Book Review: "The Gentleman's Book of Vices" by Jess Everlee

Even though its title is similar to a few other books, including a popular YA series, this is a fun and romantic gay Victorian love story.

London, 1883. Charlie is a well-dressed son of privilege, although what he has to show for it is a mountain of debt, an immense tolerance for alcohol, and a collection of erotic novels that he keeps under lock and key. He spends many nights with a motley crew of friends at The Curious Fox, one of the city’s “molly houses” (gay bars).

All of this is soon to change, however, when Charlie gets married, in an arrangement brokered by both sets of parents. Charlie feels like he can be a dutiful husband even if he can’t truly love his wife.

But when he finds the true identity of Reginald Cox, his favorite author of erotica, he cannot wait to meet the man, Miles Montague. When Charlie shows up at the bookstore he owns, Miles thinks Charlie is there to blackmail him, but he just wants Miles to sign a copy of his favorite book. Their chemistry is instantaneous and intense, and it’s not long before the two are spending a lot of time together.

As Charlie’s wedding approaches, Miles and all of his friends at The Curious Fox try to convince him to call it off. Should Charlie risk the wrath of his family and the loss of his financial comforts to finally go after his happy ending, or should he do what is expected?

I enjoyed this so much!! I loved all of the characters and there was a lot more weight to the story than I expected. I hope Everlee has another book like this up her sleeve!! (Note: the second book in the series comes out in July!)

Book Review: "Frat Wars: Master of Mayhem" by Saxon James

This book was a sexy frat house romance that stole my heart!⁣

⁣ “This brotherhood you love so much? The idea that we’ve all got each other’s backs through thick and thin, no matter what. That’s what a relationship is.”⁣

⁣ Robbie and Brandon are fraternity brothers and very close friends. They couldn’t be more opposite, however. Robbie is loud, cocky, competitive, and the king of pranks at Sigma Beta Psi. Brandon isn’t as comfortable being the center of attention, and as the frat’s risk manager, he’s always worrying about the havoc Robbie and the other brothers cause with their schemes.⁣

⁣ When Robbie decides he’s curious about what it’s like to have sex with a guy, no one thinks it’s that big of a deal. But when none of his frat brothers—not even those who are gay—are willing to experiment with him, no one is expecting that Brandon will volunteer to kiss Robbie to see what he thinks. And of course, no one is expecting them to love it.⁣

⁣ Although there is some initial reluctance to take their friendship to this level, after a while their attraction to one another is too strong to ignore. But Robbie has never been the type to want a relationship, they’ll be graduating soon, and Brandon isn’t sure if he’s bi, gay, or what. Is this just college fun, or something else?⁣

⁣ I loved the first book in this series, King of Thieves, and this is just as good. It’s super-steamy in places, romantic and funny in others. It was a very quick but emotionally satisfying read, and I can’t wait to pick up Presidential Chaos, the third and final book in this series.

Book Review: "Ice Planet Barbarians" by Ruby Dixon

Well, umm, this was interesting.

If ever there were a "Bookstagram Made Me Do It" book, it would be Ice Planet Barbarians. And now I can say that I was yesterday years old when I read my first piece of alien erotica.

Georgie often has weird dreams after a long day of work. But when she dreams of being abducted by aliens, it turns out it’s not a dream at all. She’s being held captive on an alien ship with a number of other young women, enduring harsh conditions and living in fear that they’ll be raped if they make a sound.

When the ship has engine trouble, their crew leaves its human cargo on an ice planet. Georgie, who is the de facto leader of the women, goes off to find shelter and food. But what she finds is Vektal, a 7-foot-tall blue alien who is immediately taken with her. He doesn’t know what she is, but she makes his chest purr, and he believes she is his mate. And he’s willing to show her just how taken with her he is.

Vektal agrees to help Georgie by helping the other women from the ship. But what will he want in return? And will he be willing to let her go?

The steam in this book is off the charts and the story is surprisingly funny at times. I don’t think I’ll read the rest of the series but this was one I won’t soon forget!