Caffeinated Crystal's book reviews

Book 1/179 rereading books I never reviewed. Listen. I love Lucy and May as coauthors. I know, before I even read it, that I am gonna love the story. That remains true with HIJACKED, the first Horn of Glory book. • puns • doctor/bodyguard • chemistry • kidnapping • rampaging capybaras • small town shenanigans  • did I mention PUNS • puts the comedy in romcom Carter and Riggs were so fun. The entire Gustav Santiago situation had me cackling, and the chemistry between these two was off the charts. Read this if youre looking for silliness after a heavy story, or maybe you just wanna cute giggle. I loved how broken they were when they got back from Venezuela, how they were just so miserable. It was obvious to everyone that Carter and Riggs were made for each other. Love love love. Absolutely recommend!

This book was perfection. May Archer always finds a way to make her stories so incredibly heartwarming and hilarious. KISS MY AXE had me laughing and crying (they were happy tears.) Big moments and an entire cast of characters kept me enjoying the story, but the romance between Griffin and Beckett ... ✨️sighs dreamily✨️ these two were absolutely wonderful. How to share without giving away the story? • adorable "enemies" to rivals to lovers • quirky town and gossiping residents • THEMES and puns galore • a set of brothers who will find love • city boy marketing man/small town lumberjack • magical tree houses • matchmakers • town festivals • big moments • adventurous sex I am not kidding about the magical tree house. Beckett is a grown man but he is also a disaster gay. 😂😂😂 the man is an absolute mess and Griffin turns him into a lunatic. Griffin knew he was in trouble before Milo even left Vermont. Becoming dickmatized is a thing, Taylor Swift even wrote about it. Kiss My A...

Absolutely worth the wait 💕 in case you were wondering. I LOVED Control Freak, book three in the Foster Bro Code series. I knew as soon as I met Holden in book one that I would love him. He's one of my favorite kinds of characters, all calm on the outside and hidden depths. Plus, while this isn't a daddy book, the control & the caretaking kind of give those vibes and I'm here for it. Holden is touch averse. He meets Shiloh, online, through a camming site. It's the only way he can comfortably have intimacy. When Holden realizes Shiloh is in trouble, he brings Shiloh home with him to Nebraska. I love both Holden and Shiloh. I love how they had to work for it & really communicate with each other. I love the ways they find ways to be intimate ✨️the hand scene was hot✨️ I love that Shiloh finds the family and community he craves in Riverton and finds his own worth by seeing Holden show up for him over and over. Holden was amazing with his honesty and his truths. I a...

I usually keep a book or two by a favorite author squirelled away for a rainy day. Today I wanted the comfort of an unread Emmy Sanders book, and so I read Swan Hearts. If you know me at all, you know that Fool Hearts, book one of this series is one of my favorite books ever. I reread it every six months or when I need a good cry. It's the best. Swan Hearts is book four from that series. It had exactly what I needed tonight. Mature mcs who are best friends who are also lovers. Nash and Jake's story was not at all what I was expecting. And to be perfectly honest, I wanted to throttle Jake and Nash multiple times throughout the whole situation. Not because I didn't sympathize with what they were going through... but because they were so obviously soulmates. Like, babes, get it together. Nash, the town's barman and Jake's, the town's vet, have been besties for over 30 years. You think you know why the two aren't together but that's not at all why. What coul...

PRINCE MATERIAL, book two in the Prince Pact series was a tasty little roommates to friends to lovers story. Sprinkle in a little playboy/nerd "teach me" spice and a lot of sweet little moments where these two were so gone for each other? Chef's Kiss. Floris & Orson were great. The last 40% were chock full of my favorite bits. Floris is a prince from the Netherlands and Orson is a grad student hyperfocusing/studying water & land management. I loved Orson. He was trying so hard to live up to his dad's memory. Floris helped draw him out of his self imposed study exile and brought a spark into his life. Floris was a tornado of energy and joy. I loved his integrity and determination to not out ----, and how that kicked off the entire events of the book. • prince/"commoner" • past trauma • ✨️teach me✨️ • roommates to friends to lovers • sunshine/nerd I also loved the New Orleans storyline. I loved Orson's family, except Uncle Bill. And of course I lov...

I just finished up THE PRINCE AND THE PLAYER book one in the Prince Pact series by Nora Phoenix. I don't usually enjoy enemies to lovers, but I am a big fan of an undercover prince - and I am so glad I gave this story a chance! • undercover prince • "enemies" to lovers • grumpy/sunshine • college sport: soccer • rich/poverty To be very clear, I loved Farron and Tore. I think the entire premise of the prince friend group and their pact was such a great idea for a series. Tore, Floris, Nils, and Gregory. I can't wait to read all of their books. Farron was a dick. I get it. I get why. But if Tore and Farron hadn't kissed when they did... I was about to throw my Kindle, MAMBO no. 5, out the window. Tore was WAY more patient than I would ever have been. Again, I get why Farron acted the way he did, but I wanted to strangle Farron so many times. Let yourself be happy, my guy! And grow up a little bit. Stop standing in your own way! Even though I was hardcore hating on F...

What does this woman put in her books?!?! I swear Lucy Lennox has a way of injecting romcom nostalgia into every one of her stories. HASHTAG HOLIDATE was exceptional, delivering on the small town holiday Hallmark feeling AND a sweet little will they won't they romance. Adrian shows up in Legacy, Montana to do some influencer marketing for a clothing company. Maddox just happens to be a photographer and videographer. Maddox is determined to dislike Adrian, and Adrian goes full orange cat on him - basically doing everything to make the man fall in love with him (without even realizing it) all the while pushing Maddox's buttons. It was entertaining and hilarious. These two had chemistry for days, and also just happened to be perfect for each other.  The theme? Cute. The holiday vibes? Off the chart. The side characters? Awesome & memorable. The romance? Enchanting. The spice? Nice when it arrived! This story was a sweet little reminder that sometimes it takes a while to figure...

ON THE LAND, WE SHOOT STRAIGHT is a terrible title. That's the ONLY thing I didn’t like about this book. Everything else was FIRE. Grady and Cole were slow burn, but they also were not. The pace of the story was SPRAWLING and the story took me by surprise. I don't want to give any of the story away, I think it will be most enjoyed if you go in a bit blind. The storytelling reminded me of how UNBREAK ME by Jesse H. Reign made me feel. If you enjoyed that story, then I definitely think you'll enjoy this one. It was similar but completely different. The two MCs had me absolutely enthralled. I wanted the backstory and then when I got it I was left heartbroken and enraptured. How can I feel all that at the same time? Who knows? But I did. Grady was perfectly broody, grumbly, and quiet. Always watching & with big feelings. He was gruff. But he had a giant sweet spot for Cole. With Cole, he softened. Cole was a wounded but determined character. He had obviously gone through so...

This series is CRIMINALLY UNREAD AND UNDERAPPRECIATED. I love love love Blue Creek Ranch. EARN HIS TRUST is Hawk & Carter's story. • age gap • older rich city man/ younger blue collar rancher • horse whisperer vibes • one sided "enemy" to friends to lovers • competency kink • one of them has a PAST that comes up • small town • welcoming family vibes • lots of different queer representation Y'all I loved this story. I ate it up. Carter Cahill pays Hawk & Blue Creek a fortune to find a specific type of horse. Which gives everyone the ick quickly. But IRL he is so sweet and earnest. They just don't know him. Hawk is very horse focused and antipeople. He is 24 and his best friend is a grizzly 70 year old former foreman. He is so delightfully grumpy and awkward. Carter and Hawk have pretty insane chemistry. It takes a while for the smut to start, like a WHILE. But the romance of it makes this book super enjoyable and very readable. This series would be best enj...

Sweet Vengeance, out October 8th, was such a pleasant surprise! But Crystal, isn't that a "darkish romance" in Riley Hart's world? Yes, it is. Cillian and Ollie were a damned delight!  ❤️ C○ckwarming 🔪 Family drama ❤️ Found family ✨️ Grief and loss ❤️ Sharing *check end of review* ✨️ Connection ----- never having friends before, and now he looks around like 👀🫢😍 I loved Ollie and Cillian. They shouldn't work, but they do. Ollie is the other side of Cillian's coin. They're both brave, in different ways. Stubborn. Loyal. Hardworking. They both have a strong moral code. They're LOYAL and FIERCE in their own way. *yes, I said loyal twice. They ARE* The chemistry between Cill and Ollie is off the charts, and their sex vibes are en fuego 🔥. I love how into each other they are. They both have experiences with grief and loss, and it just tightens their connection. What I LOVED was seeing the connection between Cillian and Rory & how Ollie was an import...

✨️squeals and kicks the couch cushions✨️ BARN BURNER was a banger. A must-read if you're a fan of cowboy romances or hockey romances or cowboy/hockey player romances. Oh my god, I loved this story so much. Brayden and Jesse were so romantic, and honestly, they are what my romance loving heart FIENDS FOR. The vibes were perfection, and the chemistry was so good. 🧡 strong silent cowboy 🧡 hockey player with a praise kink 🧡 save a horse, ride a cowboy 🧡 the French toast/breakfast scene 🧡 the mechanical bull 🧡 the [redacted for spoiler purposes] LISTEN TO ME. I AM THE CAPTAIN NOW. READ THIS BOOK. I needed a cowboy romance and Jodi Oliver delivered. 5⭐️ YOUR HONOR, I LOVED THEM.