Caffeinated Crystal's book reviews

Bull's Boy is out Monday, and if you love: Kiki Clark, D/s stories, the Leather & Chrome series universe, cameos from other stories, ✨️big time✨️ size difference, bi-awakenings, interconnected but standalone stories, gentle giants, stray cats, family of choice stories... y'all, I could go on and on. I just finished Bull's Boy, and I loved it. Malcolm thinks he's straight. And he's having a rough go of things with his family. He's doing the best he can, and now Bull, his manager at work, has asked him to go to a party. Bull, who is totally into Malcolm, avoids the bejesus out of him because he thinks Malcolm is straight. Then Bull invites Malcolm to a party at the Clubhouse, hoping to lift his spirits. Now, suddenly, the story is POPPIN' off. I loved Bull's sweetness and kindheartedness. AND his possessiveness. I loved Malcolm and how determined he was to keep going and keep trying and just go with it. The scene in the truck, after the party? CHEFS K...

Oh my, LOVE NOTES was squishy, kick your feet together, sweetness. It has activated ✨️cute aggression✨️ in my brain. Ryan and Adam were DARLING. Ryan is an introverted and lonely woodworker. His sister bullies him into sleeping in his studio while she rents out his cabin because of an emergency. The renters? That's Adam, the author with writer's block looking for absolutely no distractions. The two of them hit it off like fireworks. It all happens super fast and feels like fate. I love Henry's storytelling because of the feeling it brings, and I just love how perfect these two were. Soulmates. There's so much sweetness & the learning disability rep was well done. One of the things I loved most was seeing Ryan let himself trust Adam. Swoon. LOVE NOTES is out now! It's a short little after dinner read! A novella full of handwritten love notes and whittled aliens and a cat named Cat.

I loved going back to Devil's Garden, this gritty world filled with secrets and cover-ups. The Beaufort brothers slowly find their people while we unravel the crime and corruption in the parrish. MAN OF LIES is Mason Beaufort, the lawyer brother, getting his man. Silas, the broody bartender with all kinds of secrets hiding in his long hair. OK, I'm going to go a bit "Charlie Kelly, conspiracy board" here. Bear with me. The Beaufort brothers: ● Gage (youngest) book one linked with Wyatt, the Parrish deputy ● Mason, the lawyer & Ben's twin. Linked with Silas, the bartender & ______ book 2 ● Ben, in jail due to corruption. Was in the army, now out on release. Will be book 3 with Colton, ADA guy, and Mason's friend. ● Gideon, the oldest. The good one. He's a priest? Preacher? Runs the home where they foster kids. Has a weird vibe going with Dominic. OMG, IS IT BECAUSE THEY'RE GONNA KISS AND THEIR BOOK WILL BE MAJOR?! ● Dominic, the bad boy. The cri...

You already know where this is going. SJ Tilly is my favorite hetero romance writer, and she DELIVERED with Mountain Boss. Courtney was amazing. And even though Sterling was a hottie and deliciously dominant, COURNTEY stole the show for me. Like, will she be my girlfriend?! What a dreamboat! I don't wanna spoil anything, so I'll try to be vague. The love story, bangin' when it popped off. The spice, nice! And a bit "rougher" than I was expecting, but I was 100% here for it. Their dynamic totally worked for them. These two mcs were LONELY. It broke my heart how much they needed each other. The possessiveness was perfect 👀 looking at you, Big Joe. Other amazing story points I loved: the landscape. The other employees at the lodge. Courtney's badassery. Ben! The hot tub scene. The-Earl-Had-To-Die moments. Spike! The leg holding. Sterling's habit of taking specific dirty laundry. Everything, all of it. Sterling was a bit of a disaster-baby. I mean, he was an ...

Okay, so this was CUTE. The Marriage Policy is basically two childhood best friends being HELLA oblivious and not realizing they were in love the whole time - which is besties to lovers GOLD. There's also marriage of convenience - which is only made better when they love each other and don't realize it. Donovan and Eric have been each other's person for forever. When Eric needs help, Donovan doesn't hesitate. Because they continually show up for each other. Thata just what they do. Again, I say: these two were adorable. The chemistry was fire, and the dirty talk too! Another thing I love in oblivious dummies in love stories is when everyone else knows! This story has a great collection of side characters, including the other two ✨️jilted exes✨️ and I loved seeing Rylan and Hayes still being adorable for each other. I'm SO CURIOUS about Anthony's story! I enjoyed the hell out of Donovan and Eric exploring each other and getting themselves sorted out. This was the...

I love this book. I love this universe, and I love this author. Kiki is the best. THE ALPHA AND HIS KING is book one of the Kincaid Pack series, and sets the stage for an entire group of shifters finding their mates & problem solving a big bad. This universe also branches out into a stand alone (adjacent) and at least book one in another pack's series. I remember reading this for the first time and being captivated.  From the moment Kai comes out of that shed swinging that rake, I loved him. Rick is the alpha-iest alpha, and all the enforcers and betas serve as constant character dramas and entertainment. Rick and Kai have killer chemistry. The scene with Veronica, Drago  & Kai had me not even BLINKING. I didn't want to miss a minute. The family dynamics between Kai, Samantha, Callie, and Henry were amazing. Ms. Beth needs to be protected at all costs. I could go on and on. This story is great. This universe is great. I've reread this book MULTIPLE times, and I ABSO...

Just a Fling: Maya Jean I would have rated this 5⭐️, but it's a novella and I would have read 300 pages of Tate & Sully. So alas, only 4.5, for teasing me with a big romantic HEA. Ugh, I'M IN LOVE. Maya Jean's JUST A FLING was such a good little shortie novella, packed with ROMANCE. Tate, the overworked 40 year old heart surgeon, spurned by his ex-husband. And Sully, the 30 year old defensive safety, who has been looking for a home his whole life. *swoons* Could what is supposed to be JUST A FLING turn into a sprawling romance? YES, BITCH. Because Maya Jean wrote it. I loved how romantic this story was and how Sully seemed to be just what Tate needed, and Tate was everything Sully ever wanted.