The Hot Mess Library

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Series Blitz: Black Hearts Still Beat - L.A. Cotton

SERIES BLITZ

Black Hearts Still Beat

Author: L. A. Cotton

Genre: Angsty Rock Star Romance

#1 Rush: Eva & Rafe Book 1

Evangeline Walker knows how quickly everything can change.

But nothing can prepare her for the moment she meets Rafe Hunter.

Intense gray eyes.

Wicked smile.

Tattoos inked on his skin just begging to be touched.

Those aren’t the reasons Eva should stay away from him though.

The fact he’s the bassist for America’s hottest rock band is the reason she should run and never look back.

Everyone knows the greatest love stories all start somewhere.

... this is their beginning.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52751791-rush

PURCHASE LINKS

US: https://amzn.to/2WdAL1z
UK: https://amzn.to/2zeRWH0
CA: https://amzn.to/2xEJCQi
AU: https://amzn.to/3bc9HE3

B&N: https://bit.ly/3cj1C20
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2zkldjq
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2yAntTP

Audiobook: https://amzn.to/3cj4cVK

Paperback: https://amzn.to/3cfjbjh

#2 Rise: Eva & Rafe Book 2

Eighteen-year-old Eva Walker knew going on tour with Black Hearts Still Beat would be complicated.

She didn’t expect to find herself torn between two brothers.

One wants her but he walked away before.

The other needs her but she doesn’t understand why.

It’s only time before the truth comes out, and when it does, nothing will be the same for Country’s newest sweetheart and the black-hearted boys of Rock.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53004197-rise

PURCHASE LINKS

US: https://amzn.to/2YTxJ4v
UK: https://amzn.to/2YKe5Ym
CA: https://amzn.to/2yEdIUH
AU: https://amzn.to/2xHIhs9
B&N: https://bit.ly/2zhqKre
Kobo: https://bit.ly/35F5uYi
Apple Books: https://apple.co/3fsnE4e

Audiobook: https://amzn.to/3fzd5fV

Paperback: https://amzn.to/2WGpje2

#3 Rule: Eva & Rafe Book 3

Rafe Hunter thought he was destined for two things in life: playing guitar, and keeping his brother on the straight and narrow.

Until Eva.

She makes him want to be better. Makes him dream of life after the band. But Black Hearts Still Beat is all he’s ever known.

Rafe wants a future with Eva but when you’re choosing between your heart and head, fame or the future, nothing is ever simple.

Music saved them, but is it finally time for Rafe to let his heart rule? Or will love be the ultimate downfall of Eva and her Black Hearted boys?

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53004278-rule

PURCHASE LINKS

US: https://amzn.to/3dsYmBh
UK: https://amzn.to/2YJyuwK
CA: https://amzn.to/2L4SMc9
AU: https://amzn.to/2YH5q99
B&N: https://bit.ly/2Wbysfl
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2YHkQdn
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2xH2ONo

Audiobook: https://amzn.to/39j8uxJ

Paperback: https://amzn.to/394csKa

#4 Ruin: Levi Hunter’s Story

Working for America’s hottest rock band should be a dream come true for Phoebe Halstead.

And it would be, if it wasn’t for lead singer, Levi Hunter.

Tortured... Brooding... Broken. He’s everything she should stay away from.

Unfortunately for Phoebe, she’s exactly the kind of girl Levi needs. The light to his dark. The calm to his storm.

He wants to be worthy of her; she knows he’ll never change.

Everyone knows the greatest love stories end one of two ways:

... with a happily-ever-after or in heartache and ruin.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/53679251-ruin

PURCHASE LINKS

US: https://amzn.to/2HjZE6W
UK: https://amzn.to/31pmZuY
CA: https://amzn.to/2T7GQdy
AU: https://amzn.to/34eSPwo
B&N: https://bit.ly/2HfD8vL
Kobo: https://bit.ly/3kfqgEl
Apple Books: https://apple.co/3m4OoKB

Paperback: https://amzn.to/372CQBP

AUTHOR BIO

Author of over thirty mature young adult and new adult novels, L A is happiest writing the kind of books she loves to read: addictive stories full of teenage angst, tension, twists and turns.

Home is a small town in the middle of England where she currently juggles being a full-time writer with being a mother/referee to two little people. In her spare time (and when she’s not camped out in front of the laptop) you’ll most likely find L A immersed in a book, escaping the chaos that is life.

AUTHOR LINKS

Website: http://www.lacotton.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/authorlacotton

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/authorlacotton

Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/authorlacotton

Release Blitz: Coyote - Lila Rose

RELEASE BLITZ

Title: Coyote

Series: Hawks MC: Next Generation #1

Author: Lila Rose
Genre: MC Romance

Release Date: December 1, 2020

BLURB

From the bestselling Hawks MC series, Talon’s son, Cody, is all grown up and it’s time for his story!

Humiliated years earlier when in high school, Channa Edwards never expects to see her knight in shining armour again. In fact, she really doesn’t want to, but of course, life wants to mess with her again. It’s just by luck he doesn’t recognise her, and for a blissful moment, she thinks she’s got away with it.

That’s until another situation brings her knight back into her life.

Cody “Coyote” Marcus, son to the Hawks MC president, goes through life easily. He has a great family, a business he loves, and women if he wants them. Then, by chance, he meets a cute, bumbling baker, who doesn’t seem to want anything to do with him.

Of course, he has to change that, and make Channa see he’s worth getting to know on all levels.

GOODREADS LINK: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/55199690-coyote

PURCHASE LINKS – 99c for a limited time!

US: https://amzn.to/3i7Jk5A
UK: https://amzn.to/3j7yX3g
CA: https://amzn.to/3kLb2H2
AU: https://amzn.to/3j8yI7R
B&N: https://bit.ly/2S3wvPa
Kobo: https://bit.ly/3j1N5uK
Apple Books: https://apple.co/2S1UuhL

EXCERPT

No way.

No fudging way.

He was here. Right over there and inside the shop.

“Denise, I’ll be out back if you need me,” I whispered with a panicked edge to my tone before I bolted through the swinging doors behind me. Leaning over, I rested my hands on my thighs and took gulps of air.

“Channa, are you all right?” Stanley asked. He dropped the bowl on the workbench and started for me. I quickly straightened and waved him off.

“I’m fine…. I… think I swallowed a fly.” And a lie. I hated lying, but I couldn’t exactly tell Stanley, who was my cake-icing machine and sixty years old, that I ran like a wuss when I saw him. It would just be confusing, and then I would have to delve into my past, into a moment of time I wanted to forget.

Stanley screwed up his nose. “Blasted warm days stink arse. It’s hotter than hell in here. My balls are sweating so bad and my icing doesn’t want to work.”

I moved over to the bench and pressed my hands onto the cool stainless steel. “Come on, Stanley, I know you can work your magic. I might have turned off the ovens a little late this morning, but the air con is on and it’ll start freezing this place over soon.”

I could have done without hearing about his balls, but I’d put up with it because Stanley was a master at making and applying icing to all my baked goods. He was a god, and I wouldn’t know what to do without him, because I had skills to bake, which I loved doing, but the delicate decorating just wasn’t for me. I messed them up each time I tried. It was how I’d known I would have to hire someone and was lucky Stanley had approached me about the work when I’d advertised.

He huffed and said, “I’m going into the coolroom.” He picked up his bowl and walked to the floor-to-ceiling coolroom at the back of the work area. He opened the door, stepped in, and I caught his shoulders sag in relief before he shut the door behind himself.

Turning back towards the front of the shop, I tippy-toed back towards the doors, thankful Stanley wasn’t there to see my childish actions, and pushed them apart enough to peek out.

A squeak slipped through my lips, and I let the doors fall closed quickly. Taking a step back, I rested my hand over my swift-beating heart.

He was right there.

At the counter.

He was smiling at something Denise was saying. That smile could steal someone’s breath. It had stolen mine every single time back in high school. Only I hadn’t seen it since then, for eight long years, and the power of having it directed my way had grown. His light eyes could trap another’s gaze. His dark hair looked like it needed someone to run their fingers through it. His body…. All right, I had to stop there. Yes, he was handsome, but right then I didn’t need my hormones seeking out someone for a roll between the sheets. Especially not him.

I only hoped he would take whatever he was ordering and go. There wasn’t anything in the world that would have me out there in the bakery when Cody Marcus was inside.

I jolted when Denise popped her head through the doors. “Need help, please.”

Son of a bitch.

Okay, there was nothing except that.

AUTHOR BIO

Lila was born in Brisbane Australia, her step-dad was in the Army which caused them to move around a lot. They finally settled in country Victoria, Australia. Being the youngest of four children she admits she was spoilt a bit. Even drove her mum crazy when she refused to eat meat at a young age.

Now, Lila lives with her husband and two children.

She started writing in 2013 and self-published the first of the Hawks MC: Ballarat Charter series- Holding Out. Since then, she has published eleven other titles, which range from erotica, humorous romance, YA and paranormal.

AUTHOR LINKS

Email: lilarose2678@gmail.com
Website: https://www.lilarosebooks.com

Facebook: https://bit.ly/2AD9wES

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LilaRose78

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilarose78

Review: Defenseman No. 9 - Xavier Neal

Defenseman No. 9 by Xavier Neal
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars

Defenseman No. 9 by Xavier Neal is book number four in The Hockey Gods series. The book tells the story of Crash and Hugo, two childhood friends who go from friends to lovers with some complications along the way. Crash is a flamboyant, out proud young man who can put up the biggest front when it comes to who he truly is with other. We see the bad relationship that he is in at the beginning of the story and how his self-esteem has taken hit after hit from years of thinking he isn’t good enough. Enter Hugo, his childhood best friend who loves Crash, but is afraid of what having a relationship with him will mean. Throughout the book you see the love that Hugo has for Crash and how communication is key whether you are friends or lovers. Hugo is certainly one of those sweet, silent types who often steps back and watches what everyone else is doing. He loves to take care of Crash and his teammates too.

This was a very sweet read about two people who are meant to be together, but continuously question themselves and the situations that they are put in. Having read previous books in the series might help with understanding who is who but isn’t really necessary. If you like sweet MM books, then this is a read for you!

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

View all my reviews

Review: Trust in Lust - Rhylie Matthews

Trust in Lust by Rhylie Matthews
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ stars

Trust in Lust is book one in the Lust series by Rhylie Matthews. It focuses on the main character Juliana Vaughn who is a sixer, a person born with an extra sixth sense. There is a lot going on in this book that I don’t want to give away and a lot of questions are left unanswered (hence it being a series). Vaughn is an FBI agent on her first hunt for a killer, but what she comes across is something more. With the help of her boss and often grumpy handler Sutton they’re going to track down the killer whilst Sutton looks after J. There is some explosive sexual chemistry and some laugh out loud moments from the slightly awkward duo. I guess that’s what happens when you can feel people’s emotions! This is a fast-paced book and there is a lot happening with different characters popping up in various ways. We never quite get to find out about the person that J and Sutton are chasing or why but there are some hints on how he could be similar to J. You’re definitely going to have to keep pace with everything that is going on!

Throughout the book we only get snippets of J and Sutton’s life and how they have ended up where they have. But that add to the intrigue of the story. If you like lots of twist and turns, then this is going to be a series for you…also the cliff-hanger at the end was epic. I can’t wait to see what else is going to happen.

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

View all my reviews

Sunday, November 29, 2020

Review: Deal with the Devil - Kit Rocha

Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha
My rating: ⭐⭐⭐ stars

Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha is part of the new Mercenary Librarians series. The first book in the series focuses on introducing us to new characters: Nina and Knox and their motely crew of others. Nina is an information broker and leader of her mercenary librarians living in a dystopian world after numerous wars and technology crashes. She helps her local community to survive and stay safe from roughs and those that would do them harm. What makes her and her crew different is that she has been modified. Having escaped from places years before that were experimenting on people, they are trying to keep under the radar of the government organisation that is trying to find them and to control society.

Enter Knox, A Silver Devil soldier and mercenary who is trying to find one of his people who have been kidnapped. The only complication is that they want Nina instead. What follows is a lot of secrecy on Knox and his crews’ part as they try to stay separate from Nina and her people whilst learning more about them and realising that they are good people.

If you’ve read the Beyond series, you’ll know that the authors write dystopian romance really well and this book is no different. Being the first book in the series there is a lot of background information on all of the characters and how they have ended up where they have and what they are doing in order to survive. Nina and Knox’s relationship grows quite quickly, but they are suited. What makes the books though is the other characters in the story and it will be interesting to see them have their own book and how their community develops over time and with the weight of the government trying to look over their shoulders.

There is definitely a lot going on in this book with science, people’s backgrounds, betrayals and figuring out where people fit. But it is an enjoyable read and it will be intriguing to see what happens next.

View all my reviews

Wednesday, November 25, 2020

New Release: Over Easy: The Dragon Born Academy - T.L. Christianson

OVER EASY: The Dragon Born Academy

Author: T.L. Christianson

Title: Over Easy

Series: The Dragon Born Academy

Release Date: November 25, 2020

Main Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Secondary Genres: Paranormal Romance, Sweet Romance, New Adult, Urban Fantasy, Mystery

Tropes: Love triangle, age gap, stuck together, coming of age

BLURB:

A taboo romance.
A destiny revealed.
Secrets uncovered.

The school year continues, and I’m digging more and more into my family history. It’s been shrouded in darkness for too long. But the more I poke into my mother’s shadowed past, the more I wonder if history is repeating itself.

Along my way, I’ve found an unlikely ally in fellow Prime Logan Brooks. And while my partially bonded mate, Ashe, is away serving in the Dragonborn Militia, Logan is here for me. He knows all the right things to do and say…

As my feelings develop for both, but I know I can’t lead the other on. I thought I was meant to be with Ashe… but maybe I have a choice after all.

I’m solving this Dragonborn puzzle one piece at a time. I just hope that it isn’t tearing me apart as I do.