Review // Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole

October 20, 2022

Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole

He'd never met anyone as self-absorbed as Sabine. She lied, stole, cheated, and killed. Aside from Puck, every one of his subjects loathed her.
And I'm still falling for her.

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Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole

Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole


Standalone - Immortals After Dark #6
Release - January 20, 2009
Genre - Paranormal Romance / rage demon & a sorceress / fated mates
Dual POV - 3rd person
Heat - 3.5 out of 5 / a couple of scenes
Format/Source - ebook borrowed from the library
Length - 432 pages
Publisher - Pocket Books

HIS OBSESSION...
Sabine, Sorceress of Illusions: the evil beauty who surrenders her body, but not her heart.

HER DOWNFALL...
Rydstrom Woede: the ruthless warrior who vows to keep her at all costs.

THEY WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO WANT EACH OTHER THIS MUCH...
With each smoldering encounter, their shared hunger only increases. If they can defeat the sinister enemy that stands between them, will Sabine make the ultimate sacrifice for her demon? Or will the proud king lay down his crown and arms to save his sorceress?

My Two Cents

4 "Opposites Attract" stars

After finishing Dark Desires After Dusk, I really needed to know what happened to the rightful king, Rydstrom Woede. And this book gave me just about everything!

Sabine was something else. I can't think of one word to describe her. She was cold, calculating, selfish, wicked, materialistic, power hungry, narcissistic, etc. She was one of those characters I love to hate. And for the most part... I truly hated her.

➳ she may have had a reason (a weak one), but she allied herself with the evil Omort, the male who stole Rydstrom's kingdom.
➳ she knew that Rydstrom was in the right and constantly tried to sway him. But got so mad when he pointed out how very wrong her way of life, of seeing things was.
➳ despite knowing that Rydstrom was an honorable male, a male who would do anything for the one he loved, the male who was meant for her (and she for him), she didn't look to him for assistance. She constantly sideswiped and deceived him. Tormented and tortured him. Lied to and used him.

And then, about halfway through this story, something changed for me.
She was no longer someone I loved to hate.
I found myself hating to love her.
How did this happen?

She made me laugh. I began to see her in a whole new light, especially when she got a bit over herself and starting seeing Rydstrom for all of the amazing that he was.

I enjoyed the way everything in this book was described, such as the nastiness of what had become of Rydstrom's castle, to the welcoming of a queen in the refugee settlement in the Grave Realm. I do think the climax fell a bit flat (the bad guy died quick), but I was still entertained.

There are still so many people to read stories about. Lothaire helped Rydstrom escape from the dungeon, but he is going to want something in return. What will it be? And who the heck will be Nix's mate in the end? I can't even begin to imagine who it might be but I'm super excited to find out!

Check out these other reviews:
The Warlord Wants Forever * A Hunger Like No Other * No Rest For the Wicked * Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night * Dark Needs at Night's Edge * Dark Desires After Dusk



Excerpt

Read an excerpt HERE

The Author

Kresley Cole is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the electrifying Immortals After Dark paranormal series, the young adult Arcana Chronicles series, the erotic Gamemakers series, and five award-winning historical romances.

A master’s grad and former athlete, she has traveled over much of the world and draws from those experiences to create her memorable characters and settings.

Her books have been translated into 23 foreign languages, garnered 3 RITA awards, a Hall of Fame induction, and consistently appear on the bestseller lists, in the U.S. and abroad.

Cole lives in Florida with her family.

Visit http://www.kresleycole.com for more information

Review // Devil of Dublin by B.B. Easton

October 14, 2022

Devil of Dublin by B.B. Easton

The need to fill her overwhelmed me. And it didn't stop with my body. I wanted to give her everything I had. My f*cking life. My splintered heart. My hateful, hell bound soul. She could do with it what she pleased. I didn't care. None of it belonged to me anymore, and it hadn't since I was ten years old.

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Devil of Dublin by B.B. Easton

Devil of Dublin by B.B. Easton


Standalone
Release - September 22, 2022
Genre - Contemporary Romance / second chance / virgin hero
Dual POV - 1st person
Heat - 3 out of 5 / a few vaguely descriptive scenes
Format/Source - ebook borrowed through Kindle Unlimited
Length - 365 pages
Publisher - Indie

I can’t remember anymore if my grandfather’s eyes were blue or green, but I’ll never forget the way they wrinkled at the corners when he laughed at one of his own jokes. Or the way they sparkled with mischief when he told me tales about the magical creatures that dwelled in the forest behind his humble Irish sheep farm—shy fairies who liked to eat tea biscuits, cruel witches who liked to eat children, a moody lake spirit with a taste for expensive gifts.

As a child, I believed every fantastical word. But when he warned me about the mute boy who also lurked in those woods, the one the priest had declared to be the spawn of Satan himself, I refused to listen. Kellen wasn’t evil. He was kind, and beautiful, and special, and hurting. He was my friend. And with every summer I spent stolen away with him in those enchanted woods, he grew to become so much more.

But when I return to Glenshire as an adult, grieving and engaged to someone else, all those legends quickly morph into nightmares.

My grandfather had been right about everything, especially the boy.

If only I had listened.

WARNING: If you are a sensitive reader or find certain topics to be emotionally triggering, please exercise self-care and select a different book. Devil of Dublin is intended for mature audiences who enjoy dark subject matter, tortured anti-heroes, explicit adult content, graphic violence, heart-pounding suspense, fairy-tale worthy love, and gorgeous Irish scenery. If that sounds like you, then welcome to Glenshire!

My Two Cents

3.5 "I'm still waiting to be triggered" stars

This author can write!
I was immediately captivated by the setting, the characters, and what ended up being a beautiful story.
Who wouldn't fall for two kids discovering each other and finding love everlasting?

I have to be honest though... I was waiting to be triggered.
With all of the warnings about this book, I was expecting this story to go dark.


I'm still waiting.

And there's nothing wrong with it not going dark.
I absolutely adored these characters so much.
I didn't need to know the details of what they went through.
I was able to infer a lot from the way they were depicted.
Their actions and behaviors spoke volumes.

An atmospheric romance, this story was more character driven than anything else. At least for me.
Two people. Different upbringings. Both were forced to face such ugly things, but it didn't break them.
They were so fierce together and for each other.
I'll tell ya... Darby will definitely take you by surprise.

Kellen and Darby were incredibly sweet together. With a backdrop of being hunted, scary shootouts, and tons of intensity, I was often caught up with how adorable this couple was.

And with a touch of something mystical, this author delivered a story that was magical.


The Author

BB Easton is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of 44 CHAPTERS ABOUT 4 MEN, the hilarious, steamy, tell-all memoir that inspired the Netflix Original Series, SEX/LIFE. Within the first month, SEX/LIFE was viewed by 67 million households worldwide, making it the 3rd Most-Watched Netflix Original Series of all time.

BB was a stressed-out school psychologist and mother of two when the inspiration to write 44 CHAPTERS ABOUT 4 MEN struck. Through that process, she rediscovered her passion for writing, became dangerously sleep-deprived, and finally mustered enough courage to quit her job and become a full-time author.

BB went on to publish four more wickedly funny, shockingly steamy, and heartwarmingly autobiographical books in the 44 CHAPTERS series: SKIN, SPEED, STAR, and SUIT. Since then, she's been hard at work writing fictional stories that appeal to her love for us-against-the-world romance, including a dystopian trilogy (PRAYING FOR RAIN), a psychologist-client romantic comedy (GROUP THERAPY), and a dark mafia romance (DEVIL OF DUBLIN).

Visit http://www.authorbbeaston.com for more information

Books That Didn't Make the Cut Pt. 4

October 10, 2022


It's Thanksgiving Monday here in Toronto and I'm about to get down to some serious eating, but I wanted to share another one of these posts before I do that. I've got so many of these books sitting on my shelves, not getting any shine, so I need to be putting these posts out a bit more frequently (hopefully).

Let me know if you'll be giving any of these books a chance!



Fall From Grace by Christine Zolendz


I'm finally home after struggling through my brother's illness and death. But, home is definitely a bit different. My best friend (the only person alive now that knows my secret) has a new boyfriend; and he has a friend. Shane Maxton: bad boy, tattooed rock god, eye candy extraordinaire. He is also New York City's most arrogant, self-serving, son of a, well, a definite one-night stand kind of a guy.

But, it doesn't matter to me because I've spent my existence looking for the love of my life, my angel. And, there is nothing that Shane Maxton can do to change that.

*** 1 star ~ I don't know what happened.
I've five-starred a bunch of this authors books and figured this one would be another win.
It wasn't.

I didn't like the heroine. AT ALL.
I think I would have liked the hero if he was allowed to grow. He didn't.
I couldn't care less about the side characters.
There was absolutely nothing 'mature' about this book.
It felt toxic. Like it was slowly infecting me with its fuckery.

The ending was where I found things to finally get interesting, but it was too late. I don't care!


────── ♔ ──────


A Dash of Death by Michelle Hillen Klump


Bad news for Samantha Warren: The plucky Houston, Texas, reporter lost her job and her fiance in rapid succession. But Sam has a way of making lemonade out of the bitterest of lemons. At a meeting of the local historical-homes council, she serves up the homemade bitters that she made as gifts for her wedding party. She intends to use that as her "in" to become an in-demand party mixologist. But the party's over for one of the council members, who keels over dead soon after he sips the bereft bride's bitter brew.

It turns out that the victim, Mark, was poisoned--his drink spiked with oleander. Since Sam mixed the drink that Mark imbibed right before his demise, she finds herself at the front of the suspect line. Now, she'll have to use all of her reporter's wisdom and wiles to clear her name.

Who could have wanted Mark dead? His wife, Gabby? His girlfriend, Darcy? Someone who wanted his seat on the council? Or another citizen of this sweet Texas town that holds some seedy secrets?

Job hunting, building her mixology business, and fending off late-night phone calls from her nearly betrothed don't leave much time for sleuthing. But if Sam can't "pour" over the clues to find the killer, it may soon be last call for her.

*** DNF ~ I found the protagonist, Samantha, to be completely unsympathetic and unfortunate. It was impossible to gain a vested interest in this story when it was her story. It didn’t help that my ARC had so many words missing letters, making it incredibly difficult to read. I did find that it was written well, however, it took way too long for something to actually start moving in this story. I called it quits at 38% and nothing really happened. There was a death, a mystery surrounding said death, Samantha acting like a poor imitation of an investigative reporter, her endless inner ‘poor me’ monologues because her fiance left her, etc.

I’ve read a lot of cozy mysteries and have enjoyed most. While this wasn’t for me, I can see how it could be a winner for someone else.


────── ♔ ──────


Damaged and the Beast by Bijou Hunter


Heir to the local motorcycle club and crime syndicate, Cooper Johansson is accustomed to taking what he wants. His newest conquest is college freshman Farah Smith.

When the tattooed bad boy reminds her of a rough childhood she desperately wishes to forget, Farah keeps him at arm's length. Yet, Cooper refuses to give up. He pushes her buttons, tears through her walls, and forces her to admit her feelings for him. What begins as lust soon builds into something more powerful than either expects.

Can the beast heal the damage inside the girl of his dreams?

*** 2 stars ~ Maybe if the entire story wasn't told from the heroine's pespective, I'd...

Maybe if the heroine could stop crying ON EVERY PAGE
Maybe if the hero was portrayed as something more than a bully I'd...

But alas, this book was chockfull of Farah whining, cringing, crying, running, crying, longing, crying, spazzing, crying, leaping to conclusions, crying...

You get it.


Free Books & Book Deals - October 7, 2022

October 07, 2022


Hello everyone and Happy Friday!!

I'm back with a new list of books that are either free or for sale for less than $2. These books are cheap and we should grab them up at these prices while we can.

I hope your weekend is happy, healthy and safe! Happy Hunting xo

Please Note: All books are listed for $2 or less (prices valid at time of post). I apologize in advance if the sale is over by the time you found yourself here.



I only list authors I've either read or plan to read. If you know of any deals that are missing that you'd like to share, that I'd probably enjoy, please let me know in the comments section below :)

** Anthology **


A. Zavarelli


Adriana Locke


Aleatha Romig


Amo Jones


Amy Harmon


Aurora Rose Reynolds


Brittainy Cherry


CD Reiss


Carly Phillips


Christine Feehan


Cynthia Eden


Devney Perry


Gena Showalter


Helen Hardt


Helena Hunting


Honey Phillips


Ilsa Madden-Mills


J. Kenner


J.T. Geissinger


JA Huss


Jeaniene Frost


Jill Shalvis


K.A. Tucker


Kandi Steiner


Karina Halle


Kelly Elliott


Kendall Ryan


Kristen Callihan


L.A. Casey


Layla Hagen


Lisa Renee Jones


Louise Bay


Mariana Zapata


Meghan Quinn


Melissa Foster


Nicola Rendell


Penelope Douglas


Pippa Grant


R.L. Mathewson


Rachel Van Dyken


Rebecca Zanetti


Sawyer Bennett


Shayla Black


Shelly Laurenston


Susan Stoker


Suzanne Wright


T L Swan


Taylor Jenkins Reid


Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward