Metal Slinger: Fire & Metal, Book 1 Audiobook Review

Metal Slinger: Fire & Metal, Book 1

Rachel Schneider (Author), & 2 more Format: Audible Audiobook

Book 1 of 2: Fire & Metal

Book Link https://amzn.to/4vtTJhX

Blurb 

The breakout romantasy sensation by Rachel Schneider that has taken the internet by storm—bursting with suspense, romance, and breathtaking twists, this heart-stopping debut also includes a bonus scene from the highly anticipated sequel, Light Wielder.

Even though she's not one of them, Brynn has spent her life among the Alaha, training to be a guard and waiting for the chance to attend the annual market hosted by the Kenta—the very same people who exiled her adopted community to a life at sea. Going to the market is a rite of passage eagerly anticipated by all young guards, but Brynn does not anticipate breaking a century-long peace treaty while there. Nor does she plan for the intense encounter with an enemy soldier that now threatens to unwind the fragile coexistence between their people—and everything Brynn once believed about herself to be true.

Brynn's loyalty to the Alaha is tested when the truth of her identity is brought to light by this soldier who's taken an oath to bring her back to where she belongs. Narrowly escaping death on the violent high seas, Brynn's connection to the Alaha is further tested when she learns about the world of magic she's been denied. She was once certain of her fate and where she belonged, but the dark, knowing eyes of this stranger have her questioning everything, including her heart.

Packed with knife fights and seafaring adventure, Metal Slinger is the smash-hit start to the romantic fantasy duology, the Fire & Metal series.

Audiobook Review 

Listening to this book via my library app.

The book was recommended after I had finished Quicksilver. Although this is less graphic to start due to the Alaha rules of no hanky panky before marriage, by chapter 50 it gets graphic, but I preferred the slow burn as I think gives more time for the storyline to flesh out.

I enjoyed the beginning of this storyline, you think this book is a bit like a fantasy Waterworld and Swashbuckling sea folk. But by the middle we find out that Brynns origin has been a lie and shes not some orphan sea urchin.

Once Acre (not sure that is the correct spelling but that is what it sounds like) has  Brynn asking questions about her past where she learns not only is she not an orphan, but that she's been hidden from her magic, things start ramping up in the adventure and their relationship.

I thought this at first when Acre came on the scene that l knew what would happen... Whether that pans out by the end, I'm not sure. But I'm enjoying it so far.

What I liked about the MFC

That Brynn, although was seen as lower than the other Alaha residents, she was never not kind. She is a good main character. - LoL I wrote that in the first half... I wonder what Brynn (Jo) will be like in book 2.

Poor Acre didn't know what hit him 🫣

Ok now it's getting very spicy 🥵

And BAM... The plot twists and 😷🤯😳

WOW that's not where I thought this was going..

Guess I will be checking out book 2 soon as.

TO DESIRE A DEVIL by Victoria Holliday NOW LIVE

TO DESIRE A DEVIL
by Victoria Holliday

NOW LIVE

 

NOW LIVE! To Desire a Devil: A Revenge Obsession Mafia Romance by Victoria Holliday is available now + read for FREE in Kindle Unlimited!
 
“a spicy, vengeful, mafia romance filled with suspense, amazing characters, and incredible world building” – Goodreads reviewer
 
US: https://amzn.to/4ptn3Ui
UK: https://amzn.to/4dJZYqY
CA: https://a.co/d/08vVAoAl
AU: https://amzn.asia/d/00E1plCG
Universal: https://geni.us/desiredevil
 
Add to your Goodreads TBR ➩ https://t.ly/2t6bf
 
She's his past, his pain, his revenge... and his biggest weakness.

Fiero
I’m finally where I deserve to be: Don of the Bellucci mafia family and free of the monster who raised me. They call me the Devil for a reason. I’ve avenged every person who’s ever wronged me, except for one: Pfeiffer McAllister.

Fifteen years after she broke me, her uncle’s debt lands her in my club. I vow to make her remember exactly who I am, and to ruin her the way she ruined me.

But revenge becomes dangerous when obsession takes its place. And the more she trembles beneath my fingers, the more I realize I don’t want her begging for freedom.

I want her begging to stay.

Pfeiffer
One month working for the masked owner of New York’s most exclusive club, and the debt disappears. Simple. Until the mask falls, revealing Fiero Bellucci, the quiet boy my uncle forced me to torment when we were children.

He’s grown into something terrifying—a beautiful monster wrapped in bloodshed and Brioni, determined to ruin me for every scar I inflicted.

But somewhere between his cruelty and possessiveness, I stop wanting to escape. Because the most frightening thing about Fiero Bellucci isn’t that he wants to destroy me.

It’s that I think I’d let him.

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Author note: This is a standalone dark mafia romance with many of the triggers you would expect from a novel of this genre. Reader discretion is advised.
 
Coming soon in the Bellucci Brothers series
 
#2 To Covet a Wolf https://geni.us/Covet 

Cover Reveal for The North American cover of COLD REDEMPTION by Nalini Singh. A Psy-Changeling Trinity Novel

 Cover Reveal for The North American cover of COLD REDEMPTION by Nalini Singh.

A Psy-Changeling Trinity Novel

Coming December 2026

Cover Art: Tony Mauro (art) and Rita Frangie (design)  🥰 🤩 isn't it gorgeous!

Blurb

New York Times bestselling author Nalini Singh dives deep into the icy heart of a man on the brink of psychic disintegration and the only woman brilliant enough to save him.

Amara Aleine was born emotionless. A scientist with a piercing, cold intellect, the only person who matters to her is her identical twin. Some term her a psychopath. They might be right.

Pax Marshall is the epitome of Psy perfection. Raised by his ruthless grandfather, he was never permitted to be anything less. But Scarab Syndrome has ravaged his mind, until he’s now mere weeks away from total psychic collapse, insanity…and death. Any cure will come too late for him, but he is determined to spend his last weeks fighting for the rest of the afflicted.

Amara has never seen a mind as clean, as orderly, as beautiful, as Pax Marshall’s. Patient Zero. A twin just like her. And a man so cold-blooded that everyone warns her about him—when she is used to being the predator in the room.

As they work together in a hunt for the cure, Pax’s enemies deliver a violent strike. The choice Amara makes as Pax struggles to survive will have consequences far beyond anything Amara or Pax could have ever imagined.

This time, Amara might just have played herself…

Pre-order Links

Ebook

• Kindle: https://amzn.to/45e0euh
• Kobo: https://bit.ly/4ppQlDf
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• Apple: https://bit.ly/4wRnBWA

Hardcover:

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/3Rm1oki

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The Chosen, book 3 of the Hunter Trilogy by TK Leigh Release Day

Title: The Chosen

Series: Hunter Trilogy #3

Author: T.K. Leigh

Genres: Dark Romance/Romantic Suspense

Tropes: Captive Romance, Enemies to Lovers, Age Gap

Morally Gray Hero, Hades & Persephone Retelling

Revenge Romance, Forced Proximity

Release Date: July 16, 2026

BLURB

She was supposed to be a pawn. Now I’ll  down the world to keep her safe.

I thought I knew what evil looked like.

I was wrong.

For years, I believed Victor Kane was the monster at the center of everything...

The man pulling strings, destroying lives, and hunting the people I love.

I was prepared to burn down the world to stop him.

But Victor was only a distraction.

The truth is darker. Older. More sinister.

And it’s been watching me far longer than I ever realized.

Now Ariana is caught in the crosshairs of something far bigger than revenge.

Something that doesn’t just want power.

It wants obedience. Devotion. Sacrifice.

I’ve hunted monsters my entire life.

But this time, the monster isn’t in the shadows.

He’s been standing beside me all along.

The Chosen is the epic conclusion to The Hunter Trilogy, a dark captive romance. Grab your copy today.

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REVIEW 

⭐⭐⭐⭐  

I loved the first book, but was sorely disappointed with the way the second book turned out in regards to the 🌶️ scenes went. 

I was honest in my thoughts and I'm going to be honest with this book.

I started the book with a sense that it would continue in the same vein as book 2 but, I will say that although the BDSM was still there. It was written in a way that - and I'm still not convinced someone who's been abused for 10 years would accept this, but they were not as bad as the others, so I didn't let them sway my view. But that book needed Better trigger warnings.

Now onto what I did like... (As spoiler free as possible) 

That we were back into the action, suspense and investigation of finding Sarah.

I loved that it was Ariana that was responsible for saving herself in a situation.

BUT WAS suitably traumatized by it even though it was self defense.

 Henry said 

"I thought I knew what evil looked like.

I was wrong.

 For years, I believed Victor Kane was the monster at the center of everything..." Well there's someone close who's been keeping secrets... Oops... No spoilers 😉

As the investigation deepend, I was literally ignoring everything else other than reading the next page.

And that was how it continued up to the ending. 

I will say that there is a lot to trigger readers, so it's not a series I'd recommended jumping blindly into just because you have read some dark romance before. Check out the triggers. 

But overall... This story really was an emotional, thrilling action packed read that I'm glad I stuck with to find out if Ariana and Henry get their happy ever after...

At The end of this book, you get a sneak peek into Blake's book... So maybe Henry and Ariana will Pop up in that. 

I'm assuming it will be another dark Read, but I was already intrigued by his past in this book to know that I want to read it when it's out.

ALSO AVAILABLE

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UNIVERSAL / WEBSITE

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AUTHOR BIO

T.K. Leigh is the USA Today Bestselling author of romance ranging from fun and flirty to sexy and suspenseful. Originally from New England, she now resides outside of Raleigh with her husband, beautiful daughter, special needs rescue dog, and three cats. When she’s not writing, she can be found training for her next marathon (of which she has run over twenty fulls and far too many halfs to recall) or chasing her daughter around the house.

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Court of Thorns and Roses by SJ Mass Audiobook Review

 

Buy Link https://amzn.to/44wH8Q4

Blurb

The sexy, action-packed first book in the #1 bestselling Court of Thorns and Roses series from global phenomenon Sarah J. Maas

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.

At least, he’s not a beast all the time.

As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she’s been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.

From bestselling author Sarah J. Maas comes a seductive, breathtaking book that blends romance, adventure, and faerie lore into an unforgettable read.

Audio book review 

At first It took me a while to get used to the narrator but I soon got into the story.

The story is definitely a slow building storyline, and at times I am having to concentrate on not losing focus (something I find I do with audio book versions) I might even see if I can get a physical copy of the book. To see if the words hold my attention to the story more , but by chapter 17, listening to the scene of the summer fairy..  tears were falling. So yeah I definitely was more engaged in the story.

By the end of chapter 42, I'm getting the distinct feeling that SJ enjoyed making Faere suffer. 

Seriously chapter 43 was so hard to listen to 😞.

At 97% to go I'm struggling how this is going to have a happy ending.

Well the ending was intense. 

Overall I enjoyed the book, whether reading words would make it more easier to get lost in the story, I'm not sure, but I know that reading words is still my favorite way of getting lost inside of a story.

I will start the second book after my scheduled ARC list for the remainder of the month. 

The narrator has an easy voice to listen to, and since I cried at some point, definitely got me emotionally involved with the storyline.

But the book was just too long to get going, there were points when I really was starting to get bored 🥱.

The last part of the book redeemed the book, so I can happily give it  4 out of 5 stars 

Cover Reveal for The Mortal Trials by Casey L Bond

Title: The Mortal Trials

Author: Casey L. Bond

Genre: New Adult Epic Fantasy  

Editor: Stacy Sanford/ The Girl with the Red Pen

Cover: Melissa Stevens/ The Illustrated Author Design Services

Publication Date: Sept. 7, 2026

Hosted by: Lady Amber’s PR

Blurb:
In a game of gods… If you win, you lose. If you lose, you die. 

Callalie Ryan came home from war in pieces—her body broken, her name smeared across headlines, and her family in ruins. When the goddess Morrigan drags her from her desert home and orders her to Olympus, Callalie is forced into The Mortal Trials: five brutal contests staged by gods who find delight in mortal suffering, hosted by Ares, Greek god of war.

With a rusted prosthetic that shrieks with every step and a family the gods use as leverage, Callalie must outlast god-conjured beasts, shifting rules, and posturing pantheons long enough to secure a divine champion. But she’s not the only one paying the price… She soon learns that many of the other contenders have been drawn into the games by their connection to her.

How do you play a game where every victory is a punishment and showing mercy might get you killed? As heroes fall and tentative alliances are tested, Callalie must decide how much of her humanity she’s willing to sacrifice to survive the gods betting on her ruin. 

Welcome to The Mortal Trials, where victory is just another kind of death.

NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER!

Casey Bond lives on a rural farm in West Virginia with her husband and their two beautiful daughters. She writes phoenixes – gloriously flawed and morally gray characters that fiercely rise from the ashes of their circumstances. World building is one of her favorite hobbies, along with stamping metal jewelry, swimming, and enjoying the beauty of nature. She thinks thunderstorms are better than coffee and that watching a meteor shower is the closest thing to magic you might ever see. She’s a firm believer that every amazing book needs a world you want to wrap yourself in, a character you want to win, and a love you would fight for.

 

Casey is the award-winning author of When Wishes Bleed, Gravebriar, and House of Eclipses.

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Pinterest | Amazon | Bookbub | Bond-Tourage | Newsletter

NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER!

Split Decision by AD Justice Release & Review

Title: Split Decision

Series: No Safe Corner #2

Author: A.D. Justice

Genre: Romantic Suspense

Tropes: Protective Alpha Boxer, Fearless Heroine

Buried Past, Corrupt Power, Slow Burn

Release Date: July 9, 2026

BLURB

She was never the target of a moment.

She was the target of a plan.

Someone has been running an operation against Andi Morgan since she was fifteen years old. She just didn't know it until now.

With Luke in Las Vegas training for the most important fight of his career, Andi is alone in Atlanta — and the campaign against everything she's built is accelerating. The pressure is institutional, precise, and coordinated in a way that goes beyond anything Jackson Rhoades could have engineered alone. The board. The audit. The donors who suddenly have concerns. Someone with thirty years of practice is running this playbook, and they know exactly how she thinks.

The closer she gets to the source, the more the people around her become part of the game.

The man she loves makes a critical decision about their life without her — one designed to protect her, using the exact tactic she's spent her life fighting against. The distance between them becomes something neither of them knows how to close. And when a piece of documentation surfaces that connects everything she's survived to a name she doesn't recognize yet, the fight moves somewhere neither of them was prepared for.

Some operations don't stop when the first threat is neutralized. This one has been running since before she can remember.

Go down swinging.

Split Decision is book two of the No Safe Corner series. Reading Low Blow first is strongly recommended.

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REVIEW 

Book 2 starts where book one left off.

The first 8 chapters felt...

It was a weird feeling, I was anxious, turning each page and expecting something to drop, and it does, but it's slow, methodical and just built up that tension and anxiety to what is going on.

You really feel the tension that both Andi and Luke are doing through.

Someone is having a blast playing pot shot at the one's close to Andi, like ducks at a fair ground stall.

There were times when I was so agitated by the consequences of Luke and even Andi's reactions to what was happening.

It really keeps up that tension throughout the book, but slowly through the final third of the story, Luke and Andi begin to work as a team.

The story ends on ... Not really a cliffhanger, but at the beginning of (and aptly named final book in the series) The Main Event... Where one way or another the conclusion of why this is all happening to Andi will become clear.

This series has been one of the more memorable storylines I've read this year.

And I can't wait to read the final book.

If you really enjoy suspense thrillers with an end game that is unclear, then this series is for you.

ALSO AVAILABLE

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

UNIVERSAL

Free in Kindle Unlimited

COMING SOON

Releasing August 20

AMAZON US / UK / CA / AU

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AUTHOR BIO

A.D. Justice is the award-winning, USA Today bestselling author of several series and stand-alone romance novels in various romance genres, including romantic suspense, contemporary, and paranormal.

When she’s not writing, she loves spending time with her alpha male husband in the Northwest Georgia mountains. They’re living out their own HEA, frequently on horseback with a dog in tow.

She is also an avid reader of romance novels, a master of procrastination, a chocolate sommelier, a twister of words, and speaks fluent sarcasm. An avid animal lover, she has two horses, three cats, and two very spoiled dogs.

She loves chatting with her readers. You’re welcome to stalk her across all social media!

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