roksyreads's reviews
433 reviews

The Mercenary and the Mortician by Alexandra St Pierre

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adventurous dark emotional funny sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Love Unbound by Danielle Baker

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emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Make Me by Alina May

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Make Me was a thrilling read, with a dark vigilante aspect that hooked me from the first page. The first half was excellent, packed with tension between the characters and in the narrative. MMCs Ronan, Logan, and Dakota are each fascinating characters in their own right, carrying their own burdens and trauma. It was heartbreaking to learn about their pasts and to see them struggle to face them, with each ultimately finding strength through the growing, complex bond developing between them. 

The shifting dynamics between the MCs were central to the narrative in the latter half of the story, but their individual voices became less distinct, especially in the final third, and it seemed that multiple aspects of the story were glossed over in a rush to bring them together as a throuple. In particular, as focus shifted to their developing relationship, the underlying suspense plot which had been building steadily up to around the 60% mark—and which was responsible for drawing the 3 MCs together in the first place—fell away somewhat and ultimately seemed to fizzle out. I would have loved a few more chapters to really give that aspect of the story more depth, but the story did finish well with both a HEA and an amusing bonus epilogue.

This is great read for fans of the genre, but I’d encourage readers to check the detailed TWs/CWs provided on the author’s website first, as there are numerous dark themes. Always put yourself and your mental health first.
 
Ratings:
3.5⭐   ~   4🌶️   ~   4💔

Tropes:
🖤 Serial killers
🖤 Stalkers
🖤 Enemies-to-lovers
🖤 Kidnapping
🖤 Praise~

What I loved:
🖤 “Good boy”
🖤 Dark humour
🖤 Morally complex characters
🖤 All the angst
🖤 Queer joy
🖤 ART. There is interior ART!
🖤 Buffalo (trust me) 
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Nero by S.J. Tilly

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Fall by A.J. Merlin

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Picking up from the exciting end to Haunt, Fall dives straight into the scorching tension between FMC Noa and MMCs Ravage (Val) and Harrow (Kieran). I love the moral complexities that Merlin brings to her stories and characters. Getting to know the unmasked versions of the morally black serial killers that captured and captivated Noa in the first novella was a wild, thrilling ride, and I appreciated how much insight I was able to glean into their pasts and motivations through the narrative and their interactions. The banter between the three MCs was excellent, as was the chemistry—I am an absolute goner for primal play, so the spice in this one had me positively melting. I’m eagerly awaiting the third instalment of the trilogy.

Ratings:
4.5⭐   ~   4🌶️   ~   2💔

Tropes:
🖤 Serial killers
🖤 Stalkers
🖤 “Ours”
🖤 “Good girl”

What I loved:
🖤 Primal play
🖤 Hand necklaces and breath play
🖤 MMF
🖤 Morally grey/black characters with a hint of vigilantism
🖤 “Princess” and “Darling”
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Haunt by A.J. Merlin

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Whirlwind by Kayla Grosse

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I’ve always enjoyed disaster fiction. Twister, Twisters, Into the Storm, Greenland, The Wave, The Day After Tomorrow, and Deep Impact are just a handful of the ones I’ve lapped up over the years. So, when Kayla announced Whirlwind, which combines storm chasing with two of my favourite tropes—age gap and forbidden romance—I knew I was in for a wild ride. Now, it’s safe to say that I am OBSESSED. 

Finley is a total boss bitch: passionate and vibrant, I loved that she held her own with all the boys but especially with Ryker, who definitely had some serious *facepalm* moments. The tension and chemistry between Finley and Ryker was delicious and hot AF, maybe even a little… turbulent (IYKYK 👀). 

Whilst Finley and Ryker are obviously the focus of the novel, this story absolutely rocks the found family vibe, too, and I adored the broader cast of characters, Joey especially. He was responsible for so many laugh out loud moments, but was also such an incredible friend to both Finley and Ryker. The banter between everyone was funny and also very sweet at times, and the friendships—both established and developing—were a real highlight. I’m definitely hoping that there’ll be a spin-off or two in the future, because I would love to learn more about the rest of the cast and go on more adventures with them. 

~

Ratings:
5⭐   ~   3🌶️   ~   2💔

What I loved:
🖤 Strong, passionate, vibrant, plus size FMC
🖤 Grumpy, rugged MMC who will probably make you facepalm at least once
🖤 Action packed adventure plot
🖤 JOEY, MY SWEET, CHAOTIC, COCKY TORNADO OF A HUMAN

Tropes:
🖤 Forbidden romance
🖤 Professor x Student
🖤 Age gap (she’s 25, he’s 42) 
🖤 Forced proximity
🖤 Mutual pining

~

I am pleased to have the opportunity to provide an honest review as an ARC reader.
Chasing The Wild by Elliott Rose

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adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Puck Shy by Kayla Grosse

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funny lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This ultra spicy Valentine’s Day novella manages to pack a whole lot of love into 206 pages. Puck Shy had me giggling, blushing, swooning, and melting—sometimes, all on the same page. The romance between FMC Stevie and MMC Lucas is super sweet, building on broader themes that feature in the novella: self-discovery, communication, and friendship.There’s no doubt that the spice is incredible, with multiple adventurous 3+ person scenes that put my eReader at risk of burning up. Something that hit me extra hard was how Stevie was portrayed, especially physically. I enjoy curvy girl romances, but most of the FMCs seem to have perfect “hourglass” figures. This is the first time I can truly say that I’ve come across an FMC who is described as having a body like mine, apron belly and all, who not only honours her body and finds confidence in her skin, but who’s also worshipped exactly as she is. It meant so much to me; more than I can really express in words. 

Ratings:
4.5⭐   ~   5🌶️   ~   1💔

Tropes:
💘 Hockey romance
💘 Golden retriever MMC
💘 “It’ll fit”
💘 Workplace romance
💘 One night to friends to lovers

What I loved:
💘 Various (and varied) group scenes
💘 Polysexual rep
💘 The mirror scene 👀
💘 Communication and enthusiastic consent
Ready Or Not by Alina May

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I first attempted to read Ready Or Not last year, but I’m glad I paused and waited until I was in the right headspace, as this was a seriously intense story—a dark and twisty erotic thriller featuring a morally black MMC and FMC. I’ve read (and loved) plenty of morally grey/black men in dark romances, but can’t think of any stories where I encountered an FMC of their like, so it was a new and interesting experience. 

FMCs Rachel and Riley and MMC Manson are each complex characters in their own right, and I appreciated the depth given to their pasts as the story progressed, but I did feel the pacing wasn’t as strong as the first novel. The highlight for me was the thought put into Rachel’s characterisation; I saw so much of my sibling in her—right down to the fascination with bones—and I loved how Riley and Manson, even depraved as they were, found ways to support her and appreciated her as is.

This is definitely a great read for fans of the genre, but I’d encourage readers to check the detailed TWs/CWs provided on the author’s website first, as there are numerous dark themes. Always put yourself and your mental health first.

Ratings:
3.75⭐   ~   5🌶️   ~   4💔

Tropes:
🖤 𝖲erial killers
🖤 Stalkers
🖤 Forbidden (step-siblings)
🖤 Enemies-to-lovers 
🖤 Vengeance 

What I loved:
🖤 MFF with strong sapphic rep
🖤 Autism rep
🖤 Complex, morally black characters