Promised to the Orc by Sue Mercury

 Promised to the Orc

by Sue Mercury

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating: 🌶🌶🌶

Blurb:

I’ve been promised to an Orc Guardian.

He’s coming for me soon and I will have no choice—I’ll have to leave the realm of humans and marry the huge, fearsome beast known as Gregor the Slayer.

Orc Guardians are said to be cruel and unfeeling. I struggle to accept my lot in life, and I won’t lie—I’m tempted to run and hide. But deep down, I know I wouldn’t get far, and the last thing I wish to do is bring down an orc’s vengeance upon my village… or upon myself.

I soon learn that while Gregor has a fierce, vengeful side, when it comes to me, he can be gentle and… sweet. He’s also intensely protective and possessive of me.

But we come from different realms, and his world is so very different from my own.

Will I survive marriage to a big, growly orc?

My Review:

This was a short, fun read that reminded me exactly why monster romance has such a devoted fan base. If you’ve ever wondered what the appeal is, this book honestly shows it pretty well. It has all the elements people fall in love with—the fierce protectiveness, the tenderness, and the deep care the MMC shows for the woman he chooses.

Gregor is exactly the kind of hero you want in a story like this. He meets Catrin before realizing she’s actually promised to him, but the attraction between them is immediate and impossible to ignore. There’s something instinctive about the way they’re drawn to each other. Catrin doesn’t fully understand what’s happening to her at first, but she can’t deny how safe and comfortable she feels when Gregor is near—and watching that connection grow is part of the charm.

For such a short story, it still manages to sprinkle in a bit of action along the way, keeping things interesting while focusing on the growing bond between them.

Overall, it’s a quick, enjoyable read that delivers exactly what you’d want from a monster romance: a protective hero, a sweet connection, and just enough adventure to keep things exciting.

The Half King by Melissa Landers

The Half King

by Melissa Landers

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating:  🌶🌶

Blurb:

A king by day. Shadow by night…

The Great Betrayal changed everything for the Allied Realm. Long ago, the kingdom’s noble houses rose up against the goddess... and for their treachery, the firstborn of each noble family was cursed.

One with perilous beauty.
One with destructive knowledge.
One with insatiable bloodlust.

But the royal house Mortara received the worst affliction of all. For while the king exists during the day, he fades into nothingness at night...until his twenty-first birthday, when he will be lost to the shadows forever.

Now an acolyte has arrived at court. Like all the second-born children of the Allied Realm, she’s destined to serve the goddess and become a Seer...only Cerise Solon has no gift of foretelling. In fact, she has no magical gift at all.

Instead, she’s surrounded by courtiers and priests—smiling sycophants whose hearts are filled with secrets and lies. And at the center of it all sits His Majesty Kian Hannibal Mortara, with his haunting eyes, sharp tongue, and an unerring ability to send her pulse skittering at the worst possible moments.

Falling for him is unthinkable. Because the king is the last of his line, and as the specter of his twenty-first birthday—and the full force of his curse—approaches, the kingdom holds its breath.

But there’s only one way to save a dying king... and it lies with the one person who’s hiding the biggest secret of all. Cerise.

My Review: 

I finished this book about five days ago, and oddly enough, while I remember enjoying the experience of reading it, a lot of the details have already started to blur together.

The story takes a little while to get moving. The beginning felt slow, and I found myself waiting for the plot to really grab me. But once things started picking up, I became much more invested and then the ending absolutely wrecked me.

That cliffhanger? Cruel. The kind that leaves you staring at the last page thinking, well… now I need the next book immediately.

I’m always drawn to stories that revolve around curses, and this one definitely delivered on that trope. Pair that with a capable, intelligent FMC, and it made the journey enjoyable even when the pacing lagged a bit.

Even if the finer details didn’t stick with me as much as I expected, that ending alone has me ready for book two.

The Serpent and the Wolf by Rebecca Robinson

 The Serpent and the Wolf

by Rebecca Robinson

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating:  🌶🌶

Blurb:

All her life, Vaasa Kozár has been sharpened into a blade.

After losing her mother her only remaining parent to a mysterious dark magic that has since awakened within her, Vaasa is certain death looms. So is her merciless brother, who aims to eliminate Vaasa as a threat to his crown. In one last political scheme, he marries her off to Reid of Mireh, a ruthless foreign ruler, in hopes that he can use her death as a rallying cry to finally invade Reid’s nation. All Vaasa has to do is die.

But she is desperate to live. Vaasa enters her new marriage with every intent to escape it, wielding the hard-won political prowess and combat abilities her late father instilled in her. But to her surprise, Reid offers her a deal: help him win the votes to rise in power, and she can walk free. In exchange, he will share his knowledge about the dark magic running through her veins and help keep it at bay.

This proposal may be too good to refuse, yet Vaasa and Reid’s undeniable attraction threatens to break the rules of their arrangement. As her brother’s lethal machinations take form, everything is at stake: Vaasa must learn to trust her new husband, but how can she, especially when their perfect political marriage begins to feel like the real thing?

My Review:

The serpent and the wolf

This book absolutely wrecked me in the best possible way. From the very first page, I was hooked. The twists, the tension, the emotional pull… it completely consumed me. Even when I managed to predict a few plot points, there were plenty that blindsided me. I dove headfirst into this story and let it swallow me whole like it was a living, breathing thing.

The story opens on our FMC, Vaasa, on her wedding night. She’s preparing to meet the man she’s been forced to marry and in her mind, the only way out of this marriage is to kill him. Rumors about her husband swirl around her, dark and unsettling, and Vaasa has no desire to discover whether any of them are true.

One of the things I loved most about this book was the character development. Vaasa begins the story as a frightened woman, desperate to escape the life she’s been trapped in. But somewhere along the way between heartbreak, danger, and discovery she transforms. She grows into someone stronger, braver, and more powerful than she ever believed she could be. Watching her step into the person she was always meant to be was honestly one of the most beautiful parts of the story.

I know some readers feel like the “strong FMC” trope is overdone, but personally? I will never get tired of it. Women have been underestimated for centuries, and there is something incredibly satisfying about reading a story where a woman takes back her power. Give me female rage, give me revenge, give me a woman who refuses to stay small I will eat it up every single time. I don’t want a quiet, passive heroine. I want a woman with a backbone.

And then there’s Reid our MMC and easily the second-best part of this book. Reid doesn’t treat their arranged marriage like a burden or a transaction. Instead, he takes the time to truly see Vaasa. He listens to her, learns her, and gives her the space to grow into herself. While Vaasa is discovering who she really is, Reid becomes the safe place she didn’t know she needed. He never forces her, never pushes her beyond what she’s ready for. Instead, he quietly supports her healing even though he doesn’t fully understand the trauma she carries. All he knows is that she deserves better than the life she came from.

There’s so much more I could say about this book because the writing itself is beautiful and the story pulls you in completely. I know it won’t be for everyone, but for me, this was easily one of my favorite reads of the year. I can only hope more people pick it up and fall in love with it the same way I did.

Bromantasy by Maire Roche

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating:  🫑

Blurb:

Two heroes. One brain cell.

BROMANTASY is a cozy, queer fantasy about the mortifying ordeal of being known by your totally platonic best friend and the epic quest that might force you to confront the truth.

Fellas, is it gay to kiss your bff while on a quest through the forest you’re unqualified for?

Juniper O'Reilly is good at only two things: demolishing a pint of mead and finding the perfect skincare routine. Everything else—taking care of the farm, bartering for goods, any sort of manual labor—falls to Juniper’s best friend, the absurdly capable, endlessly patient Mo Elmthorn.

But when Juniper accidentally volunteers them both for a quest to kill a fearsome monster, he knows he’s finally gotten in over his head. Juniper hates camping, he hates the dark, and there’s no way all these foraged mushrooms are going to sit well in his stomach. One thing he doesn’t hate? How good Mo’s thighs look in his questing pants—he doesn’t have time to think about that, though, with a monster to hunt and their futures on the line.

But monsters come in all shapes and sizes. When Juniper and Mo realize that the terrifying beast they’ve sworn to kill is just a scared little girl torn from their family, they’re off to find not only the true villain of the story, but maybe even a happy ending.

My Review:

This book was such a fun surprise and honestly, exactly what my reading mood needed. Most of the books I pick up tend to be heavy, emotional, or dark, and while I love those, sometimes your soul just needs something light, cozy, and genuinely funny. Bromantasy delivered that perfectly. I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump lately, and this book absolutely helped unstick me.

At the heart of the story are Juniper and Mo, two best friends who share a home, a life, and though they don’t quite realize it yet a whole lot of feelings for each other. After Juniper makes a truly spectacular mistake, he accidentally volunteers them both for a quest to slay a fearsome monster. The problem? Juniper is not exactly hero material. He’s not the questing type, the camping type, or really the outdoors type at all. His greatest talents involve enjoying a good pint of mead and maintaining a flawless skincare routine. Meanwhile, Mo is the capable, patient one who usually handles…well, everything.

So naturally, dragging Mo along on a dangerous monster-hunting quest seems like a great idea.

Watching these two bumble their way through the journey is pure comedy gold. They are, quite frankly, absolute idiots (said with the deepest affection). Their feelings for each other are painfully obvious from page one, yet they dance around them again and again. It’s the kind of slow, oblivious pining that makes you want to shake them while also hugging them at the same time. Máire Roche leans into classic romance tropes in the best way possible, turning their ridiculousness into something incredibly endearing.

The dynamic between Juniper and Mo is really the heart of the story. Their friendship is warm and full of genuine love, which makes the romantic tension even sweeter. There’s something so comforting about watching two people who already care so deeply for each other slowly stumble toward realizing that maybe just maybe they’ve been in love for years.

And the adventure itself adds a great twist. When the “fearsome monster” they’re supposed to defeat turns out to be something very different than expected, the story takes a thoughtful turn while still keeping the humor and charm that make the book shine.

At its core, Bromantasy is a cozy, queer fantasy about friendship, love, and the absolutely mortifying ordeal of being truly known by your best friend. It’s warm, hilarious, and full of heart.

Also, let’s be honest: two heroes, one brain cell.

What’s not to love?

⭐ Five stars. This one made me laugh, made me smile, and reminded me how refreshing a joyful, heartfelt story can be.

 The Duke Anna Cowan 

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating: 🌶🌶

 

Blurb:

"Gorgeously written and desperately hot... Hands down, my favorite romance of the decade." — Alix E. Harrow, New York Times bestselling author of Starling House

A sapphic regency romance about the duke who fears nothing... until the woman she never forgot walks through the door and brings her to her knees.

Set in a world of powerful female nobles and the women who love them...

Kate, Duke of Howard, is known throughout Europe as a merciless autocrat not to be crossed. Consumed by a bitter rivalry, she avoids society and has vowed never to trap a woman into marriage with a monster like herself.

The beautiful, ambitious courtesan Celine Genet once threw herself on the mercy of the visiting Duke of Howard. She was desperate to escape the guillotine. But after a night of searing passion, the duke left her to the ravages of Revolutionary Paris and didn’t look back. Now Celine is in London and in possession of a dangerous letter that proves the Duke of Howard committed treason as a child - and possibly even murder.

Celine wants a titled husband in return for keeping the duke’s secret, leaving Kate no choice but to parade her around the most fashionable ballrooms. But as Celine takes society by storm, Kate finds herself growing fond of the woman set on destroying her. And as their attraction mounts, Kate faces an impossible choice: keep her childhood secret, or win the woman she loves.

Anna Cowan's The Duke is an utterly unforgettable, page-turning romance featuring two women who, separately, are a danger to each other, but together, could be the most powerful duo London has ever seen.

My Review:

Woman in charge and queerness normalized?! I was hooked! There is nothing I love more than a book that shows woman as they are, and could be all in one.

Three years after a passionate one-night encounter, Celine reappears in Kate, the Duke of Howard’s, life with an incriminating letter and a plan: blackmail her way into high society. In exchange for the letter, Kate must secure her a noble marriage and a generous dowry. The only problem? The noble Celine ends up with might not be the one either of them expected.

This book was so much fun. Cruelty, blackmail, betrayal, and a whole lot of yearning wrapped in gorgeous writing. The tension between Celine and Kate is incredible, seriously “touch her and I’ll kill you” energy. Kate may have a reputation as the coldest woman in England, but when it comes to her little French duchess? Total softie. I was here for the romance, and the romance delivered.

I’m officially obsessed with the trope of reuniting years after an unforgettable one-night stand and pretending you’re not still thinking about it. Add in the classic “I’m supposed to matchmake you with someone else but I’m the one falling for you” and the yearning is off the charts. Somehow this book manages to feel incredibly intense even without much physical intimacy for most of the story and it works perfectly.

I also loved the alt-history world where female lords inherit titles and queerness is completely normalized. Watching Celine charm her way into high society while also helping Kate untangle her political problems was such a delight.

I devoured this in one sitting! The characters crackle with tension, the writing is beautiful, and the balance of plot, romance, and character growth is just right.

Honestly? This might be one of the best historical romances I’ve ever read, because I don't really read historical romance. If you listen to me about one book make it this one. I’m already wishing I could read it again for the first time.

 Half City by Kate Golden

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊🟊

Spice Rating: 🌶🌶

Blurb:

Welcome to Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. Keep your daggers sharp, and your wits even sharper.

Viv Abbot is an average twenty-one-year-old girl. She lives in an expensive city where the rent is too high, works long hours at a thankless job, and is dating a guy she doesn’t even like in the hopes of winning her prickly mother’s approval.

She just also happens to be a demon hunter.

Ever since her father's murder, she's been forced to hunt deviants alone, meaning everyone, including her family, sees her as an outsider. . . . Until the day she crosses paths with a dangerously alluring demon, Reid Graveheart. The reformed deviant tells her of a school for people just like her: Harker Academy for Deviant Defense. If she enrolls, she'll learn to hone her craft, work with other hunters, and never be alone again.

But Viv has a deadly secret. One that not even her new friends at Harker can know about. Not when the school might hold the answers to untangling the mystery surrounding Viv's father’s death. When strange occurrences begin to plague the students, Viv will have to figure out who she can trust, and fast. All while trying to ace her classes, not fall for a demon, and make it through her first year at Harker in one piece. How hard could that be?

My Review:

Half City by Kate Golden

What in the actual hell was that ending?! Because I finished this book and just sat there staring at the wall for a minute. And now I have to wait until October for book two?! The audacity. I can’t even preorder it because I’m hoping my subscription box will include the sequel, which means I’m just going to be sitting here thinking about that ending for months.

Before I really get into it, let me say this: nothing about this review is going to stop me from picking up the next book. Not even close. I genuinely enjoyed this story as a whole. That said, the beginning was a little bit of a climb for me. There’s a lot of worldbuilding and setup happening right away—systems, history, rules of the world—and it can feel like a lot to take in at first. But once the story settles into itself, things start moving and it becomes a much more gripping ride.

Viv is a hunter, think along the lines of Dean and Sam Winchester, tracking supernatural creatures that most people don’t even know exist. Hunting runs in her blood, literally. It’s a genetic legacy passed down through generations, and it comes with something darker: a craving for the violence that comes with the job. The problem is, Viv is the last of her kind. No family who understands what she is, no one who shares that instinct. Just the constant weight of being alone with it.

Everything changes during a hunt when she’s followed, and confronted by a demon. Instead of trying to kill her, he gives her information: there’s a school for hunters, a place where people like her train to fight the supernatural. If she truly wants to protect the world, that’s where she needs to be.

So she goes.

And for the first time in her life, Viv feels something dangerously close to belonging.

Of course, nothing is ever that simple.

Girls at the school start disappearing, secrets start piling up, and the deeper Viv digs, the more unstable everything around her becomes. Trust starts to feel impossible. Even the people closest to her might not be who they claim to be. Along the way she’s navigating friendships, dangerous choices, and an extremely hot demon coach who absolutely complicates things in the best way.

This story is very plot-driven, and there are definitely characters in here you’re going to hate. Honestly, some readers might even hate Viv herself. But here’s the thing she’s in her early twenties, carrying the weight of being the last of her kind, living in a world where everything wants to kill her. She’s isolated, scared, and trying to survive while figuring out who she can trust. Of course she makes messy choices. I actually appreciated that about her. She felt human in a situation that would break most people.

And when everything starts unraveling? She’s the one who has to step up and try to save the world. Which, let’s be honest, is exactly the kind of chaos we all sign up for when we pick up books like this.

One thing I loved? She finally dumped the loser. I was cheering. That man was giving absolutely nothing and if anything seemed more interested in her mom than her. Good riddance.

And that ending… I’m still not over it. It was wild in the best possible way and left me desperate to see what happens next.

If you’re looking for a book where the FMC has her life perfectly together, this is not that story. But if you’re ready for a chaotic, supernatural ride full of secrets, tension, questionable decisions, and characters that will absolutely get under your skin, you’re probably going to have a great time with this one.

Because messy heroine or not… I’m already counting the days until book two.

 Bearly Mated by Lola Glass

My Rating: 🟊🟊🟊⯨

Spice Rating: 🌶🌶🌶

Blurb:

I'm being paid to have a bear shifter's baby.

He happens to be my childhood best friend who I was in love with for half my life, and haven't seen in years.

If I wasn't so desperate for money, I wouldn't have turned to him.

But I am, so I sign the mating contract and agree to let the big, sexy jerk breed me.

If all goes according to plan, I'll be pregnant within a month, and able to pay off all of my dad's bills within a year.

But it doesn't go according to plan.

Because he keeps calling me his.

And refusing to leave.

And feeding me.

I can't let myself fall back in love with him… but I have no idea how to stop it.

*This is a short, steamy, romantic novella with a happily ever after!

My Review:

Bearly Mated by Lola Glass was such a cute, feel-good read. It’s exactly the kind of book you pick up when you want something light, fun, and guaranteed to leave you smiling. Honestly, the serotonin boost I get from a Lola Glass book should probably be studied. If you’re in a reading slump or need a break from heavier, more emotional genres, this is the perfect kind of story to lift your mood.

The story follows our FMC as she tries to repay her father’s debts after his death. In an effort to solve her financial problems, she comes up with a wild but oddly practical idea, becoming a “bear incubator” for bear shifters who want cubs but don’t stick around long enough for traditional relationships. It’s unconventional, a little chaotic, and makes for some entertaining moments.

Things get even more interesting when her best friend, who also happens to be a bear shifter, decides he absolutely does not like the idea of other bears getting involved with her. His protective instincts kick in hard, and instead of letting someone else step in, he adds himself to her contract. What starts as a practical solution quickly turns into something deeper, and watching their relationship shift from friendship to something more was sweet and satisfying.

Overall, this was a cozy, bubbly paranormal romance with lovable characters and plenty of charm. It’s the kind of story that doesn’t take itself too seriously and just lets you enjoy the ride, and sometimes that’s exactly the kind of book you need