Tag: ARC Reviews

Just Like Magic by Sarah Hogle

4 Stars

Enjoyed the ending.

I started reading this, and the main character, Bettie Hughes, is an absolutely horrible person.  She is self-obsessed and feels she is entitled to everything she wants.  As the book goes on, the author explains Bettie’s reasoning for feeling this way, but she continued to be such a whiney, revenge driven person, I almost decided to stop reading.  But upon the introduction of the Holiday Spirit, I wanted to see what would happen to Bettie since Hall (the Holiday Spirit’s earthly name given him by Bettie) is such a giving person.  I don’t want to give away the story, so I will only say that after Hall’s arrival, the plotline starts to make a slow climb to acceptable.  By the end of the book, I was glad I had continued reading.  I was given an ARC of the book through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion. 

A Guide to Being Just Friends (Jensen Brothers, #3) by Sophie Sullivan

4 Stars

Enjoyed the book.

I really enjoyed reading the first two books in the Jensen brothers’ series and anticipated reading this one.  In it, we meet Wes Jensen, the oldest brother, who has decided to join his 2 brothers by moving to the West Coast from New York.  But where Chris and Noah have a good outlook on life, Wes’ is more pragmatic and because of this he doesn’t believe in relationships and love.  Our second main character is Hailey Sharp who is open to new experiences even though she just went through a bad breakup.  She doesn’t want to rebound back into a serious relationship, so when she meets Wes, who tells her clearly that he only wants to be friends, she agrees to being his friend.  After this start, the books seemed to take a long time in telling us the readers that they were fine as being just friends, but in their minds that they might want more.  Finally, by the end of the book, Sophie Sullivan allows us to see how the two friends truly feel.  This is a well-written book, with fully developed characters.  It’s also book 3, and the author does allow characters from the first two books to be part of this book, but if you’ve read the first two, they are welcome additions to this book.  Question is will Sophie Sullivan give us the story of the 4th sibling, a sister who is still in New York?  This book can be read as a standalone, but for the best experience, read Ten Rules for Faking It and How to Love Your Neighbor: A Novel first.  I was given an ARC of the book through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion.

The Ice Duchess (The Duchess Society #0.5) by Tracy Sumner

4 Stars

Short but good.

At only about 100 pages, this is a quick read, a prequel to the series.  We meet the main character Georgiana Whitcomb, Countess Winterbourne who is also known as the Ice Countess.  She says she’ll never marry again, after her husband dies.  Along with her friend, Lady Hildegard Templeton, they have created the Duchess Society to help young women make advantageous matches for themselves.  Enter Dexter Munro, the future Duke of Markham, who has made a promise to his dying father to marry in less than 12 days, by Twelfth Night.   This is a fun read with well-developed characters and a solid story.  And a perfect lead into the next book in the series.  I was given an ARC of the book by BookSirens, and this is my honest opinion.        

A Vampire’s Midlife Crisis (Misfits of New Orleans: Book 1) by Valerie Twombly

4 Stars

Mid-life romance

Having reached a time in her life, Sabrina, 53, is about where she wanted to be.  Her daughter is attending college, and Sabrina is running her own business.  But, going out one night with friends to a Vampire club-yes vampires are real, and humans are aware of them-Sabrina is mugged on her way home, and dies, or close enough that a vampire who turns out is her daughter’s boyfriend has no choice but to turn her or let her die.  The story becomes more engaging after that, and I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.  I was given an ARC of the book from BookSirens and this is my honest opinion. 

Fae Witch’s Vampire Guard (Dark Lords of London Book 3) by Jessie Donovan

5 Stars

Fated time traveler

This book gives us Reika Hashimoto and Stone Riley’s story.  As the prior two books in this series, one of this couple is moved from the present day back into Victorian England.  This is a short book, but very enjoyable.  Stone is the half-shifter half-vampire head of security for Leo Yates and his wife, the witch Yesenia.  Yesenia has the power to bring fated mates together, which is the premise behind the stories.  Each of the books can be read as a single story but are better when read in order so the characters and background story mesh together.  I received and ARC of the book from the author through BookFunnel and this is my honest opinion. 

Huntress Reborn: Paranormal Women’s Fiction (Supernatural Midlife Mystique) by Brenda Trim and Tia Didmon

2 Stars

What a mess!

I don’t know where to start with this review.  So many things that concern me.  The main character is confusing, and I can’t figure out who and what she is and what she wants to become.  Her backstory isn’t enough to understand what she’s been through, or where exactly she’s going.  Secondary characters are even less developed.  I’m thinking this was supposed to be a prequel, but it reads more like the authors wrote out their notes and posted them as the story.  With what’s been written, I don’t even like the main character, and really don’t care what happens next.  The book needs so much, I cannot recommend it.  I received an ARC of the book through Booksprout, and this is my honest opinion.

Dark Alpha’s Command (Reaper #15) by Donna Grant

5 Stars

I love this book!

This book is one of the best in this series!  Donna Grant uses her Dark World effectively in writing her books, and this one doesn’t disappoint.  We first met Balladyn in her Dark Kings series, and he’s become an important part of this, her Reapers, series.  Balladyn is a complex character, and this book brings almost all of his facets together for the reader to enjoy.  This is the only part that I have a concern with, and it’s from prior books he has been in love with and in hate with another character.  Here in Dark Alpha’s Command, he has completely moved on…after thousands of years invested in his feelings, he’s over them in a blink of an eye.  But if I ignore that concern, this book is outstanding.  The two main characters are well-developed, both have interesting back stories, and present themselves as people you’d want to know.  The continuing story is intricate and the arc from the last few books continues to build, and because of that, additional characters from Donna’s Dark Sword and Dark Warrior series make appearances.  With a tight story line and fast pace, I didn’t want to stop reading.  This book is not a cliff hanger, but the overall story arc isn’t finished yet.  But Dark Alpha’s Command is a satisfying read.  I cannot wait for the next book.  Well Done Donna Grant!  I received and ARC of this book from the author through Book Funnel and this is my honest opinion. 

Just This Once (Chicago Billionaires Series) by Alexis Winter

5 Stars

For Adults Only!

This book is about Savannah Grace Monroe, a pretty brilliant young woman who becomes COO for Baxter Technologies.  The owner is Warren Bexley, CEO, who is 15 years her senior and unmarried.  When Savannah interviewed for the job, she is 26, but Warren decides she is the best person for the job.  4 years later, they are friends, but each is hiding an attraction to the other.  The story is well written, with fully developed characters.  Chapters alternate between Savannah and Warren, giving their points of view.  In addition to being and age-gap, boss and equal subordinate, the story introduces Savannah proposing a “Just Once” encounter, which changes their friendship.  And the author, to make this even more interesting adds blackmail to Warren’s plate. 

  I enjoyed this book very much, and my only issue is that it seemed to go on too long- I’d have suggested about 50 pages or so less of the back and forth between Savannah and Warren.  Other than my issue, the story is satisfying and complete.  I was given an ARC of the book through Booksprout, and this is my honest opinion. 

Vampire’s Fae Witch Healer (Dark Lords of London, #2) by Jessie Donovan

4 Stars

Book 2 of the Dark Lords of London

This second book of the series gives us the vampire sister of Leo Yates (Book 1), Nora who has lived a traumatized life while she was a teenager, and the brother of Yesenia Vale, Dr. River Vale.   Yesenia was attempting to use her Witch Time Bender powers to bring into the past a Fated Mate to a vampire.  She did not focus on Nora, but Nora’s Fated Mate is who she has brought back in time- who turns out to be her brother.  The story continues as the two try and reconcile their different lives.  Jessie Donovan gives us quite a bit of backstory for both of these main characters, which would allow a reader who hasn’t read the first book to read this one with minimum problems.  The characters are well developed, and the plot is easily followed.  This series is a new direction for the author and shows that her imagination knows no bounds.  I was given an ARC of this book by the author, and this is my honest opinion.

The Gunslinger’s Guide to Avoiding Matrimony by Michelle McLean

5 Stars

Desolation, book 2

Another fun Western, written by Michelle McLean.  We return to the small town of Desolation, that is so far off the beaten path, that almost no one arrives there.  Except former criminals.  Adam Brady is trying to outrun a Bounty Hunter, and he ambles into the town.  Once he starts looking around, he stumbles into Nora Schumacher, who’s nearly on the shelf, and is tall and plain.  And so, starts a very funny, sweet tale that has ups and downs, and enough angsts to bring tears to a reader’s eye.  Well worth reading, characters from Ms. McLean’s first book are found throughout this one, and they add to the story.  I hope there will be another book in the series.  I received an ARC of this book from the author through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion.