Twilight of Ember by Tessa Hale

4 Stars

I’d always wondered what it would be like to have a family. I just never expected to find it with five mysterious strangers who have more secrets than I could ever imagine.

Getting a scholarship to Evergreen University and majoring in premed means I need to keep my head down and focus on my studies. But campus is full of distractions…

The football god with his golden retriever charm. The tortured one with his vicious tongue. The broken boy with his determined protectiveness. The merciless billionaire with a penchant for spoiling me. And the genius professor with his brilliant mind.

They make me feel like I belong for the first time since my parents were murdered. And when they touch me, my whole world sparks to flame.

But they have enemies. Those who would give anything to harm what they hold dear. And while they’ll do whatever it takes to keep me safe, sometimes falling in love will put you right in the line of fire…

I really enjoyed this book and immediately started the second book. I liked the Hayden was unaware of what she was and who her mates were. It flowed nicely but does end on a cliffhanger ending but this is pretty standard for Tessa Hale.

Book 1 Dragons of Ember Hollow

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Demon Kissed by Katie May and Ann Denton

4 Stars

I fucked up.

Honestly, how was I supposed to know that a love spell was actually a summoning spell...and that it would actually work?

Now, I have five demons at my beck and call, their sole purpose to fulfill my heart's deepest desire - which is to make William Washington fall head-over-heels in love with me.

Their solution? Insert themselves in every aspect of my life in order to make William jealous. As my fake boyfriend? Check. As my sexy new teachers? Check. As the psychotic, sexy stalker who follows me around? Check.

Their goal is to make William fall in love with me.

And my goal is to not fall in love with them in the process.

Interesting take on summoning. I enjoyed the story and the characters. It building into a nice story. It does end on a cliffhanger ending but worth reading and I can’t wait to read the rest of them.

Book 1 Darkest Flame

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Long Shot by Kennedy Ryan

4 Stars

Iris DuPree meets August West in a sports bar during her last semester of college. It's the conversation of a lifetime and sends sparks flying in every direction. The connection is undeniable...but the timing is all wrong. August is poised for the NBA draft, and Iris belongs to another man―basketball's "golden boy" and August's long-time rival.

The two go their separate ways, but they often recall that electric night and what could have been. While August has embarked on his all-star life, studded with wealth and fame, Iris's perfect public relationship has become a nightmare behind closed doors. A tarnished dream of fool's gold.

When August re-enters her life, the world seems briefly bright again, but Iris's darkest nights are not over yet. To survive, she must build her own strength and trust that her bond with August can endure after all this time.

Even when her fraudulent prince has vowed never to let her go.

Read the warnings. There is on page SA with the Iris. It is graphic and bad. This book starts slow for me but once it picks up it moves and I loved the story. There are hard topics in the book, and they’re handled well. Definitely one of my favorite reads so far this year.

Book 1 HOOPS

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A Fellowship of Bakers and Magic by J Penner

3.5 Stars

A human, a dwarf and an elf walk into a bake-off…

In the heart of Adenashire, where elfish enchantments and dwarven delights rule, Arleta Starstone, a human confectionist works twice as hard perfecting her unique blend of baking and apothecary herbs.

So when an orc neighbor secretly enters her creations into the prestigious Elven Baking Battle, Arleta faces a dilemma.

Being magicless, her participation in the competition could draw more scowls than smiles. And if Arleta wants to prove her talent and establish her culinary reputation, this human will need more than just her pastry craft to sweeten the odds.

While competing, she'll set off on a journey of mouthwatering pastries, self-discovery, heartwarming friendships and romance, while questioning whether winning the Baking Battle is the true prize.

I wanted to love this book as I loved the idea and the writing style. I couldn’t get passed how whiney FMC was. Everyone is boosting her up and she just tears herself down. She never gets better, and it frustrated me so much. I liked the writing style so much I will check out book 2 to see if the characters are better.

Book 1 Adenashire

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Demi’s Guardian by Kitt Lynn

3 Stars

Max

Demi might be the most captivating woman I've ever met. She's smart, funny, and unbelievably beautiful. And she's so clearly out of my league.

But that doesn't mean I can't admire her. Protect her. And maybe even love her from afar.

Demi

I've never been one for love and all that nonsense. I've spent too many years pretending to love alphas who used my body for their own pleasure. Most were kind, and few I even grew to adore, but I'm not dumb enough to believe they had any real feelings for me.

No. Love isn't for me.

But fun? Now that's something I'm good at.

Very consistent with the other books in the series. There isn’t a big bad like other books. It was all about Demi transitioning. I enjoyed the transition aspect but I loved how Max fell for her as a beta. It didn’t change when they got together and she became an omega. I loved that he was willing to travel for her since she had an itch to move around.

Book 3 Casin Village

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Broken Howl by Katie May and Ann Denton

4 Stars

As an omega, my job is to be the docile female—smile when they tell me to, do whatever the alphas say, and wait for the moon tide ritual when I’ll finally find my true mates.

Nobody can tell how truly broken I am inside.

When I find my perfect mates—two powerful, possessive alphas and one flirty beta—I decide to do the unspeakable.

Reject them.

Why would they want to be with someone as messed up and jaded as me? Someone who’s been used and spit out more times than I care to count?

But these shifter men? They refuse to let me go.

A twist of fate lands me on Reject Island, only…I’m not alone. I’m being hunted by the very three men I rejected—the men who still set my skin ablaze with every look in my direction.

They’re dangerous, psychotic, and possessive. And they want to see me pay.

Add into the mix a sweet, damaged delta I meet on the island, and I’m up to my elbows in sexy wolf shifters.

But the truth is…

I didn’t only run from my mates to spare them the pain of being with me. There’s someone after me, someone bad, and if he finds me, all of our lives will be forfeit.

Will I learn how to scream to the moon? Or will my howl always remain broken?

This was a hard read for what happens to Teegan but I loved how she gets out of the problem. The guys bar 2 were jackasses and needed to do more groveling. I also wanted to know what happened with the pack but that was kind of brushed away.

Part of the Reject Island Series

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Save a Vamp Take a Crown by Sedona Ashe

4 Stars

A week ago, if someone told me I’d be trying to talk a vampire into feeding from me…

I would’ve laughed in their face.

Love has a way of making people do crazy things.

Zyon is my vampire soulmate, and I have the bite marks to prove it.

But we have to keep our romance a secret… for now.

I can’t imagine being with anyone else, but the vampire queen commanded me to step back and pretend Zyon hasn’t already claimed me as his mate.

I swear, if I see one more woman fawn over him, I might just snap. The only reason I haven’t lost it is because Zyon is making it very clear to every single person in the castle that he only wants me… so the vampire women trying to steal him away from me can suck it!

Adding to my list of worries is the way my body seems to have a mind of its own… as though something inside me is desperate to get out. I have a feeling that whatever is locked away isn’t interested in playing nice with my soon-to-be vampire family.

And did I mention I feel like I’m being watched?

But that’s impossible, right?

Journee puts up with so much in this book. MMC had 0 backbone and that frustrated me soooooo much. The twist at the end was a major surprise and was very interesting. Interested in seeing where the next book takes us.

Book 2 Flawed Fates

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