Review: Blood of the Orc Prince by Lionel Hart

 

This is the book that follows Claimed by the Orc Prince. There will be spoilers for the first book so if you don't want those, go ahead and skip this post. 

In this book, we are still following Zorvut and Taegan. However, now war has broken out between the Elves and Orcs. Zorvut wants to find his human father to see if he can train him to properly use his magic. The couple ventures out of the Elven kingdom and embark on a long journey to a port town where Zorvut's father lives. As Zorvut is learning magic, Taegan feels a strain on their relationship forming. He's worried and homesick which leads him to do something very stupid. 

I didn't like this book as much as I liked the first one. I still really like the relationship between Zorvut and Taegan, but this book dragged on. There wasn't as much plot/action until the very end of the book. It was a lot of Taegan talking about how lonely he was and Zorvut doing magic. With that being said, I still like this book and am planning on reading the last book in the series. 

I suspect that the last book will pick up on the plot and adventure given where this one left off. I'm excited to see what happens to this couple and finish their journey with them. I think I will also try some of Lionel Hart's other works because I did enjoy these books. 

For content warnings, this book does contain adult sexual content (there's not a ton of it in it, but it is pretty spicy), there is bodily harm, and more. StoryGraph doesn't have very many content warnings, but I do always recommend checking there before reading. 

If you would like to purchase this book and contribute to my reviews, you can purchase it from Bookshop.org where I get a percentage of your purchase. 

As always, happy reading and I will see you soon with more reviews. 

Review: Claimed by the Orc Prince by Lionel Hart

 

As a part of the Trans Rights Readathon I participated in at the end of March, I read this book and the second one. The author of this book is a transman. I believe he has three series all of which are men together. This book does not contain a transgender character, but I believe one of his other books does have a trans main character. 

This story follows an elven prince, Taegan, who is arranged to marry an orc prince, Zorvut. Taegan is apprehensive about this because he's been raised to believe he'd fight orcs one day, but now he's marrying one in order to establish peace between their species. Another issue is that Taegan has a lover who is very upset about this arrangement and unwilling to listen to Taegan and step back. 

Taegan and Zorvut get married and begin their life together. There's a lot of awkwardness at first and miscommunication. However, the two begin to grow closer to one another. They begin to engage in intimate relations (spice level I would say is moderate to high). They bond increasingly and realize that they are different from what they expected. 

Of course, as they are falling for each other, issues come up that threaten to pull them apart. 

I really enjoyed this book. I liked the fantasy elements in it. I really loved the sweetness of the relationship between the two as they grow closer (that's not a spoiler, this is a romance, that's what happens in romances). I feel like it's a very sweet, cozy romance. Although the ending does get a bit more intense. 

For content warnings, I would say sexual content, violence, discrimination based on fantasy species, and more. Be sure to check out StoryGraph for a full list of possible content warnings as provided by other readers. This book is available as of writing this on Kindle Unlimited as well as the other books in the series. 

If you'd like to purchase this book, you can do so and support me as well as a company that is not Amazon by buying it from Bookshop.org. 

As always, happy reading, and I will see y'all soon as I catch up on my backlog of book reviews. 

Review: Woman of the Year by Darcey Bell

 

Due to FTC regulations, I do have to disclose that I received this book from Simon & Schuster for free as a part of their Book Club Favorites program. I appreciate their sending me this book so I could read and review it for y'all. 

Some of y'all may already be familiar with Darcey Bell's work. Her book A Simple Favor was turned into a movie in 2018 starring Blake Lively and Ann Kendrick. I had not read this book or watched the movie prior to reading Woman of the Year. 

What intrigued me about this book was the description of a "crazy" cat lady bent on revenge going after a former college friend who received the Woman of the Year award. I was not expecting the wild ride this book took me on. 

This book follows Lorelei, a former psychology student, and current unemployed cat parent. We start with Lorelei after the events of her story have already occurred and follow along with her journey. The entire time I was reading this book, I couldn't figure out if I liked it. To be completely honest, I'm still not sure. I read it very quickly so it wasn't horrible. It was just strange and parts of it were way more interesting than others. In this book, Lorelei talks about the death of her former friend Holly who won the Woman of the Year award, but she didn't kill her (she says). She then jumps back and forth between the present and her college days as she explains why she had this hatred for her former friend. 

Lorelei had a relationship with a professor which she says led to her falling out with Holly and her eventual departure from college right before her last semester. I found the story of her college experience to be far more interesting than the rest of the book and in fact, would've much preferred that had been the focus of the story. It reminded me somewhat of My Dark Vanessa (another book I read and reviewed on the blog) which is a book that jumps between past and present detailing the inappropriate relationship a high school girl had with her teacher. The vibes were somewhat similar although Lorelei was an adult at the time of her relationship with her teacher. 

I won't give spoilers, but I will say that Lorelei believes her professor and Holly conspired against her and did something awful. However, it is very unclear if Holly actually participated in the act Lorelei believes she participated in. It's also unclear if Lorelei is actually a reliable narrator or if her mind has been too twisted by delusions to tell the real story. 

When I read the description, I thought the part about her cat would be something cute, but it seemed to take up way more of the book than I would have liked. Her only personality traits were her cat and wanting revenge which made her a very boring character. 

I will say this, the book was entertaining. The twist was unexpected which is what we want in a thriller. There were things that were said that made me a little uncomfortable and had me researching if the author had gotten in trouble for problematic behavior prior (as far as I can tell she hasn't). I think if you want a quick read that doesn't require too much thinking and you're okay with most of your questions being unanswered, this is a fun read. 

There are content warnings present in this book such as adult sexual content, mentions of sexual assault, mentions of animal abuse, mentions of immoral psychological experimentation, and more. As always, check out StoryGraph for a better list of content warnings as provided by other readers. 

Again if you use my Bookshop.org link to purchase this book, I do get a percentage of the sale. 

As always, happy reading, and I will see y'all soon. 

Review: That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf by Kimberly Lemming

 

This is yet another Kimberly Lemming book. Check out my review of That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon if you haven't already. 

In this book, Cinnamon's friend Brie finds herself getting unwanted advances from her neighbor and when he attempts to get her with a love potion, she accidentally throws it at Felix, the werewolf. Felix instantly falls in love with Brie thanks to the potion and declares she's his fated mate. The main problem is that the love potion is likely why he feels this way and they tend to do serious damage to the person who takes it. 

Felix is all over Brie, entering her home (kind of uninvited), and obsessing over her. Brie on the other hand finds herself starting to fall for Felix, but needing to break this love potion, she consults with her friends on how to break the curse. In their efforts to remove the spell, things get a little hot and heavy and a tentacle monster is accidentally summoned. As things get more complicated between the two of them, women are going missing in the village as well and it's up to them and their friends to figure out what is going on. 

Lemming is a hilariously funny writer. Her characters are relatable, her fantasy is interesting, and her sexy scenes are spicy. I found myself highlighting way more quotes in this book than I did in the last one as I laughed uncontrollably throughout the read. 

This book does contain adult content, bodily harm, kidnapping, and more. Please check StoryGraph for a full list of possible content warnings as provided by other readers. 

As always, happy reading. 

Review: The Death God's Sacrifice by Jenny Nordbak

 

I recieved this book with a Kickstarted I bought back in October. It's the Peculiar Tastes Kickstarter that Bonkers Romance did. If you'd like to see a video of the books and art I received, an unboxing video is available on my Youtube channel. 

This is the first Jenny Nordbak book I've read and I absolutely loved it. We follow Stheno, older sister of Medusa, and monster slayer. She has been tasked with killing a druid in order to save her younger sister from Medusa's killer Perseus. Stheno agrees to be a sacrifice to the druid, but is drugged with and aphrodesiac powder. She and the druid engage in adult relations before she is able to kill him. She fails her task because of this, but manages to turn him to stone and run off to try to save her sister. On her way back, she finds Perseus who of course fights her. But then the druid isn't as dead as she thought. He fights Perseus and returns Stheno to his home. He makes a deal with Perseus to get Stheno's sister back but it means she and the druid will be staying with each other for the next two days. 

As the two spend more time together, Stheno has to decide if she's going to let this man in. She's attracted to him, he's kind, but can she really let herself weaken for a man? 

I really enjoyed this book. I liked Stheno's badass character traits and feirce love for her sisters. The druid's Scottish accent was delicious as well and his protective characteristics very sweet. I enjoyed the story building and mythology present in this book as well. It was a very quick read for me, I finished over 50% of it in a day and the rest I finished the day after. If you're looking for something, quick, spicy, and interesting, I'd recommend this book to you. 

As always I would recommend checking content warnings before reading. Content warnings include but are not limited to murder, violence, blood, adult intimate relations, and more. I recommend checking out StoryGraph for a full list of content warnings as provided by other readers. 

Happy reading and I will see you soon. 

Trans Rights Readathon

 

I am so excited to say I read five books for the #TransRightsReadathon! It has given me much hope and energy to see the bookish community come together to read for a good cause. Trans rights are on the line right now. 

For those of you who don't know, I'm from Texas and today the Texas House Public Health Committee is hearing House Bill 1686. HB 1686 is a bill that will prevent transgender youth from accessing the gender-affirming healthcare they need. For those who don't understand what it means to be trans, this may not seem like a big deal, but it is deadly. The likelihood that this will lead to an increase in trans youth being susceptible to people who would harm them as well as trans youth suicide rates increasing in Texas is high. 

Because I am a Texan, a queer Texan, I decided that I would donate $5 per book I read for this readathon to the Transgender Education Network of Texas (click "Support our work" to donate). I would very much appreciate those who would consider making similar donations to TENT or other Texas organizations dedicated to fighting for trans people. If you are looking for other ways to help fight HB 1686, you can attend the rally at the Capital at 1pm today. You can call the Committee Chairperson: Representative Stephanie Klick at (512)-463-0599. You can use this link to email committee members. You can also drop a card (instructions for dropping a card). (Information thanks to Texas Freedom Network)

Together we can fight unjust laws from being passed in our communities, states, and country. It is our job to stand up when injustice persists. Please remember that although my focus, in this case, was on the trans rights of Texans being threatened, anti-trans bills exist across the country. Furthermore, a plethora of bills fueled by hate for marginalized communities are being debated and in some cases put into place across the country. We must be vigilant. We have seen that when laws are filled with hate and fear of marginalized people, atrocities take place. 

I highly recommend staying on top of threats to our civil liberties by keeping track of the issues the ACLU is fighting and reporting on. Remember that it is far easier and far less energy-consuming to love others than to hate them. 

Review: I'm in Love With Mothman by Paige Lavoie

 

I've been excited about this book since I first heard about it on Booktok. Mothman, a queer icon plus romance? Yes, please. As many people know, Mothman is a cryptid with its own statue in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. A statue that I have not seen personally, but I hear has a nice butt. Mothman has captured the hearts of many a queer and many a monster lover. People just really want to get with Mothman and obviously, I'm here for it. 

Heather is a social media influencer, but not just any influencer, she's a mommy blog baby grown up and turned influencer. She's spent the entirety of her life behind or in front of the camera, documenting every bad hair day, breakfast, and break up. Influencing seems like the dream job. You can work from home, you get to do fun things for a living, you get lots of free stuff, and love from fans. However, Heather is exhausted from sharing every detail of her life. She finally decides enough is enough and impulsively buys a cabin in the middle of the woods and moves to it. 

Heather is a city girl and doesn't really know herself outside influencing, but now she's determined to figure it out. She makes some small-town friends and begins to feel more confident about her decision. Of course, she then makes the ridiculous choice to climb a tree. And when I say climb a tree I don't mean one or two branches, this girl decides to climb to the top of a tree. In a skirt and stylish boots. (I wish I could say that this isn't something I would do, but as a once tree climber and a stubborn person, I know I'd probably at least try to do the same). Once she climbs the tree, there's no getting down, so she plummets. Lucky for her, a mysterious forest monster saves her from death. 

Later when the same forest monster winds up hurt on her property, she brings him in to nurse him back to health. As she grows closer to him, there's only one problem, one of her friends is a monster hunter and he's determined to get her monster. 

This book was a great balance of silly, emotional, romantic, and cottage core. I liked the characters, except for Chris, we hate Chris. It's a good representation of a mid-size or possibly plus-size character (it's not specified) and a person with a chronic illness (thyroid issues). Mothman is a lovable yet strange character and honestly, I want to be him. 

This book does contain adult content but it is pretty tame compared to a lot of the other books I read. It's descriptive of adult intimacy but in a more vague way. Content warnings for this book include but are not limited to adult sexual content, gun use, injury, discussion of self-images and body image issues, and more. As always I turn my readers towards Storygraph for a list of content warnings as provided by other readers. 

I would love it if you'd purchase this book on my Bookshop.org page. This allows me to get a percentage of the profit from your purchase of the book and it is a great alternative to Amazon. As always happy reading and I will see y'all soon. 

Review: That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming

I've been meaning to read this book for quite some time, but I finally got around to it with a mutual's Monster Mash March idea. 

When I started this book, I knew from the first sentence I was going to enjoy it. Being drunk, looking for cheese, and trying to stumble home, now that's my kind of heroine. Cinnamon wanted a simple life living on her family's spice farm and enjoying their company, but life had other plans for her. On her stumble home, she finds a man in need of help but when she helps him he jumps up and chases her. Realizing she's just helped a demon, she knows her life is in danger. Her only hope is to run through the cinnamon maze and hope she gets to her parent's house in time. Luckily, she does and she barricades herself inside the house. This of course gets her teased by her family but better teased than killed by a demon. 

They don't believe a demon has chased her, but as they're eating breakfast he pops his horned head in through the window. He explains that their Goddess is who she says she is and he needs Cinnamon's help to get rid of her. With the threat of her family being in danger, Cinnamon agrees to help this demon man, Fallon. The two set off on a quest, but when it's finished, Cinnamon explains it'll take more to get rid of the false Goddess and Fallon tells her she has to come with him for the entire journey. Close proximity to a hot demon does things to Cinnamon's head and as they journey together she is unable to pretend she's not attracted to him. The two meet more friends along the way and the story gets more fantastical. 

I absolutely loved the world in this book as well as the fantastical elements of different kinds of demons (shifters, centaurs, etc). Lemming writes in a way that is funny and relatable. Her characters are the realistic side of a hero's journey, specifically Cinnamon, the hero that just wants to get back to her life. I found myself laughing out loud, gasping, and getting those schoolgirl feelings. For me, this book was basically reading happiness. If I could read only it and do nothing else, I'm pretty sure all my problems would be cured. 

I'm excited to read the second book as well as the third one when it comes out later this year. Lemming is a fantastic writer and very quickly managed to get into my top three favorite authors list. (It's Katee Robert, Kimberly Lemming, and Elle Marr for those of you interested).  If you want something adventurous, fun, and sexy, I highly recommend checking this book out. 

This book contains adult content, so you should be aware of it before reading it. For content warnings, I would say violence, drinking, intimate adult relations, and more. As always I point my readers toward StoryGraph for a full list of possible content warnings. 

This book is available currently on Kindle Unlimited and can be bought on Bookshop.org where I have an affiliate code. 

Happy reading and I'll see y'all soon with more reviews. 

Trans Rights Readathon

 As many people know, the transgender community is currently under threat in most US states. There are hundreds of anti-trans bills that the community is trying to combat. The bookish community has decided to rally together and do what we can to make a difference for transgender, nonbinary, and other gender-nonconforming individuals. From March 20th to March 27th, participating readers will read books by trans authors. In addition to this, it is a readathon so we will be donating to transgender organizations. Each participant is able to choose their own organization but some big ones would be the National Center for Transgender Equality, the Transgender Law Center, the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund, the Trans Youth Equality Foundation, and more. Many participants are choosing to donate to organizations in their home states or cities. 

I have decided to support the Transgender Education Network of Texas and will be donating $5 for each finished book between the 20th to the 27th. I have also made a few purchases of books by transgender authors to help the community in that way. I am asking that my family, friends, and followers participate in the reading challenge or if possible contribute a monetary donation to a transgender rights organization. Together we can make a change for people in our communities. 

For me, this issue hits home. I have many trans and nonbinary friends and family members and identify as a gender-nonconforming person myself. Many trans people are going to be able to move out of unsafe states but many more will not be able to. Furthermore, if the country continues down the path it is going I fear that transgender rights will be threatened across the nation. We can not be quiet when marginalized members of our community are attacked. Everyone deserves to be able to live and present in their body in a way that makes them most comfortable. 

In my home state of Texas, the situation is particularly dire. Transgender children are already being denied affirmative care and parents who attempt to provide them with it are being investigated by Child Protective Services. It is likely that adults will face a loss of access to affirmative care in the near future. Transgender people are already killed at high rates in the state of Texas and the "Gay Panic" law remains in place allowing people to get away with murdering or attacking LGBTQIA+ individuals if they believe they are threatened by them. Black trans women are killed at high rates in the state of Texas. We have a lively queer community in the state, but with more rights under attack, that community is likely to dwindle. 

I hope you will consider reading or donating to the cause. Even making a purchase of a book by one or two trans authors is a big help. 

You can head over to my Bookshop.org list to find a list of books by trans authors. I will be adding more to the list soon, but the current ones are ones I've read or that I'm planning to read for the readathon. 

Review: What We Never Say by Paulette Stout

 

I received this book for review from Reedsy Discovery which is a company I occasionally do book reviews for. The review itself follows the review guidelines of Reedsy. I will say I really enjoyed this book. It was very well written and dealt with a topic that is important to me. 

Rebecca and Kyle are seemingly doing great until a magazine publishes a picture from Kyle's modeling days and he finally has to reveal his traumatic past to Rebecca. Dealing with Kyle's assault and getting him the help he needs isn't the only thing on their plates though, Rebecca runs a blog that helps women learn to have pleasurable sex. That blog suddenly gets attention from the same magazine that published Kyle's photo, the same magazine where Kyle's abuser works. Rebecca is asked to write for the company and despite Kyle's warning, agrees to do so. Although Rebecca enjoys helping women, she's unknowingly opened herself and Kyle up to his abuser's influence once again. As things get increasingly worse, the couple has to decide what they will do. Will Kyle come out with his story? Will Rebecca be exposed and lose her job?

I enjoyed this book despite the serious topic. I found that Stout was able to handle writing about the sexual violence men face in a respectful and impactful way. This is a story we don't often hear, but it's an important one to get out there. I appreciated the relationship dynamic between Kyle and Rebecca. They were extremely supportive of each other: Kyle supported Rebecca with her sexual struggles and Rebecca supported him with the abuse he faced as a young man. We often don't see stories about men who are victims of sexual violence and more often don't see them in our lives. As someone who knows multiple men who were victims of sexual violence perpetrated by women, I am very appreciative of this story. I think Kyle's journey to finally admitting what happened, seeing a therapist, and eventually coming out with the truth is one that can help survivors like him. Many survivors are unable to get justice and I believe this book will be cathartic for them. The depictions of healthy friendships and relationships were also an important balance in this book. It's good to see survivors who are able to continue to connect with other people and live successful lives as the ones in this book did.

I would recommend this book to readers who are interested in women's issues, sexual violence against men, and similar issues. This book does contain heavy content so that is something to be aware of before reading. Content warnings include but are not limited to descriptions of sexual violence, manipulation, blackmail, on-page unwanted sexual content, discussions of orgasms and other sexual content, and consensual sexual relations. Please ensure you are prepared to read this kind of content before consumption. I think this is an important book to read and highly recommend it.

As always, happy reading!

Interested in Becoming a Book Reviewer

Ever thought that book reviewing might be something you're interested in but you're not sure where to start? Or maybe you're already a reviewer but you want to get a little bit more serious? 

I review on Reedsy Discovery which is a company that allows authors to submit their books to be reviewed on their site. I have now read and reviewed four books for this company and I've really enjoyed it. I have another book review for them due in May. I really like that Reedsy lets me pick the books I want to read and that I can see both the page count, first page, and amount of time I have to read and review the book. Their reviewer guidelines are easy to follow and make the reviewer experience pretty simple. 

I have an affiliate link for those interested in trying it out. My Reedsy Link. I hope you give it a chance if it's something you're interested in.