Happy Friday, everyone!
I massively failed this week. I kept a list of the books I’d read, intending to jot down a thought here and there throughout the week. Whelp, here we are on Friday, and I have one sentence down. Some of these books I read last weekend, so I’m not going to be able to remember too much.
Ah well, ya live, you learn. Am I right?
I hope you all had a productive book-reading week. And have a great weekend!
Be well, and happy reading!
Paige
P.S. As always, all descriptions and images are from Amazon. Â Aa an Amazon Associate, I earn commission from qualifying purchases.
P.P.S. I read a lot of darker books than usual for me. Â I’m a big data nerd, so I think I’m going to analyze the genres/tropes I read each week in six months to see if there are any trends. Â Did you find yourself reading more dark/bully books this week than usual? Wonder if there is something in the air.Â
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I don’t want an alpha.I don’t want the legendary Murphy pack as stepbrothers.
I don’t want to share a house with the four boys every girl in school wants.
And I definitely don’t want their breath on my skin
Their scent in my nose
Their marks on my neck.
Their father told them to look after me.
But he doesn’t realise just how they’ve decided to twist that directive.
I’m a pet omega for them to play with.
And they’re about to give me everything they decide I need.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: Will read more! Author teased about a fake relationship book, that's one of my favorite tropes. Â Crossing my fingers!
Positives: I don't want to spoil anything, so I'm just going to vaguely say I have never read a book with a bully to redeeming arc quite like this. Â Bravo to the author for actually addressing trauma and abuse.Â
Problems: I didn't write this up in time, so I can't remember.
I was only a fisherman’s daughter. Until I wasn’t.
The day my parents died was the day my powers awakened, and I was told I was the most powerful being in all the kingdoms. And Yves, my father’s sexy friend, took me under his wing–literally–because it turns out Yves isn’t just a silver fox, he’s a dragon shifter.
Although I didn’t know it, my mother was preparing to train me before her murder but now nothing can prepare me for the prophecy Yves says I need to fulfil. Because here, the only mages allowed are the ones who work for kings. If anyone else is found performing magick, they’re burned alive to prevent the return of The Lady of the Lake from deciding who will be the next true king. And apparently, that’s me. I am to be the next Lady of the Lake. So now I’m on the run and I need to find five men who are fated to help me.
But what do I want? I want to avenge my parents’ death, not rule and unite all the kingdoms. I’m just a girl, right? I’ve never even travelled further than the next village, let alone been with five men and command powerful magick. I’m just a fisherman’s daughter… right?
If you like Why Choose? romance with sexy mages, shifters, kingdoms, dragons and more, then join Nimue as she grapples with the prophecy she has been handed and finds five men to fall in love with. The Lady In The Lake series is inspired by tales of King Arthur and Merlin.
From Fire isthe first book in The Lady Of The Lake series. It’s a paranormal fantasy romance novel for over 18’s and has many trigger warnings, including language, violence, death and much more from the start. It includes multiple POV, some MM and a cliffhanger ending.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: Will read book 2 when it releasesÂ
Positives: Unique story line. Lots of players in this giant chess game of an arthurian legend. Â
Problems: Not enough time to fully develop the characters. I didn't feel like the emotional reactions to life changing events was fully developed.Â
P.S. It looks like this is the debut book for this author, at the very least the first under this pen name.  I'm looking forward to seeing how their writing style evolves, and how events and characters develop in book two. Â
Never again will I be that little girl who dreamed of a pack to sweep her off her feet…
I’m the omega who killed my alpha.
The day I found my mates, I thought I’d found my home at last. Instead, I was kept from them and left to suffer. For months I clung to scraps of information, and I fell in love with each of them… Angel, Kai, Caspian and Bane.
But when my worst nightmare came, I faced it alone.
Found beside my alphas body, my pack has claimed me at last. But they’re too late. Now I’m trapped in their home with them. My mates. But there’s no happily ever after, because it won’t matter to them if I had a choice or not. The man I killed was their pack brother, and they hate me for what I’ve done.
And it’s up to these four men to decide my fate…
This is a spicy adult standalone HEA where the Havoc doesn’t have to choose between lovers (MMFMM). It contains dark themes, adult language, intimidation, violence, and triggering situations detailed in front of the book. For mature readers.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: I'll read more by this author
Positives: Oof. Â What a heavy, twisty read. Â So much was happening. I don't think there is much I can say without spoiling the crap outta it. Â This had all the feels, great characterizations, fully fleshed plot, and character growth.
Problems: Really heavy book, I couldn't finish in one sitting.
I don’t know who I am or what happened to me.
I know that I’ve been running, but from what I don’t know. And I know that the five men surrounding my hospital bed are important, possibly even precious to me, but they all swear they haven’t met me before.
They say they feel it too, this familiarity, this connection.
So when danger comes looking, these five strangers take it upon themselves to hide me away while we put together the pieces of my past. What we find instead is darker. A twisted conspiracy that ties all six of us together in an unexpected and terrifying web of danger.
Progeny is a multi-POV contemporary reverse harem romance (MMFMMM). Please refer to the author’s notes in the beginning of the book for any potential content warnings.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: 83%
Prospect: Will finish tonight, hopefully!
Positives: The author does this really cool writing thing where we can see certain scenes happening from multiple characters. For example, we'll see a scene from character A's perspective, and then part of that scene from character B in the next chapter. It is extremely well done, and enables me to fully understand each character and their motivations. Â I don't think I've come across this writing style before, and it really works for me.
Problems:Â There was a beautiful scene where our FMC was looking at herself in the mirror, seeing her ribs, and basically feeling the way she looked. And then she had sex. It seemed abrupt, but I've been having to read this one where I can, so it could be that I was just taken out of the scene too many times.
With beauty comes brutality.
They’ve always tormented me, my stepbrother Noah taking the lead.
They even pushed me into a pool before homecoming in high school.
This isn’t high school anymore.
We’re no longer kids, and these feelings we have are real.
The only problem is, some of us are too scared to find out what it all means.
Until a snowstorm hits and we get trapped in a cabin far away from civilization with one another.
Then . . . someone has to break.
I just hope it’s not me.
Snowballed is a short, spicy romance with three guys and a girl. There is no choosing. Contains light MM.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: Will read this author again
Positives: I liked how the FMC was real with herself, and her questioning if what was happening was just one more elaborate ruse.
Problems: Â So many bully romance books lately. Â That's not specific to this book though.
The Syndicate plans have come to light, and now I’m hellbent on revenge. Someone has betrayed us, and we’re going to find out who it is. And when we find them, I’ll kill them myself.Spy of the Syndicate is the third book in the PNR series Bonds of Alpha Academy: A new adult university reverse harem with fated mates, enemies to lovers, protective alpha heroes, and multi-POV.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: Will read more from this author.
Positives: Really interesting story line, loved the mystery and intrigue.Â
Problems: I felt one specific character didn't act like themselves, but I don't want to spoil anything. Â It didn't ruin the story for me.Â
My ex joined the Anti Magick Alliance. He branded me with their crest. Turns out, he’s played with the wrong witch.
I grew up believing I was human. My entire town hated supers, but I’ve always been drawn to them. Especially mages.
On the night my anti-magick ex finally took his cruelty too far and tried to kill me, my powers awakened. I burned his apartment to the ground and left him in the flames.
But now I’m on the run, hiding out in a town called Phoenix Falls. A town full of magick. A town where four super-hot mages believe I’m the key to a prophecy that will stop the underworld from rising.
There’s Kole, the one they call The Viking. A powerful earth mage who’s addicted to human blood, he scares and excites me. I know being near him is dangerous, but I like it. And I know he does too.
Tanner is the gentle one. An empath with a dark past. He knows what I need before I need it, and he has some serious history with Kole.
Mack is the daddy of the group. The Professor. Super hot. Like a guy from a coffee commercial. Silver hair, goatee, deep brown eyes. Oh, and the ability to shift into a friggin’ polar bear whenever he feels like it!
Finally, there’s Luther. The fire mage cop who hates humans. He despises me, but when two hot flames combine there’s bound to be fireworks.
If they’re right about me, I’m supposed to save the world. But first, I need to save myself from the wrath of the Anti Magick Alliance.
If only I had four powerful mage boyfriends to help me…
‘Nova’ is the first book in The Phoenix Prophecy series. It is a full-length paranormal reverse harem novel with graphic sexual content, sword-crossing, possible triggers, and a cliffhanger. It is aimed at readers 18+.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: 57%
Prospect: Will finish before the r/reverseharem book club discussion.Â
Positives: I love that is is available on audio. Â It was a really hard to read beginning. Â I feel for our FMC.
Problems:Â It appears that the harem members already have very clear established relationships and lives. I'm not sure how our FMC is going to fit in. I'm only halfway, lots to happen yet!Â