Hard Target (Wrecked: Guardians #1)

Well, here's to reading another universe (series of series) in whatever order I want to. Here's "Hard Target" by Kelly Fox. It's the first novel in the Wrecked: Guardians series, which is within the Wrecked universe. 

["Everett: There are a ton of reasons why falling for my tiny, adorkable best friend is a terrible idea—starting with the body in my trunk.
I have other reasons—he still mourns his late husband, I’m way older, he’s a foot shorter, my tattoo shop is a front, he’s an assistant professor at UT.
Still, I can’t help but think we’d be perfect for each other if I didn’t kill people (very, very bad people) for a living.

Rafi: How the f*ck did I not realize how hot my best friend is? Yeah, grief, or whatever, but were my eyes not working?
Silver fox, check. Tattooed hotness, check. Cuddles with me on Monday nights while we watch Australian melodramas, check. Says he’s not a good person but totally is, check.
New goal: Get Everett to stop looking at me like a grieving widower and start seeing me as someone he’d like to pin against the wall.
Now if I only knew what was behind the door marked Portal to Nowhere…"]

These two were adorable as hell! Both down sooo bad for each other. The mutual pining. The angst. The feelings of inadequacy. Everett's desire to hold back. Rafi's desire to...update his wardrobe. An entire team of friends turned found-family to support them in everything (literally, everything).

I canNOT wait for the rest of the team to get their HEAs. I'll eventually go back to read the OG series in this universe, gotta see some of those SCs get their HEAs.

Trigger Warnings: grief, loss of a loved one, stalking, violence, murder, injuries resulting in a hospital stay, all sorts of bad guys, and more. 

#hardtarget #fullcontact #mostwanted #deepimpact #wreckedguardians #wreckedguardiansseries #wrecked #wreckedseries #wreckeduniverse #kellyfox #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Betrothed in Fury

Here's Devon McCormack's "Betrothed in Fury." 

["LOGAN

Charming. Sexy as sin. Out of his damn mind.

That sums up Killian Lorde, one of the most powerful crime bosses in Fury’s underworld.

Since his father passed, he’s stepped into his role as head of the family business.

A role which I, the golden boy of the Wilde clan, more than understand. Forced by birth into a life of corruption and moral bankruptcy, I exist for one to protect my family at all costs.

Only this time, the price is my freedom.

Unbeknownst to me, to maintain my family’s alliance with the Lordes, I’ve been betrothed to Killian.

I’ve always known him to be a bastard, but this arrangement brings out the worst in him.

He’s a monster. Pure, unfettered evil.

He doesn’t just want to marry me. He wants to control and possess me, and when his curiosity becomes obsession, we struggle for power as he demands the one thing I can’t give him.

My complete and total surrender."]

And the official tags (because they're the best): ["Dark MM Romance, grumpy/psycho-sunshine, mob-bosses-to-lovers, morally gray men, frighteningly possessive MC, “Oh, what did that contract say?” arranged marriage, bi-awakening, touch-him-and-die (like, tied up in a sack, thrown into a lake, and left for dead), anything-for-the-family vibes, torture-as-foreplay (just mob bosses doing what they love), “Did I say you could have mashed potatoes?” (iykyk)"

TO BE UPDATED SOON

Trigger Warnings:

#booksprout #arcs #arcteammember
#betrothedinjury #devonmccormack #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Swifts: A Garden of Vipers

AHHHH!!! D: :D Here's Beth Lincoln's "The Swifts: A Garden of Vipers."

["In the depths of winter, Shenanigan Swift and her family are summoned to America, where Daisy’s brother, Dandelion DeMille, is in danger.

Racing to DeMille family home – a 72-storey greenhouse in the heart of New York City – Shenanigan is too late to stop a murder. But it’s Dandelion’s Uncle Charlie who has fallen victim to a mystery assassin.

As a snowstorm rages outside, Shenanigan, Felicity, Phenomena and Erf must uncover both motive and means. But when every room is packed with poisonous plants and deadly creatures, how will they ever uncover what really happened in The Greenhouse?"]

Another family with perfectly fitting, if not too-on-the-nose names. I'm still obsessed. It shouldn't work. In any other book, calling the family chef Cook, would be too cliched and immediately nixed. But in this world, where a florist family in which every member is named after flora? It's perfection!

And the characterization itself! You never know who to trust! You hate this person, and they turn out to be good; you love this person, and they hurt you; you don’t know about this person, and they surprise you in the best of ways. It’s lovely and skilled and frustrating as hell. 

Glad to know that Shenanigan is still having her existential crisis in book three. Nothing like not knowing who you are and what you’re meant to do being sooo relatable across so many generations. 

#theswifts #theswiftstheseries #theswiftsadictionaryofscoundrels #adictionaryofscoundrels #theswiftsagalleryofrogues #agalleryofrogues #theswiftsagardenofvipers #agardenofvipers #bethlincoln #thriller #yathriller #murdermystery #yamurdermystery #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooksv

The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science: The Jungle of Carabanana

AHHHH!!! D: :D Here's "The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science: The Jungle of Carabanana." Written by Kate McKinnon...sort of. ;) This Millicent Quibb book is technically by G. Edwina Candlestick (and "as told by" by Kate).

["The Porch sisters are going on a trip– this time, to the beautiful almost-French city of ParisToo.

Between baguettes, berets, and one very big bug– what could go wrong?

Everything, of course. You see, there’s just one problem with it’s where the evil KRA is planning to execute their most dastardly plan yet!

It’s up to Gertrude, Eugenia, Dee-Dee, and their dear mentor Millicent Quibb, to stop those nefarious mad scientists from taking over the world. Though coming up with a plan is easier said than done when danger– like a tree that throws coconuts, a suspicious pile of sausage, or a glaring aunt– lurks around every corner.

If Millicent Quibb and the sisters Porch are going to defeat the KRA once and for all, they’ll need to uncover long buried secrets (including some that might just change everything…) and tap into the world of mad science like they never have before.

At any and all costs, the KRA MUST! BE! STOPPED!"]

YES! YESSS! I'm obsessed with these books. They're fabulous and funny. They're silly and serious with all the right amount of (mad) science. All of the made-up words and general weirdness and sisterhood. It's all a mesh-mash of odd perfection. Not to mention the sheer amount of times one literally lols. 

I still want more Lavinia-Steve…

#themillicentquibbschoolofetiquetteforyoungladiesofmadscience #secretsofthepurplepearl #thejungleofcarabanana #gedwinagandlestick #katemckinnon #childrensbooks #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Barbarian's Musician (Savagely Sweet #3)

Here's Amy Padilla's latest: "The Barbarian's Musician." It's the third novel in her Savagely Sweet series, which is a Not-So-Savage Barbarian's spin-off.

["After the gronnok attack, my life was never the same. I was left scarred, ashamed, and certain I would spend the rest of my days alone.

Then Henry arrived.

Blind since childhood, he somehow sees me more clearly than anyone ever has. Where others flinch, Henry offers kindness. His music seems to be the only thing that puts my heart at ease and allows me to finally rest.

But Henry was never meant to stay.

His life is already complicated enough without the hardship and uncertainty of our nomadic lifestyle. If I want any chance of keeping him, I’ll have to convince him that it’s possible for him to build a life here with me and with the clan. Because if I fail, I won’t just lose Henry. I’ll be left to face the darkness alone."]

Oh. My. Goddess.

This book was somehow even sweeter than the rest. Which is saying something. These two were so utterly devoted to each other. They were so alike in so many ways. They both felt isolated and unwanted, unloved. But they saw something in each other that was so strong and powerful and beautiful. They saw love and hope and a future. It was...beautiful.

Plus all of the accommodations just being...life? An all of the found family, continuing to grow and grow? And Simon being Simon? I'm obsessed with all of it. 

#barbariansheart #escapingtothebarbarians #thebarbariansmusician #savagelysweet #savagelysweetseries #notsosavagebarbarians #notsosavagedbarbariansseries #amypadilla #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Goodbye, May!

May was looong as hell. It was never ending. One crazy moment after another, not to mention the weather not knowing what was going on (same, though, same).

2026 Resolutions:

     (1) Don't stop reading
            (b) Complete Monthly Reading Challenge(s)
     (2) Make memories
     (3) Share love of books/reading
     (4) Be kinder to myself

(1) Book's Read This Month: 53 (though, I might squeeze one more in before midnight).

    (b) Monthly Reading Challenge(s): Shape = Taurus. Got some A-Z stuff recorded. Some ARCs. Got a lot of Beat The Backlog done.

(2) May Memories: Lots and lots of books. Some actual time off. My best friend's baby turned one. The book fair season finally ended for the summer.

(3) Posts this month (including this one): 47.

(4) Not too bad overall. I didn't eat the best, but I didn't eat the worse. There were a lot of Sunday-Blues moments and a lot of late-night saddies, but most of the month was I-got-this and I'm-a-baddie, so...

Anyone still holding onto their resolutions?

Any exciting June reads? Any existing 2026 reads?
Anything I should check out?

#newyearsresolutions #goodbyemay #hellojune #hello2026 #dontstopreading #makememories #shareloveofbooks #shareloveofreading #bekindertomyself #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Open Liner (Alchemy Ink #1)

Here's "Open Liner" by Katherine McIntyre. Its the first books in her Alchemy Ink series, which is in the same universe as the Brannon Boys series and the Hot Under the Collar series

["The firefighter who saves August from a kitchen grease fire happens to be hot, single…and his ex-girlfriend’s brother.

August
When Serena dumps me, I barely have time to process before a sexy firefighter busts into my kitchen. Mostly because of the grease fire, but damn, he snags my attention at once. Then I find out he’s Serena’s brother. And the hits keep coming, because my parents drop the news that they’re moving down South. I’m about to be utterly alone, and I’m tempted to move too.

Drake
I’m in a rut. Work is fine, but I’m just floating through it. Meanwhile, my siblings are out there changing the world. So when the fire chief asks me to come up with a new idea for our charity event, I jump in feet-first with a charity concert. Of course, the one person who can help me is the gorgeous tattoo artist my sister used to date.
Turns out, we get along too well. So well that I can’t stop thinking about him naked. So well that I want to spend every spare second with him.
Except he’s not looking to stay, and I can’t hurt my sister by crossing that line."]

My fuck these two were cute. All of the chemistry and the similar interests and the meet-cute. It was all a little awkward but their connection pushed through. It was also healing, both of them finding the perfect partner for them, that person seeing them, zero judgement. 

Not to mention the generally low angst. I’ve been reading a lot of angst lately, and I didn’t know I needed a break until now. 

CanNOT wait for the next one!! 

#arc #advancedreadercopy #arcteammember
#inkcaps #openliner #strokefrequency #katherinemcintyre #alchemyink #alchemyinkseries #brannonboys #brannonboysseries #hotundertehcollar #hotunderthecollarseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks