The Nightmare Before Kissmas

                     

Title: The Nightmare Before Kissmas

Series: Royals and Romance #1

Author: Sara Raasch

Published: Bramble, October 8, 2024

Pages: 359

Genre: LGBTQ+ NA Holiday Romance

Nicholas “Coal” Claus used to love Christmas. Until his father, the reigning Santa, turned the holiday into a PR façade. Coal will do anything to escape the spectacle, including getting tangled in a drunken, supremely hot make-out session with a beautiful man behind a seedy bar one night.

But the heir to Christmas is soon commanded to do his duty: he will marry his best friend, Iris, the Easter Princess and his brother’s not-so-secret crush. A situation that has disaster written all over it.

Things go from bad to worse when a rival arrives to challenge Coal for the princess’s hand…and Coal comes face-to-face with his mysterious behind-the-bar hottie: Hex, the Prince of Halloween.

It’s a fake competition between two holiday princes who can’t keep their hands off each other over a marriage of convenience that no one wants. And it all leads to one of the sweetest, sexiest, messiest, most delightfully unforgettable love stories of the year.

This book is full of adorable disasters. The world of these holiday royals is really fun. There's magic and sass and really cute Christmas antics. There was a tiny bit more "I'm doing this for your own good" than I typically like. But it was still a good time. And I'm really looking forward to the next one!

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5

Onyx Storm

                    

Title: Onyx Storm

Series: The Empyrean #3

Author: Rebecca Yarros

Published: Entangled: Red Tower Books, January 21, 2025

Pages: 758

Genre: NA Romantasy Adventure

After nearly eighteen months at Basgiath War College, Violet Sorrengail knows there’s no more time for lessons. No more time for uncertainty.

Because the battle has truly begun, and with enemies closing in from outside their walls and within their ranks, it’s impossible to know who to trust.

Now Violet must journey beyond the failing Aretian wards to seek allies from unfamiliar lands to stand with Navarre. The trip will test every bit of her wit, luck, and strength, but she will do anything to save what she loves—her dragons, her family, her home, and him.

Even if it means keeping a secret so big, it could destroy everything.

They need an army. They need power. They need magic. And they need the one thing only Violet can find—the truth.

But a storm is coming...and not everyone can survive its wrath.

A CLIFF HANGER?!?! The betrayal. I mean. I guess not really. But still. It's downright rude!

Back at it again with the flight goggles out here in Basgiath. Until we go on a little quest! #questsquad4lyfe. The trip across the isles was really fun and interesting. I'm so hooked by Tairn and Andarna. I just want a buddy cop comedy show that's kind of like Avatar the Last Airbender...but it's Andarna the Last Dragon. And it's Tairn and Segayl flying after Andarna to get her out of scrapes. Where's Violet and Xaden. Meh, I guess they can tag along, but only if they quit it with the melodrama. I'm here for that good good sassy dragon drama!

Ridoc is amazing. I love every single side character. Which is my main character flaw. Anyone that I get to know too well becomes less interesting. I love the mystique provided by not seeing inside a side characters head. Which does make the expanded points of view that we get toward the end of this book a little concerning. But only a little. Seeing how the different dragons and riders talk to each other is very fun. 

And now I'm waiting with bated breath for book 4, of course. I'm also pretty pumped for the TV series.....but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high. 

Ratings

Stars: 5/5

Spice: 2/5

A Wolf Steps in Blood

                                                 

Title: A Wolf Steps in Blood

Author: Tamara Jerée

Published: Water Sign Books, April 16, 2024

Pages: 163

Genre: Sapphic Paranormal

Yasmine is a red wolf girl stuck in rural Alabama. Her world is small: pick up shifts at the greasy late-night diner and endure her pack’s petty squabbles. She’s not good at being a wolf or being human, directionless in life and disconnected from her ancestors.

Blessed by a century-old enchantment, the local red wolves have escaped extinction by blending into the human world. But with the old witches’ blessing wearing thin, the wolves face an uncertain future.

An answer arrives in the form of an exiled blood witch whose magic is steeped in reckless grief. Kalta rides into town in her dead brother’s truck, prophecy following on her heels. Despite the danger Yasmine can smell swirling around the witch, a fated bond tangles their futures—and those of all the wolves.

After an accident threatens the wolves’ secret, Yasmine has no choice but to join Kalta on the road, carving a path through the South’s backroads and hoping the magic brewing between them is enough to overcome their bloody pasts.

This was a really interesting shifter/magic system. It's brutal and visceral in many ways. Which isn't standard fare for a sapphic book. But I think it might be standard fare for Tamara Jerée and I am certainly not mad at it. It definitely grounds you in their reality.

A common theme of the werewolf story is the reluctant wolf. And Yasmine certainly falls into that trope. But it does present in a unique way. Then there's Kalta, and she is obsessed with her magic. Her magic and Yasmine's wolf. 

Weaving the werewolf story in with endangered red wolves and black people in the American south was stunning. It was tragic and aching. And not an easy read, but well worth it.

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5

I'm Starting to Worry About this Black Box of Doom

                              

Title: I'm Starting to Worry About this Black Box of Doom

Author: Jason Pargin

Published: September 24, 2024

Pages: 400

Genre: Comedic Mystery/Thriller

Outside Los Angeles, a driver pulls up to find a young woman sitting on a large black box. She offers him $200,000 cash to transport her and that box across the country, to Washington, DC.

But there are rules:

He cannot look inside the box.
He cannot ask questions.
He cannot tell anyone.
They must leave immediately.
He must leave all trackable devices behind.

As these eccentric misfits hit the road, rumors spread on social media that the box is part of a carefully orchestrated terror attack intended to plunge the USA into civil war.

The truth promises to be even stranger, and may change how you see the world.

Oh this book. I had a good time reading this book, I think I even liked it. But it was definitely a very specific style choice. It was very rooted in pop culture as well, which was pretty fun actually. Seeing how the social media machine shapes stories from multiple angles felt very realistic.

The black box. This woman is dead set on getting this black box to DC, and she doesn't care what laws she has to break to do it. Which is hilarious to me because she is the most inconspicuous and ridiculous person, so of course everyone is following along with the story on their phones. Discretion? Never met her.

Here's where I'm going to give a mini *spoiler alert.*

I wish we hadn't seen what was inside the black box. I kind of wish that it had stayed a mystery. It IS funny when you find out what's in it, and I enjoyed all of the shenanigans surrounding it. 

Ultimately, it's good, but it was just missing something for me.

Ratings

Stars: 3/5

He Loves Me Not

                             

Title: He Loves Me Not

Series: Cambric Creek #5

Author: C.M. Nascosta

Published: January 24, 2025

Pages: 289

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Sumi is on top of the world. Applying for franchise ownership with a giant flower conglomerate seems like a piece of cake — they provide the equipment, the distribution contracts, all those annoying little bits she didn’t learn in Dream Flower Shop Academy in her head. Everything’s coming up roses.

There’s only one catch . . . she didn’t realize chasing after her dream might cause someone else to lose hold of their own.

Ranar never actually wanted to inherit the family business. When Bloomerang, an online flower conglomerate, opens one of their soulless flower factories in Cambric Creek, Ranar knows it’s only a matter of time before he’s forced to close the door on his family’s flower shop for good. It doesn’t matter how pretty the sylvan owner is or how friendly she seems — she represents everything wrong in the industry, in his world. She’s bound to put him out of business eventually . . . but he can make her regret it first.

Sumi is positive there is room for two flower shops in Cambric Creek, if only the owner of The Perfect Petal wasn’t such a rude, condescending, infuriatingly handsome jerk. When she joins an online chat server for florists, discovering The Perfect Petal’s owner is chatting there as well, she decides it’s the perfect opportunity to discover his weaknesses and take him down . . . if she doesn’t wind up falling for him first.

C.M. Nascosta does not miss. I'll be the first to admit that I was not a fan of You've Got Mail when I watched it the first time. I was very young when it came out, so it's not shocking that a rom com with 30-somethings wasn't my favorite film. After reading this, I'm thinking that maybe I need to give it another shot though!

Sumi is looking for a way out of her job and into her dream life. All of the dominos start lining up perfectly for her. She gets a home in this perfect town and finds a way to have her dream job. She meets a smoking hot man and hires some great help in her new flower shop. 

Ranar both loves and hates his family flower shop. He also knows that Sumi is hot as hell, and is desperate to make her pay for opening a shop to compete with his own shop. Is it love of the shop or love of the competition? I don't care because it's a great time to read about!

And don't even get me started on the heat. Very high heat! I expect nothing less, though I would accept anything Nascosta is willing to bless me with. And I'm so glad she blessed us with this one!

Ratings

Stars: 5/5

Spice: 5/5

Deal with the Devil

     

Title: Deal with the Devil

Series: Mercenary Librarians #1

Author: Kit Rocha

Publisher: July 28, 2020

Pages: 336

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Sci-Fi

Nina is an information broker with a mission--she and her team of mercenary librarians use their knowledge to save the hopeless in a crumbling America.

Knox is the bitter, battle-weary captain of the Silver Devils. His squad of supersoldiers went AWOL to avoid slaughtering innocents, and now he's fighting to survive.

They're on a deadly collision course, and the passion that flares between them only makes it more dangerous. They could burn down the world, destroying each other in the process...

Or they could do the impossible: team up.

This is a really fun concept for a series. I love post-apocalyptic settings! I love badass soldier types and alpha holes. I think, had I read this book back in 2010 I would have been absolutely RAVENOUS for it! Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed myself, and I am interested in the other 2 books in the trilogy. I just wasn't as invested in these two main characters as I would like to be.

Nina is the leader of her little girl gang of vigilante librarians. Knox is the leader of his little guy gang of vigilante soldiers. They might as well be fated mates, but those don't exist in this universe. But Nina's girl gang? I love them! 

The world building and technology discussed in this book is super interesting. So if badasses reading through the apocalypse are your jam, this is the series for you.

Ratings

Stars: 3/5

Spice: 2/5

Lessons with the Mothman

    

Title: Lessons with the Mothman

Series: Monster Smash Agency #3

Author: Kathryn Moon

Publisher: January 14, 2025

Pages: 295

Genre: Contemporary Fantasy Romance

Elias - freelance consultant to Monster Smash Agency, and prestigiously rare moth fae - has never been in love. Granted, he's never been interested in the emotion, but with his friends mating with their clients, the new curiosity is keeping him up at night. If only the act of loving made any logical sense. And if only he could find someone to draw him in like the moth to the flame.

Victoria is looking for facts not feelings. She wants to understand why the monster species are so much more satisfied than humans, than her. But the handsome mothman who volunteers to aid her study wants to stimulate more than her intelligence. She's willing to explore their physical chemistry, but she wants no part of his designs on her heart.

Some lessons can't be taught, and love is certainly one of them.

Elias and Victoria are so perfect. For being so smart, they're exceptionally dim about feelings. They could benefit from watching Inside Out. But they are fascinating, and seeing them figure each other out was very hot.

I loved how she handled Victoria's bedroom needs. I guess I loved how Elias handled them. :) The consent is impeccable, per usual. And getting to see and talk to all of the other monsters through the lens of Victoria's thesis research was really fun.

Elias's plan for finding love was fascinating. And the idea of making himself be in love no matter what was also very relatable. Their ending is perfect for them as well. UGH so good. I want to squeal about it but I don't want ultra mega spoilers in here.

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 5/5

Under Loch and Key

      

Title: Under Loch and Key

Author: Lana Ferguson

Publisher: Berkley, December 3, 2024

Pages: 416

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Keyanna “Key” MacKay is used to secrets. Raised by a single father who never divulged his past, it’s only after his death that she finds herself thrust into the world he’d always refused to speak of. With just a childhood bedtime story about a monster that saved her father’s life and the name of her estranged grandmother to go off of, Key has no idea what she’ll find in Scotland. But repeating her father’s mistakes and being rescued by a gorgeous, angry Scotsman—who thinks she’s an idiot—is definitely the last thing she expects.

Lachlan Greer has his own secrets to keep, especially from the bonnie lass he pulls to safety from the slippery shore—a lass with captivating eyes and the last name he’s been taught not to trust. He’s looking for answers as well, and Key’s presence on the grounds they both now occupy presents a real problem. It’s even more troublesome when he gets a front row seat to the lukewarm welcome Key receives from her family; the strange powers she begins to develop; and the fierce determination she brings to every obstacle in her path. Things he shouldn’t care about, and someone he definitely doesn’t find wildly attractive.

When their secrets collide, it becomes clear that Lachlan could hold the answers Keyanna is after—and that she might also be the key to uncovering his. Up against time, mystery, and a centuries old curse, they’ll quickly discover that magic might not only be in fairy tales, and that love can be a real loch-mess.

I am beginning to believe that angst is just Lana Ferguson's thing. I know that two instances don't make a pattern, but dang the angst was angsting! 

Really bold take to make the Loch Ness monster a man. Love that for her. There was quite a bit of grief in this book. Unsurprisingly, Key is traveling, ultimately, to scatter her dad's ashes. And I just had to use all of the whimsy in my soul to allow me to overlook all of the red tape that I can imagine is involved with transporting ashes internationally. But it was also a reclaiming of family, and identity which was beautiful. 

And there was hijinks and shifting and Highland Games. It was all pretty cozy, and I'd read Blair's and Rory's books for sure! Even if they would have too much angst in them.

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 3/5

Last Guard

                                                 

Title: Last Guard

Series: Psy-Changeling Trinity #5

Author: Nalini Singh

Published: Berkley, July 20, 2021

Pages: 384

Genre: Paranormal Romance

The psy-changelings' lives are at stake when a new darkness threatens to overpower and eliminate them. In a destabilized world with countless lives at stake, two people defined by their aloneness must stand together to stave off ultimate destruction--

Canto and Payal are great. I really loved what this book did for bringing them together, and for furthering the intrigue surrounding the destruction of the PsyNet. But I, personally, want to go back to Black Sea. The saving grace for me was that Canto is so close to the bears, so we still got quite a bit of Changeling interaction in this book. All of that makes it seem like Payal and Canto weren't enough on their own, they definitely were. I love that Payal was written as neurodivergent. And the story of them bonding as children, and then finding one another again as adults was very compelling.

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5

Alpha Night

                                                

Title: Alpha Night

Series: Psy-Changeling Trinity #4

Author: Nalini Singh

Published: Berkley, June 9, 2020

Pages: 365

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Alpha wolf Selenka Durev’s devotion to her pack is equaled only by her anger at anyone who would harm those under her care. That currently includes the empaths who’ve flowed into her city for a symposium that is a security nightmare, a powder keg just waiting for a match.

Ethan Night is an Arrow who isn’t an Arrow. Numb and disengaged from the world, he’s loyal only to himself. Assigned as part of the security force at a world-first symposium, he carries a dark agenda tied to the power-hungry and murderous Consortium. Then violence erupts and Ethan finds himself crashing into the heart and soul of an alpha wolf.

Mating at first sight is a myth, a fairytale. Yet Selenka’s wolf is resolute: Ethan Night, broken Arrow and a man capable of obsessive devotion, is the mate it has chosen. Even if the mating bond is full of static and not quite as it should be. Because Selenka’s new mate has a terrible secret, his mind surging with a power that is a creature of madness and death…

Mating at first sight! I mean, it says it in the blurb, and I was still surprised. But considering these two spoke for all of 5 minutes maybe before they were actual mates, this was one of the slower burns in this series. They just have to deal with one catastrophe after another before they get to...consummate their mating. Which does go a long way to build the trust between the two of them. I love that Selena mating with Ethan brought her and Valentin closer. I would have loved to see their night on the town together!

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5

The Fall That Saved Us

                                                

Title: The Fall The Saved Us

Author: Tamara Jerée

Published: Water Sign Books, September 5, 2023

Pages: 327

Genre: Sapphic Fantasy

Cassiel has given up the family tradition of demon hunting, leaving behind her sacred angelic duty and fated sword. What she can’t leave behind are the scars. To cope, she spends her days immersed in work, pouring all her attention into New Haven Books, her small bookstore and anchor in the new world she’s carved for herself.

But the past hasn't let go of Cassiel yet. When a succubus named Avitue arrives to claim her angel-touched soul, Cassiel's old hunter instincts flare, forcing her to choose between old knowledge and her truth. What should be a fatal seduction becomes a bargain neither woman expects. As they grow closer, Avitue is surprised to find her own pain reflected in Cassiel, a nephilim deemed fallen by her own family’s standards.

By choosing trust, they reveal the lies that bind them. Falling for each other begins a path towards healing. But exorcising the effects of trauma is harder than naming it, and to explore the unfettered possibility Avitue represents, Cassiel must find a way to reclaim and redefine her angelic heritage.

This was stunning. It took everything I loved about reading The Mortal Instruments series, and made it sexier and older and more interesting. I love reading about angels and demons, especially when they are very attractive women who love women. OK, I can't mislead you, Cassiel isn't technically an angel. She's descended from angels and named after an angel and can tap into angelic power, so like...might as well be in my book. But Avitue is very much a demon, and she's fabulous. 

While the writing of this is stunning, and the overall lore is fascinating, this was very hard to read at times. Cassiel did not grow up in a loving home, and her relationship with her family is not good. She wants desperately to rely on her sister, and to take care of her sister. But her sister has her own demons to battle, figuratively and literally, and they don't fully trust one another for much of the book. Family is weird at the best of times. And I wouldn't call the events of this book, the best of times. I also recommend checking trigger warnings. There was quite an emphasis on living with self harm and disordered eating. It's a heavy story, but a beautiful one. And I do hope we get a sequel.

Ratings

Stars: 5/5

Spice: 1/5

Wolf Rain

                                               

Title: Wolf Rain

Series: Psy-Changeling Trinity #3

Author: Nalini Singh

Published: Berkley, June 4, 2019

Pages: 392

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Kidnapped as a young girl, her psychic powers harnessed by a madman, Memory lives a caged and isolated existence . . . until she comes face-to-face with a wolf. Labelled an empath by her bad-tempered rescuer, Memory knows that her ‘gift’ is nothing so bright. It is a terrible darkness that means she will always be hunted.

But Memory is free now and she intends to live. A certain growly wolf can just deal with it.

Alexei prefers to keep his packmates at bay, the bleak history of his family a constant reminder that mating, love, hope is not for him. But Memory, this defiant and fearless woman who stands toe-to-toe with him awakens the most primal part of his nature—and soon, he must make a choice: risk everything or lose Memory to a murderous darkness that wants to annihilate her from existence . . .

I said the other day that all of these books are exactly the same in the best way. And I mean it! It's so cozy and comforting to know that you know what you're getting yourself into with these books. A hot dude and a hot lady falling in love. And then you're mixing in a massive dose of trauma and political intrigue. You wouldn't think that bit would be comforting, but it still doesn't change just how cozy everything about this series is to me! 

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5

Ocean Light

                                              

Title: Ocean Light

Series: Psy-Changeling Trinity #2

Author: Nalini Singh

Published: Berkley, June 12, 2018

Pages: 411

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Security specialist Bowen Knight has come back from the dead. But there's a ticking time bomb in his head: a chip implanted to block telepathic interference that could fail at any moment - taking his brain along with it. With no time to waste, he should be back on land helping the Human Alliance. Instead, he's at the bottom of the ocean, consumed with an enigmatic changeling...

Kaia Luna may have traded in science for being a chef, but she won't hide the facts of Bo's condition from him or herself. She's suffered too much loss in her life to fall prey to the dangerous charm of a human who is a dead man walking. And she carries a devastating secret Bo could never imagine...

But when Kaia is taken by those who mean her deadly harm, all bets are off. Bo will do anything to get her back - even if it means striking a devil's bargain and giving up his mind to the enemy...

Does Kaia's animal make sense as our welcome into Black Sea? Absolutely. Does it make sense for her character? Absolutely. Am I disappointed that she's not a mermaid or narwhal or beluga whale? Absolutely! 

This was still a great book. I have been really looking forward to getting a deeper look into Black Sea, and I don't think it gets any deeper than this station in the black. I love everything about it. I want more. I want to look ahead to see if we get to return to Black Sea anytime in the next few books. My fingers are still crossed.

I do think it's very interesting that Kaia had not one but two major traumatic events that affected her so severely. Obviously this happens. And it's what made this book so compelling. But for her to have to face both of these traumas in such quick succession after avoiding them for like 20+ years is a lot to ask of her! I love this series so much.

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 2/5