Oh holy sweet cuteness I declare Christian a cinnamon roll that must be protected at all costs, if only from himself.
Saxon James just somehow knows hOh holy sweet cuteness I declare Christian a cinnamon roll that must be protected at all costs, if only from himself.
Saxon James just somehow knows how to write books that are 33% cute, 33% sweet, 33% sexy, and 1% angst. And no, I won’t be budged on those numbers. You would think that I’d get tired of it, but I absolutely NEVER tire of Saxon James, and that’s down to her versatility as a writer in every other way.
Saxon is not an author you go to for plot, and that’s okay. There are many great authors known for being stronger in other areas than plot. With Saxon, it’s characters. It’s like she has some sort of character generator in her head and it spits out the most fascinating motley crews for her to write the best stories for, and we get them in all shades of the rainbow. Sometimes their backstories are happy, sometimes they’re sad, but they’re always interesting. Best of all, all of her characters are unique, distinctive, and aren’t simply there for window dressing. They usually always have a role to play, however small.
I’m very, very picky about books with a plot that hinges on the fake relationship/engagement/marriage trope. Mainly because books with that trope make the main characters look like very stupid people who have no idea how to communicate, and then you get to the 80% mark in these books and the conflict always comes to a head with… you guessed it! A major communication problem! I had given up on reading them altogether until Saxon and Eden Finley lured me out with their Fake Boyfriends series.
Luckily, Saxon sees the errors in most fake relationship trope books, knows it well, and has found a host of ways to work around it. In this book, the way through is fast-burn, confidence, taking a leap of faith, determination, and words of affirmation. Boy, does it work. It works so, so well. The chemistry between Emile and Christian is through the roof from the moment they meet, and it makes the whole book absolutely combustible.
Christian’s found family of misfit artists are all going to be the stars in the rest of this series (save Molly, if I’m correct), and they’re all absolute peaches who you will want to hug and bake cookies for.
Well done, Saxon, for birthing yet another book series for us all to go crazy for!
I was provided a copy of this book by the author. All opinions and views expressed in this review are my own. Thank you.
I think this might be my favorite entry in the One Night Series since “Secrets We Hunt” (AKA Wes and Zoe’s story). Once you read this book you might sI think this might be my favorite entry in the One Night Series since “Secrets We Hunt” (AKA Wes and Zoe’s story). Once you read this book you might see there’s a shared kink between that book and this book, and that totally has something to do with it, but another reason I loved this book was because I really and truly have a deep and abiding love for MMF romances where the female is willing, ready and able to embrace her male partner’s desires for the same sex and wants to join in. The human has the capacity for infinite amounts of love; it’s just each of us as individuals that determine if we have the ability to open our hearts in that way.
I don’t want to ruin too much about this book, but I can tell you that there isn’t much in the way of plot. This is mainly Pyro’s story, but it’s almost an extended epilogue, in a way, to “Burdens We Carry” (Owen and Aurora’s story). This entry in the One Night series takes place about six months after Owen and Aurora’s wedding when the whole group of friends this series centers around gets together for a rare group vacation in Tokyo. Jack, Quinlan, Owen, Aurora, and Pyro all decide to go out for a night of racy and spicy fun… but Owen and Aurora have a proposition for Pyro. I think you can likely guess where this is going.
What follows is a book that’s about 60% MMF spicy goodness. I don’t know about you, but that’s a dang good time in my opinion.
I want to take a time out to address how Dana Isaly writes her mm interactions: I don’t know if anyone of her other readers feel like this, but I really and truly wish she would take the plunge and write a full-on gay romance. She’s written RH/Why Choose with mm content, MMF, and a mm short story, but never a full-length mm romance, and I’m dying to see her attempt it. I know every author has their comfort zones and knows what they want to write and what they’re comfortable writing, but she’s just so good at writing male characters and the spicy scenes she does write for her bisexual male characters are already so well written I feel like if she took the plunge it would be fire.
As with the other books in this series, the book isn’t going to make sense if you haven’t read the rest of the series (especially if you haven’t read “Secrets We Hunt” or “Burdens We Carry” in this case), but it’s a worthy entry indeed.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Saxon James’ Divorced Men’s Club series has been one of 2022’s highlights when it comes to gay romances, in my opinion, because it has tapped into–andSaxon James’ Divorced Men’s Club series has been one of 2022’s highlights when it comes to gay romances, in my opinion, because it has tapped into–and made us all thirsty for–the market for those mature, divorced men who already have some miles on their tires but have strong engines just waiting for their men to take them on a hard and fast ride.
I’m not kidding: I didn’t use to be into older guys. I actually used to be almost exclusively into books about men younger than I am. I’m not saying it was this series alone that did the trick in making me hot for books about older men, but it certainly helped to fuel the fire.
I’ve loved every book in this series that has been released this year (this is the last of Saxon’s releases for 2022), but I do have to say this one wasn’t my favorite of the three (that honor still belongs to the first). I still love it, just in a different way.
In this book, it’s not the romance that holds all my love (even though it’s a sweet bi-awakening story with some very good points about the toxicity of socializing children with traditional gender roles). Nor is it the spice (which is not only hot, but shows how quick a learner someone can be if they have the right incentive). Surprisingly, it’s the main characters all on their own that made me love the book. It’s how they both had things they had done in their pasts they don’t talk about but wouldn’t change, how they both never hesitated to be less than truthful with one another (especially Orson, who refuses to waste time knowing how precious it can be), how neither one of them felt an impetus to be anything more than genuinely happy with their lives, and how generous and sincere each one of them was in their own way.
It was Orson, though, who stole the show for me with his painful earnestness and aching empathy. In real life, I’m not good at empathy. I have a neurodivergence issue that keeps me from being fully in touch with my empathetic side (I’m not a sociopath, though, so no worries). So I’m drawn to empathetic people like a fly to honey, just because I feel like they’re magic. I’m earnest and gregarious, but not empathetic. So reading the multiple scenes where Orson is able to shove aside his own anger or sadness to help someone else in need made me want to bake him cookies and a gift card to an adult website.
It’s a worthy entry with a whole lot of information about the other members of the DMC and some new supporting characters that I’m sure have been brought in to set up future books in the series (so keep your eyes peeled). If you’re a fan of making flowcharts or cluster maps or whatever when it comes to a Saxon James book series, then I suggest you get out your pen and paper (or computer program) and start now before the next book comes out. I have a feeling things are gonna get complicated soon!
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
File Under: Contemporary Romance/LGBTQ Romance/Spice Level 2/MM Romance/Gay Romance/Second Chance Romance/Romance Series/Bi-Awakening Romance/Later in Life Romance/Small Town Romance ...more
Moorewood Family Rules was one of the first ARCs I requested for 2023, and it’s one of the ones I was most excited for. Was it everything I hoped it wMoorewood Family Rules was one of the first ARCs I requested for 2023, and it’s one of the ones I was most excited for. Was it everything I hoped it would be? No, but I’m not entirely disappointed because it sure was a lot of fun.
I love grifters. I love schemers and scammers. I love a good con. I really love it when the people who need to be put in check are put in check. I love watching everything about a good con come together, when all the disparate pieces finally fall into place. And this book is like a nice big pot of grifter stew with a side of bodyguard romance.
Therein lies the rub: I wasn’t completely on board with the romantic subplot. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy it to a certain extent, but I thought it took away from the main themes of the book and the fun of the plot. I especially felt it took away from the motivations, goals, and power of Jillian, our protagonist. While it didn’t completely take away from her agency, it did give her someone else to hand power and decision-making over to, and that lowered my respect for her as a reformed con woman who is trying to turn her grifter family legitimate. It also made her look a little weak for putting her trust into a man she’s only known for a day or two after all she’s been through. Considering how paranoid grifters and players can be, I found it to be completely out of character for her to just accept this guy as a confidante, no matter how much she trusted the man who hired him for her (that is to say, implicity).
In short, for a reformed grifter who had been burned before by a lover and then burned by her family and gone to jail for it, she’s sure less paranoid than I would be under the circumstances.
The family dynamics in this book are very funny, though, and the highlight of the book. From inept younger grifters in the family who are hiding out overseas for fumbling their schemes, con men who are getting conned, clueless society matrons, slightly off-kilter elderly scheming great aunts who are obsessed with string cheese, and cousins who seem to think the most extreme measures should be the first resort instead of last, there are colorful and unique characters all throughout this book.
This is definitely more character-driven than plot-driven and I think that’s what threw me with this book. I think I wanted a little more of the family dynamic and the con plot in the place of the romantic subplot and was disappointed when that didn’t happen. While I felt Jillian needed a friend and someone to talk to, I didn’t think she needed a romance. She just needed an ally from outside the family. I would’ve loved to have seen more interactions and scenes involving the family and what Jillian was getting up to than yet another unnecessary romance.
I do think it’s a brilliant story and a ton of fun, though. It’s lighthearted, bright, and engaging. We all have weird relatives. This story just emphasizes how weird some relatives can truly be.
I was provided a copy of this title by NetGalley and the author. Any views, thoughts, opinions, or ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
When I reviewed the previous book in Cathy Yardley’s Ponto Beach Reunion series (Gouda Friends), I pointed out that a rom com has to do a lot to levelWhen I reviewed the previous book in Cathy Yardley’s Ponto Beach Reunion series (Gouda Friends), I pointed out that a rom com has to do a lot to level up right now to even hope to meet the same level as authors like Tessa Bailey, Christina Lauren, Lucy Score, and Meghan Quinn right now. That same statement is even more true today.
Sadly, this book isn’t nearly as good as “Gouda Friends”. That book was friends-to-lovers and all about living your best life. This book wants to be enemies to lovers, but is more “you broke my heart when we were younger and I pined like a Christmas tree for years about it so I’m really bitter and want to avoid you at all costs because I can’t let it go like a mature human being” on the FMC’s part and “I have a really high profile job and I love the money I make from it and I love routine and I’m not close to anyone but my sister but I live across the country from her and I’ve done some really shady stuff during my work while looking the other way but now I need help from the girl who I ignored and hurt years ago so I’m going to go and recruit her to help me do shady and illegal things to help get my job back”.
That’s not enemies to lovers, folks. That’s two characters I couldn’t stand from page one and I never grew to like them.
Cathay Yardley has the tools to write a great rom com on the comedy side of things. She’s great with the one liners, with the great supporting characters that make you crack up, and with some really humorous situations sprinkled throughout the book that lighten the mood in between the deeper parts of the plot. She also tends to excel with banter, when the characters have chemistry and are suited to one another. What Yardley doesn’t do well is the romance section. This series has no real emotional depth to it. It’s shallow and this book in particular just didn’t hit for me.
Thanks to NetGalley and Montlake for granting me access to this title. As per personal policy this review will not appear on any social media or bookseller website due to the 3 star or lower rating. ...more
I don’t often go in for a huge amount of emotional angst in my romances. I mean, I don’t mind my characters being a hot mess, but usually too much of I don’t often go in for a huge amount of emotional angst in my romances. I mean, I don’t mind my characters being a hot mess, but usually too much of it just brings me down and I’m not down for it. I got my own depressive demons to deal with, you know? I guess that’s why I love Andi Jaxon’s books. They’re thick books (this one comes in at 431 pages and I still finished it in less than 6 hours), but inside those pages are a shockingly consistent, well-balanced, and well-placed amount of angst, spice, humor, and genuine emotion. Throw in making it a hockey romance and we get some of that sweet locker room action, along with some action on the ice.
The plot of this book is a doozy, and I was here for it. I can’t say much about it because of spoilers; but Preston, one of our two MMCs, is new to Denver and its’ college hockey team after he was forced to move from Boston by his father, who is a famous and renowned plastic surgeon. Since he’s moving to the university past the housing deadline, he has to share a dorm instead of having a single like he’s used to. He ends up rooming with our other MMC, Jeremy, who is Preston’s opposite in just about every way. This, of course, leads to just about my favorite romance trope in the world: forced proximity. Heck yeah! Contents under pressure, man.
Preston is indeed the definition of a pressurized container, because he is a bottle stuffed full of secrets, lies, pain, and shame. He’s surrounded by walls made practically of adamantium, mainly because he’s made sure he’s been alone for so long. Living in close quarters with Jeremy begins to quickly erode Preston’s walls and his resolve.
Is there angst? Oh yes. Plenty of angst. You will feel plenty of emotional pain for both Preston and Jeremy, and you will feel rage on one character’s behalf as well. I know I did. Luckily, Jaxon knows when to lighten things up just a little, throwing in humorous scenes that will make you grin, cackle, and snort. If you aren’t busy laughing, you’re reading about hockey, reading about Preston and Jeremy trying to find their way through to one another, or reading one of many (but not too many) scorchingly hot spice scenes (hot, fast, and dirty, just like I love them).
If you’ve never read Andi Jaxon before, you’re in for a wild ride. She doesn’t pull punches with her characters and her writing never shies away from the darker side of romance. I know for a fact she puts a lot of time and care into writing her books and fine-tuning them into the creatures they become. Her novels are some of my favorites because they draw you in and don’t let you go.
Talk about a book destined for a ton of highlighted quotes!
The sarcasm and snark is real, folks, and it is HOT.
I don’t play hockey. I don’t watch hoTalk about a book destined for a ton of highlighted quotes!
The sarcasm and snark is real, folks, and it is HOT.
I don’t play hockey. I don’t watch hockey. I don’t even like hockey. I don’t even understand hockey except that the puck goes in the net and there’s a lot of fights and there’s a penalty box where grown men throw temper tantrums until they’re let back out. But Eden Finley (and, to an extent, Saxon James) have somehow made LGBQTQIA hockey romances my jam, and I think I loved “Shameless Puckboy” more than I’ve loved any of the other hockey romances written by either author.
I’m not kidding about the highlights, by the way. I found myself snickering, snorting, cackling, and giggling so much that I couldn’t help but highlight passage after passage because the banter was just so witty and vibrant, the dialogue so quick and funny I just don’t understand how these books aren’t on shelves at all major bookstores selling like hotcakes because they’re that good.
Maybe it’s just me, but this book was filled with such teasing, such sexual tension, and such chemistry it was like these two characters could be peeled off the page. It was so steamy and rich I got squirmy in the good way and regretted deciding to read in the living room with family around so I didn’t spend the day in bed.
And can we just talk about how this book hit some of the best buttons? Major exhibitionism? Check. A brat who isn’t a boy? Check. Two men who like it hard and fast? Checkity check check. Two men who really just want to take care of one another? Freaking SWOON. Conversation as foreplay? HELLO.
I loved this plot because I felt it felt like it wasn’t like some unrealistic fever dream that couldn’t ever happen in the world of hockey. The plot wasn’t overcooked or overcomplicated, it was just two men who had deep insecurities and had to decide what was more important to them in the end.
Now, I’m going to tell you if you haven’t read the previous two Puckboys books or aren’t familiar with Eden Finley’s Fake Boyfriend series you probably are going to be completely lost going into this book. You are going to want to read the previous two Puckboy books at least, even though I will recommend reading the Fake Boyfriend series as well to get familiar with the entire Queer Collective (the members of which do play a part in this book). It won’t be time wasted, however, because any time spent with either Eden Finley or Saxon James is never time wasted!
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
File Under: 5 Star Books/Contemporary Romance/Books in a Romance Series/Books in a Romance Universe/LGBTQIA Fiction/LGBTQIA Friendly Reads/LGBTQIA Romance/Rom Com/Spice Level 3/Sports Romance ...more
In the first few pages of this book one of our two main characters, Alexei, is setting off on what I would call a “catharticReal Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
In the first few pages of this book one of our two main characters, Alexei, is setting off on what I would call a “cathartic hike” (which I am fond of myself”, or maybe you could call it a long, dark journey of the soul on the infamous Pacific Coast Trail (do yourself a favor and look it up, because this trail covers some of the most beautiful land and views on the west coast and stretches from Mexico to Canada). Anyway, he’s hiking to grieve and hopefully close off some chapters in his life so he can start over as a revision of his former self, hopefully without all that baggage on board.
It’s going well until he’s only been on the trail a nebulously short amount of time on the trail, when he suddenly has a funny, if terrifying meet-cute with fellow PCT hiker Ben. I had to admire both hikers for handling the situation at hand in this scene, considering I’d lose my marbles in the worst way. Alexei joins up with the other hikers Ben’s been blazing the trail with for a while until all the people and chaos gets to him and he decides he wants to get back to hiking solo. To his surprise, Ben asks if it’d be okay if he hikes along with Alexei until they get to Kennedy Meadows (a well-known refueling and rest stop on the trail). Alexei’s crush on Ben, along with how Ben seems to need a little saving here and there leads Alexei to agree to the proposition. And so our two intrepid explorers set off, with mutual chemistry, fascination, and awkwardness settled over them like a transparent cloak.
I didn’t hate this book, but I was disappointed by it. I live within a couple of hours of several PCT trailheads and have hiked small sections of it before. I wanted to backpack most of it before I was 50, but chronic back injuries and epilepsy took that away. And I love gay romance. The blurb for this book had me so excited I knew this was one of the titles I was most excited for this year. But I feel let down.
Kelly’s debut effort, “Love & Other Disasters”, was one of my favorite novels last year. It was effervescent. It was like champagne bubbles in a book. It was impeccably written. This book? It doesn’t shine like L&OD did. It’s just as well-written (save I thought the book lagged a little in pacing during the early part of Act II), and the epistolary section of the book in Act III made me sob like a baby (I seriously tear-stained my silk pillowcase something fierce), but the book as a whole doesn’t feel as polished. I never felt like it was much of a comedy, but closer to a dramedy, and I never felt like it fit into the grumpy/sunshine trope. I feel like marketing Alexei as grumpy is insulting and it does the character a grave injustice, especially given events later in the book.
I know I seem to be in the minority in not singing this book’s praises, but I call it like I see it. I’m still a huge fan of Anita Kelly’s writing style and their efforts to bring us contemporary romances for the OwnVoices crowd. I can’t wait to see what they bring us next.
I was provided a copy of this title by the author. All views, opinions, and thoughts expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: Gay Romance/LGBTQ Romance/MM Romance/Romantic Comedy/Rom Com/Contemporary Romance/OwnVoices/Books with a Psych Aspect/LGBTQ Fiction/LGBTQ Friendly Read/Spice Level 2 ...more
Back in October 2022, Eden Finley dropped a little book named Football Royalty in an interconnected series of LGBTQIA+ romance novels known as FrankliBack in October 2022, Eden Finley dropped a little book named Football Royalty in an interconnected series of LGBTQIA+ romance novels known as Franklin U (more colloquially known as FU). If you haven’t read it, then I suggest you go read it because that whole book is beyond awesome and because there’s a scene in that book that is then alluded to in Can’t Say Goodbye (but is not vital to reading said book) that then resulted in every Eden Finley fan immediately salivating for the story of Brady Talon and his two Navy SEALs. And when I say we were all salivating, I mean we might as well have all been on our knees, begging and pleading and willing to be Eden’s slaves if she would give us this book.
So when Can’t Say Goodbye was announced in the fall, we all might as well have collectively swooned like a southern belle whose corset had been laced too tight. We were dogs collectively chasing our tails, not known to scratch our watches or wind our butts. And then the waiting and the teasing began.
So, I’m sure you all want to know: Was it worth the wait? Oh, oh my darling dears, it was. It was worth every day since we found out Brady Talon had a thing for more than one man in uniform.
It’s not unusual for people in a position where they spend every day taking care of everyone else, putting out metaphorical fires and carrying other people’s worries and fears on their own shoulders day in and day out, and putting a lot of pressure on themselves to succeed not because of external forces but because they want to be the best they can be to want to come home to someone to help them lay those burdens down, to help them put down the weight, and take care of them. And that’s Brady Talon. No one’s pressuring him to go to law school: He’s doing it because he knows it’ll make him a better sports agent. He’s not becoming a sports agent because it’s his legacy: He’s becoming a sports agent because he wants to be the one to advocate and take care of his brother and his brother’s legacy. He wants to be a part of the agency his uncle founded and join him in his work because it’s how they all came together as a family and the mission it started with and the goals it works toward are some of the most important things in his life.
When Brady meets Kit and Prescott at a bar known for catering to sailors, all he’s looking for is a good time, but from that very first night, it’s like something clicks, and holy patty melt does it click! Brady is a needy boy, all hands and skin and mouth. He wants these large men, who can turn him into putty, inside out, manhandle him, wreck him, and leave him feeling warm and absolutely broken down so all his cares and worries have floated away for as long as that high can last. Usually, these kinds of hook-ups are a one-time thing, but these sailors are in town for a bit, and none of them can stay away from one another; and when it comes time for Kit and Prescott to depart (Prescott to deploy, Kit to take a job at the Pentagon), none of them can stand to permanently say goodbye. The goal is to meet up once a year. Yeah right.
In a novel like this, with this level of pining (and I love a good pining), there tends to come too much angst for my taste. But this is Eden Finley, and she’s too good of a writer in her genre to let her readers languish in angst. It’s just not her bag, baby. Brady, Kit, and Prescott are pining, but none of them are emotionally stunted. Conversations emotional, steamy, and serious are had between them all. We’re given a lot of insight into who Brady Talon is professionally, and those scenes are captivating, because we get to see just how good of an agent he will be once he’s done with law school and interning for Damon. We also get to see how close he and Damon are, which is something that’s never been explored in previous books that make up the Sadenverse. (Side note: This actually WAS really, really nice and so insightful and revelatory when it came to both Brady and Damon, and it would be nice to see in future Sadenverse novels if there are certain characters who are closer to one another than others that we didn’t know about before).
I enjoyed the spicy scenes so much, but I can’t pretend it’s not because I adore mmm scenes. Three sweaty males, and twisted up in a bed together? Don’t get me started. The way Brady becomes this needy, greedy, insatiable thing around Kit and Prescott, and the way they spoil him and give him everything he needs and wants until he’s broken down into pieces? Please. Nothing’s hotter.
The emotional development of all three men is sexy, if only because it’s free of the toxicity that could have permeated this novel in the hands of another author. You’d expect it of Brady, given the family and environment he was brought up in. I think with Kit and Prescott it comes from their long history of being the best of friends and from lonely Kit being swallowed up and adopted by Prescott’s open and accepting family. You don’t see these two Navy SEALs who carry themselves around like they are at the top of the predator chain: You only see two guys who know they’re hot and all they want to do is chill and take care of each other and (especially) Brady.
Polyamory sometimes comes together out of the blue or it’s built on top of the foundation of an existing relationship. Either way, it doesn’t come together easily, cleanly, and it takes a metric ton of open, honest, and effective communication. It’s also still stigmatized by society for more reasons than I can count. Watching our boys in this story not only come to terms with what they are, what they want, what they need, what they can’t live without, and then accept they refuse to live their lives any other way is not only beautiful but it’s moving. It’s scary to tell the most important people in your life that you want to live a life less ordinary. I can relate, since my family didn’t take my own poly coming out well and choose to ignore that aspect of my identity. It seems love is love is love… as long as that love is with one person. It’s one more stigma that needs to go. Eden does a lovely job of explaining polyamory as it exists today and writes a coming out for Brady that is a mix of emotionally moving and humorous, as only she can.
It’s another novel knocked out of the park for Eden Finley, and such a freaking hot read. Brady Talon got his HEA, and us readers got the book we’ve been salivating over. It’s a win all around.
The author provided me with access to this title. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. Thank you.
Lynn Burke knows what her readers want and what they crave. Well, at least this reader anyway. As an author who stays in close contact with her fans aLynn Burke knows what her readers want and what they crave. Well, at least this reader anyway. As an author who stays in close contact with her fans and is attentive to their feedback, she’s always picking brains and brewing plots inside her naughty mind. It makes her all the more endearing when she puts out a gem like this book, “Due Process”.
This book hits some of my favorite gay romance tropes: size difference, overly-protective and possessive morally grey alpha male, psychologically-damaged cinnamon roll twink, lacy panties, gay-for-you, dirty talk… and it’s a courtroom drama too! (Just in case you’re wondering, the only tv show I love more than BTVS is every incarnation of Law & Order).
From the insta-lust between the two MMCs to each scorching hot spicy scene, this book hit so many of my mm romance novel buttons I could’ve have easily read an even longer version of it. It’s rare that I think a book could’ve been longer and I wouldn’t have minded one bit, so just take that one in for a second.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. ...more
First, a note for Sara Cate: I have been here from the beginning of SPC with you and I have been honored to have reviewed every single title of this sFirst, a note for Sara Cate: I have been here from the beginning of SPC with you and I have been honored to have reviewed every single title of this series as a member of your street team. Thank you for creating the SPC for all of us readers and inviting us in. It’s been a pleasure.
I have to say that I had my doubts when Sara announced there would be two more books added to the SPC lineup from the original four expected books. While I didn’t like The Highest Bidder as much as everyone else did, I absolutely loved Madame. It ripped me apart and then put me back together and then I sobbed like a baby at the end (actually, there were a couple of places here and there in the book where I teared up, too).
While this book generally feels like a mix of Eden St. Claire’s story and a general send-off for the SPC series as whole, it never feels like these two matters are just being mushed together for matters of convenience. It feels very organic, like it was meant to happen like this. After all, none of the characters of the SPC are getting any younger, and this book takes place two years after the events at the end of Mercy (book four, if you’re keeping track). All the founding SPC members have settled down in one way or another. Most of them don’t even come into the club anymore. Eden, the Madame who’s been a fixture at SPC since day one, is still there almost every night, working to support her and her son. Does she have control issues? Why yes. Even more so, she has trust issues. I can relate.
Sometimes, life happens though, and even Eden St. Claire can make a mistake. Like getting in a little too deep with a submissive named Clay. She was in too deep before she knew it and Clay was in love. She wasn’t ready for him and she cut the thread between them. She’s felt the ghost of him ever since.
Now, at the beginning of this book, Clay has a new girlfriend named Jade and he’s crazy about her, but she can’t give him everything he needs and part of his heart still belongs to Eden. Jade may be younger and a touch naive, but she knows Clay is hiding a part of himself from her. After a chance run-in with Eden and her son at a movie theater, Jade wants to know who Eden was to Clay, and once she knows a piece of the puzzle all Jade wants is to know more so she can make Clay happy.
So much of this book is focused on a very important point about any relationship, but it’s something that’s essential about BDSM relationships: You can’t just pick up a riding crop and start dominating your partner because you want to make them happy (or vice-versa). You have to want to do things for yourself, to make yourself happy. You can’t fake confidence. You can’t fake dominance. You can’t fake happiness. If you don’t actually want to dominate your partner, you can’t force yourself to. You have to want it for yourself. It has to make you feel good to be that person for them.
Another salient point this book makes is that communication in any relationship at all is key. Especially when everything is falling apart and when everyone is feeling their worst. That’s when it's most important to stand up, say something, and be honest. People can misunderstand things so easily when they’re already down or upset. If you aren’t open and honest with the ones you love, they could slip through your hands and you’ll never regret anything more.
I loved both Eden and Jade in this book. I didn’t like Clay as much. I found him to be a little too much of a privileged man child who didn’t understand boundaries or ethics, but I admired how much he loved Jade and Eden. I definitely identify with Eden, with my control and extreme trust issues.
Eden’s story is touching, as is her evolution as a person and a domme. Seeing her find her place in love and at SPC was a spicy, lovely read. I’m going to miss this series so much but I know I’ll always have at least two copies of every book in the series to keep me happy. You won’t regret reading this book.
I was provided a copy of this title by the author. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: 5 Star Review/Alphabet Soup Romance/Book Series/Contemporary Romance/Erotica/Kink and BDSM Friendly/Lesbian Romance/LGBTQ Romance/Polyamorous Romance/Sex Club/Sex Worker/Spice Level 3 ...more
I read and reviewed all four of the originally-planned SPC novels, and I adored every single one. I had that soft sadness that comes whenever a beloveI read and reviewed all four of the originally-planned SPC novels, and I adored every single one. I had that soft sadness that comes whenever a beloved book series comes to an end, but I was absolutely satisfied with where it ended and felt the series had wrapped up exactly where it should’ve wrapped up. Nothing more was needed or wanted, in my opinion. I was happy for Sara to move onto other projects and to create more beautiful books for us to read.
Then Highest Bidder and Madame were announced, and I felt…concerned. Two characters, one very peripheral and one we’d had a cameo from in almost every SPC novel (if not all of them). I was satisfied with letting those characters lie. I liked leaving them to be mysteries. I didn’t want more SPC novels. I wanted Sara to let sleeping dogs lie. Apparently, agents and managers and publishers come before one reader’s opinions, though, and these books were coming whether I liked it or not. And I told myself, “Well, if these books are coming then I’m coming along enthusiastically to support Sara and to support the SPC series”, because the Salacious Player’s Club series has done more to clear up erotica readers eyes concerning BDSM and sex clubs than I thought was possible, undoing a ton of damage that books like 50 Shades had done. Sara had truly taken the romance novel community to church when it came to subjects such as BDSM, polyamory, owning your sexuality and k!nks, letting yourself become emotionally vulnerable, teaching about safe spaces and aftercare, and deprogramming toxic masculinity. I was truly scared Highest Bidder was going to come in and throw off the chemistry of the original four books.
I’m going to be honest with you and say that yes, this book does throw off the direction and chemistry of the original four books. It doesn’t match up with the other books in vibe, emotional depth, or in the way BDSM is woven into the story and the characterizations.
Does the age gap squick me out? No. Honestly, this is a fiery, panty-melting, chemistry-fueled read filled with dirty talk and filthy thoughts. The sexual chemistry between Ronan and Daisy starts off as mere curiosity on her side, but soon balloons into something akin to napalm, brilliantly hot, insatiable, and just about impossible to put out. Ronan, for his part, wants to flip up her tiny uniform skirt as soon as he sees her, but that’s not exactly an unusual reaction for a mature male who regularly visits a sex club. It’s how much she needs someone to help her, take care of her, provide for her, pamper and pleasure her and give her everything she needs that sets Ronan on fire. If Daisy’s physical attractiveness is the flint, then her neediness is the spark.
The largest part of why I loved this book is Sara Cate’s impeccable characterizations and how the woman never takes any shortcuts when it comes to writing BDSM dynamics. She has a reverence for BDSM practices and the lifestyle that most authors wouldn’t bother with that bridge the gap between the sex scenes and the characters that give depth to their individual issues and motivations that would otherwise have to be explained in more mundane and roundabout ways. BDSM forces you to confront your emotions and feelings, to process them and feel them. Sara’s gift as an author is giving her characters safe space to do all this, while keeping their love intact.
The only large complaint I have about this book is that there seems to only be the barest shell of a plot to this book that only appears at convenient times. If you’re going to have a plot, then have a plot and don’t let it just go to the wayside for the sake of whimsy and spice. Keep some structure to the story’s plot at all times.
In the end, this is Sara Cate, this is the SPC, this is some of my favorite tropes, and it’s a dang good book that will melt your underthings off your body.
I was provided a copy of this title by the author. All views, thoughts, opinions, and ideas herein are mine and mine alone. Thank you.
File Under: Age Gap/Age Gap Romance/Billionaire Romance/Contemporary Romance/Daddy K!nk/Forbidden Romance/Kindle Unlimited/KU/BDSM/LGBTQ Friendly/Romance Series/Sex Club/Spice Level 3 ...more
Dana Isaly has been one of my favorite romance authors ever since I got into this whole book blogging, reviewing, and influencing shindig in the middlDana Isaly has been one of my favorite romance authors ever since I got into this whole book blogging, reviewing, and influencing shindig in the middle of last summer, and “My Summer Fling” is just another example of why she captured my attention as a writer and why I’ve stayed so devoted to her as a reader and consumer. She knows what she likes, she knows what her readers like, she knows what she excels at, and the lady knows how to draw new readers in with time-honored tropes that she then turns up the flame on. The woman loves her spice, and we so dearly love her back for being so liberal with it.
This time it’s a second chance romance with a large dollop of best friend’s sister/brother’s best friend on the side. Normally, I’m a big fan of the latter and ambivalent to the former (I blame my lack of sentimentality when it comes to people). And yeah, I wasn’t a fan of that aspect of this book. The part of the plot that had to do with the second chance romance wasn’t vibing with me. I’ll be completely honest about that.
So how does a book where the main part of the plot earn 4 stars then? Well, it comes down to Dana’s writing style, her characterizations, and her amazing spicy scenes. She happened to hit one of my favorite buttons in the world when it comes to spice: dirty talk. I can’t get enough of it. Honestly, I couldn’t put this book down simply because I wanted to hear whatever dirty things were going to come out of Noah’s mouth next. This book would’ve been worth it for that alone. Heck, Dana could’ve gone even dirtier and I would’ve been even happier.
I also loved that Dana never resorted to full-on flashback or playback of what happened between Noah and Millie in the past. Readers aren’t stupid. We didn’t need to see what happened, and Dana knew that. She made a smart choice to keep us readers in the present by only alluding to what happened, giving us the bare bones so we could fill the picture in ourselves so we could stay in the story happening right in front of us just like Noah and Millie were trying to do. I hate flashbacks with all of my being, so I was relieved to see that I was just allowed to fill in the blanks myself, because I didn’t need to be told what happened. It was easy enough to surmise.
If you’re not familiar with Dana’s work, this is a great place to start. It’s a great summer read, just in time for the warmest part of the year. ...more
When it comes to contemporary romance, almost nothing beats a good teacher/student age-gap romance novel, in my opinion. Especially not one as hot as When it comes to contemporary romance, almost nothing beats a good teacher/student age-gap romance novel, in my opinion. Especially not one as hot as this one is. K. Webster is known for writing some of the spiciest (and angstiest) romance novels out there, but I have to admit this one has got to be one of my favorites I’ve ever read that featured an AAB FMC and a AAB male MMC. Ask anyone who knows me well and they’ll tell you I’m not too keen on reading contemporary romance with cisgendered, heterosexual couples unless it’s really funny or it’s really hot, spicy, forbidden/taboo, or dark as pitch. I’m just not wired for the soft and sweet. I don’t even buy greeting cards that way.
It goes without saying the spicy scenes are definitely plentiful and hot enough you’ll find yourself squirming, but thankfully it’s not a book so packed with racy scenes there’s no room for plot, character development, or a cohesive story. I know we all love our spice, but when there’s nothing but spice a romance novel stops being a romance novel and starts just being nothing but a chain of racy scenes. That just becomes repetitive and loses its appeal very quickly.
Webster has definitely been writing long enough and has been prolific enough that she knows what she’s doing and does it with style. Even after numerous books, she hasn’t lost a bit of her touch, imagination, or inspiration. Yeah, this is age-gap, student/professor, grumpy man and sad girl, but a talented author like Webster knows how to take just about any mix of tropes and put it together into something delicious. Not just any author could do that. It takes talent and practice.
It’s definitely a book for those of us who enjoy these tropes and like our spicy, forbidden treats.
I received a complimentary advance copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
File Under: Contemporary Romance/Spice Level 3/Holy Crud That’s Hot ...more
The first book in Eden Finley’s Mike Bravo Ops series, “Iris”, was probably the best mm romance read for me in the first half of 2022. Bringing readerThe first book in Eden Finley’s Mike Bravo Ops series, “Iris”, was probably the best mm romance read for me in the first half of 2022. Bringing readers into this new series (which interconnects loosely with her Famous series) by way of the overgrown golden retriever manchild that is Iris and his basic training rival, Saint, was a brilliant move, because reading about a sexy man who makes doe eyes at a RPG but is hardcore competent but then turns around and names his adopted puppy Princess Smooshy Face and trains her to only respond to her full name was a great way to introduce everyone far and wide to the blacker-than-black private security firm known as Mike Bravo Ops. (BTW, you have to read “Iris” in order to follow the plot for this book).
Finley follows up “Iris”, which is chaotic, hilarious, incredibly spicy, and full of emotions with this action-packed, frenemies-to-lovers, love-on-the-run, zero-to-sixty adrenaline rush of a love story where the only people Rodriguez (who we met briefly in “Iris”) and Trav can trust are the men of Mike Bravo when Rodriguez gets in some hotter than hot water with the DEA and the only person he knows he can trust to keep him safe and help him get to the bottom of what’s going on is Trav, even if he doesn’t like the way he runs his business.
Did I like this book as much as “Iris”? No, but I’ve found it hard to find a gay romance to top “Iris” ever since I first read it (and I also did a re-read right before I started “Rogue”). That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it immensely. My issue was solely with the type of flirtation game that both Rodriguez and Trav play with one another: it’s not one I enjoy seeing or reading. Emotionally stunted men are not my jam. Flirting like an immature college boy is cringe to me. I could see where Rodriguez was wary of Trav’s intentions, because he pushed so much it was making me feel a little uncomfortable. I would’ve snapped at Trav and told him to knock it off. Honestly, it made me lose a lot of the respect I had built up for the character in “Iris”. He ended up not being anything like what I thought he’d be in this book and I felt thrown for a loop.
But the plot? The plot was great. I love a good cat-and-mouse, love-on-the-run, move-move-move, run for our lives story in the first place, but when you add romance and spice to the picture? It makes it so much more fun and ups the stakes exponentially. Adrenaline, sweat, blood, tears. Desperation and urgency. That sense that you may not have any time beyond right this moment, It jacks every feeling and every encounter up to 11. That’s something I can always get behind. And seeing how almost every member of Mike Bravo has followed Trav’s paranoia for contingency plan after contingency plan and how that ended up saving their butts was every bit as entertaining as I thought it might be.
I’m totally looking forward to the next book. I need to see what’s next. I know I won’t be able to keep from making grabby hands when the book is announced!
Thanks to the author and Foreword PR for granting me early access to this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. ...more
For all its solid writing style and small town charm, I found “Leaving Halberd Peak” to simply not be my cup of tea. I know for sure there will be pleFor all its solid writing style and small town charm, I found “Leaving Halberd Peak” to simply not be my cup of tea. I know for sure there will be plenty of fans for this debut book by a debut independent author, especially if those readers are fans of contemporary, small town romances with a medium-to-slow burn, but personally I tend to be very picky about. Sadly, I had a whole lot about this book to pick at.
For one, I felt the book was far too long. I felt as if the author could have dropped around 50 pages and we likely wouldn’t have known the difference. Two, I hate slow burns and I didn’t feel as if our two main characters (Sam and Gretchen) had much chemistry at all. Three, some of the supporting characters were downright annoying to the point where I dreaded when they came on the page again. Four, I am picky about books billed as being “k!nky”, because that adjective is very subjective, and to me this book wasn’t k!nky at all. Seeing as one of the reasons I was interested in reading it was that aspect of the plot, I was disappointed.
I encourage Rowan Helaine to keep writing and to keep working on finding their literary voice. I have a feeling there is something here in this book that is truly the heart of their writing style and the shape of what is to come from them in the future. Just because a jaded, lust-addled, k!nky af, decades-long reader of romances of all genres didn’t immediately fall in love with this title doesn’t mean I can’t be converted in the future. I wish Helaine all the best in their career.
Thanks to Rowan Helaine for reaching out to me directly and providing me a copy of this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. Due to personal policy, this review will not be posted on any social media or bookseller websites due to the 3 star or lower rating. This is standard protocol for all my book reviews. ...more
This book isn’t exactly bad, it’s just too long and too bogged down by unnecessary flashbacks.
Flashbacks are the enemy of sReal Review: 2.5 / 5 Stars
This book isn’t exactly bad, it’s just too long and too bogged down by unnecessary flashbacks.
Flashbacks are the enemy of suspense, propulsion, engagement, and pacing. They are the lazy path to exposition. And, in this book, they are redundant, as much of what is recounted in the flashbacks is either recounted again or alluded to in Terence’s (the protagonist) inner narrative as the book goes on. You show us, you don’t tell us.
If you took out the flashbacks, this book could’ve been about 50 pages lighter and probably a lot more engaging of a read. The way it reads now, it’s more depressing than romantic and more soppy than sexy.
I felt as if we got an uneven amount of time with all the characters in the book, and that irked me to no end when it came close to the end of the book and it was the very characters we learned the least about that stepped in to save the day, so to speak.
I’m sorry I couldn’t get into this book more, since a lot of people liked it. It’s just a no go for me.
Thanks to the author and The Hatters Author Services for providing me with early access to this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. As per personal policy, this review will not appear on social media or bookseller websites due to the 3 star or lower rating. ...more
Normally, I fangirl over almost every new RH romance K. A. Knight releases. Her book "Stepbrother's Darling" is probably my Real Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
Normally, I fangirl over almost every new RH romance K. A. Knight releases. Her book "Stepbrother's Darling" is probably my favorite standalone RH romance ever.
This book, however, isn't one I'd count as being at the top of my list. There's no doubt it was hot and enjoyable, but there was something about it that felt kind of empty and a bit derivative, both of Katie's other novels and of itself. Does that mean it's not worth reading? No, it doesn't. As usual, Knight's talent at writing violent bad boys,take-charge female main characters, and scorchingly spicy explicit scenes (with plenty of dirty words, yum) shines through. Does it have those same shades of Stockholm/Helsinki Syndrome that have both the FMC and the main male characters all questioning what's happening to them as happened in Knight's "Den of Vipers"? Yep, it does. But we see that in plenty of RH romances anyway.
What's kind of cool, in a way, is the way the FMC, Genevieve, acts as a cross between Patty Hearst (but without the old money aspect) and Alexandra Lourdes (a female entrepreneur in Las Vegas who started out with very little and opened a line of coffee shops (Cafe Lola) marketed directly at women (among other businesses) and is now very wealthy). It gave her character depth, dimension, and a directness I really enjoyed. Of course, it also made her very naive, which can happen sometimes to people who have new money. I was surprised no mention was made of a personal lawyer or financial advisor that might be missing her or no one wondering where her considerable assets (including her massively successful corporation and her NPOs) might go should she be presumed dead (then again, I don't know what the laws are like in the UK about such things).
Then again, maybe I shouldn't be, because there are a great many consistency issues in this book. I didn't bother to count them, and maybe they'll be fixed by the time this book is published, but in the copy I read there were plot holes, inconsistencies, and me asking a whole lot of questions the characters themselves should've obviously been asking for how smart and experienced they are at what they do.
All in all, don't stay for the loosely-woven plot or expect a riveting storyline. Stay for the characters and hot scenes.
Thanks to the authors and Courtney Dunham PA for providing me with early access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. ...more
While this last installment of the Loxley Prep series is a large improvement over the second installment, “Thief”, it still Real Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars
While this last installment of the Loxley Prep series is a large improvement over the second installment, “Thief”, it still falters in certain places and falls completely flat in others, taking a lot of the shine off of what could’ve been a great finish.
In my review of “Thief” I had a lot to say about how Lennon and the other characters seemed to have blinders on (I’m paraphrasing a whole lot), because there was so much I could see was going on and yet they couldn’t see what was right in front of them. Well, it seems Lennon may have been the only one wearing blinders, but the way the whole kit and caboodle is finally unspooled for her by the boys was really predictable and is one of my least favorite ways for the FMC to finally find out everything that’s been going on behind the scenes. I also complained about Lennon not getting to spend more time at school, with Ever, or at work… and while all three of these things do happen more often in “Lover” (yay!), I do dislike that all they end up talking about is boys. I really do wish that more romance novels passed the Bechdel Test.
All in all, the book felt anticlimactic, because you could see it all coming and the ending felt so rushed. This series was at its best in the first book, and now it just kind of drifts away as an average RH romance series. I don’t regret reading it, but I don’t think I’ll be reading it again.
Thanks to Valentine PR and Hattie Jude for allowing me early access to this title for review purposes. ...more
One of my favorite characters from Lynn Burke’s “Sinful Natures” series, Lily, is back in the first book of a new series centered on a hookup app callOne of my favorite characters from Lynn Burke’s “Sinful Natures” series, Lily, is back in the first book of a new series centered on a hookup app called Missing Link. I loved Lily back when she first appeared in “Unholy Yearning” as the preacher’s daughter who has a dirty mind and is engaged to Levi, one of that book’s main characters, and I loved when both she and Levi found their own ways to be happy apart from each other while still remaining friends. Lily moved to California with her cousin to live free of her family, her former church, and to find love under her own terms. What she wants, what she craves, is two men. Two men at once. It’s been her dream for years.
First off? This book is hot, hot, hot. The blurb does a poor job of letting you know what you’re in for, seeing as most of what’s in the blurb happens before the 40% mark of the book, but hooboy! Beware all who enter: there is much spiciness to be had! (I’m kidding, because if you know Lynn, you absolutely know spiciness comes guaranteed). There’s also the typical lack of toxic masculinity I’ve come to love from Lynn’s books (yes, talk about your feelings!), along with complex familial dynamics.
There is a huge amount of personal trauma in this book related to one of the main male characters, and it results in a lot of angst in this book. Not as much angst as I’ve seen in some other books like it, but it’s there all the same.
By far, my two favorite things about this book is the complete triad of polyamory and the way Lily helped bridge the gap between Grey and Blaine when she saw how they felt about one another. Lily is a gregarious and generous girl with both her affections and emotions, and even though she risked being hurt again she put herself out there like that so these two guys could find each other. She’s just so sweet.
Thanks to the author for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. ...more
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