Wanted Girl by Lexie Winston

2.5 Stars

Things are looking up for Harlow in the Summers household. She’s working toward establishing a solid relationship with her father and his children are coming around to the fact that she will be a permanent fixture in their lives. In fact, you could say things are starting to look very good for Harlow.

Unfortunately, someone wants her as desperately as the Summers men. Wants her dead that is!

Once again, the Summers family are on the hunt for those that are determined to disrupt their lives. It’s hard to woo the woman you want when you are constantly dodging attacks. Harlow has been assigned a bodyguard and a trip overseas will hopefully get her out of the firing line. New leads are beginning to point to the person or person’s responsible.

Really tired of the insta connections and either the person is amazing or awful. There is no middle ground. With more information revealed about the guys I am starting to question the author’s development of the characters. The one brother works covert ops but doesn’t have any security on his own home? It’s all adding up to a very dragged-out story that is in desperate need of a good editor.

Book 4 Neighpalm Industries

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Tormented Girl by Lexie Winston

3 Stars

Property destruction, aggressive threats and an injured family member is what Harlow and the Summers family are having to deal with.

Who is responsible or why this is happening is anybody’s guess?

But amidst all the drama, Harlow is trying to forget the hurts of the past and establish a new relationship with her adopted siblings, even if what she feels for them isn’t overly familial

A trip to Hawaii with Jaxon and Kai is just what she needs to forget about her worries for a while.

Or is it?

Will trouble follow them to the tropical paradise or will they get to relax and unwind and see where the holiday takes them.

With this one you finally see some relationship movement…FINALLY. There’s also a change of scenery as Harlow heads to Hawaii with Jaxon and Kai. I love the one on one we get and more backstory for the guys. This one is where my interest started to wane. It’s the same stuff from the previous books just repeated. The author seems to add side characters to suit the needs of the story. Still enjoyed it but getting frustrated by the lack of movement in the story.

Book 3 Neighpalm Industries

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Broken Girl by Lexie Winston

3 Stars

Never in her life has Harlow felt as low as she does now. Even a beating from her mother was easier to take then the humiliation she just suffered at the hands of the Summer’s siblings.
Unable to return home due to a promise made to her foster father, she has to stay on until her commitments have concluded. With her new friends Alex and Shane trying to convince her to stay and her grandparents and father of the same mind, Harlow’s heart is torn in two.
But a mysterious phone call and a possible job opportunity may just swing the pendulum to one side.

More questions are answered but more are introduced. The adopted siblings are slowing changing but are still too stupid for me. I am pretty sure I know who the stalker is, but we must wait for a future book for the answer. It was another cliffhanger ending.

Book 2 Neighpalm Industries

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Supernatural Academy: Year One by Jaymin Eve

3 Stars

Maddison James is about to discover some truths about the world.

Firstly … supernaturals exist.

WTF?

Secondly … she is one, even though no one seems to know exactly what kind.

Double WTF.

Thirdly … she’s about to go back to school.

Well, things just got a little more interesting.

The Supernatural Academy is where shifters, vampires, magic users, and fey are educated. Where they are taught about their abilities, and how to function in the human world. Maddison already has the human part down, but this supernatural thing is an entirely new dangerous game.

Example one: mean girls who can actually turn you into a frog.

Example two: Asher Locke, a god at the Academy. Not literally … well, who knows for sure. He certainly acts the part, as do all of his minions who worship him.

Asher drives her crazy, because apparently gorgeous and arrogant is her thing. Sparks fly between them, and the more they’re thrown together, the more Asher is determined to figure out what’s been blocking her abilities.

Until the moment the truth is revealed, and they find out nothing in this supernatural world is what they thought.

Including each other.

Maddi is thrown into a supernatural world she wasn’t aware of. She rolls with the punches so she can discover everything she can. It’s one of the things I liked best about her. I also liked all the guys and secondary characters. Some of my issues with the story is it jumps around on the timeline. It jumps ahead in the time to move the story along and it doesn’t make sense and was very jarring. There also needs to be some character development to like/hate some of the characters. Overall, I liked it enough to continue the series.

Book 1 Supernatural Academy

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Abandoned Girl by Lexie Winston

3 Stars

Her entire life, Harlow has been the cuckoo in another bird’s nest. With an unreliable junkie for a mother and an unknown father, her foster family, the kind, successful, and generous Bostons, are the brightest spot in her life. But even with a foster family like Harlow’s, there are some things money can’t buy- like the ability to fit in with the shallow socialites who act like her lack of pedigree is contagious. Now that she’s finished college and her veterinary degree, Harlow’s life was supposed to take off. She was supposed to get a job and create a life away from the petty drama of the wealthy elite. But when her mother dies and a life-changing secret is revealed, Harlow finds herself flying across the country to face an uncertain future that Kai, Holden, Jaxon, Thomas, Jacinta, Declan, and Oliver are going to make sure she won’t accept.

This one was a slow burn. You will hate a lot of the characters but that’s how they’re supposed to be. It was an interesting concept. Girl finds bio dad is rich and powerful. His adopted kids’ lust for her but think she’s after his money. They never bothered to learn anything about her. I know she’s going to end up with the brothers, but they have a lot to make up for after how this book ends. Still a lot of questions I want answered so I will end up reading the next one.

Book 1 Neighpalm Industries

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Dangerous Heat by Olivia Lewin

4 Stars

Trapped and taunted with a deadly heat barrelling toward me, I’m separated from the only men I’ve ever trusted.

Handing myself over to the enemy didn’t go as planned.

My captor isn’t the cruel man I thought he was. Shan is lost in the past, insistent on dealing with his trauma alone. Caspian is fighting against his nature, putting us all at risk. Ozzy is growing distant and restless, but is silenced by his curse. Emmett is battling to keep everyone together.

As past actions threaten to tear apart our tentative trust, one question hangs over my head…

Am I safer staying put, or trying to escape?

All I know for certain is for this heat, it’ll be far too dangerous alone.

Loved where this book went with Freya. It’s interesting to see the growth and changes that happen with the characters. There are twists and turns in it that made me so happy. This book is more a book about relationship development than the story moving forward but it was still worth the read. It still ends on a cliffhanger.

Book 2 Frayed

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Frayed Trust by Olivia Lewin

4 Stars

I’m a hidden Omega with murderous impulses…

Can you blame me? With my designation it’s kill or be killed, or worse. Just ask my sister.

After the Sanctuary thrust her into the arms of a monster, I swore I’d never follow in her footsteps. Not when I revealed five years ago, and not now. I’d make it alone. No Sanctuary. No Alphas. No plan.

I didn’t really think it through.

Even if I don’t need an Alpha to take care of me, my body does. And I’m running out of time to find one of my choice. With my heats getting closer to lethal every month and a vampire kingpin who knows my identity, my only hopes are the mysterious strangers investigating my long string of murders.

Shan, the bland angel with a penchant for the rules (and making me follow them, even when he doesn't). Caspian, an incubus-fae hybrid who’s equal parts sensual and vulnerable. Em, the team’s muscle who’s inexplicably absent from the investigation.

Add in my sassy, cursed feline familiar and we have ourselves a party. And the best heat of my life, if I can bring myself to trust them with my secrets. But can I repair my frayed trust before it’s too late?

I loved this book and Freya was just awesome. The guys were also really good. I loved the snark, and the backbone Freya has. She’s determined to never be forced like her sister and take out people who are just bad. The guys you know she’s going to end up with are investigating the murders she’s responsible for and chaos ensues. Can’t wait for book 2.

Book 1 Frayed

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Going Down Smooth by Dreia Wells

3 Stars

I’m an Alpha trapped in an Omegas body.
I never wanted to be anyone’s mated anything. I wanted to be in control of my destiny, not held down by the shackles of my biology. My father, unfortunately, had other plans. I was supposed to fall in line like my sisters, but I ran. The night of my mating ceremony I rejected my four Alphas and got as far away as I could. I gave up everything and walked away from my family and never looked back.
But even in death my father still wouldn’t let me be free. The day of his funeral I’m given an ultimatum. He offers me a chance to run the family business but under one condition. To accept the mates I left behind and reclaim what’s rightfully mine. Or I lose it all forever
Nothing’s ever easy in the Smooth family but I will find a way to get what I want.
I just hope my body doesn’t decide to betray me in the process.
Along with my heart.

This was an interesting take on omegas. I did struggle with the pacing in the book plus the guys. Mercy deserved better from everyone in the book. She just wanted to be her own person and everyone around her wanted her to fit the mold and stay in her box. The guys should have supported her but pushed and it led to problems. They didn’t have her back and it is hard to want them to get their HEA. The book does end with a cliffhanger ending and you will need to read book 2 to get the full story as nothing is resolved in this book.

Book 1 Smooth Pack

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Kurt’s Honor by Jade Thorn

 

2 Stars

Shop keeper by day, badass demon fighter by night. Grace's life isn't really that complex until the day Kurt sweeps into her supernatural store. Handsome, talented, and with an ego the size of China, he's a handful, but not more than she can cope with. He just needs a little 'attitude adjustment'.
Chicago, on the other hand, has more trouble than either of them can deal with, and if they don't get to the bottom of this sudden influx of demons, the whole city will be at risk.
Kurt is the best and brightest of The Brotherhood's elite corps and Grace packs a punch nobody expected, but even combined will they be enough to save the city?

I’ve liked so many books by Jade Thorn, this one hurts. I didn’t like this one at all. Kurt was an asshole throughout the book and doesn’t get any better. Grace deserved so much better than what she gets. It’s an interesting concept but when you hate one of the main characters it makes it hard to read. I did read the description for future books, and it looks like the main conflict continues with the men Grace is going to end up with being dicks and still getting her. I will be skipping.

Book 1 The Brotherhood

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Unbreak Me by Reese Rivers

3 Stars

On the run, living in their car as winter sets in, Avery will do whatever it takes to hide from a monster and keep her daughter safe. One good deed on a snowy night, changes everything.

3 former military men and 1 German Shepherd with their own damage, take the mother and daughter in. They fall hard for Avery and Chloe and will burn the world down to keep them safe.

Easton – carries the guilt of failure at losing half his unit in their last engagement. He sees too many parallels to his own childhood trauma with Avery and Chloe. His honor demands that he care and protect them. He fights his attraction to Avery with an iron will.

Zack – The charming playboy had his self-esteem gutted by the scars his body carries and the loss of his leg. One tiny girl has him changing his prospective on his injuries. Avery sees the man not the injury and the hole inside him slowly begins to fill with a love he never thought he’d have a chance at again.

Ryker – His sheer size and bulk intimidate and keep a safe distance between him and others. A man of few words, his main forms of communication are long drawn out growls and grunts. The tiny wisp of a girl cracks all his armor with her sweetness and her mother feels like a missing piece of his soul when she’s in his arms. When he finds the man who hurt them, he will annihilate him in the most painful way possible.

Kanga (dog) – The lady makes his pack happy and her female pup reminds him that there’s fun to be had, dimming the memories of bullets and bombs that took him and his pack out of the fight.

I have so many questions about this one. I enjoyed most of it but struggled with how Avery’s ex found them/followed the guys back to their house and got to her. Beyond that I liked all the guys, and they were super sweet with Avery and her daughter. They definitely fell first and wanted to take care of them both. If you want heavy emotions this hits the mark.

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The Gods We Obey by Auryn Hadley

3 Stars

As priests, we are meant to obey - but our duties are to our gods, not mere men.

Zeal is back, and he's seen by more people every day. The God of Temptation grows stronger, but High Priest Kinen has found the one thing that can stop a god: disbelief. The return of our gods means an end to his power.

And Kinen isn't ready to lose.

Over time, the priests of our temple have surrendered their power in the name of our god. We're trained to obey, to help, and to be Zeal's tools when he cannot help himself - and now that has become a problem.

Because power is given, never taken, and we have surrendered far too much. It's time for things to change, before our complacency destroys our gods. And yet, habits are such hard things to break.

What we need is a rebellion - and I'm going to start it.

Our gods never expected blind obedience, so it's time to give into the temptation to fight back. But will the price for this be more than I can pay? I just can't believe this is what my path was meant for - or is this all just a game between gods and men? Because we, the Priests of Temptation, have been betrayed.

I have prayed.

I have obeyed.

Now I'm doing it my way.

Too many pointless things in this book. Giving a 3 for overall series not for this book. This one does wrap everything up nicely but it takes forever to get there. It got very preachy ny the end of the series and I got bored. Overall if trimmed down it would be a good series but as is it is too long.

Book 6 The Path of Temptation

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The Prayers We Pray by Auryn Hadley

2 Stars

Be careful what you pray for - because even gods can be tempted.

The Temple of Temptation is broken. The system is failing the priests who serve faithfully, but Zeal isn't missing. He's simply powerless - or was.

As more priests believe in our god, the balance of power has been shifting. Temptation is thriving. Miracles are happening. The High Priest is struggling. In his attempts to control me, he's making it almost impossible to help the other gods.

Something has to give, and I'm worried it might be me.

With the last semester of my initiate training underway, things are supposed to be looking up. I finally have instructors who are grading me fairly. I no longer feel like a failure. However, my ties to the nobility of our barony have drawn just a little too much attention. The wrong kind.

The High Priest wants to get rid of me. My enemies want to destroy me out of jealousy. The nobility wants to put me in my place. My lovers want to protect me at all costs because things are starting to get dangerous.

None of that will stop me because gods aren't the only ones to answer prayers.

I am the voice of Zeal. I walk with the Blade, the Shield, the Temptation, and the Shadow. We are the devoted, five priests determined to serve our gods in any way they demand - but the divine holds no power over men who don't believe. Faith offers little to those who think they are the ones who should be worshipped.

Gods want love. Men want power. Everyone knows temptation.

To save Zeal, I'm tempted to destroy everything...

Even our traditions.

I am determined to finish this series because I need to know how the series ends but I think 6 books is way too many books for the storyline. This one has the same issues as the past couple of books. No movement and repetitive throughout the book. Only one more to go.

Book 5 The Path of Temptation

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Choosing Their Omega by Sadie Moss

3 Stars

Working as a live-in nanny for four hot hockey star Alphas? That’s got to be every Beta’s dream.

Except… it’s not quite that simple.

After losing my job and my apartment in the same day, I feel like I’ve hit rock bottom. But when Cruz Ashford, captain of the Titans NHL team, finds out I have nowhere to live, he makes me an offer that could help us both:

Move in with him and his three pack mates and work as a nanny for the adorable little boy they’ve adopted.

As crazy as it sounds, I say yes. It’s a chance to turn my life around after the loss of my grandmother left me buried in a mountain of medical debt, so there’s no way I can turn him down.

The only problem is, living with four gorgeous Alphas is harder than I thought it would be. Almost from the first moment I arrive at their house, the tension between us is off the charts.

I don’t know why I’m so drawn to Cruz, Knox, Lawson, and Miles. Why I can barely control my body around them. Why their delicious scents affect me so much… or why I seem to affect them too.

Until the day I start perfuming, and I finally realize the truth that’s been staring me in the face.

I’ve been wrong my whole life. I’m not a Beta. I’m an Omega.

And everything is about to change.

It was fine but repetitive at times. It was sweet and low stakes for the most part. Lily was a bit too sweet at times. The main drama happened too late in the book and wrapped up to quickly in my mind. If you’re looking for a quick and spicy read give this one a chance.

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The Ways We Betray by Auryn Hadley

3 Stars

To protect those who matter most, we will betray others in ways we never expected.

This is supposed to be a good year. With a new set of instructors - and ones I know well - I'm sure it will be. For once, things are finally starting to go my way. My mentors are proud, my family is closer than ever before, and I am happy.

Unfortunately, the gods are tired of waiting. Every day, Zeal grows stronger, but Ambition, Inspiration, Perception, Compassion, and Intuition don't. They're fading, with no hope in sight.

Except me.

Piece by piece, my god has built me up, given me "weapons" to use, and made me into the kind of woman I can be proud of. He calls me his partner and that isn't an empty title. It means more than just serving him. I can tell by the longing in his divine eyes.

My success doesn't go unnoticed, though. My haters want to destroy me, but let them try. Petty bullying is too childish for me to worry about. With so many priests able to see the God of Temptation now, I no longer care who likes me and who doesn't.

And that's my biggest mistake.

Because my god doesn't run this temple. He doesn't make the rules. With a single signed paper, I'm no longer as safe as I thought. Friends are going to be betrayed. Lovers will suffer. Somehow, I have to fix this.

I am the Priestess of Temptation, Zeal's chosen.

Someone is going to be punished.

I almost hope it's me.

Just like the last one this book dragged on because of the repetitiveness. The story is just plodding along with no new conflict. Nari was just trying to get people to remember what they are there for. Something new or different would be nice.

Book 4 The Path of Temptation

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Seize the Castle by Elizabeth Dear

3 Stars

In Saint Gabriel City, there’s a war brewing.

The Four Families have ruled the City for generations, but they made a huge fucking mistake when they murdered my parents and didn’t manage to kill me too.

I’ve revealed my true identity, taking the City and Holywell Academy by storm, but the heads of Spencer, Hargraves, and Ferrero continue to underestimate me. They think I’m an annoying little gnat trying to play at being an Heir, and that will make it all the sweeter when I take everything from them.

But their sons—the boys who were my best friends for eleven years—they have different ideas about me than their parents do.

Zach wants me back—and maybe just plain wants me.

Noah longs for our friendship but feels hurt by my lies.

And Bennett—he’ll resist my attack on his legacy until the bitter end, but he’d still rather die than lose me again.

And me? I’m starting to think I need my boys back with me after all.

But they’ll have to choose—it’s me or the Families.

Because I came to burn it all down, and nothing is going to stand in my way.

I took issue with the guys. They didn’t want her until they found out who she really was. They let horrible things happen to her and at the end now they care. They need more groveling to make it up to her and don’t. Curious to see how the series will end.

Book 2 A Knight’s Revenge

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Games We Play by Auryn Hadley

3 Stars

We're tempted to play games, thinking they will give us more power - but that only works if we win.

After spending the holidays with my guardian's family, it seems that everyone in the temple has the wrong idea. The Baron isn't my patron. He's not even a friend. In truth, I hate the man.

But the rumor mill is strong, and jealousy is running rampant.

This is all just one more excuse for my instructors to hold me back, lower my grades, and try to force me to choose one path. I can't! My god needs me to save him, and the Path of Temptation gives me the power to do that.

Except that I'm drowning in the pressure, feeling like I'm failing my god. I need to make people believe in him, but how can I do that when I can't believe in myself? All these mind games are starting to pile up, and it's tearing me apart.

But Zeal is getting stronger.

That's enough to keep me going. No matter how hard they try to push me down, I'll just keep fighting back, learning to play this game better each time. I will not become the victim here, because I'm not doing this alone. My lovers will always stand with me.

But this is not a game.

If we fail, we'll lose everything -

Including each other.

This one continues where the last ended and the story progresses but not quickly. One of the biggest issues I had was the repetitive conversations that were had plus the inner dialogue which slowed the story down drastically. It was still good but needs work.

Book 3 The Path of Temptation

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Paths We Lay by Auryn Hadley

3 Stars

To find temptation, we must lay our own path.

For the last ten years, I thought I was nothing special. I was just another priestess in the Temple of Temptation. One of many. Little did I know that my god has plans for me. He intends to make me powerful.

But what I will become is up to me.

For centuries, things here have always been done the same way - and the gods are now paying for it. Somehow, I'm expected to revive the faith. I'm their last hope, but no one is quite sure how I'm supposed to do that.

That means I'm making this up as I go. My god is begging me to become something new. My temple wants me to respect traditions. My instructors want to force me to follow their rules.

I just want to save my god.

With my three men, I know I'll figure it out. That is not the same as this being easy, though. Even worse, being "special" makes those around me jealous, and giving in to temptation is a part of our nature. When my guardian's family gets involved, things get infinitely more complicated.

The temple wants to break me.

My success or failure depends on the path I choose.

I just hope I find the right one.

The big reveal was big, and Nari has a lot to do and defend in this book. Some of the relationship stuff frustrated me in this one but it was minor. It wasn’t as good as book one but still good. Wished it would move a bit faster.

Book 2 The Path of Temptation

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Knot Your Past by Jarica James

2 Stars

I swore off mates years ago, yet they have me reconsidering...

After being rejected by a chosen mate and losing everything, I vowed I would never let anyone make me feel that way again.

Since then I’ve enjoyed the single life. My weekends were full of random hook ups and enough booze to forget how lonely I am.

Until someone starts following me.

I quickly find that not only did my ex hire someone to tail me, it was his brothers and childhood friend.

And all three of them are my mates.

In a day that seems hellbent on tearing my world apart I find that the Sulley Pack has come to town. It takes one meeting to realize that fate wasn’t done with me yet.

Now two packs want to claim me as theirs. They’re all far too caring and understanding for a jaded omega like me. At least that’s what I’m telling myself.

Can I put my past aside and give these men a chance?

There was way too many partners with this book. I struggled to track who was who. None of them were developed at all. It also felt like the story was unfinished. Just overall, a miss for me.

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Price We Pay by Auryn Hadley

4 Stars

Everyone wants to give in to temptation, but no one wants to pay the price.

I was a child when my father surrendered me to the Temple of All Gods. No one gave me a choice. No one even bothered to explain. I was simply tossed aside, unwanted.

That was the day the God of Temptation claimed me as his.

Now, I'm studying how to become the perfect priestess. Life in the temple means embracing my emotions and learning to harness each type of desire. Power, fear, lust, and rage are the most common, but not the only ones. Each has a power. Each has its place. I just have to figure out which kind of priestess I'll become.

Before I decide, I have questions - yet no one seems willing to give me answers. My only option is to leave it in my god's hands. This won't be easy, and my instructors think I'm a fool, but Temptation has been listening. Asking. Offering it all.

In exchange, he intends to use me.

I have demands. The priest and priestess who took me in have become my family. The guys? They taught me to love. How am I supposed to give this up? Why should I? Not even a god can make me walk away from them! All I have to do is stand my ground.

In this temple, there's always a temptation.

The question is if I'm stubborn enough to resist...

Or brave enough to pay a god's price.

Very very spicy read and it’s different. I love Nari and how strong she is and how willing she is to follow her own path. Even when theis means problems for her. There is a lot of things going on in this book but it works for me. Ends on a cliffhanger ending so you will need to read on.

Book 1 The Path of Temptation

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Noir Reformatory by J.R. Thorne and Lexi C Floss

3 Stars

Wrapped in a world of sin and sexy alpha angels.
Forever defined by my black wings.
My father, King of the Nora, sent me to Noir Reformatory to atone for crimes I didn’t commit.
So what’s a girl to do? Escape, obviously.
Except I need allies to accomplish that feat and no one wants anything to do with King Sefid’s daughter. If anything, my claim to the throne has only made running that much harder, and worse, I’m stuck with two hot angels standing in my way.
Auric is my supposed guardian, his white wings marking him as my superior in this deadly playground. Only, I’m his princess and I refuse to bow to a warrior like him.
And Novak, the notorious Prison King, is hell-bent on teaching me my place. Which he seems to think is beneath him. In his bed.
This prison resembles a training camp for soldiers more than a reformatory for the Fallen. I suspect something nefarious is at play here, but of course, no one believes me. I’m the guilty princess with black wings. Well, I’ll prove them all wrong. I just hope it isn’t too late.
My name is Princess Layla.
I’m innocent.
And I do not accept this fate.

This one has more questions than answers. It feels like you come into the story part way into it. The writing is good and even though I have so many questions I’m willing to give it a shot since all are out.

Book 1 Noir Reformatory

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