Saturday, February 03, 2024

#BookReview: Famine (The Four Horsemen #3) by @LauraThalassa @Read_Bloom






Synopsis: They came to earth―Pestilence, War, Famine, Death―four horsemen riding their screaming steeds, racing to the corners of the world. Four horsemen with the power to destroy all of humanity. They came to earth, and they came to end us all. Ana da Silva always assumed she'd die young, but she never expected it to be at the hands of the haunting immortal who spared her life years ago. Famine. But if the horseman remembers her, he must not care, for when she comes face to face with him for the second time in her life, she's stabbed and left for dead. Only, she doesn't quite die. If there's one thing Famine is good at, it's cruelty. He can't forget the pain humanity has brought him, and he's ready to bring it back to them tenfold. But when Ana, a ghost from his past, corners him for what he did to her, she and her empty threats captivate him, and he decides to keep her around. In spite of themselves, Ana and Famine are drawn to each other. But at the end of the day, the two are enemies. Nothing changes that. Not one kind act, not two. And definitely not a few steamy nights. But enemies or reluctant lovers, if they don't stop themselves soon, heaven will.


#BookReview: Seasons of the Storm (Seasons of the Storm #1) by Elle Cosimano






Synopsis: One cold, crisp night, Jack Sommers was faced with a choice—live forever according to the ancient, magical rules of Gaia, or die.

Jack chose to live, and in exchange, he became a Winter—an immortal physical embodiment of the season on Earth. Every year, he must hunt the Season who comes before him. Summer kills Spring. Autumn kills Summer. Winter kills Autumn. And Spring kills Winter.

Jack and Fleur, a Winter and a Spring, fall for each other against all odds. To be together, they’ll have to escape the cycle that’s been forcing them apart. But their creator won’t let them go without a fight.


#BookReview: Starlight Jewel (Gifts of the Auldtree #1) by E.L. Lyons






Synopsis: The human city of Minalav is renowned for its lavish balls, where nobles bring wealth from distant lands to the Starlight Palace, to be romanced—and robbed—by the half-human hybrids who live below the city. The wealthy guests leave without their treasure, and with no memory of their evening—except the unforgettable feelings that bring them back, season after season. But the magic of Minalav is built on dark secrets and lies.

Axly, a hybrid assassin and seductress-thief, will do anything to protect her human half-brother. The path of blood and chaos she carves will tip the precious balance of Minalav, and the world around it.



493 pages, 173k words, 3rd person PoV, Past Tense, Multiple PoV, Medieval Alternate World Epic Fantasy, Female Main Character, Spiceless/Fade-to-Black



No AI was used in the writing of this book or the making of its cover.



Honest reviews of all sorts and kinds are appreciated. If you leave a critical review, I still appreciate the time you took to read however much of my book you did, and hope that your next read is more to your liking! 

Despite some folks shelving this as "Romance" and GR adding that as a genre, I would like to caution that this is NOT a romance book, there is a romance side plot, but there is no happily ever after or happy for now and there are no major romance tropes in the book

Trigger Warnings:



This book contains some graphic violence and many elements that readers may find disturbing, including a bit of torture. There are no graphic descriptions of sex or sexual assault, but there are allusions to prostitution, a couple of steamy scenes, some sexually disturbing implications, classism, ableism, the death of a nameless dog, murder, cannibalism, matricide, and suicidal ideation. It has been described as having a "splash of grimdark."


#BookReview: It All Comes Back to You by @Melissa_Wiesner @bookouture






Synopsis: An absolutely unforgettable and heart-shattering romance, perfect for fans of Colleen Hoover, Lucy Score and Carley Fortune, that does keeping secrets destroy true love?

Anna works two jobs to get herself through college and never, ever talks about her family. It’s easier to keep her distance from everyone until she can finally leave her old life behind. That is, until chance throws her together with Gabe …

Gabe is top of the class, in a fancy fraternity, and has a big, perfect, warm-hearted family. He is everything Anna is not. Their connection is undeniable. His silver-blue eyes pierce right through her, and he makes her laugh in ways she never thought possible. But Anna would do anything to stop Gabe from discovering her darkest secret, and the real reason she goes home every night to a cold, silent apartment…

When Gabe and his family get close to the truth, Anna runs, vowing to never see them again. But forever is a long time…

Years later. Tragedy brings Anna back to the town she grew up in—a place she escaped a decade ago. When Gabe wraps his strong arms around her, it’s like finally finding home.

But when the truth comes out after all these years, will both their worlds come crashing down? Gabe is the one person Anna trusts but what if he has secrets, too? And how much pain can two hearts endure, before they are torn apart forever?

It All Comes Back to You will make you laugh, cry with both joy and pain, and hold your loved ones tight.


#ReleaseBlitz for Puck Drop by Maggie Alabaster & Jo Bradley @GiveMeBooksPR







Title: Puck Drop
Series: Dusk Bay Demons #1
Authors: Maggie Alabaster & Jo Bradley
Genre: Dark Sports Romance
Tropes: Reverse Harem/Hockey Romance
Release Date: February 1, 2024


BLURB

Revenge is pucking sweet. Until the blood won't wash off my hands and my enemies want their own retribution. 

I can only evade them for so long, before they take a shot. 

The head coach of the Dusk Bay Demons, the hockey team with everything to prove, won't let them near me. 

Who will he allow? The equipment manager who's the calm to his storm, and the defenceman whose heart is as dark as he is skilled with his stick. 

My guys want to convince our enemies I wasn't in the game, but that means sacrificing one of them instead. Can I sit out when I have everything to lose, or will the horn call time on our relationship first?

**This is an interconnected, standalone, hockey RH/ poly romance**

#ReleaseBlitz for Seeds of Malice by Maggie Cole @GiveMeBooksPR








Title: Seeds of Malice
Duet: Wilted Kingdom #1
Author: Maggie Cole
Genre: Dark Bully Romance
Tropes: Bully to Lover/Morally Gray/Opposites Attract
First Love/Forced Proximity/Taboo
Release Date: February 1, 2024


BLURB

I’m a pawn in a twisted game I never agreed to partake in.

There’s no getting out.

Dax Carrington decides all the moves.

He’s always two-steps ahead of me.

An animal disguised in warm, privileged, snakeskin, he’ll sink his teeth into every inch of my soul until he owns all of it… all of me.

When I’m at my lowest, he’ll blindside me, pulling me back into his arms, continuing to win the match that I don’t know how to play and just want to escape.

The only problem?

In Dax’s world, the plot ends once he’s the last one standing and there’s nothing left but dust—including me.

Seeds of Malice is book one of the Wilted Kingdom duet. It’s a dark college bully romance between the rich kid and the girl from the wrong side of the tracks. Dax and Ivy’s story continues in Book 2 of the Wilted Kingdom duet, Thorns of Malice.

#ReleaseBoost for The Billionaire Is Back by Kayley Loring & @ConnorCrais and @GiveMeBooksPR







Title: The Billionaire Is Back
Authors: Kayley Loring & Connor Crais
Genres: Contemporary Romance/Romantic Comedy
Tropes: Small Town/Billionaire/Brother's Best Friend
Release Date: January 25, 2024


BLURB

People in this small town are whispering…

What they’re saying is that the billionaire is back and he’s going after his best friend’s sister.

What I’m trying to do is help Claire Sweeney’s bakery business.

What I haven’t been able to admit to myself is that in all this time, no matter how hard I tried, I never forgot her.

Now she’s all grown up. I can’t stop thinking about her muffin. Or how guilty I feel when I fantasize about buttering it.

Claire has always been as much a part of Beacon Harbor as the hanging flower baskets, the boat tours, and the lobster races. She has no idea how beautiful I think she is. Even when she has flour on her face. Even when she’s rolling her eyes at me.

I’ve got her brother’s approval, but now it’s Claire that I really have to convince.

She doesn’t believe we have the right ingredients for a real relationship—so she only agrees to pretend to be my girlfriend to help me close a deal in New York.

I believe she’s about to discover exactly how I roll when I know what I want.

And what I want is her.