Review: The Misfit Mage and His Darling Demon: Diabolic Romance Book Two by MN Bennet

Rating: 4.5🌈

Mage Wally and his bonded Demon, Bez, return in MN Bennet’s highly imaginative sequel, Darling Demon, a book that’s astonishing in creative elements and plot twists.

I really enjoyed this book, it’s so mentally entertaining, with the sheer amount of depth that Bennet goes into as Wally and Bez get into a horrible situation with first the Fae, and then an ever increasingly worse group of villains.

There’s really no way to go about pointing out aspects of this story that I adore without giving spoilers because I feel as though they are also some of the most clever elements that Bennet wrote into the storyline. It’s one creative piece of thinking after another that just builds onto each other here , expanding on the universe as we thought we knew it magically.

What can I say? That the fabulous characters, demon Mora and her witch wife Kell, are back as main characters and their deep relationship and outlook on love is as remarkable and rewarding as anything else here.

We get a new family member, a pet. He’s adorable. The scorpion familiar isn’t happy.

And that ending still makes me think of whether or not, I’m impressed by the author’s choices because I didn’t see it coming or sorry because I wanted something more comfortable when this book has been anything but. That’s on me.

Bennet has always narratively gone for the wild and intriguing, the unimaginable and deliciously dangerous. That’s how we end up. True to everything and everyone.

I hope we and Bennet return, someday to check in. I love to see what’s happened next.

highly recommended.

Diabolic Romance:

The Misfit Mage and His Dashing Devil #1

The Misfit Mage and His Darling Demon #2

Buy Link

The Misfit Mage and His Darling Demon: Diabolic Romance Book Two

Blurb

Wally and Bez have spent the last six months eluding the Collective together. Not that the mages have spent much time pursuing the dangerous devil and his misfit mage, since even the best magics can’t match a Diabolic’s strength.

When Bez surprises Wally with an anniversary trip to a special event hosted by the Fae, Wally is presented with a chance to work on rare artifacts belonging to a Fae noble. However, Bez learns the Fae may be connected to the recent abductions of fellow demons, allowing them to crossover into various Hell dimensions—and threatening to expose his secret.

Bez is not the unstoppable devil that everyone believes he is. If the Collective learns about Bez’s deceit, they will rain down the full force of their magical resources to kill him. Wally and Bez will need to work together to unravel the mystery behind the missing demons and study intricate dimensional magics all while traveling in a magical villa through space and time.

• Publisher: M.N. Bennet LLC (June 10, 2024)

• Publication date: June 10, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 366 pages

Review: First Dates and Birthday Cakes: MM Romantic Comedy by Isabel Murray

Rating: 4.5🌈

I have been an absolute fan of Isabel Murray since I read Gary of a Hundred Days. Everything since has just cemented this author as a superb writer, one of great hearted, strong characters as well as wild, imaginative plots. I hadn’t read much if any of her contemporary works.

First Dates and Birthday Cakes is a gentle, wonderful contemporary romantic comedy. It’s also one that takes all the elements that I associate with this author’s writing in her fantasy novels like layered characters, and wonderful settings, and showcases it here in a contemporary story.

Ben Porter is turning 40 when the story begins. It’s the morning of his birthday, one he’s been dreading. And, honestly, Ben is every one of us who has been in denial about any kind of birthday that is a milestone in life. Instant connection!

What’s worse is he told family and friends not to make a big deal and then they had the nerve to actually listen to him. I was already laughing at the reality of that moment and the real emotional reactions Murray was vividly conveying.

Memories of a birthday past , way way past, has Ben scurrying off to an ice rink and his future.

This is so humorous. Warmly real, awkward, and so very true to each man’s spirit. Plus there’s a fantastic best friend, a mother who I love even though we see her briefly. We know her. Murray has brought every character exquisitely to life no matter how long or short they appear in this story.

I ended up smiling at the imagery and ending. And vowing to go through the rest of Murray’s contemporary catalog.

I’ve left my favorites below. I’m including this as well. Enjoy!

Favorites by Isabel Murray:

Merman Romance :

Catch and Release

Must Reads!

Fantasy Romance :

Gary of a Hundred Days

Gary the Once and Former King

The Naiad’s Gift

— First Dates and Birthday Cakes: MM Romantic Comedy by Isabel Murray

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › First-…First Dates and Birthday Cakes: MM Romantic Comedy eBook : Murray, Isabel

Blurb

Ben Porter is turning forty, and he’s not being cool about it.

He told his friends and family that he wanted to let this particular milestone pass by without any fuss, and for once, they actually listened.

Which is great. Because now here he is, sitting in his kitchen on a rainy Saturday morning, all alone, and he can feel himself aging.

So he decides to do something about it.

And maybe throwing himself a last-minute ice-skating party for one in an attempt to recreate the carefree birthdays of his expired youth wasn’t the best idea. Or the most normal. He’d even go so far as to say it was a terrible idea, as there’s a non-zero chance that his impromptu birthday activity will turn into an impromptu birthday trip to the hospital. Because despite the fact that he remembers being pretty hot stuff at skating?

He’s not. He’s really, really not.

He’s so incredibly bad at it that a tall, gorgeous member of staff—who actually is pretty hot stuff—has to come over and scrape him off the ice, just so he stops ruining everyone else’s Saturday.

Except Jake isn’t a member of staff, he has an ulterior (romantic!) motive for helping Ben, and Ben’s worst birthday ever is about to take a surprising turn for the better…

First Dates and Birthday Cakes is a 33k-word romantic comedy novella with a midlife crisis, a big surprise that Ben really should have seen coming, and something that looks a whole lot like happily ever after.

• Publisher: (June 4, 2024)

• Publication date: June 4, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 132 pages

Review: Bound to the Wild Fae (a Fortune Favors the Fae Book 3) by Tavia Lark

Rating: 5🌈

Honestly, this series is making me deliriously happy. Outstanding authors, fantastic theme, and the storylines are just so excellent. It’s really spoiling me for any other multi author series to come.

That mischievous little otherworldly Fae coin is now interfering with the lives of two intriguing people. One, a wild fae, Yarrow, whose been given a mission by his Queen to kill a mysterious shapeshifter in order to return to her court. The other is a man in the human realm, one terrified of the Fae, who has a Fae’s golden eye that he was “given” one night as a child.

Tavia Lark, an auto read author, starts immediately weaving her tale of two men on a collision course with each other, and Lark does so in a way we get a definitive impression of each character’s personality.

From his actions to his thoughts, it’s clear how unsettled the human Folly is in his current situation. He’s hiding, and it’s not just the fact that he has a golden eye that’s kept hidden under an eye patch, it’s more than that. Lark’s creating a glimmer of Folly’s past for the reader to see by allowing his fears, his reliance on lies and mistrust to build a portrait of his history as something painful and unreliable. Outstanding work. What an incredible character.

Yarrow will turn out to be just as compelling as Folly, albeit in a different manner. His issues are tied to his parentage, how it’s affected his mother and her relationship to the Court. He’s light hearted and exuberant yet feels emotions deeply.

Lark creates several realms for Folly and Yarrow to travel through on this dangerous journey to complete Yarrow’s mission and break the curse they’ve been set with.

I’ve read several of Lark’s series and her characters are all so beautifully written. Just as Folly and Yarrow, but it’s seen through smaller but equally intriguing beings that are essential to the story and their mission. They pop up, make huge chunks of emotional impact, and the reader wants to know more about them, especially when we meet up with them again at the end.

The plot or plots are entertaining, well layered with mysteries, and full of magical elements and creatures. I was absolutely absorbed by them, this couple, and the story every bit of the way.

And I found myself thinking about how it would be a great start to a new series as well for the author. I’d love to see more about this universe and the characters we met.

Bound to the Wild Fae (a Fortune Favors the Fae Book 3) by Tavia Lark is a fabulous tale of magic, adventure, mystery and love. It’s an amazing book and a must read.

Love that cover!

Fortune Favors the Fae – 15 books:

✓ A Fae Coin Transported Me Into Another World and Now I’m the Gay Holy Maiden by AJ Sherwood #1❤️

✓ The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae by Michele Notaro #2 ❤️

✓ Bound to the Wild Fae by Tavia Lark #3 June 13❤️

◦ The Sorcerer’s Thief by Lee Colgin #4 – June 20, 2024

◦ The Fae Menagerie by Edie Montreaux #5 – June 27,2024

◦ Never Darling by Sam Burns #6 – July 4,2024

◦ Prince of Poison by Alice Winters #7 – July 11,2024

◦ Grave Misfortune by Nazri Noor #8 – July 18,2024

◦ Fae for Pay by Meaghan Maslow #9 – July 23,2024

◦ Kisses at the Crossroad by Morgan Lysand #10 – August 1,2024

◦ Smoke and Mirrors by Kai Butler #11 – August 8, 2024

◦ Siren in the Rain by Chloe Archer #12 – Aug 15,2024

◦ I Destroyed the Elf Prince’s Harem by Jocelynn Drake #13 – Aug 22,2024

◦ A Fae Called Wylder by Michelle Frost #14 – Aug 29,2024

◦ Lucky or Knot by Eliot Grayson #15 – September 5,2024

Buy link

Bound to the Wild Fae

Blurb

Hiding from the fae isn’t an option anymore.

Folly is a fortuneteller, according to the sign outside his tent. Actually, he’s a nervous wreck and a total fraud. His golden eye might be magical, but Folly doesn’t see the future. He sees the fae: dangerous, beautiful creatures lurking in the shadows between realms. Avoiding the fae keeps Folly safe—

Until a misfired curse binds him to one.

Yarrow is a wild fae. Half fae, half other, and all seductive confidence. He’s on a quest to slay a monster and earn his place in the summer court. An easy task for a warrior like Yarrow.

Not so easy when the monster’s curse tethers him to a terrified human.

Now, Folly and Yarrow can’t leave each other’s proximity without agonizing pain. Folly is desperate to return home, but to break the curse, he has to follow the intimidating Yarrow into a world full of the creatures he’s spent his life hiding from.

And Yarrow’s familiar homeland seems far deadlier when he has a tiny, fascinating human to protect.

Bound to the Wild Fae is an MM fantasy romance, part of the multi-author series Fortune Favors the Fae. Each book is a standalone and can be read in any order. From spicy to sweet, zany romps to epic adventures, there’s something for everyone in this mystical series. Discover destiny and true love and follow the coin on its fickle journey to the next world and a new magical adventure.

• Publication date: June 13, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 224 pages

Review: An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling (Subpar Heroes story) by Jenn Burke

Rating: 5🌈

As a fan of this author, I couldn’t wait for her contribution to the multi-author Subpar Heroes series. It’s excellent! One of my favorites so far.

An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling includes the two ends of the super hero spectrum. One, Ward Sullivan aka Firefox, a man’s whose talent was so powerful that it’s got him damaged permanently. Now Ward’s bitter and angry about his past and the loss of what he once had.

The other? So little is thought of his talent that he hasn’t even been assigned a superhero code name. He’s just been shunted off to Thunder Bay for minor tasks , where he’s content to living his life in a small Canadian community he’s called home. That’s, cheery, bearded, outfitted in plaid, ax wielding Devlin Campbell.

A weird case of arson in the middle of a park campground in winter brings Devlin together with Ward who’s sent to investigate the case, in what’s probably his last venture with SPAM.

Burke takes interesting characters, a great location full of small town culture as well as the frigid winter conditions then just starts layering on all the necessary elements as well as adding the details that give the story the fantastic depth.

She brings to Ward, Dev and a certain young Hallie, as the story develops, all personality growth and needed revelations that make the reader feel like we have an immediate connection to them. And Dev’s oh so inconsequential talent soon is seen to be not so inconsiderable after all.

That’s one of the best qualities of Burke’s narrative. She slyly feeds us several truths about the characters. The way they are being treated or perceived as well as the way the character are truly defined. These are not portraits that form at once but ones that may take almost the entire plot to reveal, giving the reader plenty of time to form their own thoughts and become more fully involved in this journey to love and HEA.

A special note about how Burke treats Ward’s issues and injuries. This is a choice the author made to go realistic with the outcome and I absolutely agree and appreciate that she went with it. It’s in keeping with his hard won journey, with the theme of the series (these aren’t Superheros) , and it’s reflective of the trauma that he has been through.

I just loved these characters, their relationship and their journey. Hallie is fabulous too.

Top of this series! A must read. And that cover is everything.

Subpar Heroes series- 15 books:

🔷The Accidental Necromancer by Liv Rancourt

🔷Behind the 8-Ball by A. E. Wasp

🔷Transparent Is a Color by Kaje Harper

🔷Impossible Things by Alexa Land

🔷My Not-So-Super Blind Date by Allison Temple

🔷An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling by Jenn Burke ❤️

🔷In The Nick of Time by Elle Keaton 7/25/2024

🔷Static/Cling by Jaimie Samms 7/30/2024

🔷Spiritual Guidance Not Required by Jacy Braegan 8/1/2024

🔷What Could Go Wrong? By Toshi Drake 8/6/2024

🔷License to Chill by Chantal Mer 8/8/2024

🔷Code Name Dolittle by Lynn Michaels. 8/22/2024

🔷Signed, I’m Yours! By Rhys Lawless 8/29/2024

🔷A Taste of Danger by Morgan Brice. 9/5/2024

Buy links:

An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling

Blurb

No more Mr. Nice Hero

Ex-hero Ward Sullivan used to be a household name before his career went up in smoke. Now he’s stuck hunting for the cause of mysterious fires in Northern Ontario. Worse still is his new partner, an overly cheery Canadian named Devlin Campbell.

Dev’s a lumberjack and he’s okay with that. It sure beats working in an office where his not-so-super power forced everyone to be nice to him. Partnering with the famous ex-hero Firefox is a dream come true. Not only is he one of Dev’s idols, he’s immune to his niceness.

Dev’s upbeat vibe soothes Ward’s grumpy soul, but he’d never admit it. Nor would he admit that he really likes the way Dev handles an axe. But when a threat from the past comes roaring into Ward’s present, it’s no more Mr. Nice Hero. Ward may have to give up a future with the nicest guy he knows to save the world one last time.

An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe-Handling is a part of the multi-author Subparheroes MM romance series.

• Publication date: June 13, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 192 pages

Review: Unusual Emotions (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 3) by Shelby Rhodes

Rating: 5🌈

Unusual Emotions is the third book in Shelby Rhodes’ amazing paranormal romance series, The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx, so a couple of things right away. If you’re reading this series, you are already familiar with the trigger warnings, so I’m not going to repeat them.

Secondly, if you’re familiar with Shelby Rhodes writing, either here or any of this author’s work, then again, see my sentence above about triggers. Rhodes’ writing just comes with a certain amount of warnings, primarily because of the various types of themes and content that are present in this author’s work. If you know, you know.

As this is the third book in this remarkable series, one that has to be read in order, then a reader knows what is in store for them and the characters here. Proceed forward with knowledge!

Unusual Emotions tells us exactly what our characters are dealing with. After the traumatic events and deepest horrors of the past revisited that Taste of Fear put Foxx and Harlow through, now the impact of those events and its consequences, emotionally are seen here on the partners.

Unsurprisingly, Foxx is having nightmares, the burning marks upon his body still visible, his emotional state is shattered as much as his damaged threads. Hes not in good shape as the book opens. But just as shocking, neither is his partner Harlow. He’s having feelings, anger , fear, and more, which he’s trying not to identify. He’s a psychopath and , in his own words and mind, he’s not supposed to be having feelings.

Rhodes weaves an intimate, increasingly confused relationship between two characters that always thought they knew what their relationship was about. Until recently, and Foxx’s recent traumatic experiences have upset him and their dynamic. Both sides are stumbling around, dealing with their own issues, their partner’s unspoken difficulties with the current situation, and a multitude of new cases involving them and weird elements.

It’s Foxx and Harlow trying to figure out how to make their relationship work but it’s changing in ways neither understands. The author lays this out , all the fears, the misguided ways their friends and bosses interfere in the process, all the challenges that realistically make them not trusting of anything deeper than a work relationship, it’s complicated journey that makes them feel more real and broken. Incredible stuff here.

Threaded through this slow burn journey over broken glass pathways is the cases Tony is throwing their way. Unusually big numbers, scary details, weird situations. Each one coming with some defining features and scenarios that will, I’m sure, add up to something even more terrifying to the partners later on.

And I’m not just talking about the cliffhanger of that ending!

Yes, it does have a wowzer of a cliffhanger here. We also knew that would happen.

Unusual Emotions (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 3) by Shelby Rhodes is one incredibly powerful and heart stopping book. Our connection with Foxx and Harlow is made stronger, and we are all so happy that they have made a new step forward in their journey. Now about that cliffhanger!

Highly recommended! Read them in order. Not one is a standalone.

Love the covers.

The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx:

✓ At First Irritation #1

✓ Taste of Fear #2

✓ Unusual Emotions #3

◦ Thirst Quenched #4 – August 24,2024

◦ False Morality #5 – TBD

Buy link

Unusual Emotions (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 3)

Blurb

Foxx Honeywell here… Have you ever wanted something, but then when it finally happens, you panic and think of all the things that could go wrong, because things have always gone wrong? No? Just me? Well, let’s backtrack.

We pick up where we last left off…after the hypocritical murdery priests. Yeah, I’m still dealing with all that. Cases come and go, and things are normal…but then normal flies out of the window. All because my mind decided to focus on things it shouldn’t. Because, as is often the case, emotions and feelings don’t give a shit about timing, place, or the sanity of those involved!

Speaking of sanity. My annoyingly insane partner, HARLOW, decided that he wants to make it all the more complicated by feeling ‘something’ as well.

Long story short, more cases, more confusion, and just the urge to burn the world down in a fit of anger…because why the bloody hell not? Things are decidedly not okay.

CONTENT WARNING: This is a slow burn M/M paranormal romance book, that ends in a cliffhanger. Please see inside or my website for full content warning!

• Publisher: (June 11, 2024)

• Publication date: June 11, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 343 pages

Review: Fall of the Crystal Moon: An Epic Dragon Fantasy Saga (The Crystalline Dragons Saga Book 5) by Eoghan R. Cunningham

Rating: 5🌈

Fall of the Crystal Moon is the finale novel of The Crystalline Dragons Saga and it’s a grand epic fantasy adventure. Cunningham’s young heroes are finally grown up, they’re facing the end of their world, the villain who they’ve battled they killed. That person has been replaced by someone who is more powerful, more frightening, yet still someone who they knew, who they once trusted. Dusk can understand her pain and trauma and anger.

The characters have been never been more nuanced than they are here, in their final battles to save each other and their world. Cunningham has them, especially Dusk, dive deep into their own stories, their fears and their worst self doubts, face them , before they can then take on the approaching world’s enemies and ultimate villain.

The author is smart because we travel with incredible companions, back through some of the very worst places our small group has already visited before, nightmarish stuff for Dusk, on their way to gather a army to vanquish the enemy. We see what has become of some very familiar places during their journey. It’s such a great narrative choice emotionally and visually. Cunningham makes so many interesting and layered choices here.

Fall of the Crystal Moon is full of amazing full throttle action scenes, dragons, incredible heroes each with their unique abilities and stories, and even a great villain we can emphasize with while knowing that they must be brought down.

And , it has that one element that’s a must for every epic adventure ending! That the finale makes you want to accompany our heroes wherever they go next, whatever fabulous beasts they see, beings they encounter, we want to be there too. What an absolutely fantastic romp this series has been! A thriller of an adventure with a bit of romance too.

More please. A YA LGBTGIA fantasy novel I’m so excited to recommend!

The Crystalline Dragons Saga-5 books:

✓ Curse of the Dragon’s Eye #1

✓ Mist, Shadow, and Deep #2

✓ Rise of the False King #3

✓ The Queen of Darkness #4

✓ Fall of the Crystal Moon #5

Buy link

Fall of the Crystal Moon: An Epic Dragon Fantasy Saga (The Crystalline Dragons Saga Book 5)

Blurb

The final battle looms on the horizon. The last dragon has been found. The Crystal Moon has once again returned to Ditania.

The fate of the entire world lies in Dusk’s hands. But will he be able to save it in time?

Just when I thought we’d won the battle and stopped the evil in this world from coming to fruition, Tiernan outsmarts us again.

The world doesn’t know what kind of danger it’s in and the only people that can stop it are me, Lex, and Tara. But where do we even start? And is it even possible at this point to win against this evil sorcerer that’s cut us off at every turn?

I don’t know. But I do know one thing. I will not give up and I will not let the power of the Crystal Eye fall into the hands of someone like Teirnan.

There’s a final battle to be fought and I will lead the charge.

The fate of the world rest’s on my shoulders.

• Publisher: UwU Publishing (June 6, 2024)

• Publication date: June 6, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 329 pages

Review: The Trouble With Trying to Hook a Harbinger (Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees Book 4) by Jennifer Cody

Rating: 4.5🌈

The Trouble With Trying to Hook a Harbinger is another absolutely wild unhinged story in Jennifer Cody’s Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees series and I’m loving every single bit of this.

No, it’s not over yet. This is the penultimate tale of battles, families, universal balance and gods, shopping, engagements, ginormous rings, new adoptions, and just outright chaos in the best way possible. With blood and swords and lots of sex.

Cody does give Romily (and the reader) a further explanation into his muteness and past trauma. It’s typical of Cody’s writing that this aspect of the story, while it offers Romily an explanation for his tragic past and mutism, it won’t resolve it. Instead this storyline gives him a new perspective about this part of himself as well as sees another intriguing being added to the family.

Cody’s characters are so well written, grounded in their emotions and respected relationships that we stay connected with them no matter what happens to the world around them. Here, with the incredible imagery and imagination that’s been brought by Cody to this moment, it’s a very wild ride!

That’s why I just love this entire series and story. Even the smallest scene can contain ramifications for the larger plot, or even for a character’s story later on in the series. Cody’s plot is complex even when appearing at its most simplistic stage. It’s never one dimensional. Crazy, zooming off into the wilderness of the universe and who knows what else could possibly happen next but that’s what makes this work. Characters that love each other deeply amidst chaos and way too many tables.

Gotta love this. I do and can’t wait for the next one to come out. Plus I heard that there will be a new sequel series to follow. Highly recommended!

Stay tuned.

Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees :

✓ The Trouble with Trying to Date a Murderer #1

✓ The Trouble With Trying to Save an Assassin #2

✓ The Trouble with Trying to Love a Hellion #3

✓ The Trouble With Trying to Hook a Harbinger #4

✓ The Adventure of Sterling Jones: A Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees Sidequest

Buy link

The Trouble With Trying to Hook a Harbinger (Murder Sprees and Mute Decrees Book 4)

Blurb:

Romily:

Welcome back to Will-They-Won’t-They? The Engagement: The Foxily Edition. That’s the name of the show that I’m planning to pitch to a producer that’s based on my life. Will Fox ever give me a ring? Who knows! I don’t, and I don’t think Fox does either. If the rock currently sitting not-on-my-finger is any indication, we might be doomed.

In the meantime, let me introduce to you my new best friend: a cherub. (Are we surprised by this turn of events? No. I flipping love cherubs.) Akile Aristide walks into my life, declares that I’m his bestie, and then flips the world on its three way axis. What’s a Harbinger to do except announce, “Incoming!” and hope everyone’s buckled in?

The Trouble with Trying to Hook a Harbinger is a 63k MM Paranormal Romedy with a Harbinger who gets to change his title to The Chosen One, a slightly manic Reaper who’s out for a little blood, and the family that they’re building one adoption at a time.

• Publication date: June 7, 2024

• Language: English

• File size: 1483 KB

• Print length: 237 pages

Review: Black & White: An MM Shifter Romantic Suspense Novel (ORCA Book 1) by Vinni George

Rating: 4.25🌈

Vinni George dives into the fated mates shifter trope with a new action adventure romance series, ORCA, or the Organization for the Return of Criminals and Assets . That it’s centered around a family or pod of killer whale brothers as they find their fated mates while they’re hunting stolen artifacts or just on wild uncover missions is spot on. How that all happens is also a part of the storyline of this book.

George has a lot to lay out in this first book. We get the foundation for the universe, the culture of our shifter species, the various shifter family structures , especially in case of the two types of species of our main characters, a orca killer whale and an otter.

Felix White is a highly talented hacker and otter shifter, one who’s also in a load of trouble. That will bring his fated mate to him in the form of a bodyguard, Nero Black, bondsman now bodyguard, and orca shifter, one of a family of brothers that live together.

This is an instant recognition of the mate storyline. While I’m not always a fan of this approach, it works well with Nero and Felix due to their situation and the chemistry the author builds between them.

Because the series is going to be based on the rest of the family, they are quickly introduced and their personalities defined by jobs and appearance. Species characteristics are also very well represented here which I think makes them better realized as shifters. The holding hands by Felix as an otter is just adorable.

I had a few issues with the story in the I wish the actual villain was better executed and explored. This person sort of popped up out of nowhere. And was done equally as quickly. With all the buildup, this potion of the story doesn’t have the same kind of fulfillment as the other aspects. It’s over with in a blink.

My other quibble isn’t by the author but should have been caught. Things like this.

““You didn’t answer my question.” Quin looked at me with shred eyes.”

I’m guessing it should be shrewd eyes. I’m betting autocorrect struck again. But in a book you paid for , it’s annoying and a line editor should have caught it.

I’m seeing too many errors like that in books these days.

Quibbling aside, I found Black & White: An MM Shifter Romantic Suspense Novel (ORCA Book 1) by Vinni George is very entertaining and a terrific start to a new series .

ORCA :

✓ Black & White #1

◦ Grayscale #2 – Dec 31,2024

Buy link

Black & White: An MM Shifter Romantic Suspense Novel (ORCA Book 1)

Blurb

Nero Hunter is tired. He’s tired of early mornings chasing down skips. He’s tired of Shamu jokes and dealing with idiots. He’s tired of being alone. But agreeing to do one little favor for a friend turns the tide and brings Nero face-to-face with his destiny.

Felix White is unlucky. When his life is threatened and he’s hauled into police custody for safekeeping, the last thing he expects is to meet his fated mate. Especially when his mate is a giant killer whale shifter, who is also his new bodyguard.

But there is more to the plot against Felix than meets the eye, and Nero and his brothers have to work together to figure out who is after Felix before it’s too late…before Nero loses the mate he just found.

Black & White is book one in the Organization for the Return of Criminals and Assets (ORCA) series featuring an orca shifter art thief turned bounty hunter, a sea otter shifter hacker who might have pissed off the wrong people, and a group of orca brothers who will do anything—even if it’s not quite legal—to save the newest member of their family.

• Publication date: June 6, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 212 pages

Review: The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae (a Fortune Favors the Fae story) by Michele Notaro

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Well this is an absolutely splendid addition to the Fortune Favors the Fae series. I loved how Michele Notaro adapted her Brinnswick universe into this series, by means of that mischievous wayward fae coin.

While its personality doesn’t really come into play as it has in a prior tale, that coin is still the means through which unlucky fae Belryn Bizidor meets wolf shifter Remington “ Remi” Ellwood, newly arrived with some of the members of his family to start a family security company on Gauhala.

Its meet cute, and mate recognition, sort of . Mostly both feel a very special unusual attraction, which I find interesting because it takes time for this relationship to develop. For Bel, his situation is fragile. His city views Fae as the lowest form of life, discrimination is common, he’s homeless, and trying to protect what’s left of his family.

The more the reader learns about his character and how perilous the situation he’s in, the more we connect with him. Bel is the type of character Notaro crafts so well. Layered, emotional, and warmhearted. And desperate. In this case, to save his family.

Remi the wolf shifter who finds his viramore and is determined to hold him, no matter what, is kind and loving. Just by his own history he’s not as vividly drawn as a wounded Bel. It’s just the nature of the difference in the drama between them. They do have a gentle charm and connection that works well here.

Notaro has created a number of fascinating characters that support the main couple, ones that almost prove more compelling. Whether it’s Tan, Remi’s friend and business partner who’s in a frenemies attraction thing with the Dragon King, or Bel’s cousin Ker and the vampire bookstore owner, Anton Orsova, those are stories that beg to be told and look to come in a new sequel series soon to be released.

I hope we see these characters as well.

The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae (a Fortune Favors the Fae story) by Michele Notaro is a highly entertaining read and one I’m happy to recommend!

Be on the lookout for the new series below.

New connected series that continues a couple’s developing romance:

The Witch’s Grumpy Dragon (Brinnswick: Tales From Gauhala Book 1) – Oct 25,2024

Look at what’s coming up next!

Fortune Favors the Fae – 15 books:

✓ A Fae Coin Transported Me Into Another World and Now I’m the Gay Holy Maiden by AJ Sherwood #1

✓ The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae by Michele Notaro #2

◦ Bound to the Wild Fae by Tavia Lark #3 June 13

◦ The Sorcerer’s Thief by Lee Colgin #4 – June 20, 2024

◦ The Fae Menagerie by Edie Montreaux #5 – June 27,2024

◦ Never Darling by Sam Burns #6 – July 4,2024

◦ Prince of Poison by Alice Winters #7 – July 11,2024

◦ Grave Misfortune by Nazri Noor #8 – July 18,2024

◦ Fae for Pay by Meaghan Maslow #9 – July 23,2024

◦ Kisses at the Crossroad by Morgan Lysand #10 – August 1,2024

◦ Smoke and Mirrors by Kai Butler #11 – August 8, 2024

◦ Siren in the Rain by Chloe Archer #12 – Aug 15,2024

◦ I Destroyed the Elf Prince’s Harem by Jocelynn Drake #13 – Aug 22,2024

◦ A Fae Called Wylder by Michelle Frost #14 – Aug 29,2024

◦ Lucky or Knot by Eliot Grayson #15 – September 5,2024

Buy link

The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae

Blurb:

Call it fate, call it luck, but when a powerful wolf shifter walks into my life, everything changes.

Bel

I’ve made some stupid decisions in my life, and one in particular keeps coming back to haunt me. When I keep running into a handsome stranger, I know I should push him away, if only to keep him safe from my mess, keep him safe from me. But something inside of me—my heart, my magic, or my soul—keeps pushing me toward him, offering to make all my secret dreams come true. And I don’t know how to stay away.

Remi

When I travel across the world to open a new business—and get away from my overbearing family—the last thing I ever expect is to find the most beautiful and alluring fae I’ve ever met. I’m drawn to him, and I’m pretty sure if he lets his guard down, he’ll admit he’s drawn to me too. All I want to do is pull Bel into my arms and protect him from whatever he’s hiding. But he’s skittish and suspicious, and I just want to prove to him that he can trust me.

Fate, and a bit of luck, brought us together, and I’m not going to let it or anything else tear us apart.

The Wolf’s (Un)Lucky Fae is a part of the multi-author series, Fortune Favors the Fae. From spicy to sweet, zany romps to epic adventures, there’s something for everyone in this mystical series. Discover destiny and true love and follow the coin on its fickle journey to the next world and a new magical adventure.

• Publication date: June 6, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 340 pages

Review: Darkness by Eden Winters

Rating: 4.75🌈

Eden Winters new release, Darkness, is a superb supernatural thriller. Winters’ beautifully written narrative combines elements of horror, murder mystery, political conspiracy, as well as a deeply intriguing romance to create a dark, suspenseful, and gripping story.

It starts with Atlanta PD Det. Morrisey James. He’s a wounded, broken man, with a disturbing talent that allows him to sense what the newly deceased felt, a gift he keeps hidden in his job investigating violent crimes.

That’s where Winters drops the reader into the narrative. James and his partner have just arrived at the scene of a truly horrific crime, one that will have ramifications for the rest of the story. We immediately get a feel for Morrisey’s battered emotional state, the close dynamic between himself and his deeply depressed partner. And the author is able to portray, just from the remarks of the other crime scene officers, a city under siege as waves of high crime just overwhelm the police and all departments.

When tragedy strikes again and loss hits Morrisey, its help from Farren Austin that turns his life upside down.

The characters of Morrisey and Farren, the darkness and the light, are so thoughtfully and beautifully crafted. Winters builds believable people who we have real empathy for , but leaves them with so much more room to expand their characters into increasingly larger and complex roles.

I couldn’t stop reading. I was so caught up in Morrisey’s story, Farren’s role in it, each new revelation about all the various travelers and their tumultuous journeys from a dying world. Winters has enough elements for a series should she want to continue exploring the world and characters she has created and set in motion.

I wasn’t really ready for Darkness to be over as I felt the characters were just getting started with their own new beginning. There were also other characters I had grown fond of and needed to see more of them.

Whether this is a standalone or the beginning of an extraordinary series, it’s a great story and one I’m excited to share.

Buy link

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CY9ZJR45

Blurb

Darkness follows Lieutenant Morrisey James.

As an Atlanta PD detective, Morrisey understands the worst atrocities the city has to offer—or believes he does. His recent cases present something new: a killer who unleashes unbridled terror in victims before moving in for the kill. Morrisey has an edge, though, the terrifying ability to gain flashes of insight from each victim.

Most people assume Farren Austin is a shallow, pretty boy, but he’s so much more. Agent Austin keeps secrets as part of the FBI’s Alternate Entities Task Force, a unit created to monitor travelers from another realm. Although they might look human, they’re anything but.

And they’ve taken a special interest in Morrisey.

Partnered with Farren, Morrisey finds himself in the middle of demons trying to possess his body, a succubus sidekick who wants to cook him breakfast, accusations of being a powerful destructive force, and a growing number of people calling him “Darkness.” Not to mention a sudden overwhelming attraction to his new partner.

It’s going to take the mysterious Farren’s help to keep the latest case from being Morrisey’s last.

• Publication date: June 1, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 442 pages

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