Victoria Limbert's Blog, page 2

Book Review: Midnight Blue by L. J. Shen

Title- Midnight Blue

Series- Hollywood Chronicles #1

Genre- Romance (Erotic)

Synopsis- It should have been easy. I needed the money. He needed a babysitter to keep him from snorting himself to death.
I was cherry-picked especially for him. Responsible. Optimistic. Warm. Innocent. The worst part is that I should have known better. Alex Winslow. British rock star. Serial heartbreaker. Casanova with whiskey eyes. “Don’t get near the devil in a leather jacket. He’ll chew you up and spit you out.” Guess what? I didn’t listen. I signed the contract. World tour. Three months. Four Continents. One hundred shows. My name is Indigo Bellamy, and I sold my soul to a tattooed god. Problem was, my soul wasn’t enough for Alex Winslow. He ended up taking my body, too. Then he took my heart. Then he took my all.

My Review- I really wanted to love this book. And for the first 60% I did. Is Alex a dick? Hell yes and not overly likeable to begin with. He is mean and rude, egotistical and melodramatic about everything. But then, he is an artist, a high profile rock star. Addicted to basically everything, alcohol, drugs and the thought of wanting or getting revenge on his ex. And revenge on one of his bandmates. And he uses Indigo to do this. I liked her. She was sassy and fun in the beginning. Stood her ground against his crap and called him out when he pushed lines.

Things shift between Alex and Indigo. In her company, he can write music again. He finds his muse. He still wants to take her to bed to spite a fellow bandmate who seems interested in her, and to fill his time before chasing his ex again...until he realises Indigo means more than that to him, sorta, kinda...

Then, in the last 30 to 40%, it all became quite messy. Certain plot lines come together strangely, there are sudden declarations of sexual preferences, emotions are everywhere and Alex becomes stalkerish...and never really apologises for his actions towards Indigo...and somewhere our heroine lost some of her backbone and allowed herself many times to be used and feel used. With instant forgiveness for him. I was still trying to figure out to the very end if what Alex felt was actually love or infatuation...a new addiction. Even his speeches were confusing.

So the 3 stars are for the first half of this story. Enjoyable but lost its way towards the end. I also very much like the writing style and the easy flow of her words, along with some inspiring quotes and poetic prose.

Book Review: The Cruel Prince By Holly Black

Title- The Cruel Prince

Series- The Folk of the Air #1

Genre- Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis- Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.
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In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself. 

My Review- What a beautifully stunning book. I can't be more excited for the next book in the series. Wow, what a cliffhanger. So messy and so very very delightful! But I have to wait a year for it.

I love Jude, strong and brave and witty and full of attitude. A strategist, clever and full of surprises and secrets. Almost like a Fae herself! She is neither perfectly good but isn't evil either. She is what she has to be to move the pieces on her game board the way she needs them to gain power, to gain a title above 'dirty mortal'. She wants respect and damn she will go to extreme lengths to earn it! The whole book is a riddle the reader can't help but love working through.

Cardan, the spoilt Prince brat with no care for responsibility and loves to torment those lesser than him on a daily basis. I enjoyed hating him, I like liking him but I am pretty sure a part of me is going to love him in the future. He treats our heroine awfully, but she has challenged him on every page. They are a great match even if they don't see it yet.

The plans for the crown and rulership are the long game. Anything can happen. No one trusts anyone. I barely trust Jude, our main character! She is full of surprises.

But one thing I know for sure. No matter what happens to her or Cardan or her pretty weak twin sister, I know I am going to freaking love this series.

My Favourite Reads from 2017!!

I can only start with my most favourite series that I seriously consumed this year. Somehow I only discovered Karen Marie Moaning this year! How on earth had I managed to miss the Fever Series, I have no idea. But there you have it. I finally picked up Darkfever and read as many as I could in the series before running out of money to go further. I mean GOSH! Those covers are just stunning and the story is written fantastically. I finally found a female main character that is both silly and girly and kick ass when she really has to be. She grows in strength slowly through the series and never goes from weakling to superhero within one chapter like some books I have read recently. There is real character growth and development here. And REASONS for that growth. Then there is Jerico Barrons. The ultimate Alpha. Mysterious, powerful, protective and perfectly written. He makes you want to punch him in the face and lock him in the bedroom. If you haven't picked these up yet, you need to. You won't be disappointed.

And then moving on to my second favourite series this year. Another set of books I had no clue about! And I call myself a book lover and book nerd. Ugh!

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Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo. Beautifully written and fantastic characters. They felt real. I was invested in them and their survival. I bit my nails to the quick. I know most love Kaz Brekker, and so do I, but Inej steals the show for me. She is beautiful. A true saint at her very core, cares deeply for the few people who are her friends, even the very stern Kaz.


​Crooked Kingdom. Book 2 and that is where this tale ends. 2 books! Torture! I needed more. Honestly this book left me speechless and tore me to pieces. Just.....just read it... My other memorable reads of 2017 are listed below. All worth taking the time to read and wonderful in their own way. They are books I will read again and keep in my heart. Let me know your favourites, share the titles of the books you loved this year. LEAVE RECOMENDATIONS!! I loving seeing which books live in the hearts and souls of other bookworms. 

Dreamfever (Fever #4) Book Review

Author- Karen Marie Moning


My Rating- 5 STARS


​Synopsis- MacKayla Lane lies naked on the cold stone floor of a church, at the mercy of the erotic Fae master she once swore to kill. Far from home, unable to control her sexual hungers, MacKayla is now fully under the Lord Master’s spell.…In New York Times bestselling author Karen Marie Moning’s stunning new novel, the walls between human and Fae worlds have come crashing down. And as Mac fights for survival on Dublin’s battle-scarred streets, she will embark on the darkest—and most erotically charged—adventure of her life.

He has stolen her past, but MacKayla will never allow her sister’s murderer to take her future. Yet even the uniquely gifted sidhe-seer is no match for the Lord Master, who has unleashed an insatiable sexual craving that consumes Mac’s every thought—and thrusts her into the seductive realm of two very dangerous men, both of whom she desires but dares not trust. 


​As the enigmatic Jericho Barrons and the sensual Fae prince V’lane vie for her body and soul, as cryptic entries from her sister’s diary mysteriously appear and the power of the Dark Book weaves its annihilating path through the city, Mac’s greatest enemy delivers a final challenge.…

It’s an invitation Mac cannot refuse, one that sends her racing home to Georgia, where an even darker threat awaits. With her parents missing and the lives of her loved ones under siege, Mac is about to come face-to-face with a soul-shattering truth—about herself and her sister, about Jericho Barrons…and about the world she thought she knew.

My Review- Blown away.

The first part of this book was tragic and beautiful all at the same time. We left Mac in the last book under awful circumstances, being taken (sexually) against her will by Fae Princes and one mystery man we have yet to find out about. She was being tortured in the way the Fae know how, turning her Priya... A human who becomes addicted to Fae, full of lust and need until they eventually wither away with unmet need and die. And Jericho Barrons, our hero with a difference, attempts to heal her in the only way he knows how and in a way he believes Mac will hate him for. But in those scenes, we finally see something beyond the stoic, unfathomable mercenary-like-non-human person he has shown us. He has feelings, he has more for Mac than either of them want to admit. It was tragic, it was sweet, it was wrong but it was done, I believe, out of some sort of love. 

Beyond this, the world is in tatters. Fae are consuming the planet, taking over major cities, killing a massive portion of the human race and the responsibility of saving it lies heavily on Mac and a select few people who could possibly help her... Though, those options are dwindling with every brick wall Mac encounters. The girl can't catch a break! Every time she takes a step in the right direction a new problem is thrown at her. And this is why I adore Mac, she grows in strength through these terrible circumstances. She whines a little but honestly so would I! The author tortures her! But she gets up and carries on and that is what it means to be a great heroine.

I will admit to skim reading over some of Mac's inner monologue because sometimes it can become repetitive but honestly, there is always enough going on to keep you riveted. And those cliffhangers are just cruel. I need the next book right now!

Tempting Irish (Wild Irish #2) Book Review

Author- C. M. Seabrook

My Rating- 5 STARS

Synopsis- One rock god. One girl from his past. One ocean that can't keep them apart.

I've been in love with Owen Gallagher since I was twelve years old. Before the world knew his name.

Even though it's been years since I've been back to Ireland, I never forgot my Irish crush. The boy who saved me from his bully of a brother is now a dark, sexy, tattooed rock star who shreds the guitar like a true master.

A night of anonymity.

One night to live my forbidden fantasies.

He'll be furious when he finds out my true identity. But I'm not the same, shy little girl he remembers, and I have every intention of tempting my own Wild Irish.

Dreaming about a rock god is one thing, but I'm chasing that dream across an ocean.

​My Review- This was an amazingly sweet, romantic book that I devoured in one sitting. I read through the night and now have a book hangover.

I connected with the characters straight away. Bree was strong deep down but had had a rough life since moving away from Ireland with her mum who believed she had found her soul mate in America. Many promises were broken by her family in Ireland, or so she thought, and this broke her heart and her soul. And most of all, her trust.  Bree was living a terrible life with the belief that everyone had forgotten about her back home. She felt alone and isolated in an abusive situation. Owen was moody and, for the writer of his band Wild Irish, was terrible with words and how to speak about his feelings. It created confusion between them but ultimately their connection was obvious. There was no denying the chemistry. 

A great romance with likeable characters and engaging writing style. Will definitely read more from this author.


Erotic Romance

The Monkey Idol (Decker & Callie Adventures #1)

Author- K. D. McNiven


My Rating- 5 STARS


Synopsis- 

An idol...A crude map...and a race to find the truth. 

After the murder of their colleague, Leonard Romero, Decker and Callie Hayden are catapulted into a turbulent adventure through the Honduran jungle, seeking a lost city and justice for Leonard's widow. Relentlessly pursued by Bruno, a madman who will stop at nothing to claim what could be one of the greatest finds of the century.


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​My Review- K. D. McNiven has written an adventure book that plays out like an Indiana Jones/Jewel of the Nile film (which, by the way, I absolutely love those films). The story throws us into the deep end with a man sending a priceless artifact to his wife just before suspiciously losing his life in the jungle where he believes he has made an ancient discovery. His poor wife, now widowed is being followed by his enemies and calls on two young, experienced archeologists Decker and Callie, for help.

From here it is non-stop action with gun fights, treacherous hikes through the Honduras jungle, run ins with tribes and an enemy that wants the Monkey Idol for themselves at any cost, even murdering the innocent. The twists and turns are fun, figuring out who is trustworthy and who is double dealing.

And through all of the action and adventure, Decker and Callie are a sweet couple. They show love for each other and work great as a team. Callie is brave and strong and Decker is charming and smart. At some points, they felt like the characters in the film The Mummy (the Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz one) a bit of humour, posh accents and fun supporting cast making up their travelling team. Especially Holly, the poor widow. She has the worst luck throughout this story, yet it was sweet to watch her and Garret interact, despite the trauma they were put through at times.

A fun, adventurous tale with great editing and a lovely writing style.

Rhapsodic (The Bargainer series #1) Book Review

Author- Laura Thalassa

My Rating- 4 STARS

Synopsis- Callypso Lillis is a siren with a very big problem, one that stretches up her arm and far into her past. For the last seven years she’s been collecting a bracelet of black beads up her wrist, magical IOUs for favors she’s received. Only death or repayment will fulfill the obligations. Only then will the beads disappear.

Everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the Bargainer to make it happen. He’s a man who can get you anything you want... at a price. And everyone knows that sooner or later he always collects.

But for one of his clients, he’s never asked for repayment. Not until now. When Callie finds the fae king of the night in her room, a grin on his lips and a twinkle in his eye, she knows things are about to change. At first it’s just a chaste kiss—a single bead’s worth—and a promise for more. For the Bargainer, it’s more than just a matter of rekindling an old romance. Something is happening in the Otherworld. Fae warriors are going missing one by one. Only the women are returned, each in a glass casket, a child clutched to their breast. And then there are the whispers among the slaves, whispers of an evil that’s been awoken. 

If the Bargainer has any hope to save his people, he’ll need the help of the siren he spurned long ago. Only, his foe has a taste for exotic creatures, and Callie just happens to be one.

My Review- This was a very enjoyable book with a good story. I enjoyed The Bargainer, who we come to know as Desmond the Fae King of Night and Chaos. He was, at the core a good man, but frightening in his wrath and mischievous in his side job as one who deals in secrets and favours which always must be repaid as he sees fit or they die.

Callie is a Siren, a creature who can compel and command with her voice should she wish it, though it does not work again Fae, only those with human blood. She calls upon the Bargainer to cover up a murder she committed as a teen and racked herself many more favours through the following months as she becomes besotted with the handsome King. For 7 long years, he has never once called in any of the favours she owes, until he needs her help in his kingdom to find an enemy stealing female warriors.

A good plot, though at times I felt something was missing and Callie, though a brave girl and sometimes kickass siren, could be a little dumb and slow putting the evidence together. Though the romance and relationship between her and Desmond kept me reading more than anything. I wasn't overly connected to anything else happening and the Eli subplot felt more like a space filler. However, I really enjoyed it and look forward to book 2 in hopes of seeing Callie reveal more siren powers.

Has some erotic themes and sexy love scenes. 

Faefever (Fever series #3) Book Review

Author- Karen Marie Moning

My Rating- 4 STARS

Synopsis- ​He calls me his Queen of the Night. I’d die for him. I’d kill for him, too.

When MacKayla Lane receives a page torn from her dead sister’s journal, she is stunned by Alina’s desperate words. And now MacKayla knows that her sister’s killer is close. But evil is closer. And suddenly the sidhe-seer is on the hunt: For answers. For revenge. And for an ancient book of dark magic so evil that it corrupts anyone who touches it.

Mac’s quest for the Sinsar Dubh takes her into the mean, shapeshifting streets of Dublin, with a suspicious cop on her tail. Forced into a dangerous triangle of alliance with V’lane, a lethal Fae prince, and Jericho Barrons, a man of deadly secrets, Mac is soon locked in a battle for her body, mind, and soul.
​My Review- Another great book in the series, Faefever picks straight up from the previous book and we enter another fun adventure narrated by the very colourful and fun Mac Lane.

Mac is still on the search for the Dark, evil book despite it almost killing her every time she is close. She knows she needs it but her distrust of the men in her life is hitting a crescendo and she can't bear to let them near such a powerful object. Barrons, the creature yet unnamed (though I feel I may have an inkling of who and what he may be now) is becoming shadier, more distant and even less trust worthy than he was before. I disliked the way his character acted a lot in this book. Though I feel it's purposeful by the author for future character development. He was even more controlling and absolutely awfully invasive of Mac's mind while teaching her to resist mind control powers. He was horrible to her, in the name of teaching, and she either let's it go too easily or she forgives him when he apologises with gifts! The girl needs a serious backbone with him. He is awful to her and there are becoming less reasons for him to be this way with her now. She is a fricken warrior (who makes a few very silly decisions but hey we can't be perfect). 

Despite that, the story was once again fun and full of twists and turns and feeling genuinely confused for Mac as she tries to figure out who she trusts and who is less harmful to her. She feels so alone and it tugs on my heartstrings. V'lane came across almost sweet and kind compared to everything else happening. And wow did we get left on a cliffhanger there! Mac and the whole of Dublin is in deep trouble and I can't wait to see how it goes in the next book.

Bloodfever (Fever series #2) Book Review

Author- Karen Marie Moning

My Rating- 4 STARS

Synopsis- ​I used to think my sister and I were just two nice southern girls who’d get married in a few years and settle down to a quiet life. Then I discovered that Alina and I descend, not from good wholesome southern stock, but from an ancient Celtic bloodline of powerful sidhe-seers, people who can see the Fae. Not only can I see the terrifying otherworldly race, but I can sense the sacred Fae relics that hold the deadliest of their magic.

When my sister was found dead in a trash-filled alley in Dublin, I came over to get answers. Now all I want is revenge. And after everything I’ve learned about myself, I know I have the power to get it….

MacKayla Lane’s ordinary life underwent a complete makeover when she landed on Ireland’s shores and was plunged into a world of deadly sorcery and ancient secrets.  In her fight to stay alive, Mac must find the Sinsar Dubh–a million-year-old book of the blackest magic imaginable, which holds the key to power over both the worlds of the Fae and of Man. Pursued by Fae assassins, surrounded by mysterious figures she knows she cannot trust, Mac finds herself torn between two deadly and irresistible men: V’lane, the insatiable Fae who can turn sensual arousal into an obsession for any woman, and the ever-inscrutable Jericho Barrons, a man as alluring as he is mysterious. 

For centuries the shadowy realm of the Fae has coexisted with that of humans. Now the walls between the two are coming down, and Mac is the only thing that stands between them.…

My Review-  

​Book 2 In the Fever series is really heating up!

The first book, Darkfever, set up the world we are visiting and the main players in the story. It gave us some background into a unique take on the Fae. Bloodfever gave us a bit more action, some depth to the characters and our Heroine, Mac, is developing on every chapter. At first, she was a whiny girl who adored rainbow colours, getting her nails painted and crying when she had to cut and colour her long blonde hair. Mac now, though still fond of everything pink and pastel and sees a more lighter side to life than most, has become a very strong woman. A woman who can mainly stand up to her only friend Barrons, who is controlling and infuriating most of the time. Deep down I believe he cares deeply for her, wants her alive for more than just her gifts but he goes about protecting her in a very bullying way. He can be insulting and mean, aggressive and cold, but Mac is learning when to deflect and when to challenge him. Which makes me love her that little bit more.

Barrons is a dick, but I like him too! He is just nice enough to make me forgive him a little. Shows a little emotion here and there that makes me, begrudgingly say 'awww', then I am back promptly to thinking he is a dick again. 

The storyline is pretty similar to the first book. Mac and Barrons are hunting a Dark book that all sides in this game need. There are many hunters out there trying to kill Mac, to destroy her power or use her for what they need. But a couple others have joined the game. She discovers there is an entire council of Sidhe-seers, but can she trust them? She barely trusts Barrons who has saved her a few times already. A few other characters have turned up including a sassy Sidhe-seer called Dani and potentially a man who knew her sister. I enjoy V'lane every time he enters a scene with his lusty power and interest in Mac. But what really keeps me reading the books is the hope of discovering what Barrons is, whether he feels love for Mac and Mac herself holds my attention. She is utterly sweet, full of bad but brave decisions and a little whiny at times. She is a young woman who comes from a small town. We can't expect her to change over blooming night. And she is beginning to believe in herself, her strength and gifts and hope. 

Yet again my reason for giving a 4-star rating instead of 5 is because of the abrupt endings that nip off in the middle of nowhere. I'm always frowning at the next blank page wondering if I've missed something. But as before I look forward to the next book and hope some of these riddles start wrapping up.

Dark Fever (Fever Series #1) Book Review

Author- Karen Marie Moning

My Rating- 4 STARS

Synopsis- MacKayla Lane’s life is good. She has great friends, a decent job, and a car that breaks down only every other week or so. In other words, she’s your perfectly ordinary twenty-first-century woman. Or so she thinks…until something extraordinary happens.

When her sister is murdered, leaving a single clue to her death–a cryptic message on Mac’s cell phone–Mac journeys to Ireland in search of answers. The quest to find her sister’s killer draws her into a shadowy realm where nothing is as it seems, where good and evil wear the same treacherously seductive mask. She is soon faced with an even greater challenge: staying alive long enough to learn how to handle a power she had no idea she possessed–a gift that allows her to see beyond the world of man, into the dangerous realm of the Fae…. ​As Mac delves deeper into the mystery of her sister’s death, her every move is shadowed by the dark, mysterious Jericho, a man with no past and only mockery for a future. As she begins to close in on the truth, the ruthless Vlane–an alpha Fae who makes sex an addiction for human women–closes in on her. And as the boundary between worlds begins to crumble, Mac’s true mission becomes clear: find the elusive Sinsar Dubh before someone else claims the all-powerful Dark Book–because whoever gets to it first holds nothing less than complete control of the very fabric of both worlds in their hands….

My Review- I've seen this series on my newsfeed alot and it sort of just kept popping up in recommendations. Strangely enough this was a book I kept skipping over. Maybe it was because I have just finished some pretty major Fae stories/series and was worried this wouldn't be as good, or perhaps I was burned out on the Fae. 

Either way, it kept slipping by. 

A couple of weeks ago, on a Facebook page an author asked which series, that was popular, have you not yet read and I, for some reason, commented with this series. Then replies came from other readers that this was a great series and one I should try... So, darn it, I did! 

And I am very glad I did, and grateful for those who gave me a little push in the right direction. So, at the beginning it gripped me, here was this Pretty - in-pink southern bell with a perfect life and family and majorly tunnel visioned in her safe world. Then that world is turned upside down with the death of her sister, Alina, who had gone to Ireland to study. Or so Mac believed. Until she hears an ominous voicemail message on her phone by her sister before she died full of barely revealed secrets and paints a picture of being murdered by a man she loved. 

Mac, though full of grief, throws aside her perfect world to find answers and to harass the Irish police to reopen her sister's case with the new evidence she has. And this made me adore Mac from the beginning. Is she a little whiny throughout the story? Sure. Does she show her love for fashion and pretty nail varnish and beautiful hair? Absolutely. She had a normal, pretty girl, life with no shadows marring it. Yet she throws this mostly aside to take on the task of getting justice for her sister. She pleads with authorities, tries to follows clues herself and is brave enough to want to search for more fresh clues. 

Only she gets a whole lot more than she bargained for. She discovers a gift that allows her to see beyond Fae glamour and it shows her its ugliness in all forms of horror. This southern bell gets a whole lot of reality straight between the eyes. She is hunted, she is a threat to them and she has no idea who she can trust. They either want to kill her or use her. Even a man named Barrons, who keeps her alive in this new world, can barely be trusted. His intentions are never clear, he has hundreds of secrets and never directly answers Mac's questions. He needs her to find a very important artifact but we are given no clues as to what he will use it for once he has it. 

Barrons is dark, frightening, her only ally and a little bit sexy. But there is something about him even I dont trust. I'm sure more will be revealed in the next book. I hope we see more of V'lane, a Fae who makes you strip on the spot without touching, without even asking, you. 

The only reason Darkfever did not get a full 5 stars is because somewhere in the middle my attention drifted and the end felt like a non-ending, it was so abrupt after some excitement had just started. This book was full of information, developing characters and setting us up for more that when something really started to happen... It just finished. 

So now I am off to buy book 2 to satisfy that need