Off the Shelf : Tie Breaker by P Dangelico

*ARC REVIEW*

Please note that this book was provided for free by the author's publishing PR in exchange for an honest review. Feel free to check out my full book review policy here for more details.

Picture this: You fell in love at the age of 10. Yes, IN LOVE. He was 13 and like all boys at that age not exactly keen on having a girl follow him around while he did cool stuff like jumped off cliffs into lakes. But despite it all you fell in love and you weren’t going to let anybody, not even the love of your life, tell you otherwise...until one night he ruins it all and all you’ve got left is your wicked serve and your grandfather who encourages you to pursue your dreams. You’re getting on fine with your platonic boyfriend slash trainer until one day the one man who always has your back does and all he asks for is one thing...for you come back to the town where it all began.

That’s the story for Maren and Noah and boy was it a doozy! I have to say that second chance romances aren’t my usual cup of tea. It’s weird because I’m into angst but apparently not the angst of a lover scorned or a lover jilted. I think it’s the inevitability of it I don’t like, in the sense that the heroine and hero just can’t resist each other and you know without a doubt they’ll be getting together in the end that does me in (this is the part where everyone screams about HEA novels being the same). Despite that, I had to give this one a try and I have zero regrets!

P Dangelico is a master with the written word and a wizard with the slow burn! I fell in love with the characters and I just wanted them to be happy goshdarnit! I was rooting for them the entire way and the fact that the steamy bits were saved until towards the end it made the book all the more sweet!

My favourite character had to be Rowdy who, although deceased, wrought as much mischief in death as he had in life! I loved how the story was about a love gone wrong but not just between Maren and Noah but between Noah and Rowdy and Maren and Rowdy and how good intentions don’t always translate to good results. 

Noah was sweet and while at first it was hard to forgive what he had done, when I contemplated his head space at the time of the incident I couldn’t help but understand how it had happened if not exactly why. I loved that he was sassy with Maren, but knew when to pull his punches. I loved that he was there for her when she didn’t even know it, how he fought for her and her Rowdy’s bar. I loved how he wanted it all with Maren and was uncompromising.

I thought Maren was both hilarious and stubborn to boot! She wouldn’t let anyone try to tell her Noah had changed and it was actually really cool because she got to see it for herself. I thought she had gone through a lot with her sister’s injury and the way it had changed her family dynamics. Overall I just wanted her to win - on the tennis court and in life.

This book was a 5 star read all the way! I hope Miss Dangelico is writing as fast as she can because my hand is about ready to press pre order on her next book in this awesome series!

I loved the cameos from old characters! It was great seeing how their love continued to be adorable!

Visit Miss Dangelico here...and thank me later!

TK MAJ

Off the Shelf: Hell & High Water by Charlie Cochet

The fact that I waited so long before delving into the THIRDS universe is a black mark against my name because whoo boy was this brilliant!

The series is based in a reimagined world after the Vietnam war in which widespread disease spread and the medicine that was meant to be the cure ended up generating some very unintended consequences: Therians. Therians are humans who can shift into various mammals including cheetahs, lions, tigers and jaguars. With the emergence of the Therians came a whole host of new questions. How could Humans fight off those who can kill with one well-placed swipe of a claw? That’s where the THIRDS come in.

So, what is THIRDS you may ask? According to the official website (which is an amazing source of all things THIRDS including pictures and in depth bios of all the characters):

With the panic and growing number of casualties both Human and Therian during the riots of the 1980s, it was clear something had to be done to ensure public safety, and offer an unbiased justice system for Therian citizens. After a new Therian legislation branch of the government was established, along with the implementation of Therian laws, officials answered the cries of its citizens for a new law enforcement agency equipped to handle Therian threats.

In 1990, the Therian-Human Intelligence, Recon, Defense, Squadron -or- the THIRDS, opened its doors, pairing every Human element within the organization with a Therian one, in the pursuit of justice for all species.

Into this mine field enter our heroes Dex and Sloane, Human and Therian respectively. Dex has been through the ringer. When he saw his partner on the Human Police Force shoot a Therian in cold blood he had no choice but to report him. With the verdict handed down, Dex is hoping life will go back to normal but is soon the victim of disapproving looks, general cold behavior and worse yet beatings from his own colleagues. He knows something has got to give, and it does, just not in the way he expected it to. He is promoted to the THIRDS, and overnight is part of a team made up of Human and Therian partners.

Things can only look up from there right? Wrong! His partner is the team leader of Destructive Delta, Sloane, who is reeling from the loss of his teammate and partner Gabe. While there are strict rules and harsh consequences for fraternization, Sloane and Gabe were willing to take the risk and when Gabe was killed on the job it sent Sloane, not to mention the whole team reeling. Dex is expecting a little hostility but he gets more than he bargained for!

I don’t know how to express how wonderful this book was. I think you’ll have to read it to find out more. The world the author creates is complex and action filled. That being said let me chat about some of the things I loved:

The Destructive Delta team. They were these guys and girls willing to risk it all for each other (some more than others, but that’s a story for another review) and they were funny and sad at times and just so loveable as a whole. Ash was this giant lion shifter who just couldn’t get along with Dex who was a clown on most occasions. It was hilarious to see the threats fly between the two! Cael, Dex’s adoptive brother and a Therian, was adorable in his affection for his tablet and his love of all things nerdy. He and Dex picked on each other and were the most adorable brothers I’ve read in a while! Rosa and Letty were these badass girls in a mostly male team and I loved how they kicked butt and took names. They more than held their own and I loved that they weren’t shoved aside for the focus to be on the male characters (as sometimes happens in M/M romance novels). Calvin and Hobbs had this intense bromance that seemed difficult for others to penetrate but they were so crucial to the team and I could tell in reading the book that they were well loved members of the team.

I also loved the romance between Dex and Sloane. I think it was very realistic. I raised my eyebrow a bit at Sloane falling for a partner twice in a row but when love strikes it doesn’t seem to care about things like that! I also think my acceptance of it was aided by the fact that Dex was so different from how Gabe was described not to mention the fact that Sloane tried really hard not to fall for Dex.

I also loved Dex’s character! He was so humorous, so positive despite his circumstance and so understanding! He had a love for his family (and navigated the divide between his adoptive dad Maddox being his boss and his adoptive brother being his teammate!) He played pranks that were chuckle worthy and insisted on singing 80s songs as often as possible (much to Sloan’s chagrin). He was this ray of sunshine that his team needed and I can’t wait to read more about him. It was a 4 star read of note!

I feel like this review is so rambly and gushy but I honestly loved this book and the universe created in it! Thanks Charlie for bringing this intricately woven world to life and having written about thirteen books in it to date!

I’ll be reading and reviewing more of these books (hopefully more coherently). In the meantime, check out these THIRDS resources:

Goodreads (reading order)

THIRDS HQ (series website, which is super awesome)

Charlie Cochet (author website)

Till next time!

TK MAJ

Off the Shelf: Wait for It by Mariana Zapata

Straight out the gate I have to say that Mariana Zapata is different sort of author. What I mean by that is that if you’re looking for a wham bam thank you ma’am kind of romance (which we all want every now and then, don’t get me wrong) I don’t think she’s the author for you. If you’re looking for a slow burn romance where the love develops in a way that has your toes curling and heart warming in happiness, however (which we need all the time to be honest), then she’s your girl. Wait for It, her latest offering, is all that and more.

It’s the story of Diana Casillas, beloved aunt and guardian of two Louie and Josh, whose dad (and her brother, Rodrigo) passed away two years before the novel takes place, and her struggle to raise the boys in a way that shows all her love for them. She really has it tough when she has to deal with her own disapproving mom, rivalries on the baseball field and an injury or two along the way. 

What I loved about this book is what I always love about Mariana Zapata books: there’s no instant love (as I’ve gotten a bit older I just don’t relate to those novels as well anymore). It’s a love you can believe in. In fact, our two main characters start off hating each other and the reason for it is hilarious! Who was coming into who in the beginning of the book is something you’ll have to read to decide for yourself.

Another thing I loved about the book is that it was cute and funny and filled with daily stories of how a single mom of two kids who had been unexpectedly thrust into the role would struggle to feel worthy of being there for the kids but also work really hard at it. It melted my heart how Louie called her Buttercup and how he called Dallas “Mr Dallas” no matter how many times they tried to tell him it was “just Dallas”.

It’s also a story of a man waiting for the right kind of love after being burned in the worst way and who tries really hard to be a great man to his grandma, Miss Pearl, who insists on living alone (even if it is down the street from her grandsons) and a brother who won’t forgive and who’s headed down a bad path all while being misunderstood by his family.

I love how great Mariana Zapata is at making everyday scenes interesting and how it’s so easy to just open the book and read about an ordinary life made extraordinary by love. One of my favourite scenes from the book was when Diana threw Josh this insane birthday party and then she had to clean up afterwards and she just...couldn’t. It was too messy and she freaked out. I love how real that is (because who doesn’t break out in hives at the thought of dishes in the sink and a dirty yard to boot?) but my favourite part was when Dallas stepped up and offered to help if only she would calm down and leave it till the morning. 

Another favourite scene is when Dallas and his cousin Trip come over to keep her company when she had three pre-teen boys staying over for the night and Dallas brings his gaming system over to play with Louie because the older boys don’t want him with them. That scene had me convinced he was a gem because whose heart wouldn’t melt at that?

While I could go on about the great parts of this book, unlike her other book I’ve reviewed, the Wall of Winnepeg and Me, sometimes it felt like the book was going nowhere slowly. There aren’t any dramatic revelations of gut twisting mysteries and I have to say I missed that here. 

That being said, it got 4 stars from me and I will be reading more of this author soon!

TK MAJ