Book Review: My Husband, My Stalker by Jessa Kane

What’s this about?

One night he sees her on the news. She wants normal. And he can give her that. He can mold himself to become the man she needs. And if done right, she’ll never know he is a hitman…..and her stalker.

My Rating: 4/5 stars

My Review:

This book was a fucking wild case of instalove.

It’s short. It’s hot. I like Evan a lot.

I mean, I think the whole PTSD –> boning in two point two seconds was odd???? But I didn’t really care bc the book was absurd! In a good way!

This book has a daddy kink which I wasn’t expecting at all. That’s 100% not my kink, but I didn’t hate it here???? Is this just the week where I start reading books with things I usually hate but end up loving instead?!?

If you want something short and steamy, full of instalove and a hot stalker who would do anything for his person…then you’ll love this book! I wish it was longer.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: self-harm, panic attack, stalking, mentions of kidnapping.

Book Review: Wall (Steel Bones Motorcycle Club #4.5) by Cate C. Wells

I miss him, though, and late at night or when I’ve had a glass of wine too many, I wish I’d kept something. A shirt or a baseball cap. I could burn it in a bonfire. Make a fresh start.

Or so I could let myself be weak, just for a moment, and remind myself of how he smells.

What’s this about?

On a drunken night, Wall ruined his marriage. Four years later, Mona needs his help. Wall isn’t willing to let her go a second time.

My Rating: 4/5 stars

My Review:

OH MY GOD THIS BOOK HURTS 😭😭😭

I was literally crying the whole time I was reading this book.

Wall and Mona were high school sweethearts. After they got married, they started trying for a baby. Three miscarriages later, Wall gets drunk and cheats on Mona. They split. Four years later their paths cross again.

It happened a long time ago.

But my body thinks it’s happening now.

This book is a rough read. The cheating and miscarriages are talked about in detail. And are the center plot.

I absolutely loved this book. And I usually hate second chance romances and cheating so…..idk why I liked this one but I do! I haven’t read any of the other books in this series (and I don’t think I needed to since this takes place before the first book in the series?). And now I’m curious about the others in the club!

The awful pain that’d gotten dull these past few weeks flashes hot and sharp in my brain. What if it never goes away? What if somehow John and I stay together, and every night he’s a few minutes late, I still feel this way?

I do wish the book was a full length novel. Wall and Mona never had a deep talk about trust. They never really addressed the core issues of their relationship. I also didn’t like how he fucked a bunch of women after cheating on his wife. Idk. I feel like if he was truly remorseful he wouldn’t have sought after the same comforts he did the last time he was hurting. Also who the fuck knows if he even used a condom every time. I’m worried ten years from now some old ONS will show up with his long lost kid and that would fuck Mona up a lot.

I needed Wall to do more to regain Mona’s trust than just text her where he is and give her access to his phone. He didn’t have an affair. He had a ONS after telling his wife exactly where he was going to be. How is he going to prevent it from happening again? Especially when the same temptations are around him all the time. Also he didn’t tell Mona all of the details she wanted about that night. If reconciliation is the goal, he needs to have full transparency.

I hate how John didn’t seem to do anything to truly reestablish her trust. Especially after the final chapter before the epilogue.

The struggles of having a novella sized books instead of a full length novel I supposed 🙄

All in all: if you want to read a book that H U R T S and makes you cry then I highly recommend this one!

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: cheating, miscarriages, alcohol consumption, mentions of drug use/abuse, violence

Book Review: [SPOILERS] Priest by Sierra Simone

What’s this about?

Father Tyler played by the rules for years. Until one day, one of God’s lost flock visits his confessional booth changing everything. Vows will be broken in this taboo erotica romance.

My Rating: 2/5 stars

My Review:

I’m struggling to rate this book because on one hand, the sex scenes were fucking fantastic 🥵

…..but on the other hand there were multiple aspect of the plot I wasn’t a huge fan of.

Can I rate the sex scenes 5/5 stars and the plot 1/5 stars?

This review is going to have major spoilers, so you’ve been warned!

I liked reading Father Bell’s internal struggles. I found them to be pretty realistic. I liked how the holy aspects and blasphemy melded together. (Who knew prayer could be so hot!) but ultimately while we did get a ton of his internal monologue about guilt about want vs religion….I felt like he didn’t struggle enough? Which is odd because I also found those portions to be boring lol. I’m also surprised that he didn’t compare his situation to his sister’s more than that one time Poppy brought it up. Poppy and Lizzie’s situations are not remotely the same, I’m just surprised he didn’t feel like he was taking advantage of woman in need of guidance and have that guilt play a bigger role. Instead he was just like oh, didn’t even think of that. Which….how!?! I mean the whole reason you began a priest was because your sister was “taken advantage of” (i.e., sexually abused) by a priest. How would you not feel like you were “taking advantage” of a lost soul? (Again, not trying to compare Lizzie to Poppy, I just find it odd his mind never went there.)

I liked how Poppy was a sex worker, I just didn’t like the cheating subplot. At all. I don’t mind the cheating catalyst that brought her to the church (I actually loved it. It felt realistic and showed Poppy as being flawed), but the several cheating subplots that happened after. I wish the book was dual POV. I think I wouldn’t be so upset and distrusting of Poppy if it was. Sorry, but if you’re going to out to dinner with your ex-bf who is married/cheated on you/and fucked you a month ago after admitting to blackmailing your current bf, and don’t do the bare minimum of giving your current bf the courtesy to tell him where you are going, then stay the night talking with your ex-bf in his hotel room and then go see your current bf in the clothes you still haven’t changed out of…..I’m not going to like you. I mean seriously. I’m supposed to root for you as the heroine????? It’s called having some common fucking decency. She even knew her ex-bf sent her current bf a picture of the two of them together and decided ‘yeah I’ll let my current bf stew and think I’m cheating on him the whole fucking night rather than send him a text’?!? Are you sure you have three degrees?!? Sorry but this is the woman you all are staning?!? And then she goes on this big ‘I would never cheat, do you really think so low of me’ speech that actually sounded really gaslighty and victim-blaming Tyler for his concerns. Like what the fuck is he supposed to think?! And then SHE DOES CHEAT on him later in the book so where was her logic?????? I honestly don’t trust her not to fuck Sterling the first time her and Tyler have issues when this book ends. I cannot stand Poppy for those reason.

Plus she kinda set out to seduce a priest rather than it happening organically which I would’ve preferred. Girl needs some therapy. She really gave off the vibes of ‘my ex is married and wants me to be his whore so to help my self-esteem I am going to seduce a man of the cloth as one last fuck you to my ex. yay girl power!’ I mean….WTF!?!?

And why tf did she not check in with Tyler after his whole life got blown up? She’s like ‘I broke your heart and lightly cheated to get you so you could keep your job (also why is she always going on about her agency but then takes away his from him and doesn’t see the hypocrisy?!) but that didn’t work so then I decided to ghost you so that way you would lose your job your religion and me’?! What was her logic?!? I cant keep up with heroines who only drink dumb bitch juice!

Ugh her only redeeming quality was that she seemed intuitive of what Tyler needed after she spent the night with her ex-bf and made that happen. But then again….if she actually had two functioning brain cells she wouldn’t have needed to do that because he wouldn’t have had to worry so much. I did like how no one in the book was stupidly jealous for no reason. Tyler had a reason to be concerned and jealous of her literally spending the night talking with her ex-bf in his hotel room. (Also what the fuck did they even have to talk about?!? For a whole fucking night?!? The whole scenario seems like she was keeping Sterling as a backup boyfriend. Sorry, I cant root for her after that happened. Literally not even a fucking phone call?!?). It was refreshing to read Tyler always wanting Poppy choosing who she wanted and not going full caveman and punching Sterling in his pretentious mouth (which he fully deserved). Props to Tyler.

Also this had them falling in love after 6 weeks of meeting. Which….okay???????

I wanted more interactions with Tyler’s family. Especially after the fallout from his job. And I wanted more interactions with Poppy’s family. People now know she is a stripper. Wouldn’t her high class parents want to disown her for the scandal?!

All in all: Loved the sex scenes. Loved the scenes where religion and love met. Just wish a few plot points regarding the cheating/trust issues hadn’t existed.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: suicide, mentions of sexual assault, stalking, revenge porn, alcohol consumption, cheating

Book Review: Bass-Ackwards by Eris Adderly

What’s this about?

Christina needs a day off. Her asshole boss has a proposition that would be every HR employee’s nightmares. But Christina needs that day off. She wasn’t supposed to enjoy it…or Bill.

My Review:

99% of the time I hate boss employee romances, but every now and then I find an outlier. This book is that outlier.

This book started at 100. I was expecting some more set-up, but nope! The sex scenes were steamy and dirty. They were great (expect for the no condom thing the first time…also I think she should’ve gotten more than a half day for anal lol). I also like how in this book she didn’t cum every time. I get that romance is supposed to be a fantasy, but every damn sex scene in a romance the girl is cumming at least twice. Even in dark romance!

There were a few issues I had with the book. One being that Bill has claimed to be in love with Christina for a year before the incident (not a spoiler, literally his first POV chapter says that). I would’ve rather him fall in love after it started. Because you don’t treat the people you love like that.

I love how this book addressed the power dynamic. I really wasn’t expecting that considering how it started. But loved it. I also love how this took place at a truck/equipment rental office (even though I still am confused about what they actually do?!?) instead of at a law office or something else cliched. It was a working class romance! Plus the two complemented each other really well.

I do wish we had gotten to know how old Bill was. Christina is 24ish, and sometimes the guy felt late 30s and others he felt 50 so I’m just confused. Also I didn’t care about his background at all. It was vague. Either spill the details or don’t bring it up!

I wish we got more closure with what is going on with her grandpa. That was a loose end that kind of stressed me out.

All in all, if you want a dirty boss-employee romance, then I highly recommend this book.

Content Warnings: dubcon, alcohol consumption, hospitalization, hoarding,

Book Review: Priceless by Miranda Silver

What’s this about?

Christina needs money and fast. Her heat is off. She owes her dealer money. And Patrick has a proposition: his schedule, his rules, his games, his money, Christina in his bed.

My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

My Review:

Oh wow this book was 🔥🔥🔥

I LOVED how the book has a book safeword and actually uses it. I loved how it included flashbacks to an abusive relationship where the woman was the abuser. How it showed that even a submissive can be the abuser in a D/s relationship. I loved how it showed that it can affect a person for a long time after it ends. I love how it included that women can pray on younger men. All that said, I do wish that we got more Patrick POV to see him healing. And was that painting of Livia or Christina? We never find out. Why did we get one phone call from an ex and then never hear from her again? I needed a bit more from that storyline.

The only things preventing this from being a five star read were that I wanted to know more about their family dynamics. Why bring up the stuff with Patrick’s mom/siblings and then never fully address it. I wanted more closure with Christina and her sibling/parents too.

This book is 100% erotica. Nearly every chapter was a sex scene. None were repetitive though. I just wanted a tad more character development to go with the tons of hot sex.

(but go into this knowing it has some D/s stuff and lots of humiliation kink so if that’s not your thing don’t read it. also this is on Kindle Unlimited. also they have an epilogue of sorts in Miranda’s anthology book called Crave)

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: drug use, flashbacks of abusive relationship, addiction, alcohol consumption/abuse, revenge porn

Book Review: Speakeasy (True North #5) by Sarina Bowen

But love is messy, unpredictable, and occasionally loud. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

What’s this about?

May’s girlfriend cheats on her at the town’s most popular bar. And what’s the best way to get over someone? Get under someone else. And who better to use for a rebound than the guy who carried you out of said bar so you don’t attack your cheating now ex-girlfriend. Alex knows the last person he should be sleeping with is his rival’s little sister. But then again….it’s not like anyone has to know. Right?

My Rating: 3.5/5 stars

My Review:

Overall this was a sweet story about two people, a bar owner and a recovering alcoholic, falling in love. On paper, they don’t make sense, but they work out well together!

One of the problems of reading all of these books back to back is noticing inconsistencies in the story. In Keepsake, Griffin and Alec get along and Griffin was even discussing using parts of Alec’s property to use for fermenting Griffin’s ciders. So there wasn’t hate between them then. Then in Bountiful, it says that Alec is Zara’s oldest brother, but in this book he’s the middle brother. None of these things are huge plot holes, and I don’t expect a romance author to keep up with every tiny detail in these books. But every time I stumbled across something like this it made me blink.

There was a conversation about Daniela not thinking bisexuality is real (it’s challenged on page, because bisexuality is totally real!), but then that lead to a conversation about how May showed she was a lesbian with Daniela in the bedroom. I wish the author had said phrased it differently because it sounds like the characters think a bi person is a “lesbian” only when they have sex with a woman and straight every other time when you’re bi regardless of who you’re dating. It wasn’t the best way to go about the conversation. Also the author used a lot of “men and women” talk which left out enby people out of these conversations.

I also wish the author had mentioned a bit more about how May was once in a physically and verbally abusive relationship with a man and a verbally abusive relationship with a woman and how these things affected her decisions with dating and alcoholism. The author just causally mentions this stuff but doesn’t fully explore these topics. The first three books in this series explored heavy themes, but they felt better explored than they were here. I wish Alec’s business self-esteem issues, how he felt inadequate based on his high school experiences, and May’s recovery was explored a bit more fully here. I felt like Lark’s wedding prep and Audrey’s baby subplots took up more space than they needed to. Which is funny because usually I’m wishing there were more interactions with other characters in romance books, but in this case I wanted more of May and Alec’s backgrounds to be explored.

Overall I liked this book, but of the ones I’ve read in this series so far this seems like the one where you need to read the previous books to fully understand.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: cheating, alcohol consumption, alcoholism/alcohol recovery, biphobia from evil ex gf, ableist language (‘because I’m not blind or deaf’), mentions of abusive boyfriend, drunk driving, drug use, overdose, heart attack, death of a friend, car crash, texting and driving,

Book Review: The Hunter (Boston Belles #1) by LJ Shen

What’s This About?

Basically, Hunter needs a babysitter since the dude doesn’t know how to keep his dick in his pants and off the internet. Sailor is an archer trying out for the Olympics who needs help with sponsors and social media to gain support for her tryouts. So the two’s parents decide to come up with a deal: Sailor keeps Hunter celibate, Hunter keeps his cushy job at his dad’s pipeline company, and Hunter’s dad gets her the sponsorship deal she really wants. Six months of suffering to achieve your dreams. #worthit?!?!

My Rating: 3/5 stars

My Review:

I didn’t hate this book but I also didn’t love it. Three “just okay” stars from me. It was a little cliche and I wasn’t expecting the book to take such a Nancy Drew turn. I do like how we have a main character who isn’t drop dead gorgeous! It actually takes Hunter awhile to find her hot in her own unique way, which I really loved. Because not everyone is super model level gorgeous. But we are all hot in our own way!

I’m beginning to think Shen has a kink for guys fucking their girlfriend’s/wife’s younger sisters. The plot happened twice in Ruckus. I heard it happened in another of her books. And now this one too?! Out of all of the people in the world to go after and you choose your wife/gf’s SISTER?!? (For the record Hunter isn’t the one doing this since Sailor doesn’t have a little sister). But gah! Why is this used as a plot device over an over again inher books!?!?!

Also are all of Shen’s books connected? I read some reviews saying this is about the daughter from her book SPARROW and I think there were two cameos from the characters of her All Saints High series (I haven’t read them yet to confirm, but the names “Knight” and “Vaughn” sound familiar). And now I’m curious how much does this book overlap with those ones? I mean Hunter flew off to London for some reason and I have no idea why?!?!?!?! Is that in a different book??? I wish I had known this was a spin-off series before starting it. I feel like I’m missing some key points.

Also we all already know that Cill is going to end up dating one of Sailor’s friends and Hunter’s little sister is probably going to end up with Sam at some point in this series. Idk why but it always annoys me friends conveniently date siblings or conveniently date people in the exact same friend group because that’s not super common irl? Also I find it kind of boring.

There were some odd plot choices that didn’t fully make sense with the actions Hunter took. I wish we had gotten more time with the friends who came to visit. At this point it felt like Shen was just making a pointless cameo to make her All Saints High fans lose their shit. (I haven’t read the All Saints books because I can’t suspend belief enough that 16 yr olds are sex gods or legit run their town to the point adults fear them lololol)

The fact that The Archer by Taylor Swift wasn’t on her book’s playlist is the true crime of the century.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: cheating, alcohol consumption, mentions of drug use, mentions of alcoholism/drug recovery/addiction, death of a pet,

Book Review: Bountiful (True North #4, Brooklyn Brusiers #4.5) by Sarina Bowen

What’s this about?

No last names. No life stories. Nothing personal. Those were the rules Zara and some mystery vacationer Dave came up with during his month stay near her bar. It was supposed to be a summer fling. Casual. No strings attached. Things worked out perfectly until Dave left and Zara found those two blue lines. Two years later, and Zara is content with never finding Dave from Brooklyn. Until one day he walks into her coffee shop.

My Rating: 3/5

My Review:

This book contained one of my least favorite tropes, but the book handled it well. I thought adding in the hockey player thing would make me like it more (I was on a hockey romance kick earlier this year), but it didn’t. Oh well.

This is my least favorite book of the series I’ve read so far (I’ve read books 1-4 & 7). I miss the Shipleys who only had very very minor roles. Jude and Zach were minor characters prior to their respective books, but I fell in love with both of them from day one. I knew I would like Zara after Bittersweet, but it’s hard to make me love a book that has a trope I hate.

I wanted more interactions with each main character’s friends. I do love how Zara is comfortable with how sexually active she is and how Dave does zero slut shaming for it!

I was wondering why did Dave/David’s pov label swapped? Was this a conscious choice where when it was “David” he acted more one way than he did under a “Dave” pov? Or just an accident?

I do wish when they reconciled that they had some discussion in stds since Dave slept around during the two year gap.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: alcohol consumption, mentions of overdosed and child abuse, emesis,

Book Review: Steadfast (True North #2) by Sarina Bowen

When I was seventeen, I thought Jude was sent to me from heaven. When I was eighteen, I let him take me there. When I was nineteen, he broke both my heart and my family.

Synopsis:

Jude lost everything one spring day when he crashed his car into an apple tree on the side of the road. A man is dead, and there’s no way he can ever right that wrong. He’d steer clear of Colebury, Vermont forever if he could. But an ex-con in recovery for his drug addiction can’t find a job just anywhere.

For Sophie Haines, coming face to face with the man who broke her heart is gut-wrenching. Suddenly, he’s everywhere she turns. It’s hard not to stare at how much he’s changed. The bad boy who used to love her didn’t have big biceps and sun-kissed hair. And he’d never turn up volunteer in the church kitchen.

She knows it’s foolish to yearn for the man who returned all the heartsick letters she wrote him in prison. But the looks he sends her now speak volumes.

No one wants to see Sophie and Jude back together, least of all Sophie’s police chief father. But it’s a small town. And forbidden love is a law unto itself.

My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

My Review:

Usually I don’t like second chance romances, but I love this story!!!

And yes, I did get misty eyed several times reading this book.

I’ve read a few books where a character has a drug addiction, but in those the character never has cravings for the drugs so it never felt organic. In this book Jude does have cravings and it’s an ongoing struggle to maintain his sobriety. And it was handled in a sensitive way.

I’ve been on a romance kick lately where all I want to read it romance. But usually, I struggle to feel that the two characters are in love. They’ll say it, but I don’t feel it. In this book, Jude and Sophie’s love for each other is so strong it’s almost tangible.

I can’t even begin to imagine who hard it was for Sophie after her brother died. In a way, she lost a family member and the love of his life, even if that was only to prison. She didn’t get to mourn like how she wanted to.

I love how each book in this series has an extra kick to make it special. Bittersweet was split up by months. Keepsake was split by the harvest season timeline. Heartland had some of Chasity’s compositions scattered in. And this book had Jude’s chapters start with his cravings level and Chasity’s with her inner DJ.

I loved how this book included memories of how the two fell for each other in high school and a few flashbacks (although those flashbacks were in third person which threw me off at first). I wanted more of them!!

Overall a really sweet book about second chances, lost love, and recovery.

Content Warnings and Trigger Warnings: addiction, recovery from drug addiction, cravings for drugs, alcoholism, car crash, death of a friend, death of a sibling, grief, drug use (opiates), domestic abuse, doctor giving drug addict pain meds against their will, violence, emesis, withdrawal,