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oceaneanagonye's reviews
186 reviews
Shameless by Lola Malone
4.0
If you're into enemies-to-lovers, bully romances that won't turn your stomach, I highly recommend this book. Connor and Austin are heirs to opposing mob families who meet in college under... less than ideal circumstances. Immediately, there's heat between them. They part ways only to be reunited under their true identities back across the pond. A joint mission between the families sets the two up for a trip back to Europe, complete with undercover spy work, steamy firsts, and heartbreak. With the mission complete, will our two MCs find a way to become true lovers or remain loyal to their rival families?
I loved the twists and turns this book threw at me towards the end. I'll admit there were a few pages where I was a bit lost, but it all made sense in the end! Bonus points for the possessiveness and praise during the steamy bits.
I loved the twists and turns this book threw at me towards the end. I'll admit there were a few pages where I was a bit lost, but it all made sense in the end! Bonus points for the possessiveness and praise during the steamy bits.
A Home in You by Courtney W. Dixon
5.0
As expected, I loved every moment of this book. These two were destined to be soulmates. The buildup to their romance was slow and realistic for their age. The teenagers acted like teenagers, and their exploration of each other was tastefully done. And when they were all grown up in college?
The Mourning Dove and His Snow Sparrow by Eve Healy, Eve Healy
4.0
This book begins following Callum as he adjusts to life alone after the death of his sickly mother. Soon, he rescues a wounded fox sparrow and attempts to nurse it back to health. That is, until the sparrow is all at once replaced by a winged man with pale skin and black eyes.
This book had some really sweet moments between the two MCs. Callum's loneliness and fear of losing Aurear made a lot of sense given the context of his earlier life experiences. It did kind of fall into the "born sexy yesterday" trope, so I would recommend you avoid this book if that isn't your cup of tea. This book is also very explicit, so if you're looking for a low stream read, this is not it.
I personally enjoyed it quite a bit and would recommend giving it a read!.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Merged review:
This book begins following Callum as he adjusts to life alone after the death of his sickly mother. Soon, he rescues a wounded fox sparrow and attempts to nurse it back to health. That is, until the sparrow is all at once replaced by a winged man with pale skin and black eyes.
This book had some really sweet moments between the two MCs. Callum's loneliness and fear of losing Aurear made a lot of sense given the context of his earlier life experiences. It did kind of fall into the "born sexy yesterday" trope, so I would recommend you avoid this book if that isn't your cup of tea. This book is also very explicit, so if you're looking for a low stream read, this is not it.
I personally enjoyed it quite a bit and would recommend giving it a read!.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This book had some really sweet moments between the two MCs. Callum's loneliness and fear of losing Aurear made a lot of sense given the context of his earlier life experiences. It did kind of fall into the "born sexy yesterday" trope, so I would recommend you avoid this book if that isn't your cup of tea. This book is also very explicit, so if you're looking for a low stream read, this is not it.
I personally enjoyed it quite a bit and would recommend giving it a read!.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Merged review:
This book begins following Callum as he adjusts to life alone after the death of his sickly mother. Soon, he rescues a wounded fox sparrow and attempts to nurse it back to health. That is, until the sparrow is all at once replaced by a winged man with pale skin and black eyes.
This book had some really sweet moments between the two MCs. Callum's loneliness and fear of losing Aurear made a lot of sense given the context of his earlier life experiences. It did kind of fall into the "born sexy yesterday" trope, so I would recommend you avoid this book if that isn't your cup of tea. This book is also very explicit, so if you're looking for a low stream read, this is not it.
I personally enjoyed it quite a bit and would recommend giving it a read!.
I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Edin by Lily Mayne
5.0
This is my second book by Lily Mayne, and I'm completely hooked. I listened to the audiobook performed by Michael Lesley. He knocked out out of the park once again with his lively, fully performed narration. This book follows Edin from "Soul Eater" and Hunter, a soldier looking to rescue his friend. Much like with Wyn and Danny, things start off a bit stilted and awkward, but progress into a beautiful relationship. We get cameos from past characters and learn much more about the monsters, The Waste, and the military. And of course, we get some spicy monster lovin' mixed in. There's plenty of humor and moments of tenderness to balance out the book's darker moments.
Overall, I would recommend this book, especially the audiobook, to anyone who enjoyed "Soul Eater" or is open to some MM monster/human goodness. TW should include amputation and character with prosthesis, torture, and a non-consensual fight club.
Overall, I would recommend this book, especially the audiobook, to anyone who enjoyed "Soul Eater" or is open to some MM monster/human goodness. TW should include amputation and character with prosthesis, torture, and a non-consensual fight club.
Cake & Comfort by Romeo Alexander
4.0
This is my second Romeo Alexander book and the second one that I've read in the Men of Fairlake series. There are plenty of allusions to the other five books in the series, but this can be read as a standalone, in my opinion. I would definitely recommend you go back and read the others, however, because Romeo has a fantastic way with words and slowburn romances. Plus, I would like to pack up and move to the quaint little town of Fairlake myself based purely on his beautiful scene setting.
This was definitely a slowburn that started off with our MCs as hostile strangers. At the pushing of a sweet receptionist and friend, Grant and Sylas decide to get to know one another, and the relationship begins to bloom from there. This is a huge deal because Grant is clearly on the autism spectrum.
As someone with Level 1 ASD myself, I usually refrain from diagnosing or assuming real people or book characters have ASD unless it is explicitly confirmed. We don't get that in this book, but it smacks you in the face. Grant has sensory differences, social struggles, a flat affect, has a hard time with inferences, struggles with rigidity and routine... And I'll be honest, I was a little disappointed when Grant was just referred to as "weird", "odd", "strange", and "oblivious" throughout the book. The only time Sylas asks point blank if he's on the spectrum, Grant says he was never tested and that a diagnosis wouldn't do him any good anyway. Maybe this is just me taking my personal baggage into this, but it left me feeling hurt to the point that I needed to take a break from reading at some parts. I know people think I'm all those things, too. I know they don't always understand. Using those terms as "banter" landed more like familiar insults.
I wish it was just said in plain English whether or not Grant has ASD because that would have been a beautiful opportunity for representation if handled with care. I ended up kind of circling on whether or not they'd talk about it for quite a while, and the way they addressed it left things vague.
The relationship built slowly and felt genuine. And I'm glad that Sylas has such a good support in Sylvia! And I would like to wrap Felix up in several comfy blankets and keep him safe for the rest of his life. Romeo's portrayal of a person experiencing mania was SPOT ON.
Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a slow burn grumpy/sunshine MM romance set in a sleepy, cozy little small town. Triggers include childhood SA, unaliving, and mental health struggles. I would not recommend this book to anyone on the spectrum.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This was definitely a slowburn that started off with our MCs as hostile strangers. At the pushing of a sweet receptionist and friend, Grant and Sylas decide to get to know one another, and the relationship begins to bloom from there. This is a huge deal because Grant is clearly on the autism spectrum.
As someone with Level 1 ASD myself, I usually refrain from diagnosing or assuming real people or book characters have ASD unless it is explicitly confirmed. We don't get that in this book, but it smacks you in the face. Grant has sensory differences, social struggles, a flat affect, has a hard time with inferences, struggles with rigidity and routine... And I'll be honest, I was a little disappointed when Grant was just referred to as "weird", "odd", "strange", and "oblivious" throughout the book. The only time Sylas asks point blank if he's on the spectrum, Grant says he was never tested and that a diagnosis wouldn't do him any good anyway. Maybe this is just me taking my personal baggage into this, but it left me feeling hurt to the point that I needed to take a break from reading at some parts. I know people think I'm all those things, too. I know they don't always understand. Using those terms as "banter" landed more like familiar insults.
I wish it was just said in plain English whether or not Grant has ASD because that would have been a beautiful opportunity for representation if handled with care. I ended up kind of circling on whether or not they'd talk about it for quite a while, and the way they addressed it left things vague.
The relationship built slowly and felt genuine. And I'm glad that Sylas has such a good support in Sylvia! And I would like to wrap Felix up in several comfy blankets and keep him safe for the rest of his life. Romeo's portrayal of a person experiencing mania was SPOT ON.
Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a slow burn grumpy/sunshine MM romance set in a sleepy, cozy little small town. Triggers include childhood SA, unaliving, and mental health struggles. I would not recommend this book to anyone on the spectrum.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Held Hostage: An MM SWAT Suspense Romance by Morticia Knight, Morticia Knight
5.0
"Held Hostage" by Morticia Knight is Book 4 of the Sin City Uniforms series. I've read other books by this author, but none in this series. I was still able to follow along just fine reading this as a standalone.
This book follows SWAT officer Cole and clothing store manager Brett as they have not one but two chance encounters that ultimately lead them down the path to their HEA.
It's hard to keep my attention from the first page of a book, but Morticia Knight had me hooked immediately! I usually don't go for action in my romance books, but she blended the genres very well. The characters were well developed and succeeded in making me angry at times. This is a good thing. It means I care.
This book follows SWAT officer Cole and clothing store manager Brett as they have not one but two chance encounters that ultimately lead them down the path to their HEA.
It's hard to keep my attention from the first page of a book, but Morticia Knight had me hooked immediately! I usually don't go for action in my romance books, but she blended the genres very well. The characters were well developed and succeeded in making me angry at times. This is a good thing. It means I care.
The Healer by Courtney W. Dixon
5.0
Authentic and Emotional
"The Healer" by Courtney W. Dixon has been on my TBR for a hot minute. I finally sat down this weekend and decided that it was time, and oh my goodness was I not disappointed. "The Healer" follows gentle giant Jonas and feisty little firecracker José who both work at a mob-funded free clinic in a rough part of town. We get a few chapters of backstory on each MC before we catch up to the present day. This helped to set the scene and added depth to their characters.
Jonas and José start off bumpy as poor Jonas is nervous as all hell and struggling with the concept of risking his heart for a man again. Eventually, he finds his voice and a beautiful relationship blooms. Until... Demons from both their pasts rear their ugly heads to try to separate them for good.
I don't even know where to start with my praise of this book. The first thing that caught my attention was how authentic Jonas' experience was as a Black man. As a Black femme who has faced a lot of things discussed in this book, it all rang very true and I felt seen. I can't adequately express what that meant to me, especially when the genre is comprised of 90% non-ethnic main characters. José was Latinx, which was another plus. We stan authentic BIPOC representation!!
Now onto the love story itself. Oh my God. I felt butterflies, annoyance, and hope and was even left gutted for a while as they moved through their relationship. This story made me feel big feelings and I struggled to put it down for any amount of time. Of course, we get an HEA (my heart would simply break if we didn't) and boy is it a hard-earned one. I love how hard Jonas tried to overcome his fear and the hatred from his family and how patient and ultimately forgiving José was.
I loved this book. I would recommend it to anyone who wants an angsty MM romance with lots of heart and spice, with a little action sprinkled throughout.
"The Healer" by Courtney W. Dixon has been on my TBR for a hot minute. I finally sat down this weekend and decided that it was time, and oh my goodness was I not disappointed. "The Healer" follows gentle giant Jonas and feisty little firecracker José who both work at a mob-funded free clinic in a rough part of town. We get a few chapters of backstory on each MC before we catch up to the present day. This helped to set the scene and added depth to their characters.
Jonas and José start off bumpy as poor Jonas is nervous as all hell and struggling with the concept of risking his heart for a man again. Eventually, he finds his voice and a beautiful relationship blooms. Until... Demons from both their pasts rear their ugly heads to try to separate them for good.
I don't even know where to start with my praise of this book. The first thing that caught my attention was how authentic Jonas' experience was as a Black man. As a Black femme who has faced a lot of things discussed in this book, it all rang very true and I felt seen. I can't adequately express what that meant to me, especially when the genre is comprised of 90% non-ethnic main characters. José was Latinx, which was another plus. We stan authentic BIPOC representation!!
Now onto the love story itself. Oh my God. I felt butterflies, annoyance, and hope and was even left gutted for a while as they moved through their relationship. This story made me feel big feelings and I struggled to put it down for any amount of time. Of course, we get an HEA (my heart would simply break if we didn't) and boy is it a hard-earned one. I love how hard Jonas tried to overcome his fear and the hatred from his family and how patient and ultimately forgiving José was.
I loved this book. I would recommend it to anyone who wants an angsty MM romance with lots of heart and spice, with a little action sprinkled throughout.