This was a very intense and emotional short story. A little slow to get going, but once it picked up speed… it was hard to put it down. Kristoffdoes a great job of world building and bringing you into the intrigue that is to be The Lotus Wars series.
Kristoff’s world building is absolutely phenomenal in this short story. I was expecting good world building, but this was of a totally different calibre. I can’t wait to dive into the rest of this series. I mean, this is a steampunk, dystopia feeling world. Full of politics, conflict and magic.
I absolutely adored this short story, and now I can’t wait to read the first book in The Lotus Wars series. I mean, I kind of expected that from Kristoff, but it was nice to have the confirmation.
Although this is a novella length tale, it’s kind of structured like a short story. I mean, there is one chapter and it’s definitely slightly shorter than the other novellas in the Huntress collection. It was, a lot of fun to read. A good, slightly dark and fun story.
I must admit, Jack is an absolute idiot. I mean, he knows that the woman coming onto him is no good. And yet, he still decides to mess around with her. Which just leads to his entrapment. I mean, honestly mate. It was more than a little ridiculous and see-through of her motivations. Serious fool.
There are two potential romantic interests in this story. And I’m really annoyed that the one who was actually kind and good ended up being consumed. I think it was consumed, I’m not even 100% on that to be honest. Then, the manipulative, horrible woman gets to ride off, happily into the sunset. Not quite the ending that I wanted.
I really enjoyed this, as I’ve enjoyed all of the stories by Kittredge. Fun and dark. Just how I sometimes like my tales of magic and mayhem.
Following the tone of the rest of this series, OF COURSE Declan’s proposal was going to end seriously awry. I mean, you can’t really get much worse than ending up in the ER (which is what is explained on the first page). But the journey there, as with everything in the Shopping for a Billionaire series, is absolutely priceless. It had me grinning the whole way through.
I love that the first five books in this series are written from Shannon’s point of view, and then this book is written from Delcan’s. It’s a great departure and gives a whole new perspective into their relationship. It also means that Declan touches upon his past decisions and mistakes. Again, giving a wonderful, new perspective to their relationship.
As someone who has a somewhat close-knit family, and one that isn’t always great with boundaries, Delcan’s difficulties with dealing with this are quite intriguing. Particularly as it made me understand a little more just some of the difficulties my own SO has with my family. Family dynamics are always difficult, but Shannon’s definitely take the cake.
Even though this is a story just filled with calamities, Shannon and Declan do still get their perfect moment. Actually, I find their true moment so much better than what Declan had planned. It was such a wonderful read, and I can’t wait to see how Amanda and Andrew find their own way to a HEA.
There is a whole lot to unpack within this very sweet college romance. A little bit like there was a lot to unpack in The Assist. It’s, at it’s core a jock / sports romance. And ultimately an easy read. But Jenshak manages to throw in some pretty hefty thoughts and conversations about society and the ways our judgements and preconceived notions influence us. It gave me an extra layer to this incredibly fun story.
Katrina’s battles with being a single mum, and a teenage mum are pretty intense. It’s hard enough being a mother, but becoming one young and then doing it all alone? Difficult doesn’t begin to describe it. Although she has an amazing support system in her friends, she is always constantly uncomfortable with the judgement of others, and admittedly, she also tends to harshly judge herself. The juggling act that she constantly must balance is also pretty intense, but Jenshak does a great job of highlighting the difficulties, whilst also showing that there are no regrets – because sometimes being a parent is really awesome.
Joel on the other hand is a bit of a man child. As his history starts to be revealed, you can understand that some of his actions aren’t actually that ridiculous. But it takes a little while to get to that. Mostly, he flirts that line of being too immature to actually like, and seriously likeable in his kind and giving moments. Once you find out his full back story though, you realise that all of his decisions are just because of his own burdens and past. And that he’s, ultimately, a really lovely guy.
I loved how The Fadeaway is both an incredibly easy read, but it was also one that left me thinking about it long after I turned that final page. The characters go through a lot of growth throughout this story, and it reminds us of all of the things that are going on below the surface. Plus, it’s just fun reading about two people who are totally meant to be together, finally, finding a way to make it work.
I love how this is a close-proximity / accidental roommate romance. Particularly, I love how well it works out for both of them. Not just the romance aspect, but also the way that Ryann and Jonah seem to actually fit well as roommates and friends. I mean, it’s kind of difficult to find someone that you can live with and not want to tear out your own hair (in my experience at least), so I love that aside from a romance, this was actually a positive roommate story!
Aside from the awesomeness of having good roommates, I did really love the romance between Ryann and Jonah. Yes, they both admit fairly early on that there is a physical attraction. But it’s the fact that they are great friends and companions that really made me root for them. I mean, it’s hard enough finding someone you don’t want to stab as a roommate, but then finding good, solid friendship and physical attraction? Yeah, I was seriously rooting for both of these guys from pretty much the first moment. Plus, they also help each other heal from their past and move onto a much, much better future.
Secondary to the romance and the main spanner in the works for the furthering of their relationship, both Ryann and Jonah have a lot of family drama that they must wade through. It’s kind of sad and painful in moments. And I like that they help each other to process this. Plus, they find a way to live with the complexities of family – as dysfunctional as this can sometimes look and feel. In fact, I thought that Ryann’s brother was going to be much more of a problem than he actually was. And I kind of liked that fact. Yes, he was a hurdle, but in the scheme of things, he was much smaller a challenge than anticipated.
All in all, I loved this romance, it had all of the character development and dynamics that I tend to enjoy in these kinds of stories. Plus a little bit of lust and steam. That’s not even getting me started on the fact that it’s about a bunch of athletes. I mean, I may not be insanely into hockey, but it’s definitely something that intrigues me. And I do love any sports romance I can get my hands on…
My first novella in this series – although not my first by this author. I love the premise that this is a world in which vampires are common knowledge and out in the open. Although, they aren’t exactly sorted in the whole figuring out their rights. I’m definitely keen to read more of this series – I love a good, clever romance. And I particularly love those that make you think about the way we treat other in real life.
I love the moment when the lead female realises that she’s got an unwilling housemate. All because of a horrible, manipulative woman. One that does eventually get her own comeuppance, but still. The shock of just finding a random man in the house you think you have to yourself? Slightly horrifying, but very entertaining to read about. I particularly love that the relationship that follows in built upon some pretty dodgy and horrible pranks. I mean, the escalation of trying to outdo one another in the annoying factor was kind of hilarious.
Even though you know that this couple is going to end up together, the journey to get there is still really fun. They learn each other through being horrible to one another (which sounds ridiculous, but we really get to know each other when we’re not on our best behaviour). It’s a great way for a relationship to build. And a fantastic way for the lead female to create other relationships and build roots that aren’t romantic in this gorgeous small town.
I love that this is a story about a chef who has a mental breakdown, takes time off and then realises that she has a whole new dream. It’s a great, fun idea that she then decides to become a chef for vampires too. I love the idea of a dinner that caters to both vampires and humans, and all of the other things that go bump in the night…
This was a brilliant novella, I’ve read one other short story (Santa’s Mortuary) in this series, so I was looking forward to finding more out about this world. And I most definitely wasn’t disappointed. I’m seriously intrigued by this series and author, and have finally splurged to actually buy Phantom Evil, the first full-length novel in the Krewe of Hunters series.
This is a fun little paranormal whodunnit. I mean, ghosts are implicated, and romance also abounds (mostly a lot of passion and love in the case of this story), but they are not immediately assumed. I like that there are totally human and plausible reasons for the murders that are running rampant. Which, in the end meant that there were two mysteries – the one of the ghosts, and the one of the murders. Both made it really hard to put down this book and not keep diving into the pages.
It was really fun having a wedding and happily ever after implications as the backdrop to a murder mystery. I like that it’s not quite as cutesy and adorable as many of the stories that I read, but still kind of sweet. Particularly the idea that it doesn’t necessarily matter where you get married, just the commitment to one another and the future. Plus, there are so many moments that I just want to know who the psycho is running around killing people! And why there are ghosts. And there’s just so much death…
The whole time I was reading this, I felt a little bit like I was reading an adult version of Scooby Doo. Although that could be because I recently watched the movie… But, it was still a really fun kind of Whodunnit book. Even though there is an actual paranormal aspect to this story in the form of ghosts, it’s still a crime story that is based on pure human horrible-ness. I love that although ghosts are kind of implicated in the death, it is still a human driver and motivation that is ultimately the culprit (hence the Scooby Doo feeling).
Although this is a full-length, adult novel, it’s honestly a very easy read. I mean, it’s a quick and fun journey, but also has plenty of creep factor to keep you engaged. Kind of like with a cozy mystery, it gives you the chill factor and makes you really need to solve the mystery. But not to the degree that I couldn’t read it late at night. The perfect balance, plus, the romance aspect is, again, there, and has moments of intensity, but also not overly intense.
I love that Angela and Jackson are able to slowly build their relationship. But, it was kind of secondary to the crime story line. It was a nice slow burn, with a bit of instant attraction thrown in. I also liked that Angela and Jackson are kind of the default “parents” of their new “crew”. Taking on the responsibility of others and kind of guiding them. They also both have some paranormal abilities, but, again, these are kind of secondary to the fact that there is a murderer running free…
It’s always fun to have a beginning of the series starting with the forming of a new team. It means that as you get to know the characters, the rest of the team is actually getting to know them. Now I can’t wait to read more of this series and find out more about these fun characters… and the awesome characters they fall in love with.
I started off liking this novella, but it very quickly lost its sparkle. So I won’t write too much about it. Mostly I think that what I didn’t really love about this was the sex scenes… they just tried way too hard. And kept on repeating the same thing. Like, one ended, and the next pretty much immediately began. It was definitely not my cup of tea. I got about halfway through and just gave up to be honest.
Sadly, I haven’t gotten as far into the Night Huntress series as I want. Mostly because I’m kind of a series slut and tend to jump around a lot. But, it’s definitely one that I continuously enjoy picking up. And every time I read anything set in this world, I’m reminded why I find this series so exciting and interesting. Alright, this novella takes place a bit further down in the series order, but it was still exciting and seriously enjoyable. There were a few spoilers for things that are going to come up. But, with the way I jump around, I’ll probably have forgotten about some of them by then anyway.
I love that this is a story about Cat just trying to have a nice, relaxing girls’ weekend. And that it completely goes off rails and doesn’t go to plan. I mean, it wouldn’t be a story featuring Cat if anything actually went according to plan. Particularly a weekend that is all about relaxing… instead, Cat and her girlfriend get witch cults, horrors and some kind of ocean goddess. Although, surprisingly there are some survivors at the end… left on purpose and I liked the rationale for not just killing everyone.
Drunk Cat is one of the more humorous things I’ve read in a book in a little while. I mean, she is literally trying to fight the floor. And determined to still go out and kill a bunch of people. Typical Cat stubbornness, and seriously funny in that she actually succeeds in her goals. As bloody and violent as they are.
Through all of the drama and violence, Cat is trying so dang hard to figure out how to be a good mum. As a new mum myself, I understand some of this guilt and challenge. The fact that her child is actually a teenager and was trained to kill… a little bit harder than what I’ve had to go through. Her way of being a good parent and the compromise she reaches at the end is brilliant and reminded me why I love this author and series so much.
Earth and Skye 