M/M, science Fiction - novel
TBR Reviewer: Brutally honest

Review

Kirk is a pretty boy, the rich son of a billionaire who’s somehow mistaken (Or is it a mistake?) and now being sold as a Slave. Lyndarum is a shifter who is of no value because he has freckles. Together they’re stuck in this grueling slave market and that's just the beginning of their problems.

 I noticed the editing was a little worse with this book. Things popped out very frequently, both grammar and head hops. The relationship between Kirk and Lyndarum was way too quick, almost instant. I think if that was flesh out they would have felt more connected. That does change as the story progresses and the main characters have more time together. The science fiction is amped up in this story. More fantastic details and an awesome space chase. The space battle was freaking epic! There a very hot sex scenes, some shocking revelations and more action. As the plot unfolds and twists the story becomes an adventure, a race against time to save Lyndarum’s people. 

Atlantica Dream is a sexy adventure and a great addition to the Schism Universe Series.

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Paranormal, Romance - novel
TBR Reviewer: Daniella

Review

Merci is called in by her boss Arthur to do a job. He needs her magic skills to find Drake Monroe, Merci´s ex-lover. Drake, who is the wizard Merlin incarnated, has been kidnapped by a goddess who wants to destroy both him and Merci. While working together to lift the curses the goddess has laid upon them, Merci and Drake realize they never really stopped loving each other. Can they win over the goddess and lift the curse, before they are torn away from each other, this time for good?
 
This book starts very well with a compelling concept. King Arthur and his knights have been reincarnated in modern day USA and are on a mission to protect other people through their private investigations firm. The author uses the short story form well and manages to set the stage quickly, and weaves in the background story very smoothly. The story of Drake and Merci is wrapped up well enough in this book, while opening up for an interesting continuation of the series. The story does leave me with the feeling that I would have wanted more, and not just in the sense of wanting to read the rest of the series. The ending felt rushed with the “final fight” not really involving the two main characters and their abilities. I would have liked to learn more about their magic, have them work the problem a little more and seen them grow a little from the experience. 

Beloved Wizard was very good entertainment and a good romance. It got me interested to read the rest of the stories about Arthur and his knights.

Excerpt

 


“I have no wish to be the next greatest anything. I like me just the way I am. I mind my own business and no one gets into my shit. Nice, quiet and uncomplicated.”

Color rose on Nimue’s fair complexion. Merci knew she’d just crossed the line, but couldn’t seem to care, even if the goddess could squash her like a bug. The only thing that mattered to her was Drake’s tall form moving ever closer toward them.

Nimue grabbed her upper arm in a punishing grip, whirled her around to face Drake. Nimue flung her hand out and Drake flew back like a puppet on a string, crashing into the far wall of the warehouse with a sickening flesh-meet-cinderblock thud. He lay crumpled amidst the debris like a broken doll.

Something snapped within Merci. Her blood scalded her veins. The taste of ash filled the back of her throat. Rage, cold and biting, filled her, coloring her vision in a red haze. Drawing energy from the earth, she channeled it up through her body, willing it to form. Her hands glowed, magic as hot as a stream of lava engulfed her. Her skin stung like the bite of a thousand fire ants as a small burst of electricity arched over her arms, snapping with pent up energy. The stench of ozone, hanging like a heavy cloud in the still air, filled the area. The force arched into Nimue, dropped her to the floor. Merci offered a feral smile while Nimue wreathed in pain against her magic. She bent down close enough for Nimue to hear her. “Since you don’t know me, I will explain this to you. You don’t fuck with what is mine. Drake, is mine.”

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3 Comments
 
 
Adventure, Science Fiction - novel
TBR Reviewer: B.H.

Review

First suggestion to this author, stay away from exclamation points. Seriously. This would have benefited from more editing. The scenes jumps are freaking horrendous. We start  in a sparring match between Stormy and Lance. Good sequence but then suddenly after a confession he loves Stormy, she’s resting at home. Rowen's relaxing then she’s reciting this poem/rhyme or something in her head and then she’s thinking about the cake for her birthday. What? What's going on? There's no flow to speak of. Then there’s information dumps which are numerous. Can I just sigh and try another book?

I read on, as I have to review this for TBR. Okay, so to decipher, there’s apparently mental messaging. Cool concept, sort of like telepathy. The flashbacks are not italicized or any indication it’s a memory so I had no idea it was a flashback for a few paragraphs. Then we’re back to present in such a jerky fashion. There was no description on the ship, or her fly through space or landing in this asteroid. It was frustrating. This is supposed to be science fiction but she skipped over what could have been world building descriptions.

I really tried to get into this book as I absolutely love science fiction but alas, not going to happen.

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m/m, Romance, science fiction - novel
TBR Reviewer: Brutally Honest

Review

This is another book in The Schism Universe series by Mark Alders. The first one I read was freaking fantastic and I’m anxious to see if the greatness continues. Sarge’s Angel is about tough Sarge buying a slave that he's fallen completely for but this 'angel' has a secret that could kill them both.

I’m not  a fan of flashbacks. They tend to hinder the flow and muddle the story but apparently not in a Mark Alders book. I was thoroughly impressed. The flashbacks blended into the story beautifully. I also like how Alders includes foreskin on most his characters, if
not all. The erotica books I’ve read rarely have them uncut or don’t bother to get that detailed. It gives this science fiction world a little more jump into reality the way he describes the sex scenes. Holy hell, the sex scenes are so hot. Do not read this in public. Then there's this fantastic new world and the budding romance. The relationship building is magmatic between the smitten Sarge and the slave Hayden.

I did notice the editing was really bad in this book. Run-on, comma usage, repetition of words and other things were heavy enough to through me out of the world Alder’s created. The chapter  ends were choppy and the story really could have been polished better. Thus, the four star rating.

Sarge’s Angel was a sexy addition to the Schism Universe Series. I can’t wait to read more of this world and the fantastic man on man goodness.

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M/M, Romance - novel
TBR Reviewer: Amanda

Review

In an unknown future time, earth has been destroyed and the wider galaxy colonized. As some people have re-colonized earth, they have tried to escape the "Distant Rule" that seems to run everywhere else and have been at war ever since, twenty-years. Herman is a cyborg and part of the invading forces who has become mixed up with Blaze, a magician in the earth's army and is starting to doubt everything he has ever believed.
 
Because everything is shown from Herman's point of view, there are often murky points because his memories have been tampered with as well as his physical modifications. As Herman learns more about the force he fights for, he becomes more confused about which side is right and what he should do. When he finally has to choose a side, it becomes obvious that he must make a decision - and that alone helps him to decide what to do. Once he discovers that he has a choice, he becomes a freer man. He also fights mixed signals from Blaze. One moment he thinks the red-haired magician wants him, the next he thinks he is just a pawn, no longer even a soldier but just a tool. There are a lot of undercurrents in this story, like the issue of free-will and how the cyborgs memories are continously erased to keep them from caring about each other or empathizing with their enemies. Herman fights bias and prejudice from the people that he is helping on one hand, and the lies and manipulations that are all he knows on the other hand.

I admired his character for doing what he felt he should at great cost to himself and against all odds, and I was pleased with the end of the story when it looked as if he and Blaze might have a chance. Blaze himself is not as fully-realized a character as Herman, again because of the way the story is written, but some of his compassion and caring seemed to help in pushing Herman out of his "perfect soldier" mold. In all, I found this an enjoyable story and would recommend it for those who like science-fiction with romance thrown into the mix.

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M/M - Novel
TBR Reviewer: Amanda

Review


Four friends dealing with an odd combination of issues wonder if it is true that college should be the best time of your life. Blake, a pre-operative transgender, is dealing with body issues and bullying which just make his problems worse. His new roommate, Devon, starts out on the wrong foot as he enters the college in January and tries to find his place among established groups. Riley, a football player and frat-boy type surprises Blake by becoming
friends with them all. And Ethan, Blake's best friend since high school, may be becoming something more.
 
Although this story had interesting moments and covered unusual issues, with Blake's dysphoria and the bullying he received because of his transitional state, there were too many contradictions within the story. I felt like Riley and Devon's relationship felt rushed and unreal, although Blake and Ethan's rang true. Their background of having been there for each other for several years made their developing relationship realistic. However, there were details that contradicted each other (Blake talks about his old boyfriend at one part of the story, then later says he's never been in a relationship, for example), and that combined with the strangeness of the narrative kept me from fully enjoying the book.

I think it had potential, but either needed to be two seperate stories, one for each couple, or needed more length to flesh out what was happening.

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M/M, Paranormal - novel
TBR reviewer: Amanda

Review


In Lost Shifters #16, another of the small band of shifters rescued from slavery earlier in the series finally gets his story. Gage is a Hawk shifter with a desperate crush on Branson, the blind Lion who runs the historical archives of the shifter coalition. As is expected in this series, both characters bring plenty of baggage into the romance and it is interesting to
watch how the past is both revealed and begun to be put to rest. Everyone in the coalition also continues to deal with the fall-out from the Ravens' very public attack that has drawn the shifters out of obscurity and into human notice, so many favorite characters from previous stories put in brief cameos.
 
I appreciated the way that Gage and Branson kept mis-reading each other because of the way they filtered their current interactions through past memories. Branson spent so much time being picked on that he just thought Gage was taunting him when Gage made his interest known. Gage's ugly childhood and young adulthood made rejection even harder to deal with. I loved the way Branson's younger brother sneakily pushed everyone's buttons to force the issue and I think my favorite scene was when Branson chased Gage down in front of all his friends.
 
I think my favorite part of this series as a whole is the way that Ms. Hecht takes damaged, dysfunctional characters and pairs them together with beautiful results. Gage and Branson definitely fit each other and their story is a great addition to the Lost Shifters series.

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Futuristic - novel
TBR Reviewer: B.H.

Review

My first issue: the editing is so bad.  The comma use, run-ons and head hops are so freaking bad I wanted to scream. This plot sounded unique but the damn editing kept ruining the story. There are long paragraphs without breaks, the flow is atrocious and some scenes make no sense without information on this futuristic world. Why would the ups guy need to ask Donavan if he’s a terrorist on behalf of President Jesus? There’s no back story, no explanations or details into this world. 

The world building was minimal. The author explained without showing it. He never painted the picture of this futuristic world so we could get a good view.  There’s also sections where Donovan has flash backs but it’s all telling and so hard to read. The mistakes are awful and
turned a interesting book into something I don’t know if I’ll finish. Then the author actually tells us the robot manual. You’re kidding right? I don’t even like reading manuals in real life, why would I want to read it in a fiction book? 

In the end,  the flash backs ruined any chance this story had. They needed to be trimmed or deleted. The plot was unique but the execution fell flat.

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Steampunk, Pirates - novel
TBR reviewer: Christine

Review

It’s the sequel to Lady Mechatronic and The Steampunked Pirates. I’m so excited to read this. I’ve been waiting since I read the first novel. The beginning is pretty much a recap of the first novel. I hate that. It was an information dump that should have been avoided. That comes down to editing. It made me cringe every couple of sentences: Run-on’s, head hops, ect. Yes, the editing is bad but the story more than makes up for that lack. 

As always it’s the crew and how the author managed to pack so much punch into each character. From the one legged, one armed, eyeless, nose less and earless Lucky Pete to the delicate Susanna. Captain Hartwell is all honor and dignity while Lady Mechatronic is a bundle of everything. The action is swashbuckling entertainment with a few lightning bolts and fine
metallic whips from arms. It’s unique and well written. 

You all know how I feel about ‘to be continued’endings. They suck. They cheat the reader and I’m highly against them. (Except in this series, because I like it that damn much.) So, you were warned about the ending in advance but try this book. Despite the problems, Journey to Pirate’s Cover is truly a treat. 

The Lady Mechatronic series is Pirates of the Caribbean meets the sci fi channel. I really like this series and would love to see it as a movie.

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M/M, Romance - novella
TBR Reviewer: Amanda

Review

Severin, a sixth-level wizard is thrown out of Sanctuary for the crime of defending a human family against a vampire attack. He chooses to leave his world behind and move to a small town in Australia where he opens a bakery called, Decadence. He leaves behind  a lover of many centuries that does not understand why he will not fight the political machinations that got him banished. However, he finds himself questioning many things when one of the first people he meets, Will, the lawyer that handles the sale of the bakery, turns out to be someone his wizard side knows he could love. When Severin finds that someone has leaked his whereabouts to his enemies, he again questions who he can trust and if everything he has ever learned is wrong.
 
I enjoyed Will and Severin's interactions - especially as Will seemed to play up his Aussie slang more whenever Sev was the most confused. Will's sister and Sev's ex-lover were wonderful side characters. They were both protective of the people they loved, even to the point of jumping into a fight that wasn't theirs to begin with. I would have liked more of the political wrangling that played out in the background and would have loved to see the villain's
come-uppance, but all in all it was a fun magic-filled story. I especially liked the no calories, lose weight while you eat them, erotic pastries that Severin made - I wish I could find a wizard baker locally!

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