Possession: A Review

 Possession by Andrea Hagan is book one of her Memphis Magic Series, is a fun paranormal "who dunnit" with a side of romance.

Blurb: 

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I’m learning that lesson the hard way. My name’s Aubry Brooks, and here’s the thing—I’ve got myself a little possession problem.

Yes, I lead a séance I had no business leading in the first place. No, I’m not a channeler of spirit, but let me explain. I was only trying to help a mother find her missing daughter, and then a cocky half-incubus had the nerve to possess me! You’d think a clairvoyant kitchen witch would have seen this coming.

No need to panic. I can figure out a way to exorcise Damion Blackmon, assuming I can withstand his seduction in the meantime. Oh, and he’s agreed to help me find out who killed my best friend. Deals with devils. I'm not sure if it's my soul or my heart that's at risk.

But don’t worry, my grandma was a voyeur in a past life and she'll catch you up to speed. In extremely graphic detail. A word of warning—do not let my aunt talk you into a juice cleanse. Nothing magic about that, I promise.

Welcome to the metaphysical shop Memphis Magic.

Thoughts:

Ya'll...there were lots of little stories weaved into this book, and I thought it was brilliantly laid out. The possession here is just one part of it. Aubrey gets herself possessed in a séance she realizes she really had no business leading to begin with.  We learn she is possessed by a half demon, and everyone is confused because the demon should be able to just...let himself out, but he can't seem to.  So we have this mystery. They try all kinds of spells, rituals, even Damion's demon father is now involved to try to separate them.  

We also have the mystery of her friend being murdered. Who did it? Where? This book is a murder mystery with a side of half demon possessed romance.  Aubrey is independent, sarcastic, and of her own mind, and how in the world you could develop a budding romance with a GUY IN YOUR OWN HEAD is beyond me but Andrea Hagan manages brilliantly.

Possession by Andrea Hagan is available for purchase now and is on KU!

Disclaimer: I received an advanced e-copy of this book free for review.  This however does not affect my opinions, as I do not leave a review for each book I receive. There are links to amazon, clicking these links won't cost you anything but any purchase helps support this blog.  Thanks!

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Jagged Harts: A Review

 

Jagged Harts by Katelyn Taylor follows the story of Aubrey and Dax.  Aubrey has traveled from California to Alabama on scholarship to the university.  She's broke, and on her own, but quickly lands a job at the local pub as a waitress. Aubrey however keeps everyone at arm's length, she's sassy, independent and a trained MMA fighter. She also has a dark past that she doesn't want to talk about. 

Dax is a good looking, womanizing MMA fighter that every girl on campus wants to be with and he knows it. He meets Aubrey one evening when she's walking alone and gets mugged.  He comes to her rescue, however she wasn't happy about it.  She quickly told him off, let him know she could have handled it on her own...and it completely baffled him. He was used to women falling all over themselves for him, and she was less than impressed.

Thoughts:

Things that I love in this story:

1. Strong Independent female lead.
2. Protective, dark and broody male lead.
3. Characters that I really related with.
4. Slow burn romance.

Ya'll, I'm going to be honest with you, this isn't normally my type of book. However, I really really related to the MFC. Aubrey was practically me in my late teens early twenties, minus the touch of literary drama (the only kind of drama I like!). I was an angry young adult, and I kept the world at arms length, and ya'll...I also did martial arts and MMA.  I also hated it when someone felt like they had to rescue me...maybe I should rename myself Aubrey. 

via GIPHY

I loved the pacing and the slow build of the romance and the storyline. Both Aubrey and Dax came off as nasty and aggressive but it was relatable, specially because of their difficult pasts.  They had been hurt and had built a protective hard shell around themselves, and both Aubrey and Dax recognized that in each other. I felt the ending was a bit predictable, but it still didn't away from it.  Overall I think this was a bit different from the other types of romance novels that involved fighters because Aubrey was just as much of a badass. So if you like badass romances with tough guys that are actually softies, you'll enjoy this book.

Jagged Harts releases June 30, 2022 and will be on Kindle Unlimited! 

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A Castle of Bitter Thorn: A Review

Warning...Stop!!

Before you read on, if you haven't read my review of Book 1: A Court of Bitter Thorn do not proceed unless you're ok with spoilers! A Castle of Bittern Thorn is Book Two, of the Court of Bitter Thorn series.

Blurb: 

Fae Bargains are not easily broken.

Elora has decided to stay in Faerie to help Prince Brannick become High King. With the element of surprise on their side, they only have to hide their sword training lessons until the last phase of testing.

But Brannick is ruled by a bargain that could ruin everything. Queen Alessandra is beginning to remember her history with the prince. With one word, she could force him to lose the testing and give up his freedom forever.

With a growing reputation, Elora’s anonymity in Faerie is shrinking fast. Her sisters are safe in the mortal realm, but she is desperate to help Brannick win the throne.

If he doesn’t, any number of fae could capture Elora. Or even worse… her sisters.

Thoughts:

First of all, I love a book that takes me someplace else.  The world Kay L Moody creates is beautiful, vast and dangerous. In the first book Brannick irritated me.  He kept Elora under lock and key (Did we not learn anything from Tamlin's mistake ya'll??). Her bedroom was magically sealed to keep her in, and she wasn't "allowed to leave" with out an escort, but Elora still managed to swoon over him. I'm still having issues with this one. 

Spoiler alter: she doesn't dump him. Instead we have a slow burn type of romance, and if you remember from the first book...Brannick and Elora cannot touch each other. Through out the book he slowly stops acting disgusted in her presence and begins to act somewhat proud of her. Other than Brannick seeming to be her weakness, Elora is quite badass and she shows off not only her sword skills in this book again, but she also rescues herself. 
Brannick...I'm disappointed in you, she is far more than you're worth.  I would have also liked to know more about Queen Alessandra, what's her story? The book ends on another cliffhanger and it doesn't seem we are finished with Queen Alessandra yet, so perhaps we'll find more in book three.
Overall, I've given this book 4.5 stars, despite not liking Brannick, it was a page turner and I really enjoyed it.  Onward to book three!
A Castle of Bittern Thorn is available for purchase here!


Disclaimer: I received an advanced e-copy of this book free for review.  This however does not affect my opinions, as I do not leave a review for each book I receive. There are links to my new bookshop, clicking these links won't cost you anything but any purchase helps support this blog.  Thanks!

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Windsong: A Review

A beautiful blend of Beauty and the Beast, the Golden Compass and Norwegian Fairytales

You guys, I'm absolutely enchanted with Windsong.  It's possibly the best book I've read all month. Let me just lay it all out right now:

Full on five stars ya'll...no hesitation.

Blurb: 

Life doesn’t wait for tears to finish.

Eighteen-year-old Roxana Welhaven has lived her life by this motto. When her mother is diagnosed with terminal cancer, Roxana swallows her tears and vows to do whatever is necessary to save her.

Even if it means making a deal with a talking polar bear.

The bear offers to cure her mother, but only if Roxana lives with him for one year. When she agrees, the bear whisks Roxana through a portal to another world and gives her lavish accommodations in an enchanted castle. Although she’s determined to serve her year and return home, the impatient and high-strung Roxana finds her heart drawn to the bear’s tranquil nature. He’s compassionate, clumsy and utterly adorable.

He's also a cursed man, trapped inside a bear’s body.

True love won’t be enough to break his enchantment. To save him, Roxana must embark on a treacherous quest to find his captor, a journey that will lead her east of the sun and west of the moon.


A retelling of the Norwegian fairy tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon.

Artist Credit: Kayshasiemens

Thoughts:

First I want to warn you all, this book made me cry multiple times. I almost feel like you can't fail when you have fairy tale retellings, and this one feels like it has so many aspects of stories we already know.  Like beauty and the beast, and of course the Norwegian Fairytale, East of the Sun, West of the Moon. Roxana is a tough young lady, which if you know me you know I already like her. She's put in a difficult situation and makes difficult choices for the betterment of her family.  Along the way she slowly opens her heart to the bear and his meat eating horse friend, Vidar.

The book is broken up into four parts, which help with the organization of the story. My neurodiverse brain loves organization, ya'll. Part one was Roxana and the bear getting to know each other, and this bear...you guys.  He is an absolute clumsy, adorable sweetheart.  The book starts to take a darker turn, but you really aren't told why. Part two the darkness really creeps in, and Roxana is given an out, but she refuses to take it. Part three is where the difficulty really reigns in and Vidar and Roxanna become inseparable on their journey. How am I supposed to adore a frightening meat eating horse...but I do. Every girl needs a scary horse. Part four ties the story up, but I won't tell you more than that.

I found it easy to get pulled into this book.  Stephanie Donahue is brilliant at playing with reader's emotions and making us feel deep connections with her characters.  Get ready to fall in love with all the characters, and maybe even feel a little bad for the villain in the story too. This is a book that I will likely reread when I need to get away from life, and my re-read list is very very small.

Windsong by Sephanie Donohue is available for pre-order now, and will be available for purchase June 29, 2022!

Disclaimer: I received an advanced e-copy of this book free for review.  This however does not affect my opinions, as I do not leave a review for each book I receive. There are links to bookshop here, clicking these links won't cost you anything but any purchase helps support this blog.  Thanks!

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With Fangs and Claws: A Review

I'm deep in my arcs at the moment, and when I finished one I grabbed this book as a quick read before I jumped into another ARC.  I saw things like...reverse harem, and wolf knotting, and I thought ok...a fun quick smutty read.  No. It was not smut, ya'll. 

Summary: 

Darcy is the daughter of the Duke of Elverston, and is a trained fight and hunter.  She lives in a world where women are subjugated and often beaten by their father's or husband's.  She meets the four young princes of Stralae while out on a hunt, and they immediately recognize her as their mate and future queen.  Darcy wasn't even sure if she was about the reverse harem that fell into her lap, and could she leave behind the only home she'd ever known, specially when she didn't realize how much better life might be for her if she left this very patriarchal society.

Thoughts: 

I jumped into this book with out reading the reviews, thinking maybe it would be a quick easy smutty read.  It was definitely way more than that.  I really enjoyed the plot, the character development and the contrast between the "heathen warg country" and the "patriarchal human country." The author makes it clear that this is a separate made up world, but I can't help but to see the similarities to our world. Overall I really enjoyed this book, and if you're looking for a different kind of romance book with lots of depth and growth, be sure to grab it! Be ware...she leaves us on a bit of a cliffhanger, I'll keep an eye out for book two!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨ 4.5

Spice: 🍆🍆🍆🍆 - Graphic, but not a whole lot of it, and was well fitting with the story.

Trigger Warnings: Family Violence, physical abuse, and subjugated women.

With Fangs and Claws  is available now and is available on KU! 

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