Tag: Scattered Thoughts Highly Recommended

Review: What The Frack? (The ABC’s of Spellcraft Book 7) by Jordan Castillo Price

Rating: 4.5🌈

Well, this was tons of explosive fun! While a bit short on the personal relationship between the main couple, Price delivers hugely on the big epic elements!

Mysterious goings on! Dastardly corporate underhanded doings! A town and family in danger! Yes to the exclamation marks! The story cries out for it! But all the weirdness, the historical drama, and even stranger strangers that show up as Pinyan Bay is under attack is the stuff that makes Yuri and Dixon jump to investigate!

Love the twists, the Indiana Jones atmosphere at times, and the enlargement of the world building here.

All around a terrific story. And don’t forget to read the author’s notes at the end. They are as enjoyable and interesting as the story.

I’m recommending this and the series. It’s magical ride! Binge read for your pleasure!

The ABC’s of Spellcraft series:

✓ Quill Me Now #1

✓ Trouble in Taco Town #2

✓ Something Stinks at the Spa #3

✓ Dead Man’s Quill #4

✓ Last But Not Lease #5

✓ Don’t Rock The Boardwalk #6

✓ What The Frack? #7

◦ Present Tense: A Spellcraft Christmas short #8

◦ Brownie Points #9

◦ Forging Ahead #10

◦ Mayor May Not #11

◦ Bucket List #12

◦ Comic Sans #13

◦ It’s All Relative #14

Buy Link:

What the Frack? (The ABCs of Spellcraft Book 7)

Description:

It’s all fun and games until something blows up.

Thanks to the recent explosion in Pinyin Bay, most of its residents got out while the getting was good. Not Dixon Penn. He grew up there, and from the power plant to the strip malls, the city is full of fond memories. But if the mysterious corporation that bought up the shoreline doesn’t stop drilling, memories may soon be all that remain.

Yuri Volnikov is finally fitting in. He crossed an ocean to find a loving home with Dixon. Now, that home is threatened. And he won’t give it up without a fight.

The drilling has attracted plenty of attention. While a harebrained reporter covers the scene, a traveling geologist shows up who might shed some light on the situation. He’ll need all the light he can get, since he can hardly see three feet in front of his own face.

Whoever is digging up the shore, they’re using Spellcraft to exploit every possible loophole so no one can put a stop to their operations. Can Dixon and Yuri defuse the Craftings before Pinyin Bay goes up in smoke?

The ABCs of Spellcraft is a series filled with bad jokes and good magic, where MM Romance meets Paranormal Cozy. A perky hero, a brooding love interest, and delightfully twisty-turny stories that never end up quite where you’d expect. The books are best read in order, so be sure to start at the beginning with Quill Me Now.

Review: Most Wanted (Wrecked: Guardians, #3) by Kelly Fox

Rating: 4🌈

Most Wanted picks up from the events of the last book, Full Contact. There we met US Marshals Ronan as he quietly aided the Guardians on a mission to rescue sex trafficked kids and take down the federally protected pedophiles.

Now cut loose, Ronan is reunited with his past boyfriend, Guardian Thane Ashford in the aftermath of those events.

Fox’s characters are emotionally attached to each other even as they are separated by their feelings and past trauma. The story, which helps us see their relationship over the years from both sides, goes into Thane’s damaging relationship with his father, his insecurities about his body image which date back to his childhood, and why he was so against any idea of a commitment.

The characters are still working through their past differences and what that means to the current group dynamics. It makes for interesting interactions and sexy encounters.

I like that the entire team is involved here, new teammates are added, and Fox smoothly moves the story forward while also introducing the thread for the book to come. Which involves their boss, DeShawn, who’s emotionally weary and in need of retiring from the daily operations.

Fox writes characters that seem simple yet have layers. It may take a while to reveal but they do surface. Same with each couple’s relationship, there’s always that extra backstory that adds an element you might not expect but appreciate once you’ve got it.

I found Most Wanted highly enjoyable. I really like the strong women characters that continue to appear. The themes , especially of

sexually trafficked children and women are ones some will find disturbing so be aware of the nature of their investigations.

I’m recommending this and looking forward to the next.

That’s for Odd , Anders’ twin, and DB’s relationship.

Wrecked: Guardians

✓ Hard Target #1

✓ Full Contact #2

✓ Most Wanted #3

◦ Deep Impact #4

Buy Link:

Most Wanted: An M/M Friends-To-Lovers Romance (Wrecked: Guardians Book 3)

Description:

Letting Ronan go was the biggest mistake of my life. Giving me a second chance might be the biggest mistake of his.

I’d spent a year as Ronan’s friend-with-benefits, convincing myself that he could never feel the way I felt. I was floored when those three little words flew out of his mouth.

So, I ran. And have regretted that decision every day for the last five years.

Now fate has led him back to me and to the Guardians, the merry band of mercenaries who have become my family. Our last several missions have gone sideways, and Ronan is convinced that he needs to go back into the field to understand what our team is dealing with.

He’s putting himself in harm’s way and we can’t keep our hands off each other. God help me if anything happens to him.

I can’t think of anything more dangerous than giving my heart to a man who’s already destroyed it.

Then again, I might not have much say in the matter. My life’s been upended, and the only place that’s safe is with Thane and the Guardians.

It doesn’t take us long to figure out that our passion burns just as hot as it always did. Undeniable. Unstoppable.

I can’t keep my hands off him, but I can’t go back to being his friend with benefits. And I have no clue how to trust him.

Thing is…if we could learn to trust each other, I might actually have something to offer this team of morally flexible do-gooders.

Most Wanted is a mercenary MM romance set in Austin, Texas. It features a gentle (if slightly murderous), muscle-bound giant, a beautiful, wickedly flexible man, and more chemistry than a high school science lab.

This is the third book in the Wrecked: Guardians Series. Several characters from Wrecked, my series about a gym for combat vets, crossover into these books. While you can enjoy the slightly more nefarious Guardians without reading Wrecked, lots of people end up wanting all the juicy backstories.

Review: The Bogeyman and the Schoolteacher by Chloe Archer

Rating: 4🌈

This is a delightful short low angst monster romance! A prequel to a new series about a small interspecies town, Monster Hollow, that’s a sanctuary. We start off with a sweet little romance by the school principal and the newest teacher. That they happen to be a Bogeyman and a human soon becomes irrelevant. They are clearly perfect for each other.

Archer gives us the background for the town as well as hints about each main character’s history. It’s easy, engaging, and sweet.

And sets the stage for the first in the series. The Orc and the Manny. I’m looking forward to that!

Want a quick sweet read? Here you go! And a new series as well!

Wonderful characters, love the feel of the township, and want to know more!

Prequel to Monsters Hollow series:

Monster Hollow:

◦ The Orc and the Manny-Sept 22,2023

Buy Link:

https://www.amazon.com › Bogeym…The Bogeyman and the Schoolteacher: A Cozy M/M Monster Romance (Monsters …

Description:

Welcome to Monsters Hollow, where love knows no bounds—even in a town full of monsters!

When Principal Emrys Bogey sets his sights on the new schoolteacher, Jayden Bell, he’s determined to win his heart. But as a bogeyman, he knows his unconventional nature and intimidating appearance might be too much for a human to handle. Can Principal Bogey find a way to woo his crush without scaring him away? Maybe there’s more to the sweet Jayden Bell than meets the eye…

Buckle up for the prequel ushering in a new cozy M/M monster romance series by Chloe Archer where the sparks fly and the spice sizzles!

Note: This 20k prequel short was previously part of the limited time only Class of 22/23 M/M Romance Prolific Works Giveaway in June 2023.

Review: Dead Serious Case #3: Mr Bruce Reyes (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed #3) by Vawn Cassidy

Rating: 5🌈

What a fabulous story! With a heartwarming plot, full of hilarious quotable lines, memorable moments, and fantastic characters I can never get enough of, this is one of the best books I’ve read lately.

This also applies to Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed, up to three outstanding books and counting.

Cassidy begins this latest book with the strange happenings in the city, the dark rainstorms and nightmares plaguing the characters. It’s all about Bruce Reyes, Dusty Le Frey’s maybe if she could commit ghost boyfriend . There’s been plenty of dream warnings/forecasts about Bruce, his grave being found, bone’s which definitely shouldn’t, because he’s a gatekeeper.

I won’t go into the splendid greatness that’s the plot here. Read it for yourself. Dive into the fabulosity of humor and thriller combined! It’s having Tris and Danny still working on their relationship, Danny’s newfound knowledge of the otherworld, plus getting to wallow around those drag queens, Chan the Queen being the main one.

Side wonders? A lava lamp death. And Death.

Charismatic characters, marvelous layered plot, thrilling suspense filled narrative run to the finish line that leaves a reader wondering what should I have ? A desert or glass of wine? I’m so happy.

Yes. I’ll probably reread immediately because I’ll have to wait until the end of the year for the next book to be released.

Until then, I’m happy to share my recommendation that you read this series if you’re a fan of paranormal romance. It’s a must! But read them from the beginning, none are standalones. Must be read in order to understand the relationships and character development.

Love the covers.

Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed:

✓ Dead Serious Case #1 Miz Dusty Le Frey #1

✓ Dead Serious Case #2 Mrs Delores Abernathy #2

✓ Dead Serious Case #3 Mr Bruce Reyes #3

◦ Dead Serious Case #4 Professor Prometheus Plume #4 – Dec 31,2023

Buy Link:

Dead Serious Case #3 Mr Bruce Reyes: (MM Paranormal Romance/Mystery/Dark Humour) (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed)

Description:

Tristan Everett was finally getting used to the strangeness that was his life. Being able to see the dead and helping them solve their unfinished business and cross into the light wasn’t so bad after all, especially when he was accompanied by his best friend, dead drag queen Dusty Le Frey. His boyfriend, sexy Scotland Yard detective Danny Hayes, now knew the truth about Tristan’s “gift,” and they were about to move in together officially.

Life was good.

That is until Death—honest to god, Death (aka The Grim Reaper)—pitches up in Tristan’s kitchen with an unusual request: stop Dusty’s ghostly hookup Bruce from crossing into the light, which may result in dire consequences. i.e. an accidental apocalypse.

Determined to do the exact opposite, and avoid potentially the end of the world, Tristan and Danny assemble their own ragtag gang of one prickly witch, one snarky psychic private investigator, one living drag queen with an affinity for feathers, and one dead one with an affinity for a deceased rugby player in tiny shorts. Together they must solve a forty-year old cold case, while juggling a dose of the flu, a broken leg, a supernatural storm, and an immortal death deity with the looks and temperament of a sexy but grouchy CEO.

Seriously… what could possibly go wrong?

From Author Vawn Cassidy comes the next instalment of this hilarious and sweet paranormal romance mystery series

Review: At First Irritation (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 1) by Shelby Rhodes

Rating: 5🌈

When a book leaves me laughing at the end, has me doing spittakes and in stitches in the middle, and absolutely captivated by the strangeness and unique nature of the characters at the beginning of the story, well 5 stars it is.

And Shelby Rhodes didn’t even include one cliffhanger this time! Murderous, pain-loving characters (yes, pls do read the trigger warnings), a vampire who is quite unlike any other I’ve read, and a snarling human hunter who gets him as a partner. Both seem to have mysteries swirling around them. Even better.

The writing is really great, moving the story forward quickly without sacrificing character growth or relationship development. There’s so much more going on here that’s it’s easy to miss the small details. Bombs going off,bodies everywhere, mythologies being laid down, an agency foundation and country laws pieced together for the readers and multiple species at the same time.

It’s fabulous and woven in a bit at a time. Along with a great cast of characters that support diminutive vampire Foxx Honeywell and hulking hunter Harlow Blackmore.

Those terms in no way even begin to describe how complex and dynamic this partnership will become.

I’m dying to have the next release in my hands! My mind is filling with possibilities about what is going on with both of them. I can’t wait to see what happens next!

Highly imaginative, beautifully written, yes! A five-star read! One I’m absolutely recommending.

The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx:

✓ At First Irritation #1

◦ Taste of Fear #2 – Dec 15, 2023

Trigger Warnings:

“This is a slow burn M/ M paranormal romance series with heat. There will be blood, violence, gore, torture and death. Please do not read if you find any of the previous triggering.”

— At First Irritation (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 1) by Shelby Rhodes

Buy Link:

At First Irritation (The Unwilling Adventures of Harlow & Foxx Book 1)

Description:

“Welcome, welcome. I can only guess you are here to read about my wonderful adventures? Oh, you don’t know who I am? Well, I’m Foxx Honeywell. An adorable, fierce vampire with a kink for violence. Anywho, this marks the beginning of my story. A story of violence, blood, possibly pain, and love. Though, the love part is not so apparent at first.”

So how does this story start, you may ask? Well, it starts with a simple—okay, maybe not so simple—law change, and a new job. I, Foxx, join the notorious Hunters Guild. An organization that used to murder my kind indiscriminately. But that was in the past. We’ve moved on and forward to better things, as paranormals are legal now! Yay, legal…

However, joining this government agency of questionable morals was just the catalyst of it all. Sure, the job is fun; lots of killing, maiming, blood, and even some explosions. But what is an adventure if you are all on your own? Boring, that’s what. No, the true satisfaction and fun comes not just from the job but from my partner on the job, Harlow Blackmore. The man is a sexy, silver fox of a human, who may or may not be a psychopath. He also possibly finds me irritating as hell. As any rational adult would, I choose to ignore those last parts and focus on the sexy! It will surely all work out in the end!”

Review: Tournament of Losers (Legacy of Charlet Book 1) by Megan Derr

Rating: 4.5🌈

Another great story by Megan Derr. While it’s a bit predictable as far as the outline, it’s in the characters and the journey where the magic happens.

Derr starts with creating a sympathetic main character, Rath. A man literally beaten down by his life’s struggles and the daily catastrophes his drunken father manages to make him responsible for. Rath’s enduring power to survive his own father’s debts as well as provide for his mother put us automatically on his side. Then, the more we become acquainted with Rath, the deeper we dive into his empathy for others and his ability to understand the conditions of those around him. Derr has written us a beautifully human reluctant hero of the common folk.

Combined with a delightful romp with a high borne noble of mysterious lineage and a sudden need for money, Derr sets up her hero for a first class adventure.

It’s called the Tournament of Charlet but sense everyone figures it’s rigged it’s nickname is the Tournament of Losers for all the naive people who enter thinking they will win and marry into royalty and wealth.

As I said, it’s the journey Derr sets Rath out on after he enters the Tournament needing the money to settle debts. Nothing goes as planned and we love it and him that way.

The supporting characters are equally strong and one will find his way into his own book.

I throughly enjoyed this. Derr is a must read for me. And I’m happily waiting for the next to be released.

Meanwhile, if you are a fantasy lover and a Derr fan, grab this one up! Highly recommended.

Legacy of Charlet:

✓ Tournament of Losers #1

◦ Quest of Fools #2 – July 21,2023

Buy Link:

Tournament of Losers (Legacy of Charlet)

Description:

All Rath wants is a quiet, peaceful life. Unfortunately, his father brings him too much trouble—and too many debts to pay—for that to ever be possible. When the local crime lord drags Rath out of bed and tells him he has three days to pay his father’s latest debt, Rath doesn’t know what to do. There’s no way to come up with so much money in so little time.Then a friend poses an idea just ridiculous enough to work: enter the Tournament of Losers, where every seventy-five years, peasants compete for the chance to marry into the noble and royal houses. All competitors are given a stipend to live on for the duration of the tournament—funds enough to cover his father’s debt.All he has to do is win the first few rounds, collect his stipend, and then it’s back to trying to live a quiet life…

Rathatayen Jakobson, thirty-three, Robert’s sausage shop.””

— Tournament of Losers (Legacy of Charlet Book 1) by Megan Derr

Review: Touch the Lightning (The Storm Boys #3) by N. R. Walker

Rating: 5🌈

I always have such mixed emotions about the last book in a series I absolutely love. I don’t want to say goodbye so I dread reading it but I also want to see where the author is going to go with the compelling, complex characters they have created. And how the author will do so within the context of the framework of the series themes they’ve set down.

Walker sends off The Storm Boys in a manner we might not have expected but one that is so much more than I anticipated. It gives Tully and Jeremiah the happiest of moments going forward, the satisfaction for us and themselves in their lives, and all the characters we’ve come to know and adore.

If I were to be greedy, yes, I’d want holiday special stories. And yes, I hope I get them. But am I in love with the way they ended here? Yes.

Storms and lightning. Jeremiah ‘s traumatic past, and how it’s still been a lightning rod in many respects for Jeremiah, holding him back , from being able to see himself in certain roles, to being able to say I love you to Tully. Walker brings all this into the story, weaving it into their evolving relationship. Tully’s family is a terrific source of narrative joy here, with great characters and supportive, meaningful conversations.

Tully’s character is one who has always been an impulsive person away from the family but now a traumatic event causes major emotional changes in Tully’s perspectives. It’s realistic, painful, and makes Tully even more vulnerable .

It’s hard to describe how the layers of loss, tragedy, and trauma are combined, pulled apart, rendered into something more meaningful, and the new reality becomes more complex and , through Walker’s writing, something beautiful.

I love these men. I truly hope that the author will visit them again. But if not , I know this series just became a comfort read.

I highly recommend it and this book. Read them in the order they are written! And enjoy!

The Storm Boys:

✓ Outrun The Rain

✓ Into The Tempest

✓ Touch The Lightning-finale

Second Chance at First Love: Prequel to The Storm Boys

Buy Link:

Book 3 of 3: The Storm Boys Series

Description:

The Storm Boys Series – Book Three

Without a working office, Jeremiah is tasked with repairing the automated weather station on Oxley Island. It’s remote, only accessible by boat, and with there being a good chance of crocodiles, he’s dreading it.

Tully, on the other hand, can’t wait.

With a boat licence, his dad’s boat, and two days alone with Jeremiah—and with thunderstorms likely—to Tully, it’s another perfect adventure.

But their plans go awry when Jeremiah’s research gets far too close for comfort. Thirty years ago, the day his life was touched by lightning, he was changed forever.

It’s about to change again, only this time he’s determined to set things right.

Review: Make Me Stay (Safe Harbor Book 2) by Annabeth Albert

Rating: 4.5🌈

Make Me Stay is my favorite so far in the Safe Harbor trilogy by Annabeth Albert. It’s got so many interesting characters and compelling storylines attached to it, but by far, it’s the main characters here that make the book fascinating.

We have central to the series arc, a mass murderer who’s killed the mother of a character known to many people featured in the series. The house of the family of the victim is currently being renovated, and the son of the victim is a long time crush of the man who’s bought the house.

Now around that float various main characters with their own respective issues and evolving relationships.

In Make Me Stay we have Professor Holden Justice, former police officer who retired on disability. Holden’s a professor who , along with his friend have a successful true crimes podcast that’s been working on the murder mystery.

A chilling new clue from the murderer himself brings retired Navy SEAL diver Cal into the area and ongoing investigation. Albert is well known for her well crafted damaged characters and Cal fits beautifully into this category. He’s fighting a battle with survivors guilt because of a mission in his past, the same event that’s causing the untreated PTSD that’s making sleep difficult and relationships not worth fighting for.

Putting him next to Holden, a survivor himself, who use’s humor as a front to hide his own feelings of control and fear of loss, and the author’s giving the reader a dynamic relationship that’s complicated and often compelling reading.

It’s not the usual journey. Cal has a need to give up control just as Holden is one to take it. So ropes, ties, kink is included as part of the process of getting each other to trust and lower their boundaries. It’s both a sexy and superb aspect of the story.

The lake and the diving elements are also strong and chilling. There’s just enough of this part of the plot to keep us intrigued about the murder as well as the diving dangers inherent in Cal’s professional capacity.

The murder itself remains the weakest link here. I expect that to change in the next book. I’m really excited to see what happens there.

In the meantime, this is a fabulous story. Love the well written characters, the difficult issues they face, and how they personally grow to become a couple that will face the future together.

Highly recommended!

Safe Harbor series:

◦ Bring Me Home #1

◦ Make Me Stay #2

◦ Find Me Worthy #3 – Sept 28,2023

Buy Link:

Make Me Stay: A Hurt/Comfort Small Town MM Roommates Romance (Safe Harbor Book 2)

Description:

Roommate Not Wanted

I’m a forty-year-old homeowner and former detective. My friends think a roommate is the solution to my recent funk, but I know that’s the last thing I need.

And even if they’re right, sharing my home with Cal is a bad idea. The prickly SEAL rescue diver has muscles for miles, haunted eyes, a wounded soul, and wandering feet that won’t be happy for long in Safe Harbor. Yet those fathoms-deep blue eyes have me making an offer I’ll surely regret.

Our arrangement may be doomed, but Cal is an amazing roommate. We’re soon cooking my mom’s favorite recipes, watching terrible TV, accidentally cuddling, and trying not to cross the line from friendship to fling.

Until I discover Cal’s sexy secret.

Boundaries blur, and I forget I’m not supposed to fall for Cal. Every kiss, touch, and discovery we make together pulls us deeper until there’s no denying our feelings.

I want nothing more than to keep Cal in town, in my bed, and in my heart, but Cal seems destined to swim back to his solo ways.

Can I bear to let him go, or will our love make him stay forever?

MAKE ME STAY is a hurt/comfort roommates-to-lovers MM romance. It features two mature, wounded heroes, disability rep, a proud pansexual, a SEAL having a demisexual awakening, and sexy discoveries involving rope. Deep feels, dual point-of-view, and big fluffy HEA guaranteed.

MAKE ME STAY is book two in the Safe Harbor series from acclaimed author Annabeth Albert. This small historic Oregon town has a tight friend group, memorable secondary characters, quirky businesses, and long-held secrets. Each book stands alone with a fresh couple, but the background mystery of the town’s secrets ties the series together, making reading in order more fun!

Make Me Stay touches on grief, loss, military-related PTSD, disability and chronic illness, and the realities of modern military service.”

— Make Me Stay: A Hurt/Comfort (Safe Harbor Book 2) by Annabeth Albert

https://a.co/a7TwIqp

Review: A Beginner’s Guide to Mistakenly Summoned Demons and Other Misadventures (Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures Book 2) by Shannon Mae

Rating: 4.5🌈

I love it when the author improves upon the original themes and world building they originate in the first novel of the series. In A Beginner’s Guide to Mistakenly Summoned Demons and Other Misadventures (Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures Book 2), Mae continues with the humor of humans and demons finding each other their eternal soulmate, and all that entails.

But here in Mistakenly Summoned Demons, she ups the heart factor, emphasizing the importance of emotional connections and the depth of their relationship to each other and ones family. Whatever that means.

The humor and laughter is still here, but the serious topics and larger issues are always present. Not to pull down or burden the characters or storylines, but to underline their various roles, or themes within the plot.

Gabe is a perfect example. Having his marvelous grandmother summon a lust demon for his birthday, it’s not going according to plan. Gabe’s newest companion is asking Gabe to explore his sexuality, to think about how and why he’s not had a fulfilling sexual relationship or any at all. How this is done, by letting human Gabe and the Infernal King of Hell, Prince of Lust, Asmodeus, get to know each other as friends, gradually becoming more deeply acquainted (yes, it’s not just any ol’ demon).

They do start to work on Gabe’s idea of what he finds sexually attractive (there’s some kink) and it’s very hot! However, it’s also character driven with a sharp focus on plot growth and series world building. Mae throws in some fabulous plot twists and great new character developments . She’s building a group of characters who will eventually find their soulmates too. And by doing that, add to a greater pattern.

I am so enamored of Gabe and As that I’m thrilled to hear from the author they will be popping up again in the other books. They are simply amazing and too good to contain to one story.

So far there’s three ready and more planned. I’m so excited to see what happens next.

Absolutely recommending the series. Read them in the order they are written.

Check out the great covers and dates for book three to drop!

Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures:

✓ A Beginner’s Guide to Death, Demons, and Other Afterlife Disasters #1

✓ A Beginner’s Guide to Mistakenly Summoned Demons and Other Misadventures #2

◦ A Beginner’s Guide to Revenge, Chaos, and Other Absurd Escapades #3-Oct 5,2023

Buy Link

A Beginner’s Guide to Mistakenly Summoned Demons and Other Misadventures (Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures Book 2)

Description:

Gabriel:

Mistakenly summoning a lust demon was not on Gabe’s to-do list, but with a meddling grandmother, he’s gotten used to the unexpected. The real trouble begins when Gabe realizes exactly who he’s summoned. What’s a guy supposed to do when an Infernal King of Hell has decided he’s staying and wants to follow Gabe around like a stray puppy? Add having a job as a teacher, living in a family of meddlers, and dealing with a bureaucratic underworld, and Gabe is about ready to lose his patience. When the Prince of Lust decides he’s going to help Gabe figure out his sexuality, though, things really start to get interesting. Maybe mistakenly summoning a demon wasn’t the worst thing to happen after all.

Asmodeus:

Asmodeus has dealt with humans and their lust since they were first created, and he has never met someone immune to his powers. So when he’s forcibly summoned (which should be impossible), and he realizes he has no power whatsoever over the human (which hasn’t happened before), he’s more than a little intrigued. No way is he going back to hell when he’s found such a mystery. When he realizes that Gabe is confused about his own sexuality, Az happily decides to help him figure it out. Who better than a lust demon for the job, after all? If Az happens to get slightly obsessed with his human in the process, who’s going to tell him he can’t keep the guy? Now Az just needs to convince Gabe that keeping a lust demon around forever is the perfect plan.

Tags: A lust demon meets his match in a human who experiences limited sexual attraction; Grams cannot be trusted when she’s in the kitchen; siblings are annoying; Az doesn’t understand why Gabe thinks a demon shouldn’t pretend to be a high school teacher; sexuality is not always clear cut; Az likes to watch, and maybe Gabe does too; exploring what checks your boxes can be tons of fun with the right person (or demon).

Review: Rookie Mistakes (A Lights Out Novel) by Beth Laycock

Rating: 4.75🌈

““Anything happens in Grand Prix racing, and it usually does.”—Murray Walker”

— Rookie Mistakes by Beth Laycock

What an excellent read!

I’m not sure what the title and the beginning of the synopsis refers to because it really doesn’t pertain to anything in this story, imo.

In a multi-author series about one F1 racing season, the authors focus has been the F1 racing circuit itself, from the owners to the drivers. As the series says:

Twenty-three races

Twenty drivers

Ten teams

Five Lights

One Winner

Laycock , interestingly enough, takes the lowest team, Maverick Racing, an older, newly returned veteran driver, Robert Andilet, and matches him up with absolutely no one attached to the F1 world. Instead, the author creates a betrayed, damaged, older chef, coming out of an awful relationship.

Mitch Griffiths has lost everything due to his ex, but his father, a F1 fan, decided to gift to his oblivious son something he,the dad, would love to have for himself. A day at Silverstone F1 track.

In this fashion, Laycock manages , by way of a total neophyte like Mitch, to bring the reader more throughly into the racing scene than I could have imagined. We are seeing this world through new eyes, feeling the thunder and roaring of the engines, smelling the oil and gasoline, and get an adrenaline boost along with Mitch as he understands just why , from being there in person, it gets under the skin. Instantly, a fan is born. Maybe not just Mitch.

The interactions between Robert and Mitch are such a joy to read. As Robert fights his way through the crowd to better his pole position, enough to get an extension on his contract and prove himself, there’s Mitch trying to figure out his future and a pathway towards trust and a relationship.

Except for that odd title, Laycock excels at keeps her themes, the dynamic elements of F1 racing and those lovely men firmly in the heart of the story. I was so involved in every aspect of this narrative, of each man’s life and their separate journeys.

My only quibble was that the ending, the epilogue, was a bit rushed. There’s only one year’s difference between them, but so much more has changed in that time. I wish it had been covered in the story instead.

This is really one of two books in this series that , for me, got the racing aspect, the adrenaline rushing, heart pounding experience down pat. And then delivered a grand romance as well.

Love it.

I’m highly recommending it and the series. Each has something different to say about the sport. But this keeps the heart of F1 racing alive and roaring!

Well done! Terrific way to close out the series!

Lights Out:

✓ Team Orders by RJ Scott❤️

✓ Full Throttle by Lisa Henry

✓ Pole Position by Charlie Novak

✓ Scoring Points by HL Day

✓ Black Flagged by Emma Jaye

✓ Rookie Mistakes by Beth Laycock❤️

Buy Link:

Rookie Mistakes

Description:

Can a rookie mistake lead to love?

Mitch Griffiths is an ordinary man just trying to make ends meet. He lost everything thanks to his ex: his restaurant, his partner, his home. So, when his dad gifts him a ticket to the British Grand Prix and a Silverstone Driving Experience, well, a change of scene for the weekend couldn’t hurt, could it? Even if Formula 1 is kind of boring.

Robert Andilet is a veteran F1 driver on his returning season after a six-year absence. He has a lot to learn, not least of which is how to deal with the media attention, a “rivalry” between him and his rookie teammate, as well as his attraction to a man who readily admits he thinks F1 is tedious. It was a rookie mistake to let Mitch walk away after their first meeting, will Robert make the same mistake again?

This M/M romance from Beth Laycock features a famous/ordinary man, older MCs, and is set in the high-octane world of Formula 1 featuring fast cars, spectacular crashes, heated rivalries, and of course, an HEA

Each book in the Lights Out collection is a standalone story, and the books can be read in any order.