Obsidian Prey by Jayne Castle

So good until the end.

Lyra Dore made the find of an amber prospector's life and was ecstatic until her boyfriend at the time, Cruz Sweetwater, claimed the find for his family company, Amber, Inc. She was understandably upset. 

So now she can't believe that he's on her doorstep wanting help to get some of his men out of a trap that's been sprung, keeping them locked in the jungle. Even after she's done, he just won't seem to leave. His entire family claims that he loves her, but can she trust the man who left her taking not only her find but her heart?

Three and a half stars

This book came out August 25, 2009

Ghost Hunters #6 

Follows Dark Hunter

Followed by Midnight Crystal

Hard copy I own

Opinions are my own

A Regency Christmas by Leslie Lynn, Joan Smith, Barbara Metzger, Jennie Gallant

Greetings of the Season by Barbara Metzger

The Earl of Montraven fires his secretary when he discovers the man has been sleeping with the earl's mistress. As a last act, the secretary decides to mix up the cards going with the gifts to the earl's all-but-engaged-fiancée, the mistress he's dismissing, the woman he had hoped to replace her with, his mother,  his sister, and their companion. Of course, this leads to him discovering that the woman he should marry may have been under his nose all along.

Home for Christmas by Jennie Gallant

This short story is actually quite bemusing. A young woman, Elizabeth, is being pushed to marry an older, disreputable man, Baron Rathborne. He has sent her a necklace as a betrothal gift that is later stolen from her. Luckily, Lord Wyckholme is there to help her get out of that engagement and right into another. 

I originally read this book around the time it came out and her uncle infuriated me then... he still infuriates me now. I mean, I try to think the best of people but this man goes into willfully naive

Love a La Carte by Joan Smith

Cybele has put all of her money into a new restaurant, but it has been roundly panned by food critic, Monsieur Bongout. She is desperately trying to save her investment but is also trying to avoid the attentions of the man she may actually love, Lord Sinden. 

The Christmas Ball by Leslie Lynn

Persephone may not have the use of her legs but she has a bright mind. She knows that her sister Athena deserves love. It is Persephone who encourages Athena to attend a masked ball. And it is there that Lord Andrew Finchley falls in love with a mysterious woman.

Are these the best stories ever? Maybe not. And I may view them with a lot of nostalgia but they are quiet romances that hit a very sweet spot.

Four stars

This book came out October 1, 1994

Hard copy of mine

Opinions are my own

Rich in Your Love by Pippa Grant

Octavia "Tavi" Lightly is a social media influencer. She's vegan, sugar-free, and exercises regularly. Except, she's a fake. Really, she's just trying to keep her head above water because she's spent her money on a cacao farm. And now that her grandmother has instructed her entire family to move to a tiny town called Tickled Pink, her entire house of cards might come tumbling down. 

Dylan Wright was a wild teen. Now he's the town's only plumber and Tavi's assigned project. Gigi wants her to help Dylan get onto social media to raise the town's profile.

There's some pull and push. It's over the top. Not my favorite Grant story but fine. 

Three stars

This book came out July 12, 2022

Tickled Pink #2

Follows The One who Loves You

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

The One Who Loves You by Pippa Grant

Phoebe Lightly's life is turned upside down when her grandmother chokes on dinner and nearly dies. After a minute in hell, Gigi has decided that the whole family needs to turn their lives around. To do that, they're going to mimic an old move and move to a tiny town called Tickled Pink.

This... is not in Phoebe's life plan. She has been climbing the family's corporate ladder pretty steadily with the aim of one day running everything. She did make a recent misstep but she's still sure she can figure out how to make Gigi proud of her.

Teague is a local resident. His life turned upside down about twenty years ago when he ran away from his family. These days, he's living in a tiny house and coparenting his daughter with his ex-wife and her new wife. When the Lightlys come to town, he's not impressed. But there's something about Phoebe that is intriguing.

The two might have more in common than it seems at first sight but it will take some time for them to figure out what that is and how to be together. 

I'm not loving this new series but my joy in the Thrusters and Fireballs is more in the whole coterie rather than the single books so I'm hoping that will prove to be the case for these as well.

Three stars

This book came out July 12, 2022

Tickled Pink #1

Followed by Rich in Your Love

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

To Have and to Heist by Sara Desai

Simi and Chloe are ride-or-dies. The book opens with Chloe running to help Simi when there is a man who is mostly dead in Simi's aunt house. So when Chloe calls after a white hacking job turns out to be not so... white, Simi jumps into action. It's there that she meets Jack. 

Jack is a professional thief. A charming thief. One who knows a lot about plants. But he's willing to help Simi. Sort of.

In the best sort of heist, they assemble a team. One that includes Simi's Uber driver, a former suitor, her coworker, and her eighty-something aunt. I may be missing someone but it's a full crew. 

And it's a fun story. I'm glad I listened to it because, if I had been reading, I may have given up because it took a bit to get started.

Three and a half stars

This book came out 

Followed by 'Til Heist Do Us Part

Borrowed as audiobook from Libby

Opinions are my own

The Mirror by Nora Roberts

We return to the same set of characters as Inheritance. Owen and Sonya had gone through a magic mirror and were in the past, when one of their ancestors was getting married. And they witnessed his bride's death. 

They are quickly brought back to the present day where Sonya's significant other/Owen's best friend, Trey, waits for them with Sony's best friend, Cleo. They are moving further along in finding out how to solve the curse of their family. Sonya's dreams continue but she and Cleo are trying to build good vibes in the house to combat the evil spirit.

There's not a ton that happens in this book that didn't happen in the first book. The plot moves, but a lot of it is the same thing we saw in book one. Cleo and Owen get together in this book and we get to see more interaction with Chef Bree who is a fun character. Nothing ever really drags but there's not a lot that's new either. 

Three stars

Lost Bride Trilogy #2

Follows Inheritance

ARC kindly provided by Macmillan and Edelweiss

Opinions are my own

I Did Something Bad by Pyae Moe Thet War

Khin Haymar is ecstatic to learn that she's being offered a story about Tyler Tun. She's excited for the job opportunity. The fact that Tyler is Hollywood's current Hottest movie star doesn't hurt. Soon she's getting to know this thoughtful, sexy many outside of his shiny star-ness but there's one night at a party when she's approached by a strange man. He attacks her and... well, she does something bad. And Tyler sees her and accidentally helps. They decide to cover it up for... reasons (?) I get that Khin is probably under some stress but her decisions don't really make sense. 

From there, the two are stressed but falling in love. Then there's the (I think unnecessary) late misunderstanding. And the ending felt a bit rushed. 

The marketing on this one is a bit off. The blurb I read said this made it feel like it would be a funny romance and, because of that, it took me a while to get into this book. 

Three stars

This book came out October 8, 2024

ARC kindly provided by St. Martin's Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling

Bowen Penhallow is a loner (except for his friend Declan who is, admittedly, a ghost). But he has been having a bit of back and forth with Tamsyn Bligh. She is a procurer of magical items. How does she get them? Eh. Maybe best not to ask. But she is a human who is not put off by magical things. She does enjoy meeting Bowen. 

But when she arrives at a house party and realizes that he is there too, she's a bit shocked. Even more shocking is a spell that sends them back in time where they will need to help his grandparents fall in love. They do adjust the course of history, but they also fall in love.

The plotlines don't quite all fit together but it's an overall fun story.

Three and a half stars

The Ex Hex #3

This book comes out October 8, 2024

Follows The Kiss Curse

ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyage, and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Deja Brew by Celestine Martin

Sirena is a kitchen witch and she has some strict rules for being a kitchen witch that were passed down by her grandmother. It's those abilities that allow her to brew a wish tea. Her wish allows her to re-live her October in the hopes that she'll get the job she wants. She's been out of the work force taking care of family and her last boss stole her recipes so she's not in a good place. Hopefully, allowing herself some more time will let her correct her mistakes. What she doesn't expect is that she gets to spend more time with Gus.

August Dearworth is a former reality show star. He was a showy magician and reveled in the spotlight. But he loved and lost. Now, he's a historian and surprisingly happy to be in the Grove. He's drawn to Sirena like no one else and the two are magic together. But it's an overwhelming magic and both of them are a little hesitant to jump into a relationship.

What I enjoyed about this book is that we go past the date of the first wish. Often, we get to the day of the wish and everything has worked itself out. Sirena and Gus are going to have an extra couple of months in this story. 

I heard about this book on a podcast and asked for it from NetGalley. I was lucky enough to get a copy and, while it didn't hit quite as nicely for me (not all of the story parts melded for me), I really did enjoy most of this book. 

Three and a half stars

This book came out October 1, 2024

ARC kindly provided by Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

A Family Reunion by Brenda Jackson

Ethan Bennett married off his children and now he's working on the younger generation. He's got four grandchildren who need to find love. In order to help pull them through, he's planning the first Bennett family reunion in fifteen years. Well, he's not, he's turning it over to a cousin or sister or some other woman (because why would he actually do the planning and she likes to do that stuff). 

We meet the grandchildren, Taye who was supposedly the smartest of them all but got pregnant young and disappointed the family (now has two daughters), Michael (adopted) who is a pilot with a teenage daughter who is running out of control, Alexia who is a rock idol, and Rae'Jean who is a doctor dating a man (who is white which is causing issues in the family.)

The first half or so of the book is at the reunion and the back half is over a series of months. This book is definitely an earlier Jackson with all sorts of racial and gender storylines that I don't think she would use now. I was honestly surprised it came out in the early 2000s. It's a fine enough book but she has better.

Three stars

This book came out September 17, 2001

Borrowed as audiobook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Mister McHottie by Pippa Grant

After the "bratwurst incident", Ambrosia Berger stopped going by "Bro" and asked people to start calling her "Sia." She didn't have the life she expected to live after the incident but she's carved out a pretty could niche on the social media team of Crunchy, an organic food store. Too bad her nemesis (and the other person involved) has just bought the store. 

Chase Jett grew up with the Berger twins and spent a lot of time with their sister. They had a history of pranking each other but their time together is still in his memory. He doesn't think they can pick up where they left off but he knows that the spark they had is still there.

This is barely a three star for me because there is just So Much Misunderstanding in this book.

Three stars

This book came out October 30, 2017

Girl Band #1

Followed by Stud in the Stacks

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

High Intensity by Dara Joy

I remember enjoying the first of the Tyber and Zanita books but not the second. I couldn't really remember why. I now know. It's because Zanita was charming and whimsical in the first book while Tyber was bemused and enchanted (this was well before manic pixie dream girls became oversaturated in our culture.) The second book, she's a nut and he's a prankster know-it-all.
Zanita proposed to Tyber but then tells him she doesn't want to get married because they'll become boring. He decides to prove her wrong by whisking her off to an island adventure where there may be ghosts. Blooey (cook) and Hambone (cat), of course, are going to come along. Zanita's Auntie shows up as well. We even see Mills and Gregor (and his son Cody) a couple of times though the conversation is basically the same in both.

Two stars

This book came out October 1, 1998 

Tyber and Zanita #2

Follows High Energy

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

Sharp Edges by Jayne Ann Krentz

Eugenia Swift is the director of the Leabrook Glass Museum. She's big into glass sculptures, not unlike an artist who just died and left his collection to the museum. As such, she's going to Frog Cove Island to take a look at the collection. However, the collector died under... mysterious circumstances so her boss decrees that Eugenia must take along a bodyguard, Cyrus Colfax.

Colfax doesn't know much about glass art, outside of a cup (chalice) that was stolen from him by a former partner who ended up wanting Colfax dead. He does know he likes beer and Hawaiian shirts, both of which seem to irritate the classy Eugenia. But the two are going to pose as a couple in order to give him an excuse to come to the island.

I remember enjoying this book more when it first came out. As you might expect nearly 20 years later, some of the attitudes are a bit grating but the story is still good and Krentz's style holds up. 

Three stars

This book came out February 1, 1998

Borrowed as ebook from Kindle Unlimited

Opinions are my own

The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter

I REALLY enjoyed this book. I don't like time jumps (which this had), some of the misunderstandings were a bit much, and Ethan was a bit TOO much (but only a bit.) However, I stayed up late to finish this book and fell asleep with a smile. Quite lovely.

Maggie Chase has had her confidence destroyed and is happier to stay home. But then an invitation comes and her publisher tells her it's one she doesn't want to turn down. So, she boards a plane to a mysterious location where there is to be a party hosted by she doesn't know who. Unfortunately, also on the plane is Ethan Wyatt, her nemesis in their publishing house. He can never remember her name and always seems to be laughing at her. So that's a great start to the vacation. 

They finally land and discover that they've been plonked right into a locked room mystery, complete with characters who disappear and characters who die. It even happens that Maggie has some close calls herself. Can she really trust the man she is getting to know?

Four and a half stars

This book comes out September 24, 2024

ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

A Jingle Bell Mingle A Novel by Julie Murphy; Sierra Simone

This series is more explicit that I usually prefer to read (not yucking anyone's yum; it's just not MY thing) but Murphy and Simone write So Darn Well that I tend to just plow through the naughtier bits and enjoy the rest of the story.
In this case, we get Sunny and Isaac. Isaac is the last singleton of the former boy band, INK. His two bandmates fell in love in the previous books. Isaac is in the pits of dark despair because he lost the love of his life, his muse, when she was young. And now he is ruined for all others and isn’t sure that he even deserves to live. He will, however, occasionally have sex. The last time he did so was with Sunny, former part-time porn star, now working on a script for the Hope Channel.
Sunny has a pretty rich back story herself but we mostly see her trying to be an independent woman who takes care of her son… er, her cat, Mr. Tumnus. He’s the whole reason she agrees to move out of a crappy hotel and sleep at Isaac’s mansion, it’s so her cat doesn’t have to suffer.
The two obviously have the hots for each other and there is some sexy time, even as Sunny insists on trying to find Isaac’s next muse. But this is a romance so it may just be that his muse is right under both their noses.

Four stars

This book comes out September 23, 2024

Christmas Notch #2

Follows Holly Jolly Ever After

ARC kindly provided by Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

The Holiday Cottage by Sarah Morgan

Imogen lives for her work. She lives for it so much that she’s made up a personal life just to avoid her coworkers’ questions and to hide her lack of a life.

Dorothy runs her own company and likes Imogen’s marketing so much that she moved her account when Imogen moved to a new company. Her daughter Sarah is concerned that Dorothy has picked up another stray (Dorothy has any number of animals that she’s adopted as well as people who Sarah is afraid will take advantage. But they both know something that Imogen doesn’t and it threatens to upend her life.
Luckily, handsome vet (and son of Dorothy’s best friend) Miles is there to help. And he has a golden retriever named Ralph who has decided that Imogen is his person.

A sweet story. Fans of Morgan will know what to expect.  

Four stars

This book come out September 24, 2024

ARC kindly provided by Canary Street Press and NetGalley

Opinions are my own

Clean Sweep (the graphic novel) by Ilona Andrews

This book is great with setting up the world building. We've got Dina Demille who is an innkeeper. Her parents disappeared and she's wondering where they are. Her sister married and moved away. Her brother is a wanderer. Maybe not a hard world to build until you realize that Dina is actually linked to her inn and that they people that stay at her inn are beings from other planets using Earth as a place to stop on their travels. 

From the opening chapter, we actually get a glimpse of this one Dina approaches one of her neighbors. Something has been killing dogs in the neighborhood and she wants Sean Evans to take care of it. At first, he denies responsibility (and the fact that he's a werewolf) but she finds him staking his territory on her apple trees later that night. It's a hilarious encounter that only gets better

The graphic novel adaptation is pretty good but I still like the Graphic Audio better. 

Four stars

The adaptation came out March 5, 2024

Kindle ebook

Opinions are my own

Silver Master by Jayne Castle

Celinda Ingram has moved to a new city in order to avoid a scandal. But now there's a police detective and a private investigator sitting at her desk. Is she going to have to move again?

It turns out that the PI, Davis Oakes, has been retained by the local Guild (a collection of hunters, thought by some to be similar to the mob) to recover an artifact that Celinda unknowingly bought. She is more than willing to turn it over but her dust bunny has other ideas. Davis doesn't want to let her out of his sight because this job is the first major operation since he recovered from a major psychical coma. 

The two are instantly attracted but they have bigger things to worry about since there are some very bad men after the artifact and them.

Three stars

This book comes out August 1, 2007

Ghost Hunters #4

Follows Ghost Hunter

Followed by Dark Light

Borrowed as audiobook from Hoopla

Opinions are my own

Dark Light by Jayne Castle

Sierra McIntyre is an investigative reporter for a tabloid newspaper. In the beginning of the fifth book set in Castle's futuristic/sci-fi Harmony, she is sitting in the office of the local Guild boss, trying to get to the heart of some mysterious disappearances of some former hunters. When the boss, John Fontana, unexpectedly proposes a Marriage of Convenience (two people can dissolve a marriage immediately unless there are children, in which case, the people involved are immediately entered into a Covenant Marriage), Sierra is surprised but agrees to go along for the sake of getting her story.

The two are immediately attracted to each other but need to take some time during the marriage to figure out exactly what the other person is about. Luckily for them, they have some added distractions of finding the lost Hunters, being chased by a Motorcycle Gang and dealing with some near death experiences.

Three and a half stars

This book came out August 24, 2008

Ghost Hunters #5

Follows Silver Master

Followed by Obsidian Prey

Hard copy of my own

Opinions are my own

Big Witch Energy Molly Harper with Amanda Ronconi (Narrator), Teddy Hamilton (Narrator)

The Wiltons can't leave Starfall Point or they will die. This has been true for generations. And it was true for Caroline Wilton's brother. Once he died, her family fell apart. Her father has been depressed since then, her mother took on most of the burden of the family bar (the Wilted Rose) and allowed her to take on the rest of it. Her other two brothers do the bare minimum. Or even less than. So it's mostly up to her. Thank goodness she has her two friends, Alice and Riley, her coven, to keep her sane. But could she also have someone from her past?

Benjamin Hoult has just moved back to town with his two teenagers. He's not expecting to see his old flame so quickly. So when he sees her, it's more awkward than he ever thought possible. It doesn't get better, especially when his daughter rides her moped into Caroline. But that opens up the door for his whole family to spend more time with her. And it's weird how they seem to fit. Which is good because the three witches will need the help of a new generation to take on a generations-old bad guy who is still trying to pull strings.

I really liked that both Mina and Josh were real characters; not just kids dropped into the story.

Four stars

This book came out

Starfall Point #2  

Follows Witches Get Stuff Done

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Premium Plus

Opinions are my own