For a short story (MAYBE novella), Cole does a wonderful job setting the scene for this medieval romance featuring a black woman and a white Scottish Highlander.

Agnes Moor was taken in by King James IV's court as an 'exotic' and while she finds the court friendly than most, she lives with daily reminders she is other. During a tournament, the King decides a kiss from Agnes shall be the prize for the victor and one knight seems determined to win the favor.

When the "Wild Knight" emerges victorious, it turns out he is actually the Laird of a Scottish clan and someone with whom Agnes shared a charged encounter a while back. Someone who is here for far more than a kiss.

Super fun, super sexy story. I only wish there was more to it.

I received a free copy in exchange for a free review! Thank you to the publisher!

Marian's betrothed, the boy she grew up with, learned the bow with, and who she could be herself with, is dead. Robin of Locksley, who had only just begun to be Robin Hood, will never return to marry Marian or champion the people.

So Marian does it herself. Donning the green cloak, the mask, and the bow, Marian chooses to pretend Robin is still alive, his death but a ruse to confuse the cold-eyed Guy of Gisborne and the Sheriff of Nottingham.

But Gisborne is smart and may prove to be Marian's biggest challenge as his eyes seem to see right into her soul.

It looks like Robin Hood tales will be on the upswing again, especially those with "feminist" twists. Well, this is the first I've read in the new batch and it was amazing. It is a very cerebral story, set mostly in Marian's head as she plays a deadly game of misdirection. I thoroughly enjoyed the back-flashes in Robin's POV and there is an awesome slow-burn romance you can see building throughout the story.

So much fun.

Hockey player Chase Hartman is delighted when his celebrity crush follows him on Twitter and then proceeds to argue with him about the sport he loves! Their Twitter exchange turns into a bet for date.

Pop star Jordyn Banks knows that her date with Chase is just that, one date, but also can't help but think what if. What if they didn't live in separate cities? What if they didn't have crazy schedules?

But, their lives as professionals at the top of their careers is just too much of a roadblock, until Jordyn damages her vocal cords during a live Christmas concert, forcing her to have surgery and to not sing, for months. Taking the time to recover in her hometown of Chicago, which just happens to be where Chase lives, means they can explore their attraction while they have the time.

Chase is also struggling with a secret wrist injury that is also affecting his play. When Jordyn figures out why he's in a scoring slump, she urges Chase to take care of himself before he ends up like her, or worse.

With pride on the line, can these two ever really make it to the goal?

Overall I enjoyed this audio book, but wasn't blown away. The first person POV with the dual narrators gave the story a juvenile tone, and the male narrator made some of the female voices quite irritating, which was distracting. I also found Chase to be a bit of a man-baby, and most of his thoughts reflected on how "hot" Jordyn was, and how much he liked her "despite," despite her messiness (he's a neat freak), despite her this or that. A lot of the attraction just seemed to be physical instead of emotional, and the characters spent a lot of time separated.

I did like Chase's choice in the end, but felt Jordyn forgave him a bit too easily. More groveling please!

One of those books I guess I'm glad I read, but will definitely never read again. Captivating prose, but a decidedly grotesque and squeamish story revolving around an self-doubting 18 year old's study abroad trip to Denmark that turns into an affair with an older, racist Danish nationalist.

I may be getting older, but I definitely wanted to shake this girl. I kept thinking the story would turn more sinister than it ended up being, which was a bit disappointing?

Free copy received in exchange for a fair review!

The Rook has existed on the edges of Byrne's Victorian Rebels series, and we finally have his book!

Lorelei is the only reason the man now known as the Rook has breath in his lungs. She found his brutally beaten, burned, and damaged carcass in a mass grave. She didn't give up on him, much like her menagerie of animals she's also nursed back to health. She fell in love with him, but knew she with her limp and her wicked brother would never be able to be with the man she only knew as Ash, the man with no memory and the damaged dragon tattoo.

So even though she gave him her heart and despite his promise he would always come for her, Lorelei wasn't surprised when her brother told her "Ash" had left.

Eight years later, Lorelei is on the verge being forced by her brother to wed an old lecher but is on the way to the church the Rook murders her brother and kidnaps her and her sister-in-law. And the Rook is Ash.

The Rook has finally come, like he promised, but the boy she knew and loved is now a soulless pirate. Or so he claims.

What follows is a beautifully tempestuous romance where a gentle soul brings back from the gates of hell a damaged man who does indeed still have a chance to find his HEA. Also, pirates and treasure! And kittens.

Lilah is having a very bad day. She left her coffee on the roof of her car, got caught in a rain storm in her nurse scrubs, was served her final divorce papers, was late to work, and then found out the man she considers a father is a patient at her hospital, admitted for having a debilitating stroke. Oh, and her first love Ethan is back in town for the emergency. Great.

Eight years ago, Ethan dumped Lilah unceremoniously over the phone, abruptly ending their long relationship that started in high school. Ethan, as convinced by his father, decided if he wanted to really pursue his hockey career and not also ruining Lilah's dreams, he needed to set her free.

But maybe he should of explained that better.

Now Ethan's back, his hockey career is not going so well, and he wants Lilah back. Reluctant to forgive, but still hopelessly in love with Ethan, Lilah lets him back into her heart.

Their all consuming romance seems to be a "lucky charm" for Ethan but a huge detriment to Lilah's own plans of becoming a Nurse Practitioner. As her studies begin to take a side-line to Ethan's need for her time, Lilah has to decide who she is and what she wants.

A lovely little romance of second-chances and important decisions. I liked that Ethan and Lilah's relationship struggles were based off of real problems, not lying or cheating.

I thought I'd love this tale of a bad boy biker pretending he and his buddies were wedding planners, but alas the premise was way better than the actual story. I was hoping for a light-hearted rom-com, but instead found this to be emotionally all over the place.

I didn't really read the blurb of this book before starting it, as I participated in an online Q&A with the author on the page of one of the Romance Groups I follow, so I was pretty sad to realize the heroine has returned home to England after being kidnapped and placed in a harem for seventeen years. Eek.

So, I read it and the writing style suited my tastes, but I couldn't really completely get over my squeamishness with this problematic plot point. Especially when there was never any nuance to it and it was typical harem-trope nonsense. All the women were evil and manipulative, the "sultan" was a gross, fat rapist, and there were no characters of color besides the heroine's "half-caste" son who were not caricatures.

So. There we are.

I love Troy and Ruby, so I was so happy to discover they have another story! Ruby risks her relationship with Troy to help her father one last time. We also discover there may be more of a connection between Ruby and her best friend Bowen. Hot and steamy, a perfect novella.