One Line Reviews Of Some Books I Read This Year (January – December 2025)

This is a round up of the books I read this year that I’m too lazy to do a full review.

Redemption Ridge: Guys Like Him – Aimee Nicole Walker

Kieran Sullivan is broken when he arrives at Redemption Ridge. A wrongful conviction and twenty months in lockup will do that to a man. The ranch is a place for second chances and fresh starts, but for him, it’s an opportunity to discover who set him up. Get in, get answers, and get out. The plan sounds easy enough until Kieran meets an equine specialist whose sunny smile could warm the coldest heart.

Finley Ashe is a sucker for bruised spirits and sad eyes. The horse whisperer and broken-boy magnet is six months into a hiatus from love when Kieran, the king of emotionally unavailable men, gets assigned to work under his supervision. Mutual attraction is gasoline on proximity’s flame, testing Finley’s resistance in new ways.

Priorities shift, shields come down, and truths get exposed. Will the inevitable combustion redeem Kieran and Finley or consume them?

Guys Like Him is book one in the Redemption Ridge series. Though each story features a different couple, reading the series in order is essential. Guys Like Him contains mature themes and is intended for adults.

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Stonewall Investigations: Blue Creek: Love Me Again – Max Walker

AUSTIN ROMERO:
No one’s fast enough to outrun grief.

Trust me, I’ve tried. I ran away from the city and took a job as the lead detective back in my old home town of Blue Creek, New Hampshire. I expected to bump into past ghosts, but I never expected those ghosts to reopen old wounds.

The biggest ghost of them all: Charlie Marsh. The man who pushed me out of this town in the first place.

He was also the man who had stolen my heart when we were teens, and who now couldn’t even remember a single day we had spent together.

Which makes it exceptionally awkward when he becomes my first client.

CHARLIE MARSH:
An accident stole seven years of my memories, robbing me of experiences, lessons, people.

It robbed me of my first love. I couldn’t remember who Austin even was, much less when and where we shared our first kiss. So when I bumped into the most jaw-droppingly handsome man I’d ever seen, I had no idea we already shared an entire galaxy’s worth of history between us.

Second chances aren’t always easy, and this one only gets more complicated after finding out that my ‘accident’ wasn’t an accident at all, and it seems like someone wants to finish the job.

Good thing I’ve got a hot detective’s number on speed-dial.

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The Jimmy McSwain Files: Stage Fright – Adam Carpenter

All the world’s a stage, but in STAGE FRIGHT, Hell’s Kitchen private detective Jimmy McSwain learns that life upon it’s wicked boards can be a killer. The Harold Calloway Theatre on West 47th Street is home to the new play Triskaidekaphobia, and its playwright has been receiving threatening messages. Theatre owner and lead producer Wellington Calloway has hired Jimmy to investigate, but it’s a case not without its complications. His mother is the head usher there, and Jimmy grew up on its aisles. His ex, Remy, is also the costume designer for the show, a man he hasn’t seen in years. Further making his life difficult is the mysterious Seetha Assan, who is connected–albeit tentatively–to the case that forever haunts Jimmy–his own father’s murder. She may just have the clue to help him finally solve the cold case. As Opening Night for the play looms, Jimmy finds himself involved in a nest of egos and personalities, all while seeking to find the missing Seetha. Toss in his on-again, off-again relationship with Captain Francis X. Frisano, and suddenly Jimmy’s life is edging toward tragedy. That’s when a murderer strikes, and suddenly nothing is pretend anymore. Life on the stage has turned all too real, and all too deadly. Just like on the mean streets of Manhattan.

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Treasure Trail: Last Resort – Morgan Brice

Weird things are happening again in Cape May and the ghosts of old mobsters never rest easy.

Erik Mitchell gets a strange delivery of antique poker chips with odd markings tied to a casino that burned a century ago. Ben Nolan finds a dead guy in one of his rental units—turns out the guy’s been missing for twenty years and is linked to a long-lost treasure.

The ghostly energy of the old Commodore Wilson hotel juices up all the town’s spirits, and a stranger shows up with an unhealthy interest in both cases. Ben and Erik have just moved in together, and they’re still navigating the next step as partners and blending their lives.

Murder, missing persons, hidden treasure, and haunted poker chips. Can Ben and Erik put the pieces together to solve the case, or when the cards are dealt, will they be left holding the dead man’s hand?

Last Resort is a suspenseful MM paranormal romance mystery-adventure filled with second chance love, hurt/comfort, true soulmates, old curses, hidden treasure, dangerous secrets, restless ghosts, psychic visions, powerful witches, angry mobsters, and a very haunted hotel.

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Angels of Wrath: Three – Paulina Ian-Kane

Hunter Penn

One hellish moment. One painful decision. And everything radically changed.

Years later, I’ve adjusted to my new life as a P.I. when a long-bearded, red-headed guy walks into an alley. The same dark alley where I’m having a talk with the armed men who were following me. The encounter is brief and bloody and ends with him winking at me as he drives away.

My curiosity—and some tailing—brings us together again…or so I thought. He wants to work with me, and despite my lack of trust in the rest of the human population, I recognize his impressive skills and need his help to find out who’s been trying to kill me.

He calls me Grizzly, Papa Bear, Yogi. His incessant flirting, impish disposition, and sexy triple-dimpled smile drive me mad. Until I force him to his knees—and what a sight that is.

Who’d have guessed I am into men in lingerie?

But when he unexpectedly asks for my help, I discover a new side to him, and finally, I know what he is.

Mine.

Mine.

Mine.

I don’t care if he thinks he’s broken. Who isn’t?

I don’t care about his family’s side business. I have a damn big skeleton hanging in my closet.

I don’t even care if my days are numbered. He makes it worth every single moment.

The only thing that matters is being near him.

Protecting him.

Showing him who he belongs to.

WARNING-This is not a sci-fi angel story, unless you see eager vigilantes with a dark side as angels.

This is an action packed, dark themed romance with an interracial couple, an HEA and no cliffhangers. It features an impish, sassy, persistent hacker and a big, brawny, broken Bear. There’s violence, blood, torture (only of very bad people), dark humor, a band of foster-brothers and very rough, spicy and kinky scenes. Morality’s grey area is quite stretched in this story. Please check the triggers at the beginning of the book.

This is book three in the Angels of Wrath Series. Each book follows a different couple.

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Angels of Wrath: Five – Paulina Ian-Kane

Lori Boone has always been unapologetically and shamelessly himself.

Petite, with soft curls and plump lips, he’s often underestimated. Until he parts those lips and the sassiness comes out.

He thrives in uncomfortable situations and plots petty revenge in his free time. Facts that don’t change even when he starts working for a prestigious law firm and under Gabriel Reed, his best friend’s brother-in-law.

Tailored three-piece suits, perfectly styled blond hair, demanding presence, and cold stare.

My boss.

Ugh.

Well, he’s my boss’s boss’s boss, so I don’t see him much. But when we do cross paths . . . nothing.

He barely acknowledges me despite my repeated attempts to get under his skin. I’m head-turning gorgeous, catching his sharp, silver eyes shouldn’t be this hard.

I don’t hide my deep dislike for him, and my outrageous antics should get me fired, but they barely illicit a reaction.

Everything changes after I stalk him—it has become a hobby of sorts—and end up drugged, desperate, and in need of rescue, only to be saved and more by…Gabe!

I know. Bonkers, right?

Even more if you add to the mix my tendency toward sexsomnia and his multiplicity, things that set our worlds on fire.

I always thought I’d never settle for one man. More than one? Too crowded.

But what if two men share one body?

They might be exactly what I need.”

WARNING-This is not a sci-fi angel story, unless you see eager vigilantes with a dark side as angels.

This is an action packed, dark themed, enemies to lovers romance with an HEA.
It features an impish, unapologetically sassy, persistent twink and a unfazed, controlled lawyer boss with multiplicity.
There is one dub-con scene between the MCs when one of them is drugged (please don’t buy it if you think it might put you off or trigger you). There’s also a scene with sexsomnia.
Violence, blood, torture (only of very bad people), dark humor, a band of foster-brothers ready to help and very bad driving.
Morality’s grey area is quite stretched in this story. Please check the more detailed triggers at the beginning of the book.

This is book four in the Angels of Wrath Series. Each book follows a different couple.

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Dr. Maxwell Thornton Murder Mysteries: Kiss Marry Kill – S.C. Wynne

Snakes don’t only crawl in the grass.

River Martin has begun to reveal his true motives for being in Rainy Dale, and, shocker, it’s not good news for Maxwell.

If Maxwell is going to go to war with River, he’ll need people on his side. In his quest to be more of a people person, he’s roped into attending the wedding of one of his young patients, Janelle Raiden.

The bride is stunning in white silk tulle. The groom is appropriately doting. The cake is pure buttercream decadence. Everything about the wedding seems so very, very perfect.

Until the groom’s dead ex-wife makes an appearance.

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Dr. Maxwell Thornton Murder Mysteries: One Vote For Murder – S.C. Wynne

Frenemies and psychopaths keep life interesting. If they don’t kill you, that is.

Maxwell foolishly hoped things might settle down once he found the perfect new location for his medical practice.

Not. So. Much.

After a shocking revelation, Maxwell finally knows why River Martin hates him with a passion. And River isn’t willing to let bygones be bygones. To put it mildly.

In addition to protecting Maxwell, Royce is dealing with a rich, powerful, and very vindictive family in town who have organized a special election to recall him as Sheriff of Rainy Dale.

As if that isn’t enough for the duo to handle, someone is knocking off potential candidates for sheriff. Will Royce be accused of murdering the competition, or will he become the murderer’s next victim?

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Frat Wars: Royal Scoundrel – Saxon James

Royal Scoundrel is the prequel novella between Charles’s dads. Even though it takes place twenty years before the Frat Wars books, it’s best enjoyed last.

DASH

Archibald Levine the third is a pain in my ass. Rich, cocky and the closest thing to a prince that our school has.
I hate everything about his entitled attitude and the stupid Kappa crown he wears.
I also hate the gigantic crush I have on the guy.
One night, backed up by the courage of tequila, my mouth gets away from me and I offer him the one thing he can’t stop thinking about.
Me.
On my knees.
Because Archibald Levine also has a secret, and one kiss between us seals his fate.
The fling between us can never go anywhere, not with his powerful and homophobic father, but we don’t let it stop us from indulging at every opportunity that we get.
I also don’t let it stop me from falling stupidly in love with the guy.
He’s always made it clear he can never come out and I know we’re destined for destruction.
After all, happily ever after doesn’t exist between a prince and a scoundrel.

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Goliaths of Wrestling: Clean Finish – Lily Mayne

Larkin
Look, here’s the thing.

I’m young, carefree, and my job as the assistant to Holt, manager and owner of the Goliaths of Wrestling, means I’m surrounded by half-naked beefcake wrestlers all day. Of courseI’m going to be interested in… getting to know them all better. It would be, like, illegal for me to not lust after them all, right?

There’s just one hurdle I have to get over first before I can… get to knowthe wrestlers in the way I want. And that hurdle makes me really, really freaking nervous.

So I come up with an amazing idea. Holt’s bodyguard Seb, a werewolf, is the quiet, dependable, calm presence in the office. He’s safe. He’s not as intimidating as the wrestlers, and we’re kind ofbuddies, so I decide to ask him for help with my little… predicament.

Just for some practice. Before I move onto the big leagues. That’s all it is. Practice.

Seb
I’m the foolish old wolf who’s pined after Larkin since the moment he started working here. I’ve had to watch him flirt with all the wrestlers, listen to him talk about how much he wants them, act like I didn’t care, and it’s never gotten easier.

At least no one knows. And I can never tell him. He’s too young for me, too carefree and irresponsible, and he’s never shown even a hint of being interested in me that way. Mentally, I’ve accepted it. My heart, however, is a different matter.

And then he comes to me with a ridiculous proposition. Something I never thought I’d get to experience, something I should absolutely turn down, but I can’t. I’m not strong enough to deny myself. And I want to help Larkin in any way I can.

It’s just practice for him. I have to keep reminding myself of that, every time I get to touch him—every time he’s pressed against me, every time he falls asleep on my chest. He doesn’t want me. He just wants… lessons. Practice.

That’s all it is. Practice.

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The Milverton Mysteries: Death in Douglas Glade – G.B. Ralph

A scenic walk in nature isn’t Addison Harper’s idea of a good time, but with Sergeant Jake Murphy leading the way, he’s willing to give it a go.

After a picnic as delicious as his date, things are really looking up – that is, until Addison stumbles over something in the undergrowth. Bad news: it’s a dead body. Worse news: it’s his ex. And the last time they saw each other, a room full of people witnessed Addison wish him dead.

He should never have strayed from the path…

Death in Douglas Glade is the latest in a wonderful cosy mystery series set in an enchanting small town nestled amongst stunning New Zealand scenery. Investigate The Milverton Mysteries for a chaotic cast of local busybodies, delicious baked treats, a demanding and disdainful ginger cat, a very slow-burn romance with a rather appealing policeman, and of course… murder!

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Drake Security: Burned – Mika Nix

Of all the creatures I could have accidentally mate bonded with, did it have to be a dragon slayer?

I never let my dragon take control. Never. Distraught after the death of a friend, I made a mistake…

Finding a beautiful, broken viking on the verge of death in the middle of a forest, all of my instincts screamed at me to save him. My dragon wouldn’t have it any other way. For two-thousand years I’ve saved my mating fire, waiting for fate to bring me true, binding love. But with this stranger only a breath away from the afterlife, I didn’t have a choice.

I can’t really be mated to a dragon slayer, can I? There has to be a way to break this bond before his brothers come looking for him or mine realize what I’ve done.

The only problem is, the more time I spend with the captivating, big hearted man, the more I think that fate might have had a hand in things after all…

Is he feeling it too, or am I about to get burned?

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Westford: Enemy Mine – Davidson King

Imagine heading the entire Irish Mafia…and despising it.

Fred Brennan’s father was a brutal man, both professionally and personally. When the kingpin died a few years ago, Fred welcomed it, but not the brutal role he was thrust into. As a successful doctor, he’s devoted his life to helping people in a career he loves. The last thing he wants is to continue to fill his father’s shoes, but after three years, he’s no closer to offloading his dad’s title onto someone else. As a mafia boss, he’s forced to deal with the elite assassin organization, Lex Talionis…bringing him face to face with the infuriating man who runs it.

As head of Lex Talionis, secrecy is vital to Vincenzo Belini and his organization. Nothing could coax him into the light to reveal himself to Fred. That is until dangerous adversaries emerge from the shadows, all vying for Fred’s life. Vincenzo knows the enemy is closer than Fred realizes. He just has to convince Fred he’s not one of them because for as much of a pain Fred can be, Vincenzo is exactly the right man to keep him focused—both in and out of the bedroom.

Someone is threatening Fred’s throne, power, and all the responsibilities that come with the title. Despite Fred not wanting any of these things, he can’t let them fall into the wrong hands. Can he rely on Vincenzo to help take down the growing enemy and give Fred the happy ending he’s always wanted?

Enemy Mine is a spinoff series within the Haven Hart series. It doesn’t follow the main story arc. Fred was introduced in Secret Simon, Head Rush, and Law of Retaliation. While it is a standalone it’s recommended you read those three books first.

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Nothing Special: Before They Were Lovers – A.E. Via

Two warriors. One unbreakable bond. A love story in the making.

God is a hardened and confident alpha with emotional walls that keep him isolated. Day is quieter, more watchful, and looking to connect.

During their months at the Atlanta PD training academy, Day stealthily observes God’s raw power, his command of any situation, and the lethal marksmanship that makes him long for God to be his brother in arms on the force.

This origin story reveals the start of God and Day’s powerful, complicated relationship. It’s filled with tension, emotional growth, and the beginning of their legendary partnership.

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The Brotherhood: Just A Little Danger – Merry Farmer

Everett Jewel is the hottest star the London stage has seen in a generation. He is brash, sensual, and sure of himself. Men and women throw themselves at his feet, and he laps up the attention. But all of Everett’s glittering star power hides his wounded heart. He has adoration, but he longs for a love that he doesn’t think he’s worthy of, due to his dark past.

Metropolitan Police officer Patrick Wrexham has never been wanted by anyone. From the time he was a child, fighting for scraps in the orphanage where he was raised, he has always been overlooked, in spite of his good heart and determination to protect the weak. He is the complete opposite of Everett in every way, and he knows it. Which is why he has been infatuated since the moment he first saw Everett perform.

When Everett and Patrick team up to hunt down the ringleaders of a child kidnapping ring, their skills make them the perfect professional match. But sparks fly between them right from the start, creating a tempestuous, sensual partnership. And when Everett’s ego lands him in deeper trouble than he ever could have dreamed of, it’s up to Patrick to become the hero he never believed he could be to save the man he loves.

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Steam level – very spicy! And yes, this is an m/m romance, so if that’s not your thing, feel free to pass on this one.

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Knight & Daywalker: Smokescreen – Sam Burns

Flynn Knight is the only (and frankly, impossible) child of the leader of the vampires in Los Angeles. He’s also a bit of a scatterbrain, a thirty-something manchild, and a private investigator. When one of his mother’s political frenemies gets killed and she asks him to investigate, he’s put between a rock—her—and a hard place—the fact that not a single vampire in the city will believe the answers he finds without impressive proof to back him up.

Combine that with an eighty-thousand-dollar bill he has no idea how he’s going to pay, a hit and run that has landed him a victim of the cat distribution system, and his mother trying to foist a new business partner off on him, and his life is way more complicated than he likes.

At least his new partner is nice to look at, even if he’s the weirdest vampire ever, who doesn’t seem to follow any of the usual vampire rules.

Also, why won’t this kitten stop eating?

Smokescreen is set in the Fantastic Fluke universe, starring never before seen characters and a new setting. It begins to explore Flynn Knight’s relationships, and while it contains a complete story, it does not reach the slow burn romance plot, and the main overarching plot will continue in book two, Façade.

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Fox Hollow Zodiac: Silent Partner – Morgan Brice

A psychic moose shifter. A handsome guy who is psychically silent. The chance for a fresh start, and a threat from the past that might get in the way.

Brandon Davis is a psychic and a moose shifter. He makes his living as a wilderness guide in Fox Hollow, NY—a town that is a haven for misfit shifters and psychics. Brandon has a profitable business, a found family of close friends, and a cozy cabin in the woods. Life is good, but he wishes he could find a special someone to share it with. Then he picks up the unmistakable scent of his fated mate–a handsome man who isn’t a shifter of any kind and whose thoughts he can’t read. The chemistry is undeniable, but can he fall for a silent partner?

Riley Henderson escaped a bad relationship with an ex-boyfriend he suspects is a psi-vamp. He left town and got a scholarship to the Fox Institute to explore his rare ability—his thoughts are mostly closed to being read by psychics. Getting away from his ex was worth being studied for his unusual silence as a “nil” or an “immune.” Especially since the situation comes with a stipend, an apartment, and a regular gig as a musician at one of the local hotels. Riley intends to go boy-sober until he meets a tall, dark-haired stranger with whom he has a sudden, intense connection. When he realizes Brandon is both a psychic and a shifter, Riley needs to figure out how they can overcome those differences to be together. And in the back of his mind, Riley worries—what if his ex shows up to ruin everything?

Silent Partner is a MM shifter romance filled with found family, a snarky moose, a soulful musician, sexy shifters, small town winter fun, fated mates, helpful psychics, lots of snow and a very happy ending.

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The Kings: Royal Flush: Calling His Bluff – Charlie Cochet

Welcome to the Royal Flush series, where love is the ultimate gamble.

Ryden Foster is a Marine scarred by a painful past of loss and hardship, but with the support of his Four Kings Security family, he’s finally healing. As he rebuilds his life, the only thing he enjoys more than his job is sparring with Jay Starling, Ward Kingston’s flashy executive assistant. Their longstanding feud is filled with sharp banter, weaponized romance novels, and a heat neither will acknowledge.

Jay is organized, efficient, and always in control, except when it comes to Ryden, the brash Marine with a talent for getting under his skin. When a Marine wedding and a client’s murder are linked, Jay and Ryden are pulled into something far more dangerous than petty rivalry. After a chilling encounter, Jay sees a side of Ryden he wasn’t prepared for, one his heart can’t ignore.

As Ryden and Jay join the Kings on a perilous mission, surviving means risking more than just their lives. It means trusting each other with their hearts.

An enemies-to-lovers, opposites attract romance filled with found family shenanigans and high-stakes action.

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Necromancer Tales: Deadly Deception – M.J. May

Necromancer Erasmus Boone’s life is better than he ever imagined. Bucking the typical necromancer storyline, Erasmus has managed to carve out a life filled with love and purpose. With Halloween fast approaching, Erasmus is ready to enjoy his favorite time of year. Unfortunately, Detective Franklin O’Hare’s Midwestern past has other ideas.

Covered in blood and found wandering the streets surrounding Chicago, a necromancer is being accused of murder—the victim and circumstances unknown. Mentally unstable, this unfortunate necromancer is in jeopardy of being railroaded for a crime he may or may not have been involved in. Franklin O’Hare’s former captain doesn’t want to witness another victimized necromancer. Aware of Franklin’s association with Erasmus, he calls on them for help.

Now headed for chillier climes, Erasmus and Franklin need to figure out if a crime has been committed, and if there’s one thing Erasmus excels at, it’s finding where the bodies are buried. Only Erasmus doesn’t just fine one victim; he finds several. When the souls of the departed blame their deaths on a long dead bogeyman, it becomes clear the local sheriff has a problem and a necromancer accused of murder is just the tip of the iceberg.

Between bringing back the dead, dealing with local prejudices, and meeting Franklin’s family, Erasmus has his plate full. Add on a worried warlock father and more than one attempted assassination, and Erasmus is more than ready to pack it up and head back to the warm Mississippi breeze.

Deadly Deception is the second book in the Necromancer Tales series and should be read in order. This series is a spin-off of the Perfect Pixie series and takes place in the same world but can be read as a stand-alone series. Deadly Deception is a m/m romantic fantasy mystery with an unusually sane necromancer just trying to make a living, a humble human detective attempting to keep his necromancer boyfriend alive, an arrogant but redeemably overprotective warlock father, a deceptive killer, a questionably moral all-powerful djinn, a kitten who can’t figure out how it wound up in a backpack, let alone staring through a plastic bubble, humans—some redeemable and some not, a chilly Chicago fall, and a playfully bloodthirsty vampire. Deadly Deception has a HFN ending as it is part of an ongoing series.

Mentions of violence, murder, souls brought back from the beyond, spaciest bigotry, and a few characters of questionable morals and sanity.

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Reclaimed Hearts: Adverse Conditions – Elle Keaton

Xavier swore he’d never move back to the flyspeck of a town he’d grown up in and he kept that promise for over twenty years. Now he’s back for good.

Vincent never left. After college, he stayed in town to be close to his elderly parents. These days he’s the single dad of a fifteen-year-old daughter and working two jobs to make ends meet. He’s perfectly happy with his life.

Can two lifelong enemies move from hate to something more?

Xavier’s new mission is to breathe life back into Cooper Springs, but his stodgy, straight-laced, rule-following neighbor, Vincent Barone–is getting in the way. Dark-eyed, broad-shouldered,muscly Vincent, who Xav stealthily ogles when the man toils in his front yard sans shirt. For a high school shop teacher, Vincent is too sexy. And he has a kid. And he infuriates Xavier. And anyway, love is for suckers.

Vincent doesn’t have time to date. And he certainly wouldn’t date his flashy, arrogant, neighbor whom he absolutely did not have a crush on back in high school. Who did Xavier think he was, moving back to town and throwing his weight around, causing butterflies in Vincent’s stomach, and making his stupid heart beat faster every time he saw him?

Cooper Springs has changed since they were kids, maybe two guys can move from hate to love. But are they ready? Will Vincent bend a few of his rules? Will Xavier reign in his chaotic tendencies? Is love in the air?

Then there’s the matter of the grisly discovery in the woods–murder is bad for business.

Welcome to Cooper Springs, home to UFO chasers, Sasquatch believers, conspiracy theorists, chainsaw artists, and regular folk just trying to make a living. And, quite possibly, a killer.

Adverse Conditions is the first in the Reclaimed Hearts series, set in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, it is an opposites-attract, older lovers, silver fox, enemies to lovers, small-town romance, with a little murder. HEA guaranteed.

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Reclaimed Hearts: Below Grade – Elle Keaton

A serious health scare forces Martin Purdy to rethink his life. He quits his job, sells his house, and buys a set of fixer-upper cabins on the coast. There’s just one teensy problem. Along with the property comes a very angry man. Nicholas Waugh had his own scare, bad enough that he slunk back to the crappy town he grew up in. With no home to call his own, he finagles a security gig keeping an eye on a set of vacant cabins. The deal comes with a free one-year lease–and he’s not leaving a day sooner. Not even if the new owner gets down on his knees and begs him.
Okay… maybe if he got down on his knees. Fifteen years of teaching college freshmen and patience is second nature to Martin. But Nick is giving Martin a run for his money. He’s one suggestive chainsaw sculpture away from justifiable homicide. If that wasn’t enough, when he’s not infuriated with Nick, Martin finds himself fighting an inappropriate and ridiculous attraction to the much younger man Everyone in Cooper Springs thinks Nick is crying wolf, but creepy stuff is going on around town and he is the only one paying attention. Human remains found in the forest, and a body dumped on the property he’s in charge of, have Nick on high alert. Meanwhile, all Martin wants to do is get started on the remodel. Instead, he’s fighting with Nick over things that go bump in the night and losing sleep worrying he’s made a disastrously wrong decision. Failure is not an option. What will it take for Nick to let his guard down? What will it take for Martin to admit that age is just a number and Nick is more than man enough for him? Welcome to Cooper Springs, home to UFO chasers, Sasquatch believers, conspiracy theorists, chainsaw artists, and regular folk just trying to make a living. And, quite possibly, a killer. Below Grade is second in the Reclaimed Hearts series , set in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, it is an opposites-attract, age gap, only one bed, grumpy-sunshine, small-town romance, with a little murder.

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Reclaimed Hearts: Red Flagged – Elle Keaton

Ex-US Marshal turned Cooper Springs Chief of Police, Andre Dear isn’t looking for love. He’s too busy hunting a killer.

The last person Andre expected to see in Cooper Springs was Dante Castone. He left Dante and the rest of his old life behind him when he moved to Washington State and what he thought would be a quiet job in a small town by the ocean.

Dante Brown went into WITSEC for his sister’s kid–sort of.

In reality, Dante’s DIYing it; he isn’t the trusting sort. Daniella was the only witness to her mom’s brutal murder and needs both protection and anonymity–plus as normal a life as possible. It’s just a bonus that Cooper Springs has Andre Dear too.

He and Andre have a history, and Dante wants to see if they might have a future. Someone is gunning for Andre and, like it or not, Dante is going to protect him. And yeah, feed him too. Does the man never eat?

Andre needs Dante’s help even if he doesn’t want to accept it. Dante’s ready to settle down but he’s going to have to prove himself before Andre lets him in again.

Together, they need to catch a killer and maybe find each other in the process.

Red Flagged is book three in the Reclaimed Hearts series. A second-chance, older-lovers redemption story and thrilling romantic suspense set in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula.

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Reclaimed Hearts: Code Violation – Elle Keaton

Trust is a thing of the past. All that matters is the truth.

Forrest Cooper

Has a short list of people he trusts. His sister. Xavier Stone. Magnus and Rufus Ferguson. A nosey newcomer to Cooper Springs is not making his list. Ever.

Nero Vik

Produces a podcast about unsolved murders all over the country. He’s in town following his instinct. At last, he may have found his cousin’s final resting place.

Forrest is not giving the new guy an inch, much less discussing his sordid family history with him. His past, his sister’s past, is not up for debate on some nickel-and-dime podcast.

Nero was the last of his family to see his cousin alive. He was the one who said, maybe you shouldn’t. But Donny was someone who never backed down. He got into that van.

One man has dedicated himself to putting his past where it belongs—behind him. He has a lavender farm and after a lot of therapy, he sleeps at night. Most of the time.

The other is determined to expose the truth—no matter how painful it is. He’s lived with crippling guilt since he was twelve. Twenty-five years later he’s close to the truth and he’s not backing away now.

The perfect storm brings them together. Will they make it through to the other side?

Code Violation is book four in the Reclaimed Heart series.

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