All posts by Kristin

Review: Make Me by Natasha K. Lauren

Romance

Make Me
Natasha K. Lauren
Publisher: Dell
Publication Date: Nov. 17, 2026
Genre: Mafia Romance

He’s sworn to protect her. He thinks he’s the one in charge. She thinks . . . that’s cute.

By day, Gia Loren is a beloved Brooklyn trauma nurse with a coffee addiction and pink scrubs. By blood, she’s Giovanna Marcelli—daughter of one of the most powerful Italian mafia families in New York. And even if she walked away from that life years ago . . . the mob never forgets. . . and never lets you go.

When a rival boss is murdered and the city’s criminal underworld teeters on the edge of war, Gia is dragged back into the shadows and placed under lock-and-key protection, trapped in a safe house with a man who drives her crazy—in more ways than one. Nico Vitali, the Marcellis’ lethal, brooding enforcer and the one man completely off limits. Too bad Gia’s never been good at playing by the rules.

Ex-Marine. Combat-trained. Emotionless—at least on the outside. Nico’s life depends on his ability to control himself and his surroundings, and protecting Gia should be just another assignment. Except she refuses to behave. Fiery, flirty, and furious at her family and the situation, Gia turns captivity into a challenge, determined to rattle Nico’s unshakable discipline with every tease, every glance, every slow, dangerous smile.

Giving in would mean death. But resisting her just might be worse.

As sparks turn into a wildfire and the mafia war explodes around them, Gia must confront the truth about who she is and what she’s willing to claim. And Nico must choose where his loyalty lies—with the family he serves or their daughter he is sworn to protect.

Because in this city, love isn’t safe. It’s a liability.

And it might cost them everything.

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Sneak Peek Wednesday: Santa Baby Daddy by Paula Dombrowiak

Excerpt

Santa Baby Daddy
Hollow Reign, 4
Paula Dombrowiak
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: Nov. 3, 2026
Genre: Romance

Hollow Reigns bassist, Casey Beaumont, came to town for the holidays—to catch his bandmate’s Christmas show and have a little fun. One reckless night with a gorgeous stranger definitely counts as fun.

What he didn’t count on was running into her again… as the show’s costume designer. Or spotting the baby bump under all that holiday sparkle.

Casey was never great at math but he’s an expert at falling—for Ava, for the baby, and for a future he can’t stop picturing.

Ava Ramirez has been burned before. The last man who put a baby in her life walked out and never looked back. She is not handing her heart to a serial playboy no matter how cute he is.

But for once, Casey isn’t running. He’s all in.

Ava can’t make the same mistake twice… but would she be missing out on the family she so desperately wants?

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Review: Faking Through the Snow by Meribeth Richards

Romance

Faking Through the Snow
Meribeth Richards
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication date: Nov. 6, 2026
Genre: Holiday Romance

Finding a fake boyfriend for Christmas was easy… until it turned out to be my ex-boyfriend’s dad.

Coming home for Christmas was bound to be chaos, but I only made things worse when I claimed the handsome stranger who helped me in the airport as my boyfriend. Why? Because he happens to be my ex’s father.

Now Beau and I are left to fake it through the snow, the holiday, and a Christmas competition that is making our fake relationship feel a little too real.

Will we be able to win the competition and survive the holiday? Will I be able to keep things fake and festive? No matter what, I’ll be a Christmas Eve that Beau Winters will never forget.

 

 

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Quiet Rainy Days That Ended in a Heavy Heart

Ramblings

This post is linked to Sunday Post, Staking the Shelves, Sunday Salon, and #IMWAYR

 

October was pretty quiet. I got to hang out with my buddy while his family was away for the month. I’ve been watching him and his late brother since moving to Japan over 5 years ago. I spent a lot of rainy days this past month cuddling on the couch with him while I read. Unfortunately, shortly after his family returned last week, he stopped eating, and passed away. So, this week has been pretty hard on me. I’ve cried just about every day, but I don’t know if it’s truly hit me that I will no longer go to his house to hang out with him while his family is away.

I also got ready for my mom to come and visit for the month of November. We’ve been out here for over 5 years with no visitors, so the spare bedroom sort of turned into a huge closet for all the things I don’t know where to put. So it’s been a fun couple of weeks going through everything and either finding it a more permanent home, or donating it. It’s totally worth it though. My mom has never been to Japan and I haven’t seen her in a couple of years. So, I’m really excited for her trip.

This month has been pretty good for my reading and blogging. I feel like I’m finally starting to get into the grove of things again. Unfortunately, I think I threw away my blogging planner binder. I got it over a decade ago when I started blogging. I’m a visual person, and digital calendars just don’t stick with me. So I had a physical one that I wrote upcoming review posts, and tour posts on so that I could quickly glance at my planner and see if I had any missing dates for the month, or if I was about to double book myself. Because I hadn’t been active in blogging for a few years after moving out here, I worry that my lack of being able to find it means that I threw it away.

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Review: How to Kill a Guy in Ten Days by Shailee Thompson

Romance, Thriller

How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates
Slasher Rom-Com, #1
Shailee Thompson
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication date: Feb. 3, 2026
Genre: Rom-Com Slasher

When Jamie Prescott and her best friend Laurie attend a speed-dating event, Jamie expects to meet a roster of mediocre men and indulge in some street food afterwards. She doesn’t expect one of her dates to have his throat slit at their table during a blackout. After the lights come back on and there are more bodies on the floor, it becomes clear that dating can be a very dangerous pastime.

Armed with makeshift weapons and Jamie’s extensive knowledge of what NOT to do in a slasher, the remaining speed daters try to find an exit while the killer adds to their body count. As the night progresses and Jamie comes face-to-mask with the murderer, she begins to suspect they are committing the slayings to woo one of the daters and turn them into a real-life Final Girl. But Jamie has other plans, and as she fights for her life, she can’t help but find herself ensconced in a love triangle with two of the other survivors. Will she make it through the bloodshed to find her Happily Ever After? Or does this machete-wielding psychopath have another ending in mind?

 

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Review: Hurt People by Maisie Maeve

New Adult

Hurt People
Maisie Maeve
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: Oct. 10, 2026
Genre: New Adult

She learned to read hands before she learned to read books.

Willow Jones knows the difference between a touch that asks and a touch that takes. She’s known it since she was five years old and a stranger’s hands taught her that safety is a word other people get to use.

Now she’s eighteen and in a constant state of survival.

Surviving a boyfriend whose love arrives wrapped in poison, surviving a trailer where the walls carry everything, surviving a school that accepted her as a line item and expects her to be grateful.

Then Grayson Parker says her name like it holds weight.

He’s her teacher, but he’s also the first person who’s ever told her to keep going.

In a world where every hand she’s ever known has left a mark, Willow has to learn the hardest lesson of all: that wanting something for herself isn’t the same as deserving the wreckage that follows.

Hurt people hurt people. But that was never the whole sentence.

 

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Review: Hunted by Lara Lorens

Erotic Romance, Sci-fi

Hunted
A Savage Galactic Entertainment Romance, #2
Lara Lorens
Publisher: Self-published
Publication date: Nov. 1, 2025
Genre: SciFi Erotic Romance

They survived the arena, but the fight for their lives has just begun.

Takkar must free the imprisoned Sam and Steve, inflict maximum damage, and flee the sector before they become just another casualty in a never-ending broadcast.

Amidst explosions, desperate escapes, and the thrilling rush of defiance, the trio’s bonds deepen. This time, they’re writing their own script while being hunted by the galactic reality show that abducted and paraded them for entertainment to the elite who could afford to watch.

The producers who enslaved them want revenge, and they’ll stop at nothing to turn their escape into the most spectacular show ever.

The lines between predator and prey blur as they race toward their freedom. But with no homes to return to, their only refuge is each other. Can their fierce connection survive a galaxy determined to tear them apart?

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Sneak Peek Wednesday: Finding Zaide by Kim Deister

Excerpt

Finding Zaide
Kim Deister
Publisher: Caffeinated Words Publishing
Publication date: Oct. 19, 2026
Genre: LGBTQ Romance

Life had gotten comfortable for Amara Addison, maybe too comfortable. Fabulous job, great friends, even an amazing ex-boyfriend who was her ride or die for life. Then Zaide Rossi sauntered into her life and suddenly everything changed. But no matter how crazy life became, finding Zaide made every last moment of chaos worth it.

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Review: Willing Prey by Allie Oleander

Erotic Romance

Willing Prey
Feral Love #1
Allie Oleander
Publisher: Berkley Romance
Genre: Erotic Romance

Post-divorce and buried in student loan debt, Claire Collins eagerly enters a spicy business agreement with an acquaintance who wants to explore his primal desires. The deal is simple—thirty days as his sexual prey, $30,000 in her bank account. All she has to do is give Shane Underwood the hunt of his life.

Claire’s a physical education teacher and perfectly happy to spend her summer having wild, kinky sex instead of working her usual serving job. But once they cross the tree line, she realizes how little she knows about the corporate lawyer paying her to be his prey.

Shane is different in the woods. Brutal. Devastating. Feral.

That’s okay with Claire—she is, too. And she’s sinking her teeth a little deeper into Shane’s heart every time he catches her.

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Review: Rejected by the Direwolf Lord by Freya Oakley

Paranormal Romance

Rejected by the Direwolf Lord
Freya Oakley
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication date: Oct. 9, 2026
Genre: Paranormal Romance Novella

I was promised to a direwolf lord to secure peace for my pack.

I had three years to prepare myself to become a stranger’s bride. I left my home, crossed into enemy territory, and walked willingly into Thornbrook Keep—only for Lord Ethan to call me a tithe in borrowed cloth, turn his back on me, and cast me off.

He rejected me in front of his entire hall.

So I run.

Straight into the wilds.

And Fenn follows.

My brother’s most formidable warrior has guarded me for years. Silent. Brooding. Infuriatingly controlled. He escorted me toward a future neither of us wanted, never once giving me reason to suspect what he was hiding.

Fenn knew I was his fated mate.

For three years.

Now the treaty is broken, danger stalks the forest, and the wolf who once let me go is done with restraint.

He wants me running.

Caught.

Claimed.

And this time, Fenn has no intention of surrendering what fate made his.

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