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RECENT RELEASE: Force Majeure: A Pain and Pleasure Story by Elizabeth Noble (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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SERIES REVIEW: Mobsters + Billionaires Books 3 & 4: Attraction & Distraction by Kelly Fox
Mobsters + Billionaires: Attraction – Kelly Fox
I run a high-end escort service. And I’m in love with a virgin. It doesn’t make any sense, this attraction between us. I’m a violent Mafia Don, and Ford is a nervous, perfectly bow-tied, sexily bespectacled money nerd.
But he’s had my heart the first night I laid eyes on him, and while he keeps me at arm’s length, he’s never left my orbit. He’s as bound to me as I am to him.
Hell, I’m becoming a better man because of him.
I’ll be as patient as I need to be to win him over. The one thing I’m not willing to do, however, is let the man who put the fear in his eyes get away with it.
I don’t care how powerful or wealthy he is—I will tear down the world to make Ford feel safe enough to love me.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: I Dare You
Artist: The XX
Album: I See You
Mobsters + Billionaires: Distraction – Kelly Fox
An MM Murder Swoon Romance
From USA Today Bestselling Author Kelly Fox comes a uniquely unhinged Mafia romance.
Look, no one’s ever accused me of being sane, y’know? So when I say that I am crazy over this RICO agent, know that I mean business.
Sure, I’m responsible for getting him fired from the job he’s wanted his whole life, but his grandfather just died and left him 13.1 billion dollars. Dude deserves a break, is all I’m saying. And yeah, I’m a violent mobster with a savior complex, but that shouldn’t get in the way of our epic love story.
Besides, a little gunplay in the bedroom is good for the soul.
Distraction is a Mafia romance that features a frustrated RICO agent-slash-reluctant billionaire, a delightfully deranged mob enforcer with questionable boundaries, and a simple takedown that ends up a little…explosive.
As with all of my morally gray do-gooder romances, there are no cliffhangers, and the HEA is guaranteed.
Rating:
5 Stars – absolutely perfectSoundtrack: I See You
Artist: The Horrors
Album: Luminous
Mobsters+Billionaires by Kelly Fox continues with my two most awaited books in the series.
The billionaire contingent are Rand Wolfe, star of Extradition, Mads Legari, star of Protection, and Ford Bailey, financial genius and fashion icon.
The mobsters are Luca Stefano, gentleman mobster, Anthony Edgerton, Mads’s fiance, Joe Portelli, Rand’s husband, and Hopper, the Stefano enforcer.
The plot involves action, explosions, and a body count but is generally romance-centric. Adding to the chaos are recurring characters Anders and his husband Omar from the Wrecked: Guardian series, Olga, the Ukrainian spec ops, and her wife Ryder, the goth hacker.
Luca and Ford have been circling each other ever since Luca organized Wednesday night poker. They were ridiculously cute and were probably already in love even before they started attending galas together.
Attraction is Luca and Ford taking baby steps, but always moving forward in their relationship. Luca owns an escort service and is known to sample the goods. This makes Ford hesitate because, at the ripe old age of 30, he’s still a virgin.
Major points to the author for handling Ford’s situation respectfully and positively. Ford’s virginity was taken against him in the past. Add to that an attempted sexual assault by a person he knew, and you could understand why the usually confident Ford is anxious.
I loved how everyone, especially Luca, supported Ford, always making him feel comfortable and reminding him that if they finally became intimate, it would be on Ford’s terms. The story painted Luca with a classic Hollywood leading man charm, and boy, does he ooze that Italian Montgomery Clift vibe. The way he courted his man! He’s so sweet and patient with Ford!
On the flip side, it’s cheesy and a bit annoying how everyone, the billionaires in particular, gossiped like mahjong aunties, trying to squeeze the juiciest details from Ford. But Mads’s OTT dance reactions were funny.
I also found the comedic timing was somewhat off when Luca and Ford were talking. Luca would say the swooniest things, then Ford would try to lighten it by saying something funny. Maybe it was because of the narration, but their dialogue didn’t seem to flow well together
One of my favorite parts is the appearance of Liam Hughes, the RICO agent Hopper stalks. The plot sets Liam even more firmly in the world of the Stefanos and their billionaires. Just like Ford and Luca, we have been teased with Hopper and the object of his obsession, Liam, who was initially stalking Hopper, then Hop reversed-stalk him.
Liam became a reluctant billionaire after inheriting billions from his grandfather. His death wrecked Liam and he was grieving so hard, he had Hopper worried. Hop tried to help but seemed to make things worse. He’s not giving up though.
Distraction is Liam finally seeing Hopper. And what a sight it is! Hopper is complex as he is vivid, as deadly as he is gentle. He is the best character in the series. Hopper is everything!
In the previous books, Luca and Anthony consistently went out of their way to help the RICO agent in various capacities. When Liam questioned their motivations, either Luca or Anthony would respond, “It would break Hopper’s heart if something happened to his favorite RICO agent.” This sentiment always resonates with me because it highlights just how deeply Luca and Anthony care for their brother.
Here, we learn why Luca and Anthony is so protective of their Hopper.
Hopper is the most dangerous enforcer for the Stefano family. A serial killer who started when still a teen, he’s wily and cunning and knows a hundred different ways to dispose of dead bodies. He also has the uncanny ability to appear out of nowhere, his intimidating presence frequently scaring away threats from Luca or those he considers family.
Hopper is surprisingly vulnerable. He feels things too deeply. He has ADHD and FASD, and a gutwrenching childhood left him with trauma and a severe case of claustrophobia. He’s triggered whenever somebody mentions he’s a psychopath or his birth name that he associates with terrible memories.
Hopper is also a total sweetheart. He loves with all his heart and Liam is his first love. He’s shy, adorably blushy, and endearingly childlike, whose delight at seeing his favorite animals or spotting his favorite RICO agent is pure and contagious. His golden retriever energy gives me life. He’s loyal and protective of his family.
He’s never malicious, killing only bad guys, especially those who prey on sex workers. And he is incredibly artistic. He shares his creations only with those he trusts.
Among the couples in the series, Hopper and Liam’s journey from opposing sides, one-sided infatuation to mutual love, was perhaps the hardest won, the swooniest, and the most satisfying. Their chemistry has always been fantastic, and they were even more explosive and hella kinky! Their book was an emotional roller-coaster, breaking your heart into pieces, putting it back together again, then making it soar,
“Thank you,” I whisper. “I’m sorry it took me so long to see you, Hop.”
“But you see me now?” he asks, his vulnerability wrapping itself around my heart.
“I do, Hop. Worse,” I say, chuckling as I nibble his ear. “I can’t unsee you. And I don’t want to.”The shift in Liam’s perspective and his growing feelings for Hopper was a joy to witness! It took a while but Liam completely won me over at the end. I loved how he allowed Hopper be himself and understood him at a soul-deep level. He gave Hopper the world!
A romance between a federal agent and a serial killer is a recipe for disaster. Hopper and Liam shouldn’t have worked together. But they did, and they were unstoppable!
Overall, Mobsters+Billionaires is about morally grey love interests, ethical billionaires, and bad guys getting their comeuppance. Packed full of found family magic, hurt comfort goodness, and intense touch-him-and-die vibes to tickle you pink!
P.S.
Mobsters+Billionaires should be read in order. Witness a conservative billionaire get kinky with a Brooklyn boy in Extradition. Be charmed by a sunshiney billionaire and his serious bodyguard in Protection.
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Mobsters + Billionaires. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
MOBSTERS + BILLIONAIRES: Kindle | Audiobook
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REVIEW: Bump in the Night by Nikole Knight & Lily Mayne
Black Oasis: Bump in the Night – Nikole Knight & Lily Mayne
You never know what’s hiding in your closet…At twenty-six, Ivy has their life figured out. They have a decent paying job at the London office of Somnus Entertainment–the gaming company behind the wildly popular game Black Oasis–a draughty flat they inherited from their wild great aunt, and a few select friends to pass the time. They’re a responsible adult, thank you very much, and while they might get lonely at times, they know better than to put too much stock into that fanciful notion known as love.
But when a skeevy encounter during a fun night at the pub devolves into a violent hate crime, their life changes forever.
Waking up in a demon dimension, beaten within an inch of their life, is bad enough. But add a snarky, haughty healer with the universe’s worst bedside manner, and Ivy knows they’re in for a long, excruciating recovery. Lau the Dreamwraith is prickly, arrogant, and entirely infuriating, but for some strange reason, he seems hellbent on nursing Ivy back to health. Despite Lau’s whinging over their “inferior human qualities,” there is a heat building between them that neither are able to fight. Like a match meeting kerosine, their chemistry ignites, but Ivy’s stay in the demon world is temporary and fire always burns out eventually.
Love is a dream, after all; it has no business in nightmares. Right?
Join Ivy and Lau as they nurture the sparks between them until they explode into an unexpected passion that crosses dimensions in Bump in the Night, the second book in Knight and Mayne’s co-authored queer, monster romance series, Black Oasis.
Bump in the Night is an M/X monster romance full of hurt/comfort, angst, humor, and a sweet, spicy love between a fiery Brit and their arrogant sleep demon. This love story contains explicit content and is not suitable for young readers. Be sure to check the Trigger Warnings at the beginning of the book for more details
Black Oasis, the dark and humorous monster romance series by Nikole Knight and Lily Mayne, is also the name of the MMORPG game about monsters. The first book, Whispers In The Dark, gave us the cinnamon roll Texan gamer, Cody, and his adoring monster boyfriend, Nor.
I recalled the hilarious scene in Whispers In The Dark when Nor’s best friend, the then shit-faced Lau, made cryptic complaints about humans. I was thrilled to find out why in this sequel!
Bump in the Night stars computer programmer Ivy, who works for Somnus Entertainment, the developer of Black Oasis. Ivy is non-binary and wears either pants or a dress. One night, on their way home from a club, they were targeted by haters and left for dead in an alley.
Then they woke up to find themselves in another dimension with a broken leg and more, under the care of an arrogant lilac-skinned sleep demon, Lau. The demon, who’s also the town healer, complains about how inferior humans are while tenderly nursing Ivy’s injuries, even gently shampooing their hair while they bathe.
I lived for the scenes where Lau would fuss and get all annoyed because Ivy was around. The next day, Ivy would find Lau had made him some crutches or retrieved a book from the human world because of a casual comment Ivy had made. The demon is always so careful about Ivy’s broken leg, even during passionate moments.
There was also the scene that tickled me pink, where Ivy found Lau sneaking back to bed and being super cagey. By morning, they discovered Lau secretly changed the tea can labels from demon language to English because he learned Ivy was trying to make tea the day before but didn’t know which can was which.
Also, secretly repairing Ivy’s torn dress that they wore during that fateful night.
And true to his tsundere form, our dorky Lau had apparently been stalking Ivy for months before their attack, then became skittish as a cat when Ivy turned around and returned his very loud unsaid feelings.
So far, the first two books have not delved deeply into the world-building. However, the first book had a darker, angstier tone while the second had a lighter, cozier vibe.
The opening and later chapters focus on Ivy’s mundane life in London. The story employs the forced proximity trope, with most scenes taking place inside Lau’s house as Ivy recuperates. This setting felt somewhat claustrophobic, as I wished to explore more of Lau’s world.
The plot is mostly domesticity, comfort, and healing, with the authors weaving their monster romance magic in the amusing and squee-tastic antagonistic dynamics between the clearly besotted demon and the quickly-falling-for-that-demon human.
The banter was made me chuckle and Lau’s bold declarations of his superiority as a demon were hilarious. My heart, along with Ivy’s, melted at the easy way he accepted Ivy’s non-binary identity, which of course, came with him declaring he is a he as in “He is Lau, the fearsome sleep demon!”
And this is why Ivy and Lau gave Cody and Nor a serious run for their money! If you ask me which couple is my favorite, I loved them both so much!
Lau, our favorite tsundere demon, is a grumpy grump who grumbles, but inside, his heart is as mushy as our sweet sleep demon Nor! I highly recommend audiobooking this because Michael Ferraiuolo’s performance of Lau was spot-on, capturing the bravado and vulnerability so convincingly!
Another favorite part is Vary, Lau’s himbo brother, who frequently crosses over to the human world. Why? It’s a happy surprise! I hope Vary’s book is next.
Bump in the Night is a story where a whole lot of grumpiness delivered the tenderest care. Funny and heartwarming, the deep connection and the poignant moments between two delightful characters is a reminder that even in the dark, there’s always room for love, sass, and a cup of tea.
Rating:
4.5 Stars – perfection is only half a step awaySoundtrack: Bump In The Night
Artist: Skittish
Album: The Perfect Shade of Green IIP.S.
Black Oasis should be read in order. Befriend that lonely monster under the bed in Whispers In The Dark.
If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Bump In The Night. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.
BUMP IN THE NIGHT: Kindle | Audiobook
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RELEASE BLITZ: F*k, Marry, Kill Me Daddy by Lance Lansdale (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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RELEASE BLITZ: Temperance by Lark Taylor
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BLOG TOUR: The Gargoyle and the Romance Writer by Chloe Archer (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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COVER REVEAL: Temperance by Lark Taylor
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RELEASE TOUR: Brighter Than Fear by Becca Seymour
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NEW RELEASE: Brighter Than Fear by Becca Seymour
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SERIES TOUR: Corrupt Cupid Multi-Author Series (Giveaway)
