2021 Wrap up

2021 END OF YEAR WRAP UP

BEST READ OF 2021 

STILL BEATING 

by

Jennifer Hartman 

Contemporary Romance of 2021
Give Me A Reason 

by

AL Jackson

Romantic Comedy of 2021
The Stopover 

by 

TL Swan

SPIN-OFF SERIES

Kristen Ashley

Dream Team

COWBOY ROMANCE

Pam Godwin

Trails of Sin

DARK Romance (2)

Tillie Cole

Jegudiel

Giana Darling

Enslaved Duet

TABOO Romance

Pam Godwin

Lessons in Sin

Best MC Series

The Fallen Men series

by

Giana Darling

Best of hard to get books of 2021

Best Audiobook The Storyteller

by

Dave Grohl

My trip to the dark side of reading.... I LOVE it here

      Just wanted to pop in and give you a little update on what I have been reading. Not surprising I have been on a dark reading binge. I wish I had a reason I could give you that would explain why the dark and taboo genre calls to me. I love a story that sticks with me and makes it hard for me to go on to the next book, and for me, that is the dark and edgy stories. 



Let's start with this Duet by Giana Darling, 🠈 makes a few appearances on my reading list. I had no idea what I was in for, I found this in KU under "based on recent purchases we recommend this." I had no idea this duet would consume me the next 4 days. 
It is dark and there are so many twists and turns I had whiplash. There are crossover characters from The Evolution of Sin trilogy, but they are secondary and you can read this duet without getting lost. 
If you have any triggers this duet will engage them, so be warned. 
Highly recommend it if you are a fan of very dark stories.

It was the biggest day of my life.
I know most people say that about something joyous; graduation, a wedding ceremony, the birth of their first child. My situation was a little different.
Sure, it was my eighteenth birthday, but it was also the day that I was sold.
Sold to a man with hair like a crown of gold and eyes blacker than the darkest pits of Hell.
He bought me to own me, to control me, and to use me as a means to an end.
I was his tool and his weapon.
And through it all, somehow, I also became his salvation.




It was the worst day of my life.

I know most people say that about something obviously horrific—a first heartbreak, the discovery of a fatal illness, or the funeral of a loved one—but my situation was a little different.
Not only was it my wedding day, but it was also the day I chose to die.
Two men.
The first, my Master, my captor, and my impossible love.
The other, his brother, a mafioso I was meant to ensnare and ruin.
If I had any hope of living a normal life reunited with my family, I had to make a choice.
End my old life as I knew it and start fresh, or take down the monsters that hunted me and haunted my Master.
In the end, the decision was never really mine to make. Because Alexander Davenport would come to claim me even in death.

Back to the dark MC side with Giana Darling once again. Loved Inked in Lies struggled a bit with Dead Man Walking. Both were gritty and the character development is superb.  I always know what I am getting with this author and I love it. Lies was so enduring to my heart. For some reason, I found this story sweet and loving. Maybe it was the back story of Nova and Lila. Knowing you met your soul mate at such a young age and never wavering from loving him, it was just so good. 

He moved in next door.
Handsome as sin, older in a way that meant forbidden.
He had tattoos on his hands and wickedness tucked in his grin.
I was a goner as a girl to a man they called Casanova for a reason. He would never love me, at least not the way I needed him to.
I tried to move on. But I couldn’t turn my back on him or The Fallen MC.
So when they needed me most, I offered the only thing of value I could use to help them.
My body.
And when helping them meant putting my life on the line, Nova had to decide just how much he was willing to do to get me out alive.







 Dead Man, the struggle was I didn't really connect with Priest and his lack of communication. He was so intense all the time and that, I felt weighed the story down a lot. He is interesting and lives up to the "killer" mantra.  I just needed a little bit of a smile here or there. Really good read just a heavy one. 

    

A killer. A criminal.
A psychopath.
The Irish enforcer for The Fallen Men MC is everything good girls is taught to stay away from.
Only, I found myself inexorably drawn into his dark gravitational pull. I wanted to know what it would be like to walk beside the human personification of Death and hold his hand, feel his kiss, and maybe even earn his undying love.
But Priest McKenna is older, cold as ice, and notoriously unfeeling.
So what are the odds that a dead man walking would come to life for little, insignificant me?
When a serial killer begins to target the women of Entrance, BC, and The Fallen suffers another terrible blow, Priest resolves to hunt down the killer himself.
And when the murderer sets his eyes on me?
My very own psychopath steps between me and certain death, thrusting us into an intimacy I prayed we would never recover from.

Next up is Lessons in Sin by Pan Godwin, I devoured this story! What is more taboo than a Priest and his student? This book lives up to all the hype and then some. If you read Priest by Sierra Simone then this is right up your alley. If you have age gap problems, this is one to skip. Father Magnus is not for the faint of heart. 

There’s no absolution for the things I’ve done.
But I found a way to control my impulses.I became a priest.
As Father Magnus Falke, I suppress my cravings. As the headteacher of a Catholic boarding school, I’m never tempted by a student.
Until Tinsley Constantine.
The bratty princess challenges my rules and awakens my dark nature. With each punishment I lash upon her, I want more. In my classroom, private rectory, and bent over my altar, I want all of her.
One-touch risks everything I stand for. My faith. My redemption. And even my life.
As if that could stop me. I need her pain, and her heart, and she needs my lessons in sin.



I hit a bit of a Pam Godwin stride with the Tails of Sin series. If you want dark cowboy done right, this series is for you. Knotted is book #1 and it is so good! Second chance romance that seems like it is never going to happen. There are many trigger warnings in these books and if you have any, you should tread lightly. From the jump, Knotted is a heartstring-tugging intense story. Jake and Conor (female) are childhood sweethearts headed for a bright future of love and happiness. Lies and deceit from people that are supposed to love them, set things into motion that cost years of hurt. They make a pact to get revenge and OMG it is super intense and really good! 


I try to forget her.
It’s impossible.

Growing up together, Conor and I shared all our firsts.
First love, first kiss, first…
Not all our firsts.
We were sixteen the night she was violently assaulted while I helplessly watched.
I’ll never forget the sounds of her suffering.
Or my inconsolable agony when she left Oklahoma.
Years later, she returns to honor our teenage pact.
Except for the boy she loved is gone, replaced by a ruthless cattle rancher knotted with secrets.
She doesn’t know my dark cravings or the trails of sin that lead to her.
I don’t deserve her, but one truth remains.
She’s mine.

I have become a fan of Faith Summers and her Russian Bravata stories. This one Deceptive Vows was particularly good! The idea of impersonating a cartel princess and being forced to marry the man in line to take the head as part of the Bravata was original. The twists and turns this story takes are such a great ride. You think you have it all figured out when all of a sudden, curveball!  Really good and original plot. 

A monstrous Bratva leader who binds your wrists and promises to break you. Mikhail Dmitriyev is a beautiful devil with a villainous heart and a thirst for revenge.

The choices he gave me when he stole me away from my home with an army of men were very clear—marry me or die.

I chose to marry him and live.

But there’s one small problem with his grand plan to rain Armageddon on the Mexican Cartel.

I’m not the woman he thinks I am.

I’m not the cartel princess he thinks he took to make his enemies bow to him. When my captor finds out my secret and realizes he married the wrong woman, love won’t be enough to save me.

And neither will his obsession.

Deceptive Vows is a dark mafia arranged marriage romance. It contains dubious situations, mature content, and graphic violence some readers might find offensive and/or triggering. 

Rounding out my trip to the dark side is Fifty Six by Seven Rue. Let's just start with the triggers, major age gap, BDSM, orgasm denial, degrading, spanking, watersports, breath play, very vulgar language. All sexual acts in this book are consensual between two legal adults. There is no rape.

If you are not into "DADDY" stories this is NOT for you. I loved it because I like something different from the norm and WOW did this fill it. 

TRIGGER WARNING
This book is only for very open-minded readers.
There will be all kinds of kinks, some that are often seen as nasty and disgusting.
I don’t kink shame, and if you don’t either, turn the next page.
If you think you can’t handle it without judging or shaming me as an author writing fiction, but also readers who like these types of books, please do not read fifty-six.

Valley
Guys my age didn’t know how to treat me right.

Girls my age would never understand how powerful a woman can feel being adored by older men.
And men twice, even triple my age could never say no to me.
Not even Riggs.
Thirty-eight years my senior and my dad’s best friend.
Rough, short-tempered, and an alpha male.
I liked being in control in every situation, but he made it hard.
He challenged me while I kept teasing, wanting to push not only his but my own limits.
And when the most unexpected thing occurred, Riggs showed me just how much he hated the games I played.

TRACED by Samantha Wilde

 

Tessa George has three days to sell six gold bricks before Lionsgate Kinship’s men kill her father—and then her. The tall, dark, and the insanely hot black-market dealer wants nothing to do with her deal. Turns out selling four million dollars worth of gold is too much heat for a criminal. But when the men from Lionsgate find and torture her, the scandalous thug shows up.

Dare Holmes shouldn’t want a damn thing to do with Tessa, her father, or her gold. Not his circus. But her emerald-green eyes and sexy body call him back to her door. He’s thrust into the mess her father left her, but he can’t walk away. Not when being around her is an aphrodisiac and the thought of not being near her makes his chest ache.

When they discover what her dad was involved with, the stakes become downright perilous. Lionsgate’s men are on their heels. The bodies pile up in their wake. And one devastating revelation derails everything they thought they knew. As their attraction to each other grows, Tessa and Dare fall into a race against time—one that perhaps neither of them will survive



~Review~

I really, really got into this story. Dare was intriguing to me from his appearances in BOUND.  His brooding mysterious personality and stealth-like movements made him even more intriguing to me in TRACED. 

Not to be outdone Tessa was no slouch. Determined to help her father and save his life she sets out to do whatever it takes to ensure his safety. 

Dare and Tessa have a chemistry that is hard to deny so they don't and both know that it is going to lead to nothing but trouble.

This is a fast-paced journey and you just might get whiplash from all the twists and turns and names that come into play. The other Holmes brothers are all over this story and make me want to know so much more. I am really enjoying this series.  And PLOT TWIST.

TRACED
by 
Samantha Wilde
4 Clocks

book provided by NetGalley for honest review

The Casanova by TL Swan Review by Dawn

 

My favorite hobby is infuriating Elliot Miles. Just the sight of my boss’s handsome face triggers my sarcasm. God knows how he earns his Casanova reputation―if a million women want him with his personality, what the heck am I doing wrong?

Disgusted with my love life, I join a dating app under a fake name. I start chatting to a man named Edgar. He’s not my type and lives on the other side of the world, but we hit off a friendship, laugh, and confide in each other.

But lately, things are getting weird at work. Elliot’s being…attentive. His eyes linger a little longer than they should, and there’s a heat behind them that I haven’t felt before. And then, in the shock of all shocks, he tells me that my vulnerability is appealing. But when was I vulnerable?

Horror dawns…Has my boss been reading my emails to Edgar?

Damn it, why did I use my work email?

Oh no, does he know what I really think of him? I’d rather die than ever admit it.

Or, even worse: is it possible that the man I loathe in real life is the man I’m falling for online?

~REVIEW~


TL Swan is an author that is an automatic read for me. I always enjoy her books and finish them and feel like I have just gone through it with the main characters. I always at one point am feeling this crushing blow to my heart when our leading lady normally is treated badly at one point or decides that she is putting herself first. TL writes a great broken heart.  I found myself sort of hating Elliot, he was such a jerk BUT Kate gave it right back to him and I adored that. 

The banter is there, the push and pull is there and the attraction is there. What isn't there for me and I felt that it was a missed opportunity was Kate's endometriosis. I certainly thought this was going to play a much larger role. I get it who wants a book about period problems? I just thought it might have a moment in where Elliot could be charming and understanding that this was going to be a constant thing. Again, just my opinion.

Fun read as always and that is why I keep coming back. 

The Casanova
by
TL Swan
4 Clocks

book provided by NetGalley for honest review

Give Me a Reason by A.L. Jackson 4.5 clock review!

Eden Murphy came into my club looking to make some extra cash.

A girl like her didn't belong in a place like this. 

She'd get ripped to shreds.

Most likely by me.

There's nothing but sweetness dripping from her sexy little body, and I'm the monster who's salivating to get a taste. 

Trent Lawson is the last man I should want.

Dark.

Dangerous.

So wickedly gorgeous he makes my knees weak. 

He's also an arrogant jerk who happens to be my new boss. 

When I discover his adorable son is also in my kindergarten class, I know I have to keep my distance. 

But neither of us can ignore the attraction that flames.

One glance, and our hearts race. 

One-touch, and we’re aching for what we can’t have. 

One night, and we’re falling fast.

Dragging her into my sordid world is wrong. 

It doesn’t matter. 

Eden Murphy is mine. 

~Review~

Honestly, it has been a hot minute since I have read AL. One chapter in I knew I had to go back and read her catalog. I am a reader of dark books so I thought maybe this wouldn't be my cuppa, I was so wrong. 

I loved Trent and his heartbreaking backstory. He was a man with a history that was filled with trauma, grief, and crime and I ate that up. Trent knew he was never meant to have anything good and that included the pure Edan. 

Edan grew up completely different than Trent. She loved her father dearly and went to church and taught Sunday school. Their paths cross when Edan needs to make some fast cash to help out her father and she gets a job at Trent's club. One-touch is all it takes for these two to feel the spark.

This story is full of angst and twists and turns and HOLY PLOT TWIST!!! 

I really enjoyed this I just hope Jud and Logan get stories Oh and Tessa!!!! 

Give Me a Reason 

by

AL Jackson 
4.5 clocks 

Honest review based on book provided by NetGalley

Still Beating By Jennifer Hartmann .......Review by Dawn 5 Clocks Top Pick for 2021

 

***WARNING: This book contains subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers. There is dark and triggering content between these pages. 18+ only. Please read responsibly.***

When Cora attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Dean—her arch-nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side.

And she really doesn’t anticipate waking up in shackles in a madman’s basement.
To make matters worse, Dean shares the space in his own set of chains. After fifteen years of teasing, insults, and practical jokes, the ultimate joke seems to be on them. The two people who always thought they’d end up killing each other must now work together if they want to survive.

But Cora and Dean have no idea their abductor has a plan for them. A plan that will alter the course of their relationship, blur the line between hate and love, and shackle them together with far more than just chains.

Review

There are books that stay with you, however long it may be they just stay with you, and Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann will always stay with me. This story is so beautifully written. I feel like this is such an odd thing to say when dealing with the subject matter. But oh the writing is superb. This is easily one of the best books I have read this year. 

Please do not take the trigger warning lightly, this is a dark deep subject that could possibly trigger someone. I just happen to be a person that lacks in the trigger department and the dark books call to me. 

Dean and Cora endure each other throughout their lives tied by her sister being in love with Dean and about to marry him. Dean has always been the thorn in Cora's side, always set to embarrass her and quick to laugh at her, no matter the audience. Now, Cora is no wimp when it comes to payback, she will give it right back to Dean tenfold. Their banter and back and forth with pranks and jokes is what their relationship is built on. But when forced to rely on one another to survive brings out more than pranks and jokes, can they deal with the fallout?

Just because they survive does not mean they are surviving. Both are suffering and do not know how to let other people help or how to be honest with their loved ones. No one understands what they are going through they only have each other and that causes problems. 

This book to me is 2 halves. The first is the dark stuff and the second is the trying to live with the dark. The writing is perfection. The way the author weaves the aftermath of a horrendous event is masterful. The way she uses delicate words to describe what must be absolute torture to your soul, you feel it. I loved that she didn't just single out Cora and her feelings. Dean was handled with the same respect and his feelings were as important as Cora's. THAT is FANTASTIC storytelling!!!!

Please again, take the trigger warnings into account before you read this amazing story! 

Still Beating

by

Jennifer Harmann
5 Clocks

Skin Deep by Renee Miller......................................Review by Dawn

Victoria MacDonald wants to die but finding a way to go beautifully is difficult. She’s tenacious, and vows to find a way to leave this world with the beauty she fought so hard to attain. Somehow, her search for the perfect suicide turns into murder…

Detective Amos Christianson answers a call about an intruder at Victoria’s house. It’s her second home invasion in less than a month, but this time she kills her attacker in “self-defense.” Something about Victoria’s story stinks, though, and Amos can’t let it go.

He can’t let Victoria go either.

As they spiral into separate obsessions, their paths twist until neither can untangle themselves from the other, and Victoria’s desperate search for a beautiful death forces Amos to make a drastic decision.

But is the price for freeing himself of her insanity too high?

REVIEW

 I try to find something positive to say about every book I read and review, this one has me on the struggle bus. I was so intrigued by the blurb and was IN.  I was ready for this horror/sex-based story, but this fell through on both fronts. I will admit I am not a super big fan of short stories and often feel like they are rushed and forced. I felt that 100% with Skin Deep. 

I hated the mother but I hated our leading lady Tori even more. Don't get me wrong I am all for killing a main character and even hating a main, but she literally had zero redeeming qualities. Amos was a bore, a snooze fest as a leading man.  There was more of a connection with his boss than his "love" interests Vicitoria and Vickie (really original.) I wanted to get behind a cop falling for a suspect and that really is a great plotline, but again, this fell so flat on story and character development

The entire idea behind the "shadow man" I felt was ridiculous. I just did not like that element at all. The plot had so many holes and left me thinking "there has got to be more..." and there was not. We end a chapter and the next we are 3 years down the road and kids are here now and Amos has a dead wife. WHAT??? 

I wanted to like this so much but I did not, I am honestly surprised I finished it.  I am sure there is an audience for this but sadly I am not a member of it. 

Skin Deep 

by

Renee' Miller

1 Clock

honest review based on book provided by NetGalley