#BookReview: Then, Now, Always by @monashroffwrite @HarlequinBooks

Synopsis: She needs him. But does he want her? 

Maya Rao has made her own dreams come true: she’s the owner of a bustling café and bakery in New York and the mother of a beautiful teenage daughter, Samantha. 

But when Samantha lands in legal trouble over a misdemeanor she didn’t commit, Maya is desperate. 

Desperate enough to call Samantha’s dad, Sam Hutcherson, whom Maya left abruptly many years ago, and who is now a successful lawyer. The problem? Sam doesn’t know he has a daughter.

Sam has put Maya firmly in his past, despite how shattered he was when she broke his heart. So he’s both dumbfounded and furious to find Maya outside his office asking for his help—with a picture of a girl who looks just like him.

 But as Sam reconnects with Maya, those old sparks begin to fly. Can he even picture a future with the woman who wrecked his past?

#BookReview: The Girls with No Names by @serenaburdick

Synopsis: The Girls with No Names pulls readers into the gilded age of New York City in the 1910s, when suffragettes marched in the street, unions fought for better work conditions—and girls were confined to the House of Mercy for daring to break the rules. 

Not far from Luella and Effie Tildon’s large family mansion in Inwood looms the House of Mercy, a work house for wayward girls. The sisters grow up under its shadow with the understanding that even as wealthy young women, their freedoms come with limits. But when the sisters accidentally discover a shocking secret about their father, Luella, the brazen older sister, becomes emboldened to do as she pleases.

But her rebellion comes with consequences, and one morning Luella is mysteriously gone. Effie suspects her father has made good on his threat to send Luella to the House of Mercy and hatches a plan to get herself committed to save her sister. But she made a miscalculation, and with no one to believe her story, Effie’s escape from the House of Mercy seems impossible—unless she can trust an enigmatic girl named Mable. As their fates entwine, Mable and Effie must rely on each other and their tenuous friendship to survive.

The Home for Unwanted Girls meets The Dollhouse in this atmospheric, heartwarming story that explores not only the historical House of Mercy, but the lives—and secrets—of the girls who stayed there.

#BookReview: A Chance for the Rancher by Brenda Harlen

Synopsis: Would you take a risk on a cowboy’s kiss? 

Dating a single mom? Patrick Stafford would never break thatrule…

Patrick Stafford trades his suit for a Stetson and boots and risks it all on a dude ranch. But it’s the veterinarian in Haven, Nevada, who really challenges him. Dr. Brooke Langley is all business, a devoted single mom who is off-limits to a fun-loving bachelor like him. But Patrick should have taken his own advice, because after just one kiss, he’s ready to make the biggest gamble of his life…with his heart. 

#BookReview: Colton's Lethal Reunion (Colton's of Mustang Valley #2) by Tara Taylor Quinn

Synopsis: Long ago, he broke her heart.

Now he’d do anything to save her life.

Rafe Colton and Kerry Wilder were inseparable as kids—until Rafe cut Kerry out of his life without explanation. Now a detective, Kerry unexpectedly crosses paths with Rafe again while investigating a deadly shooting. When Rafe discovers she’s also investigating a cold case that puts her in harm’s way, he vows to work overtime to protect her. But can Rafe redeem his betrayal…and keep her safe? 

#BookReview: Colton Baby Conspiracy (Colton's of Mustang Valley #1) by Marie Ferrarella

Synopsis: Deadly enemies undermine her life and business

When a mysterious email threatens her family’s corporation, executive Marlowe Colton puts all her energy into protecting Colton Oil. But a more shocking scandal comes in the form of her archrival—and one-night lover—Bowie Robertson, who uncovers the consequence of their passion. As danger encroaches, Bowie and Marlowe must put aside any bitterness to safeguard the family neither ever expected.

#BookReview: Rich, Rugged Rancher (Texas Cattleman’s Club: Inheritance #2) by @josswoodbooks

Synopsis: “Why aren’t you pushing me away?”

“Because you kiss like a dream.” 

Ever since the accident that took his leg, oil tycoon Clint Rockwell doesn’t do relationships—he likes being alone. And he doesn’t need anyone’s pity. Then fast-talking reality star Fee Martinez sweeps into Royal, Texas, on to his ranch…and into his bed. It’s only for a night, and then two. Wanting more is impossible, but this goodbye might be the hardest thing he’s ever done…

#BookReview: It Started at Christmas... by @jomcnallyauthor

Synopsis: She was hired to design his house.

Instead she created a home.

Interior designer Amanda Lowery can turn Blake Randall's crumbling castle into a Gallant Lake showplace. But helping the real estate mogul with his guarded heart and his troubled, orphaned nephew? A much bigger challenge. With demons in her own past, Amanda yearns to help them both heal. But will she find the family and safety she's craved...or become a Christmas casualty in Blake's latest business plan?

#BookReview for The Strange Case of Finley Jayne (Steampunk Chronicles 0.5) by @AlterKates

Synopsis: Finley Jayne knows she's not 'normal'. 

Normal girls don't lose time, or have something inside them that makes them capable of remarkably violent things. 

Her behavior has already cost her one job, so when she's offered the lofty position of companion to Phoebe, a debutante recently engaged to Lord Vincent, she accepts, despite having no experience. 

Lord Vincent is a man of science with his automatons and inventions, but Finley is suspicious of his motives where Phoebe is concerned. 

She will do anything to protect her new friend, but what she discovers is even more monstrous than anything she could have imagined.

#BookReview: Runebreaker (The Runebinder Chronicles #2) by Alex R. Kahler

Title: Runebreaker

Series: The Runebinder Chronicles #2
Author: Alex R. Kahler
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopian, LGBT
Pages: Hardcover, 384 pages
Pub Date: November 27th 2018
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Book Source: Publisher
My Rating: 2 Stars

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Synopsis: Magic is sin

Aidan desires only one thing: to rule. Arrogant, headstrong and driven by the element of Fire, he will stop at nothing to bring the evil Howls that destroyed Scotland to their knees. But Fire is a treacherous element, and the very magic that brought him to power could burn his world to ash.

Especially with the blood of his fellow Hunters on his hands.

Driven by a bloodlust he can’t control and dark whispers that may not be entirely in his head, he and his magic-eschewing friend Kianna will do whatever it takes to liberate their broken world. Even at the risk of confronting the Church. Even at the risk of losing his humanity.

But power isn’t the only thing on Aidan’s mind. He’s falling for the intoxicating Tomas, an Incubus who offers everything Aidan desires. For a price.

And if that price burns the world down, well… Aidan is used to playing with Fire.

#BookReview: Runebinder (The Runebinder Chronicles #1) by Alex R. Kahler

Title: Runebinder
Series: The Runebinder Chronicles #1

Author: Alex R. Kahler
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dystopian, LGBT
Pages: Hardcover, 394 pages
Pub Date: November 14th 2017
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Book Source: Purchased
My Rating: DNF

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Synopsis:  Magic is risen.

When magic returned to the world, it could have saved humanity, but greed and thirst for power caused mankind's downfall instead. Now once-human monsters called Howls prowl abandoned streets, their hunger guided by corrupt necromancers and the all-powerful Kin. Only Hunters have the power to fight back in the unending war, using the same magic that ended civilization in the first place.

But they are losing.

Tenn is a Hunter, resigned to fight even though hope is nearly lost. When he is singled out by a seductive Kin named Tomás and the enigmatic Hunter Jarrett, Tenn realizes he's become a pawn in a bigger game. One that could turn the tides of war. But if his mutinous magic and wayward heart get in the way, his power might not be used in favor of mankind.

If Tenn fails to play his part, it could cost him his friends, his life…and the entire world.

#BookReview: Corpse & Crown (Cadaver & Queen #2) by Alisa Kwitney #CorpseCrown #NetGalley

Title: Corpse & Crown

Author: Alisa Kwitney
Series: Cadaver & Queen #2
Genres: Young Adult, Historical, SteamPunk (Oliver Twist, Frankenstein)
Pages: 320
Pub Date: February 12th 2019
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Book Source: NetGalley
My Rating: 3 Stars

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Synopsis: 
Oliver Twist gets a fresh take in this reimagining of the Dickensian classic taking the familiar characters and turning them on their heads in a historical thriller packed with weird science, political suspense, and steamy romance, perfect for fans of Kerri Maniscalco's Stalking Jack the Ripper and Marissa Meyer's Cinder.

From Alisa Kwitney comes a connected novel set in the same alternative Victorian England of Cadaver & Queen. Corpse & Crownfollows the story of Agatha DeLacey, an Ingold nursing student who travels to London and uncovers a devastating secret about the country's Bio-Mechanicals. Inspired by the classic story of Oliver Twist and complete with a dashing Artful Dodger-inspired male lead, this retelling is a satisfying follow-up to Kwitney's clever and critically acclaimed young adult debut.

#BookReview: Fury (Menagerie #3) by Rachel Vincent

About the Book:

1986: Rebecca Essig leaves a slumber party early but comes home to a massacre—committed by her own parents. Only one of her siblings has survived. But as the tragic event unfolds, she begins to realize that other than a small army of six-year-olds, she is among very few survivors of a nationwide slaughter.

The Reaping has begun.

Present day: Pregnant and on the run with a small band of compatriots, Delilah Marlow is determined to bring her baby into the world safely and secretly. But she isn’t used to sitting back while others suffer, and she’s desperate to reunite Zyanya, the cheetah shifter, with her brother and children. To find a way for Lenore the siren to see her husband. To find Rommily’s missing Oracle sisters. To unify this adopted family of fellow cryptids she came to love and rely on in captivity.

But Delilah is about to discover that her role in the human versus cryptid war is destined to be much larger—and more dangerous—than she ever could have imagined. 

#BookReview: Nightingale by Amy Lukavics via @RiseoftheReader #Nightingale #NetGalley

About the Book:

“Takes a slice of mid-twentieth-century Americana and exposes it as an utter and ongoing gender inequality nightmare. Electric, tense, horrifying, and a righteously angry yowl.”

—Paul Tremblay, author of A Head Full of Ghosts and The Cabin at the End of the World


At seventeen, June Hardie is everything a young woman in 1951 shouldn’t be—independent, rebellious, a dreamer. June longs to travel, to attend college and to write the dark science fiction stories that consume her waking hours. But her parents only care about making June a better young woman. Her mother grooms her to be a perfect little homemaker while her father pushes her to marry his business partner’s domineering son. When June resists, her whole world is shattered—suburbia isn’t the only prison for different women…

June’s parents commit her to Burrow Place Asylum, aka the Institution. With its sickening conditions, terrifying staff and brutal “medical treatments,” the Institution preys on June’s darkest secrets and deepest fears. And she’s not alone. The Institution terrorizes June’s fragile roommate, Eleanor, and the other women locked away within its crumbling walls. Those who dare speak up disappear…or worse. Trapped between a gruesome reality and increasingly sinister hallucinations, June isn’t sure where her nightmares end and real life begins. But she does know one thing: in order to survive, she must destroy the Institution before it finally claims them all.


“Nightingale is a beautifully constructed novel featuring out-of-this-world suspense, a classic Stephen King vibe and an edge all its own. If that wasn't enough, its powerful portrayal of gender roles and feminism makes it all too timely and important.”

—Courtney Summers, author of Sadie and This Is Not a Test

#BookTour: When Elephants Fly by Nancy Richardson Fischer @JeanBookNerd #Giveaway #WhenElephantsFly #NetGalley

About the Book:

There are some battles worth fighting even if it means losing yourself.

T. Lily Decker is a high school senior with a twelve-year plan: avoid stress, drugs, alcohol and boyfriends, and take regular psych quizzes administered by her best friend, Sawyer, to make sure she's not developing schizophrenia.Genetics are not on Lily's side.

When she was seven, her mother, who had paranoid schizophrenia, tried to kill her. And a secret has revealed that Lily's odds are even worse than she thought. Still, there's a chance to avoid triggering the mental health condition, if Lily can live a careful life from ages eighteen to thirty, when schizophrenia most commonly manifests.

But when a newspaper internship results in Lily witnessing a mother elephant try to kill her three-week-old calf, Swifty, Lily can't abandon the story or the calf. With Swifty in danger of dying from grief, Lily must choose whether to risk everything, including her sanity and a first love, on a desperate road trip to save the calf's life, perhaps finding her own version of freedom along the way. 

#BookReview: The Iron Flower (The Black Witch Chronicles #2) by @LaurieAnnForest #TheIronFlower #NetGalley #Giveaway

About the Book:

Elloren Gardner and her friends were only seeking to right a few wrongs, but their actions have propelled them straight into the ranks of the realm-wide Resistance against Gardnerian encroachment. As the Resistance struggles against the harsh rulings of High Priest Marcus Vogel and the Mage Council, Elloren begins to realize that none of the people she cares about will be safe if Gardneria seizes control of the Western Realm.

With tensions heating up in Verpacia, more and more Gardnerian soldiers continue to descend upon the university…led by none other than Lukas Grey, now commander of the newly rebuilt Fourth Division base. Though Elloren tries to keep him at arm’s length, Lukas is determined to wandfast to her, convinced that she has inherited her grandmother’s magic—the prophesied power of the Black Witch. As his very nearness seems to awaken a darkness inside her, Elloren finds it more and more difficult to believe that she’s truly powerless, as her uncle always claimed.

Caught between her growing feelings for the rebellious Yvan Guriel and the seductive power offered by Lukas Grey, Elloren must find a way to stay true to what she knows is right and protect everyone she loves…even if that means protecting them from herself.

#BookReview: Light Mage (The Black Witch Chronicles #1.5) by @LaurieAnnForest

About the Book:

Journey to the magical world of Erthia in this exciting prequel to The Black Witch by critically acclaimed author Laurie Forest.


Before Elloren Gardner came to possess the White Wand of myth, the Wand was drawn to another bearer: Sagellyn Gaffney. 


Sage’s affinity for light magery, a rare skill among Gardnerians, makes her the perfect protector for the one tool that can combat the shadows spreading across Erthia. But in order to keep the Wand safe from the dark forces hunting for it, Sage must abandon everything she once knew and forge a new path for herself…a dangerous course that could lead to either triumph or utter ruin.

#BookReview: Wandfasted (The Black Witch Chronicles, #0.5) by Laurie Forest

About the Book:

Magic, romance and adventure collide in WANDFASTED, the irresistible ebook prequel to THE BLACK WITCH 

"When they painted "Heretics" on our barn and set fire to it, I thought that was the worst it could get.

Until they sent the dragons.

But they didn't count on us having dragons of our own. 

And they certainly didn't count on Her. Our Great Mage. 


The Bringer of Fire. The Storm of Death. The Crow Sorceress. 

Our Deliverance.

The Black Witch."

- From WANDFASTED

#BookReview: The Black Witch (The Black Witch Chronicles #1) by @laurieannforest #Giveaway

About the Book:

A new Black Witch will rise…her powers vast beyond imagining.

Elloren Gardner is the granddaughter of the last prophesied Black Witch, Carnissa Gardner, who drove back the enemy forces and saved the Gardnerian people during the Realm War. But while she is the absolute spitting image of her famous grandmother, Elloren is utterly devoid of power in a society that prizes magical ability above all else.

When she is granted the opportunity to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming an apothecary, Elloren joins her brothers at the prestigious Verpax University to embrace a destiny of her own, free from the shadow of her grandmother’s legacy. But she soon realizes that the university, which admits all manner of people—including the fire-wielding, winged Icarals, the sworn enemies of all Gardnerians—is a treacherous place for the granddaughter of the Black Witch.

As evil looms on the horizon and the pressure to live up to her heritage builds, everything Elloren thought she knew will be challenged and torn away. Her best hope of survival may be among the most unlikely band of misfits…if only she can find the courage to trust those she’s been taught to hate and fear.

#BookReview of Lies We Tell Ourselves by @robin_talley

About the Book: In 1959 Virginia, the lives of two girls on opposite sides of the battle for civil rights will be changed forever.

Sarah Dunbar is one of the first black students to attend the previously all-white Jefferson High School. An honors student at her old school, she is put into remedial classes, spit on and tormented daily.

Linda Hairston is the daughter of one of the town's most vocal opponents of school integration. She has been taught all her life that the races should be kept separate but equal.

Forced to work together on a school project, Sarah and Linda must confront harsh truths about race, power and how they really feel about one another.

Boldly realistic and emotionally compelling, Lies We Tell Ourselves is a brave and stunning novel about finding truth amid the lies, and finding your voice even when others are determined to silence it.

#BookReview of Dating Disasters of Emma Nash by Chloe Seager

Reviewed By: Rachael

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Recommended Age: Young Adult

Genre: Contemporary, Romance

Goodreads | Amazon

About the Book: Don’t miss the laugh-out-loud novel of the year!

Online, you can choose who you want to be. If only real life were so easy…

Emma Nash may be down, but after months of wallowing, stalking her ex online and avoiding showering—because, really, who’s going to care?—Emma’s ready to own her newly single status, get out with her friends and chronicle her dating adventures on her private blog.

But life online doesn’t always run smoothly. Stumbling upon her mother’s Tinder dating profile, getting catfished and accidentally telling the entire world why her ex-boyfriend Leon’s not worth any girl’s…um…time… Okay, those were disasters.

But surely nothing else can go wrong?

Filled with fun, flirty encounters and heartwarming friendships, Dating Disasters of Emma Nash will shock and delight scores of readers looking for something fresh.