Category: Romance

A Simple Twist of Fate

by April Asher

Rating: 3.5*s – Cute and Cozy with a dash of spice!

Publish Date is May 13, 2025

Publisher’s Synopsis

“At the bright-eyed age of eighteen, witch Harlow “Harry” Pierce attended her first Fates Festival Finding Ceremony certain the Blue Willow Wisp would lead her to her Fated match, her cougar shifter boyfriend, Jaxon Atwood. But Fate had other plans, guiding her best friend to him instead. With a broken heart, all her belongings, and a vow to never return, Harry did the only thing a heartsick witch could do. Run.

Thirteen years later, she returns to her magical hometown—with her half-human, half-shifter goddaughter in tow—hoping that not only would the town work its magic on the troubled teenager, but that the local Alpha of the Rocky Mountain Pack could help Grace identify—and control—her fiery abilities.

Jaxon Atwood was a shifter of few words and even less patience… until his mother retired as Alpha of the Rocky Mountain Pack and left the running of things to him. It’s a headache he didn’t need, and one that brought the witch who’d ripped his heart from his chest knocking on his door.

Ever since the disappearance of the town’s Fate Witch over a decade ago, Fates Haven’s magic has been slowly going haywire. There hasn’t been a Fated Match made in thirteen years, putting the town in serious jeopardy of losing its title of Highest Fated Mates Percentage in the World. But now, something is stirring in Fates Haven, Colorado, and it smells like the past, tastes like change, and looks like A SIMPLE TWIST OF FATE.”

REVIEW:

Another super cute supernatural romance from April Asher! I was a big fan of her previous series and am very excited for what comes next in the new Fates Haven series. So many interesting characters to dive into and the end of the first really gives us something to sink our talons into.

The story between Jax and Harry is a good one to dive into. I’m not always a fan of the “simple miscommunication and teen mistakes caused all kinds of problems” trope, but this one was executed pretty well. There was a lot of world building, so it felt like that was more of the focus (also executed well). The character I fell most in love with in this one was the town of Fates Haven itself. It’s like a living, breathing part of this story. My second favorite is definitely Aunt Nora Pierce, and I cannot wait to see what other trouble that both can get into.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and April Asher for the advanced copy in exchange for this honest and impartial review!!

Historical Fiction Mystery Romance Survival

The Madness of Miss Grey

By Julia Bennet

Rating: 4*s Madly in Love

Available now from Julia Bennet!

Publisher’s Synopsis:

“Everyone thinks Helen Grey is mad but, despite ten years imprisoned in a crumbling Yorkshire asylum, she’s managed to cling to sanity. When a new doctor arrives, she sees an opportunity. William Carter may seem like an honorable man but she’s sure he’ll prove easy to seduce…and trick into helping her escape.

Will would never bed a patient, no matter how tempting she might be. But once he realises Helen’s been imprisoned for no good reason, he’s determined to save her. They need to work together but freeing her won’t be easy, not when her mysterious benefactor is determined to keep her locked up and hidden from society forever.

When Helen is entangled in her own trap and begins to fall for Will too, she must fight not only for her liberty but for her right to love.”

REVIEW

This is a dark historical romance with themes of mental and some physical abuse. Our MCs are not the typical handsome duke and debutante. No, this is a house of madness and explores the dark times when a woman could be committed for little to no reason at the whims of the men who were their appointed guardians. Helen does not present with “Madness”, something William Carter figures out quickly during their interactions. She does suffer much abuse at the hands of her supposed caregivers, which William finds himself often in need of intervening. Yet, despite his findings, it seems that someone outside of the hospital is taking great pains to see she does not emerge from this dark place. As Helen and William try to figure out a way to get her out, feelings begin to develop between them that may set their lives on fire.

Part mystery thriller, part forbidden romance, with the slightest sprinkling of horror. I really liked this dark historical romance. ❤️

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for the free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Contemporary Fiction Romance RomCom Spicy🌶️

Love to Hate You

By Marina Adair. Pub Date 4-22-2025

Rating: 4*s

“Wes Kingston is the cut-throat CEO of the bookstore chain, and he doesn’t believe in love—or failure. He runs his business the way he runs his life, alone. And he isn’t going to let a fiery femme fatale change that (even if she’s gorgeous).

Summer Russo believes in destiny and true love . . . which is why she sank her life savings into reviving a nearly bankrupt indie bookstore. But just as she starts to get the hang of the business, a big-box shop moves in next door.

At least Summer has her family’s annual vacation to look forward to. But when she arrives at the beachside cabin, she realizes her sister has brought along not only her boyfriend but a second guest—his brother, who just happens to be the same surly-but-infuriatingly-sexy bookstore mogul.

Thoughts:

This is a cute rivals to lovers romcom that gives You’ve Got Mail vibes. It goes deeper, also, into family drama and trauma, and complicated feelings around how much support someone should be responsible for to keep those they love afloat. Both characters had to deal with these feelings while discovering what really matters to them through the other person. It was such a delight and seeing the growth of the characters and how they confronted their issues with one another’s support. It really made it feel personal.

Also supernatural funny and cute!

Thanks to 8th Note Press and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review!

After Dark Fantasy Mystery Romance Spicy🌶️ Survival Witchy!

ECHOES OF NIGHT

By Caitlyn MacFarland. Pub Date THIS TUESDAY, 04-15-2025!

Rating: 4*s

PUBLISHER’S SYNOPSIS

“She didn’t expect to survive the night…

To satisfy the terms of a treaty between her pack and the Alpha who murdered her brother, twenty-four-year-old Selene Beaumont finds herself taking the place of her spoiled sister as a sacrificial bride. Powerless as a wolfless pack servant, what chance does she stand against a monster like Killian Darrow, the only living heir of the depraved Alpha King?

But something happens when he touches her, something that echoes in her soul. Changed from monster to a man, a mysterious transformation is revealed, throwing all that is known about the murderous Alpha into doubt.

He’s looking to break a monstrous curse…

Killian prefers to keep others at a safe distance, but after Selene unlocks the mystery of his affliction, he has no choice but to keep her close. Skin-to-skin close. Or risk the monster rearing its ugly head.

But soon it becomes clear that not everyone wants him to be free, or see a wolfless woman married to the most powerful Alpha in a generation. As allies turn to enemies and old secrets stir, they will learn that nothing and no one is what it seems.“

THOUGHTS

This book scratched an itch for me in a completely satisfying way. I really wanted a spicy, angsty werewolf romance and this one dug deep into it with its claws and tore if up from the root. It’ll definitely grow back in time for the next installment.

There was plenty of plot, pack intrigue, political finagling between warring packs and other supes, and hidden origin story to keep this interesting throughout all 513 pages.

Not sure when we can expect the next one, but there will by 8 books in the Daughter’s of the Shattered Moon series including ECHOES OF NIGHT!

Thanks to NetGalley and Oliver Heber Books for the advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review

Historical Fiction Romance Spicy🌶️

Heartbreaker

Hell’s Belles #2

Sarah McLean, Pub Date Oct 18, 2022

4*s Best Enjoyed when you want a truly delightful adventure romance with some Praise Kink

Publisher’s Synopsis

“A Princess of Thieves: Raised among London’s most notorious criminals, a twist of fate landed Adelaide Frampton in the bright ballrooms of Mayfair, where she masquerades as a quiet wallflower—so plain and unassuming that no one realizes she’s the Matchbreaker…using her superior skills as a thief to help brides avoid the altar.

A King of Reputation: Henry, Duke of Clayborn, has spent a lifetime living in perfection. He has no time for the salacious gossip that arises every time the Matchbreaker ends another groom. His own reputation is impeccable—and the last thing he needs is a frustrating, fascinating woman discovering the truth of his past, or the secrets he holds close.

A Royal Match: When the two find themselves on a breakneck journey across Britain to stop a wedding, it’s impossible for Clayborn to resist this woman who both frustrates and fascinates him. But late-night carriage rides make for delicious danger…and soon Adelaide is uncovering Clayborn’s truths, throwing his well-laid plans into chaos…and threatening to steal his heavily guarded heart.

THOUGHTS

Hell’s Bells is a great series by the AMAZING Sarah MacClean. This wasn’t my favorite of the three, that honor belongs to book 3, Knock Out, but it was still fun to experience Adelaide and Henry’s relationship from chase to spice.

The cat and mouse aspect lead to a fantastic emotional growth arc that was somewhat expected but no less delightful. The danger they faced added a layer to the plot that helped move the story along, but also really illustrated why Adelaide was so closed off and the obstacles that the Duke must overcome to be with his lady.

I really did enjoy this series. It has a very strong FMC vibe that it shares woth the best modern historucal romance renderings.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Adventure After Dark Fantasy Mystery Romance Spicy🌶️ Survival

A FIRE IN THE SKY

By Sophie Jordan. Now Available from Avon and Harper Voyager!!

Rating 4.5*s

PUBLISHER’S SYNOPSIS

“Dragon fire no longer blisters the skies over Penterra, but inside the lavish palace, life is still perilous…especially for Tamsyn. Raised in the glittering court alongside the princesses, it’s her duty to be punished for their misdeeds. Treated as part of the royal family but also as the lowliest servant, Tamsyn fits nowhere. Her only friend is Stig, Captain of the Guard…though sometimes she thinks he wants more than friendship.

When Fell, the Beast of the Borderlands, descends on her home, Tamsyn’s world becomes even more dangerous. To save the pampered princesses from a fate worse than death, she is commanded to don a veil and marry the brutal warrior. She agrees to the deception even though it means leaving Stig, and the only life she’s ever known, behind.

The wedding night begins with unexpected passion—and ends in near violence when her trickery is exposed. Rather than start a war, Fell accepts Tamsyn as his bride…but can he accept the dark secrets she harbors—secrets buried so deep even she doesn’t know they exist? For Tamsyn is more than a royal whipping girl, more than the false wife of a man who now sees her as his enemy. And when those secrets emerge, they will ignite a flame bright enough to burn the entire kingdom to the bone.

Magic is not dead…it is only sleeping. And it will take one ordinary girl with an extraordinary destiny to awaken it.”

THOUGHTS

I honestly slept on this one. I did not expect it to be as good as it was. I don’t know what I was expecting, however–I LOVE Sophie Jordan’s historical romances and she’s one of my instabuy authors in that genre, but I guess it’s dragons? I’m relatively new. Late adopted to The Empyrean. I really need to stop being so hesitant to enjoy and indulge in less than cozy fantasy. This was dark fantasy at its finest, and so very spicy. I really love a good bonded couple and Fell and Tamsyn were delicious together. If I had to describe this book in food terms, I’d say it’s a dark chocolate lava cake with a dash of strong, spicy cinnamon. But that cliffhanger is going to kill me…

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the advanced copy in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Fantasy Graphic Novels Horror Mystery Romance

THIRD SHIFT SOCIETY

Series Rating 4.5*s

VOLUME 1 & 2. By Meredith Moriarty

VOLUME 1

PUBLISHER’S SYNOPSIS

“In one afternoon, Ellie discovers that monsters are real, she has latent psychic powers, and a well dressed man with a pumpkin for a head wants her to be his partner. It’s a lot to take in. Now the clumsy but determined Ellie and her Pumpkin-headed boss Ichabod have to team up and fight the things that go bump in the night.

Before she can say “boo,” Ellie finds herself tangled up in a magical world where monsters are real, demons tend bar, and psychic conversations take place in a super unsettling mystical void. And there are even more dangerous forces at work, just out of sight.

This volume collects Season 1 of the bewitching WEBTOON comic Third Shift Society.”

REVIEW:

This was an excellent start to a much beloved supernatural mystery Webtoon series and the page setup for the graphic novel did it justice. There’s this will they/won’t thay that really plays out well and the art is reminiscent of other paranormal animated media, like the old Ghostbusters show/Scooby Doo. I mean that as a delicious compliment because they are shows I loved and they hit that nostalgia for me while also giving me a one-two punch right in my romantic tension/spooky loving adult feels.

Thanks to Netgalley and Webtoon for the advanced copy in exchange for this review.

VOLUME 2

PUBLISHER’S SYNOPSIS

“Life’s funny. One minute you’re jobless, deep in debt, and on the verge of eviction; the next you’re in a fight with a monster and getting a job working for a paranormal detective with the head of a Jack-o-Lantern. It’s an age-old story.

Now the clumsy but determined Ellie (who’s recently discovered she has strong psychic powers) and her pumpkin-headed boss Ichabod have to team up and fight the things that go bump in the night.

Ellie and Ichabod have some supernatural solves under their belts and Ellie has her psychic powers more (or less) under control. All they’re up against now are cryptic witches, sinister demons, and some ancient monsters hellbent on escaping their psychic prison. What could possibly go wrong?”

REVIEW:

This volume of Third Shift Society delves into Season 2 of the web comic in which we find Ellie getting more used to her powers. Ichabod is being really secretive about stuff I suspect Ellie should probably know, especially now that we are beginning to understand the motivations of our demon friends and how they pose a major danger to sensitives like Ellie. The will they won’t they pull is a constant tug of war and I never thought some pumpkin headed guy in a suit would be so very alluring. Can’t wait to see where this story goes!

Thanks to Netgalley and Webtoon for the advanced copy in exchange for this review.

Adventure Contemporary Fiction Romance Survival

Crash Landing

By Annie McQuaid

Rating: 5*

Pub Date April 1, 2025!

Publisher’s Synopsis:

“Piper Adams is completely, totally, one hundred percent over Wyatt, the former love of her life. At least, that’s what she tells herself. After he broke her heart, she stopped taking risks and focused instead on building a perfect—and perfectly safe—life. But bumping into Wyatt at the airport on the way to her best friend’s destination wedding wasn’t part of the plan. Neither was a canceled flight nor Wyatt’s offer of a ride on the tiny plane he’s flying to attend the same event. Desperate to make it on time, she accepts his offer, but things go from awkward to full-blown nightmare when their plane crashes in the Caribbean, stranding Piper on a deserted island with the last person she ever wanted to see again.

At first, rule-following Piper clashes with adventure-driven Wyatt, but as the days tick by, she can see the boy she once loved has grown into a man. A man who makes her laugh, knows his way around a fire, and is annoyingly hot shirtless. A man she could love again. As the chemistry still simmering between them boils over, Piper begins wishing Wyatt was more than just a survival partner. But for their love to survive a second chance, she’ll have to not only trust Wyatt again, but also learn to trust herself and find the courage to let go of her carefully curated life for the chance at something far greater—if they can survive the island long enough for rescue.”

REVIEW

I love Romcoms. I love survival stories. I love rivals/enemies to lovers. How could I NOT like this book when it did all three PERFECTLY.

Crash Landing has an excellent plot–survive on an island with your first love/ex until rescue comes, and try not to give into the romantic and sexual tension. Easy enough, right? Two people who once had intense feelings for one another, a misunderstanding that leads to a lifetime of hurt and longing, only to be brought back together in a scenario where there is an iffy chance of survival? So simple. The characters have great development and real problems to overcome. And it does not have that Hallmark movie feel to it, which is just another plus in my book.

If any of thisnappeals to you, put this one on your TBR.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Harper Voyager for the advanced review in exchange for a fair and honest review!

Mystery Romance Spicy🌶️ Witchy!

CURSED IN LOVE

RATING:

“In the quirky, tight-knit town of Sapphire Springs, beloved for its chocolate-caramel milkshakes and spicy senior citizens’ book club, Rune Whitlock has always felt like an outsider. Gifted with the ability to see the future but cursed to have no one believe her premonitions, she’s accepted that romance isn’t in the cards. She’s got a cozy cottage, a fulfilling graphic design career, a loyal best friend, and Valentine—the sweet rescue kitty who is definitely not her familiar. So what if she’s sometimes lonely?

But everything changes when she meets Donovan Frost. A brilliant, brooding data engineer, Donovan is everything Rune is not: methodical, reserved, logical. He’s also grumpy, judgmental, and 5-chili-peppers hot. Thrown together on a mysterious work project, the two clash spectacularly—until an unexpected connection ignites between them.

Then, Rune’s gift reveals a chilling truth: they are destined for each other, but their love story is doomed to end in tragedy on their wedding day. To protect Donovan, Rune must push him away, even if it breaks her heart. But the harder she tries, the more entangled they become. As dark forces conspire against them and secrets come to light, Rune must unravel the mystery of her curse…before it’s too late.”

THOUGHTS

This was a lot darker than I expected and a little fever dreamy at times, but the romance and realization of what was really going on with Rune’s magic was wild. It kept my attention and I finished it pretty quickly. The characters were super interesting and well thought out and the pace and world building were bith pretty great. Loved the book club coven ladies!

I would give the spicy scenes 3 chilies.

Thanks to Netgalley and Black Orchid Books for an advanced copy in exchange for a fair review.

Horror Romance

If I Stopped Haunting You

Post author By Lady Nightwolf
Post date March 4, 2025
No Comments on If I Stopped Haunting You

By Colby Wilkens

Rating: 3*s. Horromance

Now Available from St. Martin’s Press!

Publisher’s Synopsis:

“It’s been months since horror author Penelope Skinner threw a book at Neil Storm. But he was so infuriating, with his sparkling green eyes and his bestselling horror novels that claimed to break Native stereotypes. And now she’s a publishing pariah and hasn’t been able to write a word since. So when her friend invites her on a too-good-to-be-true writers retreat in a supposedly haunted Scottish castle, she seizes the opportunity. Of course, some things really are too good to be true.

Neil wants nothing less than to be trapped in a castle with the frustratingly adorable woman who threw a book at him. She drew blood! Worse still, she unleashed a serious case of self-doubt! Neil is terrified to write another bestselling “book without a soul,” as Pen called it. All Neil wants is to find inspiration, while completely avoiding her.

But as the retreat begins, Pen and Neil are stunned to find themselves trapped in a real-life ghost story. Even more horrifying, they’re stuck together and a truly shocking (extremely hot) almost-kiss has left them rethunking their feelings, and… maybe they shouldn’t have been enemies at all? But if they can’t stop the ghosts pursuing them, they may never have the chance to find out.”

REVIEW

This book really surprised me. I was expecting a Scooby Doo style horror/Romcom, but that was not the case. The horror in this contemporary romance is borderline The Haunting of Hill House. I love a good rivals to lovers trope and I really enjoy horror on its own. This had a mixture of both with a plentiful scoop of American indigenous representation, but set in Scotland. All topics were important, but I admit I experienced a lot of whiplash trying to figure out what my brain should be on at any given point. Admittedly, it gave me some anxiety unrelated to the horror aspect.

It was still a decent horror novel and somewhat decent romance. It felt like way more of a horror than a romance, but again–I dig horror. There is a place for social justice in both categories, but with all combined? It just felt like a lot at times.

Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoyed it. There were moments that were really spicy and moments that were really scary, and moments that where real talk left an impression.

It’s definitely one for the book club and would be perfect for a group to read and discuss.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the free advanced copy in exchange for this review.