#BookReview: Out of Breath (Breathing #3) by Rebecca Donovan

Synopsis: Emma leaves Weslyn and everyone in it behind to attend Stanford University, just as she always intended. A shell of her former self, she is not the same girl. She is broken, and the only way that she’ll be whole again is through forgiveness. Emma must find a way to forgive herself and recognize her own worth before she can receive the love she deserves. This final installment will have readers holding their breath until the very last page.

#BookReview: Witch Please (Fix-It Witches #1) by Ann Aguirre

Synopsis: Practical Magic meets Gilmore Girls in this adorable witchy rom-com with:

• A bisexual virgin baker with a curse
• A witch looking to avoid romantic entanglements
• And a chemistry between them that causes literal sparks

Danica Waterhouse is a fully modern witch—daughter, granddaughter, cousin, and co-owner of the Fix-It Witches, a magical tech repair shop. After a messy breakup that included way too much family “feedback,” Danica made a pact with her cousin: they’ll keep their hearts protected and have fun, without involving any of the overly opinionated Waterhouse matriarchs. Danica is more than a little exhausted navigating a long-standing family feud where Gram thinks the only good mundane is a dead one and Danica’s mother weaves floral crowns for anyone who crosses her path. 

Three blocks down from the Fix-It Witches, Titus Winnaker, owner of Sugar Daddy’s bakery, has family trouble of his own. After a tragic loss, all he’s got left is his sister, the bakery, and a lifetime of terrible luck in love. Sure, business is sweet, but he can’t seem to shake the romantic curse that’s left him past thirty and still a virgin. He’s decided he’s doomed to be forever alone.

Until he meets Danica Waterhouse. The sparks are instant, their attraction irresistible. For him, she’s the one. To her, he’s a firebomb thrown in the middle of a family war. Can a modern witch find love with an old-fashioned mundane who refuses to settle for anything less than forever?

#BookReview: Followers of the Owl (Wakefield Chronicles, #2) by M.G. Hernandez

Synopsis: A girl and a boy, haunted by their past, must battle their personal demons to fight the evil hiding in plain sight.

Eighteen-year-old Dee Bailey works hard on her personal brand. She’s intelligent and passionate about her community. To her peers, she’s a great friend and everyone’s favorite social butterfly. 

But when alone, she’s terrorized by a secret that leaves her cowering to the floor. Until one night, a mysterious girl in white appears on the manicured lawn of her family’s vacation home. She follows the robed figure into the woods with no clue that she’s about to change the course of her future.

Meanwhile, Brandon Cuenca is drowning in the weight of his self-sabotage. Mourning the death of his girlfriend, he throws himself deep into a world of drug binges and questionable life choices—until the news of another disappearance of a Wakefield teenager forces him to set his problems aside. The victim was the third girl abducted in their social circle. 

But when a chance encounter lands him in her path, he learns that bringing her home is more complicated than finding her. What happens when the missing doesn’t want to be found?

Followers of the Owl explores greed, avarice and the human need to find light in the darkness.

#BookReview: Beneath the Starlit Sea by Nicole Bea

Synopsis: Sorceress Illyse prefers to isolate herself from the age-old conflict between her coven and the humans of Sjökanten, but not at the expense of her own life. Captured by the king's men, she is threatened with the ultimate demise for sorceresses—being forever imprisoned in ore—unless she manages to put an end to the gruesome murders of human citizens at the hands of a mysterious sea creature.

Bound by an iron band that limits her power, Illyse, and her fox familiar, join with Garit Darling, a medical practitioner and an enigma unto himself. Together, they delve deep into forgotten lore and forbidden romantic entanglements, despite a ban on relationships between sorceresses and humans. However, when it is discovered that Garit's past is more closely tied to their investigation than either initially realizes, soon their passion and distraction from the crimes may just be at the cost of Illyse's potential freedom... and Garit's life.

Perfect for fans of The Witcher and A Lady's Guide to Mischief and Mayhem by Manda Collins, this new adult romantic fantasy will sweep you away with lush worldbuilding, delicate details, and deep emotions to dig into. 

#BookReview: In the Shadow of a Wish (Fareview Fairy Tale #1) by Maci Aurora

Synopsis: In the Kingdom of Kaloma, women are forced to marry by the age of 26. It’s the law.

In the remote village of Sevens, at the northernmost point of the kingdom, there lives an impoverished family with four daughters and a son. Without the means to make love matches, the daughters are trapped by their circumstances.

When one daughter discovers a golden key deep in the Whitling Woods, it may have the power to change everything...

Auri Fareview, practical and realistic, does what she can to serve her family. When she finds a golden key that could be the answer she needs to save her sisters from the unjust Kaloma Marriage Laws, she discovers the treasure might be more than she bargained for. Enchanted, it doesn’t just come with a price attached, it’s also home to an imprisoned god, who wreaks havoc on her body, her heart, and her soul. And those aren’t practical matters. He has the power to break her.

Nixus Uraiahs has lost track of how long he’s been imprisoned by the spell on the key. There have been six key-keepers, all of whom have failed to break the spell to free him, and Nix knows he’s the reason why they haven’t. So, he will hold this 7th key-keeper accountable to the bargain of the spell: three wishes and a price for each. There’s no hope in her freeing him, however. Nix knows she'll be like all the key-keepers who came before her. Except Auri approaches her wishes differently than any of the others, and Nix begins to see her as more than just a key-keeper. She intrigues him, proving her strength, surprising him, and enchanting him. Though he’s entrapped by the enchantment placed on the key, Nix realizes his heart is at risk of being captured by the seventh key-keeper. That is a risk he can’t afford to take knowing his villainy is just a single wish away.

#BookReview: The War of Two Queens (Blood and Ash #4) by @JLArmentrout

Synopsis: From the desperation of golden crowns…

Casteel Da’Neer knows all too well that very few are as cunning or vicious as the Blood Queen, but no one, not even him, could’ve prepared for the staggering revelations. The magnitude of what the Blood Queen has done is almost unthinkable.

And born of mortal flesh…

Nothing will stop Poppy from freeing her King and destroying everything the Blood Crown stands for. With the strength of the Primal of Life’s guards behind her, and the support of the wolven, Poppy must convince the Atlantian generals to make war her way—because there can be no retreat this time. Not if she has any hope of building a future where both kingdoms can reside in peace.

A great primal power rises…

Together, Poppy and Casteel must embrace traditions old and new to safeguard those they hold dear—to protect those who cannot defend themselves. But war is only the beginning. Ancient primal powers have already stirred, revealing the horror of what began eons ago. To end what the Blood Queen has begun, Poppy might have to become what she has been prophesied to be—what she fears the most.

As the Harbinger of Death and Destruction.

#BookClub: King of Battle and Blood (Adrian X Isolde #1) by @ScarlettStClai1

Synopsis: Their Union Is His Revenge.

Isolde de Lara considers her wedding day her death day. To end a years-long war, she is to marry vampire king, Adrian Aleksandr Vasiliev, and kill him. 

But her assassination attempt is thwarted and Adrian threatens that if Isolde tries to kill him again, he will raise her as the undead. Faced with the possibility of becoming the thing she hates most, Isolde seeks other ways to defy him and survive the brutal vampire court. 

Except it isn’t the court she fears most — it’s Adrian. Despite their undeniable chemistry, she wonders why the king — fierce, savage, merciless — chose her as consort. 

The answer will shatter her world.

#BookReview: The ​Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and Ash, #3) by @JLArmentrout

Synopsis: She's been the victim and the survivor…

Poppy never dreamed she would find the love she’s found with Prince Casteel. She wants to revel in her happiness but first they must free his brother and find hers. It’s a dangerous mission and one with far-reaching consequences neither dreamed of. Because Poppy is the Chosen, the Blessed. The true ruler of Atlantia. She carries the blood of the King of Gods within her. By right the crown and the kingdom are hers.

The enemy and the warrior…

Poppy has only ever wanted to control her own life, not the lives of others, but now she must choose to either forsake her birthright or seize the gilded crown and become the Queen of Flesh and Fire. But as the kingdoms’ dark sins and blood-drenched secrets finally unravel, a long-forgotten power rises to pose a genuine threat. And they will stop at nothing to ensure that the crown never sits upon Poppy’s head.

A lover and heartmate…

But the greatest threat to them and to Atlantia is what awaits in the far west, where the Queen of Blood and Ash has her own plans, ones she has waited hundreds of years to carry out. Poppy and Casteel must consider the impossible—travel to the Lands of the Gods and wake the King himself. And as shocking secrets and the harshest betrayals come to light, and enemies emerge to threaten everything Poppy and Casteel have fought for, they will discover just how far they are willing to go for their people—and each other.

And now she will become Queen.

#BookReview: A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Blood and Ash, #2) by Jennifer Armentrout

Synopsis: A Betrayal…

Everything Poppy has ever believed in is a lie, including the man she was falling in love with. Thrust among those who see her as a symbol of a monstrous kingdom, she barely knows who she is without the veil of the Maiden. But what she does know is that nothing is as dangerous to her as him. The Dark One. The Prince of Atlantia. He wants her to fight him, and that’s one order she’s more than happy to obey. He may have taken her, but he will never have her.

A Choice...

Casteel Da’Neer is known by many names and many faces. His lies are as seductive as his touch. His truths as sensual as his bite. Poppy knows better than to trust him. He needs her alive, healthy, and whole to achieve his goals. But he’s the only way for her to get what she wants—to find her brother Ian and see for herself if he has become a soulless Ascended. Working with Casteel instead of against him presents its own risks. He still tempts her with every breath, offering up all she’s ever wanted. Casteel has plans for her. Ones that could expose her to unimaginable pleasure and unfathomable pain. Plans that will force her to look beyond everything she thought she knew about herself—about him. Plans that could bind their lives together in unexpected ways that neither kingdom is prepared for. And she’s far too reckless, too hungry, to resist the temptation.

A Secret…

But unrest has grown in Atlantia as they await the return of their Prince. Whispers of war have become stronger, and Poppy is at the very heart of it all. The King wants to use her to send a message. The Descenters want her dead. The wolven are growing more unpredictable. And as her abilities to feel pain and emotion begin to grow and strengthen, the Atlantians start to fear her. Dark secrets are at play, ones steeped in the blood-drenched sins of two kingdoms that would do anything to keep the truth hidden. But when the earth begins to shake, and the skies start to bleed, it may already be too late.

#BookReview: From Blood and Ash (Blood and Ash #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Synopsis: A Maiden…

Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.

A Duty…

The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.

A Kingdom…

Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel.

#BookReview: A Court of Mist and Fury (A Court of Thorns and Roses #2) by Sarah J. Maas

Synopsis: Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court—but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world cleaved in two.

With more than a million copies sold of her beloved Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas's masterful storytelling brings this second book in her seductive and action-packed series to new heights.

#BookReview: The Reaper's Call (Bloodcaster Chronicles Book 3) by R.L. Perez

Synopsis: An assassin on the run. An angel through time. A powerful immortal enemy.

Cora Covington, once feared assassin, is on the run with the last remaining survivors of her demon coven. But as she struggles to retaliate against her power-hungry father, she realizes the cost to defeat him is more devastating than she feared.

Vince Delgado walks the line between Reapers and Timekeepers, desperate to get back to Cora. The more he uncovers about the Timekeepers, the more secrets he finds buried within the timeline... until he comes face-to-face with a deadly threat that transcends the laws of time.

Cora and Vince must rely on their skills—and the strength of their love—in order to survive. But when their enemies align, the star-crossed lovers must confront their battles head-on before the world is torn apart.

Even if it destroys them both.

**This book contains strong sexual content**

#BookReview: Spoiler Alert (Spoiler Alert #1) by @OliviaWrites

Synopsis: Olivia Dade bursts onto the scene in this delightfully fun romantic comedy set in the world of fanfiction, in which a devoted fan goes on an unexpected date with her celebrity crush, who’s secretly posting fanfiction of his own. 

Marcus Caster-Rupp has a secret. While the world knows him as Aeneas, the star of the biggest show on TV, Gods of the Gates, he's known to fanfiction readers as Book!AeneasWouldNever, an anonymous and popular poster.  Marcus is able to get out his own frustrations with his character through his stories, especially the ones that feature the internet’s favorite couple to ship, Aeneas and Lavinia. But if anyone ever found out about his online persona, he’d be fired. Immediately.

April Whittier has secrets of her own. A hardcore Lavinia fan, she’s hidden her fanfiction and cosplay hobby from her “real life” for years—but not anymore. When she decides to post her latest Lavinia creation on Twitter, her photo goes viral. Trolls and supporters alike are commenting on her plus-size take, but when Marcus, one half of her OTP, sees her pic and asks her out on a date to spite her critics, she realizes life is really stranger than fanfiction.

Even though their first date is a disaster, Marcus quickly realizes that he wants much more from April than a one-time publicity stunt. And when he discovers she’s actually Unapologetic Lavinia Stan, his closest fandom friend, he has one more huge secret to hide from her.

With love and Marcus’s career on the line, can the two of them stop hiding once and for all, or will a match made in fandom end up prematurely cancelled?

#BookBlitz: The Darkest Vampire by @JulianaHaygert @XpressoTours #Giveaway

The Darkest Vampire
Juliana Haygert
(Rite World: Vampire Wars, #1)
Publication date: October 29th 2021
Genres: New Adult, Urban Fantasy

Supernaturals around Portland are turning up dead. I’m next … if the vampire I just made a powerful bond with doesn’t kill me first. 

Magic is in a short supply for a half-witch like me, which makes things very difficult when I’m bound by a blood promise to avenge my parents.

With no leads left to follow, I make a bargain with a demon for help. Bad decision. The quest the demon sends me on binds me to a vampire named Killian, a half-mad, half-naked monster who hates my guts almost as much as he longs to drink my blood.

Killian swore to kill all witches on sight, but we agree to work together to solve the murders ravaging the city. He despises me, and I can’t stand him… but there’s an unexpected connection between us, something I can’t help but be curious about.

No, I can’t let anything distract me. Not even a hot and enraging vampire who presses all of my freaking buttons. I’m determined to find my parents’ killers, and stop the chaos taking over the supernatural world.

If only love didn’t get in the way.

A delicious slow-burn enemies to lovers novel, The Darkest Vampire is a new adult urban fantasy that’s full of dark romance, adventure, and twists you won’t see coming. Fans of Linsey Hall, Leia Stone, and Jaymin Eve are going to become obsessed with this brand-new paranormal series by Juliana Haygert!

#BookBlitz: Calling Quarters by Jen Stevens @XpressoTours $15 Amazon gift card

Calling Quarters
Jen Stevens
(Beacon Grove, #1)
Publication date: October 7th 2021
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult

I was raised to believe that towns full of witches were only in movies, and those spell books my aunt studied were just a silly pastime. I had no idea of the important role I play in a coven with zero knowledge of my existence, or the sacrifice my parents made by leaving behind everything they knew to protect me.

In the wake of my aunt’s mysterious death, I have no other choice but to return to my birthplace for answers. But Beacon Grove is a twisted place where distrust spreads like cancer, lies fester, and the truth is nearly impossible to find.

One thing I’m sure of is the danger that Remy Winters and our inexplicable connection pose to me as one of the Quarters of the Watchtower coven. Through painstaking research and placing my trust in this man who has been trained since birth to hunt me, I learn that my family is far more intertwined with the tight-knit town than I originally thought.

I could be exactly what they need to save their beloved Quarters, but admitting what I am to those who have been brainwashed into fearing me could put my life at risk.

Calling Quarters is a twisted tale of corruption, lies, and a love story written in the stars.

#BookBlitz: The New Billionaire Boss by Tina Gabor @XpressoTours $25 Amazon gift card

The New Billionaire Boss
Tina Gabor
Publication date: September 28th 2021
Genres: Comedy, Contemporary, New Adult, Romance

My life was finally on track.
Until my boss’s brother transferred to our office.

From the minute I met the broody, handsome, and infuriating Aiden Bronson, he was destroying all of my carefully made plans.

First, he hijacked my Uber. Then, he caused an accident that left me out of work for months.

Except, the disastrous day we spent together turned into the most fun day of my life.

And now, I can’t stop thinking about him. And that kiss…

I doubt he feels the same about me, and even if he did, any future together is hopeless.

He’s not allowed to date employees.
And without any family to fall back on, I can’t risk my livelihood.

But when he becomes my new boss, and we get trapped together in a beach house, I don’t know if I can resist risking it all.

THE NEW BILLIONAIRE BOSS is book one of the Bronson Billionaire Romance Series, but can be read as a complete standalone! Guaranteed to have you swooning and breathless. It includes a fierce and funny heroine and a charming, playboy hero.

#CoverReveal: Golden Crown by Kathleen Mare'e @XpressoTours

Golden Crown
Kathleen Mare’e
(Arthur Academy, #2)
Publication date: November 25th 2021
Genres: New Adult, Romance

“If the world is full of monsters, how do we know who wears the crown…”

Hendrix:
In the dark of the night he bared his soul, delivering a shocking event that should’ve changed everything.

So why in the light of day, does everything appear the same…?

The further I’m immersed in this world he calls the ‘elite’, the more I don’t understand. And it’s not only his world I’m afraid I’m falling for, but the Golden Crown himself as well.

But Pax still has secrets.

And I want him to trust me, like a flame wanting fire.

Because despite his world being nothing as it seems, I’m not sure I could walk away even if I wanted to.

Because the truth be told, I don’t want to.

I want him.
Paxton:
In the dark of the night I revealed a truth, delivering the brutal reality of what the elite really means.

So why in the light of day, does everything appear the same…?

It’s the same cat and mouse games, and the same political, power tricks where the Golden Crown is all they see. It’s all they want to see.

Except for her.

But there are things I can’t tell her. Things I don’t think she’ll understand yet.

And I need her to trust me, like a fire needing flame.

Because despite me knowing what this world does to those who fall victim to it, I’m not sure I could walk away from Hendrix, even if I wanted to.

Because the truth be told, I don’t want to.

I want her.

#CoverReveal: Calling Quarters by Jen Stevens @XpressoTours

Calling Quarters
Jen Stevens
(Beacon Grove, #1)
Publication date: October 7th 2021
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult

Description: I was raised to believe that towns full of witches were only in movies, and those spell books my aunt studied were just a silly pastime. I had no idea of the important role I play in a coven with zero knowledge of my existence, or the sacrifice my parents made by leaving behind everything they knew to protect me.

In the wake of my aunt's mysterious death, I have no other choice but to return to my birthplace for answers. But Beacon Grove is a twisted place where distrust spreads like cancer, lies fester, and the truth is nearly impossible to find. 

One thing I’m sure of is the danger that Remy Wildes and our inexplicable connection pose to me as one of the Quarters of the Watchtower coven. Through painstaking research and placing my trust in this man who has been trained since birth to hunt me, I learn that my family is far more intertwined with the tight-knit town than I originally thought. 

I could be exactly what they need to save their beloved Quarters, but admitting what I am to those who have been brainwashed into fearing me could put my life at risk.

Calling Quarters is a twisted tale of corruption, lies, and a love story written in the stars.

#BookBlitz: A Touch of Brimstone by McKenzie Hunter @XpressoTours#Giveaway

A Touch of Brimstone
McKenzie Hunter
(Magic of the Damned, #1)
Publication date: August 19th 2021
Genres: Adult, Fantasy, New Adult

They say you should never make a deal with the devil, but what about with the Prince of the Underworld?

Fresh off a breakup and an eviction, I started my day like any other: a book in one hand, a coffee in the other, and faking that can-do attitude inspirational memes are made of. I was ready to take on the world—and I did.
Unfortunately, it was the Underworld.

One freak accident later, I’m standing face to face with the sexy-as-sin and dangerously powerful Prince of the Underworld. He has a few burning questions for me—like how a mere human unlocked the door to the Underworld’s prison and released its prisoners.

I’d sure as hell like to know, too, because I have no freaking clue.

Now, instead of a forgettable bookstore clerk, I’m newly famous for doing the impossible. The wrong people want to thank me, and the rest want me dead. Spoiler alert: The Dark Prince definitely doesn’t want to thank me.

I’ll do anything to get my life back to normal and he’ll do anything to recapture the escapees. We make a deal: He’ll keep my enemies at bay, and I’ll find a way to return the prisoners.

What could possibly go wrong?

#BookBlitz: Enchanted Kisses by @taragallina @XpressoTours #Giveaway $50 Amazon gift card

Enchanted Kisses
Chelsea Bobulski
(Tara Gallina)
Publication date: September 2nd 2021
Genres: Magical Realism, New Adult

What’s a girl to do when death is the worst and best thing that can happen to her?

Lily cares for three things above all else: nature, her father, and her best friend, Caiden.

Caiden isn’t the typical hot guy, but his eyes glow—sometimes literally—with a confidence and charm that make Lily’s heart flutter wildly.

When she kisses him for the first time, he disappears into a swirl of gold and silver that leaves her questioning her sanity.

Three months later, Caiden reappears to explain what happened and who he really is, but Lily is too angry to hear it.

She needs time to figure out her feelings, time she doesn’t have because she’s being hunted by death—Death Sentries who know the truth about her lineage and want her for gifts she doesn’t know she possesses. Those gifts in Death’s hands can shift the balance between life and death on Earth and cause mass destruction.

Now, Lily must protect herself against manipulative Sentries sent to capture her, decide if she can trust Caiden, and resist or give into the explosive attraction between them.

But when she learns the truth about Caiden and his original intent toward her, Lily’s head and heart go to war. Before long, she’s left to question if her life is worth protecting or if her father and the world are safer without her in it.

*For mature young adult readers and all ages above.