#BookReview: I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com (Cosmic Chaos #1) by @kimberlylemming

Synopsis:
A hilarious and sexy romance about a woman who gets dropped on a strange planet only to fall for not one, but two, aliens, from the author of I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf.

Dorothy Valentine is close to getting her PhD in wildlife biology when she’s attacked by a lion. On the bright side, she’s saved! On the not-so-bright side, it’s because they’re abducted by aliens. In her scramble to escape, Dory and the lion commandeer an escape pod and crash-land on an alien planet that has...dinosaurs?

Dory and her new lion bestie, Toto, are saved in the nick of time by a mysterious and sexy alien, Sol. On their new adventure, they team up with the equally hot, equally dangerous Lok, who may or may not be a war criminal. Whether it be trauma, fate, or intrigue, Dory can’t resist the attraction that’s developing in their trio....

As this ragtag group of misfits explore their new planet, Dory learns more about how and why they’ve all ended up together, battles more prehistoric creatures than she imagined (she imagined...zero), and questions if she even wants to go back home to Earth in this hilarious and steamy alien romance adventure comedy romp.

#BookReview: The Antlered King (The Raven's Trade, #2) by @theivyandtheoak

Synopsis:
In this stunning conclusion to the Raven’s Trade duology that began with The Gilded Crown, Hellevir’s bargains with Death to save the ones she loves—including the princess she risked everything to bring back to life—may just lead to the ultimate sacrifice.

Hellevir’s gift to raise the dead once thrust her into the center of a court filled with backstabbing and treason, where she became duty bound to protect Princess Sullivain, the sole heir to the kingdom’s throne and target of many rivals eager for the crown. But the more Hellevir risked to keep Sullivain alive, and the more deeply she fell in love with the princess, the greater the cost became—for Hellevir’s power can only be granted by the strange figure who rules the afterlife, and there is always a price to pay.

Now Hellevir may have risked too much, and Sullivain has become obsessed with consolidating power to vanquish her foes once and for all—by whatever means necessary. Cast out to the fringes of a country on the verge of civil war, Hellevir is torn between protecting her heart or giving what little she has left to finish what she started. Yet, her connection with Sullivain runs deeper than the mortal world, and saving her friends and family might mean risking the woman she is still bound to by soul and blood.

To stop a war, Hellevir must unravel the last of Death’s riddles and decide, once and for all, who deserves to live, what a life is worth, and whether she can pay the price. This explosive finale to the Raven’s Trade duology is sure to satisfy fans of dark fantasy and queer romance.

#BookReview: Detained (Beneath the Mask #4) by @authorlunamason @kensingtonbooks

Synopsis:
Frankie
I don’t have to hide behind a mask anymore.
I rule New York, and now all I have to do is finish what I started ten years ago. 
To destroy the man who took my life from me. 
No one can get in my way. 
That is until I am arrested for murder and have my first taste of Detective Zara O’Reilly.
The woman hell bent on ruining my plans. 
She thinks I don’t know she’s watching my every move, waiting to drag me back into that prison cell. 
She can pretend I’m the enemy all she likes. 
In reality, she craves me as much as I do her. 
No matter how much we fight it.
My stalker becomes my obsession.
She doesn’t realize the power she holds, not only over me, but the city. 
Together we will be unstoppable… if she lets me break her.

#BookReview: In the Shadow of Silence by @raedumont7 @shewritespress

Synopsis:

After a lonely childhood, this novel follows love and joy—until the descent untreated depression ends with unbearable loss, forcing a family to deal with the shocking and immediate aftermath of suicide.

Eva’s lonely childhood has given her an intuitive connection with kids and teenagers. She is a gifted child psychiatrist. Single, she dreams of having her own children, and she yearns for love. The future seems bright when she meets Lyman; They build a family. They share adventures. They meet life’s challenges as team. They navigate a bout of Lyman’s depression; treatment works.

They share rich, fulfilling years while their careers develop, and their children grow up.

When their sons enter adulthood and their daughter is a teenager, they plan an entire summer as a family. But Lyman abruptly stops both therapy and medication. He spirals into a dark and irritable isolation that none of them can penetrate.

After his brutal suicide, Eva is left to cope and to guide her children through the trauma, as they each rebuild their lives.

EDITOR'S PICK BookLife and Publishers' Weekly

#BookReview: Between Two Kings (Split or Swallow, #2) by @oxfordlemon

Synopsis:
From internet sensation and Amazon bestseller Lindsay Straube comes the second book in the sexy, biting Split or Swallow series, featuring dangerous basilisks, competitive seduction, and a love triangle that could destroy kingdoms.

#BookReview: My Funny Demon Valentine (Hell Bent, #1) by @aurora.ascher.author

Synopsis:
Asmodeus, Prince of Hell, just wants to play music. Jazz, specifically.

Unfortunately, he’s a demon, and he’s supposed to be evil. A career as a musician isn’t exactly an option.
And he’s cursed, to top it all off.

Sick of playing by the rules, Ash and his brothers escape Hell in search of freedom on Earth, only to discover it’s harder than they thought to keep their enemies off their tail. The four rogues quickly become the Underworld’s Most Wanted, and if they’re caught… 
The consequences will be dire.

Everything changes for Ash when he meets a beautiful violinist who can see through his curse. It must be too good to be true, but he can’t resist the temptation.
No matter the risk, he has to have her.

Evangeline Gregory is just your average human. She works at a jazz bar, plays gigs on weekends…
And, apparently, hallucinates demons.

At least, that’s what she tells herself happens when, moments after she meets the man of her dreams, she sees him shift into a seven-foot-tall, red-skinned monster.

Not believing her own eyes, Eva decides to investigate and soon finds herself caught in the middle of a supernatural clusterf**k of epic proportions. But Ash isn’t the only one keeping secrets, and the search for answers reveals a shocking truth that will change the course of her life forever.

Or maybe just doom it.


My Funny Demon Valentine is a steamy paranormal romance about learning how to love (and what love is in the first place) with an HEA, clothes-ripping-hot love scenes, and a crew of devilish demon brothers who are supposed to be the bad guys.
There’s violence, sex, and too much swearing. You’ve been warned.

#BookReview: Ruthless Creatures (Queens & Monsters #1) by @jtgeissingerauthor

Synopsis:
An explosive new novel of love, lies, and obsession from bestselling author J.T. Geissinger.

Five years ago, my fiancé disappeared. He left me with a wedding dress I’d never wear. Left me with the kind of scars that can’t be healed. The man I built my future on vanished like a ghost. All that remained were my broken heart and unanswered questions.

Until a mysterious stranger arrives in town. 

Tall, dark, and dangerous, Kage is as full of secrets as he is sex appeal. Though I know he’s hiding something, I’m drawn to him like a moth to flame.

The intensity of our connection is addictive, unlike anything I’ve ever felt before. Heat crackles between us with every look, desire flares into passion, and I fall hard, unable to resist.

But when I discover how he’s tied to the darkness in my past, I learn what happens when you fly recklessly into fire:

You get burned.

#BookReview: Gilded Hero by @c.mtillman

Synopsis:

When you are a human living in a world full of Superheroes, making something of yourself seems like an impossible task. Supers are on the highest pedestal, leaving the rest of us to chase after them in the streets like they’re celebrities.

I don’t want to end up like everyone else - stuck in a menial job for life while the Supers are fawned over for doing even the simplest of tasks.

I want more. I need more.

And more comes in the form of Athos, a charismatic Super whom I can’t stop thinking about after a spicy one-night stand. Athos has everything, from super strength to the ability to fly, and a smile that can weaken your knees. The only thing he doesn’t have is fame.

Until we come up with an idea to help us both succeed on our terms.

Then the other Supers catch on, and I find myself entangled in their secret world, fighting for survival with only Athos to rely on.

Not all heroes are what they seem.

#BookReview: Cursed (Court of Isles #1) by @ginalamanna

Synopsis:
Allie Wells is many things: Doctor. Runaway bride. Fae.

Except for two huge problems:

She doesn’t believe in magic.

The Fae were killed off centuries ago.

Alessia “Allie” Wells is a woman of science. She doesn’t believe in things like werewolves and vampires, sparkly or otherwise. Until her wedding day, when a darkly alluring man appears and kidnaps her in the middle of her glamorous Upper East Side nuptials, whisking her away to a magical island.

As the weeks pass, Alessia struggles to accept this new world—an enchanting land rife with fascinating creatures—and her place in it. She soon learns of the curse that is holding her new island captive…and killing everyone on it. Only a true Fae can break the curse. Which is impossible, seeing as Fae have been extinct for centuries.

When Alessia discovers that she is the only remaining full-blooded Fae in existence, she accepts her responsibility to save the island, and everyone on it. The longer Alessia stays, the more she falls in love with her new home. For the first time ever, she feels like she belongs. Not least of all because of the intensely powerful man who has slowly been capturing her heart...

But if Alessia can’t undo the curse holding this island hostage, then none of it will matter—because she’ll lose everything she’s come to love.


But if Alessia can’t undo the curse holding this island hostage, then none of it will matter—because she’ll lose everything she’s come to love.

#BookReview: We Are the Beasts by @gigi.griffis

Synopsis:
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Praesent volutpat justo vitae urna ultricies, vel facilisis neque fermentum.

#BookReview: Ship of Spells by @hleightondickson

Synopsis:
A war-scarred mage. A sentient ship. A secret that could drown empires. 

When Ensign Bluemage Honor Renn is rescued from the wreckage of her first naval post, she expects death or disgrace. Instead, she wakes aboard the Touchstone, a mythic vessel whispered of in dockside ballads and royal war rooms alike. With a crew of misfits. A mysterious, elven captain. And a mission tied to the Dreadwall, the crumbling barrier that has kept the Overland and Nethersea from open war for a hundred years.

But the tragedy that sank her last ship didn’t just take lives―it left something behind.

Now Renn carries a secret everyone wants. A magik that’s chimeric, arcane...and slowly killing her. But the captain’s mission may be her only chance to survive, even if he still doesn’t trust her.

Caught between privateers, princes, and spies, Renn knows each choice could sink her future―or set the sea on fire.

Ship of Spells is perfect for readers who crave the raw grit of Arya Stark, the world-building of Samantha Shannon, and the slow-burn tension of enemies who should never trust or want each other.

#BookReview: Variation by @RebeccaYarros

Synopsis:
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Fourth Wing comes a new contemporary romance about the summer a celebrated dancer returns home and unearths years of family secrets with the Coast Guard rescue swimmer she never forgot.

Elite ballerina Allie Rousseau is no stranger to pressure. With her mother’s eyes always watching, perfection was expected, no matter the cost. But when an injury jeopardizes all she’s sacrificed for, Allie returns to her summer home to heal and recover. But the memories she’s tried to forget rush in and threaten to take her under.

As a Coast Guard rescue swimmer, Hudson Ellis knows that hesitation can mean the difference between life and death. He’s always prided himself on being in the right place at the right time, especially when it came to Allie Rousseau…until the night he left for basic. After the biggest regret of his life, the secrets he keeps mean he can never be with the one woman he wants more than his next breath.

When Hudson’s niece shows up on Allie’s doorstep, desperate to find her birth mother, Allie finds herself in an unimaginable position. Allie and Hudson’s past and present might be endlessly complicated. The thread that tied them to each other all those years ago may have unraveled, but the truth could pull them back together, or drive them apart forever.

#BookReview: Beautiful Broken Love by Shanora Williams @reallyshanora

Synopsis:
From New York Times bestselling author Shanora Williams comes an emotional page-turner about two people still reeling from tragedy who look to each other for the strength to move forward.

It’s been months since her dreams of forever were brutally shattered. Seven long months since her husband and soulmate, Lew, died in her arms, leaving her to carry on. Alone. And Davina Klein-Roberts still isn’t sure how to move forward.

To escape her anguish, Davina throws everything into work, pushing Golden Oil Co., her self-built skincare line, to become a viral success. Now she’s poised to clinch a major endorsement deal too. But it’s bittersweet without Lew by her side.

A meeting with Deke Bishop, the hot NBA star she’s courting for her brand, leaves Davina flustered. With his dimpled smile and warm handshake, Deke’s a natural pitchman. And he’s clearly interested—not only in her lotions.

Davina soon discovers that Deke’s more than just another player and carries his own pain. But as her feelings for him grow, so does her guilt. Will the pain of a future already lost keep her from embracing hope for a new one?

#BookReview: Carnal Urges (Queens and Monsters, #2) by @jtgeissingerauthor

Synopsis:
Carnal (adjective):
1) Relating to the pleasures of the body
2) Given to sensual indulgence
3) The man who kidnapped me

The devil has blue eyes, an Irish accent, and a hatred for me that runs deep.

He blames me for starting a war. Consorting with his enemies. Getting his men killed. Though I’m innocent on all charges, he wants his pound of flesh. With an eye on revenge, he makes me his captive.

But as we’ll both soon discover, there are more powerful urges than that for revenge.

When the devil meets his match but she’s his sworn enemy, that’s when the real war begins.

#BookReview: When I Was Theirs by @evelynfloodauthor

Synopsis:
The sky raged on the night that I met Benjamin Bennett.
I should have known.
Bad things always happen when the sky rages.

Ben Bennett blows into my life like a whirlwind. Intent on keeping my head down, he pushes me to look up. To look at the stars.

To dance in the rain.
To love the little moments.
To love him.

Loving Ben is easy. As easy as breathing. Until the worst happens, and I’m left alone to pick up my broken pieces for the second time.

Except now there’s Jared. Ben’s brother is angry, and I’m his favorite target. He wants nothing to do with me. I want nothing to do with him. But when my world flips again, Jared Bennett becomes the one person holding me together.

If only he wasn’t the one who broke me.

Please note that this book contains heavy, emotional themes.

#BookReview: The Man Next Door by Sheila Roberts

Synopsis:
Love in the Time of Serial Killers meets The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window in this delightful romp about a recently broke divorcée who moves in with her housebound mother only to spend their days spying on her grumpy, mysterious and sexy new neighbor.

Zona never thought her life was headed this way, but here she is, newly divorced and moving back in with her mom, Louise. After her gambling addicted ex-husband lost all of their savings, including their daughter's college fund, she doesn't really have a choice. She's cutting every coupon she can and she's going to help put her daughter through nursing school, even if it kills her.

This wasn't Louise's plan, either, laid up at home with a broken leg after one unfortunate tumble on the senior singles cruise she'd been looking forward to for months. But if she's going to spend all her time at home, at least she's got her daughter there with her. And there's some hot new eye candy next door to distract them both from their troubles. He appears to be single and just around Zona's age. Could his arrival be the universe making amends for everything it's put her through?

Maybe the universe isn't feeling as generous as Louise hoped. There’s something lurking under that mans surface charm, something…dangerous? And who's the woman they can hear him in all-out shouting matches with on the other side of the fence? When the woman seems to disappear without a trace, imaginations run wild. Or at least, Zona hopes it's just her mother's imagination...

#BookReview: Snow Kissed by RaeAnne Thayne

Synopsis:
'Tis the season for a little white lie...

Christmas has always been single mom Holly Goodwin Moore's favorite time of year. The twinkly lights on the tree, the cookies in the oven, the snow on the ground. But she's just not feeling it this year. The wedding in her ex's family is almost here, her daughter, Lydia, is bursting at the seams to be a flower girl...and Holly couldn't be dreading it more. She told a little white lie about having a new boyfriend as her plus-one, hoping to save face. She needs a date for the wedding...and she needs it now.

Ryan Caldwell wants to be free this holiday season. So even he isn't sure how he landed in Shelter Springs, looking after his niece, Audrey, with his estranged father down the road. But when he meets Holly, she makes him want to belong for the very first time. So they make a deal: he'll be her date if she'll help him give Audrey a true Christmas to remember while her mom is away.

#BookReview: The Things Gods Break (The Crucible #2) by @abigailowenauthor

Synopsis:
THE SECOND BOOK IN THE CRUCIBLE TRILOGY FROM THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES, #1 USA TODAY BESTSELLER, THE GAMES GODS PLAY

She has won the games of the gods, can she stand against the titans? Lyra may have survived the Crucible, but now she faces an even more dangerous test - a deadly race against time begins in Tartarus.

The games continue in the thrilling and highly anticipated follow-up to the bestselling romantasy The Games Gods Play. Welcome to Tartarus!

#BookReview: Twinkle of Doubt: A Celestial Bodies Romance by @patricialeavy

Synopsis:
For fans of Colleen Hoover, this inspirational follow-up to Shooting Stars Above continues the love story between internationally best-selling novelist Tess and counterterrorism agent Jack as they both fight to overcome their deepest fears.

Tess Lee is a wildly successful and world-famous novelist whose inspirational books explore our innermost struggles and the human need to believe that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Jack Miller is a federal agent who has spent decades working in counterterrorism—a violent world that has left an inevitable residue on his psyche.

Two years into their marriage, as Tess and Jack both heal from past trauma, their epic love, fostered by their ability to truly see one another, has brought them profound happiness. When an anonymous threat is made against Tess’s life, however, everything changes. Will they learn to lean on each other, or will they fall apart into the darkness?

In Twinkle of Doubt, the second Celestial Bodies Romance, Tess, Jack, and their chosen family explore the nature of doubt and the struggle to feel worthy of love.

#BookReview: The Winter Goddess by @meganwbarnard

Synopsis:
A goddess is cursed to endlessly live and die as a mortal until she understands the value of human life, in this inventive, moving reimagining of Gaelic mythology.

Cailleach, goddess of winter, was not born to be a blight on humanity, but she became it. If anyone asked her, she would say with scorn that it was their own humans were selfish, thoughtless, and destructive, bringing harm to each other and the Earth without cause or qualms. 

One day, Cailleach goes too far. Thousands die, lost to her brutal winter. In punishment, her mother Danu, the queen of the gods, strips the goddess of her powers and sends Cailleach to Earth, to live and die as the mortals she so despises, until she understands what it is to be a human. Though determined to live in solitude, Cailleach finds that she cannot help but reach for the people she once held in such disdain. She loves and mourns in equal measure, and in opening herself to humanity, hears tales not meant for immortal ears—and a secret long-buried, that will redefine what it means to be a god.