Books

Book 1,018: Rocky Start (A-List Security #4) – Annabeth Albert

The final installment of Albert’s A-List Security closes out the series with a bang. It’s relatively low-angst (mostly internal) and one major dramatic crisis, but overall, the series has been pretty low-key.

This book is a veteran-veteran romance rather than a veteran-civilian romance. Malik and Avery are both former SEALS and have connected with Duncan and Harley in their transition back to civilian life to work for their security firm. Malik experiences PTSD and Avery lost an arm (I think from combat) and they’re sent off to a remote set to help with security on a film.

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Books

Book 1,013: Make Me Stay (Safe Harbor #2) – Annabeth Albert

If there is a theme to Albert’s Safe Harbor series it is a little bit too much. Don’t get me wrong, they are not bad books, each one just has one or two too many elements for me. They’re still very well written character driven stories, there’s just too much going on for my personal tastes.

I’m not sure if this falls under the hurt/comfort or maybe (hurt/comfort)2, but it is somewhere in that category. Both main characters have trauma they start to overcome in this novel. Then you throw in the murder mystery and the kinky sex, it’s a lot.

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Book 896: A Christmas Miracle (Winsford Green #4) – Ruby Moone

As I said in my response to Dances Long Forgotten, the first book of Moone’s Winsford Green series, I sought it out because I received this review request from Gay Romance Reviews and it intrigued me enough to want to give the series a go.*

I liked the series enough to request this book halfway through the first. And while I don’t regret it, I think the first book was the strongest (I LOVED the flashback and hoped for it again), this and People Like Us were a distant second, and The Schoolmaster’s Spy further behind them.

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Book 881: The Best Gift – Eli Easton

When this one came in to my inbox I didn’t jump at it.* I was drawn to the veteran storyline and the  other protagonist having lost his son recently, but Easton isn’t an OMG must read even though I enjoyed her Clyde’s Corner series.

And I was more-or-less right. There wasn’t anything wrong with the story but I finished less than three days ago as I’m writing this and I’ve forgotten so much of it already. That’s not necessarily a bad thing when it comes to MM Romance novels, because they’re really for fun and enjoyment not deep thoughts and pondering, but three days seems a bit short even for that.

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Books

Book 472: In the Lake of the Woods – Tim O’Brien

Add this to the list of “WTF was I thinking waiting so long to read it?” books. I’m pretty sure I received this book from a former supervisor two jobs ago now. I’ll have to shoot her an email to verify it, but for some reason I have that in my mind. Either way I’m glad I read it and still thinking why it took me so long.

Whoever gave this to me for some reason compared it to Gone Girl, so if you have plans to read that don’t read this review because I’m going to spoil a few big things in that book AND this one. So this is your warning, don’t read anything until the recommendation if you don’t want spoilers. I’ll keep the spoilers out of the Recommendation because I do think it was a great book and can see why the comparison is made, but I’ll rip the band-aid off and say this one is better 😀 Continue reading “Book 472: In the Lake of the Woods – Tim O’Brien”