Review: The Dragon Experiment (Here Be Dragons #3) by Louisa Masters

Rating: 5🌈

What an absolutely hilarious, sexy, thoughtful, fantasy mystery romance. The Dragon Experiment really has it all here. Starting with the confidently engaging Fabian Draco, the dragon species historian who’s constant search for knowledge of all types is only equaled by Fabian’s enormous amounts of sexual encounters. Of all types, of all genders , species and areas of play.

When Fabian’s straying attention can be pulled towards any one subject or being at any given moment. Fabian’s brilliant brain is more likely to be off wandering through the amazing dragon archives then focusing on the car about to hit him.

This incredible character is a true joy and such a source of so many emotions here. For both the reader and Dr. Rhys Griffith. Or Dr. Rhys as Fabian will call him at first .

They met during a confusing encounter, at least for Fabian’s pov, at a mall, where Fabian thought he was getting a very pretty “purity “ ring from someone handing them out at a booth (The Professor’s Dragon #2).

Flash forward, the ring isn’t coming off Fabian’s finger, (not that’s he’s the one concerned) ,and it turns out it’s actually a medical gathering instrument for a research project headed Dr Rhys Griffith

Rhys is a sorcerer who’s research, involving sexual energy and metaphysics just might be more important then anyone expects.

This story is a romance, and a mystery, one that carries huge implications for all races. How it’s researched and resolved is as satisfying as how the romance grows into a solid relationship.

It’s funny, strong with multiple characters and storylines. There’s several hints about the next book and the character who so badly needs his story told.

I just adore this couple, especially Fabian. He’s right out of that fabulous school of brilliant absentminded Professors. Only this time he’s a sex positive dragon. Be still my heart.

The Dragon Experiment is a well written fantastic novel , filled with engaging characters and a plot that adds so much to the series foundation as well as overall arc the author is building.

Read all the stories in this universe so you’re familiar with the events that have occurred and the characters and relationships that are referred to.

I’m highly recommending them all, including this one.

Happy Reading!

🔹Hidden Species Series first, followed by…

Here Be Dragons:

🔹How To Date A Dragon #0.3

🔹Dragon Ever After #1

🔹The Professor’s Dragon #2

🔹The Dragon Experiment #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Dragon Experiment (Here Be Dragons #3) by Louisa Masters – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Who knew sleeping around could save the entire species?

I’m a simple dragon. Give me knowledge, give me research, give me rings for my hoard, and give me athletic men who want to get sweaty between the sheets… or anywhere else. Those things make me happy. Other things… well, who cares about those?

Turns out, I should have cared. Or at least paid attention. Because I somehow signed up for a scientific study run by a shy, nerdy sorcerer with the body of a god. And the study just happens to be about my favorite form of exercise.

It doesn’t take long for me to know I want to do more than science with Rhys. I’ve never been the kind of dragon to mix feelings with fun, but Rhys could be the one person who meets all my needs, even if he won’t wear a ring on every finger.

But when his research becomes more important than any of us could have imagined, our relationship enters a new phase. Now it’s up to me to show Rhys how much he’s worth… both to me and to the future of his species.

Review: Grin and Bear It (Blackhaven Manor #4) by Arden Steele

Rating: 4.5🌈

Grin and Bear It (just love the names) reverts back to the instant recognition and almost as fast bonding between the fated mates of this terrific story.

But Arden Steele’s novella does change up some elements that I sort of took for granted, given the plots of the other books. I really appreciate the surprise aspect of this.

Thorne McIver, super magical bear shifter and protector of Royal families , in this case a royal Elven prince. He’s a special Guardian, of a renowned and highly feared security team. Now he’s at the annual Summit of Allies Races Council/DARC held at Blackhaven Manor with the Prince who’s representing his Elven race.

Steele has gone both into history and mythology while constructing the character and species for Thorne and his team of Guardians. It’s fascinating and imaginative. Perfect, really, especially when called into action.

Throne’s mate is a human. Wren Covey, concierge at reception area of Blackhaven Manor, along with Kol. He’s a delightful character. With a decidedly painful past, Wren is someone who Steele shows to continually move beyond his own bad experiences to become a gentle, genuine person, with a kind heart and occasional inability to focus.

We adore him immediately as does the others we know from previous stories.

Through Wren, we get the first inkling of growing human backlash against the Otherlings and their status within human society. That’s been a subdued element before but here it’s a big factor in Wren’s family life and the weekend conference.

That’s new. So is the worry apparent in the Dragon siblings.

The drama here is woven through the mating story and the growing new relationship between Wren and Thorne. It kept me absolutely engaged. Especially as new details about Thorne’s species , his MOA security detail, and , what their future plans entail.

Hint? It comes from Dragon it Out. What a fabulous way to end it and give ideas for future stories.

This series and couples just keep getting better and better. And the universe just keeps expanding with new facts, organizations, and , of course, couples.

I’m highly recommending Grin and Bear It (Blackhaven Manor #4) by Arden Steele and the series.

Blackhaven Manor Series:

✓ Purrfect Harmony #1

✓ Night and Fae #2

✓ Dragon It Out #3

✓ Grin and Bear it #4

◦ Pixie Little Liar #5

◦ Dead Over Heals #6

◦ Silent Knight #7

https://www.goodreads.com › showGrin and Bear It (Blackhaven Manor #4) by Arden Steele – Goodreads

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Synopsis:

Thorne McIver is no ordinary bear shifter. He’s the monster whispered about in the dark, the beast feared in battles, and for hundreds of years, he’s used his formidable gifts to protect the royal families of the paranormal world. So, when he’s tasked with escorting the elven prince to a council meeting at Blackhaven Manor, he figures it’s just another assignment.

Until he meets a stunning human who fills in all the pieces he didn’t know were missing.

When he’d first started working at the hotel, Wren Covey had been a mess. He’d known almost nothing about Otherlings, their culture or rules, and everything had terrified him. Barely a year later, there’s not much he hasn’t seen, and hardly anything fazes him. Or so he thought, because nothing could have prepared him for being the mate to a genuine living legend.

When an attack on the hotel tests his already divided loyalties, Thorne finds himself torn between love and duty. Though honor-bound to protect the prince, his instincts will always be to put his mate first.

Now, he’ll have to find middle ground and figure out how to do both, or his happy ending will be over before it even begins.

Review: The Bachelor and the Cherry (Campo Royale #2) by V.L. Locey

Rating: 5🌈

The Bachelor and the Cherry is one of my favorite V.L. Locey stories. It also takes place in a series and universe that’s shaping up to be up among the very top of those as well. Which is pretty amazing, considering how much I adore her hockey series and romances.

But the Campo Royale , with its strong air of being everything from a great performance hall to a sanctuary for those stumbling in from the harsh reality of a world of family rejection, disownment, religious intolerance, and abuse, becomes that place you don’t want to leave.

Presiding over it all, is the fabulous, beautiful, and sharp tongued Mother Sitka Patel. Drag Queen Superior, owner of Campo Royale, and at the moment, still in withdrawal from the last devastating relationship.

Outside of drag, he’s Jordan Stevens, 50 years of trying to escape the effects of aging and the results of some very bad relationships. Jordan/Mother Sitka is such a magnificent character. I could see her clear as crystal, from her sarcastic wit to the warmth with which she embraces her girls and club. The wealth of the years of experience that Locey layers into her makes Sitka/Jordan such a powerfully emotionally complicated individual that your belief in them never falters.

Yampier Perez is equally strong as the naive, hopeful southern boy, determined he’s got talent to make it, no matter how many times someone beats him down. Or up.

Even if it’s his Cuban family who’s fists are flying.

So many Yampier Perez out there. Runaways, throw aways… so few lucky enough to end up outside of a Campo Royale. Heartbreaking.

The extended Campo Royale cast of found family , the Queens, their friends and boyfriends, the other employees, everyone contributing such warmth, genuine layers of humor and snark, that adds such richness here.

The relationship, friendship, and then romance is such a satisfying journey to read and watch develop. I just curled up and was so invested in this story that I couldn’t put it down.

A Drag Queen is that very embodiment of fierceness, bravery, courage, and strength. Someone, at whatever level, whatever gender, is expressing their truth for all to see! It’s beautiful, and fabulous!

The Bachelor and the Cherry (Campo Royale #2) by V.L. Locey allows us a glimpse into a slice of that world.

I’m highly recommending it. And the author if you’re not familiar with her!

Campo Royale series:

🔹The Viking and the Drag Queen #1

🔹The Bachelor and the Cherry #2

https://bit.ly/3jR9RHU

Synopsis:

Is he brave enough to stop hiding behind his persona and give love one final try?

Jordan Stevens has crammed a lot of living into his fifty years. Some of those years have been good, some bad, and some he would just as soon forget. The world isn’t always kind to an aging queen. Lovers begin to scamper into forbidden fields, your padding tends to slip, and you spend more time with egg whites than most pastry chefs. Heartache is nothing new to the man who embodies the acid-tongued Sitka Patel on stage every night, which led Jordan to vow to never trust another man under eighty again. He has his club, his drag family, and his Bombay cat Heckle. Who needs the hassle? That philosophy had served him well, until a stunning young thing with dark chocolate eyes shows up at the back door of Campo Royale with a suitcase, a sad story, and a dream.

From the time he was old enough to spell the word sequin, Yampier Perez knew that someday he’d be wearing them. One of three children born to Cuban immigrants, Yampier was always a little glitzier than the other neighborhood boys. His love of fashion design and performance arts was barely tolerated at home and even less so in the hallways of his rural Georgia high school. Yet, Yampier never let his light be doused, not even the day his older brother caught him modeling his sister’s prom dress. Beaten, disowned, and on his own before graduation, he found himself having to work seedy jobs doing even seedier things, until he saved enough cash to head to the Big Apple. That money has now run out, leaving him stuck in Wilmington with no food, no place to stay, and no family. Little does he know that stumbling into the Campo Royale Club, half frozen and weak from hunger, is about to bring him everything he has yearned for.

The Bachelor and the Cherry is a gay age gap romance that features an aging drag queen, a virginal newcomer, lots of sass, wigs galore, hurt/comfort, family found, and a richly sequined happy ending.

Check Out This Fabulous Romance by VL Locey!

ALL BUY LINKS

Cover Design: Meredith Russell

Length: 63,000 word approx.

Campo Royale Series

Book #1 – The Viking and the Drag Queen – All Buy Links

Is he brave enough to stop hiding behind his persona and give love one final try?

Jordan Stevens has crammed a lot of living into his fifty years. Some of those years have been good, some bad, and some he would just as soon forget. The world isn’t always kind to an aging queen. Lovers begin to scamper into forbidden fields, your padding tends to slip, and you spend more time with egg whites than most pastry chefs. Heartache is nothing new to the man who embodies the acid-tongued Sitka Patel on stage every night, which led Jordan to vow to never trust another man under eighty again. He has his club, his drag family, and his Bombay cat, Heckle. Who needs the hassle? That philosophy had served him well until a stunning young thing with dark chocolate eyes shows up at the back door of Campo Royale with a suitcase, a sad story, and a dream.

From the time he was old enough to spell the word sequin, Yampier Perez knew that someday he’d be wearing them. One of three children born to Cuban immigrants, Yampier was always a little glitzier than the other neighborhood boys. His love of fashion design and performance arts was barely tolerated at home and even less so in the hallways of his rural Georgia high school. Yet, Yampier never let his light to be doused, not even the day his older brother caught him modeling his sister’s prom dress. Beaten, disowned, and on his own before graduation, he found himself having to work seedy jobs, doing even seedier things, until he saved enough cash to head to the Big Apple. That money has now run out, leaving him stuck in Wilmington with no food, no place to stay, and no family. Little does he know that stumbling into the Campo Royale Club, half frozen and weak from hunger, is about to bring him everything he has yearned for.

The Bachelor and the Cherry is a slow burn gay age gap romance that features an aging drag queen, a virginal newcomer, lots of sass, wigs galore, hurt/comfort, family found, and a richly sequined happy ending.

USA Today Bestselling Author V.L. Locey – Penning LGBT hockey romance that skates into sinful pleasures.

V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, Torchwood and Dr. Who, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a pair of geese, far too many chickens, and two steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in one hand and a steamy romance novel in the other.

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Review: Elven Game (Roman and Jude:Monster Hunters#2) by Rhys Lawless

Rating: 4.75🌈

The strange, tormented romance of Jude Cohen and Roman Meyers, whose families are the Elven equivalent of the the Montagues and the Capulets , continues on in Elven Game.

Jude, a game coder, had figured out in the last story, that all the monsters everyone were encountering , except for Royal, were ones he had help create for a online game.

Together, Jude , Roman, and a encapsulated Royal in a charm, head to NYC to fight the monsters.

That’s where author Lawless basically explodes a already complicated plot into shards of high action, deeply painful scenes involving family, shocking revelations about trust and the truth behind everything they thought they knew.

Grab your popcorn, because you won’t be able to put this down!

Jude and Roman are still so new in their relationship. Plus Jude is still figuring out who he is within his status as a Elf and a being who can handle the Aether. That enormous stuff.

Lawless does an excellent job with both characters, their personalities and mindsets in this incredibly stressful situation. One that with each new stage adds more pressure to them personally and to their new relationship. So well written that their emotions just pull at you!

While all that is occurring, Lawless is throwing new wild monsters to fight at our heroes, that also includes Royal in some heartbreaking scenes. As well as Addy, Jude’s grandmother and Roman’s former partner.

As noted in the description, this book ends on a cliffhanger. Sigh.

I really dislike cliffhangers. But I will say the reader will see this coming.

So after this fantastically woven tale of heartache, bruising revelations and fast paced ,white- knuckle action of fantasy warfare, I’m more than ready to wait to see how Lawless handles the finale in Elven Heir. It’s due out in August of 2022. I’ll be here waiting.

In the meantime, if you’re a lover of fantasy romance and fiction, start reading this series from the beginning in order to understand all the intricate character relationships, plot storylines, and family histories.

I’m highly recommending them both.

Roman and Jude:Monster Hunters:

✓ Elven Duty #1

✓ Elven Game #2

◦ Elven Heir #3 – Aug. 19, 2022

https://www.goodreads.com › showElven Game – Monster Hunters #2) by Rhys Lawless – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Monsters are swarming the world…

And it’s all my fault!

The game I’ve been coding for over two years is finally released. And so are the creatures within and wreaking havoc in New York City.

Roman and I have to stop them.

But before we can, we have to figure out how it happened and who is responsible.

Everything I’ve come to know about my legacy comes to a head when we venture from the small town of Hamlet Cove into the world of monster-hunting in the Big Apple.

The rules have changed and the world is burning.

Is it too late to save it? Or will we burn with it?

Elven Game is a gay urban fantasy romance with two magical elves, a powerful baby troll, and a cataclysmic event that threatens the dimension.

Caution: This book has a cliffhanger ending!

Review: The Scars That Bind Us ( The Magi Accounts #1) by Michele Notaro

Rating: 4.5 🌈

The Scars That Bind Us, the first book in Michele Notaro’s urban fantasy series, The Magi Accounts, takes in a scary, horrific universe, especially if you’re not human.

Here , the revelation that mages and shifters existed along side humanity did not go over well. WWIII happened, countries, governments, peoples and environments were devastated and divided. So too were species. With shifters and the magi at the bottom of the species pile.

I won’t recount it here. You can read it. People so fearful of those that make them feel less powerful ,the prejudice. So they relegated to a status as “others “ ,as less than equal. Easy to control, confinement to compounds. Tagged. Registered.

Notaro ‘s has the ability to bring the ability to transfer these devastating elements to this universe and the lives and conditions the shifters and magi now live under.

It’s very emotional reading when the narrator is magi Madeo Driscoll, compound born, paired to another mage Jude Driscoll, almost since birth. A dyad. Paired magi which increases their magical strength . Which for the government meant sending them out to fight in wars when they could barely walk. More tools than people, or children in this case.

The anger, trauma, and damage Mads (for Madman) carries within him and in the enormous amount of scars on his body is there in his words and actions throughout the story and events.

Jude, his soulmate and brother, whose presence has seen everything Mads has and been there to help heal him, is as quiet and powerful a man as Mads is verbally and emotionally angry. Yin and Yang. So great a couple and yet there’s no romantic attachment. It’s a brotherly love and bonding.

The other love is coming in the form of Cosmo Ono-Nai , alpha of a pride of Lion shifters and the new team Mads and Jude are supposed to work with.

The story has a wonderful found family element with another young magi, Logan Torres, that was rescued from a brutal attack by Mads and Jude. As well as the overall arc and storylines that stem from the tears in the universe that a mysterious group on Earth keep opening up and the monsters that pour through.

Notaro manages to build a continuous atmosphere of anxiety and suspense due to the unstable nature of the status of our characters. They basically have no rights, no say over their future so when we or Mads start to get invested in a relationship, any of their relationships, it comes with a equal amount of trepidation and fear.

It ends with a uneasy HFN.

Which makes me want to grab for the next one immediately.

There’s a trigger warning at the beginning of the story. It’s about assaults that happened in the past, off page. But even without them happening in current time, there’s enough emotional content that it’s intense , and might make some people feel very uncomfortable. Please read the warnings so you can make the best decision for yourself.

Tremendous storylines, great characters and amazing world building, as awful and believable as it feels.

I’m highly recommending it.

The Magi Accounts:

🔹Our Hearts That Tie Us #0.5

🔹The Scars That Bind Us #1

🔹A Kiss To Revive Me #1.5-4/19/2022

🔹The Shackles That Hold Us #2 – release date TBD

https://www.goodreads.com › showThe Scars That Bind Us (The Magi Accounts #1) by Michele Notaro – Goodreads

What kind of mage would be crazy enough to crush on a shifter? Me. Apparently me.

The world is a messed-up place. Especially for those of us who have magic, and I know just how terrible it can be firsthand. Which is one of the reasons I try to stay away from people… humans and shifters especially.

Unfortunately, the NHSO forces magi to work alongside shifters to help protect the humans from taragorians—scary beasts from another realm. Which means I’m thrown onto a new team and forced to work with Cosmo Ono-Nai, a lion shifter.

And for some reason, I can’t keep my eyes off him.

The Scars That Bind Us is a 115K word novel and the first book in the MM urban fantasy series, The Magi Accounts.

*Intended for adults only. Please read the trigger warnings at the beginning of this novel.

Review: Dragon It Out (Blackhaven Manor #3) by Arden Steele

Rating: 4.5🌈

Dragon It Out, the third installment in Arden Steele’s Blackhaven Manor series, is my favorite yet. Fated mates is central to this series but instead of the quick mating of the previous novels, this is a slow mating romance, in a novella.

Surrounded by a mystery and full of suspense, with just a fantastic couple at its heart.

Uriah Maddox, dragon shifter , brother to siblings, Skye and Thade, is half of our fated couple. He’s thousands of years old, yet still mired in guilt over a past loss. One that’s keeping him from moving forward with his life, even when he meets his mate.

That’s Kit Meyers, human, and someone clearly in trouble. He arrives at Blackhaven Manor in at most inauspicious way. His car breaks down in the parking lot and he doesn’t have the funds to repair it.

Odd how things meant to be happen at Blackhaven just when they need to.

Scared Kit and huffy Uriah, in full out surly mode, are a great couple. One , a human, in survival mode, the other, a dragon, attempting to flee at every second, avoiding the being he knows to be his mate. Plus two exasperated siblings watching it all.

Combined with a very serious danger to Kit in a past that he’s on the run from? And Dragon It Out is just a great exciting fantasy romance, with a touching romance, and a suspenseful side element.

Steele’s ability to add small scenes with secondary characters in a diner, just make this story that much richer.

I enjoyed everything about this. As I said my favorite so far. And loving this series.

Smooth flowing, well crafted, and really quick romantic reads.

I’m highly recommending this and them.

Onto #4! Grin and Bear it.

Blackhaven Manor Series:

✓ Purrfect Harmony #1

✓ Night and Fae #2

✓ Dragon It Out #3

◦ Grin and Bear it #4

◦ Pixie Little Liar #5

◦ Dead Over Heals #6

◦ Silent Knight #7

https://www.goodreads.com › showDragon It Out (Blackhaven Manor #3) by Arden Steele – Goodreads

Synopsis:

As some of the last remaining dragon shifters in the world, Uriah Maddock and his siblings are regarded as something akin to royalty in the paranormal community. It’s one of the main reasons their hotel has become such a coveted destination for Otherlings. All he wants, though, is to be left alone. He’s not looking for love or romance. In fact, he actively avoids relationships and all their damning consequences. Too bad his meddling sister didn’t get the memo.

Kit Meyers is pretty sure he’s hit rock bottom when his car breaks down in the small, mountain town of Echo Falls. He has no money, no place to live, and no prospects. When a not-so-chance encounter leads him to the infamous Blackhaven Manor, he figures he’ll stay for a few weeks, earn some cash, then head back to the safety of the road. But all that changes when he meets a surly dragon shifter with wounded eyes and even more baggage than himself.

Uriah can’t commit to a houseplant, let alone to being someone’s mate. Convinced that Kit is better off without him, he’s prepared to leave everything behind if that means the skittish human will be safe and happy. Yet, as the days pass, he keeps finding new excuses to stay, until he’s finally forced to admit that he’s not going anywhere.Especially when he realizes he’s not the only dangerous person in Kit’s life.

Review: Winter’s Dawn (Flos Magicae #3) by Arden Powell

Rating: 5🌈

What an extraordinary story. It takes place in an alternate England, where magic and its users are to be strictly regimented, constrained by laws and prevailing ruling opinion. Anything or anyone with opposing viewpoints or uses of magic are quickly apprehended, accused of treason, and sent off to the impenetrable Blackwood Gaol to “await “ trail.

Magical, depressing Blackwood Gaol, who’s dampener’s prevent any of its prisoners from using their magic. Runes inscribed onto manacles, or embedded into the very walls themselves, seem to crush the very essence of magic within those jailed there.

We start with the journey of Dr. Thomas Brighton, imprisoned,accused of using dangerous magic . He’s a professor of theological magic but now he’s being thrown into a single dark cell in Blackwood. In an instant he’s gone from esteemed introverted college professor to someone who has lost everything.

It becomes a intimate portrait of a man in isolation, learning what it means to be deprived of nutrition, stimulation, references of times. We see it lead to bouts of depression, poor health as the cold and non existent meals tear at his physical condition, especially the loss of the magic that’s always been such a essential part of him. It’s raw, gritty, and real.

The person in the cell next to him? Winter, convicted of treason and murder. First a disembodied voice , then a hand, through a tunnel.

The relationship these two people build is at first tenuous. Especially when Thomas finds out that Winter is unapologetic about their murder sentence.

But isolation has let Thomas have more time to think about all those preconceived notion’s he’s held , about magic, and non-binary Winter is about to have a few more revelations to come.

The story builds , towards a February execution date for Winter and a increasingly questionable trial date for Thomas, as they talk, learn about each other’s magic and history.

I thought this was just a masterpiece of speculative fiction. The universe is created, the people clearly seen in those cells, for all the walls around them, and the HFN ending just amazing.

There’s two previous stories I haven’t read . I will get to those asap.

Meanwhile, put Winter’s Dawn (Flos Magicae #3) by Arden Powell on your Must Read List. It’s incredible.

I’m highly recommending it.

Flos Magicae:

The Botanist’s Apprentice #1

The Batchelor’s Valet #2

Winter’s Dawn #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showWinter’s Dawn (Flos Magicae, #3) by Arden Powell – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Thomas Brighton, a professor of theoretical magic, has been accused of treason. Imprisoned in the bleak Blackwood Gaol as he awaits his trial, he is cut off from his magic and his studies: a fate worse than death for the scholar who has devoted his life to academia. His only company is Winter, the mysterious prisoner in the neighbouring cell. As Thomas’ trial drags nearer, their whispered conversations are the only thing keeping him from giving in to boredom and despair.

Winter is a radical, a murderer, and a traitor to the crown. Everything Thomas fears and looks down on. But as Blackwood continues to crush his spirit and his magic, Winter might be his only ally. And Thomas might be Winter’s only chance of escape. Because if Blackwood and its guards don’t kill them both, the hangman’s noose surely will.

Winter’s Dawn is a 24,000-word fantasy novella with a male lead and a nonbinary love interest. It is part of the Flos Magicae series, set in an alternate 1920s universe with magic. All the stories are standalone historical fantasy romances and can be read in any order

Review: Hand of Glory (Arcane Hearts #5) by Nazri Noor

Rating: 4.75🌈

Hand of Glory is the penultimate book in Nazri Noor’s fantastic Arcane Hearts fantasy series. I’ve been sitting here thinking about the story, all the incredibly imaginative elements, and wide range of engaging characters that Hand of Glory alone showcases.

It’s made me realize, not for the first time, how limiting our rating system is. Especially for novel’s outside the contemporary spectrum. I wish I could have a list for rating some truly outstanding aspects of fantasy/Other storytelling. And now for Best IA Characters, Best Use of Loki, Best Special Effects, Best Universe…you get my drift. Just too limited.

Like other marvelous authors of fantasy or genres of fiction that allows a writer create unique universes, build cultures and characters of their own, Noor has built something spectacular with his Arcane Hearts series. And with each new installment, he expands and exponentially gives his readers even more character growth , new imaginative elements and key new characters to think about as the series arc moves forward.

Bees. Candles. Wax. All in a way I’ve never thought about before. I loved that! A major element here . It also brings more depth to a character who’s part of the found family that Jackson Pryde and Xander Wright have been bringing together, friends from the the various Guilds, helping to rebuild the artificers guild hall. Each person within their circle is getting more layers to their personalities and more powerful.

Which is to be expected, as after the disastrous battle in the Black Market, and at the Ball, the new dangers they face from the purple crystal and the Fae becomes even more perilous.

What I look forward to in these stories, is, in between all the battles, the investigations, the sexy scenes, the fantastical mythology lie the heartwarming ones. The small bits , the tiny moments when Jackson, often when Xander is present, is reunited with his deceased parents, through the remarkable capabilities of Lore and his parents foresight to put a series of memories inside Lore for Jackson, to access just when he needs them. It’s unbelievably poignant and emotional.

It’s just one more amazing aspect of this story that makes me happy just when I know everything will be falling apart fast in the next novel. A moment to treasure.

Just like this series. And the bees.

I’m highly recommending this novel and series. Read them in the order they are written for story and characters relationships development.

I’ve listed them below. Now to wait until July for A Clap of Thunder to be released!

Arcane Hearts series, 6 of 6 books:

✓ 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 – July 29, 2022 (finale)

https://www.goodreads.com › seriesArcane Hearts Series by Nazri Noor – Goodreads

Synopsis:

Glamor, glitter, and gold.

Jackson Pryde and the great guilds of the Black Market are recovering in the aftermath of the fae attacks. With Xander Wright at his side, Jackson finds the strength and spellpower to rebuild.

Yet the fae keep coming, infiltrating under cover of illusions and glamor. And then there’s the upcoming Grayhaven gala, a gathering that’s sure to attract their destructive appetites.

Whispers speak of a strange and powerful candle, one that will help Jackson find the source of the fae and stop their attacks forever. Where are the fae coming from? Who is sending them to spread chaos?

And most important of all: where will Jackson find the time and courage to propose?

Hand of Glory is a 77,000-word M/M urban fantasy romance with a HFN ending. Join a fast-talking artificer and a snarky sorcerer, childhood friends who become bitter enemies, then lovers, as they explore a world filled with strange flora, mythical fauna, and magical murders. If you like your urban fantasy with humor, horror, and a whole lot of heart, you’ve come to the right place. Experience Hand of Glory today.

Review: Chosen One Universe: Volume One by Macy Blake

Rating: 4.75🌈

Books:

Sweet Nothings

All or Nothing

Nothing Ventured

I am all in on these series collections. It allows me to read straight through a series of books without stopping, something every binge reader dreams of.

As I said in my review of Hell On Earth (Hellhound Champions #1) , I’m in the process of reading all the Chosen One novels. What better way than Chosen One bundles?

This bundle takes me back to the origin of all the series and relationships.

It begins with Sweet Nothings, the prequel novel, that’s the foundation . Here we meet human Sam Baker, alpha Vaughn Jerrick, and some of the most engaging supernatural children ever. The plot, which is heartwarming, romantic, funny, and and totally captivating. It’s also extremely moving. And not without its moments of heartbreak.

Many of the young beings are people that play important roles throughout the overall Chosen Ones series. So this is indeed where it all starts.

The next two stories are completely different. The first couple of Sam and Vaughn are completely monogamous, as you would expect a werepack Alpha mated couple to be.

But All or Nothing and Nothing Ventured are focused on the group of Guardians as they slowly find each other, adjusting to what they are to their roles and new relationships. And what that might mean to the Chosen One when it’s located,the one they are committed to, via a prophecy.

Hint, the Chosen is found but not all the Guardians are counted for as yet.

These are incredibly sexy stories. Also high action and adventure. We are talking Vampire, Dragon, Griffon, …ummm nope. The rest will need to be read.

But the relationship between all of them? It’s only of polyamory. And it’s not only extremely sexy but it works beautifully in as far as the need for their tightly crafted relationships with each other.

Blake has a huge overall series plot thread being crafted that started with Sweet Nothing and continues to build with deadly suspense with each book.

The black magic and villain is hidden to great effect, truly chilling.

I loved both books. It was outstanding seeing Henry, a grownup 21, and well into his powers. Although wasn’t quite ready for his Daddy kink.

That was a issue reading those stories together. For me, he was just the haunted, traumatized orphan I left behind in Sweet Nothings. Oops!

Now he’s 21. I felt like his parent.

Hmmm , yeah, that took a while. Sawyer yes, Henry, too soon. Not anything more than reading the books right after each other.

By Nothing Ventured, I was fine. And loving the polyamory relationship of the Guardians.

Anyway I’m onto the second volume of Chosen novels.

And if you’re a fan of supernatural beings, mythological creatures, magic, Macy Blake, and the Chosen One Universe, here’s a collection for you.

I’m highly recommending it.

https://www.amazon.com › Chosen-…The Chosen One Universe Volume One: An MM Paranormal Fantasy Shifters Series …

❤️Chosen Universe Multi-series Reading Order: