I pretty much went down a small town romance rabbit hole this month and even though they didn’t all work it was a party for sure!

I tried super hard not to reread this month and it was hard because the new Nalini Singh was released and I really wanted to reread The Trinity Series. I somehow managed to resist the temptation though and I’m very proud of myself. I will however be starting a reread on the 1st August!

I did reread 2 books for recap purposes but 2 out of 27 is like a record for me so I’ll take it! 😀

The Last Sun (The Tarot Sequence #1) – 5⭐, The Hanged Man (The Tarot Sequence #2) – 5⭐ & The Hourglass Throne (The Tarot Sequence #3) – 5⭐ by K.D. Edwards

The Last Sun and The Hanged Man were rereads as reminders for The Hourglass Throne. I adore these books. The premise, the writing and the characters are all so enjoyable. The only negative is it feels like a really long time between books but I’m not an author and don’t even post my wrap-ups on time so I’m not one to talk when it comes to delays in books.

The Hourglass Throne included the pandemic madness which is the first I’ve seen in a book and was done well. K.D. Edwards also wrote short stories (a couple that included that timeframe) that I must catch up on.

No timeframe on publication of The Misfit Caravan as yet and A LOT of shit went down in The Hourglass Throne and I need updates so I really hope it will be late this year or early next year!

Things We Hide from the Light (Knockemout #2) by Lucy Score – 4⭐

I think this is my favourite Lucy Score so far.

I laughed, I cried, I loved Lina, Nash was overbearing at times but also vulnerable and well, Piper!

One of my issues with LS is I sometimes feel like her characters behave like teenagers and not 28 year olds. They still behaved like teenagers but it wasn’t as pronounced/annoying in this book.

I really did enjoy everything, the plot and the relationship development were rather well done and that extended epilogue has me desperate for the next book!

Indigo Ridge (The Edens #1) – 4⭐, Juniper Hill (The Edens #2) – 4⭐, Garnet Flats (The Edens #3) – 3⭐, Jasper Vale (The Edens #4) – 4.5⭐& Crimson River (The Edens #5) – 2⭐ by Devney Perry

Went on a little Devney Perry binge because I was in a mood. Bit of a mixed bag. Loved book 1, 2 and 4. Didn’t love book 3 and kind of hated book 5. I’ve high hopes for book 6, Sable Peak, which is being released in December, even though the trope is not a favourite.

One of the things that started to grate on me in this series was the feeling that in order to be a family the main characters needed to have kids in some form or other. I’ll touch on that a bit more in my Lark Cove thoughts.

Tattered (Lark Cove #1) – 3⭐, Timid (Lark Cove #2) – 3⭐, Tragic (Lark Cove #3) – 0.5⭐& Tinsel (Lark Cove #4) – 2⭐by Devney Perry

Maybe binging so much Devney Perry was mistake. I had to tap out of this series and skip the final book in the end.

Things started out kind of okay. Secret baby trope, not what I usually go for but it was okay. We then hit the virgin trope with a dickhead MMC which I did used to like so for old times sake I soldiered on and then, then…

Tragic happened! Well named because it was tragic…

Oh this was not for me at all. I hated about 90% of it.

I actually naïvely thought that we were going to get a HEA that wasn’t a biological child/or any child at all, for a heroine who was infertile and a hero who suffered child loss! That was very silly of me!!

HUGE SPOILERS AHEAD:

Infertile heroine was lied to by her ex husband (but of course) and after much unprotected sex with the very emotionally unstable hero she turns up pregnant! With twins!!!

Worry not though, at the end of the day, all this trauma is cured by babies. They never cause any kind of stress to relationships, especially brand new ones!

I can get over A LOT in my books. This was something I just couldn’t get over and I’m starting to see a pattern with Devney Perry in terms of HEA’s and it’s all I can see and it’s annoying.

Because of Tragic I just didn’t enjoy Tinsel so decided to give Devney Perry a little rest after that.

The Distant Echo (Inspector Karen Pirie #1) by Val McDermid – 4⭐

This was super interesting and I was absolutely engrossed.

I really enjoyed how it was written and even though I worked out the whodunnit early on, the insight to the consequences of assuming someone is was guilty fascinating and very sad.

Rosie Duff’s murder was the beginning of the end for a lot of people and it was so interesting to see that butterfly effect from the very beginning. It just kept getting bigger and bigger.

I’m not sure why this is call the Karen Pirie series though because she was barely in it, perhaps that changes as the series goes on. I’ll definitely be reading more so I guess I’ll find out.

This is also an ITV show and I’m for sure going to watch it.

The Gargoyle’s Captive (A Deal With a Demon #3) by Katee Robert – 3⭐

Not my favourite so far. I think the only people surprised by the big reveal are Grace and Bram. I was literally saying ‘really? you guys don’t see it?’ throughout the entire book.

Grace was also a little bit annoying but she was also a badass and a liked that she wasn’t a quivering mess.

This series is still tons of fun though.

The Quiet House (Black and Blue #2) by Lily Morton – 4⭐

Pure Lily Morton goodness.

Love these two and I loved seeing how their relationship has developed. Why they so CUTE!?!?!

This was nice and atmospheric but it definitely wasn’t as scary as book one.

Looking forward to reading Will’s book!

Knot My Type (All Access #1) by Evie Mitchell – 3.5⭐

I really enjoyed this. I learned a lot and I found Frankie and Jay to be super cute.

I’d a few issues with lack of detail, I’m assuming that some of that detail would be found in the author’s backlist? Which I get not wanting to info dump but I need something. So do Jay’s brothers have other books? Do we learn more about the family through those books? Jay’s dad gives us like a tiny bit of information but doesn’t elaborate. I was very confused and had to go back to see if I missed a bit but I didn’t.

Also, Frankie’s family also didn’t get a look in. I mean she goes to her brother’s every week for dinner and I don’t think they had a proper conversation. I mean his opinion on Frankie dating a new guy doesn’t matter but a conversation about how they are getting on would be expected right?

Frankie and Jay were well fleshed out but the rest of the characters weren’t.

Also, the third act drama was eyerolling. The whole fuckboy thing was just silly. Nobody behaves this way and if they did they wouldn’t be up for podcast awards.

The Invitation by Vi Keeland – 3⭐

This started off so strong and I was so into it and just loving it!! I loved the characters and the premise and Stella’s job was so fun and I feel like I could talk to her for hours about what she does but then…

What on earth?

We had this DELICIOUS slow burn and then a freight train ending that left way too much unresolved. Like some really important shit!!

It was also super predictable, so predictable I was hoping that was all a red herring. Such a pity because the potential for it to be awesome was certainly there.

Forever Only Once (Promise Me #1) – 4⭐, From That Moment (Promise Me #2) – 4⭐, Far From Destined (Promise Me #3) – 2⭐& From Our First (Promise Me #4) – 3⭐by Carrie Ann Ryan

Another series that started out really strong and then lost momentum for me. Book 1 had all the things I liked, clear consent, trauma actually being dealt with and not cure by sex no huge third act miscommunication. Great stuff.

In book 2 I loved the characters and how their romance developed. Then I hated the FMC and was not a fan of the insta family storyline in book 3 and was kind of over everyone, especially the caricaturesque villains, by book 4. It was overall a fun series though and I will pick up more from this author in the futire as she seems to really mix things up in terms of relationships.

Wrapped in Ink (Montgomery Ink: Boulder #1) by Carrie Ann Ryan – 3⭐

I had to pick this up after meeting Arden and Liam in Forever Only Once and From That Moment.

It was a sweet story and I enjoyed them both. I also appreciate the chronic illness rep. It’s nice to see that in romance.

There are so many Montgomery’s and so many books about them. I want the story about the couple whose wedding Liam got hurt at and there was a throple mentioned so I need to find those.

Killers and Monsters (Three Fates Mafia #2) by Clio Evans – 4⭐

Great addition to this series. Serena was the right amount of kickass and forgiving. Luca was a nutter but hard not to like him at the end of it all and Ian really was a DILF! To be fair Ian was my favourite and felt the most emotionally stable out of all three.

Clio Evans does good steam and this was no exception. Looking forward to book 3 and really looking forward to Medusa’s story.

Mine To Kiss (Southern Wedding #0.5) – 3⭐, Mine to Have (Southern Wedding #1) – 3⭐, Mine to Hold (Southern Wedding #2) – 3⭐ by Natasha Madison

This series is fun. Another perfect Sunday afternoon series/author. I found the recapping of what the last person said when it switches POV to be more than a little aggravating as it went on. Not annoying enough to not continue the series but it was off-putting.