Edie is from modern day, and on her way to a Halloween party dressed in her traditional native dress sThis was about Edie/Fire Woman and Thunder Bear.
Edie is from modern day, and on her way to a Halloween party dressed in her traditional native dress she ends up back in time to the time of her People and meets Thunder Bear who has been waiting for her. And Edie is renamed Fire Woman. But will Edie/Fire Woman be able to stay with Thunder Bear or will she be forced to return to her own time?
I really wanted to love this because it was my first Indigenous romance, but this was a rough read for me. And the ebook was only over 200 pages. I kept falling asleep to it or getting distracted because the pacing in the beginning is so slow. It reads often like a history textbook as Edie goes into detail about her life with her native tribe. Did I learn a lot? Yes. And there were moments that I enjoyed. But also it was a slog to get through. A lot of telling and not showing.
With a diverse romance like this, I think the key is to follow the amazing example of Miss Beverly Jenkins. Give me one history lesson, and then proceed to have the characters live the history. Instead this book was one very LONG history lesson. And I wasn't even quite sold on the romance in the end.
But the sexy scenes were solid, so I might be open to checking out the author's other books maybe if they stay contemporary.
Merged review:
This was about Edie/Fire Woman and Thunder Bear.
Edie is from modern day, and on her way to a Halloween party dressed in her traditional native dress she ends up back in time to the time of her People and meets Thunder Bear who has been waiting for her. And Edie is renamed Fire Woman. But will Edie/Fire Woman be able to stay with Thunder Bear or will she be forced to return to her own time?
I really wanted to love this because it was my first Indigenous romance, but this was a rough read for me. And the ebook was only over 200 pages. I kept falling asleep to it or getting distracted because the pacing in the beginning is so slow. It reads often like a history textbook as Edie goes into detail about her life with her native tribe. Did I learn a lot? Yes. And there were moments that I enjoyed. But also it was a slog to get through. A lot of telling and not showing.
With a diverse romance like this, I think the key is to follow the amazing example of Miss Beverly Jenkins. Give me one history lesson, and then proceed to have the characters live the history. Instead this book was one very LONG history lesson. And I wasn't even quite sold on the romance in the end.
But the sexy scenes were solid, so I might be open to checking out the author's other books maybe if they stay contemporary....more
This is about Victoria and John. Victoria is a professor and John is a children's librarian and they start working together to form an internship for This is about Victoria and John. Victoria is a professor and John is a children's librarian and they start working together to form an internship for the college Victoria works at. And they spark instant sexual chemistry. Victoria suggests a "sordid affair" which is heavily planned. While John tries to bring spontaneity to Victoria's life. I loved the two of them together and the chemistry they had together. Also enjoyed the several steamy scenes.
The last third of the book really started to drag for me. Victoria's conflict with her mom was solved way too easily. But still overall enjoyed.
Also, this has all the fall vibes.
Merged review:
This is about Victoria and John. Victoria is a professor and John is a children's librarian and they start working together to form an internship for the college Victoria works at. And they spark instant sexual chemistry. Victoria suggests a "sordid affair" which is heavily planned. While John tries to bring spontaneity to Victoria's life. I loved the two of them together and the chemistry they had together. Also enjoyed the several steamy scenes.
The last third of the book really started to drag for me. Victoria's conflict with her mom was solved way too easily. But still overall enjoyed.
Yes, I am giving 4 stars to smut about the Kool Aid man. But hear me out!
This is about Jules and Red. Jules has moved back home temporarily as collegeYes, I am giving 4 stars to smut about the Kool Aid man. But hear me out!
This is about Jules and Red. Jules has moved back home temporarily as college is not working out. And she is back under the roof of her mom, step dad, and adult step brother Red who is also a sentient jug of Cherry Kool Aid. And they get trapped in a sauna, when Red confesses his romantic feelings for his step sister. And then Kool Aid sexy things happen.
Look, this novella was totally bonkers. But the steam was actually decent, the weird Kool Aid step brother made sense, and it ended in a Happy for Now. It was a fun time. No regrets. Vera Valentine kills it when it comes to bonkers sentient object smut. I am glad she has found her niche and is sharing it with all of us....more
This is about Sorcha and Drakolt. Sorcha is on her way to marry a neighbor Laird, when her and her sister and cousin are captured by orcs. The leader This is about Sorcha and Drakolt. Sorcha is on her way to marry a neighbor Laird, when her and her sister and cousin are captured by orcs. The leader of the clan Drakolt tells her she has been foretold has his mate so he had to kidnap her so they can breed to make a son who is supposed to bring their clans together.
This one was steamy good fun. Didn't really love the characters in this one, but good first book to the series....more
This is about a man who lives in a world where Big Foot people became pirates. And the worst Big Foot pirate of all had his ship recently sunk. And thThis is about a man who lives in a world where Big Foot people became pirates. And the worst Big Foot pirate of all had his ship recently sunk. And then the man has pain in his balls, so he goes to the doctor, and the doctor tells him his balls are haunted. I mean, wow that's impressive that a doctor can diagnose that kind of condition. Then the man finds out that he's being haunted by that Big Foot pirate. They are apparently a ship full of gay pirates that never had sex and want to have gay sex. This man is very gay and is like yes please. So he goes and has a ghost orgy with ghost Big Foot pirates on a ghost ship. I cannot make this up. But he seemed to like the orgy so good for him.
The second novella included with this one is called "Reamed by my Reaction to the Title of this Book". This one was probably the most bizarre and most meta. And weirder than all the other ones if you can imagine. A man is somehow reamed by the title of the book. That's the best I can describe it.
And so concludes my Chuck Tingle journey. I laughed. I cried? I was mostly confused. It was a good time. I definitely would read Tinglers again....more
This is about a man who is an astronaut and is left on a planet alone. His job is to monitor the planet tSecond bonkers Chuck Tingle smut. Here we go.
This is about a man who is an astronaut and is left on a planet alone. His job is to monitor the planet to see if it can grow life. And it must be pretty boring, because apparently it's unlikely. Until one day. the astronaut discovers he is not the only one there. He runs into an astronaut dinosaur who apparently is from a different earth where they evolved and he's also monitoring for life. They become friends, they are not gay, but they decide to bone. Because what else do you do alone on an abandoned planet? Obviously.
The bonus story with this one is called "Turned Gay by the Living Alpha Diner". A trucker dumps his girlfriend before pulling into a diner who he is immediately attracted to. And the diner is like fondle me in the roof, and basement and back door. It was a little weird, but also weirdly sweet? This one was kind of an HFN/HEA because the trucker wanted to stay with the diner.
It doesn't make sense. It is not supposed to. It's Chuck Tingle....more
More of a 1.5. This book was such a snooze fest. I have no idea why the average rating is so high. Did I read the same book as everyone else? If it waMore of a 1.5. This book was such a snooze fest. I have no idea why the average rating is so high. Did I read the same book as everyone else? If it wasn't for book club, I would have DNFed this.
This is about Amelia and Rory. Amelia goes on a very difficult hike in place of her best friend who is in a coma. Rory is the brooding, Scottish hiking guide with a dark past. And they fall in love over the course of the journey.
I didn't like the writing in this. It tried to be emotional and dramatic, but was written really poorly to be able to pull it off. A lot of telling the whole story in dialogue (telling, not showing) which I despise as a writing technique. Even the setting, which was supposed to be sweeping and epic, was boring. It was Gaelic names of mountains I wasn't familiar with, and failing to describe them in any sort of detail. The characters were two dimensional and boring. Amelia was annoying and bratty. Rory was moody and a jerk for no reason. The chemistry was meh. I just didn't care about either of these characters. The conflict was so laughingly bad that I couldn't believe how stupid it was. "I can't stay with my Scottish lover because I have some random ass low paying job in Miami straight out of college". YOU STAY WITH YOUR SEXY SCOTTISH LOVER, YOU DUMBASS! I was so annoyed by this book so much. I could barely get through it.
Steam was decent. I honestly cared more about Tommy and Carrie at the end. And it tried to do something, but failed at most of it.
Merged review:
More of a 1.5. This book was such a snooze fest. I have no idea why the average rating is so high. Did I read the same book as everyone else? If it wasn't for book club, I would have DNFed this.
This is about Amelia and Rory. Amelia goes on a very difficult hike in place of her best friend who is in a coma. Rory is the brooding, Scottish hiking guide with a dark past. And they fall in love over the course of the journey.
I didn't like the writing in this. It tried to be emotional and dramatic, but was written really poorly to be able to pull it off. A lot of telling the whole story in dialogue (telling, not showing) which I despise as a writing technique. Even the setting, which was supposed to be sweeping and epic, was boring. It was Gaelic names of mountains I wasn't familiar with, and failing to describe them in any sort of detail. The characters were two dimensional and boring. Amelia was annoying and bratty. Rory was moody and a jerk for no reason. The chemistry was meh. I just didn't care about either of these characters. The conflict was so laughingly bad that I couldn't believe how stupid it was. "I can't stay with my Scottish lover because I have some random ass low paying job in Miami straight out of college". YOU STAY WITH YOUR SEXY SCOTTISH LOVER, YOU DUMBASS! I was so annoyed by this book so much. I could barely get through it.
Steam was decent. I honestly cared more about Tommy and Carrie at the end. And it tried to do something, but failed at most of it....more
This is about Spencer and Winnie. Spencer accidentally finds out that he has been named in a marriage contract with a woman he's never mMore of a 4.5.
This is about Spencer and Winnie. Spencer accidentally finds out that he has been named in a marriage contract with a woman he's never met, a sheep farmer in Wales named Winnie Wallace, who has been posing herself as Winnie Halifax. And she is very surprised when the man she thought she made up turns out to be real.
This was cute and sweet. I'm glad we got a little bit more of the story of the Halifax's through Spencer and his reaction to both of his sisters leaving so abruptly. I also liked Winnie as a character.
I definitely want to read the Christmas novella, because I want to see the whole family reunited again to tie up loose ends. Especially with the relationship between the sisters which I felt did not end on good terms....more
This is about Matilda and Christian. He confronts Matilda for drawing him in dirty pictures, and she did do the lewds drawings but did nMore of a 4.5.
This is about Matilda and Christian. He confronts Matilda for drawing him in dirty pictures, and she did do the lewds drawings but did not intend for it to look like him. From there, these two realize they share kinky interests and Christian is drawn to Matilda despite their age gap and the fact he was accused of murdering his first wife. I liked to see how the story was intertwined with Margo's but not repetitive. I liked that this was more of a slow burn. For novella length, I was really invested in these characters. I wish there was more to the ending. I really want Margo and Matilda to reunite and talk it out. And I felt like things were unresolved with Matilda and Christian's sister....more
I was so hyped for this book. Loved that it was a sapphic romance centered around a dance competition between burlesque and ballet. Loved tDNF at 45%.
I was so hyped for this book. Loved that it was a sapphic romance centered around a dance competition between burlesque and ballet. Loved that it was an interracial romance. Loved that the writing duo was a married female couple. Loved the rep. Loved all of that. But the writing was not it for me.
I struggled to get to that 45%. The writing was disjointed and messy. The side characters all fell flat and I could keep track of any of them. And I couldn't really connect to the characters. The chemistry between them felt like lust and I didn't really see why this couple was falling for each other. Which is painful because I wanted to love this. I feel like the writing needed tighter editing because I just found myself bored and not engaged with the story. I hardly ever DNF but I realized this wasn't for me, and I needed to move on.
This might work for some people but the writing style did not work for me.
This was a complimentary eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own....more
More of a 4.5, but rounding up because I hate that Goodreads doesn't have half stars.
Content Warnings for depression, anxiety, use of alcohol and mariMore of a 4.5, but rounding up because I hate that Goodreads doesn't have half stars.
Content Warnings for depression, anxiety, use of alcohol and marijuana, and incarceration of a parent.
This is the sequel to Today, Tonight, Tomorrow about Neil and Rowan.
This was one of my highly anticipated reads because I loved the first book. In this sequel we see our characters going off to their respective colleges, her to Emerson in Boston and him to NYU, and starting a long distance relationship. It spans over the course of their freshman year. I loved being with these characters again and to see them really work at their relationship and the challenges that come with it. I liked that there was a concept of what happens after their big romantic moment. What happens in romance once you reach the end which I feel like was a theme throughout. I liked have the dual POV because Neil is so sweet and he adores Rowan and it was lovely to see. I also really liked the representation of Neil starting to struggle with depression which was tough to read at times. I also liked how these two communicated with each other, especially in exploring their sexual relationship.
I do feel like this book had some pacing issues. It dragged for me a bit in the middle and the ending conflict felt rushed. I wanted a little bit more about Neil and his diagnosis, maybe normalizing him taking medication? Although I liked the dual POV and it was necessary for this book, following the friend groups of both were a little confusing. And I still feel like we never really figure out what's up with Rowan's roommate.
There was still a lot of moments that I loved and just spending time with these characters again was an unexpected delight. But it definitely felt like a final book for these characters which I think made me a little sad. I just wanted a bit more of their college journey to their HEA.
I also want to add the first book was clearly YA but this book is New Adult as it's a bit more graphic in the sex scenes. FYI.
Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the NetGalley eARC in exchange for an honest review....more
This is about Ethan (a trans man witch), Peter (a fisherman captain), and Nico (a selkie). This is cozy and felt slow eveCW: infertility
More of a 3.5.
This is about Ethan (a trans man witch), Peter (a fisherman captain), and Nico (a selkie). This is cozy and felt slow even though it was only 150 pages. I liked the witchy component, and I liked these characters. There was something very sweet, genuine, and honest about the 3 of them getting together.
This is about Maggie and Aiden. Maggie is a mid 40's divorcee and a recent empty nester as her son goes to college. Aiden is 50s dad bodMore of a 4.5.
This is about Maggie and Aiden. Maggie is a mid 40's divorcee and a recent empty nester as her son goes to college. Aiden is 50s dad bod vibe returning to his hometown to take care of his elderly mother after the recent death of his father. They both meet through online gaming, and start a friendship until it becomes more.
This is slow burn with demisexual representation. Totally nerdy romance. I loved that the protagonists were older. Aiden is adorable and so precious. And Maggie is feral. Sunshine grump vibes. This was just so good and I loved the development of their relationship.
I really wish we had a little bit more of the ending especially more of a resolution with Aiden's family. But otherwise, I just adored this.
Also I need more sex scenes with this kind of joy and humor!...more
TW: Mentions of war, death of a sibling, death of a spouse
This is about Lydia and Harriet.
This was such a sweet, sapphic, holiday vibes novella with wTW: Mentions of war, death of a sibling, death of a spouse
This is about Lydia and Harriet.
This was such a sweet, sapphic, holiday vibes novella with way more chickens then I anticipated. Lydia meets Harriet by finding a rare chicken breed thought to have died out. And they start a friendship and then more, bonding over chickens and grief. Also an older romance because both women are describing as graying hair in their 30s or 40s, which was really refreshing as well.
Not what I expected, but I'm really glad I read it....more
This is about George/Dash and Nora. Nora wrote a pamphlet about how Lord Ashwood Missed Out about her brother's best friend and childhood love, Lord DThis is about George/Dash and Nora. Nora wrote a pamphlet about how Lord Ashwood Missed Out about her brother's best friend and childhood love, Lord Dashwood. Dashwood returns to marry and finds himself the laughingstock of the ton. In a series of events, they get stuck in a snow storm on the road and have to hide out in a small shelter.
This was cute. Great addition to the Spindle Cove series. I wish I had gotten a little bit more about why Lord Dashwood left in the first place (I feel like it wasn't well explained), but overall cute. And nice to see the other characters as well.
This almost makes me want to re-read the last book as I might appreciate it more, but if I remember correctly I believe the hero annoyed me. So maybe not?...more
Moriah desperately wants a child after trying witCW: Infertility, breeding, breeding kink, knotting, divorce, pandemic
This is about Lowell and Moriah.
Moriah desperately wants a child after trying with her husband and since her divorce. Moriah finds out about a breeding clinic that uses werewolves to breed and includes actual sex with werewolves. And Moriah chooses Lowell. Lowell is home after years abroad being a successful photographer due to the start of the pandemic. These two are both very lonely and find each other.
I feel like the pacing of this was really slow. It tooks to long for the main characters to meet. A lot of it was introduction to the Hemming family, which is fine I guess, but I wasn't very invested. Especially since I didn't see the connection between Lowell and Moriah except they are both feeling lonely and have sex a lot (more so then just the breeding clinic allows). The steam was good in this one though.
Taking a break from this author for a little bit as I go through her backlist....more
This is about Santa, being a horndog. Mrs. Claus and him apparently have an open relationship (which he mentions several times).
Through More of a 2.5.
This is about Santa, being a horndog. Mrs. Claus and him apparently have an open relationship (which he mentions several times).
Through magic, he visits everyone at midnight as time stops. And several people he visits on his stops he has sex with. The magical man has unlimited stamina and apparently everyone wants to bone him. He visits those who need to have a Christmas wish granted and then everyone gets horny for Santa. There's a couple threesomes in there as well. It's wild.
Oddly, the granting of Christmas wishes were serious issues. Like helping someone get over the death of a spouse, helping a marriage in trouble, and then helping a person who has severe depression. Somber topics that Santa basically cures with a wink and a smile. And they all jump on Santa's di*k right after. The juxtaposition of the serious topics with the steamy silliness was odd and I didn't know if it quite worked for me.
It's spicy as hell and I was along for the ride (figuratively), but some of the steam didn't work for me either. Like doesn't everyone need to get cleaned up? And going from a** to vagina is a no go. And isn't Santa a mess by this point if he's not cleaning up after each visit? Some of the threesomes didn't make sense logistically. And if Santa is going up everyone's a**, then the man needs to bring magical lube with him. It's the least he can do!
My holiday reads so far were more contemporary or serious, so this hit just the right note of bonkers smut to end on....more
This is about Noel and Teddy (?). I liked Noel's sarcasm from the other books and this one didn't disappoint. She has a one nigh stand More of a 3.5.
This is about Noel and Teddy (?). I liked Noel's sarcasm from the other books and this one didn't disappoint. She has a one nigh stand with someone who played Santa except he's not who she thinks he is.
This was fun. And I liked that the epilogue included all three of the sisters. I'm not sure if I'll read the rest of the series because I really liked the sisters. We'll see....more
This is about Roman Chen and Presley. He's her boss and she's his assistant. It's Christmas and he decides to finally give in to his base urges.
It wasThis is about Roman Chen and Presley. He's her boss and she's his assistant. It's Christmas and he decides to finally give in to his base urges.
It was a steamy good time with holiday vibes. I feel like I didn't really buy into the HEA at the end, because these characters were supposed to hate each other? But otherwise, the steam was good....more
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