Review: Too Fast by Abby Millsaps

Too Fast by Abby Millsaps

Series: Boys of Lake Chapel #2

Publication date: September 27th, 2023

Pages: 355

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:

Lake Chapel was supposed to be my fresh start: an opportunity to reinvent myself; my chance to finally live.

Now I'm grappling with the demons of my past... and losing.

To survive this setback, I'll need the support of the four possessive, domineering men who think I belong to them. But can my captors really be my salvation?

Worlds are bound to collide. Friendships will be tested, and rivalries are revving up.

I can't slip back into the dark--not now that I know what it's like to live in the light.

For the first time in my life, it's more than just me I'm flight for.

It's them.

Kylian. Locke. Decker. Even Kendrick.

It's all of them, and all of us together.

My name is Josephine Meyer. But that hasn't always been my name. What will the boys of Lake Chapel think when they finally learn the truth?

TOO FAST is a the second book in the Boys of Lake Chapel series. It is a high heat why choose sports romance featuring darker themes. Content notes can be found at the beginning of the book and on the author's website.

Available at:

Review:

Joey had thought that by moving away from the town that held so much pain and trauma would be the end of her issues but when she starts to grow closer to the football players of LCU she must confront her past head-on. After being captured by a rival football team as a prank she is transported back to her past and put through even more trauma that makes her essentially catatonic. The men she is hopelessly falling in love with watch her spiral with pain echoing in their eyes as well as a healthy dose of vengeance heavy on their shoulders. Joey knows that she can no longer keep her past a secret and hope that it never catches up with her. It's caught up with her but she has to know whether she can trust the men she loves to be able to look past it to who she has become. But with her men being firmly in the public eye it will only be a matter of time before the choice of telling them herself is taken away from her. Can she find a way to let down her guard and let her four lovers in finally?

This book was a lot heavier than the last one. It had mentions of SA that might be triggering to some but it truly gave the book all the more depth. Throughout the first one a reader can watch Joey struggle through her PTSD. The saving grace is Kylian with his ability to navigate her triggers so effectively and pull her through her episodes. I think making him autistic as a character fit the best in the caregiver role that Joey needed to be able to heal. His nickname of Daddy Genius made me laugh because he truly was like a number-crunching, dry humored, papa bear making sure everyone was well taken care of and safe before ever considering himself. That is what made him by far my favorite character.

Decker is still being a tool and I want to strangle him. He has to have some sort of withholding kink to be able to continue to hold himself back from his feelings for Joey while his friends all get even closer with her. He self-sabotages and makes absolutely bonehead decisions that he thinks is protecting people but is really just debilitating them. I have never seen a character act in such a way that I simply wanted to reach through the kindle screen and strangle him. If he was severed from the group, I would not feel much loss, honestly. I'd slap him then slap his PR boo thang even harder. 

Despite Decker's toolishness, I was disappointed in the flow of the story overall. It felt like it was dragged on unnecessarily. There were parts of it that could have likely just been removed entirely and the story would have progressed the exact same way. I continue to have issues with the "fuck/hell yeah" expressions during the sex scenes. The people involved are college kids, yes, but the sentiment just feels so juvenile that it makes me feel weird reading the scene after reading it. Aside from Joey revealing her trauma I honestly don't remember a lot of the fine details of the book. Just felt like a lot of smut with very little actual progress. If I wouldn't have been invested in Joey's story and Daddy Genius I would have probably dipped from the series. 

Review: Too Safe by Abby Millsaps

Too Safe by Abby Millsaps

Series: Boys of Lake Chapel #1

Publication date: July 21st, 2023

Pages: 317

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:

Never let them get you to the second location.

Even if that location happen sot be a lakeside mansion home to four hot-as-sin men.

After years of living in survival mode, I'm finally hitting rewind on the story of my life. There's nothing standing in the way of my bright future at Lake Chapel University.

Or so I thought.

Being ambushed by four devastatingly attractive football players wasn't on my bingo card. Ironically, they seem just as stupefied by me as I am of them.

There's the brooding, scowling leader. Then the iPad-wielding nerd. Net is the gruff, gorgeous jock. And finally, the huge, tattooed emo boy.

It's the last one that catches my eye.

As the recipient of the Crusade Scholarship, I'm here on a full ride, and I intend to make the most of my education. But a girl's allowed to have a little fun, right?

That's how I find myself hooking up with the right guard of the Lake Chapel Crusaders at the first part of the school year.

My plan for a casual fling is derailed a few days later when I unexpectedly run in to a couple of the guys outside of school.

Now Decker Crusade thinks I saw something I shouldn't have, and he's decided the only way to control the narrative is to control me.

There's nowhere to run, considering Decker and his boys live in a lakeside mansion that can only be accessed by boat.

Apparently, I live here now, too.

They think they can keep me captive indefinitely, but there's something about me they're sorely underestimating: my will to finally live.

TOO SAFE is the first book in the Boys of Lake Chapel series. It is a full-length why choose sports romance featuring darker themes and high heat. For a full list of tropes and CWs, see the author's website.

Available at:

Review:

When your 96-year-old best friend tells you that her major regret was that she didn't live her life to the fullest and makes you promise, on her deathbed, that you will not make the same mistake, you listen. That is how Josephine Meyer finds herself enrolled in Lake Chapel University while she lives with her uncle at his junkyard. As far as living conditions go, she has been through worse and so she welcomes the change in scenery as well as the upswing of her life. But when she arrives at school the first day she has a run in with the local heartthrobs of the town and it was less than friendly. However one of the guys seemed decent enough so when she attends a party with her new friend she seeks him out immediately. After some heated exchanges he is pulled away and she is left smitten with her new love interest. All of that goes to hell when she sees him and one of his friends outside of her work. For some reason them seeing her there freaks them out to the point where she finds herself awoken that night in the captive sight of their leader. She is to stay with them until they are sure that she didn't see anything that night and until they can trust her. Their reputations are everything and she could destroy everything they worked for. She might be their captive but for how long?

I had been so close to DNFing the book based on something I thought was an addition by way of the author's viewpoints instead of the character. As far as politics go, I tend to avoid siding with either extremist views and reside carefully in the middle. I don't like politics, cancel culture, or anything of the sort being within the books I read. It feels too much like the author is trying to push their audience into believing their way. Even when I may agree with the views, I don't like them being present within fiction books I'd like to just lose myself in. There was one instance where the FMC made a statement that was swaying one way or the other and it just made me grimace in the fact it was even there. But I wanted to see where the story went so I trudged on. There were a few more... persuasive political statements in the book but I tried to just ignore them and focus on the characters and story. I found out later that it may have just been a character trait and not the author's own views that were interjected and it was meant to show the character in a certain light. After that I was perfectly fine and started to enjoy the book.

There were times in the book where I felt like the language was a little juvenile even for college students. The fact that 'fuck yeah' was said various times in sexual scenes gave me a bit of an ick. But overall I was intrigued by the book. I am curious about Joey's past and how it can possibly tie into her future with the guys. I absolutely LOVED that they had one of the male characters be autistic. I have never read a book where the love interest was openly autistic and had it displayed so well in his mannerisms. That was what completely saved this book for me. I am anxious to see what the next books hold for Joey and the Crusaders.

Review: Restitution by Leigh Rivers

Restitution by Leigh Rivers

Series: The Edge of Darkness Trilogy #3

Publication date: March 2nd, 2024
Pages: 525

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:

THE WEAPON THEY CREATED

WILL BE THEIR DESTRUCTION

The line between sense and madness blurs as Kade seeks revenge on those who destroyed his life. They threatened his family, shattered his sanity, and then they stole his girl. He'll sacrifice everything to save them all, even if it means war.

Stacey Rhodes has been to hell and back, and now she's trapped by the monster who stole Kade from her. But Stacey isn't backing down -- she'll do anything it takes to save Kade, no matter the cost.

Can she free them both from Bernadette's clutches before war consumes everyone they care about?

As this is a dark romance the author highly recommends reading the 'content warning' page.

Available at:

Review:

Stacey is safe for a little while as her stepbrother has disappeared and Bernadette seems more focused on tormenting Kade and his best friend Base than trying to put forth true effort to find her. Stacey has not given up hope though of freeing Kade and having the life she always dreamed of having with him. But before she can even make plans to find her lost love and free him she is captured once more by her psychotic stepbrother and drawn into his plan to be get Bernadette off Stacey's back so the two can have their own version of Stacey's dream. But it will not be that easy. Riddled in betrayal, twists, and turns Stacey and Kade's story becomes a desperate journey back to each other with vengeance at the forefront of both of their minds for all that they have lost.

This installment was a long one. 500+ pages of a rollercoaster that I didn't ever want to get off. Just when I thought that the author was getting to a point where there might be a wrap-up coming soon there would be another wrench thrown into the works and we were off like a rocket all over again. These poor characters got put through the absolute wringer by Leigh Rivers. 

There were fine details that I really loved about the book. The fact that the author showed just how messed up Kade was after so much time being sexually assaulted, tortured, and forced to kill and sell his body to whoever Bernadette wished. The issue I had was in the fact that he was in it for two years before Stacey ever came back around. He seemed to be handling it decently. He hated it and it did come out in a few scenes where he was very aware how much he was struggling with it, but he wasn't completely mentally messed up. It seems that last year he was held captive did him in the worst which being as they went harder on him that could account for it. But it just seemed like I would have thought he would have still been pretty messed up after those two years than how he was portrayed. He got out of there and couldn't even be touched by Stacey without flinching. 

Another thing that wasn't for me but was pretty understandable in the story was Base referencing things he and Kade did while they were held captive in a nonchalant and playful way. I know that was his coping mechanism which we saw towards the end, but it felt like something that maybe should have been at least met with some backlash from the other characters, especially Kade. It seemed they all kinda just took it in stride and didn't even seem bothered by it. I, for one, would have a terrible time hearing that no matter my relation to the guy. Stacey didn't even blink and that was hard to swallow and took a bit away from the character for me.

While I think the book was decent, the major pet peeve I have is when there are two or more epilogue time jumps. I really can't stand them. It just feels like things are trying to be wrapped up quickly and it takes away from the immersion into the story. It jumped from present time to five years later to two years later to, I think, another four years after that? Why did it need all that? It really spoiled the ending for me even though I often do like seeing how the characters turn out after the main story is over. 

Aside from my own personal grievances, I enjoyed the series overall and would highly recommend it. I loved the love between Kade and Stacey and how true they remained to each other even in the face of overwhelmingly bad odds. They made the series a page-turning wonder of love and redemption.

Review: Voracious by Leigh Rivers

Voracious by Leigh Rivers

Series: The Edge of Darkness Trilogy #2

Publication date: November 30th, 2023

Pages: 399

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:

HE'LL NEVER FORGET HER, BUT HE'LL NEVER FORGIVE HER EITHER

Stacey returns home with the security of Kade's team, only to be dragged further into her own living hell by her deranged abuser Chris--until the opportunity finally comes to fight back.

Kade has never been so deep in the pits of hell itself. Seeing Stacey once nearly knocked him off his axis; seeing her twice -- ready to submit to his dominance -- is a disaster waiting to happen.

Yet despite his hatred for her, she's his anchor, the flashes of what they used to be the only thing keeping him sane and stopping the darkness from claiming him completely. But what happens when the truth about their past finally unravels, and both he and Stacey learn what really happened the night that tore them apart?

As this is a dark romance, the author highly recommends reading the 'content warning' page.

Available at:

Review:

Stacey had no idea if she would ever see Kade again after he shoved her onto his jet and she watched him be knocked unconscious by a bunch of armed men. She begged to be returned but when her pleas fell on deaf ears she was resigned to return to her abusive stepbrother and try to live each day in pursuit of finding and helping Kade. But when her stepbrother decides to try to force Stacey to love him by any means necessary she fights back for the first time in her life. She finds help in her ex's family and finally admits to what happened between her and Kade so many years ago. All she can think about is finding Kade and breaking him free of the dangerous forces who hold him captive. Meanwhile Kade has no choice but to go along with what he is told to do. If he doesn't, it risks everybody he loves. After he learns what actually happened to Stacey so many years ago he has nothing but guilt for how he treated her. Can Stacey break Kade free and will Kade be able to make amends for the torment he put Stacey through?

This was the absolute more heart-wrenching middle installment in a trilogy I have ever seen. It seems like Stacey and Kade just never get a break. The minute they find a moment to be together someone comes in and ruins it for them. Whether that be Kade's 'owner' for lack of a better term, Stacey's stepbrother, or their past, something or someone is always lurking around the corner to ruin everything they try to build. And the amount of abuse the two of them goes through. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy! Stacey is one strong chick to be able to handle as much crap as she does. 

I didn't find much about the book that I didn't like aside from the villains but they were made to be unlikable. I loved the interactions between Tobias and Stacey. It was so wholesome to watch a deranged serial killer psychopath melt into being a father figure to a girl who has lost everything due to her stepbrother's manipulations. I found myself laughing out loud a lot whenever Tobias would get all grumpy over Stacey showing affection to him. The way the author showed that Tobias, while unable to feel love truly, can still find a way to show he cares for the person. I liked that she could show that disconnect between Tobias and his feelings but still show that he had learned enough about love by observation to know how to show it to the people he cared about. This made Tobias one of my favorite characters in the entire series.

I think this was the perfect middle ground between books and while it was a lot of doom and gloom I could understand the necessity of it. You have to hammer away at your characters before they can rise from the ashes and find happiness, or so I hope will happen in the next book. 

Review: Insatiable by Leigh Rivers

Insatiable by Leigh Rivers

Series: The Edge of Darkness Trilogy #1

Publication date: August 10th, 2023

Pages: 413

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

Synopsis:

IF HE CAN'T HAVE HER, NO ONE ELSE CAN

Kade Mitchell is obsessed with someone he despises.

A snake in an angel's skin, Stacey Rhodes is everything he can't forget -- the girl who shattered his heart and drove him deep into the darkness of the underworld.

He watched her for years. Killed anyone who came close to her. But now, granted a brief moment of freedom from the life he's trapped in, he's back home and driven to claim her again, breaking every rule he's ever made for himself.

Not even his hatred can stop the pull between them.

But he'll never forgive her... will he?

As this is a dark romance, the author highly recommends reading the 'content warning' page.

Available at:

Review:

Stacey thought that she was done with Kade. He had written her off two years ago after a video surfaced that shed Stacey in a bad light. But videos can be doctored to make anyone seem guilty and sometimes the person being incriminated was innocent after all. Stacey knows that it was a warning that drove Kade and her apart so she allowed him to believe what he saw to be true. And he was more than happy to prove just how much he hated her by ignoring her existence. That was until he returned home and was forced to interact with her again. The cosmic pull of their obsessions with each other was hard to deny even in the face of hatred. But the threat that they left behind two years ago has grown and now the two of them may have to deny their desires and keep their distance unless they want to risk their families being destroyed. 

I was not prepared for how dark this book can get. It went from your usual bully romance where the guy picks on the girl because of some random instance where she wronged up to the darker side of romance. There were mentions of murder and sex trafficking so make sure you are on board with reading that subject matter before you delve into it. Kade, who you are pretty much upset with most often in the book for the way he treats Stacey, becomes someone who you feel bad for and even can start to understand why he is such a jerk. Stacey you never stop feeling bad for her, the girl got a raw deal every which way she turned. The only reprieve in it was when she was with Kade. My heart broke for Stacey especially when she is put in a situation where she has to see the much darker side of Kade and see just how much he's changed. 

The decision to add flashbacks throughout the story was a good choice. It gave me some insight into Kade and Stacey before they hated each other's guts. Getting to see how they started and grew together as a couple drawn to each other made a lot of what was happening between them in the present even more relevant. It helped me to grow more of an attachment to the characters so the story was even better.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It had just the right balance of hot passion, cold heartbreak, and an enemies-to-lovers romance that will hit you just right.