Title: Volatile
Author: Carina Alyce
Series: MetroGen After Hours #1
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Romantic suspense
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novel
Year: 2021

Brandon and Jennifer have a great Meet Cute in Volatile. It is full of flirty, somewhat lustful banter. And it makes you think that they are immediately going to connect in a very intimate way. Until he arrests her for having bombs in her car. Which is the beginning of this story, and a beginning I completely adored and could get behind. Volatile then continued to keep building from there in a way that made it almost impossible to put down. I absolutely adored this adventure, and it has made me really keen to read the other Carina Alyce series, and also Burn Card, the next book in this MetroGen series.

I really enjoyed Jennifer as a character, she was the absolute sunshine in this sunshine – grump romance, but she was also the aggressor. I love that she spends the entirety of this story pushing Brandon outside of his comfort zone. Rather than just letting his excuses slide, he is constantly encouraging and pushing him into new territories. Not in an overbearing way, but in the format that she is helping him expand his horizons. The end of this story and the point of highest conflict is a great example of this. Jennifer is able to help Brandon reach his full potential, with a healthy push, one that really makes him stop and think.

Although Jennifer is the aggressor, Brandon is a great support for her. He does eventually become a little more aggressive with his own romantic / sexual intentions. But, I love that, professionally, Brandon has no issue with standing back and letting Jennifer lead the investigation. Rather than being all macho and moronic about it. He happily follows her lead, and also consistently reminds others that she is the lead. Particularly in a situation in which he could very easily take over (it’s his town and his people), he still supports Jennifer and hands the reigns over.

I was really intrigued to how the romance / sexuality of this story was going to play out. I’ve read two Carina Alyce novellas, and I know that she’s been involved in writing Grey’s Anatomy (because of her bio). But I wasn’t sure how that would translate into on-page intimacies. This was definitely well written. And there were some scenes that I most definitely would not be reading in a public space. It was not vanilla sex and it was the kind of writing that had me fanning myself a few times whilst reading it. Which just makes me want to dive into some more of Alyce’s works – there was great steam, and great character development, and a really gorgeous relationship at the centre of it all.

Image source: Goodreads

Title: Cyclone
Author: Carina Alyce
Series: MetroGen After Hours #0.5
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary, Contemporary romance, Romantic suspense
Pace: Fast
Format: eBook, Novella
Year: 2024

What a brilliant way to start a new story and introduce me to a new author. I absolutely loved this story, it was intense and kind of brilliant. I loved that it was a romance featuring two people who work in high adrenaline fields. Particularly that the woman is about to begin her career as a First Responder / Fire Fighter. Then, there’s the fact that the majority of the action takes place in a cyclone.

Cyclone is a very cute second chances romance with the added drama of a cyclone and the couple finally getting together (after saving someone’s life of course). This novella contains many reminders of the past. I love that both points of view of actions and misunderstandings in both of their pasts are told differently. It’s always fun to have two different points of view of activities as a reminder of just how differently we can all view the same moments in our lives.

I honestly absolutely adored this high pace story, and the fact that this is centred around a female firefighter. I also love that it has an open ending, which I’m assuming (hoping) will be concluded a lot better in one of the MetroGen After Hours novels. I mean, she literally runs away like her pants are on fire (for good reason). And I really want to know how this happens next.

Honestly, the end of this was actually felt as somewhat of a physical blow. I mean, I spent this whole story rooting for the characters in this, and wanting them to succeed. Particularly after they save a woman’s life in the middle of a cyclone. And yet, I actually love how it ended! It’s got me drawn in.

Image source: Goodreads