixie: Parsnip’s Story (Perfect Pixie Series Book 3)

Blurb:

Youthful arrogance and misplaced trust left Parsnip’s once beautiful aqua colors little more than shades of muted gray. As a social pixie and host of a popular TV show, Parsnip desperately needs to fool everyone into believing he’s that same, stunningly colorful creature. Warlock-made charms are all Parsnip needs to keep up the rouse. But the financial cost is high, and each activated charm steals more of his life force. Despite this, Parsnip’s willing to pay any price. After all, who would want a faded pixie?

Everyone knows warlocks have no moral compass. But if that’s true, why does Vander Kines turn down more commissions than he accepts? Barely able to keep a roof over his head, his shop open, his brownie ward fed, and beer in the fridge, Vander should jump at the large sums of money clients are willing to throw in his direction. But no amount of cash is worth the cost of his soul, and his only true concern is keeping the young brownie safe.

When a magical mishap with Parsnip’s warlock sends the pixie through Vander’s door, Vander refuses his request until he discovers Parsnip is his one and only. Now, he will go to any lengths to make Parsnip happy—even trading his own life force in place of Parsnip’s.

Unfortunately, Parsnip isn’t fooling everyone, and a witch with a vendetta is determined to expose his secret, and she’s willing to kill Vander and hand Parsnip over to his worst ogre nightmare to get what she wants.

True, unvarnished love is hard to find and sometimes even harder to accept. Having found it, Parsnip’s willing to do anything to keep it safe…even if that means giving up his charmed life.

Perfectly Charmed Pixie is the third book in the Perfect Pixie series. It can be read as a stand alone but would be more enjoyable if the first two books in the series are read first.

Perfectly Charmed Pixie contains beautiful pixies—no matter what their colors, an ornery yet clever brownie, a morally sound warlock, pixie dust addicted ogres, good and bad witches, a questionably reformed siren, more honeysuckle mead, magic, and finding your perfect, other half.

Review: Exercising a Demon (Possessive Love) by H. L. Day

Rating: 4.25🌈

Possessive Love is a 15 multi-author book series about demons in love. I love to explore a collection like this because of the opportunities to revisit authors I already enjoy to finding new ones to discover.

In the case of Exercising a Demon (Possessive Love) by H. L. Day it’s an author I’m happily familiar with. Day is on my auto read list and Exercising a Demon is a terrific sample for those readers not familiar with the author to get a feel for Day’s work.

Our main characters in this paranormal love story are a human named Jacob and a demon named Valvach. Jacob is sort of a human magpie when we meet him. He loves things sparkly and shiny, without looking like them too closely. Like the man he formed an immediate crush on and has decided he wants to become his boyfriend. All based on just seeing him.

Then there’s Valvach, a demon who doesn’t exactly fit in with the rest of his demonic family and their love for the family work in Hell. Valvach prefers reading, being helpful, and, adores animals. Not great characteristics for the lower realms.

The two meet cute and then everything becomes immediately more adorable as clueless bumps up against almost blind determination until reality and a family from hell wants to set things right.

The relationship is slow to develop but so cute. The characters are clueless but engaging, and their goals are so very important and rewarding that it’s easy to cheer them on.

Exercising a Demon (Possessive Love) by H. L. Day is the second book I’ve read in this collection and it’s another winner. Funny, with lovely characters. A definite recommendation.

Now to see what the next one has to offer!

Check out the rest of the Possessive Love series! 15 books by 15 authors

◦ A Slice For My Demon by K.L. Hiers & Mozzarus Scout

◦ Cuddly Demon by Aster Rae

✓ My Demon Husband by Jax Stuart ♥️

✓ Exercising A Demon by H.L Day ♥️

◦ Drop Dead Demon by B. Ripley

◦ The Demon’s Dealbreaker by Delaney Rain

◦ My Demon Rebound by Ashlynn Mills

◦ Curiosity Caught the Demon by Travis Beaudoin

◦ My Saintly Demon by RM Neill

◦ Terrible Lovely Demon by Odessa Hywell

◦ Son of the Arch Demon by Amanda Meuwissen

◦ Recalling My Demon by Colette Davison

◦ The Demon Undertaker by Alex J. Adams

◦ Gift for a Demon by Emily Alter

Buy Link:

Exercising a Demon: An MM paranormal romance

Blurb:

Love comes in all shapes and sizes. And sometimes it has horns and a tail.

Jacob’s in love. Again. Only, his future husband likes muscular men, and Jacob, well… isn’t. A few sessions at the gym, and he’ll have the leather-clad motorcycle courier eating out of his hand, though. And no, he won’t switch his attentions to his hot new personal trainer. Honestly, he won’t.

Valvach’s not your typical demon, preferring books over torture. Which goes down about as well as you’d expect in Hell. A move to the surface gives him the opportunity to start anew. To stay, he’s going to need to make a friend, someone to help him blend in. And sweet, curly-haired Jacob is the perfect candidate. If he can’t lick him, he can at least spend time with him.

When friendship blossoms into a passion that knows no bounds, Jacob and Val believe they’ve found the perfect match in each other. However, Hell isn’t so accommodating, and they find themselves with a fight on their hands to prevent being torn apart and relegated to different planes of existence.

Exercising a Demon is a MM paranormal romantic comedy featuring a demon who’s more of a lover than a fighter, a human who might finally have found the man/demon of his dreams, steamy sexual liaisons involving a tail, and a sweet demon/human pairing who accept each other for who they are and embrace each other’s quirks.

Review: Clueless Puckboy (Puckboys, #5) by Eden Finley and Saxon James

Rating: 5🌈

When I’m not even at 15% and all I’ve done is laugh so hard I’m crying and my sides are in stitches, you bet I’m giving the book a 5 star rating. Clueless Puckboy is right. And probably my favorite novel to date out of a bunch of crazy hockey stories from this pair of authors.

Ayri Quinn is fighting an adductor injury and doesn’t want his team trainers to know he’s not as recovered as he says he is. Quinn is a character so adorable and funny that his issues, which aren’t humorous at all, have this reader snorting in laughter, because the authors have set up this situation and created him just so perfectly.

I love Quinn. He’s ferlect. That’s something you’ll get if you read the book btw. Stumbling over his words, blushing, intense, in his head , practically ferlect in every way.

The man watching Quinn and determined to help him before Quinn’s stubbornness in refusing help derails his career is one Vance Landon. Vance is one of the trainers with Quinn’s NHL team in Buffalo, NY and a great character foil for the younger man. A bit older, athletic , gay, and empathetic, Vance’s personality plays off Quinn’s endearing character in a manner that is made to have the reader fall for them both. As we do.

Starting from a basis of professional concern and knowledge, the switch to attraction and recognition of their mutual interest is natural and believable. It’s often awkward and funny too.

But James and Finley go the adult route, and that’s including a lot of discussion about what a relationship would mean for the team and their future in hockey. All that goes along with spectacular descriptions of a hockey season in play. Buffalo is fighting for the playoffs and Stanley Cup, and the authors make the race vivid in the on the ice physical scenes.

And of course, it’s not a great story if some, if not all, of the NHL Queer Collective make appearances in very memorable moments.

So, do I adore this story and couple? Absolutely. It and them made my day and night as I picked it up and read it through in one sitting. Filled with joy, a ton of laughter, and yes, some sexy moments, this is a favorite of mine.

Pick it up and see why it’s on my reread pile! Highly recommended!

Puckboys:

✓ Egotistical Puckboy #1

✓ Irresponsible Puckboy #2

✓ Shameless Puckboy #3

✓ Foolish Puckboy #4

✓ Clueless Puckboy #5

Buy Link :

Clueless Puckboy (Puckboys Book 5)

Blurb:

QUINN

Straining my groin is bad enough. It puts my hockey career, my future, but even worse, my dignity on the line.

Having to get massages in that area from Vance Landon, one of the team trainers, is mortifying.

It’s impossible to hide my feelings toward him. If my constant blushing and bumbling doesn’t give it away, my body does.

It’s getting to the point where I wonder if hockey is even worth the embarrassment.

Trying to avoid him only makes him seek me out more. He’s determined to rehab my injury, but all I want is for him to leave me alone.

Or fall for me.

One or the other.

VANCE

Ayri Quinn isn’t your typical jock … except for the fact he refuses to admit when he’s injured.

I’ve seen more than enough professional sportsmen lose the career they love due to injury, and I’m not having it happen again.

Especially not when the guy in question happens to be the sweetest, most awkward, innocent jock I’ve ever met.

When a night out leads to Quinn reinjuring himself, I create a care plan that keeps me hands on, literally. Unfortunately, working with him in close proximity brings all those feelings I’ve been trying to ignore to the surface.

I just need to get him better so he can be back on the ice and out of my bed.

Ah, my massage bed.

Because if this goes on any longer, I might mean my actual bed.

Ayri Quinn is impossible to resist.

Review: Dump and Chase (Watkins Glen Gladiators #3) by V. L. Locey

Rating: 4.5🌈

Dump and Chase is such a sweet, low angst romance, that it’s easy to overlook its beautiful moments and great qualities because it’s so smoothly written.

This is a wonderful story of a young d-man from the Watkins Glen Gladiators and the widowed assistant pastor and single father of a small congregation who find themselves in a relationship that’s leads towards a HEA. To be honest, I avoid any novels that have religious content . Not my thing. But here it comes as a profession as well as the man’s desire to serve his community. Locey’s portrait is that of a multidimensional person.

Gabriel Hansley is a single dad with a rambunctious young son, a widower who loved his wife, a overwhelmed assistant pastor trying to move his church forward and a lonely man who’s becomes attracted to a younger hockey player. Everything about Gabe makes him someone we’d like to meet and connect with.

Deandre Jones, defensive man for the Watkins Glen Gladiators, is another of Locey’s gems when it comes to her hockey players. Young, talented, smart, trying to make a name for himself yet stay true to the upright, mannered person he was raised to be by his mother and close knit family. By dialogue and background, Deandre comes together with crystal clarity. That includes the issues he has of commitment that stem from a father’s abandonment.

Dump and Chase layers in a series of serious issues and elements, gently taking an opportunity to inspect, address and then, if possible, resolve them with communication and kindness. It’s not just obstacles that arise between the main characters, although that’s often the case, but other things as well. Things get wider audience as all sorts of allies and friends are drawn together for dialogue and discussions about things that need a closer look.

Super angsty? Perhaps not. Grownup with a lovely optimistic voice of adult reason with its underlying sense of humor and self worth.

And while the adults are finding their way into a relationship, it’s framed around Gabe’s changing life at his small congregation and Deandre’s role at the Gladiators. Change is happening, it’s how each of them will be able to deal with it and decide what to do with the new paths that open up.

The supporting cast of characters is a joy. Whether it’s Gabe’s son or Deandre’s teammates, Deandre’s mother or the wealthy winemaker who’s been Gabe’s biggest supporter at the church for changes, they are engaging and people I’m sure we will be seeing more of in future stories.

Dump and Chase (Watkins Glen Gladiators #3) by V. L. Locey is an engaging sweet romance and one of my favorites to date. I highly recommend it.

Watkins Glen Gladiators:

✓ Between The Pipes #1

✓ Defending The House #2

✓ Dump and Chase #3

Buy Link:

Blurb:

Working side-by-side on a charity project might just prove to be the foundation of a new romance.

Deandre Jones is enjoying his single life quite nicely, thank you. He’s a defenseman on the Watkins Glen Gladiators, gets to travel, dates frequently, and isn’t tied down to anything other than his mom and brother back in the windy city. He has time to do the whole family and kids thing. Right now he’s happy to be footloose, even if his mother has different ideas. As the playoffs near his focus should be on hockey, but for some reason, he can’t seem to give the sport its due. Ever since he volunteered to help the incredibly handsome assistant pastor of a local church work on an addition to the parish, his attention seems to be locked on curly hair and bright blue eyes instead of breakaways and body checks.

Gabriel Hansley has quite the full plate. Not only is he the first openly out bisexual assistant pastor for a small but highly active parish, but he’s also got his son to tend to as well as his work at the church, which keeps him hopping all day long. And that’s a good thing as the nights alone are hard for the young widower. Just when he’s about to give up on finding a person to share his life with—chaotic as it can be—he finds himself hammering nails beside Deandre Jones. As they work side-by-side under the bright spring sun, he’s getting warmer under the collar with each shared smile and terrible carpentry pun.

Dump and Chase is a low-angst, slow burn, age gap queer hockey romance with a not-quite-as-confirmed-as-he-thought bachelor, a harried single father, plenty of nosy but well-meaning parishioners and teammates, tons of joyous song, and a harmonious happily ending.

Review: Nelson & MacIlwraith (Moon Murder Mysteries #1) by K Sterling

Rating: 5🌈

K Sterling has become a go to author for me and this book is an excellent example why. Nelson & MacIlwraith, the first in the Moon Murder Mysteries, is steeped in mythologies and cultural traditions. These myths and lores that enrich and at times horrify the characters and readers have been pulled from literary sources and the author’s incredible imagination.

To say the Celtic mythological tapestry Sterling has woven here works to enhance the themes, mysteries, and unique relationships is an understatement. It goes beyond that.

It starts with the unusual characters. FBI Agent Grady Nelson has been assigned the case of a missing girl, but told to “bury” the investigation by his superiors. Nelson, the son and grandson of famous agents, is a man out of favor with the FBI, a person they are looking to bury.

We’ve seen this type of character before but not Grady Nelson. Sterling has created in Nelson someone of unusual depths and qualities, submissive, unyielding in a hunt for the truth. Nelson is a dichotomy of traits and desires. And his growth here is unexpected and astonishing.

Nelson is paired with his complete opposite. That’s the renowned and well connected Professor Lennox “Nox” MacIlwraith. Looking like a combination of goth musician, he’s an archaeologist professor who’s consults in cases that have an occult or otherworldly nature. Which is what he has been working on. One exactly like the one Nelson isn’t supposed to investigate.

From a truly macabre starting point, Sterling launches a spectacular new series and couple. One missing girl becomes more, and the fact that each one is linked to local pagan communities and witchcraft just adds to the mystery.

Sterling builds on the men’s hugely different lives and unusual interior mentalities to craft a relationship unlike any other. This overlays an increasingly horrifying investigation with a narrow timeline.

This story is amazing, terrifying, haunting, and extremely suspenseful. It’s no surprise that it ends on a bit of a cliffhanger.

I can’t wait to see how the next episode in the men’s relationship and journey will go.

If you love a fantasy story with highly developed and compelling characters and a world that’s equally layered, this is for you.

Moon Murder Mysteries:

◦ Nelson & MacIlwraith #1

Buy Link :

Blurb:

No one wants a witch for a partner.

Time is running out, and the deck is stacked against Professor Lennox “Nox” MacIlwraith. Six girls have been abducted, but the FBI doesn’t realize they’re connected. There’s also the matter of the dead girl in New Castle. She was found tied to a tree and Nox suspects one serial kidnapper and killer is responsible. An unorthodox expert on the occult, Nox is rumored to be a psychic and a witch. And a crackpot. The wily young professor has to prove he’s not batty—or possibly a vampire—and that the cases are linked before the next full moon. If not, he fears the remaining girls will be sacrificed to a mythical god-king.

Everyone in the FBI hates Agent Grady Nelson. He’s failed to live up to his legendary father’s reputation within the bureau and is almost universally despised for being an uptight do-gooder. Nelson’s ready to kiss what’s left of his career goodbye when he’s ordered to work with the “sketchy professor” on what should be a nuisance case. The investigation turns into a professional minefield when Nox claims it’s connected to an ancient Celtic cult. Rules are broken and lines are crossed as Nelson falls under Nox’s spell and begins to suspect his partner might be a real witch.

Nox is a little bit witchcraft. Nelson is a little bit Federal Bureau. Together, they’re a wickedly good team, but can they find the missing girls before it’s too late? Nox is prepared to sacrifice his own career and his life to save them. He’d also like to save Nelson, but is Nox ready to sacrifice his heart too?

Review: — My Demon Husband: An MM Paranormal Romance by Jax Stuart

Rating: 4🌈

Possessive Love is a 15 multi-author book series about demons in love. I love to explore a collection like this because of the opportunities to find a new author like Jax Stuart who wrote the wonderful My Demon Husband in this group.

Stuart begins by drawing us into the life of witch Toby and the small magical town he’s growing up in. It’s not a happy life. Year after year, Toby is unable to summon a familiar on his birthday, his magic not working properly.

The manner in which Stuart cuts away from year to year, allowing the reader a window into the pain and frustration that’s been felt throughout Toby’s adolescence is remarkable. He’s become a real person to us and his suffering is now something we can connect with.

For Prince Zephyrin, the same can be said. The glimpses the author gives the reader into his life offers up much more insight into his own personal issues as well as his own family’s sufferings.

Two beings are about to be connected in the most unexpected way. This element of Stuart’s narrative is such a powerful and compelling one. It’s a part of the overall mystery. How both are connected becomes a strength of the relationship and, imo, one of the book. Because it prompts one necessary discussion about consent, status, sexuality, equality , and dominance. All of these things could have been ignored or avoided in a lesser story.

The romance between Toby and Zeph really comes together as they fight for their bond and right to stay as a magical couple as they define it. It just feels so believable and engaging to read as they grow into their dynamic. I just love them.

The mystery behind Toby’s failures is not as well developed as most of the other storylines, and it has just as many questions left unanswered at the end of the novel.

The author fills up this book with so much detail and depth in the world building that it calls out for additional novels. The covens that appeared later on with their own fascinating characters, Zephyrin’s Mother’s “queendom” and his family, and even the questions left behind as to what will happen to that village of Toby’s, it all seems to cry out for more storylines!

My Demon Husband: An MM Paranormal Romance by Jax Stuart is highly entertaining and well written. I throughly enjoyed the characters and the world built around them. I hope Stuart will revisit them someday to catch up on the loose ends and how this couple is faring.

This is a definite recommendation and for the rest in the collection, check out the list below.

Check out the rest of the Possessive Love series! 15 books by 15 authors

◦ A Slice For My Demon by K.L. Hiers & Mozzarus Scout

◦ Cuddly Demon by Aster Rae

✓ My Demon Husband by Jax Stuart

◦ Exercising A Demon by H.L Day

◦ Drop Dead Demon by B. Ripley

◦ The Demon’s Dealbreaker by Delaney Rain

◦ My Demon Rebound by Ashlynn Mills

◦ Curiosity Caught the Demon by Travis Beaudoin

◦ My Saintly Demon by RM Neill

◦ Terrible Lovely Demon by Odessa Hywell

◦ Son of the Arch Demon by Amanda Meuwissen

◦ Recalling My Demon by Colette Davison

◦ The Demon Undertaker by Alex J. Adams

◦ Gift for a Demon by Emily Alter

Buy Link:

My Demon Husband: An MM Paranormal Romance

Blurb:

He was supposed to summon a familiar, not a husband!

After numerous failed attempts to summon a familiar necessary to guide his considerable magic, Toby was down to his very last try. They would never accept him as a full-fledged member of his birth coven without a familiar. He didn’t know which punishment was worse; exile or binding his powers forever. Everything was against him, including his abnormally powerful magic and an enemy hiding in plain sight. When the spell takes a dramatic turn, poor Toby is unprepared for the consequences.

Zephyrin is desperate to no longer be the screw up of the family. His parents have had enough on their plate dealing with a family curse. Even knowing that he could be lost to them forever, Zephyrin answers the surprising call for his summoning. After meeting his summoner, Toby, he’s positive that he is destined to be by his side as his husband. Maybe having a witch in his corner could break the curse, that is, if Toby lets him visit home.

Unfortunately, Toby has troubles of his own. Can they work together to find a solution to both their problems before the Witch Council tears them apart?

My Demon Husband is a standalone paranormal romance between an overpowered witch and a demon with control issues in the multi-author Possessive Love series.