book_lover_irl's reviews
437 reviews

Deal with the Devil by Meghan March is book one of a trilogy. This fast paced story includes all the feels — plenty of angst, desperate situations, yearning inner dialogue, s3xy quips and funny banter. The sexual chemistry between India Baptiste and Jericho Forge is palpable and I am here for it. Watching the MCs soften towards each other and begin to enjoy each other’s company is delicious. 

The book ends on a cliffhanger (which makes sense since it is a trilogy) and leaves a lot of unanswered questions. I can’t wait to learn more about the mystery in the next book. On to read Luck of the Devil asap…

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
POV: Duet
HEA: No
Cliffhanger: Yes
Tropes: Billionaire, damsel in distress, touch her & ☠️

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

I read a fair number of motorcycle club books but I’ve never read one that focuses on a nomadic club. The Devil’s Due Club is about six “brothers” who wander around seeking vigilante justice when the legal system fails victims or their loved ones. 

In the Red is a high octane novel with obnoxiously funny banter. Since it’s book one in a new MC series, the author takes a little bit of time introducing the readers to all of the club members. These teasers made me excited to see how the other stories will unfold. Collector (Dover) is a complex, alpha-hole MMC with childhood trauma still haunting him. Emerson (Sunny) is a kick a$s, strong FMC who shares that childhood trauma and grief, letting it affect her into present day. 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
POV: diet
HEA: yes
Cliffhanger: no
Tropes: motorcycle club, wounded hero

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book_Lover_IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

Explosive by K.E. Osborn told the story of Raine and Zero.

Great story with entertaining plot, amusing main characters, a decent amount of action and nice spice. Nothing spectacularly earth shattering or unique about the book but still a satisfying read. Somewhat forgettable. 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️
POV: diet
HEA: yes
Cliffhanger: no
Tropes: motorcycle club, wounded hero

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO.P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

I tend to avoid sports romances but I needed a book that started with Z for a book challenge and that’s not as easy to find as you’d think.

Zack by Sawyer Bennett was an easy, light read with some delicious spice. I appreciated the emotional inner reflections. I loved the strong willed and tender hearted FMC who wasn’t afraid to tell it like it is and who legit embraced the “we listen and we don’t judge” ethos. It took the MMC a long time to get his head out of his arse but while he waffled and worked through things, at least he was truthful about where his head was (mostly).

Overall I give the book 4 out of 5 stars. I sped through it. I would most likely read it again (if I were the type to ever reread any book). 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
POV: Dual
HEA: Yes
Cliffhanger: No
Tropes: nanny, sports romance, 

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

I just can't do it. I cannot finish The Sinner by Shantel Tessier. I knew it was a dark romance but this is something else. I've read plenty of dark romances and enjoyed most of them. I read Still Beating by Jennifer Hartman, Pretty Little Savage by Lucy Smoke, Riches to Riches by Ames Mills and Mindf*ck Series by S.T. Abby. Those had dark themes and tropes. The Sinner feels like it is ENCOURAGING violence against women, pleasure of a man above the humanity of a woman, and straight up awful misogyny - expecting women to quietly slip back into the 1950s. with zero rights over their own bodies. 

I guess I have discovered a trope I cannot condone -- dub con and consensual non-consensual. I might also have an intolerance for bully romances. Previously I didn't think I had many TWs, now I know better.

I cannot get on board with the violence that continues to happen to poor Ellington. Every time I think perhaps Sin / Easton is mellowing a teensy bit to be a less despicable human being (not even good -- just less horrific), he proves that violence in the name of his s3xual pleasure is king and he has zero regard for Elli. I get that, in theory, someone who has been abused so severely for years may have a skewed idea of what intimacy and pleasure should be. However, I cannot understand why Sin wouldn't at least attempt to give Elli pleasure in a way that isn't straight up considered sexual assault and abuse. Try BDSM and drop the need to make her bleed and cry. If Elli is never shown a different way to experience pleasure, how will she know if she does or does not like it?

I know my opinions will be unpopular and I totally get it if you love this book and these tropes. I'm not here to yuck your yum. I'm simply unable to hop on that train and enjoy the ride. I really wanna know how The Sinner ends, but not enough to keep reading the book. 2025 is supposed to be the year that I embrace DNF if a book isn't for me, so here I am. Cheers to The Sinner being my first DNF for 2025.

Stars: 0 -- DNF for me

Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ -- according to BookTok. I couldn't get past the violence.

POV: Dual

HEA: No clue. DNF

Cliffhanger: No clue. DNF

Tropes: Bully romance, touch her and d!e, friends to lovers

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 

STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book_Lover_IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book

⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed

⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot

🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking

🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary

🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

The feeling of MEH continues with Heaven’s Rejects MC series. I read book one, skipped book two and just complete book three. 

Almost 90% of the book was removed from the MC life, so I wouldn’t really say this is an MC story. Rikka and Ratchet were engaging main characters. Rikka’s backstory was horrific. Ratchet’s patience with her was endearing and sweet. 

The angsty drama point or so called “twist” at approx the 75% mark was extremely anti-climactic and predictable — frankly disappointing. 

The spice was decent but I quickly grew tired of “pebbled” as a descriptor. The epilogue did end on a great spoiler that kinda makes me wanna read the next book in the series. However, I don’t love the author’s writing style, so I’m highly tempted to just find a spoiler summary and move on from the series and author. 

P.S. I know a lot of MC series include misogynist messages - club bunnies are good enough to f*ck but not be in a relationship with, old ladies can’t know club business, women shouldn’t have careers and are only good for popping out babies. This one attempts to sell the MMCs crappy sexist thoughts and inner dialogues as being “protective” and “good for women”. It seriously just pissed me off. If this type of thing doesn’t drive you bonkers (we listen and we don’t judge…), that’s cool and good for you. You may love that about this book. Me? Not so much. 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice:  🌶️🌶️ - maybe 2.5 or 3, if I’m being generous
POV: Dual
HEA: Yea
Cliffhanger: Yep
Tropes: MC, alpha male, traumatic childhoods, he falls first

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book_Lover_IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

Everything about this story was just "okay". The plot was meh (synopsis blurb made it sound better than it was). Pacing was uneven and didn't flow well. The writing was mediocre at best. Conversation seemed stilted, banter was lacking, and spicy scenes sounded repetitive. 

Usually I enjoy MC tropes (minus the way club bunnies and non-old-lady women are treated). It's often fun to read about the trouble and vigilante justice that outlaw bikers bring to a story. However, this story didn't give the reader any in-depth details about what made this Heaven's Rejects MC special. You weren't sure what businesses they were involved with; you didn't get a decent introduction into the other characters or their affiliation with the MC (other than a little bit with the club president). 

The author failed to help the reader feel connected to the 2 MCs. Hero's emotions for Dani were volatile and all over the board. First, he was attracted to her, but then he didn't trust her because of possible ties with another MC, and at the same time he had supposedly been simultaneously head over heels for her from the get go (but didn't start sharing that until the last third of the novel.) His statements didn't jive with his internal dialogue or outward actions. 

Dani was fiercely independent and wasn't afraid to stick up for herself and / or attempt to physically defend herself from unwanted male attention. As a strong FMC, Dani's disdain for being treated as "less than" because she was a woman was refreshing. However, as soon as Hero mentioned he liked her, Dani suddenly was all goo-goo eyed over him and glossed over all of the horrible things he'd said and done to her. It made zero sense considering how awful he had been. Honestly, my last straw came at the end of the novel when Dani *instantly* forgave Hero after he failed to support her in a pivotal moment. It left me flabbergasted and feeling as if the FMC devolved from the beginning of the story into a weaker MC, not stronger.

I hate giving unpleasant reviews. I think most books have redeeming qualities and bright spots. This particular novel was straight up "average" without any shining moments. I won't re-read it or recommend it to friends. I am not invested enough with any of the characters or plots to continue to read further on in the series. Someday I may circle back around to book #3 (Absolution) in the series to see how Rikka's story unfolds, but if it doesn't capture my attention in the first third of the novel, it will most likely be a DNF for me. In 2025, I want to focus on reading books I wholeheartedly enjoy, not stuff I just trudge through to get to the end.

Stars:⭐️⭐️ 

Spice:🌶️🌶️ 

POV: Dual

HEA: Yes

Cliffhanger: No

Tropes: MC, Alpha Male, Insta-Love

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 

STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book

⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book

⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed

⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot

🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking

🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary

🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

Book three of the Mindf*ck series did not disappoint. It started out with a bang and ended on another cliffhanger with some amazing dramatics. 

I’m still invested in seeing the plots through to their conclusions, enjoying the steady pacing and loving the character development. 

Lana’s flashbacks are hard to listen to and I suspect will only get more graphic and heartbreaking as we learn more details. 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
POV:  Dual
HEA: Not yet - two more books in the series
Cliffhanger: Yes
Tropes: Law Enforcement/ Criminal, Alpha male

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

Book three of the Mindf*ck series did not disappoint. It started out with a bang and ended on another cliffhanger with some amazing dramatics. 

I’m still invested in seeing the plots through to their conclusions, enjoying the steady pacing and loving the character development. 

Lana’s flashbacks are hard to listen to and I suspect will only get more graphic and heartbreaking as we learn more details. 

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
POV:  Dual
HEA: Not yet - two more books in the series
Cliffhanger: Yes
Tropes: Law Enforcement/ Criminal, Alpha male

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book_Lover_IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?

I’m currently obsessed with the Mindf*ck series because it loosely reminds me of Criminal Minds, one of my all-time favorite tv shows.

Plot pacing is swift and details are condensed since they’re packed into such short novels. There isn’t a ton of angsty inner dialogue, which I find refreshing after the last few books I’ve read recently.

Despite all the secrets between Lana and Logan, I’m cautiously optimistic that when things blow up between them they’ll still be able to figure out how to be together. I hate Lana’s lies and fear Logan is going to act holier-than-thou when he learns her truth.

As mentioned by some other reviewers, the female narrator does a pretty good job. I don’t mind her version of the FMC. The male narrator’s voice isn’t deep enough for me. The way he sounds doesn’t match the way I hear him in my head. I wish Jacob Michael or Troy Duran did the male narration. 

On to the next book…

Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️ (very little spice in this book. Story progression just didn’t leave much room.)
POV: Dual
HEA: Not yet - still more books left in the series
Cliffhanger: Of course
Tropes: Law enforcement / criminal opposing MCs, Alpha male, Bas@ss FMC

INSTAGRAM: @Book.Lover.IRL 
STORYGRAPH: Book.Lover.IRL
GOODREADS: Book Lover IRL

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I loved this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I really liked this book
⭐️⭐️⭐️ I liked this book
⭐️⭐️ Meh…  bored or annoyed
⭐️ Seriously? Not worth it

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ INFERNO. P@nty melting
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Blazing hot
🌶️🌶️🌶️ Now we’re talking
🌶️🌶️ Meh… uninspired missionary
🌶️ Does weak foreplay count?