The Finders Keepers Library (Love in Bloom) by Annie Rains-review

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The Finders Keepers Library (Love in Bloom 1) by Annie Rains-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 16, 2024

For a gardener blessed with a green thumb, Savannah Collins’s life sure seems like it’s all thorns, zero roses. She has no job, no relationship, and no place to live. With nothing but a car full of plants and her new rescue kitten, Savannah heads to Bloom, North Carolina, to spend the summer with her beloved Aunt Eleanor, a retired librarian.

Her aunt shares her love of literature with the Finders Keepers Library, located in her beautiful garden, where anyone can stop by to pick a book or leave a book. When a sudden summer storm destroys the library and many of the roses, it will take a village to get everything ready for the garden wedding that is planned there in just three weeks.

As the entire town joins in to make the necessary repairs, Savannah bonds with their neighbor Evan Sanders over the books that Eleanor has handpicked for each of them, helping them both find healing and self-discovery. Savannah only intends to stay through the summer, but when an unexpected job offer, a sudden health crisis, and a wayward pre-teen push her future in new directions, she has to wonder whether this is the place that she is meant to be—and the family she’s meant to be with.

••••••

REVIEW:THE FINDERS KEEPERS LIBRARY is the first instalment in Annie Rains contemporary, adult LOVE IN BLOOM romance series focusing on the people of Bloom, North Carolina. This is teacher / single father Evan Sanders, and botanist Savannah Collins’ story line.

Told from three omniscient third person perspectives (Evan, Savannah, Eleanor) THE FINDERS KEEPERS LIBRARY follows Savannah Collins return to Bloom, North Carolina where she spent summers with her Aunt Eleanor but Savannah is struggling in the wake of a broken engagement, a life-threatening illness, and the discovery that her aunt is battling with her own recovery following a fall. Reconnecting with Evan Sanders whose own life is nothing like Savannah remembers gives Savannah thoughts of something more but damage from a summer storm, and the impending wedding of a childhood friend pushes Savannah, Evan and the small town of Bloom, North Carolina together to make repairs before the big day, including repairs to Aunt Eleanor’s Finders Keepers Library. What ensues is the slow building romance and relationship between Savannah and Evan, and the potential fall-out when Savannah pushes Evan out of her life.

The world building follows several paths, focusing on numerous scenarios: Savannah’s heart break and broken engagement: her ongoing illness, and her search for a job; Aunt Eleanor’s struggle to move forward; and Evan’s battle with, not only his twelve year old daughter but, the grandmother who is threatening our story line hero.

The relationship between Evan and Savannah is a frenemies to friends to boyfriend and girlfriend but Savannah continues to battle a life-threatening illness, and refuses to be a burden to anyone else. Pushing Evan out of her life means another heart break for everyone, including Aunt Eleanor and Evan’s twelve year old daughter. There are no $ex scenes.

There is a large ensemble cast of secondary and supporting characters including a numbers of small town locals. We are introduced to Aunt Eleanor, Evan’s daughter June; sisters Mallory and Madison, and their grandfather Charlie Blue, and Evan’s friend Hollis.

THE FINDERS KEEPERS LIBRARY is a story of secrets, illness, family and friendships, The premise is sweet and entertaining; the romance is mostly implied; the characters are charming but mostly two-dimensional.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Follow: Bookbub / Website / Goodreads / Twitter/ Facebook

Annie Rains is a contemporary romance author who writes small town love stories set in fictional towns on the coast of North Carolina. Raised in one of America’s largest military communities, Annie often features heroes who fight for their countries, while also fighting for a place to call home and a good woman to love. When Annie isn’t writing, she’s spending time with her husband and 3 children, or reading a book by one of her favorite authors.

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Disturbing the Dead (Rip Through Time 3) by Kelley Armstrong

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Disturbing the Dead (Rip Through Time 3) by Kelley Armstrong-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play / Chapters Indigo Paper /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 7, 2024

Victorian Scotland is becoming less strange to modern-day homicide detective Mallory Atkinson. Though inhabiting someone else’s body will always be unsettling, even if her employers know that she’s not actually housemaid Catriona Mitchell, ever since the night both of them were attacked in the same dark alley 150 years apart. Mallory likes her job as assistant to undertaker/medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray, and is developing true friends—and feelings—in this century.

So, understanding the Victorian fascination with death, Mallory isn’t that surprised when she and her friends are invited to a mummy unwrapping at the home of Sir Alastair Christie. When their host is missing when it comes time to unwrap the mummy, Gray and Mallory are asked to step in. And upon closer inspection, it’s not a mummy they’ve unwrapped, but a much more modern body.

••••

REVIEW: DISTURBING THE DEAD is the third instalment in Kelley Armstrong’s adult A RIP THROUGH TIME time travel, mystery series focusing on thirty year old, Vancouver, Canada Police Detective Mallory Atkinson, and undertaker/investigator Dr. Duncan Gray. DISTURBING THE DEAD can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty but I recommend reading book one A RIP THROUGH TIME for back story and cohesion.

SOME BACKGROUND: In the spring of 2019 while visiting her ailing grandmother in Edinburgh Scotland, thirty year old, Vancouver British Columbia, Canada police detective Mallory Atkinson is attacked in an alley only to wake up as a nineteen year old housemaid in the year 1869, a housemaid who was also attacked and left for dead in the same alley where Mallory was found. Not only has our heroine time travelled back one-hundred and fifty years but she is no longer physically the same woman she was just minutes before. Working as a housemaid for Dr. Duncan Gray and his sister Isla, realizing life as she knew it was no longer under her control, Mallory must assume the position of nineteen year old Catriona Mitchell, a young woman whose history is questionable and dark. Working alongside Dr. Gray and Detective McCreadie, Mallory uses her abilities as a detective to help.

Told from first person perspective (Mallory) using two timelines, DISTURBING THE DEAD follows in the aftermath of the murder of Sir Alastair Christie. The unveiling of an Egyptian mummy finds the people of Victorian Scotland both curious and disturbed including several women who are trying to establish themselves as students at the local medical college but when Sir Alastair goes missing along with several Egyptian artifacts, and his body is discovered in the most unlikeliest of situations, fellow curiosity seekers Dr. Duncan Gray and Mallory Atkinson, with the help of Detective McCreadie, begin an investigation of their own. When fingers are pointed at several potential suspects, Mallory and Dr. Duncan Gray find themselves surveying secret tunnels and underground markets for answers, only for Mallory to be attacked, once again.

The secondary and supporting characters are numerous and colorful. We are once again introduced to Dr. Gray’s household, as well as his sisters Annis, and Isla, as well as Detective McCreadie. The requisite evil has many faces.

DISTURBING THE DEAD is a story of secrets and lies, betrayal and vengeance, jealousy and greed, time travel and acceptance. The premise is intriguing and captivating; the numerous characters are entertaining and charismatic.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
A Rip Through Time
The Poisoner’s Ring

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Follow: Goodreads / Website/ Twitter/ Facebook/ Amazon Author Page/

Kelley Armstrong has been telling stories since before she could write. Her earliest written efforts were disastrous. If asked for a story about girls and dolls, hers would invariably feature undead girls and evil dolls, much to her teachers’ dismay. All efforts to make her produce “normal” stories failed.

Today, she continues to spin tales of ghosts and demons and werewolves, while safely locked away in her basement writing dungeon. She’s the author of the NYT-bestselling “Women of the Otherworld” paranormal suspense series and “Darkest Powers” young adult urban fantasy trilogy, as well as the Nadia Stafford crime series. Armstrong lives in southwestern Ontario with her husband, kids and far too many pets.

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You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian-review

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You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Google Play /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 7, 2024

The 1960 baseball season is shaping up to be the worst year of Eddie O’Leary’s life. He can’t manage to hit the ball, his new teammates hate him, he’s living out of a suitcase, and he’s homesick. When the team’s owner orders him to give a bunch of interviews to some snobby reporter, he’s ready to call it quits. He can barely manage to behave himself for the length of a game, let alone an entire season. But he’s already on thin ice, so he has no choice but to agree.

Mark Bailey is not a sports reporter. He writes for the arts page, and these days he’s barely even managing to do that much. He’s had a rough year and just wants to be left alone in his too-empty apartment, mourning a partner he’d never been able to be public about. The last thing he needs is to spend a season writing about New York’s obnoxious new shortstop in a stunt to get the struggling newspaper more readers.

Isolated together within the crush of an anonymous city, these two lonely souls orbit each other as they slowly give in to the inevitable gravity of their attraction. But Mark has vowed that he’ll never be someone’s secret ever again, and Eddie can’t be out as a professional athlete. It’s just them against the world, and they’ll both have to decide if that’s enough.

••••••

REVIEW:YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY is an historical, adult, LGBTQ+ baseball romance set in 1960 focusing on twenty two year old, professional baseball player Eddie O’Leary, and journalist Mark Bailey. YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY is set in the same world as the author’s WE COULD BE SO GOOD.

Told from dual omniscient third person perspectives (Eddie and Mark),covering approximately nine months, YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY follows journalist Mark Bailey as he is tasked with writing a diary (of a sorts) focusing on professional baseball player Eddie O’Leary, a young man whose career is quickly spiralling out of control. Traded without warning to the New York Robins, Eddie is in a slump, struggling at the plate, and in the proverbial closet when it comes to his sex life and his career. The world has yet to accept the idea of homosexuality, or ‘queers’ in professional sports but Eddie will quickly discover the journalist assigned to write a piece about his career, is a man with more in common than Eddie could have ever imagined. Enter journalist Mark Bailey, a gay man who is battling between head and heart in the wake of losing someone he loved,and his attraction to a man whose career could end if his secret were discovered.

The relationship between Eddie and Mark begins as a professional arrangement in which Mark has been assigned to follow Eddie, and write a weekly journal focusing on the man with whom he will fall in love but Mark’s last relationship had been hidden from view, and Mark refuses to cross the line in the face of discrimination, homophobia, heart break and professional suicide. The $ex scenes fade to black and are mostly implied.

The secondary and supporting characters include a few cameos from reports Nick Russo, and his lover Andy Fleming (We Could Be So Good 1), as well as sports reporter George Allen, and several teammates and management from the New York Robins.

YOU SHOULD BE SO LUCKY is an extremely slow building story of secrets and lies, acceptance and love. The premise is thought-provoking; the slow burn romance is awkward at times; the characters are charismatic yet desperate.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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Beautiful Beast (Dragons of Viria 1)by Devyn Sinclair-review tour

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Beautiful Beast (Dragons of Viria 1)by Devyn Sinclair-review tour

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 2, 2024

Standing in front of a dragon means dying by fire, but the heart knows there’s more than one way to burn.

Humans and dragons are at war, and I am a pawn in the battle.

Princess of a dying land, my life is not my own, and a marriage to a vicious, dragon-hunting prince will save my people from deadly famine or death by fire.

But before I can vow my life to a monster, dragons drop screaming from the sky with a single aim. End the alliance. Kill me. I welcome the flames, relieved to burn instead of rot.

But the flames never come.

One look in the dragons’ eyes, and they carry me away. Three dragons whose gaze burns with hunger and fills me with fire.

They’re not what we were taught, and every passing day I learn more of the truth. Dragons are not the enemy we thought they were.

Still, one question remains: for centuries no one has stood before a dragon and survived. If these dragons were sent to kill me, why am I still alive?

•••••

REVIEW:Another trilogy by an author who is becoming a one click for me. Why choose and shifters, what more could a reader ask for 😉

Lena is to be married off to a neighbouring kingdom to form an alliance against the dragons! The only good dragon is a 💀 dragon! That’s how she’s been raised! But meeting her future husband has Lena in a panic! He’s not a polite prince that he pretends to be, in fact he’s a villain (and one you don’t want to be redeemed!)

Meeting the trio of dragons, Zovai, Sirius and Endre has Lena rethinking most of the teachings she was brought up with. And even the dragons are baffled with what they know from the elders.

I really liked how we got to read all of the main characters points of view. The plot had me reading until late into the night, in fact I finished the book in one day.

Not happy about the cliffhanger. And that cute baby dragon, Vari (that must have given her a clue that something was amiss?)

So….. wedding day approaches and Lena is lead to the altar. But before the vows are exchanged, the dragons swoop in. Lena realises she’s the target and prepares to meet her fate 💀, but that doesn’t happen….

Zovai, Sirius and Endre have been charged with killing Lena. The elders don’t want the kingdoms banding together, so to show the humans who is boss, the elders decree Lena must 💀!! So what stops that from happening? You’ll need to read the book to find out 😜

Yes, it’s a little predictable. Yes, although trust needs to be earned you know they will all be ok. But with the stories this author writes, it’s not that simple. Miscommunication and betrayal have Lena and the dragons not trusting one another. What are the elders hiding? And are the dragons really the enemy that Lena was led to believe?

There are triggers, and my advice is to visit the website and read them before grabbing this book.

Also be aware there is a huuuuuuuge cliffhanger (that was what i expected) so hoping the next book is out soon, because I need to know what happens next.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Julie B 🦋

Social Media: Goodreads/  Amazon Author / Website/ Facebook/ Instagram / TikTok

Devyn Sinclair writes steamy Reverse Harem romances for your wildest fantasies. Every sexy story is packed with the right amount heat, hot men, and delicious happy endings.

She lives in the wilds of Montana in a small red house and a crazy orange cat. When Devyn’s not writing, she spends time outside in big sky country, continues her quest to find the best lemon pastry there is, and buys too many books. (Of course!)

If you’d like updates about Devyn’s new releases, sexy bonus content, and the occasional dessert recipe, sign up for my newsletter by copy & pasting this link into your browser: https://www.subscribepage.com/devynsinclair

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FOREST OF LIES (Alexis Forrest FBI Mystery Thriller)by Kate Gable

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FOREST OF LIES (Alexis Forrest FBI Mystery Thriller 4) by Kate Gable-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 30, 2024

Forensic psychologist and FBI agent Alexis Forrest returns in her most chilling case yet. Set against the backdrop of Broken Hill, the small New England town where she grew up, she now faces her darkest challenge: a fourteen-year-old boy doesn’t show up to school after spending the night with his father and stepmother.
Meanwhile, Alexis receives a sinister note threatening her and her family from the serial killer who took her sister’s life.
Together with her old flame and partner Mitch, a bookstore and coffee shop owner, Alexis embarks on a race against time to protect her loved ones and capture the predator who always seems to be one step ahead.
Amidst the chaos, Alexis grapples with haunting questions: Is the missing boy just a teenage runaway or a victim of the serial killer who haunts this area?
When a fire consumes her father’s mobile home, Alexis finds herself in the path of the murderer who’s been the source of her nightmares since she was a teen.
The only difference is that now she knows his name.

•••••

REVIEW: FOREST OF LIES is the fourth instalment in Kate Gable’s contemporary, adult ALEXIS FORREST FBI MYSTERY THRILLER series focusing on thirty year old, FBI Agent/ forensic psychologist Alexis Forrest.

SOME BACKGROUND: Twenty years earlier, Alexis’ older sister Maddie was abducted and murdered, destroying the Forrest family in the process. With her return to Broken Hill to investigate a series of similar abductions, Alexis will reconnect with family, and the man who once held her heart.

Told from dual first person perspective (Alexis Forrest / Killer) and third person (Peter) FOREST OF LIES follows two paths: the ongoing search for a serial killer, and the disappearance of a fourteen year old boy. Alexis Forrest is on leave from the FBI as she endeavors to help the Broken Hill police in the wake of a potential serial killer but as Alexis continues to investigate a decades old series of disappearances and murders, the small town Broken Hill is not immune to the smaller but no less heart breaking cases of kidnappings and murder. When a fourteen year old boy goes missing, his parents’ separation and divorce take center stage but as Alexis digs deeper, help from an unlikely source points the finger at an unlikely suspect.

Meanwhile, the serial killer continues to taunt our story line heroine, leaving personal messages and threats involving family and friends. Refusing to give up, Alexis and her boyfriend Mitch journey to where it all may have started, discovering a killer’s reputation goes back decades and years.

FOREST OF LIES is a story of family and betrayal, madness and murder, obsession and delusion. The fast paced premise is suspenseful and dramatic; the characters are determined and dynamic; the romance continues in the face of threats against our story line couple.

Reading Order and Previous reviews
Forest of Silence
Forest of Shadows
Forest of Secrets

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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Novus Dies (The Posterity Doctrine 1) by Schalk Holloway-review

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Novus Dies (The Posterity Doctrine 1) by Schalk Holloway-review & excerpt

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon au / B&N PAPER /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK:

The year is 2364. Robotics and advanced communication technology is failing inexplicably. As if in concert, hostile militant factions are adapting and attacking faster than which the Collective—the preeminent society of the age—can respond.

The epicentre is the Durban Reclamation Zone. After a frightening robot on human attack, husband and wife operator team, Kate and Monty Park, are tasked to investigate. Like all members of the Special Task Force, the Park’s are decorated and retired warfighters with proven track records, and usually only called in when security operations might need heavy hitters.

When the investigation starts unfolding at neck breaking speed, the Parks quickly find themselves outside the Collective perimeter, in areas of the metro that have been long forgotten, or that few even knew existed. To make matters worse, they notice subtle signs that their squad of security robots might be going rogue and they begin to question whether they can trust the hardware that they rely on to protect them.

Assets are destroyed, lives are lost, and before long the military is placed on standby. Throughout the upheaval and chaos, one thing becomes certain: what Kate and Monty Park discover in the next 72 hours will usher humanity into a new era.

••••••

REVIEW: NOVUS DIES is the first instalment in Schalk Holloway’s adult THE POSTERITY DOCTRINE sci-fi, action series set in the year 2364.

Told from omniscient dual third person perspectives (Kate and Monty Park) NOVUS DIES is set in a futuristic time period in which artificial intelligence aka AI has evolved into a sentient collective, and their directive may ultimately be to control the human populations. In the early test stages, small anomolies catch the attention of the people in charge but the danger to the human population may be a threat to them all. As a squadron commander, Kate Park will quickly discover that her trio of bots have a mindset of their own, a mindset that may be targeting our story line heroine.

NOVUS DIES is set in a detailed, complex and multi-layered world of possibilities including AI, SI, cyborgenics, sentience, and loss of control. Think Star Trek ‘cyborgs’ meets I,Robot, wherein the ‘collective’, although of one mind, are individuating, acclimating and evolving into something more. NOVUS DIES is an entertaining, interesting and though provoking story of what if and how.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

A flush, covert panel sits at eye level, not far from the apartment’s
front door. To its right are the rec room’s manual light buttons.
Electronics are dark, and every wall opening is sealed by perfectly
fabricated doors and blackout windows. The space is silent—
mandated as such to allow for optimal sleep.
When the Deep Space Atomic Clock broadcasts its second daily
timestamp, Collective society on the 20/35 longitudinal resets to
00:00.
1
Novus Dies
The Otto home automation unit pings its update server from a
back-box behind the left panel. The update package checks out
against the header and security data, and the unit accepts the update
without question. It places all active services into its autonomic
bank and then reboots so fast that no human would have noticed the
downtime. Back online, it retrieves all active services from the
bank, and then switches all the lights in the apartment to full
luminance.
‘What the!’ comes a loud shout from the master bedroom.
The rec room’s newly cataloged furniture and art speak of
contemporary bachelorhood—a spartan and sleek aesthetic, with the
man now stumbling through the doorway the only item that’s
seemingly out of place.
The man shields his eyes with his palms and goes to stand in the
center of the room. Squinting against the brightness, he drops his
hands from his face and flicks one wrist a couple of times. When
nothing happens, he repeats the procedure in different directions:
first to his left, then to his right, and eventually he turns around and
flicks his wrist in the direction he came from. Still there’s no
response.
He starts searching for something and, eventually finding the
half-forgotten manual light buttons next to the Otto’s panel, pumps
them with all the vehemence his exhausted and hungover self can
muster.
At last the Otto switches all the lights off again and the man
lumbers back to his room, mumbling incoherently. When he’s
halfway there, the Otto again switches on all the lights and the man
groans as he arches his back and tugs at his hair. When he starts
moving back toward the manual buttons, the home automation unit
2
Schalk Holloway
quickly switches all the lights off again. The man’s arms shoot out
like a tightrope walker fighting off a wobble, and then he freezes.
The Otto switches all the lights on and off three times in quick
succession.
Furious, the man speeds back to his room, picks up his comms
unit, and seats it in his right ear. ‘Otto, who can I call about this
malfunction?’ The Otto rattles off a few options, but before long the
unit’s gender-neutral robotic drone gets on the man’s nerves and he
arches his back again and claws at his chest. ‘Just call the building
rep!’
Before the call connects, the Otto starts strobing the lights on
and off, and the man rushes back to the rec room, hoping to find
something to vent his frustration on. The Otto doesn’t tell him, but it
hasn’t called the rep. Instead, it found the correct dial tone in the
wild and is merely repeating it incessantly over the man’s comms.
The man lets the Otto cycle through a host of other contacts, only to
get the same grating dial tone with each attempt


 

Schalk Holloway is a subject literature author in the fields of Christian ministry, as well as professional combatives instruction. His first book, ‘Die Groot Storie’, was traditionally published by Struik Christian Media (CSM is the preeminent publisher for Christian books in South Africa), and can be found on the shelves of most South African chain bookstores. ‘The Maul Book’, co-authored by Gavin Coleman, as well as his ‘Schalk’s Little Book Series’, can be found on Amazon. 
In 2022 Schalk suffered a severe injury leading to multiple surgeries and a long period of recovery. Subsequently, he retired from certain instructional and operational environments. He is now enjoying an independent career as novelist. His first novels, ‘The Brooklyn Saga’, are a crossover between psychological thriller and realistic fiction. These books draw inspiration from his extensive experience running interventions and operations in at-risk communities. Schalk is currently working on more titles for his ‘Little Book Series’ as well as the hard and military scifi series, ‘The Posterity Doctrine’.  
Neurodivergence and C/PTSD themes feature strongly in in all Schalk’s tales.
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TAINTED DESIRE (Ruthless Rogues Mafia 2) by Kat Bammer -review

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TAINTED DESIRE (Ruthless Rogues Mafia 2) by Kat Bammer

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 3, 2024

I’m the king of bad decisions. One more won’t hurt.

I never asked to be kidnapped…again.
Never asked to be a third-wheel on my best friend’s honeymoon either.
But what I really don’t need is for Alessandro Falcone-bad boy mafia prince–to act as my self-assigned protector.
Malta is vibrant & welcoming.
My host–not so much.
As if barking orders and growling threats would have any effect on me.
Only when he holds me tight and tells me to breathe and keep my eyes on him, when I’m triggered–I see another side of him.
One that I do my darnest to dismiss.
We’re on a collision course to disaster.
Because I will never give up my freedom.
He’s the most dominant man I’ve ever met.
When Alex Falcone wants something, he usually gets it.
This time it’s me.
But I’m not to be had.

••••••

REVIEW: TAINTED DESIRE is the second instalment in Kat Bammer’s contemporary, adult RUTHLESS ROGUES MAFIA dark, erotic, Mafia romance series. This is Alessandro ‘Alex’ Falcone, and Irish Mafia princess Fiona ‘Fee’ Donnelly’s story line. TAINTED DESIRE can be read as a stand alone but I recommend reading book one SINFUL HONOR for back story and cohesion as many of the events in the current timeline are as of a direct result of the events in the previous book.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Alex and Fee) TAINTED DESIRE follows in the wake of the marriage of Fiona’s sister Sophie, to Mafia Don Gabriel Falcone but in an effort to protect and keep an eye on our story line heroine, Sophie and Gabriel all but kidnap Fiona, and take her on their honeymoon to Malta, where Fiona will come face to face with Alessandro Falcone, the bane of our heroine’s existence. Refusing to play their game, believing there is no longer a threat to her life, Fiona continues to act out until she finds herself reliving the past over and over again but there is a war brewing in the criminal underworld, and our heroine is about to get caught in the middle, a pawn to be sold to the highest bidder. What ensues is the building but acrimonious relationship between Fiona and Alex, and the potential fall-out as Alex must come to terms about his birthright, and Fiona discovers the reason for her parent’s hatred.

The world building focuses on dysfunctional families including the revelations about the who, how and why. Fiona has always felt like an outsider, and she will discover the why; and Alex is forced to assume a role he was born to play.

The relationship between Fee and Alex is tempestuous at best. Fiona wants nothing to do with Alessandro Falcone, and struggles with her new brother in law’s attempts to protect and guard. Alessandro is a man who feels betrayals at the darkest regions of his heart but it is the betrayal that is about to place him in the direct line of fire, inciting a war between the controlling families. The $ex scenes are provocative and seductive.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful and powerful secondary and supporting characters in several members of the Russian Bratva, Irish Mob and Italian Mafia including the return of Alex’s brother Gabriel and Sophie; Alex’s right hand man Matteo and his brother Vincenzo Salvini; Fiona’s sisters Jemma and Cara as well as their Uncle Craig; Fiona’s friend Frank, and Ivan Zotov. The requisite evil has many faces.

TAINTED DESIRE is a story of betrayal and vengeance, secrets and lies, power and control, dysfunctional family values, acceptance and love. The premise is dramatic, dark,and intense; the romance is fated and passionate; the characters are desperate and dynamic. TAINTED DESIRE ends on a bit of a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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Damaged Kingdom (Gilded Empire 2) by MJ Crouch-review

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Damaged Kingdom (Gilded Empire 2) by MJ Crouch-review

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / Amazon.uk / Amazon.au /

Don’t own a Kindle? Download the FREE Amazon Kindle App for your mobile device or pc

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 3, 2024

I always knew I would die young, so being left to bleed out on a warehouse floor is no shock to me.

But as the blood seeps from my body, my thoughts aren’t of the Marcosa empire I’ve ruled for years, or the city I’ve given everything to protect.

It’s on the three men who’ve stood by my side:

Greyson: my soul, my foundation. So hard and reserved, showing emotion only to me.

Dominic: my heart, my first love. He’s a dreamer but can wreck me in the best ways possible.

Nate: my comfort, my peace. He soothes and calms me even though I’ve only known him a short time.

My enemies have done their best to destroy me, and now it’s up to my men to piece me back together.

They will do anything to make that happen. But they can’t protect me from the threat none of us ever saw coming…

••••

REVIEW: DAMAGED KINGDOM is the second in instalment in MJ Crouch’s contemporary, adult GILDED EMPIRE dark, erotic, reverse harem, organized crime romance series focusing on on Mariana Marcosa, queen of the Marcosa empire, and the three men who will control her heart: Greyson Andrews, Dominic, and Nate Black. DAMAGED KINGDOM should not be read as a stand alone as it picks up after the events and cliff hanger of book one BROKEN CROWN.

NOTE: Due to the nature of the story line premise including graphic violence, there may be triggers for more sensitive readers

Told from four first person perspectives (Mari, Grey, Dominic, Nate) DAMAGED KINGDOM follows in the wake of an attempt on our heroine’s life. Mari Marcosa is the queen of the criminal underworld but there are some who would prefer a man at the top. Targeted for her position and power, Mari finds herself facing down an enemy she barely knows but along with the three men whom she loves Greyson, Dominic and Nate, Marie is a force unto herself but as the hits against Mari and the men continue, betrayal will come from within, forcing Mari to reconsider the future going forward.

The world building is detailed and gritty. Mari is a woman in charge; a woman on a mission who loves and is loved but one of her father’s former men is taking aim at the top, and Mari refuses to step aside for someone else.

The relationship between Mari and Grey, Dominic and Nate is a reverse harem affair. Mari continues to struggle with a perceived betrayal from Dominic but forgiveness will come easy when the heart wants something more. The $ex scenes are intimate and provocative,often in pairs or sometimes all four.

The secondary and supporting characters are numerous and powerful including the heads of several crime organizations and their families. Cassius ‘Cash’ Beckstrom is taking aim at the top but Cash has a secret, one that is about to destroy our story line heroine, and the men whom she loves.

DAMAGED KINGDOM is a story of power and control, secrets and lies, betrayal and vengeance, greed and jealousy,family and relationships. The premise is dark and dramatic; the romances are seductive and erotic; the characters are desperate, progressive and charismatic. DAMAGED KINGDOM ends on a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Click HERE to read Sandy’s review of book one BROKEN CROWN

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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