Audiobook Review: Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber

Pub. Date:	July 16, 2019
Publisher:	MacMillan Audio
Narrators:	Stephanie Willia Bethany Lind Nicholas Techosky
Length:	11 hrs 46 min
Source:	Publisher

Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe is my first read by Heather Webber, and it certainly won't be my last. I found this to be a sweet story with touches of romance and mysticism, and I loved the small town southern setting of Wicklow, Alabama. (Can I get one of those t-shirts???)

Audiobook Review: Under Currents by Nora Roberts

Pub. Date:	July 9, 2019
Publisher:	MacMillan Audio
Narrator:	January LaVoy
Length:	14 hrs 36 min
Source:	Publisher

Wow, Nora Roberts certainly knows how to create character connections. This book grabbed my emotional strings from the first chapter and just would not let go. I will put a little warning out there that this book may have triggers for abuse victims, but it was a wonderful story of survival, resilience, hope and family. It was definitely an audiobook that I didn't want to put down, and I found myself stealing a minute here and there so I could find out what happened next.

ARC Review: Fire & Earth by A.D. Starrling

Series:	Legion #2
Pub. Date:	July 25, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	280 pgs
Source:	Author

I've been a huge fan of A.D. Starrling and her brainy books for a while now, so I'm always happy when a new one lands in my inbox. The Legion series is technically a spinoff of the Seventeen series (one of my favorites), but I don't think its absolutely necessary to start with Seventeen. Honestly, I can't exactly remember how it spins off, but I know I realized it in the first book... my brain is just getting too old to remember details in between book releases. I obviously need to take and keep better notes! You will need to read this series in order, however, as there is a continuing story arc that needs to be followed closely.

ARC Review: Protect the Prince by Jennifer Estep

Series:	Crown of Shards #2
Pub. Date:	July 2, 2019
Publisher:	Harper Voyager
Length:	448 pgs
Source:	Edelweiss

Magic. Murder. Mayhem. Romance. That certainly sums up this series in four words. When I started Protect the Prince, I was a little worried that I wasn't going to remember enough of what happened in Kill the Queen to enjoy the story. However, Estep did a good job at putting in subtle (and not so subtle) reminders so that everything started coming back to me fairly quickly. This is definitely a series that must be read in order, as it's a continuing story arc. So this review will contain spoilers for the first book, Kill the Queen, so proceed at your own risk. 

ARC Review: Wolf Rain by Nalini Singh

Series:	Psy-Changeling #18 Psy-Changeling Trinity #3
Pub. Date:	June 4, 2019
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	416 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

I don't think I've ever read a bad, or even mediocre book in the Psy-Changeling series, or by Nalini Singh in general. The Psy-Changeling Trinity series has been extra interesting as we navigate the alliance among the Psy, Changelings and Humans. I have enjoyed expanding into some of the different changeling groups... but also loved coming back to our favorite wolf pack with this latest installment, Wolf Rain.

ARC Review: The Breakdown by B.A. Paris

Pub. Date:	July 18, 2017
Publisher:	St. Martin's Press
Length:	337 pgs
Source:	Publisher

I have been a fan of B.A. Paris from the outset, with her debut novel Behind Closed Doors. If you enjoy psychological thrillers that really turn your head upside down, I highly recommend this author. I'm only sorry that it's taking me so long to read her subsequent works, and that this one sat on my shelf long enough to constitute a blogger shame book. So I apologize to both the author and the publisher here for getting so far behind!

Audiobook Review: Fireborn by Katie MacAlister

Series:	Born Prophecy #1
Pub. Date:	Nov 20, 2018 June 11, 2019
Publishers:	Tantor Audio Kensington
Narrator:	Zehra Jane Naqvi
Length:	10 hrs 1 min 298 pgs
Source:	Hoopla / NetGalley

I had this book in my TBR on Hoopla when I saw it come across my NetGalley feed, and realized that Kensington was doing a re-release this past June. That having renewed my interest, I decided it would be a good time to do an audio/print read along, so I snatched this one up. Unfortunately, life and work travel got in the way that prevented me from getting the book read (and reviewed) prior to that re-release date... which seems to be the story of my life this year. But I'm glad I finally got to enjoy the story and meet a new cast of characters from Katie MacAlister.

ARC Review: The Evil Queen by Gena Showalter

Series:	Forest of Good and Evil #1
Pub. Date:	June 25, 2019
Publisher:	Inkyard Press
Length:	544 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

The Evil Queen is the first installment of the Forest of Good and Evil series, which will apparently be a retelling or reimagination of our favorite fairytales a la Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, etc. 

ARC Review: Shadow Warrior by Christine Feehan

Series:	Shadow Riders #4
Pub. Date:	June 4, 2019
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	432 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

The Shadow Riders is such a unique series that I feel refreshed and get sucked in every time I pick up one of the books. With all the travel I've been doing, I was stoked to get to this one in the line up right before a hellish day of delayed flights and being squeezed into the tiny rows and uncomfortable seats of turbulent airplanes.

ARC Review: The Tiger Catcher by Paullina Simons

Series:	End of Forever #1
Pub. Date:	May 28, 2019
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Length:	464 pgs
Source:	Publisher

Despite having The Bronze Horseman on my TBR list for years, this is actually my first read by Paullina Simons. I have heard great things about her writing, so I figured I couldn't let a new series by her pass me up. I wasn't sure what to expect... but man, did this book put me through the ringer!

ARC Review: The Beyond by Chloe Neill

Series:	Devil's Isle #4
Pub. Date:	June 4, 2019
Publisher:	Berkley
Length:	336 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

It's always a happy-sad moment when you come to the end of a series, and The Beyond, the final installment of the Devil's Isle series, is no exception. After living in New Orleans (and moving away a couple years ago), Devil's Isle has held a special place in my heart. Chloe Neill is also an author who does New Orleans right... even though Devil's Isle is somewhat post-magical apocalypse, Neill is spot on with her New Orleans layout and history. I have loved her re-imagining of New Orleans in this series.

ARC Review: Dragon Fire by Juliette Cross

Series:	Vale of Stars #3
Pub. Date:	April 30, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	289 pgs
Source:	Author

 

Oh Man, I just love the way Juliette Cross does a growly dragony alpha male. I got interrupted reading this one due to things going crazy at work... so I actually restarted it this morning on my flight to New Orleans so I would get the full effect of Kieran Moonring from start to finish. It totally made my early morning flight go by in a blink.

Audiobook Review: Sleepless in Scotland by May McGoldrick

Series:	Pennington Family #3
Pub. Date:	March 19, 2019
Publisher:	Macmillan Audio
Narrator:	Saskia Maarleveld
Length:	7 hrs 51 min
Source:	Publisher

Sleepless in Scotland is the third installment of The Pennington Family series, but my first read from May McGoldrick. If you are just starting out with this author, like me, I felt like the book read fine as a standalone. Though now I do plan to go back and read/listen to the earlier installments, as I enjoyed this one.

ARC Review: Lonen's Reign by Jeffe Kennedy

Series:	Sorcerous Moons #6
Pub. Date:	March 20, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	151 pgs
Source:	Author

What a happy sad moment to finish this final book of the Sorcerous Moons series. I have had such a good time getting to know Oria and Lonen, seeing them evolve, grow their relationship, and win the trust of two races of people.

ARC Review: Blood & Bones by A.D. Starrling

Series:	Legion #1
Pub. Date:	March 26, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	279 pgs
Source:	Author

If you know me, you know that I am a huge fan of the Seventeen series, and A.D. Starrling in general. So I was super excited to learn that the Seventeen series was getting a spinoff. Shockingly, I didn't really realize that this was the actual spinoff until I was pretty far into the book. Starrling is introducing a whole host of new characters at once, and I didn't immediately connect anything to the prior series.

ARC Review: Down & Dirty by Rhenna Morgan

Series:	Men of Haven #6
Pub. Date:	March 11, 2019
Publisher:	Carina Press
Length:	368 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

Welp. Here's another book for my favorites shelf. That's not really surprising given how much I have been raving about this delicious hero as we waited for his story throughout the series. It killed me to not be able to devour this book in one sitting - but work kept getting in the way and this review is way later than I expected it to be. But it was kinda nice to spend a little time with the book each night before I fell into bed... too bad I didn't have an Axel there to "run lines" with. ;)

ARC Review: Space by Penny Reid

Series:	Laws of Physics #2
Pub. Date:	March 12, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	226 pgs
Source:	Author

So Motion left us with a huge cliffhanger that I'm sure had many people screaming at their kindles. So now that it's 2.5 years later, I was dying to see what would happen when Mona and Abram meet again. And what better place for a surprise run-in than a snowed-in cabin in Aspen?

Audiobook Review: Iron and Magic by Ilona Andrews

Series:	Iron Covenant #1
Pub. Date:	July 19, 2018
Publisher:	NYLA
Narrator:	Steve West
Length:	12 hrs 51 min
Source:	Audible

So I kinda let Hugh slip through the cracks and let this audiobook sit on my to-read shelf for longer than I intended. I even finished the Kate Daniels series before checking out Hugh's story - and I was kicking myself back at the time for not reading this book before Kate and Curran battled Roland.

ARC Review: Diary of a Bad Boy by Meghan Quinn

Pub. Date:	March 5, 2019
Publisher:	Self-Pub
Length:	371 pgs
Source:	InkslingrPR

I am a fan of Meghan Quinn's romantic comedies, and I haven't experienced one in a while, so I thought I would give this new contemporary romance a shot. I mean... bad boys and books from their POV seem right up my alley. So while this one wasn't a rom com, it still kept me entertained and had a drool-worthy hero to get my imagination going.

ARC Review: Devil's Daughter by Lisa Kleypas

Series:	Ravenels #5
Pub. Date:	Feb 19, 2019
Publisher:	Avon
Length:	384 pgs
Source:	Publisher

Oh man, I think we may be out of Ravenels... or close to anyway. I really love this family. They have all been so interesting and likable... but I have particularly liked the Ravenel men. Reformed rakes, the lot of them. And there is just something appealing about a former bad boy that catches my attention.