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Dancing in Circles (Circles Trilogy #1)
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
So once again I was stuck for choice for what book to read next so I random number generated (RNG) it and got this, #22, which just shows you how old it is (2012).
I'm hoping my tastes haven't changed that much that I won't like it but we'll see what happens.

Okay, I'm going to DNF this at 35%. It wasn't that bad a story but as I mentioned in my status update, I can't help but picture Robert/Bob as some sort of Mexican thug/drug lord/drug runner with how he talks. I know he's from the wrong side of town but I'm sure they don't necessarily have to talk like he was doing. Then the fact he's in a gang...meh.

The main reason I'm not going to finish this is because I got a little bored. It was a bit too predictable. Bad boy, good girl. Meet, fall in love. Live happily ever after. Now if it had been the other way around; bad girl, good guy...then I might have stuck around for completion because I haven't read that situation often and I find it much more intriguing.

The characters were also a little strange in their actions. Stuff happened that a normal person would freak out about and instead our characters just sort of got on with life as if nothing had happened.

My taste in books has changed a fair bit in the three years since I downloaded this, when I downloaded almost everything that was free in the romance category.

I'm now going to go read something that I've paid for and actively sought out.

Not necessarily a bad book just not to my tastes.
  
Geomancist (7 Forbidden Arts #5)
Geomancist (7 Forbidden Arts #5)
Charmaine Pauls | 2016 | Erotica, Paranormal, Romance
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Sean is our Geomancist, but he can't access his power any longer, following a traumatic event with his twin sister. He is desperate to own the bar he works in, so he can fulfil his dream. Then Asia walks into his life, and tells him that SHE wants the bar - to change it into a spa to fulfil HER dream! The race is on to see which will raise the money first, and be the owner of the bar/spa.

To do this they have to do something that neither of them wanted to - attend a week-long private party on a private island owned by a Columbian drug lord. Things don't go according to plan and the book takes a sinister twist. Parts of this story are incredibly 'uncomfortable' to read, as well as hot and spicy bits of the story.

It unfolds in a way that could only be written by Charmaine Pauls, she keeps you guessing and the story moving in ways that you just don't anticipate. Absolutely thrilling and heart-wrenching, this story is a fantastic addition to the Seven Forbidden Arts series. Highly recommended and I'm already looking forward to the next book!

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Jun 1, 2016
  
The Rules of Revelation
The Rules of Revelation
Lisa McInerney | 2021 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry
9
9.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I really enjoyed The Rules of Revelation - although I started reading it fully prepared to be confused. I wasn’t. This is the third and final part of a trilogy - I do own the first two books, but in true Clare style, I haven’t read them. I like that this stands alone, although I’m sure that I will have missed out on some important parts of the plot - never fear! I’ll just go back and read the first two!

I really like stories set around bands or singers - and this does have something extra to that storyline. The side character really made this novel interesting. I loved Maureen, the mother of the local big drug baron. She really doesn’t care what anyone feels or thinks about her, and isn’t frightened by her son one bit - unlike most of Cork.

Georgie is an ex sex-worker who wants what she thinks is fair - and that’s to make sure that Ryan Cusak’s band, Lord Urchin, get what they deserve. Nothing. I can’t help but think that a lot of her problems come from the fact that she is so easily taken advantage of: in her past as well as by the journalist in her present.

And then there’s the love story of Ryan and Karine. How much more complicated could they make it for one another? On top of that, is Ryan’s battle to make his art accessible to others, to sell an album or play to an audience, but his past is constantly putting a spanner in the works. He wants to improve his life from his poor, deprived upbringing, and put his drug-dealing past firmly behind him.

And all of this set in a time of great change in Ireland. Maureen should see some positives in the new Ireland. She talks about Cork being a city for men, but Ireland has just passed laws for marriage equality and abortion rights.

There’s a lot going on in this novel, I’d never get through all of it here, and I wouldn’t want to. You should just read it. I loved it, and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.
  
Dirty Angels (Dirty Angels, #1)
Dirty Angels (Dirty Angels, #1)
Karina Halle | 2014 | Contemporary, Romance
5
7.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
I bought this years ago, 2015 to be exact, and have put it off for a long time when my taste changed from New Adult to Young Adult and Urban Fantasy. I chose it as a challenge read on here so I would finally read it.

So this starts with a prologue. Luisa decides to run away from her abusive drug lord husband in the spur of the moment decision, only to be captured by the enemy. It then moves into Chapter One and we see how she came to be married to Salvador and how she came to be in Javier's captivity. Javier wants her as a hostage so he can negotiate for something Salvador has and the longer they spend around each other, the more they begin to understand each other and feelings emerge.

I'm not really into mafia/cartel books. I find them to be rather violent and prefer sweeter stories with some angst in them. There were some times in this when I just couldn't read all the description and just skipped entire paragraphs, especially the bit with Franco. I also skipped quite a bit towards the end just wanting that final showdown between Javier and Salvador.

I didn't really get their romance. I understand Luisa looking for any light in the blackness that she's living but I still thought Javi was a bit dark, though he did have some nice moments.

I won't be continuing the series.