Birthday Girl was a story that I have so excited for and this is a very hyped up book and I honestly didn't give it a second thought when I saw this book and I just had to grab it up. Now this is one of those books that is all over TikTok that I am shocked you can't find it at B&N yet, but I am sure it is only a matter of time. It's a book that everyone is raving about these days and you all know how I feel about hyped books but apparently, I wasn't listening to myself because I didn't even think about grabbing this one up here and I have to say it didn't meet up the desired expectations. Now I am not going to lie, that it was a bit of a page turner and I was compelled by the story but I kinda felt flat at the end, because the way everyone talks about it like its their best read of the year and after reading this one, its on the lower tatum pole of books I have read this year. I enjoyed it quite a bit but not the extent of what I was expecting from it.
Birthday Girl is a wild and slow burn feeling of a story which features:
Pike-Works in construction, single father, divorced, lonely heart
Jordan-Beautiful, hardworking, waitress, sweet and kind
Birthday Girl begins with Jordan going out after working a long day at work on her birthday, with her boyfriend not answering her calls, so she takes some wine and goes to see a show but what she doesn't expect is to make friends with a man who curls her toes, but treats her like she matters. There is a connection but she knows that it can't go anywhere because she is already in a relationship even if that relationship is currently on the rocks. But when she learns that this handsome sexy stranger is her boyfriends father she is shocked to the core, but when her boyfriend hits a new low and they are evicted from their apartment, she goes with him to live with his dad. To say things are awkward is a complete understatement, but they built a quick friendship and that bond only grows the more time they are around each other. But the more neglected Jordan is by her boyfriend, the more she craves the touch of his father even though that would ruin everything. But sometimes touching the forbidden is worth the risk in the end....
Time passes by you like a bullet,” he says, “and fear gives you the excuses you’re craving to not do the things you know you should. Don’t doubt yourself, don’t second-guess, don’t let fear hold you back, don’t be lazy, and don’t base your decisions on how happy it will make others. Just go for it, okay?
Birthday Girl wasn't a book I expected in some ways. This is definitely a slow burn romance so you definitely need to be aware of that before you go into this one here. I didn't know what I expected to find going into it but I was actually shocked to see the level of heat that is actually in the book and that it doesn't happen for much later in the story. NOT the norm for Penelope Douglas but I was actually quite pleased to read such a solid slow burn romance. I will be honest, sometimes slow burn romances will put me to sleep and I definitely didn't felt that with this one here. I was actually pretty surprised how un boring this one felt. I still felt engaged by the pacing and the writing of the book so I was really into it quite a bit. But I will say that as an overall read it definitely didn't meet up with my expectations and I am actually sad about this book. Because I was expecting one to pack a punch and it didn't even make it to "pinch" haha While it was a enjoyable read and I had fun with many aspects of the story, it just didn't quite work out the way I wanted it to. I am a little confused why its so well loved by so many, I don't get the hype surrounding it.
“I knew you were out there somewhere,” I tell her, quirking a sad smile. “The girlfriends, women I dated, Cole’s mother…. I never wanted to marry anyone, because they weren’t what I was looking for. I had started to think I had my sights set too high, and you didn’t exist.” I clasp the back of her neck and run my thumbs down her throat. “Turns out my dream girl belongs to the one person it would kill me to hurt.”
Overall though I found Birthday Girl to be a relax a day away type of read, its a sweet slow burn romance, with a touch of forbidden, moments of sweet and heart packed in with a engagement to keep you sucked into the story. One that many romance readers will be entertained by.
Rapture In Death is the fourth installment in the In Death Series and thus we continue the journey of Roarke and Eve. I am slowly working my way through these books here, And even though it can be overwhelming when I look at the series order here, I am also excited to delve into a series like this, I just love seeing it feature one primary couple here and its always such fun to get some more delights from Eve and Roarke. And I will say this, this is probably my favorite book so far in the series, these two just cracked me up so much. I loved seeing them experience newly married bliss and seeing how tight their relationship is.
I'm still picking pockets--I just do it as legally as I can. Being married to a cop limits certain activities
Rapture In Death starts off with a honeymoon, a time away from her job that Eve desperately needs and one that Roarke is determined to make her experience. But while on their vacation, a mysterious death occurs and thus Eve will have to return back to her job earlier than she planned on. But when there are more mysterious deaths that come into play it just shows evidence that there is more going on than what Eve can currently figure out. But while she is trying to solve the questions that are arriving surrounding these deaths, she is also trying to learn to adapt as Roarke's wife. It is not the easiest adaptation, she is not used to the world that Roarke lives in and is trying to blend two of their worlds together while also taking her usual risks to track down the serial killer. But there are questions surrounding these deaths and so many questions with not enough answers for Eve. But is the culprit someone or more than one that are closer to home? those which neither Roarke or Eve will suspect?
“I'm sorry. It's Hard for me. I do love you," she said quietly. "Sometimes it scares me because you're the first. And the only"He held her there until he was sure he could speak, then eased her back, looked into her eyes "You've chaged my life. Become my life." He touched his lips to hers, let the kiss deepen slowly, silkily. "I need you”
Rapture in Death is quite a fun installment that we have here. I had so many fun times with these two here. Their bantering was so much fun and I love how Roarke is so mindful of Eve and boy she is so STUBBORN especially about her health. Its a good thing she has such a strong man to take charge when it's needed and guide her to maintaining her health. I was highly entertained in seeing how this book evolved. It was interesting to see the growth of the plot and how this mystery unfolded. I was actually delightfully surprised at how I didn't see the villains and how their connection to Roarke and Eve. I really found the idea of VR system being part of the plot.
"She had big plans for me. Kind of a pet, I imagine. Like William. Her little trained dog. And with you dead, she figured I'd inherit all your goodies. You're not going to do that to me are you?"Roarke: "What, die?"Eve: "Leave me all this stuff."Roarke: "Only you would be annoyed by that.”
Overall I found Rapture In Death to be an entertaining, thrilling ride of mystery, twists, and turns that go some unsuspecting ways and more laughs in the growth of the romance to curl the toes.
Raze is the first book in this overpowering and simply breathtaking series. Now I had recently read book two of the series and I knew I had to pick up Luca and Kisa's story and I am so glad that I did because WOW. This book worked for me in so many ways. Of course I knew some back story of this couple before reading it, but I knew it would be a emotional roller coaster and it certainly was. There are some flashbacks that helps the reader understand what Luca and Kisa had together as children and what seperated them.
The story begins with alternating POV's of both Luca and Kisa. Kisa is the daughter of one of the "red bosses" of the New York Russian Bravta. She lost her childhood sweetheart when she was a teenager and her brother on the same day. She is engaged to be married to a man who controls every move she makes and is overly obsessive with her and very rough in bed. But Kisa has resigned herself to her future, knowing that there isn't another way. Luca has just escaped the fighting rings that he has been forced to fight in for as long as he can remember. Now he is free, and he has one pledge, Revenge on the one person that wronged him years ago and is the reason why he was forced to fight and be drugged and lose his memories. Kisa goes out with her church to help feed the poor and homeless. When a homeless stranger rescues her from being robbed and knifed, she forms a attachment to him. She doesn't understand at first why she is so drawn to him. But when he begins training to fight in her father's club, there are certain signs that he is familar to her. Hints that this dangerous yet compelling man was once the boy she grew up with and loved and never stopped loving...
Her eyes were light blue, his eyes the richest of brown, but the left iris was smudged with the girl’s light blue. They matched. God made them this way so they would recognize themselves as meant for one another when they were born, so they would always find each other no matter where they were on Earth.
What a wild story that had me on the edge of my seat and man oh man did I fall in love with this book. Now it is way more intense than book two for obvious reasons. And one of the true set backs I feel readers should be warned about is the sex scenes between Kisa and her fiancee. All I can say is its abusive and practically rape and my heart went out to the heroine who just hasn't known anything different for a long time. This fiancee is DANGEROUS--in a very obsessive sketchy way, who would kill a man for just looking at her. But then we see the relationship she has with Luca and its completely different. Its like oil and water. When she and Luca start to reconnect, there is tenderness and true heart in their feelings and emotions. This is a very complex story and yes I guess you could say there is some cheating involved. Kisa is cheating on her fiancee, but I know she would break up with him if she could. She believes he will kill her and Luca if he finds out and timing is everything in how they handle her fiancee. It has some darker themes of course because this story is definitely not black and white....there is definite grey here. We see the effects of a long term abusive relationship. So I know not everone will be a fan of Kisa. Because on the surface she seems weak but she really isn't. She has a certain inner strength that is rare to see, and has been manipulated since she was a teenager by a controlling and really dangerous man. What really did it for me in this book was her connection with Luca, and seeing Luca slowly get his memories back and find out about his family, what really happened to him and his frienship and teen romance with Kisa before he was taken.
There is such a heart breaking quality to this story, that just gravitates toward the reader and refuses to let go. I was completely swept up in this story and highly recommend it to those who love a deep and raw emotional romance with dark tones to it!! A COMPELLING ROMANCE YOU WON'T EVER FORGET!!
After The Fall is a conclusion of the first book which features one of my favorite couples-King and Cressida. I will be honest in that I did almost pick up this book before books 2 and 3, it was a huge temptation just because I felt like there was so much more of their story to be told. But I had a feeling I would miss out on the growth of the series from other reviews I had read so I decided that I definitely needed to wait and I am happy that I did. We do get to see moments of them in books two and three but it was so refreshing to see the growth of their relationship in “After The Fall” It’s not going to be what you expect it and honestly, this is a tough book to read. All I will say is read the authors note in the beginning and have FAITH that she will guide you through the storms when you get to it.
After The Fall begins a few years following the first book “ Lessons in Corruption” where our heroine Cressida is teaching at the local college and King is finishing up his degree, but he is more possessive than ever especially when all the college boys want so much of his girl’s attention. But then there are problems building up with the Fallen MC and he and Cress are called back home. So they come back home, Cressida opens up a new bookstore for the town, but there are problems happening. The local police department is giving them issues, and that is an understatement. There are some members of the PD that are trying to do everything they can to shut down the Fallen MC no matter the cost. But when his father is framed for the murder of one of the few cops on their side and trying to do some good, he is now determined to get his father exonerated and freed from prison. But getting him free will come at a great cost, and it will test the unity of the members of the Fallen MC, of the love between King and Cress and will test the resolve of all. Because King will have to make a choice, and its a choice that will cost him dear….
After The Fall is a story that really blew my socks off and I mean that literally. This is NOT an easy romance to read. It is really rough and I will give it to Giana Darling in her delivering such a stor that packs a punch. I honestly wanted to throw my kindle at the wall in the reading of this one because it will TEAR your heart wide open. This author really doesn’t skirt on giving a story that is so packed with so much torment and heart. Now the first half wasn’t so bad, we get to see the journey of King in how he becomes a prospect and he and the Fallen MC perspective from what happens in book three. And I really loved seeing King’s journey and into becoming a fully fledged member in the MC which is his family. We really see a level of corruption within the local PD and I really liked that the author showcased this and how power and greed can consume one especially from someone who help raise King. The plot to this story was so edgy and I was so consumed with the plot and seeing where Giana was taking it. We see so much depths to the connection that King and Cress have together. They grow so much here and it was so beautiful to see.
Now below is a BIG spoiler (so try to only read it if you can do spoilers and not have it ruin the story or you have already read these books) SpoilerOur hero has to make a choice to fake his death and so everyone but one person believes him to be dead including his wife. This is really painful and heart wrenching because you don’t know that he is alive until it is revealed. (I will be honest I read the ending when this happened because I had to know if he survived) Don’t worry he does. But it really will tear you up to see what losing him does to Cress and how deeply she loved him. This level of grief was something I really related to from a personal past experience.
Overall I found that this story was one I loved and while it tore me to emotional pieces, it also delivered in every way. I just had so much fun seeing this book fall into place and seeing how the plot unraveled. It really will pack a punch onto your emotions but I hope you see this book through all the way and have faith in the author to guide you through it all. I promise she will deliver a epic romance that is majestic in its complexity and an poignant romance to fight for.
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