Just re-listened to {Smash & Grab by Maz Maddox} and it got me thinking about some of the cute/silly/romantic first dates I’ve read.
Dalton and Simon’s is definitely one of my favorites. >!B&E, silly dinosaur monstrosities, a little adrenaline, and their first kiss!!< It’s funny, light-hearted, and just ridiculously cute. What’s not to like?
What are some of your favorite first dates?
Okay... I never, ever thought I'd be writing these words, but... I think I'm into bro/twincest? 😳
Holy shit, what a revelation.
I'd been stuck in a massive reading slump, endlessly searching for my next book, but nothing really grabbed me. Then I randomly picked up {For nEver Mine by Odessa Hywell}. Honestly, I don't even know why. Probably because it was omegaverse, but definitely not because it was brother x brother.
I'd read a couple of stepbrother romances before, but they never really felt taboo. I think that's because they rarely had the whole we grew up together, we're basically brothers dynamic and had more of an enemies-to-lovers vibe. And I'd always avoided actual incest romances because I was convinced they just weren't for me.
Well... apparently I was wrong.
I absolutely loved {For nEver Mine by Odessa Hywell}. The whole "I'm suddenly in love with my sibling" aspect actually felt believable within the omegaverse setting, and by the time I finished... I wanted more!
That's how I ended up with {End Scene by Nicky James}. I'd somehow never read anything by this author, even though a quick search on this sub made it obvious they're recommended all the time. My loss for waiting this long!
I seriously couldn't put this book down. It follows Atticus (single POV), who's kicked out of his wealthy parents' mansion after coming out (there's also a short free bonus scene about this). Desperate for money, he stumbles across an ad looking for identical twins to model for gay twincest romance/erotica covers - and actually lands an interview. Convincing his twin brother, Asher, to go along with it isn't exactly easy, but from there the whole story turns into this funny, chaotic, surprisingly sweet ride.
Yes, it's smut, but it's good smut. More importantly, it's just such an enjoyable read. It's funny, easy to get through, and avoids piling on unnecessary or OTT drama. The relationship develops in a way that felt genuinely believable and incredibly sweet, and I loved their dynamic so much. There's a bit of an OM situation, but instead of creating pointless drama, it actually serves as a nice catalyst for the plot.
If you haven't read it yet, I highly recommend it. Out of everything I've read this year, it's easily in my top five.
And while we're at it... does anyone have recommendations for what I should read next? Bro/twincest only, please.
I've already read or have these on my list:
{For nEver Mine by Odessa Hywell}
{A Hawks Soft Embrace by Odessa Hywell}
{The Payback Plan by Honey London} - TBR
{Release by BL Sparrow} - TBR
{Pretty When You Cry by Ally Avery} - TBR
Hey everyone! Spoilers in the pictures, as always!
I’m back with version 3 of my Chani Lynn Feener universe mind map, because apparently I have accepted this as my role in the ecosystem now.
With the new release of {His Forbidden Omega by Chani Lynn Feener}, the upcoming {Ravaged Devotion by Chani Lynn Feener}, and Levi’s story coming later this year in {His Stolen Omega by Chani Lynn Feener}, it felt like a good time to update the map again before the universe expands even more.
For anyone who missed the previous posts: this started as a very normal reading experience, then Gunho was mentioned in {His Secret Omega by Chani Lynn Feener}, and suddenly I was making a character relationship / planet / series-spanning map instead of doing literally anything more responsible.
This version includes corrected and expanded information, new connections, and some cleanup to make the overall structure easier to follow.
As before, I’m not on her Patreon, so I may still be missing some lore. I’ve also read some of the books a while ago, so please feel free to correct me, add context, or info-dump. Spoilers from any book are completely welcome.
I hope this helps anyone else trying to keep the characters, planets, series, and connections straight!
I picked up {Tribute to the Warlord by Atlas Jones} mostly because I thought the cover looked interesting, and I ended up enjoying it so much more than expected.
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First of all: it is single third-person POV, which I honestly don’t come across that often anymore. It feels like so much of the genre is dual first person POV now, so this already felt a bit refreshing to me.
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The MC, Evran, is a nobleman, the third son of a lord, and a scholar. He is attentive, thoughtful, and absolutely burdened with an overthinking mind (which I loved, because I could relate to it a little too much). That said, this is also where one of the things that bothered me comes in. Some of his thoughts, phrases, and emotional loops were repeated quite often. On the one hand, that is very true to overthinking. On the other hand, I did notice it on a sentence level after a while.
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There were a few other writing things that bugged me here and there, especially in the beginning. Some descriptions of scenery or rooms felt a bit repetitive, and a few phrases came up often enough that I started noticing them. But that is really the main technical issue I had, because overall I thought the writing was beautiful. It felt immersive, atmospheric, and written with so much attention to detail.
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One thing I really appreciated is that the book often lets things happen between the lines. Not everything is explained directly to the reader, and some information comes through side characters, observation, or what Evran slowly pieces together. I found that refreshing, because it never felt like the story was trying to slap me in the face with every piece of information. It trusted me to read into things a bit, and I liked that.
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The love interest, Vaike, is the warlord and clan leader. Evran describes him as a “force of nature,” and that really fits. He commands obedience and has that powerful, almost larger-than-life presence, but he is also kind, restrained, and clearly a good ruler. He could have been written as a very standard dominant warlord archetype, but he worked for me because his authority is paired with care, competence, and genuine responsibility for his people.
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The emotional progression between Evran and Vaike was probably my favorite part. Evran’s feelings move from fear, to respect, to attraction, to love, and that progression felt tangible to me. It unfolds over a large part of the book, so emotionally it reads like a slow burn. At the same time, the whole story only takes place over a couple of weeks, so it is also not really a slow burn in the usual timeline sense.
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My one bigger romance-related issue is that the final shift into them actually acknowledging their feelings felt a little under-verbalized to me. The decision for them to be together happens more between the lines, and after Evran admits that he wants Vaike, things move quite quickly. It did set me back a bit, because after such a careful slow build, I wanted a little more conversation between them at that turning point. But even so, it still felt genuine.
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I also grew fond of several side characters and would honestly have liked a little more depth there. They had enough presence to make me care, but not always enough development to fully satisfy my curiosity. Still, the central story between Evran and Vaike carried the book strongly enough that I did not feel let down overall.
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I listened to the audiobook while reading, and I really enjoyed Kieran Regan’s narration. He made both Evran and Vaike feel very distinct and alive, and I think the performance added a lot to the atmosphere and emotional tension.
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So ... highly recommended, even though a few things didn’t fully work for me. If you like immersive fantasy romance, single third-person POV, anxious/overthinking scholar MCs, powerful but kind warlord LIs, and a fear-to-respect-to-love arc that feels slow even within a compressed timeline, this might be very much worth picking up!
Just saw a video of two tigers fighting for mating rights, and apparently my brain went: yes, but make it a spicy romance!
So.... I’m looking for werewolf/wolf shifter romance, or honestly any shifter romance, where one MC has to fight for mating rights. This could be a situation where the MCs are already together and someone challenges one of them, or a setup where characters have to fight for the right to choose/claim a mate.
Anything in this general direction is appreciated.
No’s: cheating, second chances