Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Must Love Demons

SERIES: Magic Emporium #6

AUTHOR: Meghan Maslow

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 310 pages

RELEASE DATE: February 18, 2021

BLURB:

You’d think being magically tethered to the hottest warden in all Verona wouldn’t be a hardship.

You’d be wrong.

Incubus Nico Azertiran has his dream job as a cherub-in-training. It’s the perfect position for a lust demon who’s more interested in happily-ever-afters than one-night stands. Or it would be, if he didn’t keep screwing it up. When a new cherub gadget misfires, Nico is left trussed to Verona’s most eligible warden, the incredibly grumpy, Sir Flame.

Flambeau Illume has a job to do. Someone’s murdering Verona’s rich and famous, and Sir Flame’s hot on the killer’s trail . . . until he has the misfortune to get magically lassoed to the most infuriating incubus he’s ever had the displeasure to meet. Except, maybe Nico isn’t so terribly awful. But how can he solve his case and keep Nico safe at the same time? Especially when the sweet demon seems to have a bullseye on his back.

Together they need to solve the crime, stay alive, and—if their luck changes—maybe even fall in love. Easy, right?

Must Love Demons is part of the Magic Emporium series. Each book stands alone, but each one features an appearance by Marden’s Magic Emporium, a shop that can appear anywhere, but only once and only when someone’s in dire need. This book contains explicit scenes, a lariat of love, a demon tail with a mind of its own, and a guaranteed HEA.

Reviewed by Anna Lynn

TITLE:  Breakaway

AUTHOR:  Kindle Alexander

PUBLISHER:  Kindle Alexander LLC.

LENGTH:  370 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  February 9, 2021

BLURB:

Greer Lockhart set out to save the world from itself when he organized his first beach cleanup at the age of twelve. Now, as a uber-successful venture capitalist for eco-friendly startups, he doesn’t let anything get in the way of his goals—whether personal or professional. When a new fitness app schedules a site-wide cycle race, Greer’s competitive side won’t let him back down. Not even when his undivided attention turns to the one racer he can’t beat: Biker101.

Dallas Reigns learned a long time ago to keep his head low and his focus forward. He gives his all to a business he started with his brothers, BikeBro. But he worries his all might not be enough if they can’t gain traction before their financial ship sinks. A chance meeting with a hard-hitting venture capitalist is just what they need. Until his resistance is tested when the striking blond man shows interest in more than just his company, challenging all Dallas’s etched-in-stone boundaries.

When the illusion of Dallas’s life threatens to crumble under the weight of his own desire, can he find a way to fortify his iron will, or will Greer help him breakaway from the restraints of his past?

Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: Grumpy Bear

SERIES: A Bear Camp Novel

AUTHOR: Slade James

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 294 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 28, 2021

BLURB:

Hooking up with an employee is not on my to-do list.

Making sure other men have a good time is my business, even if it means suppressing my own desires. It’s opening weekend at my clothing-optional campground, guests are starting to arrive, and I’ve got a pool party and a few hundred peoples’ vacations to save while battling Mother Nature’s tantrums.

The last thing I need is a temporary employee who can’t even put up a tent.

Luke Cody’s not my type. He’s too young, too pretty, and too much like my late partner. Another flaky musician? No thanks. But when a storm blows down his campsite, I can’t just leave him outside and soaked to the bone. Now he’s staying in my cabin, sleeping in my bed, and worst of all, he’s completely ignoring the proverbial sign over my head that says Grumpy Bear: Do Not Approach.

I’m not quite as immune to his charms as I want him to believe, but he’ll only be here for a few days.

Nothing’s going to happen…

Grumpy Bear is a boss/employee, grumpy/sunshine romance set at a gay campground full of bears. (Not shifters; the other kind of bears.) It’s the first full-length book in the Bear Camp series and can be read as a standalone.

Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  Unforgotten

AUTHOR:  Garrett Leigh

SERIES:  Forgiven #2

PUBLISHER:  Carina Press

LENGTH:  224 pages

RELEASE DATE:  February 16, 2021

BLURB:

Billy Daley hasn’t been home in years, and he likes it that way. He’s just fine on his own—he has a cash-in-hand job at a scrapyard, a half-feral cat to keep him company, and many miles between him, his hometown and all the baggage that comes with it.

Until the job goes sideways. Suddenly he’s back in Rushmere, working for none other than his brother’s best friend—a man whose kiss Billy can’t seem to forget.

Gus Amour’s memories of Billy Daley are all spiky edges, lips crushed against lips and a reckless streak that always ended in trouble. But when Billy needs a place to stay, Gus steps in. He’d do anything for the Daley family, including living, and working, side by side with a man who makes his heart beat too fast and his blood run too hot—two things he’s been running from for years.

It doesn’t take long before their easy banter, lingering touches and heated glances become a temptation too hard to resist. But falling into bed and falling in love are two different things, and love has never come easy to either Billy or Gus. Only when fate threatens to steal away their opportunity for a second chance will they realize they don’t need easy.

They just need each other.

Reviewed by True

TITLE: Socially Orcward

SERIES: Adventures in Aguillon #3

AUTHORS: Lisa Henry and Sarah Honey

PUBLISHER: Self-Publishing

RELEASE DATE: February 14, 2021

LENGTH: 223 pages

BLURB:

Dave is a simple orc with a simple life. He has his dragons, his music, and his friends, and that’s mostly enough. Sometimes though, he gets lonely and wishes there was someone he could share his interests with—maybe even someone he could hold hands with, although he knows it’s not likely that there’s a special person out there for someone who’s seven feet tall and green to boot.

So it’s a delightful surprise when Simon Perrin, the new kitchen boy, not only knows all about dragons, but seems to like Dave as much as Dave likes him back. But all is not what it seems, and Simon is hiding a dark secret. There are sinister forces at work, and Simon needs to find a way out of the situation he’s trapped in. If he doesn’t, it could mean disaster for the entire kingdom of Aguillon, and an even more terrible fate for Pie, Dave’s beloved fingerdragon.

When Dave discovers Simon and Pie are in danger, he’s swept up in a rescue mission that spans an ocean, tests a friendship, and has more dragons that you could poke a lute at. It’s going to be a wild ride—literally.

Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE: Mr. Uptight

AUTHOR: Felice Stevens

PUBLISHER: Self-published

LENGTH: 314 pages

RELEASE DATE: February 18, 2021

BLURB:

Jude:

What do you do when you wake up with a hangover and find yourself in bed with your best friend’s younger brother?
Who happens to be your new brother-in-law?
The man who drives you crazy.
The man who always skated by on fast-talk, good looks, and a bright smile.
The one who makes you want to break all the rules.
You hire him as your assistant, of course.
And pray you can keep your sanity.
And your hands off him.

Mason:

How do you prove you’ve changed?
That you’re no longer the party-boy who always needed rescuing from his own mistakes—and boy you’ve made some big ones.
But no one needs to know your secrets.
You take a job with the one man who doesn’t trust you.
Who’s waiting for you to screw up.
You try and forget that one explosive night together.
Except you can’t.
And to your shock…neither can he.

What do you do when the one man you can’t imagine living with is the one you can’t live without?

Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  Imagoes

AUTHOR:  N.R. Walker

SERIES:  Imago #2.5

PUBLISHER:  Self-Published

LENGTH:  73 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 16, 2021

BLURB:

When Jack receives a phone call from a colleague in the southeast of Tasmania with news of a newfound butterfly habitat, he and Lawson head off on another adventure. It’s not an easy trek to the location. The Franklin-Gordon National Park is famous for wild rivers, rainforests, and rocky cliff faces, and they’ll need to hike and abseil—in the dead of winter—to get to the site.

It’s no ordinary expedition because this is no ordinary butterfly, and Jack and Lawson aren’t an ordinary couple. Join Jack and Lawson on another quest in this short story of extraordinary butterflies and extraordinary love.

Reviewed by True

TITLE: A Valentine for Evrain

AUTHOR: Xavier Axelson

PUBLISHER: Self-Publishing

RELEASE DATE: January 30, 2016

LENGTH: 46 pages

BLURB:

Evrain runs a chocolate store in a small town and is not above using the storefront for hot encounters with local guys. But love is definitely not in the cards, at least until he meets Ambrosio.
The sexy Latino soon teaches Evrain a lesson in love that neither man will soon forget.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Sliding into My DMs

AUTHOR:  Nell Iris

PUBLISHER:  JMS Books LLC

LENGTH:  78 pages

RELEASE DATE:  February 17, 2021

BLURB:

Hi. I heard you’ve been sick.

Eddy Pennington is recovering from a severe bout of pneumonia when an old acquaintance, Moss, sends him a message on social media. They haven’t spoken in years, but Eddy is pleasantly surprised. He always liked Moss, even if they were never close friends.

Moss Fanning has no ulterior motive with his message: all he wants is wish Eddy a speedy recovery. He got over the crush he used to have on Eddy a long time ago.

They reconnect easily and have even more in common now. And when they meet in person, the attraction is instant. Will an innocent, well-meaning message on social media lead to something more? Something deeper? Something … everlasting?

Reviewed by Jen B.

TITLE: The Endless Road to Sunshine

AUTHOR: Nicky James

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 361 Pages

RELEASE DATE: February 1, 2021

BLURB:

My name is Jason Atkinson, and I married a serial killer.

My world shattered on a cold April morning when they took my husband away in cuffs.
The life I knew, the man I loved, and the world I believed in was nothing but a lie. He stole my trust, my happiness, and my faith in humanity, and I’m not sure how to move on.
With my mental health hanging by a thread and a media circus following me everywhere I go, escape seems like the only answer.
Shedding my old life and starting fresh.
A new city. A new job. A new name.
Maybe everyone will leave me alone and let me wallow in peace.
But Skylar Dawson, a student almost twenty years my junior, has a different plan.
Everything about him is endless—his eyes, his smile, even his babbling mouth.
He shines with a blinding inner light I can’t ignore.
He’s a ray of sunshine in my dark world.
Skylar Dawson will not be ignored.
But will his energy and patience run out when he realizes I’m too tormented and broken to love him back?

This is a hurt/comfort, student/teacher, grumpy/sunshine, age gap (25/43) MM romance novel with a moderate amount of angst.