This second book in the Guides for Dating Vampires series was just as witty, adorable and heart warming as the first one, if not more! I adore D.N. Bryn’s unique, queer and hilarious romances with characters who are such precious disasters that you cannot help fall completely in love with them.

The Guides for Dating Vampires is a loosely connected MM paranormal romance series with stories that can be read as standalones, but I’d still recommend you to read all of the books in the series, simply because they’re absolutely worth it! The stories are very different from the usual vampire tales, with a strong, lethal, masculine vampire seducing its victim, which honestly can be quite cheesy. Here, it’s the absolute opposite.

The vampire in How to Sell your Blood – Clementine – is a shy, a-spec, nerdy, Ivy League scientist who has been turned without him knowing how or by whom. The human he falls in love with – Justin – is an inner-city badass guy with super strength who protects the vampires in his neighborhood to make amends for a devastating mistake he did in his youth. The story also includes amazing side characters, such as Clementine’s trans sister Sissy and Justin’s vampire friends, and a very thrilling plot with Clementine needing to hide his vampirism at the lab he’s working at and being blackmailed for it.

I really loved the slow burn and watching Clementine and Justin slowly grew closer as well as their respective character development throughout the story. It was so real the way Clementine struggled with his blossoming feelings for Justin and trying to figure out his demisexuality. I also absolutely adored their dorky banter and the humor, and the fact that Clementine wrote erotic fanfic!

The characters from the first book, Vincent and Wes, were mentioned a few times in the book, but I would have loved to see a bit more of them. I also would have liked to get some more background to Antony Hilker and the reasons behind his actions, as well as some more explanation to Justin’s superstrength and his family history. There was a fallen angel-plot there that had amazing potential that I would have loved for D.N. Bryn to explore further. But maybe (hopefully) that will be part of a future book in the series!

All in all, this was a unique, sweet, poignant and addictive story about two adorkable disasters falling in love that I binged in one sitting. Highly recommended!
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Thank you so much to the author D.N. Bryn for the opportunity to read this adorable book for free! All opinions are my own and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.

Rating:
4 stars

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D.N. Bryn

This was such a wonderfully messy coming of age story about questioning your sexuality and taking the journey of finding out who you truly are. I loved the amazing representation and the relatable, flawed and fleshed-out characters.

“Maybe I’m bisexual or pansexual. Maybe I’m queer. All I know,” I start, taking a deep breath, “is that I’m probably – no, definitely – not straight.”

Ophelia After All is a sweet YA story following Ophelia, a Cuban-American High School senior, who’s been known as a boy-crazy romantic, but who starts to questioning her sexuality when all of the sudden she starts crushing on a girl named Talia. Throughout the novel we also get to know Ophelia’s group of friends as they prepare for the big event of the year – the prom – and to follow all their struggle and drama.

I really loved how the representation with the vast spectrum of identities, and how Ophelia’s group of friends all found each other before realizing that they were all queer. I also really appreciated the way ‘coming-out’ wasn’t made into a major one-time thing, nor a definitive one, but how they were all allowed to question their identities and settle for what felt right at the moment.

It took me a while to get into the story though. The beginning was quite slow and all the high school drama, including love triangles, promposals and prom queen nominations, felt a bit over the top. But once I started to fully root for the characters, and we got to see the struggles behind the drama, it was such an addictive and heartwarming story. I especially enjoyed how flawed and messy Ophelia was allowed to be, and how she fell apart throughout the book without being miraculously mended by a sudden romance.

All in all, I highly recommend this story to anyone, but especially if you are a high schooler and/or enjoy messy, complicated coming of age stories about figuring yourself and your sexuality out.

Rating:
4 stars

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Racquel Marie

This was such a heartwarming and charming story about a middle-aged lesbian librarian wanting to change her life. I loved the library setting, the witty humor, the queer representation and all wonderful side characters!

Nan Nethercott is a queer middle-aged librarian, who finds herself stuck at entry level in the Philadelphia public library system and as well as in tiresome affairs with women who are not looking for that forever after that Nan is. Realizing she might not have that many chances left to make a drastic change, she accepts a pay cut for the job as a head librarian at a small-town library in southern New Jersey. Soon she finds herself way over her head dealing with staff problems, marauding middle-schoolers, a bossy town council principal, and a hot deli owner who is, of course, not looking for the kind of relationship that Nan is.

I loved the library setting and to read about all literary tasks, book club discussions and programs that Nan organized and to get new insights of the life of a librarian (the task of weeding books was definitely a novelty to me)! I also absolutely adored Nan’s wit and sarcasm, and the fact that she was a bit older and very relatable in the way she felt that life hasn’t turned out the way she dreamed of. And the side characters were such charming, kind and fun originals! I loved the way Nan opened up to people in a way she hadn’t before and made some wonderfully sweet new friends that way.

The story was perhaps a bit uneventful at times and it wouldn’t have hurt with a little more romance and passion. Even though Nan is having affairs and dating, I wouldn’t call this a sapphic romance. It’s more a story about changing your life than finding love.

But all in all, The New Town Librarian is a truly sweet, fun and enjoyable feel-good read that doesn’t shy away from the sadder parts of life, with an adorable small-town bookish setting. A perfect book for my fellow bookworms!

Thank you to Pride Book Tours, NetGalley and Ninestar Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rating:
4 stars

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Kathy Anderson

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda meets a darker version of High School Musical in this fastpaced and addictive story about finding your true self, facing your wrongs and making amends. And maybe finding some new friends and love on the way.

Donick (Nick) Walsh has been the stereotype high school jock for years, harassing anyone being nerdy, different or just in his way. But it wasn’t always like this. Up until Nick was eleven, he had a best friend, Michael Penrose, and was into “dorky things” like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and wondering what it would be like to kiss a boy. Or, more specifically, what it would be like to kiss Michael. When he finally tried it, his father walked in on them, and the horror and anger from his dad put Nick on the toxic, masculine football playing, homophobic track he’s been on ever since.

Michael on his hand never really understood what happened. One day, Nick was his best friend, the next day, Nick punched him in the face and looked at him with resentment, either calling him names or avoiding him entirely. The hurt and bitterness kept growing over the years, and got even worse with Nick suddenly coming back into his life again when getting injured and joining the school revue instead of playing football.

I really loved all the musical theatre references and the wonderful representation, but most of all the complex, fleshed out characters, as well as how the story shows how hard it can be to truly change and grow. Not only for the person trying to grow and make amends, but also for the persons around him. Forgiveness isn’t granted just because you ask for it. The hurt you have caused might just be too much to get over, and you have to find a way to live with yourself for the damage you have caused. It was really great that the story was told in dual POVs, so that both aspects were shown so clearly, and we could see how toxic it can be for the victim as well to refuse to confront the past and let the bitterness control your life.

I did find the “Secret Admirer”-thing a little cheesy and over the top though, and I would have liked to get to see more of Nick’s struggle with his conscience before wanting to hit the reset button. Now we entered the story when he already knew that he wanted to change, with glimpses back to his former mean bully self, but we never really got to be part of the internal character transformation as such. But those are just minor complaints.

All in all, this was an emotional, poignant and addictive story about breaking free from toxic expectations to be your true self, making amends and finding new friends and love. I read this book in one sitting, it was such an easy and fast read, full of wonderful music and theatre references and relatable characters. (Just be aware of the trigger warning for homophobia.)

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book, which I have voluntarily reviewed.

Rating:
4 stars

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(This book will be published on August 15th, 2023.)

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Nathaniel Shea

This fourth book in the Big Bad Wolf series was a bit slower to begin with and I wasn’t completely sold on the undercover couple counseling plot. But about halfway the action picked up again and Park and Cooper were so adorable together. I love the alpha twist and the development of their relationship, especially how vulnerable they dare to be with one another.

This second book in the Big Bad Wolf series was so much more fast-paced and addictive than the first one! Park had my heart already from the first book, but Cooper really started to grown on me now as well. And the mystery to solve was a perfect kind of nice puzzle plot pulling Cooper’s family into the story as well.

Cooper and Park are now in a relationship… sort of… as well as partners at the BSI (the (Bureau of Special Investigations for werewolf crimes), but Cooper is struggling with trust issues, anxiety and just with relationships in general. When he’s guilted into a visit to his father and brother on the way home from an assignment with Park, he hopes the trip might help clarify their status as a couple. But then a dead body is discovered in his family’s garden, and suddenly Cooper and Park are drawn into a case that might risk put Cooper’s dad behind bars.

I really enjoyed the relationship parts, the vulnerability and doubts, the miscommunication and the tenderness, as Cooper and Park try to navigate the new feelings. I also loved getting to know more about Cooper and his family and childhood, and all the family drama. The mystery plot with the dead body was a really great, action-filled and unexpected one.

With Cooper growing on me, and Park already having my heart, I can’t wait to continue this series! I’m so curious about getting to know more about Park and his family in the next installment!

Rating:
4stars

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Charlie Adhara

This was such a different take of shifter romances! Even though this is a book with werewolves, I wouldn’t call it a fantasy or paranormal story, it’s more of a contemporary mystery that also happens to have some werewolves in it. And a very slow burn romance with amazing potential!

Agent Cooper Dayton is a grumpy ex-FBI agent now working for the secret division BSI (Bureau of Special Investigations) investigating werewolf crimes. Yes, werewolves apparently do exist and live amongst us humans. They even have their own secret organization known as The Trust. When werewolves keep being the target for murders, both organizations decide to team up together, assigning Cooper a new werewolf partner, the handsome, masculine and mysterious Oliver Park.

This book was very different from what I expected and from my usual genre, so it took me a while to get into it. The beginning was quite slow and the writing style a lot of explaining all things everyone did (a bit too much tell instead of show), so about halfway in I almost didn’t finish it.

But I’m so glad I kept on reading, because the last part of the book was amazing! The action really picked up, as did the romance. Swooning! I love enemies-to-lovers and slow burns, and the second half of this book definitely delivered in that! And the two main characters grew so much too. I rooted for Park from the start, but Cooper took me almost to the end to fully take to my heart. But now I’m completely invested in them both and their romance, and can’t wait to continue this series!

Rating:
3.5 stars rounding up to 4

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Charlie Adhara

This was such an adorable enemies-to-lovers magical teen story with amazing representation! A beautiful and sweet story about figuring out your bisexuality set at a magical boarding school, highly recommended for anyone who loves the combination of a cute queer story with some fantasy on the side!

The story is set at a magical boarding school somewhere below a glacier in New Zealand, where eighteen-year-old Tim Te Maro has just been dumped by his girlfriend and assigned to a life skill project to parent a magical egg together with his nemesis Elliot. But partnering up with his former enemy turns out not to be as bad as it first seems, when it comes with some extra benefits…

I really enjoyed this cute story about figuring out your bisexuality and the enemies-to-lovers trope is one of my absolute favorites! I loved both main characters and the way they opened up to each other and how they explored their sexuality together in such a kind, positive and healthy way, always ensuring the other’s consent. I also really loved all their diverse friends, the representation was simply amazing!

I would have wished for the enemies-part to have lasted a little longer though, and for the world building to have been a bit more developed, especially in regard to the magical system. I also had some issues with the pacing in the second half and how some of the major events remained open in the end.

But other than that, this was such a cute little gem! It gave me a lot of Carry On (SnowBaz) vibes and truly warmed my heart!

Thank you to NetGalley and Independent Publishers for the ARC of the book, which I have voluntarily reviewed.

Rating:
4 stars

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H.S. Valley

​This third book continues the epic urban fantasy Green Greek series. I love this series and its characters to pieces, but the storyline was a bit harder to get into in this book. With Robbie’s memory loss and the way the story was told, it was confusing at first and it took me almost half of the book to fully understand if it was a backstory or if the storyline continued right after the events in the second book. But the second half of Heartsong was pure magic and heartwrenching and back to the epicness of the other two books.

Robbie has lost his memory and has been taken care of a good witch (or is he really?), but he keeps having these dreams of running with wolves in an unknown forest. And sometimes he misses days without knowing what he did. And the children at the compound tells him he’s always blue, but he used to be happy. Before. (Before when?)

This time the story is told from Robbie’s POV, but since he’s not himself and doesn’t remember his pack or his love Kelly, it gets a bit confusing at time. I think I would have liked to enjoy the falling in love part of Robbie’s and Kelly’s romance first hand, not told in a backstory.

But about halfway in the book, the action really starts to pick up and the beloved pack is back in swing. Now with two new wolf members from the previous Team Human. And with all of them more hurt, more scared, older and cynical, being fractured even though there still is this enormous love between the pack members, and now also including the villagers. I loved how the human villagers were part of the story and how they were allowed to be heroes too, not just passive victims that needed protection from the wolves.

The pace was a bit slower this time, with Robbie’s struggling it was a lot one step forward and two steps back. But it only made me root more for the characters, especially Kelly. I appreciated the fact that Kelly is asexual and how T J Klune showed the beautiful love story between him and Robbie and how it was built on deeper emotions and affection.

Even though this book was full of pain and struggle, there was still a lot of fun and banter and that typical T J Klune humor. I loved that Jessie got a bigger part of the story this time and how she really showed all of her bad-ass self.

And the timber wolf finally revealing who he was… I’m even more excited for Carter’s story now! I’m both dreading and feverishly longing to read the epic finally of this magical, beautiful and absolutely heartwrenching series!

Rating:
4 stars

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T.J. Klune

If you love gay romances with a lot of steam set in the world of motorsport this is the perfect book for you! This book also has a little extra mystery subplot, and sweet family relations that will warm your heart.

Driven To Distraction is the first book in the new Gamble Racing series by Renée Dahlia. It’s a mm romance series set in the famous open-wheel single-seater car racing world (but due to copyright issues it goes under the name Series One aka S1), where each book will focus on different characters and their romances. This first book follows racing driver Ondrej D’Grieg, who was kicked out of his former team when it was revealed that he was gay, and who has decided to lay low in his new team and not let anything get in the way of his goal to be a champion just like his deceased mother. That is, until his father hires the historian Hudson Lockley to solve a mystery involving a missing rare car.

The attraction between Ondrej and Hudson is immediate and fierce, but they both have strong reasons to ignore it; Ondrej out of fear for losing sponsors and fans if he comes out, and for Hudson it’s a no-no to fall for his employer’s son. But some things are just inevitable and one night turns into several, and perhaps even more…

I really rooted for both Ondrej and Hudson right from the start, as well as for several of the other characters. There were a lot of amazing relationships in this book. The father-son relationship between Ondrej and his father was such a sweet and relatable one, with Ondrej’s dad both supporting his son’s career choice and dreading the same fate that killed his racing wife, as well as both wanting Ondrej to find love and happiness, and fearing the consequences of it. I also really loved the relationship between Hudson and his sister, who kept pushing, teasing and supporting him with a truly heartwarming big sister love.

But unfortunately, even though I rooted for both Ondrej and Hudson as characters, I never felt fully invested in their relationship. Mainly because of the dominant and submissive elements that were bordering to toxic, in my opinion. (And in Hudson’s sister’s opinion too, since she kept pointing out how Ondrej treated Hudson like a pet, only calling when he needed him and ignoring him the rest of the time.) Especially the sex scenes had too much of that dominant-submissive aspect for me. Generally, I had some issues with how much sex there was in this book, and how explicit it was. If you enjoy spicy romances, you’re in for a treat, but for me personally I felt that all the sex diminished the story itself. For a large part in the middle of the book, it felt like the story was only about Ondrej requesting Hudson to come over, and Hudson immediately obeying, the two of them saying a few words and then just hooking up and hooking up and… To be honest I skimmed some of the parts that were just a little too long and too detailed. I wish that we could have gotten some more dialogues, more of Ondrej showing his vulnerability and more of Hudson’s work with the mysteriously missing car instead. This subplot was so intriguing that it very well could have played a larger role in the story; now it was more used as a reason for Ondrej and Hudson to meet. I really enjoyed how it was solved, but there could have been so much more build-up for that, and Hudson’s investigations could also have been used as a way to balance the relationship between him and Ondrej. If Hudson’s investigations and his professional work had been given focus and value, I think it would have made Hudson feel more as an equal to Ondrej than his toy.

But with those objections set aside, I nevertheless enjoyed this book a lot! I cared a lot for Ondrej and Hudson as characters, and my heart ached for them having to endure so much hardships in their lives, but still having such big hearts.  Being a big F1 fan, I was also truly impressed with all the research Renée Dahlia must have done to get all details correct and make the setting so authentic. But on the other hand, even though the story took place in the racing world, you don’t need to be interested in racing or cars to appreciate this book. The racing world was more of a backdrop to the romance, the issues about being able to be who you are and the scary but wonderful thing called love.

I also enjoyed the subplot with the car mystery (even though I’d love more of it). This part of the story was actually based on true story about the Bugatti that was the win in the 1937 Le Mans race and that was later gifted to the winner’s friend, but that disappeared during WWII. A very fascinating story!
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All in all, if you love some steam, this is the perfect book for you, but even if you don’t it’s a great story with wonderful characters, fun sibling banter and an intriguing mystery subplot.

Thank you so much to the author Renée Dahlia for the free review copy. All opinions are my own and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily.

Rating:
3.5 stars rounding up to 4.

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Renée Dahlia