My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

All The Truths is the finale to the Lies and Truth duet. I absolutely loved the way that it really built in the story. Of course we get in a cliffhanger in the previous book, and in this installment we see the reaction to. This is where the truths are being fully revealed and I was fascinated to see what was going to happen for our couple here especially when there was revenge and a death plot and so much more happening with the Russians than I expected. I will say that what I found the most intriguing was the under plot with Jason and Asher's sister. I did really like how much more bold the heroine gets in this story. She really takes her life in her hands and fights for it in such a powerful way. Not only with her relationship with Asher, but also with her girlfriends and cheerleading squad and gets to the bottom of the truth of what happened to her. And it really packs a punch and while its definitely not on the list of my favorite books or series from this author, it definitely had some unique fresh thinking to the plot building and I really appreciated how it was developed. Not sure how I feel about the sister or if I want to read her book to be honest, but maybe when I am in the mood for that type of heroine, wasn't a fan of how she was with her sister in the end there. But maybe she has more depth to her. 

My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

All the Lies is the first book in this duology. I absolutely had a blast with these books but you will need to really be patient with this one here. It was very angsty and not many answers are revealed until the very end. It will be a book that will be very challenging to read, so keep that in mind moving forward on it.

I found the premise of this couple very fascinating and from the beginning, you definitely can sense that there is much more going on with Reina. This is very strong in the amnesia trope, but she is also in a relationship with a man that hates her, who is playing games with her mentally and psychologically and so this won't be for everyone, so please check these triggers if that is going to be hard for you to read. I found it fascinating though. I had an assumption on the heroine that for the most part was correct, but not everyone will make that assumption. But Rina Kent leaves enough breadcrumbs to build up the story so beautifully.

I think though I just wasn't in the right mindset for how the hero treats the heroine at times. So definitely make sure you are in a angsty bully mood for this one. But overall I found it fascinating and it definitely kept me up late.

 My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review)

Falcon is a great work and I am so happy that I decided to pick up this series because I have been wanting to work through some of her backlist. I have to say I did NOT expect to see what I saw in this one here. I LOVED the way that this book was written. It was borderline rom-com in my opinion. Even though it could technically be considered a borderline dark romance, it had such a comedy feel to the story and had me laughing all over the place. The setup of the story is a bit instant love and forced proximity, there is a bit of bully romance to this but its very low key. So if you want to test the waters for a bully romance or something a bit softer in that regard, you definitely should try this one out.

We see a hero who has high expectations but has a mother who removes any affection and love out of the home and only cares about her socialite status. He has only known coldness until he meets Layla who is the daughter of his father's secretary. She sees the man and not the money or prestige or his social status and he finds that so refreshing. Their romance starts steady as there is a strong attraction between them from the beginning. But Falcon is her protector when the bullies start to circle her. There is a charm that enters their relationship. Falcon and Layla get along just right and I enjoyed the dynamics that enter into the romance. They might seem like opposites in many ways, but they also click in the right ways that truly matter. I truly fell hard for this story because it had such a great mix of elements that work well for me. Now the writing is a bit slow in the first half, but it quickly gains speed and I definitely found it to be hard to put down once I really got into the story.

The romance was pretty low angst for the most part and I found that really refreshing. The complexity of Falcon's family was really fun to see get worked through. The only negative aspects to the story is that there were a couple of plot holes and there is a serial plot cliffhanger (no worries the couple ends up together) but I definitely need to read book 2 so I can find out what happens. 

 My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

Come With Me is the prequel to the Sugarland Creek saga and I was so interested when I saw this book being recommended. I am glad that I started with this one, because it really sets up the rest of the series so nicely. I was a bit apprehensive with the biggest trope of this book being a secret baby, but I have to tell you I was beyond impressed with this one. I had such a blast with it and I can't believe I am saying that for a secret baby romance but I had a great time with this one. I can tell you I definitely will be reading more from this author if any of her books are like this one here.

What impressed me immediately is how drawn in I became to the story very quickly. I just wanted so much for these characters to find their HEA and the circumstances behind the secret baby is very VALID. For those that are concerned, its worth reading. I normally hate reading secret baby because of how toxic the heroines come off being, but in this situation the heroine did everything RIGHT. I also liked the more stronger western themes in this one here. If you want a really authentic feeling western romance, then you need to grab this one up because it definitely had strong authentic vibes attached to it. I really felt for our characters because of what kept them apart, but when we see how strong they are together, I was all for it 100%. It does have some good spice. That doesn't matter to me in a romance, but I know for some readers you really need the spice moments.

Overall I fell hard for Come With Me and eager to see what this author does for this series and this family! 

 

My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

The Ritual is a book that I have been meaning to read for quite some time. This is a book that I honestly was more terrified to read than anything else. I knew it was one of those crazy dark romances that I really needed to have the correct mindset to truly enjoy, and I can tell you that this book is completely bat crazy but I fell hard for it. This will have some crazy moments within in, and it won't be an easy read. But while I was completely hooked into this one, I completely recognize how WILD this book is. What the LORDS go through....I do not understand this level of crazy lol

However, I couldn't help but becoming hooked into this story. I wanted to become so immersed within it. It is very heavy on the sexual interactions though, so much so I found myself skipping through those parts. I did love how the plot develops in this one. I enjoyed the forbidden themes to the romance at times, and seeing them overcome the circumstances and to overcome it to be together was quite superb to see. The only thing missing in the story was we didn't see the heroine's initiation so I was really hoping for that. But the epilogue was beyond heartfelt even though I think her birth mother is CRAZY lol

Overall I had a blast with this book and eager to see the other LORDS get their stories.

 

 Vacancy is a book that I have no clue why I put off as long as I did. Because this book was pretty amazing. And seeing a regular contemporary new adult author tackle a paranormal romance just really worked for me. Its not too heavy in the paranormal elements but there are aspects of it here. This story basically has a setup of where the heroine gets a lease on a apartment in a house where her roommate is a ghost but she doesn't know that she is a ghost and this ghost is the dead sister of our hero. Their meet cute is pretty hilarious, but now Damien has a conflict...how does he tell the girl he really likes that she is seeing a ghost without hating him? Honestly, I really felt for Damien. He and Oaklynn have bonded quickly and he doesn't want to lose her or what they have and he also doesn't want to come off as crazy either. I love the way that the Seven really comes together and tells him the truth on this but he doesn't really listen lol But honestly I am kinda on his side here, how on earth do you tell your girl she is seeing mystical things?

There is also a fabulous murder mystery that plays out within this story and what we see develop is so well built within the story. And if you think you know who the villain is....YOU really don't know who the villain is and man I loved the twists and turns within this one. Linda Kage is definitely growing as an author and you can see it within this story. Another aspect that I loved was the Seven dwarf personalities within the group of male friends, definitely couldn't get enough of that. 

 My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

Cry Wolf is the first book in the Alpha & Omega series. I am reading both of this authors series in order from her website. After reading the prequel novella of Charles and Anna, I just had to jump into this one next and I am so happy that I did because these two just delivered all the PNR feels that I was looking for and more. Even though it is UF, it still has strong PNR feels to it because the world building of the UF isn't as focused as we are delving into a remote wolf pack in Montana. Anna and Charles are really getting to know each other in this book. They are coming to accept their bond and discovering what that means for both of them. What impressed me the most was the heroine in this book. This author keeps blowing me away with NORMAL heroines. Like what is this magic? haha I am sorry but most UF I have read, the heroines are so crazy and out of this world kick ass that I can't relate to them on any level. But Anna....she is honestly just a normal heroine. Literally your next door neighbor type of heroine and I am having a blast with it. Charles and Anna make such a balanced couple. He isn't too alpha for Anna, especially when she has softer elements to her character with her being a omega. I am also loving the Native American aspect to him and the connection that we see between him and the alpha of the pack was quite superb. The plot of the story definitely kept me on the edge of my seat. The villain is so EVIL, but how the author develops the third act was PHNEOMENAL. Honestly I didn't know what I was expecting, but this author threw me in for a whirlwind of a story.

Overall if you are looking for a more softer UF with more romance focus in it, then I can't recommend this series enough, truly loving the beginning of Charles and Anna's story. 

 My Review ( May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review, please be responsible)

Destructive King is the third in the Mafia Royals series. If you love NA mafia romance, then I do recommend this series especially if you love a more comedy feel to it which is actually rare for the dark romance genre. Dyken has a writing style that really blends in some unique elements that just seem to really work so well together. I was really fascinated by this one. It also has a tortured dark hero with a shy sweet heroine of sorts. I love the parallels of their personalities that may seem to not work together, but they fit so right because our heroine is strong when he needs someone to stand up to him when the pain is getting too much for him. I really found the family dynamics in this one to be quite interesting and the romance was delectable at times. I really didn't have a issue with this book. It wasn't quite a five star and honestly it was almost a week ago since I read this one so I am just not sure what my exact issue was that kept it from a five star, but I did enjoy it for the most part so it gets a solid 4 star for me. Very eager to see what happens next in the series though. 

 My Review (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review so please be responsible)

The Secret Fiancee is a book I was really looking forward to. Even though the past couple books in the series have been such a disappointment, I was wanting more for this one and hoping that maybe the author had learned from how the past couple books just hasn't worked as well for her readership. So I do want to say that the first 90% of the story was superb. The romance was fun, the hero was a beta sweet hero and I really thought that this would be a win because the relationship really felt more healthy. But of course, Maura just had to ruin this book with the last 10% of the story. Now I will say that even though the hero goes bonkers in a scene, its understandable why he does. He has some past betrayal and trauma issues he just hasn't resolved so I wasn't shocked by his reaction. My issue though was how the heroine treated him. Now I get she was hurt, but the circles that she makes him jump through was very abusive for him. Now yes I do agree that he needed to do a grovel here, but what she makes him do in order for her to forgive him was more about power and manipulation than actual love. The author writes the grovel to the point where the hero is DESTROYED emotionally to the point that it literally made me sick in disgust. I am not going to justify this behavior. Quite frankly he deserved better than a woman like this. Because she knew of his past, and she should have been more understanding, and how she puts everything on him and treating him so beneath her just soured the ending for me so much that I only got to about 95% and I actually technically DNF it, I just couldn't finish it. That is how bad it was. This is why I am not picky about grovels, in fact, I would prefer to have a lighter grovel than to see this type of abuse. This is NOT the first time I have seen this from this author, and honestly I am not sure I will finish the series. I don't get the appeal when authors destroy the heroes just for the sake of having a grovel to satisfy readers. And if this grovel had been better handled, this book would have been a 5 or 6 star read.

Overall this was a disappointment. Even though the first majority of the book was pretty amazing, the ending completely was toxic and abusive in ways that can't be redeemed. 

 My Review: (May contain spoilers, fair warning upon reading this review)

This was a chef's kiss novella and one of my favorite books of the series at this point. I can see how this book is a bridge between her two primary series. This book was a enchanting quick read that I soaked up like a sponge. I love also how quick paced this book was. I really didn't want to put this one down here. This book was really enchanting in what we see in the romance itself. There is so much adventure in this one, with a slight amount of flashbacks, but they aren't flashbacks that will bother anyone. They are well mixed into the story that you don't feel the transition. We also see such great chemistry between these two. They have both been pining for the other for years. So when the hero realizes she is making a stupid decision....he decides to make his claim haha sometimes a big play is what you need to do when hints to the other isn't working. This is a very short story though, its only like 70 pages, so you sweep through it so quickly. What I really appreciate is how much emotional depth was packed within this story. Very endearing and I was so invested in these characters and I kinda wish we had longer with them and then that sweet quick ending that had a magic feel to it was just right! I can't wait to move on to her highlander series now! But a bit bittersweet this series is over though.