28- 32/100 New Species Series by Laurann Dohner

Honestly, this review could be for all of the books so I’m just going to list them and then copy and paste the review at the bottom. They all feature different male and female leads, and I find the world building to be amazing, however the explicit sex and almost rote format of these books left me bored after five. The books that I read are: 1) Fury; 2) Slade; 3)Valiant; 5) Brawn; and 6) Wrath. I did skip over Justice because I was a little squicked by the power imbalance between the male and female protagonists.

I first read this series years ago, about a decade ago as it happens. Back then I was totally into paranormal romance, and racy romances. Essentially these are erotic romances. I re-read these because I saw them at the bottom of my kindle books reads and wanted to get back into them. The world building is fascinating, I love how Dohner manages to make the main paranormal characters both relatable, and yet totally not what is expected. If you do not read this series in order I believe you will get quite confused. A new race of people was created in laboratories funded in part, unknowingly, by the US Government. This series of books takes us through the discovery and freeing of various individuals as new labs are found, as well as the individuals falling in love. I read several of these books in quick succession before I could not deal with the explicit sex scenes as well as the, sameness?, of the books. I’m not sure how to describe it, I just don’t find them enthralling after a few.

27/100 Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews

In Magic Slays Kate is trying to find her place in a new job, where she is running her own company, her relationship with Curran, as well as her place in the pack. All of this is discounting her usual drama surrounding her family and origins. That creates a jam-packed novel where we learn more about the past, present, and future of Kate and Curran with a smattering of high-stakes drama in the middle of it. If you try to jump into this series you will be hopelessly lost. If you have been reading along then this is another step toward learning what is going to happen with Curran and Kate, and a couple of huge revelations about Kate and where Curran’s Loyalties really lie!

26/100 Magic Bleeds by Ilona Andrews

This is the 4th book in the Kate Daniels series, and like all of the books before, it is filled with magic, drama, and angst. I loved it. The character development between Kate and Curren (read the rest to understand) as well as learning more of Kate’s backstory is amazing. The way Andrews winds magic, mythology, and an alternate dystopian future together is remarkable. In this tale Kate’s Aunt is wreaking havoc and Kate must try to fix things. Throughout she is also trying to save/protect her friends, figure out where she and Curren stand in each others lives and figure out where her position within the ‘order’ is. Somehow Andrews intertwines all of these plot threads, without really dropping any, and still makes a fast paced, fascinating, read. Highly Recommended. Now, I’m going to start on the 5th book to see where Kate and Curren wind up next.

4/100 From Fear by Megan Derr

This is the last book in this series that I will be re-reading at this time. I’m working my way through a large non-fiction book on my Kindle as well as listening to an audiobook, not simultaneously since I want to actually retain some information from each of these books.  This review is copied from an earlier reading, however it does still hold true today.

This is the newest addition to Derr’s Princes of the Blood series. Strangely enough though it is the fourth book in the series it is set before the first book that was written, Of Last Resort. This does mean that these books can, in theory, read in any order. The Third Book seems to take place before the fourth (which is set before the first). In Chronological Order within the Princes of the Blood universe you would probably read these books: From Fear, Book 4, With Pride, Book 2; Of Last Resort Book 1; Finally In Despair, Book 3 (though the majority is set after book 1 parts to refer back to a time before book 4).

If you can follow all of the time jumps within the series, then this is a good LGBTQ+ series with several graphic sex scenes per book. From Fear manages to add quite a bit to the universe and adds onto a very rich fantasy series. Derr manages to add in a form of werewolves without losing any of her fascinating world of demons, angels, and various magic users. The Wolves have managed to keep themselves safe for generations, however recent events have changed this status quo. I loved getting to know these characters that were briefly mentioned when reading In Despair. If you like LGBTQ+ books with fascinating warriors that fight demons and find love then this is a great series for you. The action is fast paced and I could not focus on anything but finishing this book once I’ve picked it up.

3/100 With Pride by Megan Derr

This is the second of this re-read series, there will only be one more by Derr. There is a fourth book in the series, however I do not enjoy that one so I choose to not re-read it at this time.

Edit: With the writing of the 4th book in the series “From Fear” should be read first.

This should be read as the first book in the series, start with this then read Of Last Resort, then since you will love the characters, read In Despair. The characters are stubborn cusses that will test your patience even as they test each other. This has a fascinating twist of self-derision that turns out to be an allergy…it is an interesting concept. The ending winds up a bit abrupt but it is certainly worth reading…if you are completely squicked by homosexuality then you might want to give it a skip. Honestly it is almost a background thing, if you imagine that Kristof could be a girls name then you would enjoy this fantasy novel greatly. There is one, extremely brief, semi explicit scene but that is near the beginning and the rest is a fascinating character study.

2/100 Of Last Resort by Megan Derr

This is the first of a set of re-reads by this author. I greatly enjoy this series and always read it in Kindle format on my iPad. It is one of the few series that I have not converted to Audiobook to read. The review is copied and pasted from my original review, however it still stands.

*Addition* In this book we are introduced to an entirely different world in a lovely way. The main character is terrified but willing to stand up for what he believes in and at the end…well you’ll have to read and see!*

Honestly, if the ‘Priests’ were ‘Priestesses’ then this entire series would be on the fantasy best seller lists. If you are just starting, read the series backwards. Yes, its a little series but somehow the author wrote this thing backwards so this is the book you should read last. If you are not offended by guys being with each other romantically then this is a wonderful fantasy book, upon rereading there are more explicit scenes than I would really enjoy (I skipped them the first go round because the characters were so interesting). The plot moves quickly the characters are fleshed out even though they are a bit strange and there are explanations for all of the strange occurrences. If you ever felt sorry for the geeky kid and wanted him to get a better lot in life (or if you have ever been the geeky kid) you want to read this book.

1/100 Born to Badger by Shelly Laurenston

This addition to a marvelous series was full of laughter and drama. Picking up right when Breaking Badger ended we join Tok on her journey through family drama and into love. If you have read any of the books written by Laurenston then you would be aware of the Bad-Ass women that hold you captive through her books, if not then I recommend you read these if you enjoy strong women characters with a great sense of humor. 

In this rollicking adventure Tok is sent on a mission by her grandmother. A Siberian Tiger shifter tags along, and in the process Tok is shot…which being a Honey Badger shifter would normally be fine. Any more details would spoil the whole thing. I love how Laurenston takes characters that could easily be relegated to being background characters and brings them to the forefront so that each one has their story told. I’m sort of obsessed with these series. 

76/100 Breaking Badger by Shelly Laurenston

If you enjoy any of Shelly Laurenston’s books then this is a great addition to the honey badger series. This series is full of strong women, taking what they want while still doing good in the world. They just happened all be honey badgers that played on a basketball team. I love hearing what these quirky women are up to next, and about their particular love interests. There is graphic sex in this book as well as gratuitous violence. Woven through the sex and violence there is plenty of humor, friendship, and amazing, family connections. Listening to what these women are up to is a great way for me to both relax and remember how amazing people can be. If you’re looking for a fun shifter romance with a little bit of murder, intrigue, and amazing characters, check the series out.

69&70/100 Breaking Badger and Badger to the Bone by Shelly Laurenston

I cannot tell you how mad I am that Born to Be Badger is not available to pre-order on Audible yet. Right now I have to hope that it is available before my Audible subscription expires since I have to use my last two credits before that expiration date. Fortunately this still allowed me to pre-order the next J.D. Robb book even though it is coming out in February. If I’m really lucky I’ll get to order the one coming out next September, though I doubt it. The really fun thing about Audible is even though I am being forced (by financial constraints) to cancel my subscription any books that I have pre-ordered with my credits will still be added to my account as they are released. Okay, enough financial stuff. I’m going to copy and paste the reviews that I have previously written for these two AWESOME audiobooks. I love the strong female characters that Laurenston writes without making them too…well…bitchy.

Breaking Badger:

If you enjoy any of Shelly Laurenston’s books then this is a great addition to the honey badger series. This series is full of strong women, taking what they want while still doing good in the world. They just happened all be honey badgers that played on a basketball team. I love hearing what these quirky women are up to next, and about their particular love interests. There is graphic sex in this book as well as gratuitous violence. Woven through the sex and violence there is plenty of humor, friendship, and amazing, family connections. Listening to what these women are up to is a great way for me to both relax and remember how amazing people can be. If you’re looking for a fun shift or romance with a little bit of murder, intrigue, and amazing characters, check the series out.

Badger To The Bone:

This is an amazing addition to a wonderful series.  I love the kick-butt nature of the women that exist in these novels.  I suppose that you can just read the honey badger series, however you will be missing quite a bit of the history of these characters if you simply focus on the honey badgers.  All of the characters mentioned in these books have their own stories and tales that have been told, with the exception of the new characters introduced in this book and the other honey badgers (Livvy has her own book).  Honestly, I do find the timeline a little confusing, suddenly characters have children, they are retired or moved up with no real explanation.  I understand that I am a bit spoiled in that respect with J.D. Robb’s Eve Dallas, that series only jumps a few weeks or months at most.  The graphic sex did not start until chapter 18, this really is good for paranormal romances.

In short, if you are looking for a paranormal romance that follows an amazing family of kick-butt women that find their men, then this is the book for you.  Take a woman that is trying to solve her own problems, introduce a man that doesn’t realize that he is paranormal, and shake up.  The combination is amazing, especially when he is stubborn enough to think that he has been drugged for some time. If graphic sex bothers you, then you will not want to read this one.

28/100 With Pride by Megan Derr

The below review is from a previous reading of this book, the only change I would make is that From Fear, Book 4 should now be read first with this book being read second to get the fullest view of the series (without any jumping around).

This should be read as the first book in the series, start with this then read Of Last Resort, then since you will love the characters read In Despair. The characters are stubborn cusses that will test your patience even as they test each other. This has a fascinating twist of self-derision that turns out to be an allergy…it is an interesting concept. The ending winds up a bit abrupt but it is certainly worth reading…if you are completely squicked by homosexuality then you might want to give it a skip. Honestly it is almost a background thing, if you imagine that Kristof could be a girls name then you would enjoy this fantasy novel greatly. There is one, extremely brief, semi explicit scene but that is near the beginning and the rest is a fascinating character study.