Big Witch Energy

Big Witch Energy by Kelly Jamieson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a super cute paranormal romance that put a unique spin on a blind date mishap.

Romy has lived her life according to rules, either imposed by her mother (now deceased) or by herself (having grown up in such a fashion). Something weird pushes her to take a DNA test, trying to find her birth father, and that leads her into the wonderful world of witches. Sure, she doesn't get that revelation right away, but there's still a series of events that shake up her world.

Trace was set up on a blind date that ends up being crashed by Romy when his intended doesn't show up. They hit it off, only to find out that they are destined to cross paths beyond their one night romance. The whole witch thing gets in the way again when Trace, who has a big chip on his shoulder, ends up having to tutor Romy for her witch exams. I promise, this seems much more normal in the story than in summary!

The romance and sizzle here was pretty good. They fight their attraction for so long, I thought I was going to expire before they finally ignite. I don't think I've read anything else from this author, but as an intro book it has me hooked! There was some unique and entertaining world building thrown in to the romance that I really appreciated. Oh, and a HEA, of course!

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Pack

Pack by Jeaniene Frost
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a short, very self-contained story that originally existed in an anthology.

Marlee is going through some stuff. Even after her friends have to stay behind, she ends up hiking alone and getting lost, all to prove her independence. That kind of backfires when she ends up getting attacked by wolves that are... more. In this world, they are hidden from society. They exist in their own bubble, and Daniel, the pack defender, ends up taking her under his wing (or paw?) until they can determine if she will shift or not.

Things, of course, get a little sizzly between these two. Marlee is annoyingly confident that she can continue to survive on her own, and that she won't become a wolf, even when all signs point to werewolf. This was a good, easy read, with the appropriate level of sizzle and paranormal to keep me entertained.

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The Brightest Embers

The Brightest Embers by Jeaniene Frost
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book probably lands somewhere between 3 and 4 stars in my ratings, but I rounded up. Having gone through the trauma here, it gets another star.

This is the final installment in this series and, jeez, we have been put through it! Between break ups, make ups, assumed deaths, surprise betrayals, and all manner of other thing, we finally get to the end of this saga. Ivy has grown, but that doesn't necessarily mean that I enjoy her character more. Her second guessing and crying filled most chapters, especially towards the end. At some points, I was rooting for the bad guy more than her, which is just sad.

So - where's the good? Well, Brutus for one. He is a star of this series. His story arc had me hooked more than the main two characters. I mean, I get it, Adrian and Ivy are supposed to be star-crossed lovers, etc. etc. but there was like no break coming anytime soon for these two. Brutus, I can get behind. Even Ivy's sister started to grow on me. The story ends probably exactly how you would expect, but there is a lot of back and forth progress between the start and end. I'm not really sure what else to highlight here - we got through it!

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The Sweetest Burn

The Sweetest Burn by Jeaniene Frost
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Oof, this was a tough one. As the “middle story” I should have known it would be trouble.

We join Ivy as she continues to trudge through her “destiny” and navigate the “relationship” she has with Adrian. Adrian appears again, full of promises and apologies but we know that denying their collective destiny will be difficult. There are oodles of half truths that only end up getting them into trouble and a few lies thrown in for good measure. The journey here is to find the second hollowed weapon and defeat the demons, but things are never simple for these two.

There are a bunch of ups and downs alone the way, for their relationship, progress with Ivy’s family and trust, and the inescapable destiny they have to fight. Overall, I would have been happy where we got if not for Adrian making some silly decisions. I mean, yes, they both work hard to make terrible decisions through the book, but Adrian made me want to throw my phone across the room (listening through Audible). I know, book 2 can’t solve everything and has to set up book 3, but it was still super frustrating.

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A Void of Magic

A Void of Magic by Sandy Williams
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What an interesting and unique story we have here to start a series! You’ve got your typical paranormal bunch, but they are forced to acknowledge humans because they control a magically neutral territory that gives them back their humanity for a time. I can’t wait to see where this goes!

Kennedy has done some typical teenage rebelling in an atypical environment. Since her parents own said magically neutral territory, she’s got a bit of a weight hanging over her. It passes down a bloodline, so there’s no escaping, but she’s definitely tried. The Rain Hotel is her birthright and a curse. It’s partially controlled by the whims of the two big factions – vampires and werewolves. Kennedy tried to skirt the rules, allowing in people not on the ruler’s lists, and got into big trouble for her attempt. Who knew there was so much involved in running a little hotel? She’s since made a life outside the property grounds, but finds herself pulled in while her parents are on holiday. Things do no go smooth.

There’s a visit from her frenemy, who wants to marry a vampire. There’s a health inspection that fails. There’s some possible trespassers she can’t find. Oh, and some very attractive but domineering wolves.

This book takes you on a serious rollercoaster ride and leaves you wanting more. While not really a cliffhanger, I was a little angry we didn’t get to see where Kennedy ends up at the end of her troubles but they don’t ever seem to really end. I guess I’ve got to go along for the ride that is this series and hope Kennedy can become the person the staff believes she can be.

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Ecstasy in Darkness

Ecstasy in Darkness by Gena Showalter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Working through this series book by book has been an experience. This book in particular reads as if it was after some pivot in the author’s writing style. It’s fun, snarky, and gives a lot more than the previous ones. I hope to see more from Ava and Noelle (and whoever she ends up with) in the future!

Ava is a snarky and awesome recruit for the AIR. She’s got a really tough vibe but inside is a big marshmallow. Who is she going to be paired up with? Well, remember that really mean vampire we met in the Bride story? McKell has apparently been tearing apart any AIR agents that are sent his way because… reasons. His character, like most in this universe, has gone from moderately annoying to pretty mean. He has traumatized the poor AIR to the point where they are willing to throw two trainees at him in the hopes of capturing him for blood testing. We are still dealing with the whole disease/end of the world thing, so anything is worth a shot.

Ava and Noelle’s banter was a true highlight in this book. I could read a whole Ava/Noelle saga series but was ultimately glad where we got here. Ava needs somebody to look out for her, perhaps more than Noelle does. Don’t get me wrong, these girls are a nice balance to one another, but their plans could use some review (e.g. when they try to “lure” vampires). Ava and McKell have some sizzling chemistry from the first attempt at luring him, but it only grows from there. Throw in some fated mate stuff, lots of sexy times, and your typical miscommunications and you’ve got this book in a nutshell.

The out of the ordinary stuff (random doors, the queen’s attempt at persuasion, etc.) and you get the very hurried wrap-up I’ve come to expect in this series. There are always a few loose ends that I hope we pick up next book (or not – see the whole underground vampire love interest stuff that we still don’t have resolution on). I’ll keep reading this series until it ends, and probably leaves some things incomplete!

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The Haunted Homecoming

The Haunted Homecoming by Angie Fox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I can't believe we are 10 books into this world! Each book adds another layer on top of the already awesome previous ones, dragging me deeper and deeper into this wonderful Southern story.

This book has us officially meeting Verity's mom as she returns for the town's homecoming celebration. There are tons of generations all celebrating in town, which leads to your expected mayhem and mystery. In this instance, it is a gruesome discovery in the town's time capsule that puts Verity hot on the case of a murderer. Ellis, always supportive, is now forced to try to protect all the Long girls at once - a tall task indeed!

Our favorite gangster also plays pretty prominently in this story, while not an eager ghost hunting participant, he is at least working (also, reluctantly) on his love life. There's a lot of deception, twists, and turns there, just like with the main mystery storyline. This story had me both rooting for and cringing at Verity's mom the entire way. Do we get a solid mystery resolution? Yup! Verity always gets her man, or ghost, or "other." On top of that, we have a bit of a cliffhanger at the end here that has me eager to dive in to the next installment!

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