Rise of the Alpha (The Rise series) : Helen Dhanoya

The first book from a new author. A good start to a new PNR series.

This is the first book from new author, Helen Dhanoya. It’s the first of a PNR series focusing on a group of wolf shifter packs in the USA. The book contains scenes of moderate violence and some scenes of a sexual nature. 

The story centres on 20 year old Alpha, Dahlia, who is the first female Alpha in their region. Dahlia’s parents were murdered when she was in her teens and she went to live with her grandparents. Following the kidnapping of her grandmother by the same group that murdered her parents, Dahlia is forced to take on her Alpha role much sooner than planned in order to fight this enemy and rescue her grandmother. 

The story has a good level of complexity with enough action and characters to keep it interesting. The writing improves as the book goes on and the author gains confidence. There is some character growth and development through the book. 

I enjoyed this story. As this is the first in the series, I am hopeful that we will see continued improvement in writing and that this will be reflected in character development and on that assumption, I would read the second book.

Available from Amazon 

Deep Sea Kiss (Norse Sea Dragons Book 1) : Zoe Ashwood

Here be Dragons! 

This is the first in a series of two books set in remote, coastal Norway. The story is PNR with an HEA and there are scenes of a sexual nature.

I really enjoyed this story of sea dragons and witches. It’s a different take on the usual tropes. Zoe Ashwood has a style of writing which flows well and is easy to read. It’s a light-hearted, fun read and I got through the whole book in a couple of hours. Her characters are interesting and believable and I found myself invested in the plight of this single Mum and her potential new love.

Lottie is a human nurse who has come to live in Norway from America. Her life is turned upside down when a one night stand results in a surprise pregnancy with twins. Lottie’s search for their father leads her to his brother, Eiric, who informs her that not only has the man she is looking for died but that his family are not entirely human and nor are her twins.

Lottie has a choice: remain in the human world and try to cope with the changes her children will go through and the knowledge that she and they are vulnerable to attacks from the witches who have been trying to wipe out their kind for centuries, or move to a remote, isolated island where her children can be raised with family and learn about their own supernatural side. Her life is further complicated when she realises that her feelings for Eiric are deeper than expected but are they reciprocated?

This is the first book I’ve read from this author but it won’t be the last. Book two is out. I will be reading it. 

Available from Amazon 

Love’s Goddess - Poppy’s Potions (Haven Hollow, Book 5) : HP Mallory & JR Rain

Chaos and Coercion. Can Poppy save a scared Succubus from her demon family?

This is the third book in the Poppy’s Potions series.  It’s another really enjoyable collaboration between HP Mallory and JR Rain and it’s my favourite in this series so far, giving us a deeper insight into several characters and taking us through a more complex storyline than the previous two books. 

The book falls in the Paranormal Women’s Fiction genre and although there’s a little romance, there are no adult scenes and romance is not the main focus of this book. 

The majority of the book is set in Haven’s Hollow, USA following the increasingly complex and magical life of Poppy, a 40-something year old Gypsy descendant of Scottish Travellers. 

Poppy’s relationship with her Sasquatch boyfriend isn’t going as well as hoped. They are increasingly arguing and there doesn’t seem to be a way to break the cycle. Things are further complicated when the town’s Succubus, Fifi, comes to Poppy desperate for help. Helping Fifi means inviting the attention of Fifi’s demon family, who bring chaos to the small town, forcing a brief and hair raising escape to the sanctuary of the Sasquatch colony in the mountains. 

This book has a darker tone than the previous two; briefly touching on the unpleasant subjects of coercion and the threat of being unwillingly forced into situations. These subjects are integral to the storyline and covered in an appropriate way. 

Poppy was already a well developed and relatable character but I think we get to know her so much better in this book. There are more appearances from the variety of characters which cross between this series and the Wanda’s Witchery series. 

The two series should be read parallel to each other and the reading order so far is:

Gypsy Magic (Poppy’s Potions, Book One) 

Cashmere Curses (Wanda’s Witchery, Book One)

Faery Enchantment (Poppy’s Potions, Book Two)

Spandex Sorcery (Wanda’s Witchery, Book Two)

Love’s Goddess (Poppy’s Potions, Book Three) 

I really enjoy the easy writing style of HP Mallory and JR Rain and I’m looking forward to the next books for both Poppy and Wanda.

Available from Amazon

Rise of the Tobian Princess : D.L. Gardner

An epic tale of war and magic, love and loss, good and evil, family and foe. 

Rise of the Tobian Princess is the first book in the Sword of Cho Nisi trilogy; a planned fantasy saga set in faraway lands in an age before technology. This is a tale of war and magic, love and loss, good and evil, family and foe. 

The Kingdoms of Potamia and Cho Nisi are threatened by a malevolent magical entity. They must ally to fight it but when tragedy befalls the Cho Nisi King before a mission to support Potamian troops, can the alliance hold? 

Erika, youngest of the Potamian princesses, is determined to go into battle alongside her brother to fight for the land of her people but her inexperienced actions trigger political upheaval and jeopardise the fragile alliance. 

Arell, the new King of Cho Nisi, is forced into a role he didn’t want and is unprepared for. Can he get past the untimely death of his Father to rule his island of peaceful magic users fairly while maintaining an alliance with the Kingdom where his Father was slain?

The writing is beautifully descriptive, painting a clear picture for the reader and the world building is wonderful and complex. The array of characters and cultures grow as the story unfolds. I found myself invested in their journeys and lifestyles. I celebrated their successes and felt their losses. 

There are battles, politics, magic, monsters and still within that there is love and family. I am very much looking forward to book two. 

Available from Amazon 

Chosen (Owenson Witches Book 1) : Dreia Wells

First book from a new author. A good base to build upon.

This novella is the first in the Owenson Witches series and falls in the Paranormal Romance (PNR) genre. It is the first offering from new author, Dreia Wells. 

Let me start this review by saying that I liked this story. It has promise. The characters are solid and can be developed further. It’s a good base to build upon and I’m interested to see where she takes it from here. 

That said, it’s not quite polished enough. The story needs to be expanded upon. The framework is there but it needs to be fleshed out more. The characters need more depth. The novella could have done with beta readers and proofreaders. The credits acknowledged an editor but there were several grammar, punctuation and spelling errors which should have been picked up as part of the editorial process. 

All in all, I would give book two a chance and I hope that the author gets a lot more support through the editorial process for that book than they got with this one.

Available from Amazon 

The Year I Left : Christine Brae

A beautifully written tale of bereavement and love, grief and joy, loss and self discovery

This is a beautifully written book about loss, grief, self discovery and love. It’s a standalone book which covers some difficult and adult topics and does it so well.

I was captivated by this story, which really takes you on a complex journey through the eyes of a woman whose sudden loss of her mother triggers a descent into clinical depression. We see the impact that her declining mental state and subsequent withdrawal has on her family and her work. How she finds forbidden love and despite her initial reservations, does something hugely out of character to try and find herself again.

The world building felt so real and was so vividly descriptive that I could almost see myself there. 

It was an incredibly emotional read. I felt her pain and her joy. I felt her loss and her love. The writing style really pulls you in and makes this a real and relatable story. The characters are complex and believable. It’s not often that I get so emotionally invested in fictional characters but I loved them all just a little bit and am sad now that I have finished the book and they are all still within its pages and no longer part of my own journey. 

I wholeheartedly recommend this book. This is the first time I’ve read anything by this author but it definitely won’t be the last.

Available from Amazon

 

The Venetian and the Rum Runner: LA Witt

A forbidden love affair in the time of Gangsters and Prohibition set in 1920s New York

This is a romance with M/M relationship and scenes of sex and gang related violence.

I loved this tale of forbidden love between an Italian gangster and an Irish rum runner during a time when society believed there were few worse evils than being homosexual. 

This book is filled with all the action, secrecy and violence that you’d expect during the time when organised crime ruled the streets and courthouses and the local speakeasy was the only place to get alcohol. When the poor starved to death and for many, a life of crime was the only way to make ends meet.

The writer has clearly researched the language and social structure of that time and the story is well written. The historical tensions between the Italian gangs and the Irish gangs, which frequently led to bloodshed and death, is well documented and comes to life in this book. 

Available from Amazon