Maya

💬: "The thought has the corners of my mouth twitching in the makings of a carefully repressed smile and just like that, hate slips so easily away. Love weighs so much less. Nothing at all. It is pure buoyancy."

Stephens, Elizabeth. Taken to Nobu: A SciFi Alien Romance (Xiveri Mates Book 2) (p. 294). Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, sci-fi, sci-fi romance, aliens, fantasy romance

📚Page Count: 358

🎧Audiobook Length: 09h 15min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Body horror, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

*I read this story because it was recommended by romance author, Katee Roberts*

Taken to Nobu by Elizabeth Stephens is the second book in the Xiveri Mates series. Kiki is on Nobu, a snow consumed planet, where she's stuck with no escape. The leader of the colony that she's on is Va'Raku and he claims that she is his Xiveri mate. She isn't sure what that is but she wants no part in mating with an alien and she definitely doesn't want to participate in "The Hunt", an event where she will be tracked and hunted with little to no options to save herself from the mating event. She knows one thing for sure, she's going to fight anyone who tries to touch her. Va'Raku knows that Kiki hates him but he also knows that she is without a doubt, his Xiveri mate, he's determined to win her over during "The Hunt" so she'll finally be his mate and rule the colony beside him. He's never met a warrior woman like her and while impressed, he suddenly realizes that Kiki is fighting him out of fear and not out of honor. Kiki has been hurt by an alien before and Va'Raku is willing to do anything to make that man pay, will Kiki trust Va'Raku enough to help get her revenge?

(TW - mention of sexual assault, rape, grey sexual consent lines)

I enjoyed this book as much, if not more than the first book in the series. The main character, Kiki, is a character we followed at the beginning of book one briefly, in this book we finally get to read about what happened to her after the events of book one. Kiki is a sexual assault survivor (the events are not shown on page, as they happened before the events of the first book, they are just referred to) and so at the beginning of the book when she gets the news that she'll be participating in "The Hunt" (where alien men chase and pursue woman so they can find their mates and produce children while fostering a relationship.) She goes into defense mode, she doesn't want to be forced to mate an alien against her will so she decides to fight. After defeating a few of these alien men, eventually, Kiki meets Va'Raku and Kiki's body and soul decide that they want Va'Raku (like fated mates, sort of). Kiki then changes her "No, I don't want to be touched" to a "Yes, touch me now Va'Raku".

I really enjoyed the narrators of this audiobook, just like I enjoyed the narrators of the first book in the Xiveri Mates series. Blaire Leblanc returns to voice Kiki and some of the other characters and she does a fantastic job, just like she did with the first book. Marquis De Sade voices Va'Raku and he does a really good job as well. This audiobook was published by Vitruvian Sound and overall, they did a nice job.

All but one of the spicy scenes were nice and enjoyable to read/listen to on audiobook. The first scene where the couple are together intimately for the first time is hard to judge because there is a misunderstanding between the Kiki and Va'Raku because of cultural differences. <spoiler>At first Kiki is determined to not be physically intimate with anyone, even though she is being perused by several alien men in "The Hunt". That changes when she meets Va'Raku. </spoiler> The rest of the spicy scenes were wonderful. I'm giving the spicy scenes three point five chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

Overall, I think this story was really enjoyable. I did have issues with the one part in the book that depicted "grey or blurred consent lines", but other than that issue, it was mostly good. I enjoyed most of the characters, in fact, there were only two characters (out of a cast of about 10 main and background characters) that I didn't like. I also enjoyed the growing romance between Kiki and Va'Raku. I'm giving this 4.5 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4.5/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: N/A

📖Genres: romance, sci-fi, sci-fi romance, aliens, fantasy romance

📚Page Count: 93

🎧Audiobook Length: 02h 00min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

*I read this story because it was recommended by romance author, Katee Roberts*

Exiled from Nobu by Elizabeth Stephens is the first novella in the Xiveri Mates series and it's chronologically book 2.5 in the series. Lisbel has been exiled from Nobu with her Xiveri Mate Jaxal but does she actually love him? Does she even like him? He seems brutish and even though she wants to hate him, she can't. When Lisbel finds herself in the position of protecting someone, she's impressed to watch Jaxal protect her. Maybe they can grow to really love each other, if they truly are Xiveri Mates.

This novella was cute, fun, and it definitely redeemed Lisbel from her previous actions in the 2nd Xiveri Mates book, "Take to Nobu". Book 2 needs to be read before reading this book, book 2.5 to fully understand what's happening in the background of the story. I think the only thing I didn't like about the story is how Lisbel slaps Jaxal in the face over a misunderstanding, <spoiler>she believed that Jaxal was cheating on her with several other women.</spoiler> Other than this scene, the rest of the novella was enjoyable and I can't wait to read the rest of the books in the series.

I enjoyed the audio narration of this novella just as much as I liked the narration of both of the pervious full length books. Blaire Leblanc returns to voice Lisbel and a few side characters and Marquis De Sade voices Jaxal and a few other side characters as well. They both continue to do a wonderful job. This and the previous Xiveri Mates audiobook were published by Vitruvian Sound and so far I've liked all three of the audiobook narrations, they did a wonderful job with producing this.

The spicy scenes in here were short but they were still really nice. I'm giving the spicy scenes three point five chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

Overall, this novella was really enjoyable. I did have a problem with Lisbel slapping Jaxal when she got mad, but other than that it was a good story. I'm giving this 4.5 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "Sinsar Dubh1: a Dark Hallow belonging to the mythological race of the Tuatha Dé Danaan. Written in a language known only to the most ancient of their kind, it is said to hold the deadliest of all magic within its encrypted pages. Brought to Ireland by the Tuatha Dé during the invasions written of in the pseudohistory Leabhar Gabhåla3, it was stolen along with the other Dark Hallows and rumored to have found its way into the world of Man."

Moning, Karen Marie. Darkfever: Fever Series Book 1 (p. 66). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal, paranormal romance, Fae

📚Page Count: 343

🎧Audiobook Length: 08h 57min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️ - 2/5

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TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

Darkfever is the first book in the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning. MacKayla, more commonly known as Mac, is grieving because her older sister was murdered while abroad in Ireland. Mac's sister left one clue, one enigmatic voice message. So when the criminal murder investigation halts, Mac decides to travel to Ireland to find out who murdered her sister and why. As Mac digs deeper she finds maybe an enemy or ally in the peculiar Jericho Barrons, who happens to be shadowing her. Eventually Mac discovers that she's a sidhe-seer (she-seer), someone who can see and sense the monsters on the other side of the veil. V'lane, an alpha Fae who glamours women into wanting sexual intercourse from him, also has his sights set on Mac. The one thing that Mac discovers is that she needs to get her hands on the Sinsar Dubh, a one of a kind Dark Book that has the power to control both the human world and the fae world, before anyone else finds it.

The first part of the book was really boring, things don't pick up and get more interesting in the book until after the 50% mark. This book also had some inconsistencies as well as several scenes not being explained at all. It felt like nothing relevant was happening in the first 50% of the book. We get world building when Mac learns more about the Fae world and she writes the information down in her notebook, I suppose that's okay? It feels a little like lazy writing. The first time Mac finally sees a monster up close is at the 31% mark and that felt like the story was going too slowly. When Mac sees the monster she notices that it is naked and has a large "member", for some reason the monster stares back at her and begins to stroke itself?!This was never explained "why". To be fair, I think it's okay if some things weren't explained because I understand that this first book is meant the be the beginning of a long series. I just don't understand why the monsters want to stroke themselves when they see her and that is not explained. There are a few inconsistences but I'll just share the first one I found.

"then turned out the light and fell almost immediately into a deep, dreamless sleep. Someone knocking at my door awakened me. I sat up, rubbing gritty, tired eyes that felt as if I’d just shut them seconds ago. It took me a few moments to remember where I was—in a twin bed in a chilly room in Dublin, with rain tapping lightly at the window. I’d been having a fantastic dream."

Moning, Karen Marie. Darkfever: Fever Series Book 1 (pp. 48-49). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

So Mac starts off saying that she "fell almost immediately into a deep, dreamless sleep." only to say at the beginning of the next paragraph, "I'd been having a fantastic dream."

(TW - mention of physical assault)

I don't think the relationship between Barrons and Mac is really possible without Mac continuing to accept Barrons' physically and verbally abusive behavior, at this point. Within the first few days of knowing each other, they get into one of their many arguments. Only this time, Barrons decides to "snatch" Mac up off the couch she's sitting on, by grabbing her by the hair and neck and shoving her against a wall.

He was on me before my brain processed the fact that he was coming for me. It was the third time he’d pulled such a stunt and it was getting darned old. The man was either an Olympic sprinter or, because I’d never been jumped before, I just couldn’t get a grasp on how quickly it happens. His lunges were way faster than my instincts to react. Lips compressed, face tight with fury, he dragged me up off the couch with a hand in my hair, grabbed my throat with the other, and began walking me backward toward the wall.

Moning, Karen Marie. Darkfever: Fever Series Book 1 (pp. 77-78). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

This is not described as consensual non-consent OR romantic behavior at all. This is described as the abuse it is. Barrons is supposed to be the main love interest but he physically attacks Mac several times in the beginning of their acquaintanceship. Towards the end of the book Barrons saves Mac and for some reason the author sort of paints this idea that it's okay to forget or that we should forget that Barrons was physically abusive towards Mac almost every time they were in each other's proximity. Barrons saves Mac and so the character is expected to be redeemed of his earlier behavior. Well I still don't like him, he's awful and abusive, I want Mac to get far away from him.

The audiobook narrator was okay, I didn't love their performance but I could stand it. Mac, the main character, is supposed to be from the United States South and so the narrator tried to use a "Southern" accent and sometimes the narrator would lose the accent for two sentences just to pick it back up in the third sentence. It was a bit distracting and took me out of the immersion of the story almost every time it happened. Someone gifted me every audiobook in this series (there was a sale at $2.99 per audiobook) so I plan on finishing this series. I think I don't mind that the book's narrators changes to new narrators starting in book 4, Dreamfever.

There were no spicy scenes in this book. All the scenes having to do with arousal had to do with monsters, fae, and creatures of the night being sexually aggressive and even almost sexually assaulting the main character by using fae glamour to make her think she "wants it". Nothing happened but I don't want to read about "almost sexual assaults" in my paranormal ROMANCES. I'm giving the spicy scenes zero -🌶️ chilies out of five chilies

Overall, I think the beginning of this book was not good, though the premise was interesting. The ending of the book is where the action and the full story started to come together, it was definitely the most interesting part of the book. I don't understand the "slow burn romance" in here because Barrons is terrible to Mac and even physically abusive to her in the days following their first meeting. That's not romantic at all. Some of the writing was also inconsistent. I'm giving this 2 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️ - 2/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "“I would take anything she chose to give me—the tiniest fraction or her entire world. I would take her for a single night knowing that I’ll lose her by morning, and I would hold on to her and never let go. I would take her healthy, or sick, or tired, or angry, or strong, and it would be my fucking privilege. I would take her problems, her gifts, her moods, her passions, her jokes, her body—I would take every last thing, if she chose to give it to me.”

Hazelwood, Ali. Bride (pp. 201-202). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: adult, spicy, romance, paranormal, paranormal romance, urban fantasy

📚Page Count: 402

🎧Audiobook Length: 12h 47min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

Bride by Ali Hazelwood is a paranormal romance about a Vampyre named Misery who is sent to be in an arranged marriage to an Alpha wolf named Lowe. Misery doesn't just agree to the arranged marriage only to ensure continued peace between the Vampyres and Weres, she also does it because she's determined to get back what's been taken from her. Even if that means being the only Vampyre in Were territory.

I've never read anything by Ali Hazelwood until now and I'm pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! I think it started a little slow and the world building felt a bit jarring at first because the setting is not exactly explained until around 25% of the way through the book (if I remember correctly). I was feeling very impatient during the first 25% of the way through and the main reason why I continued the book is because it was a buddy read between myself and a best friend. I'm so happy I convinced myself to finish it. I'm not big on political romance stories but this hooked me in once I hit that 25% mark. I think it also helps that this book unfolds into somewhat of a mystery on top of all the politics, romance, and the "enemies to lovers" themes.

I want give this book five stars but there were two things I didn't like. I only liked the first half of the last spicy scene, I didn't like what happened after the stuff I liked (LOL 😂😂). Another thing I didn't like was how the "enemies to lovers" trope was really based on a continual misunderstanding. I honestly don't think this book is "enemies to lovers" at all.

I don't want to spoil anything so I'll just say that the spicy scenes were enjoyable in some parts and then they became "interesting" in other parts. I'll say that I've never read an intimate scene like the last scene, but I'm very hopeful that it'll be the last I read of it's kind. I'm giving it three chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies.

"Bride" is my first Ali Hazelwood book and I was not disappointed, I really enjoyed this book and it was honestly so fun to read. I'm giving this book 4.5 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "“I want you.” He states it as fact, as if he’s not crossing a thousand different lines by putting it to voice. “I’ve wanted you since the first time I saw you, all done up in white and marrying my best friend.”

Robert, Katee. Gifting Me To His Best Friend (A Touch of Taboo) (p. ?). Trinkets and Tales LLC. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: adult, spicy, romance, contemporary romance

📚Page Count: 114

🎧Audiobook Length: 04h 06min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

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TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Roleplaying Infidelity, and Sexual content</spoiler>

Gifting Me To His Best Friend is an erotica and romance novella by Katee Robert. Emma and Grayson are a married couple and every year during Christmas they go to the mountains with Grayson's best friend, Derek. This year Grayson plans to give Derek the unconventional gift, permission to get close and steamy with Emma. Derek stars warming up to Emma and then he starts warming up to Grayson. Their ménage à trois was only supposed to last one night, what happens when it lasts the entire vacation?

This was my first spicy novel with two men and a woman and it did not disappoint me! I originally was told that this book was the "brother's best friend" trope but that was so far from being correct (because the trope in this book is "husband's best friend"). There wasn't a lot of storyline to work with, but there is a little angst towards the end.

The spicy scenes were really good! I definitely enjoyed them, they were creative. There was some roleplaying and even though I'm not a fan of the scenario they were roleplaying, the scenes included some nice spice. I'm giving it four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

I enjoyed this book despite it being something I didn't anticipate. I'm giving this book 4 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "To ensure success, and your mental health during extended isolation, we have equipped you with ourselves—a dynamic-matrix consensus intelligence encapsulating the ideals and blessed rationality of our Founders. We are implanted in your mind and will travel with you everywhere. We are your companion, and your conscience.

Jemisin, N. K.. Emergency Skin (Forward collection) (p. 3). Kindle Edition. "

📖Genres: sci-fi, fantasy, short story, novella, Hugo Award winners

📚Page Count: 29

🎧Audiobook Length: 01h 04min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

TW - <spoiler>Gaslighting, Ableism, Racial slurs, Sexism, Body shaming, Racism, and Xenophobia</spoiler>

"Emergency Skin" by N.K. Jemisin is a short story or novella from the short story collection, "Forward" published by Am*zon. A scout or explorer travels back to Earth to collect information, the danger lies in that Earth was destroyed by climate change centuries ago. When the explorer discovers that there is still some humanity left on Earth, he worries about how dangerous they are. He's instructed to get off Earth and survive any encounters. Will the soldier make it back home intact? Or was the mission more than the explorer could handle?

This was amazing. I am blow away by the fact that Ms. Jemisin created these characters, this story, and the world building within 29 pages. I'm not going to spoil anything, I want everyone to read this story while only knowing what the synopsis is.

"Emergency Skin" is definitely the best short story in the "Forward" Collection published by Am*zon. It's an amazing short story, I was speechless by the ending of the story. I can't believe she wrote this in 29 pages?! Ms. Jemisin is such an amazing writer, I know this and she still manages to surprise me with her talent. I'm giving this book 5 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 Stars

I own this audiobook, I didn't find it available at the library.

💬: "Perhaps the moths knew what he didn’t, that the joy of the flame was worth the price of destruction. He intended to find out.

Frost, Jeaniene. Eternal Kiss of Darkness (Night Huntress World Book 2) (p. 199). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, paranormal romance, paranormal, supernatural, urban fantasy

📚Page Count: 375

🎧Audiobook Length: 10h 24min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

Eternal Kiss of Darkness is the second book in the "Night Huntress" spin-off series, "Night Huntress World" both by Jeaniene Frost. Kira Graceling, a private investigator, hears sounds of pain coming from around the corner while she was walking home from work. Kira does what any upstanding citizen would do and she checks on the person who's been hurt. Mencheres is a master vampire and he isn't sure what to do about the human who just risked her life to save him. He finds himself drawn to her. In the end, Mencheres must choose the woman he's fascinated by or the darkest magic that he needs to defeat an enemy that threatens to eternally damn him.

At first I was apprehensive because I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy a book about Mencheres but this book only disappointed me once (more on that below). Mencheres' and Kira's relationship really worked for me. There was a little miscommunication and that usually bothers me in books but the book was so good that I just let it play out and I ended up liking the book overall.

I really don't like the constant threat of sexual assault that the female characters have to endure every book, it seems. For some reason Frost keeps adding elements of sexual assault and misogyny in her stories and that really ruins parts of the book for me. To further explain this specific example,<spoiler>in this instance there is a young 16 year old girl and a vampire "pimp" has forced her to do sex work and start stripping. </spoiler> This could have been left out or changed to something else, we don't need to see female characters threated with sexual assault by the people who are supposed to be the bad guys. We get it, they're bad guys.

I really enjoyed the spicy scenes in this book, they were so good. I think I just really enjoy the way Frost writes intimate scenes. I'm giving the spicy scenes four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, "Eternal Kiss of Darkness" was really entertaining just like the first book in the "Night Huntress World" series, "First Drop of Crimson". I liked this book's female protagonist way more than I liked the female protagonist in the first book so this was even more fun to read than the first book in the series. Mencheres and Kira really worked together as a couple for me and reading about them was thrilling, heart wrenching, and just amazing. I'm giving this 4.5 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 4.5/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "‘I’m sorry’ if Bones gets killed doing what you didn’t have time to. After all, it’s so much easier to say you care than to prove it.”

Frost, Jeaniene. First Drop of Crimson (Night Huntress World Book 1) (p. 30). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, paranormal romance, paranormal, supernatural, urban fantasy

📚Page Count: 374

🎧Audiobook Length: 10h 06min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4/5

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TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Gore, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Trafficking, Drug use, Grief, Murder, Death, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Rape, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content</spoiler>

First Drop of Crimson is the first book in the "Night Huntress" spin-off series, "Night Huntress World" both by Jeaniene Frost. Denise has seen so much violence, chaos, and death recently and it seems as if it's not going to stop any time soon. A demon has set his sights on Denise and he won't leave her alone until he's forced to leave her alone. In comes Spade, a centuries old vampire who has promised to protect Denise at any cost. Will Spade be able to save Denise or will all be lost once the first drop of crimson falls?

This was exciting and entertaining just like the books from the Night Huntress series, the only different is that we're following characters who are normally side characters, but in this story they're main characters now. You might need to start the "Night Huntress" series before picking up the "Night Huntress World" series because "First Drop of Crimson" starts off where one of the "Night Huntress" books end. I really enjoyed that the sexy vampire Spade was our main male character. The main female character, Denise, really needed to grow on me. She's a survivor of a horrific attack and she has PTSD, I liked the mental health representation. What I didn't like about Denise is that she had the tendency to misunderstand almost every situation and every other conversation. By the end of the book I liked Denise a lot more but I still don't think she's as compelling as the main female character of the "Night Huntress Series", Cat.

Another thing I didn't like was the threat of sexual assault that Denise had to deal with. There's a character that gets rescued in this book by Spade and Denise and they say that they've spent decades as a prisoner/victim being assault sexually and physically. As you probably guessed, if they don't stop the evil forces in this book, Denise is being threatened with the same fate. I don't like when characters are threatened or have the threat of sexual assault looming over their heads so I'm just going to knock a star off and leave it at that.

The spicy scenes in this story were nice and sizzling hot! I thought Bones was the only vampire I was attracted to but Spade also seems like a good choice in a vampire companion. I'm giving the spicy scenes four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, First Drop of Crimson was a good story, I loved how some of the side characters from the original "Night Huntress" series are the main characters of this series, "Night Huntress World". It was entertaining and I enjoyed most of it aside from the parts that mentioned sexual assault, those simply did not have to be included. I'm giving this 4 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: ““Fruitless obsession will lead you to your grave, Canto,” he muttered, repeating words his grandmother had said to him. Ena had also added: “Mercants have a gift for obsession. It’s led to prison sentences, epic heroism, great works of art, and madhouses. Choose your path.”

Singh, Nalini. Last Guard (Psy-Changeling Trinity Book 5) (p. 14). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: paranormal romance, romance, urban fantasy, adult

📚Page Count: 371

🎧Audiobook Length: 10h 52min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

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TW - <spoiler>Ableism, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Physical abuse, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

Last Guard is the 20th book in the Psy/Changeling series and 5th in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series both by Nalini Singh. Payal Rao is the CEO of a major company as well as a cardinal telekinetic and an Anchor (a Psy designation of people working together to stop the PsyNet from collapsing) . She's calm, collected, and mostly emotionless. Canto Merchant is the head of intel for the influential Merchant family, he's an Anchor who's been deemed "damaged" because of a spinal injury he endured as a child. Payal and Canto need to work together, to save the Psy/Net but this isn't the first time they've had to work together. Both of them are still hurting from their intertwined dark past. Will they be able to save the PsyNet and possibly the love that they develop for each other?

This was an okay read, I didn't hate it and I didn't love it. I will say that this is one of the most boring Psy/Changeling novels I've read. I enjoyed Canto and Payal's romance towards the end but the journey of getting there felt long. There wasn't much that was memorable about this book to be honest.

The spice in this was okay, it wasn't really memorable, though I did like the depiction of a physically disabled person being intimate with their partner because we don't see that a lot in media. I'm giving it two point five chilies 🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

Overall, I think Last Guard was just okay. The book felt like it was a little longer than it needed to be, I actually found this to be one of the most boring Psy/Changeling novels. Though I did appreciate the fact that we finally got a romance or relationship between two Psys, the book was just not as exciting as the previous one that came before it (Alpha Night). I'm giving this 3 stars out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: "His breathing shudders out. “Don’t stop. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes.” His voice goes hard. “Don’t you dare come. That orgasm is mine and I intend to take it.”

Robert, Katee. Your Dad Will Do (A Touch of Taboo) (p. 122). Trinkets and Tales LLC. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: adult, spicy, romance, contemporary romance

📚Page Count: 140

🎧Audiobook Length: 04h 13min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

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TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Infidelity, and Sexual content</spoiler>

Your Dad Will Do is an erotica and romance novella by Katee Robert. Lily is engaged but she just discovered that her boyfriend has been cheating on her and she decided to end the relationship. Feeling lost, frustrated, and hurt, she decides to visit her ex-fiance's father, Shane. Lily's plan is to get her ex-fiance's father to sleep with her so she can hurt her ex the way he hurt her. Will her plan work or will Shane turn her away?

I thought I would like this more than I do. This reading experience has been a disappointment because there were some parts that were so good but there were parts that were so bad it just ruined the reading experience. There were several times in the book where Lily would ask Shane to stop doing something and he would flat out ignore her and continue with what he was doing. Once Lily told Shane that his manhood was too endowed for her to receive and he ignored her and KEPT GOING, then the character says to herself something like "oh, it did fit". Honey, if you tell someone to stop or you say no during intimacy moments and the other person or people don't stop, that's border lining assault.

I gasp. “It’s too much.” “No it’s not.” He doesn’t stop, just keeps working me on his cock. “You’re going to take every inch, because you’re a good girl and that’s what good girls do. They take their Daddy’s cocks to the hilt.” And then, impossibly, I do.

Robert, Katee. Your Dad Will Do (A Touch of Taboo) (p. 128). Trinkets and Tales LLC. Kindle Edition.

Reading this was uncomfortable for me because in the quote above he ignores Lily's concerns and continues with what he's doing and I think he should handle her with more care and consideration.

The spicy scenes are hard to rate in this novella because some of them were really good and some of them were a turn off because of Shane's tendency to not listen to Lily's pleads or concerns. I'm giving it two chilies 🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

Overall, this was just okay, I would have rated it higher if it weren't for the issues I mentioned above. I'm giving this book 3 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [Libbyapp.com]

💬: “I will fight always for you. Until my breath stops, I’ll fight.” She accepted that to the core, and so she could tell him the rest."

Singh, Nalini. Alpha Night (Psy-Changeling Trinity Book 4) (p. 274). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: paranormal romance, romance, urban fantasy, adult

📚Page Count: 355

🎧Audiobook Length: 11h 19min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

----

TW - <spoiler>Cursing, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Grief, Animal cruelty, Death, and Violence</spoiler>

Alpha Night is the 19th book in the Psy/Changeling series and 4rd in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series both by Nalini Singh. In Alpha Night alpha wolf Selenka Durev is fierce and protective of those who are under her care. She meets Ethan Night who is a standoffish member of The Arrows, somehow they become fated mates at first sight, even though Selenka believed mattings at first sight to be a myth. What Selenka sort of knows but doesn't is that something is wrong with Ethan, Selenka and sense it through the mating bond. Will they be able to stay mated or with the secrets they're both keeping destroy everything?

This was so fun to read, I was definitely entertained through my read. I loved the chemistry and banter between Selenka and Ethan. I also really tend to love the mystery based Psy/Changeling storylines, I find those to be the most interesting and entertaining. It was nice to see past characters in this story pop up (like the author normally does with her Psy/Changeling books.) This reading experience was so pleasant.

The spicy scenes in here were so nice. I did like that we didn't have to read about a woman and her first time, because this author tends to write about that and I never really like those scenes. This was enjoyable. I'm giving it three point five chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

In my review for the previous book in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series I said that "Wolf Rain" had been my favorite book from the series so far. After having read "Alpha Night" I've changed my opinion. "Alpha Night" is my favorite in the series now. The book was entertaining, exciting, and it depicted such a wonderful love. I'm giving this book 5 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: "Unlike big, burly bears with their adorably soft hearts that us wild women have to be careful not to bruise, wolves have egos that are titanium over iron. It takes a great deal to insult a wolf, so if you manage it, kudos to you. He’ll probably give you ten thousand orgasms in revenge. You poor, poor thing."

Singh, Nalini. Wolf Rain (Psy-Changeling Trinity Book 3) (p. 143). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: paranormal romance, romance, urban fantasy, adult

📚Page Count: 392

🎧Audiobook Length: 13h 23min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

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TW - Grief, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Murder, Torture, Confinement, Violence, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping

Wolf Rain is the 18th book in the Psy/Changeling series and 3rd in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series both by Nalini Singh. Wolf Rain is about a Psy named Memory, who was found by a wolf changeling, Alexei. Memory was trapped in an underground bunker, confined against her will by a psychopath of a Psy. Now that she's been rescued and freed Alexei comes to find what a strong spirit she has inside of her and he becomes fond of her. Now he has to make a final decision, "risk everything or lose Memory". Will he choose to save her?

I think Memory was a compelling character and I enjoyed reading about her and seeing her grow. I think Alexei showed character growth by the end of the story, but he didn't have much of a personality within the story. If Alexei had more of a personality outside of caring about Memory, I would have given this 5 stars.

I think the spicy scenes in this book were much better than the ones in the previous book (Ocean Light.) I'm still not a fan of the "first time" scenes but the scenes afterwards were nice. I'm giving it two chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, I'd say Wolf Rain has been my favorite book from the Psy/Changeling Trinity series. I'm giving this book 4 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: N/A

📖Genres: horror, thriller, suspense, paranormal, supernatural

📚Page Count: 597

🎧Audiobook Length: 21h 55min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

TW - <spoiler>Addiction, Gore, Violence, Child death, Death of parent, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death, Sexual assault, Drug use, Murder, Pedophilia, Rape, and Drug abuse</spoiler>

The Good House is a suspense, horror, thriller, and mystery novel by Tananarive Due. Angela and her family have returned to her grandmother's house, also known by towns folk as "The Good House, hoping that some of her grandma's magic would help fix her marriage but instead a tragedy happens. Two years later while Angela is still coping with the traumatic events that occurred two years prior, she revisit The Good House and discovers that other people have been experience tragic events as well. Angela wonders if these incidents have anything to do with an entity that her grandmother fought against in 1929. Myles Fisher, Angela's high school boyfriend, helps Angela try and solve the mystery before it's too late and their meddling has deadly consequences.

This book felt like it was mostly suspense and it gave me actual stress from anticipation. There are tragic and horrific things that happen in this book, but the way it's written is interesting. I'll explain - the author sometimes eludes to us that a character is going to die and then we have to sit through a few agonizing scenes of them not knowing they're going to die. It was torturous in the best ways! This is the first suspense story that I've read in my adult years that actually creeped and stressed me out.

TW - <spoiler>adult/minor relationships, rape, pedophilia</spoiler>

This is a really good novel but there was one thing that I didn't particularly like about it. There's a scene where a character has possibly <spoiler>turned evil and to depict that the author makes that adult aged character engaging in a sexual act with a 13 year old, so rape. We get that he's evil, you don't have to write that scene in there to show us that he's "gone to the bad side". </spoiler>

The other problem that I have with this story is that it's so long. I don't think a thriller/suspense needs to be almost 600 pages long, I usually expect tomes to be fantasy or fantasy/sci fi books. The audio book for this was 5 minutes just shy of 22 hours long! It was entertaining so there was only one time that I wondered "How long do I have left in this audiobook?". I think there might have been some things that could have been cut to make it at least 400 pages but I know it would change the story drastically to just cut away almost 200 pages. It was a good story overall, just one that I don't think I'll revisit due to the length.

Overall, this book was really good! I enjoyed it for the most part, aside from the issues I mentioned. I'm giving this 4 stars out of 5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "This female…there is no doubt in my mind that she was created for me, and me alone. She is my prize. Worthy of a Raku. So why is it then that I sense that something is wrong…

Stephens, Elizabeth. Taken to Voraxia: A SciFi Alien Romance (Xiveri Mates Book 1) (p. 22). Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, sci-fi, sci-fi romance, aliens, fantasy romance

📚Page Count: 358

🎧Audiobook Length: 10h 28min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 3.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Blood, Death, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abortion, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Animal death, Murder, Violence, and War</spoiler>

*I read this story because it was recommended by romance author, Katee Roberts*

Taken to Voraxia by Elizabeth Stephens is the first book in the Xiveri Mates series. Miari is a survivor on the moon colony where, every three years invading aliens, the Voraxians, come "hunt" for the most beautiful women on the colony. The aliens take the women away and then they don't return for another three years. It's a pact between the moon colony rulers and the King of the Voraxians. This time the King of Voraxia, Raku, is here himself and he's set his eyes on Miari. Miari decides that she is not going to be taken by the King so she sets up an escape plan with a few of her friends. The plan does not go smoothly and Miari needs to be rescued by Raku and soon after she's taken to Voraxia to be the King's mate. Will Miari and Raku end up getting along or will Miari keep trying to escape?

(TW - mention of sexual assaults' and rape)

I really enjoyed most of this book, I was interested in the story the entire time I was listening to the audiobook. I do have an issue with WHY Miari tries so hard to get away from Raku at first. It's explained in the story that the previous hunts on the women on the moon colony <spoiler> had been horrible, brutish, kidnap fests where the women always ended up sexually assaulted and brutally raped. This doesn't happen on page, it's just explained. It's also explained later that those same women who were raped were sent back to the moon colony, probably impregnated by their alien captors. In the end they almost all were forced to have an abortion because their bodies could not withstand the pregnancy process with that alien species. </spoiler>

(TW - mention of sexual assaults' and rape)

Another issue I had was with the climax scene at the end of the book. One of the main characters friends is <spoiler>attacked with the threat of rape and then a fight and struggle is described but no rape occurs in the end, as the character is saved from the perpetrator.</spoiler> I don't understand the itching need for sci-fi romance authors to include so much sexual assault in their stories. This is the second sci-fi romance I've read (the first being Ice Planet Barbarians, and I gave that a 2 stars because <spoiler>there's an alien gang rape scene at the very beginning of the story, it's definitely described as that.)</spoiler> I'm tired of the women always being threated with being sexually assaulted!

The audiobook narrators were great! I really loved the voice actors for both Miari and Raku. I could listen to the voice actor for Raku speak all day. I believe the audiobook was actually published by the author herself. The quality is good and I enjoyed listening to the story.

The spicy scenes were really good, I really enjoyed them. The two main characters have a few miscommunication issues but once they start properly communicating, the intimate scenes are so sensual and romantic. I'm giving the spicy scenes four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, I liked this book but I did have a problem with the threat of sexual assault always looming so I'm knocking off a star for that.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 - 3.5/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "Kiss her? “I shouldn’t. I can’t.” Though gods, Geryon wanted to, desperately, and found his gaze straying to her lips. They were lush and red. Glistening. His mouth watered for a taste of them. His horns, sensitive to his emotions as they were, throbbed."

Showalter, Gena. The Darkest Fire (Lords of the Underworld) (p. 41). HQN Books. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, paranormal romance, paranormal, mythology, demons, novella, supernatural, urban fantasy

📚Page Count: 82

🎧Audiobook Length: 01h 54min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️.5 - 2.5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Death, Confinement, Murder, Grief, Sexual content, War, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail</spoiler>

The Darkest Fire is a novella and the first story in the Lords of the Underworld series by Gena Showalter (it's considered to be chronologically book 0.5.) Geryon, Guardian of Hell is the guardian of hell and he meets Kadence, Goddess of Oppression at the gates of hell regularly but this time Kadence notices a crack in the gates of hell, and demons start pouring out. Geryon and Kadence decide to fight back and escape hell together. Will they make it to the surface?

This was honestly a bit below average. I couldn't tell if the two main characters were fated mates and because of that their romance and intimacy really felt rushed and like it was instant love/instant lust. By the end of the novella I understood what the point of the story was, which is <spoiler>to tell how Pandora's Box was created in this universe.</spoiler> This was not interesting in the slightest and the dialogue was really corny. I only finished this because it's a novella and very short and because I want give this series another chance by reading the next book and I wanted to have this read before I started the first novel in the "Lords of the Underworld" series.

The spicy scene in this novella was uninteresting. The whole act of them being intimate felt rushed, to be honest. It was definitely an instalove/instalust situation. I don't even remember if the story clarified if they're fated mates or not. I'm giving the spicy scenes two point five chilies 🌶️🌶️.5 out of five chilies

Overall, this was a below average introduction to the Lords of the Underworld series, though I will be continuing the series with book 1, "The Darkest Night", in hopes that it's better than this novella. I'm giving this 3 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️.5 - 2.5/5 Stars

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: -

📖Genres: middle grade, horror, humor

📚Page Count: 225

🎧Audiobook Length: 03h 09min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 3/5

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Shark Night by R. L. Stine is a story about Carlo, who's mom is a t.v show producer. Carlo's mom comes up with this wild t.v show idea to have a kid in a large water tank film a shark that they release. At first Carlo thinks he won't have to be the one in the tank, but he's wrong. Trying to calm his nerves, he grips his camera and then realizes that the producers didn't lower down the harmless and toothless hammerhead shark like they promised, they released a more deadly shark! Now Carlo is terrified, will he survive?

This was okay, it reminded me of some of the Goosebumps books I read when I was a kid. I think I enjoyed the Goosebumps series better but this was still okay. There are a lot of wacky characters and situations that Carlo gets into so I think any middle grader reading this will be entertained.

The audio book narration was great, Ramon de Ocampo did a really good job narrator all the characters. They also helped keep the story interesting.

This book was okay. I'm giving this 3 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 3/5 Stars

Thank you [NetGalley.com], R.L. Stine (the author), and Blackstone Publishing (publisher) for the arc (advanced reader's copy) of the audiobook.

💬:“He swung, but Celaena struck, ramming her fist into his arm, sending the blade soaring through the air. In the same breath, her palm hit his left arm, knocking it aside, too. As he staggered back, her leg came up, and Verin’s eyes bulged as her foot slammed into his chest. The kick sent him flying, and his body crunched as it hit the floor and slid out of the ring, instantly eliminating him. The hall was utterly silent."

Maas, Sarah J.. Throne of Glass (pp. 217-218). Bloomsbury Publishing. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: fiction, fantasy, young adult, romance, romantasy

📚Page Count: 423

🎧Audiobook Length: 13hrs 04mins

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 3/5

TW - <spoiler>Misogyny, Blood, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Cursing, Grief, Murder, Gore, and Violence</spoiler>

The Throne of Glass is the first book in the series of the same name, Throne of Glass, by Sarah J. Maas. Celaena Sardothien is an assassin who is being tasked with killing 23 mercenaries, thieves, and warriors in a competition held by the king. Celaena agrees to fight in this tournament in order to win her freedom. Suddenly, the competitors starts dying one by one outside of the competition and Celaena has to wonder, "am I next?" Something evil may be in the castle and Celaena is determined to find out but she's also determined to survive.

There were somethings that worked for me in this story and then there were somethings that didn't work for me. I was very much expecting this book to be more adventurous and have more action than it did. We're reading about an assassin in a combative tournament, I just expected more fight scenes. What I didn't expect was the political intrigue and the focus on going to fancy balls and events held by royalty, I found these parts to be particularly boring.

There was a romance element in this story and I don't think it worked for me, but I almost think everything else in the story worked just fine. At one point the author tries to fake the reader out and she starts to write what could be see as a love triangle and this just doesn't work for me. I feel like Celaena has nothing in common with the prince and I find that the captain of the guard seemed to mesh well with the main character more than the prince did.

I liked that there was sort of a mystery as to who's killing off the contenders and what's lurking in the castle. I found the fighting scenes and the investigative scenes to be the most interesting parts of this book. The ending was fine, just a standard cliff hanger ending to lure you into reading the rest of the series.

I think that overall, this story was okay. There were some elements I didn't like, like the romance and the love triangle stuff. There were other things I really liked, like the fighting scenes and the parts that focused on the mystery at hand. I do plan on reading the second book in this series, book two will probably determine if I listen to the entire series. I'm giving this book 3 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 3/5

I listened to this audiobook on [LibbyApp.com]

💬: “To see and listen to the wicked is already the beginning of wickedness. —Confucius

Abby, S.T.. Sidetracked (Mindf*ck Series Book 2) (p. 28). S.T. Abby. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, dark, thriller, mystery, crime, novella

📚Page Count: 115

🎧Audiobook Length: 03h 08min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

TW - <spoiler>Sexual harassment, Stalking, Child death, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Murder, Rape, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, Trafficking, Violence, Death, Gore, and Grief</spoiler>

Sidetracked is the second novella in The Mindf*ck Series by S. T. Abby. Lana is being questioned by member of Logan's team and now the serial killer known as "The Boogie Man" is after Lana because of she's dating Logan. While all this is happening, Lana is still going along with her plan of revenge. She's still risking everything to remove child abusers from the world. Will Logan find out about Lana hidden murder spree? Will The Boogie Man attack Lana to get at Logan?

Overall, this story was just as entertaining as the first novella. Part two was a little more complicated than part one because there is so much more information, story elements, and characters being added to the story. The story is beginning to get complicated with all the characters that have been added, and because the story is a novella it moves at a fast past. Maybe too fast? I'm worried that with the next installation of the story, I'll start to get lost with the names of the growing cast of characters within such a short book.

Like the first novella, or part one, there were a few spicy scenes. I think it's wonderful that Lana feels safe with Logan enough to trust him and be intimate with him. I still don't think spicy scenes fit in-between scenes of the ped0s and child abusers getting murdered. I'm giving it one chili 🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, this novella was just as good as the first one, although the subject matter is a bit triggering. I'm giving this 4 stars out of 5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: “That was the biggest problem with getting used to someone, she thought. You were lonely when they weren’t there."

Robb, J.D.. Naked in Death (In Death, Book 1) (p. 347). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, dark, thriller, mystery, crime, suspense

📚Page Count: 373

🎧Audiobook Length: 10h 17min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️ 2/5

TW - <spoiler>Incest, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Blood, Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Violence, Abandonment, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Child abuse, and Gore</spoiler>

Naked in Death is the first book in the "In Death" series by J.D Robb (who is actually romance writer, Nora Roberts). In the year 2058 Detective Eve Dallas is residing in New York when she gets a case where a senator's daughter is murdered and it's discovered that the vicitim was a full service sex worker. The case then becomes a high profile case and Dallas enters a world of politics in order to track down the killer. While the case is taking place, Dallas becomes enthralled with Roarke, one of the leading suspects. Is Dallas' attraction to Roarke leading her to disaster or will she find the murderer and close the case?

I think overall this story was okay, there were things I liked and things I didn't like. I really have issues with Roarke because <spoiler>he's very controlling and seems to not take "no" for an answer.</spoiler> I found it a bit disturbing how the sex workers in the book were talked about but I keep trying to remind myself that this was written in 1995 and there are going to be some characters who are against sex workers because of prejudice so their dialogue about the sex workers reflects that. I did like how this takes place in the future, and all the futuristic and scientific advancements and inventions in the story were clever and very interesting. I also like how I didn't guess what the ending was going to be until it was already in motion and being explained to the reader.

The spicy scenes in here were either the beginning of murder scenes or they were intended to be sexy but were lacking consent, and in these instances it was evident that this novel was written in the 90s. The love interest has the idea that he knows what the main character wants more than she does, and so he's not respecting her boundaries. In fact, the love interest keeps pushing up against Eve's boundaries in the hopes that he can bend them. I'm giving it zero chilies 🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies.

Overall, this novel had it's issues but it also had some interesting elements. I think the lack of consent when it came to the love interest was a big issue with the story. I really enjoyed the ending, it was action packed and even though I still had questions at the end I definitely didn't guess that it was going to end the way it did. Instead of giving this novel 1 stars for the lack of consent all throughout, I'm giving this 2 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️

2/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: “Einstein said, “The weak revenge. The strong forgive. The intelligent ignore.”

F*ck that. Einstein wasn’t always right."

Abby, S.T.. The Risk (Mindf*ck Series #1) (p. 6). Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: romance, dark, thriller, mystery, crime, novella

📚Page Count: 132

🎧Audiobook Length: 03h 28min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5

TW - <spoiler>Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Violence, Cursing, Death, Sexual assault, Body horror, Blood, Gore, Sexual violence, Torture, Confinement, Grief, Rape, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Murder</spoiler>

The Risk is the first novella in The Mindf*ck Series by S. T. Abby. The Risk is about Lana, a victim of sex trafficking, who decides to get revenge on the men who harmed her and left her for dead. To make things complicated, Lana has started dating Logan who happens to be an FBI agent. Will Lana be able to finish her revenge mission or will she get caught by her new boyfriend, the FBI agent?

I think overall this story was entertaining, I'm not a fan of how short it is and how it ends on a cliff hanger. The novella ends at just over 130 pages and that's why it ended on a cliff hanger. I think the story is good for what it is so far, I can feel the thriller element in the book. I do like how the story is literally a mix of the shows "Criminal Minds" and "Dexter" and that mix itself is interesting.

There were a few spicy scenes, they were just okay. I feel like because there's multiple murders going around and there's gore in the book that sex wouldn't really fit and I maintain that idea. This is my first dark romance and I just can't get into the spicy scenes when someone was graphically murdered a few pages beforehand. I'm giving it two chilies 🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, this novella was interesting. I'm giving this 4 stars out of 5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: "The wind blew her hair forward, surrounding him in a silken wave of deepest brown threaded with black. He closed his eyes, drew in her scent. “I can wait,” he said when he opened his eyes. “For you, Kaia Luna, I’ll wait an eternity.”

Singh, Nalini. Ocean Light (Psy-Changeling Trinity Book 2) (p. 285). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: paranormal romance, romance, urban fantasy, adult

📚Page Count: 403

🎧Audiobook Length: 12h 52min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

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TW - <spoiler>Medical trauma, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Medical content, Torture, Gore, Grief, Violence, Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Murder</spoiler>

Silver Silence is the 17th book in the Psy/Changeling series and 2nd in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series both by Nalini Singh. Ocean Light is about human Security specialist Bowen Knight and Kaia Luna who is a former scientist turned cook where Bowen is being taken care of <spoiler>because he suffered a major injury in the last book trying to save his sister</spoiler>. Kaia is eventually kidnapped by those who mean to harm her and Bowen will do anything to save her.

This book was interesting half of the time and boring the other half of the time. This book was more interesting than the one before it (Silver Silence) but it's still not as exciting as some of the original Psy/Changeling novels. Eventually Bowen and Kaia grew on me as a couple but it definitely took some time. I'm okay with the books being as long as they are, I just wished it was entertaining all the way through instead of only being exciting at select parts.

I would say the spicy scenes were okay but I'm struggling to remember any of them, needless to say they weren't memorable. I'm giving it two chilies 🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, Ocean Light was just better than the last book in the series, Silver Silence, but half the time the book was a bit boring. I'm getting a little concerned because so far The Trinity series hasn't really impressed me. This wasn't a terrible book, but it wasn't amazing either. I'm giving this book 3 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [HooplaDigital.com]

💬: "Be wary what you read, Big Barda. Knowledge without scrutiny is poison."

Ukazu, Ngozi. Barda (pg. 111) DC Comics. NetGalley Advanced Reader's Copy Edition.

📖Genres: comics, graphic novels, super heroes, DC Comics, romance

📚Page Count: 191

🎧Audiobook Length: 00h 00min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4/5

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TW - <spoiler>Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, and Torture</spoiler>

Barda by Ngozi Ukazu is a comic published by DC Comics about the anti-hero, Big Barda. The story takes place on Apokolips and it's about the leader of the Female Furies on Apokolips, Big Barda. Barda has secretly thinking about the ideal of love, something that isn't talking about, accepted, or allowed on Apokolips. Granny Goodness the boss of the furies thinks that Barda is becoming too soft, so she's given Barda the task of torturing their new prisoner, Scott Free. Somehow, Barda finds herself allured by Scott Free. Will Barda be able to help Scott or will she stomp out this new ideal of love?

I think this graphic novel was entertaining and exciting. I loved that we get a backstory on Big Barda (even though it wasn't extensive) and that we get to see what it's like for her being the leader of the furies. Speaking of the furies, I really loved that each one of them had their own personalities. That was so pleasant. I also enjoyed the art style throughout the entire graphic novel.

Overall I really enjoyed what this graphic novel had to offer. I love the art and I love that we get a Big Barda comic that shows the different sides to her as a character. This was an emotional story and it was told very well. I'm giving this 4 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 4/5 Stars

Thank you [NetGalley.com], Ngozi Ukazu (the author), and DC Comics (publisher) for the arc (advanced reader's copy) of the audiobook.

💬: He pointed at my drink.

"What are you drinking?"

"Malibu Sunrise, it's delicious"

'It looks good but I can't be seen drinking that."

I blinked rapidly, "Oh?"

Allen, Danielle. Curvy Girl Summer (Chapter 6, p.?). Bramble. NetGalley Advanced Reader's Copy.

📖Genres: romance, contemporary, contemporary romance

📚Page Count: 210

🎧Audiobook Length: 12h 23min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 5/5

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TW - <spoiler>Infidelity, Car accident, Cursing, Alcohol, Grief, Death, and Misogyny</spoiler>

Curvy Girl Summer by Danielle Allen is about Aaliyah James a plus sized 29 year old who wants to find a boyfriend for her 30th birthday celebration. Aaliyah's family members think that she's getting older and her time find a boyfriend, get married, and have children is running out. Annoyed with her family's comments, she lets them know that she does have a boyfriend and that he'll be at her 30th birthday celebration. She doesn't have a boyfriend yet but with online dating, how hard could finding one be? When the first date goes not as planned, the local bartender, at the bar where the date took place seems to be kind and funny enough to make Aaliyah feel hopeful about finding more people to date. The more she spends time with Ahmad the closer she feels to him. Will she find a boyfriend in time for her birthday and will he be from the online dating app "Tinderfish" or will he be the funny, handsome, and caring bartender?

Reading this book was such a great reading experience. This is my first slow burn romance novel and now I still why people like this trope so much. There's so much built up sexual an romantic tension and it feels as if everything will erupt during the climax of the book. I loved how Aaliyah and Ahmad teased each other relentlessly, it was so cute. It was so nice that they both loved concerts, live shows, and music in general. The miscommunication trope was in there and it was so annoying, like the situation was very obvious but the main character was just not getting it. That was annoying but the book was so good overall that I'm not going to change my rating because of that annoyance. Something the author did a really good job of including is what it feels like to be a plus size woman dating with dating apps and websites in the real world.

The audio book narrator was really good, I enjoyed their voice for all the characters. Sometimes when an author voices several or many characters some of the voices sound off but that was NOT the case with Wesleigh Siobhan and their narration. All of the words are clear and concise and the individual voices they use for each character fits so well with the story.

Talk about a slow burn! There are two spicy scenes and let me be honest, the spicy scenes don't start happening until well over 80% through the book. The scenes come late in the book but I honestly think it was worth it. I don't really like spicy scenes with unprotected sex with almost strangers or first time lovers, though I did like the scenes in general. I'm giving the spicy scenes four chilies 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️out of five chilies

This book was a pleasant surprise! I really enjoyed myself while listening to this audiobook. It was fantastic. I'm giving this 5 out of 5 stars.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - 5/5 Stars

Thank you [NetGalley.com], Danielle Allen (the author), and Macmillan Audio (publisher) for the arc (advanced reader's copy) of the audiobook.

💬: “And the next thing I knew, one of them grabbed Thalia and me, the other grabbed Zoë and Grover, and we flew straight up, over the dam and the river, the skeleton warriors shrinking to tiny specks below us and the sound of gunfire echoing off the sides of the mountains."

Riordan, Rick. Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book Three: The Titan's Curse (p. 219). Disney Book Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: mythology, action, adventure, middle grade

📚Page Count: 313

🎧Audiobook Length: 08h 48min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

Percy Jackson - The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan is the third book in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians middle grade series. In this book, Anabeth goes missing at the beginning with a mission that had just gone wrong. Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and Grover are tasked with helping two new half-bloods back to Camp Half-Blood. Will Percy and the gang be able to save Annabeth?

The Titan's Curse has a lot of action and adventure, this series is really a joy to read. This book was really entertaining, I'm really starting to love the growing cast of characters. There are honestly so many new characters in this book and reading about them and seeing their personalities and reactions to certain things is really exciting. There was a nice cliff hanger at the end of this, it makes me want to read the rest of the series immediately.

Overall, this book was exciting and entertaining just like the previous books in the series. I'm giving this 5 stars out of 5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

5/5

I listened to this audiobook for free on [Libbyapp.com]

💬: "The Trinity Accord is the fragile foundation of all their hopes and dreams of a future without war, without violence, without shattering loss. It is a noble ambition. But the past is not an old coat that can be discarded and forgotten. It is a scent that clings and clings and clings.

Singh, Nalini. Silver Silence (Psy-Changeling Trinity Book 1) (p. 1). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

📖Genres: paranormal romance, romance, urban fantasy, adult

📚Page Count: 479

🎧Audiobook Length: 16h 01min

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5

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TW - <spoiler>Gun violence, Kidnapping, Torture, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Cursing, Violence, Blood, War, and Death</spoiler>

Silver Silence is the 16th book in the Psy/Changeling series and 1st in the Psy/Changeling Trinity series both by Nalini Singh. This book is about Silver Mercant, a Psy and Valentin Nikolaev, an alpha bear. Silver is stationed at Valentin's bear compound where she's been helping keep an eye on things since the Trinity Accord as been established. Silver gets poisoned and almost dies as a result and now Silver along with the Mercant family and Valentin are looking for the culprit.

This book had stuff going on but it really FELT like nothing was happening for the duration of the book. Silver gets poisoned at the beginning so I assumed this book would be about hunting down the culprit and they eventually do that but it takes so long. Valentine courted Silver and it was a cute story but it went by so slowly, this book took me 4 weeks (A WHOLE MONTH) to finish because there was very little action on the page. I'm actually disappointed with how boring this was.

The spicy scenes were below average for me, there were two of them and they weren't my favorite scenes. I'm not a huge fan of the virgin heroine and the painful first time, the second scene was a little better but still just "okay". I'm giving it two chilies 🌶️🌶️ out of five chilies

Overall, Silver Silence was just okay but it was definitely on the boring side. I'm giving this book 3 stars out of 5.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 3/5 Stars

I listened to this for free on the library app [HooplaDigital.com]