Dead Heat (Alpha and Omega #4) by Patricia Briggs (2015)

As usual, I am impressed with Briggs’s creativity and writing. There were times, as I read this, where I had to just stop because I was amazed at how much she communicated with so few words, through showing rather than telling us. And this was quite a story. 

Anna’s birthday is around the corner and Charles is looking for a special birthday gift that she won’t be uncomfortable with. (She doesn’t like the ostentatious jewelry he and Brother Wolf like to buy her.) It gives him an opportunity to see an old and dear friend after 20 years. Once there, Charles discovers that Joseph is dying from lung cancer. His father, Hosteen, is the Alpha of the local werewolf pack and doesn’t understand why Charles won’t save his son; Joseph doesn’t want to turn but Hosteen doesn’t want to lose his son. 

Not long after they arrive, Joseph’s daughter-in-law, Chelsea, leaves a scary message on her husband’s phone. About blood and being afraid for their children and something being wrong with her. The incident reveals the malevolence of this new Fae war on humans: a Fae put a compulsion on Chelsea to butcher her children and then kill herself. In the aftermath, Charles and Anna hunt for the Fae and work to stop the Simulacrums that they've left behind.

At Last Comes Love (Huxtable Family Quintet #3) by Mary Balogh (2009)

Meg finds love and we're treated to a gem of a tale 😊

Out of all the romances I have read, I never expected Meg, aka Maggie, to be the most like myself. Nor did I expect so much in the story to resonate so deeply. In the previous books, Meg was a little boring. In fact, I almost skipped the book since I knew that Stephen's story is next. But I stuck to my habit of reading series in order and this book proved me wrong in the best way. 

Out of all the romances I have read, I never expected Meg, a.k.a. Maggie, to be most like myself. Nor did I expect so much in the story to resonate so deeply. In a the previous three books, Meg was a little boring. In fact, I almost skipped the book since I knew that Stephen’s story was next. But I stuck to my habit of reading series in order and this book proved me wrong in the best way. So if you’re struggling with the same apprehension, fear not. You won’t be disappointed.

We quickly find that Meg feels a little boring, as her siblings describe her as a paragon of righteousness and steady character. She’s ready to move on from the parental mantle she voluntarily donned and to start living again. Even if she’s 30 and most assuredly on the shelf. Meg’s problem, or rather her hindrance, is her strength and steadiness of character. It’s odd that it should make her seem boring, especially since I see myself so much in her, once I got to know her. But, just like with her siblings, Meg’s habit of being the impassive, inscrutable bedrock, risen out of her sense of duty, is what keeps her hidden from us. Just like me, she’s been hurt by disappointment in romance (and love), worries that she quite dull and too serious, and has forgotten how to be anything but the staid, serene spinster destined to be dependent on her brother for the rest of her life.

The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E Harrow (2019)

Synopsis

In the early 1900s, a young woman embarks on a fantastical journey of self-discovery after finding a mysterious book in this captivating and lyrical debut.

In a sprawling mansion filled with peculiar treasures, January Scaller is a curiosity herself. As the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, she feels little different from the artifacts that decorate the halls: carefully maintained, largely ignored, and utterly out of place.

Then she finds a strange book. A book that carries the scent of other worlds, and tells a tale of secret doors, of love, adventure and danger. Each page turn reveals impossible truths about the world and January discovers a story increasingly entwined with her own.

Lush and richly imagined, a tale of impossible journeys, unforgettable love, and the enduring power of stories awaits in Alix E. Harrow's spellbinding debut--step inside and discover its magic.

Review

Amazing, Engrossing and Original

This is a story of 2 stories. This is a story of a girl named January, whose mother is dead, father is absent and whose spirit is slowly being stifled by the rules of the early 20th century. Her foster father, Mr. Locke, has worked tirelessly in her father’s absence to raise January to be a proper young lady (even if she’s not totally white). Being white makes a difference in the world; he’s not allowed membership in the Archeological Society which employs him even though he obtains for them archeological objects of wonder from far-off places.