Debbie

We are back with a new Victoria M. Patton read. And my excitement is real. Let's get to it.

Derek is officially back to work, leading his very own FBI cold case team, The Legacy Unit. Is he fully recovered from the happenings of book one, The Box? (IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THAT YOU MUST NEEDS GO TO DO THAT AFTER YOU ARE DONE READING MY BANANA PANTS RAMBLING). He's not but Derek isn't one to just sit around (PROBABLY WHY BOOK ONE WENT DOWN LIKE IT DID). Almost immediately he gets a case that is not cold at all and he was called in by someone high up the food chain. Let the murders begin. OH yea did I mention that Derek may or may not be hallucinating? MMHMM.

You all have no idea how long I've waited for this book. And I am not disappointed. If you like paranormal thrillers, you need to get on this. One of my favorite things about VMP is her ability to create immaculate character development. In this and her other series, Damien Kaine series, it's there in spades. And even with this just being book 2 you can still see that The Legacy Unit bond is beginning and growing. Also the ending absolutely sets up the next book beautifully. And by beautifully I mean I yelled WAIT WHAT?? and then the book ended. So yea...I'm ready for the next one.

Look...you all can keep Mike Myers...IT'S JASON FOR ME. ( Ghostface too but this isn't about him. FOCUS!). There's not much to tell here other than it's short erotica. It's about 20 pages I think. That's it.

John Persons is a PI who gets hired by someone to kill their stepfather. That someone is a ten year old child. The stepfather is a monster...but as it turns out so is Persons.

I am not well versed in Lovecraftian horror. I know what it is but I'm no expert on the genre as I've only read a book or two here and there. This book fits that bill. Now here's where I am unsure of how I feel fully about this book....Lovecraftian horror, set in the early 2000s with a PI who speaks like he's a noir character straight of the 40s and he's the only one. That being said the story IS a good one albeit short. Roughly 100 pages. And Khaw seems to have the ability to pack a lot into a short story and have it all flow well.

Hades and Persephone have been my One True Pairing since before I even knew what that was and I was probably too young to have one but you know...here we are. Couple that with it being a retelling and I knew I had to have this.

First off the reason most people were yelling at me to read this...The fucky parts are great and very 5 much five stars. It was delicious and everything it needed to be. But if you want more than just sexy Happy No No Place smashing scenes then read on...

Hades in this was an absolute cinnamon roll and I loved it. How he was with Persephone and seeing him deal with this growing feelings for her...absolute swoon. Side note.. CONSENT IS SEXY. I also loved Persephone. I didn't find her meek or weak which is off putting if you're setting her up to be Hades soul mate..WHICH SHE IS FOREVER AND EVER.

This is not a book you read for the plot but I'm weird af so once I got off the high of aforementioned smexy bits, I took a second to really think about it. It's a contemporary retelling so there's no magic. Not really. There's mention of not being able to cross a bridge because of some kind of force stopping you but that's about it really. Not how or why it works. Not much world building. I have no idea if Olympus is in the USA or not. And I only say that because they mention California. Also the ending was a bit lackluster. There was mention of a possible war...and then nothing. I kind of wanted a war by that point.

Am I going to read the next in this series? Absofuckinglutely. Did I look up all her other books and plan to read all those? You bet your ass. Did I enjoy this book? Hell yes. I just wanted to make sure you guys understood what you're going to read since every one seems to be talking about the heavy breathing scenes and not much else lol.

I went in pretty blind for this one. All I needed to know was that it was banned on Amazon, a heavy dark romance with some big trigger warnings, and my bookish friend Chelsea was all over it. Her recommendations are gospel to me. BUT ON TO THE BOOK.

Oh we've got us a dark one here, baby. I'm going to go ahead and give you the TW's I think apply to it now and you can choose if you want to keep going. So we've got murder, dub/cnc, stalking, torture, human trafficking, primal kink....I'm sure I'm missing something but I think you get it. In less exciting news it's a slow burn and ends on a cliffhanger lol.

If you're still here... I am a sucker for self aware, reckless women...which Addie is. She is an author who just inherited her grandmother's family home. She finds her GREAT grandmother's diary and finds out that her sometimes history does repeat itself.
Zade...I don't even know what to say about him other than he's a walking red flag AND I WANT TO WAVE IT. He takes one look at Addie at one of her book signings and that's that. The obsession begins. He will have her, forever, and she has no say in the matter.

I've yet again read a book that's hard to review without giving away spoilers but there are other things at play besides Z stalking Addie which I think make the book better because I personally don't want 600 pages of just that. Other things are definitely at play and I can't wait for book 2 to see how this all ends.

This is book two and the conclusion of The Sandman Duet. And what a conclusion it was!

Voss is still in search of The Sandman. We definitely learn more about Voss and his childhood in this book. I still love him in this book. Nola on the other hand annoyed me a tiny bit, HOWEVER, I want to give her a pass because as a mother myself I'd go to any fucking lengths to save any of my babies. Which can lead you to doing very stupid things.

Even though I figured out who the killer was, Keri really said BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! That epilogue left me sitting there for a few minutes, contemplating whether I should just message Keri Lake and just asking her “ COMO SE DICE, WHAT??”

For this being her first thriller, I thought it was great. And I can't wait to have a shelf full of her books. LIFE GOALS.

Iseult's book. Izzy. One of my favorite characters..of course Aeduan too but this isn't about him LoL. Seeing her growth in this installment was amazing. Heart wrenching but amazing. She doubts herself so much....her self worth, her witchery, who she is, what she is...and finally seeing her step into herself was beautiful.

With that being said Susan Dennard play too much!! ( Respectfully

This is my second Keri Lake book and my only regret is not having the next book at the ready. It ended in a cliffhanger and when I tell you I was completely invested by the end that I didn't even realize how many pages were left as a gripped the book in my hand.

A dark romance thriller?? Sign me up twice and don't hold my hand. Much like with most dark romances there are trigger warnings. So there are a few graphic and heavy scenes. There is romance but for this book I'm going to say the romance part is on the back burner. It isn't major thing going on for most of the book. Definitely more of a slow burn too. I'm going to say it's pretty steady paced through out with it getting hyper towards the end (FOR THE LOVE OF GOD GET BOTH BOOKS AT ONCE. I DIDN'T AND LOOK AT ME NOW.)

It's told in the POV of 3 people..... Nola Tensley, Rhett Voss, and The Sandman. Nola is a widowed, single mom trying to deal with the murder of her husband ( who wasn't all the great to begin with but still..didn't deserve that) and trying her best with her traumatized son. Voss....VOSS. By no means is he a good guy.....But if he wanted me to see a monster, oopsie doodle because I don't. What's a girl got to do to get a hit man to fall in love with her?? I'm ready with the note pad. Last but not least...The Sandman. A serial killer. I have no idea who he is but I have my theories. As you can imagine his chapters were heavy and graphic.

At this point I'm going to say I'll read whatever Keri Lake writes. And she has quite a number of books out so I have happy, dark catching up to do!

Sometimes a book screams at me to read it and so I hype it up so much in my own head. You can imagine that can end very badly if I end up not liking the book because the crash back down to earth hurts. Such was not the case here. NOT EVEN A LITTLE BIT.

One private school. Two Black teenagers from the opposite sides of society's tracks. Devon's mom has sacrificed much so the musical protege can lead them to a better life. Chiamaka wants for nothing. One anonymous texter exposing their darkest secrets.

This book is very difficult to review because it is, amongst other things, a thriller. And I'm don't want to give anything away as that really would ruin the book for you. I will say it is twisty and dark. I went in kind of blind and don't regret that at all. It was a Bookish First win and once I saw the cover I knew I had to have it. BOOKWORM INTUITION IS REAL.

I knew this book would wreck me. Luckily for me I live for books that rip me up from the inside out. Harper is so many of us. Trauma, bad coping mechanisms, that dreaded voice in your head, keeping the wrong people around you, self destructive behavior, depression. I can absolutely relate to her in so many ways it was kind of scary to be honest. I found myself wanted to shake some sense into her but yelling “BEEN THERE, DONE THAT, SIS!” at my e-book. I love that Harper sought help but the author didn't make it seem like 2-3 sessions were a magical cure. They absolutely were not. Harper relapses over and over.

I feel like this book would hit home for a lot of people. However, If you don't like reading about broken characters or can't deal with them making bad choices over and over then this book is not for you. Trigger warnings- miscarriage, alcohol abuse, depression, suicidal thoughts.

Vampire. Yay! That's it. That's my review.
Okay fine it's not...but also I love vampires. And I was ready to see what Lana P. would give me with Indigo and I am not disappointed. I need to figure out how to become a genius, build a bomb that takes out the world but I wake up 1000 years in the future and become a Well-blessed mate to a vampire Guardian ( or a wolf shifter. Honestly I'm not picky.).

Violet was one of the first to wake in this new future. A future she realized she helped shape. She built the weapon that destroyed the planet 1,000 years before. She carries the guilt of what she's done for the past six years as she makes her way through Elphyne hiding amongst the fae. Never truly sleeping, trusting, making any connections. Just killing vampires. Vampires like the ones who attacked her when she first woke....and she's good at it. But Clarke isn't the only Seer and others are looking for her and want what she has in her head.

Indigo. An outcast amongst his own people because his parents were the first to mate and be faithful. Then one in his own family once he decided to join the Guardians to help with his own guilt over his own past. Things he doesn't want Violet to know because he can't ever lose her. But if he can't let go of his own guilt , how can he convince her to let go of hers?

This is book 4 in the Fae Guardians series and book one in the Season of the Vampire trilogy. Which means....YAY MORE VAMPIRES.

I knew that after certain events from the previous book that Jasper would make my heart cry and bleed and so yea...I already loved him before I knew him.

The common thing between the Fae Guardians and their Well-blessed mates is that they all have their own trauma. They are all broken somehow and none think they deserve love. But they do. And Ada is no different. Abandoned as a child by a mother who gave zero shits about her she practically saved herself until a hermit taught her how to hunt for survival but not for cruelty. For all the pain she's gone through she's a healer through and through.

Jasper is broken. Very broken. Tortured and held captive for ten years, by the time he is saved he can't even remember his name. And maybe he doesn't want to. Whether he wants to or not won't stop what's coming for him because it wants him dead and it wanted him dead when he was a child.

Call me the most basic of bitches, I care the fuck not, but I'm a sucker for a broken soul especially if he's a shifter with pointy ears. Clearly I'm loving this series and all the characters in it. It's safe to say Lana P will be an auto buy author for me from here on in.

We are back in Elphyne. Not with Rush and Clarke...but with Rush's son Thorne and Laurel.

It's been about two years since Clarke woke in this new world and she knows her best friend is next. Good for Laurel to have someone there for to help her understand what she's waking up to. Laurel was the head of a fitness empire in her time. A queen in her own right. She lived and worked hard to make up for her twin that didn't make it to see adulthood. She lived for them both. Even if that meant that constantly pushing forward and not learning to take a minute to appreciate life in the now.

Thorne was born during a time where his birth was illegal and both his parents paid the price. His mother with her life and his father a cursed ghost. His aunt was sent away, he was forced to become a Guardian and his mentor has been mysteriously gone for a decade. He's angry. Very. And nobody is going to stop him from finding Jasper. BUT WAIT! THERE'S MORE...and you need to read the book to find out rest. BWAHAHAHAHAHA. (I can not give you all the deets. That's not how this works!)

This story is continuing the war that is brewing in Elphyne and as much as I miss Rush ( insert all the sad faces here), this book was just as good. And I'm ready for more delicious shifting Fae men falling for bad ass human women. ISSA MOOD.

It's been a hot minute since I've read a J. T. Ellison book and this book reminded me as to why I loved her in the first place. If you're looking for a mystery/thriller you can't go wrong with her.

Claire Hunter is ready to marry the love of her life, Jack Compton. He comes from a powerful and wealthy family so she knows life won't be the same. For instance, their wedding is taking place in a beautiful family owned villa off the Italian coast. But Claire doesn't want him for his money and has zero problems signing the prenup that comes with marrying someone like Jack. And Jack loves her.

With all that love between them doesn't mean that Claire doesn't have a past or secrets in that past and the same goes for Jack. And it seems that someone or something on the island wants all the secrets out in the open and to show that not all things buried stay that way.

Man, listen...this books starts off heavy. And stays pretty heavy throughout. It's a very haunting and heartbreaking book. And with that comes trigger warnings such as suicide and that's right off the bat. Then there's absent parent, enclosed spaces, gore and murder to name some. So I want to say that right at the beginning and not the end but when I say it can be a heavy book for some I mean it's HEAVY.

Jack Morton has had to grow up and do it fast. Life has not been easy for him at all and all he has left is his little brother. Now he has to decide if he will let his brother go to foster or find the drug money his father hid. Jack doesn't know Ava Bardem. But Ava know Jack.

Ava Bardem was told her whole life by her father to love and trust no one. And she has to choose...find the money for her father (who was Jack's father partner in crime) or help the brothers get the money so they can survive.

This was all in all a very good thriller that gave me more than I was expecting to be honest. Especially for YA, which is a plus for me.

I love historical romances. This isn't the type I usually lean towards to so I figured at the very least I would like it. Instead I loved it. Such a beautifully written love story...but beautiful doesn't ever mean easy. It's a love story about an interracial couple in the 60's in NYC. So yes there is racism involved. And it wouldn't have been as believable and gripping if there hadn't been any. If you're going to write about a certain time period then you need to give the bad right along with the good. This may be fiction but it isn't fantasy. So be real with it and I feel like Amy Harmon did her research and wrote it well.

Benny Lament is Italian, from The Bronx, and he's the nephew of a mob boss and a songwriter. Okay I can't lie...upon seeing he was from The Bronx I was already liking him. I'm not Italian, the niece of a mob boss or born in the 60's...but I am from The Bronx so off the bat I was like “What's good, Benny.” LOL. The man was born to write songs and wrote his first one at the age of 8. He goes on to have a great career...but wants nothing to do with familial responsibilities of any kind after what he witnessed as a child. The story is told from his POV.

Esther Mine is Black, grew up with a large family and is the lead singer of the group Minefield. And all Benny had to do was hear her sing one time and before she was even done he knew he just HAD to write a song for her. Esther is nobody's fool and gives as good as she gets. The songwriting part came easy for them. Everything else was quite the opposite.

Come ready to feel all the feelings.

This is great if you're a Twilight Trash such as myself. I just got it a few months ago so it wasn't anything I needed to devour. I read it in between other books here and there. Character profiles, great pictures, maps etc. Something I'd have devoured during Twilight's hay day but it wasn't necessary for me to do so now. However I'm super happy to have read it and add it to my shelves.

Hello. My name is Debbie and I love Cazien “Demonbane” Talon. I am so happy to have gotten an E-Arc because this book kept up a great pace from start to finish.

Minerva Remon's life was a good one as a child but not for long. Almost sold as a child bride, she proved herself a fighter and survivor by escaping but life wasn't musicals and swooning after that. She's strong and she'll find a way to pay back her debt so that she can finally leave Constinbul and start a new life where nobody knows her. Even if it means going back to where her happiness ended.

Cazien “Demonbane” Talon. “I don't love, darling. I fuck, I drink, I fight. But never love.” CLEARLY A FAE AFTER MY OWN HEART. Caz is looking for a certain relic that may or may not exist so that he can save his younger brother from a fae realm where he is being held captive. He needs a guide to a certain island only a tough, sassy, won't drop to his feet type of woman knows her way around.

Fantasy. Romance. Magic. Fae. A fae whose eyes turn black when he fights. YUM. I love Caz. I love Min. I love Caz and Min together. This book is a standalone so the stories continue on with the rest of the family. Which does make me kind of sad because I'd love more of Caz and Min but I'm very ready for more Talon brothers. I'M LOOKING AT YOU, GAVRET.

One of my daughters is named Athena so it is safe to say that I love Greek mythology so I was more than happy to be a part of this book tour. Which I don't regret at all because this was really freaking good! I had fun being in this world and what a world it was.

Olivia is just turning 18, in college, and very much not an upbeat almost 18 year old in college. She used to be. Until her best friend of seven years/boyfriend of three suddenly breaks up with her just as they are graduating. Not just that but he ghosts her. She is young and heartbroken and starting a new chapter in life that had been planned out with someone. We've all been there at least once. AND THEN BOOM GOES THE DYNAMITE..because Hayden is back out of nowhere and not across the country like he said he'd be...and why? Well because someone was going to murder her and we can't have that. Absolutely not. Also now she's in the middle of a war between Pure Gods and Dark Gods. I did say boom goes the dynamite.

One of my favorite things about this book is that there was some focus on some of the minor gods. I love me some Hades forever and ever but reading something based in Greek myth and it not be about the big three was refreshing and fun. There are so many other types of gods that no one ever focuses on and that was major plus for me and bumped this up from 3.5 stars to four.

Hello, my name is Debbie and I love dark romances. With that being said that doesn't mean that sometimes I don't have to put the book down and take several deep breaths. Which I had to do a couple of times for the first half of this book. So why read them you may ask? That is between me and my therapist. TYVM! Side note: My therapist is other books.

Liv is The Deliverer. Her job is to train kidnapped people to make them the perfect sex slave per the owners desire. It's up to you to decide if she's a monster or a survivor. Is she a product of her environment or just dealing with the hand she was dealt the best way she can?

Joshua Carter. College football star. Helps his parents work their farm. Virgin. Future minister. May or may not be aroused by kink he doesn't understand. Yet.

I don't usually read the ones where the female is the Master. Not because I don't like them but I generally comes across the opposite more and I do gravitate towards alpha males. But I do like a woman who can wield a crop. There is a love story here. It's a dark but beautiful story. Plus there are no cliffhangers. There is a HEA! Unless it's not the ending you wanted. But that's between you and your own therapist.

A white haired, wolf shifting Fae Guardian? I'M IN! You need more than that? FINE.

Clarke , a human, wakes up in an unfamiliar place only to realize she is technically home. Just not a home in her own time. And perhaps with some powers she didn't have before waking in this strange new place.

Rush (the aforementioned yummy white haired fae) is cursed and nobody has seen him in a very long time. Literally. Until Clarke when he's at the right place at the right time to save her.

CUE THE QUEST.

A post apocalyptic world with different shifting Fae, different races, a forbidden romance ( a human and a Fae? GASP), upcoming war, a curse that needs broken, and a library scene I may have read twice...okay fine three times. Judge me.

I am and have always been Hades and Persephone trash. So to say that I wanted to read this forever ago is an understatement. But we know how it goes when you want to read all the things ever at the same time...I'M READING AS FAST AS I CAN , PEOPLE. Anyhoots.....this was retelling perfection. You read that correct. PERFECTION. Tragic, of course because what Greek mythology story doesn't have it's share of tragedy. But it had its fair share of adorable and hilarious moments. The art was definitely icing on the cake.

I'm sure it won't be long now before I'm fully caught up. And when that happens I'll probably start it all over as I wait for more.

Two courts ( Night and Day), an heir and her guardian, the lies that come with courts, rebels, magic, plot twists and a light romance.

Seville is the Light of The Day. She has a rare form of light magic which sounds fantastic and all.....except that she has no idea how to use it or to access it. Which does wonders for one's self esteem. Jae is her guardian. Always watching over her, listening to the whispers via the winds. Both of them struggle internally with and about their duties and not without reason.

One attack on the Day Court has them separated for the first time ever on paths they never imagined, finding out truths they would have never believed before.

I can see why this book won an award in 2015 (The Watty's). I was immediately drawn in. By the world and Azzy. Mankind has gone underground because magic has tainted and twisted the Above. But even still, Azzy goes above ground for the herbs needed by her people and their crumbling underground city. Armin, her brother, has never been but once he's cast out, Azzy would never let him go alone. Things go awry just about as soon as they get up there. The book kept a pretty consistent beat with the action. Just when I thought it would dip, things would get intense again.

My one issue would be that I would have liked a bit more info on how it all came to be. I DO NOT need to be spoon fed 1,001 background details or endless chapters of info dump. The author just really got me interested in not just the characters but the whole of the world she is building.

This book was like nothing that I thought it was going to be and it was the best surprise ever.
Told from the point of view of three people..Miya, Kai and Mason. Each one was like a lost soul searching for home. Miya and Kai were drawn to each other in a way they don't understand or can remember. Mason was struggling with guilt and ran away to a place the opposite of where he came from to get away only to find that the truth follows you wherever you go.
The beauty of this book is the slow burn atmosphere through out the whole book. This is not a guns blazing book. It's more of a slow simmer, seep into your brain situation. It deals with generational trauma/curse, mental health, the very thin line between fact, fiction and the truth. This book went deep. Mentally and emotionally. But there was also a hint of humor here and there that gave it all a beautiful balance. I know it's fantasy but A. J. gave it all such a real feel.
By the end of it I felt very connected to the characters...even to Mason and he wasn't even my favorite. Kai was my favorite. He was very raw and animalistic. I found myself relating to Miya a lot with her thought processes. Even if I didn't already know it was a duology I would have taken the ending as is. It was a very inception like ending that left my mind open to so many possibilities...but with that being said I'm definitely ready for more.