by Penny Angeles-Tan | Aug 19, 2023 | Book Reviews
Crush On My Best Friend’s Alpha Dad by Luxie landed in my inbox as a recommendation, and I decided to try it. The author has just started writing it, showing great potential so far. I get the age gap romance; it happens a lot, especially when we talk about a man who was widowered early and looks like Patrick Dempsey in Grey’s Anatomy, aka McDreamy.
Her characters, CJ and Lenora, make decisions that I find questionable but, at the same time, make delicious drama that moves the story forward.
- CJ finds himself attracted to Lenora, so why in the world would he kiss her sister, Esme?
- Esme knew about how Lenora felt about CJ, so why would she kiss CJ in the first place? Is this a reflection of how much she doesn’t care for CJ or how much she wants him for herself?
- After catching them in the kiss and being hurt by their betrayal, why would Lenora decide to agree to become a girlfriend to someone she wasn’t even a little attracted to or, at least, could relate to?
So far, in the story (I am 41/45 chapters in) CJ’s being an Alpha wolf has no bearing. At the moment, it is all about Lenora’s unresolved feelings. I’m really curious to see where this story will go.
There are some grammatical issues that are forgivable (for now) that I hope the author will go back to fix, but overall, this has been engaging. If there is anything major I would ask the author to change, it would probably be the title. Not only is it a mouthful and unnecessarily confusing, it is also “spoilerish” because without even opening the book we know the dad’s a werewolf.
But see, here is where it gets confusing. CJ is the dad of Lenora’s best friend, Mariselle. At the same time, CJ is also friends with Lenora’s dad. So, would it be better to say “Crush on my Dad’s Best Friend” or stay with “Crush on my Best Friend’s Dad”?
I still think “Alpha” could be removed from the title. Without it, learning he is an Alpha becomes a gem we discover in the story. This, by the way, raises the question … where is his pack and why aren’t he and Mariselle in it?
Now that I’ve whet your curiosity, you can find Crush On My Best Friend’s Alpha Dad by Luxie on the Goodnovel app and read it for yourself.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Aug 14, 2023 | Book Reviews
When I started to read My Dreams, His Reality by Shanika Rana after my sister started talking to me about it. It’s a young adult/teen romance, and, from the way my sister was talking about it, it seemed like a fairly innocent high school romance between the most popular guy in school who has possibly slept with every other female in school, and the quiet, reserved girl who hates him for being a man-whore.
While chatting, I picked up my phone, looked it up on Goodnovel, and added it to my library to check it out myself.
I can tell you this much right now, while it needs some editing, it is well-written enough that I can be forgiving. I confess that a big pull for me is the fact that Zara, the female lead, is snarky and independent. On the other hand, Harper is highly sexed and is dealt a mighty blow on his 18th birthday.
There is more than meets the eye with My Dreams, His Reality by Shanika Rana, and so far, I am enjoying the process. This is supposed to be a trilogy and is 254 chapters. I am on chapter 44 and still having fun reading as of this posting. This book has become part of my Goodnovel reading cycle.
I can only hope the good narrative is sustained until the end. Also, author, not too long, please.
Important update:
One of my readers gave me some good news that I just have to share with all of you. My Dreams, His Reality by Shanika Rana is on Amazon! And the best news yet … IT IS ON KINDLE UNLIMITED!!!
Talk about bang for your buck!
The three books in the trilogy are:
- My Dreams, His Reality
- Dreams Fade Away
- Reality Sets In
If you have a Kindle Unlimited account, reading these books is free! If you choose to buy the books, they cost $4, $5, and $6 respectively.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Aug 9, 2023 | Book Reviews
I discovered The Alpha’s Human Surrogate by Nina GoGo on the Goodnovel app when I was offered some books to read for free within 24 hours. Of all the stories I was offered, I chose this one because the blurb was the one written in the best English … which should tell you something about the rest, lol!
The blurb says this:
“Now, let’s discuss sexual experience,” he says, his tone matter-of-fact. “It’s essential for me to understand your level of comfort and any potential concerns in that aspect.”
I feel my cheeks flush, the topic leaving me feeling exposed and vulnerable. I take a moment to gather my thoughts before responding honestly, “I… I have not had previous experiences, but I am willing to learn. And… and I can assure you that I am absolutely clean.”
Alexander’s gaze softens, and he almost seems surprised. But he eventually gives a soft laugh as he says, “I understand. Moreover, you still need to go through some tests to ensure that it is a smooth process.”
***********************
Hi, I’m Sophia, an ordinary college student. I have a happy family and two handsome roommates, but because of an accident, I had to secretly become a surrogate mother in order to pay for my father’s enormous medical expenses. What I don’t know is that the intended father, a polite and distinguished 34-year-old man, is the most influential and mysterious figure in the city. And what is beyond my control is when I give birth, I’m shocked to discover that my twin babies have wolf ears!
Note: I formatted it for readability. The original blurb is just one loooooong paragraph.
As the story begins I marvel at how little I would have to edit if I was her copy editor. There were still hiccups, but I anticipated that and could forgive it so long as the author does not make huge, repetitive errors like mixing up genders, tenses, figures of speech. It was going fine until I saw BIG holes in her writing that are usually an indication of inattention …
She does not keep track of her characters!
I’ve mentioned this before, I have a cinematic brain. This means that when I read I see the scene unfold in my head. So you can imagine my confusion when characters seemingly teleport from one location to the next and back. She also seems to take for granted how time works. In addition, she forgets what she said before about her characters.
- It takes several weeks for her to manifest pregnancy symptoms.
- A few weeks into gestation she can feel the baby kick.
- Alexander never enlightened Sophia that he was a werewolf and didn’t prepare her for giving birth 4 months from conception.
- The children are 1 year old and are already bigger than toddlers as they are walking and talking like 5 year olds.
- Alexander starts off a rich man in a luxury sedan who lives in a mansion to being some rich guy living in a corporate estate to again living in a mansion.
- Jake and Tyler are described as platonic guy friends who occasionally bring home their dates (and are at it all night) to suddenly having feelings for Sophia.
Author, make up your mind! And keep track of your story!
As an editor, let me tell you, those holes are difficult to plug as it means a rewrite. But as a reader, if I am in a forgiving mood, I can still enjoy it and just laugh at the author’s faux pas. I just pretend to myself that Alexander is actually Nightcrawler or maybe knows astral projection. 😛
I’ve read around 27 chapters already and I don’t even know if I want to call this book a romance, although it is. The romance aspect is very subtle but is implied. I have yet to encounter any steam but, who knows, maybe there will be some later in the book.
If you think this is a story you could get into or would like to try, The Alpha’s Human Surrogate by Nina GoGo is available on the Goodnovel app.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Jul 17, 2023 | Book Reviews
I came across You Are Mine, Omega by AlisTae on Goodnovel and decided to give it a chance because I was curious about what was so special with this omega that an alpha or two would be desperate to claim her. In most stories, omegas are treated with disdain or indifference.
Allison is the Beta’s daughter, but instead of having Beta blood, she is (apparently) an omega. She likes to keep things low-key so no one in school knows who she is except for the alpha’s son, Ethan, who she has had a crush on for a long time. Because of this, she gets bullied, but she ignores it.
On her 18th birthday, she discovers that Ethan is her mate, but he rejects her. In the meantime, Ryan, Ethan’s brother, is constantly in the picture and seemingly into her without saying anything.
But at the same time, he also alternately pays her attention and then ignores her completely. I swear it is causing whiplash.
Because the rejection almost killed Allison, she is unsure about how she feels for Ethan. However, she is also confused about how her body reacts when Ryan is near. Does anyone else think that Ryan is her second-chance mate?
The story has potential but needs a lot of editing, not just grammatically but also for consistency. The author tends to be repetitive, perhaps to emphasize a point. Instead, it appears that the author didn’t proofread before posting.
That I think is unfair to the readers who are paying per chapter, especially when we consider that most of these authors who post on reading apps are keeping track of their word count, and I’ve noticed that quite a few would write the bare minimum to publish a chapter as scheduled.
That being said, The story is engaging enough for me to say, “Go ahead and give it a gander,” but with a warning label that says, “Proceed with caution. It may inflame you, lol!”
It is still an ongoing story, a quick read, and not too much drama. You may enjoy it. You can find You Are Mine, Omega by AlisTae on Goodnovel.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Jul 14, 2023 | Book Reviews
The Arena by Cooper was a change of pace for me. For the longest time, I have been reading shifter stories with werewolves and lycans as the main characters. The Arena brings into play many different types of shifters such as lions, a Bengal tiger, a polar bear, and kestrels. The main characters, however, are Cedric (the last Lycan) and Tana (the last Elemental Fire Dragon).
The last of their kind
For many years, humans have hunted and killed supernaturals (or supes) out of fear. But something changed recently. For the past year )at least), supes have been hunted and captured. Why? For entertainment! They were imprisoned, starved, and then forced to fight to the death against other supes gladiator-style in the Arena. This is while being in their human form and unable to shift.
In the world, only 4 dragons remain, one for each element – earth, air, water, and fire. Tana is the last fire dragon. Her family chose to kill themselves rather than be captured by humans.
His pack was attacked on the day of Cedric’s ascension to Alpha of Alphas. His parents were killed while he and many of his pack members were captured and sent to the arena.
The Arena is where Tana and Cedric meet. They have been fighting in the Arena for about a year … which proves that they are very good fighters as they have not lost once. The hunters think Cedric is an Alpha werewolf. Cedric thinks Tana is an Alpha werewolf as well, and she has not taken the time to enlighten him otherwise. Cedric also thinks that Tana might be his mate but can’t be sure because of the suppressants the hunters have been given them to prevent them from shifting.
Mate!
I thought that seeing how the mate bond manifests for different kinds of shifters is interesting and it made sense that it wasn’t quite the same thing for dragons. A major difference is that simply biting or getting bitten is not enough. Dragons need to be claimed.
When Cedric and Tana finally get together and he bites her, he finally realizes that she isn’t an Alpha werewolf but something else altogether that is probably even more powerful. In his confusion he leaves her, presumably to work things out in his head. Unfortunately, Tana took this as a rejection and left with a broken heart.
This becomes the turning point for everything that happens in the rest of the story.
The Review
I have what I like to call a “cinematic brain”. It means that when I read I can picture what is happening in my head and, often, the words actually disappear and I am reading the book as if I were watching a movie. This translates to if the movie in my head is bad or subpar I figuratively walk out of the theater.
Cooper describes scenes in The Arena so vividly I find myself living in the story. I would put her in the same league as Chris Columbus and Peter Jackson if she were a film director. Yes, that is how gorgeous the scenes play in my head. While prone to not using the Oxford comma (hyuk!), Cooper skillfully manages to keep me so engaged that I find myself savoring all the pages, rather than flying through the book as I usually do. I spent more time reading, not because it was a struggle, but because I would rewind to see a scene more clearly.
I would classify The Arena by Cooper as a fantasy/adventure/romance and at that, I would say it is more fantasy than romance. Yes, steamy scenes can get pretty steamy, but possibly 90% of the story has nothing to do with sex … which I thought was masterful! This opens up the audience of this book to more than just thirsty women.
If a fantasy story with dragons, lycans, werewolves, etc. is something you are interested in, you may want to check out The Arena by Cooper on the Goodnovel app. This is a story I highly recommend and eagerly await on Amazon.
While chatting, I picked up my phone, 
The blurb says this:
Allison is the Beta’s daughter, but instead of having Beta blood, she is (apparently) an omega. She likes to keep things low-key so no one in school knows who she is except for the alpha’s son, Ethan, who she has had a crush on for a long time. Because of this, she gets bullied, but she ignores it.
For many years, humans have hunted and killed supernaturals (or supes) out of fear. But something changed recently. For the past year )at least), supes have been hunted and captured. Why? For entertainment! They were imprisoned, starved, and then forced to fight to the death against other supes gladiator-style in the Arena. This is while being in their human form and unable to shift.
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