Consumed by Bailey Nicole (Black Diamond Unlucky 13 #7)

Title: ⟫ Consumed (Black Diamond Unlucky 13 #7)

Author: ⟫ Bailey Nicole

Rating: ⟫ 4/5

Blurb: ⟫ Welcome to Black Diamond Resort and Spa…

Growing up in a small town in Georgia, I never dreamed of starting a band that would blow up from a viral video or that I’d live in a mansion on the beach in Miami, Florida.

Since we were seven years old, my best friend Percy had dreamed big enough for both of us. He’d always known this would be our future.

But he’s been slowly killing me for years, and yet he’s the only reason I’m still alive. He needs me. He needs me for comfort. He needs me to hold him and love him. Percy wants to live in my skin, and even that wouldn’t be close enough.

But he doesn’t want me the way I want him.

Money. Fame. Medications. Therapy.

None of that could’ve prevented what transpired that night, and even though it put me in a mental health facility, I don’t regret it. Not one bit.

Because without him, there is no me.

Consumed is an M/M romance between two highly codependent childhood best friends. Please read the content warning at the beginning of the book as there are themes that might be triggering for some readers.

Review: ⟫ This is actually a really difficult book to review for several reasons. The main reason is that the depiction of the mental struggles of the main character felt so personal that commenting on them feels wrong.

The relationship between Percy and Junesy is so incredibly co-dependent that I kinda wondered how they managed to breathe when other person wasn’t in the room. Their relationship was – well, strange – and part of my difficulty in reviewing is that I struggled to understand the miscommuncation. I fully understood Winston’s feelings – he didn’t feel good enough for Percy, and that along with the issues with his mother and father meant that he tried to pull away. But I didn’t get why Percy didn’t tell Winston how he felt – like, outright just say it. Mind you, it wasn’t like he wasn’t giving HUGE clues with the physical aspect of things that were happening.

I feel that this has quite a different vibe to the other books in the series and therefore it’s difficult to review it on the same level. Who am I to say whether or not this is an accurate depiction of the mental disorders that Winston was struggling with? The ‘romance’ was intense, troubling, complicated but also heart-warming and rewarding, with both men well aware of who/what they are to each other.

Winston’s method of handling the management issue was brilliant and I admit, I welled up a little reading the letter.

I would say take any author warnings seriously, consider whether this is a good book for you to read, but if you are not triggered, I think a lot of people will find this book enjoyable.

I received an ARC from Indie Author Creative.

Volatile by J.R. Gray (A Black Diamond Novel - Unlucky 13 Book #6)

Title: ⟫ Volatile (Black Diamond – Unlucky 13 Novel #6)

Author: ⟫ JR Gray

Rating: ⟫ 4/5

Blurb: ⟫ Welcome to Black Diamond Resort and Spa… and my exile…

A guy in a skirt wouldn’t turn a straight guy on, right?

I spent the last decade performing next to him. I’ve never looked at him as more—until I walked in on him in a skirt.

He’s as broken as I am.

We survived our childhood together. And when he’s finally trying to embrace the parts his father tried to beat out of him, I can’t handle it. He’s taunting me with smeared eye-liner and a filthy smile, singing to a sold-out crowd, and it’s getting too hot under these stage lights.

I can’t look him in the eyes. I can’t be with him—not like that—but I can’t stop thinking about him.

He's pushing me over the edge.

Now we’re banished to this forsaken celebrity timeout—to play emotional chicken—and he’s determined to make sure I lose.

He’ll push every button I possess until I give in.

Review: ⟫ I still haven’t figured out if I think Royal and Aspen are actually good for each other – Aspen seemed to be such a mess in terms of how he dealt with things, and I struggled with his attitude. He might have been defending Royal to his brother, but at the same time he was constantly pushing him in a way that I wasn’t always comfortable with.

Apart from that, the relationship between the two of them was hot af, full of steamy scenes whether they were on stage or not. I appreciated how, when Royal decided he was all-in, he really was all-in. He turned away from his father’s teachings, was honest with his mother and made sure that Aspen knew that their relationship was his number one focus and I truly thought that was wonderful.

There were links to other works by JR Gray (the Pretty Broken series) and I did enjoy catching those. I have also read most of the book in the Black Diamond series and this is the first one (for me) where the outside world was featured more and I enjoyed that too.

Messy rock stars falling in love and getting steamy on stage – can’t really ask for more than that. I enjoyed reading this and look forward to more in the Black Diamond series.

I received an ARC from GRR.

Exception by Cora Rose (Black Diamond Novel - Unlucky 13 #5)

Title: ⟫ Exception (An Unlucky 13 Novel)

Author: ⟫ Cora Rose

Rating: ⟫ 3.75/5

Blurb: ⟫ Welcome to the Black Diamond Resort and Spa . . .

When I fled my small town home to fly across the globe for a potential job on a remote island, I did it on a whim. And let’s just say, my parents were not happy. According to them, the journey of self-discovery is not nearly as important as tending the family farm.

I may not know a lot, but I do know that I needed space to breathe. To figure out who I am and what I want out of life. I desperately needed change.

So I traded in my work boots and flannels for flip-flops, golf carts, and fit men in teeny-tiny swim trunks.

I came here for adventure, but I never would have guessed that on a tropical island filled with creepy lizards, poisonous jellyfish, and one obscenely deranged monkey, it would be the surfer with the tight body and smart mouth that I really had to watch out for.

Review: ⟫ We’ve been teased with Holden throughout this series so I was very pleased when I realised that this was his book and that it was in Cora Rose’s hands. The glimpses we’ve seen of Holden to date showed him to be caring, fun, impulsive and kind so I was interested to see who his match would be.

I wasn’t expecting Chase – I don’t think anyone could expect Chase – but I thought he was sweet, a little bumbling and quite possibly one of the most innocent people to turn up on the island. Their relationship was swift, passionate and life-changing for both of them. Holden has been keeping part of himself aloof from other people, but somehow Chase gets beneath all of his barriers and armour and shows Holden what it is like to be/feel safe.

And Holden allows Chase to fly – to explore all of the unspoken things inside himself, which is the whole reason he came to the island.

Why no five score? I was seriously not a fan of Holden and Chase’s first solo interaction. I understand what was being conveyed but for me, it missed the mark. It felt far too rushed and confusing for one party – I think I needed an enthusiastic yes rather than what happened. It was in no way non-consensual but I just felt that things were rushed a little too much in the name of showing overwhelming passion.

This was a good addition to the Black Diamond series and I look forward to reading more.

I received an ARC from Indie Author Creative.

Unfortunate by Nicole Dykes (Black Diamond Novel - Unlucky 13 Book #3)

Title: ⟫ Unfortunate (An Unlucky 13 Novel)

Author: ⟫ Nicole Dykes

Rating: ⟫ 3.5/5

Blurb: ⟫ Welcome to the Black Diamond Resort and Spa . . .

I’m in exile in this luxurious refuge after a scandal, which shouldn’t be a scandal at all. I’m Elijah Hunt, former child actor, now beloved action star.

When a picture of me in a compromising position is posted online, for the entire world to see, my agent sent me here to escape the limelight.

But here, it’s different from my crazy, loud, glitzy life. It’s quiet and peaceful. No one seems impressed with my celebrity.

And no one is less impressed than the sexy, aloof member of the cleaning crew. He couldn’t care less who I am or why I’m here.

He’s convinced I’m one of the fortunate ones—and I suppose I am. I’ve had it all—big houses, the best care, money, fame, and shallow adoration . . . but I’ve never been loved.

I’ve never known if people like me for who I am underneath it all or just for my money and fame.

And to me . . . that seems awfully unfortunate.

Review: ⟫ I think I must be missing my emotion chip this week because I can tell that this was an emotional read, with both Atlas and Elijah daring to hope for more, all whilst being terrified of the potential consequences to their heart, mental health, life yet I didn’t find myself connecting with either of the m/c.

I could well understand the underlying message about what can be perceived as fortunate not always being the prize that it seems, but I just wasn’t feeling anything. I can see from other reviews that other people definitely felt that connection and I’m sorry I missed out on it.

The other thing I would say was that the ending/resolution felt a little rushed. Now it may be that we see more of this couple further on in the series, but I wanted to see more. I think this is more of a me issue –the book was well written, the sex scenes were good and I enjoyed the story in general.

I received an ARC from GRR.

Broken by Andi Jaxon (Black Diamond Novel - Unlucky 13)

Title: ⟫ Broken (An Unlucky 13 Novel)

Author: ⟫ Andi Jaxon

Rating: ⟫ 3.75/5

Blurb: ⟫ Welcome to Black Diamond Resort and Spa… After years of drowning myself in parties, hook ups, and pain, all it takes is one viral sex tape to get me thrown on a remote island to disappear for a while. That or lose my trust fund. Having to share a room with the one man I let hurt me is my worst nightmare. I’m the broken shell of the boy he walked away from on the single worst day of my life. I hate him almost as much as I hate myself. This island was supposed to be a place I could rest but instead I’m running. From Asher Vaughn. From myself. From the scars on my heart that never healed. It hurts to look at him and see all the things we never got to have. But how am I supposed to keep him at arm's length when he watches me the way he used to? When he touches me? When he calls me his? We can’t be together, not off this island. The straight football star and the gay femme son of famous parents. The media would rip us apart and ruin his career. I barely survived the last time he left me, can I live through being deserted again? Broken is a brother’s best friend, mm romance with some praise kink, and a broken boy in desperate need of love. This story has triggers which you can find on my website.

Review: ⟫ The first thing I would say is that checking out the author’s website for triggers is a good idea – there were several things in this book that I would imagine could cause issues and I appreciated the heads-up.

Asher and Eli are young and in love. Not such a bad thing except for the fact that they are hiding it from everyone, including Eli’s big brother Marcus. Asher is on his way to being a huge football star and falling in love with Eli was never his intention – now he has to figure out a way to walk away from the love of his life to have a chance at the life and career he has always wanted.

An unspeakable tragedy occurs just before Asher can walk away and it leaves both he and Eli broken and alone.

They meet up again by accident, both having been sent to the Black Diamond Resort to be out of the public eye whilst they handle public outcry from their (separate) meltdowns. What follows is a case of forced proximity bringing the past crashing down onto both of them, with secrets coming out and a lot of pain and hurt being excised.

I was not in the right place for angst so should have put this book down. It was well written but so much of it felt almost too dark for me, with neither Eli nor Asher seeming to be able to just communicate with the other in a useful way. Sex was used as a weapon and there were a lot of conflicting messages from both sides.

This was above and beyond the drama that led to them being at the Resort in the first place. I think the best way I can describe this novel for me is that too many things felt unfinished. There was a lot of discussion regarding Eli’s choices of clothing but if his parents were as dominating and controlling as they were made out to be, I don’t understand he’s been given so much leeway about the way he dresses in public.

I struggled with the way that Asher chose to handle things. Not when they initially happened – he was young so it was perfectly understandable – but what about when he got older and (hopefully) matured? Would it have been impossible for him to contact Eli and try to talk some things through? And this wasn’t just a simple misunderstanding – this was a huge secret, on top of what can only be described as parental abandonment for both of them. I just found it difficult to believe that someone who loved Eli so completely would be able to do something like that.

The subject matter(s) were handled sensitively and appropriately, with no band-aid fixes for what was going on. The sex scenes were hot and enjoyable and I didn’t doubt that Eli and Asher loved each other – it just felt a bit like they were frozen in time, acting like teenagers. It got tiresome on occasion and it affected my enjoyment of the book.

I would say that if you’re a fan of angst and can handle miscommunication as a major trope, this may well be the book for you. Both characters came across as ‘real’, struggling and suffering with things from their pasts, and you do end up rooting for them to find a way through the mess that their lives have become to be happy.

I believe this is book one in a 13-book series based at the same resort and am looking forward to reading more in this verse.

I received an ARC from Indie Author Creative.