This was everything I didn't think I'd ever feel with a dark romance ever again. It's been so long, soo long since I loved“Name it.”
Exhilarating.
This was everything I didn't think I'd ever feel with a dark romance ever again. It's been so long, soo long since I loved this kind of dark romance.
Nathan White is a fictional man I wouldn't call my book boyfriend, wouldn't simp over him and call him the "standard" because this man isn't a standard. He isn't. Truly. He is a lawless psychopathic megalomaniac and it's just so fascinating reading about him like he is a subject of a case study.
This fascination with a dark romance hero is what I find exhilarating. And it's been so long since I felt this way. The need to own this book is something I've not felt in a long time. I know I keep repeating this but fuck, I'm speechless.
Lawless God by Lola King is Haunting Adeline if it was better and had a plot. A heroine who isn't just "strong and fierce" who keeps fighting back. But a motherfucking queen who is known for her ruthlessness and someone who everyone is scared of.
Jesus christ. Nathan, this man. I have no words for his depravity. Rest assured every sexual activity between them was dub-con. But other things? Oh fuck me, there's unhinged and then there's Nathan who manipulates you but never hides the fact that he does. He will never lie. Everything he plans on doing, including the fact that Stockholm syndrome is his end goal, he'll put it all upfront.
All I can say is if you try to get mad at the heroine for giving in to him, she is already well aware of her masochist tendencies, yet at the same time you can't stay angry for long because that'd underestimating her. And underestimating Kayla King is something even Nathan White learns to never do.
Cue the laughter. Because that's something I never expected yet when I laughed out loud so many times whenever Kayla does something to Nathan it was beyond hilarious seeing it from Nathan's pov. Every time Nathan commands her to do something by saying "...like a good little wife" she manages to turn that task into a physical fight and it's so fun. Also every interaction of Nathan and Sam too!!! Not to mention the people she kills and threaten when she is possesive of Nate.
His antisocial behaviour disorder and his inability to understand people's emotions makes him study reading emotions like it's an academic course. And my god, everytime I try to hate him, he does something so unexpected WHILE remaining non-chalant about it, I just can't control my fascination.
All I know is when I get this urge to own a book, it's serious commitment. That means I want the characters to be with me and claim ownership of them and it's that feeling of strong desire and impulse that makes me put this book in my 'all-time-fav' shelf.
I fear I won't ever be able to do this book justice by putting it all in correct words. For now, I'll show you some scenes and quotes below which frankly? won't ever be enough.
I wave a hand dismissively. “The girl has a horrible concussion, and someone just tried to drown her.” “Could that someone be you, maybe?” “Well, not all proposals are done with flowers, Sam. My point is, she’s going to need some rest over the next few days before she plans anything.”
***
“This is kidnapping.” His eyes widen, and his mouth drops open as he gasps before bringing a hand to cover it. “No? Oh my god, no. Call the police.” With a dramatic shudder, his face goes blank again. “Kidnapping? Do you think that’s the worst thing I’ve ever done? Stop wasting my time, will you?”
***
“How long, Nate? How long are you going to make me pay?” “How long was I in prison?” “Practically four years,” I huff. We both know that. He didn’t need to make me repeat it. “I guess we’ll start with four years, then. Who knows, you might be the one who decides to stay after that. Stockholm syndrome is a wonderfully complicated thing.” I try to be discreet, but I don’t control my small step back. “It’s okay,” he says softly. “You won’t realize it. All you’ll feel is happy and in love, and you won’t believe anyone who tells you otherwise.”
***
“I do understand,” I say flatly. “Drying tears, snot, the redness of your cheeks. Your pulse is beating so hard that the skin at your throat is moving along with it. Your hands are shaking, your shoulders hunched, your leg bouncing. You’re terrified.” I turn to Sam, proudly showing him how good I am at this. He rolls his eyes.
***
“You want to mark me, Nate?” I hiss in his face. “I’ll mark you back.” He blinks up at me, and a smile spreads on his lips. “That hurt, little sunflower.” He can’t move his left arm, the pain in his shoulder probably too intense. But his right hand snatches my wrist, holding the knife closer against his skin, pressing, dragging red liquid to the surface. He bucks his hips, pushing into my core. The motherfucker is hard. “You’re fucking sick.” “It turns me on to know you can fight back. It’s like you’re begging me to go harder on you next time.” I shove my knees into his ribs. “There is no next time. Let me out of this fucking house.” “But baby, look at us. We’re so compatible.”
***
I’ll recognize her tone of voice and the features on her face. It’ll make it simple to read her. She names it, and I can study it. She names it, and I can remember what it looks like on her. I can’t emphasize and feel bad or ever share her joy. I can only attempt to learn. Sometimes, I can link it to something I’ve been through, but that is a lot of work because I hardly ever feel much. But if I learn what everything looks like on her face, in her body, in her breathing. If I learn all her emotions by heart, there will be nothing she can hide from me. Utter control. What a fun game to play.
***
“My dear wife,” I murmur against her mouth. “Will you cook me an omelet for breakfast? I’ve been craving one.” She doesn’t answer, but she takes a step back and walks to the counter. Pointing at different cupboards, she asks, “Pans?” I nod when she points at the right one, then go back to my phone. I could get used to this. My wife making me an omelet before I head to my first meeting of the day. “Nate?” “Mhm?” My thoughts still focused on how to help with night terrors, I turn toward her voice. I barely catch her shadow when the pan hits me right in the side of the face. The sharp pain drags a grunt out of me as I fall to the floor. I notice her towering over me, pan in hand. She looks down at my lying form, a beautiful, sick smile spreading on her lips. “How’s your omelet, darling?”
***
You and I, Kayla, we could rule the world. I will worship every fucking thing you touch. I will burn down your enemies, I will bury anyone who ever made you feel like you weren’t enough, like all you could do was stay in your shitty town and rule your shitty gang. You were made for the greatest things that ever existed. You were made to build your own path, and I want you to be with me when that happens. I want to see you sit on your throne and watch everyone else bow to the goddess you are.”
***
Kayla is becoming a passion. Something I want to see everywhere. I want her to be the subject of every conversation I have with everyone. I want to go to rallies in her name. I want to find someone who understands me so we can discuss her for hours like fangirls do about their favorite band. Oh, it’s bad. It’s bad, but it’s not love. Because love feels like…like… “What does love feel like?” I blurt out.
OKAY ENOUGH I think I need to stop. There are 100 more scenes and dialogues I've annotated and it's not possible to put it all in. JESUS. How will I ever enjoy any other dark romance after this???...more
Not rating any lower than 3 because I've seen worse doormats.
I shouldn't have expected much from this considering this fell short like any other duet Not rating any lower than 3 because I've seen worse doormats.
I shouldn't have expected much from this considering this fell short like any other duet does with the second book as the downfall.
Just want to quantify it, 50% - half the book was full of Ruslan hurting Emma and till literally 51% he didn't get to know the truth. It took about 10% of groveling with little to no resistance from the heroine about forgiving him.
All that aside, the kidnapping was at such a convenient time, I was like "dramatic much?".
::::::::: Also, why is it that when I went to surf through the author's other works because there are so many bratva romances, each of the blurbs I'm finding to be the carbon copies of each other? He is a mob, her boss, needs a baby. She is too poor, too desperate, have a traumatic and haunting past and will do anything for him....more
I severely underestimated everything about this book. And I couldn't be happier about being proven wrong.
I've read a lot of sex-to-love, fuck-buddies-I severely underestimated everything about this book. And I couldn't be happier about being proven wrong.
I've read a lot of sex-to-love, fuck-buddies-to-lovers stories, and it's hardly ever that I see a well-constructed plot with proper character as well as story development for a romance. This was an extremely long book, sure. I even dropped it before 40%, but then picked it up again hours later, and this time I realized I was just lacking patience because to go from just being in a sexual, no-strings-attached contract to an actual, meaningful start of a relationship, you need hell of a substance. It doesn't happen magically overnight.
And there were lots of uniquely embedded ways that this buildup occurred. One such way was what I loved the most. It's the fact that Ruslan's (H) personality didn't do a complete 180 when he found the sex is amazing with the secretary. The changes in him, the emotional sparks inside him began igniting from the first time he saw her in her home, with the kids, something related to her personal life and from there on, more stuff began to happen which made him act in such unusual ways where he found himself not only getting deeply invested and involved into her life but actually being interested in something other than her, which was the kids, an extension of her.
I picked this book up from seeing a reel about the 2nd book of this duet and from that blurb, I was expecting a surprise pregnancy ending where she leaves after finding out he is the Bratva Pakhan so I was expecting to be disappointed in that regard, but actually, that didn't happen at all, the overall plot was just so meticulously woven that nothing went ridiculous or unnecessary....more
JFC I'm sorry for cursing so much but WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK
WHY the fuck wasn't I informed about tYes, I stayed up till 4am to finish this.
because WTF
OMFG
JFC I'm sorry for cursing so much but WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK
WHY the fuck wasn't I informed about there being a new magical realism book in existence? Why, oh why do i have to stumble upon the most important books randomly as a luck of chance.
jfc
I have scoured the earth to find all the romance books in existence consisting of my favorite fucking trope - magical realism and you're telling me it has been more than a freaking month since a new one came to the world and NOBODY TOLD ME??? It is already so freaking rare to find magical realism in romance books. It is 10x more freaking hard to find the books which does the trope justice and does it right.
Look at my all time fav shelf, look at the magical realism shelf, both contains common books, and unfortunately, the latter has only 21 books. My magical realism fav books. Obviously, Transcend duet is no.1
I can go on and on about this trope and the significance of it and how it should be done blah blah blah but this 524 paged books which kept me up all night with its absolutely heart-wrenching, breathtaking and beautiful story, deserves all the love in the world. This book became my fav not only because it has my fav trope. It's because this has another thing i look for which i rarely ever get. The childhood element. The one where one character is a kid and their whole childhood is shown not just a flashback of time. This story managed to remind me so much of Ren and Della: Boxed Set aka Ribbon duet and that book was other-worldly. So combine the two rarest finds of the romance book community and tell me how should I not consider this book special?
I knew that as long as she remained a little kid, she is never gonna be anything but honest, and those refreshing moments spent of her as a kid with Alex, is what i cherish the most.
And because i cannot talk about the book without giving spoilers and i love this book too fucking much to give spoilers, I present to you the quotes:...more
Not being a part of online book communities like bookstagram anymore really has its disadvantages huh? 2 years ago I read Lotus yearning for4.34 Stars
Not being a part of online book communities like bookstagram anymore really has its disadvantages huh? 2 years ago I read Lotus yearning for Gabe's story and it was yesterday that I realized Gabe's book was released in 2023. Welp, here I am now.
Gotta say, this might be my favorite second chance/love-after-loss book considering I cannot recall a time I cried and felt so strongly for the dead ex.
Its also this author's marvelous ability to create an emotional turmoil of a story making it unique in the matters it generally isn't, which is more surprising than anything for me. Moving on doesn't mean forgetting, there is no need for comparisons between the lost and the new found love, it's so hard to write these kind of stories for this exact reason because one way or another somebody gets devalued by "letting go" becoming the step of "moving on''. And if nothing else, I can proudly say, there wasn't any of this till end, Matthew's presence throughout the book is something I'm so grateful for.
I just loved the connections in everything in her life connecting both Matthew and Gabe in one way or another. One man taught her to never look back and keep going. And the other taught her to never look down and keep flying.
Everything was so monumental.
----- My last read was a Jewel E. Ann book which prompted me to find authors similar to her who writes meaningful, heart-wrenching stories. There was no surprise Jennifer Hartmann was at the top of that list. And when I came across a profound quote shared in both these books, it felt like a happy coincidence and a poignant sign that I was meant to read and learn a timeless lesson that both the authors communicated beautifully.
“I don’t want someone who kills for me. I don’t want someone who dies for me.” Swallowing the emotion, she raises both palms and clasps my face. “I just want someone who will live for me.”
The only thing I loved in this was the smut and the kid brothers of the h. The smut was one of the most sacrilegious smut I've ever come across in a pThe only thing I loved in this was the smut and the kid brothers of the h. The smut was one of the most sacrilegious smut I've ever come across in a priest/preacher romance. I would not recommend this to anyone who is religious and even a slightest bit uncomfortable with sacrilegious themes. It definitely would not be as appealing -let alone hot- as it was to me. So far i've seen food play (grape fucking comes to mind), candle fucking, lollipop fucking, gun fucking and now we have the holy wooden cross to add to the list. Not to mention the places they had sex.
I was on the fence about DNFing for about 10% then I just gave up after that.
I absolutely hate single parent if the ex is still in the picturDNF @45%
I was on the fence about DNFing for about 10% then I just gave up after that.
I absolutely hate single parent if the ex is still in the picture. I love single dad/mom and this was so good because Rosie is a mom of a cute little toddler I adore. But this pet peve of mine makes me skeptical and anxious about reading it further. I don't enjoy the constant comparison to the ex, knowing that he will eventually become a source of conflict and likely be portrayed as the bad guy. It's also predictable that the main character will be shown as a better parent compared to the actual parent, with the child obviously favoring the main character.
While these elements don't completely ruin the story, they make it lack uniqueness and become boring. It's clear that the father of the child is a terrible person, and the way things are going, he seems even worse. He shouldn't be allowed to have the child, not even for a few hours. However, it bothers me that the heroine, as much as I love her, simply accepts his cruel words and doesn't stand up for herself or consider keeping him away from her child. I can't bear to witness that fictional toddler being hurt and let down by his father's actions.
The problem I have with this is that in the single parent trope, these situations don't feel genuine like a typical drama involving OM/OW would. They come across as nothing more than a plot device to establish the main character's superiority by demeaning the secondary character. As a reader, I didn't feel like the ex was written with the intention of creating a genuine third-party conflict (although I'm not a big fan of those either), but rather to show how good of a dad, boyfriend, lover the main character is and how much better he is than the actual father.
I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if it focused solely on Adam and Rosie without any other secondary characters with evil intentions. I absolutely love Adam's friends and the hockey players, they are hilarious and my favorite part of the story.
The hidden identity trope is one of my favorites, and I was really excited to read this book. However, I should have known that in a 450+ page contemporary romance, there would be more than just one unnecessary conflict. After reading a few reviews that confirmed my doubts about the ex/father creating more problems, and the heroine even considering breaking up with Adam over it, I've decided not to continue reading this book.
******
I desperately wanna read Jaxon's book though. He reminds me of Joey from friends. Although I can't decide if I'm more excited for his book or Emmett and Cara's!...more
“We should go after the girls.” “Yes, we should.” Neither of them moved. Alex bit her lip. “We’re going to kiss instead, aren’t we.” He caught
“We should go after the girls.” “Yes, we should.” Neither of them moved. Alex bit her lip. “We’re going to kiss instead, aren’t we.” He caught her in his arms. “You’re goddamned right, we are.”
THERE IS A FREAKING REASON TESSA DARE IS KNOWN AS THE QUEEN OF HR COMEDY, PEOPLE!!
"You are the worst example of false advertising. I was led to believe I was hiring a prim scold. Then I learn you’re remarkable and bold and interesting.”
♥♥
Even a less than 5 star book of hers has all the feels I expect from her books and more. It's seeing the collab of Ashbury from book 1 and Chase (H) here that I didn't knew I would be getting. Ash's infamous cat and Chase's two unusually perfect little girls would definitely make such a great team. Literally every Ash × Chase interaction is HILARIOUS AF!
Ash walked past her to stare down Chase face-to-face. “You deserve to know what a worthless scoundrel he is, Alex.” “Yes!” Chase exclaimed. He reached for Ashbury’s hand and pumped it in a vigorous greeting. “Thank you. I’ve been trying to tell her myself, but she won’t listen.” Ashbury looked more than a bit thrown by Chase’s invitation. He gave Alex a what-the-devil-is-he-on-about look.
♥♥
“You know, you two have so much in common. You ought to be friends.” “We are nothing alike,” Ash sputtered. “No one could possibly confuse us,” Chase agreed. “Of course not,” Ash continued. “One of us is a repulsive monster, and the other was scarred at Waterloo.” She spoke over their protests. “You should see yourselves. You’re giving me identical scowls right this moment.” “I am not scowling,” the two men said. In unison. While scowling.
♥♥
AAND, this is probably THE BEST if-you-hurt-i'll-kill-you speech i've ever seen in the history of ALL the romance books. I think its something to do with me being partial to Ash lol.
Before departing, Ash addressed Chase. “If you hurt her, in even the slightest way, I will eviscerate you.” “Understood.” “I mean it, Reynaud. In fact, gutting would be too good for you. I will subject you to my cat.” “Your cat?” Chase laughed. “To mewl at me, I suppose.” “Trust me. We’re not speaking of the average cat.” Alexandra spoke up. “I can attest to this.” “I’ll strip you bare, tie your hands behind your back, smear salmon on your manly bits, and lock the two of you in a wardrobe. Once he’s clawed your ballocks to shreds, I’ll crush whatever remains of you to a bloody, formless pulp.” “Good Lord.”Chase sounded a little awed. “That’s remarkably vivid. Did you plan all this out just for me, or do you keep a list of gruesome threats to use as the occasion arises?”
♥♥
It's the real versions of love declarations over the cheesy sweet nothings that makes me swoon. Them being their real usual selves>>> I love that only Tessa Dare characters are realistically sweet and hilarious together, it's pure magic which makes me addicted to her characters.
"I think the world is spinning.” “The world is always spinning.” He exhaled in a soft groan. “Well, that’s the truth. It’s spinning all the time.” “How about this. What if I say that you’re my world. You’re not spinning.” “But I am. We all are. We’re on the earth, and it’s spinning, so we’re spinning, too.” “You are ruining all my sweet nothings.”
♥♥
Honourable mention of the 10 year old Miss Rosamund and her little sister Daisy who are the cutest most unhinged kids ever! :
"Have you ever seen those girls so happy?” “Of course they’re happy,” he replied, sounding markedly less enthusiastic about it. “Daisy is surrounded by death, mummies stacked three to a case, and even Rosamund couldn’t dream of this much plundered gold.”
“Disease!” Daisy cheered. “Which ones?” “Very, very boring ones,” he said. “And don’t cheer. It was misery. Now if all that wasn’t bad enough, once you were convicted in court?” He drew a finger across his neck in a throat-slicing gesture. “Beheading,” Daisy awed
♥♥
I WANNA COPY PASTE THE WHOLE BOOK HERE, (just like i feel everytime i read Ms. Dare's books) but there are some bits and scenes special to the characters that one should come across on their own without prior knowledge (just like in every book by Ms. Dare which makes them stand out)
“You had better leave a detailed note for the great-great-grandchildren,” Ash said. “That would require them to have children first,” Emma pointed out. “Excellent observation. We’ll get on that right away.” Chase clapped his hands together. “On that note, good night and good-bye. All of you.”
♥♥
“You are the last person I want to see.” “Well, you are the last person I want to see, too.” She gestured in exasperation. “Then why are you—” “You are the last person I want to see before I fall asleep at night. Every night. The last woman I want to kiss for the remainder of my life. And your lovely face is the very last thing I want to see before I die. Because I love you, Alexandra.”
Yes, Transcend duet is my top all time fav book. Jewel E. Ann is one of my fav authors. Yet, I'm reading this story afHello! I am stupid. How are you?
Yes, Transcend duet is my top all time fav book. Jewel E. Ann is one of my fav authors. Yet, I'm reading this story after 2 years of trying -and failing- to recover from Swayze's story. I admit I had dnfed it around 28% a long while ago (for god knows what reason) but when i picked it up again and resumed yesterday, I finished it and now I feel stupid for not reading it sooner.
It's JEA people! What else can you expect but originality and magic? Morgan has grown into a cute and spunky 10-year-old girl in this, and I felt like I was reconciling with old friends. When Swayze-related references appear subtly in conversations and Nate says something only Transcend duet readers will get, I feel as if I'm in on an inside joke with Nate.
"Our capacity love grows with time. It grows with every new person who touches our lives. So I love you more because my heart is bigger."
When JEA writes love stories, they are not just simple romance regardless of the theme/trope. There is a lesson behind it. Each of her stories has a profound purpose behind it. Her characters are flawed and have baggage, but even without that, each of their love stories is distinctive and stands out.
There are so many things I want to convey and highlighted quotes/scenes I want to paste here, but I'll refrain, because each and every experience should be refreshing and new to you.
I both envy and pity readers who haven't yet read the Transcend duet because you have the opportunity to experience that spectacular and emotional journey for the first time, and I pity those readers because you are yet to be touched by JEA's true magic.
I don’t know why this feels so easy. So fated. So unavoidable. She turns her head, smiling as my mouth finds hers. Her hand presses to my cheek. It’s slow like us. Destination unknown. Fortuity.
“Loving you is realizing heaven isn’t a place, but a person.”
➺ I'm surprised by how much i love this book. This couple. Their banter. Their hilar“Loving you is realizing heaven isn’t a place, but a person.”
➺ I'm surprised by how much i love this book. This couple. Their banter. Their hilarious conversations and literally every fucking thing they do when they are with each other. I initially was planning to give this 3 stars until i realised there's 50% of the book still left.
➺ Fake relationship isn't the trope i prefer to read voluntarily. However, i went into this blind and thus this trope came outta nowhere and smacked me in the face. But the way that it happened made me feel a little less uneasy because it wasn't something i thought was going to be sticking around for a long time.
With this trope comes certain obvious things like characters second guessing every romantic moment between them and chalking it up to it being fake and something the other one clearly did for the "show". And that's something i dislike.
She’s like a rainbow after the storm, and I’ll be damned if she fades away once the sun breaks through the clouds.
➺ Here comes a twister. I saw i just reached 50% and there's still half the book left so i continued. And OMFG!!! They are perfect! They are cute! But most importantly, THEY ARE FUCKING HILARIOUS.
I don't think anyone understands me when i say I'd love to read funny romances where the MCs are actually hilarious like laugh-out-loud funny and not just some sarcastic remarks here and there. It's honestly rare to find.
➺Forget them fake dating and shit, they are so fucking cute, I honestly had to put the book down yesterday night to sleep because my single ass can't handle sweetness.
“Loving you is like being stranded in a desert without food or water. Like I’m half delusional, wondering if this whole damn thing is a mirage, because nothing should feel or look this good.”
➺ The fact that this book also deals with a serious topic of people dealing with disability and Santiago's obvious emotional struggle with his low self-esteem was phenomenally portrayed. And i absolutely freaking loved Chloe for always showing him she's sticking with him in such badass ways
➺ How she never gives up on him while also not being a doormat (mainly because Santiago is smitten and not an asshole despite being a grump) shows what rarely ever occurs in adult romances and it's : The couple sticking with each other, having each other's back, helping each other fight their demons and progress to a healthy relationship through communication and not just assumption. I loved how they just straight up came out with it and said they'll give this relationship a real chance and went from there, instead of assuming shit and never being on a same page.
➺ It's honestly amusing to me how I unknowingly chose the last book of this series and it ended up becoming not only my fav but also the author's most underrated one. Compared to the dreamland series -atleast the first two books- this is so much better and much worthy of being hyped imo!
I’ll love Santiago Alatorre for as long as the wildflowers keep growing in beautiful chaos.
Are Rafe & Penny still my fav couple??? Yes. Is Penny still my fav heroine?? Hell yes. Do i love Sinners Anonymous a
“Tell me a sin, Aurora.”
Are Rafe & Penny still my fav couple??? Yes. Is Penny still my fav heroine?? Hell yes. Do i love Sinners Anonymous any less??? Hell to the fuck no.
Yeah the first 35-40% was slow af and this is why it was hard for me to get hooked enough to ever read and finish this every other time i've tried doing so.
my fucking god. was it worth it. Because when Vicious Visconti and Rory hits, they hit hard.
There's just something about stories where they fall in love wayy before having sex. The intimate moments without it being sexual goes to my fav shelves. And this was one of them. From that one mention of F1 to the bird-cursing, I knew this was meant for me.
I find myself at such loss of words whenever i gotta praise a phenomenal book like this so i present you some of my fav highlighted quotes:
“And anyone who’s a complete cunt?” I recoil at the sound of that word. He glances sideways and smirks. “I mean, anyone who’s a complete…” He waves a hand around. “Canada goose?” “I would have gone with “cuckoo” myself.”
***
my hand shoots out and grabs a fistful of his suit jacket. He stops in his tracks. His eyes skid down to my fist and then they harden, like he can’t believe I have the nerve to touch him. But he doesn’t bark, nor does he bite. Instead, he does something so small and stupid that it has no right to snatch the oxygen from my lungs. He puts his hand over mine and lifts it to his face. Grazes his lips over it. “Stay in the car, Aurora,” he murmurs into my knuckles, making every nerve ending in my body buzz.
***
My uncle’s twenty-one-year-old fiancée emerging from the sea in a tiny black bikini is temptation personified. But her telling me she fingered herself while watching me on the shore?
A death sentence.
***
I slide my hands into the pockets of my slacks and tilt my chin up to the clear sky. Birds circle overhead: little blue ones with an annoying chirp. I bet Aurora would know exactly what fucking bird it was. She probably uses its name as a curse word. “What are you smiling about?” Rafe snaps next to me.
***
“So, uh. Where were you on Wednesday?” “Why? Did you miss me?” “Yes.” Her answer comes quick and thick. It’s followed by the most adorable little laugh. Coming to a halt to meet the gate, I drop my head against the backrest and close my eyes.
***
Under the heat of her bewildered stare, I shrug off my jacket and slip it around her shoulders. She pauses, wide-eyed, then pulls it tighter around herself, hiding a small smile in the fabric of the lapel. Fuck. Without a word, I sink down next to her and pull the cigarette carton from my pocket. I slide one out and slip it between Rory’s parted lips. As my knuckle grazes over her chin, I fight against the instinct to grip her there. The flame of my Zippo casts a soft shadow over her face, and when I light the tip, she draws a slow sensual inhale that goes straight to my cock. “Tell me a sin, Aurora.”
***
Christ. I have a Wasabi-flavored Kit-Kat melting in my glove box. It’s left over from my trip to Tokyo a few weeks back, and when I found it tucked into the seam of my luggage, my first thought was her. I’d smiled to myself, fucking smiled, picturing the adorable expression on her face when she bit into it and recoiled at the heat
***
Her hand finds my wrist, and she wraps it over my watch strap and leans her face into my palm, her eyes fluttering shut. Fuck. I hate how such a simple movement floods my stomach with warmth, but at the same time, I’d give my left nut to have her do that again.
***
“I trust you,” I whisper. His eyes flutter shut but if I’d blinked, I’d have missed it. “Rory?” His thumb pad carves a trail over my jawline. It stops at the corner of my mouth, but I turn my head to catch it between my lips. He lets out a soft moan, watching me, eyes half-lidded with lust, as I slowly lick it. “Yes?” Danger sparking in his eyes, he pushes his thumb further into my mouth, and with wetness pooling between my thighs, I open my mouth wider to take him all in. “Out of all my sins, you’re my favorite.”
***
His gaze flashes. “I’m old enough to be your father. How does that make you feel?” Heart thumping, I feign boredom. Look up at him through my lashes. “Does that mean I can call you daddy now?” Dark amusement graces his features. He gives a small shake of his head. “Come here.”
***
“You taste even better than I imagined,” he murmurs in fascination, brushing a stray curl away from my cheek. He cocks his head, a smirk dancing on his lips. “Starting a war with my family was worth that alone.”
***
I know how much she misses confessing her petty little sins, but from now on, that’s all they’ll ever be—petty. Because any real sin she wants to commit, I’ll do it for her.
“You reminded me that forgiving my past to chase after a new future could be fucking worth it.”
After being in a romance reading slump, i r
“You reminded me that forgiving my past to chase after a new future could be fucking worth it.”
After being in a romance reading slump, i randomly picked this mundane millionaire-nanny book and this was honestly just what I needed.
Let's ignore for a while i have an exam tomorrow, and this was the time i deemed right to read a book :)
I love single parent romance. Single-dad specifically ;) what i don't like is the ex-drama so i prefer the dead spouse over that. Suprisingly and fortunately, this one had the ex who was a good and genuinely sweet person. So that was a plus point.
➺ Moreover, Cozy? The FMC of the story is so weirdly unique and refreshing. The bubbly sunshine i didn't think I needed. I loved her. I adored her. Ignoring her creating the unnecessary conflict towards the end, she was and remains perfect. She was relatable at every angle. I mean who doesn't love a FMC who loves reading erotic romance? It makes reading the book even more interesting because you feel like it IS you. Makes you feel "ah! This is how i might react in this situation". Comparing the romantic incidents happening to her with what happens in books and what not.
Her internal monologue was hilarious. The embarrassing situations she often finds herself in made me laugh out loud so many times, i forgot my reality is dull and boring. (Makes this book a right choice ;))
➺ Max. The Zaddy. (A term i should have known smh) He is the perfect man. The perfect parent. The perfect millionaire. The perfect fling. And the perfect boyfriend. A true husband material. How understanding and supportive he is, is one of the many things which makes him a good person for Cozy.
Everly, that sweet little girl. I can hug her and kiss her. I might even adopt her if i hadn't already vowed to never having kids :)
➺ This book was the last book of the Wait With Me series. I haven't read any of the previous one. There's something about not starting from the beginning of a standalone series and instead, reading any book out of order. I much prefer that for some reason. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
A mundane, ordinary, typical yet different story i didn't knew I needed to read after reading just thrillers so far this month ;)
P.S : I realised Amy Daws is a new-to-me author. I can't wait to read more of her works!!
P.PS: Let's hope i do well in tomorrow's exam. ◉‿◉...more
Say hello to my favourite brother out of all three Kane brothers. Callahan Kane. The youngest yet the only brother who is everything the oth4.3 Stars✰
Say hello to my favourite brother out of all three Kane brothers. Callahan Kane. The youngest yet the only brother who is everything the other two couldn't ever be. I didn't loved Rowan and Declan much in their stories but Cal here makes it worth it for me to give this series a chance.
Cal is the only brother out of all three who actually is hilarious and someone who has real issues other than just daddy issues.
“Who lied to you and called you pretty?” She bats her lashes. “You did…while I was between your legs with my tongue deep inside your needy cunt.” Take that, you little witch. She chokes on her breath. “God.” “Please, no need to call me God outside of the bedroom. It gives me a complex.”
✧It's been a while since i read a single dad romance book. (Mainly because i don't want ex drama, teenage kids etc. Fortunately, this one ha3.8 STARS✰
✧It's been a while since i read a single dad romance book. (Mainly because i don't want ex drama, teenage kids etc. Fortunately, this one had a dead spouse :)) So it seemed like there couldn't be a better day to read that than Father's Day itself. And among thousands of Single-dad romances i chose Make Me Yours.
And I'm utterly pleased i did. Mariah is the nine y/o cute kid of Cole who is just so adorable, it reminded me of my love for cute adorkable kids in books . Love kids in fiction :))
✧I don't prefer an extreme slow burn, where up until 80-90% of the book, the MCs refuses to acknowledge their feelings then out of the blue they confess their "love" and in the last 5% we see their HEA. Nah...show me them bonding, them connecting, them being a couple and stuff like that then I'll believe they are meant to be together.
Thankfully this wasn't an extreme slow burn like i feared. It's just a regular old slow burn, where the first 40-50% of the book everything other than the MCs getting together/dating happens. And i love the fact that the other 50% of the book we'll see Cole and Cheyenne together.
✧The fact that Cole had came to his senses and decided to give Cheyenne a chance and himself for dating and loving, was a huge deal in itself.
“I feel like I was prepared to slay a dragon for you, and the dragon didn’t even show.”
‘There was a fucking dragon. I was sure of it. I could sense it. I could hear it creeping up on me. I just couldn’t see it. It was waiting for me to drop my guard, that was all. It was waiting for the exact moment I was alone and unprotected. The moment I thought I had it all. Then it was going to attack. I felt it in every blood cell, every nerve ending, every bone in my body.’
But obviously Cole has some deep rooted issues he needed to accept and move on from, thus needing therapy. Unfortunately, he was in the "men don't need therapy" stage which is very sad and i wish it was just a fictional thing.
✧Anyways, i usually don't really like the characters who live in denial and who doesn't want to "date" because of "forbidden" reasons but i understood, liked and later was able to love Cole. I understood him not being ready to date anyone despite everyone pressuring him and him meeting Cheyenne. Like why should he? If he doesn't want to, he shouldn't be forced to.
✧Cheyenne annoyed me sometimes. But she also surprised me a lotta times where i didn't expect her to react and not push it, she did the opposite and proved she had a backbone despite having an unrequited crush/love on Cole. (this just indicates I've given up on FMCs so much so that i expect majority of them to be spineless now smh)
✧As for the side characters,
Griffin (heroine's brother) who is getting married to Blaire in this book, is such a great and awesome character and i know he has his own story in the book one of this series. I just loved Griffin and his blunt and brutal honesty so much, i relate to him and loved the part he played in Make Me Yours, very much. I would've love nothing more than to read his story, but i didn't like Blaire with him. Didn't like them together as a couple. I might come for the story of Enzo and Bianca though. Loved Bianca here. Enzo and Griffin both are such cool MMCs i love to read <3
~~~×~~~×~~~×~~~×~~~×~~~
“When you have something precious in your hands, you need to hold on tight.”
“You have the right to remain silent—but I like it better when you’re loud.”
There is a freaking reason why Jewel E. Ann is my top fav author!!!
➺ She just has this magic in her writing that each of her works always has somethiThere is a freaking reason why Jewel E. Ann is my top fav author!!!
➺ She just has this magic in her writing that each of her works always has something unique in it that tops any other book I've read or will ever read. My favourite aspect of all her books is the way her titles come around to play such pivotal roles in the plot, the way each scene and word has meaning for her characters.
He stands, shrugging off his suit jacket. “You’re wearing a suit?” He loosens his tie. “I had to look the part.”
➺ Look The Part was just like this and what's more? The heroine Ellen is so freaking adorable, uncensored and a rat lady who calls her pet rats her "rat babies" (among which one named 'Gaga' who btw, likes to watch them having sex ;)) is obsessed with our hero in suits and let's not forget her constant need to adjust his tie.
“Good evening, Flint.” “You can call me Mr. Hopkins.” I push the button to the elevator. “Mmm, my landlord likes to role play. Me too.” I stiffen—everywhere—turning my gaze back over my shoulder. Ellen peeks her head around the corner and winks. I resist the urge to tug at my tie and scratch my neck. She’s flirting with me. Messing with me. Fucking with my head.
➺ This was a re-read after 2 years, and i have no memory of this book, (view spoiler)[to the point i forgot it has accidental pregnancy but don't worry, because if there is ever a time you want to try this in a book, this would be the perfect choice since (a) It happens late in the book so it's not the situation of "obligated to be here - must not love me in reality". (b) It is not secret pregnancy because she tells him asap. (c) It doesn't make much difference in terms of it just being revolving around the baby now. (hide spoiler)] and it just made me fall in love with it all over again not to mention this was FREAKING HILARIOUS like laugh-out-loud funny.
“I was just thinking about how incredibly sexy you look tangled in these sheets next to me and how hard it’s going to be to leave your bed. But then you said ‘rat babies,’ and my erection died."
➺ I have so much more to say, I want to paste all my highlighted quotes here but they are more like entire scenes and there's the fact that words escape me when I actually want to gush about a book in its review.
All I can say is, if you haven't tried Jewel E Ann yet, you're missing out the real deal in the romance genre. Anyways, I want to own the paperback now!
Her hands go right to my tie. By this point she might as well grab my dick since it’s now programmed to respond to her yanking my tie every which way
I nod and sniffle. “God … you sure do look the part, Flint Hopkins.” I grab the top to his jacket because he doesn’t have lapels to hold. He grins. “What part is that?” “My man, of course.”