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Cautionary Tails #3

How Not to Date a Griffin

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Your ride is arriving soon...

Nolan Whittier never expected to find a griffin on a rideshare app.
He certainly didn’t expect to get the ride of his life, either.
One perfect night. That's all it was supposed to be.
But when fate draws Nolan and Reid together again, there’s more between them than their insatiable chemistry. And that something is the destruction of Reid’s business at the hands of none other than Nolan’s father, to make room for the next mega hotel.
One week. That’s all they have.
Nolan will take any piece of Reid he can get, and Reid will do anything to keep the business he’s spent half his life building.
As the week passes and their connection grows, they must work together to find a way out of this mess, or watch Reid’s business—and their budding romance—go under.
~~~
Soar to new heights alongside Reid and Nolan as they discover the fall is worth it all in this sweet and sexy romcom.

252 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 2, 2023

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About the author

Lana Kole

23 books381 followers
With a southern twang that's all charm, Lana hails from Tennessee with her four feline roommates. If one of them isn't demanding her attention, she's most likely writing. Her stories bring life to characters who don't fit the mold, romance as sweet as it is sexy, and worlds better than this one.
Author of paranormal, sweet omegaverse, monster romance, and queer love stories with a happily ever after.

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5 stars
171 (45%)
4 stars
119 (31%)
3 stars
69 (18%)
2 stars
12 (3%)
1 star
1 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews
Profile Image for Elena Rodríguez.
916 reviews475 followers
June 26, 2023
3.5
“+There’s no way all those people down there have their own crises and complicated situations.
-But they do, do they ?
+Yeah, probably.”


Esta novela me ha pillado por sorpresa porque no pensaba que me fuese a gustar tanto después del desastre del segundo. Se queda en el mismo puesto que el primero.

No sé, ha sido todo tan gratuito pero los primeros capítulos me decían bueno, sin más, pero de repente algo en mí hizo “click” y empecé a verlo todo de color de rosa. Quizá es que me he sentido representada por los personajes, quién sabe.

“So listen, man. I’m not trying to tell you how to change your whole life. But if you want it to happen, you outta start somewhere. I mean, did you expect to ive your whole life miserable ?”

Sí, sinceramente si analizamos esta novela tiene sus fallos y sus clichés como el insta-love, falta de desarrollo y un argumento simple. Pero, como he dicho antes, me he encariñado de mala manera con los personajes. Me han parecido demasiado carismáticos y su forma de “idolatrar” al otro me ha cautivado. Igual me estoy volviendo una blanda.

Con ganas de una cuarta parte.

“Everyone has different struggles”.
Profile Image for Tieraney (arobynns version).
286 reviews17 followers
May 29, 2023
5/5 ⭐️
3/5 🌶️

AHHHJAKSJSKSK (this is me screaming bc this book was soooooo cute)

lana lana lana, your writing had me giggling and kicking my feet SO MUCH i kid you not nolan and reid are freaking adorable! they were so well written (i mean come on it’s lana kole lolll) , the dirty talk was phenomenal 😮‍💨😮‍💨 stg i could not deal 🔥🔥🔥, THE CATS. lana has made me fall even more in love with her characters after reading this book!

i cannot wait for the rest of the books in this series!!!

thank you to lana!! i was so fortunate to receive an arc 🥰
Profile Image for Wicked Fox ✨️.
434 reviews126 followers
June 23, 2023
Oh. My. Goodness. Reid and Nolan are just the cutest!! 😭😭 The Not Date, their bond and the KITTIES 🥹 ADORABLE. The way Reid and Nolan just *clicked* immediately is really wonderful to read about. I love them both SO much.This book warmed my heart in the best ways. How Not to Date a Griffin was such a cute and cosy read 🥰🥰 I need the next book ASAP please 🫶🫶
Profile Image for dodi.
120 reviews18 followers
October 31, 2023
the way i’m just so in love with this series. idk if there will be more books in it which makes me so sad because i’m beyond attached to this world and all its characters.

5/5 all across the board i’m obsessed and i can’t recommend them enough.
Profile Image for Liv (LivTheBookNerd).
746 reviews137 followers
June 10, 2023
4.5/5 ✨
2/5 🌶️

🌈 Thank you Lana for the eARC! 🌈

• M/M human/griffon romance
• they should be enemies but they’re lovers instead
• cozy monster romance
• rom com

Lana Kole is one of the BEST cozy monster romance writers and when she DMd me to ask if I’d like to be an ARC reader again, naturally I jumped at the chance. Thank you SO MUCH, Lana!

This was everything I’d hope it would be. I loved the relationship that developed between Reid and Nolan. They were absolutely adorable and their chemistry was so well written and executed.

If you’re looking for an adorable monster romance to dive into this June (and all year please!), you need to read Lana Kole’s work. The How Not to Date A … series just keeps getting better and better. If you haven’t read my other reviews for HNTDADragon or HNTDADemon, check those out! I’m obsessed with all three!
Profile Image for Ahren McNamara.
84 reviews
May 29, 2023
✨ ARC Reader Review ✨

How Not to Date a Griffin, the third installment of Lana Kole’s Cautionary Tails series hits on every level. The story of Nolan and Reid in endearing to say the least. From their first encounter you just want those crazy kids to make it. Nolan is calculated and shy where Reid is cool and outgoing. Their relationship shouldn’t work. Nolan is only in town to promote the construction of his fathers newest hotel. Reid is a local business owner that stands to lose it all. Watching them simultaneously navigate their new relationship while coping with the inevitability that they are from different worlds and want different things is at time heartbreaking but never stops being genuine. The writing is cozy and will give you all the feels. Please make sure you check out this book when it release on June 2nd!
Profile Image for Poppy || Monster Lover.
1,266 reviews243 followers
January 22, 2024
D’awwww

Seriously these 2 were just so precious. Nolan was the softest sweet boy and Reid wasn’t a great mix of confident and unsure. They had all the chemistry, some fun banter, and sweet moment between them.
I thought the climax between them was a bit rushed, at least when it came to forgiveness. But it also fit them as a couple really well. It lined up with Nolan’s personality.

Spice: 5/5

Triggers: emotional abuse
Profile Image for Percy Elkins.
17 reviews2 followers
May 1, 2024
Now, I will have to say that I did enjoy Milo and Xander a liiiittle more than I did Reid and Nolan, BUT that being said, these two felt like some form of soulmates. Their souls are tied together in some form, I’m convinced.

I spoke to Kole and personally thanked them for the story she has written and for not only including toxic father figures, but how the MC deals with it after his father is out of his life. It made me feel like I wasn’t crazy or made anything up when it comes to my personal issues with my father. It made me feel seen, so thank you Kole. Thank you.

Loved Nolan being old. That was a great read 🤣
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for my_throne_of_books.
209 reviews23 followers
June 5, 2023
This book people was something and I loved it! Nolan was such a cool character. I mean he is a literal griffin and gives people lifts (on occasion at least). And the person he gives a lift to that one night is Reid a shy business man. At least that’s what he seems to be at first but damn Reid got me shook at some phrases he said 😂. I loved them both so much though both of them are amazing! They got such great chemistry.
I can definitely recommend this book (and all the other books in the series) if you are looking for a cute romance. Lane is such a great romance writer and has become one of my faves this year for sure!
Profile Image for ila.
183 reviews2 followers
June 8, 2023
rating: 4.5 stars rounded up
definitely think this author is a new fave because every book in this series has been SOO good. the characters are so well written and endearing. their story is so cozy and i loved seeing their relationship develop. definitely recommend!!
Profile Image for Holly M.
358 reviews7 followers
June 7, 2023
Best of the series so far 😭 it really felt like soulmates finding each other. So sickly sweet, I’m going to be feeling it for days to come - in the best way
Profile Image for jess.
116 reviews33 followers
September 18, 2023
So cute and sappy and lovey, god I love this whole series
Profile Image for Krista.
727 reviews1 follower
June 6, 2023
The most precious men maybe ever? The bee shirt got me good.
Profile Image for Jasmine.
24 reviews
March 4, 2024
This was such a fantastic cozy read! I absolutely fell in love with both of the main characters. We got to see them each grow throughout the story and their lives entwined perfectly. Lana is great at writing witty banter and always makes the relationships so fun. This series has definitely become my favorite and I just keep looking forward to each release.
Profile Image for ☾⋆⁺ Nurse After Dark.
833 reviews11 followers
July 14, 2023
Nolan scrolled through the options, and paused, thumb hovering over something he'd never seen before. A flight? An icon of... was that a griffin?

This story emulated book 1 in how lighthearted the overall plot arc was. There were a lot of cute ideas, sweet moments, and despite my initial concerns when they aborted their first foray into spice in favor of -gasp- literally just sleeping together, the spice came around quickly enough and was completely satisfying.

The worldbuilding and characterization around griffins was well written, I enjoyed the conversation over differences and the few little discoveries Nolan got to make over Reid's general anatomy!

"Sounds like there's a 'but'?"
"Oh, there is," Nolan said, and squeezed the hand in Reid's back pocket.
Cheeky shit.

One little detail I really liked was how Reid made Nolan tell him what type of -whatever- he actually wanted. Nolan couldn't hide behind his bland vanilla and generic whiskey and that was important. I think in general, I'd be hard pressed to come up with two characters who gave each other so much genuine care and attention than these two did, between the and all of the other little moments when they checked in and made sure each other was comfortable and happy.

I still think How Not to Date a Demon has been my favorite in this series overall, but this is an easy second =)
1,029 reviews
March 9, 2024
This book gave me life! I enjoyed books 1 and 2 in this series but I absolutely adored this book and will definitely be rereading it again (or listening if we ever get lucky to have this become an audiobook ❤️). I loved the storyline, the characters, the pace and steam was perfect, and the amount of times I smiled and giggled was off the charts. The way the characters were adorkable in their own ways made this easily 5/5 stars. I would give it more if I could 😍

I loved Nolan’s juxtaposition throughout the book. He would be shy and unsure of himself and being so cute and then later on in the bedroom 🥵🥵🥵. The way he dirty-talked/had a flair of dominance was so yummy. I loved how he couldn’t help but be drawn to Reid and was shocked each time he came back. The amount of abuse he suffered at the hands of his father and his assistant really messed up his self-confidence and sucked out all his happiness. How these two met and how adorable he was with Reid in his griffin form sucked me in right from the bat. I am going through some tough times with my family (medical and scary issues) and the book from this author has brought our smiles and giggles from me and lightened my book. I was excited to come home and get on the recumbent bike so I could have 40 minutes of uninterrupted reading time with these rom com/lighter stories. I was so sad to be done this one, it has been hard to pick up any book since haha. The hangover is real 😭

Then we get to Reid. He also was a juxtaposition the whole book and I loved seeing his growth. He is the life of the party/everyone loves him because of his personality and how he gets them to smile or laugh so easily. But we get to see self confidence issues with him too (how nervous he was to show his real form for example) and it broke my heart. I loved that Nolan didnt bat an eye when he was showing him different facets of himself, like his wings, tail, furry appendages hehehe. I loved how he would purr and how he fell asleep when Nolan rubbing his body or playing with his hair. His love language was definitely touch and I loved seeing him lean into it and finally get the affection he needed in his life. He also turned it up with Nolan and pushed him out of his comfort zone (i.e the closet scene 🔥). I could go on and on about these two. I think some of my favorite scenes were the pet shelter (the cats reacting to him were so funny), the flying, the food/restaurant moments. All soooo good.

The plot was a nice touch too (I read these books more for the relationship building, not necessarily the steam but its a fabulous touch, but the way the author brings out their connection and adds so many layers and details to their love story is what makes me fall in love with her writing. I was so happy to see his dad and Chance get what they deserve. Loved the way everything ended. I was so nervous about Nolan finding out about Reid and I was SOOOO happy when the author didnt make it last a long time/didnt have a third act breakup once the info was out in the open. it helped focus on Nolan and Reid getting the hotel to be thrown out/his dad locked up and it was done so well.

This is one of my top 5 reads of the year so far and I bet it will stay up there all year with how much these two will live rent free in my head. I love M/M (again love how this author represents diversity of relationships in their work) and was so happy we got that combo in this series. I adored Nolan and Reid (the cat at the end made me laugh so much too haha) and thought the pacing and HEA couldnt be more perfect. Highly recommend this book and wish more people knew about them/took a chance on these awesome awww-inducing stories. BTW you totally don’t need to read the first 2 books to understand this one if you are worried about jumping right into the one ❤️ Can’t wait to read the next book in the series that just released!
Profile Image for Likuna.
51 reviews1 follower
July 12, 2023
it was a quick read, did enjoy it but won't say I don't have some questions 😅.
Their meeting was cute but can it really happen in real life? In Nolan's place I would be really be suspicious (and would side eye Reid) but it is a book so I am ignoring all my rational thinking.
first: how fast the relationship, emotions was building between the boys, but sometimes it's all it takes right, connections and how comfortable they were with each other. other thing that I liked about them was how communicative they were, that was the best, no side dramas and misunderstanding and miscommunication.
second: even though Nolan did not have the best relation with his father, doing what he did without confronting him was kind off, yes it was the right thing to do in the end but still would preferred if Nolan stood up for himself and confronted for all the emotional damage his father caused him.
overall was a nice and warm read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Naurarwen.
920 reviews7 followers
June 11, 2023
So I read book one, missed book two and have read book three and yes am totally going to go back and read book two before any more come out cause I adore this series, Cautionary Tails. I love the two guys in this, they are the cutest pairing. Nolan is human, the son of a greedy hotel business owner who wants to destroy the livelihoods of the people to build his monstrosities, and Reid is a griffin shifter, and owner of one of those buildings that Nolan's dad whats to destroy. But what happens when a chance meeting with a ride-share style app and the two of them, where the chemistry is off the charts happens but they're on opposing sides?

I really did just want to cuddle these two guys so hard, they are perfect for each. Gah, can't wait to see what comes next with this series.
Profile Image for Alice.
86 reviews
Want to read
August 16, 2023
How Not to Date a Demon was a very mid-read for me, but I wanted to give the series the benefit of the doubt, and wrote it off to not having read a F/M romance in a while. Unfortunately, that didn't work out for me.

The problem with this series for me is that I just don't care about the characters. It was easier to overlook that in How Not to Date a Demon, since the premise was more unusual and intriguing, but with the slow pace of How Not to Date a Griffin.. No. Everything is just too superficial, too basic, to paper cut-out-y.

Couldn't make myself finish and dnf'd at 78%.
Profile Image for Kay Claire.
Author 12 books49 followers
May 31, 2023
4.5 stars

Thank you to the author for the ARC!

This was a fun read! The romance is sweet with some tension and angst from outside forces, and they go on a lot of really cute dates together. I enjoyed the dialogue and found the romance to be believable and not too insta-love-y, considering they fell for each other in the span of a week.

I /maybe/ could have done with more shifter/supernatural vibes from Reid, our griffin character. I don't really understand why his tail is prehensile when lion tails are not prehensile, but I /am/ very happy we got a wing preening scene in there, those are always fun.
194 reviews
June 21, 2023
This was a really fun story with a meet cute involving Nolan calling a ride share and Reid turning up, as a Griffin who can carry passengers. The fact he's a Griffin doesn't really have much bearing on the story, most of the time he's in a broadly human form and occasionally sprouts wings. The actual plot is really a contemporary story involving a large corporation trying to build a hotel but trampling small businesses in the process. But I still liked it a lot. There were lots of spicy scenes and lots of sweet parts of them going on dates and getting to know each other. Fluffy, minimal relationship conflict and cute cats thrown in.
Profile Image for Ra! 	ʕ •̀ ω •́ ʔ.
369 reviews211 followers
July 10, 2023
Highlights:
The plot of this book reminded me of a Christmas rom-com from hallmark in the best way possible. Classic romance goodness. Nolan is such a genuine sweetheart and kind soul, I loved him. He is the baby gurl that Team Kendall succession girls wish he was. His connection with Reid was instantaneous and the chemistry was insane. They were drawn to each other and understood each other so well. I liked the early shyness and awkwardness and how it bloomed into something more real and natural. The plot was great and resolved well! I especially loved the epilogue! I could gush over this book forever!

Horn Level: 5/5
Profile Image for Amber Simon.
136 reviews2 followers
May 30, 2023
This book was an absolute 100/10 and Reid is a top tier book boyfriend, I will accept no criticisms. Even though the plot was pretty light and I knew how it would all work out, I enjoyed every minute of the journey. Reid and Nolan were adorable together. The queerness and monsterness was just so accepted in this world, which was fantastic.

I would definitely hire a Griffin Uber.

Plus, Nolan took care of Reid's feathers *screaming*. "...not like it was the sweetest thing anyone had ever done for Reid in his entire life."

Received an ARC.
Profile Image for Danyelle Williams.
868 reviews6 followers
June 11, 2023
Literally picking up a date

Rating 3.5 Cute read and addition to this series. I love the way that Nolan and Reid meet. Like come on picked up by a Griffin. When it came down to it they both supported each other and wanted the best for the other. What follows is filled with a little bit of drama but works out in the end.

Can we get a 🥵 for the surprise that is Nolan during 🔥🔥 scenes. I felt like I was living to see what he would say next.

Overall not my favorite from the series so far but looking forward to reading the next one.
Profile Image for Mezzzmerizerrr.
47 reviews
August 23, 2024
Maybe my favorite in this series (#4 is a close contender, but this one might take gold). Really wholesome and gay and the story line was super sweet. Plus there's a cute dorky man who likes to visit cat sanctuaries on business trips bc he *dreams* of having a cat one day and isn't that just the most precious. Also a meet cute with a hunk who can fly you out on the town doesn't hurt. At that point, taking down the patriarchy is just the cherry on top. <3 I hope they let it all burn down around them forever.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Daphnne.
1,231 reviews7 followers
June 4, 2023
Loved everything about it!

This was just an adorably sweet story, full of cavity inducing cuteness and it was amazing. It was also a really great way to start pride month and I highly suggest everyone pick this up. If you're looking for a wonderful love story with characters you just want to hug and root for then you need this read.
Profile Image for Katie Ferguson.
189 reviews6 followers
October 19, 2023
This was cute and sweet. Nolan and Reid fell hard and fast and were adorable. I felt like the conflict between them could have been played up a bit, as it never seemed like there was really much jeopardy for the relationship, but if your want something with low angst, high heat, and cute date nights, this is it!
Profile Image for Miranda McGhee.
302 reviews
October 19, 2023
The way I love these two so so much!

Reid and Nolan are such sweethearts and I’m so glad they got their happy ending😭

I loved the dynamic between these two! Nolan was great and I relate to him so much omg and Reid is such a little softie ugh love him

Can’t wait for more books in this little series!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 64 reviews

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