Sabotage by Shantel Tessier–Review

Straight out of the gate, beware of the trigger warnings. Shantel Tessier does a good job of explaining what they are. There are dark romances and then there are the other dark romances that make ‘dark’ romances seem sunny and bright. This isn’t sunny and bright.

From the first word in the prologue, you know that you are headed for some hot, steamy, and dare I say, erotic times. Colton and Raylee are stepsiblings with a vehement hatred for each other. It’s not clearly explained why they hate each other so much, just that as stepsiblings they do. Because of this, there is a flowing push/pull thread weaved throughout the book.

If you like hot, steamy, yet degraded, and submissive heroines, then Raylee is your girl. If you like over-the-top, alpha, and uber possessive (she’s mine and you can’t have her) heroes, there is Colton. Beyond that, I had trouble finding a plotline. The storyline itself was hit and miss. There were certain situations that just happened, but it didn’t make sense overall, nor had a resolution to some.

I have read other books from Shantel and have loved them, yet it saddens me that Sabotage was just kind of there and I read it because it was available. I will continue to her read books, but this one just didn’t hit the mark for me.

Hush, Hush by Lucia Franco–Review

Knock, knock…Please, enter into the world of hot, steamy, seductive, and oh, so forbidden, but I must warn you, leave your morals at the door!!

Aubrey is our heroine. She is your average twenty-one-year-old college student who lives with her best friend, loves her Grammy more than anything, and is trying to finish her senior year while struggling at two jobs to keep her and Grammy afloat.

Aubrey is your typical college senior, trying to figure out what she’s going to do with her life. She comes from nothing and is resolute that she most likely will have nothing (financially speaking). Her BFF, Natalie, is in the opposite boat. She has a trust fund but refuses to use it and does whatever she wants/can to live in the life of luxury that she is used to. Aubrey begins to like the perks she experiences while going out with Natalie and money soon becomes prominent is her pursuit of living. Aubrey is presented with what could potentially be a financial windfall, but it comes with one stipulation, leave your morals at the door.

Ok, so I’m going to upfront and honest here. I have sat on this review for a while, simply because I had no idea what I was going to say or how I was going to rate it. I’m not a prude, so that wasn’t my issue, although, there were a couple things that raised the ‘ole eyebrow. I had such a hard time getting into the book until about 52%. The first half was slow and disjointed and quite frankly, Aubrey annoyed me. She wasn’t a heroine I could get behind. The second half moved a little quicker, but we are also finally introduced to the hero and a big ole secret.

I have heard nothing but good things about this author and even though this is my first book of hers, I would be willing to try again.

Escort by Skye Warren–Review

I don’t know where to start on this one really. I am very conflicted, while I normally LOVE Skye Warren’s writing, Escort was a little different for me.

I loved the characters, Hugo and Bea, especially Bea. Bea is the sheltered, agoraphobic virgin who hires Hugo to de-flower her, because of a specific reason. However, upon meeting Bea, Hugo is hooked from her looks to her sweet, pure and innocent soul. She is a phenomenal pianist who has the ability to take any song and make it her own. For someone who is afraid to go outside, she has a YouTube channel with millions of followers where she showcases her music.

Hugo (as you can guess) is an escort. He appears to have it all, with wealth, looks, charm and the ability to make any women feel good. What he is lacking though is his sense of self-worth. He is used to feeling empty and alone. What he isn’t used to is this sweet and charming individual to be able to read him like a book. He soon finds himself falling hard.

“They aren’t asking about Hugo Bellmont, the man. They want the persona. That’s all I have to give them, anyway.”

Hugo and Bea are falling hard for each other, doing things that neither thought they could do and have a true and genuine connection. I loved their easygoing nature and witty banter between them. It was easy to root for them as a couple.

Now, I’m going to preface this next part by saying, I was experiencing a migraine while reading some of this story and don’t know how much it influenced some of my feelings. I felt slightly disconnected with certain aspects of the story. When it was just Bea and Hugo…5 stars excellent. When additional characters were brought in, I’m not sure I understood the need for them and the storyline they presented. I have to say, I’m iffy when it comes to this aspect.

That aside, Skye Warren, did a great job of bringing her main characters to life, full of emotion! Normally, I love her stories and writing, but something just seemed amiss. 🤷‍♀️

Lake + Manning by Jessica Hawkins–Review

Manning and I have what happily-ever-after is made of . . .
A home he built us on the unshakeable foundation we fought for.
A life of laughter carved out of heartache and betrayal.
A love story to stand the test of time.But between a trust that can’t be broken, joy that can’t be bridled, and passion that would scorch the sun, the empty spaces are becoming more and more difficult to ignore . . .
Fears that keep Manning up at night as he slips from our bed.
Our complicated relationship with a man he respects and one I don’t know how to forgive.
And a sprawling, beautiful home with one small room I’m afraid I’ll never be able to fill.
 
Manning and I have what happily-ever-after is made of . . . 
But I’ll beg the heavens for just one thing more.

 

I have a feeling, I’m going to be in the minority here, so here it goes. I didn’t love it, but I didn’t completely hate it either. Move the Stars had a completely unique ending for Lake and Manning. The concept of ending at their beginning, while although frustrating at the time because I wanted more, was in retrospect done beautifully.

I was one of those people that had wanted more of Lake and Manning. So, when I heard there would be a book 4, I was completely excited to get that glimpse into their future. I was intrigued as to where things could go from the ending of Move the Stars.

Lake + Manning is almost told as little vignettes. I had to keep highlighting where they were in their life (season and year) and then do the math in my head to determine their age. It was slightly frustrating and distracting. It felt choppy and lacking flow.

I still don’t like Tiffany, nor did I like her story. It felt like Jessica had tried to write her as a mature adult (thirty-eight ish), but she didn’t come across that way. Family still treated her with kid gloves and waited for her to ‘blow up’ at any minute. It appeared that the storyline perpetuated the rivalry between the sisters (Tiffany did something first before Lake that she desperately wanted). I just didn’t like this.

What I did like was Lake and Manning themselves. I loved reading about their future and life as a wedded couple. Yes, they were happy together, but still had to go through everyday issues. Their coveted happily ever after is achieved with hard work, love and communication. I was perfectly content with the true official ending and was happy with the way it ended. I feel like I, as a reader, finally had achieved that ‘Aww’ moment on the last page.