The Hot Mess Library

Thursday, March 12, 2026

Review: Pretty Vicious - Lexi Davis

Pretty Vicious by Lexi Davis
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars

Pretty Vicious is a dark, twisted tumultuous rollercoaster ride of a book. For those with a weak disposition, this one isn’t for you as we follow Laurel down the rabbit hole to survive a cult like secret society and at the forefront of that Carrson, cold, abrasive and commanding and someone who has their eyes set on Laurel, a girl just trying to survive in a world that has thrown a lot of mud her way.

Laurel becomes collateral of The Order when she sees something she shouldn’t and is ‘bonded’ to Carrson, where she is thrown into his world of violence and brutality. Only to see the man beneath as secrets come to light and feelings start to grow.

Carrson was a tricky character to get to know to begin with as he was so cold, but as we get more of the backstory to how he has become that way, the more our eyes as a reader is opened to the flaws and vulnerability, he hides from everyone except from Laurel.

There are definitely some dark elements to this story, and it has a Rina Kent/Tracy Lorraine feel to it which I kind of dig. Who doesn’t like secret societies and all the mayhem they cause? It did take a little bit to get into this book, mainly because there’s a little but of a backstory regarding the Order and what happened in the past balanced out by what is happening in the present. I did enjoy the slow burn between the two characters which was spicy and often complicated. There is a cliffhanger at the end, and it is going to be interesting to see what happens next. Overall, a good start to a new series.

ARC received for a fair, honest and sometimes long review. All opinions are my own. 😊

View all my reviews

Wednesday, March 11, 2026

Review: Bourbon & Proof - Victoria Wilder

Bourbon & Proof by Victoria Wilder
My rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 stars

Bourbon and Proof is book 3 in The Bourbon Boys series by Victoria Wilder and I think it could be my favourite book in the series! The story is all about Ace and Hadley and this push and pull that they have had forever! I love that we finally get the backstory to why Ace is reluctant to do anything with Hadley and I love how Hadley just owns who she is with a touch of vulnerability thrown in. What she goes through with her father is just deplorable and the way that Ace just steps in to help is a total ‘chef’s kiss’ moment.

This story is just so good! We have Griz being mysterious, the other Foxx brothers being delicious and the wives being sassy, throw in Ace and Hadley and this book is smoking! I love that we see their love build through both of their eyes. I love that we see tidbits of Hadley’s journal and her glimmers as well as her vulnerability when she’s not 100% sure if Ace will ever return her feelings. I love that Ace was a protector, a grump and a protector of his family even when things got hard. I love that these two characters got their story!

If you are looking for an amazing series, with some awesome writing, characters, place descriptions and some hot times, then this is the series for you! Ultimate love here!

More of my reviews can be found on my blog: http://thehotmesslibrary.blogspot.com

View all my reviews

New Release: Not A Side Chick - Lani Lynn Vale

RELEASE BLITZ

Title: Not A Side Chick

Series: Don’t Date Him #3

Author: Lani Lynn Vale

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Tropes: Grumpy (Her) / Sunshine (Him)

Forced Proximity, Who Hurt You, Small Town

Release Date: March 10, 2026

BLURB

Edith “Eddy” Wheeler was having a bad day.

A no good, very bad day.

It’s understandable, really. I mean, there didn’t seem to be anything worse than walking in on your elderly parents doing things no child should ever see. Add into that their proclivities, and Eddy is disgusted and disturbed.

So of course, after seeing the atrocious things her parents—the pastor and pastor’s wife that are supposed to be holy and a teacher of faith—are into, she makes it her life goal to expose them to their masses. The cult-like following her father has will see him for the man he is—an abuser who gets a sick thrill at seeing his girls suffer.

She will no longer allow the people of Sawtooth, Montana, to think that they’re safe when they’re anything but.

That’s where Weaver Grant comes in.

A sexy lineman who climbs poles for a living, has forearms that can break a woman in mind, body, and soul, and a smile that does things deep inside of her that she refuses to acknowledge just yet.

She has a plan.

A really good one, too.

But that plan dies a thousand deaths when she’s attacked by a bear on a hike that she was using to cleanse her soul. She thought she was supposed to be afraid of men, but that rabid bear showed her a new side of herself.

She spends weeks in the hospital, and a certain hot lineman takes it upon himself to see her healthy again. He never leaves her side. He solves all her problems. And he shows her how a real man treats a woman.

But once she’s healed and her world is once again righted, will he have a reason to stay since she no longer needs saving?

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/238867925-not-a-side-chick

BOOKBUB LINK: https://www.bookbub.com/books/not-a-side-chick-by-lani-lynn-vale

PURCHASE LINKS

US: https://amzn.to/4qev1Q2
UK: https://amzn.to/4k7sBkw
CA: https://amzn.to/4rpoJhe
AU: https://amzn.to/4q7qAWT
B&N: https://bit.ly/4ro9ips
Kobo: https://bit.ly/4k9Kakd
Apple Books: https://apple.co/4a6JY0b
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/3RMGAY

ALSO AVAILABLE IN THE DON’T DATE HIM SERIES

#1 House of BS & Lies

US: https://amzn.to/4pl1F1H
UK: https://amzn.to/4suAQel
CA: https://amzn.to/4ptyaej
AU: https://amzn.to/4bsvpq2
B&N: https://bit.ly/3Nh9QPf
Kobo: https://bit.ly/4qygmzq
Apple Books: https://apple.co/49ybHXI
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/4jjQZ2

#2 People We Avoid

US: https://amzn.to/45kS6ZN
UK: https://amzn.to/49r3qEC
CA: https://amzn.to/49r73uv
AU: https://amzn.to/452OZ8C
B&N: https://bit.ly/3L0wDyk
Kobo: https://bit.ly/4aIO6FR
Apple Books: https://apple.co/3YoYqvp
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/m0L8DW

COMING SOON

#4 Be The Full Problem – Releasing April 1

US: https://amzn.to/4refiRt
UK: https://amzn.to/40cQ0Ii
CA: https://amzn.to/46zhHP9
AU: https://amzn.to/3OKO1IJ
B&N: https://bit.ly/4u84Cqa
Kobo: https://bit.ly/4rM1Rci
Apple Books: https://apple.co/4rPzI4l
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/bO0DgE

AUTHOR BIO

Lani Lynn Vale is an American author of humorous romantic suspense novels. Born in the Great State of Texas, she has lived the majority of her adult life in East Texas where most of her novels are based. She’s married to her high school sweetheart whom her readers refer to as “LLV’s Bearded Half.” She published her first novel, Boomtown. in the summer of 2013 after the birth of her third child. She’s gone on to publish over 100 novels, with most of them going on to become USA Today Bestsellers.

AUTHOR LINKS

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Lani-Lynn-Vale/author/B00IOX7R3S

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/lani-lynn-vale

Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100005499525196

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/LaniLynnVale

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/114951082190362

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lanilynnvale

Website: http://www.lanilynnvale.com

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lanilynnvale

Monday, March 9, 2026

Review: Not A Side Chick - Lani Lynn Vale

Not A Side Chick by Lani Lynn Vale
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars

Not a side chick by Lani Lynn Vale is book 3 in the Don’t Date Him Series. This book focuses on the characters Eddy and Weaver and boy is it a good one. Eddy is choosing her own path after distancing herself from her very churchy parents, but when she sees something, she shouldn’t, she knows that she can’t keep it to herself, enter Weaver a man with a plan to help her, but who is also fighting his own demons.

I loved the interaction between the two characters and when the unthinkable happens to Eddy, Weaver just steps up and does what he must do. I’m intrigued by Weaver and his sister’s story, and it will be interesting to see what comes of that, especially when she isn’t seen in a great light at the moment. But Weaver and Eddy are made for each other. Eddy is such a strong, brave and sassy character and she has a great relationship with her sister and people that she meets, especially Bossy, Weaver’s daughter who she just embraces straight away.

Weave is just such a great character, strong, dependable and sweet. He has the feels for Eddy as soon as he meets her and sees her internal beauty and strength and stays by her side through thick and thin, no matter what he himself is going through. He has a good group of friends who also have his back too which makes this such a great story.

Overall, I really enjoyed the addition to this series and can’t wait to see whose up next!

ARC received for a fair, honest and sometimes long review. All opinions are my own. 😊

View all my reviews

Sunday, February 22, 2026

Review: Bourbon & Lies - Victoria Wilder

Bourbon & Lies by Victoria Wilder
My rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 stars

Bourbon and Lies is book one in the Bourbon Boys series by Victoria Wilder. The story focuses on Grant Foxx and Laney Young. Grant is a former policeman working for his family’s bourbon distillery after tragedy struck him both personally and professionally. Known as the moody Foxx brother, he has kept to himself and given women a wide birth, which is until Laney comes barreling into his small town of Fiasco and turns everything he thought he felt on his head.

Laney is running from something that has happened to her and has to leave her life behind (not that she felt it was much of a life) and she is thrown into the Foxx family’s orbit. Although she isn’t welcomed with open arms, the Foxx brothers and their grandfather Griz do their best to make her feel welcome and give her a job. From there Laney finds her feet and finds herself instantly attracted to the grizzly Grant and she certainly goes out of her way to antagonise him.

This was an amazing read with some great characters. I loved Laney’s new best friend, Hadley and can’t wait to read her story. The story develops slowly with a really intense slow burn between Laney and Grant, and you definitely get to feel the tension and the development between the two. I also like tat we find out a lot about both of the characters past and how that develops into them having a future together. We do find out that underneath it all, Grant is a teddy bear, but he will go to the ends of the earth to protect what is his.

I also love that Laney isn’t a walkover, she has had to go through so much and she is determined to be the best person she can be, but she won’t take what people say about her lying down (hence the mean girls being put in their place). Overall, this story was just super good. It has a great range of characters who we are given breadcrumbs about, so it leaves the reader wanting more as well as some really good suspense and steamy hot times between the characters. Love, love, loved it!

More of my reviews can be found on my blog: http://thehotmesslibrary.blogspot.com

View all my reviews

Thursday, February 5, 2026

Review: Day in the Knight - Tarina Deaton

Day in the Knight by Tarina Deaton
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars

Day in the Knight by Tarina Denton is the 4^th book in the Leonidas Corporation series and focuses on the characters Tinker and Abby. Christian ‘Tinker’ is a complicated character. Having dealt with trauma in his life, he doesn’t do commitment, but when he meets Abby, he thinks that she could be the one, that is until he learns that she is a single mother and ghosts her, something that Abby isn’t going to fall for, especially when she has to put her son first. That is until her life gets a little bit complicated and the one person she can think of to help is Tinker.

I like that Abby doesn’t just fall back into routine with Tinker and that he actually has to redeem himself for the way he treats her (even though it wasn’t on purpose and there is a little bit of background to why he does what he does.) The fact is that Tinker is a great character, he is caring and understanding and protective of Abby and her child, even when fighting his own demons. There is definitely a lot of chemistry between Tinker and Abby which makes them great together and the addition of other character’s also brings the story together. Overall, a really good read!

ARC received for a fair, honest and sometimes long review. All opinions are my own. 😊

View all my reviews

Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Release Blitz: House of BS & Lies - Lani Lynn Vale

RELEASE BLITZ

Title: House of BS & Lies

Series: Don’t Date Him #1

Author: Lani Lynn Vale

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Tropes: Bad Boy Ex Con/Small Town

Alpha Male

Release Date: January 13, 2026

BLURB

She was enraptured by the man they called Romeo the moment that he turned those butterscotch-colored eyes her way.

What wasn’t to love about a big, burly, plaid-wearing lumberjack?

He was tall, gorgeous, and knew how to wield a chainsaw better than Leatherface. He could fell a tree in seconds, had thighs that were as thick as said trees, filled out a pair of Wranglers better than any cowboy ever, and didn’t care that she could operate heavy machinery better than him.

He was everything a girl like Mable could ask for.

The caveat? He was a convicted felon that’d just escaped from prison, faked his death, and ran from his home in Texas to the mountains of Montana.

At first, Mable didn’t know what kind of man he’d been before coming to her small, mountain town. He led Mable into a false sense of security, made her fall madly, deeply, and irrevocably in love with him, and then shocked her by sharing his darkest secret.

Now, she’s left reeling, thinking life couldn’t get more complicated.

Until she finds out her stepmother knows Romeo’s secret and plans to exploit him. To make matters worse, Romeo goes on the run to protect Mable from himself, and she realizes that she has a dark side, too. One that’ll stop at nothing, not even murder, to make sure that he can live free.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/238867919-house-of-bs-lies

PURCHASE LINKS