Tag: 3.75 Reviews

Review: The Rest of Me by Ashley Munoz

Posted May 22, 2023 by Holly in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: The Rest of Me by Ashley MunozReviewer: Holly
The Rest Of Me by Ashley Munoz
Narrator: Scarlette Everdeen, Sean Hardisty
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: October 18, 2019
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 284
Length: 8 hours and 7 minutes
Add It: Goodreads
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four-stars

Death never simply settles for the life it claims.It’s greedy.It stole all of our lives that night and while it put my husband in the ground, it left my four children and me behind.After an ugly year of grief, something had to change.
My sister suggested open spaces, big skies and fresh air in the heart of Wyoming.We settled into our shared estate the best we could until I met my new neighbor.Arrogant, bossy and rude; Reid was easily the worst person I’d ever met. I'd decided to write him off entirely until I realized he was the only local horse instructor.
I’d heard that if I could get my kids onto a horse, they’d start to heal. Desperation had me creating an alliance with him. Envy had me craving the connection he had with them.
Distracted by the newness of our situation, I missed how close his demons danced to my ghosts. While I was ignorantly letting him take my heart, it was too late to realize . . . He’d already stolen it once before.

I discovered this book through a reel on Bookstagram. The blurb intrigued me so I decided to give it a go. I wasn’t really expecting a dark, angsty read, but the heroine’s husband died a year before the story opens, so she and her children were still in the grieving process, which made for a darker tone. Plus, the MMC had some trauma of his own.

When Layla’s husband died unexpectedly, she gave herself and her children a year to grieve. They’ve basically been in a fog since then, but on the exact one year anniversary of his death she knows she has to push forward so they can find a new normal. For six months they’ve been living in a small town in Wyoming, but they haven’t really interacted with the town much or really settled in. As part of their healing process they start riding lessons with the neighbor next-door. Reid has recently moved back home and is trying to adjust to his new normal as well. It’s a struggle, but spending time with Layla and her kids helps him in unexpected ways.

I really liked Reid and Layla’s four children. The kids were doing their best to find their way without their father, and Reid really stepped into a role they needed. He didn’t take the place of their dad, but he helped them heal and move forward in a positive way. The best part of the book for me was the small ways they interacted with each other. I really felt for him as he tried to give Layla space while also being there for her.

Layla I had a harder time with. She didn’t really deal with any of her grief in the year since her husband passed, so she still had a lot of emotions to work through. I felt for her in that regard. But the way her kids suffered because she wasn’t ready to face anything? I had a harder time with that. Especially since she played hot and cold with Reid and the kids for the majority of the book.

I don’t want to spoil anything, but I’m still trying to decide how I feel about the ending. I saw the plot twist coming, though I had hoped that I was wrong. For all that I enjoyed the romance and the way they all came together, I have a hard time believing that this is an issue that’s put to bed and will never come up again. Especially the way Layla acted throughout the book, constantly pushing Reid away and getting angry at him for making her feel things she wasn’t sure she should (attraction, love, etc). I don’t blame her for it, because I can’t imagine her grief, but that doesn’t leave me with a lot of confidence that she wouldn’t throw his transgressions back in his face at some point. Or that the kids were really as okay with everything as they said. They might feel that way now, but what about down the road?

With a different FMC, this may have worked better, but the way Layla acted throughout the book left me feeling vaguely uneasy about the overall resolution and their HEA.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

four-stars


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Review: Ancient Warrior by Katie Reus

Posted May 15, 2023 by Casee in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Ancient Warrior by Katie ReusReviewer: Casee
Ancient Warrior by Katie Reus
Series: Ancients Rising #8
Also in this series: Ancient Vengeance, Ancient Sentinel
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: April 11, 2023
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Point-of-View: Alternating Third
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Pages: 246
Add It: Goodreads
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

The last time she saw him…
Long before The Fall, before the world changed forever, tiger shifter Harlow worked in Black Ops for the safety of all shifters. She excelled at her job, loved everything about it, until the male she loved tried to kill her. So she was forced to kill him first.
She killed him.
Now Aodh is back. And this fierce, dominant dragon shifter won’t stop until he gets answers. But things aren’t what they seem and now he has more than a battle with Harlow on his hands. If they want a chance at a future, they’ll have to take down an ancient enemy who has targeted not only them, but their friends—and it’s going to take uniting all their skills to survive.
Author note: Each book in the series can be read as a stand-alone, complete with HEA and no cliffhanger.

Harlow has always been a character that I was curious about. She was such a badass from the moment she appeared. I was really looking forward to seeing who the hero would be that could deal with her dominant personality.

Long before The Fall, Harlow & Aodh worked on a Black Ops team. They were responsible for policing the supernatural. When Aodh turned against Harlow, she was forced to kill him. Or so she thinks. Even after all the years that have passed, Harlow still feels the loss of her would-be mate. Now Aodh is back and wants revenge on Harlow & the rest of the team for deserting him. The only problem with that is that he loves Harlow deeply & could never hurt her. He has no idea why she or the rest of his team abandoned him, but he does know that he won’t let her go so easily.

When Aodh returns, Harlow knows that something went terribly wrong. The man that she thought she killed was not Aodh. It was a witch that wanted Aodh for the dragon inside him. After draining him of his powers for decades, Aodh is finally free. Now Harlow & Aodh have to work together with the rest of their pack to find the witch that destroyed both their worlds.

I loved both Harlow & Aodh. While it was hard for both of them to forgive the other one, they realized that they would have to work together to bring down the witch responsible for so much pain & suffering in their lives. I enjoyed Harlow immensely. She was a great heroine. Aodh wasn’t bad himself, but it was really Harlow that shined on the pages. My only complaint was that the book was way too short.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5.

Ancients Rising

four-stars


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Review: Stray by Andrea K. Höst

Posted May 2, 2023 by Holly in Reviews | 3 Comments

Review: Stray by Andrea K. HöstReviewer: Holly
Stray by Andrea K. Höst
Narrator: Stephanie Macfie
Series: Touchstone #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: March 20, 2011
Format: Audiobook, eBook
Source: Purchased
Point-of-View: First
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Content Warning: View Spoiler »
Genres: Science Fiction
Pages: 273
Length: 9 hours and 50 minutes
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

On her last day of high school, Cassandra Devlin walked out of exams and into a forest. Surrounded by the wrong sort of trees, and animals never featured in any nature documentary, Cass is only sure of one thing; alone, she will be lucky to survive.
The sprawl of abandoned blockish buildings Cass discovers offers her only more puzzles. Where are the people? What is the intoxicating mist which drifts off the buildings in the moonlight? And why does she feel like she's being watched?
Increasingly unnerved, Cass is overjoyed at the arrival of the formidable Setari. Whisked to a world as technologically advanced as the first was primitive, where nanotech computers are grown inside people's skulls, and few have any interest in venturing outside the enormous whitestone cities, Cass finds herself processed as a 'stray', a refugee displaced by the gates torn between worlds. Struggling with an unfamiliar language and culture, she must adapt to virtual classrooms, friends who can teleport, and the ingrained attitude that strays are backward and slow.
Can Cass ever find her way home? And after the people of her new world discover her unexpected value, will they be willing to let her leave?

Stray (Touchstone #1) by Andrea K. Höst was recommended by reader Kareni. At the time of this writing it is free for Kindle. I tried reading it several times, but never fell into the story and always ended up setting it aside. The first 1/4 or so of the book is fairly slow. It’s told in the form of diary entries, and the early portions were slow, with no dialogue to break up the monotony. I’m glad I pushed through, however, since I really ended up enjoying the story.

Cassandra Devlin is walking home from her last day of high school in Australia when she is suddenly….somewhere else. A strange land not-unlike Earth, but perhaps also not Earth. After weeks of surviving on her own on this abandoned planet, she is rescued and taken to a new, technologically advanced planet, Tare, where she’s treated as a stray – a displaced refugee. She’s implanted with an interface that helps her translate their language, but leaves her without privacy. She also starts developing strange and wonderous gifts, which she’s told isn’t uncommon in strays, though never to this degree. Paired with the Setari, psychically advances special ops soldiers, because of her emerging abilities as an enhancer (touching her gives the Setari a power boost), Cassandra learns there is a shadow-type land that separates our world from all others. Tears have started to happen between worlds, which allow Ionnoth, deadly shadow monsters capable of destroying entries worlds through. The Setari fight these monsters to keep the Tareans and all others safe. When the Tareans realize Cassandra may hold the key to unlocking their home world (the planet she spent weeks surviving alone), she’s watched even more closely. She’ll have to decide

The difficulties Cassandra deals with as a stray, and as a person who has developing abilities the Tareans haven’t dealt with before, were interesting to read about. There are so many different threads – Cassandra’s lack of privacy and the way she feels she’s “punished” and put in a box when she’s sent to medical, the tears between worlds and the battles they face, the quest the Tareans are on to reclaim their home world with the help of Cassandra, etc. This is a complex plot in a multifaceted world. Frankly, I still don’t have all the terms and names straight and at times I find it to be slow moving, but I am invested in Cassandra and her journey. I can’t wait for the next book.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

Touchstone

four-stars


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Review: Promise Me Always by A.L. Jackson

Posted January 30, 2023 by Casee in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Promise Me Always by A.L. JacksonReviewer: Casee
Promise Me AlwaysNarrator: Connor Crais, Samantha Brentmoor
Series: Redemption Hills #4
Also in this series: Give Me a Reason, Say It's Forever
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: January 30, 2023
Format: eARC
Source: NetGalley
Genres: Contemporary Romance
Pages: 491
Length: 12 hours and 37 minutes
Add It: Goodreads
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four-stars
Series Rating: five-stars

I should know better than to let Tessa McDaniels pretend to be my fiancée.I’m a dark, dangerous disaster who leaves destruction in his wake.But when she offers to pretend to marry me to help me get my kids back, I can’t refuse. They are the one thing I have left to fight for.
Milo Hendricks found me at my lowest.Battered and broken by my ex with no place to call home. When he insists I stay at his cabin with him, he sparks the feelings I’ve tried to suppress.He’s only supposed to be my friend, but every time he comes in the room, he makes my knees weak.This gorgeous, tatted, mountain-of-a-man who’s riddled with secrets.
Tessa is everything I crave but can’t have.I shouldn’t touch her.Shouldn’t make it real.But she’s a red-headed flame I can’t resist, and I can’t help but take her to my bed.
Now we’re falling into an abyss of passion and need.Loving her is easy.Only we’re tied in ways we don’t know.I’ll do anything to protect her, but it’s my past that might destroy her in the end…

Tessa McDaniels was introduced as Eden’s quirky but loving friend in Give Me a Reason. She became more prominent of a character as the series continued, until it was obvious she needed her own book. Tessa is a woman that is holding out for her “Ace”. Due to the situation she finds herself in after her brother is injured, Tessa doesn’t think she will ever find her Ace.

Milo Hendricks is a bouncer at Absolution. The head tough guy. But the head tough guy wasn’t really a tough guy at all. He’s a softie. Hard on the outside & gooey on the inside. It made for quite the contradiction. All Milo wants in his life is to get his kids back from their grandparents. After his wife died, Milo was certain that he had (and lost) his chance at happiness. Then he meets Tessa & all his thoughts go up in smoke.

After Tessa finds herself in an unimaginable situation, Milo is there to help her pick up the pieces. He is there for her when she feels like she has no one else. Even her gang of girlfriends and their families aren’t enough to make her feel less alone. Then Milo comes in & saves the day. The least she can do is help him get it kids back. Right? Because it’s a great idea to lie to everyone you love. I did have a hard time with that even though I understood.

This was definitely a friends-to-lovers book. It was so nice to see Milo & Tessa’s friendship grow into more. I loved both these characters. Milo was everything a tortured alpha hero should be. Tessa was a combination of sweet and spunky. They just fit. They fit from the very first page they came together.

It took me five long days to finish this book. ALJ generally tends to write angsty novels, but this one took angsty to a whole other level. Like I was feeling anxiety when I was reading this book. I felt relief when it was over because I just couldn’t take it anymore. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good book. It was a great book. It was just a lot. A lot of blame, self-hatred, grief, and love. It really did have everything that I usually love when I a read an ALJ.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5.

Redemption Hills

four-stars


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Review: Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik

Posted November 28, 2022 by Holly in Reviews | 1 Comment

Review: Eclipse the Moon by Jessie MihalikReviewer: Holly
Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik
Series: Starlight's Shadow #2
Also in this series: Hunt the Stars
Publisher: Harper Collins, Harper Voyager
Publication Date: July 12, 2022
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Point-of-View: First
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Genres: Science Fiction
Pages: 440
Add It: Goodreads
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

Kee Ildez has been many things: hacker, soldier, bounty hunter. She never expected to be a hero, but when a shadowy group of traitors starts trying to goad the galaxy’s two superpowers into instigating an interstellar war, Kee throws herself into the search to find out who is responsible—and stop them.

Digging up hidden information is her job, so hunting traitors should be a piece of cake, but the primary suspect spent years in the military, and someone powerful is still covering his tracks. Disrupting their plans will require the help of her entire team, including Varro Runkow, a Valovian weapons expert who makes her pulse race.
Quiet, grumpy, and incredibly handsome, Varro watches her with hot eyes but ignores all of her flirting, so Kee silently vows to keep her feelings strictly platonic. But that vow will be put to the test when she and Varro are forced to leave the safety of their ship and venture into enemy territory alone.

Cut off from the rest of their team, they must figure out how to work together—and fast—because a single misstep will cost thousands of lives.

Eclipse the Moon (Starlight’s Shadow #2) by Jessie Mihalik picks up where book #1, Capture the Sun“>Hunt the Stars, left off. Kee is a systems specialist on board Starlight’s Shadow, a mercenary ship. They’re on the hunt for a traitor set on restarting the war between the Human Federation and the Valoffs. Neither Kee nor any of the rest of the crew is willing to go back to war, so she heads to, Bastian, a space station in human airspace just outside a Valoff wormhole to see if she can track down their enemy or figure out what plot is afoot. If that gets her away from Varro, the sexy Valoff she’s been crushing on, all the better. She’s been sending out hints for weeks and he’s clearly not interested, so she needs some space to get her head on straight and move on.

Only Varro follows her. When things escalate and they end up fighting for their lives she’s grateful, if mortified that he doesn’t return her feelings.

Kee isn’t my favorite crew member, but I liked her in the previous book and wanted to know more about her and Varro. I enjoyed them both, though I did think they danced around each other a bit too much. There’s a lot of action in this book, which kept the pace moving but left me frustrated at times since it interrupted communication between them. Still, I enjoyed how they worked together and how the overall storyarc progressed. I’m anxious for the next book.

Rating: 3.75 out of 5

Starlight’s Shadow

Capture the Sun

four-stars


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