Verity by Colleen Hoover

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish.

Lowen arrives at the Crawford home, ready to sort through years of Verity's notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn't expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity likely didn't intend for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity's recollection of the night their family was forever altered. 

Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents would devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen's feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife's words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue to love her.

 I'm a big fan of Colleens - but honestly, how could anyone not be?  I wasn't sure what to expect with Verity, a true psychological thriller of a romance - but I can tell you I sure as hell didn't expect what I got.  "Disturbing is putting it mildly."  So well written the panic & terror are palpable.  Oh. My. God. this book is right up there with Steven King & M Night Shyamalan, yet with a love story that sucks you in & will have you so conflicted.  Shocking, sexy & mysterious, with Colleens classic wit & sarcasm.  Tragedies that bring you through a full range of emotions, from shock & heartbreak to disgust, love & heart stopping fear. 


I couldn't put this one down, even when I wanted to.  The ending, wholly crap - I can't even... Cringe-worthy at the start "Ugly and honest..."  By the end, you won't know what to believe - or if you are like me, how to feel.  A story that will make you rethink what people might be capable of in pursuit of love & success, then have you questioning assumptions you yourself make everyday...what you should believe "...to separate our reality from fiction..."


READ THIS BOOK, you just may not want to do it when you are alone.


Well done Colleen - you've truly "...pushed the envelope..." with this remarkable tale.


ARC received in exchange for an honest review.


Amazon US/UK

Saint (Mercy #2) by JB Salsbury

BLURB

Milo sold his soul to the devil to save an angel.
Now he’s after revenge.

There are worse prisons than the lush estate of a notorious drug smuggler in Mexico. Mercy lives out her days alone and hidden from the world, but her sleep is riddled with nightmares of the muti and all the boys and girls just like her who weren’t lucky enough to get away.

If the people who kept her as a child are in Mexico, is it possible she could find them?

What starts as vigilante justice unravels a web of human trafficking deeper and darker than Milo and Mercy could’ve imagined. When she comes face-to-face with the people she once considered family, she proves she is far from the Angel they raised her to be.

MY REVIEW

 

Saint by JB Salsbury, book 2 of her Mercy duet, this is the sexy contemporary romance & mystery thriller conclusion to Mercy & Milo's story.  Picking up right where the Ghostgirl epic cliffhanger left off, Saint with Milo "...doing what was best for those I love. You know what they say. Hindsight is a bitch."  A romance entwined with drug cartels & international human trafficking...

The connection between these characters continues to extend past the physical, toward soul deep, heart wrenching emotion.  While Milo risks all for revenge, Mercy struggles to hold on to the man she loves  "Forever. You and me. Not a single thing on earth will ever come between us." all the while fighting to be free once more from a all new kind of imprisonment.  Secrets, vengeance & lies "For your protection, it's better that you don't know."  A wild ride as a new mystery unfolds, one evil put behind them only to fight another.  "There is so much evil in the world. No matter what I do, I can't seem to get away from it."  A story of a savior, of healing of body & soul ~ finding faith in humanity & seeking destined purpose in this world.  

I love seeing these characters grow into themselves "I realize I'm not an angel, that I have no supernatural powers, but that doesn't mean I can't make a difference in a person's life."  So much love & affection.  An ending that won't disappoint.

"Everything is a journey, a wild ride with constant surprises."

ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon US/UK

Ghostgirl by JB Salsbury

 She was brainwashed into believing she could save mankind.

Now, she’s the one who needs saving.

Abandoned with his two younger brothers, Milo Vega was placed in foster care. Now a twenty-year-old high-school senior covered in gang tattoos and working as the school’s janitor, he is living a life vastly different from the one he was destined for.

When another foster joins the family, this one from the psychiatric facility, Milo’s skeptical. A rare genetic condition makes her unlike any girl he’s ever seen, and he wants nothing to do with the one he calls Ghostgirl.

Despite his reluctance, his protective instincts flare when she enrolls in school, and eventually, an unlikely friendship grows between them. When a tragic event snaps her fragile psyche, Milo is faced with the possibility of never seeing her again.

Unless he risks it all to save her.

MY REVIEW

Ghostgirl by JB Salsbury is a contemporary romance like none I’ve read before.  Characters so different & intriguing from the start – this is an addictive contemporary romance full of mystery, angst & heart wrenching emotion “I felt that shit everywhere.”  All while funny, sexy & sweet.  Family ties that are blood ties, for better or worse.  Attraction that is as unusual as it is undeniable.  Secrets are revealed, with a cliffhanger that will have you ready for more. 

Told in first person from dual perspectives, with flash backs throughout.  Milo~a boy whose had to grow up to fast, he is fierce & protective of those he calls his own with “…gang affiliations inked all over my skin and the hundred-pound chip on my shoulder…”  A guy after my own heart “Call me a pussy, but it’s the truth. No matter how old I get, I hate being sick without my mom.” Ghostgirl~who is she?  Where did she come from? Can she save mankind?  “Vulnerable, shy, and so modestly sexy…” She is the ultimate mystery.  A story of overcoming pasts that haunt, finding hope & freedom with self-sacrifice at the same time, toward a future not thought possible.

 

I loved the sarcastic wit, emotional depth & secrets that unfolded through to the end.  

“It’s all too much yet far from enough.”  

Looking forward to the conclusion to their story in Saint.

ARC received in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon US/UK

King of Code by CD Reiss

BLURB

From New York Times Bestselling author, CD Reiss, comes a sexy tale of secrets, intrigue, betrayal, and a love worth crossing a continent for.

Taylor Harden is a man on the edge.
The edge of fame. The edge of untold wealth.
The edge of utter humiliation.
He built an unhackable system, and in front of everyone, it’s hacked.
His reputation goes from king to goat in a split second. Boom. Like that.
Some dude in Barrington, USA (AKA Nowhere) has locked down Taylor’s code, and if he doesn’t get it back, he’s going to be wearing a monkey suit for the rest of his life.
Except, this guy? This hacker from Nowhere? He’s not a guy.

Harper Watson’s all woman. And she has a plan for Taylor, his code, and his body.


MY REVIEW


Taylor, on the verge of becoming a computer King – Harper, the hacker no one saw coming.  From Silicone Valley to Crazy town USA.  Taylor has been hyper focused on attaining the kind of glory, names like Steve Jobs & Bill Gates are world renowned for.  Harper is aimed at using her abilities to saving her forgotten Nowhere, USA hometown & the people in it.  “She was hacking me and I didn’t have any defense against her attack.” 

Told in first person, with some flash backs - this cyber thriller-suspense got off to a bit of a slow start for me.  The ‘tech speak’ was tough to get through at first “I wasn’t wasting my time teaching her how to read metadata.” BUT quickly turned smoothly into an intriguing & mysterious hacker hunt... searching for the who, how & why of the system breach.  You'll wonder who can you be trusted & be surprised by the answer.  Working through a puzzle not only for the hack, but also of the interesting personal connections being made. Take your time so you don’t miss a single detail as you puzzle through this mystery suspense entwined with a unexpectedly seriously hot romance “She gutted my life so I could show her how to f*ck?”, with unexpected attraction, desire, seduction “The body always betrays the mind.”.  It goes deeper, taking a look at the drive for success at the highest level & exploring the possibility that success isn’t the most important thing in the world for everyone -that you can’t lose site of the importance of the true humanity in all of us “My world view was having a head-on collision with the world.”. 

So smartly written. This is my first CD Reiss read & although I was hesitant because of all of the ‘tech speak’, by the end it flowed seamlessly & I find myself appreciating the level of detail & highlighting of awkwardness that comes from being super smart.  Really enjoyed this surprisingly super sexy story of friends & lovers - statistical nerds & kindred spirits~ “I’m a statistical outlier. I love it when you talk dirty.”.

 Hopeful for more of our dark web master, silent partner & financers story...

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon US/UK

 

Savior (The Kingwood Duet #2) by S.L. Scott

Blurb

Everything is not as it seems.

Alexander IV has succeeded to the throne of the billion-dollar Kingwood Empire, but the people he thought he could trust aren't allies.

They're enemies.

Everyone he cares about is at risk.

Decisions--SACRIFICES--must be made.

What will he do to protect the people he loves? Will Sara Jane live or die?

Find out NOW in this EPIC conclusion to the bestselling The Kingwood Duet. Savage, book 1 in the series, should be read first and is LIVE on Amazon.

  

My Review

Savior, the second book of The Kingwood Duet, is a Romantic Suspense/Mystery Thriller - true epic conclusion to the duet.  Savage, book 1 of the series must be read before.  Alexander Kingwood continues his fight against a world that seems bent on destroying him.  Searching for answers he may never get, by asking questions that put lives at risk, dealing with his anguish the only way he knows how - revenge, all the while praying for one thing - survival for his queen.  "She's the reason I breathe, the reason I wake up in the morning. She's everything that matters in my life. I can't lose her."  Sara Jane & her beautiful heart - is she strong enough "Her innocence cloaked the woman beneath, the bold and strong woman..." For King & his Queen - the Kingwood's "only exist because the other does."  "Our story may not be pretty, but it's still ours..." 

The first quarter of this read gave me exactly what I'd been waiting for. "The dead don't care how we mourn. This is a show for everyone else." The second quarter was a slow build to something I never could've expected. "We're not invincible. Actions have consequences."  By the mid-point - wow, I mean "shut up! & wow & NO!" "This can't be happening. This can't be how it ends."  Riddled with flashbacks & told in first person, from dual perspectives, this is an emotional roller coaster of heart gutting loss, sadness, hopelessness, guilt, pain, fear, regret, forgiveness, all wrapped up in a love story for the ages. "A love this extraordinary can't be contained to one lifetime." Mysteries will be solved, only to lead to "a whole new mystery...", & new questions. "...two souls fated to fight a battle we may never win." Questions are answered, leading to more - the kind you never see coming "We signed a deal with the devil before we read the contract. We'll take this journey together, because it's too late to turn back now."  - As with Savage - Expect surprises even after the mystery is revealed with more, twists & turns, & an ending that comes to quickly - don't let yourself read this to fast! In the end, ALL is revealed.

 "I always knew you'd be my savior."
 

S.L. Scott has finished this duet beautifully.  She draws you in, builds upon the story, gets you invested further than you can imagine.  This epic love story is one that I will revisit & recommend to every reader.  The love, romance, friendships that make true family, mystery & intrigue, can't get enough.  I really got attached to Jason/Eric & would love a spin off for him & the mystery that his character exudes...come on S.L.!

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review. 
AMAZON US / UK 

 

Savage (The Kingwood Duet #1) by S.L. Scott

Blurb

From New York Times Bestselling Author, S.L. SCOTT, comes this new and utterly captivating series, The Kingwood Series. With memorable characters and an unforgettable story, you will want to be a part of this new series launch. 

Welcome to the mysterious world of the rich and the damned in this gritty, modern day fairy tale. Two star-crossed lovers will either find their destiny or meet their fate in a world where demons come in the form of familiar faces and pawns aren’t just players, but deadly. 

She was my destiny.

I was her downfall.

We were a match made in hell.

But when we were together, that hell was pure heaven. 

The moment I laid eyes on her, I knew she would pay the price for my sins. I wasn’t much older than she was, but old enough to know better. Old enough to know she would be good for me and I was bad for her. But I pursued her anyway. Back then I had hope that maybe she could change my future.

Maybe together we could change our fate . . .

My Review

Savage, the first book of The Kingwood Duet, is a Romantic Suspense/Mystery Thriller like nothing I've read before.  Alexander Kingwood is a man on a mission ,whose life is full of secrets, enemies & lies.  Sara Jane Grayson has her whole life ahead of her, she is the only true constant in Alex's life, the only one he can count on.  All he wants is for her to be his queen.  All she wants is for him to be the King she knows he can be.

Told in first person, from dual perspectives, this story starts out slow, leaving no doubt that the love between these characters is beyond intense.  A soul deep kind of love "We'll never love anyone as much as we love each other."  The sensual & sexy physical attraction between these two is nothing short of hot.  There also is no room for doubt, that this is a tale of good versus evil, light versus dark, just as much as it is a romance "I love you, both the dark and the light.", "I never knew life could teeter between good and evil so easily..."  There is a lot of build up before the nature of the mystery is revealed & I was unsure where the story was going for a while (DON'T let that deter you).  Expect surprises even after the mystery is revealed with more, twists & turns, & an ending that comes to quickly. 

S.L. Scott has the wonderful ability to draw you in, building the story, getting you invested to the extreme without even realizing it!  At first glance, I didn't think the slow build was necessary, honestly thought it was a bit much, just to add to the mystery of it all... until the very end.  This is an epic love story that I never saw coming...  I love Alexander & his knight in shining armor - "determined to be everything she would ever need." way with Sara Jane.  I love Sara Jane & the insurmountable strength she didn't know she had - "There's nothing ugly about the firefly.  Just like her, its strength is illuminated in the darkest of times."  Together they hold to the mantra "Don't let the world win." Oh my goodness how I hope that will be true... S.L. Scott summed up my thoughts on this story best: "I didn't love it because of the ending. I loved it because of the journey.  Every love story has its burdens to bear. It's how they survive it that makes it great."

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon US/UK