sassypantsreading's reviews
732 reviews

Broken by Daylight by Elizabeth Helen

emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Oh my god. This series. Just… write faster pleaseandthankyou? This book had my heart and emotions in shambles. Cas… Farron… Dayton… I need more asap!

Undeniable Love by Samantha Chase

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Undeniable Love was a cute, fairly low-angst book. I do wish publishers and authors would let you know if a book is fade-to-black, closed door, open door, etc. This book was faded-to-back, and while there’s nothing wrong with that, I like my books on the spicy side. The blurb interested me, but I’m not sure it would’ve been a choice for me to review if I had known that it was fade-to-black. That aside, I really liked Jax and Lucy together, and I loved Jax’s family. I’m generally a sucker for sports romance, so I loved that plot line. I’m glad Tyler wasn’t an overly overbearing big brother, because that is one of my pet peeves. He was just the right amount! Overall, a good read, I just missed the spice. 

I received an ARC of Undeniable Love from Valentine PR. I am leaving my review voluntarily. 

The Heartbreaker by Marni Mann
Did not finish book. Stopped at 37%.

I DNF’ed this book at 37%. I did not like Ridge at all and couldn’t get past it. He was giving me major pervy, love-bombing predator who doesn’t take no for an answer vibes. He’s a good guy, he says, not like other guys, he says, as he’s perving on Addison in the strip club. He just really rubbed me the wrong way and I wasn’t enjoying the book because of it.

The Billionaire's Snowbound Heart by Avalon Barlowe
Did not finish book.

Very poorly edited. 

Tempting the Black Wolf by N.J. Walters

emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I really enjoyed Tempting the Black Wolf! It was much more emotional for me than I was expecting. I just felt so terrible for Onyx; she was so beaten down and just accepted that she would have a loveless life and likely die confronting Solange. Dagen fighting his bond with her made me so sad for her. I didn’t read the first two books so I didn’t have the complete picture of the other two wolves and their battle with Solange, but I didn’t feel I was missing much. I thought the pacing and writing were well-done. It could’ve been slightly steamier, but it was still good. 

I received an ARC of Tempting the Black Wolf from NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily. 

Capitally Engaged by Rachel Holm

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Capitally Engaged was a meh read for me. The plot was fine, the Brandt brothers are amazing, and Preston was absolutely perfect. Jax, on the other hand, goes onto my “nope” list: she’s erratic, secretive, kind of manipulative, a user, and basically kind of a jerk. There’s only so many times you can freeze someone out or behave terribly and call it your “walls” in place. No, you’re actually just a bit awful. Preston deserved so much better! He was such a golden retriever, though it did get to be a tiny bit much sometimes. Otherwise the story was okay. I appreciated the DC-area bits, as a resident of the DMV.

One note about the writing style: it was oddly verbose with very strange placement of propositional phrases, which really reduced the readability and flow of the book. There were many, many sentences that I was trying to piece together out of the order written to determine what the author was trying to say. Some examples:

- I arrived twenty minutes early, wanting to be already situated as my dinner date approached, locking in for my own sake that I was in charge here.

- Tucking my phone away, the strain of leaving reduced knowing something to look forward to waited for my return.

- She bent down and put the hat back on my head she had knocked off during our enthusiastic celebrations. (This reads like she knocked off his head, not his hat 😂)

I received an ARC of Capitally Engaged from BookSirens. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Forbidden Desires by Stephanie Tyo
Did not finish book. Stopped at 7%.

It’s a book about cheating. I never would’ve picked it up if I knew that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity

The Vanishing of Margaret Small by Neil Alexander

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really liked The Vanishing of Margaret Small. The little mystery of who was sending Margaret letters kept me on my toes. I also learned a lot more about the history of long-term care homes and how tragic it was that people with learning disabilities were sent away. This book was very well-done. 

Blood and Whiskey by Jena Doyle

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I think Blood and Whiskey is my first foray into the Royal Bastards Motorcycle Club; I say think because there are a ton of RBMC books out there. I’m not generally a fan of interconnected worlds by multiple authors, and had I known that was what I was getting into, I might’ve passed on this book. I’ve been burned by low-quality writing and plot lines in these types of worlds before. However, I’m glad I read it. I enjoyed Blood and Whiskey. It had just enough suspense to keep me on my toes. Isolde and Orion were super hot together. I loved the other members of the MC, and some of the Vanderbilt family members. I’m actually hoping for more books on either of those two groups from this author. The werewolf spin on the MC was a fun one. I did find it odd that Sol just woke up from her transition just totally, completely cool with the fact that, not only did shifters exist, but she was one. Like imagine one day being a normal human, then waking up to that news and being like, sure that tracks? Wild. I also didn’t think there was much closure with Sol’s brothers or the Scorpions, which is why I think more books are in order.

I received an ARC of Blood and Whiskey from BookSirens. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Cowhand Crush by Audrey Bell

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I seriously love these short, sweet, and steamy stories by Audrey Bell. Cowhand Crush was no exception. My only complaint is that they aren’t longer! I loved Avery and Bowen together, and revisiting Grady and Birdie a bit! 

I received an ARC of Cowhand Crush from Booksprout. I am leaving my review voluntarily.