Shapeshifters – Author Gail Marie

Book Review – A Shifter’s Choice (Wolves of Hawthorne Cove 5) by Debbie Cassidy

I loved this series and the type of shifters this revolved around. Those shifters were an ancient shapeshifter line that migrated from a dying planet and brought an ancient darkness and enemy with them. The female MC, Quinn, is half shifter and half fae hybrid. I loved watching her grow into herself and finally put her needs first. On par for a Cassidy series, this quickly became a favorite series. I am obsessed with this world and the political aspects between humans and supernatural enforcement. The cast of characters was unforgettable. The plot and pace had me reading these late into the night. The next series in this world is centered around Nyx, a demon friend of Quinn. I don’t wait well for books between series so I will likely wait until December for book 6 of the Demon throne series to be published. (4/5 rating)

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Book Review – Ruthless as a Cheetah (Society of Shifters 1) by Katie May

Checked out with kindle unlimited, April 2023. This was my first standalone book by Katie May. I was excited to try this assassin, urban fantasy, story. I have a weakness for a good assassin story and this one didn’t disappoint. Tessah is a cheetah shifter kidnapped to work for a group of assassins: The sisterhood. I know Tessah’s general attitude will be a downer for some people, but she did grow on me as her character arc progressed. I feel like May needed her outrageous antics to balance some of the darker plot aspects, like kidnapping and raping young women. I didn’t expect to like this after the first chapter begins where it does, but I did enjoy most of this. I’ll always enjoy revenge stories and Tessah certainly got hers at the end. It was nice to watch Tessah grow into herself after she vanquishes her demons and finds her version of a happy ending. (4/5 rating)

Book Review – Death Warden (MC Syndicates 2) by Debbie Cassidy

Everything I’ve read by Debbie Cassidy so far has been well put together and kept me on the edge of my seat. I was excited to try this necromancer, motorcycle club, urban fantasy story. This was a standalone novel amidst a series by different authors set inside the MC Syndicates universe. I loved, Adi, the witch heroine and her relationship with her mates, Logan (hellhound), Spectre (hellhound) and Curos (lich). Normally it’s hard to balance multiple relationships in one book but I thought Cassidy accomplishes well-rounded personalities and relationships of everyone involved. I also felt that the plot and action balanced with the relationship aspect of the story. The tone remained suspenseful, and that ending hit me right in the feels. I loved the way the motorcycles interacted with the club members. I loved everything about this and recommend giving this a try. (4/5 rating)

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Book Review – The Dead Ringer by Michaela Haze

This story centers around a nightmare demon forced to survive working for a fae after her unit in Hell was killed. I was excited for the premise of this book and the chance to try something from this author for the first time. I’m sad this is standalone since I loved this world and its characters. Haze developed better characters in this standalone than others I have seen in multiple book series. I loved everything about this, and this quickly became a favorite book. I’m anxious to read all the books that Michaela Haze has published, since they will likely become favorites too.
The writing style and plot pulled me into this standalone book. Haze kept the tone suspenseful but funny as Mara’s nature kept me laughing and rooting for her to succeed. I think it’s safe to say that Mara has become one of my favorite demon stories so far. I loved learning about her nightmare nature. Her commanding officer, Warren, was her polar opposite with his commanding and serious demeanor. Her colleagues of Team P, Remi, Jae, Hart, and Hugo don’t initially know that Mara is undercover and hiding in the body their colleague, Frankie. Warren enlists Mara’s help from her boss after Frankie’s unit is killed suspiciously. With the possibility of a betrayer in their midst, Warren brings the vision of Frankie back to their compound to flush out the killer. (5/5 rating)

Book Review – Savage As Hell (The Demon Academy 3) by G. Bailey

This was my first series by G. Bailey. I liked the first book of this trilogy even if the ending was unexpected. Everything seemed to go downhill from there. The love interests never felt well established, even with the epilogue. I enjoyed the entry into this world and Alexandria discovering about her heritage at the Academy, but the addition of Lucifer’s story arc introduced so soon kind of ruined this for me. I also wasn’t a fan of how he was defeated with the plot mechanics. I was disappointed with this ending since the premise and book 1 had so much promise. (3/5 rating)

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Book Review – Academy of Assassins (Academy of Assassins 1) by Stacey Brutger

Checked out with kindle unlimited, March 2023. I was eager for this novel by Stacey Brutger as it was recommended to me as a story with a powerful heroine. Morgan is an orphan with no memories who is taken in by a legendary assassin. Training her to protect herself from an early age, she is eventually invited to join the Academy of Assassins – a rare honor given her female status. Her mentor sends her to learn her craft but also to find and stop a murderer targeting the Academy’s students.

I loved Morgan and her story. I found the plot aspect of the narrative, the part that had me reading until midnight to finish this. Even though the romance aspect felt slow at times. I could relate to Morgan’s desire to maintain her independence after a lifetime of choosing her own path and not the one society chose for her fellow hunters. This did not end on a cliffhanger, for which I was appreciative. I was immersed in the writing style and dangerous atmosphere. Brutger’s characters were multi-dimensional. I’m not sure what my ultimate opinion is of Kincade since he had several unlikable moments with Morgan. I liked Ryder, Draven, and Ascher. Atlas was the one character I felt we didn’t understand much of until the epilogue. Ready for book two. (4/5 rating)

Book Review – Newly Undead In Dark River (Dark River Days 1) by Grace McGinty

I was excited for this urban fantasy vampire novel from new-to-me author, Grace McGinty. Mika McKellen’s Canadian backpacking trip must be delayed after she wakes under the of the road, with no memory of how she got there. The town of Dark River must become her new refuge after Mika learns she’s a vampire too. I love the way this vampire world presents their power hierarchy and way of life. At times, Mika annoys me with her actions, however she also learns to take advantage of her new lease on undead life. I enjoyed watching her fight back against anyone trying to hold her back and grow into the woman she always wanted to become. The pace felt a bit slow but with the plot, they set up the betrayal cliffhanger nicely at the end. Her cast of characters were engaging, and the Sherriff vampire was my favorite. I am eager to continue this series as well as the shapeshifter series also set in this universe. (4/5 rating)

Book Review – Embrace Me Darkly (Dark Alliance 1) by Kira James

Checked out with kindle unlimited, February 2023 to test this debut series by Kira James. Sara is out celebrating a huge win at her prosecutor’s office when she meets a beautiful, mysterious stranger at her favorite bar. After one passionate night together, Sara discovers he is a vampire named Luke and implicated in the murder of a local retired judge. As a prosecutor for a supernatural judicial system, Sara and Luke will be forced to work together to overcome a much bigger threat to their city than Luke. This was the first in a six-book series. This was an engaging mix of supernatural crime and romance. This world is also rife with political alliances, betrayal, and webs of deceit. I liked James’s take on Vampires and the laws governing them. The pace remains blinding from the first page to the last. I struggled to rate this book since there were aspects that I loved and hated. I know I will read book 2 eventually to see how this plot progresses. (3/5 rating)

Book Review – A Ruin of Roses (Deliciously Dark Fairytales #1) By K.F. Breene

This is the first in Breene’s latest book series. I wanted to wait until the entire series had been released until I dug back into this one. I was excited for this since it is a retelling of The Beauty and The Beast storyline. I loved every word and detail of this world and its characters. Breene, as usual, set the first book up to be a series of epic proportioned. I loved our strong heroine, Finley, and the fact that she refuses to back down from Nyfain, especially in the face of his obvious physical strength over her. Hadriel became a favorite side character since he made me laugh a lot. He was a perfect dose of hilarity amongst the heavier tones within this. The pace remained quick while the world building was off the charts. This is exactly why I horde my other Breene books, like a dragon myself. No one does it the way she does. This is not a typical fairy tale, but it is Breene’s fresh take on it, that makes it something else entirely. (5/5 rating)

Book Review – Untamed (House of Berserkers 1) by Lacey Carter Andersen

Checked out with Kindle unlimited in January 2023. My first novel by Lacey Carter Andersen is centered around the House of Berserkers within the Wicked Reform School. Kiera is a female berserker sentenced to the school after berserking to avenge a fallen friend. As one of the only female berserkers that can, she finds a huge target on her back but also help in unexpected places. The world that this school is in was intriguing and I’m interested to learn about the other author series for the Houses. The plot and pacing were effective in building suspense. The cliffhanger has me ready to continue the series. Kiera was a strong female lead, and the subplots for the male leads were interesting but I struggled with how fast those relationships progressed. Even though there was discussion of the mate factor, it felt a bit rushed but that’s my issue and not the authors. Adam and his cat, Princess, were my favorites from this. (3/5 rating)