August | Kindle Unlimited Reading

I probably need to be a little better with taking advantage of my Kindle Unlimited subscription and I did just that in August. I was a reading machine last month, but that hasn’t quite been the case for September. Oh what a year it has been for my reading.

Definitely check out a couple of my favorite bloggers and their Kindle Unlimited recommendations, plus they’re just the best people ever :

• The Brown Eyed Bookworm
• HEA Novel Thoughts

I’ve canceled my KU subscription, but can still use it until mid-October. I’m going to adapt what Corina (The Brown Eyed Bookworm) does when it comes to KU and build up a TBR, subscribe (which is actually a great idea because there’s always deals with free months), and then cancel. For me, this is a great way to kind work around the system and save money, I can’t even begin to tell you the number of months of not utilizing my KU. That’s money down the drain, so I’m trying to avoid that from here on.

I know KU can be a hit or miss, but there are some decent reads in there, eventually, I’ll put a list together of my favorites. But let’s take a look at what I managed to read last month.

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kindle unlimited in august

Breaking News

Book 2 in the Prime Time series

by Ella Frank

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis

Xander

Sean Bailey, the older brother of my lifelong best friend, has always been a surly, temperamental pain in my ass. But sometime during the last few weeks, I’ve gone and fallen head over heels for him.

Gruff and charming, charismatic in his own way, I’ve found myself looking past my preconceptions and discovered a whole new side to Detective Dick—a side I could fall in love with.

But life isn’t always easy—it can change course in the blink of an eye. Sometimes for the good and sometimes for the bad. I know this because last night I experienced both sides.

I went to Sean for help in guarding my body; what I didn’t expect was for him to steal my heart.

Breaking News is not a standalone and should only be read after book one, Inside Affair. Headlines, the third and final book in the Prime Time Series, will be available 9.28.20.

Tropes : M/M romance; bodyguard romance

[rating stars=”four-stars”] — definitely enjoying this series, they’re quick reads, so I kept wishing it wasn’t a trilogy.

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Vicious Prince

Book 5 in the Royal Elite

by Rina Kent

Genre: New Adult Romance

Synopsis

He’s prince charming. Just not hers.

I have a secret.
I stole a heart, or rather a marriage contract.
It wasn’t mine to own, to look at or to even consider.
But it was there for the taking so I took it.
Huge mistake.
Ronan Astor is a nobility in this world.
Arrogant player.
Heartless bastard.
Vicious prince.
Now, he’s out to destroy me.
What he doesn’t know is that I’m out to destroy him too.
My name is Teal Van Doren, and I’m where princes go to die.

Vicious Prince is part of Royal Elite Series but could be read on its own. For better understanding of the world, you might want to read the previous books first. This is a mature new adult and contains situations that some readers might find offensive or triggering.

Tropes : arranged marriaged, enemies to lover, bully romance

[rating stars=”four-stars”] — definitely not a book/series for everyone. And it was tamer than the previous books in this series. There are trigger warnings, so I’d check reviews for those.

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Salvatore

Book 1 in the Benedetti Brothers

by Natasha Knight

Genre: Dark Mafia Romance/Contemporary Romance

Synopsis

Lucia

It all started with a contract signed by him, then by me, while our families watched. While my father sat silent, a man defeated, giving his daughter to the Benedetti monsters.

I obeyed. I played my part. I signed my name and gave away my life. I became their living, breathing trophy, a constant symbol of their power over us.

That was five years ago.

Then came the time for him to claim me. For Salvatore Benedetti to own me.

I had vowed vengeance. I had learned hate. And yet, nothing could have prepared me for the man who now ruled my life.

I expected a monster, one I would destroy. But nothing is ever black or white. No one is either good or evil. For all his darkness, I saw his light. For all his evil, I saw his good. As much as he made me hate him, a passion hotter than the fires of hell burned inside me.

I was his, and he was mine.

My very own monster.

Salvatore

I owned the DeMarco Mafia Princess. She belonged to me now. We had won, and they had lost. And what better way to teach a lesson than to take from them that which is most precious? Most beloved?

I was the boy who would be king. Next in line to rule the Benedetti Family. Lucia DeMarco was the spoils of war. Mine to do with as I pleased.

It was my duty to break her. To make her life a living hell. My soul was dark, I was hell bound. And there was no way out, not for either of us. Because the Benedetti family never lost, and in our wake, we left destruction. It’s how it had always been. How I believed it would always be.

Until Lucia.

Author’s Note: Salvatore and Lucia’s story is a steamy standalone romance. No cliffhanger and no cheating. It is intended for mature readers.

Tropes: enemies to lovers, bdsm

[rating stars=”four-stars”] — I wouldn’t say this is a dark romance, it’s pretty tame. But I enjoyed the crap out of this one. I found this author through an anthology where these characters were introduced.

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Sweet Mercy

Book 1 in the Empire Nightclub

by Nina West

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Synopsis

One visit to my father in prison—convicted for a murder he didn’t commit—and I’ve attracted the attention of the last man I’d ever want knowing that I exist.

Gabriel Easton.

Son of an infamous crime boss. Deplorable womanizer. Scoundrel to the core.

Worse, he has figured out how desperate I am to protect my father from brutality behind bars. He has the power to grant that protection, and he has offered it … for a price.

Me.

I am to become a “guest” in his mansion, to live with him until he tires of having me around.

I’ll do anything for my father, including agree to Gabriel’s cruel game. But I won’t comply with his every whim and wish.

Not when he taunts me with that ruthless spark in his cold blue eyes.

Not when he requires that I share his bedroom at night.

Unfortunately for me, I think my loathing for him is what he’s enjoying most.

That’s fine. By the time I’m through with him, he’ll be crying my name.

Mercy.

This title is recommended for mature audiences only due to graphic content.

Tropes: enemies to lovers, mafia elements

[rating stars=”three-half-stars”] — intrigue definitely pulled me into this one, I was expecting a bit more of the mafia element. Originally this was supposed to be a trilogy, but there’s one more book coming. I can’t say I love this series, but I’m completely invested. I quickly read Gabriel Fallen afterward.

**Nina West will be republishing these books under K.A. Tucker. There will be 4 books in this series.

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The Wolf Hotel Series

4 Book Bundle by Nina West/K.A. Tucker

Genre: Erotic Romance

This bundle includes all four full-length books in the highly addictive forbidden romance The Wolf Hotel series!

Tempt Me (Book 1):
I ran from home to escape heartbreak, only to deliver myself into the hands of a wolf.
Henry Wolf, that is.
Heir to a luxury hotel chain.
Infamous playboy.
Arrogant bastard.
And my new boss.
Why he wants me, Abbi Mitchell—a girl who lacks experience on every front that would matter to him—as his personal assistant, I cannot fathom, especially when I keep screwing up in the most spectacular way.

Did I already mention he’s a bastard?
A beautiful, moody one, who’s quick to demand, slow to apologize.
And toying with me every chance he gets.
Testing me.
Messing with my head in a way that makes my body crave him.
He knows it, and he doesn’t hide the fact that he enjoys doing it.
He says he doesn’t want me for more than my mediocre computer skills and color-coding flair.
He says he’s not willing to risk losing his empire for a tangle in the sheets with “the help.”

But I’m beginning to think that’s a big, dirty lie.

Break Me (Book 2):
Henry Wolf is a deliciously wicked, sinfully handsome man who has done a very bad thing.
Potentially.

Worse, he owns me now—every inch of my body and a sizeable chunk of my stupid, naïve heart.
And he’s made it clear that if I want to keep my job and stay in Alaska, I’m stuck catering to his every whim and wish—both in the hotel and in his bedroom—while I wait for the potential fiery media circus ring that will no doubt drag my reputation into the gutter along with his, should his past discretions surface.

I will not surrender to his demands, not when I have dirt to hold over his head. IF I have the guts to blackmail him, that is. Something warns me that going through with it will have disastrous consequences for my heart.

Teach Me (Book 3):
I am not the naïve, innocent girl everyone expects me to be. Not anymore.

Henry has ignited a fire, and I will do anything—defy everyone—to keep him in my life.

But the question now is, does he feel the same way about me?

Surrender to Me (Book 4):
I have battled my controlling family and won. I finally have what I want most—the wickedly sinful billionaire Henry Wolf, committed to me and within arm’s reach most nights.
If only it could stay that way.
Because now I find myself caught between two titans vying for the Wolf empire, worth enough to make any moral man lethal. And Henry’s brother is immoral to the bone.
What will Henry do to save what he loves?
And will I fall into that category?

Tropes: age gap, billionaire romance, forbidden romance

[rating stars=”three-half-stars”] — this series was such a wild ride and I was here for every second of it. The drama was a bit over the top for me, but allll the erotic scenes, I loved it and couldn’t get enough. Such a devourable read and you definitely won’t regret it.

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One Moment Please

Book 3 in the Wait With Me series

by Amy Daws

That awkward moment when an ER doctor has to inform you that you’re pregnant…with his baby.

Three things Lynsey Jones knows about the hot doctor: he’s grouchy, an arrogant jerk, and strangely obsessed with pie.

Three things Dr. Dick knows: he doesn’t talk about his past, he doesn’t do relationships, and the crazy girl in the hospital cafeteria who ate a fistful of French silk pie…is annoyingly irresistible.

After a chance meetup at a bar and a heated cab ride together, things come to a head and now instead of hating each other, they’re horizontal in a bed.

Three months later, the weird cafeteria stalker who crept out of Dr. Dick’s house like a thief in the night, winds up as his patient in the ER after her Tinder date from hell.

Dr. Dick is prepared to keep it cool and professional. That is until her bloodwork reveals that she’s pregnant.

What really throws him for a loop…is that the surprise baby…is his.

Trope: surprise baby, enemies to lovers, one night stand

[rating stars=”four-stars”] — I truly love the surprise baby trope, probably more than secret baby (because the reason behind the secret can be an absolute no for me). I’ve had Amy Daws on my TBR for what seems like forever, but my mood struck me and I was wanting to read a surprise baby trope. When it comes to romcoms, I tend to question everything such as “does this really make me laugh?”. And you bet I did, the banter between the main characters were wildly entertaining. My goodness, the hero earned the nickname Dr. Dick time after time. There are soo many funny moments, truly an enjoyable read.

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