Friday, April 30, 2021

What's on the Reading Radar? #WishList #TBR

DUDES!

So, I missed creating the Reading Radar again. I've said before (three weeks running) that I was pushing to finish Cherish (The Valespian Pact, 4) and Holy Smokes, I did! Now I have to that little thing called 'type it up' and 'self edits' before I ship it off to a professional editor. But the story is COMPLETE. I will do some celebrating when I send it off because my work is not done yet. Someone send me some fast fingered transcribing faeries!

In the meantime, books!

Series: Sacred Guardian, 1
Author: J.A. Jaken
Length: 358 pages

Genre: Slow Burn Romance / Fantasy / Action & Adventure / Intrigue / Mystery / Gay

Notes: I love this book and it just came out on audio! MINE.

Blurb: When Kaori Sansa’s father dies, he is forced to return home to claim the throne as the rightful heir of the country of Kazure. In the aftermath of his father’s death, he learns that the country he loves is riddled with corruption, and is hovering on the brink of war. Will he be able to hold the kingdom together despite the odds that are stacked against it, and somehow unlock the buried powers of Shinja, the Sacred Beast of Kazure?


Series: Forsaken Fae, 2
Author: RA Steffan
Length: 176 pages

Genre: Slow Burn Romance / Urban Fantasy / Enemies to Lovers / Gay

Notes: I read the first one and loved it. Bonus that the audio is already out. MINE.

Blurb: Len needs to track down a handbasket ASAP, because things are going straight to hell.

In the aftermath of the disastrous battle to close the rip between realms, he's stuck with a Fae who seems convinced that the only way to fix things is to leap directly into the maw of the Wild Hunt.

Len recognizes martyrdom when he sees it, and he's not about to let Albigard of the Unseelie sacrifice himself on the altar of his own guilty conscience.

After the events of the past few weeks, it's looking more and more like Len's ghosts may hold the key that can lock the Hunt back inside its box of horrors. But when circumstances trap him alone with Albigard in a dead pocket realm, it becomes increasingly clear that the Fae is every bit as damaged inside as Len is.

Before they can stop the Hunt and save the lost souls of their closest friends, they'll have to glue their broken edges together somehow. Only then will Len have a shot at undoing the damage that's already been done.

He just has to keep himself—and Albigard—alive long enough to get the chance.

* * *

Forsaken Fae is a slow-burn M/M urban fantasy trilogy. It's set in the same world as the bestselling series The Last Vampire and its other spinoff, Vampire Bound. Download Book Two today, and enter a world shared by humans, fae, demons, and vampires. It’s a place where the supernatural threatens the mundane, nothing is as it seems, and enemies must overcome their tangled pasts in order to save the future.


Series: 
Author(s): Rhys Lawless, Sam Burns, W.M. Fawkes, Morgan Brice, Meghan Maslow, Richard Amos
Length: 1134 pages

Genre: Romance / Urban Fantasy / Anthology / 

Notes: I always love to see fairy tales reimagined. The stories in this anthology are 40k to 60k (wow) so they are not short.

Blurb: Tales as old as time…reimagined.

What if your favorite fairy tales…kicked some serious, urban fantasy ass?

Fueled by magic, steam, and scorching men, this MM romance anthology has just the thrill you’re looking for.

6 paranormal and urban fantasy authors.
6 fairy tales retold in modern day.
6 gorgeous couples to fall in love with.
Over 1,200 pages.

A limited edition anthology you don’t want to miss.
Comes with happy-ever-afters guaranteed!

Grab your copy of Fables Retold today!

Stories included:
Blake & the Beast by Rhys Lawless (Beauty & the Beast)
The Cat Returns to Adderly by Sam Burns (Puss in Boots)
The Seventh Ring of Bertram Bell by W.M. Fawkes (Bluebeard)
Gruff by Morgan Brice (Three Billy Goats Gruff)
The Demon's in the Details by Meghan Maslow (Rumpelstiltskin)
Spirit of Snow by Richard Amos (Snow White)




Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Guest Post: New Audiobook Release Through the Last Door by J.A. Jaken #excerpt #mmfantasy

Back in 2015 I wrote a review for Through the Last Door by J.A. Jaken. (See review here.) It is an awesome fantasy with a slow burn romance spiced with intrigue and adventure. And it now has been released on audio!! *happy wiggles*




Title: Through the Last Door (Audiobook)
Series: Sacred Guardian #1
Author: J.A. Jaken
Genre: m/m romance, fantasy, adventure
Length: 13 hours 37 minutes (134,000 words)
Narrator: Dan Calley
Audiobook publication date: 4/27/2021

Buy Links:
Audible: http://bit.ly/TTLDaudio
Amazon: http://getBook.at/TTLD
iTunes: COMING SOON

Sacred Guardian Series Webpage: http://jajaken.com/novels/sacredguardianseries.htm

Summary: When Kaori Sansa's father dies, he is forced to return home to claim the throne as the rightful heir of the country of Kazure. In the aftermath of his father's death, he learns that the country he loves is riddled with corruption, and is hovering on the brink of war. Will he be able to hold the kingdom together despite the odds that are stacked against it, and somehow unlock the buried powers of Shinja, the Sacred Beast of Kazure?





Author Bio

J.A. Jaken has been writing fictional stories and novels for more than ten years, most frequently in the fantasy and science fiction genres. She got her start in the profession writing slash fanfiction, where she has published numerous stories under the pen-name Rushlight. Over the years she has written short stories and novels in genres ranging from science fiction/fantasy to gothic horror to modern detective mysteries, most with at least a touch of m/m romance to them. She lives at home in the southwestern U.S. with her college-aged son, a cat, and the family Rottweiler. Outside of writing, her interests include studying foreign languages, practicing martial arts, riding horses, and collecting medieval weaponry.

Author's email: jajakenfiction@gmail.com
Author's website: http://jajaken.com/
Author's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/jajakenfiction
Author's Twitter page: https://twitter.com/#!/jajakenfiction
Goodreads book page: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23511477-through-the-last-door


Excerpt

"You really should try to eat something, High Lord," Ishaya said.

Kaori closed his eyes. The smell of the food--while undoubtedly well-prepared and mouth-watering--was making him feel ill. But if he hadn't eaten all day, then neither had Hunter. And Hunter would not eat before he did; not out of a misguided overabundance of fealty, but because he was as much of a mother hen as Ishaya was.

Reluctantly, he selected a plate of light crackers and cheeses, adding a pile of thin-sliced veal at Haku's insistence. The food clung to his throat when he tried to swallow, without any taste at all. He nodded gratefully when Haku handed him a cup of spiced wine to wash it down with.

"You, too," he said, frowning in Hunter's direction. "Don't tell me you aren't hungry."

Hunter made no move to accept the offer. "I want to be sure you have enough to eat first," he said. "You need--"

"There's more than enough here to feed all of us if we want it, and half the grounds staff besides. Eat, damn you."

A small smile touched Hunter's face as he slid down to sit at Kaori's other side and reached for a plate, piling it high with sliced veal and fruit. "If you insist." There was an ironic twist to the words.

The familiar byplay made something inside Kaori's chest loosen. Hunter, at least, wasn't treating him any differently because his father had died. Taking comfort from the shoulder brushing so warmly against his, he finally found the courage to look up and meet Ishaya's eyes.

"There are probably things I need to know," he said. The words felt heavy in his mouth. "Affairs of state, or... something." He felt lost.

Ishaya smiled kindly at him. "There's no need for you to worry about that tonight, High Lord." His eyes were soft. "Rest assured that all is running as it should within your kingdom. For tonight, at least, you have no responsibilities other than spending time with your friend."

"I'd like to hear about that university in Gyre," Haku said, selecting a grape from the platter and taking a slow bite from it. "What was it like, living over there? Was it horrible?"

"No, it wasn't horrible at all. Gyre is really a wonderful place. Let me tell you about the campus where I was living...." Kaori was glad for the delay in having to face his new reality for that much longer. He felt more relaxed now as he talked about the country he had spent the past three years visiting, the things he'd learned there, the culture, the language, the people. In return, Haku told him about the trials he'd passed in order to become a member of the Palace Guard, and some of the campaigns he'd been on. Kaori was unsettled to realize that his friend had significant battle experience now, and had even killed on occasion, when it had become necessary. That image jarred discordantly with the image of the childhood companion he carried around in his mind's eye. In many ways, this new Haku seemed a stranger to Kaori; the thought made him feel sad. But time moved on, and people changed. That was the way of the world.

At length, he began to feel quite sleepy. He realized with some surprise that he had eaten more than he thought he'd be able to.

"Your room has been prepared," Ishaya said, drawing his attention, "if you'd like to retire for the night."

Kaori caught himself in the middle of another yawn and ducked his head embarrassedly. He really was very tired. The thought of going to sleep as if nothing untoward had happened disturbed him, but at the same time he wanted it desperately, wanted the dark and the temporary oblivion it offered.

"Yes," he said, sighing. "I think I'd better." He smiled, feeling very much aware of his friends sitting around him like a balustrade, like armor, sitting with him so he wouldn't have to be alone on this night of all nights. "Thank you."

He got up to walk out of the room, but stopped before he reached the doorway. Turning around, he met Haku's eyes and asked, "Did my father suffer at all?"

Haku hesitated before replying. "It wasn't easy for him," he said at last. "But what is, in this life?"

Ishaya leaned forward in agitation. "Haku!" he said sharply, with a disapproving frown. "There was no reason for him to know--"

Haku shrugged, unimpressed by the other man's ire. "We shouldn't get into the habit of lying to him. Life is hard, and it's only going to get harder." He glanced in Kaori's direction, his gaze contemplative. "Especially for him."

The words sent a wave of coldness washing through Kaori, but he nodded agreeably enough. "Thank you, Haku." Feeling numb, he left the room.

He'd taken nearly five full steps before he realized that Hunter had fallen in beside him. Glancing at the man irritably, he said, "You'd better get some sleep, too."

"Of course." Hunter's tone was nonchalant. It occurred to Kaori that he'd never once seen the other man sleep. He just always seemed to be there, watching over him.

"Seriously, Hunter." That thought worried him, for some reason. "I don't think you have to worry about anyone trying to assassinate me here in the palace tonight."

"No," Hunter said agreeably. "You should be safe enough here."

"So get some rest. Please."

Hunter's eyes were extraordinarily dark when they looked at him. For the first time, Kaori wondered if he was mourning Akashi's passing, too. Had the two of them been close at all? They must have been, for Akashi to have assigned Hunter the task of protecting his only heir.

"I will," Hunter said after a moment's pause. "Promise me you'll get some sleep as well. Don't just lie awake, worrying."

It had been nearly three years since Kaori had last slept in a room alone. Having a roommate had been troublesome for him at first, but he'd swiftly grown accustomed to the sound of another breath in the darkness next to his own. All of a sudden, he missed Ben so poignantly it brought a physical ache to his chest.

"Yes," he said, wondering if he sounded half as insincere as he felt. "I promise."

They walked in silence the rest of the way to Kaori's room. At this hour, there was no one else out and about in the corridors. The emptiness of the palace was unsettling, as if it were inhabited by nothing more than ghosts, or memories. Kaori wasn't sure which of the two would be worse.

He paused outside the door to his bedroom when he reached it, staring hard at the elaborate whorls etched into the polished wood. At his side Hunter waited patiently, as if sensing that he needed to find the courage to speak.

"Everything's changed," he said at last. There was no one else he could have made such an admission to, not even Haku. "And I don't think... I don't think I can be what they need from me."

"Nonsense." Hunter's tone was kind. "You've spent the past two years--nearly three--studying politics and economic stratagems. You're already more educated than your father ever hoped of being."

"My father was a great warrior."

"It takes more than war to rule a country."

"I'm too young. The lords of the Council are going to laugh at me if I try to tell them what to do."

"I assure you they won't."

"They'll be right to. I don't know anything. I mean, I do, but it's all book knowledge. I don't know anything about their fears, about the issues they're facing."

"You'll learn. The important thing to remember is that you aren't alone. We're all here for you, and we're rooting for you. We'll help you all that we can."

Hunter. Haku. Ishaya. Kaori smiled slightly at that reminder. "I'm probably going to fall on my ass."

The corner of Hunter's mouth curled upward. "If you do, you'll pick yourself up again. You'll make mistakes, you'll learn from them, and life will go on. Your father made more than his fair share of them."

That made Kaori raise his head, surprise widening his eyes. The thought that his father might have been fallible rocked the foundations of his world.

After a moment, he asked, "Do you miss him?"

For a moment, it didn't look as if Hunter was going to answer. Then he turned away with a small sigh, so soft Kaori almost couldn't hear it.

"I think you have the potential to be a far greater ruler than your father ever had a hope of being," he said, without looking at Kaori's eyes. "I think people are going to assume, at first, that you might be just like him... and that they'll be pleasantly surprised when they find out you're not."

Kaori turned those last statements over in his head and tried to determine if, taken as a whole, they amounted to a compliment for him, or for his father. He decided he was too tired to come to a coherent conclusion and that he'd do best to just let it go for now.

He slid the fingers of one hand over the surface of his door, feeling the familiar warmth of it slide in through his skin. "Promise me," he said, staring down at his hand. "Promise me... you aren't going to change. Promise me you'll never treat me any differently because of... of what I am."

Hunter turned to look at him then, surprise at the words tightening the skin between his brows. A moment later, his expression softened. "Is that an order, High Lord?"

Kaori frowned. "No. It's not. It's only a request."

Hunter nodded seriously. "Then unfortunately, I'm going to have to decline. I can't promise never to change. I don't know anyone who could do that." When Kaori opened his mouth to speak, he said, "But I will promise always to treat you as I have in the past."

"Like an obsessive mother hen, you mean," Kaori said, subsiding with a grin.

"If you'd like to think of it that way." Hunter's eyes sparkled. "But seriously, Kaori. You don't have anything to worry about. No matter what happens, I'll always be by your side."

It was ridiculous, how much comfort that promise gave him. Kaori was struck by the sudden urge to ask the other man to go into his bedroom with him, just so he wouldn't have to sleep alone.

Flustered, he turned back toward his door. "Go get some sleep, then. You promised."

"I did." Hunter lifted a hand and ruffled Kaori's hair, his palm settling in a warm, heavy weight on the top of his scalp. "You go to sleep, too."

Kaori repressed a shiver. "I told you I would." He pushed open the door and stepped into his room, feeling strangely bereft when the other man's hand fell away from his hair.

He didn't look back when he closed the door.



Friday, April 16, 2021

What's on the Reading Radar? #reading #TBR #WishList

What am I doing? Well... I might have jumped the gun thinking that Cherish (The Valespian Pact, 4) would be finished last week. Oh, look! Another week has gone by and I still can't type 'Fine'. I've been pushing to complete the book because the end is so very near. But there are also many exciting things going on with the story that added more story and I trying to exercise discretion and NOT SPILL ALL THE BEANS! I'm so excited but I have got to keep some revelations for later. I keep telling myself that... looks at manuscript and scribbles out series spoilers... well, it seems that might be a work in progress.


Series: (The Pudding Protocol Universe)
Author: Angel Martinez
Length: 178 pages

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Fantasy / Action Adventure / Lesbian

Notes:

Blurb: Brave paladin. Royal princess. Fierce dragon. Simple. Being all three at once? Way too complicated.

Paladin Snillek's mother was human and ruled a planet. That's about the extent of her knowledge since they didn't see each other much. When her mom dies in a freak accident, her father tells Snillek she's inherited the title, and she has to learn how to pass as the mostly human Princess Siel for a planet she never thought about much. The dresses alone are horrifying and the courtiers aggravating.

In a moment of frustrated rage, Snillek's princess persona slips and frightened palace staff misinterpret what they see. Now Paladin Snillek has been called upon to rescue Princess Siel…from herself.

Gruyere wants desperately to journey into the wilds of Tarribotia, but it's too dangerous to go alone and so far, everyone's laughed at her for suggesting it. When she spots a Dzedek paladin sulking in a tavern, she offers her services, hoping to pass herself off as a rogue guide.

Two women with secrets and possibly opposing goals head out into the hinterlands of a planet neither one of them knows well. They might both make it back by Winterfest if nothing eats them first.

This book contains one out-of-her-element paladin, the perils of academia, deadly cake, and unconventional dragons.

Title: Braevan
Series: Mates of Mylos
Author: Leona Windwalker
Length: 

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Aliens / Gay

Notes: releases April 29th

Blurb: Chitose

When our parents died, I thought for sure my university days were over. I had a younger brother to look after, and he needed me. I couldn't turn him over to someone else just so I could work more hours in order to attend classes at least part-time. The Mylos scholarship program's expansion to include gay males sounded just the ticket! I currently didn't have a boyfriend, so there was no one to object to them checking if I was a one in a gazillion chance match to one of their warriors. The scholarship money would pay for my schooling, housing, and provide a stipend for food and other expenses for us both. It was too good to pass up. It was the solution to most of our current problems, I was sure of it.

Braevan

When the Bride Treaty's program was expanded to include males such myself, my hearts and mind became filled with hope. Was my mate one of the males below, thirsting for knowledge and open to finding their forever love? Matches were rare, and I knew that the odds of it happening were only one out of so many billions. One chance in however large a number was still one, though, not zero, and so every single day, I gaze out the windows as I walk down the corridors to my duty station. Please, let him be there. I am ready, my arms and hearts open.

Series:
Author: Mary Calmes
Length: 338 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Fated Mates / Detective / Mystery / Gay

Notes:

Blurb: You belong to me and I know it down deep, in muscle and bone, where my wolf lives.

Avery Rhine isn’t an average homicide detective with the Chicago PD. In fact, Avery isn’t an average anything. Sure, as an omega he knows he’s at the bottom of the food chain, but that’s never slowed him down. He’s got a great life, complete with a loving family and a best friend who’d take a bullet for him, so what more could he possibly want or need? Except, maybe, for the world to change. And to find someone to spend more than one night with, but that isn’t high on his list of priorities. He’s never been one to believe in destiny or whatever else the fantasies sell about there being someone special out there meant just for him.

Then a chance encounter at a party changes everything.

Graeme Davenport has no delusions about finding his true mate. The consensus is that if an alpha doesn’t find their other half by the time they’re thirty, the chances of it ever happening go from slim to none. He’s not a mere alpha, though; Graeme is a cyne who sits at the pinnacle of lupine hierarchy, so he’s obligated by tradition and duty to choose an omega now, sign a contract, and bond with him. Love is not part of the equation.

When Graeme and Avery meet, their fierce attraction to each other flies in the face of reason and logic. Avery’s intense physical reaction to the alpha is something he’s never experienced before, while Graeme, who has always been the soul of discretion, loses all his inhibitions to desire for the man he wants to possess. They are two very different men trying to navigate expectations, separate reason from innate primal drive, and do it while working together to solve a murder.

It will take everything they are to find a middle ground, and to learn to trust in a fated kind of love.

Series: (Nevermore Bookshop Mysteries Book 1)
Author: Steffanie Holmes
Length: 302 pages

Genre: Romance / Slow Burn / Urban Fantasy / RH

Notes:

Blurb: What do you get when you cross a cursed bookshop, three hot fictional men, and a punk rock heroine nursing a broken heart?

After being fired from her fashion internship in New York City, Mina Wilde decides it’s time to reevaluate her life. She returns to the quaint English village where she grew up to take a job at the local bookshop, hoping that being surrounded by great literature will help her heal from a devastating blow.

But Mina soon discovers her life is stranger than fiction – a mysterious curse on the bookshop brings fictional characters to life in lust-worthy bodies. Mina finds herself babysitting Poe’s raven, making hot dogs for Heathcliff, and getting IT help from James Moriarty, all while trying not to fall for the three broken men who should only exist within her imagination.

When Mina’s ex-best friend shows up dead with a knife in her back, she’s the chief suspect. She’ll have to solve the murder if she wants to clear her name. Will her fictional boyfriends be able to keep her out of prison?

The Nevermore Bookshop Mysteries are what you get when all your book boyfriends come to life. Join a brooding antihero, a master criminal, a cheeky raven, and a heroine with a big heart (and an even bigger book collection) in this brand new steamy paranormal mystery series by USA Today bestselling author Steffanie Holmes.

Series:
Author: Macy Blake
Length: 143 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Fated Mates / Gay

Notes:

Blurb: Even a human like me knows that to a shifter, pack is everything. So when my best friend asks me to check up on her brother—a lion/tiger hybrid who was been banished from his own pride—I agree...

And find out I’m his fated mate.

Hart’s been through a lot, and I know it. The circumstances of his birth made him an outcast, and those scars run deep. He’s also got a million excuses for why he never came back to claim me the way he says he wanted to.

But when he sees me on his doorstep and suddenly decides to make up for lost time… well, let’s just say I’m not falling for it.

Claiming is a forever thing. And nothing about Hart Sherman with his fancy career and solitary lifestyle says he wants forever with small-town guy like me.

If he wants me to believe he’s serious, he’ll have to prove it. By finding a place in the pride for the amazing man he made himself… and for the liger he was born to be.

Thank you for stopping by an reading!!

Saturday, April 10, 2021

What's on the Reading Radar? #TBR #WishList #reading

 I missed posting the Reading Radar the last couple of weeks. I've been distracted as I push to get Cherish completed. I'm almost there. So close that I can practically taste the "The End". Another couple of day, I think, and Cherish will be done... then the editing begins and it not going to be pretty.

Series: Lost Shifters, 3
Author: Megan Derr
Length: 154 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Poly /

Notes: I love the Lost Shifter series. The first book where a snake shifter adopts wolf pups is adorable. This one has raccoon, platypus, and crane shifters. I wanted to taste test all of Oakley's cupcakes and inject him with a wealth of confidence. I have questions about the former alligator friend! Maybe we will get a story about him, too!

Blurb: All Oakley wants is a quiet life, to run his cupcake shop in peace, chat with the regulars, and be left alone otherwise.

Well, he'd also like a lover and a house full of kids, but thanks to his asshole relatives and their attempts to murder prominent members of the Lost Shifters Foundation, that's not likely to happen anytime soon. So he settles for quietly pining after men who will never look at him that way.

Then a sudden burst of impulse leads to a date—a date quickly ruined by an unexpected murder that is almost immediately followed by another, and another…

Series: Dragon Hoard, 3
Author: Minerva Howe
Length: 198 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / All The Dragon Babies / Mpreg / Gay / 

Notes: I've been waiting for Ty's story. He yearned for a mate so hard. When he does find, the journey isn't over. There is the tragedy that his mate is dealing with and the a learning curve with not only Ty and Myk, but with Ty and his brothers and their mates... and so many babies. It's a fun and heart warming story. The bonus is there will be more books in this universe. I'm so happy about that.

Blurb: Dragon shifter Tyson has been hearing a distant call for months now, a lonely cry that he hopes is his mate. All he has to do is find out where it's coming from. When the mournful voice screams for help, Tyson leaves his home and his brothers in the mountains of Colorado to rescue Myc, another dragon who's in a terrible and dangerous situation. Nursing Myc and his niece and twin nephews back to health, Tyson knows he's found what he's looking for, but he doesn't want to push. He's waited this long. He can wait until Myc is ready to mate with him.

Myc knows Tyson is the one for him, but he's lost his home and his family, and he's not sure he knows how to convince Tyson he's not shy or fragile. He also knows he's added three more kids to Tyson's rapidly growing family, and he's afraid to ask Tyson to mate with him and have more.

Tyson and Myc have to fight the past, their own fears, and their deep, stubborn notions of what's right to come together with the kind of love they both know they can make.

Series: Pizza Shop Exorcist, 1
Author: Dakota Brown
Length: 202 pages

Genre: Romance / Urban Fantasy / Why Choose / 

Notes: This was rather fun. I get a bit tired of the FMCs being in their early 20s and saw this one recommended with a FMC in her mid 30s. I really enjoyed the story and the characters. By the end of the book I was really starting to despise her 'best friend'. He is not even a friend to her. Angst level was pretty low. There is a backstory that is hinted at that is painful but she's avoiding it for now. She strikes me as chaotic neutral and that is part of the reason why this was fun to read. I was ready to jump into the next book, but it's not out until Summer, I think. I would definitely recommend it. 

Blurb: When my family died at the hands of a demon prince, I hung up my exorcist hat. I’d failed to protect them, and while I was willing to risk myself, the price had risen too high.

Now I’m serving up hot, fresh pizzas to everyone who wants them. I was the only person left to inherit the family business and I’m doing my best to keep it up and running in honor of my loved ones.

These days, my biggest challenge is telling off a rampaging customer, and endless paperwork. That is, until he shows up again.
Darius was the only guy I couldn’t say no to, the one who dragged me into the world of the occult in the first place. When he shows up and begs me to assist with an exorcism, I reluctantly agree. He’s still using me; because I’m the best exorcist around and he only calls when he needs my help.

Before I know it, I’ve got an incubus in the living room, a hellhound marking around my yard, and a demon prince who can’t decide if he wants to kill me or… you know. Not to mention the vampire and the nephilim I seem to have collected. Normally I wouldn’t work with the supernatural, but we all have a common goal. Prevent the crime syndicate from summoning a demon prince and becoming more powerful than we can hope to handle.

If I can keep my cool, it will be a miracle. If I can hold on to my soul it’ll be an even bigger one. No one ever claimed being an exorcist was easy, but to protect those I’m coming to love, I’ll pay whatever price necessary.

This book is intended for mature audiences. 18+ readers only! It contains language and sexual situations. This is a medium burn reverse harem where the girl gets all the guys. Why Choose? Harem members added as series progresses.

Series: Deadside Reapers, 1
Author: Debbie Cassidy
Length: 294 pages

Genre: Slow Burn Romance / Urban Fantasy / Why Choose / 

Notes: This was an interesting story. The broken world where the spirits/ghost of the dead have to wait in a cue to be processed before moving on because the number of reapers was affected by the same incident that allowed humans to see and interact with ghosts. There is a bit of suspense that played havoc with my anxiety so it took me about a week to read, but was interesting enough that I kept coming back to see what happens next. I tried to spoil myself by reading the blurbs for the other books in the series and that was a mostly useless endeavor because those blurbs were vague, vague, vague. I don't even know who she is going to have as mates. I can't decide if the author is devious or diabolical.

Blurb: Your dead are our business.

Got a loved one who’s passed? Want to ask your dead aunt where she hid that elusive will? Head over to Necro city and look no further than Soul Savers Inc.

One day the world was normal, and the next, it was filled with ghosts. And then the reapers came. Blood-sucking hot dudes with wings and wicked scythes. They took control, and now we have a system.

Now we have Necro city, the hub of all things untethered.

As a soul relocation agent, it’s my job to rehouse the dead until the reapers come to collect, but with so few of those dudes about, the wait isn’t pretty. Thank goodness for decent coffee, frosted donuts, and a pending promotion.

Things are looking good until they’re not.

One bar fight and a dead reaper later, I’m left holding the scythe.

Not just any scythe, but a scythe belonging to one of Lilith’s four favored sons—the most powerful reapers in the world.

For some reason, it’s chosen me.

Now, three very large, very pissed off reapers are on my case.

It looks like that promotion is going to have to wait.


A kickass Urban fantasy with a why choose romance. Vampires, ghosts, angels, and demons. Perfect for readers who enjoy forbidden romance, enemies to lovers, or friends to lovers.

Series: The Mystic Bay Series, 3
Author: MA Church
Length: 213 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Vampires / Elementals / Gay 

Notes: Yay! It's here!

Blurb: He’s what things that go bump in the night fear.

Tragedy brings the ice elemental, Nicholas Frost, to America and lands him on the doorstep of the High Council. While surrounded by a group of Guardians who question his offer to kill the vampire Jackson, Nicholas stumbles across the man fate has decreed his. Although overjoyed, the secret he hides is now in jeopardy of being revealed.

Something lethal lurks within.

Cold. Powerful. Feared. A killer. Like the softly falling snow, Nicholas is silent and deadly. Always alone. Always guarded. His abilities are unrivaled, and other paranormals avoid him. With good reason.

And the man fate has paired him with is a truthsayer—a living lie detector.

Guardian Jonas Parker is convinced fate has made a monumental mistake. Guardian lifespans are practically eternal. Elementals only live a couple of hundred years. No way that golden thread which links them means what he thinks it does. Surely fate wouldn’t gift him with a man he’ll outlive?

Jonas is a truthsayer, which is difficult enough. Add in the chance of an accidental surface reading if he touches bare skin, and no one is willing to get close to him. Jonas can dig into anyone’s psyche and unearth all their secrets regardless if they’re willing are not.

No secret can remain hidden from him.

While Nicholas and Jonas struggle to figure out how a mating can work between two such different paranormals, Jackson plots. As the final battle looms on the horizon for the men of Mystic Bay, a terrifying prospect has emerged—something not even Nicholas and the others may be able to defeat.

Series: 
Author: Rachel Langella
Length: 181 pages

Genre: Romance / Urban Fantasy / Fated Mates / Gay /

Notes: 

Blurb: Sometimes Fate has a bizarre sense of humor.

Or at least it seems that way to Gus, owner of the Rainbow Room, Asheville’s main hangout for gay paranormals. He’s seen Fate catch up with the patrons of his bar while he served drinks and listened to their stories for three hundred years. He found all of it amusing, until his fated mate walks in and suddenly the twists aren’t so funny any longer!

Bear Hickes is a mage who specializes in fire, but life has lost its spark since his twin brother got married and left him alone. His older brother, Whimsy, is determined to help Bear find happiness no matter how much Bear objects, but meeting Gus gives Bear a wonderful idea: if Gus will pretend to be his boyfriend, Whimsy will get off his case. And somewhere along the line, Bear finds he wants it to be for real.

But there are secrets Gus is keeping from not just Bear, but the whole world. And when those secrets catch up with him at last, the danger won’t be just for Gus alone.

This story is set in the Asheville Arcana universe, but can be read as a standalone.

Stop Dragon My Heart Around is part of the multi-author Magic Emporium Series. Each book stands alone, but each one features an appearance by Marden’s Magic Emporium, a shop that can appear anywhere, but only once and only when someone’s in dire need. This book contains explicit scenes, a grumpy mage, a paranoid dragon, a very arrogant vampire and a guaranteed HEA.


Series: 
Author: Aspen Black
Length: 476 pages

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Why Choose / 

Notes: The curvy model caught my eye though this doesn't release until the 16th. 

Blurb: I can't see the shadows that lurk in the dark.

It was supposed to be my first summer on my own, but then I meet Seth, Axel, Jasper, and Cody. There's something about them that drew me closer and they seemed hell-bent on protecting me.

I didn't think I needed protecting until people started showing up dead in the woods.

So much for a quiet summer...

Can I escape the shadows, or will the darkness consume me?

Shrouded In The Dark is a standalone shifter paranormal reverse harem novel with 140k+ words that includes M/M.

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!