A Symbol of Time by John Westley Turnbull

January 28, 2026 By Leave a Comment


A Symbol of Time by John Westley Turnbull
Publisher: Self Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Historical
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Survival requires sacrifice. But what if the price is an entire world?

Their home is cold and dying, choked by the toxins of their own progress. Now, an advanced alien species looks toward the Third Planet—Earth—with hope and fear. They see a fertile paradise, but one that is hostile, hot, and dominated by massive, predatory reptiles.

The choice is stark: die in the heat, or remake this new world in their own image.

As they descend to alter the climate and purge the planet of its prehistoric masters, they set in motion a chain of events that will echo through geological time. A Symbol of Time weaves palaeontology and astronomy into a chilling tale of survival. As the new masters of Earth terraform the planet, the question remains: does high intelligence inevitably carry the seeds of its own destruction?

Nothing is more important than survival.

The world building was thorough and kept my interest levels high. I especially enjoyed gradually discovering the many physiological and psychological differences between this species and our own. Their expectations about everything from relationships to how to organize a society created challenges for them on the Third Planet that were as unique as they were critical to understanding later plot twists. Exploring a familiar subject through the perspective of a species so unlike my own is one of the reasons why I love science fiction so much, and there were certainly many opportunities to do so here.

It would have been helpful to have stronger character development, especially for Elthyris and the other protagonists. Sometimes I struggled to keep track of all of the secondary characters due to how many of them were introduced and how little I knew about them as individuals. Had this not happened, I would have happily chosen a much higher rating as there were so many other things I loved about this book.

There were multiple times when plot twists caught me by surprise. It was a great deal of fun to be surprised so often, especially given how many different types of twists and turns were shared with the audience. Various types of threats were included, none of which I can go into detail about here other than to say that they ranged from interpersonal conflicts to accidents to environmental issues that these characters couldn’t have predicted would happen in advance.

A Symbol of Time was an adventurous and imaginative read that made me want to hear more from Mr. Westley Turnbull.

Filed Under: Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , ,

Ruthless Creatures by J.T. Geissinger

January 27, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Ruthless Creatures by J.T. Geissinger
Publisher: Tor Publishing Group/Pan Macmillan
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

Five years ago, my fiancé disappeared. He left me with a wedding dress I’d never wear. Left me with the kind of scars that can’t be healed. The man I built my future on vanished like a ghost. All that remained were my broken heart and a million unanswered questions.

Until a mysterious stranger arrives in town.

Tall, dark, and dangerous, Kage is as full of secrets as he is sex appeal. Though I know he’s hiding something, I’m drawn to him like a moth to flame. Heat crackles between us with every look, desire flares into passion, and I fall hard, helpless to resist.

But then I discover he’s been sent to collect on an unpaid debt from my missing fiancé….

And that debt is me.

Nat is struggling in the limbo her life has become. Her fiancé had disappeared without a trace just before their wedding rehearsal dinner and Nat has a million questions along with her broken heart. It might have been five years, but she still can’t seem to reconnect with the world and move on. Then Kage moves in next door. Tall, dark and dangerous Nat knows she shouldn’t be intrigued, but they’re drawn together like a moth to the flame. Then she learns he’s here to collect her fiancé’s debt – and payment will be herself.

This is the first mafia romance/darker romance story I’ve read since the genre exploded in recent years and I have to say this was a good book. In many ways it felt similar to me as the many (many, MANY) erotic romance stories I’ve read over the years, though I’ve usually stayed away from the mafia element. I admit the mafia aspect to this story was fairly light – Kage is the right hand man and member of this particular mafia family but he’s away from home, collecting the debt and “making a point” and I do feel that since he’s out of his home city, away from the rest of the family this really tones down the mafia element of the story. It was perfect for me and I felt it was a really good way to dip my toe into the genre.

The story itself was really quite good. I enjoyed both Nat and Kage’s characters, the plotline of her disappeared fiancé (ex-fiancé, I suppose, since it’s been five years and legally, he was deemed dead) and in particular the emotional fall out Nat has been dealing with over the situation was an emotional and excellent read. I do feel that Kage almost instantly fell in love with Nat – which I thought was strong for the plot and storyline but was never really thoroughly explained or discussed. Much of the book is from Nat’s perspective and so we can see why Kage and his honesty about not being a good person and not being a “regular” kind of man doesn’t turn Nat off. I found Nat’s perspective and attachment a lot better explained and much easier to connect with. I did enjoy Kage and his character truly appealed to me, but I wished a little there were a few more chapters from his perspective so I could have more easily understood some of his thought process. With some difficult themes both characters were going through a bit more balance between their perspectives would have helped me with this, I think.

The paperback copy of this book I purchased and read had a bonus chapter – from Kage’s perspective – at the end and this did fill some of that gap for me. The chapter was after the end of the book, and apparently an addition to the paperback copy only. I thought it was an excellent addition – though obviously I didn’t reach it until I had finished the book itself.

This book has plenty of spice and erotic readers should find it very satisfying. I thought the balance of spice and plot was very well written and I thoroughly enjoyed Sloan – Nat’s BFF and a fun and interesting secondary character. The final chapter fairly clearly outlines that the second book will be Sloan’s story and set up a cliffhanger style intro/prequel into the second book so readers who dislike that kind of ending/lead up to the sequel should probably not read the final chapter from Sloane’s perspective.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , ,

From The Ashes by Damien Boyd

January 26, 2026 By Leave a Comment


From The Ashes by Damien Boyd
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Long lives are being cut short in this thriller from the bestselling DI Nick Dixon crime series.

A retired teacher is found dead in her Somerset home on a cold January night. At first glance, it is a routine unexplained death and a simple referral to the coroner, until a neighbour reports an unscheduled visit from an occupational therapist an hour before the body was discovered.

Detective Chief Inspector Nick Dixon is convinced the elderly woman has been strangled—a cause of death confirmed by the pathologist—and a murder investigation is launched.

More victims are soon found—a second retired teacher who died in eerily similar circumstances in Devon. Then a possible third victim is exhumed in Dorset.

Leading a regional task force, Dixon must find the connection between the victims. As the coincidences mount, he begins to fear he has stumbled on something premeditated and deeply sinister—a serial killer targeting the elderly in their own homes.

When a sharp-eyed rural police officer notices similarities between the seemingly sudden death of an elderly lady with a similarly sudden death recently of an elderly man, DI Nick Dixon is called in to review the crime scene. The similarities are striking – and soon the forensic details also match in ways that are unlikely to be faked. DI Dixon and his team soon uncover a much larger issue and the case grows even more complicated.

I have found this to be a really good and reliable series. I strongly feel this new addition is an excellent book – one of the best recently in the series. I thoroughly enjoyed how the plot slowly grew both more intense and more complicated. By half way through the book is was a far deeper and more complicated case than a few elderly people dying in their sleep could ever have appeared. I also really enjoyed the methodical way the facts came together without too many red herrings or lost time.

I have high hopes for the newly minted officer who first spotted the similarities – I hope we see her character again more in future books. I also really enjoyed the personal and relationship progress between Jane and Nick and find their interactions really grounding and satisfying to read. It adds a good reality to the story, and I think the books are better for it.

I found this book good and am enjoying this interesting and well written British police procedural mystery series.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Next in Line by T.W. Baker

January 23, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Next in Line by T.W. Baker
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Genre: Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Welcome to Mortar and Pestle RX, where prescriptions are filled, patience is tested, and absolutely nothing goes according to plan.

Meet Mic, Janice, Monika, Bronco, and Sammy—five pharmacy employees held together by caffeine, sarcasm, and the thinnest thread of professionalism. Whether they’re dodging irate customers, surviving corporate chaos, or staging passive-aggressive Post-it note wars, this band of lovable misfits is just trying to make it to closing time without strangling each other.

A sharp-witted satire of customer service culture and workplace dysfunction, Next in Line is for anyone who’s ever worked retail, waited in line too long, or wondered if the pharmacist was secretly judging them (spoiler: they were).

Sometimes irritation is a gift.

The most memorable scenes were the ones that described how the pharmacy crew bonded over their hectic and occasionally wacky workplace. Having warm and strong relationships with coworkers can make this type of often low-paid, unappreciated job so much easier on an employee’s mental health. There is nothing like an inside joke or a friendly offer to help clean up a customer’s mess to soothe the soul, so I nodded along as all of the main characters gelled together and faced the best and the worst of what they were about to experience as a close-knit team.

I struggled with the repetition, especially given the limited character development. Many chapters seemed to follow a similar pattern of introducing a new customer who had a troubling habit or personality trait and then explaining why he or she behaved that way. It would have been more meaningful for me to meet a few memorable customers and then gradually learn their difficult backstories as the pharmacy employees interacted with them over weeks or months. This is something I’m saying a reader who adored the concept of this tale and would have loved to give it a full five-star rating.

However, this captured the frustration, drudgery, and occasional joy of working in the customer service industry beautifully. People are fascinating and there is so much more to learn about humanity by observing folks when they’re impatient, in pain, frightened, bored, or otherwise not functioning as they normally might on a better day for them. This is a topic I wish was covered much more regularly in fiction as there are so many opportunities waiting for clerk and customer like to grow as individuals when characters are forced to serve a long line or to wait in one.

Next in Line has piqued my interest about what this author will write next.

Filed Under: Mainstream Fiction, Other, Reviews Tagged With: , , ,

Beer Truck by Emily Carrington

January 22, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Beer Truck by Emily Carrington
Publisher: Changeling Press
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, LGBTQ
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

When TJ, a famous country star, finds out he has cancer, he retreats to his hometown to heal away from the paparazzi. Uncomfortable living with his parents, he gets a job as a beer truck driver.

Harvey is the owner of a local bar. He’s been following TJ’s career because the two of them used to be lovers. But TJ insisted on being in the closet. Now that Harvey’s older, he can’t imagine burying himself like that ever again.

But when TJ walks into his bar, both men are shocked by the attraction that still blossoms between them. But neither will budge in their beliefs. How can they possibly find happiness in each other’s arms?

Famous country star TJ’s life is turned upside down when he gets a cancer diagnosis. Retreating back to his hometown, all is wants is to escape and try to heal. Getting a job as a beer truck driver, TJ is shocked when he walks into a bar and hinds his secret ex-lover, Harvey still in town and the owner. Can these two stubborn men find their happily ever after?

I found this to be an emotional read – TJ’s fight against his cancer runs fairly smoothly but the depth of emotion and worry he feels runs deep and is quite powerful to read. Readers who aren’t comfortable with cancer as a main plot device should be cautious with this book.

Normally I find books where one (or both) partners are in the closet fairly difficult and annoying to read. I was fairly impressed though with how the author handled it in this story. TJ had two very strong reasons to be so firmly closeted – his strictly religious, homophobic parents but also his music career. That, coupled with Harvey’s refusal to go back into the closet made this a strongly conflicted romance plot and I feel this gave quite a bit of meat to the story. I felt deeply connected to both characters and the emotion all but dripped from the page for me.

Readers looking for well written and stubborn characters, a solid romance plotline and a lot of emotion should find this to be an excellent story. I do feel this might be a difficult read for some people, but I equally feel the story is well with the discomfort. A charged and emotional read, this was a story I’m not likely to forget any time soon.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Their Little Secret by Mark Billingham

January 21, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Their Little Secret by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

When DI Tom Thorne is called to the site of a suicide, he expects to be in and out in no time. But when he arrives at the Underground station where a woman named Philippa Goodwin threw herself in front of a train, he inexplicably senses something awry and feels compelled to dig deeper. He soon discovers that she was the victim of a callous con man who preys on vulnerable women—and whose deception plunged Philippa to her end.

Thorne enlists DI Nicola Tanner to help him track down the swindler and bring him to justice. But the detective duo gets more than they bargained for when a young man’s bludgeoned body turns up on the shore of a nearby seaside town and the two cases come together in a way that neither of the detectives could have foreseen . . .

Tom Thorne is called out to an apparent suicide and while he’s fairly sure that this is what it seems – the reason behind the suicide is something he struggles to let go of. When eventually he and his partner Nicola Tanner do hand the case to the fraud squad no one is more surprised than Thorne when he’s contacted by another division – the DNA sample turning up in a recent murder case. Suddenly his interest doubles and the case once again becomes theirs. Can Thorne and Tanner sort out what’s going on?

I found this to be an enjoyable British police procedural murder mystery book. Both Thorne and Tanner have worked a few cases before, so they seem to have found a good rhythm together now which I really enjoyed. While there are some developments in each of their respective personal lives, I was pleased this didn’t take too much time away from the main plot.

I really enjoyed how this case grew and almost spiraled as the main characters wove together and the case grew as the villain’s relationship did too. While I definitely found parts of the plot easy to guess and foresee, there were still enough twists to keep me guessing and surprised. I feel this book should absolutely appeal to mystery readers of all kinds. I particularly liked how while the villains were clearly villains, they both had quite different issues and in many respects, they worked wonderfully together it was equally clear they were also going to cause serious issues for one another. I thought their relationship – both growing and disintegrating – was an extremely complicated and intriguing dynamic and I feel this really made the plot as gripping as it was. I can’t recall reading a story like this previously and to some extent the two villains even outshone Tanner and Thorne for me- which is a highly unusual position for me as a reader to find myself in.

With a steadily growing plot and plenty of realism I found this to be a good read and a nice addition to a great series.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

The Killing Habit by Mark Billingham

January 19, 2026 By Leave a Comment


The Killing Habit by Mark Billingham
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

While Tanner investigates the deadly spread of a dangerous new drug, Thorne is handed a case that he doesn’t take too seriously—until a spate of animal killings points to the work of a serial murderer. When the two cases come together unexpectedly, both Thorne and Tanner must risk everything to catch two very different killers.

DI Tom Thorne and Nicola Tanner both return in this book and I feel readers are in for quite a ride with this. While this is a good number of books into the series I was pleased to find it quite fresh and still able to grip me by the throat.

I enjoyed the fact that this book – unlike most of the others in this series – had a few different moving parts to the plot. And while I was fairly sure from the beginning that they were all linked somehow it wasn’t clear at the start how they were linked – or even if they were connected at all. That kept a lot of my attention on the book in a different way that I’m used to with this series. I also thought the way things came together in the end (both linked and not) shows exceptional writing on the authors behalf and I have to admit there were a number of points I wasn’t even close to guessing correctly.

I was pleased Nicola Tanner was back, while her character is fairly new, I enjoy her strong presence, and I feel she adds a good counterpart to Thorne. I definitely feel these two work well together and I’m glad the author has continued along these lines. I also really enjoy how while these two characters are vastly different, there are a few key aspects to which they are really quite eerily the same when push comes to shove. I am very eager to read more of these two continuing to work together.

While I usually find the plots quite uneasy and uncomfortable reading I feel a few of the above points helped me with this book. And while Thorne is initially hunting an animal killer, which is obviously not lighthearted or fun as a major plot line, I did feel this book remained gritty but not the same level of discomfort I usually associate with a DI Thorne novel. I had to pause at numerous times to breath and regroup – there are still quite a few fairly hard aspects to these plots, but overall, this book was well worth the effort and was a strongly plotted and well written read.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , ,

Ruff Justice by Tara Choate

January 16, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Ruff Justice by Tara Choate
A Canine Accounting Caper
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Romance, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Irene Lisner was not expecting a request to mediate her sister’s marriage. Or to drop her own list of cases to help a coworker. Or a new dog to come into her life. Or a date. A talented principal and a rigid business manager have squared off over accusations of false enrollment, improper purchasing, and state curriculum violations. As Irene investigates the charges, she finds hidden agendas and ulterior motives that make her wonder if she can restore justice to the hardworking school. And, of course, Irene’s irrepressible best friend has something to say on everything, especially the new dog.

There are many different ways to learn the same lesson.

My review of the first book in this series, Paw Prints in the Ledger, mentioned a few pacing problems I noticed with the storyline. While of course I can’t say for sure whether or not Ms. Choate took that into account while writing the sequel, I was quite pleased with the pacing this time around. Irene steadily discovered new clues about what was truly going on, and there was never a good stopping point when I needed to take a break from reading. That reluctant feeling of tearing my eyes away from the page is something I love to experience as it means that there will be even more wonderful passages to read once I can return to the plot!

It would have been helpful to have a little more time dedicated to developing the mystery elements of this tale, especially when it came to the conclusion. I was a bit surprised by how quickly things were wrapped up given how complicated they seemed earlier on and how many of the early clues either didn’t pan out or could be interpreted in more than one way. This was the only thing holding me back from selecting a full five-star rating.

The subplots were well written and added depth to Irene’s character and life. One of my personal favorites involved a romantic arc that I thought blended in beautifully with the protagonist’s already busy life. It was something I’d love to see more of if or when this series continues as it did such a nice job of showcasing the softer side of a character who must always remain professional and practical at work.

Ruff Justice was thought provoking.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Cole For Christmas by Treva Harte

January 15, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Cole For Christmas by Treva Harte
Publisher: Changeling Press
Genre: Contemporary, Erotic Romance, Holiday, LGBTQ
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Fern

Sarah has a secret — she wants her best friend Cole. Cole wants Jeff. And Jeff? Surprise! He wants them both.

Cole is wild, funny, impulsive, and Sarah’s best friend. She doesn’t understand what he gets out of submission, but she’s not going to let Cole get hurt the way he has in the past. So when she discovers his new dom is Jeff, the jerk who helped kick her out of her undergraduate program, she knows she has to intervene.

But when she sees Jeff again, she’s confused. He says he wants Sarah to be Cole’s Christmas present, and she’s stunned. She and Cole are just friends, aren’t they? Amazingly, Cole seems to want her as much as she secretly has wanted him. The even bigger surprise? She realizes she wants Jeff too.

Even if she could have them both, this is supposed to be temporary. It’s too bad she’s only allowed to have Cole for Christmas.

Life was never meant to be simple. Cole is Sarah’s best friend. When she finds out his new Dom is Jeff – the jerk who got her kicked out of her undergraduate program – she knows she needs to keep a very close eye on her best friend. Only Jeff thinks Sarah should be Cole’s Christmas present, and suddenly everything gets complicated. Can the three of them work something out with no one having a broken heart in their Christmas stocking?

Readers looking for a spicy and lightly kinky friends-to-lovers style Christmassy read should absolutely enjoy this read. While Jeff and Cole have recently begun a relationship, Cole and Sarah have been good friends for years. I thought this would be an interesting dynamic to the usual menage scenario – one where all the characters know each other quite well already but the relationship itself changed significantly through the story. This certainly made the quick road to intimacy easier to accept and understand so I think most readers should find the storyline believable and realistic.

There was quite a bit of antagonistic history between Jeff and Sarah. While this created a good amount of conflict and tension in the story I was pleased that the author handled the difficult conversation between these two fairly early into the story. Getting their history, the circumstances leading to the situation and both their feelings aired and discussed really paved the way not just for all the sexy shenanigans to be enjoyed, but also for some truth and trust to have room to flourish between them. While not exactly realistic – when do conversations like this ever really go smoothly this fast and this easily? – I could absolutely appreciate the author getting this worked out and smoothed over early so I could sit back and enjoy the relationship develop between the three main characters.

Readers who enjoy their erotica with a bit of BDSM and plenty of spice and strong characters should absolutely enjoy this story. I thought there was a solid balance between the emotional plot, the strong connections between the threesome and the spice levels which made this a lovely read for me.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

The New World by Shirley Bigelow Dekelver

January 14, 2026 By Leave a Comment


The New World by Shirley Bigelow Dekelver
Climate of Fire, Book Three
Publisher: BWL Publishing Inc.
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Romance
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

It is 2047, two years since Vancouver was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami. Taylor West, Carlie Fleming, and Mai-Li Wong, and two children, Eddie Coleman, and Debbie Ross, fear retaliation from Willie Arbuckle who they banned from their group for stealing food and threatening Carlie. They leave their winter sanctuary and continue their journey to the Interior and arrive at Blackfoot and are welcomed by the Chinese and the Similkameen Band.

Chief Pete Johnson and Mai-Li, now ruler of the Chinese, tell Carlie she must exonerate Willie, as there’s no room in Blackfoot for resentment and malevolence. Taylor tells Carlie he loves her, but before they can be together, she must confront Willie. Without informing her, he leaves with Pete on an expedition. Unable to forgive Willie, Carlie is banned from Blackfoot. She returns to the cabin and Lance, Pete’s grandson, goes with her. He talks about the culture and traditions of the Similkameen people and confesses he has feelings for her.

Taylor and Pete arrive at the cabin; Lance must return to Blackfoot to undertake leadership of the Band. Carlie refuses to return and is left on her own. She discovers an interest in wildfires and while exploring one day, is captured by Lars, a violent man from Taylor’s past who has a grudge against him. She escapes and is injured when she falls from an embankment. Will help arrive in time, will she find the strength to absolve Willie, and find peace and contentment with the man she loves?

Letting go of the old ways is the only way to survive.

The foreshadowing was handled nicely. While Carlie continued to make some decisions that she really should have thought twice about given everything that had already happened to her, I liked the way Ms. Bigelow Dekelver used those lapses in judgement to push the storyline forward. Everyone makes mistakes, after all, and there is something to be said for seeing what happens when someone had advanced warning that certain choices aren’t the best ones but insists on taking that route anyway.

Just as I mentioned in my review of the second instalment, Treachery, I once again found myself wishing that the romantic subplot had either been given more space to grow or left out of the tale entirely. I was happy to see a little more attention paid to it this time around, but it still didn’t have enough development for this reader’s tastes. This was especially true due to how many other conflicts Carlie was juggling simultaneously. She had such limited free time even before romance came into play. Of course I wanted her to find true love and live happily ever after, but at this point in her life she didn’t seem to have much energy to devote to a longterm relationship.

One of the things I’ve consistently appreciated about this series is how much effort it puts into describing what life would be like if society as we knew it disappeared. That is to say, Carlie and every other survivor had to adapt to a world where there were no stores left to buy essential things like medicine, food, or clothing. The social safety net that still existed in this universe relied upon small groups of people taking care of each other and sharing what little they had which meant that something as ordinary as falling off of a horse could have much more serious consequences than it would in the before times when doctors and hospitals still existed.

This is the third book in the Climate of Fire series that should be read in chronological order for plot and character development reasons.

The New World made me hope that we’ll someday have a fourth instalment!

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , ,
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