This is the first book in a new series by Jessie Donovan. Set here in our time briefly, it moves back in time to 1890s London. Vampires, shifters, and fae are common in both times, and our heroine, Yesenia Vale, is a Time Bender, but she is unaware that she holds magic at all. Thrust back in time, she meets a Dark Lord of London (there are several) Leopold Yates. Leo is a vampire. This is their story. It is well written with good characters. Jessie Donovan gives us quite a bit of backstory, and the history of this different timeline from what we know. This book also sets up the second book. I enjoyed reading this ARC and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. I was given an ARC of this book by the author through BookFunnel, and this is my honest opinion.
I have to say that I miss the Dragon Kings having stories located on Earth. The challenges that were presented here were mostly believable; at least if you believed in dragons. On Zora, and Earth clone, I know that they could be real, but more than likely not. So, my review is for the story between Shaw, a Dragon King, and Nia who is a courtesan for the ruler “the Divine”. They meet in the city that belongs to “the Divine” because Shaw and Merrill, another King, have been sent to gather information on this person, and the inhabitants of the city. Shaw becomes enamored of the beautiful Nia, and because of Shaw, she starts to question her own actions in acting on behalf of “the Divine”. The story takes a while to move to the exciting ending, with bits of what is happening with Merrill, and with the Dragon part of Zora. Donna Grant gives us just a glimpse of what is going on with Con and his fellow Dragon Kings, Rhi, and the dragons who have made Zora their home. Wish that more had been written on this part- for as important a character as Constantine is, it seems that his intelligence and abilities as King of Dragon Kings isn’t useful on Zora. The interplay between the Dragon Kings is what kept me involved and interested in prior books.
This book is well written, and the two main characters are fairly well developed. The story that takes place in the city is interesting, if a bit long. The ending is definitely a 5-star ending. But the overall book only deserves 4 stars- scenes of personal interaction are great but don’t make the slower parts deserving of more stars. Donna Grant is a wonderful writer, who writes interesting books. She continues to give readers reasons to enjoy her books. This book is interesting, but the first half or so seemed to take forever to read. A new reader should read the prior books in this part of the series- Dragon Kings- so that they understand the world it’s written in.
I did receive an ARC of the book from the author through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion.
I had a bit of a hard time with the start of this book. Mary Kelley to me came across as a bit spoiled and whiney. As I got further into the story, she became more tolerable. The story has her as and IT director, and she and her co-worker and friend are sent to Ireland to work on a project for their company. The two get a flat to share and start going out in the evenings. While at a pub, Mary meets Sean Calhoun. The two seem to form a connection, but of course nothing is as it seems. For me the story got better at about the halfway point. The two main characters didn’t change much, but the story became more interesting, and the ending was very good. No grammatical errors, and well written, if you like a ghost or two in your reading, this book might be good for you. I probably will read the second book, and hope that the 2 main characters have grown up by then. I was given and ARC of the book by BookSirens, and this is my honest opinion.
I originally read this in May 2019, and only rated it 4 stars. This is an updated re-release by Donna Grant, and I’ve enjoyed it more this time around. I cannot pick out where changes were made, which is a good thing. The story centers on Leoma and Braith, who meet while trying to find a witch. Most witches are evil, but not all, and Leoma can pick out a witch easily. The story flows, and for our 2 hunters they have a book about them. But the larger story continues with Everwylde, book 2 in the series. Characters are well-developed and the plot is interesting. I have a copy of book 1 but received a new copy from the author. This is my honest opinion.
This is the 4th book in Mandy Roth’s Grimm Cove series and introduces us to Detective Stratton Bright and Astrid Franks. Moving back into the past and then into the present it was a little confusing at first. There are ins and outs to the story that make this a very interesting read. I enjoy this series so much! Well done, Mandy! I received and ARC of this book from the author through Booksprout, but also purchased a copy. This is my honest opinion.
If you’ve been reading these interconnected books (Immortal Ops, PSI-Ops, Immortal Outcasts, Shadow Agents, Crimson Ops) by Mandy Roth, you will recognize Striker (Dougal McCracken) from previous books. His character has grown with each appearance, and I, for one, have been waiting to hear his story. A big Scotsman, who would be called a player in today’s world, he has lived hundreds of years. Nothing has bothered him until about 5 years ago. He met 2 women in a hotel in Egypt. He helped save one, but the other has been lost. Striker has tried to move on and forget that he was unable to save her. And this is where his story starts.
Well written, with fully developed characters, Mandy M. Roth has done an outstanding job of giving us Striker’s story. Characters from the other books in this series make appearances, but they add to the story, not just fill space. If you are a new to Mandy Roth reader, this is a terrific book, but you really need to know the backstory that encompasses the entire series. Either start with book 1 in the PSI-OPS series Act of Mercy, or book 1 of the entire series from Immortal Ops entitled Immortal Ops. All are easy to read and entertaining. And you’ll join the rest of us, waiting for the next book in this Paranormal world.
I was given an ARC of this book by the author through Booksprout, and this is my honest opinion.
My rating is 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4. I’ve been a fan of this series since I started reading Donna Grant’s works. The earliest Reaper’s books are the best, so that would make this one not the best. It’s good, but I found that the first half was not of the caliber of prior books. We’re introduced to the hero and heroine, but unlike prior books, the backstory for them was just so-so. We are told what happened in the past and why they aren’t together. But then they see each other, and they just fall back into their old ways. There is no true depth to the story Then, with the second half of the book, the action starts. We learn more about the Others, who are now working independently from the original Others. All of the second half is more detailed, with twists and turns that made up for the lackluster start. This book could be read as a stand-alone, but the story would make more sense if you started with book one. This series is nearly completed, and I hope Donna Grant gives the main characters more depth and brings back some of the key characters from her Dark Kings series. I was given an ARC by the author through NetGalley, and this is my honest opinion.
We meet Amelia Peters, who is the daughter of two now deceased paranormal investigators. The role her parents have played in Amelia’s life is covered more than once, with Amelia having decided that her parents were frauds. She now inherits a small cabin, which she moves into. The prior tenant of the cabin died there 5 years ago. As Amelia spends time in the cabin, a mysterious man shows us, questions her as to why she is in his cabin, and then disappears. This happens several times, and Amelia finds out his name is Grey, who is completely real and solid to her touch. And he is also the prior tenant. The author weaves an interesting story of this couple and what Amelia does to find out what happened to Grey in the past. I enjoyed the book, but it took me 75-100 pages to get into the story. Mary Frame gives the time travel aspect of the book a plausible explanation, and it’s well written. And she gives Amelia back some of the lost faith in her parents. I was given an ARC of this book to read, and this is my honest opinion.
This is the very last book in this collection, and I enjoyed reading it very much. Even though it is a short story, the characters are well-developed, and the plot is complete. It is a typical Mandy M. Roth novella and is fun read if you only have about an hour. I was given an ARC copy of the book to read and review by the author and BookSprout and this is my honest review.
I will update my review as I read additional stories in this collection.
This short novella is re-visiting Vlad (V) and Clare, who’ve had multiple problems in their short time together. Set at Dreagan, with cameo appearances of some of the other Kings and their mates, we see both Clare and V embracing the ideas of Valentine’s Day. Each has decided to surprise the other with romance. An enjoyable, well-written story, we get a glimpse of what life is like for those who call Dreagan home. Donna has written this story to include only those who are residing there, and how they spend their time. A reader will find only good thoughts and happy times in this novella, which is fine after all the extended family has gone and will go through. Having read all the prior books will make this book easier to understand. I received this ARC of My Fiery Valentine from the author through BookFunnel, and this is my honest opinion.
This, that, and the other-my thoughts 