hookedbythatbook's reviews
3146 reviews

One Big Happy Family by Susan Mallery

4.0

This Christmas family drama was riveting and poignant, evoking a whole range of feelings from anger and heartbreak to forgiveness, happiness, and love. 

There were parts that I loved and others not so much. Dana and her relationship woes felt a bit neglected. I was happy that she found her own happy ending, but between all the other things going on there wasn’t enough time to explore this plotline properly. And there certainly was a lot of drama. 

Nick came across as very charmed. Everything seemed to fall in line just right for him. Even with the conflict with his mother, you just knew it would work out for him because Julie would never begrudge him any of it. 

As for Julie and Heath, Susan Mallery has done this before and she does it really well – create conflict and consequently strengthen bonds in an existing relationship. Julie represented a generosity of spirit that should be everyone’s goal. She held no real resentment, even with Nick’s revelations and Gwen’s unpleasantness. Heath embodied the image of an ideal partner. One who sees all your faults and still loves you unconditionally. Yet, these two characters showed enough flaws to be realistic at the same time. 

I was captivated by this family dynamic. The ending may have been predictable, but it was a pleasure getting there. I can highly recommend this if you like big family drama and romance. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

 

Good Duke Gone Wild by Bethany Bennett

4.0

A charming and delightful romance between an author desperate to keep her secret and the duke that couldn’t stop thinking about her. 

The fact that Caro was an author of lurid novels made her even more interesting and the best parts were when she modeled her heroes after Dorian and other people started to notice. Caro’s cousins were hilarious and so supportive without asking questions. But frivolity aside, this book had plenty of depth uncovering the truth about Dorian’s marriage and Caro walking a fine line concealing her author identity. 

This book was a pleasure to read. I enjoyed the light-hearted writing style, witty dialogue, and there was plenty of sizzling chemistry between Caro and Dorian. I can highly recommend it if you like steamy historical romance. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Hidden Dragon by Genevieve Jack

4.0

I was riveted throughout the thrilling action and nail-biting suspense. The discord between Dianthe and Sylus was unsettling and this whole situation with their making-up was done really well. My favourite part was Sabrina confronting the vampires on Paragon. Aborella played an important role and everything that happened to her were a big surprise. The dragon siblings were slowly making progress and I loved how everyone worked together. This is an excellent series if you like fantasy and magic with steamy romance. It is best to read these books in order.

Viscount in Love by Eloisa James

4.0

This book feels like it had two very distinctive parts: how Torie and Dom got together and then their trials and tribulations after marriage. The first part was very intriguing. Right from the start it was obvious that Torie and Dom were meant to get together, but how that was going to happen when he was engaged to her sister and showed no signs of breaking the engagement, that was frustrating and tantalizing. I loved Torie with her generous heart. She was just so hard on herself and constantly diminished her own accomplishments. The descriptions of Torie's paintings and what she wanted to represent was brilliant and thorough. I am much like Dom in that I can appreciate a beautiful painting, but the deeper meaning behind it will probably escape me. And like other reviewers, my feelings about Dom also dipped between very high and very low. 

Books and Broadswords by Jessie Mihalik

5.0

There are two very quick, but emotionally charged and exciting stories in this book. This was a book that was impossible to put down and I enjoyed both magical tales immensely. Both stories take place in the same world, and the world-building was thorough, even for such short stories. 

How to Fall for a Scoundrel by Kate Bateman

4.0

This caper of hidden identities and mysterious pasts is sexy and charming and very entertaining. 

Perhaps Ellie, Tess, and Daisy were too easily taken in by an enticing smile and handsome face, but it did lead to an adventurous investigation and lively romance. Ellie and Harry had spades of chemistry that also punctuated their conversational sallies. It was a lot of fun following the clues with these two, especially when it forced Ellie out of her comfort zone. 

Harry and his uncle were two undeniably interesting characters. I didn’t always completely understand his uncle’s motivations for the way he raised Harry. But the investigation into his past and their happy-ever-after ended this story on a very satisfying note. 

I can highly recommend this book if you like a steamy historical romance with some intrigue and drama. This is book two in the series, but it stands well on its own. 

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

The Deepest of Secrets by Kelley Armstrong

4.0

At the eleventh hour before Rockton's closing, Eric and Casey have a final case to solve. And as usual, things are never as simple as they seem, with multiple suspects and multiple victims. This was yet another nail-biting addition to this exciting series. And a fitting ending. 

House of Fire and Magic by Sherrilyn Kenyon

4.0

A unicorn and a dragon, a highly unlikely pair, manage the impossible and find love in the midst of a quest for vengeance. 

Right from the start we are thrown into a whole new fantasy world where a unicorn shifter is the king of all, precarious as his position may be. I was very intrigued by the unicorns, dragons, and many other magical creatures that popped up as the story went on. The world building was fairly solid and did a good job of introducing the history and current state of affairs. It did get a teeny bit confusing sometimes to keep all these different characters straight. There wasn’t one specific villain, but rather an unrelated group all with the same nefarious plans to unseat Dash as High King. 

Tanis and Dash set off together, each with their own agenda, that turned out to be chasing the same perpetrators. I liked the two of them together. They put aside centuries of mutual animosity and found that they really enjoyed each other’s company. The relationship development between these two and their interactions was done really well and I was very invested in them and their quest. 

In most shifter stories, we get used to the shifters spending more time in their human forms and using their animal forms for specific purposes. Here, for example, Tanis’s dragon form is her natural form and she needed Dash’s magic to turn her human. It was a bit difficult to imagine these humungous dragons going about their day-to-day business, which was set up very similar to what a human’s environment would look like, just bigger to accommodate their size. The same went for Dash (and by extension all unicorns), though he was able to change forms at will. 

Despite some gaps, this was an exciting read and I couldn’t put it down. I can highly recommend this if you like fantasy romance with thrilling action and betrayal around every corner, and I hope there will be more. 

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own. 

Emergence by Kim Harrison

4.0

Renee continues to be somewhat naive when it comes to the Neighbors and their intentions. At least Jackson has a more realistic view and tries to mitigate any unintentional consequences. Things worked out well for Renee, but she did make some dangerous and very questionable decisions. Noel turned out to be a surprise, which was unexpected. This book was over way too fast and I was very upset to discover that this is very far from the end. It is best to read these books in order. 

The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey

4.0

Burgess handled Tallulah's fears with caution and he went above and beyond to help her feel safe in his home. The attraction between them was instant and constantly at the forefront of every interaction. I liked this book, but not as much as Fangirl Down. It just didn't have that same electric excitement. I enjoyed watching Tallulah reclaim her agency and continuing her journey even after their breakup. This romance had a lot of obstacles to overcome and it did lead to a very satisfactory ending.