Review: Abandoned Girl by Lexie Winston

 

Abandoned Girl by Lexie Winston

Series: Neighpalm Industries Collective #1

Publication date: July 10th, 2020

Pages: 272

Synopsis:

Her entire life, Harlow has been the cuckoo in another bird's nest. With an unreliable junkie for a mother and an unknown father, her foster family, the kind, successful, and generous Bostons, are the brightest spot in her life.

But even with a foster family like Harlow's, there are some things money can't buy--like the ability to fit in with the shallow socialites who act like her lack of pedigree is contagious.

Now that she's finished college and her veterinary degree, Harlow's life was supposed to take off. She was supposed to get a job and create a life away from the petty drama of the wealthy elite.

But when her mother dies and a life-changing secret is revealed, Harlow finds herself flying across the country to face an uncertain future that Kai, Holden, Jaxon, Thomas, Jacinta, Declan, and Oliver are going to make sure she won't accept.

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Review:

I am always anxious to try out new authors and see how their writing measures up to some of my favorites. Lexie Winston was a new author I hadn't heard anything about and with the synopsis of this budding series coupled with a very aesthetically pleasing cover, I wanted to see what she had and how she would be able to create a reverse harem series with a found long lost daddy foundation.

Harlow was accustom to not fitting in with her foster sister's friends as they were upper-crust and she was more day old slice. When invited to go clubbing with her foster sister one evening Harlow had no idea how her world would be turned upside down by the end of the night. After meeting a devastatingly  beautiful man with a panty-dropping personality, Harlow thought she was on the way to finding nothing more than a night of pleasure but with one phone call from her foster father, her world shatters. Her junkie mother has been found dead of an overdose.

Upon cleaning out her mother's belongings she finds her birth certificate and a name written upon the father line that she never would have guessed would be filled in. Turns out the name given is a friend of her foster family and one of wealth and prestige. But with this newfound connection comes 7 adoptive siblings that may be less than thrilled to find their adoptive father's new biological daughter. Add to that the fact that one of those 7 children to be the man Harlow had almost left the club with in a very carnal fashion and the awkwardness ensues. 

The siblings make it their mission to send Harlow packing back to where she came from before she can steal anymore of their father's heart. But the boys may find that a little harder to do than their sister as their attraction to the new addition seems to consume each of them at varying degrees.

Can Harlow navigate the treachery, animosity and underlying desire of her new family or will she be destined for a life of solitude?

The surprise daddy turned into a "yeah sure son, you can bang your new sister" vibe was a little cringe upon first inspection. I know none of them are actually blood related but there were points where the grandparents actively told the siblings that a reverse harem would be best for them. Whatchu talkin' about, Granny? What was most puzzling was the fact that they didn't try to curb their attraction to Harlow because of the weirdness of desiring their father's biological daughter but because they thought her to be a gold digger. Something seems just a little... HUH about that.

Add to that the fact that reverse harems were mention copious amounts before the idea was ever even presented by the Kink Granny herself. It got to the point where I tossed my e-reader aside and said "oh here we go again referencing reverse harems... foreshadowing overload!" I think it was mentioned in passing at least 6 or 7 times just in this one book. There might as well have been a huge neon sign that read: THERE WILL BE A REVERSE HAREM IN THIS STORY!

That is not to say that there weren't parts or characters that I didn't enjoy. I am kinda digging Declan and Thomas. They both seem to have that hard-ass businessman vibe that make me think of Christian Grey. I wouldn't mind either of them tying me up to be fair. Declan is loyal to a fault and Thomas is the strong silent type. I guess I have a type.

Abandoned Girl is an unconventional yet cute story of a girl searching for her place in a family that is not equipped to trust or love without it being earned.

Review: Dead Man's Isle by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti @CarolinePeckham @susannevalenti

 

Dead Man's Isle by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti

Series: The Harlequin Crew #2

Publication date: May 28th, 2021

Pages: 594

Synopsis:

I'm the girl who no one wanted. Or the one who got away. Depending on who you ask.

Either way, betrayal and heartache have been my friends for far too long and it's time for me to start over.

I gave the Harlequin boys a chance to change. A chance to prove that history wasn't just set to repeat itself. But they failed with spectacular colours.

Maybe it's time for me to stop running. After all, Sunset Cove has been living under the Harlequins' thumb for far too long. It's time to set our demons free and let them burn this place to the ground. Who knows if I'll survive the fallout? But I guess I'll soon find out if dead girls can die twice.

This is an enemies to lovers contemporary series where the girl will end up with multiple love interests and all of the characters are in their late twenties.

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Review:

In the previous book, Maverick wasn't a strong presence within the pages. He was mentioned and had a few cameos but there was no Maverick meat on that bone (I'm sorry. Terrible analogy). In the second book we are coming off Chase's betrayal and faced with Rogue's capture by Maverick. I loved Maverick from the start so I was completely squeeing over the opportunity to see Rogue and Maverick have a little more page time. 

Finding out you were the fall guy for the boys you once thought were your world once was bad enough. Finding out they were willing to do it a second time was a tough pill for Rogue to swallow. Even though she knew Maverick would never hurt her due to their bond she was having a terrible problem with the boys she grew up with locking her up and trying to throw away the key. But it seems Maverick, while seeing batshit crazy, has demons that he tries to hide behind his need for vengeance. Rogue is starting to realize that they have a lot more in common then she had originally thought. This kindred spirit realization brings to light how much they both need to feel a connection they thought was gone forever. Perhaps the both of them can find more than just a mutual need for vengeance on the boys that wronged them and threw them to the wolves.

With a plan in motion, Maverick allows Rogue to return to the fold of the Harlequin boys to make them pay for the pain and torment they are due. But will Rogue be able to keep to the plan once she realizes that not all of her boys had a hand in her betrayal? And when a bigger enemy, one who Rogue knows intimately, threatens the crew can she find a way to bring all the Harlequins (past and present) back together to defend their home of Sunset Cove?

I already stated that Maverick was my favorite of the boys but being able to see just how deep his feelings go was a new experience. Maverick isn't unfeeling. He's misunderstood and broken. His family sold him down the river and made his existence in jail a misery. There is no wonder he came back and immediately wanted to see all of them pay for the injustice. 

Maverick's feelings for Rogue and their connection is something palpable. Do yourself a favor and when you reach that place in the book where Rogue and Maverick finally give into their feelings for each other... listen to the song "I Am the Fire" by Ghost Monroe. It gives it that *chef's kiss* feel. 

Dead Man's Isle is the salacious sequel to what is growing to be a phenomenal series. I cannot wait for the third installment to be released!

Release Blitz with Teasers: Small Town Pretender by Brighton Walsh @BrightonWalsh @GiveMeBooksBlog

Small Town Pretender by Brighton Walsh

Series: Havenbrook #5

Publication date: June 24th, 2021

Synopsis:

Asher McCoy can win over a crowd with a husky note and a strum of his guitar, but proving to a judge he's responsible enough to gain custody of his niece and nephew? Not so easy. His big idea--a fake marriage. And who better to play his doting bride than his longtime best friend? He just needs to get her home first...

Natalie Haven couldn't get away from her suffocating hometown fast enough. For years, she's fluttered around the globe as a freelance photographer. And if that unconventional job pisses off her daddy? Well, all the better. But when her best friend sends out an SOS, she heads back to the one place she swore she'd never land.

Except a fake marriage means a not-so-fake living arrangement, including only one bed. Nat's witnessed enough women fall for Asher's charms, but she refuses to be one of them. Because permanence isn't in her blood. Not even for him.

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USA Today  and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Brighton Walsh spent a decade as a professional photographer before taking her storytelling in a different direction and reconnecting with her first love--writing. She likes her books how she likes her tea--steamy and satisfying--and adores strong-willed heroines and the protective heroes who fall head over heels for them. Brighton lives in the Midwest with her real life hero of a husband, her two kids--one who's already taller than her and one who's catching up too fast--and her dog who thinks she's a queen. Her boy-filled house is the setting for dirty socks galore, frequent dance parties (okay, so it's mostly her, by herself, while her children look on in horror), and more laughter than she thought possible.

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Review: Sinners' Playground by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti @CarolinePeckham @susannevalenti

 

Sinners' Playground by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti

Series: The Harlequin Crew #1

Publication date: November 13th, 2020

Pages: 656

Synopsis:

Dead girls don't feel pain.

But they like the taste of vengeance.

Maybe that's why I came back to my hometown. Because it sure as hell wasn't for the surf. But what else was I supposed to do when I found myself in Sunset Cove with twenty bucks to my name, the key to my enemies' secrets hanging around my neck and a mouth full of grave dirt that wouldn't wash clean?

I hate the Harlequin boys.

But this is the perfect opportunity to take what they owe me. Because once upon a time, they broke my heart, stole my life and sent me away from everything I'd ever known.

Fox, JJ, Chase and Maverick.

The four names tattooed onto my heart more permanently than any of the ink on my skin. they don't just live in this town anymore, they rule it. And the view here may be beautiful, but the sun, sea and sand hide dark secrets.

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Review:

Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti have become household names on BookTok and in the "smut" reading community as of recently. In fact, this book Zodiac Academy was just placed on my TBR yesterday. However, I had no idea how many books they had actually written together. This book struck my fancy when I decided to take a dip into the Discover feature on my Kindle app. The cover of the book was absolutely gorgeous and made me really curious about the tattooed woman with the pastel hair. I didn't fully read the synopsis because I enjoy going into a book blind. This is because it keeps me from reading into the synopsis and awaiting certain things to happen that coincide with the description given. What possessed me to tackle a 600+ page book with no background? Apparently me.

The story opens on Rogue crawling her way out of a shallow grave (talk about catching your audience attention...). Whereas a normal person would be screaming bloody murder and traumatized beyond all reason, Rogue looks around, realizes she's near her hometown, shrugs, and starts heading that way. What? This chick is already as hardcore as they come! So, you've discovered yourself a few miles from the home and the people who set your life in motion towards being straggled to death and first instinct is to finally seek revenge on those who wronged you ten years prior. Sure, Rogue, ya nut. Rogue quickly finds herself in overbearingly protective company of 3 of the 4 boys who abandoned her so long ago. Her mission? Find and retrieve their keys to open their crews very own Pandora box and release all their damning secrets. 

But she'll need to get through Fox, the alpha male bent on making Rogue his and his alone, JJ, the easy going escort with a smile that melts panties, and Chase, the angry asshole who wants nothing to do with Rogue's return and wishes she would disappear once more. These three are just as attractive and droolworthy as she remembered. They're going to be tough to resist (at least, Chase's broody ass makes it a bit easier). 

When Rogue returns the boys she knew are at war amongst themselves with her personal favorite boy who took the fall for her so many years ago, on the enemy team. Maverick, leader of the Dead Man's Crew, wants the Harlequins to feel the pain he was dealt when he was made to suffer through 6 years of prison for a crime he didn't commit. Maverick will stop at nothing to see Fox, his adoptive brother, and his boys dead. 

Rogue is the definition of a feisty spitfire heroine who everyone would love to be. She gives big time Harley Quinn vibes for me. While she is a definitively wonderful character I am not sure why so many of the boys are so over the moon for her. With periodic flashbacks we get to see a slightly softer side of Rogue and it touches on the different dynamics in the relationships with each of the boys but I still don't know why they're all so willing to give up anything and everything for her without the slightest hesitation nor why now and not 10 years ago. Albeit, Rogue has quickly stolen my heart as well, so I guess it's not that farfetched. 

We all have that one character that just speaks to a reader and for me, that was Maverick. He was so delightfully cuckoo for cocoa puffs. He was the alpha dominant personality that Fox tries to be but won't completely commit to because he still wants to be liked. Maverick doesn't care one bit whether he's liked. He also has a kindred spirit vibe going with Rogue that makes me 'ship' them so completely. 

Sinners' Playground is the sensationally electric book you've all been dying for. If you like books where the heroine doesn't choose one love interest but several and will snark and sass every step of the way, this is the book for you!