Avery's bookshelf: all en-US Tue, 29 Apr 2025 18:35:48 -0700 60 Avery's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Barbarian's Valentine (Ice Planet Barbarians, #16.5)]]> 43978513
Come and revisit two of your favorite couples from the original Ice Planet Barbarians series!]]> 70 Ruby Dixon Avery 3 3.92 2019 Barbarian's Valentine (Ice Planet Barbarians, #16.5)
author: Ruby Dixon
name: Avery
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/29
date added: 2025/04/29
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis (The Vampire Chronicles, #12)]]> 23267873
It is through this spirit, previously considered benign for thousands of vampire years and throughout the Vampire Chronicles, that we come to be told the hypnotic tale of a great sea power of ancient times; a mysterious heaven on earth situated on a boundless continent--and of how and why, and in what manner and with what far-reaching purpose, this force came to build and rule the great legendary empire of centuries ago that thrived in the Atlantic Ocean.

And as we learn of the mighty, far-reaching powers and perfections of this lost kingdom of Atalantaya, the lost realms of Atlantis, we come to understand its secrets, and how and why the vampire Lestat, indeed all the vampires, must reckon so many millennia later with the terrifying force of this ageless, all-powerful Atalantaya spirit.]]> 480 Anne Rice 0385353790 Avery 4 3.70 2016 Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis (The Vampire Chronicles, #12)
author: Anne Rice
name: Avery
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/28
date added: 2025/04/28
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Gift for Drenol (Ice Planet Barbarians, #16.25)]]> 43322621
A free holiday short story for fans of Ruby Dixon.
Probably meant to be read post Barbarian’s Beloved.]]> 20 Ruby Dixon Avery 5 3.86 2018 A Gift for Drenol (Ice Planet Barbarians, #16.25)
author: Ruby Dixon
name: Avery
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/27
date added: 2025/04/27
shelves:
review:

]]> Old Wounds 205181070
But when they find themselves stranded - and eventually separated - in the creepy woods of rural middle-America, they suddenly have much bigger problems.

First, there’s the creature that, according to legend, feeds on girls, hunting them through the shadows. And then there are the locals, who are searching for a female sacrifice. If either of them hope to survive to see the sunrise, Erin and Max will have to come together and stop running: from their attackers, from each other, and, ultimately, from themselves.]]> 336 Logan-Ashley Kisner 0593814746 Avery 5 4.08 2024 Old Wounds
author: Logan-Ashley Kisner
name: Avery
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/27
date added: 2025/04/27
shelves:
review:

]]> The Absolutist 13414716
But the letters are not the real reason for Tristan's visit. He can no longer keep a secret and has finally found the courage to unburden himself of it. As Tristan recounts the horrific details of what to him became a senseless war, he also speaks of his friendship with Will - from their first meeting on the training grounds at Aldershot to their farewell in the trenches of northern France. The intensity of their bond brought Tristan happiness and self-discovery as well as confusion and unbearable pain.

The Absolutist is a masterful tale of passion, jealousy, heroism, and betrayal set in one of the most gruesome trenches of France during World War I. This novel will keep readers on the edge of their seats until its most extraordinary and unexpected conclusion, and will stay with them long after they've turned the last page.]]> 311 John Boyne Avery 0 currently-reading 4.07 2011 The Absolutist
author: John Boyne
name: Avery
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/27
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Indigo Room (The Shivers Collection, #2)]]> 229214157 New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones.

When the lights go out and the slideshow begins, middle manager Jennifer has a disturbing a headless colleague right across the boardroom table. Is it a trick of the light, or a vision of the future? She tries to brush it off and salvage the afternoon—but when her ex unexpectedly drops off her son at the office after school, suddenly her whole world takes an alarming turn.

Stephen Graham Jones’s The Indigo Room is part of The Shivers, a collection of haunting stories that reveal the otherworldly terrors all around us. Once you know, there’s no going back. Read or listen to each story in one unsettling sitting.]]> 36 Stephen Graham Jones 1662532180 Avery 3 3.02 2025 The Indigo Room (The Shivers Collection, #2)
author: Stephen Graham Jones
name: Avery
average rating: 3.02
book published: 2025
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/25
date added: 2025/04/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Blanks (The Shivers Collection, #3)]]> 229214159 New York Times bestselling author Grady Hendrix’s thrilling short story, one boy can’t look away—and pays the price.

Jeckle Island offers Rachel’s children the chance to spend summers roaming wild and free, as long as they follow the rules. But when her son comes face to face with a terror they dare not speak of, she must prepare for their perfect world to change. Forever.

Grady Hendrix’s The Blanks is part of The Shivers, a collection of haunting stories that reveal the otherworldly terrors all around us. Once you know, there’s no going back. Read or listen to each story in one unsettling sitting.]]> 36 Grady Hendrix 1662532407 Avery 5 4.05 2025 The Blanks (The Shivers Collection, #3)
author: Grady Hendrix
name: Avery
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/25
date added: 2025/04/25
shelves:
review:

]]> The Heart's Invisible Furies 33253215 real Avery or at least that’s what his adoptive parents tell him. And he never will be. But if he isn’t a real Avery, then who is he?

Born out of wedlock to a teenage girl cast out from her rural Irish community and adopted by a well-to-do if eccentric Dublin couple via the intervention of a hunchbacked Redemptorist nun, Cyril is adrift in the world, anchored only tenuously by his heartfelt friendship with the infinitely more glamourous and dangerous Julian Woodbead.

At the mercy of fortune and coincidence, he will spend a lifetime coming to know himself and where he came from � and over his three score years and ten, will struggle to discover an identity, a home, a country and much more.

In this, Boyne's most transcendent work to date, we are shown the story of Ireland from the 1940s to today through the eyes of one ordinary man. The Heart's Invisible Furies is a novel to make you laugh and cry while reminding us all of the redemptive power of the human spirit.]]> 582 John Boyne Avery 3 4.51 2017 The Heart's Invisible Furies
author: John Boyne
name: Avery
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/24
date added: 2025/04/24
shelves:
review:

]]> Diavola 126918202 Jennifer Thorne skewers all-too-familiar family dynamics in this sly, wickedly funny vacation-Gothic. Beautifully unhinged and deeply satisfying, Diavola is a sharp twist on the classic haunted house story, exploring loneliness, belonging, and the seemingly inescapable bonds of family mythology.

Anna has two rules for the annual Pace family destination vacations: Tread lightly and survive.

It isn’t easy when she’s the only one in the family who doesn’t quite fit in. Her twin brother, Benny, goes with the flow so much he’s practically dissolved, and her older sister, Nicole, is so used to everyone—including her blandly docile husband and two kids—falling in line that Anna often ends up in trouble for simply asking a question. Mom seizes every opportunity to question her life choices, and Dad, when not reminding everyone who paid for this vacation, just wants some peace and quiet.

The gorgeous, remote villa in tiny Monteperso seems like a perfect place to endure so much family togetherness, until things start going off the rails—the strange noises at night, the unsettling warnings from the local villagers, and the dark, violent past of the villa itself.

(Warning: May invoke feelings of irritation, dread, and despair that come with large family gatherings.)]]> 296 Jennifer Marie Thorne Avery 0 currently-reading 3.84 2024 Diavola
author: Jennifer Marie Thorne
name: Avery
average rating: 3.84
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/21
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> Under the Eye of the Big Bird 205673377 From one of Japan's most brilliant and sensitive contemporary novelists, this speculative fiction masterpiece envisions an Earth where humans are nearing extinction, and rewrites our understanding of reproduction, ecology, evolution, artificial intelligence, communal life, creation, love, and the future of humanity.

In the distant future, humans are on the verge of extinction and have settled in small tribes across the planet under the observation and care of "Mothers." Some children are made in factories, from cells of rabbits and dolphins; some live by getting nutrients from water and light, like plants. The survival of the race depends on the interbreeding of these and other alien beings--but it is far from certain that connection, love, reproduction, and evolution will persist among the inhabitants of this faltering new world.

Unfolding over fourteen interconnected episodes spanning geological eons, at once technical and pastoral, mournful and utopic, Under the Eye of the Big Bird presents an astonishing vision of the end of our species as we know it.]]> 288 Hiromi Kawakami 1593766114 Avery 0 to-read 3.77 2016 Under the Eye of the Big Bird
author: Hiromi Kawakami
name: Avery
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Barbarian's Beloved (Ice Planet Barbarians, #18)]]> 38460281
But can I convince her that she can be happy in this strange new world with me?

This story explores the long-awaited romance of Ariana and Zolaya. Even though it is a ‘flashback� to the beginning of the Ice Planet Barbarians series, it can be read out of order.]]> 228 Ruby Dixon Avery 4 3.91 2018 Barbarian's Beloved (Ice Planet Barbarians, #18)
author: Ruby Dixon
name: Avery
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2018
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/14
date added: 2025/04/14
shelves:
review:
I'm always nervous when an author tackles anxiety rep. (Pun sort of intended lol) So many times I feel like it misses the mark or comes off quirky. Not in this one, though. It was well written and while I did find her anxiety annoying - it's mostly because minus the crying, my anxious brain likes to play that avalanche game too.
]]> <![CDATA[Influencing Death: Reframing Dying for Better Living]]> 218239198
Death is undeniable and unavoidable. We must accept it; there is no other choice. But coming to terms with our mortality can profoundly influence how we live—and how we die. Having been a hospice nurse for decades, Penny Hawkins Smith is an expert on death and dying. As a recovering alcoholic and former drug addict, she knows what it means to change course and become a meaningful contributor to society. Through her work with death, Penny found her purpose in life.

In Influencing Death, Penny brings transparency and levity to the grim topic of death while revealing truths about the reckless past that influenced her decision to become a hospice nurse. Using down-to-earth, compassionate storytelling, she transports readers into the room with dying people and their families, laying bare the raw and real human emotions and behaviors people have when life and death are hanging in the balance.

Weaving together dual narratives of death and life, Penny challenges us to see how embracing our own mortality—and the mortality of the people we love—can help us live more fully and approach the end of life with greater acceptance, grace, and peace.]]> 224 Penny Hawkins Smith, RN 1959411969 Avery 4 4.44 Influencing Death: Reframing Dying for Better Living
author: Penny Hawkins Smith, RN
name: Avery
average rating: 4.44
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/13
date added: 2025/04/13
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[Morning Glory Milking Farm (Cambric Creek, #1)]]> 123852869
Morning Glory Milking Farm offers full-time hours, full benefits, and generous pay with no experience needed . . . there’s only one catch. The clientele is Grade A certified prime beef, with the manly, meaty endowments to match. Milking minotaurs isn’t something Violet ever considered as a career option, but she’s determined to turn the opportunity into a reversal of fortune.

When a stern, deep-voiced client begins to specially request her for his milking sessions, maintaining her professionalism and keeping him out of her dreams is easier said than done. Violet is resolved to make a dent in her student loans and afford name-brand orange juice, and a one-sided crush on an out-of-her-league minotaur is not a part of her plan—unless her feelings aren’t so one-sided after all.

Morning Glory Milking Farm is a short human/monster romance novel, featuring a high heat slow burn with a lot of heart, and a guaranteed HEA. CWs include: cock milking, non-human anatomy, size difference, and a lot of fluid. It is the first book in the Cambric Creek monster romance series, and can be read as a standalone.]]> 247 C.M. Nascosta 1736546619 Avery 4 3.47 2021 Morning Glory Milking Farm (Cambric Creek, #1)
author: C.M. Nascosta
name: Avery
average rating: 3.47
book published: 2021
rating: 4
read at: 2025/04/12
date added: 2025/04/12
shelves:
review:

]]> Goddess of the River 181865600
A mother and a son. A goddess and a prince. A curse and an oath. A river whose course will change the fate of the world.

Ganga, joyful goddess of the river, serves as caretaker to the mischievous godlings who roam her banks. But when their antics incur the wrath of a powerful sage, Ganga is cursed to become mortal, bound to her human form until she fulfills the obligations of the curse.

Though she knows nothing of mortal life, Ganga weds King Shantanu and becomes a queen, determined to regain her freedom no matter the cost. But in a cruel turn of fate, just as she is freed of her binding, she is forced to leave her infant son behind.

Her son, prince Devavrata, unwittingly carries the legacy of Ganga’s curse. And when he makes an oath that he will never claim his father’s throne, he sets in motion a chain of events that will end in a terrible and tragic war.

As the years unfold, Ganga and Devavrata are drawn together again and again, each confluence another step on a path that has been written in the stars, in this deeply moving and masterful tale of duty, destiny, and the unwavering bond between mother and son.]]> 496 Vaishnavi Patel 035652020X Avery 3 3.77 2024 Goddess of the River
author: Vaishnavi Patel
name: Avery
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2024
rating: 3
read at: 2025/04/11
date added: 2025/04/11
shelves:
review:
I loved this author's first book and really wanted to love this one too. I felt that the pace was slower an the characters not as well fleshed out. It dragged on a bit and in parts even made war seem a bit boring. I will read her next one but it'll be the tie breaker for if I continue to 'auto' buy her books.
]]> The Spirit Bares Its Teeth 89144437 Mors vincit omnia. Death conquers all.

London, 1883. The Veil between the living and dead has thinned. Violet-eyed mediums commune with spirits under the watchful eye of the Royal Speaker Society, and sixteen-year-old Silas Bell would rather rip out his violet eyes than become an obedient Speaker wife. According to Mother, he’ll be married by the end of the year. It doesn’t matter that he’s needed a decade of tutors to hide his autism; that he practices surgery on slaughtered pigs; that he is a boy, not the girl the world insists on seeing.

After a failed attempt to escape an arranged marriage, Silas is diagnosed with Veil sickness—a mysterious disease sending violet-eyed women into madness—and shipped away to Braxton’s Sanitorium and Finishing School. The facility is cold, the instructors merciless, and the students either bloom into eligible wives or disappear. So when the ghosts of missing students start begging Silas for help, he decides to reach into Braxton’s innards and expose its rotten guts to the world—as long as the school doesn’t break him first.]]> 399 Andrew Joseph White 1682636186 Avery 5 4.48 2023 The Spirit Bares Its Teeth
author: Andrew Joseph White
name: Avery
average rating: 4.48
book published: 2023
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/10
date added: 2025/04/10
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Survivor Wants to Die at the End (Death-Cast, #2)]]> 199531917
Paz Dario stays up every night, waiting for the Death-Cast call that would mean he doesn’t have to keep faking his way through this lonely life. After a devastating day, Paz decides he’s done waiting around for Death-Cast. If they say he’s not dying, he’ll just have to prove them wrong. But right before Paz can die, a boy saves his life.

Alano Rosa is heir to the Death-Cast empire that encourages everyone to live their best lives, but he doesn’t feel in control of his own existence thanks to his father. And with a violent organization called the Death Guard threatening Alano, his End Day might be closer than he thinks. It’s time to live.

Fate brings Paz and Alano together, but it’s now up to the boys to survive the tragic trials ahead so no one dies at the end.

This book contains themes that some readers may find difficult.]]> 720 Adam Silvera 0063240858 Avery 0 to-read 4.05 2025 The Survivor Wants to Die at the End (Death-Cast, #2)
author: Adam Silvera
name: Avery
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/04/07
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Burning Passion 220260452 It's Halloween, and the only thing more frightening than my stalker is the two hot but terrifying psychopaths who show me more treats than tricks.

When a haunted house turns into the sexiest night of my life, I don't expect to see Haz again. I certainly don't expect his best friend Zack to kidnap me.
The two men promise me to save me from my stalker, even as they hurt and dominate me in ways that make me scream ... with pleasure.
But when my past catches up to me, it's not just my heart in danger--it's my life.

***
This is a MFM dark romance that contains adult themes ]]> 104 Lily Prince Avery 2 3.57 Burning Passion
author: Lily Prince
name: Avery
average rating: 3.57
book published:
rating: 2
read at:
date added: 2025/04/04
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Rafael (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #28)]]> 55248282 Rafael, king of the wererats, must fight to the death to defend his crown. He wants Anita Blake, one of his closest allies, with him as he faces an opponent unlike any he’s faced before. He will ask Anita to risk everything to be at his side.�

But some of the wererats fear that Rafael depends too much on Anita and her ties to the vampires. They believe that there is only room in America for one supernatural king, and Rafael will turn them into nothing more than food for the bloodsuckers.

Among his enemies, a new challenger has arisen who is younger, hungrier, and has dark secrets that could destroy both the wererats and the vampires. Rafael will go into the magical heart of his people to find the power and violence that he needs to save them all, or die trying.
]]> 258 Laurell K. Hamilton 0593332911 Avery 5 4.04 2021 Rafael (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #28)
author: Laurell K. Hamilton
name: Avery
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2025/04/01
date added: 2025/04/01
shelves:
review:
I FINALLY caught up to where the series is, and the next book doesn't come out for weeks! I'm definitely going to miss reading one of these a month as I did while I was catching up on the series! I need Smolder NOW!!
]]> Astray (Gated, #2) 19085549
The Community is willing to do terrible things to bring her back to the fold. The members are still preaching Pioneer’s twisted message that the end of the world is near. Pulled in two directions and unsure which way to turn, Lyla risks everything to follow her heart, but can she uncover the Community’s plan before it’s too late?]]> 352 Amy Christine Parker 0449816028 Avery 2 3.88 2014 Astray (Gated, #2)
author: Amy Christine Parker
name: Avery
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2014
rating: 2
read at: 2025/03/27
date added: 2025/03/27
shelves:
review:
After reading the first in this pair, I was excited for the second. I was excited for Lyla to get closure and she eventually does but some parts of this one seem drawn out for no reason other than to fill up pages. I know deprograming is a long process but I don't feel like we see a lot of that. By the end she says she gets it but I'm not sure she does.
]]> The Twisted Ones 42527596 When a young woman clears out her deceased grandmother’s home in rural North Carolina, she finds long-hidden secrets about a strange colony of beings in the woods.

When Mouse’s dad asks her to clean out her dead grandmother's house, she says yes. After all, how bad could it be?

Answer: pretty bad. Grandma was a hoarder, and her house is stuffed with useless rubbish. That would be horrific enough, but there’s more—Mouse stumbles across her step-grandfather’s journal, which at first seems to be filled with nonsensical rants…until Mouse encounters some of the terrifying things he described for herself.

Alone in the woods with her dog, Mouse finds herself face to face with a series of impossible terrors—because sometimes the things that go bump in the night are real, and they’re looking for you. And if she doesn’t face them head on, she might not survive to tell the tale.

From Hugo Award–winning author Ursula Vernon, writing as T. Kingfisher.]]> 385 T. Kingfisher 1534429573 Avery 0 to-read 3.60 2019 The Twisted Ones
author: T. Kingfisher
name: Avery
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Crow King's Heir (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga #8)]]> 52801840
His omega runs smack dab into him while racing through the forest clutching his sister to his chest like the hounds of Frost are after him. There’s no time for these true-mates to slow down if they’re going to free Micah Gilmore and return peace to the Raven Hallow Wolf Pack once and for all.

Silas Crowise is in over his head. Discovered saving children left for dead in the forest he goes on the run taking his best friend with him. Once the pair reaches safety the battle’s only begun. His father and enemy, Brone, have allies he nor his Hemlock friends never imagined. Silas is determined to lead his people out of dark times, but will have to use all his strength, cunning, and every unconventional method he can think of to spare as many of his pack as possible.

Will love be enough to see Silas, Kodiak, and their families through the battles ahead?]]> 285 Maggie Hemlock Avery 5 4.43 The Crow King's Heir (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga #8)
author: Maggie Hemlock
name: Avery
average rating: 4.43
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/25
date added: 2025/03/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Bloody Bones (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #5)]]> 30241 336 Laurell K. Hamilton 0425205673 Avery 5 4.13 1996 Bloody Bones (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter, #5)
author: Laurell K. Hamilton
name: Avery
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1996
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/23
date added: 2025/03/23
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story]]> 40984365 A heart-wrenching, eye-opening, and giggle-inducing memoir about what it's like to grow up not sure if you're (a) a boy, (b) a girl, (c) something in between, or (d) all of the above.

From the moment a doctor in Raleigh, North Carolina, put "male" on Jacob Tobia's birth certificate, everything went wrong. Alongside "male" came many other, far less neutral words: words that carried expectations about who Jacob was and who Jacob should be, words like "masculine" and "aggressive" and "cargo shorts" and "SPORTS!"

Naturally sensitive, playful, creative, and glitter-obsessed, as a child Jacob was given the label "sissy." In the two decades that followed, "sissy" joined forces with "gay," "trans," "nonbinary," and "too-queer-to-function" to become a source of pride and, today, a rallying cry for a much-needed gender revolution. Through revisiting their childhood and calling out the stereotypes that each of us have faced, Jacob invites us to rethink what we know about gender and offers a bold blueprint for a healed world--one free from gender-based trauma and bursting with trans-inclusive feminism.

From Jacob's Methodist childhood and the hallowed halls of Duke University to the portrait-laden parlors of the White House, Sissy takes you on a gender odyssey you won't soon forget. Writing with the fierce honesty, wildly irreverent humor, and wrenching vulnerability that have made them a media sensation, Jacob shatters the long-held notion that people are easily sortable into "men" and "women." Sissy guarantees that you'll never think about gender--both other people's people's and your own--the same way again.]]> 319 Jacob Tobia 073521882X Avery 3 4.07 2019 Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story
author: Jacob Tobia
name: Avery
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2019
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/21
date added: 2025/03/21
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sunrise on the Reaping (The Hunger Games, #0.5)]]> 214331246 When you’ve been set up to lose everything you love, what is there left to fight for?

As the day dawns on the fiftieth annual Hunger Games, fear grips the districts of Panem. This year, in honor of the Quarter Quell, twice as many tributes will be taken from their homes.

Back in District 12, Haymitch Abernathy is trying not to think too hard about his chances. All he cares about is making it through the day and being with the girl he loves.

When Haymitch’s name is called, he can feel all his dreams break. He’s torn from his family and his love, shuttled to the Capitol with the three other District 12 tributes: a young friend who’s nearly a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in town. As the Games begin, Haymitch understands he’s been set up to fail. But there’s something in him that wants to fight . . . and have that fight reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.]]> 387 Suzanne Collins 1546171460 Avery 5 4.62 2025 Sunrise on the Reaping (The Hunger Games, #0.5)
author: Suzanne Collins
name: Avery
average rating: 4.62
book published: 2025
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/19
date added: 2025/03/19
shelves:
review:
I loved this and hope to write a review once I have some more time to process it all.
]]> In Case You Read This 217896236
Arden isn’t excited about moving. Los Angeles was an easy place to fit in and find a supportive queer community. But Winifred, Michigan? That sounds like a much more difficult place to exist.

Pasadena, California, is the perfect city for Gabe’s reinvention. Everyone knew everything about him in small-town Shelby, Illinois. Gabe, who wants to be out and proud, can’t wait to relocate.

When Arden and Gabe randomly meet in the lobby of a motel in Nebraska, it feels like fate. Both are trans, but more importantly, both are huge fans of the band Damaged Pixie Dream Boi. Clearly, the universe is trying to tell them something. Right?

But after an incredible evening of hanging out, the pair part ways only knowing the other’s first name. And as both boys struggle to adjust to their new homes, their thoughts keep being drawn back to their time together. Is one perfect night enough to bring Arden and Gabe back to each other, or will the boys need some help to find each other again?]]> 368 Edward Underhill 0063373777 Avery 0 to-read 3.79 2025 In Case You Read This
author: Edward Underhill
name: Avery
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Omega Rebellion (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga, #7)]]> 48611247 Alpha, Micah Gilmore, loves the finer things in life. A good time, a warm body to keep him company on a long night and basking in the adoration of his fans. When he meets his true-mate his illusions of the world being a fair and kind place are shattered and Micah must decide whether to protect his own or aid in a plot to change the destiny of a whole pack.
With war and revolution hanging in the balance will Micah and Cody’s love be enough to see them through the hard times ahead?
]]> 118 Maggie Hemlock Avery 5 4.12 Omega Rebellion (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga, #7)
author: Maggie Hemlock
name: Avery
average rating: 4.12
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/17
date added: 2025/03/17
shelves: dark-and-twisty, family-relationships, fantasy, gay-romance, ghosts, mpreg, shifters
review:

]]> Gated (Gated, #1) 15752340
Appearances can be deceiving.

In the Community, life seems perfect. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Pioneer invited Lyla’s family to join his group and escape the evil in the world. They were happy to be chosen, happy to move away from New York and start over in such an idyllic gated community. Now seventeen, Lyla knows that Pioneer is more than just their charismatic leader, he is their prophet . . . but his visions have grown dark.

Lyla is a loyal member of the Community, but a chance encounter with an outsider boy has her questioning Pioneer, the Community—everything. And if there’s one thing not allowed in the Community, it’s doubt. Her family and friends are certain in their belief. Lyla wishes she could feel the same. As Pioneer begins to manipulate his flock toward disaster, the question remains: Will Lyla follow them over the edge?

From the outside looking in, it’s hard to understand why anyone would join a cult. But Gated tells the story of the Community from the inside looking out, and from behind the gates things are not quite so simple. Amy Christine Parker’s beautiful writing creates a chilling, utterly unique YA story. Perfect for fans of creepy thrillers and contemporary fiction alike.]]> 352 Amy Christine Parker 0449815978 Avery 4
At first, I wasn't sure what I would think of this duology now but I was pleasantly surprised. That feels strange to say about this book.

I want to say I don't know how people could be so easily tricked but then I look at the current state of the country and know they can be - even if I don't know the how. In that way, this book rang very true to human nature. It was twisty and full of people gaslighting the MC and being gaslit themselves.

4 stars because I wish some of the characters were a little more fleshed out. I will be reading the other one. ]]> 3.75 2013 Gated (Gated, #1)
author: Amy Christine Parker
name: Avery
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/16
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves:
review:
I don't know what I was thinking when I bought this one. It was years ago. At least 8 years ago? I'm currently working my way through all the books I've collected over the years and either reading or unhauling them.

At first, I wasn't sure what I would think of this duology now but I was pleasantly surprised. That feels strange to say about this book.

I want to say I don't know how people could be so easily tricked but then I look at the current state of the country and know they can be - even if I don't know the how. In that way, this book rang very true to human nature. It was twisty and full of people gaslighting the MC and being gaslit themselves.

4 stars because I wish some of the characters were a little more fleshed out. I will be reading the other one.
]]> <![CDATA[Prince Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles, #11)]]> 21412673 458 Anne Rice 0307962520 Avery 5 a-partial-series-owned 3.80 2014 Prince Lestat (The Vampire Chronicles, #11)
author: Anne Rice
name: Avery
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/16
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: a-partial-series-owned
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar, #1)]]> 13986 Follows the adventures of Talia as she trains to become a Herald of Valdemar in the first book in the classic epic fantasy Arrows trilogy

Chosen by the Companion Rolan, a mystical horse-like being with powers beyond imagining, Talia, once a runaway, has now become a trainee Herald, destined to become one of the Queen's own elite guard. For Talia has certain awakening talents of the mind that only a Companion like Rolan can truly sense.

But as Talia struggles to master her unique abilities, time is running out. For conspiracy is brewing in Valdemar, a deadly treason that could destroy Queen and kingdom. Opposed by unknown enemies capable of both diabolical magic and treacherous assassination, the Queen must turn to Talia and the Heralds for aid in protecting the realm and insuring the future of the Queen's heir, a child already in danger of becoming bespelled by the Queen's own foes.]]> 320 Mercedes Lackey 0886773784 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.13 1987 Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar, #1)
author: Mercedes Lackey
name: Avery
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1987
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Braveheart 1105093 For love of country, for love of maiden, for love of freedom ... he became the hammer and scourge of England.

In one of history's darkest hours there arose from humble beginnings a man of courage and honor—the likes of whom the world may never see again. Amid the color, pageantry, and violence of medieval Scotland unfurls the resplendent tale of the legendary William Wallace, farmer by birth, rebel by fate, who banded together his valiant army of Scots to crush the cruel tyranny of the English Plantagenet king.

Mel Gibson is William Wallace, the valiant highlander whose epic adventures changed the course of history.]]> 288 Randall Wallace 0671522817 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.22 1995 Braveheart
author: Randall Wallace
name: Avery
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1995
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> It's Kind of a Funny Story 248704
Craig's suicidal episode gets him checked into a mental hospital, where his new neighbors include a transsexual sex addict, a girl who has scarred her own face with scissors, and the self-elected President Armelio. There, Craig is finally able to confront the sources of his anxiety.

Ned Vizzini, who himself spent time in a psychiatric hospital, has created a remarkably moving tale about the sometimes unexpected road to happiness.]]> 444 Ned Vizzini 078685197X Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.08 2006 It's Kind of a Funny Story
author: Ned Vizzini
name: Avery
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Magdalen Rising: The Beginning (Maeve Chronicles, #1)]]> 358489
"This amazing book could well become a classic of women's literature."—Booklist, named one of the "Year's Ten Best Fantasy Books"

Young Magdalen and Jesus, brimming with youthful charm and arrogance, find each other and fall in love, forging a bond that is stronger than death. Their pleasure is overshadowed by a brilliant but unbalanced druid who knows a perilous secret about Maeve's past. The prequel to The Passion of Mary Magdalen.]]> 416 Elizabeth Cunningham 0976684322 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.28 2000 Magdalen Rising: The Beginning (Maeve Chronicles, #1)
author: Elizabeth Cunningham
name: Avery
average rating: 4.28
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Shadowland (The Mediator, #1) 187811 287 Jenny Carroll 0060725117 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.05 2000 Shadowland (The Mediator, #1)
author: Jenny Carroll
name: Avery
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Pandora (New Tales of the Vampires, #1)]]> 31343
The novel opens in present-day Paris in a crowded café, where David meets Pandora. She is two thousand years old, a Child of the Millennia, the first vampire ever made by the great Marius. David persuades her to tell the story of her life.

Pandora begins, reluctantly at first and then with increasing passion, to recount her mesmerizing tale, which takes us through the ages, from Imperial Rome to eighteenth-century France to twentieth-century Paris and New Orleans. She carries us back to her mortal girlhood in the world of Caesar Augustus, a world chronicled by Ovid and Petronius. This is where Pandora meets and falls in love with the handsome, charismatic, lighthearted, still-mortal Marius. This is the Rome she is forced to flee in fear of assassination by conspirators plotting to take over the city. And we follow her to the exotic port of Antioch, where she is destined to be reunited with Marius, now immortal and haunted by his vampire nature, who will bestow on her the Dark Gift as they set out on the fraught and fantastic adventure of their two turbulent centuries together.]]> 383 Anne Rice 8466302948 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.82 1998 Pandora (New Tales of the Vampires, #1)
author: Anne Rice
name: Avery
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Gregor the Overlander (Underland Chronicles, #1)]]> 262430 The story of a boy who embarks on a dangerous quest in order to fulfill his destiny -- and find his father -- in a strange world beneath New York City.
When Gregor falls through a grate in the laundry room of his apartment building, he hurtles into the dark Underland, where spiders, rats, cockroaches coexist uneasily with humans. This world is on the brink of war, and Gregor's arrival is no accident. A prophecy foretells that Gregor has a role to play in the Underland's uncertain future. Gregor wants no part of it -- until he realizes it's the only way to solve the mystery of his father's disappearance. Reluctantly, Gregor embarks on a dangerous adventure that will change both him and the Underland forever.]]> 326 Suzanne Collins 043977134X Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.04 2003 Gregor the Overlander (Underland Chronicles, #1)
author: Suzanne Collins
name: Avery
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sandry's Book (Circle of Magic, #1)]]> 58889 252 Tamora Pierce 0590554085 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.02 1997 Sandry's Book (Circle of Magic, #1)
author: Tamora Pierce
name: Avery
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in His Adventure on Earth (E.T., #1)]]> 225706 247 William Kotzwinkle 0425054535 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.20 1982 E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial in His Adventure on Earth (E.T., #1)
author: William Kotzwinkle
name: Avery
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1982
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Dances with Wolves 543339
Set in 1863, the novel follows Lieutenant John Dunbar on a magical journey from the ravages of the Civil War to the far reaches of the imperiled American frontier, a frontier he naively wants to see "before it is gone".]]> 304 Michael Blake 0449000753 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.24 1988 Dances with Wolves
author: Michael Blake
name: Avery
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1988
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Beowulf 52357 259 Unknown 0393320979 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.46 1000 Beowulf
author: Unknown
name: Avery
average rating: 3.46
book published: 1000
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (The Wicked Years, #1)]]> 37442 When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

]]> 406 Gregory Maguire 0060987103 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.52 1995 Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (The Wicked Years, #1)
author: Gregory Maguire
name: Avery
average rating: 3.52
book published: 1995
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness, #1)]]> 13831 From now on I'm Alan of Trebond, the younger twin. I'll be a knight.

And so young Alanna of Trebond begins the journey to knighthood. Though a girl, Alanna has always craved the adventure and daring allowed only for boys; her twin brother, Thom, yearns to learn the art of magic. So one day they decide to switch places: Thom heads for the convent to learn magic; Alanna, pretending to be a boy, is on her way to the castle of King Roald to begin her training as a page.

But the road to knighthood is not an easy one. As Alanna masters the skills necessary for battle, she must also learn to control her heart and to discern her enemies from her allies.

Filled with swords and sorcery, adventure and intrigue, good and evil, Alanna's first adventure begins - one that will lead to the fulfillment of her dreams and the magical destiny that will make her a legend in her land.

]]> 274 Tamora Pierce 0689878559 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.28 1983 Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness, #1)
author: Tamora Pierce
name: Avery
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1983
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Inferno 15645
A groundbreaking bilingual edition of Dante's masterpiece that includes a substantive Introduction, extensive notes, and appendixes that reproduce Dante's key sources and influences. Of the great poets, Dante is one of the most elusive and therefore one of the most difficult to adequately render into English verse. With this major new translation, Anthony Esolen has succeeded brilliantly in marrying sense with sound, poetry with meaning, capturing both the poem's line-by-line vigor and its allegorically and philosophically exacting structure, yielding an Inferno that will be as popular with general readers as with scholars, teachers, and students. For, as Dante insists, without a trace of sentimentality or intellectual compromise, even Hell is a work of divine art.

Esolen's edition also provides a critical ntroduction and endnotes, with appendices containing Dante's most important sources—from Virgil to Saint Thomas Aquinas and beyond —that deftly illuminate the religious universe the poet inhabited.

Verse Translation by Anthony Esolen
Illustrations by Gustave Doré]]> 490 Dante Alighieri 0812970063 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.02 1320 Inferno
author: Dante Alighieri
name: Avery
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1320
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Thirteen Reasons Why 29844228 You can’t stop the future.
You can’t rewind the past.
The only way to learn the secret . . . is to press play.

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a strange package with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks earlier. Hannah’s voice tells him that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out why.

Clay spends the night crisscrossing his town with Hannah as his guide. He becomes a firsthand witness to Hannah’s pain, and as he follows Hannah’s recorded words throughout his town, what he discovers changes his life forever.]]> 352 Jay Asher 1595147888 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.71 2007 Thirteen Reasons Why
author: Jay Asher
name: Avery
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> The Neverending Story 27712
The story begins with a lonely boy named Bastian and the strange book that draws him into the beautiful but doomed world of Fantastica. Only a human can save this enchanted place by giving its ruler, the Childlike Empress, a new name. But the journey to her tower leads through lands of dragons, giants, monsters, and magic, and once Bastian begins his quest, he may never return. As he is drawn deeper into Fantastica, he must find the courage to face unspeakable foes and the mysteries of his own heart.

Readers, too, can travel to the wondrous, unforgettable world of Fantastica if they will just turn the page...]]> 396 Michael Ende 0525457585 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.16 1979 The Neverending Story
author: Michael Ende
name: Avery
average rating: 4.16
book published: 1979
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> The Joy Luck Club 7763 Alternate cover editions of ISBN 9780143038092 can be found here.

Four mothers, four daughters, four families, whose histories shift with the four winds depending on who's telling the stories. In 1949, four Chinese women, recent immigrants to San Francisco, meet weekly to play mahjong and tell stories of what they left behind in China. United in loss and new hope for their daughters' futures, they call themselves the Joy Luck Club. Their daughters, who have never heard these stories, think their mothers' advice is irrelevant to their modern American lives � until their own inner crises reveal how much they've unknowingly inherited of their mothers' pasts.

With wit and sensitivity, Amy Tan examines the sometimes painful, often tender, and always deep connection between mothers and daughters. As each woman reveals her secrets, trying to unravel the truth about her life, the strings become more tangled, more entwined. Mothers boast or despair over daughters, and daughters roll their eyes even as they feel the inextricable tightening of their matriarchal ties. Tan is an astute storyteller, enticing readers to immerse themselves into these lives of complexity and mystery.]]> 288 Amy Tan Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.96 1989 The Joy Luck Club
author: Amy Tan
name: Avery
average rating: 3.96
book published: 1989
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> A Brief History of Time 3869
Told in language we all can understand, A Brief History of Time plunges into the exotic realms of black holes and quarks, of antimatter and “arrows of time,� of the big bang and a bigger God—where the possibilities are wondrous and unexpected. With exciting images and profound imagination, Stephen Hawking brings us closer to the ultimate secrets at the very heart of creation.]]> 226 Stephen Hawking 0553380168 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 4.22 1988 A Brief History of Time
author: Stephen Hawking
name: Avery
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1988
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> For Whom the Bell Tolls 46170 For Whom the Bell Tolls. The story of Robert Jordan, a young American in the International Brigades attached to an antifascist guerilla unit in the mountains of Spain, it tells of loyalty and courage, love and defeat, and the tragic death of an ideal. In his portrayal of Jordan's love for the beautiful Maria and his superb account of El Sordo's last stand, in his brilliant travesty of La Pasionaria and his unwillingness to believe in blind faith, Hemingway surpasses his achievement in The Sun Also Rises and A Farewell to Arms to create a work at once rare and beautiful, strong and brutal, compassionate, moving and wise. "If the function of a writer is to reveal reality," Maxwell Perkins wrote to Hemingway after reading the manuscript, "no one ever so completely performed it." Greater in power, broader in scope, and more intensely emotional than any of the author's previous works, it stands as one of the best war novels of all time.]]> 471 Ernest Hemingway Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.98 1940 For Whom the Bell Tolls
author: Ernest Hemingway
name: Avery
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1940
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Death of a Salesman 12898 'For a salesman, there is no rock bottom to life. He don't put a bolt to a nut, he don't tell you the law or give you medicine. He's a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine.'

Willy Loman has been a salesman for 34 years. At 60, he is cast aside, his usefulness now exhausted. With no future to dream about he must face the crushing disappointments of his past. He takes one final brave action, but is he heroic at last?, or a self-deluding fool?]]> 144 Arthur Miller 0435233076 Avery 0 to-read, sweet-romance 3.57 1949 Death of a Salesman
author: Arthur Miller
name: Avery
average rating: 3.57
book published: 1949
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/16
shelves: to-read, sweet-romance
review:

]]> Trap Line: A Short Story 228823648 An engineer’s groundbreaking solo mission is rudely interrupted when he stumbles into an interstellar trap. The New York Times bestselling author of the Thrawn trilogy is back with a wholly original short story of first contact.

En route to far-off stars, Toby’s consciousness has a crucial inhabit his clone long enough to repair a spaceship, then zip back to Earth. He’s done it a million times, more or less. OK, twelve times. It should only take a few hours.

Until he wakes up in jail. And he’s not alone.

His fellow a cadre of alien soldiers. His an ethereal boundary that will imprison their spirits until their bodies die. His jailers can’t even see him. But their pet cat (er, iguana cat?) can—and it’s got a serious case of the zoomies.

With humanity’s place in the odd and ever-widening universe riding on Toby’s choices, it’s time to saddle up for a ghostly game of cat and mouse.]]> Timothy Zahn Avery 3
I was in love with this premise and pulled in by the idea of a lizard-cat. What can I say? A cat of any sort is a good addition to most stories. With that said, 2/3 stars I'm giving this book is for the cat because for me the delivery of the story was flat. Being stuck out of body is a concept that's been explored throughout a lot of mediums and I think in this case could've been explored more thoroughly with the other prisoners Toby wakes up locked in with. I know short stories don't go that deep but this story didn't leave me wanting more - it left me feeling as there wasn't much there at all.
]]> 3.73 Trap Line: A Short Story
author: Timothy Zahn
name: Avery
average rating: 3.73
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/15
date added: 2025/03/15
shelves:
review:
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

I was in love with this premise and pulled in by the idea of a lizard-cat. What can I say? A cat of any sort is a good addition to most stories. With that said, 2/3 stars I'm giving this book is for the cat because for me the delivery of the story was flat. Being stuck out of body is a concept that's been explored throughout a lot of mediums and I think in this case could've been explored more thoroughly with the other prisoners Toby wakes up locked in with. I know short stories don't go that deep but this story didn't leave me wanting more - it left me feeling as there wasn't much there at all.

]]> <![CDATA[My Blood Is Yours (The Summoning #1)]]> 228552296 This novella features explicit *spicy* content and is intended for audiences 18+ only.

“Look at what you do to me, Elowen. No one holds a candle to you. Even in this hellish place, you bring me to heights I’ve never known.�
____

A glistening bead of sweat trails between the gloriously sculpted plains of his chest as he gifts me a crooked grin.

“You are the embodiment of perfection, Elowen.�

A grin curls my lips as my gaze holds his and my hands wrap around him.

“Such a good boy.�
____

The Summoning (sum-mon-ning) A pivotal life event experienced by all daemon males or dominants when they and their soulbound come of age. This Summoning urges them—mind, body, and spirit—to unite. Intense side effects may include, but are not limited heightened emotions, uncontrollable arousal, dizziness, dream walking, an increase in fluids, and an insatiable thirst and hunger for their soulbound in a variety of intimate ways that cannot be listed here (please reference the book). Some effects may be painful.

Sariel
Born in Hell, I have waited millennia for my soulbound. Now, after crossing realms to find her, the only things standing in my way are a mad doctor, a dungeon cell, and magic-suppressing shackles. Anyone who enters my cell puts their life in my merciless hands.

That is until Elowen—a delicate human female—is assigned to my care. I would know even by scent alone that she belongs to me. The moment I break free of these manacles, I will rightfully claim her as mine.

Elowen
I’ve dreamed of Sariel for three years. I know him as intimately as I know myself. So when Dr. Forsythe assigns me to care for the daemon, I’m not afraid of the massive, horned, and winged male—I’m exhilarated. Because I know, without a doubt, he is mine.

Tropes
Spicy & sweet meets gothic romantasy
Fated mates
Captured by a mad scientist
Bondage
MMC In shackles
FMC tasked w/ his care (including obtaining his s3m3n samples)
Touch him/her & become a c0rpse
HEA guaranteed
Traverses the realms to find her
Cinnamon roll only for her
Fast burn
Dom/sub dynamics
Dual POV
Unique world & magic system
Enough k!nk & spice to set your undergarments aflame
Morally grey MCs
All the banter
All the feels

Trigger Warnings
Copious amounts of s3minal fuid
Captivity (of the MMC)
Violence & gore
Highly explicit descriptions of numerous sexual acts
C_m play
Cr3am p3s
Gagging
Knotting
Claiming/marking
Dom/sub/switch dynamics
Discussion of mental health
Discussion of the death of a parent]]> 224 Chiara Forestieri Avery 0 to-read 3.67 2025 My Blood Is Yours (The Summoning #1)
author: Chiara Forestieri
name: Avery
average rating: 3.67
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Wicked Beasts 228213270
A gothic paranormal romance inspired by Beauty & the Beast and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde.]]> Shelley Leigh Crane Avery 0 to-read 4.89 Wicked Beasts
author: Shelley Leigh Crane
name: Avery
average rating: 4.89
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Fine, I'm a Terrible Person 223439309 274 Lisa F. Rosenberg 1960573675 Avery 0 to-read 3.94 Fine, I'm a Terrible Person
author: Lisa F. Rosenberg
name: Avery
average rating: 3.94
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Boys with Sharp Teeth 208840739 We Were Liars meets The Raven Boys in this mind-bending YA debut about dark revenge, twisted desire, and the sinister secrets lurking behind the walls of an elite boarding school.

Seventeen-year-old Marin James has spent her entire life living in the shadow of the exclusive Huntsworth Academy. And when her cousin’s dead body is found in a creek on school property, Marin knows exactly who’s to blame: Adrian Hargraves and Henry Wu, the enigmatic yet dangerously alluring leaders of the school's social elite.

Swapping her ripped jeans for a crisp prep school skirt, Marin infiltrates Huntsworth to seek justice. But her quest is quickly muddied by a confusing attraction to her new life, and to the two dysfunctional and depraved boys who somehow understand her better than anyone ever has.

When Marin uncovers an otherworldly secret the boys are hiding within Huntsworth's ivied gates, the lines between right and wrong, love and hate, and nightmare and reality begin to crumble -- and nothing is as it seems.

Welcome to Huntsworth Academy.]]> 400 Jenni Howell 1250334594 Avery 0 to-read 3.39 2025 Boys with Sharp Teeth
author: Jenni Howell
name: Avery
average rating: 3.39
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Ghostwriter 217506549 368 Julie Clark 1464221286 Avery 0 to-read 4.25 2025 The Ghostwriter
author: Julie Clark
name: Avery
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Annie Bot 215989058
She’s learning, too.

Doug says he loves that Annie’s artificial intelligence makes her seem more like a real woman, but the more human Annie becomes, the less perfectly she behaves. As Annie's relationship with Doug grows more intricate and difficult, she starts to wonder whether Doug truly desires what he says he does. In such an impossible paradox, what does Annie owe herself?]]> 240 Sierra Greer 0063312700 Avery 0 to-read 3.91 2024 Annie Bot
author: Sierra Greer
name: Avery
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2024
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Great Gatsby 4671 The only edition of the beloved classic that is authorized by Fitzgerald’s family and from his lifelong publisher.

This edition is the enduring original text, updated with the author’s own revisions, a foreword by his granddaughter, and with a new introduction by National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward.

The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s third book, stands as the supreme achievement of his career. First published by Scribner in 1925, this quintessential novel of the Jazz Age has been acclaimed by generations of readers. The story of the mysteriously wealthy Jay Gatsby and his love for the beautiful Daisy Buchanan is an exquisitely crafted tale of America in the 1920s.]]> 180 F. Scott Fitzgerald 0743273567 Avery 0 to-read 3.93 1925 The Great Gatsby
author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
name: Avery
average rating: 3.93
book published: 1925
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Of Flame and Fury 215700931 Fourth Wing meets Iron Widow in this enemies-to-lovers romantic fantasy by debut author Mikayla Bridge. The hottest must-read of the summer!

On an island built from ash and shrouded in fire, phoenix racing is a sport just as profitable as it is deadly.

Seventeen-year-old Kel Varra and her team of underdogs, the Crimson Howlers, are desperate to win the annual races and the fortune that comes with it. But the Howlers need a new rider, which leads Kel to join forces with Warren “Coup� Coupers � an arrogant rival she can’t get out of her head.

As tensions rise on and off the track, Kel's home is mistakenly burned down, and she’s forced to take a job from a mysterious tech mogul with an unsettling interest in her phoenix, Savita. This sets in motion a conspiracy that threatens everyone Kel cares for, especially Coup, for whom her embers of resentment are quickly igniting into something dangerously new.

Heart-pounding pages full of steamy romance, fiery confessions, political scheming, and volatile magic culminate ina final twist readers will never see coming.]]> 416 Mikayla Bridge 0374393427 Avery 0 to-read 4.25 2025 Of Flame and Fury
author: Mikayla Bridge
name: Avery
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Amalfi Curse 218674082 “Sarah Penner transported me to the sea-swept cliffs of Positano and introduced me to characters I’ll never forget. A magical read!�
�Emilia Hart, New York Times bestselling author of The Sirens

Powerful witchcraft. A hunt for sunken treasure. Forbidden love on the high seas. Beware the Amalfi Curse�

Haven Ambrose, a trailblazing nautical archaeologist, has come to the sun-soaked village of Positano to investigate the mysterious shipwrecks along the Amalfi Coast. But Haven is hoping to find more than old artifacts beneath the azure waters; she is secretly on a quest to locate a trove of priceless gemstones her late father spotted on his final dive. Upon Haven’s arrival, strange maelstroms and misfortunes start plaguing the town. Is it nature or something more sinister at work?

As Haven searches for her father’s sunken treasure, she begins to unearth a centuries-old tale of ancient sorcery and one woman’s quest to save her lover and her village by using the legendary art of stregheria, a magical ability to harness the ocean. Could this magic be behind Positano’s latest calamities? Haven must unravel the Amalfi Curse before the region is destroyed forever�

Against the dazzling backdrop of the Amalfi Coast, this bewitching novel shimmers with mystery, romance and the untamed magic of the sea.
Ìý±Õ±Õ> 336 Sarah Penner 0778308006 Avery 0 to-read 4.24 2025 The Amalfi Curse
author: Sarah Penner
name: Avery
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Bright Years 214152211 One family. Four generations. A secret son. A devastating addiction. A Texas family is met with losses and surprises of inheritance, but they’re unable to shake the pull back toward each other in this big-hearted family saga perfect for readers of Mary Beth Keane and Claire Lombardo.

Ryan and Lillian Bright are deeply in love, recently married, and now parents to a baby girl, Georgette. But Lillian has a son she hasn’t told Ryan about, and Ryan has an alcohol addiction he hasn’t told Lillian about, so Georgette comes of age watching their marriage rise and fall.

When a shocking blow scatters their fragile trio, Georgette tries to distance herself from reminders of her parents. Years later, Lillian’s son comes searching for his birth family, so Georgette must return to her roots, unearth her family’s history, and decide whether she can open up to love for them—or herself—while there’s still time.

Told from three intimate points of view, The Bright Years is a tender, true-to-life novel that explores the impact of each generation in a family torn apart by tragedy but, over time, restored by the power of grace and love.]]> 288 Sarah Damoff 1668061449 Avery 0 to-read 4.42 2025 The Bright Years
author: Sarah Damoff
name: Avery
average rating: 4.42
book published: 2025
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Claiming the Shaman (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga #6)]]> 53146752
After years of helping others find true love and reuniting lost mates, Xenos is ready for a family of his own. Shortly after his father’s death, the spirits announce it’s time for him to meet his true-mate. Xenos has been counting down the days, but for every day there’s a new problem. With half the Nightshade Bears toting around guns and the group’s founder on extended leave his work has doubled.

Alpha, Barry, better known as Nurse Barry to his contemporaries, doesn’t believe in happy-ever-afters. At least, not for himself. He carved out his niche at Hemlock Academy. A fully trained doctor who can run the academy’s clinic and fight off would-be dragon kidnappers he considered himself a lucky man. Barry put his past behind him and started fresh, but when a war threatens his pack, old secrets crawl out of the dark.

When the Nightshade Bear’s doctor and Barry’s old mentor passes away, he leaves the comforts of Hemlock Academy for the more rural Nightshade Bear Territory. Drone deliveries allow him the creature comforts he’s accustomed to, but the lack of all-night convenience stores is the least of his problems. The previous doctor, Old Man Sigmore, left behind a handful of patients and a son with big dreams who are all counting on him.

The world doesn’t stop spinning just because true-mates meet. Xenos and Barry must figure out how to overcome the obstacles both between them and in front of them. Anything less than a united front may cost the lives of innocents. With their family hanging in the balance will their love be enough to keep the mates together?

MM Gay Mpreg Romance.]]> 269 Maggie Hemlock Avery 5 4.37 Claiming the Shaman (Hemlock Wolf Pack Saga #6)
author: Maggie Hemlock
name: Avery
average rating: 4.37
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/13
date added: 2025/03/13
shelves: cultural-fiction, dark-and-twisty, dark-fantasy, family-relationships, fantasy, friendships, gay-romance, ghosts, hauntings, lgbt, mystery, paranormal, mpreg
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Malcolm Lives!: The Official Biography of Malcolm X for Young Readers]]> 208840710 In collaboration with the Malcolm X Estate, this powerful biography for young readers is a modern classic in the making, written by #1 New York Times-bestselling, National Book Award-winning author Ibram X. Kendi.Published 100 years after his birth, Malcolm Lives! is a ground-breaking narrative biography of one of the most influential Americans of all time.Dr. Kendi expertly crafts a propulsive telling of Malcolm X’s life—from birth to death. He provides context for both Malcolm’s choices—and those around him—not just painting an intimate picture of a famous figure, but of the social and political landscape of America during the civil rights movement. Ultimately, Malcolm's true legacy is a journey toward anti-racism. Just like history, Malcolm lives.With short, evocative chapters, exclusive archival documents, photographs from the Malcolm X Collection at the NYPL Schomburg Center, and extensive backmatter,this is a thoughtful and accessible, must-read for all Americans. ]]> 400 Ibram X. Kendi 0374311862 Avery 0 to-read 3.58 Malcolm Lives!: The Official Biography of Malcolm X for Young Readers
author: Ibram X. Kendi
name: Avery
average rating: 3.58
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Witchcraft for Wayward Girls 207611566 There’s power in a book�

They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to the Wellwood Home in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.

Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who knows she’s going to go home and marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.

Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid…and it’s usually paid in blood.

In Witchcraft for Wayward Girls, the author of How to Sell a Haunted House and The Final Girl Support Group delivers another searing, completely original novel and further cements his status as a “horror master� (NPR).]]> 482 Grady Hendrix 0593548981 Avery 4 4.00 2025 Witchcraft for Wayward Girls
author: Grady Hendrix
name: Avery
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2025
rating: 4
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves:
review:

]]> The Stand 60311454 Stephen King's apocalyptic vision of a world blasted by plague and tangled in an elemental struggle between good and evil remains as riveting and eerily plausible as when it was first published.

Nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read

A patient escapes from a biological testing facility, unknowingly carrying a deadly weapon: a mutated strain of super-flu that will wipe out 99 percent of the world's population within a few weeks. Those who remain are scared, bewildered, and in need of a leader. Two emerge--Mother Abagail, the benevolent 108-year-old woman who urges them to build a peaceful community in Boulder, Colorado; and Randall Flagg, the nefarious "Dark Man," who delights in chaos and violence. As the dark man and the peaceful woman gather power, the survivors will have to choose between them--and ultimately decide the fate of all humanity.

(This edition includes all of the new and restored material first published in The Stand The Complete And Uncut Edition.)]]> 1439 Stephen King 0307743683 Avery 5 4.25 1978 The Stand
author: Stephen King
name: Avery
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1978
rating: 5
read at: 2022/02/24
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance]]> 33574161
That tornado was the first of many strange events that seem to follow Weylyn from town to town, although he doesn’t like to take credit. As amazing as these powers may appear, they tend to manifest themselves at inopportune times and places. From freak storms to trees that appear to grow over night, Weylyn’s unique abilities are a curiosity at best and at worst, a danger to himself and the woman he loves. But Mary doesn’t care. Since Weylyn saved her from an angry wolf on her eleventh birthday, she’s known that a relationship with him isn’t without its risks, but as anyone who’s met Weylyn will tell you, once he wanders into your life, you’ll wish he’d never leave.

Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance tells the story of Weylyn Grey’s life from the perspectives of the people who knew him, loved him, and even a few who thought he was just plain weird. Although he doesn’t stay in any of their lives for long, he leaves each of them with a story to tell. Stories about a boy who lives with wolves, great storms that evaporate into thin air, fireflies that make phosphorescent honey, and a house filled with spider webs and the strange man who inhabits it.

There is one story, however, that Weylyn wishes he could change: his own. But first he has to muster enough courage to knock on Mary’s front door.

In this warm debut novel, Ruth Emmie Lang teaches us about adventure and love in a beautifully written story full of nature and wonder.]]> 346 Ruth Emmie Lang 1250112044 Avery 5 4.17 2017 Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance
author: Ruth Emmie Lang
name: Avery
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/11
date added: 2025/03/11
shelves:
review:

]]> I Am Still Alive 36519545 Jess is alone. Her cabin has burned to the ground. She knows if she doesn’t act fast, the cold will kill her before she has time to worry about food. But she is still alive—for now.

Before
Jess hadn’t seen her survivalist, off-the-grid dad in over a decade. But after a car crash killed her mother and left her injured, she was forced to move to his cabin in the remote Canadian wilderness. Just as Jess was beginning to get to know him, a secret from his past paid them a visit, leaving her father dead and Jess stranded.

After
With only her father’s dog for company, Jess must forage and hunt for food, build shelter, and keep herself warm. Some days it feels like the wild is out to destroy her, but she’s stronger than she ever imagined.

Jess will survive. She has to. She knows who killed her father� and she wants revenge.]]> 331 Kate Alice Marshall Avery 5 3.85 2018 I Am Still Alive
author: Kate Alice Marshall
name: Avery
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2018
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/09
date added: 2025/03/09
shelves:
review:
I read a lot and these days not many books make feel broken and this one did. It was excellent YA story telling with a bitter sweet ending.
]]> <![CDATA[Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister]]> 18943
Set against the backdrop of seventeenth-century Holland, Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister tells the story of Iris, an unlikely heroine who finds herself swept from the lowly streets of Haarlem to a strange world of wealth, artifice, and ambition. Iris's path quickly becomes intertwined with that of Clara, the mysterious and unnaturally beautiful girl destined to become her sister. While Clara retreats to the cinders of the family hearth, Iris seeks out the shadowy secrets of her new household -- and the treacherous truth of her former life.]]> 372 Gregory Maguire 0060987529 Avery 3 3.54 1999 Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister
author: Gregory Maguire
name: Avery
average rating: 3.54
book published: 1999
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/05
date added: 2025/03/05
shelves:
review:
This one was nothing like I expected. It's plot was okay and might've been really good without all the fluff/filler.
]]> <![CDATA[Kiss of the Basilisk (Split or Swallow, #1)]]> 219542918 THIS BOOK IS NOT SAFE TO READ AT WORK. YOU'VE BEEN WARNED.

Twenty year old Temperance Verus has never been kissed. But that's what the basilisk is for.

Along with thirteen other contestants, Tem must train with a basilisk to learn the power of seduction and win the prince's hand in marriage. When Tem is matched with Caspen, the Serpent King, she realizes she might actually stand a chance. But with tensions rising between the basilisks and the humans, Tem is suddenly torn in two directions. As her bond with Caspen deepens, so does her connection with the prince. And when she uncovers a terrible secret about the royal family, Tem finds herself caught between two neither of which she can survive without.

Guaranteed to make you blush (and then some), Split or Swallow is like if fanfic Draco Malfoy went on the Bachelor and had to compete with a snake. Sounds fun, doesn't it? That's because it is!!]]> 528 Lindsay Straube 1464247579 Avery 0 to-read 3.43 Kiss of the Basilisk (Split or Swallow, #1)
author: Lindsay Straube
name: Avery
average rating: 3.43
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/04
shelves: to-read
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]]> My History, My Gender, Me 215592177 40 Cassandra Jules Corrigan 1805014013 Avery 5
This book broke down the history of trans/non-binary/gender fluid historical figures into bite sized chunks that not only makes the reader want to do more of their own research but also proves that we have always been here. Books like these are more important than ever in the current climate. ]]> 4.59 My History, My Gender, Me
author: Cassandra Jules Corrigan
name: Avery
average rating: 4.59
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/03/04
date added: 2025/03/04
shelves:
review:
Thank you to Netgalley and the author for an early review copy of this book.

This book broke down the history of trans/non-binary/gender fluid historical figures into bite sized chunks that not only makes the reader want to do more of their own research but also proves that we have always been here. Books like these are more important than ever in the current climate.
]]> As You Wish 219520676 They say be careful what you wish for�

For Lydia, Jenny, and Selene, au pairing in Seoul is the opportunity of a lifetime. Lydia wants nothing more than to transform into a leading lady; Jenny is determined to swear off love for good 5,955 miles away from her ex; and Selene is convinced working in Korea will finally lead her to her biological mother.

During a combined family vacation with their host families, the women visit an enchanted waterfall on Jeju Island and make a wish under a full moon. Overnight, everything changes. Suddenly, Lydia is the girl everyone wants—except, strangely, her mysterious art class partner from Spain. Jenny is having secret, no-strings-attached fun with her host mom’s irresistible younger brother. And Selene is finally getting somewhere in her search for her mother thanks to a research-savvy photographer.

But when Jenny’s romantic feelings begin to deepen, she realizes her wish is standing in the way of true, lasting love. Her decision to return to the waterfall will have unexpected consequences and force the au pairs to confront a new question altogether: Could it be that their friendship was the real magic all along?]]> 368 Leesa Cross-Smith 0593476182 Avery 0 to-read 3.80 As You Wish
author: Leesa Cross-Smith
name: Avery
average rating: 3.80
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Do Not Disturb 58778536
To avoid spending her life in prison, Quinn makes a run for it. She leaves behind her home, her job, and her family. She grabs her passport and heads for the northern border before the police can discover what she’s done.

But when an unexpected snowstorm forces her off the road, Quinn must take refuge at the broken-down, isolated Baxter Motel. The handsome and kindly owner, Nick Baxter, is only too happy to offer her a cheap room for the night.

Unfortunately, the Baxter Motel isn’t the quiet, safe haven it seemed to be. The motel has a dark and disturbing past. And in the dilapidated house across the way, the silhouette of Nick's ailing wife is always at the window. Always watching.

In the morning, Quinn must leave the motel. She'll pack up her belongings and get back on the road to freedom.

But first, she must survive the night.

Do Not Disturb is a Hitchcock-style psychological thriller that will keep you tearing through the pages until you reach the shocking conclusion!]]> 325 Freida McFadden Avery 3 3.93 2021 Do Not Disturb
author: Freida McFadden
name: Avery
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2021
rating: 3
read at: 2025/03/02
date added: 2025/03/02
shelves:
review:
This was my first Frieda McFadden. It was mid for me. I expected a lot more with how many people recommended her to me.
]]> <![CDATA[Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years, #1)]]> 30241301 When Dorothy triumphed over the Wicked Witch of the West in L. Frank Baum's classic tale, we heard only her side of the story. But what about her arch-nemesis, the mysterious witch? Where did she come from? How did she become so wicked? And what is the true nature of evil?

Gregory Maguire creates a fantasy world so rich and vivid that we will never look at Oz the same way again. Wicked is about a land where animals talk and strive to be treated like first-class citizens, Munchkinlanders seek the comfort of middle-class stability and the Tin Man becomes a victim of domestic violence. And then there is the little green-skinned girl named Elphaba, who will grow up to be the infamous Wicked Witch of the West, a smart, prickly and misunderstood creature who challenges all our preconceived notions about the nature of good and evil.

]]> 406 Gregory Maguire Avery 0 to-read 3.51 1995 Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (Wicked Years, #1)
author: Gregory Maguire
name: Avery
average rating: 3.51
book published: 1995
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Black Rose (The Dracula Duet, #2)]]> 62923533
Is it her destiny to love him?

Or is it her destiny to die?

Valtu Aminoff is no stranger to tragedy. Though many know him as the enigmatic vampire that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Valtu’s complex life is far more horrific than any fiction could imagine. When you lose the love of your life over and over again, it can do more than break your heart—it can corrupt your soul.
It's up to his new lover to decide if Valtu's damaged soul is even worth saving.

But destiny isn’t done with Valtu yet. And tragedy is always around the corner.

Black Rose is the sequel to Blood Orange and is not a standalone. Snap up this completed dark gothic vampire romance duet if you like:
High spice
Dark Academia
Gothic Setting
Vampires vs Witches
Spooky vibes
Reincarnated love
Dracula re-telling
Fantasy romance
Please check inside the book for content warnings.

"Every vampire has a sad love story to tell."]]> 408 Karina Halle Avery 3 3.52 Black Rose (The Dracula Duet, #2)
author: Karina Halle
name: Avery
average rating: 3.52
book published:
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves:
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]]> <![CDATA[Black Rose (The Dracula Duet, #2)]]> 123271311
Or is it her destiny to die?

Valtu Aminoff is no stranger to tragedy. Though many know him as the enigmatic vampire that inspired Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Valtu’s complex life is far more horrific than any fiction could imagine. When you lose the love of your life over and over again, it can do more than break your heart—it can corrupt your soul.
It's up to his new lover to decide if Valtu's damaged soul is even worth saving.

But destiny isn’t done with Valtu yet. And tragedy is always around the corner.]]> 394 Karina Halle Avery 0 3.87 Black Rose (The Dracula Duet, #2)
author: Karina Halle
name: Avery
average rating: 3.87
book published:
rating: 0
read at: 2025/03/01
date added: 2025/03/01
shelves:
review:

]]> Under the Magnolias 220578798 ]]> 43 Avery Thorne Avery 5 5.00 Under the Magnolias
author: Avery Thorne
name: Avery
average rating: 5.00
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/01
date added: 2025/02/28
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Importance of Being Earnest]]> 92303
Cecily Cardew and Gwendolen Fairfax are both in love with the same mythical suitor. Jack Worthing has wooed Gwendolen as Ernest while Algernon has also posed as Ernest to win the heart of Jack's ward, Cecily. When all four arrive at Jack's country home on the same weekend the "rivals" to fight for Ernest's undivided attention and the "Ernests" to claim their beloveds pandemonium breaks loose. Only a senile nursemaid and an old, discarded hand-bag can save the day!

This Prestwick House Literary Touchstone Edition includes a glossary and reader's notes to help the modern reader appreciate Wilde's wry wit and elaborate plot twists.]]> 89 Oscar Wilde 158049580X Avery 5 4.17 1895 The Importance of Being Earnest
author: Oscar Wilde
name: Avery
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1895
rating: 5
read at: 2023/04/05
date added: 2025/02/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Minoan Bride (Cambric Creek Bite-Sized Reads #1)]]> 182067707
The Minoan Bride is a dual-narrative trip into the Cambric Creek universe's minotaur origin story. As they move around the relics of the labyrinth, Gwen realizes the story is a mirror to her present circumstances. No matter how much the world changes, some things � living, and loving, and dying � always stay the same.

Please see author's note for content advisories.]]> 66 C.M. Nascosta Avery 4 3.81 2023 The Minoan Bride (Cambric Creek Bite-Sized Reads #1)
author: C.M. Nascosta
name: Avery
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2023
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/25
date added: 2025/02/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Akata Woman (The Nsibidi Scripts, #3)]]> 57841497
Now, those hard lessons and abilities are put to the test in a quest so dangerous and fantastical, it would be madness to go…but deadly not to. With the help of her friends, Sunny embarks on a mission to find a precious object hidden deep in a magical realm. Defeating the guardians of the prize will take more from Sunny than she has to give, and triumph will mean she will be forever changed.]]> 404 Nnedi Okorafor 0451480589 Avery 4 4.16 2022 Akata Woman (The Nsibidi Scripts, #3)
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Avery
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2022
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> The Message 210943364
The first of the book’s three intertwining essays is set in Dakar, Senegal. Despite being raised as a strict Afrocentrist, Coates had never set foot on the African continent until now. He roams the “steampunk� city of “old traditions and new machinery,� but everywhere he goes he feels as if he’s in two places at once: a modern city in Senegal and a mythic kingdom in his mind. Finally he travels to the slave castles off the coast and has his own reckoning with the legacy of the Afrocentric dream.

He takes readers along with him to Columbia, South Carolina, where he meets an educator whose job is threatened for teaching one of Coates’s own books. There he discovers a community of mostly white supporters who were transformed by the “racial reckoning� of 2020. But he also explores the backlash to this reckoning and the deeper myths of the community—a capital of the confederacy with statues of segregationists looming over its public squares.

And in Palestine, Coates discovers the devastating gap between the narratives we’ve accepted and the clashing reality of life on the ground. He meets with activists and dissidents, Israelis and Palestinians—the old, who remember their dispossessions on two continents, and the young, who have only known struggle and disillusionment. He travels into Jerusalem, the heart of Zionist mythology, and to the occupied territories, where he sees the reality the myth is meant to hide. It is this hidden story that draws him in and profoundly changes him—and makes the war that would soon come all the more devastating.

Written at a dramatic moment in American and global life, this work from one of the country’s most important writers is about the urgent need to untangle ourselves from the destructive nationalist myths that shape our world—and our own souls—and embrace the liberating power of even the most difficult truths.]]> 232 Ta-Nehisi Coates 0593230388 Avery 5 4.51 2024 The Message
author: Ta-Nehisi Coates
name: Avery
average rating: 4.51
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/23
date added: 2025/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> Macbeth 17861393
William Shakespearen synkin näytelmä kääntyy suomalaisten tekijöiden käsittelyssä hypnoottisen tehokkaaksi sarjakuvasovitukseksi. Vaikka tarina sijoittuu keskiaikaan, se löytää myös hyvin nykypäivän kitkeriä huomioita yksittäisten ihmisten ja valtarakenteiden toiminnasta. Kolmen noidan kiehtova ennustus saa vallanhaluisen kenraali MacBethin tavoittelemaan kuninkuutta, hinnalla millä hyvänsä. Mutta hinta osoitautuu arvaamattoman korkeaksi kun väkivallan kierre tempaisee mukaansa maailmaan jossa kehenkään ei voi luottaa ja murha johtaa vain uusiin murhiin. Vainoharhaisuus ja syyllisyys tuhoavat pala palalta kaiken, mielenterveyttä myöten.

Tässä uusimmassa versiossa huomaamme jälleen kerran hätkähdyttävän selkeästi miten ahneus, pahuus ja hulluus ovat ajattomia inhimillisiä ominaisuuksia. Hanninin tarina on uskollinen lähtökohdilleen, mutta sujuvasti etenevä ja mustalla huumorilla ladattu. Hiltunen ei ole koskaan piirtänyt paremmin. Hänen tummanpuhuvissa kuvissaan keskiaikainen Skotlanti ihmisineen herää henkiin lähes käsinkosketeltavan aitona.

Petri Hiltunen on helsinkiläinen sarjakuvataiteilija.

Petri Hannini on kuopiolainen kirjailija ja kriitikko.]]> 52 Petri Hiltunen 9518871507 Avery 3 3.37 1606 Macbeth
author: Petri Hiltunen
name: Avery
average rating: 3.37
book published: 1606
rating: 3
read at: 2022/11/14
date added: 2025/02/17
shelves:
review:

]]> If We Disappear Here 50830416 They are marionettes under a concrete sky.

Pain shoots through Maeve Campbell’s body when she wakes cold and disoriented, locked in a neglected cement room.

Her drowsy eyes sweep the cell and land on a masculine, limp body across the room. Gripping his shoulder, she rolls him to his back, face angling toward her. Only it’s not who she thinks.

It’s not her husband.

And they aren’t alone. A stranger taunts them from within an old rusted speaker. A stranger who wants them to suffer.

With each passing day, and only each other to lean on, their determination becomes a fight not only for survival but for each other.

*If We Disappear Here features mature themes and content that may not be suitable for all audiences. Reader discretion is advised.*]]> 387 Mindy Hayes Avery 5 4.21 If We Disappear Here
author: Mindy Hayes
name: Avery
average rating: 4.21
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2025/02/17
date added: 2025/02/17
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Mated in the Stars (Starscale Mates #6)]]> 223802263
Nelum doesn’t know what to make of the Starscale worlds at first. He only runs through their door while he’s chasing down his supper. He never expected the first word he’d hear from the strange group’s mouth to be ‘mum.� Now, he has all these strange dragons claiming they knew him in another life but Nelum is more worried about navigating his future than resurrecting the past.

Love may stand the test of time but will the trio of true-mates be able to untangle the past from the present to bring all their families together or will Nelum forever live in the shadow of Lotus Cromwell?]]> 194 Avery 'Maggie' Hemlock Avery 5 4.66 Mated in the Stars (Starscale Mates #6)
author: Avery 'Maggie' Hemlock
name: Avery
average rating: 4.66
book published:
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2025/02/16
shelves:
review:

]]> Taken 59722174 For months, Aliana and Kade have been straddling that line, questioning their relationship.
He is arrogant, obnoxious, and downright impossible.
She is stubborn, exhausting, and unrelenting.
But none of that seems relevant when a breakdown turns sinister.
Aliana and Kade are assaulted, held captive, and tortured in inexplicable ways.
Their captors peel away at every ounce of self-worth they possess.
With no way of escaping, all they have to cling onto is each other.
The comfort of memories, and the fading hope of a future.
Can two people survive a fate worse than death and come out unscathed?

WARNING:
The following story is a work of fiction and contains mature themes that some may find offensive. There is dark and triggering content between these pages. It is intended for adult readers only (18+). I advise you to skip this book if kidnapping, graphic sexual and physical assault, non-con, dub-con, profanity, PTSD, depression, anxiety disorders, cheating, and abuse are sensitive topics.]]> M. Jameson Avery 3
This one just fell a little flat for me. I liked how much therapy was involved in their healing processes, though.]]> 3.38 Taken
author: M. Jameson
name: Avery
average rating: 3.38
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/02/15
shelves:
review:
This one started out with vibes that really matched Still Beating by Jennifer Heartman. I know I read that one really recently but the whole time I just kept comparing them in my head because the whole set up was really similar except for the MCs in this book were already a couple.

This one just fell a little flat for me. I liked how much therapy was involved in their healing processes, though.
]]> <![CDATA[Blood Orange (The Dracula Duet, #1)]]> 58245394 From New York Times bestselling author Karina Halle comes a dark and delicious Dracula retelling filled with secrets and lies, dangerous liaisons and a forbidden, student-teacher, second chance love story with a twist.

"My heart will always find yours."

Dahlia Abernathy has only known revenge. When her parents were killed at an early age by vampires, Dahlia spent the rest of her life under the thumb of the Witch's Guild being trained to kill them. Her latest mission sends her undercover to a prestigious music academy in Venice, Italy. Her goal? To kill Professor Valtu Aminoff, her teacher and the notorious vampire who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula.

But getting close to a dangerous vampire like Professor Aminoff is one thing. Falling for him is another. With Dahlia's appearance disguised under a glamor spell, Valtu has no idea that the woman who has become his new dark obsession is actually the reincarnation of the woman he loved and lost twice before.

And Dahlia doesn't remember that the very man she has been sent to kill is the love of her life.

Will their love come through and transcend time once again? Or are the fated lovers destined to let history repeat itself?

Blood Orange is a modern-day Dracula retelling about the "real-life" Dracula that inspired Bram Stoker. This is a dark vampire romance with plenty of content warnings (please check interior of book for extensive list as it is +++++spicy) and while it is a spinoff of The Dark Eyes Duet, you do not need to read any other books before Blood Orange.]]> 314 Karina Halle Avery 3 3.80 2022 Blood Orange (The Dracula Duet, #1)
author: Karina Halle
name: Avery
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/02/15
date added: 2025/02/15
shelves:
review:

]]> Shell Game (Getaway, #6) 61655231 New York TimesLeave the World Behind.

Mark has a wife and two kids, a sense of purpose, financial security, and a fragile contentment. However wistful his visions of the future, Mark knows who he is. But a summer trip with his abrasive brother-in-law and unhappy sister-in-law leave Mark questioning everything he thinks he knows about his family—and himself.

Shell Game by Rumaan Alam is part of Getaway, a collection of six stories about dream escapes that take unimaginable, even sinister, turns. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single sitting.]]> 29 Rumaan Alam 1662506074 Avery 1 2.31 2022 Shell Game (Getaway, #6)
author: Rumaan Alam
name: Avery
average rating: 2.31
book published: 2022
rating: 1
read at: 2025/02/13
date added: 2025/02/13
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Blood Canticle (The Vampire Chronicles, #10)]]> 31331 400 Anne Rice 0099460173 Avery 4 3.76 2003 Blood Canticle (The Vampire Chronicles, #10)
author: Anne Rice
name: Avery
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/05
date added: 2025/02/05
shelves:
review:

]]> Not in Love (Not in Love, #1) 198716261 A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science.

Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down.

Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through - and he's a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can't stop thinking about. The woman who's off-limits to him.

Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business - one that plays for keeps.]]> 384 Ali Hazelwood 1408728915 Avery 4
For once I'd like to see this particular boundary stick. ]]> 3.59 2024 Not in Love (Not in Love, #1)
author: Ali Hazelwood
name: Avery
average rating: 3.59
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/02/04
date added: 2025/02/04
shelves:
review:
3.5 rounded up

For once I'd like to see this particular boundary stick.
]]> Keep It in the Dark 209489417 In this unashamedly queer, supernatural romance, Justin Arnold, author of Wicked Little Things, challenges the institutions that have sidelined queer love to the shadows, and brings it into the light.

Rowan Young knew where his life was heading.
The headmaster’s son and golden boy of elite Vermont boarding school Mockingbird Prep, Rowan was set to inherit a legacy passed down through generations of forefathers.
Until a strange new student arrives to derail those plans.

Casper Belamy didn’t ask to be a vampire.
But now that he is one, all he wants is to travel the world looking for more of his kind.
Before he can do that, he must accomplish an impossible task set forth by his adoptive family of vampiric royals: prove he can keep their kind safe and finish high school without being discovered.

If controlling his thirst wasn’t hard enough, he is forced to share a dorm with the headmaster’s son. And despite their instant dislike for one another, Casper can’t ignore the mouth-wateringly delicious scent of Rowan’s blood.

When bitter fights become late night rendez-vous, forbidden romance blossoms in the shadows. Facing a fearful world that would rather they stay hidden, Rowan and Casper contend with an onslaught of troubles: Rowan’s father is breathing down his neck, the safety of Casper’s new-found family is on his shoulders, and a secret society of slayers threatens to destroy everything.]]> 326 Justin Arnold 1915585201 Avery 0 to-read 3.85 Keep It in the Dark
author: Justin Arnold
name: Avery
average rating: 3.85
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Where's Molly 203760167
“Molly Devereaux has been missing for more than two weeks, and police are still searching for the girl who seemed to vanish out of thin air. The world still wants to know... Where's Molly?�

In my dreams, I never escaped the Oregon woods.

Life after death isn't easy to accept, especially when I still feel like a ghost.

Now, I live deep in the mountains of Montana—the paradigm of beauty. But they are also the home of horrors.

Horrors that I only unleash at night.

When my pigs are allowed to feast.

It is strongly recommended to read Haunting Adeline and Hunting Adeline before reading Where's Molly.

Important Note: This is a dark romance that contains dark subject matter. Please refer to the author's website for content warnings]]> 243 H.D. Carlton Avery 5 4.17 2024 Where's Molly
author: H.D. Carlton
name: Avery
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2024
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/29
date added: 2025/01/29
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[I Will Break You (Pen Pals Duet, #1)]]> 210081071 My prison pen pal got the electric chair.
So how can he sext me from the grave?

Prey

I see dead people, and not just the men I murdered.

I'm in danger of being committed because I can’t tell what’s real from my hallucinations.

Everyone thinks I’m crazy when the serial killer I jilted starts haunting my house.

He assassinates any man who shows me interest, leaving their body parts under my pillow.

During the day, his gaslighting destroys my peace of mind.

But at night, he invades my nightmares and makes me crave the depravity.

Predator

She ghosted me at the altar. Now, I’m aching for revenge.

I want to break her, piece by delicious piece. Revel in her terror. Bathe in her screams. Make her moan my name.

Someone from her past wants her captured or dead, so it’s up to me to protect her from the shadows.

She belongs to me and no one else—body, mind, and soul.

If I don’t take out her enemies, I’ll lose more than just my beautiful obsession.

I Will Break You is a dark psychological thriller romance with unreliable narrators, and disturbing themes. It ends on a cliffhanger. Please check the two pages of trigger warnings.]]> 584 Gigi Styx Avery 0 to-read 4.10 I Will Break You (Pen Pals Duet, #1)
author: Gigi Styx
name: Avery
average rating: 4.10
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Like A Moth To A Flame 220906051 Returning to the town of my childhood abduction to settle my late father's estate proves more challenging than expected.

On my first day, a chilling note labeled "Little Moth" sparks unsettling events. The notes soon lead to ominous phone calls and a lurking presence outside my windows. I suspect the stalker could be Sheriff Banner, tangled in my father's past, fire chief Dale Watchman, or even the firefighter who saved me years ago. Someone watches me sleep, lurks outside my darkened windows, yet vanishes without a trace when confronted. Despite warnings to leave, I, Vanessa Elizabeth Harper, am determined to confront my fears.

In a town where shadows hold secrets, my past threatens to become my future.]]> Lillith Abendroth Avery 0 to-read 4.14 Like A Moth To A Flame
author: Lillith Abendroth
name: Avery
average rating: 4.14
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/27
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> More to Love 63904213 An Unexpected Love

For Jamir Cunnigham, a relationship is the last thing on his mind.  After inheriting his grandparent’s bookstore, Jamir has been completely focused on running the business. And if he’s lonely, that was between him and the books. Yet, from the moment Emmy Park walked into his life, Jamir was immediately captivated by the plus-size Korean.

A Fresh Start

After his recent divorce, former Olympic Wrestler Emerson “Emmy� Park moved to Texas to get a fresh start. After taking a job as an assistant wrestling coach at a nearby university, he stumbles across Jamir’s bookstore. Emmy is instantly attracted to Jamir. Unfortunately, he is big and burly with a resting bitch face and thinks he has zero chance with the gorgeous Black man.

However, when a sudden encounter shows them how good they can be together. Is the simmering attraction between them enough for them to see past their differences and finally give in to their desires?

More To Love is a short and sweet m/m romance book featuring bookstores, coffee shops, plus-size main characters, bisexual couples, sapphic side characters, autumn feels, and Black/Asian romances.]]> 100 Georgina Kiersten 9781737736 Avery 0 to-read 3.73 2023 More to Love
author: Georgina Kiersten
name: Avery
average rating: 3.73
book published: 2023
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Left to Die 211902092 147 E.M. McConnell Avery 4 3.71 2024 Left to Die
author: E.M. McConnell
name: Avery
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2024
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/26
date added: 2025/01/26
shelves:
review:
Twisty read found through Divination Hollow's Queer your Ereader!
]]> <![CDATA[On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century]]> 33917107
On November 9th, millions of Americans woke up to the impossible: the election of Donald Trump as president. Against all predictions, one of the most-disliked presidential candidates in history had swept the electoral college, elevating a man with open contempt for democratic norms and institutions to the height of power.

Timothy Snyder is one of the most celebrated historians of the Holocaust. In his books Bloodlands and Black Earth, he has carefully dissected the events and values that enabled the rise of Hitler and Stalin and the execution of their catastrophic policies. With Twenty Lessons, Snyder draws from the darkest hours of the twentieth century to provide hope for the twenty-first. As he writes, “Americans are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism and communism. Our one advantage is that we might learn from their experience.�

Twenty Lessons is a call to arms and a guide to resistance, with invaluable ideas for how we can preserve our freedoms in the uncertain years to come.]]> 127 Timothy Snyder 0804190119 Avery 5 4.24 2017 On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century
author: Timothy Snyder
name: Avery
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/25
date added: 2025/01/25
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Scenic Route (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2.5)]]> 59959655
During a quick jaunt to the United States, Sunny and Sasha embark on a tour of Chicago that is unlike any other! From the bottom of Lake Michigan to the top of the city’s most famous skyscraper, their wild ride reveals mystical secrets of the city that are only viewable to those in the know. In The Scenic Route, award-winning writer Nnedi Okorafor weaves an enthralling short story starring the beloved Nsibidi Scripts characters from Akata Witch, Akata Warrior, and the upcoming Akata Woman, available in January 2022.]]> 30 Nnedi Okorafor 0593528581 Avery 5 to-read 4.00 2021 The Scenic Route (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2.5)
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Avery
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2021
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/01/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Akata Warrior (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2)]]> 18746776 The long-awaited sequel to the genre-breaking Akata Witch by multiple award-winner Nnedi Okorafor!

A year ago, Sunny Nwazue, an American-born girl Nigerian girl, was inducted into the secret Leopard Society. As she began to develop her magical powers, Sunny learned that she had been chosen to lead a dangerous mission to avert an apocalypse, brought about by the terrifying masquerade, Ekwensu. Now, stronger, feistier, and a bit older, Sunny is studying with her mentor Sugar Cream and struggling to unlock the secrets in her strange Nsibidi book.

Eventually, Sunny knows she must confront her destiny. With the support of her Leopard Society friends, Orlu, Chichi, and Sasha, and of her spirit face, Anyanwu, she will travel through worlds both visible and invisible to the mysteries town of Osisi, where she will fight a climactic battle to save humanity.

Much-honored Nnedi Okorafor, winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy awards, merges today’s Nigeria with a unique world she creates. Akata Warrior blends mythology, fantasy, history and magic into a compelling tale that will keep readers spellbound.]]> 496 Nnedi Okorafor 1101598980 Avery 5 4.23 2017 Akata Warrior (The Nsibidi Scripts, #2)
author: Nnedi Okorafor
name: Avery
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2017
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/24
date added: 2025/01/24
shelves:
review:

]]> A Monster In The Dark 210685941
A dark figure has been following Jovie Rae Taylor for years, lingering in the corner of her eye, but never making its presence known. It bleeds into her dreams, turning them into nightmares, and makes her life a living hell, but at least it can't hurt her.

At least, that's what she's always thought. But how will she feel when she finds out the shadow that's stalking her isn't much of a shadow at all?

A Monster in the Dark is a standalone paranormal stalker romance.]]> 129 R.K. Pierce Avery 4 3.84 A Monster In The Dark
author: R.K. Pierce
name: Avery
average rating: 3.84
book published:
rating: 4
read at: 2025/01/19
date added: 2025/01/19
shelves:
review:
I loved the premise but wished it was a bit longer and the characters were a bit more fleshed out.
]]> Still Beating 55882116 WARNING: This book contains subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers. There is dark and triggering content between these pages. 18+ only. Please read responsibly.

When Cora attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Dean—her arch nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side.

And she really doesn’t anticipate waking up in shackles in a madman’s basement.

To make matters worse, Dean shares the space in his own set of chains.

After fifteen years of teasing, insults, and practical jokes, the ultimate joke seems to be on them. The two people who always thought they’d end up killing each other must now work together if they want to survive.

But Cora and Dean have no idea their abductor has a plan for them. A plan that will alter the course of their relationship, blur the line between hate and love, and shackle them together with far more than just chains.]]> 314 Jennifer Hartmann Avery 5 4.18 2020 Still Beating
author: Jennifer Hartmann
name: Avery
average rating: 4.18
book published: 2020
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/16
date added: 2025/01/19
shelves:
review:

]]> Then She Was Gone 35297426 She was fifteen, her mother's golden girl. She had her whole life ahead of her. And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone.

NOW
It’s been ten years since Ellie disappeared, but Laurel has never given up hope of finding her daughter.

And then one day a charming and charismatic stranger called Floyd walks into a café and sweeps Laurel off her feet.

Before too long she’s staying the night at this house and being introduced to his nine year old daughter.

Poppy is precocious and pretty - and meeting her completely takes Laurel's breath away.

Because Poppy is the spitting image of Ellie when she was that age. And now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back.

What happened to Ellie? Where did she go?

Who still has secrets to hide?]]> 359 Lisa Jewell 1501154648 Avery 3 4.02 2017 Then She Was Gone
author: Lisa Jewell
name: Avery
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/19
date added: 2025/01/19
shelves:
review:
This was enjoyable enough because it was twisted but it was also predictable. I don't know if it's the book or I've just read too many thrillers these days
]]> <![CDATA[Blackwood Farm (The Vampire Chronicles, #9)]]> 31337 774 Anne Rice 0099446723 Avery 5 3.90 2002 Blackwood Farm (The Vampire Chronicles, #9)
author: Anne Rice
name: Avery
average rating: 3.90
book published: 2002
rating: 5
read at: 2025/01/11
date added: 2025/01/11
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Catch Her in a Lie (Steinbeck and Reed, #0,5)]]> 61404084
Cold case expert Evangeline Reed and forensics legend Harry Steinbeck are on their way from Minneapolis to Costa Rica. They’ve been ordered to keep close watch on a protective mother and her daughter, both of whom have troubling connections to a Minnesota serial killer. Are they on holiday? In hiding? Or on the run? It’s time for Van and Harry to close in on the truth. And there’s more at risk than anyone can imagine.

Catch Her in a Lie by Jess Lourey is part of Getaway, a collection of six stories about dream escapes that take unimaginable, even sinister, turns. Each piece can be read or listened to in a single sitting.]]> 44 Jess Lourey 1662507674 Avery 3 3.72 2022 Catch Her in a Lie (Steinbeck and Reed, #0,5)
author: Jess Lourey
name: Avery
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2022
rating: 3
read at: 2025/01/07
date added: 2025/01/07
shelves:
review:
The sudden shifts of POV made this feel disjointed.
]]>