spicycronereads's reviews
216 reviews

🌶️🌶️

Audiobook loan expired 

Leonor Soliz does it again! She writes these book boyfriends that are soooo swoon-worthy - and usually for totally opposite reasons. I was so excited to get my hands on an ARC of this. I stopped another read midway through, while on vacation, to start this one! 

Jake Stewart is the plus-size red haired MMC with such a tender heart. Vi (pronounced vee) Sotomayor is the curvy Latina MMC who has been pining for her brother’s best friend since high school. We find out right away that they are into each other and the plot of the book revolves around Jake managing his own responses to past trauma to allow them to move forward. 

One of the things I like about Soliz’ writing is that she writes low-angst stories that still have emotional complexity. And her billionaire characters are so relatable. Yours, Finally is no different. Jake’s behaviors and coping mechanisms are so familiar and heartbreaking. 💔 The way he listens to Vi and his therapist are amazing. And Vi is a bad*ss. In addition to being a high-powered VP, who knows how to handle skeevy ex-boyfriends, she is an avid romance reader (and audiobook listener), which feels like a love letter to Soliz’ readers. There is an amazing audiobook scene that will have readers commiserating. 😅

When

they kiss in chapter one

I thought the author was moving away from her typical slow burn. But I was wrong.  As with her other books, there are moments of *delicious* tension. 👩🏻‍🍳💋 And when the spice hits, it is quite schmexy. 🌶️🌶️🌶️

A central component of the diverse representation in this book comes from the spicy scenes. The plus sized bodies are not just tolerated but celebrated. I want to cuddle with Jake! 😍 Vi and her parents and the entire billionaire friend group are Latine. I thought in the last novel that one of the characters was a trans woman but in this one there were no indicators of that, so I think I was wrong previously. 

Overall, this was a cute and schmexy read with relatable characters

This was adorable. It is a closed door romance so it was a perfect airplane read. Thanks goodness I was wearing a mask so I could just smile and giggle (and cry) and nobody was any the wiser. Somehow this was simultaneously a rock star romance and a mountain man romance. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I can’t explain. You will just have to see for yourself!

FMC Sloan and MMC Jason are super cute together. And Tucker is the best good boy and the ultimate matchmaker. 🐶 The sigh-worthy moments are few and far between but there are a few sprinkled throughout and there are definitely moments to smile and kick your feet. 💖💖💖

Sloan’s grief and the highs and lows of their relationship add emotional complexity to an otherwise extremely lighthearted romcom.

Diversity is kind of tough to evaluate. Other than Sloan having a tan, nobody’s skin is described and descriptions of hair etc are kind of ambiguous. There does seem to be a butch female character (Zane) but otherwise everything is pretty normative. Apparently this was the first book Jimenez ever wrote so I don’t know if this holds true in her more recent work. 

Overall, it was a super cute read that I read in one sitting (on an airplane 😂) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 💖💖💖

The character development is strong in this novel with both FMC Dani and MMC Nick experiencing growth. There are rich secondary characters that add a lot to the story. 

I enjoyed that Dani is the morally gray character and she and Nick had a cute dynamic. And their spicy scenes were pretty good (though I could have done with more!) 🌶️🌶️

All of that said, this one was a bit of a struggle for me. It was very slow paced and a lot of he chapters were just characters talking to one another. I think the book would have benefitted from another careful round with a developmental editor. We actually learn very little about the central mystery in the course of this book. 

As a result, there are still many loose ends in the story but that is to be expected since it is first in a series. Will my nosiness about what is happening overcome my hesitation that there is no way it can all come together? I guess only time will tell! 😂

Overall, fun characters with a lot of potential. I was occasionally entertained though sometimes had to force myself to keep reading. ⭐️⭐️✨ / 🌶️🌶️

It had its funny moments but there were too many things that I found annoying:

There was no diverse representation. The spice was… just fine. 🌶️

Had it not been a buddy read I don’t think I would have finished it. 

The dynamic between the niece and the brothers was cute, as was the animal naming and the chapter headings. So with those redeeming qualities I give it ⭐️⭐️💫. 

Update: still not a full review but the end of the month looks and I want to move on. For being well-written and having emotional depth, plus a few of the spicy scenes were spicin’, I give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 / 🌶️🌶️🌶️. 

A lot of this book steps over the line from cnc to dubcon and I stand by my assertion that Tiernan’s story would have been better served with a different ending.

I am glad she had the wherewithal to leave but I think she should have ended up alone or with Noah, with Kaleb getting help separately. With how deep seated his issues were, he needed more time and therapy to heal.

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Earlier: 
I am still processing this one. The characters were so heartbreaking. And one of my favorite things is when authors write characters that love one another despite, or because of, all their broken edges and jagged pieces. That said, I think Tiernan’s story would have been stronger if it had ended differently. 

There is a lot to unpack with this one. I may come back and write a proper review later but for now I am just thinking on it.  

Definitely read the content warnings and take them seriously. 

An entertaining read. It is cute and funny, with zero angst - so…not really my typical fare. 😂 

I read it because I needed a novella for my June Diverse Baseline challenge and because the author will be at a con I am attending later this summer. I bet she would be fun to hang out with! 

The characters are diverse and there is plenty of spice. There are hints of D/s elements but nothing really more than some light play. 🌶️🌶️ 🌶️

Overall it was a lighthearted and fast summer read. And I will never think of crawfish the same again! 😂
⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🌶️🌶️🌶️

This was a fun and spicy read. While the overall storyline and ending were pretty formulaic, it was still a good read. Kind of like how you can enjoy a road trip to somewhere that you’ve been before. Originally, I was thinking this was maybe a 3 or 3 1/2 stars read, but at the end the swoon is amped up a little bit and so that pushed it a bit higher for me.

Vivian is a beautiful and empowered business owner that comes from a newly rich family. Dante is a grumpy,  possessive, morally gray billionaire CEO who, of course, only smiles and lightens up for Vivian. The story of their “arranged“ proposal and how they both deal with the dynamics that forced them into this agreement unfolds pretty much like you expect it to. I love forced proximity of any kind, so a fake engagement is a lot of fun for me to read. I don’t mind a billionaire romance, but I tend to like them better when at least one part of the couple is not a billionaire. When everyone in the book is rich, it isn’t quite as interesting to me.

The book has lots of swooniness and some pretty spicy scenes. I gave it three chili peppers.

In terms of diverse representation, there is a bit of racial diversity: Vivian and her family are Asian American. 

Overall, it was a fun read. I got enough of the secondary characters Kai and Isabella that I want to read their book, which is next in the series. But I might try one of Huang’s other series 1st. ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75 / 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Book three has the same fast pacing and banter as books one and two, but things come a bit unraveled plot-wise.

Serce and Wolf are indeed dead. Many new POVs are introduced and the plot becomes a bit muddled with the origin story of the fae and the goddess Zerra. The book needed the support of a strong-handed developmental editor. That said, a welcome addition is Gabriel’s point of view, which helps us to understand the curse of the warders and his actions a bit more. 

The end is a pretty big cliffhanger though I don’t for a moment believe that

Nadir

is dead. There are so many loose ends that I have my doubts that everything can possibly be wrapped up in the fourth, and reportedly final, book.

With the introduction of so many new characters, the development of the other secondary characters remains largely where it was in book two. 

The diverse representation of the series continues to hold strong, though I recognized fewer South Asian influences in this one (which could be due to my own ignorance). 

The spice… Well, the slow burn finally catches fire.

With Lor finally realizing that she and Nadir are mates, the swooniness increases too. Though I found the complete lack of hesitation in her feelings a little unrealistic (she says about a series about fae kingdoms 😂)

. I thought we were going to get some fun spicy scenes with the intro of the House of Payne, but that wish sadly went unfulfilled. 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Overall, I really liked it. The banter, pacing, and tension between Lor and Nadir kept me interested, even if the plot got a little convoluted. I will read the final book when it comes out (though I may wait for it to hit the library). ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5