Slow Burn ARCs

These made me shiver with antici...pation

I am not sure about everything, but I am sure that I have good taste in author Patreon’s for my book preferences. I would let Dax and Riley beat up and hold my TBR hostage anytime for books as fun as these were to read.

Resisting the Alien Rider by Ursa Dax

Release Date: November 30, 2024

Content Notes

• She’s Already engaged!

• Slow Burn

• Grumpy/Sunshine

• Single Dad

• Road Trip

• Camping

I think Ursa Dax has shown that the stories are just getting better in her Cowboy Colony Mail-Order Brides series with Resisting the Alien Rider. Between a well-constructed slow-burn and characters you’re compelled to like, this may be my favorite yet in this series.

If you’re a reader in the mood to be emotionally tortured and teased before the sexy stuff happens, this is it. Dax has you covered with this story. She strung me along, dying of anticipation, wondering how this plot would work out. I would gladly take a writing workshop on how she did that.

The other part I enjoyed most about this story was the characters. Garrek was a well-done grump with satisfying dimensions to his behavior. Magnolia, who I had not expected to enjoy so much, is not just a romantic. She is a romantic with reason. As a parent, I must also applaud Dax’s portrayal of Garrek‘s ward, Killian. He is adorable. He is ornery. He is capable. He is an excellent example of how to write a kid.

I received an ARC of this book as a member of the author’s Patreon.

Five Gifts for the Blacksmith’s Wife by Lyonne Riley

Release Date: December 6, 2024

Content Notes

• Marriage of Convenience

• King of Consent MMC

• Virgin FMC

• Slow burn

• Size Difference

• Language Barrier

• Breeding

I could have cut through the emotional and sexual tension Lyonne Riley baked up in Five Gifts for the Blacksmith’s Wife and served it for dessert at a Yule feast. It was that thick and rich. I just loved it.

Lyonne Riley is one of my tried and true favorites at this point, but stories like this remind me that it is for good reason. It is hard to write a slow burn that doesn’t drag. It is hard to build the skills needed to craft a story that keeps the reader excited to see what happens next. This story accomplishes it though and is wrapped in a cosiness that makes this book a new wintertime favorite of mine.

I received an ARC of this book as a member of the author’s Patreon.

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