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This Time Around by Jane Suen – Review by Lauren Cox

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This Time AroundThis Time Around by Jane Suen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A sweet, hometown romance filled with regret, what ifs and nostalgia.
Katie was head over heels in love with Chase, but the longing for a different life in the city to follow her dreams left them broken. After ten years of not talking and living two different lives Katie is invited to her friends wedding in her hometown. Single and focused on her job she was short of a plus one, the bride set her up with her cousin. Little did she know, her blind date/plus one to the wedding would be her ex-boyfriend Chase.

After being home Katie is wondering what life would have been like if she would have stayed all those years ago, what if she didn’t miss all these milestones in her family & friends lives. What would have happened if she hadn’t left Chase?

This book captured my attention on first chapter and finished it all in one sitting, not only is it sweet and dramatic but there is also enough drama, angst, grudges to keep you engaged in the story the whole time. Add this to your “Must Read List!”.

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Ashes of Sin and Stardust (AnchorX) by Lindsay Murray – Review by Lauren Cox

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Ashes of Sin and StardustAshes of Sin and Stardust by Lindsay Murray
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dark, emotional, traumatic romance. This book will draw in readers that like BDSM, please not there is also mental health, child abuse, suicide, physical violence triggers.

Alice has a tendency to push people away, say things to ruin relationships just to keep everyone and arms length. She struggles with borderline personality disorder, makes questionable decisions and fights her inner demons. She is hesitant to let anyone in, especially another Dom.

Reuben also has his own struggles and an ugly past that he tries to hide under is hard wall of cockiness and confidence. Reuben is hard core into BDSM and has been dreaming of his perfect girl for years, but the one thing he cannot stand is a brat.

These two worlds collide in this beautifully written raw romance. They way Reuben helps Alice through her episodes and struggles is really beautiful, the patience and the way he talks to her is amazing. If you are looking for smut, kink, BDSM and romance this book is for you. I loved all 1139 pages of this story.

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Sword of Darkness (The Vigilant Book 3.5) by LM Preston – Review by Lauren Cox

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Sword of Darkness (Vigilant, #3.5)Sword of Darkness by L.M. Preston
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This YA fantasy book is part of a series but can be read alone. This mystery, danger, supernatural book is fast paced and attention grabbing. This book is about Reece, the car loving, adrenaline seeking car racer who finds himself in a race he didn’t bargain for.
Reece finds himself in a world he thought only existed in books, then forced to make tough decisions, with tough lessons with even tougher consequences. Save the love of his life or save his family, Can he save both?

There is love, betrayal and secrets. This book had me hooked from the very beginning and can’t wait to read more by this author

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The Detail by Dana Wayne – Review by Lauren Cox

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The DetailThe Detail by Dana Wayne
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Detail is the perfect amount of suspense and romance, not only does Dana captivate you with this suspenseful thriller she also gives sexual tension. This book is a quick read but definitely a page turner.

Jessica is trying everything she can to track down this killer, with the help of her very attractive partner Seth. Right when they were going to confront their attraction for each other Jessica goes missing as well as Seth’s prisoner “the killer”.

I really liked this mixture of the two book genres coming together, more often than not romance and suspense thriller don’t collide like this and I enjoyed it.

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Saved by Love (Bellevue Bullies Book 7) by Toni Aleo – Review by Lauren Cox

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Saved by Love (Bellevue Bullies #7)Saved by Love by Toni Aleo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This story is cute, inspirational, raw and so relatable.

The two main characters are Callie and Evan. Callie is a champion gymnast and Evan used to be a pro hockey player until his mental health takes a turn for the worse and he searches out for a new career path back home in Tennessee.

Both of these main characters have a rough past and find solace in each others company, the relationship grows from crush, to friends and then so much more. The struggles in this book are so relatable and raw that is just captivates you and makes you fall in love with their story. So much so, that I lost sleep because I couldn’t put this book down.

If you are looking for a good sports romance book you will love this one! I highly recommend.

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Victoriously Yours (Titans of Manhattan Book 4) by Anise Storm – Review by Lauren Cox

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Victoriously Yours (Titans Of Manhattan #4)Victoriously Yours by Anise Storm
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Dark, Deep, Emotional roller coaster. This book was amazing, just like all of you I have been dying to read Jonas’s story. Jonas’s and Mackenzie’s story has a lot of history and is very dark. Jonas is your typical bad boy, who has made questionable decisions in life and in the bedroom. Jonas Mackenzie were falling in love, or so she thought. He had made his intentions clear about Mackenzie to everyone in high school, once Mackenzie caught wind of what has been said about her behind her back it had changed everything.

Later down the road these two meet again, not in the manner Mackenzie prefers as her chef dreams come true and land this huge contract she now has to work for Jonas. The man who hurt her all those years ago, secrets unfold and the past catches up to them.

I don’t want to give any spoilers so I will leave it at that, but this book is definitely worth the read and actually probably my favorite book out of this series so far.

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Coyote’s Road Trip by Laura Koerber – Review by Lauren Cox

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Coyote's Road TripCoyote’s Road Trip by Laura Koerber
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Quick read, but not short on entertainment, humor, grief or captivating characters.
This book touches on climate change, the changes in the world that is causing droughts and deaths. It also reminds me a lot of native American coyotes stories and spirits I have heard before even though this author clearly states in the beginning of the book that this is not based of off any indigenous groups. Maybe this is just where the author pulled her inspiration from when writing this book.

This paranormal character coyotes ventures out of a sad, dry, empty desert valley of Nevada. As Coyote searches for a new home, he finds new friends and beauty in the most unlikely places throughout his journey. Beauty is defined in the book as more of necessities like water, shelter and food. This book is and can be very dark, moody and sad but the author does a great job of balancing it out with lightness and humor.

Coyote has a lot of depth to his character, Laura did such an amazing job writing, storytelling and growing this character throughout the book. Not only does the story go together seamlessly, she also does a phenomenal job describing the landscape, places and feelings of Coyote and the world that he lives in as he makes his travels across the Pacific Northwest to find his new home. Laura completely engulfed me in this story and had me finishing this book in one sitting.

This is not normally a genre of books I would read, but I am so glad I ventured out and read this story. I highly recommend and will definitely be reading more from this author.

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As Close to Perfect by Maria Jane – Review by Lauren Cox

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As Close to PerfectAs Close to Perfect by Maria Jane
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the first book I have read but third book in the series, even though I didn’t read the first two this book was easy to keep up with and I didn’t feel like there was very many missing pieces in the dialog.

I found the main character Bree very relatable, she has gone through a lot of really bad relationships and did not want to be hurt anymore. Although I did find this very relatable, Bree went a full 180 in the other direction, she set strict rules and high expectations for all her new prospects and I feel like this really hurt her character growth.

As she starts to venture out in the dating world again, she swears off athletes, jocks and looking for mister right AKA the one.

She really enjoys playing tennis and while playing tennis she meets her best friend Nate, who is completely and utterly in love with her. But to Nate’s dismay he has been friend zoned, not only is he an athlete he is a tennis coach. Everything Bree has sworn off.

Does she wake up and realize what she has always wanted is right in front of her? Or does she let him slip through her fingers.

Overall this was a very cute book and would recommend to friends.

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Deadly Sommer (Nora Sommer Caribbean Suspense Book 1) by Nicholas Harvey – Review by Lauren Cox

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Deadly Sommer (Nora Sommer #1)Deadly Sommer by Nicholas Harvey
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the first time I have ever read something from this author and he did not disappoint!

This book is perfect for any murder mystery lover, it is has suspense, mystery and twist and turns that I did not see coming, definitely a page turner I finished this book at 3 am.

Nora’s journey throughout this book was a roller coaster, at first she thinks she is coming to a beautiful island, will be an easier job, she can relax and take it easy for awhile. Little did she know she would be become a pawn to the kidnappers plan, and will she survive?

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The Mind-Reading Hat (Invisible Magic Wand Series Book 6) by Lois Wickstrom – Review by Lauren Cox

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The Mind-Reading Hat: Invisible Magic Wand Book SixThe Mind-Reading Hat: Invisible Magic Wand Book Six by Lois Wickstrom
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was so cute and creative, first children’s book I have read by this author and will definitely being reading this book to all my nieces and nephews.

It starts off with a little boy named Caspian on his un-birthday with a present from his grand-father and a present from his mother under his bed. The first present from his grand-father has a brown hat inside and the second present had a small stone in it. Caspian goes down stairs and realizes he can hear peoples thoughts with his new hat.

He finds a new friend with his hat and problem solves with his stone (Thinking Stone).

Has a very cute ending and such a creative way to teach kids how to problem solve.

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Nite Fire: Slash & Burn (Book 4) by C.L. Schneider – Review by Lauren Cox

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Slash & Burn (Nite Fire, #4)Slash & Burn by C.L. Schneider
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nite Fire: Slash & Burn by C.L. Schneider reviewed by Lauren Cox

This book was so different from the last three books, and I could argue it is one of my favorites so far. Dahlia has grown so much since we first met her three books ago, all of the challenges she has faced, the people she has saved and the dragon queen she has continually outran.
This book has heartache, lack of trust, broken relationships and more monsters than can take over the city. After they discover a sink hole, missing pets and more blight, can they come up with a solution before the blight become uncontrollable and destroy everything in their path?
Her former partner Alex has come to her for help after not speaking, the deaths could only have been from more monsters. Can he trust Dahlia again? Can they work together and find the solution?

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Nite Fire: Smoke & Mirrors by C. L. Schneider – Review by Lauren Cox

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Smoke & Mirrors (Nite Fire #3)Smoke & Mirrors by C.L. Schneider
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nite Fire: Smoke & Mirrors by C.L. Schneider reviewed by Lauren Cox

Dahlia Nite is back in book 3 with even more mystery, murders and secrets.
Dahlia starts searching for answers as multiple species have been left exposed on Sentinel City’s riverbank. A discovery this big is going to be hard to hide or cover up and Dahlia is caught between hiding the evidence and telling the truth. She starts to distant herself more and more from Alex to try and keep her secrets hidden all while, she helps her sidekick Casey try and find his sister, are the crimes connected?
As Dahlias perfectly crafted lies and secrets start to fall apart and the line between new and old life start to become blurry. Can and will these secrets have deadly consequences? Can she keep everyone safe?
I love how much the characters grow and evolve in every book, C.L. Schneider does an amazing job at merging, action, drama, suspense, murder, mystery, supernatural, urban fantasy into these books and the plot twists, character growth has me reading these books into the late AM. I am 100% here for it and will continue reading this series.

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Nite Fire: Chain Reaction (Book 2) by C.L. Schneider – Review by Lauren Cox

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Chain Reaction (Nite Fire #2)Chain Reaction by C.L. Schneider
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nite Fire: Chain Reaction by C.L. Schneider reviewed by Lauren Cox

Dahlia Nite and Detective Creed are back, and I could not be more impressed with the second installment of this series. Just like in the last book more and more people are turning up dead in Sentinel City and Dahlia is trying to figure out why?
Not only is Dahlia and Creed following leads on the mysterious deaths going on it town, they now have to worry about this new drug that just hit the street. Whoever is behind this new drug is using this town as a guinea pig with no care to the growing bodies piling up. It doesn’t cause the highs and the lows of most street drugs, Chrysalis is causing behavioral, and physical changes to the human body. Dahlia is fierce, strong and persistent and will not back down to a fight.

This book had so much action, twist and turns and I absolutely love a good murder mystery, this series has easily grown to be one of my favorites and I cannot wait to see what book three has in store for us.

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Nite Fire: Flash Point by C. L. Schneider – Review by Lauren Cox

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Flash Point (Nite Fire, #1)Flash Point by C.L. Schneider
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nite Fire: Flash Point by C.L. Schneider reviewed by Lauren Cox

This is the first time I have ever read anything by this author, and I have to say I am quite impressed. The characters have a lot of depth the writing of this book is amazing, has me coming back for more.
The books start off with Dahlia and her past, she had grown up with heavy influencers in her life that manipulated her and made her believe she had to follow The Guild of Dragon’s orders and directions at any cost. She was exiled from her home almost a hundred years ago and now has found solace in the human would, as a half human, half dragon Dahlia has gotten good at hiding her dragon side from the humans and has dedicated her life to protect the human world.
As more mysterious and gruesome murders continue in her new hometown and more bodies are found she realizes these are the shape-shifters doing. Why after all this time is her past catching up to her? After all this time and swearing to never return to her old life again, what choice will she make?
This book is the perfect mix of supernatural and murder mystery, can’t wait to read book two!

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Nite Fire: Exit Strategy (Book 5) by C.L. Schneider – Review by Lauren Cox

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Exit Strategy (Nite Fire #5)Exit Strategy by C.L. Schneider
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Nite Fire: Exit Strategy by C.L. Schneider reviewed by Lauren Cox

Here it is! The moment we have all been waiting for, but also have been dreading because we all know this story is coming to an end.
C.L. Schneider has done such an amazing job on this series and I cannot wait to read more from this author.
The apocalypse has finally come and this action packed book begins! Dahlia has so many things going wrong, old enemies are returning, she has missing team members all while she is trying to save the world. Her dragon and her powers continue to grow, but even still is seems like she is fighting a losing battle. Although there is some losses in this book, there is also some wins. This is a very fast paced book that doesn’t let up until the end.

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Until There Was You by G. Colgrove – Review by Lauren Cox

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Until there was youUntil there was you by G. Colgrove
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Until There Was You by G. Colgrove

This was my first book ever reading by the author it was full of passion, humor, and drama packed. Don’t be like me and start this book right before bed because you will be up all night reading.

It starts off with a young lady named Regan who was born and raised in the south and working at diner, trying to make a better future for herself as she is not from the best family, having to struggle growing up she wanted something better in life.

She meets Jeremy at the diner she worked at, he was having dinner with some other guys and ended up leaving a less than desirable tip and Jeremy overhears her snide comment.

Regan has a hard time opening up to him, she doesn’t want him to find out about her past and family. Jeremy comes from a more weathly family and hasn’t ever had to deal with the struggles Regan has.

Once their worlds collide they realize they are not so different after all.

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Shamrock & Clover: Field’s Apart by C.A. King – Review by Lauren Cox

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Shamrock & Clover: Fields ApartShamrock & Clover: Fields Apart by C.A. King
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Shamrock & Clover: Fields Apart by C.A. King

This was my first book that I have read by this author and it did not disappoint.

This book has a lot of emotions tied into it, and a beautiful love story.
It starts out in Clover’s POV one of the main characters; her friends see her as a silent suffer alone type, but she really is just trying to help the only family member she has left, she spends every last dime she has to give her beloved grandmother the treatment she needs.

Her grandmother had given her the name Clover and told her the first leaf stands for hope, second leaf stands for faith, third leaf stands for love and all she needed was to find a four leaf clover, fourth leaf stands for love.

Clover wanted nothing more than to find this four leaf clover her grandmother had been talking about since she was a little girl and gift it to her, because she knew that would mean more to her grandmother than a 100 roses or carnations. Relentlessly searching and late a night Clover was running out of luck and time… Then unexpectedly she meets Shamrock.

This story has a couple plot twists, three POV’s and such a cute ending. The author did an amazing job writing this book, I couldn’t help but fall in love with both Clover and Shamrock and ended up reading the whole book in one day.

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Spring’s Showers (Romantically Seasonal Series) by C.A. King Review By Lauren Cox

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Springs Showers: Romantically Seasonal

I love the storyline of this book, who wouldn’t want a little mythology mixed with romance?

It starts off with a bunch of God’s getting together and laughing about how easy Cupids job actually is, so Cupid bets the other God’s to try and make two people fall in love.

Mother nature’s goes first AKA spring, she takes on the body of middle aged women and has to live the life of a mortal to try and fit in to society and play matchmaker.

This book was definitely a page turner leaving me wanting more!

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Claiming My Mate: A forbidden-lovers romance (Wolf Hollow Pack series) Book 1 by Nicole Howl – Review by Lauren Cox

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Claiming My Mate (Wolf Hollow Pack #1)Claiming My Mate by Nicole Howl
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Claiming My Mate by Nicole Howl Book 1

This Werewolf Fiction Romance starts with a young women named Lily who has known nothing but slavery, she is naturally timid, quiet, selfless and loyal. Lily serves the Wolf Hollow Pack and is treated horribly by the guards, pack and King but through it all she finds her mate.

First few chapters is just building her character, getting to know her personality and laying down the foundation of the storyline, little did I know there would be so many twists and turns.

Lily finds herself in a bad situation with one of the guards that leaves her, broken, scarred and violated. Luckily a member of the pack finds her in her panic and brings her to the royal hospital where she awaits questioning from the not so understanding King and merciful Queen.

From there fate intertwines and her mate is revealed…. Or so we think.

This book is romantic, dark and actually quite witty, I love how much Lily’s character grew in such a short time.
I did not expect the ending at all! quite a cliffhanger, I can not wait for book two come out and read more about these two main characters and how they grow together as mates.

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Reviewed by @laurencox