The Villain by L.J. ShenNew Adult and College RomanceDecember 16th, 2020Self Published Reviewed by Jen The Villain by L.J. Shen is the second book in her Boston Belles spin-off series. The Villain is the story of Cillian, nickname Kill, and Persephone (Persy). Kill is the brother of Hunter from book one. Kill is cold, sharp, callous, ruthless, and fairly unredeemable for me. I’ve really enjoyed Shen’s books, but this one didn’t sit as well. A very good read, but not one I was completely Continue Reading
Jen’s Most Anticipated of 2021
Good-bye 2020 and so glad you're here, 2021. Please let this year be better. I can say without any doubt, there are a ton of great books I'm looking forward to reading. The Crown of Gilded Bones by Jennifer L. Armentrout First up, I JUST finished Blood and Ash and immediately one clicked A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire. If you haven’t read these yet, do it now. This urban fantasy series is everything. And, you need to start at the beginning and be ready for The Crown of Gilded Bones Continue Reading
Jen’s Mini-Reviews
Ash and Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout One of my favorite genres is urban fantasy. I tend to binge through a genre then take a break. I binged urban fantasy for a long time and didn’t pick up one single UF in 2020, until now. I’m so glad I decided to try Ash and Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout. I listened to this on audible. Here's a great tip- if you have the ebook (which I did, and just hadn’t read yet) you can go on Amazon and use their match tool to find out which ebooks have matching Continue Reading
Jen’s Favorites of 2020
I read QUITE a bit this year. Living in California, we’ve been on non-stop lockdown and I turned to books to help me escape. I have so many favorites! Here are my top picks. The Ravenhood Duet by Kate Stewart My heart…these two books, Flock and Exodus, nearly killed me. I thought about these books long after I finished them. I still think about them. I will reread them in 2021. I’m not even sure where to start with this duet. This was romantic, very dark, weird town and people Continue Reading
Jen’s Mini-Reviews
King of Libertines by Pam GodwinHistorical RomanceMay 6, 2020 by Heartbound Media Because I LOVED Sea of Ruin so much, I clicked the free prequel novella, King of Libertines by Pam Godwin to get another pirate fix. Prequels can be hit or miss for me. This one was a big hit! You can read it before or after Sea of Ruin and still really enjoy the story.The short story sets up how Priest (hero) and Bennett (heroine) first meet and takes place between chapters five and six of the timeline in Sea Continue Reading
Review: Sea of Ruin by Pam Godwin
Sea of Ruin by Pam GodwinHistorical RomanceApril 28, 2020Heartbound Media Reviewed by Jen I’m such an avid reader, yet I never joined a book club until this summer. The first book assigned was Sea of Ruin by Pam Godwin. I was busy and had so many other books on my TBR list, so I never got around to this one. Part of my reluctance was because it’s a pirate romance. I just didn’t see myself as a pirate girl. I picked the book up again last week and I’m here to tell you, ladies…I AM a pirate Continue Reading
Review: The Kingdom Duet by Rina Kent
Kingdom Duet: Reign of a King and Rise of a QueenBy Rina KentRomantic SuspenseOctober 29th and November 19thBlackthorn Books, LLC Reviewed by Jen My current addiction is bully romance books. I feel a tinge guilty about it because the behavior in real life would have me screaming “call the cops, this guy scares the crap out of me!” But, since this is between us, I’m confessing my love for this genre. I mention this because while The Kingdom Duet is technically romantic suspense, it is a Continue Reading
Review: Resisting the Billionaire by Allie Winters
Resisting the Billionaire by Allie WintersBillionaire Romance/Contemporary RomanceOctober 22, 2020, Self PublishedARC Review by Jen Allie Winters is a new to me author and I chose this book because…well…I'm a sucker for the billionaire hot hero genre. It honestly didn’t pull me in quickly, maybe it was a bit too precious, nice, not edgy enough for my current reading tastes. I walked away for a bit. I picked up a dark romance book that has GREAT reviews and thought that would get me out of Continue Reading
Top Ten November 13, 2020
It's Friday the 13th! I am writing this from Lincoln, NE where it is a balmy 27 degrees right now. BOOOOO Cold weather I am not ready for you! The romance world has been busy this week! I hope I have room to share some cute animals with you this week :) 10. Perhaps you noticed some new reviewer names on the Smexy site recently? We are so happy to officially announce we have some new friends joining the Smexy team! Welcome to Melinda, Jen, Kate, Melanie, and Isabelle. All are long time Continue Reading
Review: I Promise You by Ilsa Madden-Mills
I Promise You by Ilsa Madden-MillsSports RomanceOctober 12, 2020, Self Published Bringing you part two of the books that got me through election chaos, presenting, I Promise You by Ilsa Madden-Mills. This is a standalone book, HOWEVER, there are other books set in this world. If you like it, which I did, you can go back for more deliciousness. Our story begins in college with young freshman hottie and future football star, Dillon McQueen. Every time I read that name, I did indeed think of Continue Reading