offmyredcarpet's reviews
791 reviews

The pacing was okay but there were zero transitions between a scenes; everything was snippets of interactions and it felt incomplete. It’s touted as a grumpy/sassy trope between the mains but is really more two different approaches of rude. I didn’t like either character. A lot of their interactions were quite juvenile. Overall I thought the writing to be amateur so I DNFd at 35% as the technical aspects are not going to change so I’m moving on. But I do think a lot of people will find it quite cute. 

Immaculate. Incredibly epic and the sci-fi is so good. If you like alien MMCs who look alien, competent FMCs in the 30ish age range, in depth world building, slow burn romance, emotionally intimate spice, that’s tied up very nicely with beautifully created sci-fi grounded in real world science that’s immersive and believable, this is the series.

What happens when living genetic code merges with synthetic designed to mimic the real thing? What happens when the coding for that merger is interrupted opening the door for liberation? 

Fás is a charming blend of romantic and feral who respects Roz as an individual with free will instead of the object she was created to be. Character and relationship development are exceptional, particularly character. Roz navigating what is her coding and what is free will is quite masterfully done. Meanwhile Fás is doing his own navigating, trying to move from his prey state to predator to ensure their survival. There’s a very tangible sense of foreboding throughout that heightens every decision, every interaction. I was truly on the edge of my seat the entire book. Excited for the next installment and more reveals.

I purchased this anthology solely for Zoey Draven’s entry as it is a companion to her Brides of the Kylorr series and my review is based on that. 

This might be my favorite story of hers and I wish it had been published as a companion novella instead. It has all the intensity, emotional intimacy, and angst of Claimed by the HK with all the exquisite world building amassed in the Kylorr series. 

Spurred by their unusual meet cute, the connection between the MCs is immediately palpable and intense. Their attraction and curiosity about the other drives their dialogue creating great tension mixed with humor while underscoring that something significant is being left unsaid. 

That something unsaid does much heavy lifting as we can sense the weight of it is going to alter their relationship as well as them as individuals. Draven is one of the best at necessary betrayal as well as the angst that comes with it while soothing us with a heartfelt apology that is a balm to the heart. 

I really wanted to love this, especially with the way that cute cover pulled me in but it’s a frustrating read. 

It’s not a standalone though it is marketed as such. If understanding the world building of book 2 requires me to read book 1, then it’s not standalone. 

The premise for their forced proximity is weak. They’re journeying to retrieve her sister-in-law’s horses as a surprise gift from her brother but it’s also somehow a heist? I could overlook it if it wasn’t for the extremely choppy relationship development. At one point I thought I had inadvertently skipped a chapter. There’s good dialogue and interaction between the mains but there’s no transition between them seeing one another for the first time after 15 yrs to them arguing about a relationship. 

Extremely misleading title and blurb. Story is primarily about fighting a demon hive than the romance. It’s also almost entirely inner monologue. Very little dialogue happens, even between the MCs.

Dark alien romance so check content warnings. The premise was good but the execution wavered. It takes a fair amount of time to get into the story because the first half is spent in a lab with very little interaction between the main characters even though there was proximity. So much of that time is written as inner monologue that is painfully dull and leans hard on questions asked in groups of three to communicate doubt, hesitancy, and uncertainty on behalf of the FMC (76x in the first half of the book). I think this story would have fared better written in third person instead of first. It is difficult to communicate those behaviors in first person which is why so often authors resort to packs of questions to do so. We never really get a chance to care about her plight because it comes off as whiny rather than the bone deep trauma it is.

Once the main characters are out of the lab and interacting the story gets interesting (romance readers read for the relationship development after all). The MMC doubts the FMC’s morality and is outright cruel while struggling with an undeniable pull to her. In his anger he commits an action that puts him in near unredeemable territory. The author doesn’t really give enough time to this part of the story to work it out so the apology, acceptance, romance part of their relationship is unfortunately rushed. 

Regardless, I applaud the author going for a darker story on page with a believably difficult escape.

This got very offensive very quickly. Firstly, the FMC’s disparaging of her own figure which just so happens to be an idealized body type had me rolling my eyes. But what had me shuttering the book was the MMC tearing her clothes from her body when she refuses to wear the leather garments he gives to her then proceeds to run his hands over her under the guise of “checking her for injuries” turning it into a fingering sesh…wtf is this? I like spice but this is a poorly constructed power play and a reminiscent justification along the lines of old school porn and I’m just no longer interested. 

another charming installment in this series. I’m forever enamored of authors who can give us a novella that feels wholly complete and not rushed. Great character and relationship development, deliciously steamy spice, fun world building that isn’t dense or heavy handed, and great pacing all wrapped up in a tight little package. 

Bannon—side character in The Midsummer Bride—gets his HEA! He falls first, fast, and hard for Sarya who is wary of relationships after having lost so much post the stone sickness that plagued their lands in Midsummer Bride and Bannon is delightfully relentless in his pursuit. I loved it.