Wraith (Crestvale Killers #2)

Here's "Wraith" by Mia Monroe. It's the second novel in the Crestvale Killers series.

["To keep him I’ll have to break the one rule I never thought I would.

Paxon
As a hockey defenseman it’s my job to protect the net and I don’t do it quietly. I like to throw a punch or two just to keep the fans excited. I put everything into my job, after all, hockey is the only thing keeping me together.
There’s only one person who knows the me behind the hockey mask, and that’s my brother Boone. He breaks my heart on a daily basis, but I promised our mom I’d look out for him. Which is hard enough with my schedule and his…choices.
When someone starts closing in on him, I have to risk everything to protect him. Unfortunately for me, the guy trailing my brother is the hottest man alive and the attraction between us is undeniable. Irresistible.
Is there a way to keep my brother safe and the dangerous man after him in my bed?

Wraith
Paxon Bouchard is a problem. He’s the extremely sexy, bossy, loudmouth obstacle between me and the job I’m supposed to get done. Finding out my latest assignment is his brother is unfortunate, but nothing gets between me and a job well done. Not even a beefy hockey player.
When new information surfaces, I have a difficult decision to make. Breaking the rules isn’t something I do, ever, and I’m not keen on it, but Pax offers me something I never saw for myself - a future. Maybe even love.
To keep Pax, I’ll have to trust him and hope I made the right decision. If I’m wrong, I could lose everything."]

I wasn’t too sure about this one. Then again, I wasn’t looking forward to the thought of instant angst. Turns out, it wasn’t so instant. But it was strong as fuck. 

These two fell in love before they realized it. And when they did, it was already too late. It was sweet and was too self-sacrificing. But all of their brothers verbally slapped them over the head with advice (spoiler alert?) and all was mostly well.

I want sooo much more of this series and these broken men. 

Trigger Warnings: on-page suggestion of SA of a woman who is not a character in this book, sex trafficking and SA victims, abusive/traumatic background, prior drug overdose discussions, prior suicide attempt (not MCs), and more.

#specter #wraith #carnage #crestvalekillers #crestvalekillersseries #miamonroe #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Moody as a Minotaur (Willow Lake Pack #1)

Here's "Moody as a Minotaur" by Lori Ames. It's the first novel in her Willow Lake Pack series, which is a spin-off of the Willow Lake Supernaturals series. 

["Magic isn't real, is it?

Parker’s intuition has been itching for months—no, it’s probably closer to years—telling him something isn’t quite right in Willow Lake. But sometimes it’s safer to ignore the feeling than expose truths you don’t want to face. Especially when Levi, the handsome and beefy owner of the local motel, is right in the middle of all the weirdness.

Okay, okay.

Parker might have an itty-bitty crush on the big guy, but who can blame him? Levi is delicious… and as the owner of a café, Parker knows a thing or two about tasty treats.

And now Parker’s Nana is in town and she hasn’t come alone. She’s dragged his cousin and his paranormal investigative team along with her. But her arrival couldn’t have come at a worse time, because Parker was finally making progress with Levi.

Now what is he supposed to do? Because, for the record, it is incredibly difficult to flirt when your grandmother is eyeing everyone, including Levi, like she's in the FBI and they are in the Mafia… or like she’s Van Helsing hunting down a bunch of powerful supernatural beings.

Because that’s ridiculous. Really.

Right?"]

And the official tags (because they're the best): ["MM Paranormal Romance, a wary minotaur, a curious human, a meddling grandmother, fish make great friends (mostly because they can’t talk back), no one likes a paranormal hunter, and secrets no one expected."]

I put off reading this one for the angst. Parker and Levi had been teasing us with their HEA for sooo long! I wasn't ready for the straight-up, in-your-face pining. Not to mention the stress of the hunters and Parker's family and Levi's past. It felt like it was all too much.

And in some ways, it was. But in typical Lori fashion, it was perfectly balanced with fluff and protectiveness and sweet feelings and found family. Plus more mysteries to be solved and more fated mates awaiting us in future novels. 

Trigger Warnings: violence, mention of rape, mention of murder, people hunting other people, guns and shooting violence, injury due to a gun shot, fight ring, attempted abduction, home being broken into, bullying and bigotry, and more. 

#moodyasaminotaur #stubbornasashadow #loriames #willowlakepack #willowlakepackseries #willowlakesupernaturals #willowlakesupernaturalsseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Under The Surface (Tenebrea Cove #1)

Here's NR Walker's "Under The Surface." It's the first novel in the Tenebrea Cove series.

["When Hobart Detective Douglas Sawyer chases someone along Constitution Dock, the last thing he expects to see is the guy change shape and disappear into the freezing cold water. He also doesn’t expect a government suit to intervene on the case and offer him a job in a remote town in the wilds of the Southwest Coast to report on things that may or may not be weird.

As the leader of his consortium, Ciaran Brenner takes protecting his town of Tenebrae Cove, and his family, very seriously. He’s never been bothered by any cop who takes up post in town because none of them stay long enough to find out the truth.

Until Sawyer, that is.

Sawyer has never felt at home anywhere until he arrives in Tenebrae Cove, the creepy little town in Southwest Tasmania. He can’t explain the unnatural pull he feels toward the water, or to the man who seems to despise him. He knows things aren’t as they appear, not when it comes to the water and not when it comes to Ciaran Brenner either.

For reasons he can’t yet explain, he’s dying to get under the surface of both."]

I have NO idea why I haven't read this yet. This book was sooooo good! And NR Walker is one of my followed authors. 

All of the lore and the magic and the history and the fated-ness of it all. All of the mystery and the intrigue, the fucking little cliffhangers and unfinished business. 

This story was adorable. It was fate and fighting it. It was making your own magic. It was finding a place to call home and meeting a family you can lean on. It was new loves and unrequited loves. It was trouble on the horizon.

I canNOT wait for the next book! 

#underthesurface #intoodeep #tenebreacove #tenebreacoveseries #nrwalker #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Shadow Prince (Shadowmen #1)

Here's S Rodman's "Shadow Prince." It's the first novel in the Shadowmen series.

["What if your childhood bogeyman turned out to be real? And a real pain in the ass?

Apparently, the monster under my bed imprinted on me as a child. Like a baby duck. A six-foot, insufferably hot, made-of-shadows baby duck.

He claims he's a prince from the Shadow Realm. His powers have been bound, and he's been exiled to the human world.

And now the only person he can feed on is me. Because of our childhood bond.

The problem? He used to feed on my fear. Now that we're adults, he needs something... else. Something that involves him being a lot closer. And me wearing a lot less.

So what do you do when the monster that lurked under your bed now wants to be in your bed?

I should send him back to whatever dark realm spat him out.

He's shameless. Smug. Thinks materialising in my bedroom uninvited is foreplay.

Never mind that he's cocky, insufferable, or that he's far too charming for something that used to live under my furniture.

I should sage my entire life and move on.

He's a shadow with a filthy mouth and no boundaries. He’s my worst nightmare, in all sorts of ways.

But he needs my help.

He used to lurk under my bed. Now he's under my skin."]

This wasn't as dark or as scary as I had expected. It was pure fluff and protection and obsession. The steam was there, but that was also lesser than I had expected. 

This book was just all kinda of sweet and organization and healing (of so many kinds) and found family and teasers to future books. 

I've been seeing this book advertised for sooo long in so many different ways and formats. I'm really upset with myself that I didn't give it a chance sooner.

Trigger Warnings: bullying, decapitation, fire/trapped in burning building, grief from relationship breaking, home invasion, infliction of physical pain, intimidation and threats, murder, near loss of a loved one, peril, relationship break-up, sleep paralysis, threat to life, unloving relationship, un-secure housing, and more. 

#shadowprince #shadowking #shadowmen #shadowmenseries #srodman #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Safe (Constantine Brothers)

Here's Rina Saint's "Safe." It's the next novel in her Constantine Brothers series.

["For years, I wasn’t human and didn’t want to be. It was easier to be the Beast, pacing in my cage until my handlers let me out to fight. I didn’t speak, didn’t have a name. My existence was brutal, but it was simple. I understood it. Accepted it.

But everything changed when Lucas was thrown into my cage with me, when I claimed him as my own—when I realized I would do anything to protect him. That meant getting us out, to somewhere safe.

And that’s what I did. That’s where we are now, in a good, safe place. Except, it doesn’t feel good to me. I don’t belong here. Nothing about me makes sense here.

I’m trying to make it work. I want Lucas to be happy. But the past keeps intruding, and the problem is … I want it to. I make sense in that dark space. But Lucas doesn’t, and I don’t want him there. So what the hell am I supposed to do?"]

TO BE UPDATED SOON

Trigger Warnings:

#gayromancereviews #grr #arcs #arcteammember
#posession #confession #safe #rinasaint #constantinebrothers #constantinebrothersseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Pumped (Gymbos #2)

Here's KM Neuhold's latest: "Pumped." It's the second novel in her new Gymbos series.

["I’m just a nerd, standing in front of a bench press, asking it not to humiliate me in front of my gym crush

I’ve never walked into a gym on purpose in my life, and I’m not sure which part is more shocking, the massive beefcake who immediately challenges me to arm wrestle or the fact that I kind of want to come back.

I spent years of my life refusing to lift anything heavier than a textbook, and it shows. I never expected that coming to the gym and bulking up would give me more gender euphoria than all the T shots in the world.

The crush I’m developing on my Golden Retriever of a personal trainer, Butch, though? Yeah, I should have seen that one coming.

Butch is a guy’s guy. Jockstraps, armpit licking, Sweat enthusiast… what could he possibly find exciting about a scrawny, book-ish nerd like me?

I’m just going to try not to drool on him too hard while he helps me get pumped. And I’m for sure not going to do anything stupid like falling in love with him…"]

How can mutual pining be so sweet and fluffy and feel so awkward but not be too angsty? KM achieved it here perfectly (probably had Percy use the scientific method while Butch counted miles or calories burned or something all equally as gross—though their chemistry and equally instant crushes were anything but gross).

And there's nothing like literally all of their friends doing their best to get these two non-communicating idiots together. All of the innuendos and wingman-ing and supportive words. 

Trigger Warnings: internalized dysphoria and more.

#jacked #pumped #grind #gymbos #gymbosseries #kmneuhold #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Werewolf's Deputy (Charmed Away Temp Agency #7)

Here's Amy Padilla's "The Werewolf's Deputy" is the seventh novel in her latest series, Charmed Away Temp Agency. 

["Jonah spent his entire life raised in a human-only community with anti-supe family members trying to brainwash him, to no success. When his father demands he get off his computer and go get a job, he knows accepting a job at a supe-run temp agency is risky, but he’s determined to experience the world and finally see what he was missing. He didn't expect his first assignment to be at the largest supe-run company in the world. Maybe he should have considered asking for a smaller assignment for his first supe experience. Werewolves don’t eat humans, right?

When Emmett notices a nervous human at Spellbound, it’s his job as a member of security to ensure he feels safe. It has nothing to do with thinking the easily startled human is adorable and smells delicious. Out of the kindness of his heart, he offers to be the human’s authority on all things supe, answering all his questions and giving Jonah a safe harbor while he learns. When the adorable human starts receiving some unwanted attention and mentions a fake relationship to give himself a buffer, Emmett is happy to play along. Fake dating should include actual dates, though. Right?"]

And the official tags (because they're the best): ["Jonah has no experience with supes, Emmett is the Supe Guru Extraordinaire, texting is their love language, getting hit on by supes is a little much for Jonah, Emmett volunteers as tribute, dates include kisses, and maybe some other stuff, Taron decides to adopt Jonah, Jonah thinks he’s joking, who’s going to tell him?, Emmett gets growly, Jonah finds out what it’s like to be claimed by a werewolf, guaranteed HEA."]

My GOD did I love this book...even if it made me cry several times. This book was cuteness and fluff overload, plus all of the found family and new friends and pack shenanigans (I really hope we get a pack spin-off).  Jonah and his sweet blushes and sassy replies. Emmett and his wagging tail. The puppy cuddle puddle. The picnic lunches. I can't. 

Plus Taron being...Taron but so mature and so responsible. 

This is one of the books (and the previous one in the series) that I would erase from memory just so I can reread it again. 

Trigger Warnings: species-ism, toxic parents, men who can't understand 'no,' and more.

#theincubssassistant #thedragonsaide #theshapeshifterssecretary #thevampiresreceptionist #thetelephathstemp #thdemonsattendant# #thewerewolfsdeputy charmedaway #charmedawayseries #charmedawaytempagency #charmedawaytempagencyseries #amypadilla #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks