missdevo's reviews
290 reviews

 Wicked Serve is the final book in the Beyond the Play series by Grace Reilly. The series consists of interconnected stand alone college sports romances. The first three books are the stories of the Callahan brothers, and this one centers around their little sister, Isabelle Callahan, and her situationship turned HEA with Nikolai Abney-Volkov. They are all interconnected standalones with recurring characters. I don't think you need to have read them all to enjoy this story, but it would deepen your appreciation of the relationships and side characters.
During her internship in NYC with a well known event planner, Izzy discovers the #1 perk of her new job is that her boss happens to have a super hot, distractingly sweet son who is more than willing to give her a "hot girl summer" fling.
This book is an emotional read. I love when a story has both emotional impact and piping hot spice. Both Nik and Izzy are dealing with the weight of familial expectations. She feels like the black sheep of an exceptionally gifted family of athletes who can't measure up, and he's not dealing well with his own past family trauma. The subject matter can feel heavy at times, but it's handled well in my opinion. I loved that the answers are to "do the work" for both of them. No shortcuts on this path. We really get to see these characters mature and grow into themselves. When they come together, it's sweet and spicy in all the best ways. I will certainly be adding more Grace Reilly to my TBR.
Thanks to Valentine PR, Avon Books, Netgalley, and Grace Reilly for the ARC opportunity. 

Haven Weston is a 25 year old plus size model with physical intimacy avoidance issues who has never even had a hug. Her therapist suggests cuddle therapy to help her with her problem. Reign "King" Beckett is a 40 year old billionaire who falls into instalove upon seeing Haven in a hotel lobby. The tropes for this book are right up my alley - age gap, he falls first, OTT possessive/protective, curvy FMC, but somehow it doesn't quite all hit for me. It's an easy quicker read, and I enjoyed it. I just also feel that there's some potential left on the table.
Haven and King don't feel fully fleshed out to me. I want to know more about how Haven has made it to 25 with the issues she has, and still had the confidence to model high fashion, and lingerie. She is at one hand afraid of touching and being touched, and on the other so starved for affection she agrees to this marriage of convenience super quickly after discovering that King has been hiding the truth of who he is from her the entire time she's known him. I know... willful suspension of disbelief... I also want more from King's background as to why he doesn't believe in love. It's just kind of stated.
While I wish the characters were more fleshed out, a larger issue for me is over the pacing. The big conflict happens around 80% of the way in, and I don't know why the villain is the villain. They have no dimension at all previous to then really, and it doesn't have much oomph behind it as a result. Then the conflict is resolved almost instantly, even though King's reaction is pretty heinous. When the MMC goes that far, I want a big time juicy grovel. I need a big time juicy grovel. I didn't get a big time juicy grovel.
Overall, if you're into the tropes, and are looking for a quick enjoyable read with an OTT hero, this one definitely fits the bill.
Thanks to The Author Agency and Hope Ford for the ARC opportunity. 

 In case you are new to her work, I consider Morgan Elizabeth to be a modern spicy rom-com queen. Her Seasons of Revenge series is not to be missed, and her more emotional turn in All My Love just blew me away. While we all eagerly await the next book in the Atlas Oaks series, this lighthearted raunchy romp through the pageant world gives us a little peak at the crew we met in All My Love since Jamie (our hunky bodyguard MMC) is their head of security. While the band records a new album, Jamie is temporarily reassigned to guard the winner of the Miss Americana (Swiftie Squee!) pageant on her three month nationwide tour. Ava Bordeaux isn't the same old pageant queen. Her refreshing take on the entire endeavor won her the hearts of viewers across the country, and the majority of the audience vote to take the crown. When these two get together, it's like fire and gasoline.
I adored all the callouts to us bookish girls who are fans of romance novels and all their subgenres. Jamie researching the types of books Ava likes and getting her a new one every now and then along the road is such a love language! And the first date at the female owned romance bookstore? SWOON! And the note he leaves in one with her annotating supplies... so hot. Jamie is a serious man with a serious job, but Ava can see through his walls to the real him peeking out with his diamond stud earrings and marshmallow center. This book was the perfect antidote to a rough week at work for me. It's sexy, smart, funny, and empowering. I may have found a new mantra inside in the words of Ava, "Shoulders back, t1ts out, b1tch. You were born for great things."
Huge thanks to Valentine PR & Morgan Elizabeth for the ARC opportunity. 

 Tessa Jennings is a small town girl who is restless under her parent's expectations for her future and wants nothing more than to leave the town of Pelahatchie, Georgia in her rear view mirror. Beau McAbee is the twin brother of Tessa's best friend (Peyton). The whole of Pelahatchie seems to have decided that he and Tessa should get married someday-much to Tessa's annoyance. Shep McAbee is the oldest McAbee son, and his professional baseball career is on the cusp of beginning as scouts from the Houston Tornadoes have been watching his minor league play closely. Once the Georgia summer turns up the heat, the three of them are never the same.
As a small town kid who moved to the city myself, I love the trope, and I am always down for a messy, angsty, love story with some real sizzle. This book is all that and more. I'm invested in these characters, and I want more. The love triangle is so steamy, and the tension is so yummy, that I gobbled this book right up. I felt a little naughty reading it, in all the best ways. That third act spice had me feeling some type of way (IYKYK🥵). I wasn't sure how spicy we were going, and the will they/won't they, is this headed where I think it's headed, tension- and ensuing payoff- is masterful.
Considering that this is her debut novel, I'm excited for much more from Claire Foster and the McAbee's. 
 Thank you to the Author Agency and Claire Foster for the ARC opportunity. 

 Chord Davenport is coming off a bad relationship, and a rocky breakup with his former hockey team. In order to protect himself and his career, he's closed himself off from virtually everyone. Violet James is an introverted aspiring bridal couture designer who has had to make sacrifices for her family, and now finds herself working as a marketing assistant for the San Francisco Fury. When the Marketing Director makes it obvious just what services she's hoping to provide, Chord decides to change the plans and chooses the one person in the room who can't even meet his eyes to be his assistant and contact for the team in the off season, much to Violet's dismay.
For my people who love a slow burn romance with a delicious build up of pining and tension before the big bang(ahem), this will be right up your alley. The pacing really works to make that payoff so good. Thanks to the Dual POV, we get to see Chord start to fall while Violet remains anxiously oblivious. Without giving too much away, the third act conflict is really well done in my opinion. The resolution is sweet and spicy in all the best ways.
This is the first book in the Aster Springs series, and there are so many side characters we've been given peeks into that I'm excited to see who the next pairing will be. The Davenport family looks to be chock full of interesting personalities and stories to come, and I'm here for it!
Thank you to the Author Agency and Samantha Leigh for the ARC opportunity. 

 Wow. This one is going to sit with me for a while. It feels like so much happens, but very little happens all at the same time because so much of it is mental/emotional. The Then/Now timeline Abby Millsaps uses in this series is a clever way to give us just a little nugget of information at a time. It's a glimpse into the past to help inform the present, but not so much that the fog fully lifts. It definitely kept me turning the page to try and figure it all out. If SO WRONG baited the hook, SO REAL set it deep, and Millsaps gives us just enough to let us know she's got more up her sleeve the whole time.
With the introduction of Kabir Spencer into the triad formed in book 1, we see loyalties tested and boundaries pushed for Levi and Greedy. We spend a lot of time learning where Hunter disappeared to in her grief. Spence believes he's riding to the rescue once again, but ends up dropping a bomb that will change everything forever.
The heat of the spice is definitely taken to another level in this book. Spence is a dom, and we get to explore Hunter's praise/degradation k1nk with his arrival. He was able to get her out of her grief and crumbling mental health in a way that tied them together deeply, and I spent a lot of this book trying to decide if I even liked him. I am won over eventually, but still want to side-eye him sometimes.
Overall, I'm dying inside again waiting for book 3 to rescue me from the artful cliffhanger at the end of SO REAL, and to learn about "The One and Only" who has been teased since book 1. 
Thanks to Valentine PR and Abby Millsaps for the ARC opportunity.

 I'm gobsmacked. It feels like this book has changed my brain chemistry. I actually let it marinate in my brain for a couple days before writing this review, and I feel even more strongly that this is one of the top releases of 2024. It's written in 3rd person POV, and while it's been a while since I've read anything but dual 1st Person POV, I didn't mind it. The way this story unwinds is everything. The relationship between Xander and Gwen is tender and wild at the same time. Neither of them are easy people. This is not an easy love story, but in my opinion it's all the better for that. Everything is not served up on a silver platter with a bow to the reader. I wouldn't consider this to be a book I could read while watching TV, or out in public where I felt the need to split my focus to remain situationally aware. This is the perfect book to tuck into your coziest reading spot with your snacks and beverage (or two) of choice, and delve in for the long haul. I'm glad I read it in basically two large chunks, because all the breadcrumbs along the way might have slipped past me if I didn't have the thread fresh in my mind. Discovering the author's background in playwriting and fan fiction makes perfect sense to me. This story is so sensual. Once I was a few chapters in, I turned on a playlist of Vitamin String Quartet pop covers, and it was a sensory delight I suggest you try too!
Thank you so much to Netgalley and Forever (Grand Central) for the ARC opportunity! 

 Better strap in before you get cozy with this book, it’s wild and packs a punch. Gage and Jillian are two broken people whose edges fit together just right. The darkness in her calls out to the darkness in him. They both have secrets they’re keeping, and the moment when it all comes out is*chef’s kiss*! For me this book is all about the characters.

Jillian is a baddie. She’s a bigger girl, but she knows she’s sexy, and her confidence just makes her more so. Her relationship with bestie, Lana, another plus size baddie, is also super supportive and without judgement. Jillian has been through too much in her young life thanks to her family, and now she’s stuck cleaning up her missing brother’s mess. 

A super talented, sexy motorcycle riding tattoo genius is one thing, but one who has seen the darkest depths of your soul and still can’t stop being obsessed with you? Complete red flag IRL, but in a dark romance? So yummy! Gage is the guy your mamma definitely warned you about, but the deep desperate way he loves Jillian takes it to a whole other level. What’s a little stalking and switchblade between soulmates? 

This is definitely a darker romance with triggers galore, so if you are sensitive please check them out before you dive in. I found it a little darker than I usually tend to go for, but it was still very entertaining.

Thank you to Lila Herron for the ARC opportunity! I can’t wait to see what’s next in the Stained Hearts series. 💄🗡️ 

 

If You Want Me is the 2nd book in the Toronto Terror series by Helena Hunting. I am fully obsessed with the 1st book (If You Hate Me), so to say I was excited to dive into this one is a massive understatement! Rest assured, it does not disappoint. In my opinion, the Toronto Terror series is Helena Hunting’s best work yet. 

The level of humor, heat, and emotion written into this universe makes some real magic. It’s like all the best parts of Hunting’s previous hockey books come together in the TT series, and I’m hooked. The love story between Hollis and Aurora is deliciously angsty, spicy, and hard fought. Hollis is dirtier than I initially gave him credit for, in all the best ways. I also love that Aurora is not afraid to go after what she wants and lay it all out there for Hollis in her own bratty princess ways.

One of my favorite parts of this series is the girl gang that has formed with all the female characters. I love that they are always there for each other and cheering each other on. The way they rally around Aurora when things go sideways is all any girl could want. I really want to see them all have their HEAs too.

The main couple for book 3 has been revealed, and I’m here for it. See you again soon in Toronto!

Huge thanks to Good Girls PR & Helena Hunting for the ARC opportunity!💜💙 

 Penalty to the Heart is the 3rd book in the Puckered Hearts series of interconnected standalones set around the Boston Guardians professional hockey team. I haven't read the first two books, and I think it's ok, but it definitely would have given me more depth to the character and group dynamics if I had. I really enjoy a slow burn romance, but I was missing some of the building tension I crave in this one. I love the hot glances when he doesn't think she's looking, and the Mr. Darcy hand-flex type moments when he can barely control himself. It always makes the snap when they finally give in so much sweeter.
I felt the pacing was a little off in the story. Due to the subject matter, the front two-thirds or so of the book feels so heavy. It's real and it's rough, and rightfully so, but at times it feels laborious getting to the love story. I want to acknowledge that grief is such a tough thing to write because everyone's journey is so different through it though. Once we finally get that pivot point in the story it picks up steam fast. I really enjoyed everything once things start to lighten slightly mood wise. I am still in a fresh grief journey myself, so I do want to concede that my personal frame of mind could certainly be coloring my feelings on the pace of the story. I really do appreciate the depth of the characters.
In the end, Caleb and Roxie have a beautiful love story. It's sexy, and meaningful, and hard fought, like all the best ones. Thank you to Wordsmith Publicity and Ivy Fox for the ARC opportunity.