A Flame in the Night by Morgan Dante

Published: April 11, 2023Publisher: SelfAuthor: WebsiteInfo: Goodreads

The start of bloody decadence...The definition of marriage: Two people and their silver-haired vampire.In 1924, Paris is a bastion of sexual freedom, even for shell-shocked Leon Laflamme, the most dramatic blond this side of the Seine. After years of loneliness and secrecy, he's married the clever and sumptuous burlesque dancer Claire. However, Leon truly finds liberation when he meets the stoic, intriguing, and silver-haired Count Matthias, who offers true freedom in his dark gift: immortality. (goodreads.com)

I'm just a hair shy of saying the florid writing of A FLAME IN THE NIGHT was too much for me, but most of the time it created a sumptuous scene that was just luscious to read. It did occasionally lose itself in the language, though, as I had a hard time working my way through some of the sentences and certain scenes, especially the sex scenes because the descriptions got a little boggy. It sometimes slowed the reading down to the point where I got a little lost in what was happening.Dante nails painting vivid characters from the moment they step on the page. Claire and Leon and Matthias were all fully formed using so few words. In their cadence of speech, how they viewed the world, and how they interacted with each other. The development there was enviable.The pacing was a little slow, which is kind of surprising for such a short book. There is a lot of character setup and their interaction with Matthias, and getting to the point of his story arc, took more than half the book to get to. As a result, the ending felt rushed, albeit it satisfactory. I liked where the story went and how the arc was resolved. I liked the realization of just how shallow the monster now lives under their skin and how they now must control it forever. It creates a good cyclical plot. Leon and Claire were running from monsters, and they ended up fighting fire with fire.If you're looking for a lush read that's sexy as hell (those sex scenes were something else) that's worth the payoff of a slower start to the plot, you'll like A FLAME IN THE NIGHT.3.5I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden

Published: February 28, 2023Publisher: DuttonAuthor: WebsiteInfo: Goodreads

It's 1852 and Margaret Lennox, a young widow, attempts to escape the shadows of her past by taking a position as governess to an only child, Louis, at an isolated country house in the west of England.But Margaret soon starts to feel that something isn't quite right. There are strange figures in the dark, tensions between servants, and an abandoned east wing. Even stranger is the local gossip surrounding Mrs. Eversham, Louis's widowed mother, who is deeply distrusted in the village.Lonely and unsure whom to trust, Margaret finds distraction in a forbidden relationship with the gardener, Paul. But as Margaret's history threatens to catch up with her, it isn't long before she learns the truth behind the secrets of Hartwood Hall. (goodreads.com)

THE SECRETS OF HARTWOOD HALL is an incredibly atmospheric book that sets the tone from page one. A widow with a questionable past and a maybe suspicious death of her husband. A creepy old house with figures lurking in the shadows. Conspiring servants that promise to make life difficult. It's a lot for one person to handle, yet I think Margaret handles it quite well, all things considered. I'm not sure if I would have let Susan get away with the things she did, but social conventions and hierarchy in the household are things I don't have the best grasp on with this particular setting.I loved the underlying thrum of creepiness Lumsden created with the setting. That even despite a sunny day, there's almost something sinister and looming about Hartwood Hall, the people living in it, or the townspeople looking at it with fear. She mounted that well throughout the book, creating an ambiance of distrust with the reader, making them question whether Margaret is a reliable narrator or not. And as a reader, you honestly don't know until the very end of the book where everything comes to a head.A part of me wants to say that Paul wasn't that necessary of a character, and that whole plotline wasn't very needed. At the same time, the emotional growth Margaret got out of it was integral to her character arc, and I'm not sure how else that specific growth could have been done. Granted, there wasn't much buildup to that pivotal moment when she has that awakening. It seemed sudden and not out of nowhere, but they weren't thoughts in Margaret's head until Paul forced them in there, which makes it seem kind of out of nowhere where that plotline went. At the same time, it's completely relatable, because I've found myself in certain relationships where one person thought waaaaaaayyyy beyond what I did and his ideals weren't in alignment with mine. It just wasn't a conversation we thought to have until that final moment. So with that in mind, it is a rather realistic moment.LOL glad I could talk myself in a circle there!I enjoyed what I was reading in THE SECRETS OF HARTWOOD HALL. The story had me hooked, and I wanted to know how everything was going to come to a head. Are there really ghosts in the manor, or is it something else? Something far more sinister? That absolutely kept me going. But also the evolution of Margaret. And the honest emotions of her, especially in regard to Susan. I liked how she wrestled with those. It lent realism to her situation and her emotional growth.I don't want to say much else because it may spoil things, but I liked the ending. It wrapped up in a very satisfying way that had me on board with every character in the story. It's a good book, and I think it would do well as a read on an overcast, rainy day or a fall evening when the wind is blowing and the leaves are rustling. Get that extra-sensory mood in there as well.4I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Murder on Holiday Lane by London Lovett

Published: November 16, 2020Publisher: SelfAuthor: WebsiteInfo: Goodreads

It's a warm and sunny Christmas season in Los Angeles. Things are slow at the Starfire Detective Agency, but Poppy is sure things will pick up after the holidays. When a pretty young starlet who works part-time as an elf at Santa's Workshop on Holiday Lane is murdered, Poppy's close friend, the up and coming director, Wyatt Blaze, becomes a prime suspect. Wyatt needs Poppy's help to find the real killer. Gossip travels fast in Tinseltown and an arrest, even a false arrest, will destroy Wyatt's career for good.Now Poppy must start from the very beginning to find out just who had it out for the elf. Is it possible Santa himself is behind the diabolical deed? (goodreads.com)

Overall, MURDER ON HOLIDAY LANE is a super cute story. One that I can totally empathize with since I, too, have warm Christmases with living in Arizona. Poppy is in LA, and I think their winter is actually warmer than ours, so at least there's that. I found the voice lovely, and it's really what kept me reading. What was keeping me at a distance was Poppy has no real skin in the game. As the main character of her own story, she could easily be removed and the story would be largely unaffected.This is where I wonder whether coming into a series at book four is doing me a disservice. Which is why I'm not tapping out of the series yet. I'm wondering if there's more to Poppy's and Wyatt's relationship than what I was getting in this book. While I understand Poppy wanting to help out a friend, there were no repercussions for her doing an independent investigation. I kept waiting for  the other shoe to drop and it didn't. While this creates a rather wholesome story, which I'm not opposed to, and I was invested enough to read to the end to find out who did it, it lacked tension. Mainly because nothing interfered with Poppy. She could walk away from her own story, and the story would continue on without her. I feel like that's a fatal flaw for any book.The story started very slowly as well. I had to get to the quarter mark of the book before anything resembling the plot outlined in the blurb happened. It was all kind of random stage setting up to that point and I was starting to wonder where the story was.Poppy is an enjoyable character, and I think she's pretty relatable. She does have an inkling of spoiled about her, but it's something to be expected as the only daughter among brothers and it wasn't anything that pushed me away from her. She's just not a main character in her own story. I didn't feel lost in the story at all, really. I was able to get the gist of things that happened in past books that played some relevance to this plot. Like I said, it's why I'm wondering if I'm missing some more in-depth backstory into her and Wyatt's relationship and whether that is what pushes this story forward. Because there's nothing really else doing it.Poppy is just there. Nothing really happens to her that causes her to have any kind of character arc. She is the same character at the beginning of the story as she is at the end. She doesn't really have any trials and tribulations to get through. Her most harrowing moments in the story are her cramming herself into the Red Line during Christmas shopping season or waiting in the long line at the deli. The story existed around her; she was not a part of it, and I found that disappointing.I'm going to read the first book in the series, again, to see if I can pick up something that may beef up MURDER ON HOLIDAY LANE a little more. But if it's another book where Poppy exists at the fringes of her own story, I won't be reading more in the series. We shall see.3

The Agent and the Outlaw by Lily Riley

Published: May 19, 2022Publisher: Mystic Owl PressAuthor: WebsiteInfo: Goodreads

The murder of a marquis, an accidental kidnapping, an elite vampire death squad, and a beast stalking the French countryside? All in a day’s work for a member of the les Dames Dangereuses.As the most enviable comtesse of the tonne, Charlotte de Brionne was almost satisfied with her wealth, power, and rather tepid marriage, until her murderous husband betrayed her.Now she has seized the chance to make a more adventurous start with les Dames Dangereuses, an order of women spies in service to the French crown. But her latest assignment is rudely interrupted when she is kidnapped by a crossbow-wielding madman, who turns out to be not at all mad only rather surly and annoyingly handsome.Lieutenant Antoine de Valle has no idea what to make of the exasperating, untrustworthy, and frustratingly beautiful woman he’s suddenly saddled with, but his honor demands he see Charlotte safely home. Especially since it’s his fault she accidentally witnesses his murder of a marquis, ends up on the wrong end of a brutal vampire death squad, and barely survives an encounter with the Beast of Gévaudan.In fact, the more Antoine tries to keep Charlotte safe, the more trouble they find themselves in. And the harder it is for Antoine to remember his honor in the face of Charlotte’s dangerous charms. (goodreads.com)

Yup, the sequel was just as good, if not better, than the first! More saucy interactions, more supernatural shenanigans, and the slowest of the slow burn romances. I'm here for it!Charlotte is a gem and I think I like her even more than Daphne, which is hard as hell because Daphne is a fantastic character. Charlotte's defense mechanism appears to be charm and wit. Whether it's her natural personality, something she learned at court, or a little bit of both, the reader will probably never know. But she's a witty, smart, independent woman who doesn't need no help from no one. Until she does. 😁Antoine is even more brooding than Étienne was, if that's possible. Surly and very much a loner, when he gets saddled with Charlotte with no gentlemanly way to get rid of her, he's doesn't quite know what to do with her. Until he does. 😝 And with only one bed between them, whatever will this clash of characters do?I love how werewolves are handled in THE AGENT AND THE OUTLAW. It doesn't shy away from the curse aspect familiar to the werewolf trope, but when in wolf form, the person retains their human brain and comprehension. Aside from eating raw meat and transforming into a wolf, the monster aspect of the trope is gone. I like that, especially for the world. If it were left in, it really wouldn't have fit with the characters. Although it would have created some rather INTERESTING situations. Granted, this is a paranormal romance, not a horror novel.Les Dames Dangereuses very much reminds me of Brooklyn Ann's Scandals with Bite series from the approach it's taking. Where Ann's female characters were a bit more demure and toeing the line of feminism, Riley's women are full tilt assassins and use their wiles to kill things dead from the get-go. They're also similar in how they flow from one book to the next. Charlotte was a secondary character in book one, where Daphne was the main. Charlotte is now the main in this book and Van Helsing has made appearances in both books. Now it looks like book three will be Van Helsing's book. I very much enjoy the flow here.A wonderful book and a wonderful series. There's at least one more and I can't wait to read it when it comes out!5I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

The Assassin and the Libertine by Lily Riley

Published: October 14, 2021Publisher: City Owl PressAuthor: WebsiteInfo: Goodreads

Daphne de Duras is a proper French duchess by day and fledgling assassin by night. Her latest mission is to dispatch justice and protect the French aristocracy by executing Étienne de Noailles, disgraced former noble, legendary rake, and vampire emissary to the court of King Louis XV.But Étienne’s alleged crime—the gruesome murder of Madame de Pompadour, the King’s mistress and Daphne's friend—doesn’t quite fit the dashing vampire’s nature. With his immortal days suddenly numbered, Étienne needs to convince his would-be executioner not only of his innocence, but that they should hunt the real killer together—a challenge almost as difficult as convincing himself that he isn’t falling for her.Daphne reluctantly agrees to a temporary partnership when Étienne persuades her that something more sinister is afoot. He can, after all, help her find answers in places she’s unable to go alone. And despite her deep loathing for any and all vampires, she can't help but start thinking of a few other places she'd like to go with him. (goodreads.com)

I never go into a book thinking I'm going to dislike it. But I certainly wasn't expecting to love THE ASSASSIN AND THE LIBERTINE the way I did! It's such a wonderfully fun book! I had a hard time putting it down.Daphne is a wonderful character, pushing the boundaries of her role in society to the breaking point only to pull back once again. She's a broken individual who's desperately trying to hold herself together, but comes unraveled in the face of Étienne. Can't say I blame her.Étienne is just as broken of an individual, just in different ways. It's no surprise that he and Daphne are so drawn together. He's very usual in terms of being the vampire love interest for the scorned duchess, but I have to say it's a trope I love. I can't help it. I can read those kinds of vampires all day, and Étienne is no different. He comes off great on page (heh) and I think the chemistry between him and Daphne is spot on. I couldn't look away.The story itself was fantastic, sucking me in from the beginning (heh). I didn't see the plot twist coming, and I found it so fitting once it did. It added a level of sinister to the story and also looped other plot elements in for a more robust tale.I literally have nothing bad to say about THE ASSASSIN AND THE LIBERTINE. I couldn't get enough of it and I want to read more. Luckily, I have book two waiting for me.5I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.