Welcome to the Love Bytes Book of the Week Poll!

Here are the books which achieved a 4.5 or 5.0 review last week from our reviewers. 

As a reminder, the top two books from each week’s poll will roll into our Book of the Month poll at month’s end. Happy Voting!

Please scroll to the very bottom for the voting section.

POLL SCHEDULE:

This poll will remain open until at least 6PM, Amsterdam time next Friday. The actual closing time will vary depending on blog staff schedules…

Reviewed by Chris

TITLE:  The California Dashwoods 

AUTHOR:  Lisa Henry

PUBLISHER:  Self-Published

LENGTH:  211 pages

RELEASE DATE:  May 1, 2018

BLURB:  

Make a new future. Choose your true family. Know your own heart.

When Elliott Dashwood’s father dies, leaving his family virtually penniless, it’s up to Elliott to do what he’s always done: be the responsible one. Now isn’t the right time for any added complications. So what the hell is he doing hooking up with Ned Ferrars? It’s just a fling, right?

Elliott tries to put it behind him when the family makes a fresh start in California, and if he secretly hopes to hear from Ned again, nobody else needs to know. While his mom is slowly coming to terms with her grief, teenage Greta is more vulnerable than she’s letting on, and Marianne—romantic, reckless Marianne—seems determined to throw herself headfirst into a risky love affair. And when Elliott discovers the secret Ned’s been keeping, he realizes that Marianne isn’t the only one pinning her hopes on a fantasy.

All the Dashwoods can tell you that feelings are messy and heartbreak hurts. But Elliott has to figure out if he can stop being the sensible one for once, and if he’s willing to risk his heart on his own romance.

A modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Butterfly Assassin

SERIES: part of the Regent’s Park world

AUTHOR: Annabelle Jacobs

PUBLISHER: self-published

RELEASE DATE: June 8, 2018

BLURB:

Set in the Regent’s Park pack world:
Clapham Common—a new pack with their own set of problems…
Shifter Aaron Harper gets drawn into illegal underground fighting to keep an eye on his best friend. The thrill of the fight keeps him coming back for more, but discovery could mean imprisonment and banishment from their pack. Without a beta to watch over them, common sense takes a back seat.
Michael Archer of the Shifter Crimes Task Force is investigating recent murders. Despite the brutal cause of death pointing to the work of a shifter’s claws, instinct tells him a well-known nightclub owner is involved, but they have no proof.
Aaron and Michael’s paths cross after another body with the same injuries is discovered. With Aaron finding himself on the wrong side of the SCTF and Michael looking for a killer, any attraction between them is both ill-advised and unlikely. But fate has other ideas.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Frankie – Unforgettable

SERIES: Man Up #3

AUTHOR: Felice Stevens

PUBLISHER: self-published

RELEASE DATE: June 7, 2018

BLURB:

Frankie
No one understands why I love him.
Why I need him.
Why I took him back.
But they don’t have to.
I know.
Despite the hurt and the heartache, I see beneath his skin.
And I’m different now.
No more Flirty Frankie. I’m done with being King of the club.
My dreams have changed, and so have I.
I’m stronger.
I believe in myself.
And I’m a hell of a lot smarter than a year ago.
Now it’s his turn to show me the man he really is.
To prove it.
I’ve always loved him.
But that’s not enough.
I need to learn to trust him.
Aaron
No more excuses.
No more chances.
I make this right or lose him for good.
I have to do this.
No one has ever believed in me but him.
No one has ever wanted me but him.
I can’t let him down.
I won’t.
I can’t let myself down.
I’m trying, but it’s so damn hard.
No matter what they throw at me, I’m stronger.
And I’m going to make it.
I’m on my way.
With Frankie by my side.
I can see the future.
I have a future.
Us. Together.
Forever.

Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: His Leading Man

SERIES: Dreamspun Desires (book #59)

AUTHOR: Ashlyn Kane

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 222 pages

RELEASE DATE: June 5, 2018

BLURB:

He wrote a comedy. Fate directed a romance.
Drew Beaumont is bored of the same old roles: action hero, supervillain, romantic lead. He’s not going to let a fresh gay buddy comedy languish just because they can’t find him the right costar. No, Drew bats his eyelashes and convinces everyone that the movie’s writer should play Drew’s not-so-straight man.
Aspiring writer Steve Sopol has never had a screenplay optioned. Now one of Hollywood’s hottest properties wants to be in a movie Steve hasn’t finished writing—and he wants Steve as his costar. Turns out the chemistry between them is undeniable—on and offscreen.
Drew swore off dating in the biz, but Steve is the whole package: sharp, funny, humble, and cute. For Steve, though, giving in to the movie magic means the end of the privacy he cherishes. Will the credits roll before their ride into the sunset?

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: BFF

AUTHOR: K.C. Wells

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 200 pages

RELEASE DATE: June 5, 2018

BLURB:

I’m about to do something huge, and it could change… everything.
I met Matt in second grade, and we’ve been inseparable ever since. We went to the same schools, studied at the same college. When we both got jobs in the same town, we shared an apartment. And when my life took an unexpected turn, Matt was there for me. Every milestone in my life, he was there to share it. And what’s really amazing? After all these years, we’re still the best of friends.
Which brings me to this fragile, heart-stopping moment: I want to tell him I love him, really love him, but I’m scared to death of what he’ll say. If I’ve got this all wrong, I’ll lose him—forever.

Reviewed by Dan & Cinnamon

TITLE: Twenty-Two

AUTHOR: S. Davidson

PUBLISHER: Encompass Ink Publishing

LENGTH: 1684kb

RELEASE DATE: June 1, 2018

BLURB:

Taylor’s job was to photograph the spoils of the war. His instructions – make our military look good. Problem – the view was not always a pretty one. His obsession – keeping some of the worse images that he captured, often the last proof of what the depths a man will go to when faced with his own morality. Often, his images were so horrific, he didn’t dare let anyone else see, particularly the military.

Ryan ran a successful business, was well respected, and was raising two children. Surrounded by small-minded people, he didn’t dare come out as a gay man to his employees or his clients without the fear of losing business. Instead, he traveled miles from home just to keep his secret safe.

Sometimes, a one-night stand becomes more.

Twenty-two veterans commit suicide every day. Will Taylor be part of that count? Not if Ryan has any say in it.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Blood Bathory: Absence of the Sun

SERIES: Guardians of Gaia #2

AUTHOR: Ari McKay

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH:  261 pages

RELEASE DATE: June 4, 2018

BLURB:

Gaia’s theriomorphs may have gravely injured Elizabeth Bathory, but they face new challenges now that her daughter Anna has instigated a coup against her mother. An appeal for help from Antonio, Marielle’s European deputy, results in new revelations for the younger theriomorphs about the origins and nature of the enemy they’ve been fighting for so long — revelations which also change how Evan St. John sees his role in the war.
Tyr Gustavson — a theriomorph who has been feral since 1945, grieving the death of his partner Aaron — and Adam Carson — a fighter pilot who was turned into a vampire against his will — enter the picture, both of them still fighting the specters of their experiences in WWII. As the theriomorphs attempt both to block Anna’s moves against them and to find and destroy Elizabeth once and for all, Tyr and Adam are drawn together, despite Tyr’s hatred of vampires. When Tyr pushes Adam away out of fear, Adam accepts a desperate, suicidal mission to find Thrace, the original nosferatu. If their desperate plan works, the theriomorphs would have the opportunity to destroy not only Elizabeth, but the sire of all vampires. But if it fails, they might have unleashed a force which could lead to the destruction of them all — and perhaps even of Gaia herself.

Reviewed by Donna

TITLE: A Day in Cleburne

SERIES: The Robbie Day Duology Book 2

AUTHOR: I.M. Flippy

PUBLISHER: Self Published

RELEASE DATE: May 31, 2018

BLURB:

Bart and Robbie have found happiness together and Bart’s career is going nowhere but up.

Everything should be perfect, right? But going from having nothing to lose to having everything to lose is keeping Robbie up at night.

Plagued by self-doubt following the loss of Day Studios, Robbie doesn’t know why he can’t just shut up and be happy. The “King of Pain” worries that he’ll drag Bart down in his first attempt at a sober relationship. After Robbie pushes Bart away, he’s forced to wrestle with the demons that even the best relationship can’t easily fix.

When Bart runs back to Texas and Robbie chases after him, he fights to gain back the love and family he wants even more than a movie studio.

Reviewed by Taylin

TITLE: The Vampire’s Angel

SERIES: The Realm of The Vampire Council #1

AUTHOR: Damien Serbu

PUBLISHER: NineStar Press

LENGTH: 334 Pages

RELEASE DATE: March 19, 2018

BLURB:

As Paris devolves into chaos amidst the French Revolution, three lives intertwine.

Xavier, a devout priest, struggles to hold on to his trust in humanity only to find his own faith threatened with the longing he finds for a mysterious American visitor. Thomas fights against the Catholic Church to win Xavier’s heart, but hiding his undead nature will threaten the love he longs to find with this abbé. Xavier’s sister, Catherine, works with Thomas to bring them together while protecting the family fortune but falls prey herself to evil forces.

The death, peril, and catastrophes of a revolution collide with a world of magic, vampires, and personal demons as Xavier, Thomas, and Catherine fight to find peace and love amidst the destruction.

Reviewed by Amber

TITLE: God of Monsters

SERIES: Bound Gods #8

AUTHOR: Adrienne Wilder

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 261 Pages

RELEASE DATE: May 6th, 2018

BLURB:

There is nothing stronger than the heart of a Doxie, and at the same time, there is nothing more fragile.
And when it breaks?
The shards cut deep, and the wound never heals.
Just when you thought the betrayal couldn’t go any deeper, it reaches all the way to Purgatory.

Warning: The ending of this installment is HFN but abrupt. And this timeline will not pick up until Bound Gods 10 which is where all the storylines merge for the final apocalyptic battle for the survival of the Doxies.

Reviewed by Taylin

TITLE: Out, Proud, and Prejudiced

AUTHOR: Megan Reddaway

PUBLISHER: Self-Published

LENGTH: 270 pages

RELEASE DATE:  June 4, 2018

BLURB:

One’s proud, one’s prejudiced, and they can’t stand each other.

Quick-tempered Bennet Rourke dislikes Darius Lanniker on sight. Darius may be a hotshot city lawyer, but that doesn’t give him the right to sneer at Bennet, his friends, and their college. It doesn’t help that Bennet’s restaurant job has him waiting at Darius’s table. So when his tutor recommends him for an internship at Darius’s Pemberley estate, Bennet isn’t sure he wants it. He’s also not sure he can afford to turn it down.

Darius is a fish out of water in the small college town of Meriton, but something keeps pulling him back there. He’s helping out a friend with business advice, nothing more. If he’s interested in Bennet, it’s not serious. Sure, Bennet challenges him in a way no other man has. But they have nothing in common. Right?

Wrong. Their best friends are falling in love, and Bennet and Darius can’t seem to escape each other. Soon they’re sharing climbing ropes and birthday cake, and there’s a spark between them that won’t be denied.

But betrayal is around the corner. Darius must swallow his pride and Bennet must drop his prejudices to see the rainbow shining through the storm clouds.

A standalone novel—a modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.