Peaches in the Rain by Aurelia L Imeri

June 16, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Peaches in the Rain by Aurelia L Imeri
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Romance, Poetry, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

What if the person you ruined is the only person who ever felt like home?

Dear reader, Orion did what people do when regret becomes too loud to ignore.

He went looking for the ghost he had spent a decade pretending not to love.

At Glasgow Airport, shaken by seven impossible weeks and a heart he can no longer control, Orion boards a flight back to London. Beside him sits Ava: anxious, wounded, funny, and far too perceptive for a stranger. As the plane claws through turbulence, their conversation becomes a confession.

There is L.

The woman he loved before he knew how to keep love safe. The woman he hurt. The woman whose voice still lives in the quiet rooms of his mind. The woman who may not be a fantasy after all.

Through airport fog, borrowed cars, rain-slicked A-roads and the brutal intimacy of things left unsaid, Peaches in the Rain asks whether love can return after the damage is done.

Is it delusion to still feel someone after ten years?

Or is it only delusion if they do not feel it too?

Raw, lyrical and painfully intimate, Peaches in the Rain is a novel about longing, guilt, second chances, and the dangerous hope that some love does not die.

It waits.

Regret is a heavy load to carry.

Orion and L both struggled to form and maintain emotionally healthy relationships. This isn’t something I typically find in romance novels, so I was eager to find out if one or both of them would develop the emotional and communication tools necessary to change this by either seeking professional help or finding the right workbook to help them figure out why they reacted the way that they did.

It would have been helpful to have more information about why these two characters should try to be romantically involved with each other for a second time. The stories Orion shared about the way he treated L disturbed me, and when I finished those scenes I hoped they’d both do quite a bit more healing before deciding whether to get back together. This is something I’m saying as a reader who virtually always roots for the main characters to live happily ever after, but in this particular case I didn’t have enough evidence that these two were good for each other at this precise moment in their lives.

I applaud the author for not wrapping up all of the loose ends of this romance the way such a thing would generally be written for this genre. There’s something to be said for playing around with the audience’s expectations of what should happen next and allowing the characters to develop naturally instead, even if it was in a direction that wasn’t particularly common. This was my first experience reading their work, and it has piqued my curiosity about what else they have already published or will publish in the near future.

Peaches in the Rain was a creative take on a difficult relationship.

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

Silver Spider by Lena Austin

June 15, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Silver Spider by Lena Austin
Publisher: Changeling Press
Genre: Dark Romance, LGBTQ, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller, Paranormal, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

The secretive Duke of Aberystwyth has invited Madge Majesty to a murder mystery party, but he’s the first victim!

Madge is a harpy, mystery writer, and amateur sleuth with a nose for murder. At her side is her faithful chauffeur, Hayden, who is a telekinetic ex-thief — and a confirmed bachelor.

Now it’s up to Madge to solve the whodunit. Her suspects are a motley assortment of inverts and very nervous heterosexuals, all of whom have more than just their sexual foibles to hide. Is it the cross-dressing vampire, the packless werewolf, the voyeuristic doctor, the gargoyle majordomo, or the promiscuous man who seems bent on getting everyone into his bed, including Hayden?

Some parties can never be forgotten.

This was a good example of how to include a wide variety of characters in a storyline that probably would not have otherwise crossed paths with each other. It was interesting to see how they all interacted, especially the characters who weren’t human and who therefore weren’t necessarily bound to the social norms of this era, much less the typical behavior of human beings in general. While I can’t go into detail about this without sharing spoilers, I was pleasantly surprised by how this played out and how it affected what certain characters wished to do.

I would have liked to see more character development in this piece, though. Sometimes I had trouble keeping track of who everyone was because of how little time was spent describing what they were like. Given how many characters were interacting with each other in the various scenes, this was something that kept me from fully immersing myself in the plot.

With that being said, I thought Ms. Austin did an excellent job of combining the erotic and mystery genres. They both kept the storyline chugging along smoothly and fed into each other in all sorts of creative ways. When combined with what appeared to be a 1910s or maybe an early 1920s setting, there were some fun plot twists involving hijinks both in and outside of the bedroom in a time when people tended to be more reticent about certain things…at least in public.

Silver Spider – A Paranormal Murder Mystery Romance was a wild ride.

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

Freedom Quest – A Love Story by Debora Masterson

June 12, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Freedom Quest – A Love Story by Debora Masterson
Publisher: Atmosphere Press
Genre: Romance, Historical, Contemporary
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

FREEDOM QUEST: A Love Story follows Michael Griffin, a gifted musician whose journey through the Southern California music scene of the 1960s-80s becomes a cautionary tale about artistic integrity, the pursuit of stardom, and the cost of chasing dreams. From backing up strippers in North Beach, San Francisco, to nearly landing a Capitol Records deal, from fronting his band Freedom Quest to losing the love of his life, Grace, Michael’s story captures the raw reality of what it means to live and breathe music.

Their story begins in 1965, when an instant spark ignites between them in a San Fernando Valley music shop. As Michael chases his musical destiny amid the counterculture revolution, Grace becomes his anchor, his muse—and the love he can’t live without. But the struggle between artistic integrity and commercial success, betrayal, and the chaos of the times tear them apart, sending each down separate and often harrowing paths of self-discovery.

FREEDOM QUEST is a sweeping and emotional odyssey. A love story that survives separation, success, failure, and illness and reveals the redemptive power of music. At its heart lies a timeless truth that true love does exist.

True love is eternal.

I adored Ms. Masterson’s creative approach to the second chance romance trope. Micheal and Grace were young lovers who never quite got over each other even after life pulled them in wildly different directions. It was engrossing to see where they both ended up and how their paths continued to cross years after their first relationship disintegrated. The conflicts that kept them apart were realistic and understandable, but I also liked how nostalgic these characters were about those years and how much they wished that things had turned out better.

There were times when I wished for more character development in this book. Michael’s life was filled with romance, adventure, and, in some phases, deep trauma, and I kept hoping he’d go into more detail about how they influenced him not only in those particular moments but also decades later as he began reflecting on what he had and hadn’t accomplished. While I still wish his innermost thoughts had been given more time to shine, the author’s note after the final chapter softened my opinion on this. I highly recommend taking a moment to look back at some of those scenes with a fresh perspective after reading it as it does put certain plot twists in a new light!

The ending was what made this tale so memorable in my opinion. Kudos to the author for being willing to take risks with this genre that stayed true to both her characters as well as to the decades-long journeys they’d just undertaken. This sort of writing that stretches the boundaries of what love could look like and how it can transform a character’s life no matter how many plot twists have already appeared is why I continue to include romance in the types of books I read.

I didn’t want Freedom Quest – A Love Story to end. It was beautiful.

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

Space Station Halcyon – “Now Under New Management!” by Matthew C. Lucas

June 10, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Space Station Halcyon – “Now Under New Management!” by Matthew C. Lucas
Publisher: Sky Dog House
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Action/Adventure
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Welcome to Space Station Halcyon!
(Management is not responsible for anything that happens to you)

Joey Mumbai’s down on his luck and over his head. To pay off his gambling debts, he’s forced to run an old space station at the end of the galaxy as a “legitimate business” for the mob. All Joey has to do is make money—and not attract any attention. But Space Station Halcyon is like a floating death trap, with a rage-filled manatee, a psychotically cheerful computer, and a sports bar that may or may not be possessed.

When a government code inspector and her enforcerbot drop by the station, Joey must bluff, bribe, and connive his way through interstellar bureaucracy, laser gun fights, and the worst beer in the galaxy. Can Joey turn his derelict station and degenerate crew into something resembling legality? Or is the whole place going to explode in a cloud of code violations? Or maybe both?

Sometimes bureaucracy is the best place to begin.

I adored Mr. Lucas’ tongue-in-cheek sense of humor, especially when it came to the ridiculous aspects of a workplace whose rules sometimes didn’t make any sense at all. Joey would have had nothing to do with Space Station Halcyon if he could have helped it, so the fact that he was stuck dealing with a neglected space station filled with a motley crew of loyal workers, human and otherwise, made all of the hoops he needed to jump through even funnier.

There were hints that this may be the beginning of a new series. While I don’t know for certain if or when the second book may be en route, I enjoyed the way the characters were introduced, especially when it came the first few employees that Joey met when he arrived at his space station. The descriptions of them were vivid, engaging, and often hilarious, but also left plenty of opportunities for further development. This isn’t always an easy balance to strike, so I must tip my cap to the author for making me care about Sherrod, Auntie, Daryl, and Natalie so much already as I learned what roles they played onboard and why each of them was vital to the future of the station as a whole. At no point was this more true than when things began going terribly wrong and they had to band together to try to figure out a solution.

The logic of this tale reminded me of Douglas Adam’s work. It had a dreamlike quality that made it impossible for me to stop reading, but it also made sense within the context of Joey’s zany adventures as a character who, to be honest, had not always made the most honorable choices in the past and who had a lot of growing up to do even thought he was technically already an adult. I loved seeing how he responded to things that generally wouldn’t be expected to occur and how he maybe even started to mature a little as a result of him stepping up to improve how this station was run.

Space Station Halcyon – “Now Under New Management!” was thrilling.

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

The Wine Cellar by Chris Hart

June 4, 2026 By Leave a Comment


The Wine Cellar by Chris Hart
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

She inherited a house she had never seen. She did not know what waited under it.

When Dr. Rosaria “Rosie” Conti loses the grandmother she barely knew, she also inherits a stone masseria in the hills outside Ragusa – a property no one in her family knew existed, kept in silence for more than eighty years. Burned out from emergency medicine and grieving more than she can name, Rosie travels to Sicily to settle the estate and walk away.

Then she finds the wine cellar beneath the kitchen floor. And the bottle dated 1943. And the man waiting on the other side of one impossible swallow.

Salvatore “Turi” Valenti is an OSS operative working with Sicilian partisans behind German lines during Operation Husky – an Italian-American from Brooklyn living between three names and one war he may not survive. The cellar that brings Rosie to him will only open ten times. After that, the door closes for good.

As Rosie crosses again and again into a country at war, she discovers that her grandmother’s silence held more than grief – and that the choice waiting for her at the bottom of the bottle is not whether to love a man eighty-three years out of reach, but what she is willing to leave behind to stay.

Some love stories are not bound by time.

Love is everywhere.

This was a great example of how to include complex world building into a tale that was fast-paced and didn’t have space for lengthy descriptions. The author made every sentence count, and within a few pages I could imagine Sicily in exquisite detail that included all five senses during both the World War II era as well as today.

There were times when I wished for more information about the budding romance between Rosie and Turi. Life in the 1940s was quite different than it is today, especially for a woman. It surprised me a little that the main character didn’t think about how rare it was for women to become doctors eighty years ago and how her life might change for the worse if she decided to remain in the past. Developing the romance even further would have given the protagonist a solid reason to make this decision, and I would have gone for a full five-star rating if this had occurred due to how well written the rest of it was.

The descriptions of how Rosie treated common injuries and illnesses in a world that didn’t yet have widespread access to antibiotics or other modern medical advancements were among my favorite scenes. This would have been tricky enough during peace time, but during a war it was even more daunting due to how limited certain supplies could be and how dangerous it was to travel some nights. I also enjoyed seeing how these scenes explored Rosie’s calm personality and the relationships she built with people who trusted her to help them during some of the worst moments of their lives.

I didn’t want The Wine Cellar to end. What a heartwarming read!

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

Imago Nine – The Popstar Apocalypse by A.D. Shaddox

June 3, 2026 By 2 Comments


Imago Nine – The Popstar Apocalypse by A.D. Shaddox
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Young Adult (14 – 18 y.o.), Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Action/Adventure, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Amaya Reed never asked to become an Active.

One day, she’s a normal high school junior. The next, she’s cycling through eight unpredictable powers—mind-reading, gravity control, phasing, speed—each one replacing the last, each one harder to control than the one before.

There’s just one problem: once she uses a power, she can’t use it again until she’s burned through all eight.

When a disastrous rescue attempt goes viral, Amaya is branded a danger instead of a hero. But before she can even figure out how to live with her abilities, the mysterious Agency comes calling with an offer she can’t ignore:

Go undercover on the biggest show in America—The Next American Popstar—and stop a killer who plans to strike during the live finale.

Now, Amaya has to survive high school, master a volatile cycle of powers, and compete on a national stage where one mistake could cost her everything.

Because this time, failure won’t just go viral.

It’ll be deadly.

Being a teenager is complicated enough even before magical abilities start developing.

The descriptions of Amaya’s eight powers and how she learned to use them were detailed and memorable. I liked the fact that each ability was not only associated with a color but also had a special name. Once the characters explained them all, it was easy for me as a reader to know what to expect next based on what she’d done recently and which power was next on her rotating list. I should note that it did take a little while for this to be fully explored, but I didn’t mind the wait and thought it felt very natural to learn the last few bits of information when I did. Sometimes life does get in the way of lengthy conversations about important matters, after all!

It would have been helpful to have stronger character development, especially for Amaya. As much as I enjoyed learning about the incredible things she could do, I found myself wishing that I knew more about her personality and the interests she had that were unrelated to her role as an Active. Her relationship with her younger brother, for example, could have been explored more deeply in order to round out her character and give the audience a glimpse of what she was like when she was doing typical teenage things.

Many of the young adult books I read tend to shy away from including social media or reality television in their storylines, so I found it refreshing to see how the characters used and were affected by both the Internet and this style of programming. There are some key differences between teens who grew up in previous generations where these things either didn’t exist at all or were much more niche and people in that age group today who know that anything they say or do could be immediately shared and dissected online.

I was intrigued by Imago Nine – The Popstar Apocalypse.

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

Two Lives With You by Lauren Ho

June 2, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Two Lives With You by Lauren Ho
Publisher: Mindy’s Book Studio
Genre: Romance, Paranormal, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

What if they never married? For an overwhelmed husband and wife, that what-if wish comes true in an emotional and bittersweet novel about choices, sacrifice, and the love that they might lose forever.

When Dana and Nigel got married, they had such promise. After sixteen years, the cracks are showing.

Dana is a burned-out ER nurse, and Nigel is a recently unemployed stay-at-home dad whose professional identity is disappearing. Questioning the directions their lives have taken, Dana and Nigel are each granted a wish from a mysterious stranger. For one week they can escape the pressure of their lives in favor of ones in which they never married.

Waking up in an alternate reality where their youthful, individual dreams have come true is, at first, a marvel. When they meet by chance in Bali, Dana recognizes Nigel instantly, but he feels only an inexplicable connection to this stranger. And they discover there’s a catch to their wishes.

Returning to normal—and to the long-haul love they vowed would be forever—won’t be as easy as they thought. As the clock ticks down, Dana and Nigel face an impossible choice that will test the very foundation of their relationship and alter their lives forever.

Perfection is a myth.

Romantic relationships evolve over time, especially when a couple decides to have kids, encounters health problems, or struggles to find work among many other potential stressors in life. There simply aren’t enough romance novels about characters in these busy and sometimes difficult stages of life for my tastes, so I was thrilled to read something about a relationship that has weathered multiple storms and no longer feels quite the same as it used to. While I don’t want to give away any spoilers, I can say that this realistic approach to romance for people who are no longer college aged was refreshing and I loved seeing how Nigel and Dana explored their past together as they contemplated their possible futures as well.

I would have preferred to see more attention paid to character development. While I could easily describe Dana and Nigel’s professions and what they thought of their work on their best days as well as their worst ones, explaining what their personalities were like or how they grew and changed as a result of their magical experiences would be trickier. There were moments that briefly focused on this topics, but not to the extent I’d hope to find in a full-length novel. As much as I enjoyed the storyline itself, I needed a deeper understanding of who these two characters were as individuals in order to select a higher rating.

With that being said, I loved the fantasy and paranormal subplots of this tale. They were well developed and blended beautifully into the main romantic storyline due to how reliant the two protagonists were on figuring out the spell that bound them in order to repair their marriage and hopefully return to their original reality. This was a great example of how to blend these genres together in ways that honor all of them equally.

Two Lives with You was romantic and heartwarming.

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

Love Across Time by Beth Ford

June 1, 2026 By 2 Comments


Love Across Time by Beth Ford
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Romance, Paranormal, Historical
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Ashley and Thomas, a medieval knight, are in 1377 England, escaping from present-day immigration authorities intent on capturing Thomas. Having fled to the past to ensure their togetherness, Ashley is faced with adapting to fourteenth-century life, while Thomas, new to his title as Baron after his older brother’s death, is called to Parliament, encountering enemies there and at court as he struggles to build his own alliances.

Ashley’s work at a monastic hospital is deemed “miraculous” but draws unwanted attention as potential witchcraft. Meanwhile, becoming embroiled in a political movement, she realizes too late it’s a plot against the King.

How can Ashley conform to social expectations, counter the plot, and still keep her relationship with Thomas, in all the turmoil?

Even true love has its limits.

I adored the way this novel explored what romance can be like after a couple has settled into life together and things are no longer quite as fresh and exciting. That is a stage of life that can be tricky at times, but it can also encourage two people to eventually fall even more deeply for each other as they practice solving conflicts and putting each other first even when they disagree about something important. As someone who had not read the first book in this series yet, I quickly began rooting for these two to resolve their differences and figure out how to blend their cultures and personalities together. They seemed so well-suited for each other despite the rough spots.

There were a few times when I struggled with the pacing, especially as it pertained to the stretches of time that Ashley and Thomas spent at Lydiard, his estate. She still had so much to learn about life in England in 1377 that I sometimes found myself wishing she‘d use these quieter moments to ask him more questions about everything from how currency worked in that era to what the social etiquette back then was for people of their station. This would have given Ashley a deeper understanding of just how different life was back then as well as keep my interest levels high enough to justify the five-star reading I wanted to give this piece.

The ending was well done and satisfactory. It made me feel as though the characters were wrapping things up while in good places in their lives while still leaving room for future adventures if the author ever decides to write them. I also appreciated how they approached the logical next steps in their lives after their biggest conflicts had been resolved. That final scene fit both the characters and their setting nicely which was especially remarkable given the many personal and cultural differences between Thomas and Ashley.

This is part of a series, but it can also be read as a standalone work.

Love Across Time was sweet and romantic.

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

Devourer by R.M. Sayan

May 29, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Devourer by R.M. Sayan
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Historical
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Somewhere off the coast of Peru, 1879.
Half a world away from home, Bo is rescued from a shipwreck by the crew of the Ayar, a ship manned by runaways and deserters with a mute captain and an enigmatic first mate. But mutiny festers in the bilge, and between luck spells and sea dragons, surviving on the high seas becomes a matter of ‘kill or be killed’ — eat or be eaten.
What is a captain to a god?
What is a god to a cook?

Anything can happen on the open sea.

I enjoyed the way the horror storyline was gradually introduced. This started out as a fairly typical shipwreck and rescue tale with only a few vague hints of what was to come. The further I read, though, the more Bo understood that something odd was happening on the ship that rescued him. His slow realization of the truth was nearly as interesting as the principled stand he took against doing something that all of the other sailors thought was perfectly acceptable.

Speaking of taking a stand, I liked how understated Bo’s moral dilemma was. The author trusted their audience to understand why Bo felt so uneasy and, later on, what was at stake if he disobeyed his conscious. By focusing on the horror and speculative fiction elements of the tale, the author left plenty of room for readers to come up with their own interpretations of what was happening and why Bo’s choices mattered so much.

The ending was what ultimately convinced me to select a five-star rating for this piece. It was well written, and I especially adored how all of the hints from earlier scenes, particularly the ones that were so subtle it was easy to overlook them entirely, coalesced together into something filled with eldritch themes. Readers who have spent any time travelling on water, especially in cramped quarters or under even mildly unpleasant conditions, may find a few interesting tidbits here about the quiet but chilling feeling of feeling trapped on a ship with days to go until one touches land again.

Devourer made me yearn for a sequel.

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

Protecting Home by Kyle Shoop

May 28, 2026 By Leave a Comment


Protecting Home by Kyle Shoop
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Historical, Contemporary
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

You can’t outrun home.

A game-winning hit.
A mysterious inheritance.
One journey that changes everything.

After the sudden death of his father, major-league all-star Buck Boone is forced to return to the hometown he left behind years ago. But instead of a traditional inheritance, Buck is surprised to find his father left him a final challenge: in five days—the length of a little league baseball game—he must revisit four meaningful places from his past.

Four bases.
One final trip around the diamond.
Only then can he claim what his father left behind.

Each stop uncovers a memory his father could never forget—a defining moment in their relationship, and a moment Buck believed he had outrun long ago. As the journey unfolds, the line between past and present begins to blur, revealing the love, heartbreak, and quiet sacrifices that shaped his life.

Told through an emotionally rich dual timeline, Buck’s return home forces him to confront formidable moments, old friends, a fractured relationship with his family, and the lesson his father lived by: always protect home.

Heartfelt and unforgettable, Protecting Home is a powerful novel about baseball, fathers and sons, forgiveness, and the courage it takes to come home—reminding us that the greatest victories aren’t always won on the field, but in the lives we choose to protect.

Forgiveness is for everyone.

Memories can be tricky things sometimes, so I was glad to see the dual timelines included in this book. Buck’s understanding of the world as a child and teenager were obviously not the same as how he viewed the same events many years later. It was helpful for me as a reader to see how his perspectives evolved as he began to understand his family better and branched out into the world as a professional athlete.

It would have been helpful to have stronger plot and character development. Other than his love of baseball and his close relationship with his father, I’d have trouble describing what Buck was like as a person. For example, no other hobbies or interests of his were included and I’m not sure what it would be like to meet him in person. Was he gentle, loud, thoughtful, or impulsive? I was never certain, but the same could be said of the vague descriptions of his small hometown. Was this set now or sixty years ago? Good arguments could be made for many different decades, and knowing roughly when it occurred would have helped to clear up some of my questions about why the character who was struggling with serious mental health problems didn’t seem to have any medical assistance with them.

With that being said, the descriptions of what it’s like to have a relative who is struggling with their mental health were interesting. Whether it was happening decades ago or in current times, getting help for a family in crisis can be difficult and sometimes provoke feelings of shame and guilt in both the person who is suffering as well as in their loved ones. This isn’t something that can always be easily resolved, and I liked the way the author acknowledged that aspect of the subplot along the way.

Protecting Home was a thought-provoking look at fraying family ties, mending fences, and, of course, the joy of baseball.

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