-
Book Review: All I Survive (All’s Fair #3) by Abrianna Denae
Read my reviews of previous books in the All’s Fair series: All I Want (#1) | All I Fear (#2) Love is not necessarily a stagnant thing, and I have so much respect for storytellers who don’t freeze their characters in amber at the moment of a previous “happily ever after.” Denae has crafted such complicated and…
-
Book Review: Beyond Fate (Beyond #1.5) by Lee McCormick
Read my review of the previous book in the Beyond series, Beyond Time. Even though the author didn’t give me quite the ending I might have wanted for the previous book in this series (but an excellent one nonetheless), they almost did something even better—they gave me a second book. I immediately jumped into this…
-
Book Review: Beyond Time (Beyond #1) by Lee McCormick
I’ve seen this book recommended multiple times since it first came out, and last night I was finally in the mood for something dark and angsty. Surprisingly, the book was neither as dark nor as angsty as I expected, though it included plenty of violence and more than one moment that made my chest do…
-
Book Review: Rogue (Jericho’s Boys #2) by Onley James
Read my review of the first book in the Jericho’s Boys series, Paladin. Often, when the hurt/comfort trope is applied in romance novels, the character doing the comforting comes from a much “better” place (in terms of emotional well-being or general life status) than the hurt character. Darker romances, on the other hand, tend to…
-
Book Review: All I Fear (All’s Fair #2) by Abrianna Denae
Read my review of the first book in the All’s Fair series, All I Want. Though this is not always true, the found-family nature of some series means that the books are so interconnected that they cannot stand alone. While I think this novel could be read and enjoyed without the broader context of the…
-
Book Review: All I Want (All’s Fair #1) by Abrianna Denae
Denae doesn’t waste any time letting readers know what they’re in for with the start of this book. It’s a fairly brutal way to set up a romance, even a dark one. However, launching us straight into the black moment of this story sets up both main characters well, especially since their emotional (and physical)…
-
Book Review: Death’s Bloom (Monsters & Mayhem) by Lily Mayne
Read my reviews of previous books in the Monsters & Mayhem series: Lightning Born by Sam Burns | In Darkness and Dank by K.L. Hiers This story begins from Ari’s perspective, in which he is living the opposites-attract trope of a typical contemporary romance. A quick glimpse into Theo’s point of view shows that we’re in…
-
Book Review: Paladin (Jericho’s Boys #1) by Onley James
I count myself among the readers who were thrilled when James announced she would be returning to the world of her Necessary Evils series with a spin-off featuring the “murder muppets” introduced in Moonstruck. Jericho is now a Mulvaney by marriage, which means the band of strays in their early 20s had to come along…
-
Book Review: In Darkness and Dank (Monsters & Mayhem) by K.L. Hiers
Read my review of the previous book in the Monsters & Mayhem series, Lightning Born by Sam Burns. Though this book is advertised as a dark romance, horror-retelling, et cetera, it really isn’t. The book opens with classic jungle adventure vibes combined with a healthy dose of modern chemistry, and anyone who doesn’t enjoy science…
-
Book Review: Nightingale (Virtuous Sinners) by Laura Lascarso
Read my reviews of other books in the Virtuous Sinners series: Day of Judgment by Briar Kearney & Aurora Crane | Speak and Obey by Ki Brightly & M.D. Gregory Kahlil and Julien share a lot of complicated backstory because of how they grew up together and into the complicated adults they have become. Rather…
-
Book Review: Sleepwalkers (Garden of Fiends #2) by Daniel May
Read my review of the first book in the Garden of Fiends series, Crimson Halo. Though the author has chosen to set this book in the same series and world as his previous vampire novel, it can be read as a true stand-alone, even with an excellent cameo appearance. In fact, one of the things…
-
Book Review: Speak and Obey (Virtuous Sinners) by Ki Brightly & M.D. Gregory
Read my review of another book in the Virtuous Sinners series, Day of Judgment by Briar Kearney & Aurora Crane. I have enjoyed “psychopaths finding their person and falling in their version of love” books by a few others authors, but in all of those cases, it was a person without empathy connecting in their…
-
Book Review: Lightning Born (Monsters & Mayhem) by Sam Burns
Sometimes a book can be well-written from a technical standpoint, and follow the themes of the concept, but still be difficult to connect with on an emotional level. I found myself thoroughly invested in the dramatic opening, which presented a ton of questions and was made even creepier by my knowledge of the source material.…
-
Book Review: Day of Judgment (Virtuous Sinners) by Briar Kearney & Aurora Crane
The surface-level tropes were what originally attracted me to this book, but the deeper story and connections that developed between the characters drew me in completely. Even though it begins with a married couple in a long-term established dynamic, I found myself immediately invested in the external plot, which is much more than Justin taking…
-
Book Review: Maniac (Necessary Evils #7) by Onley James
Read my reviews of the previous books in the Necessary Evils series: Unhinged (#1) | Psycho (#2) | Moonstruck (#3) | Damaged (#3.5) | Headcase (#4) | Mad Man (#5) | Lunatic (#6) The final book in this epic and addictive series delivers on multiple unspoken promises: a sprawling cast of characters featuring all of our favorites from previous books, an explanation…
-
Book Review: Sins That Define Us (Madly Ever After #3) by E.M. Lindsey
Read my reviews of the previous books in the Madly Ever After series: Sins That Find Us (#1) | Sins That Bind Us (#2) In another world, more of this trilogy delved deeper into the history of and relationships between the complicated dynamics between Kane, Phoenix, James, and Ari. I will never penalize an author in a…
-
Book Review: Sins That Bind Us (Madly Ever After #2) by E.M. Lindsey
Read my review of the first book in the Madly Ever After series, Sins That Find Us. Lindsey doesn’t leave us hanging off the cliff they left us in the previous book for long. However, while Kane’s kidnapping is established, his rescue isn’t quite so straightforward. The guys go through a lot to find him,…
-
Book Review: Sins That Find Us (Madly Ever After #1) by E.M. Lindsey
The first installment of this nontraditional fairy tale retelling has a lot of work to do. Multiple characters to introduce, both individually and their previously established dynamics, along with the politics of an underworld to set up. Lindsey pulls no punches by immediately showing how dark and kinky these guys are, already with each other…
-
Book Review: Best Served Cold by E.M. Denning
One of my favorite books by this author is called Murder Husbands, so I knew I had to check out her dark romance featuring a literal demon. I was not disappointed, and this book is a perfect way to enjoy the spookiest month of the year. Note, however, that I primarily call this a dark…
-
Book Review: The Fae Queen’s Captive (Peculiar Tastes) by Sierra Simone
I’m traveling on Halloween this year, so I’ll admit that I’m not as hyped for the holiday as I usually am. Reading this unexpected dark romance changed all that in a heartbeat. The opening events are the perfect welcome to the spooky season, evoking horror tropes of the final girl while simultaneously instilling a sense…
