Tag: paranormal slow burn romance

Review: A Dragon Rider’s Guide to Retirement (Dragons of Safeway Haven Book 1) by Julia Huni

Rating: 4.5⭐️

What a wonderful find and absolutely fabulous read!  Julia Huni is an author I hadn’t heard of before but she’s now firmly in my author list to look forward to. 

A Dragon Rider’s Guide to Retirement, the first book in Dragons of Safeway Haven series by Julia Huni, is a quietly stunning story.  I’m not sure I’ve read one quite like this in a group of novels about dragons and dragon riders. 

There’s no fast paced adventure, no real action or battles. At least not yet. Those have already happened. In a long,  dark ongoing war between two countries that’s continuing to escalate and claim the lives of many, this story focuses on the recent retired warriors of each country.  One a battle witch who’s losing her powers and one a disabled dragon rider who lost his dragon in the war.  Both in their early 50’s and they’ve retired to Safe Haven , a mystical island unbeknownst to each other. At first. 

 What author Huni delivers is beautiful, deeply believable characters, ones who are dealing with their own trauma and personal losses. Who then are confronted with not only the physical enemy they have been fighting all these years, a enemy that has cost them greatly in terms of unbelievable loss and suffering, but they also have to face the fact that perhaps they have been rigid and bigoted in their own ways. 

Huni’s story doesn’t preach but slowly sees change occur as the characters interact with each other and the town people who are accepting them into their own lives.  It’s a magical place, full of many different kinds of beings and beautiful creatures. Including dragons. 

Acceptance, loss, grief and the ability to see things from different perspectives and move on is key here.  The dragon rider William Ordell, slowly becoming a part of Safe Haven, readjusting his views as he feels more at home with his new surroundings. And Calantha Stormbringer, a battle witch whose powers are fading, has returned to her home, feeling like a stranger only to find herself confronted by the very thing she was fighting in the war. 

Calantha and William are both very relatable and very well defined in their own personalities and challenges that each are facing in their respective retirements. From Calantha’s loss of powers after she reached menopause, (and the fact that most battle witches never survived to this age) to William dealing with the loss of his bond with his dragon, his dragon, his small corp of brother riders, and country and his leg.  They are the unlikely survivors of a deadly war that’s still going on. And this writer gives us remarkable insights into what happened, and how emotionally and physically this has and continues to affect them both. 

But there’s also light-hearted and heartfelt content in this book. Magical moments and a slow burn love story as well. 

I love it. Have to wait for the next one but totally worth it. I’ll savor this one and reread it just before the next is released. 

A definite winner and one I’m thrilled to recommend. 

Cover designed by Mariah Sinclair Designs

Dragons of Safeway Haven :

  • A Dragon Rider’s Guide to Retirement #1
  • A Blacksmith’s Guide to Dragon-Rearing #2 – Aug 31,2026

Buy

 Book 1 of 2: Dragons of Safe Haven 

Blurb 

They survived the war. Now they just have to survive retirement.

When dragon rider William Ordell is grounded by a battlefield injury, he trades conflict for peace and purchases an abandoned lighthouse on the island of Safe Haven. But quiet doesn’t suit a man used to action. After a series of mysterious fires, William finds himself launching the island’s first fire brigade—with help from the local sea dragons.

Calantha Stormbringer has left war behind, along with the last sparks of her fading magic. She retreats to Safe Haven to rebuild her late aunt’s dusty bookshop—and maybe herself. Restoring the shop will require patience, intelligence, and gold. Calantha figures two out of three isn’t bad.

What neither of them wants? To run into each other. Again.

Old grudges, magical dragons, and one cozy, nosy village—what could possibly go right?

A Dragon Rider’s Guide to Retirement is a cozy, low-stakes fantasy filled with magic, mischief, and a slow-burn romance that won’t steam your glasses. Perfect for fans of Legends & Lattes, Cursed Cocktails, and J. Penner’s Adenashire series.

  • Publisher: IPH Media, LLC
  • Publication date: August 5, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 336 pages
  • Book 1 of 2: Dragons of Safe Haven

Review:  Smokescreen (Knight & Daywalker Book 1) by Sam Burns 

Rating: 4.5🌈

Set in the same universe as the marvelous Fantastic Fluke series, Sam Burns has a new fantastic paranormal series out, Knight and Daywalker. 

The first book, Smokescreen, which ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, is an excellent read and start up. 

It’s got murder mysteries, a paranormal universe with magical characters, including two main characters who are somewhat enigmatic in their precise nature and history as well as a black kitten with a bottomless appetite. It’s also just as intriguing as the other main characters. 

Flynn Knight, has a very scary ,Morticia coded in looks, mother who rules the vampires of their city. Is Flynn a vampire? No, he talks to animals. That’s one of the puzzles in the story. What is Flynn? Other than absolutely engaging.

Then there’s Davin, the Irish vampire who, courtesy of Flynn’s mother, ends up being Flynn’s business partner. But the idea of another agenda seems possible. He’s got his own troubles and backstory to revealed. 

The pace is quick. We meet many new and exciting characters. All incredible and with their own stories to explore. 

And Smokescreen finishes with a startling dramatic flourish and cliffhanger.  Which I’m not unhappy about. 

I’m excited about the next story, even if it’s months away from release.

Sam Burns is an auto buy for this very reason. Definitely recommend this book.

Cover art © 2025 by Natasha Snow 

Knight and Daywalker – a planned trilogy:

Smokescreen #1

Façade #2 –  Jan 1,2026

Masquerade #3 – TBD

Same universe as 

THE FANTASTIC FLUKE-complete ❤️

The Fantastic Fluke 

Fluke and the Faithless Father

 Fluke and the Faultline Fiasco

 Fluke and the Frontier Farce 

Fluke and the Fantastic Finale

Buy link

 Book 1 of 2: Knight & Daywalker 

Blurb 

Flynn Knight is the only (and frankly, impossible) child of the leader of the vampires in Los Angeles. He’s also a bit of a scatterbrain, a thirty-something manchild, and a private investigator. When one of his mother’s political frenemies gets killed and she asks him to investigate, he’s put between a rock—her—and a hard place—the fact that not a single vampire in the city will believe the answers he finds without impressive proof to back him up.

Combine that with an eighty-thousand-dollar bill he has no idea how he’s going to pay, a hit and run that has landed him a victim of the cat distribution system, and his mother trying to foist a new business partner off on him, and his life is way more complicated than he likes.

At least his new partner is nice to look at, even if he’s the weirdest vampire ever, who doesn’t seem to follow any of the usual vampire rules.

Also, why won’t this kitten stop eating?

Smokescreen is set in the Fantastic Fluke universe, starring never before seen characters and a new setting. It begins to explore Flynn Knight’s relationships, and while it contains a complete story, it does not reach the slow burn romance plot, and the main overarching plot will continue in book two, Façade.

  • Publication date: September 4, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 259 pages
  • Book 1 of 2: Knight & Daywalker

Content Warning: multiple gruesome deaths described in detail, injured (but NEVER killed) animals, ableist attitudes from non-MCs, violence, fraught parental relationships.

Review: Waifs And Strays (The Cat Lady Chronicles Book 1) by Helen Harper

Rating: 4.5⭐️

Another new author and new book and series to explore in Waifs And Strays (The Cat Lady Chronicles Book 1) by Helen Harper.  

It’s a paranormal mystery thriller that has a 43 year old woman of mysterious origins and her 5 cats taking in a teenage werewolf boarder who’s soon kidnapped. That’s the basic premise. 

They live in a city/town, Coldstream, that’s home to most of the paranormal population and throughout the story, Harper takes us by way of the characters and events through the streets and places of this highly unusual city brimming with otherworldly beings living their typical daily lives. It’s a lively, well worn and believable city and works perfectly as the location and atmosphere of the series. 

Kit McCafferty’s a character whose life unfolds as the story progresses. She’s remarkable in so many ways. For the book and in series I enjoy reading. One is that Harper has written a retired woman, hugely successful in her former career but forced to take retirement due to her age.  

Most women in the novels I read are much younger so it’s an absolute joy to read a main character of her age and experience. And Harper’s dialogue for Kit’s character, inner monologue and the conversations that she has with others seem perfectly in sync with her personality. 

She’s absolutely phenomenal.

And holding secrets, all of which need to be disclosed during the course of the story. 

The cats , each of whom has its own unique identity, are just as important and well crafted.  So too are the people, paranormal characters that are equally powerful in their impact on the lives and multiple storylines Harper is threading through the pages here. 

Nick, the teenage werewolf is vulnerable and easily accessible to the reader.  Thane too is a good character but could use more depth.

This is a fast moving story, full of charm, surprises, and terrific elements.  There’s plenty of gruff emotional moments and satisfying action sequences, but really little romantic scenes. However there’s the potential for some in the future. 

And the ending is both an hilarious twist and perfect way to finish the story off.  Some people will be shaking their heads in total agreement. Yes indeed. 

I absolutely recommend this book. I’m heading to the next. If you’re interested in reading urban fantasy or paranormal mysteries, this is a great fit for you. 

The covers are ok. Not sure who the artist is but someone needs to tell them it’s ok to put a 40ish woman on the cover, wearing the clothes she wears in the story. While not all the readers are women , it’s likely most are . And would appreciate a better representation.

Goes for the series. 

Book Cover created by JoY Cover Designs/ Covers By Juan

 

The Cat Lady Chronicles:

Waifs And Strays #2

The Dark Hiss of Magic #2

Buy link:

        Waifs And Strays (The Cat Lady Chronicles Book 1)

    

Blurb

Nobody is just a cat lady.

Kit McCafferty’s life is quiet, unremarkable and filled with cat hair. In the magical city of Coldstream, located on the border between Scotland and England, Kit is viewed as little more than mildly eccentric and mostly harmless. She passes her days caring for her family of five cats, feeding the local feral moggies, and maintaining relatively good relations with her neighbours.

All that changes, however, when a teenage werewolf shows up at her door in the desperate hope of renting out a nearby vacant flat. Kit knows that the smart move is to tell him to leave. The last thing she needs is to become embroiled in complicated shapeshifter politics. But something about the secretive young werewolf tugs at her heartstrings.

It’s not long before Kit ends up caught in a maelstrom of mysterious crime and magical wrong-doing. Fortunately, there’s far more to Kit McCafferty than meets the eye and she has a few dark secrets of her own.

Of course, anyone with an ounce of intelligence knows that you underestimate a cat lady at your own peril.

Waifs And Strays is the first book in a new urban fantasy crime series. Expect mystery, magic and adventure with a heroine who will keep you turning pages late into the night. There will also be a lot of cats.

  • Publication date: February 10, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 300 pages

Review:  Dead Last (Crossroads Queen Book 3) by Annabel Chase

Rating: 5⭐️

Dead Last is a game changer because I didn’t expect to get the answer to important series and character questions this early in the series, but got them we did!

Chase delivered the most important answer to what Lorelei’s character is in a stunning way and it still feels like the series hasn’t lost any momentum. But instead is ramping up its narrative engine even further with this revelation.

This book is funny. It’s highly suspenseful, the characters have become more endearing to us and each other. So much so that as real relationships are being developed, the dangers that Chase is bringing into a town that has been balanced and peaceful is unacceptable and scary. Even for those considered monsters. 

And the ending is just as divided. On one hand, it’s satisfying and happy. On another, disturbing and unsettled. Much like the town and characters themselves. 

So perhaps, perfect. 

I’m jumping rapidly into the next phase of Lorelei’s journey. And definitely recommending that readers who love paranormal stories, great characters, and mystery should dive right into this series. 

Cover by Trif Designs, love it

Crossroads Queen series:

Dead to the World #1

Dead of Night #2

Dead Last #3

Dead Wrong #4

Dead Weight #5

Play Dead #6

Dead Heat #7

Half Dead #8

Dead End #9 – April 17,2025

Buy link

        Dead Last (Crossroads Queen Book 3)

    

Blurb 

Lorelei Clay is desperate to stay safe behind her castle walls.

She’s also desperate for money.

When a mage assassin asks for help with a delicate matter involving a ruthless vampire mobster, Lorelei agrees—for a price. Part of the deal is that Kane Sullivan can’t know. Yes, that Kane. Prince of hell. Demon to end all demons. Stubborn, nosy, and ridiculously sexy. 

If only the demon weren’t so curious about her.

Lorelei has spent her life moving, hiding, laying low, and avoiding relationships of any kind.

In Fairhaven, that’s all about to change.

Find out how in Dead Last, the third book in the six-book Crossroads Queen urban fantasy series that features a strong female protagonist, a slow-burn romance, monster takedowns, and Scrabble-playing vampires.

Review:  Dead of Night (Crossroads Queen Book 2) by Annabel Chase

Rating: 4.5⭐️

Another fun, engaging paranormal mystery tale about that mysterious new resident to Fairhaven, Pennsylvania, a small town who seems to be supernatural center in Pike County. 

Annabel Chase’s enigmatic magical newcomer, Lorelei Clay can’t seem to keep up her plans off renovations and isolation in her rundown Bluebeard’s Castle of a ruin but once again is reluctantly caught up in a local ghostly mystery.

A local legend of a real estate agent comes knocking with a deal that’s hard to ignore, get rid of a ghost so she can sell a house and she’s will get Lorelei’s moat redone for free.

But in this town, it’s never simply a quick fix. 

Chase has written another great little story, full of new quirky characters, new questions about Lorelei’s identity, and further expands and explores the history of Fairhaven and the otherworldly beings that inhabit it.

Slowest burn romance evah. I’m here for it. 

And I love these so much it’s tough to stop to remember to review each one.

Another find and recommendation!

Cover by Trif Designs, love it

Crossroads Queen series:

Dead to the World #1

Dead of Night #2

Dead Last #3

Dead Wrong #4

Dead Weight #5

Play Dead #6

Dead Heat #7

Half Dead #8

Dead End #9 – April 17,2025

Buy link

        Dead of Night (Crossroads Queen Book 2)

    

Blurb 

For Lorelei Clay, no good deed goes unpunished…

Reluctant ghost whisperer Lorelei Clay wants a working moat, which is the only reason she agrees to help with yet another supernatural situation. The simple ghostbusting job quickly escalates when Lorelei discovers the involvement of a powerful and ancient collective not known for their social skills.

Lorelei wants nothing more than to get back to her renovations and her life of solitude, but it becomes painfully clear that if she can’t fix this small-town problem, Fairhaven is going to suffer big-time consequences.

Dead of Night is the second book in the Crossroads Queen urban fantasy series.