nikkisbooknook's reviews
4946 reviews

Time for Christmas Crime Capers with the residents of the Grotty Hovel and Second Home!

I was very lucky to be gifted a paperback copy of this book from the author and I couldn't wait to get stuck into this.  Tanya, Harry, Mouse and Co are attempting to get in the Christmas spirit but tensions are a wee bit high after Tanya, the body magnet, finds yet another dead body = this time in her own back garden!

This one at least isn't fresh and she can't be on the suspect list for this one!  Needless to say her DI ex George is not exactly happy that she's yet again involving herself in his patch.  But do we really think that Tanya would let the suspicious death of an elderly male go uninvestigated?  No neither did I!

Tanya was a great investigative journalist and that stands her in good stead at solving these mysteries. But they also have a missing cat, Hades and Tanya didn't exactly get on but she's worried sick since Mouse is taking his loss hard.  As usual the cast of suspects are eccentric in their own ways and I never saw the big bad coming. 

The action may be gentle but these are still terrific mysteries. The found family vibes is strong between the shop staff, friends and colleagues.  The relationship between Tanya and Mouse especially is really sweet and I love the way they have bonded - I won't lie their last interaction in the book brought a tear to my eye!

This is a great festive read and you'll love the very British humour and the nod to all our festive TV shows! Roll on our next trip to Seacastle!

 

A passion for the ages - this HEA was 16 years in the making.  The story sweeps from current events to the first meeting of JT and Alexandra.  From the start they were star-crossed lovers - he the wealthy, CEO, son of the founder and her an average post-grad Physics student with little time and no inclination to date.

From that first meeting, JT and Alexandra were swept up into a love story that just could not last.  His political ambitions, drive to prove everyone wrong about him, his own sense of self-loathing, all made JT hesitant when it came to going all in.  Alexandra knew she would always be 2nd string to his career but still attempted to stay in his life but when he made that one, fateful comment, their peaceful truce went up in smoke!

As the action slips between present and past Alexandra faces being the suspect in a murder, having to abandon her young child, finding safety and attempting to figure out what really happened.  It all seems to be linked to the events which brought her and JT together.

I really enjoyed this time-lapse romance.  Learning more about the events that blew their HEA apart and how they have gone on to make new lives for themselves, whilst still harbouring those deep feelings for each other.  The way JT immediately springs into action to protect Gemma and never once believes that Alexandra is guilty. Is there anything hotter than a child-averse man going googly eyed over a toddler?

The chemistry is intense and the investigation draws in a lot of characters from previous books in the series, all willing to put themselves on the line for their friends.  JT has done a lot of work on himself - let's face it he really needed to see a therapist long before he did!  He now owns his actions and understands why he did and said such horrible things to break them up.  Alexandra too has grown up and matured and knows she can have a life on her own - but her heart keeps bringing her back to JT.  Little Gemma is an absolute star and her little scenes with panny and tee-tee are so sweet.

There was a great sense of satisfaction when the baddies were all punished accordingly and I know the series is coming to a close but I really hope that these characters appear in some future series, even if only as a cameo! 

 

Rosemary and Will are finally getting married!  After a longer than anticipated engagement they are tying the knot.  They have lucked into an amazing property where they can have the whole wedding.

However, on arrival Rosemary gets those hinky feelings and they soon discover that all is not as it seems.  It would appear that she and Will now have to eradicate a demonic visitor before their wedding!

This was a great shorter story in the Demon Hunters world.  It was great to be back with the psychic/Nephilim Rosemary and her devout but worldly love. Michael and Audrey make a cameo appearance and the gang really get a psychic workout from the demon - one particular scene was really atmospheric and showed just how powerful their new foe was.

I really enjoyed the way they banished their wedding crasher with what would be a simpler than average solution for them! It really is true what they say - if it's too good of a deal, it's too good to be true.

 Small town Oregon has a freakishly high homicide rate!  Evan is the local kid turned sheriff and when his mentor is found dead he vows to find the killer.  But the case gets more complex when the victim's daughter is also targeted and then Evan himself becomes a target.

Rowan and her SAR dog Thor are settling into life with Evan.  Rowan and her family are settling into their new normal with the return of their lost son/sibling and she relishes the sibling nights they have.  However, Evan is not the only one pulled into this latest case, Rowan is targeted too and poor Thor almost becomes a crispy critter! Who wants Evan tagged as a crooked cop and killed?

OOh this was a twisty thriller of the best kind.  It was really difficult to figure out who was after Evan and why.  There were a few misdirects and it didn't help when witnesses and victims weren't giving them all the facts.  I thought Zack, the original victim's grandson, was a brave lad and really tried to help the investigation but he ultimately was just a kid and the big bad used that to their favour and muddied the investigation further.

The background romance between Evan and Rowan isn't the focus of the book, the suspense/thriller is the main storyline but it was nice to see them settling into their new life and planning for the future. It gave them a very normal day to day relationship instead of once forged in adventure - life after the HEA if you like.

Evan really goes through the wringer in this one and poor Malcolm doesn't exactly have a stellar time either, those big feelings of his nearly get him into real trouble!  You can't really go wrong with a thriller from Ms Elliot! 

 A little holiday cheer in the Kilted Hearts series!

This is a super short read and could happily fill a lunch hour for most readers.  Set at Christmas time, Zeke, BFF for Raleigh, has come up with the best present for her buddy - he's bringing him his horse from the USA.

Pippa also has plans to return to Scotland for Christmas, so the friends decide to go on a road trip together.  They may have missed their chance once but will cupid shy away once again?

Pippa and Zeke are true friends to lovers.  The spark was there but the distance between their businesses kinda put the kibosh on the potential romance.  Now forced to travel together all those pent up chemicals are playing with their emotions and they may get more out of this trip than just delivering a horse!

Can I just say that cowboys, no matter where, are HAWT! LOL.  Even in our rubbish Scottish weather - gimme a man in a cowboy heart and wranglers any day! Great ending and I would have loved to have seen more of their relationship building over the years but then I'm a greedy so-and-so! 

 

An angel that gets too close to a human and Josie who is left reeling when her boyfriend tells her he's an angel before he drops out of her life.

Now Caleb has fallen back into her life.  He's been cursed to complete the matches that he messed up and now he's all mixed up as he tries to keep his feelings separate from his missions.  But what's an Angel to do when he thinks he's met his chosen??

There was a great deal to enjoy about this fated mates story.  Caleb was a great MMC and he could be a very naughty angel when he wanted to be.  At the same time so much strife could have been avoided if people (and Angels) could get their communication straight. Gabriel and Caleb did have a bit of a bromance going which I thoroughly enjoyed - he's not above meddling in others' love lives himself!

It was great to have another bookish fmc in Josie, one who has own magical touch/intuition when it comes to pairing a reader with their perfect book.  The friction with her family added a bit of outside drama to the story and of course the store cats brought a bit of levity and playfulness to the storyline.

Although this was a standalone it really could easily spin off into a series with all the matches these two could get involved in.

  

 This story develops over a decade, each episode set around Christmas.

Bea has some decisions to make. Does she stay with her safe, dependable but staid boyfriend or does she seize the chance to seek out a new life in NY.

A chance meeting turns into a seat-mate situation, turns into potential romance.  But each episode shows how Bea's life could have turned out, sliding doors style.  There are more strands to her story than just her stalled love-live, Bea is hiding from a trauma, thinking that if she leaves her life and "it" behind, she can escape her feelings about it.

Bea is a complicated character - she has flaws, sometimes her own worst enemy and completely selfish, sometimes sympathetic and in need of a hug! Her London life deals with depression and family and friendship.  NY gives her a clean slate but still it's not the dream escape she thinks it will be.

Seeing the two timelines occasionally overlap, but seeing the events from another perspective helps you to see her decision-making in action and the reasoning she uses for those decisions. I was happy with the outcome and thought she finally "grew into" her decisions and accepted her agency in her own life and no longer tries to shirk responsibility for causing some of her own problems. 

 Brooke is a very successful advice columnist but she can't seem to follow her own advice!  She's grieving the loss of her sister in all the wrong ways and her new book is struggling to be written. In walks Kaleb, tow truck driver and receiver of misdirected texts from Brooke. Luckily they see the funny side of things.

Kaleb is struggling himself, his deceased mother it turns out isn't that deceased and he's not sure if or how he wants to meet her.  The attraction to Brooke is intense but they both agree that romance under stressful conditions is all kinds of wrong.  Pity they can't take their own warnings!

There are some serious themes covered in this book but there is a hefty dose of humour. Grief, traumatic loss, abandonment issues - they are all handled so well.  Kaleb is the cinnamon roll MC we all want in our lives - even if it's just as your bestie!  I loved the secondary romance between Max and another recurring character and there is simmering tension between Mason and a certain mechanic.

The Spencer-King's certainly know how to throw a flash-mob and I love that their favourite term of endearment is "f you"! 

 Bella has been the heart that kept the Hart's together for a while.  She uses her food to feed the souls of those around her.  But has she been using her niche on the Ranch as a way to hide from the world.  Has she used her fear of the world and love to allow her to dodge life?  She's finally ready to face the challenges the world brings and spread her wings and fly.  But just as she comes to a possible decision of her future life, a huge, hunky, figure from her past turns up and upends her world!

Falcon has been hunting the man who ruined his life for decades.  Now that the threat is over he's determined to face the future and finally claim Bella as his.  One slight wrinkle to the plan - she doesn't want to be claimed, married or even be in a relationship.  So what's a man to do when his entire future hinges on one woman and she claims not to want him or anyone?  He becomes her bodyguard when shadows from his past attack!

Falcon and Bella are just big emotions personified.  They both love deeply and are both scared of losing themselves in rejection.  But Bella has the added fear of losing herself and her dreams of independence and self-determination like many other women.  But is she using that fear of potential hurt to keep herself safe or to keep herself in her little self-imposed box of safety?

These two are full of flaws, messy, traumatised and when the emotions finally surface, the chemistry is intense!  Falcon is especially supportive of Bella.  He wants to be a choice not a safe harbour.  He's happy to have Bella rescue herself and make her own choices in life.  He just wants to be included and be there for her.  But whilst they may have differing views on what those future selves look like, they both agree that loving each other isn't the problem.

The Hart women are an awesome bunch and I love the way they support and challenge each other.  They understand what loving a Hart man entails and how scary and freeing that can be.  I'd really love to have a gaggle of friends like them, they are definitely #friendgoals.

I think the ending was a superb way to blend futures, dreams and aspirations. 

 Hiding out in Hawaii seemed like the best plan to Hollis.  She overheard something she shouldn't have and now instead of call sheets and scripts, she's dodging hoodlums and bullets!

Meeting her hunky new neighbour is one thing, but whilst almost naked and dealing with a flaming coffee machine is another! Sawyer has seen and done it all as a Ghost ops veteran.  He's still in touch with most of his team, including one Vander Norcross, but he's liking the solitude of Maui.  But with Hollis in the sights of a hit team, he's on bodyguard duty for the foreseeable.

Hollis thought she was so crafty with her disguises but everyone saw through them, lol.  They still kept her secrets though and I think she realises that most people just see her as a regular person.  She's passionate about what she does and doesn't want to compromise her career for love.  She's made a life for herself, a world away from her poor childhood but she hasn't become self-entitled or b*tchy with her success.

Sawyer is dealing with PTSD, insomnia and not a small amount of survivor's guilt. The tranquillity of the island and a big, boisterous, meddling, found family is also good for his soul.  His skills aren't rusty though and I loved the way he kept Hollis safe but still made time to let her have some freedom and choices.

The romance is fast and intense but so are the circumstances.  Getting to meet a few familiar faces was a complete bonus - I love a crossover!  I thought the suspense elements tied up neatly and I got satisfaction when the big bad got their comeuppance.

I'm really interested in learning more about Parker and I'm hoping he gets a chance at love soon!