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Review: The Game Series by Cara Dee
Top Priority (Book 1) When I read the description, I immediately loved this book’s concept—talk about the endless possibility of conflict. Since it was short and I had some time to kill before an appointment, I figured it’d made a fun afternoon read. Instead, I fell head over heels in love with both Lucas and…
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Review: Three Player Co-op Series by Allyson Lindt
Looking For It (Book 1) I’m a firm believer that romance novels are for everyone, not just (straight) women. That said, sometimes it’s obvious who the intended audience of a book is supposed to be, which is the case for this title. It is blatant wish-fulfillment, utterly indulgent, and honestly: There’s nothing wrong with that…
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Review: Enemies Like You by Annika Martin & Joanna Chambers
I have so many books on my to-be-read pile at this point that when I’m tempted to buy another, I’ve started glancing at the top few reviews. And because I’m contrary, reviewers with complaints tend to make me even more interested in this book, which was definitely the case here. The first few chapters clarify…
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Review: Conventionally Yours (True Colors #1) by Annabeth Albert
2020 has been a bit of a year, and one of the things I miss most is going to conventions to spend time with fellow readers and writers and gamers. Even though my gaming is mostly on the computer, the social aspect mixed with the competition is familiar enough to me that this book sucked…
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Review: Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall
Snarkiness, terrible jokes, and a dose of anxiety are how I fit myself into this crazy world, so it should come as no surprise that I fell in love with the character of Luc at once. Even better, so much of Oliver’s personality is shown through the text, even in a story from Luc’s point…
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Review: Marquis of Secret Doors (Royal Powers #3) by Lynn Lorenz
Read my review of Royal Powers #1, Duking It Out, by E.J. Russell Read my review of Royal Powers #2, The Hero and the Hidden Royal, by Renae Kaye For the third installment of this shared-world romance series, the author takes advantage of the fact that these countries are European-based and also dips back into…
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Review: The Hero and the Hidden Royal (Royal Powers #2) by Renae Kaye
Read my review of Royal Powers Book 1, Duking It Out, by E.J. Russell After the first installment of this shared-world series focused on the royals who have superpowers, I was excited to read something similar yet completely different. The fact that some “commoners” also have superpowers is unsurprising based on how the world works.…
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Review: Duking It Out (Royal Powers #1) by E.J. Russell
I picked up the first installment in this superpowers-themed, shared-world romance series because I’d read another book by the first author. The author note at the beginning helps with the world-building issues in such a short text, and even though I still have lots of questions about these countries, none of them prevented me from…
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Review: The Sugared Game (Will Darling Adventures #2) by K.J. Charles
Read my review of the Will Darling Adventures #1, Slippery Creatures. Charles has such a fantastic gift for crafting worlds that I want to fall into, populated by characters I want to befriend. In fact, beyond the plot and romance of this particular novel, one of the elements I love best about it is the…
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Review: Fork in the Road by J. Coyne
Some novellas, especially in the romance genre, fall flat for me because I don’t get a complete sense of character development. In this case, however, Coyne uses carefully placed sentences to evoke a deep history between all three characters without ever “info-dumping” the nuts and bolts of their origin stories. Coyne also builds the comfortable…
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Review: Scientific Method Universe Series by Kris Ripper
Surrender the Past Sometimes the theme of a book is difficult to parse; not so with this installment of the extended Scientific Method Universe collection of stories. After meeting him as a bit character in the main series, I was excited to get to know Nick better in his own romance. Because it takes place…
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Review: Unhallowed (Rath & Rune #1) by Jordan L. Hawk
I was delighted to return to the world of Widdershins, eight years beyond the original series, and check in on my favorite fictional town. The librarians of the Ladysmith Museum were always a source of amused befuddlement for me during the original series, so I was excited that one of those librarians was a hero…
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Review: Scientific Method Series by Kris Ripper
Catalysts (Book 1) The structure of this book is unusual but makes sense once you realize that it originally consisted of two books and that the first book originally consisted of a series of even shorter interludes. This narrative style might make the story disjointed for some readers, especially those who are looking for a…
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Review: Magic in Manhattan Series by Allie Therin
Spellbound (Book 1) Paranormal queer romance in early twentieth-century New York City seems to be a trope I’m particularly fond of, so I didn’t hesitate to purchase this book when at least two authors I follow raved about it on Twitter. The story itself did not disappoint in any measure, from the romance to the…
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Review: Trinity Masters Series by Mari Carr & Lila Dubois
Primal Passion (Book 2) I abandoned the first book in this series at about 70%. The three-way arranged marriage via secret society concept intrigued me. Unfortunately, the book used it more as an excuse for three characters to launch immediately into sexual escapades without any personal connection. By the time the external plot showed up,…
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Review: Dark Orchid Trilogy by Auryn Hadley
Power of Lies (Book 1) The easiest way to include a lot of erotica in a fantasy novel is to toss in some lust magic. But Hadley doesn’t keep things quite so simple, by layering in other elements of magic to her excellent world-building. The erotica always makes sense, based on the rules of the…
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Review: Unholy Trifecta Series by A.J. Sherwood
How to Shield an Assassin (Book 1) If you love heist stories, you should read this book. If you love the television show Leverage, you should read this book. If you adore found family stories, you should read this book. If precocious children in fiction don’t annoy you too much, you should read this book.…
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Review: Slices of Pi Series by Elia Winters
Even Odds (Book 1) As a gamer girl myself, I’ll always have a soft spot for those characters in romance novels. But it’s so hard to find stories that portray gamers of either gender realistically, much less those who work in the industry. Winters, on the other hand, described the world so well that reading…
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Review: Two Rogues Make a Right (Seducing the Sedgwicks #3) by Cat Sebastian
Read my review of Seducing the Sedgwicks book 1, It Takes Two to Tumble. Read my review of Seducing the Sedgwicks book 2, A Gentleman Never Keeps Score. Some romance is full of angst and pain and hardship before a happily ever after. And some romance is full of all of those things in the…
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Review: Demons’ Muse Series by Auryn Hadley
The Kiss of Death (Book 1) The “angels are bad, demons are good” trope is not unfamiliar in paranormal romance, but this series puts a different spin on things by including a unique magic system, multiple dimensions, and a new way to look at how angels and demons affected religion on Earth. The heroine’s power…
