Happy Friday!
Whew, what a whirlwind of a week it was for me. I hope you all had a good one!
I’m quite light on books, even though it’s been two weeks since my last post. I do have quite a few books on my TBR pile, but summer with a kiddo is just so dang busy I’m not finding as much time to read.
Anyway, without further ado, I give you the seven books I managed to mostly finish over the last two weeks.
As always, all images and descriptions are from Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, I earn commission from qualifying purchases.
Be well, and happy reading!
Paige
When you hear hoofbeats, think of horses not zebras.
That’s what our mayor said after a series of bloody attacks rattle the citizens of our otherwise quiet town of Widow’s Peak.
My fiancé is a deputy and they are all firmly behind the Mayor’s claim that there’s a pack of feral wolves who have settled on the outskirts of town. The police say they’ve got it under control and given how much Hunter was working, I believed them.
Until the fateful night I was up comforting our colicky baby and he stumbled home with his clothes in bloody tatters. His eyes were glowing faintly in the moonlight, and my breath caught in my chest when it hit me.
Hunter is the monster.
It took me months to plan an escape for the baby and I, but somehow, we managed to make it out alive without him tracking us down.
I knew we would need a refuge so we didn’t have to stay on the run forever, but I didn’t know it would be the small mountainside town of Moon Creek where I grew up.
My grandmother welcomes us with open arms and before long, we are safely settled in my grandfather’s old hunting cabin, but she makes me promise to heed her warnings if I’m going to stay.
Her words echo in my head as I fall asleep every night:
Hang silver on the door.
Don’t leave your house on a full moon.
Whatever you do, stay away from the Murphy boys—they’re animals.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: Will likely read more by this author
Positives: I liked that the FMC had a kiddo and had to leave an abusive relationship
Problems: There were a few too many plot-holes. I can usually overlook a lot of them, but there were two main ones that just stuck out like a sore thumb, and that detracted from the re-readability.
I would rather be an unavowed servant, with no pack protection, than attend Primal Moon Academy… unfortunately, no one cares what I want.
Not the future Alpha making my life hell.
Not the Wolf I thought I’d lost long ago, and not his best friend either.
Everyone has a plan for me, but no one thought to clue me in first.
So here I am, being lied to about my very existence, and treated like dirt.
My world is about to get flipped upside down, and not for the better.
These men all want something from me, but they didn’t ask nicely.
Now I’ll have to show them exactly what it means to be human.
This book was previously in an anthology. Many of the details have been edited or changed completely to fit the story better. (For example, there are a few additional love interests/bullies.)
MMFMM
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished, skipped around
Prospect: Will try more
Positives: This society has a lot of potential
Problems: I was super confused. I felt like maybe I missed a book or this was a spin off series. I actually couldn't keep track of the packs and who fit where. I wish that this could have a bit of a deeper edit, and get some thing fleshed out more. So, so much potential is here. But it almost seemed like this was a set up book for a spin-off, so who knows.
Four strapping Marines are home for Independence Day.And all four brothers in arms have their eyes on one lucky lady.
I moved in with my older brother after leaving a toxic relationship.
To my surprise he’ll be going away for business…
Leaving me alone with four of his insanely HOT military best friends.
I remember drooling over them growing up.
Now they can’t keep their eyes off me.
I must be imagining it, right?
How can all four want me?
One night, they sneak into my room,
Shirts off, their hands on my skin.
My heart racing a million miles a minute.
Will this be the most unforgettable night ever?
Or, will I regret letting my inhibitions finally get the best of me?
A full-length standalone reverse harem, age-gap romance. Each book in this series can be read on its own. All books come with an oh so satisfying happily ever after. No cheating or cliffhanger!
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: I liked it
Positives: Nice, light-hearted book. I finished it in one sitting. I also liked how they had to deal with the brother and his views on their relationship
Problems: It's good for what it is. Yea, the climax (book climax!) was over the top, but it worked.
Christmas gifts aren’t the only surprises Ginny is going to get this year.
Moonstone Guinevere ‘Ginny’ Miles is in Silver Springs visiting her parents for the holidays. They moved to the town five years ago, and adore their new life here. Used to the hustle and bustle of London, England, Ginny isn’t convinced at first—what’s so great about a small town in Upstate New York, anyway? Despite her own opinions, it’s clear to Ginny the move has done her parents the world of good—they look years younger. There’s clearly something magical about this town.
Following some exploration of her own, Ginny discovers Silver Springs has its charms—Jewels Cafe is amazing, for starters, as is its pumpkin spice latte. Ginny’s drunk a lot of lattes in her thirty-three years, but nothing quite like this.
Her taste buds are still tingling from the tasty treat when she comes across a broken-down truck on the way back to her parents’ place. And when she spots the three gorgeous guys with the vehicle, it’s not just her taste buds that are tingling.
Is Ginny’s vacation in Silver Springs about to get a whole lot more interesting?
Moonstone is a standalone contemporary reverse harem romance. It is part of the Jewels Cafe series.
**Be sure and check out Snowbound, a Moonstone bonus story!**
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Finished
Prospect: When I'm in the mood, I pick up a book from this universe.
Positives: Cute, light-hearted novella
Problems: It was a fast listen, but it is a novella. The character's were well fleshed out, despite it being a novella, so well done author.
P.S. I listened to this on audio, and I liked 80% of the narrator, but the vocals for one of the guys (Trent) jarred me out of the story, too much pausing between words. Nitpicky, thy name is Paige.
For your crimes today
Your first sons will pay
As long as they shall remember,
I curse them with this ember
From adulthood until they find the fountain
The three must find a maiden
They will be tied to your boat
Every night it will pull them back to float
KIAN, AXEL, & ZEB
In the year 1801, the quest for the fabled fountain of youth became a quest of greed.
That sealed the fate of their children for over two centuries while they waited to be freed.
For as long as they can remember, their time on land has been limited.
As the days stretched to centuries, they became kindred.
Finding little joy along the way, while hiding from history.
Everything changes when one loses his memory.
CORA
Magic is only half of who I am.
I never realized my life was a sham.
Three men have me question everything
My body is finally awakening
Their secrets may be our undoing
Kian says he can trust me, that he has a feeling
While their lies aren’t the only thing creeping
My own secrets may be a blessing
Or our very own curse
**Ship Wrecked is book one of The Cursed Pirates Duet and will end on a cliffhanger. It is a full length 80k word novel recommended for readers 18+.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: In progress
Prospect: I keep slowly pecking at it
Positives: I like the idea of a centuries long curse. The friendships in this book are great, I love supportive friends.
Problems: Too many big-bad's for me. I don't get the curse (maybe I will), and I feel like a lot could have been fixed with some communication. If you frequent this blog, you may know that my two big pet peeves are a glossary at the FRONT of a book, and the miscommunication trope. I'm not sure this fits the miscommunication trope, since they don't actually communicate, but it still gets me to set aside the book now and again.
No one goes to a party and expects to become the sacrifice in a demonic ritual. Especially when demons aren’t real. Right?
As it turns out, I find myself in exactly that position after allowing my best friend to drag me to the biggest Halloween party in our senior year. Thanks, Emma.
What I sure do not expect is for Vance, Elijah, and Jesse to come to my rescue. And I sure as hell don’t expect to find out that the three hottest guys in school are demons themselves. What the hell is happening right now?
Vance, Elijah, and Jessie are different in ways that I never expected. They show me that not all demons are the same. I wonder if they can convince me that it’s okay to trust the dark if it means staying safe when I find myself a constant target for reasons that make absolutely no sense to me.
This is a novella length reverse-harem, recommended for 18+
Paige's Perspective
P.S. I cannot remember this book, for the life of me. I know that I read a good chunk of it, but did I finish it? I can't tell.
Have you ever been punched in the face by a hockey player?
Imagine… 6’1” all chiseled goodness, accidentally punching you out into unconsciousness because this girl right here couldn’t let the pucking douche of my ex hit the fine goalie in the face. That’s exactly what happens when you decide to jump into an explosive brawl between two rival teams, thinking they’ll stop if the coach’s daughter gets involved.
Yeah… that didn’t work.
Now, I’m sure you’re wondering how I, Mikayla Cross Johnson, ended up in this predicament.
Let’s rewind.
After graduating with my best friend and becoming certified registered nurses, we decided to go outside the box regarding healthcare. Where did that land us? Getting a sports internship in the hopes of being the team nurse of one of the many NHL hockey teams across North America. Everything goes all fine and dandy until we have to choose different teams.
It shouldn’t be a problem until I realize the star players of each team are my exes.
Cue the theatrics.
Picking the more tolerable ex-boyfriend is one thing, but digging up old wounds is another. These two used to be my best friends—my Heartbreaker Crew—who tore themselves apart. Now, I land on the rival team while my sweet father, the newly hired coach, is assigned to the other. This is the definition of messy, but it can only go downhill from here.
Despite being sandwiched between two professional teams, fighting to be the winners of the NHL championships, and attempting to not fall in love with four players, I’m coming to realize one striking thing.
I might be wearing the wrong pucking jersey.
WRONG PUCKING JERSEYis a spicy 200,000 words ‘why choose’ hockey romance. This book stands alone as the first in a brand new hockey romance series.
Paige's Perspective
Progress: Mostly finished
Prospect: May try another, I did skip a bit
Positives: Cute, light hearted (mostly) read.
Problems: I love hockey. Used to have season tickets & dragged my now husband to a game as soon as he landed in the States love hockey. This was not a hockey book, despite what the cover says. There was just too much that was inaccurate, and I felt professional athletes would not get into those shenanigans when they have a run at the Stanley Cup dangling over them. But to each their own.
