A Dawn Of Gods & Fury is out today! I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
What a stunning conclusion to an epic series!
I’m going to keep this review short, because I cannot talk about the plot without spoilers so I will just say I loved it! It was everything I wanted it to be.
Told in many POVs, we finally get the answers to the questions that have been building throughout the series. We also get action and adventure, humor and sadness, love and war.
It is a thick book, with a lot of chapters, but it moved really quickly for me as I was dying to find out what would happen.
I’m not a romantasy fan in general, but I’ve honestly enjoyed this journey so much and I will happily read whatever KA Tucker writes!
I saw a friend post about this book and thought it sounded right up my alley – small town, romantic suspense so I requested it from my library. I’m always looking for more of this type of book!
Told in dual timelines, this is a story about Maggie, a woman with a complicated past who returns to her hometown where old secrets start to resurface. She was once torn between two men who both reappear in her life and she must once again make a decision who she wants to be with.
She’s purchased a home where mysterious things start to happen (lights flickering, temperatures spiking, etc) and it gets pretty creepy. You’re not sure as the story unfolds if the house is haunted, or if Maggie is losing her mind, or if someone is messing with her.
I pretty much read this in one sitting because I was dying to know what would happen. It’s a little messy and dramatic at times and I ate it up. I’m not a fan of love triangles in general but I immediately thought there was a clear winner between the guys and I had to read to see if the one I wanted to “win” would end up with her.
Was some of it a little far-fetched and too coincidental? Sure. But I still couldn’t put it down.I think the author is more of a thriller writer in general but I’ll definitely be keeping my eye out for more romantic suspense from her in the future because I really enjoyed this ride.
Happy Delicate Escape day! Thank you to the author for the ARC and ALC
It’s great to be back in Sparrow Falls!
This brings us Thea and Shep’s story, both of whom we met in book one. Thea is a woman on the run, in hiding for reasons we discover as the book progresses, who has trouble letting anyone in for obvious reasons. Shep is a good guy who wants to get to know her and help her out when her house needs work. They end up as roommates so he can help with her plumbing (literally … but also figuratively wink wink)
I loved them both individually and together. I just love when opposites attract and their black cat/golden retriever energies were so great. Shep fell hard and fast for Thea and I love how carefully he worked to gain her trust and get her walls down.
The suspense had me guessing and my theory was so wrong which I love! The author fooled me again and I’m so glad she did.
I love the family/found family aspect of Shep’s family and how they welcomed Thea so readily into their fold. Lolli continues to be the best and I can’t wait to get more of her antics! I love this series and this world and am so glad when I get to spend more time there.
I read it first with my eyeballs then did a second read on audio and thought both narrators did a great job! It’s Erin Mallon and Teddy Hamilton so of course they did.
Give me a grumpy cowboy, a fish out of water city girl, and an enemies to lovers plot where the MMC thinks he was supposed to get the ranch the FMC inherits and now they have to work together side by side by side and I am a happy girl but throw in Jessica Peterson’s signature charm and steam and I am ecstatic.
Cash was on the surface a stoic, grumpy cowboy, but at heart he was actually quite sweet and very caring for those he loved. He gave up basically everything for his younger brothers after his parents passed away and has devoted his adult life caring for them and Lucky Ranch, so he doesn’t appreciate this city girl coming in after she inherits the property. Also, he has a great mustache and isn’t afraid of being vulnerable and sharing his feelings.
Mollie was a great character too, she was strong willed and determined but also willing to admit she didn’t know what she was doing. She stepped in and really tried to learn the business and I love how she stood up to Cash with no hesitation.
The banter between them was excellent and the sparks were intense from the get go, and when they finally give into that chemistry it gets to be melt-your-kindle hot. No location is off limits to these two! I’ve never considered the phrase “mustache ride” hot before but my worldview has been shaken and I’m re-evaluating everything.
I also loved the setting and side characters. Every small town cowboy romance needs a local dive bar, a close knit group of cowboys, and brothers who interfere with your life choices. I’m so excited to get the rest of these brother’s stories and get more from this world!
I’ve loved every Jessica Peterson book I’ve read and given her combination of southern gentleman (except in the bedroom) mixed with sassy, smart heroines, I feel like she was made to write cowboy romance!
My goodness did I love this book! I didn’t necessarily think I would but man was I wrong (again.)
It’s a marriage of convenience romance between a werewolf alpha and the vampyre daughter of a councilman. Misery’s best friend has gone missing and the only clue points to her new husband so she agrees to marry to try to find out what happened, while he agrees to the marriage for political reasons.
Misery has long been neglected by her family unless she can be used to their advantage, and I just loved her. She was alone in enemy territory, doing whatever she could to try to find her bestie and I loved her journey as she navigated that. She was so snarky, so funny, and her walls were up so high in a very believable way with her history. I loved her romance with Lowe but I loved her relationship with Lowe’s little sister even more. They genuinely had me giggling with their interactions.
Lowe was the new alpha to his pack, and did everything he could to keep a distance from his new bride but just couldn’t stay away. He was a great character but the star for me was really Misery.
I loved the angst and longing between these two strangers who meet for the first time at their wedding.The romance is a bit of a slow burn due to Misery’s circumstances but I loved how they eventually built a relationship and it did get good and steamy eventually.
I have a long history with vampire and werewolf romance so I will say parts of it were pretty easy to guess what would happen but the author’s voice felt fresh and it was honestly such a joy to read! I loved it and look forward to more in this world.
The Spider and the Storm was recommended to me by a friend and I just had to read it because I love a loner hero. I don’t know why, but something about a solitary, isolated man who finds the right partner to finally love, to finally have a person, just melts my cold heart every time.
Much like Saving Rain, this is also told just from the MMCs POV. Charlie also had a rough childhood but at least he always had his brother. He was an anxious kid, to the extent they had to pull him from school for his mental health and because of bullies, and we follow his story, which is full of tragedy and heartbreak, into adulthood.
It’s told in dual timelines with the present, where we find Charlie has become a fully isolated adult, living alone in the cemetery where he’s also the caretaker. One day he bumps into the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen, a woman who likes him for him, even if he’s quiet and anxious. He’s also tall, tatted, bearded, and drives a motorcycle so I’m sure that helped.
Also much like Saving Rain, the romance is the lesser plot but I still really enjoyed it. Charlie and Stormy were pretty much instantly into each other, and I was so glad he finally found someone who loved him in return.
This one is a whopper of a book (691 pages) but please don’t let that deter you. I binged both Saving Rain and The Spider and the Storm in about two and a half days and was entirely captivated the entire time. I love the extra time we got to really root around in the Spider’s head and honestly could have kept reading.
I really just thought this was a great story, it is angsty and sad but never TOO angsty and sad for me. Just the right amount! I really enjoyed pretty much everything about this book (and Saving Rain) and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.
*This book can 100% be read as a standalone but if you think you’re going to read both books, I would start with Saving Rain since the characters do overlap and you’ll really appreciate seeing Soldier from Saving Rain here.
This is a beautiful story of redemption, told in dual timelines but only one POV, which was his. I really liked the uniqueness of the single POV being the MMCs. And what a great MMC he was!
Soldier was born to a young mother with a drug problem, leading a very unstable upbringing and a series of bad decisions as a teen led him to be in prison in his early twenties. He did not always make the best choices but we can see the desperation that brought him to that point. We get his whole story from childhood to adult as we move through the first past timeline.
We also get his present day story, being released from prison years later and trying to fit in back in the outside world. He ends up living next to a single mother and her son, whom he befriends and eventually starts a romance with the mom.
Truth be told, the romance is somewhat of the lesser plot here, and I didn’t mind at all. I loved Soldier, his strength and inherent goodness despite his difficult upbringing was beautiful. His journey was hard at times but I genuinely loved it. There is not much I love more than a true story of redemption and this one just really hit the spot for me.
We do however definitely get a romance, and a beautiful, tender one at that. Soldier and Rain saved each other in multiple ways and their love felt meant to be. I also loved Soldier’s other relationships, with his former prison guard who helped him reestablish himself, with the townspeople as he won them over, and especially with Rain’s son who was the first person to befriend Soldier and not treat him any differently.
I do have to say, it’s pretty long. It’s around 500 pages, and it’s very character driven so you spend a lot of time with Soldier. I personally enjoyed every second and flew through the pages. I loved the author’s writing style so much I immediately picked up the next (loosely interconnected) book and binged that one as well (review to come!)
The Boss + The Maid = Chemistry is out now! Thank you to the author for the ARC.
This was such a sexy and fun rom-com! This is a spin off of the author’s Doctors series though it reads fine as a standalone.
Efa and Bennett have a one night stand after meeting at a bar, only for her to show up as a maid at the hotel Bennett is currently residing in (and secretly owns.)
Efa is young and ballsy, she’s come to New York to get a job in tech and has no trouble going toe to toe with Bennett, who is 13 years older and tech billionaire. Bennett thinks she’s possibly stalking him after she shows up in his hotel room which was a funny misunderstanding.
The two are very hot for each other but it’s complicated with their age gap, her technically working for him and wanting a job at his tech company, and his general desire to remain anonymous.
It was spicy, funny, and I had a good time reading it!
Northern Twilight is out today! Thank you the author for the ARC.
I always love returning to Ardnoch!
In this we get Lewis and Callie’s story, who we first met in their respective parents’ stories, and now it’s their turn to shine. This is a second chance romance, they were childhood friends to teenage lovers, but wanted different things post school. They reunite briefly and their one night stand results in an accidental pregnancy.
This was very much an “it’s always been you” kind of romance, you just knew these two were meant to be and I loved all the angst and longing this brought. They’ve had seven years apart, and neither managed to quite move on successfully so suddenly being back in each other’s lives is quite an adjustment – at least for Callie.
Lewis was more all-in, and what’s not to love about a tatted, man bun wearing, motorcycle riding architect who knows what he wants (and has quite a dirty mouth on him!)
I loved how their relationship progressed and that we got flashbacks to where it all went wrong. It was sweet, it was steamy, there was some angst, and we got to revisit some of the other characters from previous books, so I loved it!
The Truth According to Ember is out now! Thank you to the publisher for the ARC.
I was very excited to dig into this romcom from Danica Nava – I don’t think I’ve ever seen a traditionally published contemporary romcom from a Native author with two Native main characters.
Ember is our main character, she’s working at a bowling alley cleaning toilets and serving nachos, desperate to get a job as an accountant but no one wants to hire her.
She makes a few creative adjustments to her resume, which leads to a new career based on a bunch of lies. She starts at her new office and runs into Danuwoa, the IT guy who she’s immediately attracted to but the office has a no-dating policy so the two start off as just friends which turns into more, though she has to keep lying to him to uphold her original lies.
I love that we get a book about Native joy and love. I enjoyed the exploration of microaggressions Native people face in a mostly white workforce, though not pleasant to read, it is so important.
I’m not always a fan of books where the central plot is based on lies, and there were certainly times where I just wished Ember would be honest. So many of her lies were pointless, but I did understand the desperation that led to the first lie and how it can easily snowball from there. I spent most of the time worrying about when the other shoe would drop and all her lies would be found out (because they always are!)
Overall though it was a cute romcom from a fresh new voice and I love that I got to read a different perspective than I ever h
Romance Reviewed 