Showing posts with label < Three Stars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label < Three Stars. Show all posts

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.28

August 27, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Coming to Hale by Marie James


Contemporary Romance

The only time she trusted someone with her heart, she was just a girl; he betrayed her and left her humiliated. Since then, Lorali Bennett has let that moment in time dictate her life.

Ian Hale, sexy as sin business mogul, has never had more than a passing interest in any particular woman, until a chance encounter with Lorali, leaves a lasting mark on him.

Their fast paced romance is one for the record books, but what will happen when Ian’s secrets come to light? Especially when those secrets will cost her everything she spent years trying to rebuild.

My Rating -

I gave up at 25%.

I can't take this Lorali girl. She's judgmental, superficial, and lacking in so many ways that it's impossible to like her. I didn't even get to the juicy bits :(


Desire in His Blood by Zoey Draven


SciFi Romance, dual pov, arranged marriage

A monster wants her as his bride…and he will stop at nothing to claim her.

Gemma Hara is drowning under the weight of her father’s debts. Working herself to the bone, she knows that if she doesn’t pay them off in time, the sadistic creditors will take everything: their home, their respected name, and, worst of all, her two beautiful sisters.

To save her family, Gemma agrees to do something reckless: marry a wealthy and mysterious stranger, who offers her a wicked bargain she can’t afford to refuse.

However, his bargain comes with one terrifying catch. Because her husband-to-be is a Kylorr.

One of the most fearsome alien races in the Four Quadrants, the Kylorr are beastly monsters, all muscle and menace, with powerful wings, depraved cravings, and berserker-like rages. The worst part?

They survive on blood.

Cold and cruel, Azur of House Kaalium, the High Lord of Laras, demands Gemma as his blood bride. To feed from her. To use her body in whatever way he wishes. For paying off her family’s debts, he expects her complete submission.

What neither of them predicts is how his bite doesn’t bring pain—it fills Gemma with more exquisite pleasure than she’s ever known. And as she finds her footing on a strange new planet, the one thing Gemma thought she’d never surrender might be at risk after all.

Her heart.

Too bad her new husband can’t seem to decide if he wants to break it…or keep it forever.

My Rating -

I really wanted to like this. I really did. But Gemma was AnNoYing!!

Who wouldn't be intrigued by a vampire race of aliens with large bat-like wings and sexy muscles? I know I was definitely interested.

But Gemma...


Tall, Dark and Stormy by Mickey Miller


Contemporary Romance novella

They say I’m a rich, bitter a**hole who isn’t capable of normal feelings.

Well, they say a lot of things.

And they don’t know shit.

You don’t become a billionaire without a strain of obsession bubbling within you. Strong and true, like a deep blue pilot light.

It’s true, I don’t suffer fools. And I don’t have time to become emotionally involved.

I loved once before. This is my curse. It keeps me focused.

Until I see Stacy’s ad. The office intern, auctioning off her virginity for charity, right there on the screen.

A gorgeously seductive photo, followed by some of the dirtiest erotic fantasies I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading.

And they’re about me. Her boss.

I’ll be damned if one of these tasteless men with no appreciation for this smart, beautiful angel will be her first.

If anyone has her, it’s going to be me.

Like I said, I’m a man of obsession.

My Rating -

I've read a few books by this author and this one was unlike any of those. Especially because I didn't like it. It didn't even sound like something he would write. Ah well. You've got two characters who have lost loves. The hero seemed to still be grieving even after becoming involved with the heroine. Honestly, their match up made no sense and lacked any real heat. I didn't feel a connection and couldn't believe how unrealistic their relationship was. He's a kagillionaire who owns what seems to be the one club in town... and he's got a sex dungeon in the basement that he had put in for the love he's lost. She's an intern at his company who has been fantasizing about him when she takes time from being a walking talking contradiction - she's bisexual and a Jehovah's Witness. What?! Absolutely not my taste.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.27

June 25, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Alpha's Moon by Renee Rose & Lee Savino


dual POV, Paranormal Romance

My alpha ordered me to keep away from humans.

My wolf is highly unstable. Nearly feral. I can’t be trusted around civilians.

Certainly not with the lovely kindergarten teacher whose scent drives me wild.

But she needs a fake boyfriend for a weekend wedding trip. A big guy to intimidate her ex.

How can I refuse?

I won’t be directly disobeying an order, because it won’t be a real date.

It will be a nice, clean mission. We’ll have separate rooms.

I’ll keep my wolf on a tight leash.

And no matter how much I want to, I will not mark and claim the sweet human as mine…

My Rating -

First Chapter: everything I'm looking for. I like the idea of shifters on a special forces team, getting rid of bad guys and rescuing the good ones.

Second Chapter: I don't care. Why oh why oh why did Sadie ruin it for me?

The End


The Beast of Moscow by Bethany-Kris


dual POV, contemporary mafia romance

Tucked away deep in the hills of Dubna lives a man hiding from a past that’s as grisly as the scar on his face. Reclusive. Paranoid. Violent. His trek to the top has been a bloody game—with a deadly end for anyone who loses.

And it’s not over yet.

Vera Avdonin stumbled into the life of Vaslav Pashkov entirely by accident, and it should have stopped there, too. Just a broken ballerina who helped a beautifully tortured stranger.

But she’ll soon learn that like the mafiya he controls, once he brings you in, there is no way out.

They don’t call him The Beast of Moscow for nothing.

My Rating -

I can't believe I'm saying this because BK is one of my absolute favorite authors, but...

This book just wasn't working for me. I couldn't get into it. Which sucks because about 99% of her books get 5 stars from me so this is obviously not normal.

Breaks my heart :(


Dark Side of the Cloth by Brooklyn Cross


dual POV, Contemporary vigilante romance

He didn't believe in flowers, but he would hunt down everyone that ever hurt her.

Groomed from birth to take over the Cartel, darkness was all Dean knew. Except he had no interest in running a gang, and even less in being the next El Chapo like his abusive father.

So, he ran.

That’s when the Army found him. He was highly sought after for his unique skill set, and quickly became a valued member. Finally, he found a place where he belonged. Until The Righteous came knocking with an opportunity for a new life. So, he put on the priest collar and settled into the small town, happy with his new beginning.

Then he saw Yasmine Jacobs.

Wracked with survivors guilt, Yasmine struggled to put that dreadful night behind her. She tried to move on and take over the family business. She thought her life was fine the way it was. That is, until the new priest, Dean O’Sullivan came into town. Confession was supposed to cleanse her soul, not damn her for the thoughts running through her mind.

How long would she be able to deny her basic primal instincts, when circumstance kept pushing them together?

But who exactly was the forbidden fruit?

My Rating -

What's more delicious than a priest who isn't really a priest and looking scrumptious while doing it? Oh and he kills bad guys in his own thrilling ways.

Too bad this book just wasn't doing it for me :(

Once again, the heroine made me quit.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.26

June 11, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Master of Salt & Bones by Keri Lake


dual POV, dark romance

When I was a little girl, I dreamed a handsome knight would come and rescue me from my wretched mother. He'd ride up on his white steed and break the curse I've been fated to carry since the day I was born.

Funny how things changed over time. How the fairy tale twisted into something far more crooked, darker than I ever imagined.

In reality, my knight is scarred and broken, living alone in a castle of bones that overlooks the sea. He isn’t searching for me. He never was.

Lucian Blackthorne is as cursed as I am, and equally shunned by the locals, the fishers of men, who believe him to be the devil in the flesh.

Perhaps he is, with the way his amber eyes draw me in, ignite me like an infernal blaze. And the sins he whispers in my ear are as wickedly intoxicating as the man himself.

Yet, his touch is heaven and his will is my weakness.

He calls us forbidden, an unsalvageable tragedy, with no happy end. Maybe we are. But in this story, he’s the one who needs saving.

My Rating -

I've loved everything else I've read from this author and assumed that I'd love this book. It sounds so good, but actually being in it, I wasn't feeling it. Honestly, I wasn't feeling much of anything. I didn't care about anything, which is the strangest thing because I've got tons of books on my shelves, some even signed, by this author. Ah well, not every book will be a winner right? I'll try something else by her for sure.


Second Chance Baby by Natasha L. Black


In walks my past, hotter than ever.
I never could tell her no.

If Ava thinks she can walk back into my life
Thinks I’ll help her out when she’s desperate for a job,
If she thinks I’m going to lay awake wanting her back…
She’s right.

My first love, my first heartbreak, and now she needs me.
I’m not the kind of man who would walk away from her.
Loyal to the core, running my family’s bar and working sixteen hour days.

The next thing I know I’m working long nights with Ava
Feels like old times, and an old flame that never stopped burning
Is about to become an inferno.

All that desire, all those years apart
How could we make the same mistake again?
The one that cost us everything all those years ago
When we couldn’t get past what we’d lost.

Can we survive it this time, older, wiser, more in love than ever?
Or will it tear us apart just like it did back then?

My Rating -

This story was pretty basic, but sometimes you need some basic in your life. You know?

So I gave it a chance.

The heroine: boring
The hero: boring
The story: boring

But that's ok.

Until it wasn't.

I DNF'd at chapter 38 because I was too tired of the heroine's antics. She's pregnant, a man knocked her to the ground, the hero had just lost his dad and that anger fueled him in punching dude a bit, and she basically tells the hero no. Then yes. Then no. Then yes.


I couldn't even bring myself to read the remaining two chapters.


Fable of Happiness: Book One by Pepper Winters


A house hidden in the middle of nowhere.
A man who’s lived alone for a decade.
A woman who trespasses on his solitude.
A love full of hate as well as hunger.


The thing about my life is... I was never in control of it.
I just I thought I was.
I thought I had everything figured out—a good career, fun hobbies, a bright future, but everything changed when I found an ivy-cloaked house, tucked in a forgotten valley, hiding the man who would corrupt my world forever.
I thought I was successful, until he showed me fortune and happiness could be snatched away in an instant.
I believed I was blessed, but really, I was cursed.
Cursed to become a plaything for a monster.
Cursed to become a prisoner just because I trespassed.
Now, I know nothing.
I am nothing.
I’m just his.

My Rating -

I can't believe I'm doing this.
I love PW. Seriously lurve her work.
Her books line my shelves -- signed, sealed, delivered

So why did I have such a hard time with this book? Why did I not fall in love with its depravity?

I didn't care about Gemma AT ALL and Kassen didn't have strong enough appeal to keep me going.

Every book can't be a winner, right?

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.25

May 28, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Beautifully Cruel by J.T. Geissinger


Dual POV, contemporary

Alpha (noun):
1) Having the highest rank in a dominance hierarchy
2) The most powerful man in a group
3) Liam Black


He was a stranger to me, a dark and dangerous presence who materialized from the shadows one rainy night to save me from a vicious attack. I didn’t know his name or where he was from. All I knew was that the only place I’d ever felt safe was in his arms.

But safety is an illusion.
And not every savior is a hero.
And—as I’d soon find out—having an alpha save your life comes with a price.

Liam Black wanted something from me in return.

My Rating - DNF

I had to stop reading at 47%.

She slapped him across the face. That means it's a hard pass for me. If he'd given her a solid box across the face, readers would be up in arms. We wouldn't hear the end of it. But because she's a she, no one says anything. It's okay? No. That sort of double standard doesn't work for me.

So as potentially hot as this story could be, and I'll be honest but I really wasn't getting all hot and bothered up to this point, it doesn't even matter. Because she slapped him.


The Danger You Know by Lily White


Dark contemporary

You’ll judge me.
Hate me and tell me I’m wrong.
Refuse to see how my darkness is what she needs.

While I don’t particularly care about your feelings in the matter, and while I pursue her despite the wedding bells that rang for another, only I can see how she is drowning beneath mediocrity.

How many times must I remind her?
It can’t matter that I am the person who ruined her life.

The man who killed her father.
The constant shadow that watches her sleep.
The lover who prefers dirty alleyways to freshly laundered sheets

She’s mine. Always has been.
I'm the worst thing for her, yet I’m the only salvation she knows.

He had his chance to make her happy.
He failed.
He didn't see how she was dying inside because he couldn't know her.
Not like I know her.

I am her stalker.
Her protector.
And the only man that can bring her back to life.

My Rating - DNF

I'm so sorry. I've enjoyed this author in the past and I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy them in the future, but this book didn't work for me.

I was BORED!!

The End.


Mating Theory by Skye Warren


Dual POV, contemporary

My best friend is getting married to the woman I love. They say the nice guy finishes last. So what's the point of being a goddamn gentleman?

Maybe I should take what I want.

Even that sexy little thing on the street corner.

She needs a hot meal and a place to sleep. Instead I'm taking her home to soothe the savage beast inside me. I was born a bastard, and for the first time in my life I act like one.

Except the more I use her, the more I need her.

I didn't know I had someone left to lose.

But for a single heartbeat, I had her.

My Rating - DNF

After reading this book (and others from this author), I have decided that maybe she's not the person I should be reading from. This story was a hot mess that had some crazy potential. I was down with the 'hero' being bi. I was even down with him falling for a prostitute who couldn't sell her body and make a buck. Worst Prostitute Ever! But it was told in such a way that I didn't care.

I didn't care.

I. Didn't. Care!

Which is sad because... potential.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.24

May 21, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


The Flame King's Captive by Chloe Chastaine


Dual POV, Paranormal Romance, omegaverse

He snatched me from the jaws of death for one reason—to be his.

I was a dead king’s sacrificial bride, until his murderer claimed me as his. Zabriel invaded my country of Maledin on the back of a monstrous, fire-breathing dragon and took me prisoner.

The lethal Zabriel towers over me in steel plate armor, and he could easily crush the life out of me—but the Flame King isn’t interested in harming me. Instead, he destroys everyone who has hurt me in a storm of fire and vengeance.

There’s malignant rot deep within my country. My family has vanished along with whole villages of people. As I desperately try to find those who are missing, my body and heart awaken under a powerful and alarming force.

Zabriel sets my soul ablaze every time he growls, “Mine.” He calls me Omega. The rarest. The most vulnerable. The one he craves to possess and protect.

When evil forces in Maledin threaten everyone I know and love, there’s only one person who is strong enough to help me defeat them, and the only place where I’m safe from an ancient foe is in the arms of the Flame King.

My Rating -

I really thought this would be right up my alley.

* dragons
* omegaverse
* signs of filthyness
* a warrior who never hesitated in killing whoever needed killing

Unfortunately, it wasn't.
It all went downhill after he rescued the heroine from religious zealots who were about to sacrifice her in fire. He brings her to his camp for safety, heads back to kill these evil men, and she runs away while he's gone. She goes back to the village the zealots took her from in the first place. I get wanting to see her family again, but how was this smart? And then she acknowledges that it maybe wasn't the most intelligent thing to do and she ends up back in the hands of the zealots. All while viewing the hero as some kind of demon. Never once did she question the brainwashing she received. Never once did she stop to consider that the male saved her and vowed to never harm her. To kill anyone who thought to lay a hand on her. And he did do that, again and again. She was just not worthy of being read.

So I quit.


Devil's Claim by Dariel Raye & Muffy Wilson


Dual POV, fantasy

Generations ago, he died for her. Now, it’s her turn. Pride kept them from looking at one another, but their bodies could not lie. Recognition lived in their souls, rekindling memories of passion, love, betrayal….and death. Apache Elder Aidan Stringfellow, V, is a very wealthy man with one wish – to free his only son, the brilliant, yet abrasive David, from the curse that has plagued his family for generations. When his controversial plan for a cure is revealed, shock and disbelief are only the beginning, for David has deadly, yet beguiling secrets of his own.

Choosing to honor Aidan’s wishes, David and Katala unwittingly awaken an ancient evil desperate to lay claim to the last-born Stringfellow – David. The tumultuous consequences of a vengeful pact spanning generations, defies time, tradition, and death itself. Katala finds herself falling in love with a man whose gaze and touch ignite long-forgotten passion, propelling her to fight for his life. She unearths one devastating clue after another on her winding journey toward the truth, but unseen forces escalate their attack as truth collides with myth. Clinging desperately to her own sanity, she must find a way to reconcile the two, for even her own identity comes into question. Trust no one. Not even David.

Time is running out. Promises will be kept, and if the devil has his way, souls will be claimed.

My Rating - DNF

I actually got pretty far with this one. I enjoyed getting to know David and the curse that seemed to haunt him and his ancestors. However, Katala annoyed me and I couldn't take one more second in her head. I might come back to this one in the future.


Deceived by Lies by K.J. Thomas


Mafia Romance

I was deceived from the first day we met, right up until my planned death.

After being set up on a botched job, I escaped to find peace and quiet.
I never found it.
What I did find was someone I thought I could give my heart to, I had no idea of the monster living inside of the man.
Revenge makes the heart do horrible things.
Now I’m back in New York. I need to save the lives of my brothers.
Can I do this and not sacrifice myself in the process?

My Rating - DNF

O
M
G
There were so many grammatical errors.
Commas upon commas when a comma wasn't even needed.
Can you imagine how hard it is to read something like that?
If this story was any good, I wouldn't know because the commas kept distracting me.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.23

May 14, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


The Two Week Arrangement by Kendall Ryan


Dear Sexy AF Intern,

I know you don't particularly care that I'm the CEO of this company, and you're just an intern. I also know you're not impressed by my power or my wealth, and that's fine.

You think you've got me all figured out from working alongside me for two weeks, but you don't know me. Not really.

You don't know that I'm a single dad to twin toddlers, or that those two little girls matter more to me than this entire hotel chain.

I'm not interested in starting something deep and meaningful, but what I am interested in is the way your body reacts to mine when we're in the same room. You probably assume the concentration on my face is work-related, when in reality, I'm figuring out which I want more--to nail you against the wall, or to bend you over my desk.

While you're too disciplined to act on it, I'm not. And the night you stepped into my limo, all bets were off.

My Rating - DNF

It's my first DNF for Kendall Ryan. I've liked every book I've read from her until now. This story wasn't sexy to me yet it's advertised as sexy all over the place. I just didn't like it. I was okay with Dominic, not okay with Presley, and bored.

Contemporary, dual pov


Chasing Fate by J.R. Thorn


Every Thousand Years the Cycle of Death Returns

A young psychic named Renee inherits her grandmother’s terrifying powers and summons two hot (and very naked) angels to help her save the world. Paired up with her ex-boyfriend turned vampire, she’s in for a hell of a ride.

Every thousand years the cycle of death comes to claim the three major realms: Earth, heaven, and hell. It’s her turn to chase fate and stop the cycle from devouring her world, bringing heaven and hell down with it.

When the echoes of calamity begin to take form and destroy her beloved Fortune Street, she’ll have to race against the clock to stop her new vision from coming to fruition. Earth in ashes and heaven and hell collapsed in a ball of flames.

Edwin and Devon aren’t the kind of angels she’d expected to conjure with her new gifts for such a monumental task. With Devon’s constant flirting, Edwin’s sexy brooding, and Jeffery’s distracting fangs, she’ll have to hope they’re more useful than they are distracting in the game of chasing fate.

My Rating - DNF

A young psychic, her two protectors, and her dead (ex)boyfriend who is now a vampire. Sounds like a good time. Until I realized that this was shaping up to be a reverse harem story and I don't read those (anymore).


Kill or Be Killed by Bry Ann


Scarlett:
Love doesn’t make sense to me.
Like, what, your heart pitter-patters a few times and your brain loses all sense of reason.
It just joins in on the torture.
No thank you.
I'm hot. I f*ck. That’s ALL I do.
I'm not bitter. No one dumped me.
I’ll give you a hint what screwed me up so bad…
DEATH.
And that’s exactly what he is… death with muscles and enough physical scars to match my emotional ones.

Tobias:
I was tortured for years on end.
Beaten within an inch of my life more times than I can count.
I became a monster. A beast who craved to hurt people like I was hurt…
Until I meet sex on heels and all I want to do is hurt her. F*ck her. Use her.
Until I don’t.
...and that’s the part that scares me.

My Rating - DNF

Stopped at 51%

No connection to the characters, to the story, to the writing, etc.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.22

April 16, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Cut & Blow: Book Two by Ashleigh Giannoccaro


Tangled up in a dangerous love affair, Chelsey can’t seem to catch a break. Alone and afraid, with everything on the line she’s going to have to make some grown up decisions.
Sal has a second chance to get it all right with Chelsey. His do over to fix the mistakes of his past. Will his family approve? She’s very young, but he’s determined to do the right thing, even if it’s for all the wrong reasons.
There’s a Rat amongst the pigeons and no one has smelled him coming. Revenge is such a dirty business, but someone has to do it. When the person you hate the most in the world, has the one thing you want more — you take it.

My Rating -

With how much I couldn't resist the mess of book one, I thought I'd give the next book a try. However, this one didn't work as well for me. Chels was worse than a mess and I didn't care enough about her much older man relationship. There wasn't anything hot or attractive about it. Throw in his son and I still didn't care. Ewww.


Security Breach by Evan Grace


It was only one night. One night, and I was sure I’d never see her again.
Fast forward six months and I’m staring into those same eyes. Only this time Delilah is my boss’s daughter. But the real kicker…she’s very much pregnant.
Now my only goal is to stand by her, protect her, and make sure my new family is taken care of.
But there’s a certain danger lurking in the shadows, threatening everything I hold dear.
I won’t rest until my family is safe. I won’t stop until I’ve annihilated every threat.
Delilah is mine. The child she’s carrying is mine…and I’ll be damned if anyone takes them away from me.

My Rating -

It read very stilted.

He said... She said... I did this... And then...

No chemistry. No connection. Great premise though.


Sex Material by Victoria Ashley


Sex Material…
It’s what I’m known around town for.
A rock-hard body, covered in tattoos with a sizeable bulge that women spend their nights fantasizing about.
Women track me down, needing someone that will take them rough without holding back.
They find me because they need a distraction from reality. They need something to get their mind off of the boyfriend who screwed them over or the job promotion they got passed over on at work.
Sometimes it’s just because they need someone reckless in the bedroom before settling down with the right one.
‘Cause I’m not that guy.
Nowhere close.
I’m not the suit wearing, flower-buying guy you take home to meet the parents. I’m not the guy who will make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
Not anymore.
I was boyfriend material once. Would’ve even made a good husband. Until one night changed everything.
These women come to me because they need an escape to cope with the real world, but none of them know I need it more than them. I need something to make me feel alive. Something to get my heart beating again.
Then Cami shows up in my hometown, broken-hearted and pissed off at the world, needing an escape from her cheating ex.
She’s the only one that doesn’t want to use my body. In fact, she wants nothing to do with it and has no problems telling me so.
She’s interested in one thing only from me—to move into my rental property. But the problem with that is the more we fight, the deeper she buries herself in my soul.
Sex material is what I’m good at, but for the first time, it may not be enough.

My Rating -

That cover... YUM!

It was easy to picture that delicious man as Jensen.



And that's where my good thoughts end.

Jensen was a mess. Cami was a mess.

ANDDDDD... he has a descriptive sex scene in the beginning with some other woman.



Now I get that I'm supposed to be all about him and his growing feelings for Cami because he hasn't kissed a woman in years (bones them no problem tho) and he kisses her. He even loves kissing her.



But when his sex scene with another woman, which did happen before he met Cami so let's give him some points for that, is hotter than anything he shared with THE HEROINE OF THE STORY, overshadowing what they share like a muhfuqqa and making their 'sexy scenes' seem like straight out of a Sweet Valley High book...



I'm gonna have to pass.

That is all.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.21

March 12, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Finding Gray by K.L. Kreig


Contemporary, dual pov

Cocksure. Suave. Untouchable.

Gray Colloway is the very definition of these. He’s also sweet, drop dead gorgeous, and relentless in his pursuit of me. But I don’t let people in my inner bubble. That only leads to heartbreak. After I turn down his initial proposition for a date, he shows up where I work day after day until he finally wears me down and I give. I want to let him in. I do, but will Gray be able to truly break down barriers it took others a lifetime to shape?

Livia Kingsley is the entire sexy package. Outside of swimming curves and that angel’s face, she’s smart as hell, witty, and all fucking mine. I knew it the moment I laid eyes on her. Her resistance to give me a chance is cute and weak. And straight up futile. The harder she pushes me away, the harder I push back. But she gives in and our chemistry is off the charts hot, just as I knew it would be. And three years later when she agrees to be my wife, I am the happiest man alive.

Until she ruins me.

My Rating -

As always, the writing was perfect because it's K.L. KREIG!!

However...

While I adored Gray, I kept finding fault with Livia. From the first moment of this novella, I didn't like her and I think their story would be better served if I dropped this and just started with Forsaking Gray instead. I don't want to go into the story hating the girl (although I pretty much already do). So I'm going to take a step back, make something else wash this gross taste out of my brain (thanks for that, Livia) and continue on with this series another day.


Pearl White by Lindsay Marie Miller


Mystery

It’s senior year at Maple Creek High. And Savannah is swarming with gossip about who killed the star quarterback.

Last summer, Addie Smith thought she’d witnessed her last murder. But when a letter arrives from France, she must revisit the past.

A French count invites Tom and Addie to spend Christmas with him in Paris. Hesitant at first, the young love birds fly to the romance capital of the world. But the count is haunted by a woman from his past.

A woman who spoke of an emerald necklace…

My Rating -

Honestly, this book has elements that I quite enjoy. It's got a touch of romance, a mystery, some thrilling and suspenseful parts, and it's young adult. Surely a recipe of enjoyment. Unfortunately, it was barely okay for me. I skimmed and skimmed and still don't know what I was 'reading'. I think it was one of those "it's not you, it's me" situations. I just couldn't get into it.


Goodnight, Nic by Marley Jacobs


Twenty-four-year-old Nicole Fletcher is having a rough summer. The woman who raised her is dying and there’s nothing she can do about it. Nothing but find solace in the forbidden fantasies starring her best friend’s younger brother. Nic knows there are some lines you can never cross – but when it comes to “little” Landon Pike, she kind of already has. She tries to stay away but when your world is falling apart, you can’t help but fall right along with it. Good thing Landon refuses to let her fall alone.

My Rating -

With the way I feel about this heroine, and the fact that the entire book is told from her POV, I think it's better that I quit now. I can't get over how self-absorbed she is, how she treats people, how she just doesn't seem to care. I'm sure this will change at some point later in the story, but with the way she's treating the male lead, after he's so freaking amazing... I can't get down with that.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.20

January 16, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


The Last Phone Booth in Manhattan by Beth Merlin


Women's Fiction

Avery Lawrence thought she had it all—a charming fiancĂ©, a Broadway-themed star-studded engagement, and a picture-perfect life. But when her fraudster of a fiancĂ©’s true identity is exposed and he’s hauled away in handcuffs, Avery’s world comes crashing down faster than the chandelier in Phantom of the Opera. Left stranded on Christmas Day outside the federal prison without her cell phone or wallet, Avery stumbles out of the cold and into the last phone booth in Manhattan. With nothing left to lose, Avery is directed by a mysterious voice on the line to the doorstep of the college boyfriend she thought she’d moved on from over six years ago.

When a second encounter with the phone booth leads Avery to a life-changing audition for Marley Is Dead, a new musical based on Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, Avery is blown away by the striking similarities between the show and her own life. Convinced the phone booth is somehow responsible for reuniting her with “the one that got away” and reigniting her acting career, maybe she will finally have the chance to rewrite her future. But as she grapples with the ghosts of her past and the uncertainty of her present, Avery must decide whether to follow her heart or pursue her dream.

My Rating: — Why is this categorized as a romance?

IT IS NOT A ROMANCE!!

Luckily, I got this as a free book from Prime or I'd be pissed!!

It's about a woman named Avery finding herself, rediscovering her past with a man named Gabe, and getting closure so she can move forward.

Honestly, if I'd known what it was about, I'd probably still read it. I just wouldn't have gone in with these expectations of a love story.

What a downer :(


Bad Boys After Dark: Carson by Melissa Foster


Contemporary Second Chance Romance

As the founder of a multimillion-dollar international security business, Carson Bad exposes secrets for a living. He knows better than to forge relationships built on them. But for years he did just that with his best friend, and secret lover, Tawny Bishop. She brought a sense of calm and understanding to his life—in and out of the bedroom. Until one fateful night when a knock at the door changed everything.

Tawny is no longer a naive college student. She’s a sought-after perfumer living in Paris. She has plenty of resources at her fingertips, and lots of lonely nights to think about the only man she’s ever loved—the one she ran away from all those years ago. She needs to move forward with her life, but how can she when Carson still owns her heart?

Maybe showing up in the middle of the night unannounced isn’t the best route to unraveling the past and figuring out her future, but Tawny has played it safe for ten long years, and it's only made her long for the man she never should have walked away from. Now she's back in Carson’s life, and he’s determined not to make the same mistake twice. If only he knew what that mistake was…

My Rating: — I really wanted to like this one because I really like this author.
But it was hard to deal with the heroine.
She and the hero, Carson, were college besties... and something more.
She left him.
She married another man (poor Keith) when her heart still belonged to Carson. Married him, made him feel second class, had him begging to be with her again after their divorce, etc.
It's been ten years and she's looking for something from Carson.
And he just accepts her back into his life because he's such a great guy.
But I didn't like her.
I didn't trust her.
So no. I didn't care for a happy ending for her.
Carson deserved better.


The First Taste by Jessica Hawkins


Contemporary One Night Stand Romance

Andrew Beckwith has already devoted his life to one girl—and as far as he’s concerned, she’s all he needs. The rough-around-the-edges bad boy left his reckless ways behind six years ago when his daughter Bell was born. To the female population’s dismay, he’s unapologetically single. When Bell’s mother walked out on them years ago, he vowed never to let another woman close enough to hurt them again.

Amelia Van Ecken isn’t just another woman. She’s an independent, smart, and savvy businesswoman who doesn’t have time for sex, much less love. In the midst of a drawn-out, bitter divorce, all she wants is to bury herself in work. But when sharp-tongued Amelia and stubborn Andrew cross paths, sparks fly—and burn. Two things are obvious in an instant: they want each other, and they’re from different worlds. It’s the perfect formula for an off-the-charts one-night stand. After all, it’s not as if opposites ever attract.

My Rating: — I’m a sucker for a story about a single parent. I’m not sure if it’s because I enjoy the parallels I can draw between fiction and reality, being a single parent myself. I just enjoy watching the way these characters, who give so much of themselves to their child(ren), trying to navigate a world in which they are people separate from said child(ren). Who says having kids and raising them alone means you stop being an individual with wants and needs?

Andrew was content to live the life of a bachelor raising his daughter. And honestly, I couldn’t blame him. After Bell’s mother abandoned them, he became everything to make sure his little girl wanted for nothing. Both suffering from abandonment issues, he doesn’t want to try for anything permanent again. He’s all about having some fun and when he meets Amelia, it seems she’s all about the same thing. Coming out of bad divorce, she doesn’t think she has what it takes to give herself over again.

Sounds like a good story right? And it would be for many people. I’m just not one of them. I actually enjoyed both characters… separately. When they were together… not so much. I couldn’t feel their chemistry and I couldn’t connect with the idea of them evolving into anything serious. They didn’t work well for me and the more I tried to convince myself to give them a chance, the harder it was. So I had to just let this story go.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.19

January 09, 2024


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Becoming Us by Amy Daws


New Adult Contemporary Friends to Lovers Romance

The dreaded friend-zone...

The last place Finley ever want to be with college basketball God, Jake LaShae. She is losing her mind trying to figure out what this guy wants from her. Between their late night phone calls, cuddle sessions and him showing up at parties, causing a scene, his mixed signals are giving her whip lash.

When a mind-blowing betrayal knocks the wind out of Finley and she thinks she can’t feel any lower, Brody stumbles into her path—barefoot and charmingly sexy.

This boy next door is a breath of fresh air. And he’s not shooting her any mixed signals.

But even he has a past. A past that makes him anything but perfect.

When Finley begins to think she’s found the one in Brody, will Jake try to make one final play and ruin the game for everyone?

My Rating: ★ — So... I hate Finley. Hate her so much that I couldn't find it in me to give this book a real chance.

She was almost everything I can't stand in a protagonist.

And she was the one narrating this story.

NO.


Dangerous Love: an Anthology


A Paranormal Romance collection

Includes:
Blood's Fury by C.M. Owens
Eternal Vows by Chrissy Peebles
Awakened by Brenda K. Davies
Finding Forever by Melisa Hamling
Rae of Hope by W.J. May

My Rating: ★ — So mainly I picked up this collection for a list of reasons...

1. It was free. Can't argue with the price.
2. It had Brenda K. Davies in it and I really enjoyed her Road to Hell series.
3. It also had C.M. Owens contributing and although I've never read anything from her, I've heard great things and thought this would be my chance to give her a shot.

So what happened?

The first book was by Owens and it was so ridiculous that I couldn't even finish it. I'm not a fan of single perspective stories. They try my patience because not every author can give me what I need from one view. The other main character may fall flat. Side characters may seem irritating and one-dimensional. And what if I don't like the voice I'm reading from? I'm just stuck with this person for a bunch of pages until the end?

That's what happened. I couldn't stand the heroine and she lacked the ingenuity to properly capture the nuances of the other characters. And there were so many other seemingly interesting characters to be found. Unfortunately, that could all be down to my imagination because the words just weren't there.

The writing was annoying. The heroine was annoying. And so the entire book became annoying. I didn't finish it and have no plans to do so in the future.

The End.


Waking the Dragon by Juliette Cross


Paranormal Romance

The Gladium Province is on the verge of civil unrest as humans and Morgons, the dragon-hybrid race, clash once more. But amid disorder can also arise passion.

When the bodies of three human women are discovered in Morgon territory—with the DNA of several Morgon men on the victims—it’s just a matter of time before civil unrest hits the Province. But for ambitious reporter Moira Cade, it’s more than just a story, and it may mean risking her own life.

Descending into the dark underworld of Morgon society, Moira is paired with Kol Moonring, Captain of the Morgon Guard, for her protection. Fiercely independent, Moira bristles at his dominance, and defies his will at every turn. Yet resistance proves futile when passion flares between them, awakening powerful emotions within both, body and soul. But as the killings continue, can their fiery newfound bond survive an even greater evil—one that threatens all of humanity, Morgonkind, and Moira’s very soul?

My Rating: ★ — I freaking love Juliette Cross. She's written some my favorite books EVER!
This just wasn't one of them.
It's the single POV. I really hate those.
It's the manufactured tension between the heroine and the hero that didn't feel real to me.

It's just one book. That didn't work for me. I'm not gonna love everything, right?
I'll still be reading everything from this author.

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt.18

December 19, 2023


Hello hello! I'm back with some more books that didn't really work for me, but might be winners for you.

Let me know if you've read any of these or plan to. I'd love to know your thoughts :)


Forever Kind of Guy by Khelsey Jackson


Gretchen Elliot wasn’t looking for love, she’d had enough of ‘love’ to last her a life time. All she wanted was a little fun and a good time, and she’d found it in one passionate night with Claus. Now with her divorce about to be final, Gretchen can’t help but think back to that amazing night with that amazing man. Too bad they’d promised never to contact each other again.

Stefan Romano never imagined that he would meet the woman who’d been haunting his dreams again, let alone arrest her for car theft. Now he can’t wait to get her beneath the sheets again. He just hopes he can keep her there this time, while fooling himself into believing he’s not a forever kind of guy.

Can two people not looking for love, avoid falling for each other and keep things on a no strings attached level? Gretchen and Stefan believe they can…

My Rating: ★★ — I read this book based on the sexy beast on the cover. Yes, I'm a bit of a cover whore. If you don't want a bite out of him then something's wrong with you lol. Unfortunately the story didn't live up to his hotness. Yes there were grammatical, spelling and punctuation errors but that wasn't my problem. The story was so fast and there was absolutely no conflict resolution that I couldn't connect with the story or the characters. There was some meat there but it needed to cook longer.

contemporary romance


Obsessed with Him Boxed Set by Hannah Ford


COLT

I wanted to screw her from the moment I saw her.
I wanted to take her curvy body and full lips, wanted to pull her hair and bend her over and take what was mine.
I didn’t mind helping a damsel in distress, but she was going to have to give me something in return.
I didn’t want to shatter her heart. But she was just too damn tempting, with her soft skin, her long blond hair, her tight little…
She claims she hates me, but her body tells a different story.
I’ll just have to show her how good a bad boy can be.

OLIVIA

I hated him from the moment I saw him.
I hated his dark brooding eyes, his smartass mouth, and that cocky grin that always made it seem like he was in on some private joke I knew nothing about.
I hated his need to control me, his bossy attitude, his dominating stare, the way he could make women drop their panties just by looking at them.
But I was in deep trouble.
I had no family, no money, no one to save me.
So when he offered me a job and a place to stay, I had no choice but to say yes.
Now I’m around him all the time, and I can’t stop thinking about his rough hands on my bare skin, his kiss on my lips, my neck, my…
I’m too smart to think I’m the one who can convince him to change. Guys like him never change.
I know he’s going to break my heart into a million pieces. The problem is, I’m powerless to stop it.

My Rating: ★★ — I honestly thought I would like this series more because I have enjoyed other books by Hannah Ford, but I didn't. I couldn't connect with either Colt or Olivia. I tried and tried but it proved to be an impossible task. There was a lot of potential for a brilliant story, but it seemed pretty rushed to me. Olivia was a cutter but aside from her slicing and dicing herself, then using sex with Colt as a substitute, there wasn't much else to that part. To be honest, she wasn't a likeable character. She was a fan of biting the hand that feeds you and looking a gift horse in the mouth. Colt was forced to be involved with drugs and prostitution but other than a few track marks and an interrupted fellatio session, nothing else was really mentioned. The one action scene wasn't even intense. I'm sorry, but I was disappointed in this series and found it a lackluster product of Ms. Ford's great skill.

contemporary romance


His Naughty Maid by L.M. Roberts


Axel Hart is the big time CEO/Founder of Hart's Inc. He’s in the business to get people off. Literally. He owns one of the top sex toy companies in the world. He’s all of six foot and he puts the HO in Hottie. He's labeled as a wham, bam, thank ya ma'am kind of guy. Most would call him Mr. Ice, or my favorite Mr. Iron Buns. He has all the money in the world, yet no one to share it with. At the moment he's branching out with his new line, "Get Down and Dirty with Axel." Needing a spokesperson/model to head his line up, he is then informed of a stripper in the Miami area, Kandy Kane.

When Kandace Kross comes to work at his home in the outskirts of Miami as a house maid, he can’t help but be drawn to her. There's just something about her he can’t peg, she has a certain quality that begins to melt his icy heart. Looks however can be deceiving. She isn't just any girl, she is the Kandy Kane. One of the best Stripper's in Miami and she works at Club Inferno. She likes to keep her facade Kandy Kane a secret, reasons unknown. No one can put two and two together when it comes to Kandace and Kandy. She keeps both lives completely separate and for good reason.

Going through trials at work to get to see Kandy Kane, Axel decides to have a little fun with Kandace in the process. Which could only lead to one thing, and who knows how far their willing to go to get what they want.

My Rating: ★★ — This book had a lot of potential but...

I got sucked in by the blurb and the book did not meet my expectations. At all.

Editing was all over the place. Contradictory facts. Zigzag of plot. Bits and pieces of steam. I think the author had a great idea for the story but lacked follow thru. In my humble opinion.

contemporary romance