The Lies of Omission (Without Limits #3)

Continuing on a TBR/Beat-The-Backlog kick (and ignoring my ARCs kick). Here's "The Lies of Omission" by Skyla Raines. It's the third novel in her Without Limits series. 

["Two men.
One forbidden love.
And a truth that could ruin them both—if it doesn’t set them free first.

Sinclair
Getting exiled to my aunt's country home and being disowned was supposed to be a punishment. My parents were sick of my parties, my hookups, my refusal to play the perfect son. So now I’m stuck working at some uptight country club, pretending I’m not falling apart inside. Then I meet Theo Astor—buttoned-up, ice-cold, and twelve years older. He acts like he’s better than me, like I’m just a reckless distraction. The way he looks at me says otherwise.
I didn’t mean to want him. I definitely didn’t mean to need him.
But once we start, I can’t stop. Even if I’m just a secret he’s ashamed of.

Theo
I’ve spent my entire life doing what’s expected. Running my family’s legacy, keeping up appearances, saying yes when I want to scream no. Then Sinclair Soul walks into my club—loud, messy, infuriating, beautiful. He challenges everything I’ve buried and makes me want things I’ve fought so hard to forget.
Unfortunately in my world, there are rules I must follow, prying eyes to avoid, and an engagement I didn’t choose.
I can’t have him. I shouldn’t even look at him.
But I do.
And once I touch him, it’s already too late."]

My fucking GOD! Why was this one worse than the last? Why was it more heartbreaking and more tragic and harder to swallow? Why did I cry (and sob) during most of it? 

The hurt-comfort-hurt was agonizing in execution. Theo had his reasons for being shut down and cold, keeping secrets and keeping his distance. But Sin, of all people, didn't deserve to be a secret, a shadow, a convenience, not after everything his parents did/said to him his whole life. That strong, loud, brazen man was broken by his life for Theo. Then again, Theo started off the book mostly broken.

But those last few chapters? When they finally accepted their feelings, themselves, and pushed for their own future? All of the horrible people got their karma? All of the okay people vowed to do better (and did better)? All of the good, honest, stand-by-your-side people go what was coming to them too? A cheesy as fuck, well-earned, romantic epilogue? Allll of the yes. 

Trigger Warnings: homophobia, mentions of conversion therapy, emotional child abuse, abandonment, manipulation, and more.

#thelieswetellourselves #thelieswebelieve #liesofomission #theliesoftemptation #skylaraines #withoutlimits #withoutlimitsseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Lies We Believe (Without Limits #2)

Continuing on a TBR/Beat-The-Backlog kick (and ignoring my ARCs kick). Here's "The Lies We Believe" by Skyla Raines. It's the second novel in her Without Limits series. 

["He was my safe place.

My protector.
My home.

River
Unwanted. Broken. Used.
I spent my childhood bouncing through foster care until I finally ran away, only to end up in the hands of a devil disguised in elegance. She promised me dreams spun in gold, but beneath the surface, they were nothing but sweet lies.
Now, I was trapped in a life where my worth was measured by others' desires, my screams unheard, my tears falling silently in the dark. The only thing stopping me from wishing it would all end was the thought of a boy from my past, the one with mismatched eyes—one like a clear summer’s sky, the other deep and shadowy like a forest. He was a fleeting spark of hope in a world that had none. A dream I never thought I’d hold on to.
The lies we clung to never came true... until they did. And when they did, they mocked us with their cruelty.

Bane
My world shattered the day my family was taken from me, plunging me into the foster system. I was lost and broken until I found solace in a boy with deep emerald eyes. He became my anchor, pulling me from the edge with his quiet smiles and steady presence. For two years, he was my everything, the one thing keeping me together.
After that loss, I vowed to make a difference—to fight for the innocent, protect the vulnerable, and bring justice to those who had none. I never thought the biggest case of my career would bring me face-to-face with the boy who had once seen straight through me. And I never expected the flood of emotion that would follow.
He was no longer the boy I remembered. He was hurt, broken, twisted by the cruelty of the world. I needed him for the case, but all I wanted was to shield him, to keep him for myself. I was torn between my duty to the greater good and the deep pull of a heart I didn’t even know I had."]

Well THAT was all kinds of painful. Like all kinda of painful. You start to feel like you can uncurl and let the blanket fall from your face a bit, and then booooom, more pain. So basically River, River's life, River's trauma, River's pain. The small bits of safety were Bane (and Shadow), but the life, the trauma, the pain, the reality (or the lies we believe (see what I did there)) demand attention. 

Which made their progress and their successes and their happily ever after all the more sweet.

Trigger Warnings: child abuse (mental, psychological, physical, sexual), abuse, mental health rep, panic attacks, suicidal ideation, loss of loved ones, sex work/trafficking, drug use, sexual assault/rape, stalking, physical assault, attempted murder, murder, manipulation, homophobia, and more.

#thelieswetellourselves #thelieswebelieve #liesofomission #theliesoftemptation #skylaraines #withoutlimits #withoutlimitsseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Lies We Tell Ourselves (Without Limits #1)

Continuing on a TBR/Beat-The-Backlog kick (and ignoring my ARCs kick). Here's "The Lies We Tell Ourselves" by Skyla Raines. It's the first novel in her Without Limits series. Because apparently, I'm also crossing off a lot of the bully-romance books I have TBRed. 

["𝐇𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝.
𝐌𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞.
𝐌𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐤𝐢𝐬𝐬.

𝐉𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐞
ʙʀɪᴀʀ ᴜ ᴡᴀꜱ ᴍᴇᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴀ ꜰʀᴇꜱʜ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛ, ᴀ ᴄʜᴀɴᴄᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴅɪꜱᴄᴏᴠᴇʀ ᴍʏꜱᴇʟꜰ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴀꜱᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴜɴᴛᴇᴅ ᴍᴇ. ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍ Qᴜɪᴄᴋʟʏ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴀ ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ.
ᴏɴᴇ ɴɪɢʜᴛ. ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴀʀᴛʏ. ᴏɴᴇ ᴛᴡɪꜱᴛᴇᴅ ꜱᴇɴꜱᴇ ᴏꜰ ꜰᴀᴛᴇ.
ᴀ ꜰʀᴇᴀᴋ ᴇɴᴄᴏᴜɴᴛᴇʀ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏʏ ᴡʜᴏ ꜱᴛɪʟʟ ᴏᴡɴᴇᴅ ᴍʏ ʜᴇᴀʀᴛ ꜱᴇɴᴛ ᴍʏ ᴡᴏʀʟᴅ ꜱᴘɪɴɴɪɴɢ ᴏꜰꜰ ɪᴛꜱ ᴀxɪꜱ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴏꜰ ᴍʏ ʟɪꜰᴇ ʙᴇᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴍʏ ᴇɴᴇᴍʏ ɪɴ ᴀ ʜᴇᴀʀᴛʙᴇᴀᴛ.

𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐧
ᴍʏ ʟɪꜰᴇ ᴡᴀꜱ ꜱɪᴍᴘʟᴇ: ᴛʀᴀɪɴ, ᴘʟᴀʏ, ᴀɴᴅ ᴡɪɴ. ᴏɴᴇ ᴍɪꜱꜱᴛᴇᴘ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴄᴀᴜꜱᴇ ᴍᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴅʀᴏᴡɴ ᴜɴᴅᴇʀ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴇɪɢʜᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴇᴠᴇʀʏᴏɴᴇ'ꜱ ᴇxᴘᴇᴄᴛᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ.
ᴀ ɢʜᴏꜱᴛ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴍʏ ᴘᴀꜱᴛ ʜᴏʟᴅꜱ ᴛʜᴇ ᴋᴇʏ ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ ʀᴜɪɴ, ᴀ ꜱᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴄᴀɴ ɴᴇᴠᴇʀ ʙᴇ ʀᴇᴠᴇᴀʟᴇᴅ. ɪ ᴄᴀɴ'ᴛ ʟᴇᴛ ʜɪᴍ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ.
ɪ'ʟʟ ʙᴇᴄᴏᴍᴇ ʜɪꜱ ᴡᴏʀꜱᴛ ɴɪɢʜᴛᴍᴀʀᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴋᴇᴇᴘ ᴍʏꜱᴇʟꜰ ꜱᴀꜰᴇ.
ᴇᴠᴇɴ ɪꜰ ɪᴛ ʙʀᴇᴀᴋꜱ ʙᴏᴛʜ ᴏꜰ ᴜꜱ."]

God, what a roller coaster. That was a beautiful mess of fear and meanness and fierce devotion and unbridled chemistry. They connected (reconnected) instantly, like they did all those years ago..until fear and anxiety got ahold of Dillion.

Jamie is a ray of fucking sunshine, for everyone and everything, except himself. He was resilient and brave and so fucking kind. 

Their journey back together wasn’t easy, sooo many people and circumstances got in the way, but it made them stronger.

Trigger Warnings: mental health rep, bullying, homophobia, off-page memories of domestic violence, memories of physical childhood abuse, drugging, kidnap, attempted murder, beating, violence, and more.

#thelieswetellourselves #thelieswebelieve #liesofomission #theliesoftemptation #skylaraines #withoutlimits #withoutlimitsseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Prince of the Barbarian (Not-So-Savage Barbarians #6)

Here's Amy Padilla's "Prince of the Barbarian." It's the fifth official novel in her Not-So-Savage Barbarians series.

["There’s always a point in someone’s life where they regret the decisions of their past. Take me for instance. I skipped my lessons as often as I could get away with, figuring I’d always have someone with me to translate or watch my back. As a prince of Al Nuzem, I was very rarely alone. But when one of my own guards stabbed me in the back and had me handed off to the barbarians, my inability to speak even the common tongue meant I couldn’t tell them I wasn’t what they thought. And no amount of fighting was going to get them to bring me home. Not until they learned to communicate with me. It wasn’t going to be the other way around. They’d learn eventually."]

I thought I would be annoyed with Zakai. Granted, he was a brat, but he had a good heart and just wanted to be loved and cared for and paid attention to. He wanted to be important and special to someone (and who doesn't?).

Uttin didn't know what he wanted, but it certainly wasn't a tribute who couldn't (wouldn't) talk while he was supposed to be training (and not sure if he wanted to be training) to take over the clan. Deep down, he want something of his, something he could call his own, something that no one else had (something that didn't necessarily come with loads of responsibility).

Together, they were adorable as hell. Fitting together perfectly, matching each other in ways they didn't know they needed. 

And this book was the PERFECT ending to an absolutely perfect series. Sweet and sassy, filled with all kinds of new loves and found family, new alliances and new homes on the horizon. Not to mention that last chapter (what's better revenge than living your best life (okay...torture/murder with a semi-villainous monologue is close)). 

#theunexpectedbarbarian #thebarbarianstribute #savedbyabarbarian #seduingabarbarian #thebarbariansclaim #thephysiciansbarbarian #thebarbarianprince #notsosavagebarbarians #notsosavagedbarbariansseries #amypadilla #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Goodbye, January!

January was a blur of cold and wind and snow and more cold. Also, Christmas seems aggges ago.

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: 48.

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

(2) January Memories: I saw Clue at the theater (sooo good!) and dinner with my mama, my grandma, and my aunt. Cleaned my grandma's. So many record breaking cold days. SO much snow (like sooo much). A looot of read though, a lot a lot.

(3) Posts this month (including this one): 46.

(4) Quite a few days of telling myself I'll get up at a decent time and then sleeping in; my bed it just so warm and the world is cold and mean. A few depressive moments, but nothing crazy. The reading helped. My anxiety was high, trying to juggle so very many, many work projects and life and weather. Lots of self-care moments (I made some lego flowers today).

Anyone still holding onto their resolutions?

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

#newyearsresolutions #goodbyejanuary #hellofebruary #hello2026 #dontstopreading #makememories #shareloveofbooks #shareloveofreading #bekindertomyself #books #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Crossed Lines (Close Quarters #3)

Continuing on a TBR/Beat-The-Backlog kick (and ignoring my ARCs kick). Here's "Crossed Lines" by Sierra Bennett. It's the third novella in her Close Quarters series. Now sure when I read the first one, but GoodReads says I did so...

["Spencer Hall is everything I shouldn’t want—star soccer captain, my roommate, and my best friend.

Luke

I’ve worked hard to get to the Collegiate semi-finals and make my dad proud by achieving what he never could. But everything changes when I have to share a dorm with my gorgeous best friend.

We’ve always been competitive, making harmless bets with dumb forfeits. He knows exactly how to get under my skin, and his constant flirting makes my heart race in ways I can’t explain.

As far as I know, I'm 100% straight. But when a bet turns into a kiss, my walls start to crumble. One kiss, and now I’m hooked. His touch ignites a fire in me I’ve never felt before, and I’m terrified of getting burned.

Winning the semi-finals has been my dream since I was a kid. I can’t afford any distractions—but Spencer is impossible to ignore.

The more we cross the line between friends, the less I want to stop."]

Idiots. Idiots who kiss and fuck and dare each other into more and more and more instead of thinking through (let alone talking through) their feelings. They’ve been half in love with each other for years, only falling more and more, but the individual insecurities keep them from understanding what they truly feel. And when these bets and these kisses start, it’s feel oh so natural (and looks oh so fucking adorable)c you wonder what took them so long (idiots). 

Trigger Warnings: internalized homophobia, past death of a parent, mention of past abuse, and more.

#snowangel #motelfever #crossedlines #closequarters #closequartersseries #sierrabennett #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Motel Fever (Close Quarters #2)

Continuing on a TBR/Beat-The-Backlog kick (and ignoring my ARCs kick). Here's "Motel Fever" by Sierra Bennett. It's the second novella in her Close Quarters series. Now sure when I read the first one, but GoodReads says I did so...

["I’ve always been obsessed with my best friend. Now we’re stuck together for three days in a small-town motel… And we have to share a bed.

Callum

Driving home for spring break with my best friend should have been just a straightforward trip back to our families. But when my pickup truck breaks down in the middle of nowhere, we’re left stranded at a small-town motel with only one bed.

We’ve been inseparable since junior year of high school, sharing everything—late-night talks, our deepest secrets, dreams—except the one thing I've been hiding for the past five

I’m hopelessly obsessed with him.

I can’t get him out of my mind, even when we’re around each other. But if he ever discovers the truth, it could destroy our friendship. The longer we're stuck together, the harder it becomes to keep my feelings hidden, and the closer I come to risking everything we've built."]

A little cliche, but a lot sweet. This story was about trusting yourself and being brave and second shots at communication. It was about memories and togetherness and doing something that scares you.

#snowangel #motelfever #crossedlines #closequarters #closequartersseries #sierrabennett #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks