The Bailey Brothers series by Claire Kingsley

I've been reading a TON lately, especially through Kindle Unlimited. And rather than write a review for each and every book of a series, it has seemed to work well to write a review on the series as a whole. This series is, as yet, incomplete, but I've caught up with the four books that are out and they are FANTASTIC!

This is my first exposure to Claire Kingsley, and her Bailey Brothers series did not disappoint. This is technically a spin-off series of her Miles Family series, but I haven't read those, and I didn't feel that I was lost or missing out by not reading them first. The characters from the Miles books do show up briefly in the second and third books of this series, but since these are romance novels, we shouldn't at all be surprised that people have ended up together.

The Bailey Brothers series follows Asher, Evan, Logan, Levi and Gavin Bailey. Their parents passed away when they were all young and their Grandmother, known to everyone as Gram, raised them. They live in a small town in Washington called Tilikum and of course, they're a bunch of hell raisers. Add in a town feud (that is completely hilarious) and the coolest Grandma around, and it makes for a very entertaining series.

'Protecting You' and 'Fighting for Us' are the first two books in the series and they are about Asher Bailey and Grace Miles. 'Protecting You' is very much the "origin story" of the entire Bailey family and the start of Asher and Grace's love story. Their story is not easy and straightforward, so 'Fighting for Us' is the real meat of their story. I don't want to give away why their story isn't easy, because it is a great plot element. If you read the synopsis of 'Fight for Us', you'll find out what it is, but I encourage you to be patient and just work your way through 'Protecting You' first. You won't be disappointed. Asher and Grace have been best friends for their entire life and as they get older, they both start to develop romantic feelings for each other, but their both so scared of ruining their friendship that neither of them change the dynamic, until one summer when Grace is home from college, they tentatively test out the flirty waters and find them to be inviting! Their story has a really sweet beginning, a heartbreaking middle and a lovely HEA. It is a "sort-of" second chance/childhood sweethearts romance.

By far my favorite book of the series is 'Unraveling Him'. This is Evan's story and it is so funny! Evan is the family grump, though nobody really knows why. He dropped out of college, bought a house a few miles outside of town, and started his own custom car restoration business. This life suits him perfectly, because he can be all by himself (with his faithful dog, Sasquatch). In blows Fiona. She is the daughter of a man who has just screwed Evan over, but he also just messed up Fiona's life and she needs Evan's help. Lucky for her, she has an ace up her sleeve that she is sure will convince Evan to help her. Fiona is seriously one of the funniest characters I have ever read. She is so happy and seems to sprinkle joy wherever she goes. We learn that it's because she's had a bit of a hard life, but instead of letting it turn her bitter, she makes happiness where she can find it. My favorite thing about her is her house plants. She starts the book with two house plants that are her best friends. She gives them old lady names and talks to them as if they are her babies. Evan thinks she's a bit wacky, but she really grows on him. It turns out Fiona is exactly what he needs to overcome the hurts from his past that have turned him in to a loner. She is the perfect combination of cheery, loving, badass, sassy and super competent. She is perfect for Evan and I loved them together. This is a frenemies to lovers romance.

The most current book is the story of Gavin Bailey and Skylar Stanley, who is the daughter of the Fire Chief, who happens to be Gavin, Logan and Luke's boss. Skylar comes home to her dad (her parents are split) after a nasty break-up and a crushing career blow. She needs a fresh start, so she decides to move in with her dad in Tilikum. She meets Gavin Bailey when she runs in to him with her car. Gavin is the town daredevil who feels no fear and Skylar is afraid of everything. When Skylar hits Gavin with her car, he breaks his leg and can't work until it's healed. He decides since he has a lot of time on his hands, he will be Skylar's first friend and help her get comfortable with her new town. Of course, being friends can't last forever and things turn steamy. This story was really sweet, because Gavin, while seemingly a crazy lunatic, is actually a really sweet guy on the inside with scars of his own. He helps Skylar conquer her fears and Skylar eventually shows him that there are things that he is afraid of and she is just the woman to help him overcome them.

This series is very good and I am looking forward to the final two installments. I really hope the next book is Logan's. He has a hilarious hate-filled relationship with Grace's best friend, Cara, and you just know there is a story to that one. They'd make a great enemies-to-lovers story.

On top of enjoying this series, I really enjoyed Ms. Kingsley's writing style, so I'm sure it won't be long until I start reading her other series'.

The Royals Series by Louise Bay

The Royals Series by Louise Bay is essentially stories of the King family and those connected to them. The series starts with Max King and his love interest, Harper. Book 2 is Harper's best friend Grace and her love interest, Sam. Book 3 is Max's next youngest sister Scarlett and her love interest, Ryder. Book 4 is Max and Scarlett's younger sister, Violet, and her love interest Alexander. Book 5 is Ryder's sister, Darcy, and her love interest, Logan. 

Since I flew through these books, one after the other, I figured I would just review the series as a whole. These books are pretty much read, rinse, repeat, but each story is pretty interesting and they are all very steamy. The characters are all pretty complex, with differing issues and interesting development. I would say that these are books I enjoyed, but didn't love and wouldn't read again. Overall, the BIGGEST problem I had with them was the lack of detail in the overall story line and how each story changed the background of the world dynamics to fit each new book. For example, in Max and Harper's book, Scarlett seems to be a dating machine (Harper meets her for the first time as she is headed out on a date) and in her book, we learn that she was two years divorced from her high school sweetheart. The dating machine is Violet. I'm thinking that Ms. Bay got the name wrong, because later in Max's book, we are told Scarlett doesn't really date. Also in the age area, Darcy is said to be Ryder's older sister. This comes up because Ryder believes Darcy should inherit because she is the oldest, but English titled society is still very old fashioned. But in Darcy's book, she is 28 and Ryder's younger sister. There was also an issue with ages. Time passed between each book, nothing overlapped. I don't recall precise ages of everyone, but I do know Harper was 25 in her book and I believe Max was 32. I got the impression that Scarlett and Violet were not significantly younger, so maybe 25ish at the youngest. Scarlett was for sure out of college, because she had already been working at an investment bank for a while. In Scarlett's book, we know she has been divorced for two years and that she was married for three. I believe she and her ex-husband were married at 19, so that would have made her 24 in her book, but Max and Harper were already married and had two kids. So, it can't be a timeline issue with Scarlett from the previous book and concerns about when she could have been married and divorced. Violet's timeline has issues as well because she has a history with a college boyfriend that was two years in her past and her story begins at least two years after Scarlett's, because Scarlett and Ryder have two children as well. By the time we get to Darcy's book, she should be nearly 35 (which she hinted at wanting to adopt a child before she turned 35 in Violet's book and it didn't come up again after that brief mention).

This type of stuff REALLY bothers me. There is no excuse for these kinds of mistakes and people who like series' like to follow the storyline with reasonable continuity. The stories themselves were enjoyable, and since they could be read as standalones, I tried to ignore the incongruous nature of the larger story arc. But it was very difficult at times when fundamental parts of the story were changed from book to book.

Overall, the books were enjoyable, but I would only recommend them to someone who wouldn't be hung up by the discrepancies.

Busted Steel by M.J. Fields

She’s the forbidden fruit, and I’m her dirty fantasy.

Four years ago, she kissed me. She said she was nineteen. She wasn’t even close. To make it even worse, she’s daddy’s little princess.

Then, a year ago, I was hired to head a security team for her out-of-control younger sister while on a world tour with the band Foreplay. I vowed to stay away from her, becoming a shadow in the dark whenever she was around. Now she’s been hired to photograph her sister’s sixty-day honeymoon, all around the world.

She’s not a little girl anymore. She makes damn sure I notice that, too. But I’m still the same man.

Falling is not an option. However, each day, she’s making it harder and harder to avoid.

I promised myself not to break her heart, yet mine lies in busted pieces all over the world. 

I will lead off by saying I ADORE an age-gap romance. These men tend to have been single until now because they haven't found the other part of their soul, and it is so fun watching them get knocked on their a**es by confident, strong, young women who know what they want, despite what everyone else is telling them.

And that is precisely what M.J. Fields has given us with Busted Steel.

As I always do, I will recommend that you don't read this one unless you are at least caught up with AT LEAST the original Men of Steel and the Steel Crew series'. Although I would recommend also reading Ties of Steel, Tied in Steel and Steel Country, as these characters and their stories do show up in parts. 

Busted Steel is the story that we have all been waiting for! We first meet 25 year-old Ranger, aka Wyatt Dalton, in Tagged Steel, which is the first of the Steel Crew series. He's fairly peripheral to the story, other than he's part of the reality tv show for tattoo artist ex-cons that brings Bella and Tags together. We get our best and juiciest glimpse of him when he runs into Brisa "Little Bit" Steel at an underground fight in Laced Steel. Brisa, who is 15, worms her way into Ranger's heart with her sweet nature, then plants a juicy kiss on him. She tells him she's 19 and dashes away. Unfortunately for her, he shows up to her house the next day and finds out she is not indeed 15. Before it all goes sideways, we get a look into Brisa's head where she has already decided Ranger is it for her. Her forever, the father of her babies, the whole shebang. It breaks her heart when he does the understandably correct thing and cuts off communication with her. 

I just knew there would be a delicious story for them to come in the future and I could kiss M.J. for finally giving it to us. 

Busted Steel starts four-years later when Brisa and Ranger are thrust together on a trip that neither of them can get out of. Cue the chemistry that has been between them all along and they can't ignore it when they are literally spending every day together. I absolutely loved them together. Ranger was so broken and Brisa had never endured hardship in her life. He thought she wouldn't get it and she knew he just needed to let her in. Seeing Brisa break down his walls and allow him to be the man inside was so beautiful. And the ending. *swoon* I've reread it a million times because it gives me all the feels. 

On top of how awesome Busted Steel was, there were a few juicy tidbits about some potential goodies in the books to come and I absolutely love that we never leave a Steel couple behind. I love continuing to learn more about everyone, even when their books are over. 

Justified Steel by M.J. Fields

 

When offered the keys to the kingdom, I all but pissed on the throne.

I didn’t need the figurative crown to become the king, and I sure as hell didn’t want anything more to do with the little queen.

When the power started to shift and lives were being torn apart, justice needed to be served.

Who better to serve it up … than me?

I've been looking forward to Justice's story since I started reading the 'Crew' series. I loved the original Steels, but the next gen is proving to be even more delicious. What I love about them is that we get to see just how much everything we loved about the OG Steels has trickled down to their kids. I think the kids are even more over the top than the originals. If that's possible. 

This is the first Crew book about a male of the Steel family. So, this is our first look at just how alpha the Steel daddies made their boys. Justice definitely thinks he's the king of the castle. The only problem? He's being forced to put Gabrielle up as his queen. I was so confused why he seemed to hate her so much. Sure, she was a total 'mean girl' to his sister and cousins, but his loathing of her was hard core. The big reveal was something I did not see coming, but wow. It made total sense. And it really made me feel for him. 

Wait until you find out the really big secret at the very end. I got all sorts of mushy for Justice. And once again, the Steel men show us that they aren't just tattooed hotties with big attitudes. They have hearts of Steel as well.

Branded Steel by M.J. Fields

 

He can sing, dance, and owns whatever stage he’s "performing" on.

His looks make him a triple threat.

And he’s gone viral.

He is the Country Music Artist of the Year.

Which means that face, those eyes, that hair, that body, and his voice are every-freaking-where.

He’s America’s newest country sensation, and he can do no wrong.

Except, he did.

He totally did.

And he did it to me.

I started my M. J. Fields journey with the Steel Country series and fell in love with Brand as a cute little 5-year old. I could see the potential for a story for him with all his interactions with Bella and Kiki and I was so excited to finally get to read it.

The whole book is too spoilery to try and talk about, but let me just say, within the first few chapters my jaw had dropped, my heart had broken and I'd laughed my butt off. Brand was everything I had hoped he would be. Sweet, protective, alpha, and totally Steel worthy. Kiki was a bada**, take no crap chick and I loved how she and Brand clashed and came together. And as my favorite original Steel, I was so excited to get more Jase. I love his snarky personality and seeing him again in his dad role was a joy. My heart broke again toward the end of the book, but then it was put back together and given all the warm fuzzies. All in all, this book was everything I had hoped for Brand's story. 

Storm by Carian Cole

I had no idea crashing into a ditch would change my life forever.

Fate had other plans, and I never stood a chance.

A series of weather and road mishaps left me trapped in the middle of a blizzard with a complete stranger in the back of a pickup truck.

For forty-eight freakin' hours.

A stranger with long hair, tattoos, and rippling with muscle.

A stranger with an insanely sexy voice and a smile that turned my insides to jelly.

A stranger who held me in his arms, calmed me, and then set a fire in me that I couldn't put out.

I didn't know I was trapped with America's favorite bad boy guitarist, Storm Valentine. And he was in no rush to reveal his secret. He's used to getting everything he wants, and for some reason, he's decided he wants me.

Some people chase storms for the beautiful thrill. What happens when the storm chases you? 

Storm is Carian Cole's debut album and let me tell you, this lady has some skills! This book does not read like a debut album and I'm very happy I discovered her after she wrote a few more books so I didn't have to wait to read the next story. While this series is billed as a rockstar romance, there isn't as much actually rock starring as there are in other series. This book revolves primarily around the lives of the characters, and only spends a little bit of time on-stage or on-tour. 

Storm is the story of Storm and Evelyn, who meet each other in the middle of a blizzard. They end up stuck in Storm's truck, with his dog, for 2 days. Needless to say, those cramped quarters with a sexy, tatooed, muscled bad boy and a cute, sexy woman, lead to some interesting warm fuzzy feelings. Even after they are rescued from the blizzard, Storm can't help but feel something for Evie, even though she is currently in a long term relationship. Throughout their time together though, Storm shows Evie the things she's been missing in her relationship and makes her start to question why she's been in it for so long. Together they are cute and sweet and funny and loving and all the things we love in swoony romance couples. I absolutely loved them!

While there isn't expressly cheating, per se, a few lines were crossed. I won't say I loved that part of the story, but I did love how much Storm loved her, in spite of the obstacles they faced. Their story had its shares of ups and downs, but wasn't terribly angsty, which I also like. It gave me all the feels and I just wanted to hug Storm over and over again.

This book was fantastic, and I am super excited to dive in to Ms. Cole's next book.

The Lasaran by Dianne Duvall

 

New York Times bestselling author Dianne Duvall brings readers the first novel in a thrilling new sci-fi series full of action, intrigue, humor, and romance.

Taelon searches the galaxy for his younger sister, who mysteriously disappeared while on a diplomatic mission. When an ally reveals that she was seized and is being held prisoner on Earth, Taelon descends upon the blue planet, intent on freeing her and exacting vengeance. However, all does not go as planned. Before he can find her, Taelon is captured and becomes the subject of torturous experiments. For what feels like an eternity, all he knows is pain and fury… until a mind tentatively touches his own and a woman’s voice forever changes his world.

After suffering tragic losses, Lisa is finally beginning to carve out a future for herself when chance sends her to the Anomalous Cognition Research Institute. What at first appears to be a benign organization seeking participants for a psychic study instead turns out to be a government facility harboring a much darker intent. Lisa discovers this too late and soon becomes the unwilling subject of a terrifying experiment. Just as fear and desperation threaten to consume her, a deep, compelling voice penetrates the looming insanity and lends her hope.

Having seen only the worst of humanity, Taelon is shocked when Lisa risks everything to free him. Together the two make their escape, and Taelon finds himself fascinated by the small human woman who—despite all she’s suffered—can still laugh and tease and lure smiles from him. Friendship swiftly grows between them as they work together to evade soldiers intent on capturing them and find themselves hunted by mystifying preternatural beings. Through it all, Lisa steadfastly remains by his side, stealing more of his heart each day while she helps him unravel the mystery of his sister’s fate. Can they find his sister before the hunters find them? If they survive their quest, will Taelon have to bid Lisa farewell… or can he coax her into leaving her planet and joining him for the adventure of a lifetime?

You should all know by now that I LOVE LOVE LOVE Dianne Duvall. I have read everything she has ever published and I crave the next release like it's my next breath. When I found out her next release wasn't going to be part of her amazing Immortal Guardians series, I was devastated for half a second. Then, she told us that it would have IG characters, so I calmed down pretty quick. Now that I've read it, I'm not sure I'm ready to go back to IG books. The Aldebarian Alliance is another level for incredible! 

***A slight caution*** While this is "technically" a standalone and a new series, I would recommend starting with her Immortal Guardians series, and specifically start with 'A Sorceress of His Own', which is a prequel to the series. If you hate spoilers and you haven't read all the IG books, I would not proceed

The Lasaran is the story of Taelon (who we know from the end of Death of Darkness is Ami's brother) and Lisa. The book shares some scenes with Death of Darkness. We see the raid on Gershom's compound and peripherally see the rescue of Seth's IG family and we also see the scene where Taelon shows up at David's house from his point of view. And while you may think that this would be where the story would start winding down, I assure you, friends, this is only half way through the book! There are spaceships and aliens and intergalactic battles and of course.....some love 😍

Taelon and Lisa escape the compound where they have both been held and begin a journey where they have literally no idea who they can trust. Taelon is an alien and Lisa has no family, so who can they turn to. As they navigate what comes next after escape we see their relationship develop in the sweetest way. They are both so uncomfortable with themselves after their detainment (read the book to find out why) and both think the other should not be attracted to them, but of course they are! Even though we know that they are going to end up at David's eventually, you can feel the struggle that they endure to that point. Add in a few unforeseen complications along the way and Taelon and Lisa certainly don't have an easy road to the HEA. 

There was the perfect amount of set-up and background and action and story progression. This is always the case with Dianne's books, but the start of a new series can be complicated to build in the first book. It certainly helps that she didn't have to do any world building, since it is firmly intrenched in the IG world. I expected to love this book, but I wasn't quite prepared for how much I LOVED this book. And as if that wasn't enough, she TORTURED us with a sneak peek in to the Segonian, the next in the Aldebarian Alliance series. Talk about an agonizing wait! I'm telling you, run, don't walk to pick this book up. You will not be disappointed.