Lola Glass: Lust & Lollipops

Survival of the Mated Book 1: read in 2025

Molly "Lollie" is a human through a blood test she is found to be a match to be a fated mate to a Fae male.  Fae males are dying out and they don't have enough female Fae to sustain their lineage... in fact if they don't pair with someone they will fade away until completely gone so after saving the world a game show is created like a paranormal Bachelorette where a human female goes on a series of dates with male Fae to pick who they would like to be with in the end.  Lollie is assigned a Fae guard (Cameron) who protects her at home and at work while she awaits her assigned season of the Bachelorette, they really don't have much interaction other than snarky comments towards each other even though they have lived together for several years.

Molly finds out her season is starting and gets whisked off to prepare only she isn't going to the luxurious Bachelorette mansion... she is being air dropped onto an Island for a new show (more like Survivor).  A surprise awaits her and it's not just all the hot Fae men waiting to fight to be chosen by her... Cameron is also there on the island as one of her potential candidates... he didn't even say that he was coming she makes it clear early on that Cam is not going to be in the running to be selected she is mad at him which works out well for Cam because the men in the running get to vote each other off until there are only 3 contestants for Molly to choose from... why wouldn't they want to keep someone she doesn't like to better their odds of being selected.

During the book you find that while Molly didn't feel all that close to Cam during the time they lived together Cam was falling in love with her and he will be her end choice no matter what he has to do he would claim her today if she could.  Molly feels these rules are unfair and the Bachelorette game at least allows the female to select from all of the candidates and not just the final three.  

Molly is independent and sassy but it feels that a lot of her choices are being made for her, and while on this beach with a bunch of handsome Fae men she can't help but grow a bit closer to the one she already knows... but is he end game material?  

The challenges were not that challenging and there were several days separating each "challenge" and elimination leading to several passages of time being just a sentence or so about how nothing much was happening.  Molly just kind of goes along with what Cam wants at times during the book even though she mentions several times about how she wants to feel like she has more of a choice in this set situation.  Some of the other Fae men were likeable but of course there were the ones that were just cringeworthy.  

This book was pure fluff... and I was totally down for that it was a quick read with some humor and spice (I did feel some of the spicy moments maybe were a bit over the top... like I don't think anyone is going to fall asleep the way that they say our lead characters did in one section on a beach when they are dirty, hungry and tired... well maybe they were so tired they just passed out?)

Have you read anything by this author?  Have you read this series?  Did you like it?  

What paranormal romance would you recommend for me to read?  

*paranormal  *reality show type setting *Fae  *some spice *enemies --> more  *fantasy

 

Mariah Stone Duke of Rath

 Read in 2025

Seven Dukes of Sin book 1

Dorian the Duke of Rath is a damaged man  he had a rough childhood with an awful father trying to make him the "proper" kind of Duke by sending his mom away and punishing him for minor things trying to make him into a "hardened" man.  As a man he no longer has his father's anger against him but he is fighting his own inner demons to the point where when he feels anger he calls it "the beast" a bit dramatic...yes.  

Dorian has a dark secret where an incident happened while he was away at college this was right after finding out his father had died.  His two friends helped him cover up "the incident" and they banded together along with 4 other dukes to form a friend group this is where things get kind of hokey as the names of the dukes are to match (ish) the 7 deadly sins, they also get together regularly as adults to go to the "Gentlemen's" club to help to release their sinful urges.  

Dorian's aunt has been getting onto him about getting married and producing an heir, Dorian wants to remain a bachelor until hearing that his victim's family is about to lose their home with their father going into debtor's prison if they can't find a way to pay back their debts.  Dorian who has been consumed with guilt for the last 12 years decides to "help" the family by marrying one of the unmarried daughters preferably the youngest and paying all of the families debts.  Dorian hasn't met any of the daughters and the first day he sees his wife to be is on their wedding day.  The leading lady Patience is a blonde... so not sure who the cover model is supposed to be. 

Patience is sweet and cheerful, she enjoys gardening and has been working on a research paper related to her attempts to produce a new type of rose, the writer gets the point across and I did like the leading lady, while young she does find a way to start to break thru her husbands thick layers.  Dorian has many rules for his new wife some of them include punishing her when she does something to disobey his orders.  He also doesn't want her snooping and asking questions about his past and the incident that involved her brother many years ago.

The book is fairly repetitive and brings up the same things regularly throughout the book it reminded me at times of when I was in high school and had to write an essay then repeated some stuff and added additional words to pad it out.  Dorian is a bit of a beast at times and flies into a blind rage and smashes things... this has red flags all over it, while you can see from his past that he is damaged emotionally from what his father put him through as a child in modern days he would really need a lot of therapy sessions to help with these problems he has poor coping skills and Patience has a lot of Patience putting up with him and his outbursts as long as she did.

Patience of course doesn't heed Dorian's warnings and continues to investigate what could have happened in the past and how he could possibly know her brother.  Dorian continues throughout the book to have a lot of guilt surrounding the incident to the point where he probably has an infection brewing in his hand which has never fully healed from the day of the "event." 

I had a hard time finishing this one, I went on to read other things midway through and finally finished the book due to it being the closest to being finished percentagewise and I've been trying to read 10 books a month.  Anyways when the end came and it asked if I wanted to read extra about this couple I declined and un-downloaded the book.  

I did read the second book which was slightly better and I have read other books by this author which were more enjoyable.  Have you read this book?  what did you think?  did the extra chapter add anything to this book?

*Historical Romance  *age gap  *marriage of convenience  * Grumpy/sunshine  *beauty and the beast

*some spice  *opposites attract  *Dukes   *mystery (kind of)  *Strangers to lovers

Trigger warnings:  mention of child abuse,  Duel leading to death,  self harm tendencies, anger management issues for LMC

Spoiler alert:

I have to say while the book maybe just wasn't for me I wanted to like this book I just found it kind of a slog to read through.  It has a happy ending but their "break up" is brief and the whole ending feels a bit rushed like the secret comes out at a big event the lead lady is very upset and never to talk to him again then a few weeks later he goes and says he has changed his will to make sure his wife and her whole family is still provided for as additionally agreed upon (only with the condition that she doesn't leave him for a year) and everyone is all of a sudden very forgiving of him and the situation... somehow I don't find this very likely.  

E. Cleveland: Griz

 read in 2023

Westbury Warriors Book 3:

I did read these books in order but they can potentially be read as a stand alone just keep in mind that Griz has a sister and her story is in book 2 (in a brothers best friend situation).  The other characters from the series are in this book as well I enjoy when you get to follow a loveable group of friends throughout several books.

Griz is a college hockey star and while he had been playing the field while at school he is putting that on the back burner for now and taking a break from relationships after a pregnancy scare with his last relationship.  

Hattie is a sweet girl (I think she is a journalism major?... don't quote me on this but she works for the school paper) who hasn't had much luck recently in the romance department, feeling insecure due to her "perfect" sister getting married soon and her sister not believing that she could actually secure a date to her wedding... maybe she can't but she would rather her sister not automatically assume that to be the case.  

While Hattie is hosting the Westbury Bachelor Auction Griz comes up for bid and Hattie getting a savage text from her sister prior to going on stage about her lack of a date shouts out a bid of $1,000 making Griz highest bid of the night... now she has an upcoming date with Griz and she's unsure about actually asking him to this out of town wedding and just tells him that she wants help moving a new couch upstairs to her apartment and it looks like he could lift some heavy things.  This leads to a pretty funny situation since she just spent all of her extra money on Griz and now has to find a super cheap couch to purchase.

This book was a short and sweet read with some real laugh out loud moments.  I loved how Griz agreed to go out of town with Hattie to meet her family and he was really protective over her even jumping in to put her family in their place when they were being snarky towards her!  Every woman wants their own Griz in their corner backing them up even if they are able to fight their own battles it's nice to have a partner. 

This relationship starts out fake but sparks fly between our couple and soon lines blur as to what is fake and what is real.  Can they make this relationship work?  Can Griz learn to trust a woman again after he was burned in his last relationship?  

Out of the 6 book series this one was my favorite, I did think it could have been a bit longer to see our couple grow together a bit more some of the book felt a bit rushed and in some ways more of a insta love/lust situation since the book takes place over a shorter period of time.  

Have you read any of this series?  Which book was your favorite?   Have you read anything else by this author?  what would you recommend?  

*Sports Romance  *Hockey Romance  *College  * Friends to more  *fake dating/relationship

*plus size representation  *spice (more mild)  *one bed/bedroom  *broody storm cloud MMC

possible triggers: body shaming (from side characters not main characters) 

S.J. Sylvis Weak Side

Read in 2024

Bexley U book 1 

This is a forced proximity fake dating --> more type of story.  Starts off when Theo Brooks (hockey star and ladies man) and Claire Bryant (dance major, hard worker and has a boyfriend who is a tool) anyways they end up with a dorm room mix up where the admissions team rearranges Claire's name and places her in the male dorm room with Hockey hottie Theo.  Theo is a bit arrogant and believes that Claire must be a puck bunny who snuck in to be near to his royal hotness... she of course didn't sneak in and is upset with the mix up but it's too late to swap rooms as there is now nothing else available so she is going to have to live with this guy for the semester. 

While Theo complains about puck bunnies sneaking into his room to be with him he is also spending the beginning of the book bringing them home with him, poor Claire is working hard and going to school she just wants to relax in her own dorm but ends up walking into some spicy times with Theo and a random hook up a few times... but she should have known better because there was a scrunchie on the door handle.  

Claire is crushed when she finds out her boyfriend is cheating on her and Theo makes her a deal that will work for both of them if they can fake date for a short period of time it will make her ex jealous and it will help keep him focused on Hockey by keeping "all" of the women that are after him away (even though he brought a lot of them to his dorm himself...) this is prior to fake dating Claire and he doesn't have any hook ups after they start fake dating.

After they agree to this fake dating situationship starts to become more after a few kisses and then some spicy times in their shared room.

Claire also has some family issues going on with her mom constantly asking her for money and upset that she isn't getting back with her ex, Claire has financial issues and has always been told that her dad didn't want to be in her life by her mom but that may not be the case after all.

Really enjoyed the team dynamics and how protective Theo's team mates were towards him and Claire. 

*Spice  *forced proximity  * College romance  *hockey romance *fake dating --> more  

* dancer  * found family  * slow burn *enemies to  more 

Belle Ami Paris Time

 Lost in Time Series Book 2 read in 2025

While this book is potentially a stand alone it's better to read the first book if you are planning on reading this as there is additional history as to what is happening and how three paintings by famous Renaissance painter Marco Allegretto become cursed and turned into time portals and the love story between Iris (the time traveler who wrote the famous book our 3 friends love) and Marco.  

Jenee Lazaar is a successful dermatologist who lives in Los Angeles (in modern times) taking a trip to New  York to meet her online besties for the first time she ends up at the Metropolitan Museum of art where she ends up being pulled into the second of these time portal paintings while standing in front of it waiting to meet back up with her friends.  Moments after being pulled into the painting she is no longer in New York she is a bit disoriented and even though she lived in Paris for many years... she has been pulled to Paris from the past (1900) even worse she has landed in the middle of chaos as there has just been an explosion and as a doctor she is compelled to help those around her including performing the new (for the time period) method of CPR on American heiress Constance. 

Xavier Doumaz a police detective is in the area and is he seeing things or did this beautiful woman just appear right after the bomb went off?  Xavier has been investigating a terrorist cell and has to rule out that Jenee might be involved she is wearing odd clothes, and has no forms of identification or money and the story she tells as to how she got there and where these items are seem pretty shady... something is not right with her story.

While he shouldn't get involved with the suspect Xavier and Jenee are insta love drawn to each other and have a brief interlude prior to Jenee finding a hidden photo of his wife and child in his drawer... instead of asking about this she believes him to be playing the field and cheating on his wife she leaves him a nasty note and meets up with Constance who had requested her presence at her home the day after Jenee saved her life.  Constance gives her a job as a companion, Constance has an assistant Violet who lives with her Jenee feels she looks very familiar but is unsure why.

Xavier and Jenee from here end up running into each other on several occasions and continue to fight their attraction (but not that hard), there continues to be a general miscommunication/no communication situation.  Xavier lost his whole family in a fire a few years prior and has been grieving but finally feels like he's coming back to life again after meeting Jenee even if she did steal money from him and leave him the morning after an amazing night.

Jenee gets pulled into the drama of helping Iris (who is disguised as Violet in this time) and Marco regain control of the painting and therefore gain control of the time portal.  The evil guy from the first book has popped up in this book as another wealthy evil gentleman kind of reminding me of a super evil dramatic version of the Lemony Snicket character Count Olaf since Iris and Jenee know who he is he just has a different name and he continues his killing spree into the second book.  How can they defeat this evil time hopper once and for all?  If he is still in the picture will Iris and Marco ever be able to be together again?  

While I enjoyed the story I felt there could have been a little more time for the couple to get to know each other and actually "fall" for each other and more information on Xavier's investigation process, there are a lot of historical sites and several famous people that make cameo's in the book and as a reader while that was fun a few times I felt maybe that part of it took up too much of the book in exchange for less actual plot.  

This book does set up for book 3 for Iris and Marco to find the final painting and return it to it's rightful owner (them).  there is a happily ever after for our couple and I enjoyed that Jenee and Emily were able to reconnect at the end of this book.  

I plan to finish out the series by reading the last book 

Have you read this series?  How did you feel about this insta love trope?

*time travel  *romance  *historical  *some spice *Insta love/lust  

*Trigger:  discussion of death/loss of family, friend  *murder mystery

Mariah Stone: Duke of Luhst

 Read in 2025

7 Dukes of Sin book 2  

Lucien Wrenn, The Duke of Luhst, is a ladies man he never stays with one woman long but he does take precautions so that he will not end up a father.  He is part of the friend group of dukes with names similar to the 7 deadly sins you get a bit of an introduction to him in the first book.  

Lady Chastity Perrin is his best friend's (the Duke of Rath (Dorian) from the first book) little sister and off limits.  Chastity is a brilliant scientist and has been researching how to better prevent infections with patients with healing wounds, turned away from the hospital used for the upper society she turns to helping a doctor in a bad part of town where she meets and helps those less fortunate. 

Chastity has always loved Lucien and even though she is under no illusion that he will change his rakish ways or ever marry her (not that she even really wants that) he has always been handsome and has always held a piece of her heart.  

Chastity is caring and kind but very socially awkward and hides behind glasses and dull colored gowns, she has been a bit of a wallflower over the years and now in her late 20's is fully on the shelf as a spinster.  Coming home one evening from working in the hospital she runs into the Duke of Luhst and does not want him to alert her brother as to her current activities (helping the doctor in the bad part of town).  In order to get him to stay silent they end up making a bet for the next 30 days at the house party they are going to, Lucien must remain celibate for the duration of the party and Chastity needs to secure a proposal of marriage... super easy right!

Throughout the book you see that while Lucien was her brother's best friend they were also friends as well and spent a lot of their childhood together and shared the common problem of having abusive parents who did a number to their emotional growth.  Lucien walls off his heart and uses his body to cover up for his low self esteem, Chastity covers up her beauty with dull dowdy gowns seeing that her beautiful mother was bossed around and bullied by her husband, she never wants that for herself.  

Lucien helps give Chastity a bit of a makeover by helping her with her social skills and picking out better colored dresses and in a "she's all that" or Disney movie make over just by dressing in brighter colors she now is the belle of the party attracting the attention of multiple men... she might just get her proposal after all and Lucien while wanting her to be happy can't help feeling sad at the same time because he has always loved her too but she's always been off limits and he's not good enough for her anyways everyone knows it even his best friend Dorian doesn't feel he is good enough for his little sister.

Some of the usual drama of a historical romance novel where our couple gets a bit closer and keep getting pulled apart by their own inner turmoil/demons and a bit of scandal that comes up at the end. Would her brother ever be ok with them being together?  Can they ever get over their childhood trauma to be together?  Will they realize that they are meant to be together too late to go after that happiness? 

I did like this book better than the first book and plan to read the next one in the series.  This series has been a bit darker for a historical romance.  I did enjoy getting to know Chasity and Lucien better and seeing them fall in love with each other all over again they are both likeable characters they just need to learn to love themselves a bit more.  

Have you read any books by this author?  which one is your favorite? 

*Older brother's best friend  *friends to lovers  * historical romance  *some spice (mild)  

*Duke  *makeover  *rake *house party  *bets  *spinster *happy ending

*Trigger warning: mentions of child abuse/neglect 

Noah Hardy Borrowed Bride

 Read in 2024 

Zoe is a chef with a catering business she has been hired for the wedding of the year (as far as she's concerned) there are going to be Senators, members of congress and the president might make an appearance... seriously everything needs to go well it could lead to other important catering jobs.  When she gets there she finds that it's not what she thought it's not in fact catering the wedding itself but for the staff in the parking lot (limo drivers, security staff)... they are not impressed by her special cuisine that she had prepared they just want a burger and fries, in fact where is the closest place they can get that from?  

To make matters worse she runs into the actual bride in the parking lot and somehow manages to talk her into eloping after talking about her own dream wedding, the bride in a panic over trying to impress all of these important people and not even having much say in the wedding due to her in laws to be making it all about them and a big announcement her future father in law is making (running for president) she hasn't even been allowed to invite her family and friends to her own wedding.  The groom meets them in the parking lot and is in agreement this is not about them at all it's about his parents and he wants his bride to be happy... they then leave their own wedding... this is a nightmare Zoe will be blamed for their departure.

Luke (the groom Carter's twin brother) and Zoe end up in a very short term enemies situation when they have a verbal altercation in the parking lot.  Luke's parents frantic over the actual bride and groom eloping and the fact that all of their fancy guests will be upset if there is no wedding today Luke's dad needs to make his big announcement this has to go right they at this point don't care who is getting married they just need a bride and groom... in comes their new idea Luke and Zoe will be their bride and groom for the day it will be fine they need to keep the wedding on track.  Zoe and Luke agree... but they will need compensation Luke's parents agree to their terms and the day moves on as planned (kind of...) 

No big deal... what could possibly go wrong.  Zoe now just has to pretend to be the bride (who is from Turkey) she's slightly larger than the bride but manages to get into the dress (barely)... Zoe is also terrible at lying.  Luke has to pretend to be Carter and keeps running into his frat bro's who have a long history with Carter... but no history with Luke... someone is going to figure out they are not the real couple this is in fact a disaster.  

While the story is a bit unrealistic covering a play by play of 24 hours where the couple fall for each other.  I did enjoy this book it was entertaining and had several laugh out loud moments for me... especially when a Turkish man kept trying to talk to Zoe in her "native" language.  

Luke and Carter's parents are really unlikeable you understand well why Luke has been avoiding being around them for awhile.  There are side characters that are loveable though like Zoe's employee and friend Aya, Luke's sister Victoria and their grandmother were really cute.  

*Happy ending  * mild enemies--> more  * closed door romance/no spice  * some adult language