It’s that time again! I actually read a lot of good books in May and you can find them all on my Goodreads shelves. Below are my favorites, but it was so hard to choose!
1 – Top May Read (tie)
Transcendence By Shay Savage
It’s said that women and men are from two different planets when it comes to communication, but how can they overcome the obstacles of prehistoric times when one of them simply doesn’t have the ability to comprehend language?
Ehd’s a caveman living on his own in a harsh wilderness. He’s strong and intelligent, but completely alone. When he finds a beautiful young woman in his pit trap, it’s obvious to him that she is meant to be his mate. He doesn’t know where she came from; she’s wearing some pretty odd clothing, and she makes a lot of noises with her mouth that give him a headache. Still, he’s determined to fulfill his purpose in life – provide for her, protect her, and put a baby in her.
Elizabeth doesn’t know where she is or exactly how she got there. She’s confused and distressed by her predicament, and there’s a caveman hauling her back to his cavehome. She’s not at all interested in Ehd’s primitive advances, and she just can’t seem to get him to listen. No matter what she tries, getting her point across to this primitive, but beautiful, man is a constant – and often hilarious – struggle.
With only each other for company, they must rely on one another to fight the dangers of the wild and prepare for the winter months. As they struggle to coexist, theirs becomes a love story that transcends language and time.
This book was unlike anything I’ve ever read before. The blurb pretty much explains everything that the book is about, and in all honesty, the story is pretty simple and sometimes repetitive but it’s not boring. Everything is told from the hero’s point of view which makes for a very interesting read. Seeing the way he understands things and what he does to protect and care for his heroine is both sweet and hot. I was intrigued by the circumstances of this book and how Savage would bring it to an end, but I won’t say too much because the ending absolutely destroyed and surprised me, and I wouldn’t want to spoil it for anyone else!
This book is completely unique and is one you’ll remember. It takes you on a rollercoaster of feels and by the end, you’d do anything to keep going. I highly, recommend this for anyone who is tired of the typical boxed in characters sometimes found in romance and who want to read a true love story that makes you cry with happiness. It’s not for everyone, but I absolutely loved it. You can read my full Goodreads review here.
1 – Top May Read (tie)
Golden Dynasty by Kristen Ashley (Fantasy Romance)
Circe Quinn goes to sleep at home and wakes up in a corral filled with women wearing sacrificial virgin attire – and she is one of them. She soon finds out that she’s not having a wild dream, she’s living a frightening nightmare where she’s been transported to a barren land populated by a primitive people and in short order, she’s installed very unwillingly on her white throne of horns as their Queen.
Dax Lahn is the king of Suh Tunak, The Horde of the nation of Korwahk and with one look at Circe, he knows she will be his bride and together they will start The Golden Dynasty of legend.
Circe and Lahn are separated by language, culture and the small fact she’s from a parallel universe and has no idea how she got there or how to get home. But facing challenge after challenge, Circe finds her footing as Queen of the brutal Korwahk Horde and wife to its King, then she makes friends then she finds herself falling in love with this primitive land, its people and especially their savage leader.
I absolutely LOVED this book. I said last month that I thought Perv was going to be my favorite book of the year, but this one has now overtaken that title. It has everything I absolutely love in epic fantasy and everything I love in romance. Possessive alpha? Check. Sassy heroine? Check. Cast of characters? Check. Magic and alternate worlds? Check. The list goes on.
The heroine, Circe, finds herself in a brutal world where she endures harsh treatment at first during the Hunt, where warriors claim their wives. She finds herself claimed by the king of that culture and she begins to learn about him and their culture, all the while thinking she would eventually return home the same way she came. Unfortunately, that doesn’t happen and she and the king begin to get more familiar with each other. I loved the dominant, obsessive and possessive nature of Lahn (the king). He was brilliant. And Circe was a little annoying at first, but I loved the way she put her foot down about certain things and the fact she didn’t hold on to anger unnecessarily.
I loved everything about the turns and twists in their relationship – the expectations they had of each other, the demands they placed on each other. I loved both the hero and heroine, they complimented each other perfectly and loved seeing them stand together as one unit against the trials they faced. This book is LONG, 500+ pages, but it was a joy to read. However, it isn’t the first in the series. The first book gives you a better insight into Circe’s situation and features a fantastic alpha hero, however this one I enjoyed more. For my full blissed-out, fangirl review, see here.
2
Bad Billionaire by Julie Kriss (Contemporary Romance)
I’m no one. A mechanic. A getaway driver. A thief.
I was born on the streets, and I like it rough — life, sex, everything. My job is dirty. My past is dirty. So is my future.
Until I get out of prison and discover I’ve inherited a billion dollars.
I’m not a good billionaire. I don’t care about penthouses, fancy dinners, or private jets. I don’t care about life and death. Hell, I don’t even care about money. I’m willing to spend every penny of it on one thing.
Find the woman who gave me one unforgettable night before I went down. The woman who is too good for me. The woman I can never have.
Find her. Get revenge on the man that hurt her. And make her mine.
This was quite an unusual billionaire book. The hero is a petty criminal who lives opposite the heroine in the same complex. They notice each other and their relationship builds just before and after he goes to prison. This felt like a gritty, romantic suspense novel at times, and I forgot that I was reading a billionaire story – I think that’s what made it unusual. The hero wasn’t a billionaire at the beginning of the story so we got to know about him and what he was all about before the money came into play.
Although the hero wasn’t as possessive as I would have liked him to be in his actions, (he was in his thoughts) I really liked him and his approach to his life and the heroine. They really suited and I liked reading about them together. Great writing and memorable story.
3
Step Boss by Ash Harlow (Contemporary Romance)
Four months ago, I had a one night stand that blew my mind, and literally blew my ‘you know what’.
She’s the one that got away, and I’ve been craving her ever since.
Just the thought of her, just a scent of the perfume she wore, and I’m hard as a rod.
So how do you think I feel now that she’s back in my life?
Great? Excited? Aroused? Ecstatic?
Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
Because having her back in my life is pure torture.
Not only is she my new PA, and I have a strict hands off policy at work, she’s also my father’s spanking new stepdaughter.
That makes her my stepsister.
I’ve heard of keeping it in the family but come on, that’s got to be crossing the line.
The thing is, everything about Carley makes me want to cross the line.
I want to rip her out of her ridiculous new business clothes, breathe in her delectable scent, throw her down on my bed, and show her what I meant to show her the first night I had her.
You know what? Screw the rules!
I keep saying I’m not a fan of step-something stories, but actually, I have read a few good ones. This falls into that category. Both main characters didn’t know each other when they had their one night, and then have to end up working together after finding out that their parents are married.
This was a much better read than I thought it was going to be. The main characters were great – developed and complex – and the situation was truly intriguing and real. I felt like the characters were really in an unwinnable situation and I was keen to see how they would deal with it. Of course, the parents happened to be the biggest assholes on the planet and were frustrating as hell, as they were supposed to be, but it still felt well-rounded. The conflict at the end was also realistic and a worthwhile pay-off.
Overall, a great all-rounder.
