Caffeinated Crystal's book reviews

Pick One: Sunday Brothers novella. This one doesn't feature a Sunday Brother as the mc. Remember Gage and Knox's trip to BarZ in Boston? When Gage tries to make Knox jealous with the bearded man? And then the bearded man's roommate shows up? THIS IS THEIR STORY! Teagan and John are roommates who are head over heels in love with each other. This story is absolutely adorable with fun characters and a quick and syrupy sweet HEA. I loved their mini epiloge and where they end up and how it's tied back to the Sunday Brothers series. John and Teagan were the best! ✨️ and never ever let anyone, even your bestie, tell you that you should be less. I wanted to smack Fern through the phone. Teagan was a tornado of a man and perfect for John. ✨️

Book three in my Sunday Brothers rereadathon: CHERRY PICKED. This is Hawk Sunday's love story. It's also a brother's best friend romance with an age gap AND a boss/employee dynamic, too. Throw in Hawk's virgin status, an evil developer & Jack realizing maybe he's been in love this whole time?  Chef's kiss, babes. This story is a riot. The characters are all popping off the entire time, and watching Jack and Hawk dance around each other is equal parts adorable and infuriating. I love it. Plot points I LOVE: ♥️ Hawk's love and appreciation for Austen, Pride and Prejudice & the Regency era. It's absolutely adorable. ♥️ Jack's stubbornness & house renovations & his adoration of all things Hawk Sunday. ♥️ the Little Pippen Hookers & the gossip mill. Hilarious every time. This book is also chock full of "I'm not romantic" followed by romantic as hell grand gestures. I love Jack and Hawk and their daily chase of their Happi...

I love the Sunday Brothers. Book two, HAND PICKED, is Webb Sunday's book. Webb runs the family apple orchard, and he's a single dad to a seven year old fire cracker named Aiden. Webb is stressed to the max, and his temper isn't helped by the new neighbor ✨️and Aiden's school teacher✨️ Mr. Luke Williams. Webb is a d!ck in the beginning of the story, but eventually, Luke's kindness wins Webb over. Luke is new to the Hollow, having won a house & a large acreage from a magazine contest. He brings his sunshiney disposition & his determination to make the best out of a bad situation. Webb and Luke get pulled into town shenanigans, and there's the lore of the BUGLE and handfasting and ceremonial scrolls. Really, the whole situation is as ridiculous as it is entertaining. But we get to watch these two dummies fall in love. Webb is definitely the lucky one because Luke Williams is a gem. HAND PICKED is an amazing read if you enjoy a small town romance with whacky...

Book one: PICK ME is Knox Sunday's book. Knox is the elder brother back home on a mental health sabbatical from his big deal finance job. While getting the books fixed up for his family's apple orchard, he meets the newest temporary employee, Gage Goodman. Gage was hired to update the systems and create an app for the business and will be living with Know in the barn apartment. ✨️THEY WERE ROOMMATES✨️ This was a classic grumpy/sunshine story with a little age gap. Gage is determined to get down and dirty with a lumberjack, and Knox is his dream come to life. PICK ME has practically everything I love in a romance. Small town, quirky family members & neighbors, a set of brothers who eventually find their HEA, and plenty of plot bunnies to keep the series going. I loved the mental health representation ✨️panic attacks✨️ and I appreciated that Gage's love didn't magically fix Knox's problems. I wish Knox had been a little less patronizing & stubborn, but the two...

One kiss changed everything. Just a reminder that I loved Foster and Tommy getting their HEA. Rescuing Dr Marian is out now!!! As sheriff, I’m the guy people call for help. But when my solo Hawaii trip gets hijacked by my clingy ex, suddenly I’m the one who needs saving. My unlikely rescuer? A gorgeous stranger who plants one breathtaking, reckless kiss on me in the middle of a crowded bar—sending my ex packing… and stealing my carefully guarded heart. Tommy Marian kissed me like he knew me. Like he wanted me. Like I was his. Like he was mine. But he’s not. He’s a straight, ambitious city doctor—here in paradise for his own damn wedding. And I’m going home alone, as usual. Six months later, I land a dream search and rescue gig in Legacy, Montana. One summer. A break from my coupled-up friends. Zero distractions. Except guess who’s freshly single… and bunking in my tiny cabin? The biggest distraction of my life. Tommy Marian is still beautiful, still infuriating, and still everything I ...

Perfect. Give me 500 of them. Lark Taylor once again delivers. GUARDED, book three in the Hopeless Blessed series, is Noah and Jeremiah's story. Oof. This one packs a multilevel emotional punch in the best way, I assure you. Noah, the newest member of the Seraphim, left the Juniper unit with some hefty baggage. When he meets his mate Jeremiah, it does not go well. And lord, do we go on an emotional adventure. Usually I get frustrated with characters in this situation [I am not telling you the situation], but getting the two POVs shows us this isn't just angst for angst sake. There's reasons behind both the mcs actions, and I get it. So we get this romance. We get plot from the other two books, we get some baddies & [redacted]. This story doesn't let up the entire time. In typical Lark faction, I was an emotional wreck at the end, but I knew what I was signing up for. Lark, we need RAMI NOW. I mean, I respect your boundaries and your schedule, but you know what you ...

I couldn't have swooned harder over Maddox if I tried. He is the perfect mix of macho and marshmallows. And Hannah. She was just the absolute best. This story was so good! [Read TACKLED IN THE STACKS the prequel first, you'll thank me later] 15 years after the events of the prequel, Maddox has bought the company Hannah works for - and neither of them knew. LOVE, UTLEY is the second chance romance dreams are made of. It's second chance. It's *made for each other*. It's *they were the opposite of you*. Not only was the romance meter tipping, but the spicy scenes were 🔥🔥🔥. Maddox is possessive as hell. There was such a desperation to both of them. They were so scared that another 15 years would go by, and they'd be separated again. These two had such amazing chemistry. I love the idea that even though circumstances kept them apart, they inevitably were pulled back together. After a reread, I have to say this book is still absolute fire.  Maddox: still dreamy. St...

Oof. This book has me emotional as hell. Y'all need to read the content warning for this one, please. But OMG, the last book in the Camboy Network series was so good. Linden Bell was writing for her life. This is a teensy bit spoilery, but not really. Especially after you've READ THE CONTENT WARNING: The depression rep - spot on. The "voice"? SPOT ON. I can safely say that I can relate to Hayden's experience, and the way it was handled in the story felt very accurate. At least it did for me. ●○•○●○•○○• All the characters were great, we see all of them from the first three books. The mcs for this story, Santino and Hayden, were the sweetest. Like SUNSHINE/SUNSHINE-IER. The story is a bit of a slow burn, understandably, but holy hell, when it picks up, it's pretty hot.  The scene on the balcony was absolutely FIRE. If you're looking for a romance with spice & camboys & really accurate mental health rep, this is gonna be for you! Also, I can not rec...

🚨 attention all BODYGUARD ROMANCE FANS 🚨 wee ooooo wee ooooo I haven't read Jax Calder before, but I am now in possession of the rest of this series. THE UNLIKELY SPARE was an absolute delight. But be warned, it's a bit slow-burny. I felt like it took two hundred years for them to kiss, and OMG WAS IT PERFECT. Our MCs were entertaining, and the plot was plotting all over the place. Eion (sounds like Owen, according to g○○gle) is an Irish detective from Scotland Yard pulled into protection detail for "the spare" to the Brittish throne - Nicholas Alexander. Do I need to do a history lesson on the very big feelings between Ireland & England? Needless to say, this dynamic is a KEY component to the plot and the baddies involved with facilitating Eion into protection detail. There is grumpy/banter(er). There is adventure and intrigue. There are very real conversations around dec○linizati○n & reparations. We not only got a romance and what basically felt like a spy...

Rami & Truett were hot. CASUAL FELONIES was a smorgasbord of easter eggs & callbacks from Fox's entire Texas Universe while somehow simultaneously being inviting to new readers. Kind of like Taylor Swift - you can just listen to her music, but if you wanna go full swiftie down the rabbit hole, you can do that too! Choose your own adventure! Rami is the son of Anders and Omar. The man is also absolutely down bad for his barber Truett. *love that name* Things I loved in this story: ● being bad at stalking ● somno!  ● the k!nk in general ● the cousins ● the og characters ● OBT in the cabin 😂😂😂 ● Truett's bedroom ● Rami, the sweetheart Truly, this story was absolutely over the top, in the best way. The author calls this genre murderswoon, and I agree. So outside of introducing the characters (there are a lot!) and reintroducing old characters, and setting up the Wildlings series, there was Rami & Truett falling for each other, and there was a bad guy! AND a plot that...

Emmy delivers the ultimate friends to lovers story with Fool Hearts while simultaneously giving me a favorite comfort read. FOOL HEARTS is book one in the Plum Valley series. Wyatt and Easton are childhood best friends growing up in a conservative Texas town. Wyatt knows from an early age that he's gay and he also knows that he is head over heels in love with Easton. While Wyatt loves Easton steadfastly and unrequitedly through the years, he leaves home when Easton marries Becca. When [redacted] brings Wyatt back home, the two fall into a life that brings obstacles and lots of happiness and love. The hea just takes a while. Easton is the quiet, thoughtful cowboy of my dreams. I love a slow talking character with deep emotions and feelings running fast beneath the surface. It's never said outright, just questioned, but I read Easton as a demisexual king 💜 He loved Becca, and when he figures it out with Wyatt, it's pure perfection. This is a perfect slow burn, PINING romanc...

Rescuing Dr. Marian was AMAZING. I didn't go into it ready to cry, but I think maybe I should have. Tommy & Foster were absolute dummies, but they are dummies who belong together. Lucy Lennox just keeps getting better. This story had me so emotional, y'all. Foster and Tommy meet on an airplane. They have this instant connection. But then something happens, and they're separated for six months. Miscommunication happens. Then they aren't separated anymore - except by their own stubbornness and hurt feelings. While we are watching all this happen, there are practically a million other things happening, too. All at the same time. At a few points in the story I wanted to shake both of these idiots by the shoulders and say "go gettum," but they worked it out. On top of everything else, this story was so ROMANTIC. I was seriously swooning. Rescuing Dr. Marian comes out 08/19. If you're a Lucy Lennox fan or you loved the Billionaire Brotherhood series or you j...

Now is the time for squealing in dolphin language! Red alert, babes, Emmy Sanders is dropping a standalone.  ^'hKayebufizlahsjfjkai!!;$&:* Keyboard smash ^ OMG, IT'S HAPPENING. This is literally all I know. Standalone. September 25th. And this blurb: Once upon a time, a man chose love. Do you believe you can know someone inside and out? Know every piece of them. Their passion, their pain, their happiness and grief? Do you think it’s possible there’s one person out there that’s meant entirely for you? That out of everyone you meet in your lifetime and everyone you miss, you’ll find them without fail? Fate. Soulmates. Do you believe in it? I didn’t. But everything changed with him. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘭𝘭. 𝘌𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘔𝘔 𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢 𝘏𝘌𝘈 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘵...

Wild Card delivered a sweet story featuring a sheriff's deputy who can't help liking the chaotic wild chronic hookup-er & a man who uses sex as a shield to protect his big softie heart. Dalton & Axel were as sweet as I assumed they'd be. Dalton has a lot of work cut out for him breaking down Axel's walls. It worked, but it just took some patience.  Axel was the star of the show for me. Dalton got on my nerves a bit with the whole "I shouldn't want him" and the "this feels so wrong" - Axel deserved to be loved loudly and I'm just glad they got there in the end. I loved the side plot of the sheriff & the son. The other characters were great, the deputies, and of course, the other brothers. The dogs had me laughing regularly & the whole dust up with Jett made me so sad. Overall, this was a great edition to the series, and I'm absolutely feral for Holden & his camboy and can't wait for their story to come out. I'm ...

How have I not read DJ Jamison before?! How did NONE OF YOU TELL ME ABOUT THIS BOOK?! This is EXACTLY up my alley. Spoiler -not spoiler- I LOVED THIS. Gray and Emory were amazing & the brothers leave us with an entire series of books on the horizon. This was a messy story interlaced with familial expectations, survivors guilt, tons of trauma, and lots of love. Gray comes home to help his brothers. He wants to work (earn) his way back into their lives, but it's hard. After rescuing his old high school crush on the side of the road from a hookup gone wrong, Gray and Emory orbit each other while navigating secrets, their own pasts, business, harassment and SO MUCH more. This story had me dailed in immediately. The mcs were main-charactering, the other brothers have me feral for their books, the other side characters were entertaining & the villain was very turdy which, y'all know I love to hate on someone. Along with all the plot and story, the emotional components were al...

Just finished my reread of ON THE MOUNTAIN and I can tell you this story still holds up. It's still one of my favorite stories with two of my favorite characters ever. ● the primal play ● the c○ck warming ● the obsession & need for each other ● the patience ● the growling ● MINE Both mcs are absolutely compelling on their own, but together - they're undeniable.  Excerpt from my original review: Crow and Cyrus together were ELECTRIC. Crow, a survivor of the cult The Enlightened, lives on the mountain he's been on his whole life. With a backstory chock full of tragedy, the man is a walking definition of PTSD, and he's content to live out his life alone on his mountain. Cyrus moved to the town of Tranquility after rehab looking for a new start. If Crow's backstory is sad (it is!), then Cyrus brings a tsunami of grief and struggles - all while maintaining this sweetness that just *sighs* it's perfect. The instant spark between these two was incredible. Seeing th...

This book. THIS BOOK.  god, y'all. This story was IT. These characters were messy, and their morals were definitely skewed. But they have their code. Tiernan's crew was so loyal & they're definitely giving ✨️found family✨️ Dean is looking for revenge. His way to get it is through Tiernan. What he isn't expecting is for all his broken pieces to fit beside Tiernan's perfectly. Things I loved: • touch him and ☠️ • I hate you - no, you don't • marking & c u m play • both mcs are so lonely • family is everything I want to spoil the entire story, but I would never do that to you. When I saw the blurb, I worried this would be a mean enemies to lovers story ... but I should have trusted Riley. These two were a bit toxic, but it just kind of worked. The side characters? Amazing. The plot? Engaging & violent. The spice? VERY NICE.  The love story? So good. BITTERSWEET REVENGE was such a fun read, especially if you love dark but not too dark romances.

I just finished KEEP YOU SAFE, and it was I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E. Truly. The Second Chance Ranch series has been such a treat, and Grayson and Adler stole my heart. A city boy helping on a ranch and an older foreman who doesn't think anyone will stay, let alone the freckled red-haired ray of sunshine. ✨️squeals in dolphin language✨️ Things in this story that had me hooked: • Edging • Praise kink • Sobriety • Spanking • Begging • Minor bratting • Found family • Cowboys • light D/s Adler and Grayson were sweet and steamy, but it took a while to get there. I love when the mcs have to work for their HEA. Adler's sobriety and recovery were a big part of who he was & I love that we got to see an addict in recovery LIVING. He went to meetings and didn't shy away from his past. He was moving forward and healing and being himself. Grayson was such a grump. He'd had a hard life too, and seeing him fighting against himself was entertaining and irritating. But also realistic. Life...