Be Mine, Twisted Valentine by Gianni Holmes (Corrupt Cupid #1)

Title: ⟫ Be Mine, Twisted Valentine

Author: ⟫ Gianni Holmes

Rating: ⟫ 3.5/5

Blurb: ⟫ Fifteen years ago, I helped put my abductor behind bars.

And shunned the events of my traumatic past.

I’ve lived a content life with my wife.

Until the dreaded phone call.

Duncan Whittaker’s out on parole.

The first time I confront him, I intend to kill him.

But when we’re face to face, everything changes.

I’m still codependent on him.

Duncan’s the only man who’s ever made me feel desire.

He’s also the one who held me captive for almost a year.

Isolated me from others to make me grateful for his presence.

Deprived me of sensation to make me crave his unwanted touch.

Duncan Whittaker’s the sadist who broke me in the name of revenge.

Now his twisted obsession is about to ruin my life a second time.

And God help me, but I don’t know how to stop him.

I… may not want to stop him.

Be mine, Twisted Valentine is part of a multi-author collab. Ditch the hearts and flowers and step into the dark world of Corrupt Cupid. Each book can be read as a standalone, but why not grab each and every deranged romantic tale as you slip into a place where darkness rules?

Review: ⟫ I have flu, so this review is probably going to be shorter than normal – apologies for that.

Be Mine, Twisted Valentine was not even what I would call a twisted valentine story – it was just straight up twisted. It just seemed like everyone in this story was all the way effed up and I felt like I was reading a car-crash. How the heck was there going to be anything even resembling a HEA in this story? The person I felt for the most was Teddy’s wife – she was the only one who didn’t deserve all of the stuff that went on in this story.

Teddy was obviously traumatised by what happened to him all of those years ago, and no surprise considering what we learnt about how Duncan treated him. Did he not get therapy? He obviously didn’t get support from his father, but surely someone could have looked a little deeper and seen how he was feeling.

And Duncan was like a man completely obsessed. As soon as Teddy was anywhere near, he seemed to lose all sense of survival instincts or common-sense. This book was a trip, and I hurtled through it because I was really fascinated with all of the characters and wanted to see how they got their HEA – or their version of it.

If you like your stories a little bit trippy, a lot dark, and more than a little unhinged, this one if for you!

I received an ARC from GRR.

Daddy's Stepstalker by Gianni Holmes

Title: ⟫ Daddy’s Stepstalker

Author: ⟫ Gianni Holmes

Blurb: ⟫ He’s been Daddy since he won me my first stuffie at a carnival booth.

Even when he married her and became unavailable.

For years Daddy Shaw’s all I’ve ever wanted.

But he still sees me as the innocent boy he took in.

It's a giggle how sweet he thinks I am.

He has no idea of the things I have done.

Of how I've stalked him…

...fantasized about him

... killed for him.

Will he still think of me as his little angel when he finds out I'm rotten to the core

Review: ⟫ Oh wow, this book was a study in contrasts! Ari was an absolute delight – completely committed to Shaw and keeping him safe, whilst pretty much acting like a psychopath to anyone else. There were so many layers to him, it was absolutely fascinating reading and I really enjoyed it as each one was peeled back and you got to know him better.

I really liked Shaw. He was out of his depth but once he had committed to Ari – and knew what he was getting into (kinda) – he really was all in. He showed such care for Ari in a way that few people in his life had done previously, and it made the obsession understandable. Even once he found out some of the lengths that Ari had gone to, Shaw did his best to impose rules to keep them both safe and sane. Sane was not the byword here though – the two of them together were pretty much all the way bonkers and I was so here for it!

There were many aspects to their relationship, some of which were a complete surprise to me, although in the context of how the two of them were together, it made sense. and I believe the author provides a comprehensive list of trigger warnings at the beginning of the book. I chose not to read them because I don’t have particular triggers (so far) but I would advise anyone who is concerned to make sure to read these warnings.

I am looking forward to the next book in the Daddy’s Little Deviants series, and happily give this book a 4/5.

I receieved an ARC from GRR.

To Not Date My Best Friend by Gianni Holmes (The Simple Rules #2)

Title: ⟫ To Not Date My Best Friend (The Simple Rules #2) 

Author: ⟫ Gianni Holmes 

Blurb: ⟫ What do you do when you meet the man of your dreams, but you’re already engaged? You become best friends and hope for the best. 

BAZ 

It was a meet-cute that should have come with a happy ending. I was hardly at my best when I caught Andy snapping photos of me topless in the name of street photography. I fired angry words at him. In exchange, he gave me his jacket to keep me warm. 

Thus began our friendship and an unrequited crush on a man who was about to get married. 

ANDY 

After a photography assignment in the Middle East left me scarred, I have no choice but to face the many issues in my life—my marriage is over, my wife has moved on, and I may never hold another camera between my hands. 

But there’s no hurdle I can’t get over once I have my best friend, Baz, in my life. When he tries to transition from a stylist to a journalist at the magazine where he works, he enlists my help in writing a column. 

How can I prove to him that moving from best friends to lovers makes sense when he’s determined to prove the opposite? 

To Not Date My Best Friend is a bi-awakening romance between a plus-sized stylist who’s claimed his place in the fashion world and a bi-curious photographer who happens to be his best friend. 

This book can be read as a stand-alone and has mild angst in some parts. 

Review: ⟫ I should preface this to say that I think this is more about me than the book. 

I wanted to like this story, I really did. I thought the premise was excellent and I loved the idea of the two of them dating whilst Baz was trying to confirm that it couldn’t work whilst Andy wanted to prove that it could. 

But that wasn’t what the story was. 

I wanted to learn more about what Andy went through that made him decide he needed to face his issues; the whole friends-to-lovers thing happened in a flash with what seemed like very little thought about the consequences if things didn’t work out; and I can’t fully explain it, but it felt like it held little substance. 

I didn’t like the cheating thing with the wife and thought it was unnecessary to the story, and perhaps that affected my perception? I don’t know, this just didn’t work for me. 

It was very well written, descriptive and interesting in parts, but somehow didn’t strike a chord for me. 

3.5/5. I received an ARC from GRR.

Grudge by Gianni Holmes (Ruthless Daddies)

 Title: ⟫ Grudge: An MM Mafia Romance (Ruthless Daddies)

Author: ⟫ Gianni Holmes
Blurb: ⟫ Can their love grow stronger than a twelve year old grudge?

Mitch spent the last twelve years dreaming about his plans when he gets out of the slammer. The last thing he expects is to be abducted the same day he’s released from prison. And sure as hell not by the boy who’s responsible for his criminal record. But Cesare is no longer the snivelling, pathetic, abused boy Mitch protected that day. He’s the Boss of the Lacovelli family. And one glimpse of the onesie beneath the boy’s expensive suit is enough to make Mitch’s knees go weak.

Cesare never forgot the man who saved his life at the expense of his own freedom. When he abducts Mitch to get close to him, he doesn't count on the sight of Mitch to affect him so much. It doesn’t take long for his teenage crush to turn into full blown love. As Cesare and Mitch grow closer, how can Cesare be sure of Mitch’s feelings when he forces Mitch to stay by his side out of a sense of duty?

Grudge is a part of the Ruthless Daddies multi-author mafia collab and a complete standalone. Expect to find an age gap romance with an ex-convict Daddy, a trigger happy Mob Boss boy, and a sweet HEA. Want more deliciously morally gray Daddies and boys? Grab the whole series!

Review: ⟫ I think I should say that I haven’t read any of the other Ruthless Daddies stories in the collaboration, but I accept that this story can be read as a complete standalone.

There are so many aspects of this story that I thought were good. Cesare was such an intriguing mix: sadist, little, submissive – it was a lot! I liked how his little side was expressed – that he knew exactly what he needed and was able to express it clearly. I also really liked the harsh, dominant side of him that ran his family with a willingness to choose violence when necessary.

Mitch was harder for me to read and get into. Sometimes it almost felt like he was locked in to his relationship with Cesare by duty – there felt like there was very little development of their relationship, and I didn’t feel the connection as strongly from his side.

There was so much going on in the story – possibly too much – with the Russians, the family being unhappy with Cesare being openly gay and the changes he was making, the situation with his uncle, his friend Faro. I think I ended up feeling a little fatigued by it all. There were also times when there was a disconnect – things sort of jumped around. For example, how Mitch and Cesare found the time to be at the Loft when things were allegedly exploding within the family and a hit being taken out on Cesare.

The sex scenes were hot and varied, with all of the different areas of Cesare’s desires being explored. But there was a lingering sense of dissatisfaction – most likely caused by the disconnect I felt – and overall the story didn’t work for me. It was well written and I would imagine a lot of people will find it interesting and hot. It just wasn’t the story for me.

I received an ARC from GRR.

To Not Marry My Enemy by Gianni Holmes (The Simple Rules #3)

Title: ⟫ To Not Marry My Enemy (The Simple Rules #3)
Author: ⟫ Gianni Holmes
Rating: ⟫ 4/5
Blurb: ⟫ He’ll rue the day we say “I do”.

Ford

Being jilted once was bad enough, and it won’t happen again. This time I’m marrying for business. When my current fiancee dupes me a few days before the wedding, luckily she leaves behind someone who can take her place. It’s the right thing for him to do, since he convinced her our wedding was a sham. If he doesn’t agree, I know just how to get him down the aisle.

River

The first time I met Ford, I knew instantly we were bound to be enemies. I loathe every gorgeous, pretentious inch of the man, even after the I dos. If it’s a marriage he wants, then a marriage he’ll get…starting with our honeymoon. I’ll make our marriage such an unbearable hell that he’ll ask for an annulment. When my plan backfires and I accidentally sleep with my new husband on our honeymoon, things take a turn I least expected. Now I need a divorce…or maybe not?

To Not Marry My Enemy is an enemies-to-lovers short novel with marriage-of-convenience and bi-awakening.

Reviews: ⟫ Enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience, bi-awakening – this book had a lot to live up to! And it did!

River and Ford were so blinded by their hatred of each other that they struggled to see past it to the people behind the masks. Their pride did them both favours, making it so that neither of them would back down and giving them a chance to make their marriage of convenience much more real than either had planned.

I really loved the banter between the two of them, the hate-sex was off the charts hot, and the fact that this wasn’t one of those miscommunication plot devices that could be fixed in one conversation really worked for me. I enjoyed watching them learn about each other, figure out what made the other person tick and slowly reveal the true feelings that were bubbling beneath the surface, and the banter and chemistry showed through clearly. I didn’t love the character of the brother and his motivations/actions felt like they were forgiven far too easily; I also wasn’t a fan of Cammie as it felt like she just abandoned River without considering that there might be consequences for him caused by her actions.

A nice addition to the Simple Rules series and I enjoyed it very much.

I received an ARC from GRR.