Quick fire reviews of the last 4 books I read (cowboy romance, literary horror and paranormal romance)
I have a pretty varied taste in books, but put in words in this post it feels a little unhinged, I won’t lie…
From interlinked literary horror short stories to cowboy romance to paranormal romance and all the way back to cowboy romance again. None of them quite have enough for a full review, especially as three of the four are part of a series, but I have thinks I need to get off my chest for each of them.
‘How It Works Out’ by Myriam Lacroix
This collection of stories is marketed as a ‘multiverse queer love story’, but it’s so much more complicated than that. The book is comprised of eight short stories that all feature the same two main characters, Myriam and Allison, as they fall in and out love in different places, situations and, sometimes, different forms.
It’s so messy and gritty, exposing the reality of love in all of it’s chaos, desperation and heartbreak. There’s also a level of the weird, literary psychological body horror that I’ve recently become obsessed with. This was a big hit with me and I’d really like to read more short stories collections where the stories and characters are interlinked and reoccuring.
‘Wild Eyes’ by Elsie Silver
The second book in the ‘Rose Hill’ series is one of my most anticipated romances of the year after I fell unexpectedly in love with ‘Wild Love’. I’m not usually a billionaire romance girl so I was pleased to get back to cowboy romance with this instalment.
When Skylar turns up at the ranch to meet with Ford from ‘Wild Love’, but her first encounter is with Weston Belmont. The chemistry between these two is electric, just as you’d expect from an Elsie Silver novel, and I was really invested in how much they grew together even with the stark contrast of a pop starlet and a single dad cowboy.
Silver has created a really special world here (it connects with the ‘Chestnut Springs’ series) and it’s always a joy to be back in it. She balances big issues and huge character arcs with spicy romance and a really satisfying emotional pull.
‘Smoke Bitten’ by Patricia Briggs
I followed up ‘Wild Eyes’ with the twelth book in the Mercy Thompson series, ‘Smoke Bitten’. I love Mercy, Adam, Jesse and the rest of the gang - reading a book in this series is always a highlight of my reading month. This was no exception, even if the tension between Adam and Mercy in this one was a bit stressful!
I’m a big fan of villain of the week, but I also appreciate an extended underlying issue and ‘Smoke Bitten’ combines these two beautifully, especially when there are mental, physical and emotional consequences of the trouble these guys get themselves into in every book.
I’m very close to catching up with this series and then I’ll be relegated to a book every two years in the current publishing pattern for Mercy, but at least I won’t have to say goodbye to the Hauptmans just yet!
‘Fire Line’ by Maggie Gates
‘Fire Line’ is the third and final book of the ‘Griffiths Brother’s cowboy romance series and I loved the first two books so I was super excited for CJ’s story, but this wasn’t at all what I wanted from this book.
CJ and Lennon have a very hot tryst in a Texas bar and expect that to the be the end of that, until Lennon turns up to Griffiths Ranch as the new chef at the Lodge that’s just about to open on their land. Sparks are still flying, but this time with some hatred in there.
The relationship between CJ and Lennon make me really uncomfortable from the start. I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was but after speaking to Sarah who had also started the book she said that it felt predatory and she’s totally correct. The power imbalance between these two combined with the unexpected power and control that CJ exercises over Lennon’s life. It really coloured the romance and the developments with a family and a setting that I’d really fallen in love with. I’m not sure I’ll continue reading Maggie Gates, but I may at least try her next release.
What have you been reading recently?
Written by Sophie
