Jordan’s loves having his own business. He has the best coffee, eats a healthy lunch each day, and gets everything done in time.
That is until2.5 stars
Jordan’s loves having his own business. He has the best coffee, eats a healthy lunch each day, and gets everything done in time.
That is until his PA Brady gets sick. Now Jordan’s days don’t run so smoothly anymore. When it looks like Brady won’t be coming back after a few days, Jordan decides to visit Brady to see if he can help in any way.
Brady is quite surprised to find his boss on his doorstep. Now he would think Jordan wants him to get better because he can’t do without his PA, but it looks like Jordan just wants him to feel better, not necessarily because of the company.
And that’s not helping Brady’s crush at all…
I really liked the first half of this low-angst story. I liked how Brady had this unrequited crush on his boss, and how Jordan finally saw Brady when he had to do without him.
But the second half was such a letdown. We suddenly got all these details and conversations about people who didn’t interest me at all. I always feel that side characters should have a role in a story, or at least have something interesting about them. If they’re just there to be there, I lose interest quickly.
For example, I didn’t care about Brady suddenly poring his heart out to his upstairs neighbor at all. I didn’t know her, I didn’t feel any kind of connection with her, so I could have done without her.
And Jordan’s friends who hosted the party they were at were just so meh. And their perfect children didn’t make me like them any more. The sudden ‘nasty person’ of the story also came out of nowhere and I rolled my eyes throughout that scene a lot.
I liked Brady and Jordan together, but when all the dull side characters got introduced, I slowly lost interest in the story and I ended up wanting it to be over.
------------------------------
An ARC of My Fair Brady was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
This was quite cute. I wouldn’t say it had much depth, plot or character wise, but it was still a fun little Christmas story.
Jules is one of 3.5 stars
This was quite cute. I wouldn’t say it had much depth, plot or character wise, but it was still a fun little Christmas story.
Jules is one of Santa’s elves, but he has never really been happy about that. Being an elf is not making him happy, so he gets into trouble a lot doing things to spice up his life.
When he gets sent to Snow Hope for 90 days after he’s gotten into trouble one too many times, Jules is not happy. Snow Hope is where toys go to die, and now apparently elves too. Well, for 90 days that is.
When Jules meets the head of Snow Hope Island, Felix, he is immediately attracted to the other man. Felix is a bit awkward and shy, but he is very passionate about Snow Hope, and Jules can’t help but feel he needs to help Felix out since it looks like Snow Hope might be shut down for good…
I can’t say I got a good feeling for either Jules or Felix with so many other things going on, but this was still entertaining. The romance was sweet but not really spicy (there is some sex, but only one scene). The focus was more on the story and the whole Christmas sweetness feel than on any real character or plot development. Jules did seemed to have changed for the better, but this was rather quick to be truly believable. But hey, I just went with it.
Nice little Christmas short about Santa’s (regular sized) elves.
------------------------------
An ARC of Operation Toy Rescue was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
This was a bit of a strange book. I didn't really like it.
First of all, there is no world-building. We have a cursed prince, people ride carriages anThis was a bit of a strange book. I didn't really like it.
First of all, there is no world-building. We have a cursed prince, people ride carriages and horses, they deliver letters by horseback, but they also have phones and Twitter. Now I don’t need a lot of world building in my books, but I couldn’t wrap my head around this world. Especially because one minute they are calling each other on their cells and the next a letter needs to be delivered by horseback, several hours away.
I also thought the sex scenes could use some work.
Breathless, Tuck forced him to slow a few times. “I’m sorry,” Frederick said. “Eagerness is difficult to dampen when I have such a goal ahead of me.” “Understandable,” Tuck said from his position with his face against his arm, “but try not to be so rough.” “Sorry.” Frederick finally was able to stretch Tuck enough that Tuck could accommodate him. The lovemaking itself was rushed, but the initial hurt soon eased into something almost pleasant.
Almost pleasant? Wow, ringing endorsement of the sex, dude. I get that sex is not all hearts and flowers, but I kind of want hearts and flowers in my books. This was too.. clinical? at times.
What I really did like was the fairy tale feel of it all. I was curious to see of Frederick could break his curse and what role Tuck would play in that.
But I can’t say the romance was all that wonderful either tbh. These guys saw each maybe 3 or 4 times before the I love yous were flowing. I was actually quite surprised when the first I love you is mentioned. I was sure they were just starting to get to know each other, but apparently they were waaaay beyond that.
I read only one other book by Ryan Loveless and the writing in this felt nothing like Ethan, Who Loved Carter. This felt disjointed at times and the characters felt very superficial.
But if you’re looking for a fairy tale kind of story, you might like this.
------------------------------
An ARC of His Cursed Prince was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I haven’t had much luck with my ARCs lately. For some reason I’m liking all my other books and then I read an ARC and it’s a letdown again. N2.5 stars
I haven’t had much luck with my ARCs lately. For some reason I’m liking all my other books and then I read an ARC and it’s a letdown again. Now this book wasn’t that bad, but it wasn’t great for me either.
Michael is the head of the company he owns with his business partner. He is quite happy that he hired Jack, a young man of 25 who seems to be a bit different, but still highly capable.
When one of his employees asks Michael to have a chat with Jack, Michael is wondering why. It appears his colleagues are worried about Jack. Something about him not eating and smelling a bit bad.
Michael want to know more about Jack before he talks to him, so he tries to figure out where he lives. When Michael sees Jack is basically homeless and struggling, he offers him a place to stay.
Jack doesn’t know what to do with his boss’ offer. Does Michael want sex in return? He can do that, since his boss is hot. But when he offers, Michael turns him down.
With Christmas almost there, the two are spending a lot of time together in Michael’s apartment and are trying to ignore their attraction to each other. Michael because he doesn’t want Jack to want him because he’s grateful, and Jack because he doesn’t want to push Michael into something he doesn’t want….
I really wanted to like this book. It had all the ingredients of a wonderful hurt/comfort Christmas story. And while I did like the plot, I had a hard time liking the characters. So I can totally see people who do click with these guys enjoying themselves with this book.
I mostly had a hard time with Michael. He was so stiff and anti-social. Like how he was 30, but hadn’t ever had penetrative sex because he thought that was just too intimate. Now I’m all for ‘older’ virgins, but this was supposed to be the head of his own company, the guy who was rescuing his employee Jack from a life on the streets. I wanted him to just be a bit more alpha I guess. Like how he also didn’t really want to offer Jack a place to stay at first, because then Jack would be in his home. I wanted Michael to be this caretaking person, but he wasn’t quite that.
I know these issues are mostly because I love the stereotype alpha taking care of the younger twink and that it was a bit different here, but as you guys all know, if you don’t like the characters, there’s not much that can save a book.
------------------------------
An ARC of Trusting Jack was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Oooooh, I liked this! I loved the writing, the whole atmosphere of the place. Such a great comfort Christmas read.
It’s 1888 and Alby has just arrived Oooooh, I liked this! I loved the writing, the whole atmosphere of the place. Such a great comfort Christmas read.
It’s 1888 and Alby has just arrived in New York City. Now in his 30s, he has come back to the place he left when he was 13 when he was shipped off to work at a farm. Alby would like to know what happened to his mother and brothers, but the home he was born in doesn’t seem to exist anymore.
When Alby almost gets run over by a trolley, someone pushes him out of the way. Xenocrates Varnham-Summerfield his savior introduces himelf as. But Alby can call him Xeno.
When Alby tries to find a place to stay for the night, Xeno tells him to go to the YMCA. So that’s where Alby ends up. A place where he can eat, wash, and sleep while he is in the city.
Alby tries to find out more about his family, but he doesn’t know where to start. And he also keeps running into the beautiful Xeno….
Alby and Xeno were a joy to read about. Alby was sweet and a little gruff, while Xeno was this positive ball of energy. I loved how this was completely angst free. These men couldn’t seem to stay away from each other, and with the help of a christmas angel, they sure got their well-deserved HEA.
------------------------------
An ARC of Summerfield's Angel was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Hunter is a 23 year old college grRe-read December 2020 I love this book.
------------------------------------
Keira Andrews doing daddy kink? Oh yeah!!
Hunter is a 23 year old college graduate desperately looking for a job. He hasn’t had a lot of luck in that department so far, so he accepts a job offer in his home town to play Santa’s elf. The mall is closing down, but Hunter wants to give it his best shot to make the final year a happy one for all the kids visiting Santa.
Unfortunately the new Santa is such a grumpy bastard, that Hunter isn’t sure he can pull off playing a happy elf. No matter how hot Nick is.
Nick is 46 years old and likes his solitude. That's why he loves being out on his tree farm by himself. But now he has to play Santa. But he couldn't turn down one of his only friends when he needed a mall Santa. Now all he needs to do is get through the next few days, and ignore the hot young guy in the tight elf costume.
When Nick's friend arranges for Hunter to come work at Nick’s tree farm for a few days, Hunter isn’t sure he is all that welcome. But Nick needs the help, so he’s going to try his very best. No matter how unpleasant the man’s attitude is…..
When I first saw this book I was all over it, but when I started it I wasn’t so sure I was going to like Nick. Nick was a complete dick at first. But… then we suddenly got some lovely hurt/comfort thrown in and I was in my happy place. (view spoiler)[(Hunter’s car slides into a ditch in the snow and he calls Nick to tell him he will be late. Nick tells Hunter to just forget about it and hangs up before Hunter can explain. Hunter doesn’t have any cell service after that, so he is forced to walk to Nick’s tree farm in the snow, where he eventually arrives, half frozen.) (hide spoiler)] So while I didn’t like Nick at first, once he let go of his misconceptions about Hunter, things really started to look up. These guys had all the chemistry!
I’ve read my fair share of daddy kink books this past year and some only touch on the subject briefly by throwing in a ‘daddy’ every once in a while and others are full on age-play. Now, this daddy kink was pretty tame (yet HOT!), where Hunter basically calls Nick Daddy in the bedroom and gets bossed around. The rest of their relationship was devoid of any power exchange, for those of you worried about this (I just like it all…).
This book gave me all the warm holiday fuzzies. Add in some daddy kink and I was a very happy girl.
------------------------------
An ARC of Santa Daddy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
While this was a cute friends-to-lovers story, the writing was not my thing.
What I noticed when I started was how the writing didn’t seem to have a niWhile this was a cute friends-to-lovers story, the writing was not my thing.
What I noticed when I started was how the writing didn’t seem to have a nice flow. We are immediately thrust into the most important thoughts of our main characters and I kind of wanted to get to know them a little more first.
Some emotions also didn’t make a lot of sense, like how the brother was ‘fuming’ when Matt made a joke. Sure, he could be the most humorless brother in history, but to me it felf a bit out of place. Irritated perhaps would have been a better word in this case.
What I also found hilarious is that when Matt fell through the ice and he needed to be warmed up, Matt and Cody could only come up with a naked Cody to keep Matt warm. Now, that might sounds like a cheap porno, and yes, it felt that way to me too. I mean, the guy could at least keep his underwear on if all he wanted was to get Matt warm. The heat of dick wasn’t going to prevent frostbite! Well, I guess Matt and Cody thought so.
Now it may sound like it was all bad, and that wasn’t the case. It was kind of cute overall, and if you don’t expect too much, you will enjoy this.
------------------------------
An ARC of Mine for Christmas was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
It’s been quite a while since I read a romance book with almost no romantic development. And no matter how much I loved the first two books in the serIt’s been quite a while since I read a romance book with almost no romantic development. And no matter how much I loved the first two books in the series, I really didn’t like this one. Even the writing felt different. I was often confused and just decided halfway to go with the flow and to stop trying to actually understand this book.
My biggest complain in this was Sam. I’m not sure why but I felt very disconnected from him. I felt as if he wasn’t really there. Even when the big reveal happened around 35% about his childhood, I didn’t feel any emotional connection. That was partly because I simply didn’t like him, but I also felt he was written in an unemotional way.
Then let’s talk about the romance, or should I say the lack of romance. This book started with Vance and Sam as partners. Vance is already in love with Sam, Sam knows this and tries to ignore it. He even says to Vance he’s not gay (BIG LIE). The rest of the book is things happening with their case about enhanced children. Then there is (view spoiler)[kind of a sex scene somewhere around 60%, which of course ends bad. And then we have them sort of getting together at 90% and then they get into a fight at 92%, where Vance stops Sam in the middle of a sex scene because Sam didn’t prepare Vance enough (or at all). And then at the end Sam proposes, because he is scared he didn’t let Vance know he’s really commited to him. WTH?!? (hide spoiler)]There was no romance whatsoever throughout this book except for Vance’s pining. Sam didn’t even think about Vance all that much.
I’ve loved lots of other books by Victoria Sue, but I think I might have to throw in the towel with this series. The plot and the people confuse me and if the romance isn't all that good either, then I’m not sure why I should continue with this series. And that saddens me. I used to be able to count on Victoria Sue’s books being winners, no matter what. :(
------------------------------
An ARC of The Strength of His Heart was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I’m very conflicted about this book. On the one hand there were quite a few things that bothered me. But I still had this urge to continue re3.5 stars
I’m very conflicted about this book. On the one hand there were quite a few things that bothered me. But I still had this urge to continue reading and I couldn’t quite put it down. Because I did like all three men in this MMM, I have a hard time rating this. The issues I had were mostly with the actions of one of the men and the people surrounding the three guys.
Easton was a 19 year old college student when he met 30 year old cop Lan. They dated for two months and were pretty much in love by that time. When Lan hurt Easton deeply when he denied his existence to his friends, when Lan refused to come out, Easton moved out of town.
10 years later and Easton just moved into his dream house. When he hears a noise next door and his dog keeps growling, he goes to check it out. Turns out he is just in time to save his neighbor’s life. The neighbor who turns out to be Lan.
Lan just got shot and stabbed in his own home. He’s not happy about it, but he is happy to see Easton again.
When Easton, who is a paramedic, wants Lan to go to the hospital, Lan refuses. Lan’s partner shows up with some guys of the Hawks motorcycle club. Together they fix Lan up and have him recover at home.
Easton tries to keep his distance, but he didn’t count on Lan’s persistence to show Easton he has changed and wants to be with him now.
Meanwhile Lan’s partner, Parker, is worried about his best friend. But he’s also confused that Lan is apparently gay now.
When Lan kisses Parker when under the influence of his painkillers, Parker is very confused.
Lan confesses to Easton he kissed Parker, but Easton can’t be mad since he himself is attracted to Parker too….
Let me start off by saying that I had no idea this was part of a series. I don’t know if it’s a spin-off or just a new addition to a series, but it would have been nice if that was mentioned anywhere. There were so many people in this book I didn’t know and that was quite confusing. I also had the feeling Lan and Parker featured in the other books. I was mostly lost for the first 25% of the story. I did pick up on the story along the way and was slightly less confused for the rest of the book.
Second, I wouldn’t have read this if I had known this was a biker book. I absolutely loath biker books. There are so many things that I don’t like about motorcycle clubs. First the use of the words birds or bunnies for women. Just no… And then the whole handling things their own way, killing (bad) people and being above the law. For detectives Lan and Parker that was just not what I wanted for them.
I did like the guys of the club, but I’m so over names like Warden, Vicious, Gamer, Knife. Badass names? Maybe, but I just found them ridiculous.
With this whole tough guy biker atmosphere came the need for Parker to prove he wasn’t gay so he had to hook up with a woman (I refuse to call her a bird). This was at 62% and I was not happy with it. (There were several gay and bi people in the club so it wasn’t even necessary for Parker to prove anything)
But.. and this is a big but. I still liked this book. I quite liked Easton, Lan and Parker. Especially Easton was very endearing with his shy stuttering and nervous rambling. Lan was pretty great in his way to convince Easton about his love as well. And Parker was an ass at first, but he grew on me.
So even though I had a lot of issues with this book, I ended up enjoying it anyway and that was all because of Easton, Lan, and Parker. While this wasn’t a very romantic book, these guys were quite sweet with each other when they finally had everything straightened out.
------------------------------
An ARC of Out of the Blue was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Re-read October 2018 Greg Tremblay does a formidable job with the audio of this book. I do have to admit that this was the first time that he used almoRe-read October 2018 Greg Tremblay does a formidable job with the audio of this book. I do have to admit that this was the first time that he used almost the same voice for both MCs, but I can understand why. There are so many characters in this book (and they're there to stay or have their own book in this series), that I could imagine that he kind of ran out of voices. Ace sounded exactly like I imagined, so he nailed that voice. Colton's voice was deeper than I thought it would be, but it is mentioned in the book that he has a deep voice, so Greg Tremblay had to work with that.
Overall I really enjoyed the audio of this one and I can't wait for the second book to come out on audio. While the book might not have been my favorite, anything Greg Tremblay narrates is enjoyable to me.
-----------------------
What a great start to a new series!
I’m always a sucker for the whole bodyguard/client trope. There’s just something about it that makes me all excited.
In this first book of the Four Kings Security series we meet the ‘four kings’. These men served as Special Forces together until they lost half their unit. When they left the army, 4 of them started a security company. And now Ace, Red, Lucky, and King run a very successful business.
When the company gets approached by Paxton Connolly to protect his son, Colton, Ace is immediately intrigued. It seems Colton does not want a bodyguard and they get told Colton will make their life as difficult as possible.
Colton has enough experience of people trying to rule his life. He is definitely not going to just accept a team of bodyguards who will be with him around the clock. But even though Colton tries to be as uncooperative as he possibly can be, he cannot deny the sparks that fly between him and Ace.
And while Colton and Ace grow closer, there is still someone out there who’s trying to hurt Colton….
I really liked this. At first I wasn’t too sure where it was going to go, since I couldn’t get a good feel for Colton. I wasn’t liking how he treated Ace at first.
And I used to love banter, but it seems I’ve outgrown it a bit. In the first half Colton and Ace were trying to make life so difficult for each other, while all I wanted was for them to just get along. I was happy that it didn’t last too long though. And when they finally did start acting like adults, there was no relationship angst, so that made me very happy. These guys were not afraid to admit their feelings for each other and to start something serious (once they got their head out of their asses).
We got some good sexy times, some lovely hurt/comfort moments, and an intriguing plot. This was a very promising start to this new series. I can’t wait to read about the other guys....more
I’m not a fan of books where the couple only gets together in the last few pages. As was the case here.
Ted is a bear shifter, a very big, clu2.5 stars
I’m not a fan of books where the couple only gets together in the last few pages. As was the case here.
Ted is a bear shifter, a very big, clumsy, extremely kind bear shifter. He has contacted Supernatural Selections to find him the perfect mate. And they have found just the guy for him. Rusty is an inactive beaver shifter and Ted can’t wait to meet him.
Quentin is an incubus. An incubus who doesn’t want to drain people’s energies. So he’s been on suppressants for decades. When he arrives at the house of the husband Supernatural Selections picked out for him, it is not what he was expecting. He didn’t expect a vampire to live out in the woods, far away from everyone and everything. There isn’t even electricity!
When Ted sees the stranger arrive, he isn’t sure why he’s there. Well, it turns out Supernatural Selections made a mistake. Quentin is Ted’s new husband. And they signed with blood, so it’s a pretty binding contract….
I was sure this was going to be awesome, but somewhere halfway through I got the feeling these guys would never get together. Yes, there are some (small) sex scenes, because they ‘have’ to consummate the marriage, but there were hardly any sweet or tender moments between these two.
There was a whole bunch of other stuff going on that all got together at the end, which was just too much for me. I wanted these guys to have some quiet time together, but they only got that on the last page.
So overall I ended up being quite disappointed in this book. I won’t be reading the other books when they come out.
------------------------------
An ARC of Single White Incubus was generously provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Sometimes you expect a book to be a certain way based on the blurb and the reviews you’ve read. Well, this was total different from what I expected!
FiSometimes you expect a book to be a certain way based on the blurb and the reviews you’ve read. Well, this was total different from what I expected!
First of all the way it was told was not like other books. And I’m not sure I liked it to be honest. This started with present day which is in italic (so it reads like a flashback), then we get 6 months earlier which is in regular font, so it reads like the present. We then constantly skip to present (in italic) and past (in regular font). Somehow that made the 6 month separation period more bearable, but it also made me feel a bit distant from the story.
Adam is running a construction company with his best friend Nick. When they are in desperate need of people to hire, someone recommends Johnny Sparrow.
Adam hires Johnny on the spot and the two of them immediately start a job building a house conservatory.
In the next few weeks they both feel weird vibes coming from the place where they are digging into the ground, but when they find a box, it expels this light. After this they suddenly see the ghost of a woman standing nearby.
Adam is more freaked out about this than Johnny is, but somehow the ghosts won’t leave them alone.
Adam says he can’t handle the ghosts and asks Johnny if it is ever going to stop. And that’s when Johnny suddenly breaks things off with Adam and moves to Germany….
What stood out to me was that the ghost plot in this could have been left out. I felt that there was enough relationship material to fill this (short) book. The ghost plot felt a bit like an afterthought at times. And while I love ghost stories, I would have been fine without the ghosts in this one. And the rules about the ghosts and how they could communicate were kind of ridiculous.
The relationship was sweet, but because of the format of the book I couldn’t quite connect with either guy. I thought Johnny was a bit strange and the whole ghost thing made him stranger.
I think if the format appeals to you, you will love this book. I had some trouble with it, so while I liked the story, I wasn’t a fan of the way it was written.
And for those of you who don’t like separation periods like me, there were no other people for either of them during this time and both were miserable without the other.
------------------------------
An ARC of The Reluctant Ghost Whisperer was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I love hurt/comfort books where one of the MCs just came out of an abusive relationship and now needs to heal, with the help of a patient, lo2.5 stars
I love hurt/comfort books where one of the MCs just came out of an abusive relationship and now needs to heal, with the help of a patient, loving man of course. But… not all writers can pull it off. There needs to be some time to heal until I’m comfortable with a new romance. And there wasn’t enough healing here unfortunately.
Warwick meets Jack for the first time in the ER when Jack comes in with a broken arm and a black eye. Warwick has seen a lot of cases like this in his time as a doctor, so when Jack tells him he fell down the stairs, Warwick doesn’t buy it.
Of course Warwick sees that Jack is extremely intimidated by his huge and aggressive boyfriend who’s standing next to him. But all Warwick can do is give Jack his card and tell him to call him when he needs help.
Several weeks later Jack still hasn’t called the kind doctor from the hospital, even though he really wants to. When Greg finds the card, he explodes and attacks Jack. But Jack runs out of the house and calls Warwick.
Warwick comes to collect Jack immediately when he gets the call. And when Jack doesn’t know where to go, Warwick offers his spare bedroom, and Jack gratefully accepts.
Warwick has a roommate, but she’s just fine with Jack staying with them. When several weeks have past Jack still doesn’t feel safe enough to go outside or go to work. And that’s when Warwick comes up with a plan to go to England to visit his family. Greg can’t get to Jack there.
The time they spend in England is great, but when feelings start to play a role, neither knows if it would be a good idea to get involved with each other so soon after Jack’s abusive relationship…
There were a few things I liked about this and a few things I didn’t.
What I liked was Jack and Warwick themselves. I liked them both as individual characters and together they were very sweet. I liked the hurt/comfort parts in this, with Jack being scared and Warwick taking care of him.
But I also had a hard time with several other things.
Jack had been abused and raped for over a year, but no one mentioned therapy or seeking help to get him to mentally heal. Even though Warwick should know better as a doctor. At one point he says Jack should just try to forget about Greg. As if it’s that easy!
Now it seemed as if Jack just got over it in a matter of weeks, with the help of Warwick’s magical healing dick of course.
I also didn’t get the roommate. She was OTT ADHD like and way too friendly. She also didn’t really serve a purpose to the story. I just thought it was weird that she said to Warwick that they should even live together when both of them were married to other people because she didn’t want to part. That’s not healthy in my book, but okay….
And then Greg himself. He was simply too evil. Now I couldn’t take him seriously as a villain anymore. It seemed he had super tracking powers and constantly knew where to find Jack or how get his phone number. And what happened with him at the end wasn’t given enough page time at all. It was just resolved in 2 sentences.
This story had a lot of potential, if Jack was just given more time to heal and perhaps had some therapy, I would have believed in his miraculous recovery a bit more. So it wasn’t a bad story, but I can’t say it was a huge success either.
------------------------------
An ARC of To Love Again was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
For the first half I was sure this would be a 4 star read. Then halfway I thought maybe 3.5, but then it went downhill even more and I ended up with 3For the first half I was sure this would be a 4 star read. Then halfway I thought maybe 3.5, but then it went downhill even more and I ended up with 3 stars. I hate it when that happens.
Alexandre Bonfils is the second son of a wealthy businessman. Alex doesn’t really have to do anything, but he is still employed by his father, and Alex was sure that would be enough. But when his father tells him he’s had enough of his playboy ways and that he can no longer work for the company, Alex is heartbroken. He always thought it didn’t matter what he did within the company, as long as he showed up.
That’s when Alex comes up with a brilliant idea. He will go undercover as an intern in one of the company’s warehouses. That way he can start at the bottom, and also find out who’s responsible for the strange accidents at that warehouse.
When Alex meets his new manager, Tate, he can’t help himself and immediately starts flirting with the pretty man. But Tate shoots him down. Of course Alex doesn’t give up after one try, and it’s not long before Tate finds himself agreeing to go out on a date.
Tate isn’t sure he should date anyone, let alone an employee. He has his 3 brothers and sisters to look after, so there is no time to date. But of course Alex can be very persistent….
I really liked the second book in this series, and was sure this would be a winner too. But what bothered me the most in this was the romance. I wanted these guys te be more than what they ended up becoming.
Alex was a fun guy, but his overall cheerfulness did feel a little forced at times. Tate I had a harder time liking. I liked how sweet he could be and how cute he and Alex were together, at first. But he was kind of hard to get to know too.
I was sure Tate would get over his carefulness, his hesitation to start a relationship, but he never really did. And that ending.. That was the most (view spoiler)[unromantic proposal I’ve ever read. (hide spoiler)] I can do careful guys just fine, but somewhere along the way there has to be a point where they both say, I really want you, I really love you, I really want to be with you. But Tate never really got there. And that really bummed me out.
After a promising start I just wanted more from these guys than what we got.
------------------------------
An ARC of Romancing the Undercover Millionaire was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I really did not like this one. The romance felt ridiculously underdeveloped and the characters had no depth to speak of.
Ethan is a 20 year old studenI really did not like this one. The romance felt ridiculously underdeveloped and the characters had no depth to speak of.
Ethan is a 20 year old student who has always had nightmares. Very vivid nightmares. And they almost all have the same girl and the same werewolf in them.
When it looks like Ethan is starting to dream during the day as well, he asks help from an old family friend. Arthur tells him to go visit a friend of his, Dr. Grady Hunter.
When Ethan is under the impression he is in the doctor’s office to get himself examined, physical or mentally, he doesn’t get why the place looks like a new age store. And Dr. Hunter himself looks like a very eccentric kind of person.
When Grady tells Ethan he is hired, Ethan is shocked. Hired? As what? Turns out he was applying for the job of an intern in the occult business Grady runs.
Now Grady needs Ethan’s help with witches, werewolves, ghosts, vampires, and other creatures that go bump in the night….
I thought this would be a great story with a blurb like that. But I was wrong. There wasn’t a lot I actually did like in this.
What bothered me the most was the characters themselves. Ethan is this doe-eyed naïve boy with only one setting: hero worship of the amazing Grady Hunter. The whole employer/apprentice relationship felt really wrong to me. Or I should say, it felt really wrong that there would ever be anything romantic between the two.
Ethan doesn’t appear to have any other strong emotion than just this overall silly happiness. And Grady is this cynic who I didn’t like at all.
There were these little things that totally weirded me out about them too. Like Grady talks to Ethan about his relationship with vampire Dacey.
”What Dacey and I share isn’t something anyone should aspire to. It’s heartless and it’s vulgar.”
And while they talk about Grady’s sexual relationship with another man, Ethan just smiles and nods. Because yes, that’s the right response. Very romantic.
And I’m all for thinking the mother of the boy you like is a beautiful woman, but here it says that Grady found the woman very attractive. And then he flirted with her while Ethan was standing next to them feeling uncomfortable because of it. Oh, that was just so wrong.
“I mean, I want them to like each other but they almost seem to like each other too much. It’s kind of weirding me out."
I also had a major problem with the way Grady lied to Ethan. He eventually came clean, but it was no small lie. I would have kicked Grady’s ass. But no, eventually Ethan forgave him…. Ugh….
Oh, and the one sex scene is fade to black.
This book felt like a bit of a mess. I guess other people could like this, but I wasn’t feeling it.
(btw Ethan was 20 and Grady 37, for those who want to know the age gap)
-----------------------------
An ARC of Roam was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I liked this one a little less than the first book, but it was still entertaining. I wouldn’t read this as a stand-alone since this features 3.5 stars
I liked this one a little less than the first book, but it was still entertaining. I wouldn’t read this as a stand-alone since this features all the characters from the first book.
We met Lee in the previous book as the witness Reid was trying to protect by posing as his boyfriend. Of course Reid fell in love with Camden, so that wasn’t a very believable cover.
After testifying against the gang who killed his brothers, Lee has returned to the little town 3 years later. Camden and Reid are still living in the house they fixed up, and are quite surprised to see Lee on their doorstep.
Lee doesn’t want to be Huy anymore, so he kept the cover name Lee. He doesn’t want to be a coward with a criminal past, he wants to be out and proud Lee, a good guy. So that’s why he got his mother and sister and dragged them to Fields, the one place he ever felt even remotely safe.
When Lee is looking at buildings to buy for the diner he and his family want to open, he comes across real estate agent Miguel. Lee had a huge crush on Miguel 3 years ago, but Miguel had a boyfriend then. But he doesn’t now..
When Miguel shows Lee the first place on the list, they unexpectedly find the body of a teenage girl. The police question the two men, and when they make a connection to teens dying of drug overdoses and Lee’s drug past, they think they have their man…..
I like DJ Jamison’s writing style. These books have a nice flow to them. They’re not totally without flaws, but overall this kept me entertained til the end.
I wasn’t a fan of the relationship angst, but…. at least it wasn’t fabricated or fake. There was a real issue that they had to overcome, so I was okay with it. Not my favorite part, but that’s just me.
The mystery did lose a bit of its shine near the end, when I thought it was never going to be solved. It just went on a bit too long for me to stay completely interested in it.
The romance was pretty sweet and I loved that these guys talked to each other about what they both wanted from each other and how insecure they actually were that the other one wouldn’t want them.
Overall this was pretty entertaining, and I will definitely read the next book when it comes out.
------------------------------
An ARC of Buyer’s Remorse was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I’ve never read a book where the BDSM felt so out of place than in this book.
I love BDSM books, but here I really didn’t like it. It wasn’t t2.5 stars
I’ve never read a book where the BDSM felt so out of place than in this book.
I love BDSM books, but here I really didn’t like it. It wasn’t that it was unexpected or anything, since Lincoln hints at it from the start. I just felt it didn’t fit the story or the characters at all. And the story didn’t need it since there were lots of other things going on to keep things interesting.
Lincoln has had his own diner for the last 10 years. He enjoys working there and loves to help out people as much as he can. So when obviously homeless Noel comes into the diner to ask for a job, Lincoln doesn’t hesitate and hires Noel on the spot.
Noel doesn’t know why Lincoln is so kind to him, but he is determined to work his butt off to prove to Lincoln he is worth the trust Lincoln puts in him.
When the two grow closer and closer neither remember why it would be a bad idea to start something romantic…
When I first started this I immediately thought two things. One was that it was sappy, sweet, and had lots hurt/comfort, so that was keeping my interest. The other one was that I didn’t like the writing style. I had a hard time with the pages and pages of inner dialogue to explain the background of both guys. And that wasn’t just at first, no, they kept doing this the entire book. Even in the middle of a conversation sometimes. It made me feel disconnected from the ‘now’ from the start.
But that aside, I tried to really get into it and just concentrate on the hurt/comfort parts. And those were plentiful. But then we got introduced to the BDSM element of this story. And that’s where it went completely downhill for me.
I never once felt like Lincoln was a real Dom (or at least not acting like I prefer in my books). Noel was still trying to find his place in the world and had so much to process and deal with, that I didn’t think it was very wise that Lincoln suddenly went all demanding on his ass. Now some would say that a Dom is demanding, but not like this. It felt off to me.
“Five minutes. Have your ass downstairs, ready to go.” He didn’t wait for an answer. It was time Noel got to know Lincoln better, and why not start with the basics: jump when your Dom says to.
And that’s where I disagree. I’m no BDSM expert, but I don’t think the gist is ‘jump when your Dom says to’. Now Lincoln does second guess himself when he says this to Noel, but not enough to change how he acts.
Now I’m not sure if the book would have been any better if we take out the BDSM parts, since I still had an issue with the overall sappiness of the writing. And there was no subtlety to anything that happened. No slow reveal of information. It just all laid out for us, no need to think for ourselves.
What also bothered me was that Lincoln gets up at 3am to start at the diner. At one point it is mentioned that it is 8pm and he has 3 hours to go til closing. If he starts at 4am that’s a 19 hour work day. It is later said that Lincoln works 16 hours a day, 6 days a week. Now the diner is closed on Sunday, but I do think it’s weird that a diner would close on Sunday since most people would like to eat something on a Sunday. So why not hire more people and be open on a Sunday? Or close on a Monday like lots of diners do around here?
That kind of workweek would be unhealthy for everyone. But when Lincoln says to Noel he wants to hire a cook so he can have more time off, Noel disagrees, because 'Lincoln needs to continue to give his all to people, because that’s what he does'… Talk about setting yourself up for an early heart attack…
So I can’t say I enjoyed this book. It may have started out promising, but it didn’t work out that well for me in the end.
------------------------------
An ARC of Lincoln’s Park was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I’m a huuuuge Mary fan, but it seems her latest books are a bit of a miss for me. There were parts in this that made me all, oh yeaaaaaah, now we’re tI’m a huuuuge Mary fan, but it seems her latest books are a bit of a miss for me. There were parts in this that made me all, oh yeaaaaaah, now we’re talking! And then suddenly I got bombarded with all kind of details about the vampyr world and I was all ooooooh noooo, not this again.
I also felt that the relationship between Jason and Varic was pretty underdeveloped. Now don’t get me wrong, I love Mary’s crazy kind of insta-love, but I also need to see more of the couple together to really feel their love. And there was too much other stuff going on that detracted from that.
This actually reminded me a bit of the Change of Heart series, with its rules and the mate thing and the world building. And that series was a miss for me as well, because just like in this book, it sometimes felt as if the rules were just made up as they went along. There was no real logic to it all. Now sometimes in a Mary book that can be a good thing, like in her contemporaries. But when it’s shifters, or in this case vampyrs, I get lost in the rules and the world and the everything.
We also had the female best friend in this, like in every Mary book, and just like in all the other books, I didn’t like her. It felt like she was just filling. And can I just say how ridiculous it is how in every book this best friend is super angry at the MC for getting himself in danger, while it is never their fault. As if Jason could have stopped someone from shooting at him!
Now it looks like I didn’t like this at all, and that wasn’t the case either. There were some lovely possessive moments a la Mary Calmes, and those were wonderful. But it just wasn’t as good as some of her other book….
I have a feeling only true die hard Mary fans will love this. Or not, like me, but I get annoyed at too much world-building a lot, so don’t pay attention to me.
-----------------------------
An ARC of His Consort was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
When I started this I was quite confused. I know I read the second book, but some details about Lucky, Mason and some Oscar were a little murky. UnforWhen I started this I was quite confused. I know I read the second book, but some details about Lucky, Mason and some Oscar were a little murky. Unfortunately things were not recapped in this book. I figured out what was going on near the end I think. While it wasn’t super important for the story, it did result in me being a bit confused what the actual problem was between Mason and Lucky.
And that’s why I was quite convinced this would not be a winner for me. But then around 60% I suddenly found myself totally engrossed in the story. And I ended up enjoying it a great deal actually.
Lucky and Mason have been dancing around each other for quite a while, but neither is ready to give into the other.
When Mason accepts a temporary job with the Kings, he and Lucky are forced to work close together. And it’s not long before they both acknowledge that they can’t stay away from each other…
As I mentioned, I had a hard time understanding the angst between Mason and Lucky at first. I couldn’t quite figure out why they were so set against a relationship. But things improved once they got their heads out of their ass. And once the rest of the Kings started to show up and play bigger roles, I was enjoying this quite a lot more.
The sexy times were very sizzling and we even got some dirty talk!
One thing that felt very unrealistic to me was why Mason accepted a temporary position with the Kings. I think that could have been a bit smoother. Or have Mason think about approaching King a bit longer. Now it was clearly that there had to be some reason to get Mason to work together with Lucky and apparently this was the quickest way. (view spoiler)[Mason was put on paid leave because he failed a drug test. He forgot to list his cough medicine. While he’s being investigated he immediately goes to King to ask for a job. (hide spoiler)] Now that was just too sudden for me to really believe in it.
So even though this had a rocky start for me, I ended up enjoying this anyway. Especially when Mason and Lucky got together after they stopped being so stubborn.
------------------------------
An ARC of Join the Club was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Re-read March 2020 This is one of those hugs in a book. I can re-read this over and over again.
----------------------------------------
I love reading aRe-read March 2020 This is one of those hugs in a book. I can re-read this over and over again.
----------------------------------------
I love reading about strong characters who are dealt a shitty hand in life and try to make the most out of it.
Ethan is in college when he starts losing part of his hearing. He struggles with it and gets pretty depressed for several years. Luckily he has a supporting boyfriend, now fiancé, and an amazing best friend.
When Ethan comes home early the day before his wedding, he is not expecting to see his fiancé in bed with his best friend. Turns out the two have been in a relationship for the last 2 years. The two try to tell Ethan it is not so bad and that Ethan should have an open mind and think about a polyamorous relationship, but Ethan never signed up for that.
And that’s how he ends up going on his honeymoon by himself. He has no idea where he’s going to live when he gets back, but he is determined to enjoy himself and leave the worries for when he gets back.
Ethan can hear people fairly well when they speak directly to him, talk a bit slower, and there’s not a lot of background noise. But some people talk to him like he’s not all there, they mumble, or they start yelling so he can hear them better, which is not the case with his sensitive hearing aids.
Ethan is just thinking he made a huge mistake by coming to Australia alone when he meets the driver of the tour bus, Clay.
Clay is in his early forties, divorced and has two grown kids. He befriends Ethan when he sees the young man could use a friend. Ethan being hard of hearing never fazes Clay and he adjusts the way he speaks so Ethan can hear him just fine.
The two become close friend during the tour, but when the tour ends Clay gets a little spooked by how much he likes Ethan. But Ethan doesn’t get why he is suddenly getting the cold shoulder from Clay. Especially since the tour is now over and Ethan had hoped to spend some time with Clay as friends.
But when Ethan’s reservation is suddenly cancelled he has no place to stay for the rest of his holiday. When Clay offers Ethan a place to stay, Ethan knows he shouldn’t be so happy to go home with an apparently straight man, but he can’t help his crush….
Ethan was so sweet, I liked him from the start. I hated his (ex)fiancé with a vengeance with how he cheated on him and then how he tried to defend himself by laying it all on Ethan and his depression. Because Michael had 'needs'! Oh please......
Clay was lovely in the way he just befriended Ethan and tried to make him feel better. I love 'older' characters with grown children btw. Especially ones that are only now finding out what (or who) they really want.
A GFY story sometimes gets on my nerves because I don’t like a big gay freak-out in my books. But I have to say that Clay was not too bad in handling this. When he gave into his attraction he was all in. Of course there is some minor angst when Clay’s kids get involved, but that was over before I knew it.
And while I liked the romance itself, I think that what kept me the most intrigued and entertained throughout this story was the fact that Ethan was hard of hearing. Because Ethan struggled with how people treated him and how isolated he could sometimes feel because of it, we got some lovely hurt/comfort moments. Clay never had an issue with repeating sentences or speaking more slowly. And I just loved how the hurt/comfort played a huge role without it being too heavy.
What did annoy me was that I felt the aussie slang was a bit overdone. Now, of course it could be that Clay really did talk like the slangiest Aussie slanger to have ever slanged, but it was a bit overdone sometimes. I talked about this book to my friend Elsbeth, and she mentioned that Charlie (from N.R. Walker’s Red Dirt Heart) never talked like that. Now every person is different and every book character can be as well, but I just got the feeling it was too much in this. Well, don’t pay attention to me, I’m not an aussie expect and it could be that everyone in the outback really does talk like this. I just never read a book about an Australian character with quite that much of an aussie vocabulary. Do all the other Australian authors tone it down? Or did Keira Andrews simply write an OTT Australian character? Either is fine of course, but here it annoyed me a bit.
Overall, this was a nice relaxing book with some lovely hurt/comfort moments sprinkled throughout the story. ...more
Loading...
