Tag: violence

Review:  Dungeon Crawler Carl: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 1 by Matt Dinniman

Rating:  4.75⭐️

What inspired, insane fiction! Dungeon Crawler Carl: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 1 by Matt Dinniman just about defies being categorized into a trope. It’s too wild, too murderously funny, thrilling, outrageous, and alien to be put into a box.   

Coast Guard veteran, Carl, is living in an apartment with his ex-girlfriend’s Champion Persian cat, Princess Donut, when she takes a runner out his window.  It’s late, so he follows in only his boxers, pink crocs, and a coat to capture her from the tree. 

Then the aliens arrive. 

What happens next is bedlam. Death, destruction, and alien gamers galore as a galactic corporation sets up a massive network game called Dungeon Crawler on what is left of Earth. 

If you have played any type of game, then you will be familiar with the main elements of the story. Leveling up, winning points, getting gift boxes, fighting bosses etc, that you would in most games. If you haven’t, you can pick it up. 

But the characters, the monsters, the interactions and sheer intensity of the game and situations are believable and gripping.  It’s fast paced and over the top murderous lunacy at times.  And just when it’s veering off into the ultimate craziness, author Dinniman brings us and Carl back into the terrifying, devastating reality of what happened to the world Carl knew. Everything’s occurring so quickly, he’s having to react to survive, crisis after crisis, that he’s not been able to properly process his emotions or the reality of his own situation. Or Princess Donut’s.  

The shattering heartbreak of the callousness of this situation will fleetingly make it known but, at least in this story, they can’t stop and reflect on what happened.  They must keep moving. 

There’s so many great moments and inventive characters. Carl and Donut, who both acts like a cat and a highly intelligent leader, are incredibly believable and relatable personalities. 

I’m quickly headed to the next book, there’s seven released at the moment, and it’s not completely finished yet.

Can’t imagine not wanting to read such a well written, highly entertaining, imaginative novel. Yes, it’s extremely violent, tons of deaths, heartbreaking but also funny. Fascinating, and thoughtful. Great for those who like to game and those who don’t. 

A urban fantasy adventure/science fiction alien crossover? Either way, highly recommended. 

These are, book by book, the most incredible, on point illustrations for covers. Colors are popping, the characters are spot on! Amazing artwork!

Cover Illustration by Luciano Fleitas

Cover Design by Toby Dinniman

 Interior Illustrations by Erik Wilson

Series not complete/Dungeon Crawler Carl:

Dungeon Crawler Carl #1

Carl’s Doomsday Scenario #2

The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook #3

The Gate of the Feral Gods #4

The Butcher’s Masquerade #5

The Eye of the Bedlam Bride #6

This Inevitable Ruin #7

Buy link

        Dungeon Crawler Carl: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 1

    

Blurb 

The apocalypse will be televised! 

You know what’s worse than breaking up with your girlfriend? Being stuck with her prize-winning show cat. And you know what’s worse than that? An alien invasion, the destruction of all man-made structures on Earth, and the systematic exploitation of all the survivors for a sadistic intergalactic game show. That’s what.

Join Coast Guard vet Carl and his ex-girlfriend’s cat, Princess Donut, as they try to survive the end of the world—or just get to the next level—in a video game–like, trap-filled fantasy dungeon. A dungeon that’s actually the set of a reality television show with countless viewers across the galaxy. Exploding goblins. Magical potions. Deadly, drug-dealing llamas. This ain’t your ordinary game show.

Welcome, Crawler. Welcome to the Dungeon. Survival is optional. Keeping the viewers entertained is not.

  • Publication date: October 2, 2020
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 446 pages

Review:  Beautifully Savage Butterfly (Mafia Bound #2) by K. M. Neuhold 

Rating: 4.5🌈

I had no idea that K. M. Neuhold’s dark crime romance series, Mafia Bound, would climb to the top of my list of favorites from this author.  But it certainly has just based on the two fantastic books Neuhold has released in this addictive series.

Violent, dangerously sexual, full of men ready for kinky sex and dark unmistakable attraction amidst Mafia family drama and power struggles within the criminal territories of their city.  Yes, please!

Mafia Bound has its center in the powerful crime family, the Morettis, run by big brother, Lorenzo Moretti.  The first story, which I loved, featured his enforcer, the Ice Man, Xaviaro Saviano, and his romance with Sparrow, an assassin with an agenda. They are seen again here in all their loving psychotic glory. Perfection.

The hints of this relationship we saw in that novel come out swinging here, literally as Elio’s obsession with MMA/ underground boxing champion  Orion is on full display during a courtside match.  It’s a match where anything goes, and the fury, the sheer intensity and physicality just powers off the page.

Neuhold sets the tone and themes here for the characters, the settings, and their dynamic, all right there at the beginning.  It’s violent, bloody, powerful, intense, gripping, and magnetic.  Each character is so well executed and beautifully defined that we understand them even though they have more layers to be revealed as the story progresses.  

Each man is set both within their own family and history, and then within their developing world where their universe will eventually overlap.  It’s fascinating to watch/read about because we feel a part of this couple’s journey. That Orion makes a credible reversal in his view of the Moretti family is due to how Neuhold handled this aspect of his journey in the storyline.  Well done. 

This is how the reader makes such an intimate connection with them , the understanding we reach with each of them, one that’s potentially very dark as well given the violent nature of the situations. 

This is a BDSM D/s relationship, with someone who craves certain elements within their sexual play. Read the notes.  This will go for the series as well, per the characters. 

The plot lines, the characters and their interactions were so great.  I loved the elements with Jack. That’s Orion’s brother whose disability plays a huge part of the story.  And as the two novels have hinted at, Dante,the intriguing dancer,  has a relationship of his own with Sal coming. 

I can’t wait for this one. 

So, more please.  I’m so hooked.  The Moretti family has me in their clutches.  I’m highly recommending Beautifully Savage Butterfly but start with Deadly Little Sparrow, then head here. 

Great covers.

Mafia Bound:

  • Deadly Little Sparrow #1
  • Beautifully Savage Butterfly #2

Buy link 

        Beautifully Savage Butterfly (Mafia Bound Book 2)

    

Blurb

Being savage in the ring is one thing. The way Elio Moretti craves my violence outside the ring is another.

I feel like I’ve been fighting my whole life, and tapping out has never been an option.

I can live with owing money to the Morettis. I can even live with the constant guilt that my brother is the one paralyzed in a hospital bed while I live his dream. What I can’t live with is Elio Moretti, second in command to the infamous crime family, showing up to all my fights, sitting in the front row, watching me like he can’t look away, and barging into the locker room to patch up my wounds and invade my space.

The Morettis are monsters. Vicious, brutal sociopaths. So, why is Elio so eager to get on his knees for me?

He’s as desperate to give up control as I am to take it, but is giving in to these primal urges enough of a reason to sell my soul?

He claims there are worse people in this city than his family, and the deeper I get dragged into his world, the more true that’s starting to seem. Can I really fall in love with a Mafia underboss? Is it even possible to walk away?

  • Publication date: September 6, 2024
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 280 pages

Review: War of the Wicked (Lucifer’s Landing Book 1) by Davidson King

Rating: 4.5🌈

Trigger warnings:

“This book contains on-page violence, torture, attempted rape, and abuse.”

That out of the way, and yes, I think most readers appreciate that the warnings are put at the beginning of the book so any reader can make a quick judgement as to whether they should read the story or not, rather then search it out at a website or wait until the end of the book for them when it’s too late, War of the Wicked is an exciting, violent mob romance.

King has created a city in New York, Lucifer’s Landing, that’s completely owned, and operated, however illegally, by various mob families. There’s the Italians, the Japanese, the Irish, the Haitians, and the Greeks, all fighting against each other to ensure their territories and weaken their opponents.

These are the main characters, primarily, so the violence and warnings make sense.

It starts with the Italians. Dante Scavo, who’s just buried his father, the now former head of their mafia family. It’s Dante, in this time of mourning for his father, who must gather the family together, keep their businesses and territories intact against the other families, and find out if his father’s death was murder.

King builds a strong sense of who Dante is in this moment of crisis and grief, as well as the people closest to him. That includes his family and the men who worked under his father, like his consigliere, Edward.

That these people are violent predators, criminals who are also capable of being loving family members is inherently important to the plot and their characters. King’s creations get that across beautifully.

If there is an “innocent” person here, it’s the high end prostitute/escort, Rainn Blessings, who works at one of the Scavo businesses, The Magic Mirror. The sex workers here aren’t forced to work here. They’re paid highly and treated extremely well and with respect. It’s a matter of perspective or level.

And while their initial meeting and discussion of future plans is that of a business plan, which I found interesting and pretty relevant to the situation, King still builds on a chemistry happening between them.

This is a book I gobbled up. The action and events just start speeding up as the Scavo family comes under attack, Dante has to fight back against forces inside and out, while his relationship with Rainn builds.

The warnings at the beginning are there for a reason. It gets intense when the families go to war and start slaughtering each other. If this is a trigger, this might not be the book for you.

I’m recommending it for lovers of this trope and fans of this author. I absolutely enjoyed it. And moved onto the sequel.

Lucifer’s Landing

✓ War of the Wicked #1)

✓ Rise of the Ruthless #2

Buy Link:

War of the Wicked (Lucifer’s Landing Book 1)

Blurb:

Lucifer’s Landing is full of unscrupulous people: five families desperate to own every inch. For years, under the watchful and most powerful eye, there has been peace. With the murder of the most powerful man, it’s as if the gates of Hell have opened.

Dante Scavo is trying to fill his father’s shoes, find the person responsible for killing him, and stop Lucifer’s Landing from becoming a war zone. He has to focus, find out who the traitor among his ranks is, and end them. The last thing he needs is a distraction, but when he meets Rainn, one look, one touch, takes his breath away.

Rainn Blessings is no stranger to strong and powerful men. His life is about survival and getting to a place where he finds his peace, though sometimes that means being the fantasy of others. Working as a high-class escort he’s seen a lot…done a lot…and not much surprises him. Then Dante walks into The Magic Mirror and turns his world upside down.

With an unlikely ally, Rainn and Dante try to survive the storm, but no one is bulletproof or untouchable in the game of violent delights. Getting out unscathed is impossible; the question is: will they get out alive?

***Please see start of book for trigger warning

(This was previously released through Maple House Publishing. War of the Wicked has been reedited and minor changes have been made from the original content)

• Publisher: (January 4, 2023)

• Publication date: January 4, 2023

• Print length: 235 pages

Review: Liar’s Gambit ( The Elite Universe) by Kelly Fox

Rating: 5🌈

10/10 Fabulously Recommend!

Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox is one of the top highlights of The Elite series, nine novels written by different authors. At the heart is The Anonymous, a mysterious club housed in a historic art deco hotel that caters to the needs and whims of the wealthy, who are often of the blackest or at least grey natures. That extends to their businesses, professions, and perhaps proclivities.

Within the boundaries of The Anonymous, all are protected.

Liar’s Gambit begins where a Hitman’s job ends. Nigel , a hitman with a sorta conscience, heads towards a potential new assignment and company that his handler has passed on to him. It’s shortly after his latest job ends, and he’s in need of a hotel room, something to eat , to go along with his meeting.

It’s all about to take place at The Anonymous. His client , Wilhelm, a gorgeous billionaire, with a mission that’s a bit quirky, retrieve a rare coin, maybe hit a couple of people. All sounds very nebulous, and yet he’s still on board with the idea. Must be Wilhelm.

I have to say Kelly Fox must be inundated by now with requests to write further novels about these characters. They definitely deserve it. They are simply sublime.

From their dangerously wry and sometimes disturbing inner commentary, about the events and each other, to the kinky , hot sex, and fast paced games of thrilling suspense and violence, this is an incredible story!

The men, their swift building relationship, and , that stunning “I never saw THAT coming “ twist at the end which made you go immediately back to the beginning and start all over.

Do NOT read anything with spoilers because that ending shouldn’t be given away. It’s that great!

What can I say? Outstanding characters, tightly packed and plotted storylines, an out of this world twist, and fabulous ending.

Liar’s Gambit ( The Elite Universe) by Kelly Fox is top notch entertainment! I wish I could rate it higher!

The Elite Multi-Author series (9 Books):

✓ Reckless Roulette by Alice Winters

✓ Leave No Trace by Michelle Frost and Sammi Cee❤️

✓ Ace of Maids by K.L. Hiers

✓ Poison Hearts by Jennifer Cody❤️

◦ Liar’s Gambit by Kelly Fox❤️

◦ Dealer of Secrets by Davidson King

◦ Bullets & Butterflies by Maz Maddox

◦ Love for the Reaper by Charlie Cochet

◦ Chance Encounter by Luna David

Buy Link:

Liar’s Gambit (The Elite Book 1)

Description:

He’s a liar. I’m a hitman. And there’s a game afoot.

After seeking sanctuary at The Anonymous, an elite club for lawless types, the elegant, beastly Wilhelm invites me to help him with a simple mission: retrieve the priceless artifact that was stolen from one of his billionaire friends.

I’m bored, there’s potential for violence, and his terms are generous, so why not?

I quickly discover, however, that Wilhelm has been slightly mischievous with the details, and there’s nothing simple about this mission. He’s betting I’ll go along with his insane plan; I’m still deciding whether or not to slit his throat.

Could be fun either way.

Liar’s Gambit is a 22k-word novella that is part of the multi-author series The Elite. Each book can be read as a standalone and in any order. What links these books together is The Anonymous, a club beneath the gritty city where only the elite are welcome.

Review: In Death Together (The Undead Detective Agency #3) by Shelby Rhodes

Rating: 4.75🌈

In Death Together is everything I expected it to be and yet it’s more!

I’ve come to have high expectations for this series. Rhodes has layered in a chilling storyline of a psychological horror thriller that has elements of pathological violence and stalking, abuses and non consent, obsession and death.

There’s a fabulous found family of paranormal beings headed by an ancient vampire who’s unlike any I’ve met in other works of fiction. Octavius and his human lover , Turney’s path to a forever relationship has been eventful and , here, shockingly horrifying. I shed so many tears. Why I didn’t think I would, I honestly don’t know. But I was as shattered by the first part of this story as was Octavius. It’s that Rhodes has done such an exemplary job in making us care for Turney that the events at the end of Keep It Together, those that double as the beginning of In Death Together, are emotionally draining and so full of pain even as they are expected.

The author’s skillfully wrought dynamic that’s so outwardly sexy and humorous between these two characters gets peeled away at the most powerful moments to reveal the depths of feeling and love that truly exists within their bond. One that death cannot break. Although it tries.

There’s other characters, and romantic relationships. Most within the found family. Some are promising, some are tragic, and one is unexpectedly lovely. The last is an explicit F/F romance. If this is an issue, skip over it, or this isn’t the book for you. I adore the couple.

There’s a battle unlike any other. But as Octavius is involved in the planning, wild things ensue! And horrible things as well. Rhodes’ narrative balancing act between comedy and pathos/horror teeters delicately even when bones are being smashed, and explosions are going off.

The ending is a cliffhanger. It sets up the final book , Forever Together.

I love In Death Together. I wept throughout all that excellently executed horror, and expected moments of untold emotional agony and guilt. Rhodes has given us , with Octavius and Turney , romantic relationships and deep love, hilarity and glitter, sexual hijinks and role playing moments that are so memorable they need bookmarks!

And a found family full of characters to treasure and journey with to their own destiny with happiness and love.

We have but one more book to see that happen.

I’m highly recommending In Death Together (The Undead Detective Agency #3) by Shelby Rhodes but make sure to read all the preceding books first. They must be read in the order that they were written.

I also love the covers.

The Undead Detective Agency:

✓ Get It Together #1

✓ Keep It Together #2

✓ In Death Together #3

◦ Forever Together #4 TBD 2024

Buy Link:

In Death Together (The Undead Detective Agency Book 3)

Description:

You’ve returned… good! Octavius Evander here, your lovable vampire detective. So, where we ended things last time, everything had gone horribly wrong. What can really be said, besides that change is a fact of life, and unlife. Turney, my love, my heart—unfortunately, he has much change to deal with. No matter, we will all get through it together! Some of us will be getting through it together, much closer than we ever expected, if you know what I mean.

But, enough about that. On to the cases! We will have a new one come up, one with love and questionable family relationships, and even a murder! We don’t get to witness the murder, but we can’t always get what we want. Either way, it’s going to be fun.

Lastly, I suppose there is also the old case looming over us. The ‘pain in the ass’ case. Prepare yourselves for pain, blood, betrayal, glitter, and devastation. No, hint’s as to whose…but remember, this is a love story. Stop worrying, you silly humans. It will be fine.

CONTENT WARNING: This is an M/M paranormal romance book, with a little F/F on the side. There will be blood, violence, gore, mention of SA (no on-page details), and death. Please do not read if you find any of the previous situations triggering.

Review: The Bones in the Yard (Beyond the Veil Book 5) by KM Avery

Rating: 4.75🌈

Beyond The Veil series continues it’s excellent journey into the macabre and magical with The Bones in The Yard. KM Avery’s series is slightly divided into sections of three, each focusing on a specific main character and couple.

The Bones in The Yard is the second of the group of stories about the elf detective, Valentine “Val” Hart. Val, now private investigator with Beyond the Veil , a firm owned by Mason and Ward , a orc witch and human warlock who deal in all things magical, arcane and the dead.

Avery’s book picks up after the events in The Dog In The Alley, the story that introduces Val to Taavi Camal, Xoloitzcuintli shifter who is a rare born Arcanid. Taavi, in a fascinating twist, spent much of that story and their time together in his dog form (through trauma) , which prompts a lot of mixed emotions and deep questioning from Val over how to deal with Taavi on different levels. It’s a great element and one whose impact continues through to this story.

Avery has ,through five books, demonstrated an exemplary ability to craft believable traumatized characters, ones so complex and compelling that we can understand all the layers of denial they are putting between them and the reality of their existence. These are brutal books, dealing with death through evil, horrific acts. Some from past history that Avery brings tragically, furiously to life through the ghosts Ward talks to. Others through the vicious, ruthless events of modern life, from the magical world or against it.

The Bones In The Yard attacks the seemingly unflappable elf on every level. Avery uses this book to narratively open up Val emotionally, flay him for his own introspection about his life, and the shifter he’s not sure how to love. The same shifter who’s trying to get Val to see that Val is showing all the signs of some who has PTSD. Which Val does. Most of the beings here are under constant threat of violence or have been physically / mentally/ magically assaulted. Or been somehow effected by it. It’s a very harsh reality.

The shifter, Taavi Camal, a Xoloitzcuintli dog (among those commonly known as Mexican hairless) , has been recently injured and Arcanids are being ritually murdered, another scary fact for him and Val.

Avery layers on fascinating Maya and Incan mythology to go with terrifying discoveries and murders. All the marvelous found family of the Beyond the Veil is highly visible and involved as well as Val’s best friend from Wisconsin.

Elliot is important because a huge

part of Val’s identity is his Wisconsin family and heritage. He’s still that nondescript , 5’7” brown haired boy that no one wanted to date. The one that likes his baked goods and family before the Arcanavirus changed him into a 6’2”, gorgeous elf with long silver hair that continues to grow. There’s a constant struggle between the being he’s become , how he’s now perceived as this luminous beauty and the real person he’s inside. Again, a great element of this story and series. The new beings created , the ones that survived, by the Arcanavirus and society’s response to them.

Avery is constantly expanding this universe, coming back to the original threads which made it so imaginative. Here Taavi is a rare born Arcanid, instead of someone changed. He’s never been anything else, with implications for that. He doesn’t understand what it’s like to be human.

I’ve been distressed, constantly amazed, frustrated, appreciative, totally invested and always looking forward to the next chapter in the lives of the beings here.

I’m highly recommending this book but this is a series that must be read in order for the reader to understand the characters, the events that happened to them.

Beyond The Veil :

The Ghost In The Hall #1

The Boy In The Locked Room #2*

The Skeleton Under The Stairs #3

The Dog In The Alley #4

The Bones In The Yard #5

• Pls read reviews and trigger warnings about book 2 and Chapter 19, a chapter which deals in a sexual assault.

Buy Link:

The Bones in the Yard (Beyond the Veil Book 5)

Description:

I… have issues.

I know. Who’d have thought that a jaded ex-cop elf would have problems with emotional commitment and self-esteem?

Yeah, me, too.

I’m trying to work on that. I’ve also got a new job, new boss, and a pile of bones I’m trying to identify while not stepping on too many official police-business toes. To top things off, it looks like the Antiquus Ordo Arcanum aren’t the only murdering cult making my life a living hell.

I’m in the middle of a battleground between not one, but two cults and a group of people who think that witches, warlocks, and people like Ward and me shouldn’t exist. And as if that weren’t enough, I’m struggling to find time to work on self-improvement and maybe manage to go on a date or two in the mean time with a certain shifter who is just way too adorable for words.

I’m pretty sure he’s going to dump my ass. But I really, really, really hope he doesn’t. At least not before I can solve these murders and get my life a little more together than it currently isn’t.

Beyond the Veil Book 5

Part two of Hart’s story

Beyond the Veil 1-3: Ward & Mason’s story

Review: How to Defy a Vampire (VRC: Vampire Related Crimes Book 5) by Alice Winters

Rating: 4.5🌈

It’s was 2020 when we last saw a release in this series, so it took a while to remember what had happened and where we stood with all the characters and their relationships.

This paranormal series stood out from the beginning due to one of its main characters. That’s Finnegan “Finn” Hayes, a human police detective who comes to work for the VRC, the Vampire Related Crimes Unit. He’s a double amputee, arm and leg, both purposely cut off by a vampire with a master plan for Finn’s life, including total control.

That’s all discovered through convoluted, and disturbing revelations and plot threads in the beginning books. His outlook, his banter, all Finn’s way of dealing with the enormous horror he’s faced and the memories he carries. Winters never lets us or Finn, through his emotional struggles, forget that those special prosthetics (part of that horror) aren’t any true replacement for his missing limbs. They can break, the electronics can stop working, the nerves or specific cap where they attach has been damaged. It’s a believable portrait of a man who both needs his prostheses to feel complete and hates the vulnerability because of what he sees he becomes without them. A issue addressed further here.

I feel Finn is actually the most complex character Winters has created. And he continues to show character growth in small ways throughout the series.

His relationship with his partner, the ancient vampire, Marcus Church, is a terrific example. Marcus isn’t forthcoming about his bloody past , but it’s often his past that’s comes to confront them, forcing an exchange of information. As it happens here.

But Winters has a deeper scheme for the series arc apparently as she doubles, shockingly, back to Finn’s beginning.

I’ll say no more. But this is a real fear inducing storyline. And it’s only partially solved, leaving several threads open for discussion and potentially more huge issues and high drama.

We also get two new characters, both fascinating and engaging, and linked to both Finn and Marcus’ pasts.

Claude and Alexei are here and clearly more established in their relationship. I adore them.

I had forgotten how much I really love this series. It’s raw in its character complexity, scary in its story execution, and while it has it humorous moments, it remains a terrifying tale at heart with love always at risk.

Hopefully we won’t have to wait as long for the next installment.

Guts are torn out, heads fly, much violence. This is dark fiction at much of the time. Not something that you would want to read? Take notice.

Otherwise I’m recommending it highly. They must be read in the order they are written in order to understand the events and characters development.

VRC: Vampire Related Crimes series:

🔷How to Vex a Vampire #1

🔷How to Elude a Vampire #2

🔷How to Lure a Hunter #3

🔷How to Save a Human #4

🔷How to Defy a Vampire #5

Buy Link:

How to Defy a Vampire (VRC: Vampire Related Crimes Book 5)

Description:

Finn
Stumbling into a crime scene is pretty typical for me. As a human, joining the VRC has done everything but keep me out of trouble. And now I seem to be playing a part that I’d really rather not play… if I want to keep my head, that is.

By my side is my partner Marcus, a vampire who has vowed to tear the world apart—and even a mattress—to keep me safe. I want to do everything I can to protect my newfound family, no matter what we’re forced to face.

Marcus
When ghosts from my past step right into my path, I want to look the other way. I’d rather enjoy my life with Finn, figure out a way to make my brother less obnoxiously gaudy, and find out how to never go roller skating ever again.

Finn is the bravest person I’ve ever met, but he’s also a human and we’re working against some of the strongest vampires in existence. I’m left doing what I can to shield those dearest to me while trying to keep the past from consuming the present.

I can’t let the same mistakes happen again.

How to Defy a Vampire contains peculiar festive wear, misguided attempts at welcoming a human, and Marcus terrifying everyone as usual.

Review: Captured (Star Marked Warriors Book 1) by Sam Burns and W.M. Fawkes

Rating: 2.75 🌈

I do look forward to new releases from Sam Burns and W.M. Fawkes. Usually they are urban fantasy. But Captured is the first novel in their new Star Marked Warriors series and while I wish I could say I was a successful venture into aliens, space , and sci fi , it’s not. For me it registered as disappointing and a bit tired on themes.

While there’s a few elements that are good, and some nice characters, there’s also many overfamiliar features that factor into the novel I recognize. Story aspects I’ve come across multiple times from my years of reading this genre .

Let’s see if you recognize some.

◦ Humans being taken for breeding purposes. Why do aliens want us?

◦ Aliens similar enough to humans so breeding is possible. Does everyone have to be bipedal?

◦ They are blue aliens. Why are there so many blue aliens? Why not tangerine?

◦ Native cat species like giant tigers the size of cars. Very popular! Cats rule apparently.

◦ Tattoos that actually give various powers. That’s a great one and used so many ways.

◦ Poisonous jungle with flesh eating plants that throw out a spear to pull you in and devour you. That’s a favorite of many.

◦ Species that’s one gender. Also common. But here they sacrifice their ability to give birth in order to become strong warriors.

◦ Mages, alien mages. Huh.

◦ Labs, babies in bottles

◦ Warriors tournaments

◦ Instant love

Seriously, I know I missed a few but that’s quite a list. It all seemed so familiar because , even though the characters were new , new names, the plot and foundation felt dated.

Plus the way the aliens whipped in and out of the Earth’s orbit, kidnapping gorgeous people here and there. If they need only genetic material, why not be more specific?

The aliens almost idolize strength and the incredible survival ability above all. They’ve sacrificed for massive warrior body types. So when kidnapping another species for breeding wouldn’t they search out athletic types? Something to improve or at least not “weaken” the species?

But here, like giant blue magpies, they seek beauties! Oh look, shiny pretties! Doesn’t matter if they are tiny or medium sized, or whatever gender.

For a giant blue race that values warriors, strength, and fighting abilities. Anyone see a issue here?

Then it’s the kidnapees! The ones who awake on a ship of aliens, figure out they are all a bit gorgeous and hey, sexual slavery. They naturally panicked. One has a massive crying spell, as you would. But then. People who were only hysterical for a while, after undergoing what realistically could be called a emotionally shattering event, now they are fine. It’s an adventure! Well, after another suspended reality chapters.

Human kidnapped Lucas almost immediately gets into a sexual relationship with Prince Kaelum after only a few sentences about consent and gratification. SMH.

Was I connected in anyway to any of the people/beings here? No. Ok maybe the cats. But really no.

Events go by rather quickly. Things happen that ,especially at the end, make no sense. Then it’s over, but with threatening hints about what’s to come.

But each book is supposedly a standalone with a different couple.

So Lucas and Prince Kaelum get a HFN and the whole situation continues.

I don’t know. It’s a breeze to read . If not taken seriously, somewhat entertaining. But it’s not close to what I expected from any of their other pieces, especially Sam Burns’ fantasy stories. I do keep hoping for something new, exciting when authors decide to go narratively to space and beyond!

That just didn’t happen here.

If you’re a fan of these authors, have some spare time, you decide if this is your wheelhouse.

There’s more to the series:

Star Marked Warriors:

✓ Captured #1

◦ Declared #2

◦ Submitted #3

https://www.goodreads.com › showCaptured (Star Marked Warriors, #1) by Sam Burns | Goodreads

Synopsis:

An alien prince, a threatened throne, and the human mate who can help him save it…

Lucas: Sure, my life isn’t going exactly according to plan—I have a degree that led nowhere, a crappy job as a closing-shift barista, and an ex who has everything I want and got it . . . by dumping my sorry ass—but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to give up on living yet! And holy crap, when I’m plucked off the sidewalk of my rural Colorado town on the very night of my ex’s wedding, I’m pretty damn sure I’m about to lose my life and a whole lot more.

If you’ve never tried flying, I do not recommend the first time be when you’re drunk and alone at two in the morning. But there I was, dumped in a cage on a spacecraft, surrounded by barbarous, giant blue aliens. And the only thing that might keep me safe is there’s one huge, intimidating warrior who can’t keep his eyes off me.

Kaelum: I am the true-born son of the King Xyren the Imperator, but as a Thorzi-human hybrid, my path to the throne of Thorzan is far from clear. My father’s people are enormous and foreboding, their skin is the deep dark of twilight when our planet’s twin stars set. I am not. My enemies think I am small, soft, incapable, and they dog my every step.

If I am to take my rightful place, I must focus on saving my people. But my mother was born on a far-away blue planet called Earth. In my bones, I know the answer to my problems hides out there beyond the stars.

By popular cowriting duo Sam Burns & W.M. Fawkes, Captured is an M/M SciFi alien romance with a warrior prince, a resourceful human at the end of his rope, an intergalactic war that could keep them apart forever, and true love that’s entirely out of this world! This book is first in the Star Marked Warriors series, but each book can be read as standalone. This series does not contain mpreg.

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Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Hot Lips: A MM Romantic Suspense Mystery (The Hot Cannolis) by Tara Lain

Rating: 3.75🌈

Hot Lips is the last of The Hot Cannolis series. It is written by Tara Lain, when the original plan was to continue to coauthor , with Eli Easton, all four books was halted by Lain’s personal health issues that had Easton and Lain dividing up the last two stories.

She mentions all this in the prologue but I bring it up again because unlike the other books, Hot Lips seems the only story removed from the encompassing “embrace” of the Canoli compound and family we’ve come to love. Even Tito, one of its main characters, is an enigma. His personality , with those vague hints of shyness, a lack of history, and a real disconnect to everyone in the Canoli family, wasn’t that interesting.

The reader, through every book, has no idea, who this shadow is.

That’s completely opposite of every other novel where we had a semblance of the person we were to meet going in. Here? Nothing.

Lain assembles Tito’s personality like a puzzle at the same time she’s crafting her storylines, and I’m not sure it works. It’s not a smooth or fluid construction.

Tito ‘s character has endured trauma. Has PTSD, has become housebound. Has another identity. Lain piles onto Tito multiple layers of elements that don’t have “page time” for full treatment. There’s mystery, kidnapping, stalking , and other elements that would act as trigger warnings.

Then there’s Ari Cohen, the undercover Detective. He’s huge, sweet, has a great cat. I mean he’s a good character but his role within the Canoli “universe “ is barely there when Uncle Rick asks him over to talk to Tito. Which is a real stretch here.

I think that’s part of my issue here. All the preceding books felt like a part of a family. They naturally flowed together. They had history, substance , a firm foundation that the storylines and characters stood upon.

This easily could have been a standalone with nothing to do with the Canolis. It felt like the author kept pushing to make connections to the series instead of letting it be what it was, it’s own novel.

So it ends up being something that almost succeeds but doesn’t because it tries so hard. Sweet romance with trigger warnings.

The Hot Cannolis series:

◦ Fireman’s Carry (The Hot Cannolis #0.5) by Eli Easton

✓ Hot Seat #1

✓ Hot Wings #2

✓ Hot Pursuit #3 by Eli Easton

✓ Hot Lips #4 by Tara Lain

https://www.amazon.com › Hot-Lips…Hot Lips: A MM Romantic Suspense Mystery (The Hot Cannolis) – Kindle edition

Synopsis:

Sometimes there are too many closets to come out of.

For two years, Tito’s been hiding from his past in the midst of his uncle and aunt’s big, crazy, compound full of relatives in a tiny town in California.
Now his past’s come to get him – and threatens not only Tito’s life, but to reveal the secret that will get Tito kicked out of the family he loves.
Time to fight back!
Ari Cohen, a tough cop on the hate crimes task force, knows about hiding and fighting, since he spends his life undercover searching out bad guys.
Ari’s got a big secret too that perfectly matches Tito’s –both in and out of bed.
But don’t play hearts and flowers yet.
The price they have to pay for the match may send them running back to their closets – if Tito can stay alive long enough to get there.

HOT LIPS is a M/M romantic suspense mystery, packed with sexy secrets, danger, family love, and a crazy, one-eyed cat

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Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Hell and Gone by Tal Bauer

Rating: 5 🌈

I’m thrilled to see Tal Bauer branching out into the western genre. Hell and Gone is the second western novel I’ve read of his. The first being the terrific Never Stay Gone, the beginning of his new Texas Rangers series.

Prior to these stories, it was Bauer’s excellent espionage or political thrillers I knew him by.

But extending his world of law enforcement characters to include those branches of western police such as Stock Detectives, Range Detectives, and Brand Inspectors is not only exciting but in an age where cattle rustling is close to a multi million dollar business, a section of criminal activity rarely covered outside of historic novels. As the author himself tells us these officers can be called upon to assist federal, state and local agencies investigations or arrests. No matter what they may be for.

And the American west covers a lot of territory.

Here it’s a section of Montana and a mountain range known as the Crazies. Bauer’s writing has never been finer or emotionally deep when describing the wildness of this land and the soul deep hold it has on the men here. The gritty harshness of ranch life high in the Crazies that runs along side the Incredible wild beauty of the mountains speaks to the reader on every page.

The men are tough, hard, filled with pain. Torn by life, damaged, filled with rage , and yet still capable of great sweetness.

Everett Dawson is one shut down man until he arrives at his new assignment, his first as a Stock Detective. His background, his damage, come through in trickles, pulled from him by his case and the one man demanding Everett look beyond the easy answers everyone else is giving him.

That’s the amazing character of Lawrence Jackson. All fire, rage, competence, and sheer belief in himself and his knowledge of the land, Law burns off the page, igniting the story and Everett’s case.

It’s a matter of conflagration!

The investigation is scary, tumultuous and one long white knuckle horse back ride. It’s so suspenseful that you literally find yourself holding your breath.

There’s violence, high action, murder , and a fantastic resolution.

Law and Everett make an outstanding, fascinating couple. One I’d love to see made into a series with Stock Detective as the focus agency.

Hope Bauer is listening.

In the meantime, what a marvelous exciting new tale, full of rarely explored sectors of law enforcement and amazing descriptions of a pristine area of Montana.

I’m highly recommending Hell and Gone by Tal Bauer. Don’t miss it or the author!

https://www.goodreads.com › showHell and Gone by Tal Bauer – Goodreads

Synopsis:

One hanged man.
Two vanished cowboys.
Three hundred missing cattle.
The Crazy Mountains are devouring everything they see.


Everett Dawson, Montana’s newest Stock Detective, has been sent from Helena down to the Crazy Mountains. Cattle are going missing in the Crazies and Everett is charged with finding these modern-day rustlers and bringing them in.

When he arrives, he finds a hanged cowboy and a heap of questions. Was it suicide or was it murder? Why are cowboys fleeing the Crazies? Far from a simple investigation, Everett’s case plunges deep into the mountains’ dark past.

Lawrence Jackson, the bad boy who runs the Lazy Twenty Two, was the last man to see the dead cowboy alive. There’s a whole forest fire of smoke swirling around Lawrence, and where there’s smoke, there’s flame… and maybe even murder.

But Everett is drawn to Lawrence, and if he takes the risk Lawrence offers, will Everett find what he craves, or will the Crazies claim their next victim?