A Storm is Coming by Orion Azure
A Storm is Coming by Orion Azure is a fast-paced reverse harem Christmas novella that leaves you wanting more. Skylan is about to have a winter break she will never forget. She always spends winter break in the Smokey Mountains in her family's secluded cabin with her stepbrother Jaylen and her parents. This year Jaylen and his friend Kyler have something different in mind. They have been reading Skylan's journals. They know her darkest fantasies and desires. With help from another friend who is equally as obsessed with Skylan as they are, they plan on making those fantasies a reality this winter break. Jayden is emotionally possessive over Skylan, Kyler has a dark and primal need for her, and Thomas brings his cinnamon roll charm to balance. Thanks to a winter snow storm Jaylen and Skylan's parents will not be able to make the trip leaving the four alone for two weeks in the secluded Smokey Mountains.
I was recommended this book through Booktok. Luckily it was available through Kindle Unlimited. It was a fast-paced and easy read, that I thoroughly enjoyed! It checked all the boxes for a perfect dark fantasy read. The plot and spice were equal throughout the storyline. The storyline left me wanting more at the end. I want to see where the four take their new relationship next. I would recommend this to any dark romance reader but especially the reader who loves a why choose with masked men romance. Always remember to read the trigger warning before diving into a dark romance.
The Naughty List by Jade West
The Naughty List by Jade West is nothing short of NAUGHTY & SPICY! This full-length stand-alone Christmas novel is overloaded with dirty Christmas scenes for the reader. Ella is a goth girl who has recently left her washed-up wanna-be rockstar boyfriend. What she is left with is an underpaid job and a mountain full of debt, with her parents halfway across the country. She needs cash and fast! One of her online friends introduces her to the “PR Entertainment” job she does regularly. She instantly becomes addicted to not only the paydays but also the liberation and quest to be the best. A hardcorer. Ticking every box off her naughty list Ella is determined to get all five-star reviews and make a name for herself as the best hardcorer in the company.
I was recommended this book through Booktok. Luckily it was available through Kindle Unlimited. I did not know what to expect when jumping in but this was one of the dirtiest books I have read this year. Each chapter is Ella doing a different scene with a client or clients. Author Jade West did a great job with descriptions and not leaving a single kink left untouched. There was no romance in the storyline until the very end but only a little bit. 95% of the book is spice. I would recommend this book to dark romance readers who don’t mind a story having no plot. If you solely want spice this is the book for you. Who knows you might find a new kink while you’re it. As always read trigger warning before jumping right into a dark romance novel.
Why Don’t You Make Me by Rae Knight
Why Don’t You Make Me by Rae Knight is a perfect mixture of troupes in a dark romance novel. You have enemies to lovers, bullies to lovers, morally gray trio of men, why choose, bad boys to good girl, forced proximity, and many more. Victoria has been living free or rather avoiding at all costs, her high school bullies for three years. They call themselves the Iron Triad - Thorne, Ryder, and Blaze. One slip up of running into Throne at the grocery store Victoria is thrown right back into her bully rath. One by one the Iron Triad stakes their old claim on Victoria. They never intended to let go of her only waited. The key issue is Vitoria is not the same girl they toyed with three years ago. She is stronger and sharper. This time around Vitoria will pull the strings or so she thinks. As she gets closer to unraveling the secrets of the Iron Triad it’s harder to resist the pull each of the men has on her. If she is not careful it won't be them that is left shattered it will be her.
Thank you Rae Knight for the ARC! I was hooked from the first few pages. The character development in this book is top-notch. Each has their baggage and backstory but is madly obsessed with Vitoria. Throne is the only one that has had her but the other men are unwilling to share at the start. Ryder is the dominant daredevil and Blaze is the sweet level-headed comforter. The plot from the first couple of chapters sucks you in and will keep your attention through all the twists and turns. The spice in the book is not overbearing and well-written. I can not choose one favorite scene from the book but it has to come down to the basement with Blaze, the bike/woods with Ryder, or alone with Throne. The cliffhanger at the end had me shocked! It is going to be a long and antagonizing wait for the next book! My heart can not cope. Until then I will be reading more of Rae Kinight’s work since this was my first read of hers.
Filthy Rich Santas by Eva Ashwood
Filthy Rich Santas by Eva Ashwood is a spicy holiday romance that will surely heat your holiday reading. Lana just got dumped by her fiancé because “chubby girls aren’t wife material,”. She is on a mission to find the real her now. She has always lived in the shadows of her perfect older sister and brother who now plays in the USHL. With the holidays fast approaching Lana is dreading going to Vermont to see her parents, but also the long drive by herself. As she is terrified of planes. It just so happens that her brother's three best friends live in LA as well. They own an exclusive adult club and are scorching hot, filthy rich. Beckett, Tristan, and Ryder offer to road trip home with Lana for Christmas. Lana can handle a week-long road trip with three men she has been crushing on her whole life, no big deal. Until she confesses about breaking free of her ‘good girl’ persona and exploring her wilder side. The three men propose while on the trip to fulfill Lana’s desire. Her body will be theirs to play with. They will teach her everything while living out all of her dirtiest fantasies. The only rule; is no falling in love and once they arrive in Vermont it is over. It’s risky but she of course doesn’t say no. It’s the holiday season and the three filthy rich Santas are about to give Lana everything she asked for.
Filthy Rich Santas by Eva Ashwood was not what I thought it was going to be when I first added it to my holiday reading list. Lana’s character is the perfect sunshine up against the three grumpy Beckett, Tristan, and Ryder. I loved how she introduced a new meaning of Christmas to each one of them throughout the book. I caught myself smiling so many times during those little cute scenes. The MMC's way they cared for Lana, protected her, and how obsessed they were over her had a hold on me throughout the book. The spice scenes were spicey! The author did a great job writing each of those scenes out even with the BDSM. It didn’t feel out of place or too much. I can’t say this enough I love it when an author can write a plot and spice. Eva Ashwood did exactly that with this piece. This book has a lot of spice but there is a plot and story to it too making it more than just a smut book. It’s a story of acceptance, family, love, self-confidence, finding yourself, and the holiday spirit. As always read trigger warning before jumping right into a dark romance novel.
The Devil's Jazz: The Haunted Chronicles of the Axman of New Orleans By Vincent B. "Chip" LoCoco
The Devil’s Jazz by Vincent B. LoCoco is a historical fiction novel with elements of thrill and horror laced in. LocCoco brings the Big Easy to life with his skillfully crafted, deeply researched, and gripping tale of suspense and horror of the Axman. In 1918 the city of New Orleans's large population of Sicilian immigrants became the target of the Axmen. Giancarlo Rabito retires just as the Axmen begin his rain of terror. He is reluctantly drawn into the entanglement of pursuit to catch the Axmen. This proves challenging as the widespread belief that the Mafia is involved and responsible. The population of New Orleans becomes widespread with hysteria as each gruesome crime is committed by the axe-swinging madman. The police have no leads, only the hazy recollections from the few surviving victims. The Axman’s reputation grows more when he mocks the people of New Orleans with a letter in the newspaper. He claims he is a hellish demon, but will spare those who revel in the devil’s music, jazz, during a chosen night of killing. Captivated by fear the citizens of New Orleans play jazz all night long, but is it enough to stop the Axman once and for all?
I had high hopes that going into this novel, it would be a serial killer thriller. Unfortunately, that is not what The Devil’s Jazz genre is. I would say this novel is 85% historical fiction with 15% of it being a thriller. When I say thriller take it very lightly. I will credit the author who researched or knew his facts on the city and aspects around this time. The details of history were in-depth. The bouncing from history lesson to crime scene is where this book lost me along with being slow for the first 80% and then picking up the last 20%. Overall just not a book I would normally read for enjoyment. Thank you to NetGalley for the copy in return for an honest review.
Second Chance by Nadia Neale
Second Chance by Nadia Neale is the first installment of her BYC series. We are introduced to Conner an ex-hockey player who craves control and Rina a single mom who seems on a mission. That mission is to cross off her spicy bucket list and revive my boring sex life. The man who has insisted on helping her check off this list is no other than her hot, famed NHL star ex, Conner. Connor knows he is playing with fire but when he discovers Rina’s kinks fall in line with his. He is playing for keeps. Rina on the other hand is struggling with going back into bed with the guy that broke her heart. But what do you do when your kid adores him, your body craves him, and he’s made it clear he’d do anything to fix the past?
I could not put this book down from the very start. I might have a new favorite trope after reading this - second chances. The characters you soon fall in love with each one as it is a dual point of view. Since we know that Conner and Rina have a past the author did an amazing job not letting any detail be left out on their past. It breaks your heart in two once you learn everything. Conner’s possessiveness but also simp for Rina in every way possible. Whereas Rina hangs on to every word of his even when she doesn’t want to fully dive in. The banter between Rina and Conner is amazing. It was also refreshing to see the BDSM side as it is made to be. A deep level of care and compassion between partners. There are so many scenes in this novel that are SPICY!
The author does an amazing job of not only establishing the main characters but also the secondary characters. I love the relationship that Conner develops with Eric throughout the storyline. Not to mention the relationship that Nats has with both Rina and Eric makes your heart melt. I can not wait to read the rest of the series. I would recommend this book to any spicy romance reader out there. If you like sports romance including hockey romance this would be perfect for you too.
Give Me a Chance by Nadia Neale
Give Me a Chance by Nadia Neale is her second BYC series installment. We were introduced to Natalie and Matt in the first book, Second Chance. This novel is their love story. Natalie does not do commitments, nor does she do love. She knows the good guy persona is all an act. Matt knows he should not pursue her. She hates him pretty much anyway after the one night they shared. He can’t stop thinking about her and the beast she has awoken inside of him. Can Natalie keep resisting him? His ridiculous hot body, sweet words, and big puppy dog eyes. She keeps bending the rules she put in place long ago. Matt knows underneath all that hate is something else. Something more than worth fighting for. Can these two enemies turn the tables around to lovers?
I LOVED THIS BOOK! My favorite in the series! We met Matt and Nat in the first book. They could not stand each other even when they were in the same friend group. I had to know what the tension was. We find out throughout this installment (I won’t spoil it for you). The author did an amazing job again with the tension, the banter, and the dirty talk. I fell in love with Matt! He is such a sweetheart/golden retriever. While Natalie is a headstrong and feisty woman. I loved the sides that they brought out from each other. It was heartbreaking to find out Natalie's backstory. It provided so much more knowledge on why she acted so guarded. I’m so glad that Nadia kept all the characters together. We still see glips into Conner and Rina’s relationship as well. Along we more of Eric and Nat's amazing friendship too. That just melts your heart. I can’t wait to read book number 3!
Taking Chances by Nadia Neale
Taking Chances by Nadia Neale is her final BYC series installment. We know and love Anne from the past two books of the series. She is the helpless romantic of the group. She finds herself heartbroken after getting dumped by her boyfriend. She soon starts to believe that love doesn’t exist. Not the kind I read about in my romance books, anyway. Until she runs into a biker with the looks and the tattoos at her favorite bar while drowning her sorrows. He turns out to be Lennox Cade, a newly retired NHL hockey player and best buddy with Conner. Lennox Cade is a bad boy with a dominant streak to match. They string up a plan to pretend to date at Anne’s ex-wedding. It’s the perfect excuse for Anne to live out her Booktok dreams. However Lennox on the other hand thinks she can play pretend with him for a weekend, and he is not strong enough to resist the chance to corrupt her. After the wedding, Lennox comes around the group a lot more as he just moved to the area. The more time he spends with Anne, the more he realizes he is the one in danger of breaking. But can he give up control and everything he knows in favor of love? Or will letting go of Anne destroy more than just his icy heart? Meanwhile, can Anne keep a wishful heart from falling in love with this fictitious romance? Or is it only setting herself up for another heartbreak?
She does it again! Another amazing book! It’s rare to find a romance that blends heat and heart so well Nadia does a perfect job every single time! The balance between intense chemistry and moments of genuine introspection are chef kiss. The character development throughout this book with the darker elements of Anne and Lennox's backgrounds was again perfect. It was so great to have the rest of the BYC characters play such large parts in this third installment. It was like wrapping the series up with a bow. There are so many spicy scenes in this book it is hard to pick which is my favorite. The book scenes that he recreated for her probably are high up there. I wish someone would do that for me. Again like the first book in the series, it was refreshing to see the BDSM side as it is made to be. A deep level of care and compassion between partners. Lennox Cade is the true embodiment of a book boyfriend. Thank you to Nadia Neale for sending me an advance copy in return for an honest review. I can not wait till the book officially comes out on February 8, 2025. Everyone make sure to get your copies! You will not regret it :)